Craig Wissler | The University of Arizona (original) (raw)
Papers by Craig Wissler
Puma predation on radiocollared and uncollared bighorn sheep. BMC Res. Notes, 2.
Craig Wissler is an Assistant Professor of renewable natural resources in the School of Renewable... more Craig Wissler is an Assistant Professor of renewable natural resources in the School of Renewable Natural Resources, 325 Biological Sciences East, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721; e-mail: craig@srnr.arizona.edu. He is also Director of the Advanced Resource Technology (ART) facility in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. Craig holds a B.S. degree in environmental resources in agriculture from Arizona State University and a Master of Landscape Architecture degree from the University of Arizona. Deborah Angell is the Data Manager for the National Park Service Sonoran Desert Network Natural Resources Inventory and Monitoring Program. She is also a part-time Senior Research Specialist in the University of Arizona’s School of Renewable Natural Resources. Deborah earned a B.S. degree in renewable natural resources and an M.S. degree in range management from the University of Arizona. In: McClaran, Mitchel P.; Ffolliott, Peter F.; Edminster, Carleton B., tech. coords. Sant...
The projected growth in human population, rapid urbanization, and expansion of structures like hi... more The projected growth in human population, rapid urbanization, and expansion of structures like highways and canals pose a major threat to the future survival of wildlife, particularly large terrestrial mammals. In many cases, wild animal populations have been restricted to fragmented habitat islands due to anthropogenic developments, endangering them to local extinction. Current and future wildlife conservation and management strategies are leading to the implementation of mitigation measures such as creation of wildlife habitat corridors. In this light, novel and interdisciplinary research methods such as approaches in the field of landscape genetics are proving to be increasingly useful and necessary for assessing the status of wildlife populations and furthering efficacy of conservation programs and management efforts. In this 5-year research study, I review literature in the field of landscape genetics, highlighting studies and their applications toward wildlife conservation ove...
Geographic analysis procedures and multiple linear regression techniques are applied to the probl... more Geographic analysis procedures and multiple linear regression techniques are applied to the problem of generalizing forage production and utilization information from sample point data. The study involves the application of these procedures to predict the spatial variability of mean production and utilization of Diaitaria californina on the Santa Rita Experimental Range near Tucson, Arizona. Analysis of ten-year means from data collected between 1957 and 1966 indicate that variability in production is a function of mean summer precipitation and elevation. Variability in utilization is found to be a function of land slope and distance from livestock water. Geostatistical procedures are used to estimate mean summer precipitation. A geographic information system (GIS) is used to automate multiple linear regression functions for points in a raster data structure. The geographic analysis procedures are used to describe the spatial variability of the data in a mapped form. Management appl...
Open-File Report
A hillslope-scale erosion prediction model (USLE) and a spatially derived sediment delivery model... more A hillslope-scale erosion prediction model (USLE) and a spatially derived sediment delivery model (SEDMOD) are applied within a raster geographic information system (GIS) to estimate erosion, sediment yield and sediment deposition for five adjacent sub-basins impacted by historical mining in the Patagonia Mountains of southern Arizona. Geospatial landscape data (elevation, soil type, vegetation, mine locations, and stream networks) were divided into 30m 2 cell grids, allowing for consistent high-resolution analysis within each watershed. The automation of paper soils maps is described. The model results identify non-point sources and sinks of trace-metal bearing sediment.
Long-term measurements and repeat photograph collections have been collected in a systematic mann... more Long-term measurements and repeat photograph collections have been collected in a systematic manner on the approximately 21,000 ha Santa Rita Experimental Range (SRER) since its establishment in 1903. This research facility, located in the Desert Grassland vegetation of southern Arizona, was administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture until 1988, when it was transferred to the State of Arizona to be administered by the University of Arizona, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. To facilitate the preservation of the long-term data collected on the SRER and to increase access to the data, we developed a digital archive that is accessible on the World Wide Web at http://ag.arizona.edu/SRER. The digital archive contains 10 databases, seven of which provide the longest records of ongoing measurements of precipitation, vegetation response to grazing and mesquite clearing experiments, and widespread photographic evidence of landscape changes available for the SRER. Two databases provide essential ancillary data about plant species names and spatial coverages (maps) of elevation, soils, plot locations, and other attributes. The final database is a digital version of a previously published annotated bibliography of SRER publications between 1903 and 1988. The information in these databases is available in five formats (ASCII text, Excel spreadsheet *.xls, ARCINFO *.e00, tagged image *.tif, and graphical interchange *.gif) that can be easily used in analytic, word processing, graphic, and geographic information system software.
