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Title: Biogenic gas dynamics in peat soil blocks using ground penetrating radar: a comparative study in the laboratory between peat soils from the Everglades and from two northern peatlands in Minnesota and Maine.
Creator: Cabolova, Anastasija., Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Physics
Abstract/Description: Peatlands cover a total area of approximately 3 million square kilometers and are one of the largest natural sources of atmospheric methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2). Most traditional methods used to estimate biogenic gas dynamics are invasive and provide little or no information about lateral distribution of gas. In contrast, Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) is an emerging technique for non-invasive investigation of gas dynamics in peat soils. This thesis establishes a direct comparison...
Show morePeatlands cover a total area of approximately 3 million square kilometers and are one of the largest natural sources of atmospheric methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2). Most traditional methods used to estimate biogenic gas dynamics are invasive and provide little or no information about lateral distribution of gas. In contrast, Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) is an emerging technique for non-invasive investigation of gas dynamics in peat soils. This thesis establishes a direct comparison between gas dynamics (i.e. build-up and release) of four different types of peat soil using GPR. Peat soil blocks were collected at peatlands with contrasting latitudes, including the Everglades, Maine and Minnesota. A unique two-antenna GPR setup was used to monitor biogenic gas buildup and ebullition events over a period of 4.5 months, constraining GPR data with surface deformation measurements and direct CH4 and CO2 concentration measurements. The effect of atmospheric pressure was also investigated. This study has implications for better understanding global gas dynamics and carbon cycling in peat soils and its role in climate change.
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Date Issued: 2010
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/2974433
Subject Headings: Wetland ecology, Wetland ecology, Wetland ecology, Gas dynamics, Soil permeability, Ground penetrating radar, Porous materials, Fluid dynamics
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Constraints of landscape level prey availability on physiological condition and productivity of great egrets and white ibises in the Florida Everglades.
Creator: Herring, Garth, Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Biological Sciences
Abstract/Description: Life history strategy suggests long lived bird species will adjust their nesting effort according to current conditions, balancing the costs of reproduction with their long-term needs for survival and future reproduction. The habitat conditions that produce these responses may differ between species, even within the same ecosystem, producing different nesting and population trends. I traced the pathway by which food availability influences the physiological condition of pre-breeding great...
Show moreLife history strategy suggests long lived bird species will adjust their nesting effort according to current conditions, balancing the costs of reproduction with their long-term needs for survival and future reproduction. The habitat conditions that produce these responses may differ between species, even within the same ecosystem, producing different nesting and population trends. I traced the pathway by which food availability influences the physiological condition of pre-breeding great egrets and white ibises through to reproductive measures, and the physiological condition of chicks. I focused on these two species with contrasting foraging strategies, in relation to foraging and habitat conditions to maximize the likelihood of application of these results to other wading bird species. Experimental food supplementation and physiology research on white ibis chicks demonstrated that in years with low prey availability white ibis were food limited, with increased levels of stress protein 60 and fecal corticosterone. This is the first study to demonstrate experimentally the response of stress protein 60 to changing levels of food availability. During a year with low prey availability (2007) white ibis adults and chick physiological condition was lower than that of great egrets. During the same year, fledging success was lower for both species (20% for white ibis versus 27% for great egret) but the magnitude of the decrease was particularly severe for the white ibis (76% decline versus 66% decline for the great egret). Results suggest white ibises modify their clutch size during years with poor habitat in accordance with life history traits of a long-lived species, whereas great egrets maintained their clutch size during years with poor habitat., Increasing recession rates, hydrological reversals, and prey densities influenced white ibis, whereas great egrets were most influenced by prey densities and recession rates, with no effect of hydrological reversal. During the same year, fledging success was lower for both species (20% for white ibis versus 27% for great egret) but the magnitude of the decrease was particularly severe for the white ibis (76% decline versus 66% decline for the great egret). Results suggest white ibises modify their clutch size during years with poor habitat in accordance with life history traits of a long-lived species, whereas great egrets maintained their clutch size during years with poor habitat. Increasing recession rates, hydrological reversals, and prey densities influenced white ibis, whereas great egrets were most influenced by prey densities and recession rates, with no effect of hydrological reversals. This study is the first to make the link between landscape hydrology patterns, prey availability, and responses in wading bird nesting. These linkages provide critical insight into how species' nesting patterns could differ given the same time and spatial constraints and how that may be related to long-term nesting trends. This knowledge could ultimately lead to novel predictions about population and community patterns of wetland birds.
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Date Issued: 2008
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/77643
Subject Headings: Bird populations, Water birds, Wetland ecology
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Consumptive effects of predatory fish reduce wetland crayfish (Procambarus spp.) recruitment and drive species turnover.
Creator: Kellogg, Christopher M., Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Biological Sciences
Abstract/Description: Trade-offs in traits conferring success in permanent and ephemeral habitats are often at odds with few species being able to persist in both types of environments. I examined the effect of sunfish predators on two species of south Florida crayfish to establish the mechanism that limits one species, Procambarus alleni, to short-hydroperiod environments. The crayfish assemblage response to a gradient of sunfish predators and the effect of predation on P. fallax alone was examined. I also...
