Natural Resources and Conservation Commons^™

Understanding Patterns And Functional Impacts Of An Invasive Tree And Its Biological Control In A Riparian System, Annie L. Henry

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Invasive species have become an inextricable part of the landscape, particularly in riparian plant communities, and removal is often a key component of restoration programs. Biological control (biocontrol) is a method of removal that is often both efficient and effective. However, the impact of biocontrol on target species and indirect effects from invasive species removal can be hard to predict. While monitoring the impact of invasive species removal usually involves some species-based assessment such as changes in diversity, historically dominant species or native species, these strategies do not typically provide insight into the mechanisms underlying plant community response to removal. …

Species Distribution Modeling For Arid Adapted Habitat Specialists In Zion National Park, Sam Driver, Chris M. Schalk, Daniel Unger, David Kulhavy

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Arizona toad (Anaxyrus microscaphus) and Jones’ waxy dogbane (Cycladenia humilis var. jonesii) are habitat specialists with historical ranges in the desert southwest and specifically, Zion National Park (ZION). The machine learning method, MaxEnt, constructed species distribution models (SDMs) in ZION for the two study species at 30 m and 900 m spatial resolutions using climate, topographic, and remotely sensed data. Additionally, 900 m forecasting models were constructed to observe the shifts in suitable habitat for the years 2050 and 2070, based off two representative concentration pathway scenarios. Results indicate promising predictive power for both high …

Analyzing The Effects Of Of Seasonal Land Cover And Precipitation On The Sediment Delivery Ratio Of An Agriculture Dominated Watershed., Jonah Liebman

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Soil erosion is of escalating importance as increasing population and climate change have put increasing pressures on agricultural food production. Vegetation and precipitation are two factors that control the amount of soil erosion extant within a region. Sediment delivery ratios (SDRs) assess the ratio of soil eroded from a watershed system that is permanently removed from the system through stream sediment discharge. Using 1) river discharge and sediment concentration data and 2) the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE), this thesis analyzes fluctuations in monthly SDRs for an average hydroclimatological crop-harvest season for the Senachwine Creek watershed, IL. Through calculating …

A Tale Of Two Species: Black-Tailed And White-Tailed Prairie Dog Biogeography From The Last Interglacial To 2070, April Dawn Bledsoe

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Ecological niche models (ENMs) were created for White-tailed and Black-tailed prairie dogs and projected into the Last Interglacial (LI), the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), and mid-Holocene (mid-H) to discern possible past suitable habitat for both species. Additionally, ENMs were projected into the future year 2070 representative concentration pathways (RCPs) 2.6 and 8.5 to discern how climate change may affect future habitat suitability. Kernel density estimations, minimum convex polygons, and median distribution centers of White-tailed and Black-tailed occurrence records were examined between time-periods to discern the effects of anthropogenic westward expansion on both species’ distributions. Current ENMs were constructed from commonly …

Applications Of Digital Remote Sensing To Quantify Glacier Change In Glacier And Mount Rainier National Parks, Brianna Clark

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Digital remote sensing and geographic information systems were employed in performing area and volume calculations on glacial landscapes. Characteristics of glaciers from two geographic regions, the Intermountain Region (between the Rocky Mountain and Cascade Ranges) and the Pacific Northwest, were estimated for the years 1985, 2000, and 2015. Glacier National Park was studied for the Intermountain Region whereas Mount Rainier National Park was representative of the glaciers in the Pacific Northwest. Within the thirty year period of the study, the glaciers in Glacier National Park decreased in area by 27.5 percent while those on Mount Rainier only decreased by 5.7 …

Influence Of Mink Predation On Brown Trout Survival And Size-Structure In Rapid Creek, South Dakota, Austin Galinat

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

I compared movement, home range, habitat selection, and mortality among radio-tagged Brown Trout (Salmo trutta) at an American Mink (Neovison vison)-removal site, improved habitat site, and an undisturbed stream site in Rapid Creek, South Dakota. I observed high, post-surgery (> 26 days) survival rate (90%) of radio tagged Brown Trout. Average gross movement of Brown Trout was greater at the improved habitat site (127 m) compared to the mink removal (31 m) site, while average home range size (i.e., stream distance) among all three sites was not significantly different indicating strong site fidelity (125 to 200 m). Brown Trout movements …

