In this study, two ways of accumulating Pb were investigated: natural accumulation and chemically enhanced accumulation with the chelating agent ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA). Young cattails (Typha latifolia) were removed from the Arcata Comm . . .

Improved understanding of the importance of estuarine wetlands to the function of coastal ecosystems has lead to increased restoration efforts of degraded wetlands. The South Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve (SSNERR) in Coos Bay, Oregon, has . . .

Five species of western gooseberries (Ribes: Grossulariaceae) hybridize to varying degrees in northwestern California and southwestern Oregon. Pollinator surveys and hand-pollination experiments were conducted to identify reproductive barriers between . . .

Throughout their global distribution, bats vary in their use of microhabitats along the vertical strata of forests. Ground-based detection techniques typically cannot sample canopy strata in taller forests as it falls beyond detection and netting rang . . .

The movement ecology of the adult northern red-legged frog (Rana aurora aurora) is essentially unknown throughout its range. Systematic studies, particularly those that investigate terrestrial movements of these animals, are urgently needed since this . . .

Long term comparisons are important for understanding intertidal community dynamics and documenting response to environmental pressures. This study compares the historical abundance of high intertidal sessile organisms at two rocky intertidal sites wi . . .

Historically human olfaction has been underestimated. There is considerable recent evidence that olfaction is biologically important in social and emotional contexts, including mate selection and kin recognition. Observations of humans in social conte . . .

I investigated seasonal activity, movement patterns, and habitat use of the wandering salamander, Aneides vagrans, in an old-growth forest canopy. During the fall and winter months from September 2000 to January 2003, a mark—recapture study of salaman . . .

The Early Devonian epoch (419.2 ±3.2-393.3 ±1.2 Ma) (Gradstein 2012) marked the commencement of a rapid evolutionary radiation and increase in the diversity and complexity of basal tracheophytes and other groups of land plants. While the importance of . . .

The development of industry, mining activity, irrigation of waste water, and the application of sewage sludge to agricultural lands have increased the release of metals into our ecosystems causing serious environmental problems and posing threats to h . . .

Seagrass beds are productive, structurally complex ecosystems that support an abundant and diverse assemblage of animals. Although light is clearly important to seagrass productivity, grazers also alter this aspect of plant communities. Grazers may in . . .

A sampling design that can provide estimates of abundance with low variance is very valuable to biologists working with limited budgets and time. Estimates that are precise even with low sampling efforts allow researchers to cheaply and confidently mo . . .

Place-based education is an instructional approach that engages students with their local environment, which can enrich the educational experience and improve scientific literacy. This project is a place-based secondary-level life science curriculum i . . .

In this study I tested the ability of the pollination syndrome model to predict the most effective pollinator of a tropical forest tree, Hibiscus elatus (Malvaceae), at three sites in Jamaica, West Indies. The floral characteristics of this species su . . .

Bacterial endosymbionts often contribute to the nutritional fitness of their host, as seen with Buchnera endosymbionts in aphids and Wolbachia endosymbionts in Cimex lectularius. Conventionally, amino acids and vitamins provided by bacterial endosymbi . . .

Spartina densiflora, a non-indigenous, invasive, perennial cordgrass has colonized and modified roughly 90% of the remaining salt marsh habitat in Humboldt Bay, California. As part of a region wide effort to ameliorate the effects of this invasion, tw . . .

The marine copepod, Tigriopus californicus (Baker), is commonly found in high rocky splash-pools between Alaska and Lower California. In this habitat the animal has the ability of withstanding a great range of temperature and salinity. The body of thi . . .

Gray whales (Eschrichtius robustus) are ‘living islands’ to a diverse assemblage of crustacean ectoparasites that includes at least three species of highly specialized whale lice (Cyamus spp.). These lice are obligate parasites that undergo direct dev . . .

The utility of nocturnal flight calls as an indicator for monitoring bird migration has been demonstrated and its usage continues to grow. However few studies have addressed how and if nocturnal flight calls can be used as a measure of migrating bird . . .

The abundance, distribution, prey availability, and prey consumed by gray whales (Eschrichtius robustus) in northern California were investigated during 1999 and 2000. Systematic shore-based observations from four sites occurred year-round but were co . . .

The Caenorhabditis elegans SPE-26 protein is involved in the formation of viable spermatids. Two-hybrid interaction analysis was performed in order to determine with which proteins SPE-26 physically interacts. Fusing the carboxy terminal 471 amino aci . . .

The identification of organisms present in an environment is a crucial prerequisite for understanding the role of organisms in the environment and the processes influencing the diversity of those organisms. In general, the basic ecology of acidic ther . . .

The science of immunology, for much of its history, has focused on the ability to induce the biological acquisition of specific immunity or on the ability to produce specific immune agents. Examples are, respectively, vaccinations that enable vertebra . . .

Pinus balfouriana Grev. and Balf., foxtail pine, is endemic to California, occurring as two subspecies: P. balfouriana ssp. austrina in the southern High Sierra and P. balfouriana ssp. balfouriana 500 km to the north in the Klamath Mountains. Previous . . .

Baseline information is needed to protect pollinators in at-risk ecosystems. One such system, Tolowa Dunes (Crescent City, California), in northern California, is undergoing habitat fragmentation caused by an introduced, invasive plant, Ammophila aren . . .

