15Th Biennial Conference of Science and Management for the Colorado
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15th Biennial Conference of Science and Management for the Colorado Plateau and Southwest Region Theme: “Science & Solutions for Conserving the Southwest’s Land, Water, Biodiversity and Cultures” September 9–12, 2019 High Country Conference Center, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, Arizona Abstracts Abstracts are ordered alphabetically by presenting author, whose name is indicated in bold type. The future is now: impacts to our most valued western cultural heritage from changing environmental conditions ADLER, R.S.1 and L.M. Meyer1 1Vanishing Treasures Program, Intermountain Regional Office, National Park Service, Santa Fe, New Mexico, 87505 USA, [email protected] ABSTRACT: Land managers in the National Park Service and elsewhere have long been concerned by the effects of a rapidly changing environment on the natural resources protected by our public lands. However, only in the past decade has it become clear that federally protected cultural resources are at risk as well. The resulting lack of research on the potential effects of climate change on cultural resources presents a major challenge to current resource managers when it comes to planning and prioritizing documentation, treatment, and monitoring of the cultural sites under their care. While the available research has increased exponentially since 2012, most of the resources that have been studied through the lens of changing environmental conditions are located in coastal and arctic areas of the US, focusing on the associated risks of sea level rise, increased frequency and intensity of hurricanes and tropical storms, and the melting of tundra and permafrost. Cultural resources in the desert southwest are underrepresented in the current research, but face unique challenges that will need to be addressed if there is any hope of preserving the area’s cultural heritage in an uncertain environmental future. Drought, increased frequency and intensity of wildfire, and increased intensity of precipitation events are all conditions that have been associated with a changing climate in the West. In addition, architectural materials that are common in this geographic region, such as adobe and other forms of earthen architecture, face unique risks that have not been dealt with in other areas of the country. The National Park Service is working to expand the body of research related to how these materials respond to the specific changing environmental conditions they currently face, and are expected to face in the future. Genetic investigation of Bouteloua gracilis on the Colorado Plateau: implications for restoration using wild and cultivated varieties ALLAN, G.J.1 and K. Tso1,2 1Environmental Genetics & Genomics Facility, Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ 86011, USA, [email protected]; 2Phylos Bioscience, Portland, OR 97214, USA ABSTRACT: As large-scale restoration efforts on the Colorado Plateau become increasingly important, the need to understand the adaptive genetic structure of natural plant populations and their relation to heavily-utilized cultivars is critical. Here, we investigate how genetic variation is partitioned in the widespread perennial grass, Bouteloua gracilis (blue grama), and the degree to which this 1 variation is shaped by environmental variation in natural populations and cultivated varieties. Consisting of several cytotypes (2n=2x- 6x) blue grama has a widespread distribution in western North America and is regularly used in restoration treatments. Using AFLP (Amplified Fragment Length Polymorphism) and cpDNA (chloroplast DNA) analyses, we assessed the genetic variability and adaptive genetic structure of blue grama within and among 44 sampling sites that are representative of the species’ environmental and habitat diversity in the southwestern U.S., specifically on the Colorado Plateau and adjacent regions. Five cultivars were also included to investigate genetic diversity and differentiation in natural versus cultivated populations. Three main findings resulted from this study: 1) Ninety-four polymorphic AFLP markers distinguished two population clusters defined largely by samples on and off the Colorado Plateau; 2) Substructure of samples on the Colorado Plateau was indicated by genetic divergence between boundary and interior regions, and was supported by cytotype distribution and cpDNA analysis; 3) Six AFLP markers were identified as “outliers,” consistent with being under selection and were significantly correlated to several environmental variables in natural populations, but not in cultivated samples. Marker x environment relationships were found to be influenced by cytotype and cultivar development. Our results demonstrate that blue grama is