bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Yellow Bush Lupine Invasion in Northern California Coastal Dunes I. Ecological Impacts and Manual Restoration Techniques
Authors: Pickart Andrea J. , Miller Linda M. , Duebendorfer Thomas E. 
Published: March 2003

AbstractWe studied the ecological effects of the invasion of coastal dunes by Lupinus arboreus (yellow bush lupine), an introduced species, and used the results to develop manual restoration techniques on the North Spit of Humboldt Bay. Vegetation and soil data were collected in five vegetation types representing points along a continuum of bush lupine's invasive influence. We collected data on the number and size of shrubs, vegetation cover, and soil nutrients. One set of plots was subjected to two restoration treatments: removal of lupine shrubs only, or removal of all nonnative vegetation and removal of litter and duff. Treatments were repeated annually for four years, and emerging lupine seedlings were monitored for three years. Prior to treatment, ammonium and nitrate were found to increase along the lupine continuum, but organic matter decreased at the extreme lupine end. Yellow bush lupine was not the most significant variable affecting variation in soil nutrients. After four years, nonnative grasses, including Vulpia bromoides, Holcus lanatus (velvet grass), Bromus spp. (brome), and Aira spp. (European hairgrass), were significantly reduced in those restoration plots from which litter and duff was removed. Native species increased significantly in vegetation types that were less influenced by lupine. By the third year, soil variables differed among vegetation types but not by treatment. Bush lupine seedling emergence was higher, however, in plots receiving the litter and duff removal treatment. Based on these results, we conclude that bush lupine invasion results in both direct soil enrichment and indirect enrichment as a result of the associated encroachment of other nonnative species, particularly grasses. Although treatment did not affect soil nutrients during the period of this study, it did reduce establishment of nonnative grasses and recruitment of new bush lupine seedlings. Restoration should therefore include litter and duff removal. In areas that are heavily influenced by lupine and contain few native propagules, revegetation is also required.
The Role of Thermal Regime in Tundra Plant Community Restoration
Authors: Shirazi M. A. , Haggerty P. K. , Hendricks C. W. , Reporter M. 
Published: March 2003

AbstractMineral extraction activities in the Arctic regions of the world produce long‐lasting ecological disturbances. Assisted recovery from such disturbances may require restoration of the tundra thermal regime. We transplanted plugs of entire root zone and live tundra plants to a disturbed site in Alaska oil fields. The dominant species were Carex aquatilis, Eriophorum angustifolium, Dupontia fisheri, Poa glauca, Festuca rubra, Salix ovalifolia, S. reticulata, and Sphagnum spp. We studied plant responses in the plugs to thermal regime manipulations by means of greenhouse and of single‐ or double‐plug treatments. All plugs continued to produce new plants with time and expanded in area and canopy volume. Plants responded differently to treatments and generally reversed those responses when we reversed the greenhouse treatment the third year after transplant. Our small‐scale experiment showed that the native thermal regime of a plant community is vital in revegetating a disturbed tundra. But large‐scale restoration using transplants requires resources of modern extraction technology, engineering, and planning to salvage the extensive live tundra mats now routinely destroyed under gravel fills of roads, structures, and mine‐site stockpiles.
Defining the Limits of Restoration: The Need for Realistic Goals
Authors: Ehrenfeld Joan G. 
Published: March 2003

AbstractThe search for a universal statement of goals for ecological restoration continues to generate discussion and controversy. I discuss the diverse roots of restoration ecology, and show how the complex lineages within the field have led to diverse, and divergent, sets of goals. I then review the three major themes that currently are used to develop statements of goals: restoration of species, restoration of whole ecosystems or landscapes, and the restoration of ecosystem services, and point out both the advantages and the limitations and problems associated with each category. Finally, I suggest that restoration ecology would be better served by recognizing that the diversity of conditions requiring restoration demands much flexibility in goal setting, and that restorationists should seek to develop guidelines for defining the sets of conditions under which different kinds of goals are appropriate. I further suggest that goals would be more easily and more appropriately set if restorationists would set forth at the outset the true scope and limitations of what is possible in a given project.Key words: goal‐setting, wetlands, conservation biology, ecosystem management, ecosystem services, landscape management.
Effects of Prescribed Fire on Shinnery Oak ( Quercus havardii) Plant Communities in Western Oklahoma
Authors: Boyd Chad S. , Bidwell Terrence G. 
Published: March 2003

