The main functional purpose of a water distribution network is to transport water from a source to several domestic and industrial units while at the same time satisfying various requirements on hydraulic response. All the water distribution networks perform two basic operations: firstly the water network needs to deliver adequate amounts of water to meet specific requirements, and secondly the...

ubstantial evidence indicates that agricultural activity has led to major water quality , wildlife, and soil quality problems nationwide. The damages associated with each type of problem vary widely, depending on how production practices affect an area's natural resources. In certain geographic areas, the stress on the environment from farming or ranching is severe. At this writing, a number of...

The Forest Inventory and nalysis Program (FI ) of the USD Forest Service conducts a national inventory of down woody materials (DWM) on forestland in the United States. Estimates of DWM for inventory plots occurring in eastern U.S. hardwood forests facilitate largescale assessment of hardwood forest fuel loadings and wildlife habitat. Therefore, the objectives of this study were (1) to quantify...

Forest management often has cumulative, long-lasting effects on wildlife habitat suitability and the effects may be impractical to evaluate using landscape-scale field experiments. To understand such effects, we linked a spatially explicit landscape disturbance and succession model (LANDIS) with habitat suitability index (HSI) models to assess the effects of management alternatives on habitat s...

A biotelemetry study was undertaken during spring 1995 to identify black crappie (Pomoxis nigromaculatus) nesting sites in two South Dakota water bodies. Individually coded ultrasonic transmitters were implanted into the body cavity of 15 adult male black crappie in each water body prior to spawning. Available habitat characteristics were recorded at 75 randomly selected sites within each water...

Habitat availability ultimately limits the distribution and abundance of wildlife species. Consequently, it is paramount to identify where wildlife habitat is and understand how it changes over time in order to implement large-scale wildlife conservation plans. Yet, no work has quantified the degree of change in range-wide breeding habitat for the Golden-cheeked Warbler (Setophaga chrysoparia),...

Both the percent of producers reporting and the value of wildlife-caused losses increased from 1989 to 1994. In 1994, 58% of respondents reported wildlife-caused losses of their agricultural commodities, an increase from the 55% of respondents who reported losses in 1989. Based on the median value of producer-estimated loss, wildlifecaused losses cost producers approximately $591 million in 199...

Understanding habitat quality for wildlife is extremely important for biologists, but few papers have explored the pros and cons of how to measure it. In this review, I clarify terminology and distinguish habitat quality from related terms, differentiate habitat quality from animals’ and wildlife managers’ perspectives, and describe different ways of measuring habitat quality in the field. As i...