Other Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Commons^™

Coyote (Canis Latrans) And Non-Target Wildlife Responses To Livestock Guardian Dogs At Sheep Grazing Sites On The California Central Coast, Tricia T. Nguyen

Master's Theses

Livestock depredation is one of the oldest and most widespread forms of human-wildlife conflict. The coyote (Canis latrans), a midsized canid, represents a significant proportion of domestic sheep depredations in the United States, costing livestock producers an estimated 24.6 million dollars annually. Management strategies for coyote-sheep depredation vary widely in their effectiveness and in their level of public support. Identifying appropriate strategies for farms, ranches, and other sheep grazing sites remains a pressing need due to the potentially negative consequences for surrounding ecosystems and socioeconomic outcomes for sheep producers. The livestock guardian dog (LGD) is a nonlethal control …

Investigating The Impact Of Psychoactive Plant Alkaloids On Bumblebee Behavior, Skylar Mathieson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The relationship between plants and their pollinators is often framed as a food-for-service exchange in which plants provide pollinators with nutrients in exchange for transport of their gametes. However, in addition to essential nutrients, many floral rewards (nectar, pollen) also contain defensive toxins such as alkaloids, with largely unexplored consequences for plant-pollinator interactions. I investigated how three psychoactive and addictive plant alkaloids — caffeine, nicotine, and morphine — affect foraging behavior in generalist bumblebees (Bombus impatiens) using robotic flowers. Each of these chemicals affected pollinator foraging behavior, influencing the number and duration of their visits to flowers in …

Drivers And Consequences Of Changes In Nectar Microbiome Composition Across Spatial And Biological Scales, Daniel A. Barker

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Microbial communities inhabiting floral nectar, known as the nectar microbiome, are important mediators of plant-pollinator interactions. However, the ecological and environmental factors that shape the composition of these microbial communities remain poorly understood. While previous studies have examined the effects of a few microbial groups, typically independent of one another, on one plant or pollinator species, this dissertation takes a wide-scale approach to explore how abiotic conditions and biotic interaction’s structure microbial communities within floral nectar. Furthermore, I also quantify how variation in microbial richness and identity influences pollinator behavior and plant reproductive success.

This dissertation shows that microbial abundance …

Changing Globally, Acting Locally: Responses Of Coastal Plant Functional Traits To Global Change Are Mediated By Biotic And Abiotic Interactions., Shannon L. Walker

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

We live in a time of rapid global change with substantial consequences for planet-wide functioning. Local ecosystems reflect this change, yet we struggle to predict their responses. Coastal ecosystems, like dune and interdunal wetlands, have declined rapidly and predicting their responses to global change is essential for future management. Functional traits may be particularly informative as they drive species and ecosystem responses and can provide generalizable findings. This dissertation investigates how global change, especially anthropogenic nitrogen (N) enrichment, interacts with abiotic and biotic factors to affect coastal sand dune and interdunal wetland plant functional traits. First, I used a long-term …

Ecosystem Services Of Urban Green Spaces In Louisville, Ky., Julia Kachanova

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Accelerating urbanization poses critical challenges to urban green spaces (UGS), vital for ecological balance and human health. Rapid development often results in fragmented habitats, biodiversity loss, and diminished ecosystem service delivery. There is an urgent need to explore and evaluate novel strategies capable of enhancing urban resilience, such as implementing urban orchards, and managing existing parks and gardens in sustainable ways. This dissertation explores how different forms of urban green spaces (UGS) contribute to the provision and maintenance of critical ecosystem services that support human well-being and urban biodiversity. By analyzing UGS impact on ecosystem service provisioning and long-term sustainability, …

Watching The Grass Grow: Expanding Outreach And Accessibility Of Itex-Aon, Justin Blough

Masters Projects

Science has an accessibility problem. Though results are published and the component data is archived and made publicly available, distrust in and misunderstanding of science by the lay populace remains common. This work focuses on bolstering the outreach component of the International Tundra Experiment (ITEX)—Arctic Observing Network (AON) to increase public awareness, interactivity, and ultimately, the understanding of how the science of ITEX-AON takes place. This project uses several component methods to further outreach goals of ITEX-AON. These include: documentary photography of researchers, study sites, subjects and the surrounding environments, 360-degree imaging and interactive virtual tour building, building interactive data …

Scientific Note: Garden Loosestrife (Lysimachia Vulgaris, Primulaceae), An Emerging Invasive Plant Species Of Riparian Corridors In The Mid-Atlantic Region, Christopher T. Martine, Amy L. Jewitt, Claire M. Ciafre, Kaitlin G. Henry, Elizabeth H. Williams, Pj Newhart, Melody P. Sain

Faculty Journal Articles

Lysimachia vulgaris (garden loosestrife, Primulaceae) is an herbaceous perennial native to Europe that has been identified as an aggressive invasive species in parts of North America. The status of the species in the Mid-Atlantic region of the US, however, is poorly determined. Using recent field observations (from iNaturalist, iMapInvasives, and EDDMapS records) we here report localized incursions of L. vulgaris in the Susquehanna River Valley of central Pennsylvania, along with notes on its ecology, threats to native plant communities, and broader distribution in the state.

