Matching Items (10)
Filtering by
- All Subjects: Flora
- All Subjects: Plants
- Creators: Makings, Elizabeth
- Creators: Alford, Eddie J
- Creators: Barber, Anne Christine
- Member of: Theses and Dissertations
Description
This study was designed to produce a comprehensive flora of Usery Mountain Regional Park and Pass Mountain of the Tonto National Forest. A total of 168 vascular plant species representing 46 families and 127 genera were collected or documented at this study area. Sixteen species were not native to the flora of Arizona and represent 9.5% of the flora. Nevertheless, the study area does not appear to be significantly damaged or degraded in spite of its historical and current land use. The location and types of invasive species recorded in this study will assist with implementing preventative measures to prevent further spreading of certain species. The complete list of all vascular species recorded in this study will provide a valuable tool for land management decisions and future restoration projects that may occur at this area or similar sites and invasive species control. The distribution of the saguaro (Carnegiea gigantea) population on Pass Mountain was documented through the measurement of saguaros by random sampling. ArcGIS was used to generate 50 random points for sampling the saguaro population. Analysis to determine saguaro habitat preferences based on the parameters of aspect, slope and elevation was conducted through ArcGIS. The saguaro population of Pass Mountain significantly favored the southern aspects with the highest concentration occurring in the southwest aspects at an average density of 42.66 saguaros per hectare. The large numbers of saguaros recorded in the younger size classes suggests a growing populations.
ContributorsMarshall, Laura Lee (Author) / Steele, Kelly P (Thesis advisor) / Miller, William H. (Committee member) / Alford, Eddie J (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
ABSTRACT The Phoenix Four Rivers Flora is an inventory of all the vascular plants growing along the Salt, Gila, New and Agua Fria Rivers, and their tributaries in the Phoenix Metropolitan Area during the years of the study (2009-2011). This floristic inventory documents the plant species and habitats that exist currently in the project area, which has changed dramatically from previous times. The data gathered by the flora project thus not only documents how the current flora has been altered by urbanization, but also will provide a baseline for future ecological studies. The Phoenix Metropolitan Area is a large urbanized region in the Sonoran Desert of Central Arizona, and its rivers are important for the region for many uses including flood control, waste water management, recreation, and gravel mining. The flora of the rivers and tributaries within the project area is extremely diverse; the heterogeneity of the systems being caused by urbanization, stream modification for flood control, gravel mining, and escaped exotic species. Hydrological changes include increased runoff in some areas because of impermeable surfaces (e.g. paved streets) and decreased runoff in other areas due to flood retention basins. The landscaping trade has introduced exotic plant species that have escaped into urban washes and riparian areas. Many of these have established with native species to form novel plant associations.
ContributorsJenke, Darin (Author) / Landrum, Leslie R. (Committee member) / Pigg, Kathleen B. (Committee member) / Makings, Elizabeth (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
The Arizona State University Herbarium began in 1896 when Professor Fredrick Irish collected the first recorded Arizona specimen for what was then called the Tempe Normal School - a Parkinsonia microphylla. Since then, the collection has grown to approximately 400,000 specimens of vascular plants and lichens. The most recent project includes the digitization - both the imaging and databasing - of approximately 55,000 vascular plant specimens from Latin America. To accomplish this efficiently, possibilities in non-traditional methods, including both new and existing technologies, were explored. SALIX (semi-automatic label information extraction) was developed as the central tool to handle automatic parsing, along with BarcodeRenamer (BCR) to automate image file renaming by barcode. These two developments, combined with existing technologies, make up the SALIX Method. The SALIX Method provides a way to digitize herbarium specimens more efficiently than the traditional approach of entering data solely through keystroking. Using digital imaging, optical character recognition, and automatic parsing, I found that the SALIX Method processes data at an average rate that is 30% faster than typing. Data entry speed is dependent on user proficiency, label quality, and to a lesser degree, label length. This method is used to capture full specimen records, including close-up images where applicable. Access to biodiversity data is limited by the time and resources required to digitize, but I have found that it is possible to do so at a rate that is faster than typing. Finally, I experiment with the use of digital field guides in advancing access to biodiversity data, to stimulate public engagement in natural history collections.
