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Articles 1 - 21 of 21
Full-Text Articles in Forest Management
Distribution And Impact Of Cogongrass (Imperata Cylindrica) In Northern Mississippi, Carl R. Pulver V, Ryan E. Burke, Elizabeth Esser, Evan Moore, Ashley Schulz
Distribution And Impact Of Cogongrass (Imperata Cylindrica) In Northern Mississippi, Carl R. Pulver V, Ryan E. Burke, Elizabeth Esser, Evan Moore, Ashley Schulz
Endeavors: Mississippi State Undergraduate Research Journal
Cogongrass (Imperata cylindrica) is a non-native, rhizomatous grass that has invaded the southeastern United States. It forms dense mats that outcompete native plants, alters decomposition and microbial assemblages, and has highly flammable litter that alters fire behavior, affecting native plant communities. Though surveys for cogongrass have been conducted in southern Mississippi, the degree of cogongrass infestations in northern Mississippi has remained unclear and concerning. This study aimed to update cogongrass location data for the state and identify problem areas to guide state invasive plant management efforts. To provide a starting point, previously documented cogongrass locations were synthesized from natural history …
Growing Confidence: Women Forest Landowner Workshops In Georgia, Neil R. Dingley Jr., Nicholas E. Fuhrman, Kris Irwin, Elizabeth Mccarty
Growing Confidence: Women Forest Landowner Workshops In Georgia, Neil R. Dingley Jr., Nicholas E. Fuhrman, Kris Irwin, Elizabeth Mccarty
Journal of Human Sciences and Extension
The number of female forest landowners (FFLs) has been growing throughout the United States. This growth demands educational outreach for a demographic that is often behind their male counterparts in experience and education. The purpose of this exploratory study was to design and host educational workshops geared towards FFLs and to answer the following questions using quantitative and qualitative methods: (1) Are the workshops changing FFLs’ confidence in land management? (2) What are FFLs’ intentions after attending workshops? (3) Does confidence or participants’ intentions with their land vary with demographics? (4) Are workshops providing a platform to start FFL social …
Impacts Of Southern Pine Beetle (Dendroctonus Frontalis Zimmerman) On Loblolly Pine (Pinus Taeda L.) Canopy And Water Use In The Homochitto National Forest, Mississippi, Usa, Sasha Goodnow, Yun Yang, Hui Liu, Ashley Schulz
Impacts Of Southern Pine Beetle (Dendroctonus Frontalis Zimmerman) On Loblolly Pine (Pinus Taeda L.) Canopy And Water Use In The Homochitto National Forest, Mississippi, Usa, Sasha Goodnow, Yun Yang, Hui Liu, Ashley Schulz
Endeavors: Mississippi State Undergraduate Research Journal
Abiotic and biotic forest disturbances can have many impacts to forest ecosystem services, including to forest water use. Studies on impacts to forest evapotranspiration have been conducted on the mountain pine beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae) in western North America, but not on the southern pine beetle (Dendroctonus frontalis), which is a native pest of loblolly pine (Pinus taeda) and shortleaf pine (Pinus echinata), in the southeastern United States. Stressed pine trees produce pheromones that attract southern pine beetles and, with enough stressed trees, beetle populations can quickly grow to epidemic levels and attack healthy trees, which results in widespread tree mortality. …
Insights Into The Challenges Posed By Climate Change And Land Competition To Brazil’S Midwest Pulpwood Market, Roberto Hajime Sant Anna Kimura
Insights Into The Challenges Posed By Climate Change And Land Competition To Brazil’S Midwest Pulpwood Market, Roberto Hajime Sant Anna Kimura
Theses and Dissertations
I investigated the effect of climate change in one of the few expanding markets in the world in Brazil. In the last decades the demand for pulpwood increased from zero to 11 million tons, leading to an expansion of 700 thousand hectares of Eucalyptus plantation. In 2024, a new mill will start operating increasing the consumption of wood fiber by 8.2 million tons (+49%). I used mathematical programming to investigate how different scenarios of productivity and land will affect the market. My results showed that around 946,000 hectares (+124%) of additional timberland will be necessary in the upcoming decades. The …
Heirs' Property Disputes On Forestlands, Partition Actions, And The Determinants Of Court Verdicts, Mahesh Prasad Tiwari
Heirs' Property Disputes On Forestlands, Partition Actions, And The Determinants Of Court Verdicts, Mahesh Prasad Tiwari
Theses and Dissertations
Heirs' property is generated through the intergenerational transfer of a property to several co-owners when the original owner dies without a will. Such co-owners hold undivided fractional interest in the entire land but lack a clear title. Co-owners face several legal, financial, and technical constraints to manage the forestlands and often seek partition of the land. However, the legal environment and empirical assessment of partition actions on forestlands owned as heirs' property has not been examined. This thesis evaluates statutory laws relevant to forestland partition and the factors instrumental in adjudicating partition lawsuits. The findings reveal that partition lawsuits are …
