Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Commons^™

Nature - The Ultimate Classroom, Red Rock Desert Learning Center

Oliver Ranch Project

A public meeting will be held to introduce the Red Rock Learning Center, the first outdoor education center for local fifth grade children in Southern Nevada. Designed to enhance math and science skills, the school will be built in the Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area. It will feature a curriculum that teaches children about conservation and the natural world by increasing their knowledge and understanding of the Mojave Desert ecosystem.

Red Rock Desert Learning Center & Wild Horse And Burro Facility: Public Meeting Psa For Radio/Tv, Red Rock Desert Learning Center

Oliver Ranch Project

Text of a public service radio announcement for a meeting about the Red Rock Desert Learning Center.

Red Rock Desert Learning Center Core Group Meeting: January 17, 2006, Red Rock Desert Learning Center

Reports (RRLC)

1. Introductions & Announcements (5 min.)
2. Approval of Minutes from December 6, 2005 Meeting (5 min.)
3. Update on Project Schedule – Michael Reiland (10 min.)
   A. Utilities
   B. Parking
   C. Construction Estimates/Inflation
4. Statement of Work/Request for Information Update – Michael Reiland
   (10 min.)
5. Update on Water Line – Michael Reiland/Las Vegas Valley Water District
   (10 min.)
6. Update on Environmental Assessment – Michael Reiland (10 min.)
7. Update on Curriculum Development – Jeanne Klockow (5 min.)
8. Standing Reports (10 min.)
   A. Line and Space Architects
   B. BLM Capital Improvements – Michael Reiland
   C. Community Outreach – LaNelda Rolley
   --RRDLC Open House, January 26, …

Prevalence And Serovars Of Salmonella In The Feces Of Free-Ranging White-Tailed Deer (Odocoileus Virginianus) In Nebraska, David G. Renter, David P. Gnad, Jan M. Sargeant, Scott E. Hygnstrom

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

To determine the prevalence and serovars of Salmonella in free-ranging deer, we cultured feces from white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) harvested by hunters during a regular firearm season in southeastern Nebraska (USA). We recovered Salmonella from 5 (1%; 95% confidence interval: 0.37– 2.20%) of 500 samples and identified four different Salmonella enterica serovars [Litchfield (1), Dessau (1), Infantis (2), and Enteritidis (1)]. Although the prevalence of Salmonella in free-ranging deer appears to be low, the serovars recovered are known to be pathogenic to humans and animals.

Terpenes And Carbohydrate Source Influence Rumen Fermentation, Digestibility, Intake, And Preference In Sheep, J. J. Villalba, F. D. Provenza, K. C. Olson

Green Canyon Environmental Research Area, Logan Utah

We hypothesized that toxins and nutrients in foods interact to influence foraging behavior by herbivores. Based on this hypothesis we predicted that 1) terpenes in big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata) influence intake and preference in sheep for diets varying in sources of nonstructural (barley grain) and structural (sugar beet pulp) carbohydrates, and 2) these effects are due to the differential effects of terpenes on fermentation products and apparent digestibility of each class of carbohydrates. Lambs were fed 2 isoenergetic and isonitrogenous diets with varying proportions of the same ingredients (beet pulp- and barley grain-based diet) or offered a choice between the …

Our Places To Tell Stories: Making Connections With Our Audiences, Public Lands Institute

Our Places to Tell Stories

The idea for an annual Our Places Tell Stories conference was prompted by discussions that took place within a unique partnership of federal, state, university, and public organizations in southern Nevada. Members identified the need to share and learn from successful educational and interpretive strategies. Our increasingly urban surroundings and rapidly changing populations hinder personal connections between people and their natural environment. However, the right tools and techniques will help us inspire children and adults to understand, value, and take care of our shared natural places.