Natural riparian habitats are among the most diverse, productive, and structurally complex of terrestrial habitats. Although litter-decomposing fungi are integral components of riparian habitats, they are often omitted in studies of riparian ecology a . . .

This study examined wrack-associated macrofaunal communities in northern California, providing base line data and documenting potential prey for federally threatened Western Snowy Plovers. I investigated three hypotheses regarding beach wrack macrofau . . .

The morphology and proportions of the limb skeletons of thirteen species of North American mustelids are examined. A series of forty-nine ratios is generated for each species. Ratios are analyzed using standard descriptive statistics; mean, standard d . . .

Phytoplankton community descriptions are becoming an increasingly important component in studies of oceanographic and nearshore marine ecosystems. These primary producers play a major role in the global carbon cycle and are the foundation of nutrition . . .

Increased sophistication in methodology of echolocation monitoring has enabled the pursuit of a widened array of research and management objectives for bats. I developed and tested an automated program for detecting, measuring and classifying species . . .

Between October 2011 and September 2013, I designed and implemented an effort-based beach survey protocol for stranded marine mammals and seabirds in Humboldt County. This study was designed to create a baseline data set that is comparable to other pr . . .

Changing the fire regime of a plant community can result in significant alterations to its structure and composition. Seed banks have the potential to increase a population's ability to survive in areas where fire regimes have been altered by fire-sup . . .

Whitebark pine (Pinus albicaulis) is vulnerable to a number of threats including an introduced pathogen (Cronartium ribicola), epidemic levels of native mountain pine beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae), competition, and climate change. To elucidate fact . . .

Crop pollination by wild bees is an ecosystem service of great value, particularly in heavily developed tropical settings. Self-fertile Coffea arabica is an important cash crop for many tropical countries. I used pollinator surveys and exclusion exper . . .

The relationship between tidal elevation and the distribution of salt marsh vascular plants was investigated in Humboldt Bay, California. Plant species composition and cover were assessed and elevation surveyed in 148 one-square-meter plots in July-Au . . .

Premise of research. Climate change may alter the timing of flowering and pollinator activity to differing degrees, resulting in phenological mismatches between mutualist partners. Assessing the potential for such mismatches requires an understanding . . .

Marine habitats are under increasing threat of invasion by exotic species, the successful establishment and spread of which are poorly understood. Cryptic yet genetically distinct bryozoans in the genus Watersipora have invaded bays throughout Califor . . .

This study is a systematic assessment of eleven species of ectomycorrhizal fungi from the genus Clavulina (Clavulinaceae, Cantharellales, Basidiomycota) from the interior rainforests of the central Guiana Shield. Additionally, the presence of the resu . . .

Understanding the movements of anurans is important for developing successful conservation plans because breeding, foraging, and overwintering resources are often separated by time and space. I used radio-telemetry to study the movements and habitat u . . .

I examined differences in native macroinvertebrates among four lake management categories (fish stocked, temporary stocking suspension, fish removal lakes, and historically fishless lakes) and among three habitats (rock, organic/silt substrate, and em . . .

Oyster reefs serve an important role in estuarine ecosystems. Their shells create a complex habitat that serves as a home for future generations of oysters, other sessile invertebrates, and fishes. Native oysters, Ostrea lurida, are thought to have be . . .

Recent research on sea urchins has shown that they possess unexpected visual capabilities. Behavioral tests have revealed that they are able to detect the spatial distribution and wavelength of light using the surface of their body. The well-studied p . . .

A whole-plant concept was developed for the Early Devonian (Lochkovian – Pragian, ca. 410 Ma) drepanophycalean lycophyte Sengelia radicans gen. et sp. nov. from the Beartooth Butte Formation of Wyoming, based on 1131 fossil fragments. The concept, dev . . .

The biogeographic area between Cape Mendocino, California and Cape Blanco, Oregon spans over 320 km and is characterized by prominent coastal headlands that act as genetic and species barriers for marine organisms. Because of a lack of a current macro . . .

Coastal grasslands in Redwood National Park, known locally as the Bald Hills, are dominated by introduced species. The most dominant and invasive is tall oatgrass, Arrhenatherum elatius. Increasing in cover and distribution rapidly since 1985, it has . . .

In species where offspring are restricted to neonatal habitats, fitness is dependent upon oviposition site selection by females, a concept often referred to as the preference-performance hypothesis. Before determining if this hypothesis can be applied . . .

This study examined the effects of copper exposure on neurons and the excretory cell in the nematode, Caenorhabditis elegans, using transgenic strains with specific green fluorescent protein (GFP)-tagged cells. Exposure to CuSO₄ damaged particular neu . . .

I surveyed the flora of the San Joaquin Roadless Area, a 44km2 area on the east side of the central Sierra, and then analyzed its floristic affinities (origins) using Sorensen's similarity coefficient, cluster analysis, and Bray-Curtis ordination. The . . .

Analyzing DNA sequence data from multiple unlinked nuclear loci in a coalescent Isolation-with-Migration (IM) model is a statistically powerful method for estimating population divergence times, effective population sizes, and gene flow. This approach . . .