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The Effects Of Anthropogenic Stressors On Above- And Belowground Phytochemical Diversity Of The Wetland Grass, Phragmites Australis, Andrea E. Glassmire, Ana L. Salgado, Rodrigo Diaz, Joseph Johnston, Laura A. Meyerson, Joshua S. Snook, James T. Cronin

Faculty Publications

Coastal wetlands face threats from climate change-induced flooding and biological invasions. Plants respond to these stressors through changes in their phytochemical metabolome, but it is unclear whether stressors affecting one tissue compartment (e.g., leaves) create vulnerabilities in others (e.g., roots) or elicit similar responses across tissues. Additionally, responses to multiple simultaneous stressors remain poorly understood due to the focus on individual metabolites in past studies. This study aims to elucidate how the phytochemical metabolome of three Phragmites australis (Cav.) lineages, common in the Mississippi River Delta, responds to flooding and infestation by the non-native scale insect Nipponaclerda biwakoensis (Kuwana). Among …

Australians Support Multi-Pronged Action To Build Ecosystem Resilience In The Great Barrier Reef, Stewart Lockie, Henry Bartelet, Brent Ritchie, Csilla Demeter, Bruce Taylor, Lintje Sie

Quantitative Methods and Information Technology Faculty Publications

The scale and pace of global environmental change calls for a dramatic upscaling of ecosystem restoration and for actions that build the resilience of ecosystems to future environmental change. This research aimed to quantify public perceptions of threats to the health of the Great Barrier Reef (GBR), Australia, and their support for strategies to address those threats including large-scale restoration and resilience-building actions. We examine how these perceptions change over time and across social cohorts including people living closer to the Reef (n = 2621) and the general Australian population (n = 5825). Respondents were concerned about both …

In Hot Water: Uncertainties In Projecting Marine Heatwaves Impacts On Seagrass Meadows, Paula S. Hatum, Kathryn Mcmahon, Kerrie Mengersen, Jennifer K. Mcwhorter, Paul P.Y. Wu

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Seagrass ecosystems, vital as primary producer habitats for maintaining high biodiversity and delivering numerous ecosystem services, face increasing threats from climate change, particularly marine heatwaves. This study introduces a pioneering methodology that integrates Dynamic Bayesian Networks of ecosystem resilience with climate projections, aiming to enhance our understanding of seagrass responses to extreme climate events. We developed cutting-edge metrics for measuring shoot density and biomass in terms of population and site extinction, presented as annual ratios relative to their respective baselines. These metrics include associated uncertainties and projected recovery times. This innovative approach was applied in a case study focusing on …

Trade-Offs In A Reef-Building Coral After Six Years Of Thermal Acclimation, Anna Roik, Marlene Wall, Melina Dobelmann, Samuel Nietzer, Anna Fiesinger, Miriam Reverter, David Brefeld, Peter J Schupp, Matthew Jackson, Marie Rutsch, Julia Strahl

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

There is growing evidence that reef-building corals can acclimate to novel and challenging thermal conditions. However, potential trade-offs that accompany acclimation remain largely unexplored. We investigated physiological trade-offs in colonies of a globally abundant coral species (Pocillopora acuta) that were acclimated ex situ to an elevated temperature of 31 °C (i.e., 1 °C above their bleaching threshold) for six years. By comparing them to conspecifics maintained at a cooler temperature, we found that the energy storage of corals was prioritized over skeletal growth at the elevated temperature. This was associated with the formation of higher density skeletons, lower calcification rates …

Changes In Morphology, Phenology, Demography Of Several Avian Species Over 18 Years At A Restored Grassland, Ashley Mcmahon, Katie Stumpf, Charlie Muise

Biology Theses

In response to a changing climate and habitat loss, avian species are displaying changes in body size, migration phenology, and demography. Species have often adhered to Allen’s and Bergmann’s rules, displaying increased wing length and decreased body mass, respectively, over time in response to higher temperatures. Additionally, climate change has resulted in earlier spring migration and depending on species, either earlier or later fall migration. Finally, species affected by habitat loss often display male-skewed sex ratios and juvenile skewed age ratios. Our goal was to determine how 1) body size, 2) migration phenology, and 3) demography have changed for grassland …

Climate Change And The Logan River: Past, Present, And Future, Mercy Smith, Kendall Becker, Scott Hotaling

All Current Publications

The Logan River runs through Idaho and northern Utah, beginning in the Bear River Mountains and flowing through Logan Canyon to Cutler Reservoir. The river is socially and ecologically significant to the Cache Valley community. Throughout its history, the Logan River’s water and energy have sustained life within the valley. However, climate change is threatening the Logan River’s support of both human and animal communities. Rising water temperatures and reduced flow caused by declining snowpack may impair the river’s ability to maintain healthy ecosystems.

