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Developing Techniques for Quantifying Habitat Disturbance Within Small Watersheds and Predicting the Affects on Aquatic Biota
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Small
watersheds are very common throughout much of the world and serve a
wide variety of ecological functions. These streams receive water and
nutrients directly from rain and runoff and in turn feed larger water
bodies. Small streams also serve as important habitats for many
plants and animals, making them an important habitat to conserve. In
order to begin working towards the implementation of sound conservation
methods for small watersheds, it is first necessary to evaluate the
effects that anthropogenic development have on stream ecosystems. Before
detailed mapping and Global Information Systems (GIS) were available,
determining the these effects was an  extremely
difficult task. In this project I develop a standardized method for
quantifying the amount and type of habitat disturbance within small
watersheds and use that to draw conclusions about the effects of habitat
disturbance on steam-dwelling salamanders. I also propose this method
as a way to predict salamander abundance and thus identify areas that
should be targeted for conservation. |
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This page was created by J.D. Willson as an assignment for an undergraduate class in GIS at Davidson College
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