Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Bryoecology In The American Southwest: Patterns Of Biodiversity And Responses To Global Change, John Carroll Brinda

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This dissertation combines investigation of the large-scale responses of bryophyte species diversity and distribution with small-scale physiological adaptations to global change. These two areas of inquiry are linked because one way to predict plant species responses to global change is to examine their distribution across current ecological gradients produced by factors such as latitude and elevation. By examining these biogeographic patterns one can identify those species that have a narrow tolerance and therefore are most sensitive to change. Selected bryophytes might then be used as indicator species in long-term monitoring programs. Where historical data exist, these can be used to …

Hydroclimatic Forecasting In The Western United States Using Paleoclimate Reconstructions And Data-Driven Models, Christopher Allen Carrier

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This thesis investigated climate variability and their associated hydrologic responses in the western United States. The western United States faces the problem of water scarcity, where the management and mitigation of available water supplies are further complicated by climate variability. Climate variability associated with the phases of oceanic-atmospheric oscillations has been shown to influence streamflow and precipitation, where predictive relationships have led to the possibility of producing long-range forecasts. Based on literature review, four oceanic-atmospheric oscillation indices were identified in having the most prominent influence over the western United States including the El Niño - Southern Oscillation (ENSO), Pacific Decadal …

Changing Climatic Conditions In The Colorado River Basin: Implications For Water Resources Management In The Las Vegas Valley, Srijana Dawadi

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Climate change affects the water available in a region. It also affects the water demand, because of the increase in temperature. A system dynamics model was developed for the Colorado River Basin (CRB), operating at a monthly time scale, to assess the potential impacts of climate change on streamflow in the Colorado River and its subsequent impact on the water resources management in the Las Vegas Valley (LVV). The effect of climate change on streamflow was evaluated using 16 global climate model outputs for 3 emission scenarios, also referenced in the Inter-Governmental Panel on Climate Change Fourth Assessment Report. Risk …

Sustainability And Climate Models For The Intermountain West: An Annotated Bibliography, Marianne A. Buehler, William E. Brown Jr.

Brookings Mountain West Publications

This resource on climate models and sustainability in the Intermountain West, a region that includes the states of Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah, is a collaborative effort between the UNLV Libraries (http://library.unlv.edu/) and Brookings Mountain West (http://brookingsmtnwest.unlv.edu/).

The selected citations include academic, government, and non-profit information that highlight ongoing research on climate models and sustainability efforts in the region. The websites, government studies, independent reports, scholarly articles, and media reports reflect the diversity and complexity of climate change and sustainability issues in a region that contains widely varying ecosystems. The Intermountain West, with its deserts, basins, mountains, …

Climate And Vegetation Change In The Newberry Mountains, Southern Clark County, Nevada, Ross Joseph Guida

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Ecological studies have shown worldwide that vegetation is being affected by climate change. Species are shifting to new elevations and physiographic positions to adapt to changes in their environment. More specifically, paleoecology studies in the Mojave Desert have shown shifting vegetation patterns in response to past warming and precipitation changes. Recent studies have shown mortality among desert plants related to extended drought and warming. However, few studies have shown how the geographic distribution of Mojave Desert species has changed during this most recent period of warming. This study addresses this gap in the literature by focusing on several plant species …

Assessing A Combined Theories Approach To Climate Change Communication, Ted Greenhalgh

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This research examines the complexities of communicating climate change risk information and the underlying individual attitudes and message content that affect message reception. Using climate change messages incorporating fear appeals and normative information subject's reactions to the messages were evaluated using the Theory of Planned Behavior model. The study found that fear appeals did increase behavioral intention to adopt a lower carbon lifestyle among test group subjects. The Theory of Planned Behavior model showed that attitudes and self-efficacy were significant predictors of the behavioral intent to adopt a lower carbon lifestyle, while community norms were only marginally predictive. However, not …

How Defining Planetary Boundaries Can Transform Our Approach To Growth, W. L. Steffen, Johan Rockström, Robert Costanza

Institute for Sustainable Solutions Publications and Presentations

The article focuses on the importance to identify safe boundaries based on the fundamental characteristics of our planet to address the growing threats of climate change. It highlights the rapid transition of the planet from the stable Holocene state to an unknown future state of significantly different conditions. In addition, climate change, biodiversity loss and phosphorus production were already transgressed by humanity and require innovative frameworks and effective solutions.

