Natural Resources and Conservation Commons^™

Aba Rpte Conservation Easement Task Force Report: Recommendations Regarding Conservation Easements And Federal Tax Law, W. William Weeks

Articles by Maurer Faculty

Authors' Synopsis: In October 2015, the American Bar Association's Real Property, Trust and Estate Law (RPTE) section convened a Conservation Easement Task Force. The objective of the Task Force was to provide recommendations regarding federal tax law as it relates to conservation easements. This Report is the culmination of the Task Force's work. Part I of the Report is an Executive Summary of the Task Force's recommendations. Part II provides the background necessary to understand the Task Force's recommendations. Part III briefly sets forth the Task Force's comments on the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 as it relates …

Gateways-Nd: Building The Institutional Infrastructure Towards Viable Postsecondary Stem Education Reform, J.M.D. Motschenbacher, M. Vosen Callens, J. Nyachwaya, E. Berg, J. Ladbury, R. Reichenbach, P. Kelter

School of Natural Resources: Documents and Reviews

No abstract provided.

Age-0 Walleye Sander Vitreus Display Length-Dependent Diet Shift To Piscivory, Christopher S. Uphoff, Casey W. Schoenebeck, Keith D. Koupal, Kevin L. Pope, W. Wyatt Hoback

Nebraska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit: Staff Publications

The ontogenetic diet shift to piscivory can be energetically beneficial for fish growth and allows larger, more energetically profitable prey to be consumed. A shift to piscivory may be easier for longer individuals within a cohort due to larger gape size, and an early shift is likely advantageous, potentially leading to increased growth rates and survival. Such length-dependent ontogenetic diet shifts may explain the intracohort variability in length that is common for age-0 walleye (Sander vitreus). The objectives of this study were to describe seasonal intracohort variability in length, identify the timing of the shift to piscivory and …

Ecosystem Size Predicts Social-Ecological Dynamics, Mark A. Kaemingk, Christopher J. Chizinski, Craig R. Allen, Kevin L. Pope

Nebraska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit: Staff Publications

Recreational fisheries are complex adaptive systems that are inherently difficult to manage because of heterogeneous user groups (consumptive vs. nonconsumptive) that use patchily distributed resources on the landscape (lakes, rivers, coastlines). There is a need to identify which system components can effectively predict and be used to manage nonlinear and cross-scale dynamics within these systems. We examine how ecosystem size or water body size can be used to explain complicated and elusive angler-resource dynamics in recreational fisheries. Water body size determined angler behavior among 48 Nebraska, U.S.A. water bodies during an 11- year study. Angler behavior was often unique and …

Droughtscape, Winter 2019, National Drought Mitigation Center

DroughtScape: Quarterly Newsletter of the National Drought Mitigation Center (2007–2023)

Contents

From the Director

Drought intensified in California and Nevada, eased elsewhere

Year in Review: Drought spread and intensified in the West; record precipitation in the East

Drought impact summary for 4th quarter 2018

Drought impact summary 2018

Five states began drought plan updates in 2018

New web-based form makes submitting drought observations easier

FEMA risk assessment process tailored for drought

Upcoming events

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 …

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 …

Through The Eyes Of Locals: A Changing Climate In Bolivia, Jacob D. Rex

Undergraduate Theses, Professional Papers, and Capstone Artifacts

Deforestation and Agricultural Land-Use Change in Bolivia as a Function of Socio-Economic Realities.

This research combines semi-structured interviews of key informants and local participants, as well as field observations, which were conducted between January and April of 2019 in the Departments of Santa Cruz & Chuquisaca.

Evaluating Reforestation Options For Surface Mines In Appalachia, Joseph Frederick

Theses and Dissertations--Forestry and Natural Resources

During the last century coal extraction has degraded ecosystems in Appalachia, converting forested land into other cover types that have a diminished capacity to naturally progress to later stages of succession. This projects objective was to examine two options for land-use that can assist in returning the reclaimed surface mines to forested cover types, with increased ecosystem services, and a potential for economic gain.