This first conference supports professionals in creating and evaluating effective educational programs and interpretive …

Oliver Ranch Science School Complex & Wild Horse And Burro Facility: Annual Progress Report, Year Ending June 30, 2006, Margaret N. Rees

Oliver Ranch Project

Assist in project coordination between numerous stakeholders such as the Clark County School System, Desert Research Institute, Community College of Southern Nevada, UNR Cooperative Extension, Nevada State College, local museums, state parks, non-profit organizations, federal agencies, and the public to ensure appropriate educational curricular activities and venues are provided for in the conceptual design of the School and the Wild Horse and Burro facility where appropriate as well as assist in the NEPA process as needed. The activities will be conducted at least in part by university faculty, staff and students as part of the university’s research, teaching, and service …

Oliver Ranch Science School Complex & Wild Horse And Burro Facility: Quarterly Progress Report, Period Ending September 30, 2006, Margaret N. Rees

Oliver Ranch Project

Assist in project coordination between numerous stakeholders such as the Clark County School System, Desert Research Institute, Community College of Southern Nevada, UNR Cooperative Extension, Nevada State College, local museums, state parks, non-profit organizations, federal agencies, and the public to ensure appropriate educational curricular activities and venues are provided for in the conceptual design of the School and the Wild Horse and Burro facility where appropriate as well as assist in the NEPA process as needed. The activities will be conducted at least in part by university faculty, staff and students as part of the university’s research, teaching, and service …

Oliver Ranch Science School Complex & Wild Horse And Burro Facility: Quarterly Progress Report, Period Ending September 30, 2006, Margaret N. Rees

Oliver Ranch Project

Assist in project coordination between numerous stakeholders such as the Clark County School System, Desert Research Institute, Community College of Southern Nevada, UNR Cooperative Extension, Nevada State College, local museums, state parks, non-profit organizations, federal agencies, and the public to ensure appropriate educational curricular activities and venues are provided for in the conceptual design of the School and the Wild Horse and Burro facility where appropriate as well as assist in the NEPA process as needed. The activities will be conducted at least in part by university faculty, staff and students as part of the university’s research, teaching, and service …

Oliver Ranch Science School Complex & Wild Horse And Burro Facility: Quarterly Progress Report, Period Ending March 31, 2006, Margaret N. Rees

Oliver Ranch Project

Executive Summary

Activity highlights during the third quarter of Year Two include the following actions toward task agreement deliverables:

• Agenda and minutes prepared and distributed for Core Group meetings on January 17 and March 21, 2006.
• Cultural curriculum 100% completed
• Night Sky curriculum 100% completed.
• Green Building curriculum 75% completed.
• Native American Correlations 75% completed.
• Teacher piloting workshops held on February 23, March 18, and March 25, 2006 at Spring Mountain Ranch State Park and the Oliver Ranch site.
• RRDLC newsletter completed.
• Website content, navigation, and graphics updated and improved.

Learning About The Natural World Through An Inquiry-Based Residential Experience, Red Rock Desert Learning Center

Oliver Ranch Project

The mission of the Red Rock Desert Learning Center is to instill stewardship and respect by increasing knowledge and understanding of the Mojave Desert ecosystems and cultures through a unique experiential discovery program

Red Rock Desert Learning Center Community Outreach Activities Plan, Red Rock Desert Learning Center

Oliver Ranch Project

The Red Rock Desert Learning Center is being designed to teach participants about the natural world through inquiry-based experiential and interdisciplinary methods in a residential outdoor setting in Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area. The intent is for students, teachers, and researchers to gain an appreciation of desert ecosystems and to begin to apply and connect their knowledge to world ecological systems. The campus will incorporate many “green building” systems in its design and operation, and those systems will be an active part of the school’s curriculum.

Red Rock Desert Learning Center & Wild Horse And Burro Facility: Fact Sheet, Red Rock Desert Learning Center

Oliver Ranch Project

Overview and questions about Red Rock Canyon Desert Learning Center and Wild Horse and Burro Facility.

Red Rock Desert Learning Center & Wild Horse And Burro Facility: Frequently Asked Questions, Red Rock Desert Learning Center

Oliver Ranch Project

The mission of the Red Rock Desert Learning Center is to instill stewardship and respect by increasing knowledge and understanding of the Mojave Desert ecosystems and cultures through a unique experiential discovery program.