Journal of Raptor Research, 2015
BioOne Complete (complete.BioOne.org) is a full-text database of 200 subscribed and open-access t... more BioOne Complete (complete.BioOne.org) is a full-text database of 200 subscribed and open-access titles in the biological, ecological, and environmental sciences published by nonprofit societies, associations, museums, institutions, and presses.
Environmental monitoring …, 2008
This study investigates the application of models traditionally used to estimate erosion and sedi... more This study investigates the application of models traditionally used to estimate erosion and sediment deposition to assess the potential risk of water quality impairment resulting from metal-bearing materials related to mining and mineralization. An integrated watershed analysis using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) based tools was undertaken to examine erosion and sediment transport characteristics within the watersheds. Estimates of stream deposits of sediment from mine tailings were related to the chemistry of surface water to assess the effectiveness of the methodology to assess the risk of acid minedrainage being dispersed downstream of abandoned tailings and waste rock piles. A watershed analysis was preformed in the Patagonia Mountains in southeastern Arizona which has seen substantial mining and where recent water quality samples have reported acidic surface waters. This research demonstrates an improvement of the ability to predict streams that are likely to have severely degraded water quality as a result of past mining activities.
Open File Report, 2002
This report is preliminary and has not been reviewed for conformity with US Geological Survey edi... more This report is preliminary and has not been reviewed for conformity with US Geological Survey editorial standards or with the North American Stratigraphic Code. Any use of trade, product or firm names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the US ...
Puma predation on radiocollared and uncollared bighorn sheep. BMC Res. Notes, 2.
Craig Wissler is an Assistant Professor of renewable natural resources in the School of Renewable... more Craig Wissler is an Assistant Professor of renewable natural resources in the School of Renewable Natural Resources, 325 Biological Sciences East, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721; e-mail: craig@srnr.arizona.edu. He is also Director of the Advanced Resource Technology (ART) facility in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. Craig holds a B.S. degree in environmental resources in agriculture from Arizona State University and a Master of Landscape Architecture degree from the University of Arizona. Deborah Angell is the Data Manager for the National Park Service Sonoran Desert Network Natural Resources Inventory and Monitoring Program. She is also a part-time Senior Research Specialist in the University of Arizona’s School of Renewable Natural Resources. Deborah earned a B.S. degree in renewable natural resources and an M.S. degree in range management from the University of Arizona. In: McClaran, Mitchel P.; Ffolliott, Peter F.; Edminster, Carleton B., tech. coords. Sant...
The projected growth in human population, rapid urbanization, and expansion of structures like hi... more The projected growth in human population, rapid urbanization, and expansion of structures like highways and canals pose a major threat to the future survival of wildlife, particularly large terrestrial mammals. In many cases, wild animal populations have been restricted to fragmented habitat islands due to anthropogenic developments, endangering them to local extinction. Current and future wildlife conservation and management strategies are leading to the implementation of mitigation measures such as creation of wildlife habitat corridors. In this light, novel and interdisciplinary research methods such as approaches in the field of landscape genetics are proving to be increasingly useful and necessary for assessing the status of wildlife populations and furthering efficacy of conservation programs and management efforts. In this 5-year research study, I review literature in the field of landscape genetics, highlighting studies and their applications toward wildlife conservation ove...
