Forest Biology Commons^™

Avian Communities Monitored Along A Successional Chronosequence In Bottomland Hardwood Forests In The Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley, Eamonn Alasdair Thurmond

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Bottomland hardwood forests in the Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley have been extensively reduced due to agriculture conversion and altered hydrology. Remnant forests have undergone further degradation from sources such as a lack of forest management, invasive species, and reduced regeneration of oaks (Quercus spp.). Recent restoration efforts of bottomland hardwood forests have focused on implementing wildlife forestry practices that prioritize restoring wildlife habitat while retaining profitable timber harvests. In this study I surveyed bird communities in bottomland hardwood forests in the Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley along a successional chronosequence. Birds were sampled using automated recording units over 10 days …

A Seasonal Decomposition Comparison Between Forest And Turf Habitats: Implications For Climate Change, Amanda Shirmer

DePaul Discoveries

Decomposition is an essential ecosystem service in which microorganisms breakdown organic matter. This process improves soil health and acts as a vital step in global carbon cycles. In this study, we examined decomposition rates and associated soil properties in turf and forest habitats across summer and fall seasons in order to determine how land management practices and climate change may be altering local decomposition regimes. Our study determined that there was a statistically significant difference between decomposition rates in turf and forest ecosystems (P=0.003) and a significant difference in decomposition rate across season (P

New York City’S Rising Sea Level And Coastal Erosion: Approaches To Resiliency, Ryder D. Isidro

Student Theses 2015-Present

No abstract provided.

Effects Of Cogongrass Invasion On Soil Biota And Nutrient Loads In A Longleaf Pine Savanna, Jordan Werneth

Honors Theses

The longleaf pine (Pinus palustris) ecosystem, characterized by its namesake pine species and diverse community of understory vegetation, is a hotspot of biodiversity in the southeastern United States. The longleaf pine savanna is differentiated from other longleaf systems through the combination its unique assemblage of herbaceous understory vegetation, wide-open canopy, and distinct hydrogeological composition. Longleaf pine ecosystems, including savannas, are facing significant decline from their historic range due to anthropogenic interference including fire suppression, habitat fragmentation, deforestation, and the introduction of invasive species such as cogongrass (Imperita cylindrica).

Cogongrass, a nonnative grass species introduced to the …

Utilization Of The Hunt Trap Method To Investigate A Small Mammal Community In An Upland Pine Stand, Leo Montano

Undergraduate Research Conference

Small mammals are strong and informative biological indicators of forest ecosystems. Populations are responsible for shaping successional patterns through their diets, behaviors, and contributions to other ecological communities.

Knowledge of community metrics within southern yellow pine forests under varying production and disturbance regimes can be valuable in understanding pine production impacts on biodiversity.

The objective of this study was to investigate species richness, time to detection, and activity patterns of the small mammal community in an upland pine stand utilizing the Hunt Trap Method.

Effects Of Treated Effluent Discharge On Tree Water Use And Growth In A Cypress Swamp., Devin Schexnayder

LSU Master's Theses

Inundated baldcypress (Taxodium distichum) trees generally respond to secondarily-treated and disinfected municipal effluent additions with increased growth rates and reduced mortality. Yet, the effects of effluent additions on the water-use and functional traits of inundated mature baldcypress are poorly understood. Because increased tree growth is associated with increased water use, effluent additions may affect the water budget in coastal swamps by increasing water uptake from the rhizosphere due to increased tree transpiration. I used sap flux density (f_d) measurements to assess water-use traits and tree-level daily transpiration (E) in seven mature inundated baldcypress trees that had …

Vascular Epiphyte Population Dynamics Within Human-Modified Landscapes Of Guadalupe, Cerro Punta, Chiriquí, Panamá, Lucine Tashjian

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Epiphytes are plants that grow on other plants non-parasitically, and globally, epiphytes compose a very large and diverse group. They are especially abundant and species-rich in the tropics- particularly, in tropical montane forest ecosystems. Human population growth in the tropics, however, has resulted in significant declines in forest cover with land being converted largely for agricultural purposes. Studies on epiphytes have traditionally been undertaken in pristine, undisturbed forest ecosystems, yet terrestrial land conversion has increased the need to understand the value of human-modified ecosystems for epiphytic populations and biodiversity conservation. This study sought to understand the relationship between human modification …