Evaluation Of Fall-Seeded Cover Crops For Grassland Nesting Waterfowl In Eastern South Dakota, Charles W. Gallman Iii

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Prairie Pothole Region is the primary breeding ground for many species of North American waterfowl. This landscape was historically dominated by mixed and tallgrass prairies interspersed with wetlands, but >70% of native grassland area has been lost due to widespread conversion to croplands, which may threaten waterfowl production. Cover cropping is a re-emerging farming technique that may provide suitable nesting cover for grassland nesting waterfowl on active farmlands. My research objectives were to evaluate the utility of fall-seeded cover crops to breeding waterfowl compared to perennial cover, determine if cover crops in rotation with row crops can successfully support …

Apartment Residents' Understanding Of And Satisfaction With Water Savings Devices, David Farmer

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

As the human population increases, the way we use and manage our supply of drinking water becomes even more important. The purpose of this study was to determine residents’ satisfaction level of and performance rating of new water savings devices installed in their apartments. Specifically the investigation focused on ratings of shower heads, kitchen faucet aerators, bath faucet aerators, and fill valve and flapper systems.

This quantitative survey included residents at 4 apartment complexes in Tennessee using a paper questionnaire (N = 626). The participants were grouped by age, ethnicity, gender, and whether or not they had experienced both nonrestrictive …

The Effects Of Constructed Wetlands On Metal Solubilization And Bioavailability In Passive Mine Remediation, Elizabeth Cochran

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The legacy of coal mining in Appalachia has left many watersheds impacted by abandoned mine drainage. The drainage degrades streams, groundwater and habitats with acidity and toxic heavy metals. The Lowber Passive Remediation System has been in operation since 2004 to remediate high amounts of dissolved Fe, SO₄, Al, and Mn. The site consists of six settling ponds and an extensive wetlands at the finish. This study investigated the resolubilization of Fe and Mn in the wetlands and the role of bacteria in resolubilization. During three seasons, field measurements of water quality and lab analysis of Fe, Mn, …

Unconventional Gas Extraction In Southwestern Pennsylvania: Complaints, Production, And Water Quality, Dannielle Pratt

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The dramatic rise in unconventional oil and gas extraction in Pennsylvania has presented a challenge to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection in managing regulatory required data, and the uniformity of public access via their online databases. This study analyzed over a decade of all the oil and gas complaints and unconventional gas production in Washington County. Of the 1,811 wells drilled between 2004 and 2018, 1,683 are producing, 74 are plugged, 52 regulatory inactive, and 2 abandoned. The PADEP received 10,389 complaints from 2004 to 2018. Only 2,420 of 4,489 water quality complaints were resolved within the legally required …

A Multi-Plot Assessment Of Vegetation Structure Using A Micro-Unmanned Aerial System (Uas) In A Semi-Arid Savanna Environment., Nicholas E Kolarik

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) have emerged as a capable platform for measuring vegetation health, structure and productivity. Products derived from UAS imagery typically have much finer spatial resolutions than traditional satellite or aircraft imagery, allowing the spectral and structural heterogeneity of vegetation to be mapped and monitored with more detail. This study uses UAS-captured imagery from the Chobe Enclave of northern Botswana. Flights were conducted across a gradient of savanna sites classified as grass-, shrub-, or tree-dominated. We compare multiple approaches for extracting woody vegetation structure from UAS imagery and assess correlations between in situ field measurements and UAS estimates. …

Miami-Dade Task Force: A Content Analysis Of How Coastal Communities View Sea Level Rise As A Threat, Francisco Alvaro

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Sea level rise (SLR) has become a serious threat for coastal communities in recent years. Many communities, including South Florida, are already having the security of their daily lives impacted as climate change causes SLR and other environmental impacts to worsen. This study reviews the Miami-Dade Sea Level Rise Task Force Report to determine how this coastal county government views SLR as a threat. Using mixed content analysis to analyze the report qualitatively and quantitatively, the Task Force's recommendations are categorized based on their focus on security, infrastructure, economics, and the environment. One finds the concerns of the people to …

