Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology Commons^™

The Effect Of Nitrogen Fertilization On The Phenology Of Roots In A Barrier Island Sand Dune Community, Everett P. Weber

Biological Sciences Theses & Dissertations

Little work has been done on the phenology of root growth and senescence largely due to methodological difficulties. The application of minirhizotron technology has enabled the tracking of individual roots through an entire growing season. As a result, direct measures of turnover, root growth, and an analysis of cohorts were made. Small plots on a 36 year old dune on Hog Island, a barrier island in the Virginia Coast Reserve Long Term Ecological Research Site, were fertilized with nitrogen. Minirhizotron tubes were installed in each fertilized and control plot. Each tube was sampled monthly for nine months, March through October …

Seasonal Composition Of Mesozooplankton In The Pagan River, A Nutrient Enriched Virginia Estuary, Lillian Norman Davis

Biological Sciences Theses & Dissertations

A two year study of the mesozooplankton composition and seasonal distribution was conducted in the Pagan River, a nutrient rich tidal estuary and tributary to the lower James River. The mesozooplankton was dominated by calanoid copepods (80%), with the total zooplankton abundance peaks occurring during spring and fall. The total mean abundance, 3008/m', was somewhat lower than those found by other authors, however the mean abundance at one station approximated those means. Seventy-eight percent of the calanoid copepods were Acartia spp. that were primarily responsible for the fall increase in mesozooplankton abundance. The spring increase was primarily due to increases …

Seasonal Phytoplankton Dynamics In The Pagan River, David Wade Seaborn

Biological Sciences Theses & Dissertations

The composition and seasonal abundance patterns for phytoplankton in the Pagan River, Virginia, were determined. This river is characterized as a nutrient enriched system with annual mean levels of total nitrogen and phosphorus at 1.8 and 0.8 mg/I respectively. Three phytoplankton maxima occurred during the year with the highest in fall, followed by summer and spring peaks. A diatom flora was dominant throughout the year at concentrations of 107 to 108 cells/I. Other algal populations exhibited distinct periods of abundance, which seasonally varied in magnitude and time of development. Turbidity levels were high throughout the year, with a mean secchi …

Aboveground Biomass And Net Primary Production Along A Virginia Barrier Island Dune Chronosequence, John Joseph Dilustro

Biological Sciences Theses & Dissertations

Aboveground biomass was examined along a chronosequence of dune communities on Hog Island, a Virginia Coast Reserve LTER site. The dominant species were Ammophila breviligulata and Spartina patens. Aboveground biomass was harvested monthly from ten quadrats on dunes 6, 24, 36, and 120 years old. Sampling was conducted from April to November 1993. Biomass values were greater for younger dunes. Total aboveground biomass decreased with increasing site age and ranged from 152 g m^-2 on the 120 year old dune to 205 g m^-2 on the 6 year old dune in October 1993. Spartina patens biomass was …

Eutrophication And Macrobenthic Communities Of The Lower Chesapeake Bay: Effects Of Organic Enrichment In Pocomoke Sound, Saxis Virginia, Janice D. Mcdonnell

Biological Sciences Theses & Dissertations

The effects of organic enrichment on benthic community structure were evaluated in a field study conducted in Pocomoke Sound in the vicinity of a seafood processing plant. The empirically derived Species Abundance and Biomass (SAB) curves of Pearson and Rosenberg (1978) were used to model patterns of organic enrichment at the study site, called Pig Point, as well as two reference sites located within Pocomoke Sound. The Split Moving Windows (SMW) method was used to detect the ecotone point as defined in the Pearson and Rosenberg (1978) model and the Two Term Local Quadrat Variance (TTLQV) method was used to …

Open Corridors In A Heavily Forested Landscape: Impact On Shrubland And Forest-Interior Birds, Robert A. Askins

Biology Faculty Publications

In eastern North America, remnant patches of forest surrounded by open habitat constitute unfavorable habitat for many species of migratory forest birds because of high rates of nest predation and cowbird parasitism. Although most evidence for this relationship comes from 'forest islands' surrounded by residential or agricultural land, even forest patches isolated from other forests by narrow open corridors such as roads and powerline rights-of-way seem to show this pattern. Productive habitat for migratory birds can be maintained by consolidating corridors and routing them along the periphery of forests to retain as much continuous forest as possible. Consolidation of open …

Effect Of Sewage Effluent On Bird Abundance And Species Composition In A Northern Minnesota Wetland, Joann M. Hanowski, Gerald J. Niemi