Show moreTrade-offs in traits conferring success in permanent and ephemeral habitats are often at odds with few species being able to persist in both types of environments. I examined the effect of sunfish predators on two species of south Florida crayfish to establish the mechanism that limits one species, Procambarus alleni, to short-hydroperiod environments. The crayfish assemblage response to a gradient of sunfish predators and the effect of predation on P. fallax alone was examined. I also examined the effects of sunfish on crayfish growth and quantified activity levels and risky behaviors of both crayfish species. P. alleni dominated at low sunfish densities but dominance shifted with increasing sunfish density. P. alleni was more active and likely to initiate risky behaviors, suggesting that sunfish predators remove the more active P. alleni, reducing their numbers disproportionally to those of P. fallax and allowing P. fallax to dominate crayfish assemblages in long-hydroperiod wetlands.
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Date Issued: 2011
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/3171400
Subject Headings: Wetland ecology, Habitat selection, Marine ecosystem management, Predatory marine animals, Ecology
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Diet variation and the consumptive effects of native centrarchids on benthic macroinvertebrates in wetlands.
Creator: Bransky, Jacob., Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Center for Environmental Studies
Abstract/Description: Fish predation can have structuring effects in aquatic communities, but the most important fish predators are not always immediately obvious. Generalist fish predators often occupy similar habitats and consume similar prey making determination of their consumptive impacts difficult. Understanding these consumptive impacts is important for understanding complex wetland food webs. I collected warmouth (Lepomis gulosus), bluespotted sunfish (Enneacanthus gloriosus), and dollar sunfish (Lepomis...
Show moreFish predation can have structuring effects in aquatic communities, but the most important fish predators are not always immediately obvious. Generalist fish predators often occupy similar habitats and consume similar prey making determination of their consumptive impacts difficult. Understanding these consumptive impacts is important for understanding complex wetland food webs. I collected warmouth (Lepomis gulosus), bluespotted sunfish (Enneacanthus gloriosus), and dollar sunfish (Lepomis marginatus) in two seasons from sloughs for both diet and bioenergetics analysis. Macroinvertebrates dominated diets of the three species, and nonparametric analyses revealed evidence of diet ontogeny in warmouth and potential competition for prey items among gape-matched individuals. Bioenergetics modeling revealed high levels of macroinvertebrate comsumption by these species relative to macroinvertebrate reproductive output suggesting that when combined with other sources of mortality, consumptive pressures placed by sunfish on benthic macroinvertebrates may be quite large.
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Date Issued: 2012
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/3356894
Subject Headings: Wetland ecology, Predatory marine animals, Ecology, Predation (Biology), Habitat selction, Marine ecosystem management
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Dietary niche relationships of white ibis, tricolored heron and snowy egret nestlings in the northern Everglades.
Creator: Boyle, Robin A., Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Biological Sciences
Abstract/Description: Food availability is the primary factor affecting the reproductive success in many species of birds. Diet composition can indicate diet quality, habitat use and niche requirements for breeding birds and may be variable across short and long-term time scales. Identifying primary prey types of nesting wading birds is important for the hydrologic restoration of wetlands. I collected nestling boluses during the 2008 and 2009 nesting seasons from three species of wading birds that nest in the...
Show moreFood availability is the primary factor affecting the reproductive success in many species of birds. Diet composition can indicate diet quality, habitat use and niche requirements for breeding birds and may be variable across short and long-term time scales. Identifying primary prey types of nesting wading birds is important for the hydrologic restoration of wetlands. I collected nestling boluses during the 2008 and 2009 nesting seasons from three species of wading birds that nest in the northern Everglades: White Ibis, Tricolored Herons and Snowy Egrets. White Ibis bolus composition was dominated by crayfish in both years, but exhibited some variation with landscape water depth in 2009; fish use was greatest when the wetland landscape was relatively dry. In contrast, the prey of Tricolored Herons and Snowy Egrets were primarily fish and their respective diets did not differ from one another in either fish species composition or size structure.
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Date Issued: 2010
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/2953207
Subject Headings: Wetland ecology, Bird populations, Water birds
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Differentiating decomposition rates within the ridge-slough microtopography of the central Florida Everglades.
Creator: Van der Heiden, Sheryl R., Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Biological Sciences
Abstract/Description: The relative rates of detrital decomposition in four vegetation communities within the Everglades' ridge-slough microtopography were evaluated during two trials. Litterbags with community-specific detritus in proportion to each community's composition were put into the four communities; namely, submerged marsh, emergent marsh, short Cladium ridge, and tall Cladium ridge. These litterbags were paired with litterbags containing control leaf litter from Chrysobalanus icaco and Salix caroliniana...
