Tag: Oral Session 4CS

Complicating Autonomy through Empowering Agency: Honeybees at the Center of Conflict

Presenter(s): Jacob Jansen − Cultural Anthropology

Faculty Mentor(s): Ana-Maurine Lara

Oral Session 4CS

Research Area: Social Science

It is argued that as we are shaped, so too are the animals that come into contact with our interests. By positioning honeybee identity in the context of environmental conflict, we can see through and with biological objectives, including social matters which actively influence our relationship to honeybees. When we question the autonomy of honeybees, we reveal the agency that has been deeply imbedded in this organism’s relationship with humans. To see the manifestations and human interest of this agency, the shaping of honeybees must be considered in a physical and social context. Through empowering nature, an idea originally brought forth by Anna Tsing, we can associate familiarities that allow us to position honeybees in an entangled human-animal complex. By questioning autonomy, we dust off the normality of Western honeybee culture, asking us to challenge the ways through which we’re associated to this animal’s identity.

Quantifying Vegetation, Structure, and Canopy Density at ʻAlalā Release Site

Presenter(s): Sierra Ching − Environmental Science

Faculty Mentor(s): Peg Boulay

Oral Session 4CS

Research Area: Restoration Ecology

Funding: National Science Foundation Research Experience for Undergraduates, University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo, Americorps Kupu Hawaiʻi, Pacific Internship Programs for Exploring Sciences

Worldwide, bird populations suffer from habitat loss, invasive species, and disease. Avian keystone species are vital to conserve in the wild because of their strong roles in ecosystems in which they live. The ʻAlalā (Corvus hawaiiensis) is a keystone species in the Hawaiian Islands because of its seed dispersal and germination capabilities, which are vital for
the restoration of wet and mesic forests. The ʻAlalā went extinct in the wild in 2002 and its reintroduction into the wild is supported by the San Diego Zoo Institute for Conservation Research’s Hawaiʻi Endangered Bird Conservation Program. The current reintroduction site is located at the Puʻu Makaʻala Natural Area Reserve on the Island of Hawaiʻi. My project analyzed the composition between two adjacent geological substrates at the reintroduction site. I used haphazard sampling to collect data for species composition, vegetation structure, and canopy density through a Braun-Blanquet categorical system. The results did not find significant differences therefore neither substrate was considered to have more of the variables studied than the other.

2018 Native Revegetation and Restoration at Goose Creek

Presenter(s): Emily Bork – Environmental Science, Marine Biology

Co presenter(s): Bren Catt, Lachlan Addicott, Elizabeth Baach, Brianna Ashley, Madeline Cowen, Drew Donahue, Hailey Gilliland, Alice Gregg, Philip Hou, Harrison Satterthwaite

Faculty Mentor(s): Peg Boulay, Alejandro Brambila

Oral Session 4CS

Research Area: Natural Science

Funding: University of Oregon’s Environmental Studies Program

Goose Creek runs through Whitewater Ranch, an organic blueberry farm and timber harvester that is adjacent to the McKenzie River. Since 2014, the Environmental Leadership Program’s (ELP) Riparian Restoration team has been working to reverse the deleterious effects of past livestock grazing along Goose Creek. The overall goal of the restoration project is to replant disturbed native vegetation along Goose Creek, which will revitalize pollinator habitats, control the spread of invasive plant species, and increase stream health via a reduction in temperature. We will monitor these variables by using a variety of methods, including photopoint monitoring, vegetation survival and percent cover, pollinator surveys, stream temperature measurements, and aquatic macroinvertebrate surveys. After restoration, we expect to observe greater populations of native plant communities and native pollinators, less non-native plant species, and an overall improvement of stream health represented by a decrease in temperature and the presence of sensitive macroinvertebrate species. This year’s restoration efforts will augment the overall health of the McKenzie River Watershed and will provide valuable monitoring data for future ELP teams. These protocols will serve as useful guidelines for other agricultural areas that would like to restore native habitat and increase the health of riparian systems.

Estuary Coastline Change over a century in the Coos Bay, Oregon

Presenter(s): Kira Bartlett − Earth Science, Geography

Faculty Mentor(s): David Sutherland, Patricia McDowell

Oral Session 4CS

Research Area: Natural/Physical Science

Coos Bay Estuary is the largest bay between San Francisco and Puget Sound. The estuary serves an important role in the region’s economic prosperity through transportation and agriculture. The purpose was to study the Coos Bay Estuary coastline change through the years 1895 through 2011 and determine the human and natural influences causing the changes. Historic NOAA maps were georeferenced into ArcGIS and analyzed by altering shapefiles of the estuary shoreline the years using for each selected map. Comparison maps, area change charts, and shoreline distance verses time graph were used to demonstrate the major changes. The changes were compared to a historical events timeline for the region of Coos Bay to show the correlation. The major changes on the estuary shoreline are a result of the local airport construction, and other areas that were heavily influenced by human alteration and influence. Between the years 1953 and 1940 the estuary was the most heavily altered. Only a minimal amount of the shoreline changes shows evidence of natural causes, such as erosion. With this information, the City of Coos Bay can decide on what preservation or alterations they feel are necessary to maintain the economic benefits of the estuary.

Impacts of Rising Heat and Precipitation on Plant Phenology in Pacific Northwest Prairies

Presenter(s): Benjamin Avis – Environmental Studies

Co presenter(s): Miles Steele, Sean Petitt, Emma Rasmussen, Hunter Mackin

Faculty Mentor(s): Peg Boulay, Scott Bridgham

Oral Session 4CS

Research Area: Environmental Science

This study seeks to understand the anticipated impacts of predicted climate change on the phenology of 12 different prairie grasses and forbs. Three sites have been selected ranging from Southern Oregon to Southern Washington. Our site, Willow Creek, is located in the Southern Willamette Valley and was selected due to its high-quality restored prairie habitat. To address the possible effects of climate change on plant survival rate and vigor, our experimental design approach is to manipulate temperature and precipitation with four treatments (including control) and measure reproductive variables of the planted focal species. Experimental parameters will be consistent with average predictions for temperature and precipitation increase, and the site will be composed of 20 plots with 5 replicants of each treatment. Our team will be responsible for data collection, quality assurance, and analysis of the results. These simulations will predict the likelihood of extinction for focal species within their current range, as well as the effects on phenology and geographic distribution.