genetically variable and broadly structured across the Colorado Plateau and is responsive to environmental variation. Our study enables the selection of seed source populations for commercial development and conservation management of B. gracilis, and potentially other native grasses, on the Colorado Plateau. Recent developments at three western CESUs: an update from the Colorado Plateau, Desert Southwest and Rocky Mountain CESU directors ALLEN, J.A.1, J. Koprowski2, and T. DeLuca3 1Colorado Plateau CESU, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ 86011 USA, [email protected]; 2Desert Southwest CESU, University of Arizona, 1064 E. Lowell St., Tucson, AZ 85721 USA; 3Rocky Mountains CESU, University of Montana, 32 Campus Dr., Missoula, MT, 59812 USA ABSTRACT: We will present brief introductions to our respective Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Units (CESUs), followed by an overview of recent developments (e.g., new partners) and examples of new research, education and technical assistance activity. We will also discuss best practices for managing our CESUs and ongoing challenges, such as ensuring adequate reporting by all partners, the lack of effective interaction with some technical representatives, and the difficulties in ensuring that some of our smaller partners are selected to implement projects. We will conclude by highlighting some opportunities to make our CESUs more effective in achieving their mission. Monitoring uranium and trace elements associated with breccia pipe uranium deposits in the Colorado River and main tributaries of Grand Canyon, northern Arizona ANDERSON, J.R.1, J.A. UNEMA1, F.D Tillman2, and T. Chapin3 1U.S. Geological Survey, Arizona Water Science Center, Flagstaff, Arizona 86001, [email protected], [email protected]; 2U.S. Geological Survey, Arizona Water Science Center, Tucson, Arizona 85719; 3U.S. Geological Survey; Geology, Geophysics and Geochemistry Science Center; Denver, Colorado 80225 ABSTRACT: The Colorado River, which carved Grand Canyon over the last 6 million years, is one of the most important water sources in the western U.S., serving the needs of more than 38 million people in the U.S. and Mexico. The Grand Canyon region also hosts some of the highest-grade uranium deposits in the U.S. and has subsequently experienced varying levels of uranium mining activity since the 1950s. The U.S. Geological Survey has monitored major surface waters in Grand Canyon for elements associated with mineralized uranium deposits in the area since late 2015. Dissolved constituents in the Colorado River are monitored upstream (Lees Ferry), near the middle (Phantom Ranch), and downstream (above Diamond Creek) of Grand Canyon National Park. Observed uranium concentrations in water at these sites are 2.5 to 4 µg/L, substantially less than the 30 µg/L USEPA maximum contaminant level, with little change observed over time or with changes in streamflow. Additionally, dissolved and sediment bound constituents are monitored at the mouths of the Little Colorado River (LCR), Kanab Creek, and Havasu Creek tributaries, whose watersheds have experienced different levels of uranium mining activities over time. Difficult sampling conditions exist at these remote tributary monitoring sites, including limited access and extremely variable flow from baseflow to flood runoff conditions. Dissolved uranium concentrations sampled across a range of flow at the tributary sites were ⁓1–17 µg/L at LCR, ⁓1–9 µg/L at Kanab Creek, and ⁓1–4 µg/L at Havasu Creek. Concentration of uranium in suspended sediment samples were ⁓2–5 µg/g at LCR, ⁓2–3 µg/g at Kanab Creek, and ⁓2–3 µg/g at Havasu Creek, all well below a published sediment quality guideline of 104.4 µg/g. Continued monitoring at these and additional tributary sites will provide a robust dataset with which to compare potential future changes. 2 Assessing the magnitude of compositional change in two arid ecosystems over 80 years ANNETTS, T.S.1, Rachel M. Mitchell1, Margaret M. Moore1, Daniel C. Laughlin2, Jackson M. Leonard3 and Kevin C. Grady1 1Northern Arizona University, [email protected]; 2University of Wyoming; and 3Rocky Mountain Research Station, USFS Abstract: The capacity to quantify changes in plant communities in response to shifting environmental conditions is crucial to predicting future composition and restoring resilient communities. In the arid Southwest, the effects of climate change are already being felt as annual mean temperatures increase and annual precipitation levels decrease. Utilizing permanent 1-m2 quadrats put in place over a century ago, we analyzed rates of change of understory species at two sites at two elevations in Northern Arizona to ask two questions. 1) Does the magnitude of change in community composition differ between the two sites? And, 2) Are there changes in species