ContributorsBarber, Anne Christine (Author) / Landrum, Leslie R. (Thesis advisor) / Wojciechowski, Martin F. (Thesis advisor) / Gilbert, Edward (Committee member) / Lafferty, Daryl (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
This study identifies the flora of the Eagletail Mountain Region, an area covering approximately 100,600 acres, located in west-central Arizona that includes the Eagletail Mountains, Granite Mountains, portions of the Harquahala Valley, and Cemetery Ridge near Clanton Well. The region is located about 129 km (80 mi) west of Phoenix and 24 km (15 mi) south of Interstate 10. Plants were collected over a six-year period, beginning September, 2004 and ending May, 2010, including two wet winters and two wet summers. A total of 702 collections were made covering 292 species that represented 63 families. Additional information on the region included in the thesis are: 1) an analysis of the climate, based on 20 years of rainfall records; 2) a description of the geology and its influence on plant distribution; 3) a prehistory and history identifying archeological sites; 4) an analysis of food plants used by the Native Americans that suggests how they were able to live in the region; 5)a paleo-botanical history based on an evaluation of pack-rat midden collections from mountain ranges around the region; 6) a comparison of the trees, shrubs, and perennials of the Eagletail Mountain Region with those of the Sierra Estrella and Kofa Mountains; and 7) a survey of non-native species. The habitats that the plants occupied based on climate and soils included were: 1) the bottoms and sides of sandy/ gravelly washes, 2) bajada slopes-volcanic soils, 3) bajada slopes-granitic sandy soils, 4) slot canyons/rock outcrops, 5) desert pavement, and 6) open valleys. Each habitat has its own characteristic species composition and distribution.
ContributorsNewton, Douglas R (Author) / Landrum, Leslie (Thesis advisor) / Alcock, John (Thesis advisor) / Makings, Elizabeth (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
The Upper Verde River of central Arizona flows through a landscape of complex geology at the meeting of seven biotic communities and three physiographic provinces. This has resulted in notably diverse flora and fauna and a hub of rare and endemic plant species. The river has sustained cultures since pre-history, however current regional water use is predicted to diminish streamflow over the next century. Prior to this project, no floristic inventory had been conducted along any section of the Verde. The purpose of this study was to develop a Flora of the Upper Verde River, with the goals of documenting rare and endemic species, the composition and abundance of wetland plants, and the factors shaping plant diversity in the region.
I made a total of 1856 collections and reviewed past collections to produce a checklist of 729 vascular plant taxa in 403 genera and 98 families. The most species-rich family is the Poaceae, followed by Asteraceae and Fabaceae. The flora includes 159 wetland taxa, 47 endemics, and 26 taxa of conservation concern, eight of which are Federally listed. Several new populations were found in these categories and of rarely-collected taxa including one state record, three county records and several range extensions. I report on the local status of several endemics, wetland taxa with limited distributions, and relict populations of a tepary bean (Phaseolus acutifolius) that were likely transported to the region and cultivated by pre-Columbian cultures. I categorize thirteen distinct plant communities, the most abundant being Pinyon/Juniper Woodland, Chihuahuan/Apacherian Scrub, and Riparian Deciduous Forest.
Four primary factors influence floristic diversity of the Upper Verde region: 1) a location at the junction of three physiographic and floristic provinces—represented by co-occurrence of species with affinities to the Sonoran, Intermountain and Madrean regions, 2) geologic diversity—as distinct groups of species are associated with particular geologic types, 3) topographic and habitat complexity—allowing species adapted to disparate environments to co-occur, and 4) human introductions—since over 15% of the flora is composed of introduced species from Eurasia and several taxa were introduced to the region and cultivated by pre-Columbian cultures.
I made a total of 1856 collections and reviewed past collections to produce a checklist of 729 vascular plant taxa in 403 genera and 98 families. The most species-rich family is the Poaceae, followed by Asteraceae and Fabaceae. The flora includes 159 wetland taxa, 47 endemics, and 26 taxa of conservation concern, eight of which are Federally listed. Several new populations were found in these categories and of rarely-collected taxa including one state record, three county records and several range extensions. I report on the local status of several endemics, wetland taxa with limited distributions, and relict populations of a tepary bean (Phaseolus acutifolius) that were likely transported to the region and cultivated by pre-Columbian cultures. I categorize thirteen distinct plant communities, the most abundant being Pinyon/Juniper Woodland, Chihuahuan/Apacherian Scrub, and Riparian Deciduous Forest.
Four primary factors influence floristic diversity of the Upper Verde region: 1) a location at the junction of three physiographic and floristic provinces—represented by co-occurrence of species with affinities to the Sonoran, Intermountain and Madrean regions, 2) geologic diversity—as distinct groups of species are associated with particular geologic types, 3) topographic and habitat complexity—allowing species adapted to disparate environments to co-occur, and 4) human introductions—since over 15% of the flora is composed of introduced species from Eurasia and several taxa were introduced to the region and cultivated by pre-Columbian cultures.