Association Of Oceanic-Atmospheric Oscillations And Hydroclimatic Variables In The Colorado River Basin, Ajay Kalra

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

With increasing evidence of climatic variability, there is a need to improve forecast for hydroclimatic variables i.e., precipitation and streamflow preserving their spatial and temporal variability. Climatologists have identified different oceanic-atmospheric oscillations that seem to influence the behavior of these variables and in turn can be used to extend the forecast lead time. In the absence of a good physical understanding of the linkages between oceanic-atmospheric oscillations and hydrological processes, it is difficult to construct a physical model. An attractive alternative to physically based models are the Artificial Intelligence (AI) type models, also referred to as machine learning or data-driven …

Has Recent Climate Change Caused A Genetic Bottleneck In A Sierra Nevada Population Of The Bushy-Tailed Woodrat?, Mitchell Gritts, Angela D. Hornsby, Majorie D. Matocq

Festival of Communities: UG Symposium (Posters)

Many montane species respond to climate change by shifting their range upslope as temperatures at lower elevations increase. An elevation range shift causes a range contraction that may result in a population bottleneck. Joseph Grinnell surveyed the fauna along the Yosemite transect from 1914 to 1920. In 2003 Craig Moritz and his colleagues began to resurvey the Yosemite transect to assess the faunal change during a century of climate change. The bushy-tailed woodrat suffered severe range contraction and population bottleneck between the two surveys. I will use evolutionary models to determine if the population has suffered a genetic bottleneck.

The Organization And Status Of The Department Of Interior's Programs And Studies On Climate Change In The Colorado River Basin, Colorado River Governance Initiative, University Of Colorado Boulder. Natural Resources Law Center, Western Water Policy Program

Books, Reports, and Studies

21 p. : ill., maps ; 29 cm

Western Equatorial Pacific Climate Variability From Restricted Basins : Century Scale Changes In Kau Bay To Glacial-Interglacial Changes In The Sulu Sea, Samantha Langton

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

The surface ocean in the western equatorial Pacific contains some of the warmest water on the planet in the western Pacific warm pool (WPWP). Changes in the size and scope of the warm pool have a significant impact on global climate. With the concern of changes in the extent of this body of water as a result of anthropomorphic changes in atmospheric composition, it is vital to investigate prior changes to the WPWP, the causes of such changes, and resultant effects. For my dissertation, I used several proxies to analyze sediments from Kau Bay and the Sulu Sea in Indonesia …

Biogeographic Consequences Of Historic And Contemporary Climate Change In Boreal Forest Birds, Joel Ralston

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

In this dissertation, I combine ecological niche models (ENMs), which can be extrapolated through time to predict historic and future changes in species distributions, with mitochondrial and nuclear genetic markers to study the biogeographic consequences of historic and contemporary climate change on boreal forest birds, and in particular Blackpoll Warbler.

Quantifying Uncertainty In Urban Flooding Analysis Considering Hydro-Climatic Projection And Urban Development Effects, Il-Won Jung, Heejun Chang, Hamid Moradkhani

Geography Faculty Publications and Presentations

How will the combined impacts of land use change, climate change, and hydrologic modeling influence changes in urban flood frequency and what is the main uncertainty source of the results? Will such changes differ by catchment with different degrees of current and future urban development? We attempt to answer these questions in two catchments with different degrees of urbanization, the Fanno catchment with 84% urban land use and the Johnson catchment with 36% urban land use, both located in the Pacific Northwest of the US. Five uncertainty sources – general circulation model (GCM) structures, future greenhouse gas (GHG) emission scenarios, …