Show moreThe relative rates of detrital decomposition in four vegetation communities within the Everglades' ridge-slough microtopography were evaluated during two trials. Litterbags with community-specific detritus in proportion to each community's composition were put into the four communities; namely, submerged marsh, emergent marsh, short Cladium ridge, and tall Cladium ridge. These litterbags were paired with litterbags containing control leaf litter from Chrysobalanus icaco and Salix caroliniana during the wet and dry season trials, respectively. No regional differences in decomposition were shown, but there were significant differences across communities, attributed to the initial C:N ratio of the detritus, with the fastest decomposition occurring in the deepest submerged marsh followed by emergent marsh, and the shallower ridge communities had equally slower decomposition. Additionally, both controls followed the same pattern. Thus, decomposition contributes to an active self-maintenance mechanism within the vegetation communities which ultimately helps to conserve the ridges and sloughs.
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Date Issued: 2008
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/166456
Subject Headings: Biogeochemistry, Surfaces (Technology), Measurement, Vegatation dynamics, Mathematical models, Wetland ecology
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Effects of fish on reptile and amphibian community assemblages in wetlands of variable permanence.
Creator: Holbrook, Joshua D., Dorn, Nathan, Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Biological Sciences
Abstract/Description: Many herpetofaunal species are imperiled, and the causes of this are often a synergy of multiple factors. In wetlands specifically, two of the possible determinants of species occurrence and faunal community assemblage are fish presence and wetland permanence, which are not always correlated. Twenty wetlands were sampled in Jonathan Dickinson State Park, Florida, USA to observe how wetland herpetofaunal communities vary with fish, wetland permanence and other environmental factors....
Show moreMany herpetofaunal species are imperiled, and the causes of this are often a synergy of multiple factors. In wetlands specifically, two of the possible determinants of species occurrence and faunal community assemblage are fish presence and wetland permanence, which are not always correlated. Twenty wetlands were sampled in Jonathan Dickinson State Park, Florida, USA to observe how wetland herpetofaunal communities vary with fish, wetland permanence and other environmental factors. Herpetofaunal communities with and without fish were significantly different from one another and differences between herpetofaunal communities were primarily due to the contribution of four species of frogs, two generalist ranids and two specialist hylids. Wetland permanence had no observable effect on community structure. Fishless wetlands were significantly more species-rich and possessed higher numbers of individuals even for species that occurred in both fishless and fish wetlands, regardless of their permanence. These findings have implications for wetlands restoration and herpetofaunal conservation.
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Date Issued: 2014
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004203, http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004203
Subject Headings: Amphibian surveys -- Florida -- Jonathan Dickinson State Park, Amphibians -- Conservation, Amphibians -- Ecology, Jonathan Dickinson State Park (Fla.), Reptiles -- Conservation, Reptiles -- Ecology, Wetland ecology, Wetlands -- Environmental aspects
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: The effects of water depth and vegetation on wading bird foraging habitat selection and foraging succes in the Everglades.
Creator: Lantz, Samantha., Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Biological Sciences
Abstract/Description: Successful foraging by avian predators is influenced largely by prey availability. In a large-scale experiment at the Loxahatchee Impoundment Landscape Assessment project within the Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge, I manipulated two components of prey availability, water depth and vegetation density (submerged aquatic vegetation and emergent vegetation), and quantified the response by wading birds in terms of foraging habitat selection and foraging success. Manly's...
Show moreSuccessful foraging by avian predators is influenced largely by prey availability. In a large-scale experiment at the Loxahatchee Impoundment Landscape Assessment project within the Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge, I manipulated two components of prey availability, water depth and vegetation density (submerged aquatic vegetation and emergent vegetation), and quantified the response by wading birds in terms of foraging habitat selection and foraging success. Manly's standardized selection index showed that birds preferred shallow water and intermediate vegetation densities. However, the treatments had little effect on either individual capture rate or efficiency. This was a consistent pattern seen across multiple experiments. Birds selected for certain habitat features but accrued little benefit in terms of foraging success. I hypothesize that birds selected sites with shallow water and intermediate vegetation densities because they anticipated higher prey densities, but they did not experience it here because I controlled for prey density.
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Date Issued: 2008
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/2788592
Subject Headings: Water birds, Habitat, Wetland ecology, Habitat selection, Avian ecology, Wildlife management
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: EFFECTS OF WATER FLOW ON A WETLAND MACROINVERTEBRATE COMMUNITY.
Creator: Hansen, Chris, Dorn, Nathan, Florida Atlantic University, Department of Environmental Sciences, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
Abstract/Description: Macroinvertebrates make up a large fraction of secondary production in wetlands and are strongly influenced by hydrologic alterations. However, little is known of the effect flow has on macroinvertebrate production and community composition in wetlands. Reintroducing measurable water velocities (1-5 cm/s) to the oligotrophic (phosphoruslimited) Everglades has the potential to affect macroinvertebrate production and community structure by increasing the supply of phosphorus (P) to periphyton,...