Bioenergy Crop Production: Implications For Grassland Bird Communities In Southwestern Nebraska, Grace E. Schuster

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Biofuel and bioenergy systems are components of most climate stabilization pathways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and limit global warming. Currently, corn (Zea mays) is the predominant feedstock used for bioenergy production in the United States. However, widespread production of this monoculture crop has resulted in many negative environmental impacts. The most notorious impact has been the loss of grassland habitat due to agriculture expansion which has had detrimental effects on wildlife that depend on grassland habitat. One such group, grassland birds, has faced steeper, more consistent, and more widespread declines than any other avian guild. Therefore, strategies …

Mammals Of Malheur National Wildlife Refuge And Surrounding Harney County, Oregon, John E. Cornely, Leslie N. Carraway

Monographs of the Western North American Naturalist

Malheur National Wildlife Refuge (NWR), located in southeastern Oregon, is part of the National Wildlife Refuge System (NWRS) of the United States. Currently, NWRS includes more than 568 NWRs, 38 Wetland Management Districts, and 5 Marine National Monuments. Malheur NWR, like a majority of the refuges in the NWRS, was established for the conservation of migratory birds. Many of these NWRs also provide significant habitat for mammals. Malheur NWR, one of the oldest (established 1908) and largest refuges in the system, is one of those with significant habitat for mammals. In addition to the refuge, we have included Harney County, …

United Seas For Resilient Reefs: A Blueprint For Coral Conservation Through International Cooperation, John J. Bohorquez, Maoz Fine, Dana I. Grieco, David A. Gill, Ali Al-Swalimih, Jacqueline Padilla-Gamino, Isaiah W. Bolden, Margaux Hein, Callum Backstrom, Melanie Mcfield, Raphael Martinez, Benjamin Midberry, Fahd Al-Guthmy, Ellen K. Pikitch, Natalia Benejam, Chen Azulay, Britt Ronen, Oren Levy, Anne Mcelroy, Karine Kleinhaus

School of Marine & Atmospheric Sciences Faculty Publications

Coral reefs are one of Earth’s most vital and threatened ecosystems. They protect coastlines, generate billions of dollars of tourism revenue, support valuable fisheries, and contribute to the development of vital medicines. Yet half of the world's coral reefs have been lost in the last 50 years, and 90% of remaining reefs are projected to die off by the middle of this century, mainly due to warming seas from climate change.

Despite these challenges there is reason for hope. Some coral reefs – such as in the northern Red Sea and Gulf of Aqaba – have demonstrated remarkable resilience to …

Woofs And Warbles: The Influence Of Urban Dog Walking On Birdsong, Grace Phillips

University Honors Theses

Recreational activity in natural areas can disrupt songbird singing during critical learning or courtship periods, increasing the risk of fitness and population declines in sensitive species. Local data on birdsong disturbance caused by recreation can guide management efforts protecting wildlife, such as signage, leash laws, and dog walking bans. This study assessed bird vocalization responses to groups with and without dogs in urban greenspaces. Surveys were conducted in Fall 2024 at three parks in Portland, Oregon, with varying rates of dog and human presence. Throughout two-hour observation periods, bird vocalization activity of seven songbirds was recorded at five-minute intervals and …

Disturbance And Diversity: Lichens In Changing Landscapes, Laura Boggess

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Disturbance is a fundamental ecological force that shapes biodiversity, community composition, and ecosystem function. Human-driven disturbances—such as habitat fragmentation, deforestation, and air pollution—are increasing worldwide, altering ecosystems at unprecedented rates. While ecological research has illuminated many effects of disturbance, significant knowledge gaps remain for underappreciated but ecologically vital organisms, such as lichens. Lichens are obligate symbioses between at least one fungus and one alga or cyanobacterium. As such, they are sensitive bioindicators of environmental change, offering unique insights into ecosystem health due to their responses to stressors such as poor air quality, habitat fragmentation, and deforestation. Yet, their responses to …

