Wetland and Aquatic Research Center
Publications
Explore WARC's science publications.
Preserving connectivity under climate and land-use change: No one-size-fits-all approach for focal species in similar habitats
Habitat connectivity is essential for maintaining populations of wildlife species, especially as climate changes. Knowledge about the fate of existing habitat networks in a changing climate and in light of land-use change is critical for determining which types of conservation actions must be taken to maintain those networks. However, information...
Costanza, Jennifer K.; Watling, James I.; Sutherland, Ron; Belyea, Curtis; Dilkina, Bistra; Cayton, Heather; Bucklin, David N.; Romanach, Stephanie; Haddad, Nick M. Beloniformes: Belonidae (Needlefishes) and Hemiramphidae (Halfbeaks)
The order Beloniformes (or Synentognathi) contains two suborders, six families, 37 genera, and about 235 species of atherinomorph fishes (Rosen & Parenti 1981; Collette et al. 1984; Collette 2004). Features common to these fishes include dorsal and anal fins on the rear half of the body, abdominal pelvic fins with six soft rays, no fin spines...
Bruce B. Collette; Walsh, Stephen Space use and relative habitat selection for immature green turtles within a Caribbean marine protected area
Background A better understanding of sea turtle spatial ecology is critical for the continued conservation of imperiled sea turtles and their habitats. For resource managers to develop the most effective conservation strategies, it is especially important to examine how turtles use and select for habitats within their developmental foraging...
Griffin, Lucas P; Smith, Brian J.; Cherkiss, Michael; Crowder, Andrew; Pollock, Clayton G; Hillis-Starr, Zandy; Danylchuk, Andy J.; Hart, Kristen Investigating the gene expression profiles of rehabilitated Florida manatees (Trichechus manatus latirostris) following red tide exposure
To investigate a Florida manatee (Trichechus manatus latirostris) mortality event following a red tide bloom in Southwest Florida, an RNA sequencing experiment was conducted. Gene expression changes in white blood cells were assessed in manatees rescued from a red tide affected area (n = 4) and a control group (n = 7) using RNA sequencing. The...
Lazensky, Rebecca; Hunter, Margaret; Amador, David M.; Al-Khedery, Basima; Yu, Fahong; Walsh, Cathy; Gitzendanner, Matthew A.; Tripp, Katie; Walsh, Mike; Denslow, Nancy D. Mortality and cholinesterase inhibition in butterflies following aerial naled applications for mosquito control on the National Key Deer Refuge
Natural resource managers are concerned about the impacts of aerial ultra-low volume spray (ULV) of insecticides for mosquito control (i.e., mosquito adulticides) and seek science-driven management recommendations that reduce risk but allow vector control for nearby human populations. Managers at the National Key Deer Refuge (Florida Keys, FL) are...
Bargar, Timothy; Anderson, Chad; Sowers, Anthony Frequency of extreme freeze events controls the distribution and structure of black mangroves (Avicennia germinans) near their northern range limit in coastal Louisiana
AimClimate change is expected to result in the tropicalization of coastal wetlands in the northern Gulf of Mexico, as warming winters allow tropical mangrove forests to expand their distribution poleward at the expense of temperate salt marshes. Data limitations near mangrove range limits have hindered understanding of the effects of winter...
Osland, Michael; Day, Richard; Michot, Thomas C. Near-term spatial hydrologic forecasting in Everglades, USA for landscape planning and ecological forecasting
Operational ecological forecasting is an emerging field that leverages ecological models in a new, cross-disciplinary way – using a real-time or nearly real-time climate forecast to project near-term ecosystem states. These applications give decision-makers lead time to anticipate and manage state changes that degrade ecosystem functions or...
Pearlstine, Leonard G.; Beerens, James M.; Reynolds, Gregg; Haider, Saira; McKelvy, James M.; Suir, Kevin; Romanach, Stephanie; Nestler, Jennifer H. Small gradients in salinity have large effects on stand water use in freshwater wetland forests
Salinity intrusion is responsible for changes to freshwater wetland watersheds globally, but little is known about how wetland water budgets might be influenced by small increments in salinity. We studied a forested wetland in South Carolina, USA, and installed sap flow probes on 72 trees/shrubs along a salinity gradient. Species investigated...
Duberstein, Jamie A.; Krauss, Ken; Baldwin, M.J.; Allen, Scott T.; Conner, William H.; Salter, John S.; Miloshis, Michael Divergent biotic and abiotic filtering of root endosphere and rhizosphere soil fungal communities along ecological gradients
Plant roots assemble two distinct microbial compartments: the rhizosphere (microbes in soil surrounding roots) and the endosphere (microbes within roots). Our knowledge of fungal community assembly in these compartments is limited, especially in wetlands. We tested the hypothesis that biotic factors would have direct effects on rhizosphere and...
Lumibao, Candice Y; Kimbrough, Elizabeth; Day, Richard; Conner, William H.; Krauss, Ken; Van Bael, Sunshine A Hurricane Sandy effects on coastal marsh elevation change
High-magnitude storm events such as Hurricane Sandy are powerful agents of geomorphic change in coastal marshes, potentially altering their surface elevation trajectories. But how do a storm’s impacts vary across a large region spanning a variety of wetland settings and storm exposures and intensities. We determined the short-term impacts of...
Yeates, Alice G.; Grace, James; Olker, Jennifer H.; Guntenspergen, Glenn R.; Cahoon, Donald; Adamowicz, Susan C.; Anisfeld, Shimon C.; Barrett, Nels; Benzecry, Alice; Blum, Linda K.; Christian, Rober T; Grzyb, Joseph; Kracauer Hartig, Ellen; Hines Leo, Kelly; Lerberg, Scott; Lynch, James C.; Maher, Nicole; Megonigal, J Patrick; Reay, William G.; Siok, Drexel; Starke, Adam; Turner, Vincent; Warren, Scott Structural impacts, carbon losses, and regeneration in mangrove wetlands after two hurricanes on St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands
Hurricanes Irma and Maria ravaged the mangroves of St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands, in 2017. Basal area losses were large (63–100%) and storm losses of carbon associated with aboveground biomass amounted to 11.9–43.5 Mg C/ha. Carbon biomass of dead standing trees increased 8.1–18.3 Mg C/ha among sites, and carbon in coarse woody debris on the forest...
Krauss, Ken; From, Andrew; Rogers, Caroline; Whelan, Kevin R.T.; Grimes, Kristen W.; Dobbs, Robert C.; Kelley, Thomas Effects of barrier island salt marsh restoration on marsh bird occurrence in the Northern Gulf of Mexico
In the Northern Gulf of Mexico, salt marshes are threatened by sea level rise, erosion, and loss of protective barrier islands. These barrier islands provide critical habitat for wildlife, including globally significant populations of marsh and shorebirds. We investigated salt marsh restoration on two Louisiana barrier islands using presence of 8...
Byerly, Paige A.; Waddle, Hardin; Premeaux, Alexis R.; Leberg, Paul L.