Journal of the Minnesota Academy of Science

Bird abundance was monitored before (1985 and 1987) and after (1989) sewage wastewater effluent was added to a northern Minnesota wetland. Community parameters (i.e., number of individuals and species richness) varied annually, but, overall bird communities in 1985 and 1989 were more similar to each other than they were to the 1987 community. Relative abundance of 35 bird species was unchanged between years and species abundance ranks were not different between years. Distribution of numbers of individuals (relative percent) within nesting and foraging guilds (species that have similar nesting or feeding requirements) was similar among years. Numbers of species that …

Additions And Confirmations To The Algal Flora Of Itasca State Park Ii. Diatoms From Chambers Creek, Mark B. Edlund

Journal of the Minnesota Academy of Science

A survey of the summer diatom flora of Chambers Creek, Clearwater County, Minnesota, is presented, continuing an inventory of the algal flora from Itasca State Park. Chambers Creek is a short, second-order, hardwater stream with great habitat diversity and a rich algal flora. One hundred and twenty-six diatom taxa representing 45 genera are reported, with many new reports from the park. Recent taxonomic revisions have been incorporated into this study and seven new nomenclatural combinations proposed.

An Inventory And Condition Survey Of The Murchison River Catchment, Western Australia, Peter James Curry, A L. Payne, K A. Leighton, P Hennig, D A. Blood

Technical Bulletins

The inventory and condition survey of the Murchison River catchment and surrounds, undertaken by the Department of Agriculture between 1985 and 1988, describes and maps the natural resources of the region’s pastoral leasehold land. This survey report provides a baseline record of the existence and condition of the natural area’s resources, to assist with the planning and implementation of land management practices. The report identified and described the condition of soils, landforms, vegetation, habitat, ecosystems, and declared plants and animals. It also assessed the impact of pastoralism and made land management recommendations. The area surveyed by field work during 1985-88 …

An Inventory And Condition Survey Of Rangelands In The North-Eastern Goldfields, Western Australia, H J. Pringle, S A. Gilligan, A M E Van Vreeswyk

Technical Bulletins

The inventory and condition survey of the north-eastern Goldfields, undertaken by the Department of Agriculture and Food, Western Australia (DAFWA) between 1988 and 1990, describes and maps the natural resources of the region’s pastoral leasehold land. This survey report provides a baseline record of the existence and condition of the natural area’s resources, to assist with the planning and implementation of land management practices. The report identified and described the condition of soils, landforms, vegetation, habitat, ecosystems, and declared plants and animals. It also assessed the impact of pastoralism and made land management recommendations. The area surveyed covers about 100 …

Sport Fisheries Of The Belgrade Lakes, Maine Department Of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife

Maine Collection

Sport Fisheries of the Belgrade Lake

Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife, Augusta, Maine 1994.

Contents: Belgrade Lakes Chain, Some Vital Statistics / Some Features of the Seven Major Waters of the Belgrade Chain of Lakes / A Partial List of Fish Species That Occur in the Major Waters of the Belgrade Chain of Lakes / East Pond Oakland and Smithfield / Great Pond Oakland, Belgrade, and Rome / Long Pond Mt. Vernon, Rome, and Belgrade / Messalonskee Lake Oakland and Belgrade / North Pond Smithfield, Rome, and Mercer / Salmon Lake and McGrath Pond Belgrade and Oakland

Reproductive Biology And Early Life History Of Fishes In The Ohio River Drainage, Vol. 2, Larry K. Kay, Robert Wallus, Bruce L. Yeager

Ohio River Fish

No abstract provided.

Recruitment Of Coral Reef Fishes To Bermuda: Local Retention Or Long-Distance Transport?, Eric T. Schultz, Robert K. Cowen

EEB Articles

The benthic marine fauna of isolated oceanic islands may be self-seeding, or alternatively may be continually supplied with recruits advected from elsewhere by ocean currents. Estimates of the time required for transport of larvae from elsewhere was combined with information on the larval durations of fishes inhabiting the reefs of Bermuda, to test the hypothesis that other populations are sources for recruits to Bermuda. Specifically, we tested the prediction that transport occurs frequently enough to sustain local populations of reef fishes. Transport of larvae was modelled as a 2-step process in several numerical simulations. The first step of transport was …

Diversity Of Vascular Plants And Intensity Of Plant Collecting In Nebraska, Robert B. Kaul, Steven B. Rolfsmeier

Transactions of the Nebraska Academy of Sciences and Affiliated Societies

A computerized database of Nebraska's flora has been made from specimens in 20 herbaria. Almost 1,900 species of native and escaped-alien vascular plants have been collected in the state since the mid-1800s. The flora of some counties is very well known but that of many counties, especially southwestern and Sandhills counties, is poorly collected. More than 800 species (nearly 100% of the species that are likely to occur) have been collected from each of Cherry, Douglas, Lancaster, and Richardson counties, but fewer than 150 species are known from Fillmore and McPherson counties, less than 25% of the potential number species …

Long-Range Dispersal Of A Red-Cockaded Woodpecker, Warren G. Montague, George A. Bukenhofer

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

No abstract provided.

