While there are many more species of reptiles in the tropics than in temperate
latitudes, relatively little is known about the natural history of tropical species of
snakes. Even basic information, such as reproductive ecology and behavior, is lacking. Patterns of reproduction in tropical species differ from patterns in temperate...
Shell-boring polychaetes pose economic risks for oyster aquaculture industries as they reduce the aesthetic quality of oyster products by creating unsightly mud-filled blisters on the inside of the shell. Recently there has been a reported uptick in infested oysters on commercial farms along the west coast of the US, which...
The coast of Oregon is highly dynamic, with beach and dune morphodynamics constantly evolving in response to physical and ecological forcing at scales ranging from seconds to decades and meters to tens of kilometers. Evaluating spatial and temporal trends in shoreline evolution is paramount in understanding and eventually developing a...
In order to solve some classic problems in traditional topology optimization, such as unknown material distribution, checker-boarding and curse of dimensionality, this thesis introduces a new method to construct a mechanical structure that can reduce mass and increase stiffness. It uses a graph to represent the skeleton of a structure....
Wave energy has the potential to power large and small factions of economies around the world alike. Current methods for determining the amount of wave energy resource available to wave energy converter (WEC) devices entail capturing the look of the sea state at large by presenting characteristic wave heights, periods,...
The cultural and ecological values of Pacific lamprey (Lampetra tridentata) have not been understood by Euro-Americans and thus their great decline has almost gone unnoticed except by Native Americans, who elevated the issue and initiated research to restore its populations, at least in the Columbia Basin. They regard Pacific lamprey...
Chinook salmon are the largest of any of the salmon in Oregon. Mature fish range from less than 2 pounds to more than 70 pounds. In the late 1800s, chinook salmon were almost the only species taken for canning in the Columbia River, with production peaking at 43 million pounds...
Coastal cutthroat trout is one of three cutthroat subspecies found in Oregon. The coastal subspecies, which is closely related to steelhead/rainbow trout and Pacific salmon, displays the most diverse and flexible life history of any of the Oregon salmonids. Coastal cutthroat can be found in streams and rivers from the...
Anglers and naturelovers prize steelhead trout for their mystique and power. Oregon has two subspecies of steelhead (so-called because of the metallic appearance of maturing adults) or rainbow trout: a coastal form and an inland form.
A plant community classification was developed describing the comprehensive variation of oak vegetation currently occupying the Willamette Valley Ecoregion of western Oregon. Multivariate statistical analyses were used to classify field collected floristic and habitat data. Field sampling targeted minimally managed, homogenous vegetation stands with a significant oak component occupying at...