Modeling The Effect Of Neighborhood Competition On Tree Diameter Growth In The Pacific Northwest Coast Range, Htet Lin Naing
Modeling The Effect Of Neighborhood Competition On Tree Diameter Growth In The Pacific Northwest Coast Range, Htet Lin Naing
Theses and Dissertations
Trees compete for various resources such as sunlight, water, and nutrients, which can be expressed as numerical terms, called competition indices (CI). Competition between individual trees is correlated with their growth and mortality. Therefore, CIs are used as independent variables to develop, improve and modify growth and yield models. This study was conducted to test the effect of neighborhood competition on tree diameter growth among Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco), western hemlock (Tsuga heterophylla (Raf.) Sarg) and red alder (Alnus rubra Bong.), in the Pacific Northwest Coast Range, USA. After testing seven distance-independent CIs and three distance-dependent …
Gene Expression Effects On Productivity And Stress Tolerance In Polyclonal Plantings Of Populus Deltoides, Macy Gosselaar
Gene Expression Effects On Productivity And Stress Tolerance In Polyclonal Plantings Of Populus Deltoides, Macy Gosselaar
Theses and Dissertations
Polyclonal plantings of Populus deltoides are expected to display increased site resource use, productivity, and tolerance to stress through plasticity changes leading to niche differentiation (i.e changes to crown/canopy structures). In the present study, P. deltoides Clones S7C8, 110412, and polyclonal plots were tested for differentially expressed genes and enriched biological pathways between planting schemes. Transcriptomic analysis of leaves revealed upregulation of an active growth gene and gene family members that play important roles in plant stress and stress tolerance in polyclonal plantings. A gene associated with oxidative stress was upregulated in polyclonal plantings across all treatments. Secondary metabolic pathways …
Leaf Area Index And Aboveground Biomass Estimation Of Populus And Its Hybrids Using Terrestrial Lidar, Surya Adhikari
Leaf Area Index And Aboveground Biomass Estimation Of Populus And Its Hybrids Using Terrestrial Lidar, Surya Adhikari
Theses and Dissertations
Short rotation woody crops (SRWC) eastern cottonwood (Populus deltoides) and hybrid poplar plantations were established in 2021 in Pontotoc and Oktibbeha counties of Mississippi to study the biomass potential of SRWC for biofuel production. We used a novel backpack LiDAR system to measure forest metrics and harvested sample trees to build aboveground biomass (AGB) and leaf area index (LAI) equations. The results showed that LiDAR-derived variables accurately estimated aboveground biomass (R2 =0.81 and 29.22 % RMSE). However, the LAI estimation results showed that the LiDAR metrics moderately explained field measurements of LAI (R2 =0.31 and 18.05% …
Maximum Size-Density Relationships In Mixed-Species And Monospecific Stands Of The Southeastern United States, Maxwell Robert Schrimpf
Maximum Size-Density Relationships In Mixed-Species And Monospecific Stands Of The Southeastern United States, Maxwell Robert Schrimpf
Theses and Dissertations
Maximum size-density relationships (MSDR) are used to quantify differences across sites in the number of trees of a given size and species that can be supported per hectare. These relationships are important to managers who are trying to maximize basal area and wood volume. In my study, I examined MSDR across Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Mississippi using US Forest Service, Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) data. I determined the impact of species-specific, specific gravity, functional traits, and environmental factors on MSDR using a quantile regression approach. Overall, I found that climatic factors had the greatest influence on MSDR, and that …
Effects Of Fire Seasonality On Bachman’S Sparrows In The Longleaf Pine Forests Of Southern Mississippi, Michael D. Warren
Effects Of Fire Seasonality On Bachman’S Sparrows In The Longleaf Pine Forests Of Southern Mississippi, Michael D. Warren
Theses and Dissertations
The Bachman’s sparrow (Peucaea aestivalis) is a ground-dwelling, pine-obligate species experiencing range-wide population declines due to land development and fire exclusion. We explored the effects of fire seasonality on wintering Bachman’s sparrow abundance in Southern Mississippi from 2021-2022. We used generalized linear mixed models to investigate differences in sparrow abundance and vegetation characteristics following dormant and growing season fire. We explored the effects of growing season fire on breeding territory vegetation characteristics. Our results indicate that burn type (dormant vs. growing season), native grass groundcover, and shrubs over 1m were the most significant predictors for wintering Bachman’s sparrow …
A Silvicultural Approach To Increase Drought Resistance And Resilience In Longleaf Pine, Kyle R. Dues
A Silvicultural Approach To Increase Drought Resistance And Resilience In Longleaf Pine, Kyle R. Dues
Theses and Dissertations