Red Rock Desert Learning Center & Wild Horse And Burro Facility: Newsletter, Red Rock Desert Learning Center

Oliver Ranch Project

The mission of the Red Rock Desert Learning Center is to instill stewardship and respect by increasing knowledge and understanding of the Mojave Desert ecosystems
and cultures through a unique experiential discovery program.

Red Rock Desert Learning Center & Wild Horse And Burro Facility: Historical Timeline, Red Rock Desert Learning Center

Oliver Ranch Project

Historical Timeline of Red Rock Desert Learning Center.

Fisheries Occasional Publication No. 33 - Department Of Fisheries Community Survey 2005, Tara Baharthah

Fisheries Occasional Publications

A telephone survey of the Western Australian public was conducted to assess the level of success of programs implemented by the Department of Fisheries. The sample comprised of 700 interviews, 422 in the metropolitan area and 278 in regional areas throughout the State.

This community survey was used to determine the level of recall and awareness of the Department of Fisheries, the understanding and support of the community for the Department of Fisheries' management strategies and to examine key aspects of community participation in recreational fishing.

It is estimated that the overall participation rate for recreational fishing in Western Australia …

Variation In The Response Of Crustacean Zooplankton Species Richness And Composition To The Invasive Predator Bythotrephes Longimanus, Angela L. Strecker, Shelley E. Arnott, Norman D. Yan, Robert Girard

Environmental Science and Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

The predacious invertebrate Bythotrephes longimanus has invaded >90 freshwater lakes in North America. There is some evidence that B. longimanus has a negative effect on summer zooplankton species richness; however, no study has examined the effect of B. longimanus throughout the ice-free season in more than one lake. We visited 10 invaded and 4 reference lakes every 2 weeks from May to September, collecting B. longimanus, crustacean zooplankton, and water chemistry samples. Composite samples were pooled across the study season for each lake. Bythotrephes longimanus significantly reduced cladoceran species richness, diversity, and abundance, and the total zooplankton community also exhibited …

Lake Mead National Recreation Area Vegetation Monitoring And Management: Quarterly Progress Report, Period Ending December 31, 2005, Margaret N. Rees

Vegetation Monitoring

Executive Summary

• Required reports on sticky buckwheat (Eriogonum viscidulum) and threecorner milkvetch (Astragalus geyeri var. triquetrus) to be submitted through appropriate protocols by December 30, 2005
• Summary report on several other rare plants to be submitted through appropriate protocols by December 30, 2005
• Invasive perennial pepperweed (also called tall whitetop; Lepidium latifolium) documented and treated by Weed Sentry within Black Canyon, Lake Mojave

Lake Mead National Recreation Area Sensitive Wildlife Species Monitoring And Analysis: Quarterly Progress Report, Period Ending December 31, 2005, Margaret N. Rees

Wildlife Monitoring

• Topsoil replacement monitored at Willow Beach Wastewater Rehabilitation Project
• Desert tortoise surveys and monitoring conducted for Northshore Road reconstruction projects, and desert tortoise training provided to 9 construction contractors.
• Field work associated with the project to remove desert tortoise radio transmitters from animals on Mormon Mesa completed.
• Weekly data processing for Desert Bighorn Sheep monitoring associated with the Hoover Dam Bypass Project continued.
• Fall field surveys for relict leopard frogs completed (11 sites surveyed); last of this year’s head-started animals released; RLFCT meeting held.
• Work started on a digital database (GIS) of Peregrine falcon observations.
• Monthly shorebird surveys conducted (22 …

Red Rock Desert Learning Center Core Group Meeting: December 6, 2005, Red Rock Desert Learning Center

Reports (RRLC)