ContributorsCoburn, Francis S (Author) / Stromberg, Juliet C. (Thesis advisor) / Landrum, Leslie R (Thesis advisor) / Makings, Elizabeth (Committee member) / Fertig, Walter F (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2015
Description
A floristic analysis is essential to understanding the current diversity and structure
of community associations of plants in a region. Also, a region’s floristic analysis is key not only to investigating their geographical origin(s) but is necessary to their management and protection as a reservoir of greater biodiversity. With an area of 2,250,000 square kilometers, the country of Saudi Arabia covers almost four-fifths of the Arabian Peninsula. Efforts to document information on the flora of Saudi Arabia began in the 1700s and have resulted in several comprehensive publications over the last 25 years. There is no doubt that these studies have helped both the community of scientific researchers as well as the public to gain knowledge about the number of species, types of plants, and their distribution in Saudi Arabia. However, there has been no effort to use digital technology to make the data contained in various Saudi herbarium collections easily accessible online for research and teaching purposes. This research project aims to develop a “virtual flora” portal for the vascular plants of Saudi Arabia. Based on SEINet and the Symbiota software used to power it, a preliminary website portal was established to begin an effort to make information of Saudi Arabia’s flora available on the world- wide web. Data comprising a total of 12,834 specimens representing 175 families were acquired from different organizations and used to create a database for the designed website. After analyzing the data, the Fabaceae family (“legumes”) was identified as a largest family and chosen for further analysis. This study contributes to help scientific researchers, government workers and the general public to have easy, unlimited access to the plant information for a variety of purposes.
of community associations of plants in a region. Also, a region’s floristic analysis is key not only to investigating their geographical origin(s) but is necessary to their management and protection as a reservoir of greater biodiversity. With an area of 2,250,000 square kilometers, the country of Saudi Arabia covers almost four-fifths of the Arabian Peninsula. Efforts to document information on the flora of Saudi Arabia began in the 1700s and have resulted in several comprehensive publications over the last 25 years. There is no doubt that these studies have helped both the community of scientific researchers as well as the public to gain knowledge about the number of species, types of plants, and their distribution in Saudi Arabia. However, there has been no effort to use digital technology to make the data contained in various Saudi herbarium collections easily accessible online for research and teaching purposes. This research project aims to develop a “virtual flora” portal for the vascular plants of Saudi Arabia. Based on SEINet and the Symbiota software used to power it, a preliminary website portal was established to begin an effort to make information of Saudi Arabia’s flora available on the world- wide web. Data comprising a total of 12,834 specimens representing 175 families were acquired from different organizations and used to create a database for the designed website. After analyzing the data, the Fabaceae family (“legumes”) was identified as a largest family and chosen for further analysis. This study contributes to help scientific researchers, government workers and the general public to have easy, unlimited access to the plant information for a variety of purposes.
ContributorsAlbediwi, Albatool (Author) / Wojciechowski, Martin (Thesis advisor) / Franz, Nico (Committee member) / Makings, Elizabeth (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2017
Description
Urbanization has global impacts on ecosystems and transforms landscapes into man-made constructs. As urbanization continues to encroach on landscapes it is important to understand its effects on biodiversity and the long term health of our planet. In terms of species numbers, urban floras can actually be more diverse than their native surroundings and I am specifically interested in the species that have been introduced into these settings, their provenance, and the historical circumstances of how they were established. I collected plants in the alleys of Tempe, Arizona over a 5 month period to get a baseline understanding of the local diversity; then collected data from herbarium records using SEINet http://swbiodiversity.org/seinet/ to trace the origin of the introduced species and the first record of their appearance. I also used on-line information from the City of Tempe to investigate the relationship of land use change, development, and population growth to the introductions of some non-native plants. Finally, I used SIENet records to investigate the relationship of collection intensity throughout the decades to the introductions of some non-native plants. A total of 130 specimen were collected representing 83 different species from 32 different families. Most of the introduced species were from climates similar to Arizona. New occurrence records were spread out over the decades that Tempe has been around, and I was only able to weakly link them to the historical and collection intensity data. Knowing the biodiversity of an area can give clues into the ecosystem services that biodiversity provides, as well as management implications. Additionally, knowing the history of what is out there may give insights into what the biodiversity of the future may look like.
ContributorsHauck, Chad Steven (Author) / Franz, Nico (Thesis director) / Makings, Elizabeth (Committee member) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor) / School of Sustainability (Contributor) / School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
This project is a revised taxonomic treatment of the tobacco genus, Nicotiana, for the Arizona Flora. The treatment required morphological descriptions of all six species found in Arizona based on measurements and observations from mounted herbarium specimen as well as field collections. Loans from regional herbaria including: Northern Arizona University, Arizona State University, the University of Arizona, Rancho Santa Anna Herbarium, and the Desert Botanical Garden were examined and annotated according to standard herbaria protocols. A dichotomous key was then created based on morphological descriptions for use in identifying species both in the field and from herbarium mounts. Distribution maps were generated using online databases of herbarium vouchers, mapping soft wares, and field excursions. During the course of my field work, I was able to locate all six species and four of them were collected, vouchered, and deposited in the ASU Vascular Plant Herbarium. One species, Nicotiana quadrivalvis was not relocated based on historical records. This treatment will contribute to ongoing revisions of the Arizona Flora via a publication in the regional taxonomic journal Canotia.