Droughts are a common disturbance experienced by forest systems across the southeastern United States and are expected to increase in frequency in the near future. Few empirical studies have evaluated the response of individual tree resistance and resilience following silvicultural treatment in longleaf pine (Pinus palustris Mill.). This study evaluates the differences in drought responses between two forests during three different periods. The first period evaluated pretreatment (2000) conditions, while the second (2006), and third (2011) compared conditions after the implementation of five silvicultural treatments. The main findings are that, as additional basal area is removed, both individual tree …
Timing Is Everything: Impacts Of Firing Technique And Season On Plant Communities In The Southeastern United States, Luke Michael Resop
Timing Is Everything: Impacts Of Firing Technique And Season On Plant Communities In The Southeastern United States, Luke Michael Resop
Theses and Dissertations
Prescribed fire is a common land management tool in the southeastern United States. Historical fires occurred primarily in the growing season, but modern day prescribed fire is commonly restricted to the dormant season. Plant community responses to various fire regimes are relatively unknown, and managers require information on how fire regimes impact plant communities. To address these limitations, I studied the impacts of March and June fire on plant communities. Results indicated various woody midstory species respond differently to fire season and community response is driven by species composition. In another study, I examined impacts of February, May-June, and September-October …
The Response Of An Avian Community To Intercropping And Forest Management Practices In A Private Working Pine Forest, Rebecca Doyne Bracken
The Response Of An Avian Community To Intercropping And Forest Management Practices In A Private Working Pine Forest, Rebecca Doyne Bracken
Theses and Dissertations
Within managed pine forest systems, a plethora of bird species exist throughout the lifecycle of a stand akin to what may be experienced through post-disturbance regeneration in a natural forest system. I sought to address how breeding avian communities shift across time in response to stand aging and forest management, evaluate species-specific responses to stand conditions, investigate the responses of at-risk avian species to forest management, and determine avian non-breeding, over-wintering presence in a managed loblolly pine (Pinus taeda) forest. I conducted breeding bird point count and vegetation surveys within five stands of privately owned and managed pine forest in …
Spatial Conservation Planning In The Southeastern United States: Alignments And Opportunities, Bradly Stewart Thornton
Spatial Conservation Planning In The Southeastern United States: Alignments And Opportunities, Bradly Stewart Thornton
Theses and Dissertations
Conservation managers and planners need the ‘best available science’ to support robust and defensible decisions, ensuring that public resources are appropriately allocated. Spatial planning products and decision-support tools developed for this purpose should enable partner organizations to achieve focus, coordination, and increased effectiveness in their investments and actions. Whereas conservation partnerships have historically created distinct planning tools, there is increasing interest for improved coordination, communication, and unifying biological datasets to improve the cohesiveness of regional management activities. We sought to inform spatial conservation planning efforts in the southeastern United States through the development of species distribution models for focal avian …
Mapping Forest Structure In Mississippi Using Lidar Remote Sensing, Nitant Rai
Mapping Forest Structure In Mississippi Using Lidar Remote Sensing, Nitant Rai
Theses and Dissertations
This study aimed at evaluating the agreement of spaceborne Light Detection and Ranging (lidar) ICESat-2 canopy height with Airborne Laser Scanning (ALS) derived canopy height to inform about the performance of ICESat-2 canopy height metrics and understand its uncertainties and utilities. The agreement was assessed for different forest types, physiographic regions, a range of percent canopy cover, and diverse disturbance histories. Results of this study suggest that best agreements are found using strong beam data collected at night for canopy height retrieval using ICESat-2. The ICESat-2 showed great potential for estimating canopy heights, particularly in evergreen forests with high canopy …
Evaluating Functional Zoning Based On Site Index To Achieve Competing Objectives Held By Family Forest Owners On Southern U.S. Pine Forest Tracts, Bradley S. Resch
Evaluating Functional Zoning Based On Site Index To Achieve Competing Objectives Held By Family Forest Owners On Southern U.S. Pine Forest Tracts, Bradley S. Resch
Theses and Dissertations
Family forests comprise a significant portion of total forest lands in the southern United States and their owners frequently have multiple, competing objectives. This research evaluated the effectiveness of functional zoning based on site index on forest sizes relevant to family forest owners. A total of fifty family forests were randomly selected from counties in the East Texas Pineywoods region. Timber production and quail habitat were used as proxies for competing objectives. It was found that 80% of family forest parcels had sufficient site index heterogeneity to benefit from functional zoning. For forest parcels that could benefit from functional zoning, …