Mushroom Composition Across An Elevational Gradient During The 2024 Wet Season In Mazumbai Forest Reserve, Tanzania, Christopher Brady

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Mushrooms are key bioindicators that contribute greatly to ecological health, and their diversity is indicative of a healthy ecosystem. However, even with the vital role they play in ecological health, there are few studies which measure the diversity of mushrooms in Mazumbai Forest Reserve (MFR), Tanzania, Africa, and none which focus on diversity along the elevational gradient within the reserve (1300-1900m). This study measures the diversity and equitability of mushrooms growing in six elevational zones within MFR during the rainy season of 2024. A species checklist of mushrooms growing in MFR during the 2024 rainy season was created, tracking the …

An Ecological Analysis Of The Elevational Gradient Effect On Mushroom Community Diversity Near Andasibe, Madagascar, Zoe Garver

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The effect of elevational gradients on biodiversity has been widely studied in the field of ecology (Rahbek, 1995). The evidence supports a trend for highest biodiversity at mid latitudes and decreasing biodiversity as elevation increases (Rahbek, 1997; Grytnes, 2003; Hariharan and Buckley, 2022). This effect has primarily been explained by variation of temperatures and resource availability at different elevations. However, the effect that elevation plays on fungal communities is relatively underrepresented in the literature (Dahlberg, 2001). This study analyzes changes in mushroom diversity across an elevational gradient in Mitsinjo Reserve and Analamazaotra National Park found in Madagascar. Using the Braun-Blanquet …

El Retamo Espinoso (Ulex Europeaus L.) En La Provincia Del Sumapaz, Arlette Ivonne Gil Clavijo, Jenny Paola Moreno Lopez, Laguandio Del Cristo Banda Sánchez, Alba Gissela Fajardo Ortiz, Ángela Ginet Prieto Chitiva, Anyela Patricia Guaidia Gómez, César Alfonso Ariza Castillo, Daniela Rincón Garzón, Erika Katerina Romero González, Gloria Adriana Velosa Cruz, Héctor Emilio Tinjacá Torres, Iván Camilo Perilla Domínguez, Jader Yedfrey Rodríguez Velásquez, Juan Gabriel Niño Castillo, Juliana Andrea Martínez Chiguachi, Juliet Andrea Clavijo Giraldo, Karen Lorena Herrera Delgado, Lina Ximena Galindo Castillo, María Del Carmen Sierra Garzón, Natalia Arias Rodríguez, Odair Andrade Andrade

Ciencias Agropecuarias

El retamo espinoso ( Ulex europaeus L.), una planta europea altamente agresiva en Colombia, afecta los páramos y desplaza especies nativas, generando preocupación ecológica. Este estudio investiga su biología, a partir de un banco de semillas (113 semillas/m² a 5 cm), acumulación de biomasa (0,006732 g/día en 481 días), fenología en estado juvenil durante 378 días sin floración, y resultados preliminares del uso de herbicidas en los tallos. Estos datos iniciales son cruciales para desarrollar métodos de control, abordando disciplinas como ecología, fenología, hábitat, herbicidas, malezas, biodiversidad y bioseguridad.

Automated Tree Mortality Detection Using Ubiquitously Available Public Data, Michael T. Huggins

Master's Theses

Understanding the dynamic interplay between fire severity, topography, and tree mortality, is crucial for predicting future forest dynamics and enhancing resilience against climate change-induced wildfire regimes. This thesis develops a multi-sensor approach for automated estimation of tree mortality, then applies it to examine trends in tree mortality over a six-year period across a fire affected study site in the Trinity River basin in Northern California. The Random Forest model uses publicly available USGS 3D Elevation Program Lidar (3DEP) and NAIP imagery as inputs and is likely to be easily adaptable to other landscapes. The model had a Receiver Operating Characteristic …

