Forest Sciences Commons^™

Section Abstracts: Agriculture, Forestry And Aquaculture

Virginia Journal of Science

Abstracts of the Agriculture, Forestry and Aquaculture Section for the 93rd Annual Virginia Academy of Science Meeting, May 2015, at James Madison University

Rapid Response Tools And Datasets For Post-Fire Modeling: Linking Earth Observations And Process-Based Hydrological Models To Support Post-Fire Remediation, Mary Ellen Miller, Michael Billmire, William J. Elliot, K. A. Endsley, P. R. Robichaud

Michigan Tech Research Institute Publications

Preparation is key to utilizing Earth Observations and process-based models to support post-wildfire mitigation. Post-fire flooding and erosion can pose a serious threat to life, property and municipal water supplies. Increased runoff and sediment delivery due to the loss of surface cover and fire-induced changes in soil properties are of great concern. Remediation plans and treatments must be developed and implemented before the first major storms in order to be effective. One of the primary sources of information for making remediation decisions is a soil burn severity map derived from Earth Observation data (typically Landsat) that reflects fire induced changes …

White Spruce (Picea Glauca), Moose (Alces Alces) And The Origin Of A Zootic Disclimax Community On Isle Royale, Stephen C. Caird

All NMU Master's Theses

Understory herbivory combined with canopy loss alters trajectories of forest succession, and in extreme cases may produce novel landscapes dominated by the groundcover layer. I investigated the response of woody species to savannas which have emerged in Isle Royale National Park as a result of moose herbivory. I used dendrochronological methods and microsite plots to describe the spatial, temporal, and competitive responses of white spruce (Picea glauca), a non-palatable species, to the savanna environment. Most tree species had lower densities in savannas, however bird-dispersed species mountain ash (Sorbus decora) and chokecherry (Prunus virginiana) were …

Mapping Ancient Baldcypress Forests For Conservation At Black River, North Carolina, Jordan Nichole Burns

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A few ancient baldcypress-bottomland hardwood forests survive across the southeastern United States in a mosaic of remnant old-growth stands left untouched by extensive logging during the early 20th century. Uncut stands in the Southeast that survived centuries of disturbance following European settlement tended to be too senescent and non-commercial to justify logging. Remnant ancient baldcypress forests at Black River, North Carolina, appear to contain the oldest living trees in eastern North America and The Nature Conservancy has protected several of these stands. However, the full extent of ancient bottomland forests along Black River is not known and many valuable tracts …

Monitoring Abundance Of Ips Bark Beetles And Determining Related Tree Mortality In Arkansas And Texas, Chandler Stefan Barton

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The abundance of the southern pine engraver beetles, Ips avulsus (Eichhoff), I. grandicollis (Eichhoff), and I. calligraphus (Germar), was monitored with pheromone-baited traps in 2012 and 2013 in Arkansas and eastern Texas. Additionally, vehicle-based and comprehensive ground-based surveys were used to estimate and confirm the amount of dead and fading trees in each trapping site. Pine engraver beetles have historically been recognized as secondary invaders of healthy trees, but observations of pine mortality in Texas and Arkansas appeared to correspond with high population densities of Ips spp. Forest sites exhibiting subjectively high or low incidence of Ips-associated mortality in Arkansas …

Fire Environment Analysis At Army Garrison Camp Williams In Relation To Fire Behavior Potential For Gauging Fuel Modification Needs, Scott M. Frost

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Large fires (400 ha +) occur about every seven to ten years in the vegetation types located at US Army Garrison Camp Williams (AGCW) practice range located near South Jordan, Utah. In 2010 and 2012, wildfires burned beyond the Camp’s boundaries into the wildland-urban interface. The political and public reaction to these fire escapes was intense. Researchers at Utah State University were asked if a spatially organized system of fuel treatments could be developed to prevent future escapes. The first step of evaluation was to spatially predict fuel model types derived from a random forests classification approach. Fuel types were …

Smokejumper Obituary: Hammond, Albin C. (Missoula 1946), National Smokejumper Association

Smokejumper Obituaries

No abstract provided.

Smokejumper Obituary: Catlin, Del F. (Mccall 1947), National Smokejumper Association

Smokejumper Obituaries

No abstract provided.

How Does The Exploitation And Degradation Of Finite Natural Resources By Industrial Oil Producers Effect Our Future Planetary Environment?, Zachary J. King Mr.

Symposium of Student Scholars

Zachary King

Dr. Tu

26 March 2015

GEOG 3700

Abstract

The purpose of this presentation is to communicate content of the reports given by credible institution on the degradation and exploitation of finite natural resources by corporate institutions, for short term financial gain, and how it will effect the future planetary environment. Methods used in obtaining this research range from point source observation directly from oil spills in the Gulf or pipe leaks in the Mid-West, to analytical and numerical data quantifications gathered over a period of two decades. This presentation encompasses a wide scope of information concerning the way …

Modelling Climate Change Responses In Tropical Forests: Similar Productivity Estimates Across Five Models, But Different Mechanisms And Responses, L. Rowland, A. Harper, Bradley O. Christoffersen, D. R. Galbraith, H. M.A. Imbuzeiro, T. L. Powell, C. Doughty, N. M. Levine, Y. Malhi, S. R. Saleska