AbstractChanges in structural and compositional attributes of shinnery oak (Quercus havardii Rydb.) plant communities have occurred in the twentieth century. These changes may in part relate to altered fire regimes. Our objective was to document effects of prescribed fire in fall (October), winter (February), and spring (April) on plant composition. Three study sites were located in western Oklahoma; each contained 12, 60 × 30‐m plots that were designated, within site, to be seasonally burned, annually burned, or left unburned. Growing season canopy cover for herbaceous and woody species was estimated in 1997–1998 (post‐treatment). At one year post‐fire, burning in any season reduced shrub cover, and spring burns reduced cover most. Winter and annual fires increased cover of rhizomatous tallgrasses, whereas burning in any season decreased little bluestem cover. Perennial forbs increased with fall and winter fire. Shrub stem density increased with fire in any season. Communities returned rapidly to pre‐burn composition with increasing time since fire. Fire effects on herbaceous vegetation appear to be manifested through increases in bare ground and reduction of overstory shrub dominance. Prescribed fire can be used as a tool in restoration efforts to increase or maintain within and between community plant diversity. Our data suggest that some plant species may require or benefit from fire in specific seasons. Additional research is needed to determine the long‐term effects of repeated fire over time.
Effects of Initial Site Treatments on Early Growth and Three‐Year Survival of Idaho Fescue
Authors: Ewing Kern 
Published: March 2003

AbstractPrairies in the Pacific Northwest have been actively restored for over a decade. Competition from non‐native woody and herbaceous species has been presumed to be a major cause for the failure of restoration projects. In this research, plugs of the native prairie bunchgrass, Festuca idahoensis Elmer var. roemeri (Pavlick), were grown from seed in a nursery and transplanted into a grassland site dominated by non‐native pasture grasses. The growth of the plants was followed for three years, and biomass of all volunteer plants was measured. Before planting, five treatments were applied to the plots: removal of vegetation by burning, removal of vegetation by an herbicide‐and‐till procedure, soil impoverishment by removal of organic matter, fertilizer application, and compost mulch application. Initial growth of Idaho fescue plugs was greatest with fertilizer and compost mulch. Plants grown in mulched plots were also able to photosynthesize later into the dry summer season. After the first year, plots initially fertilized or composted had the lowest survival rate of Idaho fescue. Impoverished and herbicide‐and‐till plots had the greatest 3‐year survival. Mulched plots supported the greatest weed growth after three years. Stressful environments give a competitive advantage to Idaho fescue in prairie restoration projects. As weedy species increase, growth and survival of Idaho fescue decreases.
Mounding as a Technique for Restoration of Prairie on a Capped Landfill in the Puget Sound Lowlands
Authors: Ewing Kern 
Published: March 2003

AbstractClosed landfills create large open spaces that are often proposed as sites for restored or created ecosystems. Grasslands are probably prescribed most often because of the presumption that grass root systems will not breach the landfill cap. Capped landfills have a number of soil degradation problems, including compaction, decreased permeability, lack of organic material, diminished soil fauna, inappropriate texture, and lack of structure. In this study in the Puget Sound lowlands, Washington, U.S.A., mounding (low sandy‐loam mounds, about 20 cm high and 2 m in diameter), addition of fertilizer, and mulching with yard‐waste compost were applied to landfill sites as treatments in a factorial‐design experiment. Prairie plants (1,344 individuals, 7 species) were planted into 4‐m2 plots (n = 48), and plant growth and survival and the increase in weed biomass were monitored for 3 years. Mulching had no effect on plant survival or growth. Fertilization had a negative effect on Lupinus lepidus, a nitrogen‐fixing species. Mounding had a positive effect on growth and survival of Eriophyllum lanatum, Festuca idahoensis, and Aster curtus. Potentilla pacifica was indifferent to mounding, and Carex inops responded negatively. Mounds should probably be used as one element of a complex of habitats on restored landfills.
Topsoil Stockpiling Versus Exposure to Traffic: A Case Study on In situ Uranium Wellfields
Authors: Stahl Peter D. , Perryman Barry L. , Sharmasarkar Shankar , Munn Larry C. 
Published: March 2003