Show moreMacroinvertebrates make up a large fraction of secondary production in wetlands and are strongly influenced by hydrologic alterations. However, little is known of the effect flow has on macroinvertebrate production and community composition in wetlands. Reintroducing measurable water velocities (1-5 cm/s) to the oligotrophic (phosphoruslimited) Everglades has the potential to affect macroinvertebrate production and community structure by increasing the supply of phosphorus (P) to periphyton, changing basal food quality, and physically altering the habitat. In Chapter 2, I investigated the potential effects of flow-mediated nutrient-loading on the growth rate of herbivorous grazers, apple snails (Pomacea maculata), by growing periphyton on standard substrates, in four sloughs within a landscape-scale flow addition experiment; two sloughs received elevated flow velocities (2.9-5.2 cm/s) and two control sloughs (0.3-0.4 cm/s). Snails fed periphyton from the flowing sloughs gained more than 3.7-fold greater total mass than snails fed periphyton from the control sloughs. The highest velocity slough produced the greatest snail growth. Snail growth was correlated with P accumulation and C:P ratios in the periphyton. Water column nutrients were low and the water column TP differences among sloughs could not fully explain differences in periphyton nutrients or snail growth. Increasing flow above background conditions by as little as 2.4 cm/s in this oligotrophic wetland altered periphyton food quality by flow loading, which subsequently increased growth rates of primary consumers. In Chapter 3, I investigated potential changes in macroinvertebrate standing stock biomass and community composition caused by flow by conducting two sweep net surveys. Surveys were conducted within two groups of sloughs, flow sloughs (6 sloughs) and control sloughs (12 sloughs), within the same landscape-scale flow addition experiment as the growth experiment. Surveys were conducted from January to March in 2018 and 2021. Biomass was compared between the flow sloughs and control sloughs using generalized linear models. Community composition was analyzed at the slough level using Bray-Curtis similarity. Biomass of macroinvertebrates was similar among transects in 2018 but higher in the flow sloughs in 2021 with the highest biomasses further from the L67A (velocities <2cm/s). The two highest flowing sloughs (typically >3cm/s) had a different community composition from the other 16 sloughs in both 2018 and 2021 with a predator resistant non-native snail appearing in 2021. The results of the surveys show an increase in macroinvertebrate production in the flow sloughs possibly related to increased nutritional value of food, however, with higher biomass further from the L67A and the invasion of a predator resistant snail at the high flow sloughs, it also appears that there is increased top-down pressure on the macroinvertebrates at the sloughs closer to the L67A (were cover from predation has been reduced). The overall results of these studies indicate flow produces more nutritional food for herbivorous macroinvertebrates and increases standing stock biomass but can change the community composition when periphyton cover is reduced.
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Date Issued: 2021
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00013873
Subject Headings: Wetland ecology, Everglades (Fla.), Invertebrate communities
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: EFFECTS OF WET SEASON HYDRO-PATTERN ON CRAYFISH (PROCAMBARUS FALLAX) POPULATION DENSITY AND JUVENILE MORTALITY RISK.
Creator: Sommer, Jeffrey L., Dorn, Nathan J., Florida Atlantic University, Department of Environmental Sciences, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
Abstract/Description: Distribution and abundance of water impacts population dynamics and habitat structure within a wetland ecosystem. It is known that drought can interfere with trophic dynamics and temporarily free crayfish from the threat of predation by population limiting fish predators in seasonal freshwater wetlands. Less is known about wet season water depths, and their effect on predator prey interactions. In order to address this, I conducted a two-and-a-half-year study in which I experimentally...
Show moreDistribution and abundance of water impacts population dynamics and habitat structure within a wetland ecosystem. It is known that drought can interfere with trophic dynamics and temporarily free crayfish from the threat of predation by population limiting fish predators in seasonal freshwater wetlands. Less is known about wet season water depths, and their effect on predator prey interactions. In order to address this, I conducted a two-and-a-half-year study in which I experimentally manipulated the wet season water depth in four 8 ha replicate wetlands of the central Everglades, allowing two wetlands to be flooded as natural rainfall patterns would allow (unconstrained hydro-pattern) and two wetlands to experience a constrained hydro-pattern in which the maximum depths to which they were flooded was limited. I discovered that crayfish, small marsh fish, and large bodied predatory fish populations were unaffected by the water depth difference between the hydro-pattern treatments. Unlike fauna, flora did respond to the hydro-pattern treatments with stem densities increasing in the wetlands under the constrained hydro-pattern treatment.
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Date Issued: 2021
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00013738
Subject Headings: Crayfish, Procambarus, Wetland ecology
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Hierarchical resource selection and movement of two wading bird species with divergent foraging strategies in the Everglades.
Creator: Beerens, James M., Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Biological Sciences
Abstract/Description: Seasonal variation in food availability is one of the primary limitations to avian populations, particularly during the breeding season. However, the behavioral responses between species may differ based on foraging strategies. I examined the influence of food availability on landscape-level habitat selection, patch-level habitat selection, and movements of two wading bird species with divergent foraging strategies, the Great Egret and White Ibis. On a landscape scale, there appeared to be a...
Show moreSeasonal variation in food availability is one of the primary limitations to avian populations, particularly during the breeding season. However, the behavioral responses between species may differ based on foraging strategies. I examined the influence of food availability on landscape-level habitat selection, patch-level habitat selection, and movements of two wading bird species with divergent foraging strategies, the Great Egret and White Ibis. On a landscape scale, there appeared to be a relationship among resource availability, the temporal scale of the independent variable, and whether the response was similar or different between species. At the patch level, results demonstrated a relationship between resource availability and the spatial scale of the independent variables selected by birds. Species movements were consistent with the differing strategies. This study is the first to make the link between landscape hydrology patterns, prey availability, and responses in wading bird habitat selection at multiple spatial scales.