This project examined a biomass plantation and an American chestnut trial. In the biomass trial, greatest heights for American sycamore (12.3 m) and black locust (8.0 m) were found in the fertilizer plots. Mean individual tree …

Alpine Plant Communities Of The White Mountains Of New Hampshire: Aboveground Plant Diversity And Abundance Correlated To Belowground Factors, Timothy Maddalena-Lucey

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Alpine plant communities are fragile complex systems that may be threatened by climate change. Patterns of climate-driven soil warming are shown to have lasting effects on ecosystem nutrient cycles, alpine plant phenology, and belowground soil biotic activity. There are concerns in the alpine mycorrhizal research community as to how belowground fungal biomass will react to climate-driven soil warming. To address these concerns I asked in this study what are the correlations between belowground factors such as collective ectomycorrhizal (EcM) and ericoid mycorrhizal (ErM) percent colonization, pH, and soil depth to bedrock and aboveground plant diversity and richness. In 2018, on …

Habitat Characteristics And Nesting Ecology Of Golden Eagles In Arizona, Michele J. Losee

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Golden Eagles (Aquila chrysaetos) have a broad range globally and in general are well-studied. However, Arizona’s Golden Eagle population remained essentially unstudied until 2011, when Arizona Game and Fish Department (AZGFD) began nest surveys for cliff nesting Golden Eagles throughout the state. As a result of this data collection, the natural history of Arizona’s Golden Eagles is finally revealing itself. This dissertation outlined a reliable description of their nesting phenology that provides a framework for timing surveys and a baseline to monitor the effects of climate change on Golden Eagles. The mean date for egg-laying was February 14 and pairs …

Understory Light, Regeneration, And Browsing Effects In Irregular Structures Created By Partial Harvesting In Coast Redwood Stands, Kurt Anthony Schneider

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Regeneration of commercial species is central to long-term success of multiaged management for wood production. We used a replicated uneven-aged silviculture experiment to study regeneration by stump sprouting (Chapter 1) and planted seedlings (Chapter 2). In Chapter 1, we present relationships between understory light, varying overstory tree retention, and growth of coast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens) and tanoak (Notholithocarpus densiflorus) stump sprouts initiated by group selection (GS) and single-tree selection harvesting. First, we quantified understory light throughout this 20 ha experiment comparing four different silvicultural treatments repeated at four sites. Then, we related understory light to post-treatment …

An Assessment Of Farmer Participation In The United States Department Of Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Services’ Conservation Technical Assistance Program In West Virginia, Matt D. Oliver

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Food and fiber production on America’s farmlands have a major influence on the environment, therefore, soil and water conservation practices are critical. NRCS has provided no-fee technical assistance for nearly 100 years through the Conservation Technical Assistance (CTA) program. The CTA program is essential because it provides technical knowledge directly to farmers for planning and implementing conservation practices that are proven to benefit environmental health and on-farm production. CTA program funds support NRCS staff and training and are thereby the local service delivery vehicle for all NRCS programs. However, in recent years, funding for CTA has remained relatively constant while …

Soil Health Assessment In Reclaimed Mine Soils, Katie Danielle Stutler

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

West Virginia is one of the top coal-producing states in the nation, which has resulted in over 500,000 acres of highly disturbed, anthropogenic mine soils caused by surface mining. Mine soils are often rocky and contain low organic matter content, low plant-available nutrients, and toxic metals, which could result in poor soil health and low productivity. Soil health has been defined as the continued capacity of soil to function as a living ecosystem that sustains plants, animals, and humans. It is assumed that with time since reclamation, mine soil properties and related functions may change, and soil health will improve …

River Report. State Of The Lower St. Johns River Basin, Florida: Water Quality, Fisheries, Aquatic Life, Contaminants, 2019, Environmental Protection Board, City Of Jacksonville, University Of North Florida, Jacksonville University, Gerry Pinto, Brian P. Zoellner, Christopher Baynard, Charles Closmann, Nisse Goldberg, Scott F. Jones, William Penwell, Radha Pyati, Adam E. Rosenblatt, Gretchen Bielmyer-Fraser

State of the River Report

No abstract provided.

