Harkers Run Team B: Updated, Complete Draft 1: Landscape Fragmentation

This topic submitted by Christopher Fleming, Lauren Collins, and Elisabeth Price ( priceea@muohio.edu ) on 1/27/02 .

1. Research Question:

With the understanding that the use of land surrounding Harker's Run for agricultural and pastoral purposes peaked around 1938, we will discuss how the history of the overall environmental movement changed the local communities’ views toward how the land surrounding Harker’s Run should be used. We will investigate the fragmentation of the landscape in Harker’s Run’s watershed, and analyze the historical reasons for those differences.

2. Interdisciplinary Approach:

Cultural Perspective

We will study how and when Miami University decided to restore Harker’s Run to a protected nature reserve, focusing on the involvement of the community. We will discuss how Harker’s Run has been used as a community resource for environmental research and recreation (grad students living on reserve, hiking trail system). More importantly, Harker’s Run/ Bachelor’s Reserve is a reflection of the liberal arts culture that Miami University wishes to provide for its students, faculty, and community members. We will also discuss the historical reasons behind many human disturbances to the natural environment, such as Bachelor Pond.

Social Perspective

Social changes, such as the environmental movement, have influenced how the local community has perceived the utility of Harker’s Run. We will examine the development of the reserve as part of the national movement to create park systems and nature reserves.

Scientific Perspective

In order to study the Harker’s Run watershed, we will focus on the composition of the estuaries that lead into Harker’s Run. These estuaries flow through different environments, or ecotones, within the reserve, and our testing will show how the differences in the ecotones will affect the water quality of Harker’s Run. The state of the river is the result of the fragmentation of the land around it.

3. Predictions:

We hypothesize that we will see differences in the estuaries leading to Harker’s Run that correlate to the historical differences in land use and the stages of succession in each of the ecotones around the stream. We expect to see evidence of a healthy managed ecosystem with minimal integrity to its original state, because human interaction with Harker’s Run/Bachelor Reserve lands has markedly changed the landscape.

4. Preliminary Research Design:

Specifically, we will test the estuaries’ acidity, chemical composition, biological diversity, sediment load, and the soil composition of the ecotones surrounding each estuary. We will focus on an estuary from each of the major ecotones surrounding Harker’s Run. We will take into account the history of each of the ecotones in our research.

5. References:

Library/Journal References

Boden, Thomas A., et al. "Management Plan for the Joseph M. Bachelor Wildlife and Game Reserve." Institute of Environmental Sciences, Miami University, Oxford, Ohio: 1984.

Chatfield, Thomas. "Creation of a Computer-Based Geographic Information System Database of the Joseph M. Bachelor Wildlife and Game Reserve, 1938 to 1988." Miami University, Oxford, Ohio: 1991.

Font, Xavier and John Tribe. Forest tourism and recreation : case studies in environmental management. New York : CABI Pub., 2000.

Goldsmith, Barrie, ed. Monitoring for conservation and ecology. London; New York: Chapman and Hall, 1991. 1st edition.

Gramlich, Lori M. "A Landscape Guide to the Bachelor Reserve." Miami University, Oxford, Ohio: 1998.

Johnson, Carl S. "Miami University’s Lands for Learning: A Report on the Nature and Possible Uses of the Bachelor Estate and Associated Lands." Report presented to President C.R. Wilson and the Board of Trustees of Miami University, Oxford, Ohio: 1965.

Thompson, Bertha Boya. "The history of Miami University from 1873 to 1900." Thesis, 1954.

Website References

Campus Natural Areas: University of Wisconsin-Madison : We chose this website because it gives detailed information about another campus nature preserve. We can compare Miami’s efforts to restore a natural area with theirs, as well as place both within the environmental/conservation movement.

Miami University Natural Areas : This website has information about all Miami U’s natural areas.

Insect Diversity in Bachelor Reserve : This website will provide information on insect diversity in the Bachelor Reserve which we can compare our own findings to.

Species Population and Diversity in Successional Communities of Bachelor Reserve : This website will be a good reference we can compare our own findings about species diversity to.

A History and Biographical Cyclopaedia of Butler County, Ohio: This website briefly discusses the history of Butler County, including when key roads were constructed. We may be able to find more information on the history of disturbances in the Harker’s Run area from this website.

PDF Articles

Boon, P.J. "River restoration in five dimensions." Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems. Volume: 8, Issue: 1, January/February 1998, pp. 257-264.

Graf, William L. "Damage Control: Restoring the Physical Integrity of America’s Rivers." Annals of the Association of American Geographers. Volume: 91, Issue: 1, March 2001, pp. 1-27.

Haslam, S.M. "Enhancing river vegetation: conservation, development and restoration." Hydrobiologia. Volume: 340, Issue: 1/3, December 6, 1996, pp. 345-348.

Sear, D.A., A. Briggs and A. Brookes. "A preliminary analyses of the morphological adjustment within and downstream of a lowland river subject to river restoration." Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems. Volume: 8, Issue: 1, January/February 1998, pp. 167-183.

Ward, J.V., et al. "Understanding natural patterns and processes in river corridors as the basis for effective river restoration." Regulated Rivers: Research & Management. Volume: 17, Issue: 4-5, July-October 2001, pp. 311-323.

6. Timeline:

Week of 1-28: Contact Dr. Douglas H. Taylor, Chair of Bachelor Reserve and Other Natural Areas Committee, and James E. Reid, Field Manager, Natural Areas.

Within the next 2 weeks: Designate specific test sites and locate testing equipment.

Weekly meetings: Wednesday nights at 8:00pm for research and planning.

Biweekly meetings: Sunday afternoons, for testing.

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