Abstract
Abstract The flood pulse of the Illinois River (Illinois, USA) has been distorted and the floodplain extensively modified as a result of human activity. This activity has changed the historic flood regime from moderate, late winter-early spring flood pulses, followed by a summer drawdown period, to a chaotic hydrology with floods occurring throughout the year. Boltonia decurrens (Torrey and Gray, Wood), federally listed as a threatened species, is endemic to the Illinois River floodplain. The species occurs as a large metapopulation; however, flood regime and habitat alteration have substantially reduced the size and number of populations within the metapopulation. We developed a geographic information system (GIS) to analyze habitat and geospatial population dynamics for B. decurrens. We analyzed floodplain land cover, identified specific wetland patches supporting B. decurrens, quantified habitat availability, habitat pattern, and analyzed the distribution of populations and individuals by wetland type ...
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