1. Introductions & Announcements (5 min.)
2. Approval of Minutes from October 18, 2005 Meeting (5 min.)
3. Update on Project Schedule – Michael Reiland (10 min.)
   A. Utilities
   B. Water Line
   C. Parking
   D. Operator
4. Update on Design Development – Michael Reiland (10 min.)
5. Cultural Treatment Plan – Michael Reiland (10 min.)
6. Environmental Assessment Update – Otak Inc. (10 min.)
7. Curriculum Update – Jeanne Klockow (10 min.)
8. Standing Reports (10 min.)
   A. BLM Capital Improvements – Michael Reiland
   B. Community Outreach – LaNelda Rolley
9. Committee Reports (5 min.)
   A. Building Committee
   B. Design Oversight
   C. Educational Programs
   D. Fund-raising and Partnerships
   E. …

Spatial Autocorrelation Of Deer-Vehicle Accidents In Vigo County, J. Scott Horn

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Deer-vehicle accidents (DV As) are a problem in many areas. They cause millions of dollars in property damage, personal injury, and loss of life each year. This thesis examines whether DVAs in Vigo County, Indiana during the year 2000 were spatially autocorrelated; and whether DV As selected by deer habitat were spatially autocorrelated. Specifically using Moran's I to test for spatial autocorrelation this study determined if and to what degree spatial autocorrelation existed among these DVAs. A Moran's I value of .0023 shows that the accidents occurred randomly. These DV A data were then used to plot a map which …

Fisheries Research Report No. 151 - Biology And Stock Assessment Of The Thickskin (Sandbar) Shark, Carcharhinus Plumbeus, In Western Australia And Further Refinement Of The Dusky Shark, Carcharhinus Obscurus, Stock Assessment., Rory Mcauley, R Lenanton, J. Chidlow, R. Allison, E. Heist

Fisheries Research Reports

Final FRDC Report - Project 2000/134

The purpose of this project was to collect the biological and fishery information necessary to conduct a stock assessment of the sandbar (known locally as ‘thickskin’) shark, Carcharhinus plumbeus and to improve and update the existing stock assessment for the dusky shark, Carcharhinus obscurus. Results from this project have already been used by the Western Australian Department of Fisheries to determine appropriate management arrangements for the State’s shark fisheries to ensure the sustainable exploitation of these species. Results have also assisted the WA target-shark fisheries in conducting Ecologically Sustainable Development (ESD) assessment in order …

The Prairie Naturalist, Volume 37, No.4 December 2005

The Prairie Naturalist

AVIAN COMMUNITY RESPONSE TO CONSTRUCTION OF A NATURALISTIC GOLF COURSE IN TALL GRASS PRAIRIE IN KANSAS ▪ R. J. Robel, S. L. Bye, K. E. Kemp, and S. J. Thien

SECOND REPORT OF THE NORTH DAKOTA BIRD RECORDS COMMITTEE: 2002-2003 ▪ D. Svingen, and R. E. Martin

RECENT RECORDS OF FORMERLY EXTIRPATED CARNIVORES IN NEBRASKA ▪ J. D. Hoffman, and H. H. Genoways

PLAINS HARVEST MOUSE IN NORTH DAKOTA ▪ R. W. Seabloom, and T. L. Shaffer

Book Reviews

A Primer on Prairie Ecology ▪ M. A. Cunningham

Range Wars: Have Prairie Dogs Lost the Battle for the West? ▪ …

Fisheries Occasional Publication No. 29 - Western Rock Lobster Fishery Effects Of Fishing On The Ecosystem - Scientific Reference Group (Chairman's Report No. 3, February 2005), Department Of Fisheries, Western Australia

Fisheries Occasional Publications

The Western Rock Lobster Effects of Fishing on the Ecosystem Scientific Reference Group (the SRG) was convened jointly by the Department of Fisheries and the WA Fishing Industry Council (WAFIC). The SRG met on Tuesday 1 February 2005 at the Fremantle Sailing Club, and this document is the official report from that meeting.

