The mechanisms of dung inhabiting insects' heterotrophic succession were studied by preventing the colonisation of early successional insect. The early successional insect, predominantly the large larvae of Calyptratae Diptera, both facilitated and inhibited the later establishing insect. Whereas the removal of early successional species affected negatively the late successional Coleoptera (facilitation), the small late successional larvae of Acalyptratae Diptera were affected positively (inhibition). The patterns retrieved from the heterotrophic succession strongly resemble the patterns retrieved from the autotrophic, mostly plant, succession Therefore it is possible to suggest, that similar mechanisms are behind both the autotrophic and the heterotrophic succession.

abstract: Ephemeral streams in Arizona that are perpendicularly intersected by the Central Arizona Project (CAP) canal have been altered due to partial or complete damming of the stream channel. The dammed upstream channels have experienced decades long cycles of sediment deposition and waterlogging during storm events causing the development of "green-up" zones. This dissertation examines the biogeomorphological effects of damming ephemeral streams caused by the CAP canal by investigating: (1) changes in the preexisting spatial cover of riparian vegetation and how these changes are affected by stream geometry; (2) green-up initiation and evolution; and (3) changes in plant species and community level changes. To the author's knowledge, this is the only study that undertakes an interdisciplinary approach to understanding the environmental responses to anthropogenically-altered ephemeral stream channels. The results presented herein show that vegetation along the upstream section increased by an average of 200,872 m2 per kilometer of the CAP canal over a 28 year period. Vegetation growth was compared to channel widths which share a quasi-linear relationship. Remote sensing analysis of Landsat TM images using an object-oriented approach shows that riparian vegetation cover gradually increased over 28 years. Field studies reveal that the increases in vegetation are attributed to the artificial rise in local base-level upstream created by the canal, which causes water to spill laterally onto the desert floor. Vegetation within the green-up zone varies considerably in comparison to pre-canal construction. Changes are most notable in vegetation community shifts and abundance. The wettest section of the green-up zone contains the greatest density of woody plant stems, the greatest vegetation volume, and a high percentage of herbaceous cover. Vegetation within wetter zones changed from a tree-shrub to a predominantly tree-herb assemblage, whereas desert shrubs located in zones with intermediate moisture have developed larger stems. Results from this study lend valuable insight to green-up processes associated with damming ephemeral streams, which can be applied to planning future canal or dam projects in drylands. Also, understanding the development of the green-up zones provide awareness to potentially avoiding flood damage to infrastructure that may be unknowingly constructed within the slow-growing green-up zone. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Geography 2014

In this thesis, I will examine the difficulties of documenting ephemeral art and the possible solutions that archivists, curators, artists and other museum professions have come up with. I will begin by presenting a background of the history of performance art, which was the impetus for all ephemeral art to come. Then I will present case studies of three artists: Allan Kaprow, Eva Hesse, and Richard Tuttle, and their archival processes, all of which provide very different approaches to similar artistic problems. Finally, I will discuss the implications of re-performance and re-creation of ephemeral artworks.

Pollinator sharing in mixed species communities is expected to significantly contribute to mating patterns in contemporary populations but may also affect the evolutionary trajectory of traits associated with plant mating. In this thesis, I considered how the spring environment and pollinator sharing may contribute to the widespread convergence in traits among spring flowering species using comparative biology. The proposed correlation between a spring flowering phenology and white or light floral colour, fleshy fruits, woody growth forms and understory occupation is confirmed. In addition, I examined the effects of pollinator responses to community and population traits to determine the relative importance of inter- and intraspecific interactions in pollinator mediated reproductive success of a spring flowering species, Trillium grandiflorum. In this study, the reproductive success of T. grandiflorum was pollen limited. However, the magnitude of pollen limitation was influenced only by intraspecific density and varied independently of community diversity. The results of this thesis contribute significantly to our understanding of pollinator-mediated interactions in spring flowering communities but also highlight future avenues of investigation.