Decoding The Plant Metabolome: A Metabolomics Approach To Guereza (Colobus Guereza) Feeding Ecology In Kibale National Park, Uganda, Emma Grace Thurau

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Plant metabolites, an elusive and diverse group of plant chemicals, represent a complex chemical interplay between plants and herbivores. Plants contain essential nutrients necessary for herbivore survival, yet herbivore consumption results in negative fitness consequences to a plant. This relationship has triggered a coevolutionary arms race in which plants have evolved chemical defenses to prevent herbivore consumption and herbivores, in response, have evolved their own counter-adaptations. This arms race has led to the diverse numbers of herbivores and plants observed today; therefore, these plant metabolites act as a signature of evolution through their influence on herbivore adaptations. Plant metabolites are …

Field Journal: The Excluded Middle, Carrie E. Kouts

Masters Theses

What does it look like to engage with organisms and landscapes at the periphery of anthropocentric value structures? How does one break the internalized myth that the “built” environment is excluded from the natural world? When does a hyper-mobile and hyper-commodified society confront the exponential crisis of animal death? Within this series of journal entries, field notes, collection observations, weird prose, and sensory musings, one will find questions on the nature of being human and the complex narratives of care we encounter in a world shared with more-than-humans. Each handwritten vignette and photograph from daily life weaves a non-linear and …

Assessing Niche Differences Across The Dwarf Salamander Species Complex Of The Southeast Us, Sarah Roy

LSU Master's Theses

Characterizing niche differences in closely related species can provide valuable insights into the extent of ecological divergence between species, and the potential evolutionary processes behind speciation. This study builds the first ecological niche models for the Eurycea dwarf salamander species complex, which includes five species with varying distributions across the southeastern United States. Ecological niche models (ENMs) were built for each species using the machine-learning algorithm, MaxEnt. We used pairwise niche overlap analyses and statistical validation techniques to investigate potential ecological drivers behind species divergence and the degree of niche overlap among the five Eurycea species. We found an overall …

Adaptation And Discovery In The Ethiopian Highlands: Testing Rules, Cryptic Shrews, And Patterns Of Montane Mammal Diversity, Evan W. Craig

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

Montane landscapes of the Horn of Africa harbor exceptional but incompletely documented biodiversity. Focusing on rodents and shrews—the dominant but least studied of Ethiopia’s high-elevation fauna—this dissertation integrates repeat faunal surveys, genomic taxonomy, and phylogenetically informed modelling to clarify how small mammals distribute, diversify, and morphologically adapt across steep elevational gradients.

A century‐scale resurvey of Simien Mountains National Park (1927-2015) revealed significant upward range shifts for multiple species and a persistent mid-elevation richness peak, implicating warming temperatures as a driver of community reassembly. Museomics using genome-skimming and craniodental morphometrics subsequently uncovered a deeply divergent miniature shrew lineage within the Crocidura …

Cost-Effective Solutions For High-Throughput Enzymatic Dna Methylation Sequencing, Amy Longtin, Marina M. Watowich, Baptiste Sadoughi, Rachel M. Petersen, Sarah F. Brosnan, Kenneth Buetow, Qiuyin Cai, Cayo Biobank Research Unit, Vanderbilt University, Michael D. Gurven, James P. Higham, Heather M. Highland, Yi-Ting Huang, Hillard Kaplan, Thomas S. Kraft, Yvonne A. L. Lim, Jirong Long, Amanda D. Melin, Michael J. Montagne, Jamie Roberson, Kee Seong Ng, Michael L. Platt, India A. Schneider-Crease, Jonathan Stieglitz, Benjamin C. Trumble, Vivek Venkataraman, Ian J. Wallace, Jie Wu, Noah Snyder-Mackler, Angela Jones, Alexander G. Bick, Amanda J. Lea

ESI Publications

Characterizing DNA methylation patterns is important for addressing key questions in evolutionary biology, development, geroscience, and medical genomics. While costs are decreasing, whole-genome DNA methylation profiling remains prohibitively expensive for most population-scale studies, creating a need for cost-effective, reduced representation approaches (i.e., assays that rely on microarrays, enzyme digests, or sequence capture to target a subset of the genome). Most common whole genome and reduced representation techniques rely on bisulfite conversion, which can damage DNA resulting in DNA loss and sequencing biases. Enzymatic methyl sequencing (EM-seq) was recently proposed to overcome these issues, but thorough benchmarking of EM-seq combined with …

Participatory Science Newsletter 2025_05_20, Mairi Poisson, Malin Clyde, Alyson L. Eberhardt

Participatory Science News

In this edition of the UNH Participatory Sciences Newsletter, we offer news and resources on The Power of Participatory Sciences. These include a story about UNH graduate student Lauren White's work using participatory science data about horseshoe crab spawning in the Great Bay. Another story highlights UNH's Coastal Research Volunteers Beach Profiling Project and another outlines how many UNH researchers at UNH are working with local communities to find solutions to environmental problems. A final article shares information about the 2025 conference for the Association for Advancing Participatory Sciences and the poster presented by scholars and students from UNH.