AbstractManagement of soils on areas subjected to planned disturbance, such as surface mine sites, is crucial to post‐disturbance restoration. We conducted a study to determine which of the following two topsoil management strategies resulted in less of a negative impact to the soil and vegetation resources and better promoted site restoration on in situ uranium wellfields: (1) removal of topsoil from an entire wellfield and stockpiling until mining activity is complete; or (2) leaving the majority of topsoil on the wellfield and allowing it to be exposed to disturbance associated with wellfield development activity (primarily heavy vehicle traffic). Our study compared selected soil properties from areas on in situ uranium wellfields managed by the two strategies stated above and with adjacent, relatively undisturbed sites. Vegetation reestablishment was assessed on sites where topsoil was left in place. Results indicated that levels of vehicular traffic on wellfields did not cause significant soil compaction and that removal and stockpiling of topsoil results in more negative impacts than disturbance inflicted when topsoil is left in place.
Hydraulic Geometry: A Geomorphic Design Tool for Tidal Marsh Channel Evolution in Wetland Restoration Projects
Authors: Williams Philip B. , Orr Michelle K. , Garrity Nicholas J. 
Published: March 2003

AbstractEmpirical hydraulic geometry relationships for tidal marsh channels are a practical geomorphically based design tool that can assist in the planning of tidal wetland restoration projects. This study provides hydraulic geometry relationships for predicting the depth, width, and cross‐sectional area of mature tidal channels as functions of contributing marsh area or tidal prism. The relationships are based on data from San Francisco Bay coastal salt marshes ranging in size from 2 to 5,700 ha. These hydraulic geometry relationships refine and expand on earlier relationships. Relationships for mature marshes can be used to predict the direction and rate of evolution of a channel in an immature or perturbed marsh system. Channel evolution data for three youthful tidal channels, ages 4 to 13 years, suggest that the channels are converging on their predicted equilibrium morphology. Two channels are eroding in response to significant increases in upstream tidal prism. They have enlarged first by deepening, in one case after 13 years to beyond the predicted equilibrium depth, and then widening through slumping of the channel banks. The third channel, a new one forming in a depositional mudflat, is converging on its equilibrium morphology after 13 years but will likely take several decades to equilibrate.
Clinical versus quantitative vibration assessment: improving clinical performance
Authors: Burns Ted M. , Taly Anisya , O'Brien Peter C. , Dyck Peter J. 
Published: March 2003

Abstract  In 3 large cohorts (total of 787 patients), clinical vibration impairment (CVI) of the great toe using a tuning fork was compared with quantitative vibration threshold (QVT). Using a stepwise multivariate analysis, we assessed demographic and anthropomorphic patient characteristics associated with the difference between CVI and QVT for the various cohorts and the chosen QVT ranges of percentile abnormality. We also compared CVI or QVT abnormality with a composite score of nerve conduction abnormality to confirm that QVT is a valid measure of severity of neuropathy.Highly significant associations between CVI and QVT were found in all 3 cohorts studied, regardless of the chosen QVT percentile level of abnormality. However, in the 2 cohorts evaluated by many different physicians, CVI overestimated QVT much more often than underestimated it. The discordance between CVI and QVT in all QVT abnormality percentile levels was associated with age, height and body surface area (BSA) in 1 cohort, with age and BSA in another cohort, and with age in the third cohort. In the third cohort, the correlation between QVT and the composite score of nerve conduction abnormality was significantly higher than the correlation between CVI and the composite score.Using a tuning fork, neuromuscular physicians overestimate vibration sensation loss more often than when QVT testing is done, which employs quantitative stimuli, a broad range of stimulus magnitudes, null stimuli, validated algorithms of testing and validated reference values. To improve assessment of vibration sensation, physicians should take into account age, height and weight (or body surface area) when judging vibration abnormalities. Applying some useful approaches to quantitative sensory testing might improve the accuracy of clinical sensory testing.
Characterization and Position of the Genus Stenogramme in the Phyllophoraceae (Gigartinales, Rhodophyta)
Authors: Lopez‐Bautista J. M. , Fredericq S. , Lindstrom S. C. , Nelson W. A. , Ramirez M. E. 
Published: March 2003