Headwater streams are considered to be the greatest contributor to nonpoint source and are a crucial part of overall watershed dynamics because they comprise more than 50-80% of stream networks and watershed land areas. This study addressed the influence of headwater areas (ephemeral and intermittent) on downstream hydrology and water quality following harvest as well as characteristics of vegetation communities within three first-order catchments in the Upper Gulf Coastal Plain of Mississippi. Four treatments representing a range of potential Best Management Practices (BMPs) for ephemeral drains were used: BMP1 - removal of all merchantable stems while leaving understory intact with minimum surface soil disturbance; BMP2 - same as BMP1 with the addition of logging debris to the drainage channel; No harvest - left uncut as a reference; Clearcut - total harvest with no BMPs applied. Harvested treatments caused the height of water table to increase up to 55 cm; however impacts of timber harvesting on peak discharge, storm discharge, and time of concentration were not consistent with water table response. Response time to stormflow was reduced significantly in harvested treatments (BMP2 and unrestricted harvest) as a result of decreased evapotranspiration and increased soil disturbance. Forest clearcutting in ephemeral drains caused intensive surface soil disturbance that resulted in substantial impacts to net soil erosion/deposition in both channel and hillslope positions and significantly increased total suspend sediment (TSS). There were no significant differences between two BMP and reference treatments in net soil erosion/deposition and TSS. Distinct vegetation communities between channel and hillslope positions in ephemeral-intermittent drains corresponded to water table gradients. Timber harvesting affected vegetation communities through direct and indirect disturbances. Four indicator species (V. blanda, L. glandulosa, A. gigantean, and P. acrostichoides) were identified as having a strong response to hydrologic gradients in ephemeral-intermittent drains.

No description available.

Triggered by advanced technologies, physical structures are becoming increasingly efficient and vanish from the experienced space. Eventually, the main task of architects will shift to shaping and manipulating the atmosphere that is surrounding the dissolving physical reality of architecture. Any clear separation between interior and exterior starts to blur as every biological and metaphysical experience can be simulated in any given environment. A phenomenon accelerated by efficient communication technologies, merging the analog and digital space. Not only profane architecture will be affected, but also the very intimate setting of our living habitats. The proposal of a prototypical future dwelling explores the potential to both implement spatial simulations and to manipulate cultural rituals in our living environments. By communicating through the medium of post-processed pencil drawings, the project dares to predict the future relation of serving and served spaces to our body and mind.

No description available.

No description available.

In the southeastern United States, ephemeral wetlands in pine flatwoods provide important habitat for amphibians and aquatic invertebrates, but extensive deforestation has destroyed or isolated many wetlands and fire suppression has altered vegetation in others. My goals were to identify how wetland hydroperiods have changed through time and to examine the effects of long-term fire suppression on aquatic communities, including Reticulated Flatwoods Salamanders (Ambystoma bishopi) and Ornate Chorus Frogs (Pseudacris ornata). Chapter 1 used a modeling approach to relate wetland hydroperiods to current climate conditions and to hindcast historic conditions. Over the past 118 years, hydroperiods were often unfavorable for A. bishopi reproduction, and in recent years hydroperiods were shortened by persistent drought. Chapters 2 and 3 focused on identifying the effects of shifting from an open, grass dominated wetland to a wetland with high canopy cover and little herbaceous vegetation. In Chapter 2, I quantified amphibian and invertebrate communities in several wetlands. A. bishopi and P. ornata tended to occupy wetlands with lower canopy cover and higher herbaceous vegetation cover. Aquatic invertebrate abundance was generally higher in wetlands with lower shrub density and lower canopy cover. In Chapter 3, I examined how a reduction in herbaceous vegetation affected tadpoles when a predatory crayfish was present using two experiments. Crayfish were effective predators of both species across all vegetation treatments and often caused nonlethal tail injury. My results suggest that managers should focus on ensuring that wetland basins regularly burn, and wetlands with longer hydroperiods should be a management priority. / Master of Science