Geographic analysis procedures and multiple linear regression techniques are applied to the probl... more Geographic analysis procedures and multiple linear regression techniques are applied to the problem of generalizing forage production and utilization information from sample point data. The study involves the application of these procedures to predict the spatial variability of mean production and utilization of Diaitaria californina on the Santa Rita Experimental Range near Tucson, Arizona. Analysis of ten-year means from data collected between 1957 and 1966 indicate that variability in production is a function of mean summer precipitation and elevation. Variability in utilization is found to be a function of land slope and distance from livestock water. Geostatistical procedures are used to estimate mean summer precipitation. A geographic information system (GIS) is used to automate multiple linear regression functions for points in a raster data structure. The geographic analysis procedures are used to describe the spatial variability of the data in a mapped form. Management appl...
Open-File Report
A hillslope-scale erosion prediction model (USLE) and a spatially derived sediment delivery model... more A hillslope-scale erosion prediction model (USLE) and a spatially derived sediment delivery model (SEDMOD) are applied within a raster geographic information system (GIS) to estimate erosion, sediment yield and sediment deposition for five adjacent sub-basins impacted by historical mining in the Patagonia Mountains of southern Arizona. Geospatial landscape data (elevation, soil type, vegetation, mine locations, and stream networks) were divided into 30m 2 cell grids, allowing for consistent high-resolution analysis within each watershed. The automation of paper soils maps is described. The model results identify non-point sources and sinks of trace-metal bearing sediment.
Long-term measurements and repeat photograph collections have been collected in a systematic mann... more Long-term measurements and repeat photograph collections have been collected in a systematic manner on the approximately 21,000 ha Santa Rita Experimental Range (SRER) since its establishment in 1903. This research facility, located in the Desert Grassland vegetation of southern Arizona, was administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture until 1988, when it was transferred to the State of Arizona to be administered by the University of Arizona, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. To facilitate the preservation of the long-term data collected on the SRER and to increase access to the data, we developed a digital archive that is accessible on the World Wide Web at http://ag.arizona.edu/SRER. The digital archive contains 10 databases, seven of which provide the longest records of ongoing measurements of precipitation, vegetation response to grazing and mesquite clearing experiments, and widespread photographic evidence of landscape changes available for the SRER. Two databases provide essential ancillary data about plant species names and spatial coverages (maps) of elevation, soils, plot locations, and other attributes. The final database is a digital version of a previously published annotated bibliography of SRER publications between 1903 and 1988. The information in these databases is available in five formats (ASCII text, Excel spreadsheet *.xls, ARCINFO *.e00, tagged image *.tif, and graphical interchange *.gif) that can be easily used in analytic, word processing, graphic, and geographic information system software.
Journal of Raptor Research, 2015
BioOne Complete (complete.BioOne.org) is a full-text database of 200 subscribed and open-access t... more BioOne Complete (complete.BioOne.org) is a full-text database of 200 subscribed and open-access titles in the biological, ecological, and environmental sciences published by nonprofit societies, associations, museums, institutions, and presses.
Environmental monitoring …, 2008
This study investigates the application of models traditionally used to estimate erosion and sedi... more This study investigates the application of models traditionally used to estimate erosion and sediment deposition to assess the potential risk of water quality impairment resulting from metal-bearing materials related to mining and mineralization. An integrated watershed analysis using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) based tools was undertaken to examine erosion and sediment transport characteristics within the watersheds. Estimates of stream deposits of sediment from mine tailings were related to the chemistry of surface water to assess the effectiveness of the methodology to assess the risk of acid minedrainage being dispersed downstream of abandoned tailings and waste rock piles. A watershed analysis was preformed in the Patagonia Mountains in southeastern Arizona which has seen substantial mining and where recent water quality samples have reported acidic surface waters. This research demonstrates an improvement of the ability to predict streams that are likely to have severely degraded water quality as a result of past mining activities.
Open File Report, 2002
This report is preliminary and has not been reviewed for conformity with US Geological Survey edi... more This report is preliminary and has not been reviewed for conformity with US Geological Survey editorial standards or with the North American Stratigraphic Code. Any use of trade, product or firm names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the US ...