Coastal Wetlands In The Anthropocene, John Day, Edward Anthony, Robert Costanza, Douglas Edmonds, Joel Gunn, Charles Hopkinson, Michael E. Mann, James Morris, Michael Osland, Tracy Quirk, Andre Rovai, John Rybczyk, Thomas Spencer, Jessica Stephens, Jaia Syvitski, Robert Twilley, Jenneke Visser, John R. White

Faculty Publications

We review the functioning and sustainability of coastal marshes and mangroves. Urbanized humans have a 7,000-year-old enduring relationship to coastal wetlands. Wetlands include marshes, salt flats, and saline and freshwater forests. Coastal wetlands occur in all climate zones but are most abundant in deltas. Mangroves are tropical, whereas marshes occur from tropical to boreal areas. Quantification of coastal wetland areas has advanced in recent years but is still insufficiently accurate. Climate change and sea-level rise are predicted to lead to significant wetland losses and other impacts on coastal wetlands and the humans associated with them. Landward migration and coastal retreat …

Because He Lives: Exploring The Resurrection Of Jesus As The Root Belief In Theologically Conservative Christians' Resistance To Climate Policy, Roger E. Prather

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this dissertation is to contribute to the ongoing and constantly evolving investigation into Christian attitudes about environmental issues generally and skepticism about climate change and climate policy specifically. This purpose is achieved primarily in two ways. First, it seeks to distinguish and disambiguate between skepticism about climate change among theologically conservative American Christians and skepticism about climate change policy. The study contributes to the academic literature by synthesizing two bodies of literature: that dealing with American Christians’ beliefs and climate change and that dealing with the nature of climate skepticism. Using the insights of Niklas Luhmann’s Social …

Ex Vivo And In Vitro Methods As A Platform For Studying Anthropogenic Effects On Marine Mammals: Four Challenges And How To Meet Them, Juan M. Vazquez, Jane I. Khudyakov, Carla B. Madelaire, Céline A. Godard-Codding, Heli Routti, Emily K. Lam, Elizabeth R. Piotrowski, Greg B. Merrill, Jillian H. Wisse, Kaitlin N. Allen, Justin Conner, Pierre Blévin, Demetri D. Spyropoulos, Anders Goksøyr, José P. Vázquez-Medina

Pacific Faculty Work

Marine mammals are integral to global biodiversity and marine health through their roles in coastal, benthic, and pelagic ecosystems. Marine mammals face escalating threats from climate change, pollution, and human activities, which perturb their oceanic environment. The diverse biology and extreme adaptations evolved by marine mammals make them important study subjects for understanding anthropogenic pressures on marine ecosystems. However, ethical and logistical constraints restrict the tractability of experimental research with live marine mammals. Additionally, studies on the effects of changing ocean environments are further complicated by intricate gene-environment interactions across populations and species. These obstacles can be overcome with a …

Temperature Affects Nest Box Selection, Nest Success, And Nestling Size In A Southeastern Population Of Eastern Bluebirds, Katie Stumpf

Georgia Journal of Science

Given the critical role of temperature in avian reproduction, rising global temperatures will likely impact reproductive success of many bird populations. We examined the effect of nest box temperature, nest box color, entrance orientation, distance to forest cover, and distance to water on net box selection, nest success, and nestling size in eastern bluebirds (Sialia sialis) in central Georgia. White painted nest boxes had significantly cooler temperatures than control nest boxes (P < 0.05). However, model selection revealed that eastern bluebird females selected control boxes, despite their overall warmer temperatures. Nest success was associated with year, likely because of high nest predation during the warmer 2022 breeding season (P < 0.05). Nest success was also associated with cooler nest boxes, possibly because incubating females spend more time incubating which can reduce predation risks. Larger nestlings fledged from painted nest boxes, nest boxes with cooler temperatures, and nests from 2021, which we attribute to decreased thermoregulatory demands enabling faster nestling growth in cooler boxes and years. These seemingly opposing results suggest there may be an optimal temperature range where nest box temperature maximizes reproductive fitness while minimizing energetic demands on incubating adults. Determining this temperature range can help target management efforts to ensure specific goals are met.

Wrack Lines Volume 24, No. 2, Fall-Winter 2024-2025, Farwa Mohsin, Seth Kinter, Elena Smith, Eden Torres, Dominic Moore, Isaiah Sosa

Wrack Lines

Six recipients of the Wrack Lines Voice of Diverse Youth Scholarship share personal essays about their relationship to nature and climate change.

