Society for Ecological Restoration, Texas & Southwest Chapters
Joint Conference
Ecological Restoration in the Southwest
October 17-19, 2014
Sul Ross State University, Alpine, Texas
Conference Presentations & Field Trip Handouts
Friday Field Trips:
Grasslands Restoration – O2 Ranch – Trip Leader – Bonnie Warnock, Sul Ross State University, Alpine, TX. Field Trip Handouts:
Restoring Riparian Habitat – Terlingua Creek and Big Bend National Park – Trip Leaders – Joe Sirotnak and Jeff Bennett, National Park Service, Big Bend National Park. Field Trip Handouts: Terlingua Creek Field Trip Literature 2014
Native Seed Sources of West Texas – Trip Leader – Colin Shackelford, Texas Native Seeds, Alpine, TX. Field Trip Handouts:
Saturday & Sunday Conference Presentations:
Keynote Address: Dryland Restoration in the Anthropocene. Brandon Bestelmeyer, Research Ecologist, USDA Agricultural Research Service, Jornada Experimental Station & Co-PI Jornada Basin Long-Term Ecological Research Site, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM
Plenary 1: Rewilding West Texas. Louis Harveson, Director Borderlands Research Institute and Professor of Wildlife Management, Department of Natural Resource Management, Sul Ross State University, Alpine, TX (Contact presenter.)
Plenary 2: Bi-National Restoration in the Sky Islands. Carianne Campbell, RESTORE Program Manager, Sky Island Alliance, Tucson, AZ (Document too large to upload. Contact presenter.)
Saturday Morning Presentations, Room AB – October 18, 2014
10:00 am – Modeling the Competitive Dynamics Between Native and Invasive Grasses Under Varying Light Conditions. Kristen Schultz and Ann Adams, Trinity University
10:20 am – Coastal Thornscrub Forest Restoration in South Texas – Effectiveness of Different Management Techniques. Heather Alexander, University of Texas, Brownsville
10:40 am – The Relocation of a Population of “Plateilema palmeri” (A. Gray) Cockrell (Asteraceae) – Brewster County Texas. Chris Jackson, Department of Biology, Sul Ross State University
11:00 am – Hydrologic Investigations of Rock Detention Structures. Laura Norman, Western Geographic Science Center, U.S. Geological Survey
11:20 am – Edge Effects on Diatom Community Succession Trajectory within a Mitigation Wetland. Bradley Hoge, University of Houston-Downtown
11:40 am – Indicators of Ecosystem Development in Resaca Restoration Based on the Macroinvertebrate Community. Leah McIntosh, University of Texas, Brownsville
Saturday Early Afternoon Presentations, Room AB – October 18, 2014
1:20 pm – Evaluating Burrowing Owl Nest Site Selection in Far West Texas. Lois Balin, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. (Document too large to upload. Contact presenter.)
1:40 pm – Small Mammal Response to Wildfire on the Marfa Grasslands, Texas. Robert Allcorn, Borderlands Research Institute, Sul Ross State University
2:00 pm – Pronghorn Restoration in Trans-Pecos, TX – Where Are We Now? Taylor Garrison, Borderlands Research Institute, Sul Ross State University
2:20 pm – Effective Indicators of Ecosystem Functional Recovery in Estuaries Linked to Lower Laguna Madre. Alejandro Fierro-Cabo, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Texas, Brownsville
2:40 pm – Post-Fire Response of Understory Bryophytes in Association with Vascular Plants in the Lost Pines Ecosystem of Central Texas. Ingrid Karklins, Department of Ecosystem Science and Management, Texas A&M University, College Station
Saturday Early Afternoon Presentations, Room CD – October 18, 2014
1:20 pm – Using Ecological Site Descriptions for Rangeland Restoration. Michael Margo, USDA-NRCS
1:40 pm – Forest Watershed Tree Thinning Restoration Effectiveness Monitoring in the Manzano Mountains of New Mexico. David Lightfoot, SWCA Environmental Consultants
2:00 pm – Inventorying and Restoring Springs in the Sky Island Region: New Tools for Managers. Louise Misztal, Sky Island Alliance. (Document too large to upload. Contact presenter.)