Pre-Spawning Migration Of Channel Catfish Into Three Warmwater Tributaries-Effects Of A Cold Tailwater, Gary L. Siegwarth, James E. Johnson

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

Spring migrations of channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) into the Kings, Mulberry and Buffalo rivers, Arkansas, were compared to determine adult catfish migration into a warm water river that flows into a cold tailwater. The Buffalo River flows into a cold tailwater reach of the White River and supports a sparse channel catfish population compared to similar rivers in the region that do not flow into cold tailwaters. This is an important factor because many recent studies have demonstrated that channel catfish make pre-spawning migrations into tributary streams and may contribute significantly to tributary populations. To assess channel catfish migration, hoop …

An Evaluation Of Benthic Macroinvertebrate Community Structure And Sediment Toxicity In Lake Taylorville, Sanhita Datta

Masters Theses

Sediments act as a "sink" for xenobiotics which can be accumulated by a variety of organisms and thereby enter the food chain contaminating fish, wildlife and humans. Although the chemical nature of these substances can be known by direct chemical analysis of the sediments, the significance of the contaminants and their bioavailability should be determined through bioassay techniques. A survey of the benthic macroinvertebrates of Lake Taylorville, a reservoir in central Illinois which is fed by two rivers that drain a primarily agricultural area, revealed a rather depauperate fauna. Subsequent studies were conducted in order to identify the underlying cause …

Zooplankton Community Structure As A Function Of Abiotic And Biotic Factors Prior To A Multiphased Restoration Effort, John H. Ensign Jr.

Masters Theses

Lake Taylorville, an impoundment on the South Fork of the Sangamon River, is located just south of Taylorville in Christian County, Illinois. The tributaries of this reservoir drain primarily agricultural areas and contribute to degradation of the reservoir through excessive sediment and nutrient loading. A restoration project is underway which involves construction of sediment basins and dry dams. Analysis of the crustacean zooplankton community has formed an integral part of an intensive limnological investigation of the reservoir during the initial stages of the restoration effort. Seasonal variation in the composition, and density of the major groups was observed. Rotifers (Brachionus …

Spatial Distributions Of Three Species Of Desmognathus In A North Carolina Stream, James J. English, Alvan A. Karlin, Laurie D. Lacer

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

Salamanders of the family Plethodontidae comprise the most common salamanders in eastern North America. It is not uncommon for more than 10 plethodontid species to occur syntopically in one creek. The purpose of this research was to determine whether the spatial distribution of one species affected the spatial distribution of other species. Geographic Information System technology and nearest-neighbor analyses were used to determine the spatial distributions of three species of the salamander genus Desmognathus. The analysis demonstrates that D. ochrophaeus and D. monticola change their spatial use from a random distribution during the day to a clumped distribution during evening …

Long-Term Study Of Benthos In Dardanelle Reservoir, John D. Rickett, Robert L. Watson

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

Winter, spring, summer, and autumn samples were collected with a 15.24x15.24-cm Ekman grab from five stations on Dardanelle Reservoir, Pope County, Arkansas during the 24-year period from 1970-1993. Twenty-three taxa representing the eight phyla, Cnidaria, Nematoda, Nematomorpha, Entoprocta, Ectoprocta, Mollusca, Annelida, and Arthropoda, were collected. Numerically, oligochaetes comprised 36%, whereas chironomid larvae, Chaoborus larvae, and Hexagenia naiads mad up 29.7, 17, and 12%, respectively, of the samples. Asiatic clams, fingernail clams, amphipods, and Urnatella were collected frequently during the last 10 years but were not abundant. Other taxa were taken infrequently but consistently during the study period. Densities of all …

Pleistocene And Halocene Remains From The Red River, Southwest Arkansas, Terry A. Sanders

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

Vertebrate remains have been found on gravel bars of the Red River in southwest Arkansas, northeast Louisiana, and east Texas. The majority of these specimens were recovered by amateur archaeologists and Dr. Frank Schambach of the Arkansas Archaeology Survey. Extinct species of bison (Bison sp.), mastodon (Mammut americanum), pampathere (Holmesina septentrionalis), llama (Palaeolama mirifica), tortoises (Geochelone sp.), and (Terrapene sp.) indicate a Pleistocene component in the region's alluvium. The giant tortoise, pampathere, and llama represent first known occurrences of these species for the state of Arkansas. Search times between finds were recorded for seven localities. The richest gravel bar averaged …

Renewal And Recovery: Shortleaf Pine /Bluestem Grass Ecosystem And Red-Cockaded Woodpeckers, George A. Bukenhofer, Joseph C. Neal, Warren G. Montague

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

No abstract provided.