Novel Silviculture Practices For Non-Industrial Private Forest Landowners, Darcey Alyce Collins
Novel Silviculture Practices For Non-Industrial Private Forest Landowners, Darcey Alyce Collins
Theses and Dissertations
Many landowners in the southeastern United States have invested in southern yellow pine plantations and managed them using traditional management schemes. However, non-industrial private forest landowners often have goals and challenges that make traditional management less desirable or possible. This thesis contains two projects that offer potential solutions for these landowners. The first project is a management option for landowners with small parcels that wish to manage pine plantations and proposes low-density management paired with crown lifting for the production of saw logs without commercial thinning entries. The second proposes a method for incorporating mixed-species management into already existing plantations. …
Use Of Consumer Grade Small Unmanned Aerial Systems (Suas) For Mapping Storm Damage In Forested Environments, James Dewey Cox
Use Of Consumer Grade Small Unmanned Aerial Systems (Suas) For Mapping Storm Damage In Forested Environments, James Dewey Cox
Theses and Dissertations
Storm damages to forested environments pose significant challenges to landowners, land managers, and conservationists alike. Damage scope and scale assessments can be difficult, costly, and time consuming with conventional pedestrian survey techniques. Consumer grade sUAS technology offers an efficient, cost-effective way to accurately assess storm damage in small to moderate sized survey areas (less than 10 km²). Data were collected over a 0.195 km² area of damaged timber within the Kisatchie National Forest in Central Louisiana using a DJI Mavic 2 Pro drone. Collected imagery was processed into an orthomosaic using Agisoft Metashape Professional with a resulting ground sampling distance …
Diversity-Productivity Relationships In Forests Of The Southeastern United States: Leveraging National Inventory Data And Tree Functional Traits, Elizabeth Baach
Diversity-Productivity Relationships In Forests Of The Southeastern United States: Leveraging National Inventory Data And Tree Functional Traits, Elizabeth Baach
Theses and Dissertations
Numerous studies have evaluated the relationship between biodiversity and productivity, with general trends suggesting a positive relationship. While most studies only use species richness, this study also analyzed how productivity changes with functional diversity and Shannon’s diversity index. Functional diversity gives important context to the examination of biodiversity-productivity relationships due to the direct link between organisms’ functional traits and their role in a given ecosystem. This study used data from the USDA Forest Service Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) database collected in Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi to estimate plot-level productivity and diversity. Structural equation modeling was used to determine the …
Assessing Priority Bird Response To Open Pine Management In Eastern Mississippi, Holly Marie Todaro
Assessing Priority Bird Response To Open Pine Management In Eastern Mississippi, Holly Marie Todaro
Theses and Dissertations
Fire suppression, combined with lack of forest thinning and short-rotation, monodominant management, has drastically altered the landscape in the southeastern U.S., leading to the loss of open pine ecosystems and associated avian species. Management of open pine ecosystems is a common practice; yet, there remains uncertainty regarding how vegetation structure impacts priority species. Using empirical data, I assessed changes in species abundance and associated vegetation characteristics before and after management. I also sought to identify vegetation characteristics that influence home range establishment and microhabitat selection of Bachman’s Sparrows. Priority species were negatively associated with hardwood midstory and abundance per site …
Climate Sensitive Diameter Growth Models For Major Tree Species In Mississippi, Sujan Subedi
Climate Sensitive Diameter Growth Models For Major Tree Species In Mississippi, Sujan Subedi
Theses and Dissertations
Anticipated climate change and increasing wood demand require dependable diameter growth models for adaptive forest management. We used a mixed-effects modeling approach with Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) data to fit diameter growth models for loblolly pine, other softwood species (slash pine, shortleaf pine, and longleaf pine), sweetgum, and other hardwood (southern red oak, red maple, and water oak) species. Climatic variables coupled with individual tree attributes and competition factors improved climate insensitive models. Growth of loblolly pine and sweetgum was positively correlated with mean temperature of the coldest month. Mean temperature of the warmest month negatively influenced diameter growth …