Biogeochemical Effects Of Sea Level Rise-Induced Transitions Within Coastal Wetlands, Havalend Steinmuller

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

As sea level rise (SLR) affects coastal wetlands, ecosystem responses can include vertical accretion, landward transgression, or submergence. Sea level rise-induced transitions can alter key biogeochemical transformations within wetland soils, impacting the ability of these systems to provide ecosystem services, specifically carbon (C) storage and water quality regulation. Through a series of complementary laboratory and field-based studies, biogeochemical responses to salinity, vegetation shifts, and submergence were investigated. Changes in nutrient dynamics associated with saltwater intrusion were evaluated by artificially adding saline water to different freshwater wetland soil types, indicating that potential exports of critical nutrients (forms of nitrogen, phosphorus, and …

Effects Of Grazing And Fire On Soil Microbial Communities And Hydrological Processes In The Northern Great Plains Grassland, Jacob Comer

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Historic grazing and fire regimes have been altered with the development of the livestock industry in the Northern Great Plains and have resulted in a reduction of diversity across all scales. As alternative land surface disturbances are developed to combat the loss of diversity, their potential to serve as a sustainable land surface disturbance should be evaluated. To determine the ability of an alternative grazing strategy to serve as a sustainable land surface disturbance, the reaction of the soil microbial community and soil hydrological processes should be evaluated. Objectives of this study were to: 1) evaluate the impact of alternative …

Application And Refinement Of Molecular Ecology Techniques For Amphibian Conservation, Stephanie Marie Burgess

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Wildlife conservation has become increasingly difficult due to habitat loss habitat fragmentation and land use change. Thus conservationists have embraced advances in molecular ecology such as landscape genetics and microbial bioinformatics that employ genetic techniques to further understand the relationship between individuals and their environment. In landscape genetics model inferences can be used to identify features that facilitate or resist gene flow providing a framework for anticipating the impacts of land use changes on a species’ ability to disperse. However the factors that affect the transferability of landscape genetics inferences are poorly understood and little is known about the effect …

Community-Based Coastal Restoration: Long Term Impacts On Habitats And People In Volusia County, Rachel Wimmer

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Coastal habitats provide invaluable economic and ecosystem services. However, coastlines are eroding at increasing rates due to anthropogenic and climate driven changes. Grey and green infrastructure solutions have been proposed to retard the decay of coastlines, with oysters serving as a popular living shoreline. Three community-based stabilizations that implemented living shorelines and engaged local communities in restoration efforts over the past decade in Volusia County were revisited to determine if they were successful and if they produced positive public perceptions of success. Chicken Island, which was restored after waves, boat wakes, tides, and adverse weather altered the natural shoreline, had …

Seascape Genetics And Rehabilitation Efficiency In The Florida Manatee, Madison Hall

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Florida manatee (Trichechus manatus latirostris) was recently downlisted federally from "endangered" to "threatened" despite acknowledgments of remaining threats to long term population persistence. Challenges to future manatee conservation include, but are not limited to, increases in frequency of harmful algal blooms, intensifying anthropogenic disturbance, and loss of warm-water habitat. The goals of this dissertation were 1) to assess threats to the manatee via a comprehensive, long-term (1973-2016), retrospective analysis of the manatee rescue and rehabilitation partnership (MRRP) and 2) to use seascape genetics analysis to examine whether abiotic, biotic, or anthropogenic seascape variables could significantly describe genetic distance patterns …

Groundwater Hydrogeolgy And Hydrochemistry Of Karst Springs In The Eastern Peninsula Of Fort Hood Military Installation, William Scribner Welles

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The eastern peninsula of Fort Hood Military Installation is underlain by a complex karst spring network. These springs are a primary water source in a protected habitat for endangered songbirds, which has only recently begun to be fully investigated. These Fredericksburg Group springs express both epigenetic and hypogenetic karst signatures. The study area is part of a paleo reef trend, a hydraulically disconnected segment of the northern section of the Edwards Aquifer. This study utilized standard ion index values, repeated measures, and principal component analyses on the chemical profiles of six perennial springs to classify spring water sources and their …

