Climate and terrestrial vegetation have had mutual feedbacks for nearly five hundred million years, yet both are now departing from recent historical norms, with uncertain implications for forest ecosystems. This dissertation outlines the current and potential future climate responses of lichen and bryophyte communities in the United States as part...
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Robert J. Smith for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Botany and Plant Pathology
presented on May 1
The Farm Enterprise Committee of the Confederated Tribes of
the Umatilla Indian Reservation requested that an evaluation be made
of the Reservation land resource for the purpose of acquisition by the
Tribe as a part of a study of the feasibility of an expanded farm
enterprise. The Committee's primary goal...
Bitterbrush [Purshia tridentata (Pursh) DC] plants were burned or
clipped, fall and spring, under different soil moisture conditions on
two sites in east-central Oregon. Treatments, on plants of an erect
growth form on the Juniperus/Artemisia-Purshia site resulted in 38% of
the fall-clipped and 40% of the spring-clipped plants sprouting. None...
Unity Reservoir in Baker County, Oregon, was chemically treated with liquid rotenone on October 17, 1962. Approximately 136 miles of streams and diversion ditches and seven small ponds, tributary to the reservoir, were treated with liquid rotenone prior to work on the reservoir. The reservoir at time of treatment contained...
Research suggests that entrepreneurs tend to seek to maximize utility when considering whether to pursue a new venture opportunity. However, when choosing whether to persist with their current venture or not, utility maximization may not be of primary importance. Using a conjoint experiment, we examine the difference between policies in...
This study addresses how parents communicate with their children about Significant Emotional Events (SEEs). A SEE is an experience that is so mentally engaging as to cause an individual to consider, examine, and possibly change one's initial values or value system. It examines parent's goals, concerns, and values related to...
Nuclear DNA flow cytometry was used to differentiate ploidy level and determine nuclear DNA content in Rubus. Nuclei suspensions were prepared from leaf discs of young leaves following published protocols with modifications that included: increasing the stain concentration, adding the stain after the RN ase treatment instead of adding it...
Habitat for wildlife species that depend on sagebrush ecosystems is of great management concern. Evaluating how management activities and climate change may affect the abundance of moderate and high-quality habitat necessitates the development of models that examine vegetation dynamics, but modeling tools for rangeland systems are limited. I developed state-and-transition...
Decline of western sage grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus phaios)
in Oregon may be related to the reduced availability of foods in upland
sagebrush (Artemisia)-grasslands used for brood-rearing. The goal of
this study was to determine primary foods of chicks and the short-term
response of brood-rearing habitat to prescribed burning at Hart...