This dissertation describes arthropod responses to and effects on decay processes in ponderosa pine, a dominant forest canopy tree in northern California. We used both descriptive and experimental field techniques to establish how arthropod assemblages depend on and are important to the disintegration of woody structures in forests of this...
The family Bibionidae has a worldwide distribution and includes approximately 700 species in eight extant genera. Recent studies have not produced compelling evidence supporting Bibionidae as a monophyletic group or identified the sister group to bibionids. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to examine the classification and evolution of...
Invasive plants have the potential to reduce the diversity of species in plant and animal communities. I examined the negative effect of two invasive wetland plants, purple loosestrife and reed canary grass, on the species richness and diversity of plant and moth communities within 24 wetland study sites in the...
Members of the tribe Sabethini (Diptera: Culicidae) oviposit and develop in phytotelmata (plant-held waters) and are primarily distributed in a pantropical pattern. Recent cladistic studies have demonstrated that while the tribe is monophyletic, three of its 13 genera are not. The genus Wyeomyia is particularly problematic and debate among culicidologists...