Pollinator Plant Communities Within Restored Montane Longleaf Pine Ecosystems, Hanen Van Rossem

Master's Theses

Historically the fire-dependent and biodiverse longleaf pine (Pinus palustris) ecosystem was the dominant ecosystem of the Southeastern US. This ecosystem’s range was massively reduced due to land conversion and fire exclusion, causing the decline of many native species. Efforts to restore and protect longleaf pine stands are now ongoing with the goal of expanding habitat and refuge for threatened species. Differences in restoration practices and prior land use may influence the extent to which restored habitat patches can support pollinators and their plants. This study compared pollinator plant biodiversity between restored neighboring montane longleaf pine stands that differed in …

Balancing Burrowing Owl (Athene Cunicularia Hypugaea) Protections While Maintaining Renewable Energy Development Within The San Joaquin Valley, Madison Lenzi Mcginn

Master's Projects and Capstones

Balancing the needs of wildlife and people has long been a complex challenge. The San Joaquin Valley exemplifies this tension, as space for agriculture and urbanization compete for land use of native grasslands– often resulting in the conversion of grasslands for agriculture fields, commercialized areas, or energy development. With an increasing number of agricultural landscapes going fallow and the passing of SB-100 in 2018, solar farm development has emerged as an attractive option to offset financial losses from unproductive farmland. However, the same landscapes favored for solar development also provide suitable habitat for sensitive species such the western burrowing owl …

Plastic In The Pack: Assessing Microplastic Risk To Urban Coyotes (Canis Latrans) In The San Francisco Bay Area, Elaina E. Herrmann

Master's Projects and Capstones

Microplastics are an emerging concern worldwide. However, their impact on terrestrial mammals, such as Canis latrans (coyotes), has yet to be extensively studied. Coyotes are unique in their ability to adapt to urban environments and have recently begun bridging the gap between marine and terrestrial food webs. This research examines the potential sources and impact of microplastic exposure in urban coyotes in the San Francisco Bay Area and possible food web impacts through literature synthesis and Geographic Information System (GIS) mapping. This research examined potential mechanisms for direct and trophic microplastic uptake by coyotes resulting from the anthropogenic, terrestrial, and …

Experimentally Testing A Mechanism Of Urban Adaptation: Are Wild Catbirds Able To Immediately Adjust Their Song In Response To Urban Noise?, Eriberto Osorio

Masters Theses, 2020-current

Anthropogenic noise is loud and low-frequency (low-pitch) sound with frequencies spanning from 1-2.5 kHz in frequency. In noisy urban areas, many birds sing songs with higher minimum frequencies, which can avoid the masking effects of anthropogenic noise. However, the mechanism for an individual to alter spectral aspects of bird song in real time to avoid the masking effect of urban noise is unknown. Immediate flexibility is the ability a bird may use to shifts their song frequency or amplitude in response to noise fluctuations in the environment. Some species that sing higher frequency songs in noisy habitats are not able …

Remotely Sensed High-Resolution Soil Moisture And Evapotranspiration: Bridging The Gap Between Science And Society, Jingyi Huang, Vinit Sehgal, Laura V. Alvarez, Luca Brocca, Shuohao Cai, Rui Cheng, Xinghua Cheng, Jinyang Du, Bassil El Masri, K. Arthur Endsley, Yilin Fang, Jie Hu, Mahesh Jampani, Md Golam Kibria, Gerbrand Koren, Lingcheng Li, Laibao Liu, Jiafu Mao, Hernan A. Moreno, Angela Rigden, Mingjie Shi, Xiaoying Shi, Yaoping Wang, Xi Zhang, Joshua B. Fisher

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

This paper reviews the current state of high-resolution remotely sensed soil moisture (SM) and evapotranspiration (ET) products and modeling, and the coupling relationship between SM and ET. SM downscaling approaches for satellite passive microwave products leverage advances in artificial intelligence and high-resolution remote sensing using visible, near-infrared, thermal-infrared, and synthetic aperture radar sensors. Remotely sensed ET continues to advance in spatiotemporal resolutions from MODIS to ECOSTRESS to Hydrosat and beyond. These advances enable a new understanding of bio-geo-physical controls and coupled feedback mechanisms between SM and ET reflecting the land cover and land use at field scale (3–30 m, daily). …

New Mexico Cooper's Hawk Demographic Study: 2024 Annual Report, Brian A. Millsap Dr.