2:20 pm – Utilizing Hunter Harvest for Disease Surveillance. John Stone, Department of Biology, Sul Ross State University.
2:40 pm – Pine-Hardwood Classification with LiDAR-Derived Canopy Data and Multispectral Image for Mixed Forest in Huntsville, TX. Xiangmin Sun, Department of Ecosystem Science and Management, Texas A&M University, College Station
Saturday Late Afternoon Presentations, Room AB – October 18, 2014
3:30 pm – An Overview of Texas Bighorn Restoration Efforts. Thomas Janke, Borderlands Research Institute, Sul Ross state University
3:50 pm – Large Scale Restoration of northern Bobwhite Habitat on a Rangeland Dominated by Non-Native Grasses. Matthew Wojda, CKWRI, Department of Animal and Wildlife Sciences, Texas A&M University, Kingsville
4:10 pm – Productivity of Interior Least Terns in Central Oklahoma: Past Habitat Dynamics, Current Pressures, and Future Management Considerations. Priscilla Crawford and Angelina Stancampiano, Oklahoma Biological Survey, University of Oklahoma. (Document too large to upload. Contact presenter.)
4:30 pm – The Current Predicament of the Bordas Escarpment – Ways and Means of Restoring Peyote Habitat in South Texas. Martin Terry, Department of Biology, Geology and Physical Science, Sul Ross State University
4:50 pm – An Integrative Approach to Conservation Biology. Joshua Banta, Department of Biology, University of Texas, Tyler
Saturday Late Afternoon Presentations, Room CD – October 18, 2014
3:30 pm – Key Plant-Animal Interactions in the Natural Propagation of Sabal Palm (Sabal mexicana) and the Restoration of Palm Forests in Texas. Alejandro Fierro-Cabo, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Texas, Brownsville
3:50 pm – Alternative Restoration Treatments to Maximize Growth and Survival of Tamaulipan Thornscrub Species During Seedling Establishment. Jennifer Vela, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Texas, Brownsville
4:10 pm – The Effects of Shrub Encroachment and Shrub Removal Methods on South Texas Coastal Grasslands. Parker Watson, University of Texas, Brownsville
4:30 pm – Castner Range – Can It Be Conserved? Mike Gaglio, The Frontera Land Alliance. To see the video Mike showed click here: http://fronteralandalliance.org/castner/ and/or to see the Castner Range Land Use Plan click here: http://fronteralandalliance.org/castner/land-use-plan
4:50 pm – An Art and A Science – How Can Researchers Better Influence Landowner Stewardship Practices. Jill Nokes, Hill Country Land Alliance
Sunday Morning Presentations, Room AB – October 19, 2014
8:00 am – Evaluation and Development of Native Seed Sources of West Texas. Colin Shackelford, CKWRI, Texas A&M University, Kingsville
8:20 am – Development of Native Plant Material for the Colorado Plateau. Troy Wood, Southwest Biological Science Center, U.S. Geological Survey. (Presentation not available.)
8:40 am – What Can Restoration Science Do For Green Infrastructure? Mary Carol Edwards, Texas Coastal Watershed Program, Texas Sea Grant/Texas A&M AgriLife Extension
9:00 am – Irrigation to Establish and Maintain Riparian Plant Assemblages Along Regulated Rivers. Matthew Grabau, GeoSystems Analysis, Inc.
9:20 am – Hillslope and Channel Restoration of Ox Canyon Following the 2007 Ojo Peak Wildfire. Cody Stropki, SWCA Environmental Consultants. (Contact presenter.)
9:40 am – Impact of Saltcedar Biological Control Along the Rio Grande on Saltcedar and Athel. Chris Ritzi, Department of Biology, Geology, and Physical Sciences, Sul Ross State University
10:00 am – Fuel Treatments Reduce Wildfire Severity in Sky Island Pine Woodlands. Charlotte Reemts, The Nature Conservancy
Please Note: Some of the presentations were too large to upload to the website. If interested, you will need to contact the individual presenter.