Legal Considerations For Atmospheric Methane Removal, Korey Silverman-Roati, Romany M. Webb

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

Scientists are beginning to investigate atmospheric methane removal approaches, which would accelerate the conversion of methane to a less radiatively potent form or physically remove methane from the atmosphere and store it elsewhere. Developing and, if appropriate, deploying atmospheric methane removal approaches will require an understanding of relevant legal considerations and governing structures that could impact whether, when, where, and how specific projects take place. This paper examines the treatment of atmospheric methane removal approaches under international and U.S. domestic law. The paper focuses on five atmospheric methane removal approaches that are currently being investigated: (1) atmospheric oxidation enhancement, (2) …

Long-Term Effects Of Climate Change On Juvenile Bull Shark Migratory Patterns, Philip Matich, Jeffrey D. Plumlee, Walter Bubley, Tobey H. Curtis, J. Marcus Drymon, Lindsay L. Mullins, Oliver N. Shipley, Thomas C. Tinhan, Mark R. Fisher

Faculty Publications

Seasonal variability in environmental conditions is a strong determinant of animal migrations, but warming temperatures associated with climate change are anticipated to alter this phenomenon with unknown consequences. We used a 40-year fishery-independent survey to assess how a changing climate has altered the migration timing, duration and first-year survival of juvenile bull sharks (Carcharhinus leucas). From 1982 to 2021, estuaries in the western Gulf of Mexico (Texas) experienced a mean increase of 1.55°C in autumn water temperatures, and delays in autumn cold fronts by ca. 0.5 days per year. Bull shark migrations in more northern estuaries concomitantly changed, with departures …

Modeling Threatened California Red Legged Frog (Rana Draytonii) Habitat With Maxent Using Environmental Dna Presence Via Quantitative Pcr, Charley Abernathy

AES Theses

As a sensitive and federally threatened species, the California Red Legged Frog (Rana draytonii) is known as a bioindicator because it most often occurs in complex healthy ecosystems capable of sustaining a diverse web of species. As humans affect natural habitats and climate change alters the environment, locating and monitoring sensitive species and their habitats is vital to supporting biodiversity and ecosystem health. Once ranging from Northern Mexico to the northern reaches of the California coast and Sierra Mountains, habitat of R. draytonii has been reduced to primarily the central coast of California. Environmental DNA ( eDNA) can be invaluable …

A Call To Strengthen International Collaboration To Assess Climate Change Effects In Polar Regions, Clare B. Gaffey, Narissa Bax, Naomi Krauzig, Kévin Tougeron

Student Publications [Scholarly]

Climate change is exerting complex and transformative effects in the Arctic and Antarctic; regions that are essential to global climate, biodiversity, and sustainable futures. Given the polar regions’ roles in Earth’s system, a robust, coordinated, and innovative strategy to monitor and manage climate change effects is needed. Insufficient baseline data, inconsistent international collaboration, and short-term financing are obstacles to effectively monitor these changes. This hinders our understanding of biodiversity shifts, their implications for food security, and climate change mitigation. Confronting the impacts of climate change will require interdisciplinary collaboration and genuine participation of nations, including Indigenous communities. This sentiment includes …

Regulating Shipping Of Carbon Dioxide For Sequestration, Carolina Arlota, Michael B. Gerrard

Faculty Scholarship

A number of facilities intended for permanent sequestration of carbon dioxide are being developed in the United States. Several will be located on or near the coast of the Gulf of Mexico, making them easily accessible to ships. Meanwhile, in Europe there is substantial interest in capturing carbon dioxide from industrial operations, but currently inadequate sequestration facilities, and growing interest in shipping carbon dioxide for sequestration in the United States. This Article reviews the main U.S. federal laws applicable to transportation and geologic storage of carbon dioxide, including laws enacted to implement relevant international treaties. The Article also contextualizes its …

Living In The Shadows: Exploring The Link Between Colonialism, Climate Change, And Women’S Vulnerability, Akash Bag, Anwesha Ghosh

Journal of International Women's Studies

The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released its sixth climate change report in early 2022. For the first time in thirty years, this report acknowledged colonial domination and global exploitation as drivers of the climate issue and contributors to the vulnerability of communities and groups. Colonialism, climate change, and women’s vulnerability are rarely discussed in the available literature. A scoping review was done to determine how colonialism makes women more vulnerable to climate change and related disasters. The study examined when and how colonialism increases women’s vulnerability in the Global North and South. Through the study, it was …

Projected Near-Future Flooding And Warming Increase Graminoid Biomass In A High-Latitude Coastal Wetland, Matteo Petit Bon, A. Joshua Leffler, Katharine C. Kelsey, Tyler J. Williams, Karen H. Beard

Wildland Resources Faculty Publications

1. With rapid climate warming, some coastal high-latitude ecosystems are experiencing more frequent tidal floods. Yet little is known about tundra plant-community responses to flooding, and whether Arctic warming may modulate such responses.

