Natural Resources and Conservation Commons^™

Interpreting Nature In Australia Through Poetry: A Personal Anthology Written Within The Erosion Caldera Of Northern New South, Kyla Allon

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

My Independent Study Project (ISP) involved traveling within the erosion caldera of northern New South Wales, mainly WWOOFing (Willing Workers on Organic Farms) and writing environmental poetry about the places where I lived and worked. I began by researching past Australian environmental poets so that I could have a strong basic understanding before commencing my own writing. I lived in four different locations within the erosion caldera and strove to form a strong sense of place that is reflected in my poetry. Ultimately, I produced an anthology of poems that capture my responses to the natural environments that I experienced. …

The Development Of Environmental Consciousness And Identity In Surfing Subculture, Alex Mass

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Since the 1960’s and 1970’s, surfing has exuded the stereotype of a laid-back, environmentally conscious and left-wing culture, a connotation often spread through media outlets such as movies, television, and music that encourage the idea. While the stereotype is often known and widely accepted, no studies could be found that actually tested this view. Using a series of interviews and surveys of the New Ecological Paradigm, this study investigated the formation of environmental consciousness and identity in surfing subculture in order to examine the accuracy of such stereotypes, and analyse the effect that such generalized views have on the formation …

Sea Urchin Predation In Misali Island Marine Park, Nicole Esclamado

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The populations of sea urchins and their main predators, triggerfish (Balistidae), wrasses (Labridae) and emperors (Lethrinidae), were studied in the extractive and non-extractive zones of the Misali Island Marine Conservation Area in order to (1) evaluate the applicability of a sea urchin-sea urchin predator model developed in Kenya’s fringing reefs, (2) gain baseline data on Misali’s coral reef, and (3) evaluate the recovery status of the protected zone. This study revealed the predictive power of the sea urchin-sea urchin predator model for the reef ecosystem of Misali Island. As expected, a decline in sea urchin predators as a gross trophic …

Un Estudio De La Palma De Ramos, Ceroxylum Alpinum, En La Zona Intag, Ecuador, Lupe Moscoe

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study addresses the endangered wax palm species, Ceroxylum alpinum, in the Ecuadorian cloud forest zone of Intag. Attention has recently arisen regarding this plant because the yellow-eared parrot, Ognorhynchus icterotis, which depends on it for food and nesting, is in critical danger of extinction. Much of this attention has targeted the use of wax palm fronds on Palm Sunday, but this investigation shows that this is only one of the many threats to the palm. Environmentalists in Intag are currently undertaking reforestation projects in community reserves to save the palm, but little is known about its development. This study …

Natural History Of The Quarry Trail, Genevive Espinoza, Megan Michael, Shayla Williamson

Student Research

We tested the effectiveness of an interpretive trail guide in promoting environmental education at the nature park. Our sample consisted of 98 introductory biology students at DePauw University. Our study investigated the impact of environmental education with the interpretive trail guides as a tool for changing student attitudes toward nature. Conservation biology and human impacts were highlighted in the trail guides and selection of the points of interest along the quarry guide. We designated 11 points along the quarry trail. Our trail guide incorporated aspects of the quarry trail that were relevant to conservation biology and significant historically. Pre and …

Cooperative Conservation: Increasing Capacity Through Community Partnerships -- Interagency Volunteer Program & Cooperative Conservation Program: Quarterly Progress Report, Period Ending March 31, 2006, Margaret N. Rees

Get Outdoors Nevada

• Interagency volunteer database now contains 2,211 records, reflecting 404 new volunteer records this quarter, a 22% increase over last quarter.
• Website activity decreased, recording an average of 35,798 hits per month, with an average of 3,337 pages viewed per month.
• Volunteer events were successfully executed in Sloan Canyon NCA, Spring Mountains NRA, and Lake Mead NRA.
• Interagency training was delivered to 70 volunteers.