Development Of Biological Reference Conditions Of Wadeable Streams In The Major Ecoregions And Subecoregions Of Georgia, Duncan L. Hughes

Theses and Dissertations

One bioassessment tool available to resource managers to indicate NPS impairment of wadeable streams and rivers are multi-metric invertebrate indices. Such indices are assembled from metrics in broad categories that represent different aspects of community structure and function (e.g. richness, composition, tolerance/intolerance, feeding group, and habit). Indices must incorporate suites of metrics that are ecologically relevant, quantifiable, non-redundant, and that best individually discriminate between reference sites and impaired sites. More than 240 wadeable streams in Georgia were sampled during the September thru February index period using RBP protocols during three successive sample seasons (1999-2003). Ecoregional reference (minimally impaired) sites, as …

Red Rock Desert Learning Center Core Group Meeting: October 18, 2005, Red Rock Desert Learning Center

Reports (RRLC)

1. Introductions & Announcements (5 min.)
2. Approval of Minutes from September 20, 2005 Meeting (5 min.)
3. Curriculum Update – Jeanne Klockow (15 min.)
4. Review of Project Schedule – Michael Reiland (10 min.)
   A. Utilities
   B. Water Line
   C. Parking
   D. Operator
5. Standing Reports (15 minutes)
   A. Line and Space Architects – Les Wallach/Henry Tom
   B. BLM Capital Improvements – Michael Reiland
6. Committee Reports (5 min.)
   A. Building Committee – Angie Lara
   B. Design Oversight – David Frommer
   C. Educational Programs – Paul Buck
   D. Fund-raising and Partnerships – Blaine Benedict
   E. NEPA – Michael Johnson
   F. Operations – Jackson Ramsey
   G. …

Impact Of Bythotrephes Invasion On Zooplankton Communities In Acid-Damaged And Recovered Lakes On The Boreal Shield, Angela L. Strecker, Shelley E. Arnott

Environmental Science and Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

Invasive species introductions into freshwater ecosystems have had a multitude of effects on aquatic communities. Few studies, however, have directly compared the impact of an invader on communities with contrasting structure. Historically high levels and subsequent reductions of acid deposition have produced landscapes of lakes of varying acidity and zooplankton communitystructure. We conducted a 30-day enclosure experiment in Killarney Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, to test the effects ofBythotrephes longimanus, an invasive invertebrate predator, on two contrasting zooplankton communities at different stages of recovery from acidification: recovered and acid damaged. Bythotrephes significantly decreased zooplankton biomass and abundance in both communities but …

Fisheries Occasional Publication No. 32 - Allocation Of The Western Australian Abalone Resource Between User Groups, Department Of Fisheries Western Australia

Fisheries Occasional Publications

In this submission to the Integrated Fisheries Allocation Advisory Committee (IFAAC), the Department will outline what it believes are the most practical and cost effective ways of managing a system for allocating the abalone resource between the commercial, customary and recreational sectors.

In preparing this submission, it has been noted that because of the limited data on recreational catch outside of the metropolitan area, the Sustainable Harvest Limit (SHL) set for the fishery relates only to the area that is equivalent to Area 7 of the commercial fishery. Further, it is acknowledged that the Minister has approved that proportional catch …

Red Rock Desert Learning Center Core Group Meeting: September 20, 2005, Red Rock Desert Learning Center

Reports (RRLC)

1. Introductions & Announcements (5 min.)
2. Approval of Minutes from August 16, 2005 Meeting (5 min.)
3. Discussion of Scope/Design Issues –Michael Reiland/David Frommer (30 min.)
4. Cost Update – Michael Reiland (15 min.)
5. Schedule Update – Michael Reiland (15 min.)
6. Standing Reports (15 minutes)
   A. Line and Space Architects – Les Wallach/Henry Tom
   B. BLM Capital Improvements – Michael Reiland
   C. Community Outreach – Nancy Flagg
7. Committee Reports (5 min.)
   A. Building Committee – Angie Lara
   B. Design Oversight – David Frommer
   C. Educational Programs – Paul Buck
   D. Fund-raising and Partnerships – Blaine Benedict
   E. NEPA – Michael Johnson
   F. Operations …