Biodiversity Commons^™

Traversing Swanton Road, 2nd Ed., James A. West

Academic, Government & Associated Organizational Research Resources

Situated at the northwest end of Santa Cruz County and occupying circa 30 square miles of sharply contrasted terrain, the Scott Creek Watershed concentrates within its geomorphological boundaries, at least 10-12% of California's flora, both native and introduced. Paradoxically, the use/abuse that the watershed has sustained over the past 140+ years, has not necessarily diminished the biodiversity and perhaps parallels the naturally disruptive but biologically energizing processes (fire, flooding, landslides and erosion), which have also been historically documented for the area for +60 years. This is an early edition of an extensive document by James A. West. Please visit the …

Foundational Checklist Of The Amphibians Of Wise County, Virginia, Sarah R.A. Davidson, David L. Chambers

Virginia Journal of Science

The Appalachian Mountains are arguably home to the highest degree of amphibian diversity in the world, particularly caudate (salamander) biodiversity. Despite the high degree of amphibian endemism in the Appalachians, several regions remain unsurveyed for amphibian species. In addition to this knowledge gap, we are in the midst of alarming amphibian biodiversity loss. Thus, it is of the utmost importance to bridge this knowledge gap by conducting surveys before some of these amphibian species are lost. We surveyed Wise County (previously unsurveyed county in the Appalachian Mountains with no records existing in the primary literature) over two years to assess …

Rare, Threatened And Endangered Species Of Oregon (2010), James S. Kagan, Sue Vrilakas, Eleanor P. Gaines, Cliff Alton, Lindsey Koepke, John A. Christy, Erin Doyle

Institute for Natural Resources Publications

Extinction is a natural process. Today, however, plant and animal species are disappearing world-wide at an accelerated pace. Based on current trends, half of the species on earth will be extinct within the next 100 years. The major cause of this phenomenon is human caused changes to the environment, which continue to increase - in Oregon and throughout the world.

Once lost, a species can never be recovered, and there is no way of knowing how useful it may have been. We do know that human beings and many of their industries depend on plant and animal products. About 50% …

Tactical Research Fund – Asfb 2009 Workshop, Department Of Fisheries

Fisheries Occasional Publications

Biodiversity of aquatic ecosystems – What to measure and monitor for fisheries and ecosystem management FRDC Project No. 2008/353.

The European Union And International Maritime Organization: Eu’S External Influence On The Prevention Of Vessel-Source Pollution, Nengye Liu, Frank Maes

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

The European Union (EU), with its 27 Member States, has a coastline 70, 000 km along two oceans and four seas. Its well-being is therefore inextricably linked with the sea.' Europe plays a major role in today's shipping world, 41% of the world's total fieet (in dwt) is beneficially controlled by European companies.^ Ensuring that the use of the marine environment is genuinely sustainable is a prerequisite for the EU's sea-related industries to be competitive.

The Human Oral Microbiome, Floyd E. Dewhirst, Tuste Chen, Jacques Izard, Bruce J. Paster, Anne C. R. Tanner, Wen-Han Yu, Abirami Lakshmanan, William G. Wade

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

The human oral cavity contains a number of different habitats, including the teeth, gingival sulcus, tongue, cheeks, hard and soft palates, and tonsils, which are colonized by bacteria. The oral microbiome comprises over 600 prevalent taxa at the species level, with distinct subsets predominating at different habitats. The oral microbiome has been extensively characterized by cultivation and culture-independent molecular methods such as 16S rRNA cloning. Unfortunately, the vast majority of unnamed oral taxa are referenced by clone numbers or 16S rRNA GenBank accession numbers, often without taxonomic anchors. The first aim of this research was to collect 16S rRNA gene …

North Coast Fish Identification Guide, Ben M. Rome, Stephen J. Newman

Fisheries Occasional Publications

The intention of the North Coast Fish Identification Guide is to provide a simple, easy to use manual to assist commercial, recreational, charter and customary fishers to identify the most commonly caught marine finfish species in the North Coast Bioregion, Western Australia. This guide is not intended to be a comprehensive taxonomic fish ID guide for all species. It is anticipated that this guide will assist fishers in providing a more comprehensive species level description of their catch and hence assist scientists and managers in understanding any variation in the species composition of catches over both spatial and temporal scales.

Western Rock Lobster International Stock Assessment And Modelling Workshop Report, Department Of Fisheries

Fisheries Occasional Publications

No abstract provided.