AbstractThe red algal genus Stenogramme was described by Harvey (1840) for entities having flattened, dichotomously branched thalli with cystocarps borne in narrow, linear sori resembling an interrupted midrib on blades, and with isomorphic tetrasporophytes with scattered circular to irregular tetrasporangial nemathecia. In the current literature, the most common species listed is Stenogramme interrupta (C. agardh) Montagne ex Harvey 1848, said to have a worldwide distribution in temperate seas. DNA sequences from three molecular datasets (chloroplast‐encoded rbcL, and nuclear‐encoded ITS and LSU rDNA) instead reveal that the genus is more species‐rich than is currently appreciated, and that several species go under the name S. interrupta. The latter species, described from Cadiz, Spain, is found to be restricted to the Eastern Atlantic. The name Stenogramme californica Harvey 1840, the type species described from the Pacific coast of North America, is reinstated for members from California and Oregon. S. rhodymenioides Joly et Alveal 1969 is reinstated for the entity from Chile. The range of S. phyllophoroides (J. Agardh) Millar 1990 described from northern NSW, Australia, is expanded to accommodate the taxon from South Australia referred to as S. interrupta. S. leptophylla J. Agardh 1885 is a distinct South Australian species. A new name needs to be provided for the New Zealand taxon. The genus also comprises a new entity (sterile) from Alaska, and a new (sterile) species from offshore Louisiana. Stenogramme is a well‐defined monophyletic genus, but its position within the Phylophoraceae remains equivocal.
Protist Origin of the Ulvophyceae (Chlorophyta) Revealed by SSU rDNA Analyses of Marine Coccoid Green Algae
Authors: Pröschold T. , Surek B. , Marin B. , Melkonian M. 
Published: March 2003

AbstractTraditionally, brackish and marine coccoid green algae are placed as isolated species of common trebouxiophycean or chlorophycean genera (e.g. Chlorella, Chlorococcum); exclusively the marine genera Chlorocystis and Halochlorococcum are characterized by quadriflagellated zoospores and a ‘Codiolum‐stage’ (characteristic for the Ulvophyceae) in their life histories. In Chlorocystis cohnii, sexual reproduction could only be induced by presence of the tube‐dwelling diatom Berkeleya rutilans. Phylogenetic analyses of the SSU rDNA sequences of 32, mostly marine, coccoid or sarcinoid strains confirmed the monophyly of the Ulvophyceae. The class contain 11 independent well‐supported lineages; of which eight contain coccoid species. (1) The basal branch of the ulvophytes is the Oltmannsiellopsis clade (in agreement with the order Oltmannsiellopsidales emend.) which contains the quadriflagellated monads (O. viridis and O. unicellularis) and the type species of the coccoid genus Halochlorococcum (H. marinum). (2) The other species of Halochlorococcum (except H. saccatum) formed together with Chlorocystis and Chlorella salina a significant clade corresponding to the order Chlorocystidales in emended form. (3) Gomontia polyrhiza is closely related to Urospora penicelliformis within the Acrosiphonia group (Acrosiphoniales). (4) The sarcinoid Trichosarcina polymorpha and T. mucosa, and the freshwater planctonic Helicodictyon planctonicum are member of the Ulothrix clade together with filamenteous taxa. (5) The type species of Pseudoneochloris (P. marina) form together with three unidentified marine coccoid strains an independent lineage within the Ulvophyceae (called Pseudoneochloris clade). (6–8) Ignatius tetrasporus (isolated from soil), the strain CCMP 250 originating from desert soil and the marine strain CCMP 1293 isolated from Palau Islands represent three single lineages within the ulvophytes. From our results, the class Ulvophyceae can be subdivided taxonomically into at least 11 orders (including the Ulvales, Cladophorales and Dasycladales) with the largest biodiversity at the coccoid level.†Present address: Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912, USA.
Toward Individualized Evidence‐Based Medicine: Five “N of 1” Trials of Methylphenidate in Geriatric Patients
Authors: Jansen Inge H.M. , Rikkert Marcel G.M. Olde , Hulsbos Hans A.J. , Hoefnagels Willibrord H.L. 
Published: March 2003