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Date Issued: 2008
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/172667
Subject Headings: Water birds, Habitat, Habitat selection, Bird populations, Wetland ecology
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: INFLUENCE OF HYDROLOGICAL VARIATION ON WADING BIRD DIETS AND REPRODUCTION IN A LACUSTRINE WETLAND.
Creator: Essian, David A., Gawlik, Dale E., Florida Atlantic University, Department of Biological Sciences, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
Abstract/Description: Wetlandscape topography creates spatial variation in hydroperiod, which in turn creates spatial variation in biotic communities. Such spatiotemporal variation occurs on a large scale in some of the most productive wetlands in the world, including those of south Florida, U.S.A. Wading birds (Pelicaniformes and Ciconiiformes) are iconic, top-level consumers of such ecosystems. Infrequent drying is necessary to maintain the primary nest substrate (Salix caroliniana), and prey availability is...
Show moreWetlandscape topography creates spatial variation in hydroperiod, which in turn creates spatial variation in biotic communities. Such spatiotemporal variation occurs on a large scale in some of the most productive wetlands in the world, including those of south Florida, U.S.A. Wading birds (Pelicaniformes and Ciconiiformes) are iconic, top-level consumers of such ecosystems. Infrequent drying is necessary to maintain the primary nest substrate (Salix caroliniana), and prey availability is regulated by production of prey biomass in the wet season and the subsequent concentration of prey biomass into shallow pools during the dry season. The goal of this dissertation was to explicitly model wading bird nest abundance and survival as functions of water-level fluctuations, which were spatially nested (i.e., the effects of water-level fluctuations that occurred over a large scale were measured separately from the effects of water-level fluctuations that occurred over a small scale). In Chapter 2, I modeled colony-specific effects of wetlandscape water level fluctuations on wading bird nest abundance. Modeling the response at the colony level allowed the inclusion of important parameters that cannot be measured at the wetlandscape scale. For instance, each colony had its own optimal range of lake stage, which depended on local topography. I used the models to predict cumulative nest abundance under six hydrologic scenarios that were based on potential water management actions at Lake Okeechobee. I found that increasing water levels at the lake would marginally benefit the Great Egret but would substantially reduce long-term Snowy Egret and White Ibis populations. In Chapter 3, I modelled spatiotemporal distributions of fish biomass density in Lake Okeechobee’s littoral zone as a function of hierarchically nested hydrological variables. These models were consistent with the dynamic landscape connectivity model previously described in the literature. I modified the models to predict a binomial response which could then be linked to wading bird foraging threshold. The model predictions were used to estimate the number of available patch days during the breeding season, which was highly correlated with the number of nests for the great egret (Ardea alba), the snowy egret (Egretta thula), and the white ibis (Eudocimus albus). In Chapter 4, I used spatial statistics to better understand how interannual variability in resource wave patterns in the littoral zone influenced wading bird nest abundance. I found that more birds nested in years when the drying edge of the marsh moved further across the landscape. Great egret nest survival increased also, but small heron nest survival decreased. This decrease was likely because small herons continued to nest late into the season in years with longer waves, and, as with most bird species, nests that are initiated later in the season. In Chapter 5, I compiled conventional nestling diet data from 5 wading bird species sampled in 4 wetland types from 2010 to 2020 (not every wetland type was sampled in every year). This chapter provides a comprehensive, broad description of wading bird diets in south Florida, and quantifies interspecies, spatial, and interannual variation in nestling diets. By using a model-based approach to quantify the relative biomass of prey species and prey traits in nestling diets, I provide the first diet analysis that is fully reproducible across the large sympatric range of the wading bird species in the study (great egret, snowy egret, tricolored heron [Egretta tricolor], little blue heron [Egretta caerulea], and wood stork [Mycteria americana]).
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Date Issued: 2022
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00013908
Subject Headings: Wading birds, Wetland ecology, Okeechobee, Lake (Fla.), Lacustrine ecology, Lake ecology--Florida.
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Investigating variability of biogenic gas dynamics in peat soils using high temporal frequency hydrogeophysical methods.
Creator: Wright, William J., Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Geosciences
Abstract/Description: Peat soils are known to be a significant source of atmospheric greenhouse gasses. However, the releases of methane and carbon dioxide gasses from peat soils are currently not well understood, particularly since the timing of the releases are poorly constrained. Furthermore, most research work performed on peatlands has been focused on temperate to sub-arctic peatlands, while recent works have suggested that gas production rates from low-latitude peat soils are higher than those from colder...
Show morePeat soils are known to be a significant source of atmospheric greenhouse gasses. However, the releases of methane and carbon dioxide gasses from peat soils are currently not well understood, particularly since the timing of the releases are poorly constrained. Furthermore, most research work performed on peatlands has been focused on temperate to sub-arctic peatlands, while recent works have suggested that gas production rates from low-latitude peat soils are higher than those from colder climates. The purpose of the work proposed here is to introduce an autonomous Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) method for investigating the timing of gas releases from peat soils at the lab scale utilizing samples originating from Maine and the Florida Everglades, and at the field scale in a Maine peatland. Geophysical data are supported by direct gas flux measurements using the flux chamber method enhanced by timelapse photography, and terrestrial LiDAR (TLS) monitoring surface deformation.