Information Acquisition And Sociality Among Migratory Birds, Zoltán Németh

Dissertations

Information use is a key feature of adaptive behavior: the better informed an individual, the better it is able to adjust its behavior to meet the demands of a variable world. Therefore, most animals attempt to reduce environmental uncertainty by gathering information when it is available. However, tracking unpredictable ecological factors may carry costs as individuals invest valuable time and energy in the process of information acquisition. Social learning (i.e., use of social information inadvertently produced by other individuals) enables the individual to gain rapid and more complete assessment of its novel environment. This process may be particularly important for …

Wpa News 85 (2010), World Pheasant Association

Galliformes Specialist Group and Affiliated Societies: Newsletters

WPA News (Summer 2010), number 85

Published by the World Pheasant Association

Bats Of The Grenadine Islands, West Indies, And Placement Of Koopman's Line, Hugh H. Genoways, Gary G. Kwiecinski, Peter A. Larsen, Scott C. Pedersen, Roxanne J. Larsen, Justin D. Hoffman, Mark De Silva, Carleton J. Phillips, Robert J. Baker

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

Almost nothing is known concerning the chiropteran fauna on the Grenadine Islands, a chain of islands between St. Vincent and Grenada located near the southern end of the Lesser Antilles. Previously, only a single species—Glossophaga longirostris—had been reported from the Grenadines. Our research, conducted on 4 occasions over the period of 1980 to 2006, provided museum vouchers and genetic specimens for the addition of 4 other species to the known fauna of these islands—Noctilio leporinus, Artibeus lituratus, Artibeus schwartzi, and Molossus molossus. The Grenadines, being situated between St. Vincent and Grenada, occupy an important zoogeographic position. …

Marine Bioinvasions And Climate Change, James T. Carlton, Sandra C. Lindstrom, Celia M. Smith, Jennifer E. Smith

National Invasive Species Council

BACKGROUND

Invasive species are second only to habitat destruction as the greatest cause of species endangerment and global biodiversity loss. Invasive species can cause severe and permanent damage to the ecosystems they invade. Consequences of invasion include competition with or predation upon native species, hybridization, carrying or supporting harmful pathogens and parasites that may affect wildlife and human health, disturbing ecosystem function through alteration of food webs and nutrient recycling rates, acting as ecosystem engineers and altering habitat structure, and degradation of the aesthetic quality of our natural resources. In many cases we may not fully know the native animals …

Seed Production And Maturation Of The Western Prairie Fringed Orchid, Bonnie Warner Alexander, Donald Kirby, Mario Biondini, Edward Dekeyser

The Prairie Naturalist

A population of threatened western prairie fringed orchid (Platanthera praeclara) was selected in 2004 on the Sheyenne National Grassland in southeastern North Dakota to study seed production and maturation for future use in population viability modeling. We randomly collected 30 seed capsules from the population under a permit from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to: 1) identify capsule parameters that might be correlated with seed number and viability, 2) estimate an appropriate sample size to obtain accurate seed production estimates, 3) quantify seed production and viability per seed capsule, and 4) document temporal patterns in seed embryo …

Cattle Grazing Reduces Survival And Reproduction Of The Western Prairie Fringed Orchid, Bonnie Warner Alexander, Donald Kirby, Mario Biondini, Edward Dekeyser

The Prairie Naturalist

QuantifYing impacts of livestock grazing and prairie management strategies on the threatened western prairie' fringed orchid (Platanthera praeclara) is difficult due to the erratic appearance of the orchid above-ground. We monitored above-ground survival of orchids from flowering to mature seed capsule production, comparing plant height, flower numbers, and seed capsule numbers from 2002-2004 in rotationally grazed pastures and non-grazed sites. Orchid survival differed significantly between grazed and non-grazed pastures, with the proportion of plants surviving from flower to capsule production consistently lower in grazed pastures. Mean orchid survival in grazed and non-grazed areas was 40% and 87%, respectively. …

The Prairie Naturalist, Volume 42, No. 1/2 June 2010, The Great Plains Natural Science Society

The Prairie Naturalist

CHANNEL CATFISH DIETS INCLUDE SUBSTANTIAL VEGETATION IN A MISSOURI RIVER RESERVOIR • J. D. Dagel, M. R. Wuellner, and D. W. Willis

USE OF LATE SEASON STANDING CORN BY FEMALE WHITE-TAILED DEER IN THE NORTHERN GREAT PLAINS DURING A MILD WINTER • T. W. Grovenburg, C. N. Jacques, C. C. Swanson, R. W. Klaver, and J. A. Jenks