Distributional Records Of The Badger (Taxidea Taxus) In Arkansas, Michael E. Cartwright, Gary A. Heidt

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

No abstract provided.

First Record Of The Channel Shiner, Notropis Wickliffi Trautman, In Arkansas And Comments On The Current River Populations Of Notropis Volucellus (Cope), Henry W. Robison, Thomas M. Buchanan

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

No abstract provided.

The Near-Shore, Soft-Substrate Bivalves Of The Swan Estuary: An Assessment Of Their Use As Biological Indicators, Graham Bailey

Theses : Honours

The soft-substrate bivalves of the Swan Estuary were evaluated for their suitability as biological indicators. The major requirement of a biological indicator is that a response to changing conditions can be shown. Demonstrating that bivalve community and populations respond to changing environmental conditions within The Estuary would fulfill this criteria. To make this assessment the study conducted a quantitative sampling program which established the current structure of the near-shore soft-substrate bivalve community and this was compared with the community established in 1973-74. To evaluate the predictive potential of bivalve structure as an indicator, major environmental conditions in the Estuary were …

Identification Of Tire Leachate Toxicants And A Risk Assessment Of Water Quality Effects Using Tire Reefs In Canals, S. M. Nelson, G. Mueller, D. C. Hemphill, U.S. Bureau Of Reclamation

Publications (WR)

Cover is an important component of aquatic habitat and fisheries management. Fisheries biologists often try to improve habitats through the addition of natural and artificial material to improve cover diversity and complexity. Habitat-improvement programs range from submerging used Christmas trees to more complex programs using sophisticated artificial habitat modules. Used automobile tires have been employed in the large scale construction of reefs and fish attractors in marine environments and to a lesser extent in freshwater and have been recognized as a durable, inexpensive and long-lasting material which benefits fishery communities.

Recent studies by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation have quantified …

Terrapene Carolina Carolina, Joseph C. Mitchell, Rafael O. De Sá

Biology Faculty Publications

TERRAPENE CAROLINA CAROLINA (Eastern Box Turtle). REPRODUCTION. Female Terrapene carolina containing oviductal eggs have been recorded in Virginia from 26 May to 25 July (Mitchell, in press. The Reptiles of Virginia. Smithsonian Inst. Press, Washington, D.C.). Other reports of reproduction in Terrapene (see list in Ernst and McBreen 1991. Cat. Amer. Amphib. Rept. 512.1-512.13) indicate that nesting occurs in late spring and early summer throughout its range.

Fifteen Years Of Colony Dynamics In Pogonomyrmex Occidentalis, The Western Harvester Ant, In Western Nebraska, Kathleen H. Keeler

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Ecological communities respond to environ- mental changes as the individuals of the component species die and are replaced. Thus, pat- terns of population turnover form an important aspect of community processes. Much less is known about species of long-lived individuals than of short-lived ones (Likens, 1989).

Instantaneous observations of age structure can be used to infer long-term dynamics but not all species can be aged retrospectively. Inferring life- history dynamics from current populations requires assumptions that are hard to verify. Following marked colonies of long-lived species is slow but provides direct, non-inferential data on population dynamics, although those are specific …

The Influence Of Temperature Salinity And Postlarval Transport On The Distribution Of Juvenile Spiny Lobsters, Panulirus Argus, In Florida Bay, Jennifer Marie Field

Biological Sciences Theses & Dissertations

Florida Bay is a major nursery for the Caribbean spiny lobster, Panulirus argus. The Bay contains a series of hardbottom or seagrass-covered basins separated by mudbanks, which serve as barriers to water circulation and presumably to transport of postlarvae. Temperatures can fluctuate dramatically in the basins and salinities range from 35 ppt to > 50 ppt. In this study I: i) investigated the physiological tolerance of spiny lobster postlarvae to combinations of temperature and salinity representative of conditions in Florida Bay, and ii) examined how postlarval availability and habitat structure influence spiny lobster recruitment into basins. I measured juvenile lobster …

Phytoplankton Assemblages Associated With A Bloom Of Ptychodiscus Brevis Off The North Carolina Coast, Traycie Lea West

Biological Sciences Theses & Dissertations

A bloom of the dinoflagellate Ptychodiscus brevis occurred off the North Carolina coast in late 1987, and samples were forwarded by NOAA to the Old Dominion University Phytoplankton Laboratory for total phytoplankton analysis. Six sampling stations were chosen to represent different bloom scenarios and these six were clustered into three site groups based on the concentrations of statistically significant taxa. Abundances of phytoplankton taxonomic groups over time were examined in relation to P. brevis concentrations to identify any general tendencies. These results indicated the total phytoplankton concentration, and most taxonomic groups, increased at all three site groups regardless of the …