Papers by Rachel O'Malley
FACTORS AFFECTING WESTERN SNOWY PLOVER WINTER FORAGING HABITAT SELECTION IN SAN FRANCISCO BAY PON... more FACTORS AFFECTING WESTERN SNOWY PLOVER WINTER FORAGING HABITAT SELECTION IN SAN FRANCISCO BAY PONDS by Benjamin G. Pearl Within the San Francisco Bay Area, Western Snowy Plovers (Alexandrinus nivosus nivosus) nest and winter in former salt ponds. They face a number of threats including human-altered habitats and high levels of predation by mesopredators and raptors. The South Bay Salt Pond Restoration Project (the Project) is a large wetland restoration project that will change and potentially eliminate Snowy Plover habitat in the region. As the Project returns salt ponds to tidal wetland, there will be less of the dry, flat, and sparsely vegetated habitat that plovers need for breeding and wintering habitat. A greater understanding of the specific microhabitat requirements for high quality plover foraging sites is needed. In particular, it is important for managers to understand what constitutes high quality wintering habitat for Snowy Plover numbers. This study assessed the charac...
BENTHIC INVERTEBRATE RESPONSE TO HABITAT COMPLEXITY IN SOUTH BAY SALT PONDS by Jessica L. Murphey... more BENTHIC INVERTEBRATE RESPONSE TO HABITAT COMPLEXITY IN SOUTH BAY SALT PONDS by Jessica L. Murphey Wetlands are unique ecosystems that support specific flora, fauna, hydrology, and geology. These ecosystems increase groundwater availability, improve water quality, decrease flood water impacts, and help decrease shoreline erosion. In the south San Francisco Bay, the South Bay Salt Pond Restoration Project is restoring over 6,000 hectares of former salt ponds to tidal marshes and managed pond habitats. These habitats will support endangered species as well as migratory birds, diving ducks, invertebrates, and algal species. Benthic invertebrates are a vital piece of the South Bay food web as they provide the sustenance for other invertebrates, fish, shorebirds, and waterfowl. Improving the health of benthic communities in existing ponds is expected to attract more birds to those ponds and improve the overall health of the South Bay. This study assessed the relationship between invertebr...
Approximately seventy-five years after extirpation from Washington State, gray wolves (Canis lupu... more Approximately seventy-five years after extirpation from Washington State, gray wolves (Canis lupus) returned. As of December 2012, eight packs had arrived from adjacent states and provinces. Delisted from the Federal Endangered Species List in the eastern one-third of Washington, state wildlife managers now have the authority to manage wolves without federal supervision. As a result, one seven-wolf pack has been destroyed. The current study was developed to provide information for managers and policymakers to modify wolf management policies to fit the new regulatory context. Effects of a range of cultural and demographic factors on attitudes toward wolves and tolerance of wolf-human interactions were assessed using surveys mailed to 1,500 residents in Washington State. Factors included risk perception, experience with and knowledge of wolves, socio-demographic factors, and cultural attributes. Unexpectedly, 48.3% of respondents approved of wolves; only 18.1% disapproved of them in t...
USING VEGETATION TO REDUCE NITROGEN RUNOFF IN CALIFORNIA CANEBERRIES By Rebecca I. Riesenfeld Wit... more USING VEGETATION TO REDUCE NITROGEN RUNOFF IN CALIFORNIA CANEBERRIES By Rebecca I. Riesenfeld With a 700% rise in global fertilizer use in the last 50 years, agricultural lands are a significant source of nitrogen and phosphorus pollution in aquatic ecosystems worldwide. Record high levels of nitrate-contaminated runoff from agricultural sources in California's Central Coast are affecting drinking water supplies in the Pajaro Valley and increasingly threatening the ecological health of the Monterey Bay. Bands of vegetation strategically planted to control runoff and soil erosion, or vegetative filter strips (VFS), are used in urban landscapes and at some farm peripheries. On-farm vegetative diversity has been promoted for its contribution to biodiversity and pest control. The efficacy of in-row VFS for nutrient removal, however, has never before been explored in caneberries, the fastest-growing agricultural commodity in Central California. This on-farm study experimentally teste...
FERAL CAT MANAGEMENT: PERCEPTIONS AND PREFERENCES (A CASE STUDY) by Rachel L. M. Wilken Feral cat... more FERAL CAT MANAGEMENT: PERCEPTIONS AND PREFERENCES (A CASE STUDY) by Rachel L. M. Wilken Feral cat management is a highly debated topic. Trap, Neuter, and Return (TNR) programs have become increasingly popular as an alternative to eradication. Public preference about how to manage feral cats has been explored by previous authors, but no consensus has been reached. Public policy and best management practices depend in part upon public opinion on this topic. Wording of a feral cat management preference in surveys can play a role in respondent opinion. For this thesis, the researcher examined public opinion about feral cat control by surveying 298 Stanford University faculty and staff members using two different communication approaches. Half the surveys included scientific language, "feral" and "euthanasia," and half included colloquial terminology, "free-roaming" and "removal." Results suggested education and pet ownership affect preference for ...
