Document Type
Thesis
Degree
Master of Science (MS)
Major/Program
Environmental Studies
First Advisor's Name
Jennifer Rehage
First Advisor's Committee Title
Committee Co-Chair
Second Advisor's Name
Rolando O. Santos
Second Advisor's Committee Title
Committee Co-Chair
Third Advisor's Name
Elizbeth Anderson
Third Advisor's Committee Title
Committee Member
Fourth Advisor's Name
Micheal Allen
Fourth Advisor's Committee Title
Committee Member
Keywords
Florida Largemouth Bass, Acoustic Telemetry, Boosted Regression Trees, Climate Change, Habitat Suitability, Environmental Conditions
Date of Defense
11-1-2022
Abstract
Numerous species face redistribution and compression of habitat due to climate change. We coupled long-term movement and environmental data to assess how a freshwater species responds to changes in a coastal refuge habitat using Boosted Regression Trees (BRT) to predict distributional changes in the coming decades. Salinity, variation in salinity, and stage of the surrounding marsh habitat were the most important variables in BRT model, accounting for over half (56.6%) of the tree splits informing the final model. Interestingly, the habitat classified as conditional experienced the most variability (5.85 ± 6.2 km2), while core habitat remained relatively consistent (1.29 ± 0.98 km2) across years with varying hydrological conditions. These results suggest that varying environmental scenarios can drastically shift the amount of suitable habitat available for freshwater species using high salinity, conditional habitats at the coast. Climate change will likely result in large-scale reductions of critical dry season habitat for these species; while restoration efforts and adaptive management can bolster the resiliency of these habitats to ensure population persistence.
Identifier
FIDC010948
ORCID
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4273-4083
Recommended Citation
Viadero, Natasha, "Between Dry Rock and a Salty Place: Freshwater Species in a Coastal Environment Facing Climate Change" (2022). FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 5169.
https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd/5169
Included in
Animal Studies Commons, Environmental Indicators and Impact Assessment Commons, Natural Resources and Conservation Commons, Natural Resources Management and Policy Commons
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