Toward A Coordinated Understanding Of Hydro-Biogeochemical Root Functions In Tropical Forests For Application In Vegetation Models, Daniela F. Cusack, Bradley Christoffersen, Chris M. Smith-Martin, Kelly M. Andersen, Amanda L. Cordeiro, Katrin Fleischer, S. Joseph Wright, Nathaly R. Guerrero-Ramírez, Laynara F. Lugli, Lindsay A. Mcculloch, Mareli Sanchez-Julia, Sarah A. Batterman, Caroline Dallstream, Claire Fortunel, Laura Toro, Lucia Fuchslueger, Michelle Y. Wong, Daniela Yaffar, Joshua B. Fisher, Marie Arnaud, Lee H. Dietterich, Shalom D. Addo-Danso, Oscar J. Valverde-Barrantes, Monique Weemstra, Jing Cheng Ng, Richard J. Norby

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

Tropical forest root characteristics and resource acquisition strategies are underrepresented in vegetation and global models, hampering the prediction of forest–climate feedbacks for these carbon-rich ecosystems. Lowland tropical forests often have globally unique combinations of high taxonomic and functional biodiversity, rainfall seasonality, and strongly weathered infertile soils, giving rise to distinct patterns in root traits and functions compared with higher latitude ecosystems. We provide a roadmap for integrating recent advances in our understanding of tropical forest belowground function into vegetation models, focusing on water and nutrient acquisition. We offer comparisons of recent advances in empirical and model understanding of root characteristics …

Animal Conservation In St. Louis, Kate O'Sullivan

Undergraduate Research Symposium

St. Louis has a multitude of organizations involved in the natural sciences. But how many of them actually contribute towards animal conservation? The St. Louis Zoo is an organization that focuses a lot of its effort on presentation, so how does that impact the funds that go towards actually saving the animals? I plan to dive into the different animal-based organizations in St. Louis and its surrounding areas, as well as discuss the positives and negatives of each organization. Furthermore, I will provide examples from several sources that I have been reviewing all year to support my claims. I plan …

Environmental Biology Masters Capstone, Antonio Gonzalez-Pita

Regis University Student Publications (comprehensive collection)

Human wildlife interactions (HWI) pose a complex challenge for wildlife managers. Human encroachment into wildlife habitat and the growing number of outdoor recreationists are increasing the frequency of contact and conflict, especially in regions such as the Front Range of Colorado. Geographic information systems (GIS), which use a combination of remote sensing and environmental survey data, allow for predictive spatial analyses of where human wildlife interactions are likely to occur. I used publicly reported observations of moose to create spatial predictive maps in a species distribution model framework. Slope and elevation were shown to be the strongest predictors of HWI, …

Timber Talk, Vol. 62, No. 1, March 2024

Timber Talk: Nebraska Forest Industry Newsletter

Timber Talk, Vol. 62, No. 1, March 2024

Timber Talk, Vol. 62, No. 4, December 2024

Timber Talk: Nebraska Forest Industry Newsletter

Timber Talk, Vol. 62, No. 4, December 2024

Biology And Ecology Of Neonectria Magnoliae And Neonectria Punicea, Two Understudied Neonectria Species In West Virginia, Hannah Marie Petronek

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The family Nectriaceae includes numerous phytopathogenic fungi that cause canker diseases on both angiosperm and conifer hosts worldwide. Numerous Neonectria spp. cause cankers on hardwoods and conifers in North America, but their roles in contributing to tree decline and mortality outside of beech bark disease are largely understudied. One such pathogen, Neonectria magnoliae, causes perennial cankers on two native hosts in central Appalachia: Fraser magnolia (Magnolia fraseri) and tulip-poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera). We also recently confirmed N. magnoliae from non-native star magnolia (Magnolia stellata) in West Virginia. Both native hosts occur in the central …

Timber Talk, Vol. 62, No. 2, June 2024

Timber Talk: Nebraska Forest Industry Newsletter

Timber Talk, Vol. 62, No. 2, June 2024

Timber Talk, Vol. 62, No. 3, September 2024

Timber Talk: Nebraska Forest Industry Newsletter

Timber Talk, Vol. 62, No. 3, September 2024

Assessing Understory Vegetation Response And Fuel Load Levels Following Silvicultural Treatments In Headwaters Forest Reserve, Humboldt County, California, Kyle James Railton, Madison Tatar

