• Refine Query
  • Source
  • Publication year
  • to
  • Language
  • 1
  • Tagged with
  • 1
  • 1
  • 1
  • 1
  • About
  • The Global ETD Search service is a free service for researchers to find electronic theses and dissertations. This service is provided by the Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations.
    Our metadata is collected from universities around the world. If you manage a university/consortium/country archive and want to be added, details can be found on the NDLTD website.
1

Effects of snowpack on avian abundance and species richness in Sierra Nevada forests

Stuart, Tyler Hull 03 June 2016 (has links)
<p> This thesis examined avian population dynamics over a four year span (2011-2014) in four forest types in Kings Canyon, Sequoia, and Yosemite National Parks, California. I asked, do bird populations show fluctuations in abundance and species richness depending on early spring snowpack levels in various forest types of the Sierra Nevada? I conducted point transect sampling surveys as part of the Sierra Nevada Network's Inventory and Monitoring bird monitoring program. To calculate local abundances for fourteen common bird species, I modeled detection functions in program Distance 6.2. I also determined species richness for each transect, and finally correlated avian abundance with spring snow depths. None of the common bird species in this study displayed a strong correlation between their abundance and snow depths in any of the four years. Clark&rsquo;s Nutcracker indicated potential for a positive correlation for abundance and snow depth, but this result may have been driven by other factors. With changing climate in the Sierra Nevada expected to increase the variability of snowpack among years, it is crucial to continue studying relationships between bird populations and snowfall in the Sierra Nevada.</p>

Page generated in 0.138 seconds