Take Pride In America In Southern Nevada: Quarterly Progress Report, Period Ending March 31, 2006, Margaret N. Rees

Anti-littering Programs

• A community-based roundtable met three times this quarter to suggest goals and objectives for the anti-litter strategic plan.

• Project Manager Doug Joslin is representing the public lands on a Clark County Recycling Advisory Committee, which met twice this quarter.

• Four public service announcements were produced by UNLV students, with one selected by the team for use in the Southern Nevada messaging campaign.

• The Clint Eastwood Take Pride in America PSA aired 74 times in January 2006 and was viewed by 116,802 people.

• The interagency team has begun arrangements for paper recycling in partnership with the …

Technical Documentation For The Approximate Point Locations And Year Of Collection For Over 50,000 Specimens In The University Of Michigan Herbarium's Michigan Flora Database, Rachel A. Simpson

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

This is the technical documentation for a set of mapped points representing the approximate locations at which over 50,000 plant specimens were collected in Michigan. The specimens are a subset of those documented in the University of Michigan Herbarium's Michigan Flora Database, compiled by E.G. Voss.

A Multi-Site Analysis Of Random Error In Tower-Based Measurements Of Carbon And Energy Fluxes, Andrew D. Richardson, David Y. Hollinger, George C. Burba, Kenneth J. Davis, Lawrence B. Flanagan, Gabriel G. Katul, J. William Munger, Daniel M. Ricciuto, Paul C. Stoy, Andrew E. Suyker, Shashi Verma, Steven C. Wofsy

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Measured surface-atmosphere fluxes of energy (sensible heat, H, and latent heat, LE) and CO₂ (FCO₂) represent the ‘‘true’’ flux plus or minus potential random and systematic measurement errors. Here, we use data from seven sites in the AmeriFlux network, including five forested sites (two of which include “tall tower” instrumentation), one grassland site, and one agricultural site, to conduct a cross-site analysis of random flux error. Quantification of this uncertainty is a prerequisite to model-data synthesis (data assimilation) and for defining confidence intervals on annual sums of net ecosystem exchange or making statistically valid comparisons between …

Presentation To Green Valley Rotary Club March 16, 2006, Public Lands Institute, Nancy Flagg

Presentations (PLI)

The Public Lands Institute is dedicated to strengthening the national fabric that is essential for the protection, conservation, and management of public lands.

In collaboration with federal, state, and non-profit partners, we are:

• creating new knowledge
• advancing technology
• improving education
• engaging the public to enhance public lands stewardship.

Public Lands, Public Lands Institute

Presentations (PLI)

The Public Lands Institute is fully engaged in strengthening the national fabric that is essential for the protection, conservation, and management of public lands.

First Record Of The Spurge Hawkmoth As A Pollen Vector For The Western Prairie Fringed Orchid [Notes], Carla R. Jordan, Gerald M. Fauske, Mrion O. Harris, Darla Lenz

The Prairie Naturalist

Identification of pollen vectors is one step in refining management plans for a threatened plant such as the western prairie fringed orchid (Platanthera praeclara Sheviak and Bowles). Pollen vector bionomics, phenology, and ethology must be understood to assess this moth and other potential pollinators relative to orchid reproductive success. Also, the ability of spurge hawkmoth (Lepidoptera: Sphingidae), a recently introduced species, to act as a pollen vector for an obligate prairie plant, the western prairie fringed orchid, in theoretical terms, provides evidence which contradicts long held tenets of one-to-one correspondence between orchids and their pollinators. Further research might shed …

Suggestions For Contributors And Editorial Policy (The Prairie Naturalist), Elmer J. Finck, Hilary Gillock

The Prairie Naturalist

Suggestions for contributors and editorial policy for The Prairie Naturalist from March 2006, Volume 38, Issue 1.