Effectiveness Of Prescribed Fire On Meeting Fuel Load And Wildlife Habitat Management Objectives In East Texas National Forests, Trey Wall

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Using standardized methodology outlined by the United States Forest Service and the National Forests and Grasslands in Texas’ Fire Monitoring Program for data collection, the efficacy of current Forest Service prescribed burn regimes were analyzed for 24 study sites in East Texas National Forests. Study sites were located within Sam Houston, Davy Crockett, and Angelina/Sabine National Forests. Efficacy was determined by comparing defined management objectives established by the Forest Service to the data collected at the study sites. The results conclude that most objectives, as outlined by the Forest Service, are not being met with the current practices. Re-visitation of …

Economics Of Managing Loblolly Pine Plantations For Increased Wildlife Biodiversity, Melissa Griffith

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The goal of this thesis was to identify the differences between the costs incurred and revenues gained from managing loblolly pine (Pinus taeda) plantations in East Texas for strictly timber production or a combination of timber production and wildlife biodiversity. Management regimes evaluated had varying planting densities, thinning frequency and intensities, prescribed burn intervals, and site indices. Economic analyses used to evaluate management regimes over a range of nonindustrial private landowner (NIPF) alternative rates of return (ARRs) and site indexes were net present worth, land expectation value, and equal annual annuity. These economic analyses demonstrated that altering management …

Speleogenetic Evolution And Geological Remote Sensing Of The Gypsum Plain, Eddy County, New Mexico, Jessica Shields

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Permian evaporites of the Gypsum Plain region of the Delaware Basin host extensive karst phenomena, as well as unique diagenetic alterations of host strata. Because of the complex, poorly understood hydrogeologic system, little has been established concerning the relation and evolution of the overprinted, modern and ancient karst manifestations within the Gypsum Plain, as a whole. Through a combination of traditional field studies and the development of improved remote sensing methodologies, this study established the speleogenetic evolution of the Gypsum Plain in relation to the greater tectonic, stratigraphic, hydrogeologic and climatic history of the Delaware Basin. Emphasis was focused on …

A Comparison Of Four Wetlands Assessment Procedures Relevant To The Alluvial Valleys Of East Texas, Amy Camp

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Currently several methods are used by public and private entities to assess wetland functional condition in support of the Section 404 Clean Water Act program. Four of these are: Forested Wetlands in Alluvial Valleys of the Coastal Plain of the Southeastern United States (SEHGM); A Regional Guidebook for Applying the Hydrogeomorphic Approach to the Functional Assessment of Forested Wetlands in Alluvial Valleys of East Texas (ETXHGM); Texas Rapid Assessment Method (TXRAM); and the Wildlife Habitat Appraisal Procedure (WHAP). Little previous research compares wetland functional assessment methods. Results of the SEHGM, ETXHGM, TXRAM, and WHAP methods were compared on five East …

Evolution And Distribution Of Phenotypic Diversity In The Venom Of Mojave Rattlesnakes (Crotalus Scutulatus), Jason Strickland

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Intraspecific phenotype diversity allows for local adaption and the ability for species to respond to changing environmental conditions, enhancing survivability. Phenotypic variation could be stochastic, genetically based, and/or the result of different environmental conditions. Mojave Rattlesnakes, Crotalus scutulatus, are known to have high intraspecific venom variation, but the geographic extent of the variation and factors influencing venom evolution are poorly understood. Three primary venom types have been described in this species based on the presence (Type A) or absence (Type B) of a neurotoxic phospholipase A2 called Mojave toxin and an inverse relationship with the presence of snake venom metalloproteinases …

The Ecology Of Land Managers In Riparian Restoration, Lisa Buie Clark

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

While previous studies in restoration ecology have focused on the efficacy of direct management actions, the driving forces on management decisions (e.g., managers' characteristics or attitudes, environmental conditions) and the indirect impacts on restoration outcomes from management decisions (such as whether to collaborate) are quantified here for the first time. As a case study, I used data from 244 sites across the riparian Southwest US where the invasive shrubby tree Tamarix sp. was removed using various different methods. I surveyed and interviewed the 45 land managers who were responsible for the removal projects to determine their characteristics, attitudes, and …

An Examination Of Beta Diversity Indices And Their Predictors In Two Large-Scale Systems, Philip Schroeder