New Mexico Cooper’s Hawk: Publications

The 2024 Annual Report for a long-term (2011 -  present) demographic study of Cooper's hawks (Astur cooperii) in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Assessment Of Lake Salvador Shoreline Dynamics To Support Restoration Of Submerged Aquatic Vegetation In Jean Lafitte National Historical Park And Preserve, Louisiana, Lydia V. Dipaola

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

High wave energy degrades shoreline habitat between Lake Salvador and Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve (JELA), Louisiana. JELA constructed a northern breakwater in 2004, and a southern breakwater in 2024 to protect the shoreline and promote restoration of submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV). This study analyzes Sentinel-2 imagery to quantify coastal loss along the JELA-Lake Salvador using the Change Polygon Approach, assessing annual, cumulative and major storm event-associated shoreline changes for January 2017-2025. SAV cover, nekton diversity, wave energy, and turbidity were measured before-and-after southern breakwater construction to monitor ecological and environmental outcomes. The JELA-Lake Salvador shoreline has lost …

A Genetic And Spatial Analysis Of The Last Megafaunal Species (Tapirus Terrestris) In The Paraguayan Dry Chaco Forest, Emily Bowers

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Ghosts In Glass: Ghost Crabs As Judges Of Glass Sand For Coastal Restoration, Emily Parrish

Honors Theses

Over 60% of the Gulf of Mexico coastline is actively eroding, which has resulted in thousands of miles of lost coastline over the last 100 years. This drastic loss of coastal land highlights the dire need for coastal restoration across the entirety of the Gulf Coast. A vital aspect of restoring these eroded areas is replenishing eroded substrate, traditionally conducted through offshore dredging of substrates which comes with high economic and ecological costs. Recycled glass sand may be able to fill this role and reduce our reliance on dredging while lowering the amount of glass waste entering landfills each year. …

Chromosome Evolution Model Reveals Hidden Variation In Karyotype-Driven Speciation In Ferns, Thomas Buchloh

All Theses

Because karyotype change commonly generates reproductive isolation between diverging species, rapid karyotype evolution, like that seen in plants, may increase the total rate of diversification. However, few studies have investigated this predicted relationship. Tests of this prediction have identified a positive correlation between the rate of karyotype change (specifically whole genome duplications) and diversification, but tests have been restricted to relatively small and young clades. Fortunately, novel macroevolutionary models have recently become available to investigate patterns of karyotype evolution in large phylogenies, providing new opportunity to investigate variation in karyotype driven diversification. Ferns are one of the most karyotype rich …

Understanding Factors That Drive Wildlife Mortality During Prescribed Fire Management Of Prairie Restorations, Hunter M. Griffey

Crop, Soil and Environmental Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

Fire is a key ecological disturbance, which plays a vital role in maintaining biodiversity and early successional species. For today’s land managers, prescribed fire is key in the restoration and maintenance of prairie ecosystems, halting woody encroachment and creating habitat desperately needed by many species. However, fire may have unintended effects on wildlife populations through direct mortality. Among taxa living in fire-dependent ecosystems, reptiles are predisposed to direct mortality, and several studies have recorded significant mortality during prescribed burns. However, the few studies investigating reptile mortality in prescribed fire are limited by small sample sizes and generally have limited analysis …

Impacts Of Climate Change On Cannibalism And Disease Transmission In The Fall Armyworm, Kale Rougeau

LSU Master's Theses

Climate change may alter host-pathogen dynamics in terrestrial ecosystems due to rising global temperatures and carbon dioxide levels. Here, we examined cannibalism and disease transmission using the fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda), an invasive agricultural pest, and its species-specific lethal baculovirus, Spodoptera frugiperda multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus (SfMNPV), under various potential challenges of climate change. We used three temperature treatments (cooler, optimal, warmer) based on the fall armyworm’s thermal performance curve to simulate a changing climate and four artificial diets with various protein-to-carbohydrate ratios (low, equal, high, standard) to manipulate resource quality from altered carbon dioxide levels. We found that higher …