Estimates Of Breeding Bird Populations In The Sheyenne National Grassland, North Dakota, Mary Ann Cunningham, Douglas Johnson, Daniel N. Svingen

The Prairie Naturalist

We conducted a two-year survey of breeding birds in the Sheyenne National Grassland, North Dakota, to estimate total populations of breeding birds. The Grassland is of interest because it provides wildlife habitat and recreational birding opportunities. Indicated breeding pairs were counted on 100-m wide belt transects during morning surveys from late May to early July in 2002 and 2003. We surveyed approximately 6 to 7% of the Grassland each year. The most abundant species in both years were grasshopper sparrow (Ammodramus savannarum), red-winged blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus), claycolored sparrow (Spizella pallida), Savannah sparrow (Passerculus …

Effects Of Predator Removal On Upland Nesting Ducks In North Dakota Grassland Fragments, Kristen D. Chodachek, Michael J. Chamberlain

The Prairie Naturalist

Low nest success rates in the Prairie Pothole Region are attributed mainly to changes in the predator community coupled with reductions in availability of suitable nesting cover. We evaluated effects of removal of mammalian predators on pair density and nest success of ducks nesting on 259 ha sites in northeastern North Dakota during 2001 and 2002. We monitored pair density and duck nests on 10 sites with removal and 10 sites without removal. Overall nest success for both years was greater on trapped (53.4%) than nontrapped sites (28.7%). Pair densities were not affected by predator removal, but did increase across …

Fire History, Passerine Abundance, And Habitat On A North Dakota Drift Plain Prairie, Timothy J. Ludwick, Robert K. Murphy

The Prairie Naturalist

Prescribed fire is among key tools for restoring and managing prairies in the northern Great Plains, yet there are no published reports of its impacts on grassland passerine birds on native prairie in the Drift Plain, a major physiographic subregion. We examined relationships between prescribed fire history and abundance and habitat of breeding passerines in Drift Plain prairie at Des Lacs National Wildlife National Refuge in northwestern North Dakota. In 2003, we used point counts (n = 79 75 m radius plots) to survey bird abundance on 16 management units that had been prescribe-burned one to three times each …

The Prairie Naturalist, Volume 38, Number 1, March 2006, Elmer J. Finck, Hilary Gillock

The Prairie Naturalist

Fire History, Passerine Abundance, and Habitat on a North Dakota Drift Plain Prairie by Timothy J. Ludwick and Robert T. Murphy, pages 1-11

Bats in a Human-made Forest of Central Nebraska by Keith Geluso, pages 13-23

Effects of Predator Removal on Upland Nesting Ducks in North Dakota Grassland Fragments by Kristen D. Chodachek and Michael J. Chamberlain, pages 25-37

Estimates of Breeding Bird Populations in the Sheyenne National Grassland, North Dakota by Mary Ann Cunningham, Douglas H. Johnson, and Daniel N. Svingen, pages 39-56

Notes: First Record of the Spurge Hawkmoth as a Pollen Vector for the western Prairie Fringed …

Taunton Watershed Water Resources, Geosyntec Consultants

Maps

No abstract provided.

Taunton Watershed Wildlife Habitat/Ecological Resources, Geosyntec Consultants

Maps

No abstract provided.

Taunton Watershed Land Use, Geosyntec Consultants

Maps

No abstract provided.

Taunton, Massachusetts Orthophotomap - East, Geosyntec Consultants

Maps

No abstract provided.

Taunton, Massachusetts Orthophotomap - West, Geosyntec Consultants

Maps

No abstract provided.

Fisheries Research Report No. 153 - A 12-Month Survey Of Recreational Fishing In The Pilbara Region Of Western Australia During 1999-2000, P C. Williamson, Neil R. Sumner, B E. Malseed

Fisheries Research Reports

A 12-month creel survey of recreational boat-based and shore-based fishing in the Pilbara region (Onslow to Broome inclusive) of Western Australia was conducted between December 1999 and November 2000. During the survey 3,085 boat crews were interviewed at public boat ramps when they returned from their fishing trips. Patrols conducted along the coastline interviewed 73 groups of boat-based fishers and 569 groups of shore-based fishers at fishing locations and camp sites.

