Assessing Drought Trends within the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge

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dc.contributor.advisorDebbage, Neil
dc.contributor.authorPorritt, Glenn E.
dc.contributor.committeeMemberXie, Hongjie
dc.contributor.committeeMemberSmith, Jennifer
dc.date.accessioned2024-02-12T19:30:52Z
dc.date.available2024-02-12T19:30:52Z
dc.date.issued2021
dc.descriptionThis item is available only to currently enrolled UTSA students, faculty or staff. To download, navigate to Log In in the top right-hand corner of this screen, then select Log in with my UTSA ID.
dc.description.abstractDrought is classified as an environmental disaster that can have severe implications for agriculture, the economy and wildlife that winter in the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) in coastal southern Texas. Although previous research has analyzed drought within the ANWR using the Palmer Hydrological Drought Index, this study examined additional indices that more fully accounted for plant health, temperature, and precipitation. Specifically, this study examined drought trends between 1986 – 2020 since drought is one factor that can affect wildlife in the ANWR. Multiple drought indices were utilized, including the Precipitation Condition Index (PCI), Temperature Condition Index (TCI), Vegetation Condition Index (VCI), Scaled Drought Condition Index (SDCI), and Vegetation Health Index (VHI), to provide a comprehensive assessment of drought trends. Additionally, the relationships between drought and wetland salinity were explored to better understand if drought elevates salinity levels, which can further negatively impact wildlife. Although the Mann Kendall statistical trend analysis indicated that the results varied by season and drought index, the majority suggest that drought magnitude decreased over the study period in the ANWR. The salinity levels did not display a significant relationship with drought, which could potentially be due to temporal lags in the drought-salinity relationship. Overall, this study suggests that drought became less severe in the ANWR between 1986 – 2020.
dc.description.departmentGeosciences
dc.format.extent54 pages
dc.format.mimetypeapplication/pdf
dc.identifier.isbn9798759968429
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12588/4948
dc.languageen
dc.subjectAransas National Wildlife Refuge
dc.subjectDrought
dc.subjectLandsat
dc.subjectTrend Analysis
dc.subjectgeodesy
dc.subject.classificationWater resources management
dc.subject.classificationRemote sensing
dc.subject.classificationGeographic information science
dc.titleAssessing Drought Trends within the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge
dc.typeThesis
dc.type.dcmiText
dcterms.accessRightspq_closed
thesis.degree.departmentGeosciences
thesis.degree.grantorUniversity of Texas at San Antonio
thesis.degree.levelMasters
thesis.degree.nameMaster of Science

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