Life Sciences Commons^™

The Impacts Of A Quagga And Zebra Mussel Infestation, Casey Silva

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Invasive species issues have been on the rise in the United States for decades. These organisms can disrupt the natural flow of an ecosystem and overtake native species, altering an environment as a whole. The introduction of the zebra mussel (Dreissena polymorpha) in 1988, followed by the quagga mussel (Dreissena rostriformis) in 1989 is arguably the most prolific aquatic infestation the nation is currently up against (Hoddle, 2022). Beginning in the Great Lakes, both quagga and zebra mussels quickly spread their infestations through the Midwest and the East coast. The potential invasion of these species across …

A Bayesian Hierarchical Approach For Modeling Virtual Species With Realistic Functional Trait Relationships, Sarah Bogen

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Understanding the spatial and temporal dynamics of plant populations has important implications for the fields of ecology and conservation. A rich body of mathematical modeling approaches, including reaction-diffusion equations and integrodifference equations, have been developed to mechanistically model population spread based on species demography and seed dispersal characteristics. However, with over 390,000 plant species on Earth, it is not feasible to collect complete information on all species for the purpose of drawing generalized conclusions. One means of overcoming such a problem is through trait-based modeling, which seeks to represent realistic combinations of organismal traits rather than focusing on individual species. …

Interactive Effects Of Soil And Browsing On Big Sagebrush: Implications For Restoration Success, Kyle Nehring

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Heterogeneity in landscape conditions (e.g., soil types) precludes a “one size fits all” management strategy across large landscapes. New management approaches that explicitly account for heterogeneous landscapes (and the variable conditions therein) will be required to maintain habitat quality. In particular, we require an improved mechanistic understanding of how the outcomes of conservation and restoration actions are contingent upon a) contextual abiotic factors (e.g., moisture availability mediated by soils and precipitation) and b) their interactions with biotic factors (e.g., browsing wildlife).

We propose to answer fundamental questions about how big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata), the foundational species for sagebrush …

Taphonomy Of Late Jurassic (Tithonian) Morrison Formation Apatosaurus Sp. Vertebrae Found Associated With Teeth From Allosaurus Sp. And Ceratosaurus Sp., And Body Size Extrapolation From The Associated Theropod Teeth., Greg C. Agyan

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

An Apatosaurus sp. locality from Dinosaur National Monument designated DNM-15 was excavated in 1985, and associated with two Allosaurus teeth and one Ceratosaurus tooth that were near one of the caudal vertebrae. The Ceratosaurus tooth was buried between an overlying rib and that same caudal vertebra. The caudal vertebrae of the DNM-15 Apatosaurus were intact and articulated, but the anterior skeleton was mostly absent, with a row of articulated sacral vertebrae in close association with a femur. Two other Allosaurus teeth were reported near the preserved ilium of the Apatosaurus, but they could not be located in the collections. …

Evaluating The Effect Of The Removal Of Non-Native Trout In Two High Elevation Tributary Streams In The Intermountain West, Clint Brunson

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Native fish species such as Bonneville Cutthroat Trout (BCT) require cold, clear, well-connected streams for spawning and rearing as well as access to complimentary habitats. Increasing river temperatures and lower water flows may have allowed non-native Brown Trout (BNT) to migrate into higher elevation pristine streams. Additionally, anthropogenic actions such as stocking non-native Brown and Brook (BKT) and Rainbow Trout (RBT) for angling opportunities impact BCT. Invasion of these tributaries by non-native species may reduce or eliminate cutthroat trout by predation, competition, displacement, genetic suppression, and exclusion. A seven-fold increase in BNT numbers of 50 to 350 from 2017 to …

Assessing & Protecting Dark Night Skies In El Morro National Monument, Leslie Kobinsky

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Light pollution is causing the disappearance of dark night skies around the world. In the United States alone, 1/3 of people are unable to see the Milky Way where they live (Ramlagan, 2016). National Park Service sites contain some of the darkest skies in the country. Here at El Morro National Monument, these dark skies are a beautiful and healthy benefit to people in the local community and visitors traveling from afar. El Morro’s current park legislation does not include specific measures of protection for the night sky. This capstone project will create a baseline data set of night sky …

Understanding Wetlands And Irrigation In The Little Snake River Basin, Wyoming, Lindsey Washkoviak

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

The Little Snake River Basin (LSRB) is a managed basin in South-central Wyoming located within the Colorado River watershed facing severe water shortages. There is increased pressure on water resource managers and agricultural producers to adopt water efficiency practices that could negatively affect wetland resources. However, studies have begun to quantify the importance of irrigation for recharging groundwater, maintaining late season instream flows, and maintaining and creating wetlands that provide wildlife habitat and ecosystem services.