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Date Issued: 2013
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/3361256
Subject Headings: Gas dynamics, Wetland ecology, Soil permeability, Estuarine sediments, Ground penetrating radar, Hydrogeology, Geophysics
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Limitations on macroinvertebrate populations in South Florida weltands.
Creator: Knorp, Natalie E., Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Biological Sciences
Abstract/Description: It can be difficult to disentangle the factors that determine population success in freshwater systems, particularly for organisms with disturbance-resistant life stages like aquatic invertebrates. Nevertheless, the effects of environmental variation and habitat structure on animal population success in wetlands are important for understanding both trophic interactions and biodiversity. I performed two experiments to determine the factors limiting crayfish (Procambarus fallax) and dragonfly ...
Show moreIt can be difficult to disentangle the factors that determine population success in freshwater systems, particularly for organisms with disturbance-resistant life stages like aquatic invertebrates. Nevertheless, the effects of environmental variation and habitat structure on animal population success in wetlands are important for understanding both trophic interactions and biodiversity. I performed two experiments to determine the factors limiting crayfish (Procambarus fallax) and dragonfly (Family: Libellulidae) populations in wetland environments. A simulation of a dry-disturbance and subsequent sunfish (Family: Centrarchidae) re-colonization revealed that crayfish populations are sensitive to sunfish, while dragonfly naiads seemed to be limited by other drying-related factors. A second manipulation revealed that small-bodied fishes and habitat structure (submerged vegetation) shaped dragonfly communities primarily through postcolonization processes.
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Date Issued: 2013
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/3362485
Subject Headings: Wetland ecology, Wildlife conservation, Freshwater invertebrates, Ecology, Predation (Biology), Marine ecosystem management
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Mechanisms that generate resource pulses and drive wading bird nesting in a fluctuating wetland.
Creator: Botson, Bryan A., Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Biological Sciences
Abstract/Description: Variation in the seasonal water level fluctuations of tropical and subtropical wetlands controls the production and concentration of aquatic fauna that support breeding wading birds. However, little is known about how particular components of the annual hydrologic cycle affect processes that control food availability and reproduction. This thesis identifies specific mechanisms responsible for transforming wet season prey standing stock into dry season prey concentrations, links landscape...
Show moreVariation in the seasonal water level fluctuations of tropical and subtropical wetlands controls the production and concentration of aquatic fauna that support breeding wading birds. However, little is known about how particular components of the annual hydrologic cycle affect processes that control food availability and reproduction. This thesis identifies specific mechanisms responsible for transforming wet season prey standing stock into dry season prey concentrations, links landscape hydrological patterns to wading bird nesting, and presents a predictive model of Wood Stork nesting. I examined the supoort for several a priori hypotheses of factors affecting wading bird prey concentrations and wading bird nest effort. Factors affecting the concentration and vulnerability of prey were important for transferring secondary production to higher trophic levels. Receding water levels, microtopographic variation, and high standing stocks of prey were critical for generating pulses of food availabiltiy to meet the high energy requirements of breeding predatory birds.
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Date Issued: 2012
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/3358281
Subject Headings: Wetland ecology, Restoration ecology, Wood stork, Habitat, Predation (Biology), Water birds, Habitat
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Population distribution, habitat selection, and life history of the slough crayfish (Procambarus fallax) in the ridge-slough landscape of the central Everglades.
Creator: Van der Heiden, Craig., Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Biological Sciences
Abstract/Description: Understanding where and why organisms are distributed in the environment are central themes in ecology. Animals live in environments in which they are subject to competing demands, such as the need to forage, to find mates, to reproduce, and to avoid predation. Optimal habitats for these various activities are usually distributed heterogeneously in the landscape and may vary both spatially and temporally, causing animals to adjust their locations in space and time to balance these conflicting...
Show moreUnderstanding where and why organisms are distributed in the environment are central themes in ecology. Animals live in environments in which they are subject to competing demands, such as the need to forage, to find mates, to reproduce, and to avoid predation. Optimal habitats for these various activities are usually distributed heterogeneously in the landscape and may vary both spatially and temporally, causing animals to adjust their locations in space and time to balance these conflicting demands. In this dissertation, I outline three studies of Procambarus fallax in the ridge-slough landscape of Water conservation Area 3A (WCS-3A). The first section outlines an observational sampling study of crayfish population distribution in a four hectare plot, where I statistically model the density distribution at two spatial scales. ... Secondly, I use radio telemetry to study individual adult crayfish movements at two study sites and evaluate habitat selection using Resource Selection Functions. In the third section, I test the habitat selection theory, ideal free distribution, by assessing performance measures (growth and mortality) of crayfish in the two major vegetation types in a late wet season (November 2007) and early wet season (August 2009).