The public perception of wildfire is that it destroys forests and that all fires should be quickl... more The public perception of wildfire is that it destroys forests and that all fires should be quickly extinguished. However, fire plays a central role in determining structure, composition, and recruitment in many forest types. In coast redwood forests, the role of fire is not well understood, particularly in the southern part of the range. Observational data suggest that redwoods are relatively unaffected by fire. The sites of three 2008 and 2009 fires were sampled for this study: the Martin Fire in Bonny Doon, California, the Whitehurst Fire near Gilroy, California, and the Lockheed Fire near Swanton, California. Randomly selected ten-meter diameter plots were used to collect data on survivorship and post fire regeneration in order to determine the short-term response of Sequoia sempervirens to fire. Additionally, data were collected on associated tree species in order to compare mortality and regeneration between adjacent forest types. Data collected included mortality, tree height,...
GROWING GREENS AND SOILED SOIL: TRENDS IN HEAVY METAL CONTAMINATION IN VEGETABLE GARDENS OF SAN F... more GROWING GREENS AND SOILED SOIL: TRENDS IN HEAVY METAL CONTAMINATION IN VEGETABLE GARDENS OF SAN FRANCISCO by Jennifer Gorospe As urban dwellers prioritize eating locally grown foods to reduce environmental impacts, benefit the local economy, and bring fresh produce to the table, urban gardening has emerged as a popular approach to improving food security. Researchers have shown previously that urban landscapes can accumulate environmental toxins at levels that may be unsafe for human health, with socioeconomically disadvantaged communities often shouldering an unequal burden of exposure. In order to identify and predict likely risk to gardeners, in this study, soil samples from 91 vegetable gardens in the city of San Francisco were analyzed for 16 heavy metals. A majority of the gardens exceeded the California Human Health Screening Level for arsenic (74%), cadmium (84%), and lead (62%), including nine gardens with lead levels above the hazardous toxic waste threshold for California...
HOW SMART IS CEQA ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE? AN EVALUATION OF CEQA'S GREENHOUSE GAS ANALYSIS by Papia ... more HOW SMART IS CEQA ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE? AN EVALUATION OF CEQA'S GREENHOUSE GAS ANALYSIS by Papia Kowshal Analysis of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) is an emerging practice, which, if done correctly, could contribute significantly towards meeting California's GHG emission reduction goals set under the Global Warming Solution Act of 2006. Whether CEQA analysis is adequate in assessing climate impacts of GHG emissions has yet to be determined. In this research, I evaluated the quality of climate change analyses in the draft environmental impact reports (DEIRs) prepared for 14 mixed-use projects in California. Results of this research indicated that CEQA analysis did not adequately include the effects of population density around the project sites, nor were project-related Vehicular Miles Traveled (VMT) accurately accounted for while estimating GHG emissions. Thus, potential GHG emission reduction benefits of mixed-use developments located in higher densities may not be realized using the current analysis methods. v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS With my deepest and heartfelt gratitude, I would like to thank my thesis committee chair, Dr. Rachel O'Malley, for her immense guidance, encouragement, patience, and support in designing and completing this study. I would also like to thank my committee members, Dr. Lynne Trulio and Ada Marquez for their valuable comments and moral support during my entire thesis-writing journey. It was an honor working with this eminent committee who truly transformed my research project into a great learning experience. I will never have enough words to thank and appreciate my mother Sunita Kowshal and my father Sunil Kowshal for their everlasting support and patience during my entire thesis process. I would not have finished this thesis without their blessings.
Journal of Insect Conservation, 2009
Precise information about endangered species, in particular identifying their resources requireme... more Precise information about endangered species, in particular identifying their resources requirements, is needed to identify areas that might support populations. Little is known about the endangered Mount Hermon June Beetle (Polyphylla barbata) found only within Zayante soils region of Santa Cruz County, California. We investigated the beetle's host plant selection, habitat association and mating behavior between June 2004 and September 2005. We identified angiosperm and Pteridophyta phyla, and fungi within the frass pellets of Mount Hermon June Beetle larvae demonstrating that they are not specialist feeders but are microhabitat specialists. Larval species was confirmed by DNA analysis. Significant differences were found in vegetation assemblages between regions where the Mount Hermon June Beetle did and did not occur for Chorizanthe pungens var. hartwegiana, and bare ground.
Environmental Entomology, 2005
This paper links ecological theory to the biological control of insect pests in banana plantation... more This paper links ecological theory to the biological control of insect pests in banana plantations. Through an established predictive approach, ecological data on tritrophic interactions from natural systems were used to formulate simple recommendations for biological control in banana plantations. The speciÞc goals were (1) to determine the most effective parasitoid enemies for biological control of lepidopteran larvae in banana
ILLEGAL DUMPING AS AN INDICATOR FOR COMMUNITY SOCIAL DISORGANIZATION AND CRIME by Amory Brandt Il... more ILLEGAL DUMPING AS AN INDICATOR FOR COMMUNITY SOCIAL DISORGANIZATION AND CRIME by Amory Brandt Illegal dumping of household waste in and around city streets results in many negative health, economic, and environmental effects. This goal of this study was to understand the systemic causes of illegal dumping within San José, California. Illegal dump sites were identified, quantified, characterized, and mapped within urban census block groups at a range of median family income levels. Results showed that commonly dumped debris types were furniture, and garbage. The most illegal dumping occurred within census block groups with low median family incomes, high percentages of non-English speaking individuals, and high percentages of renters. Factors such as social disorganization, inequitable levels of garbage service, and lack of awareness of free city programs could be causing illegal dumping within San José. Illegal dumping was also more prevalent in areas with occurrences of petty crim...
Uploads
Papers by Rachel O'Malley