COMPARISON OF TWO ZOOPLANKTON SAMPLING GEARS IN SHALLOW, HOMOGENOUS LAKES • M. E. Livings, C. W. Schoenebeck, and M. L. Brown

VEGETATION TRENDS ON A WASTE ROCK REPOSITORY CAP IN THE NORTHERN BLACK HILLS • A. C. Korth, G. E. Larson, L. …

Channel Catfish Diets Include Substantial Vegetation In A Missouri River Reservoir, Jonah D. Dagel, Melissa R. Wuellner, David W. Willis

The Prairie Naturalist

Channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) are native to Lake Sharpe, a Missouri River mainstem reservoir, and are common in angler catches. Channel catfish growth has declined since the formation of the reservoir in 1963. Mean lengths at time of capture for channel catfish ages 9, 10, II, and 12 have decreased by 69, 55, 115, and 21S mm, respectively, since impoundment. The objective of this study was to document monthly food habits of channel catfish throughout the growing season (May-August) in Lake Sharpe to assess potential effects of diet on growth. Although channel catfish consumed both macro invertebrates and …

Observations Of Little Blue Herons Nesting In North Dakota, And An Instance Of Probable Natural Hybridization Between A Little Blue Heron And A Cattle Egret, Alisa J. Bartos, Lawrence Igl, Marsha A. Sovada

The Prairie Naturalist

The little blue heron (Egretta caerulea) is native to North America and most commonly breeds along the coast of the southeastern United States and the Gulf of Mexico through Central America and into South America (Rodgers and Smith 1995). In North America, little blue herons rarely nest outside their coastal range. However, nesting has been documented at several locations in the northern plains including Brown, Kingsbury, and Charles Mix counties, South Dakota (Naugle et al. 1996, Tallman et al. 2002); Pope County, Minnesota (Green and Janssen 1975); and possibly in southeastern Saskatchewan (Nero and Lein 1971, Smith et al. 1996). …

Bat Survey Along The Missouri River In Central South Dakota, Alyssa M. Kiesow, Joshua A. Kiesow

The Prairie Naturalist

ats are efficient predators of night-flying insects (Whitaker 1993), particularly in urban, agricultural, and forested areas in South Dakota (Kiesow 2004). In South Dakota, 6 bat species are considered rare and presently monitored by the South Dakota Natural Heritage Program (SDNHP; South Dakota Natural Heritage Program 2002). Because bats serve a vital ecosystem function there is an increased need to conserve bats and their habitats. Hence, the objectives of this project were to determine bat species richness along the Missouri River in central South Dakota. We conducted surveys of bats using mist-nets and acoustic detection from early May to early …

Use Of Late Season Standing Corn By Female White-Tailed Deer In The Northern Great Plains During A Mild Winter, Troy W. Grovenburg, Christopher N. Jacques, Christopher C. Swanson, Robert W. Klaver, Jonathan Jenks

The Prairie Naturalist

Winter habitat and resource use of white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) have been studied extensively throughout their northern range. However, limited information exists on deer use of late season standing corn. We evaluated standing corn use by female white-tailed deer on winter range in north-central South Dakota during winter 2005-2006. Results indicate that cover type selection occurred at the population (P < 0.001) and home range (P < 0.001) levels. PopUlation level analysis indicated selection for standing corn (vi> = 4.31) and Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) grasslands (vi> = 2.81). Similarly, at the home range level, deer selected for standing corn (vi> = 1.35) and CRP grasslands (vi> = 1.44). Deer disproportionately increased use of standing corn and CRP …

Potential Importance Of Competition, Predation, And Prey On Yellow Perch Growth From Two Dissimilar Population Types, Casey W. Schoenebeck, Michael L. Brown

The Prairie Naturalist

Our objective was to describe the influence of population dynamics, inter- and intra-specific competition, predation, prey abundance, and prey size structure on yellow perch (Perca flavescens) growth for two perch population types (high-quality and low-quality) commonly found in South Dakota glacial lakes. We selected Lake Cochrane as a low quality yellow perch population and Lake Madison as a high quality perch population. Sunfish (Lepomis spp.) relative abundance was greater (P < 0.05) in Lake Cochrane than Lake Madison, suggesting interspecific competition may have a large influence on yellow perch growth. Indices of available sizes and densities of zooplankton were lower (P < 0.05) in Lake Cochrane than Lake Madison, suggesting that increased competition for large zooplankton may have reduced zooplankton size structure and density. Zooplankton may be a limiting resource in South Dakota glacial lakes when both yellow perch and sunfish are feeding primarily on zooplankton which may explain differences in perch growth rates between population types .