School of Integrative Biological & Chemical Sciences Faculty Publications

Accurately predicting the response of Amazonia to climate change is important for predicting climate change across the globe. Changes in multiple climatic factors simultaneously result in complex non-linear ecosystem responses, which are difficult to predict using vegetation models. Using leaf- and canopy-scale observations, this study evaluated the capability of five vegetation models (Community Land Model version 3.5 coupled to the Dynamic Global Vegetation model - CLM3.5-DGVM; Ecosystem Demography model version 2 - ED2; the Joint UK Land Environment Simulator version 2.1 - JULES; Simple Biosphere model version 3 - SiB3; and the soil-plant-atmosphere model - SPA) to simulate the responses …

Agricultural Assessment: Pecan Orchard Feasibility Study, Brad Henley

Undergraduate Research Conference

East Texas has predominantly been categorized historically as a forestry and timber management region. The nearest region to expectedly encounter viewing a large number of properties containing the growth of nut-bearing tree plantations, better known as orchards, is the Hill Country or South Texas Regions. During 2012, I witnessed a rural real estate transaction between an East Texas timber landowner and successful almond orchard farmer. The almond farmer had no previous experience with the practice and management of Texas loblolly pine plantations; however, he had interest in diversifying his real estate investment portfolio to include a pine plantation offering a …

Hickory Creek Orchard Feasibility Study, Brad Henley

Undergraduate Research Conference

Does land in East Texas host desirable soil types for developing large acreage into nut-bearing orchards?

Smokejumper Obituary: Painter, Robert H. (Cave Junction 1944), National Smokejumper Association

Smokejumper Obituaries

No abstract provided.

Smokejumper Obituary: Samsel, Hal A. (Missoula 1949), National Smokejumper Association

Smokejumper Obituaries

No abstract provided.

Smokejumper Obituary: Rungee, Fred W. (Missoula 1945), National Smokejumper Association

Smokejumper Obituaries

No abstract provided.

Quantifying Land Cover Change Due To Petroleum Exploration And Production In The Haynesville Shale Region Using Remote Sensing, Daniel Unger, I-Kuai Hung, Kenneth W. Farrish, Darinda Dans

Faculty Publications

The Haynesville Shale lies under areas of Louisiana and Texas and is one of the largest gas plays in the U.S. Encompassing approximately 2.9 million ha, this area has been subject to intensive exploration for oil and gas, while over 90% of it has traditionally been used for forestry and agriculture. In order to detect the landscape change in the past few decades, Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) imagery for six years (1984, 1989, 1994, 2000, 2006, and 2011) was acquired. Unsupervised classifications were performed to classify each image into four cover types: agriculture, forest, well pad, and other. Change detection …

The Effects Of Water Quality On The Habitat Use Of Tiger Salamanders In Prairie Wetlands, Broc S. Kokesh

Undergraduate Research Symposium 2015

The tiger salamander (Ambystoma tigrinum) is a wide-ranging amphibian of North America common to prairie wetlands. Nevertheless, little is actually known about their ecology, including what water quality conditions are desirable and what effects water quality may have on established populations. In this study, I assessed how water quality parameters affect salamander survival and microhabitat use in the prairie pothole region of Western Minnesota. My goal was to assess if differences in water quality between ponds act as potential indicators of microhabitat preferences among salamander populations. I took water quality samples and trapped salamanders from four ponds with …

Ficus Sp. Y La Frugivoría: Una Investigación Sobre Un Recurso Importante Para Las Aves En El Bosque Nublado Occidental Del Ecuador, Hilary Niles

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Ocho plantas fructíferas de Ficus sp. (Moraceae) fueron monitoreadas durante 16 días en la reserva La Hesperia en el bosque nublado al oeste del Ecuador; esto con el objetivo de entender mejor los patrones de la frugivoría aviar y la relación entre las aves y el género Ficus. Se observaron aves durante el 70.8% de las visitas de observación, en las que se registraron 326 individuos, 28 especies, y 7 familias comiendo la fruta de las plantas de Ficus. La mayoría (74.5%) de las aves observadas perteneció a la familia Thraupidae, siendo las dos especies predominantes Tangara gyrola …

Resin Production In Natural And Artificial Red-Cockaded Woodpecker Cavity Trees, David Kulhavy, Kimberly B. Rozelle, William G. Ross, Daniel Unger, Richard N. Conner

Faculty Publications

Resin flow was measured in red-cockaded woodpecker (Picoides borealis Vieillot) clusters in longleaf pine (Pinus palustris Mill.) in the southern region of the Angelina National Forest, Texas. Resin flow (ml) at 1.4 m height over 24 hrs was measured from one 2.5 cm punch through the phloem between 0700 and 1000 hrs from March 1999 to September 2000, for a total of 9 measurements per tree. Resin was sampled in naturally active cavity trees, artificial (insert) active, natural inactive, artificial inactive and control pines (84 sample trees). Resin flow pattern was significantly different during the year, but not significantly different …

Forest Park Ecosystems Services Inventory: An Exploratory Study, Pablo Barreyro, Jenny Dempsey Stein

Institute for Sustainable Solutions Publications and Presentations

This report presents both qualitative and quantitative survey data concerning resident perceptions of ecosystem services in Portland’s Forest Park. Focus group best practices and ecosystem services in urban parks literature are reviewed. Representative focus groups were conducted to ascertain local awareness and understanding of the urban wilderness area’s ecosystem services, identify concurrent challenges and measure interest in a potential interpretive center. Individual surveys were also administered in order to connect issues with demographics and recreational use information. Regression analyses were conducted to examine related park usage, access and economic trends.

While the study is preliminary, the results reveal opportunities for …