Sierra County Research Articles

Association Between Geographic Distribution of Eye Care Clinicians and Visual Impairment in California

The association between availability of eye care clinicians and visual impairment, a condition presenting with increased morbidity and health care costs, has not been thoroughly studied. To examine associations between the geographic distribution of eye care clinicians and visual impairment in California. This survey-based cross-sectional study included ophthalmologists and optometrists licensed in California in 2018 and 2020 as well as respondents to the 2014 to 2018 American Community Survey (ACS) by California counties and Medical Service Study Areas (MSSAs). Data were analyzed from August 2020 to December 2021. Prevalence of visual impairment by county and MSSA. The number of eye care clinicians was determined based on the number of member ophthalmologists of the American Academy of Ophthalmology in 2018 and optometrists listed in the 2020 Blue Book of Optometrists in California. The prevalence of visual impairment was determined using questionnaire data from the American Community Survey. Linear regression was used to assess multivariable associations between number of eye care clinicians and visual impairment by MSSA. A total of 30 068 581 California residents were included; 15 253 655 (50.7%) were female, and 5 314 389 (17.7%) were 65 years and older. The overall number of eye care clinicians was 22.18 clinicians per 100 000 residents. The overall prevalence of visual impairment was 2411.07 residents with visual impairment per 100 000 residents. San Francisco County had the highest number of eye care clinicians per 100 000 residents (39.24 clinicians per 100 000 residents). Four counties had no eye care clinicians (Alpine, Mariposa, Inyo, and Sierra counties). For every increase of 1 eye care clinician per 100 000 residents, there was a mean (SE) decrease of 3.90 (1.39) persons with visual impairment per 100 000 residents in adjusted analyses. In this cross-sectional study, a higher number of eye care clinicians was potentially associated with lower prevalence of visual impairment in California. Additional studies are needed to assess eye care clinician availability on a national and global scale and strategies to improve access to eye care.

Observations on the range expansion of Mecinus janthiniformis Toševski & Caldara, 2011 and Rhinusa neta (Germar, 1821) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) into California

Dalmatian toadflax, Linaria dalmatica (L.) Mill., and yellow toadflax, Linaria vulgaris Mill. (Plantaginaceae), are exotic forbs that have become widespread in North America, including California. Both species have accumulated several exotic insects from accidental and intentional introductions. Until recently, Mecinus janthiniformis Toševski & Caldara, 2011 was known to occur at only one location in southern California. Recent surveys of L. dalmatica in northern California recovered M. janthiniformis and a second weevil, Rhinusa neta (Germar, 1821), the latter a new California record. From 2010–2015, M. janthiniformis was recovered at 24 of 27 sites in Lassen, Modoc, Plumas, Siskiyou, and Trinity Counties. After 2014, four locations in Trinity County and one in Sierra County were monitored annually through 2020, but no M. janthiniformis have been recovered to date suggesting this species has not extended its range since 2014. In 2018, R. neta was discovered in L. dalmatica seed capsules in Trinity and Sierra Counties. Later surveys found R. neta infesting L. dalmatica at five locations in four counties and Sairocarpus virga (A. Gray) D. A. Sutton (= Antirrhinum virga A. Gray) (Plantaginaceae), a native species, at one location in Colusa County. The intensity of attack of R. neta on L. dalmatica ranged from 9–70% of seed capsules infested. Being found 300 km south of the Oregon border suggests that R. neta spreads more readily than M. janthiniformis, which has only spread 190 km south of the Oregon border but no further since 2014. Repeated annual sampling at uninfested sites found R. neta to have spread 42 km in one year, an unusually high dispersal rate for exotic Coleoptera.

Wildlife Interactions within Highway Underpasses

ABSTRACTHighway underpasses are a common management tool used to lessen wildlife‐vehicle collisions on roadways. Despite their widespread use, the effects of predator‐prey interactions and human disturbances on wildlife within underpasses have not been well studied. To understand the effect of species interactions and human disturbances on wildlife traveling through underpasses, we analyzed camera data from 3 underpasses in Hallelujah Junction Wildlife Area, Sierra County, California, USA, from June 2017 to December 2018. We recorded 3,589 detections, which were predominately mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus), rodents, lagomorphs, California quail (Callipepla californica), bobcats (Lynx rufus), mountain lions (Puma concolor), and coyotes (Canis latrans). We used occupancy modeling and daily activity estimates to analyze species' spatial and temporal activity within the underpasses. Predator‐prey interactions and human disturbances were among the most important factors that influenced wildlife travel through the underpasses. Mule deer avoided underpasses highly used by mountain lions, and mountain lions followed mule deer daily temporal activity patterns and seasonal activity patterns. These results indicate that predator‐prey interactions influenced deer and mountain lion use of the underpasses. Coyotes favored underpasses and seasons with higher rodent and lagomorph presence, suggesting that the presence of prey was also important to coyote use of the underpasses. Coyotes, mountain lions, and bobcats all exhibited either temporal or spatial avoidance of human activity within the underpasses. California quail avoided predators within the underpasses and favored underpasses and times with high human activity. Our study suggests that underpass managers need to closely monitor the effect of predator‐prey interactions and human activity on wildlife within underpasses to ensure these interactions do not discourage wildlife from using them. © 2019 The Wildlife Society.