The total annual recreational fishing effort for the Pilbara region was estimated to be 201,000 fisher days (95%CI: 193,000 – 210,000). This comprised 109,000 fisher days by boats launched …

New Directions In Conservation For The National Wildlife Refuge System, Robert L. Fischman, Vicky J. Meretsky, James R. Karr, Daniel M. Ashe, Michael Scott, Reed F. Noss, Richard L. Schroeder

Articles by Maurer Faculty

The National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997 includes the nation’s broadest statutory commitment to ecosystem protection: to “ensure that the biological integrity, diversity, and environmental health of the system are maintained.” The act also directs the US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) to expand the scope of conservation monitoring, assessment, and management beyond refuge boundaries to encompass surrounding landscapes. The act thus gives the FWS a leadership role in developing research and management partnerships with other agencies, organizations, and neighboring landowners. Increasing research capacity and scientific expertise, and strengthening institutional resolve to limit activities that impede the attainment …

Presentation To Outside Las Vegas Foundation January 23, 2006, Public Lands Institute

Presentations (PLI)

The Public Lands Institute is dedicated to strengthening the national fabric that is essential for the protection, conservation, and management of public lands.

In collaboration with federal, state, and non-profit partners, we are:

• creating new knowledge
• advancing technology
• improving education
• engaging the public to become involved in conservation and stewardship.

Effects Of Aphid (Homoptera) Abundance And Surrounding Vegetation On The Encounter Rate Of Coccinellidae (Coleoptera), Chrysopidae (Neuroptera) And Nabidae (Hemiptera) In Alfalfa., James R. Brandle

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

A Convective Line With Leading Stratiform Precipitation From Bamex, Brandom Storm, Matthew D. Parker, David P. Jorgensen

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

On 31 May 2003, a front-fed convective line with leading stratiform precipitation (FFLS) was observed during the Bow Echo and Mesoscale Convective Vortex Experiment (BAMEX). The high-resolution BAMEX measurements provided one of the first opportunities to thoroughly observe the characteristics of an FFLS system. The 31 May system had an overturning updraft during its early stages, and produced leading stratiform precipitation. As the system matured, a jump updraft developed and the system began to produce trailing stratiform precipitation. It appears that this transition was facilitated by a local decrease in the low-level line-perpendicular vertical wind shear over time, as well …

Severe Convective Wind Environments, Evan L. Kuchera, Matthew D. Parker

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Nontornadic thunderstorm winds from long-lived, widespread convective windstorms can have a tremendous impact on human lives and property. To examine environments that support damaging wind producing convection, sounding parameters from Rapid Update Cycle model analyses (at 3-hourly intervals) from 2003 were compared with 7055 reports of damaging winds and 377 081 occurrences of lightning. Ground- relative wind velocity was the most effective at discriminating between damaging and nondamaging wind convective environments. Steep surface-based lapse rates (a traditional damaging wind parameter) gener- ally did not discriminate between damaging and nondamaging wind convective environments. Other pa- rameters, such as convective available potential …

Trend Identification In Twentieth-Century U.S. Snowfall: The Challenges, Kenneth E. Kunkel, Michael A. Palecki, Kenneth G. Hubbard, David A. Robinson, Kelly T. Redmond, David R. Easterling

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

There is an increasing interest in examining long-term trends in measures of snow climatology. An examination of the U.S. daily snowfall records for 1900–2004 revealed numerous apparent inconsistencies. For example, long-term snowfall trends among neighboring lake-effect stations differ greatly from insignificant to +100% century -1.

Internal inconsistencies in the snow records, such as a lack of upward trends in maximum seasonal snow depth at stations with large upward trends in snowfall, point to inhomogeneities. Nationwide, the frequency of daily observations with a 10:1 snowfall-to-liquid-equivalent ratio declined from 30% in the 1930s to a current value of around 10%, a change …

A Hybrid, Markov Chain-Based Model For Daily Streamflow Generation At Multiple Catchment Sites, Jozsef Szilagyi, Gabor Balint, Andras Csik

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.