Browsing Environmental & Conservation Sciences Masters Theses by Title
Now showing items 1-20 of 63
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Alluvial Fans in the McMurdo Dry Valleys: A Proxy for Melting Along Terrestrial Margins of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet
(North Dakota State University, 2013)Surface melting along Antarctic ice sheet margins is the most poorly understood input in models of future sea level rise. Alluvial fans in the McMurdo Dry Valleys originate from meltwater produced from high-elevation ... -
Antipredator Behavior and Morphology in Isolated Cyprinodont Fishes
(North Dakota State University, 2018)For desert fishes in the American Southwest, predation by invasive species has triggered massive population declines for decades, leaving researchers speculating on the underlying cause. It has been shown that Post-Pleistocene ... -
Attenuation of Nitrate from Simulated Agricultural Wastewater Using an Immobilized Anaerobic Biofilm
(North Dakota State University, 2012)A number of methods are currently in use for attenuating nitrates from wastewater with varying degrees of efficiency. Bioremediation using bacteria may be an efficient and cost effective method. In an anaerobic bioremediation ... -
Bat Population Monitoring in National Parks of The Great Lakes Region and Evaluation of Bat Acoustic Analysis Software
(North Dakota State University, 2019)North American bats face multiple threats, prompting an increase in bat research and conservation efforts in recent decades. Researchers often use acoustic monitoring, which entails recording bats’ echolocation calls and ... -
Body Shape Divergence Among Wild and Experimental Populations of White Sands Pupfish (Cyprinodon Tularosa)
(North Dakota State University, 2011)Reports of contemporary evolution have become ubiquitous, but replicated studies of phenotypic divergence for wild populations are exceptionally rare. In 2001, a series of experimental populations were established to ... -
Characterization of Road Dust in Western North Dakota
(North Dakota State University, 2015)Samples were collected during summer 2014, at three locations: along 15th St. SW near agricultural test plots, along an access road leading to a newly built oil drilling pad, and adjacent to the pad. MiniVol™ TAS Samplers ... -
Chemical Repellents for Reducing Blackbird Damage on Mature Sunflowers: The Importance of Plant Structure and Avian Behavior in Field Applications
(North Dakota State University, 2019)Across North America, blackbirds (Icteridae) depredate high-energy crops, such as sunflower (Helianthus annuus), placing an economic burden on producers. Chemically-defended crops, in the form of human-applied repellents, ... -
Cosmogenic 10Be Surface Exposure Dating and Numerical Modeling of Late Pleistocene Glaciers and Lakes in Northwestern Nevada
(North Dakota State University, 2019)This thesis focuses on the glacial record in the Pine Forest and Santa Rosa Ranges located in the northwestern Great Basin. Seventeen cosmogenic exposure ages in the two ranges are consistent with observations elsewhere ... -
Development and Genetic Regulation of the Novel Abdominal Appendages in the Male Sepsid Fly, Themira Biloba
(North Dakota State University, 2013)Evolutionary novel structures are structures with no known homology. Novel structures often provide a novel function to the organism. Some species of sepsid flies (family Sepsidae) have evolved novel abdominal appendages ... -
Development and Scale Up of Aqueous Surfactant-Assisted Extraction of Canola Oil for Use as Biodiesel Feedstock
(North Dakota State University, 2012)In oilseed extraction, alternative extraction media have been studied to replace the traditional solvent, hexane, due to health, safety, and environmental concerns. In this work, aqueous surfactant-assisted extraction was ... -
Developmental Changes in Fat Metabolism of Tobacco Hornworm, Manduca Sexta
(North Dakota State University, 2012)Insects fed high carbohydrate diets have increased fat storage, and excess fat storage in insects may have fitness costs. M. sexta larvae reared on 5.6% fat diet had lower body mass and growth rate compared to those on ... -
Ecological and Sociological Considerations of Wind Energy: A Multidisciplinary Study
(North Dakota State University, 2012)Wind energy is quickly becoming a critical technology for providing Americans with renewable energy, and rapid construction of wind facilities may have impacts on both wildlife and human communities. Understanding both the ... -
Economic Analyses of Agricultural Land-Use Change and Agro-Ecosystem Services for Waterfowl in North Dakota
(North Dakota State University, 2014)Understanding the relationship between crop production and wildlife habitat in North Dakota - which contains a large portion of the Prairie Pothole Region - will be essential to the continuation of both in a region facing ... -
Effects of Nanoscale Zero-valent iron (nZVI) on Bacterial Viability: Roles of Growth Phases and Oxidative Stress
(North Dakota State University, 2011)The effect of nanoscale zero-valent iron (nZVI) particles on bacteria from different growth phases was studied. Four bacterial strains including Escherichia coli strains JMI09 and BW25 l l 3, and Pseudomonas putida strains ... -
The Effects of Salinity on Canadian Toad (Anaxyrus hemiophrys) Larvae and Post-Metamorphic Juveniles
(North Dakota State University, 2021)Sodium Chloride (NaCl) production in the United States is at an all-time high. As weather patterns become harsher through climate change and demands on energy and agriculture increase, evidence of long-term NaCl exposure ... -
Effects of Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles and Carbon Nanotubes in Important Crop Species: Plant Growth and Element Uptake
(North Dakota State University, 2021)Engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) have been developed for various uses in the agriculture industry. The effects of ENMs in plant systems are not yet fully understood. Some studies have reported the different effects of ENMs ... -
Environmental and Conservation Sciences Program, College of Graduate and Interdisciplinary Studies
(North Dakota State University, 2011)This study offers an insight on pertinent parameters that may be considered to address potential emerald ash borer {EAB), Agrilus p/anipennis, infestation. The study utilizes a geospatial model, calibrated using empirical ... -
Evaluating the Potential Utility of Drones to Deter Birds from Areas of Human-Wildlife Conflict
(North Dakota State University, 2018)Predator-prey dynamics shaped the evolution of morphological and behavioral adaptations that foraging animals use to detect and avoid predators. Wildlife managers can potentially exploit antipredator behavior when attempting ... -
Evaluation of a Nitrate-Assimilating Bacterium for Potential Use in Nitrate Bioremediation
(North Dakota State University, 2013)Increasing levels of nitrate (NO3-N) in water resources have brought about the need to find ever more versatile forms of NO3-N removal from contaminated water. The ability of several microorganisms to transform NO3-N has ... -
Evidence of Inbreeding and Divergence in the Western Prairie Fringed Orchid (Platanthera praeclara)
(North Dakota State University, 2018)The conversion of grasslands to agriculture land has made the tall grass prairie one of the world’s most endangered ecosystems and has played a key role in the decline of one particular species of rare endangered orchid, ...