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Publications

Filter Total Items: 1990

Unusual bacterioplankton community structure in ultra-oligotrophic Crater Lake

The bacterioplankton assemblage in Crater Lake, Oregon (U.S.A.), is different from communities found in other oxygenated lakes, as demonstrated by four small subunit ribosomal ribonucleic acid (SSU rRNA) gene clone libraries and oligonucleotide probe hybridization to RNA from lake water. Populations in the euphotic zone of this deep (589 m), oligotrophic caldera lake are dominated by two phylogene
Authors
Ena Urbach, Kevin L. Vergin, Ariel Morse

The influence of biological soil crusts on mineral uptake by associated vascular plants

Soil surfaces dominated by cyanobacteria and cyanolichens (such as Collema sp.) are widespread in deserts of the world. The influence of these biological soil crusts on the uptake of bioessential elements is reported for the first time for six seed plants of the deserts of Utah. This sample almost doubles the number of species for which the influence of biological soil crusts on mineral uptake of
Authors
K.T. Harper, Jayne Belnap

Biological Soil Crusts: Webs of Life in the Desert

Although the soil surface may look like dirt to you, it is full of living organisms that are a vital part of desert ecosystems. This veneer of life is called a biological soil crust. These crusts are found throughout the world, from hot deserts to polar regions. Crusts generally cover all soil spaces not occupied by green plants. In many areas, they comprise over 70% of the living ground cover a
Authors
Jayne Belnap

Whitebark pine, grizzly bears, and red squirrels

Appropriately enough, much of this book is devoted to discussing management challenges and techniques. However, the impetus for action—the desire to save whitebark pine (Pinus albicaulis) - necessarily arises from the extent to which we cherish it for its beauty and its connections with other things that we value. Whitebark pine is at the hub of a fascinating web of relationships. It is the stuff
Authors
David J. Mattson, Katherine C. Kendall, Daniel P. Reinhart

Southwestern willow flycatchers recaptured at wintering sites in Costa Rica

An adult Southwestern Willow Flycatcher banded in summer 1998 at Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge, Nevada, was recaptured the following winter in Santa Cruz, Costa Rica, then relocated at Ash Meadows during the 1999 breeding season. Another Southwestern Willow Flycatcher banded in 1999 as a nestling at Roosevelt Lake, Arizona, was recaptured in January 2000 on its wintering grounds in Bolsen,
Authors
Thomas J. Koronkiewicz, Mark K. Sogge

Soil biota in an ungrazed grassland: Response to annual grass (Bromus tectorum) invasion

Bromus tectorum is an exotic annual grass that currently dominates many western U.S. semi-arid ecosystems, and the effects of this grass on ecosystems in general, and soil biota specifically, are unknown. Bromus recently invaded two ungrazed and unburned perennial bunchgrass communities in southeastern Utah. This study compared the soil food-web structure of the two native grassland associations (
Authors
Jayne Belnap, Susan L. Phillips

Effective population size and genetic structure of a Piute ground squirrel (Spermophilus mollis) population

Piute ground squirrels (Spermophilus mollis) are distributed continuously in habitat dominated by native shrubs and perennial grasses in the Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area in Idaho, U.S.A. This habitat is being fragmented and replaced by exotic annual plants, changing it to a wildfire-dominated system that provides poor habitat for ground squirrels. To assess potential effect
Authors
Michael F. Antolin, Beatrice Van Horne, Michael D. Berger

A model for nematode locomotion in soil

Locomotion of nematodes in soil is important for both practical and theoretical reasons. We constructed a model for rate of locomotion. The first model component is a simple simulation of nematode movement among finite cells by both random and directed behaviours. Optimisation procedures were used to fit the simulation output to data from published experiments on movement along columns of soil or
Authors
H. William Hunt, Diana H. Wall, Nicole DeCrappeo, John S. Brenner

A targeted mist-net capture technique for the willow flycatcher

No abstract available.
Authors
Mark K. Sogge, J.C. Owen, Eben H. Paxton, S.M. Langridge

Aeolian dust in Colorado Plateau soils: Nutrient inputs and recent change in source

Aeolian dust (windblown silt and clay) is an important component in arid-land ecosystems because it may contribute to soil formation and furnish essential nutrients. Few geologic surfaces, however, have been characterized with respect to dust-accumulation history and resultant nutrient enrichment. We have developed a combination of methods to identify the presence of aeolian dust in arid regions a
Authors
Richard L. Reynolds, Jayne Belnap, Paul Lamothe, Fred Luiszer

Myrmecophagy by Yellowstone grizzly bears

I used data collected during a study of radio-marked grizzly bears (Ursus arctos horribilis) in the Yellowstone region from 1977 to 1992 to investigate myrmecophagy by this population. Although generally not an important source of energy for the bears (averaging <5% of fecal volume at peak consumption), ants may have been an important source of protein during midsummer and were heavily consumed du
Authors
David J. Mattson