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Biodiversity is what conservation biology was developed to conserve. It is the physical manifestation of life as a concept and, be it for practical or idealistic reasons, all conservationists seek to protect or, in some cases, enhance it. Because of its monolithic importance to the field, much effort has been expended trying to better measure and understand it. Recently, greater attention has been paid to the partition of diversity; the observation that the total diversity of a system (γ) can be broken down into within-site diversity (α) and between-site diversity (β). In particular, it has been noticed that the β …

Spatially Explicit Model Of Areas Between Suitable Black Bear Habitat In East Texas And Black Bear Populations In Louisiana, Arkansas, And Oklahoma, Caitlin M. Glymph, Christopher Comer, Daniel Scognamillo, Daniel Unger, Yanli Zhang

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Although black bears (Ursus americanus, Ursus americanus luteolus) were once found throughout the south-central United States, unregulated harvest and habitat loss resulted in severe range retractions and by the beginning of the twentieth century populations in Oklahoma, Louisiana, Texas and Arkansas were nearing extirpation. In response to these losses, translocation programs were initiated in Arkansas (1958-1968 & 2000-2006) and Louisiana (1964-1967 & 2001-2009). These programs successfully restored bears to portions of Louisiana and Arkansas, and, as populations in Arkansas began dispersing, to Oklahoma. In contrast, east Texas remains unoccupied despite the existence of suitable habitat in the region.

To facilitate …

Effects Of Ponderosa Pine Ecological Restoration On Forest Soils And Understory Vegetation In Northern Arizona, Elena M. Thomas, Kenneth W. Farrish, Brian P. Oswald, Melinda G. Shaw-Faulkner, Scott R. Abella

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The human exclusion of wildfire and overgrazing by livestock since settlement have caused dramatic changes in ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa Dougl ex Laws) forest ecosystems. These changes include increased numbers of tree stems, reduced understory cover and diversity, and the introduction of invasive, non-native understory species. This study evaluated the coverage and species composition of understory vegetation present in the “cool-season” (late spring and early summer) in a ponderosa pine forest on grazed and ungrazed plots that had undergone restoration treatments on three different soil/geologic parent material types near Flagstaff, Arizona, twelve years after tree thinning and grazing exclosure …

Spatiotemporal Analyses Of Recycled Water Production, Jana E. Archer

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Increased demands on water supplies caused by population expansion, saltwater intrusion, and drought have led to water shortages which may be addressed by use of recycled water as recycled water products. Study I investigated recycled water production in Florida and California during 2009 to detect gaps in distribution and identify areas for expansion. Gaps were detected along the panhandle and Miami, Florida, as well as the northern and southwestern regions in California. Study II examined gaps in distribution, identified temporal change, and located areas for expansion for Florida in 2009 and 2015. Production increased in the northern and southern regions …

The Role Of The Y-Chromosome In The Evolution Of Autosomally Coded Traits, Ian Kutch

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Recent work indicates that the Y-chromosome of the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster can influence gene regulation on the autosomes and X chromosome. This newly discovered function of the Y has the potential to dramatically shape the regulatory evolution of numerous genes that reside throughout the genome; even for genes that code for both male and female traits. Given that the mechanism underlying the Y-linked influence on gene expression in D. melanogaster appears to exist in other independently evolved heterogametic sex chromosomes, the evolutionary implications of Y-linked regulatory variation (YRV) deserves to be explored. These implications include the potential for Y-chromosomes …

Improving Survey Methodology To Monitor Rare Grassland Birds In South Dakota, Kassondra Hendricks

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) data for grassland bird species has shown the most rapid population decline of any other bird group. Current roadside survey techniques, however, may fall short of providing accurate numbers of rare grassland bird species such as chestnut-collared longspur (Calcarius ornatus), lark bunting (Calamospiza melanocorys), Sprague’s pipit (Anthus spragueii), and Baird’s sparrow (Ammodramus bairdii). Trends resulting from roadside data for grassland birds are oftentimes determined to be statistically insignificant because many grassland bird species occur on too few routes, occur in low numbers per route, and show high annual fluctuations in number. It is possible roadside surveys …