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Alabama

Physical Environment      Alabama is the fifth most biodiverse state in the US, ranking first among states east of the Mississippi River (Stein 2002). Alabama contains six distinct Level III Ecoregions which are further divided into more specific Level IV Ecoregions; some of these are illustrated in Figure 1 below. I selected the following three locations based on their spatial distribution and their representation of three distinct ecoregions: Red Mountain, Old Cahawba Prairie, and Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) (Figure 1). Figure 1. Map showing three selected locations within Alabama and their corresponding Level III and Level IV Ecoregions.  Data source. Climate     Overall, Alabama has a humid subtropical climate type. Between my three selected locations, climate does not vary drastically. One notable difference is in mean precipitation of Bon Secour NWR, which has drier periods in the spring and fall relative to wetter winters and very wet summers (particularly in Augu
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Shasta National Forest: Biotic Communities and Disturbance Regime

  Shasta National Forest's Biotic Communities Western North America Alpine Tundra Conditions Western North America Alpine Tundra (WNA Alpine Tundra) ecosystems are found on mountain ranges along the west coast of North America, including the mid-elevations on Mount Shasta (Billings & Meidinger 2015). This ecosystem is characterized by short growing seasons and long winters with high snowpack. Soils in this ecosystem tend to be shallow, rocky, low in organics, and well drained (Billings & Meidinger 2015) .  Plant Communities Plants commonly found in the WNA Alpine Tundra ecosystem on Mount Shasta include wildflowers in the genus Eriogonum , like Sulphur Buckwheat ( Eriogonum umbellatum ), and some trees at lower elevations such as Lodgepole Pine ( Pinus contorta ) (Billings & Meidinger 2015; Anderson 2003; United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) & United States Forest Service (USFS) 2016; USDA & USFS 2014) .  Sulphur Buckwheat. Source . Sulphur Buckwheat&#
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The Gauley River: Stressors and Management

  Anthropogenic Stressor.  In the Upper Gauley, there is less of a chance of having an anthropogenic stressor in this area. Here, human activity is far and few in between. Many locals live here, so the potential stressor would most likely be a lack of governmental management over pollutants.  Both Summersville Lake and the Lower Gauley have a high anthropogenic stressor of pollution from humans. Tourism is highly encouraged and managed in Summersville Lake and the Lower Gauley. Whether that is human waste (defecation or trash), altering of the physical environment, or hunting/fishing, tourism is a huge stressor to the environment here. Many fish species suffer from water pollutants in this area.  In addition, Summersville Lake is drained once a year by the Army Corps of Engineers in preparation for the spring floods. Draining the lake dries out habitats, as well as nutrients and minerals throughout the lake. The riparian buffer surrounding the waters edge loses those nutrients and the
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