Publications

The California chaparral community has a rich flora of species with different mechanisms for cuing germination to postfire conditions. Heat shock triggers germination of certain species but has no stimulatory effect on a great many other postfire species that are chemically stimulated by combustion products. Previous reports have shown that charred wood will induce germination, and here...

Cladistic analysis supports the conclusion that the Orcuttieae tribe of C4 grasses reflect evolution from a terrestrial ancestry into seasonal pools. All nine species in the tribe exhibit adaptations to the aquatic environment, evident in the structural characteristics of the juvenile foliage, which persist submerged for 1–3 months prior to metamorphosis to the terrestrial foliage...

A three-trophic-level interaction among American Black Oystercatchers (Haematopus bachmani), limpets (Lottia spp.), and erect fleshy algae in rocky intertidal communities of central and southern California was documented via manipulative and “natural” experiments. Removal of the territorial limpet (Lottia gigantea) initially caused large increases in the percent cover of erect fleshy...

Orcuttieae is a small tribe of C4 grasses endemic to seasonal pools in the southwestern U.S., comprising the basal genus Neostapfia, Tuctoria, and the most derived group, Orcuttia. Growth is initiated underwater, and when pools dry, species undergo a metamorphosis replacing aquatic foliage with terrestrial foliage. O. californica and O. viscida exhibit CAM-like diel fluctuations in...

Ecological theory and wildlife management often depend on reliable comparison and interpretation of population density estimates. A synthesis of 1,772 mammalian carnivore population estimates (713 unique to reference, species, site, and size of study area) from 74 species revealed global patterns among aspects of study and interpretive design that undermine the reliability and usefulness...

A primary objective of riparian restoration in California is the creation of habitat for endangered species. Four restoration sites in San Diego County were monitored between 1989 and 1993 and evaluated for their suitability as nesting habitat for Vireo bellii pusillus (Least Bell's Vireo), a state and federally endangered obligate riparian breeder. Vegetation structure at each site was...

Lesser snow geese (Anser c. caerulescens) from the Wrangel Island, Russia breeding colony spend the winter in two widely separated areas: the northern subpopulation in southern British Columbia and northern Washington and the southern subpopulation in the Central Valley of California. We examined 19 trace elements in the eggs and livers of geese from these two subpopulations to examine...

No abstract available at this time

No abstract available at this time

This study had two primary objectives: to conduct roost surveys C. townsendii in two parts of California where distributional information was most limited or lacking, and to obtain information on roosting and foraging ecology in two distinctly different habitats. This project was urgently needed because 1) recent California Department of Fish and Game surveys (conducted in 1987-1991)...

No abstract available.

A study of fuels in Sierra Nevada conifer forests showed that fuel bed depth and fuel bed weight significantly varied by tree species and developmental stage of the overstory. Specific values for depth and weight of woody, litter, and duff fuels are reported There was a significant positive relationship between fuel bed depth and weight. Estimates of woody fuel weight using the planar...