The Cretaceous System in central Sierra County, New Mexico

The Cretaceous System in central Sierra County, New Mexico

The Effects of Leaf Litter on Germination in The Serpentine Endemic Boechera constancei

Leaf litter accumulation may negatively impact seedling germination by altering key ecosystem properties, such as light availability and soil moisture. The impacts of litter depth may be particularly strong for species in dry environments with low vegetative cover and high light availability. The rare species Boechera constancei (Rollins) Al-Shehbaz (Brassicaceae) is endemic to the serpentine outcrops of Plumas and Sierra Counties, where litter accumulation is highly variable and B. constancei inhabits a range of litter depths (0–40 mm). In this study, we tested whether increased litter depth impedes germination, and whether populations vary in tolerance to litter depth. Specifically, we quantified the impacts of treatments representing the observed range of litter depth occupied by B. constancei on the germination of seed collected from nine populations. Differences in germination were analyzed using a two-way ANOVA. While both source population and litter treatment influenced germination, the interaction term was not significant. Post-hoc Tukey's honest significance tests revealed that germination under both median and high litter treatments was significantly lower than under no litter. The median and high litter treatments did not differ significantly. Differences in germination were observed during dark, cold stratification, suggesting that light availability was not a factor. These results indicate that early life stages of this species may benefit from litter reduction treatments, as both median and high litter treatments reduced germination.

A review of Sedum section Gormania (Crassulaceae) in western North America

Sedum section Gormania was restricted to Oregon, Nevada and California in the western United States. After extensive field work from 2011 to 2016, we revised 17 members of the group using floral and vegetative characters, resulting in the acceptance of four new taxa in California. A serpentine endemic from the mountains of western Tehama County was recognized as S. rubiginosum. It was separated from S. kiersteadiae by its dense rosettes, overlapping stem leaves and non-apiculate corolla. A serpentine endemic from low elevation canyons in Del Norte County was described as S. patens. It was distinguished from S. laxum by its white spreading petals and yellow anthers. A plant of high elevation, serpentine and non-serpentine sites in Siskiyou County was circumscribed as S. marmorense; it differed from S. oregonense in its sepals and inflorescence with a thick granular waxy deposit, and leaves in dense rosettes. Sedum paradisum was segregated from S. obtusatum, raised to species level, and divided into two subspecies. Plants of the northern Sierra Nevada were newly defined as S. paradisum subsp. subroseum, separable with nodding young flowering shoots and a disjunct range in Butte, Plumas and Sierra counties. Sedum flavidum and Sedum eastwoodiae were removed from S. laxum sensu stricto, and raised to species rank, based on floral characters. We clarified the concept of S. obtusatum subsp. retusum, and restored it to the rank of species as S. sanhedrinum; it was restricted to Glenn, Lake, Mendocino, and Tehama counties, California. Sedum flavidum and S. oregonense as defined here showed more morphological variation than previously understood. Finally, we remarked on hybridization and cleistogamy observed in the field.

Bryozoan fauna of the Lake Valley Formation (Mississippian), New Mexico

AbstractTen bryozoan species are described from the Andrecito and Tierra Blanca members of the Lake Valley Formation (Mississippian) of Sierra County, New Mexico, USA. One genus, with one species, is new—a cystoporate,Cystomeson sierraensisn. gen. n. sp. The bryozoans indicate quieter and deeper conditions in the Andrecito Member and more agitated and shallower conditions in the Tierra Blanca Member. The species identified in this study are endemic to North America, whereas at the generic level, the composition is rather cosmopolitan.UUID:http://zoobank.org/fc354A60-1fbc-4e41-8b9b-bbfd65e59a71

Uncertainty of Soil Water Characteristic Curve Measurements Using an Automated Evaporation Technique

Core Ideas Replicate‐specimen measurement of SWCCs was performed with an automated technique. Inter‐specimen uncertainty for SWCC parameters was quantified. A comparison of automated evaporation technique vs the standard hanging column is presented. Soil water characteristic curve (SWCC) measurements are used to estimate hydrologic parameters for a variety of engineering and agricultural applications. The SWCC parameterization is often based on a single measurement or with little or no consideration and/or quantification of the uncertainty in collection of SWCC data. Uncertainty in the SWCC data stems from random variability in pore geometry associated with irregular granular media. Additionally, a substantial opportunity exists in SWCC measurements for systematic or experimental errors that can increase uncertainty. This study utilized an evaporation method for measuring 10 SWCCs for each of four different test soils. One low‐plasticity and three high‐plasticity silty sand soils were sampled from the Sagehen Creek Experimental Watershed in Sierra County, California. The uncertainty in the SWCC measurements was quantified by the distribution and variability of van Genuchten parameters evaluated via nonlinear regressions on each set of SWCC data. Despite a careful, replicated specimen preparation, variability in the measured SWCC data was indicated by variability of estimates of van Genuchten's fitting parameters α and n and residual volumetric water content θr, suggesting that packing specimens to identical dry densities does not produce identical SWCC measurements for a single soil type. For the soils tested in this study, replicate specimen testing resulted in uncertainty in α between ×/1.2 and ×/1.5 the geometric mean estimate for α, between ±2 and ±6% of the mean estimate for n, and between ±2 and ±6% for θr. Additional testing is required before applying these uncertainties generally to soils of different textural classifications.

