Browsing by Author "Stedman, Kathryn"

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    Diversity of Small Mammals in Six Different Habitats in Itasca State Park
    (2011-02-09) Stedman, Kathryn
    In order to gain information about the diversity of small mammals present in six different habitats located in Itasca State Park, we captured and marked mammals in these habitats over the course of three days. We found the unburned red pine forest to be the most diverse habitat surveyed. The distribution of the majority of species captured was consistent with their distributions in previous years.
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    Impact of Pocket Gophers on Long and Short Term Prairie Vegetation Diversity
    (2011-02-09) Do, Anh; Knoeck, Matthew; Stedman, Kathryn
    The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effects of pocket gopher (Geomys bursarius) mounds on prairie vegetation. This includes long and short term succession patterns as well as plant diversity on individual mounds. We obtained data by species counts and mound counts on an old field. We found that diversity on abandoned mounds was higher than that on new or old mounds or undisturbed land. In addition, old mounds were found to have the highest proportion of distinct patches of vegetation.
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    The Original Ant-Eaters: The effect of ants on the health of Sarracenia purpurea
    (2012-03-05) Grunzke, Danielle; Hawkinson, Anna; Stedman, Kathryn; Wagener, Jasmine
    Pitcher plants (Sarracenia purpurea), a species of carnivorous plant found in bogs, are often preyed upon by herbivorous insects. A study done by Moon et al. has suggested that ants indirectly deter this herbivory. The relationship between S. purpurea health and presence of ants was investigated by observing ant activity around plants, measuring the contents of pitchers, and recording average height, diameter and color of the plants. We found that plants without signs of herbivory were more likely to have ants in the surrounding area.