In the LSRB there are 11,636 acres of wetlands; 56% of which overlap with irrigation. Conversion to more efficient irrigation could reduce water availability to …

Seasonal Resource Selection And Habitat Treatment Use By A Fringe Population Of Greater Sage-Grouse, Rhett Boswell

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Movement and habitat selection by Greater Sage-grouse (Centrocercus uropasianus) is of great interest to wildlife managers tasked with applying conservation measures for this iconic western species. Current technology has created small and lightweight GPS (Global Positioning Systems) transmitters that can be attached to sage-grouse. Using GIS software and statistical programs such as Program R, land managers can analyze GPS location data to assess how sage-grouse are geospatially interacting with their habitats. Within the Panguitch Sage-Grouse Management Area (SGMA) thousands of acres of land have been restored or manipulated to enhance sage-grouse habitat; this usually involves removal of pinyon pine …

The Role Of A Beaver In Shaping Stream Channel Complexity And Thermal Heterogeneity In A Central Oregon Stream, Florence Consolati Machen

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

North American beaver (Castor canadensis) alter stream channel morphology, hydrologic processes, and instream temperature regimes, yet there are few data driven studies that investigate the effect of beaver on stream channel complexity and stream temperature regimes across multiple spatial and temporal scales. The use of beaver as a restoration tool is a method at the forefront of watershed restoration, however little is known about the implications of this restoration technique, particularly with regard to its ability to alter stream channel complexity and stream temperature. This thesis addresses two knowledge gaps with the following objectives: to quantify the role …

Interactions Between Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep Ovis Canadensis Canadensis And Domestic Sheep Ovis Aries And The Biological, Social, Economic, And Legal Implications Of These Interactions On Usda Forest Service Lands In The Evanston/Mt. View Ranger District, Ashly Nicole Herrera

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Strong evidence exists indicating domestic sheep (Ovis aries) can infect Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis canadensis), a United States Forest Service (USFS) Region 4 sensitive species, with pneumonia (Callan 1991; Foreyt 1989, 1992, 1994; Foreyt and Lagerquist 1996; George et al 2008; Wehausen et al. 2011). Since the transmission of the pneumonic bacteria between the domestic and wild sheep is a result of bighorn sheep coming into contact with the bacteria carried in the mucous membranes of the domestic sheep, bighorn sheep at risk of initially contracting the bacteria are those individuals that enter areas currently being grazed or …

Landscape And Habitat Attributes Influencing Beaver Distribution, Ryan John Leary

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Removal of beaver across the North America landscape from the 1600s through the 1800s has played a major influence on the alteration of stream and riparian resources. Degradation of riparian habitats has negatively impacted many wildlife and fish species, including species listed under the Endangered Species Act. The ability of beavers to modify stream ecosystems offers a unique opportunity to restore these habitats. Many private and government agencies are working towards using beaver as a restoration tool, not only for better functioning ecosystems but also to benefit humans. Taking the big picture look, beaver and their ability to modify the …

Alternative Futures For The Upper Colorado River Ecosystem: Phase Two, Temis G. Taylor

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (2001) reports that habitat destruction is the main factor responsible for species endangerment. Trends in land use and expansion of urban areas into adjacent open space will continue to consume land and fragment or destroy habitat (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency , 2001). Studies have shown that habitat loss negatively impacts overall species abundance and reduces biodiversity (Andren, 1997; Fischer & Lindenmayer, 2007; Hansen et al., 2005; McKinney, 2002; Pimm & Raven, 2000; Sole, Alonso, & Saldafia, 2004, and others). Habitat destruction and fragmentation are believed to be core causes for biodiversity decline, although species' …