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Date Issued: 2012
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/3356890
Subject Headings: Habitat selection, Statistical methods, Fish habitat improvement, Crayfish, Life cycles, Wetland ecology, Habitat (Ecology)
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Selection of canals and ditches as foraging habitat by wood s7374torks (Mycteria americana).
Creator: Van Os, Eleanor K., Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Biological Sciences
Abstract/Description: A challenge to ensure the health of wading bird populations is to have a better understanding of the altered habitats that we must now consider part of their natural history. Throughout their range endangered Wood Storks (Mycteria americana) have been reported to forage in ditches, a disparate category of linear man-made waterways. In a 52-kmP 2 P study area on the east coast of central Florida, the characteristics of hydrologically diverse ditches were quantified, and their use by Wood...
Show moreA challenge to ensure the health of wading bird populations is to have a better understanding of the altered habitats that we must now consider part of their natural history. Throughout their range endangered Wood Storks (Mycteria americana) have been reported to forage in ditches, a disparate category of linear man-made waterways. In a 52-kmP 2 P study area on the east coast of central Florida, the characteristics of hydrologically diverse ditches were quantified, and their use by Wood Storks documented during their non-breeding season. Logistic regression analyses were carried out using the ditch characteristics as independent variables and Wood Stork presence/absence as the dependent variable. This study confirms the use of these marginal wetlands, and identifies the significance of emergent vegetation on the foraging habitat selection of Wood Storks in the dry season.
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Date Issued: 2008
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/166457
Subject Headings: Water birds, Habitat, Florida, Habitat selection, Animal behavior, Wetland ecology
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: The impact of willow encroachment on water and carbon exchange in the vegetation of a subtropical wetland.
Creator: Budny, Michelle L., Benscoter, Brian, Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Biological Sciences
Abstract/Description: Shortened periods of inundation due to water management have led to the encroachment and expansion of Carolina willow (Salix caroliniana) in sawgrass (Cladium jamaicense) marsh communities. Morphologic and physiologic differences between sawgrass and willow have potential consequences for microhabitat conditions and ecosystem function such as a reduction in temperatures and light availability and changes in primary productivity. Since it is a woody shrub, willow is often assumed to exhibit...
Show moreShortened periods of inundation due to water management have led to the encroachment and expansion of Carolina willow (Salix caroliniana) in sawgrass (Cladium jamaicense) marsh communities. Morphologic and physiologic differences between sawgrass and willow have potential consequences for microhabitat conditions and ecosystem function such as a reduction in temperatures and light availability and changes in primary productivity. Since it is a woody shrub, willow is often assumed to exhibit higher rates of transpiration than non woody plants, which in turn can affect photosynthesis and carbon exchange and ultimately wetland water management. In this study willow was found to have higher rates of stomatal conductance (gs) and photosynthesis (Anet) than sawgrass. However, sawgrass had greater intrinsic water use efficiency (WUE) than willow. This suggests that willow is capable of greater gas exchange and carbon assimilation than sawgrass but requires more water. Understanding the implications of willow expansion will improve landscape models of wetland water and carbon exchange and inform water management decisions.
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Date Issued: 2015
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004350, http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004350
Subject Headings: Biogeochemistry, Ecosystem management, Surfaces (Technology) -- Measurement, Vegetation dynamics, Wetland ecology
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Understanding Variability of Biogenic Gas Fluxes from Peat Soils at High Temporal Resolution Using Capacitance Moisture Probes.
Creator: Munzenrieder, Cali, Comas, Xavier, Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Geosciences
Abstract/Description: Peatlands act as carbon sinks while representing major sources of biogenic gases such as methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2), two potent greenhouse gases. Gas production and release in these peats soils are also influenced by overall warm temperatures and water table fluctuations due to the naturally shallow water table in the Florida Everglades. Releases of biogenic gases from Florida Everglades peat soils are not well understood and the temporal distribution and dynamics are uncertain....
Show morePeatlands act as carbon sinks while representing major sources of biogenic gases such as methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2), two potent greenhouse gases. Gas production and release in these peats soils are also influenced by overall warm temperatures and water table fluctuations due to the naturally shallow water table in the Florida Everglades. Releases of biogenic gases from Florida Everglades peat soils are not well understood and the temporal distribution and dynamics are uncertain. The general objective of this work was geared towards a methodological approach which aimed to examine the feasibility of capacitance moisture probes to investigate biogenic gas dynamics in various Florida Everglades peat soils at high temporal resolution. This work has implications for establishing capacitance moisture probes as a method to monitor gas dynamics in peat soils at high temporal resolution and better understanding patterns of gas build-up and release from peat soils in the Everglades.
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Date Issued: 2016
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004700
Subject Headings: Everglades National Park (Fla.) -- Environmental conditions, Gas dynamics, Geographic information systems, Grassland ecology, Greenhouse gases, Wetland ecology
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Wading bird prey production and prey selection in a dynamic wetland.
Creator: Klassen, Jessica A., Gawlik, Dale E., Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Biological Sciences
Abstract/Description: Anthropogenic impacts, such as habitat destruction and spread of exotic species, are contributing to the sixth major extinction event in Earth’s history. To develop effective management and conservation plans, it is important to understand the ecological drivers of at-risk populations, assess the ability of a population to adapt to environmental change, and develop research methods for long-term ecosystem monitoring. I used wading birds nesting in the Florida Everglades, USA as a model system...
