Theses and Dissertations
Issuing Body
Mississippi State University
Advisor
Morin, Dana J.
Committee Member
Hileman, Eric
Committee Member
King, Richard B.
Committee Member
Boudreau, Melanie
Committee Member
Iglay, Raymond
Date of Degree
12-8-2023
Original embargo terms
Campus Access Only 1 Year
Document Type
Graduate Thesis - Open Access
Major
Wildlife, Fisheries & Aquaculture
Degree Name
Master of Science (M.S.)
College
College of Forest Resources
Department
Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Aquaculture
Abstract
Over the 21st century, climate change and wetland habitat loss will pose major threats to the Eastern Massasauga (Sistrurus catenatus), a federally threatened and Great Lakes region endemic rattlesnake. I collected capture-recapture data from sites across the range and modeled the effect of climatic variables on growth rate and asymptotic size. I found that high snow residence time was associated with larger asymptotic sizes but slower growth, while high spring precipitation increased growth rate. I then projected future growth and size under different carbon emission scenarios. Given the threat posed by successional encroachment of woody vegetation, I used spatially explicit capture-recapture models to examine the effects of landscape characteristics and phenology on the spatial distribution of density for a population in Michigan. I found highest density in areas close to a stream and with low vegetation intensity, which can inform prescribed burn programs and give additional insights into life history.
Recommended Citation
Helferich, James, "Of changing climate and habitat: range-wide individual growth and local patterns of phenology and landscape use in a threatened pit-viper" (2023). Theses and Dissertations. 6047.
https://scholarsjunction.msstate.edu/td/6047
Included in
Climate Commons, Natural Resources and Conservation Commons, Other Animal Sciences Commons, Other Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Commons, Population Biology Commons