An Alternative Futures Study For The Uintah Basin: Exploring 2030, Nicholas E. Kenczka

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

The Uinta Basin is located within the Colorado Plateau consisting of various ecosystems ranging from high elevation mountainous regions to sage and juniper woodlands. The basin rests in the northeast corner of Utah with the largest communities being Vernal, Roosevelt, and Duchesne. Other key features include the Flaming Gorge Recreation Area, Green River, and Dinosaur National Monument. The basin historically has been a major region for natural resource extraction, and the population fluctuation has mirrored the "boom" and "bust" cycles of the industry. The Uintah Basin has recently recognized the need for developing a comprehensive plan for identifying the critical …

Alternative Futures 2030: Ogden Valley, Louis Alan Hurst

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Ogden Valley is a high mountain community located in the northern Wasatch Mountain Range (Figure 1), and is located entirely within Weber County, Utah. Three communities sit within the valley: Huntsville, Eden, and Liberty. Early Mormon settlers established these communities in the mid-1800s; however, only the town of Huntsville is incorporated. The rural valley is in close proximity to the densely populated Wasatch Front, in particular, Ogden City. Ogden Valley is approximately 331 square miles and has an elevation that ranges between 4400 and 9700 feet. This wide range in elevation provides a diverse environment for humans, wildlife , and …

Alternative Futures For The Bear River Watershed, Richard E. Toth

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

The Bear River Watershed (BRW) is located in northeastern Utah, southeastern Idaho, and southwestern Wyoming. Over the three states the watershed encompasses an area of 7,500 square miles (4,800,000 acres). The Bear River 's headwaters begin at close to 13,000 feet in the High Uintas Wilderness Area of northeastern Utah. The course of the river follows a horseshoe pattern flowing north through Wyoming, Utah, and Idaho before bending south at Soda Springs. The river then meanders through the Gem and Cache Valleys before reaching its delta at the Great Salt Lake at an elevation of 4,211 feet.

Alternative Future Growth Scenarios For Conserving Open Space Along Utah's Wasatch Front: A Case Study For The Mountain Land Association Of Governments, Richard E. Toth

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Over the past 20 years, rapid suburban and second-home development along Utah's Wasatch Front has threatened to irreversibly alter the region 's character and quality of life. This rapid development has raised concern among federal, state, county and community leaders with respect to the protection of surface and subsurface water; public health, safety and welfare; public services and infrastructure, and open space. The major areas being developed include the valley edges and bottom lands, riparian zones, agricultural lands and bench areas. Since most of these areas are under private ownership, they are highly vulnerable to an array of development activities.

A Walk On The Wild Side: Conceptual Master Plan And Vegetation Management Plan For The Ogden Nature Center, Beth G. Pyle

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

This report provides an introduction describing: 1) Ogden Nature Center site planning history; 2) background of the problem a) lack of a conceptual master plan which responds to current management objectives, b) lack of a vegetation management plan, and; 3) thesis objectives and methodology for the creation of conceptual master plan and vegetation management plan for the Ogden Nature Center. Chapter 2 presents a written discussion of the Ogden Nature Center site inventory drawings and site analysis. Chapter 3 delineates strategies for management of weedy vegetation including; a general discussion of management techniques, general criteria for the selection of weedy …

An Analysis Of Institutional Approaches For Management Of Common Rangeland Resources In Sub-Saharan Africa, Mohale Gabriel Sekoto

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

The purpose of this report is to address the issues that are relevant to the management of common rangeland resources in Sub-Saharan Africa. I feel that the issues presented here are among some of those which are important and need to be considered in order to understand the kind of performance perceived about the efforts to develop the range and livestock in pastoral societies. In this report, three case studies have been reviewed, regarding institutional approaches tried to manage common rangelands. These case studies are about group ranches in Kajiado District, Kenya and in Upper Volta and the Sehlabathebe Grazing …

Pastoral Development Strategies In The Sahel And East Africa: Can The Mistakes Be Corrected?, Ahmed Musa Haji Ahmed