Changes In Walleye Fecundity And Egg Size Before, During, And After Rehabilitation Of The Red Lakes Fishery, Benjamin J. Miller, Benjamin D. Erb

Journal of Earth and Life Science

The Red Lakes in northern Minnesota experienced a major Walleye Sander vitreus fishery crash in the late 20th century, but has since recovered to record abundances and supports a major commercial and recreational fishery. Fecundity is an integral aspect of recruitment that can contribute greatly to the understanding of fishery population dynamics. To elucidate the effects of varying Walleye densities and exploitation rates on fecundity and egg size in years 1989 (overexploited fishery), 2004 (recovering fishery), and 2017 (recovered fishery), we analyzed linear models that related fecundity or egg size to morphological features for these three sampling periods. Walleyes were …

A Multi-Scale Analysis Of Jaguar (Panthera Onca) And Puma (Puma Concolor) Habitat Selection And Conservation In The Narrowest Section Of Panama., Kimberly A. Craighead

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Over the past two centuries, large terrestrial carnivores have suffered extreme population declines and range contractions resulting from the synergistic anthropogenic threats of land-use change and indirect effects of climate change. In Panama, rapid land use conversion coupled with climate change is predicted to negatively impact jaguar (Panthera onca) and puma (Puma concolor). This dissertation examined the environmental variables and scales influencing jaguar and puma habitat selection by season (annual, wet, and dry), using multi-scale optimized habitat suitability models and a machine-learning algorithm (Random Forests), in the narrowest section of Panama. The models derived from the data of an intensive …

Cause‐Specific Mortality Of The World’S Terrestrial Vertebrates, Jacob E. Hill, Travis L. Devault, Jerrold L. Belant

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Aim: Vertebrates are declining worldwide, yet a comprehensive examination of the sources of mortality is lacking. We conducted a global synthesis of terrestrial vertebrate cause‐specific mortality to compare the sources of mortality across taxa and determine predictors of susceptibility to these sources of mortality.

Location: Worldwide.

Time period: 1970–2018.

Major taxa studied: Mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians.

Methods: We searched for studies that used telemetry to determine the cause of death of terrestrial vertebrates. We determined whether each mortality was caused by anthropogenic or natural sources and further classified mortalities within these two categories (e.g. harvest, vehicle collision and predation). …

Feral Swine Harming Insular Sea Turtle Reproduction: The Origin, Impacts, Behavior And Elimination Of An Invasive Species, Richard M. Engeman, Robert W. Byrd, Jamie Dozier, Mark A. Mcalister, James O. Edens, Elizabeth M. Kierepka, Timothy J. Smyser, Noel Myers

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Feral swine are among the world's most destructive invasive species wherever they are found, with translocations figuring prominently in their range expansions. In contrast, sea turtles are beloved species that are listed as threatened or endangered throughout the world and are the focus of intense conservation efforts. Nest predation by feral swine severely harms sea turtle reproduction in many locations around the world. Here we quantify and economically assess feral swine nest predation at North Island, South Carolina, an important loggerhead sea turtle nesting beach. Feral swine depredation of North Island sea turtle nests was first detected in 2005, with …

A Bioeconomic Model For The Optimization Of Local Canine Rabies Control, Aaron Anderson, Johann Kotze, Stephanie A. Shwiff, Brody Hatch, Chris Slootmaker, Anne Conan, Darryn Knobel, Louis H. Nel

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

We present a new modeling tool that can be used to maximize the impact of canine rabies management resources that are available at the local level. The model is accessible through a web-based interface that allows for flexibility in the management strategies that can be investigated. Rabies vaccination, sterilization, chemo-contraception, and euthanasia can be specified and limited to specific demographic groups. Additionally, we allowed for considerable complexity in the specification of management costs. In many areas, the costs of contacting additional dogs increases as management effort increases, and this can have important strategic implications. We illustrated the application of the …