Show moreAnthropogenic impacts, such as habitat destruction and spread of exotic species, are contributing to the sixth major extinction event in Earth’s history. To develop effective management and conservation plans, it is important to understand the ecological drivers of at-risk populations, assess the ability of a population to adapt to environmental change, and develop research methods for long-term ecosystem monitoring. I used wading birds nesting in the Florida Everglades, USA as a model system to address the challenges of managing and monitoring populations within an ecosystem greatly impacted by anthropogenic activities. Specifically, my project investigated 1) the prey selection of wading bird species, and the role of prey and foraging habitat availability on annual nesting numbers, 2) the ability of using diet change to predict species adaptability to a rapidly changing environment, and 3) the use of sensory data to provide low-cost, long-term monitoring of dynamic wetlands. I found that tricolored herons, snowy egrets, and little blue herons consumed marsh fish larger than those generally available across the landscape. Additionally, number of nests initiated by tricolored herons, snowy egrets, and little blue herons was strongly correlated with the annual densities of large fish available within the Everglades landscape. Conversely, number of nests initiated by wood storks, great egrets, and white ibises was more correlated with the amount of foraging habitat availability across the nesting season. Wood stork diets changed considerably since the 1960’s, consisting of mainly sunfish and exotic fish as opposed to marsh fishes dominant in historical diet studies. Storks also consumed more exotic fish species than they did historically. This diet plasticity and the species’ ability to exploit anthropogenic habitats may be conducive to maintaining population viability as storks experience widespread human-induced changes to their habitat. Sensory-only data models generated complementary results to models that used site-specific field data. Additionally, sensory-only models were able to detect different responses between size classes of fish to the processes that increase their concentrations in drying pools. However, the degree to which sensory variables were able to fit species data was dependent upon the ability of sensors to measure species-specific population drivers and the scale at which sensors can measure environmental change.
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Date Issued: 2016
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004716
Subject Headings: Charadriiformes -- Habitat -- Florida -- Everglades, Ciconiiformes -- Habitat -- Florida -- Everglades, Everglades National Park (Fla.) -- Environmental conditions, Predation (Biology), Wetland ecology, Wildlife conservation
Format: Document (PDF)

Water birds (6)	+ -
Habitat selection (5)	+ -
Habitat (4)	+ -
Predation (Biology) (4)	+ -
Bird populations (3)	+ -

Ecology (3)	+ -
Gas dynamics (3)	+ -
Marine ecosystem management (3)	+ -
Biogeochemistry (2)	+ -
Crayfish (2)	+ -
Everglades National Park (Fla.) -- Environmental conditions (2)	+ -
Ground penetrating radar (2)	+ -
Predatory marine animals (2)	+ -
Soil permeability (2)	+ -
Wildlife conservation (2)	+ -
Amphibian surveys -- Florida -- Jonathan Dickinson State Park (1)	+ -
Amphibians -- Conservation (1)	+ -
Amphibians -- Ecology (1)	+ -
Animal behavior (1)	+ -
Avian ecology (1)	+ -
Charadriiformes -- Habitat -- Florida -- Everglades (1)	+ -
Ciconiiformes -- Habitat -- Florida -- Everglades (1)	+ -
Ecosystem management (1)	+ -
Estuarine sediments (1)	+ -
Everglades (Fla.) (1)	+ -
Fish habitat improvement (1)	+ -
Florida (1)	+ -
Fluid dynamics (1)	+ -
Freshwater invertebrates (1)	+ -

Florida (9)	+ -
Everglades (6)	+ -
Everglades Region (1)	+ -
Maine (1)	+ -
Minnesota (1)	+ -

Department of Biological Sciences (14)	+ -
Florida Atlantic University (8)	+ -
Department of Environmental Sciences (2)	+ -
Department of Geosciences (2)	+ -
Dorn, Nathan (2)	+ -

Gawlik, Dale E. (2)	+ -
Beerens, James M. (1)	+ -
Benscoter, Brian (1)	+ -
Botson, Bryan A. (1)	+ -
Boyle, Robin A. (1)	+ -
Bransky, Jacob. (1)	+ -
Budny, Michelle L. (1)	+ -
Cabolova, Anastasija. (1)	+ -
Center for Environmental Studies (1)	+ -
Comas, Xavier (1)	+ -
Department of Physics (1)	+ -
Dorn, Nathan J. (1)	+ -
Essian, David A. (1)	+ -
Hansen, Chris (1)	+ -
Herring, Garth (1)	+ -
Holbrook, Joshua D. (1)	+ -
Kellogg, Christopher M. (1)	+ -
Klassen, Jessica A. (1)	+ -
Knorp, Natalie E. (1)	+ -
Lantz, Samantha. (1)	+ -
Munzenrieder, Cali (1)	+ -
Sommer, Jeffrey L. (1)	+ -
Van Os, Eleanor K. (1)	+ -
Van der Heiden, Craig. (1)	+ -

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