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the efficacy of methylphenidate in depressed or apathetic geriatric patients.DESIGN: Five “N of 1” trials (individual cross‐over, double‐blinded, randomized trials).SETTING: Department of Geriatrics, University Medical Center, Nijmegen, and two nursing homes in Nijmegen, the Netherlands.PARTICIPANTS: Patients suffered from depression due to a general medical condition (n = 2); depression resistant to antidepressive drugs (n = 1), chronic apathy due to mild and moderate severe dementia (n = 2).INTERVENTION: Methylphenidate (5 mg bid) and placebo (both for two subsequent days) in 5 weeks of randomized treatment blocks.MEASUREMENTS: Montgomery Åsberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS), Apathy Evaluation Scale (AES)‐clinician, the AES‐informant, Barthel index and a semiquantitative checklist of adverse effects.RESULTS: Among the three depressed patients, two showed significant improvement on the MADRS (P = .089 and P = .001; α = 0.10), one patient's apathy showed significant improvement on AES‐clinician and ‐informant (P = .077 and P = .086). One apathetic patient's trial was stopped because AES could not be completed. None of the patients showed significant changes in the Barthel index. No side effects developed.CONCLUSION: “N of 1” trials are useful in evaluating efficacy of methylphenidate in depressed or apathetic geriatric patients. Single‐patient trials can be a useful tool in pharmacotherapeutic decision‐making in frail older subjects.
A Nurse‐Led Interdisciplinary Intervention Program for Delirium in Elderly Hip‐Fracture Patients
Authors: Milisen Koen , Foreman Marquis D. , Abraham Ivo L. , De Geest Sabina , Godderis Jan , Vandermeulen Erik , Fischler Benjamin , Delooz Herman H. , Spiessens Bart , Broos Paul L. O. 
Published: March 2003

OBJECTIVES: To develop and test the effect of a nurse‐led interdisciplinary intervention program for delirium on the incidence and course (severity and duration) of delirium, cognitive functioning, functional rehabilitation, mortality, and length of stay in older hip‐fracture patients.DESIGN: Longitudinal prospective before/after design (sequential design).SETTING: The emergency room and two traumatological units of an academic medical center located in an urban area in Belgium.PARTICIPANTS: 60 patients in an intervention cohort (81.7% females, median age = 82, interquartile range (IQR) = 13) and another 60 patients in a usual care/nonintervention cohort (80% females, median age = 80, IQR = 12).INTERVENTION: (1) Education of nursing staff, (2) systematic cognitive screening, (3) consultative services by a delirium resource nurse, a geriatric nurse specialist, or a psychogeriatrician, and (4) use of a scheduled pain protocol.MEASUREMENTS: All patients were monitored for signs of delirium, as measured by the Confusion Assessment Method (CAM). Severity of delirium was assessed using a variant of the CAM. Cognitive and functional status were measured by the Mini‐Mental State Examination (MMSE) (including subscales of memory, linguistic ability, concentration, and psychomotor executive skills) and the Katz Index of activities of daily living (ADLs), respectively.RESULTS: Although there was no significant effect on the incidence of delirium (23.3% in the control vs 20.0% in the intervention cohort; P = .82), duration of delirium was shorter (P = .03) and severity of delirium was less (P = .0049) in the intervention cohort. Further, clinically higher cognitive functioning was observed for the delirious patients in the intervention cohort compared with the nonintervention cohort. Additionally, a trend toward decreased length of stay postoperatively was noted for the delirious patients in the intervention cohort. Despite these positive intervention effects, no effect on ADL rehabilitation was found. Results for risk of mortality were inconclusive.CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrated the beneficial effects of an intervention program focusing on early recognition and treatment of delirium in older hip‐fracture patients and confirms the reversibility of the syndrome in view of the delirium's duration and severity.