Undergraduate Scholarship

Old growth forests are important for ecological resilience, especially in temperate rainforest ecosystems. There are presently 3,000 acres of old growth forest within the 7,472 acres of the Headwaters Forest Reserve (HFR) in Humboldt County, California. Remaining acres were subjected to unsustainable logging practices, such as clearcutting, that resulted in a severely overstocked second-growth forest. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) created a management plan for the reserve to restore previously harvested areas to their historic condition. The goal for the BLM is to accelerate growth rates of residual forests, to align them on a trajectory of achieving old-growth forest …

The Effects Of Experimental Warming On Root Respiration And The Fungal Community Of Tropical Forest Soil, Malik A. Sankofa

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Climate induced changes in tropical forests fungal communities could impact diversity and abundance, forest health, and carbon release/sequestration. Under warmer soil temperatures and over time, we hypothesized that arbuscular mycorrhizal, pathogen, saprotroph diversity and abundance would increase, that ectomycorrhizal and overall fungal diversity and abundance would decrease, and that root respiration would be unaffected. Experimental warming (+2-3 ℃) was conducted on root ingrowth cores at the Tropical Responses to Altered Climate Experiment (TRACE) in Puerto Rico. ITS2 metabarcoding was used to analyze fungal diversity and abundance in control or warmed root/soil samples. We found that warming decreased arbuscular mycorrhizal diversity, …

Quantifying The Ecological Effects Of Salix Fragilis On Riparian Habitat In Kittitas County, Washington, Landon Shaffer

All Master's Theses

Invasive species threaten plant community structure and function globally. Riparian areas, the zone near streams where water influences vegetation, are especially sensitive to invasive species colonization, suffering large-scale shifts in community composition. Salix fragilis (crack willow) is a nonnative riparian species abundant in the lower elevation tributaries of central Washington. Some speculate whether this willow should be listed as invasive in Washington, despite a lack of regional supporting evidence. I studied riparian communities dominated by either S. fragilis or native species in the Kittitas Valley and measured biodiversity, quantified differences in solar attenuation, and compared leaf decomposition rates to learn …

Movement Behavior And Metapopulation Connectivity Of Stream Salamanders In Response To Disturbance Events, Kathryn M. Greene

Theses and Dissertations--Biology

Metapopulations are shaped by the dispersal between populations in a landscape. Disturbance events can disrupt this connectivity resulting in local population extinction. For my dissertation, I used a combination of empirical and theoretical techniques to examine dispersal in response to disturbance and assessed it’s population-level consequences. My research used capture-mark-recapture sampling techniques to evaluate stream salamander movement in response to (1) a supraseasonal drought and (2) mountaintop-removal-mining (MTR) and valley-filling (VF) and (3) agent-based simulation modeling to evaluate population extinction risk in response to varying dispersal and mortality rates.

First, I evaluated the effects of a supraseasonal drought, a severe …

Leaf To Canopy Functional Resilience: Plant Physiological And Carbon Cycling Stability Following Disturbances, Lisa T. Haber

Theses and Dissertations

Ecological disturbances impact core ecosystem functions, including production and biogeochemical cycling, by precipitating changes in biodiversity, physical environmental variables, vegetation structure, and functional trait distributions. As disturbance patterns intensify and abruptly transition to novel regimes under global change, future trajectories of ecosystem functions, including carbon (C) uptake and storage, are uncertain. A more complete understanding of the mechanisms underpinning ecosystem stability (or ability to return to baseline functioning) following disturbance is needed to forecast future C cycling.