2. In a 2-year, full-factorial field experiment in coastal tundra wetlands of the Yukon-Kuskokwim (Y-K) Delta (western Alaska), we simulated periodic tidal flood events at two severities under both ambient and warmed summer conditions and measured above-ground plant-community responses. Low-severity flooding represented overbank flooding 1 day per month, which is consistent with projections in the next 5 years. High-severity flooding represented a more impactful flooding regime (three consecutive days …

Implications For Grasslands Of The Response To Climate Change By The World Food System, Martin Parry, Cynthia Rosenzweig

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

A recent and preliminary assessment of the sensitivity of the world food trade to climate change has indicated the following: Assuming {unrealistically} no adjustments in inputs, global food grains production in 2060 is estimated to be reduced by l-7% from the level that would be expected under a future without climate change. Food prices, including feedstock prices, are estimated lo be increased as a consequence, The implications of lhese changes for grassland production systems are considered. Two broad types of adjustmenls in inputs can be envisaged: firstly, on-farm responses of crop type and management and, secondly, national and international policy …

Tree Diversity Across The Minneapolis-St. Paul Metropolitan Area In Relation To Climate And Social Vulnerability, Adrienne B. Keller, Leslie A. Brandt, Jeannine Cavender-Bares, Joseph F. Knight, Sarah E. Hobbie

Michigan Tech Publications

Urban tree canopy cover is often unequally distributed across cities such that more socially vulnerable neighborhoods often have lower tree canopy cover than less socially vulnerable neighborhoods. However, how the diversity and composition of the urban canopy affect the nature of social-ecological benefits (and burdens), including the urban forest's vulnerability to climate change, remains underexamined. Here, we synthesize tree inventories developed by multiple organizations and present a species-specific, geolocated database of more than 600,000 urban trees across the 7-county Minneapolis-St. Paul (MSP) metropolitan area in the Upper Midwest of the United States. We find that tree diversity across the MSP …

Climate Change: Adapting Tropical And Subtropical Grasslands, G M. Mckeon, S M. Howden, N.O J. Abel, J M. King

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Climate change as a result of increasing greenhouse gas concentrations or lhe repetition of historical climale variability will affect the management and production of tropical and subtropical grasslands that support about half the world's domestic herbivores. Previous studies of the regional impact of climate change and climate variability on intensive agriculture have shown lhat such evaluation should include the known and expected abilities of managers and governments to respond by reducing the negative impacts and taking advantage of positive opportunities, A high priority for grassland scientists is the development of similar evaluation capabilities for grassland systems, which are more complex …

Evaluating The Effects Of Climate Changes On Grasslands, Robert G. Woodmansee, William E. Riebsame

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Determining the effects of climate change on cold region grasslands requires the integration of knowledge from the biological, physical and social sciences. That integration is dependent on new methods, technologies and facilitation techniques ! that allow evaluation and management of complexity rather than focusing on simplification. Specifically, grassland response can be defined as the interaction of 10 basic sectors: (I) wenther and climate (Including chemical factors}, (2) winter, (3) soil properties, (4) assemblages of organisms, (5) energy, (6) economic viability, (7) individual human behavior, (8) cultural and community viability, (9) organisational penalty, and (10) political, legal, policy, and regulatory Influences. …

Prediction Of Grassland Plant Responses To Global Change, B D. Campbell, J P. Grime

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Global change is challenging the predictive power of biology. Increasingly, biologists are being asked to draw together existing knowledge and new experimental data, in order to provide predictions of the effects of global change at regional, national and global scales. In this paper we examine how well global change effects on grassland plants can be predicted, and what avenues might be used in future to improve predictive capabilities. Broad predictions of the direction of change in grassland vegetation can be made quite simply and from a limited set of data. Predictions of the rate and magnitude of change are more …

Variation In The Response Of Pasture Plants To Carbon Dioxide, B D. Campbell, W A. Laing, P.C D. Newton