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

There is much controversy on the definition given to those people who raise livestock on the natural vegetation. Differences in the degree of their dependence on livestock and livestock products for food, as well as differences in the patterns of their movements, create the controversy. "Pure-pastoralists", "nomadic pastoralists", "semi - pastoralists", "semi-nomadic", "transhumant", and "semisedentary" are but some of the many terms used in the literature to describe them (see, for example, Johnson, 1969; Jacobs, 1965; McGee, 1986; Horowitz, 1981). To avoid much of the confusion created by the use of these terms, we use the definition of pastoralists as …

Impact Of Development On Traditional Pastoralism In Somalia, Abdulkadir A. Handulle

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

The Somali pastoral nomads live in an environmental condition of risk and uncertainty. The scarce and unreliable rainfall is the primary element ·which determines the existence of nomadic pastoralism. The lands devoted to pastoralism in Somalia are those arid and semi-arid areas that could not sustain cropping, so that pastoralism may be considered the only rational utilization of the land resource. Nomads live in an environment where the survival of both animals and plants are constrained by many factors such as droughts. Yet, both nomads and their animals have evolved by learning numerous adaptive strategies to cope with their harsh, …

Revegetation Of Denuded High Elevation Watersheds In Mustang, Nepal, Madhukar Upadhya

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Lack of vegetative cover largely caused by such human activities as firewood collection, intensive grazing, and deforestation have accelerated the process of desertification at high elevation watersheds in Nepal. Mountain environment at high elevation is delicate and regeneration of vegetation is slow. Livestock grazing and firewood collection are the basic needs of the people. However, constant human pressure on natural vegetation upsets the hydrologic processes and results in disastrous soil erosion. Desertification caused by long-term soil erosion in semi-arid regions of Mustang district (a severely desertified, high elevation area) in Nepal probably indicates the future of other high elevation watersheds, …

An Agro-Sylvo-Pastoral Approach To Desertification Control And Increased Productivity Of The Sahel, Rober D. Kirmse

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

The southern arid fringe of the Sahara Desert, called the Sahel, is progressively becoming less productive through a systematic deterioration of the environment. Population increases and technological advances have encouraged ecological degradation through man's normal activities for survival. The degradation process has been referred to as desertification, desertization, desert encroachment, and desert creep.

Importance Of Legumes, Especially The Trifolium Species, In Range Improvement, Abdelhai A. Ibnattya

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

This paper analyzes the most important characteristics of legumes, which have led to their utilization in range improvement all over the world. It emphasizes the Trifolium spp. (esteemed among the legume family), their contributions to soil a n d forage improvement, and the success obtained from their utilization, especially in semi-arid ranges. Many references originally from Australia, United States, Morocco, and Portugal were used as sources of data because of the ample utilization of these species in these countries. Careful analysis related to requirements, potentialities, and production of clovers were used and recommendations were made for different ecological areas where …

Influence Of A Soil Microfloral Crust On Hydrologic And Chemical Properties Of Soils In Southeastern Utah, Walter L. Loope

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Cryptogamic soil crusts within the Colorado Plateau were studied to determine their effect on infiltration rates, potential sediment production, permeability, and several chemical properties of the soil. Six different crust stages were identified. Undisturbed soil cores were used to determine intrinsic permeability under three treatments and disturbed soil samples were analyzed for pH, percent organic matter, soil texture, Ca+Mg content and total conductivity.

It was found that the cryptogamic crust had little effect on soil chemical properties. Analysis of undisturbed soil core data indicates that high cryptogamic cover tends to decrease intrinsic permeability; this effect was reinforced when cores were …

Preliminary Studies Of Germination Requirements Of Shadscale Atriplex Confertifolia Torr. And Ferm. Wats, Ijaz Hussain

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Shadscale (Atriplex confertilolia (Torr. and Frem.) Wats.) is an important component of the salt-desert-shrub vegetation type in the intermountain region. This species dominates a large portion of the 41 million acres occupied by this vegetation type. Shapscale reaches greatest importance at lower elevations of Utah and Nevada, where despite the low productivity due to its harsh habitat, this vigorous shrub furnishes considerable winter grazing for sheep and cattle. Gates et al. (1966) have observed that poor drainage conditions, coupled with low precipitation, results in the concentration of salts, a chief habitat factor determining the growth and distribution of this species. …