Kapfer, J.M. and D. J. Munoz. 2012. An assessment of herpetofaunal and non-volant mammal communities at sites in the Piedmont of North Carolina. Southeastern Naturalist 11:65-88.
 

Abstract:

The southeastern United States contains a rich diversity of vertebrate species. Despite this, the Piedmont province of the southeastern US has received less attention than the more biologically diverse Coastal Plain and Mountain regions. Yet, the Piedmont region experiences the greatest anthropogenic impact and should be the focus of conservation efforts. In an attempt to obtain diversity information for this under-studied region, we surveyed amphibian, reptile, and non-volant mammal communities for one year at two sites in the Piedmont of North Carolina. Our survey methodologies included drift fences, artificial cover objects, camera traps, and visual encounter surveys. We captured or obtained evidence of a total of 49 species across both sites (mammals = 20, amphibians = 15, reptiles = 14), and over 2000 animals were captured or detected. We calculated measures of species richness, abundance, diversity, and evenness for each study site, and calculated similarity between sites. Diversity and evenness measures varied, but were generally highest for amphibians or reptiles and lowest for mammals. Measures of similarity between study sites indicated high similarity. The species we observed were comparable to those reported by past inventory projects in the Piedmont of North Carolina, although such projects have been sparse. Our results provide much-needed information on vertebrate communities in this under-studied region.
 

Morgan Booker (Biology major) “Responses of herbaceous wetland plants often used in bioretension basins to drought and flooding.”

Caitlin Byrne, and John Moody (Environmental and Ecological Science majors) “Clonal integration in a wetland plant: The importance of acropetal water transfer between mother and daughter ramets.”
 

Brittany White (Biology major) “Physiological responses in the coastal marsh plant, Spartina patens, following sudden increases in soil salinities.”

“The Effect of Disturbance on the Spread of Invasive Plant Species in the Haw River Corridor” by Ashley Steele and Janet MacFall.

“Bank Geomorphology of the Haw River, NC” by Paul Robinette, David Welch, and Janet MacFall.

“Phytohormone Signaling in Emergent Freshwater Plants during Simulated Drought Conditions” by Kirsten Rhodes, Adam Frank, Genevieve Romanello, and Brant Touchette.

“Water Quality and Cyanobacteria Populations in the Lower Pamlico River” by Scott Russell, Brant Touchette, and Elizabeth Fensin.

“Observed Water Conservation in a Wetland Plant, American Water Willow (Justicia americana), During Emerged Conditions” by Christopher Miller, Brock Strom, and Brant Touchette.

 “Contrasting Responses of two Coastal Wetland Plants to Fluctuating and Sustained Salinities” by Gracen Smith, Mariana Poole, Kirsten Rhodes, and Brant Touchette.

All six presentations were entered into the Student Presentation Competition (which also included graduate students at research institutions, such as NC State University, UNC-Chapel Hill, and Duke University). The presentation by Christopher Miller and Brock Strom was tied for third place with the presentation by Kirsten Rhodes.