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

The percentage increases in growth resulting from a doubling of atmospheric CO2 concentration were measured for 37 common pasture plants under strictly controlled conditions of temperature, nutrient supply and irradiance. A wide range of variation in potential response lo CO2 was detected in the day/night temperature range 12n°c to 28/ 23°C. C4 species responded litlle to elevated CO2 The mean ± standard deviation of the distribution of c3 species responses ranged from l±21% at 1m•c to 90±40% at 28/23°C. These responses varied with the stage of plant development. The response by Lolium perenne cv. Grasslands Nui was of intermediate size …

Will Subtropical Grasses Keep Spreading Through New Zealand?, B D. Campbell, R.J M. Hay

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

n this paper we briefly examine the effects that rising temperature and atmospheric CO2 concentrations may have on the spread of subtropical grasses in New Zealand. Data are presented from controlled-environment experiments measuring the growth and competitive suppression of white clover by a variety of local temperate and subtropical grasses at CO2 concentrations of 3S0 ppm and 700 ppm. These data support the prediction that some subtropical grasses may decline in aggressiveness relative to temperate species in New Zealand in the future as atmospheric CO2 levels rise. Some of the factors likely to modify the expression of temperature and CO2 …

Effect Of Carbon Dioxide Concentration On The Competitive Ability Of Clover: Measurements Of Growth And Rubisco, W A. Laing, D H. Greer, B D. Campbell

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

White clover (Trifolium repens cv. Grasslands Huia) was grown in competition with one of 10 established grass species or else grown alone. Plants were grown at either 350 or 700 ppm CO2, at 28/23°C and 700 µmol/m1/sec photon flux density. Plant growth and extractable ribulose bisphosphate carboxylase (rubisCO) were measured. Grass growth responded less to CO2 than clover. In the absence of grass competition, clover growth Increased 30% under 700 ppm CO2 compared with 350 ppm, but the response varied from 0% to 100% • when grass competition was present. Increased CO2 reduced extractable rubisCO activity (expressed on a …

Response Of Natural Turves Of Pasture To Elevated Carbon Dioxide In A Controlled Environment, P.C D. Newton, H Clark, C C. Bell, E M. Glasgow

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Large natural turves from a ryegrass-white clover (Lolium pernne, trifolium repens) pasture were exposed to increasing day/nighl temperatures at 350 and 700 µVI CO2 over a 7•month period. Growth rate al the highest temperature (22/16°C day/night) was IS% higher at the elevated CO2 level; at lower temperatures the response to CO2 was reduced or even negative (-6% at 10/4°C). The growth rate of ryegrass was much lower at elevated CO2 while that of white clover and other grasses was increased. These results are compared with previous studies using synthetic communities, and the limited response to CO2 is noted …

Effect Of Elevated Carbon Dioxide On The Performance Of Nine Coexisting Grassland Species, J Watson, J D. Graves

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Microcosms were constructed to represent a neutral grassland community under traditional agricultural management. During a season of fumigation at ambient and 600 µmot/mot CO2, plant performance was recorded. An increase of biomass for the whole community resulted at elevated CO2, but the response of individual species differed, There are indications that competitive interactions may change within a community due to the effects of CO2 enrichment; this may eventually result in a change in species composition.

Comparison Of Photosynthetic Responses To Carbon Dioxide In Pasture Species, D H. Greer, W A. Laing, B D. Campbell

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Thirteen major pasture species were grown in controlled environments at 3 temperatures (12n, 18/13 and 28/23°C) and at 350 nnd 700 ppm CO2 for 4-8 weeks and net photosynthesis measured under these conditions. In C1 cultivars, short-term (within minutes) exposure to elevated CO2 had the greatest effect on photosynthesis, with an average of 55% higher rates than that at ambient CO2. There was also a response to long-term growth at high CO2, with a,1 average of 40% higher rates of photosynthesis than at ambient CO2 (both measured al their growth CO2) and a marked alteration in the temperature dependence Qf …

Modeling The Effects Of Climate Variability And Climate Change On A Pastoral Farming System, R J. Martin, D B. Baird, M J. Salinger, P R. Van Gardingen, D G. Mccall

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

A simulation model was used to investigate the pasture and animal production and gross margins of a typical all sheep permanent pasture farm in South Canterbury, New Zealand, using 60 years of current climate data, and also a climate change scenario. The model was run on a fixed management system at different stocking rates with and without destocking during feed shortages. Mean annual pasture production was 8060 kg/ha, with a coefficient of variation of 22%. Destocking enabled more stock to be carried on average, with higher, but rh.ore variable, returns. A climate change scenario of a 75% increase in CO2' …