ContributorsSolves, Jean-Phillippe Yvan (Author) / Pigg, Kathleen (Thesis director) / Makings, Elizabeth (Committee member) / Doan, Shannon (Committee member) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2016-12
Description
The Phoenix Zoo, also known as the Arizona Center for Nature Conservation (PZ), is an Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) accredited zoological institution and among largest-nonprofit, privately-owned zoos in the United States (Smith, 2020). Located within Papago Park in Phoenix (Maricopa County), Arizona, adjacent to the Desert Botanical Garden (DES), the two combine to bring environmental awareness to the Phoenix Metropolitan Region. While the DES specializes in botanical presentation, the ACNC focuses on zoological education. Whereas the flora of DES is well known, that of ACNC has yet to be completely documented. Given its role as a center for public engagement and education, documenting and mapping the floristic diversity of the Phoenix Zoo provides updated botanical information and occurrence records, an important component of understanding biodiversity for the Phoenix area. Between the fall of 2017 and the Spring of 2021, the grounds of the ACNC were walked within the 2-mile perimeter and surrounding exterior within Papago Park. Plant specimens and photographs were collected and archived for later identification using various botanical keys. Species names were verified through updated botanical databases such as Tropicos.org and worldfloraonline.org and compiled into a checklist. A total of 706 species have been identified, and of those 548 specimens have been collected as specimen vouchers. Of these, 120 are of taxa known to be native to the Phoenix Salt River Valley. While approximately 79 of those previously listed taxa native to Papago Park were either not found during this study or were extirpated from the grounds of the ACNC during urbanization of the region. There are 586 exotic taxa, some are common cultivars, while others are new to the region. Data for this survey is publicly available on SEINet, a regional network of North America herbaria (https://swbiodiversity.org/seinet/), as georeferenced voucher specimens, human observations, and photographs. Data is also partially duplicated through the iNaturalist platform (iNaturalist.com).
ContributorsBerry, Zachery R (Author) / Makings, Elizabeth (Thesis advisor) / Pigg, Kathleen B (Thesis advisor) / Wojciechowski, Martin F (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2021
Description
Las Cienegas National Conservation Area (LCNCA), located in southeastern Arizona, is a place of ecological and historical value. It is host to rare native, threatened and endangered fauna and flora. as well as the site of the oldest operating ranch in the state. The first chapter of this thesis provides a preliminary flora of vascular plants at LCNCA assembled from field collections, photographs and herbarium specimens, and published through the online database SEINet. This preliminary flora of LCNCA identified 403 species in 76 families. Less than 6% of the flora is non-native, perennial forbs and grasses are the most abundant groups, and over a third of species in the checklist are associated with wetlands. LCNCA has been the target of adaptive management and conservation strategies to preserve its biotic diversity, and results from this study will help inform actions to preserve its rare habitats including cottonwood willow forests, mesquite bosques, sacaton grasslands, and cienegas. The second chapter investigates poorly understood aspects of the life history of the endangered Huachuca Water Umbel (Lilaeopsis schaffneriana subsp. recurva. Apiaceae) (hereafter HWU). This wetland species occurs in scattered cienegas and streams in southeastern Arizona and northern Sonora, Mexico. Three studies were conducted in a greenhouse to investigate seed bank establishment, seed longevity, and drought tolerance. A fourth study compared the reproductive phenology of populations transplanted at LCNCA to populations transplanted at urban sites like the Phoenix Zoo Conservation Center and the Desert Botanical Garden (DBG). Results from the greenhouse studies showed that HWU seeds were capable of germinating 15 years in a dormant state and that HWU seeds are present in the seed banks at sites where populations have been transplanted. Also, greenhouse experiments indicated that colonies of HWU can tolerate up to 3 weeks without flowing water, and up to 2 weeks in dry substrate. Transplanted populations at LCNCA monitored in the fourth study produced a higher abundance of flowers and fruit relative to urban sites (i.e. DBG) suggesting that in-situ conservation efforts may be more favorable for the recovery of HWU populations. Findings from these studies aim to inform gaps in knowledge highlighted in USFWS recovery plan for this species.
ContributorsSolves, Jean-Philippe Yvan (Author) / Pigg, Kathleen B (Thesis advisor) / Salywon, Andrew (Committee member) / Makings, Elizabeth (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2020