Replicated ecosystem-scale disturbance experiments, particularly when coupled with modeling, are required to rigorously test hypothesized trajectories of ecosystem structural and functional change following …

Influence Of Landscape Characteristics On Eastern Gray Treefrog (Hyla Versicolor) Occupancy Within Managed Forests Of Pennsylvania And Virginia, Susanna G. Sousa

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Understanding the characteristics that influence amphibian occupancy within forest ecosystems is necessary for effective conservation and management. My study focused on how eastern gray treefrog (Hyla versicolor) occupancy is influenced by environmental attributes quantified at various spatial extents. From May through July 2020 and 2021, we deployed autonomous recording units at 986 unique locations within managed forests in Pennsylvania and Virginia. Landcover class and road density were evaluated around each sampling location at ten spatial extents between 60 and 4000 m. Additionally, I measured aspect, elevation, soil drainage class, distance to nearest wetland, and basal area at each …

Longevity Of Prescribed Fire Effectiveness In Mixed-Evergreen Forests Of The Klamath Mountains, Kaily M. Fineran

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Prescribed fire is a common management tool used across the western United States to create wildfire-resilient ecosystems and communities. The Klamath Mountains of northern California, USA has experienced numerous, large wildfires in recent years. This is due in part to a combination of highly flammable fuels, uncharacteristic weather events, and high fuel accumulations as a result of fire exclusion and forest management practices. Within the last decade, local land management organizations and the Karuk Tribe have begun re-introducing prescribed fire in low elevation, mixed evergreen forests. While the long-term effects of fuel treatments are not well-known, these efforts provided a …

Investigating Birds As Dispersal Vectors Of Litylenchus Crenatae Subsp. Mccannii (Anguinidae), The Nematode Associated With Beech Leaf Disease, Spencer Rock Parkinson

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Beech leaf disease (BLD) is an emerging forest pathogen primarily affecting American beech (Fagus grandifolia, Ehrh.) in North America and has been attributed to tree mortality of sapling sized trees within five to seven years of infection. Symptoms typically occur in regenerating American beech thickets sprouting from roots of trees killed by beech bark disease. Scientists first observed BLD in Ohio in 2012 and currently has spread to 15 states in the USA and one Canadian province. The nematode Litylenchus crenatae subsp. mccannii (Lcm) is highly associated with BLD symptoms, interveinal chlorosis and defoliation of leaves, and is currently …

Quantifying The Influences Of Abiotic And Biotic Factors On Post-Fire Vegetation In The Southwestern Us, Joseph Lafayette Crockett

Biology ETDs

The ongoing warming associated with climate change is increasing the flammability of southwestern US dry forests. As larger fractions of the landscape are impacted by high-severity fire, the potential exists for forests to convert to non-forest. Given that the forested area in the southwestern US is an important contributor of ecosystem services, quantifying limitations to vegetation establishment is critical to informing post-fire recovery efforts and understanding how ongoing climate change will limit seedling establishment in the future. To that end, this dissertation focuses on post-fire vegetation recovery of southwestern forests. First, I report on the influence of precipitation and topography …

Phenology Of Asian Longhorned Beetle (Anoplophora Glabripennis, Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) In South Carolina, U.S.A., Lena Schmitt

All Theses

A new population of the Asian longhorned beetle (Anoplophora glabripennis Motschulsky, hereafter ALB), an invasive species in the United States since 1996, was discovered in Charleston County, South Carolina in 2020. This population is the furthest south ALB has been found in North America and provides an opportunity to examine the phenology of this beetle in a novel climate. I collected 1009 eggs, larvae, pupae, and adult beetles from the federal quarantine zone in South Carolina and used larval head capsule widths to determine the rate of development and voltinism of ALB in South Carolina’s coastal climate. With this …

Germination Trends Of American Chaffseed, Schwalbea Americana L., And Factors Affecting First-Year Seedling Development, Trenton Miller

All Theses

Following centuries of exploitation and fire suppression, longleaf pine systems are now the focus of many conservation efforts. Efforts to restore populations of Schwalbea americana L. in longleaf pine savannas have been met with frustratingly low recruitment. While past studies have briefly quantified germination rates for Schwalbea, there have not been any studies yet that truly investigate this plant’s germination requirements. Additionally, there has been little research into characterizing the parasitic relationship between Schwalbea and its various host species. We conducted a germination study in a growth chamber that investigated Schwalbea’s germination rate and time to germinates as …