Phyllic Alteration in the Copper Flat Porphyry Copper Deposit, Sierra County, New Mexico [abs.

Recent work by Wallace (2016) and earlier work by Dunn (1982) recognized widespread, albeit relatively weak, phyllic alteration in the Copper Flat porphyry copper system of the Hillsboro district, Sierra County, New Mexico. Wereport shortwave infrared (SWIR) spectral absorption features of the phyllic alteration obtained using a probe mask in order to significantly reduce the area sampled by the spectrometer probe. This allows the detection of IR absorption anomalies on a much smaller spatial scale than previously possible. Analytical transects across individual samples of the early phyllic alteration that is widely distributed in the Copper Flat system generally show limited sample-specific wavelength variations for the main Al:OH bond absorption feature in the infrared spectrum. Detailed analyses utilizing the probe mask indicates that sericite in the altered mafic sites has slightly longer wavelength absorption by about 3-4 nanometers (nm) relative to sericite replacing adjacent plagioclase. This supports the conclusion of Wallace (2016) based on microprobe analysis that the sericite in this setting inherited a composition partly from its precursor silicatemineral, rather than being compositionally controlled by the fluid. On average, the early sericite has its main Al:OH absorption feature at around 2210nm, which is produced by mica of celadonitic composition. Analytical transects over samples showing multi-stage phyllic alteration have up to a 9nm wavelength variation in this absorption feature. Later stage phyllic alteration is characterized by well-developed sericite halos to thin quartz ±sulfide veinlets affecting all precursor minerals, but has limited representation in the system. The IR absorption features of this sericite have both longer (to 2214nm) and shorter wavelengths (2205nm) relative to the background sericite. The late sericite of longer-wavelength absorption tends to be a gray color and that of shorter wavelength is white. Based on the location of the Al:OH absorption feature, the late sericite ranges between muscovite and celadonite compositions (2205nm to 2214nm), and overlaps with the background sericite. No sericite of shorter wavelength has been found in the Copper Flat system. The Copper Flat hydrothermal system differs from other copper porphyry systems in a number of waysbut the characteristics of the phyllic alteration are particularly noteworthy. As in other porphyry systems, the widespread background carbonate-bearing phyllic alteration likely evolved from earlier potassic alteration fluids, butthese were much more restricted in volume, less oxidized and sulfur-poor at Copper Flat. Due to the fact that the hostrock rock strongly buffered the phyllic fluid, the resulting alteration was weak and targeted specific minerals with the general preservation of the texture of the rock and the dominance of celadonitic sericite compositions. In other porphyry systems, greater stability of shorter-wavelength sericite (i.e., < 2205nm), such as muscovite and paragonite,may result from various processes (absent at Copper Flat) that result in a reduction of the host rock’s capacity to buffer the hydrothermal fluid.

Survival of Female Scaled Quail During the Breeding Season at Three Sites in the Chihuahuan Desert

Scaled quail (Callipepla squamata) populations declined markedly across much of their range from 1988-2004, however little research has been conducted to investigate possible causes for the decline. As part of a larger study on scaled quail ecology and management, and in an attempt to determine whether breeding season survival could be implicated in this decline, we monitored survival of radiotagged female scaled quail during the breeding season at sites in Brewster and Pecos counties, Texas, and Sierra County, New Mexico, USA during 1999-2003. Survival rates were calculated using Kaplan Meier analysis for birds living >7 days post capture. Interval survival rates (S) from Mar-Aug ranged from 0.46 to 0.82 for populations in Pecos County, Texas, and from 0.56 to 0.69 in Brewster County, Texas; survival was lower at the New Mexico site (S ranging from 0.22 to 0.48). Predation by mammals was the leading cause of mortality at both Texas study sites, whereas predation by raptors was the primary cause of mortality at the New Mexico site. Several mortalities in Texas were attributed to drowning; 3 in a water trough and 2 others following a flash flood. Survival rates on Texas sites were not affected by moist soil management but were greater than survival on New Mexico sites. Survival on New Mexico sites was greater on areas with access to free-choice quail feeders (S = 0.48) relative to a non-fed site (S = 0.22). Survival rates of scaled quail during the breeding season were higher than those reported for radiotagged northern bobwhite in west Texas at similar latitudes. Survival of female scaled quail during the breeding season does not appear to be a bottleneck to recruitment, at least not on sites where conservative grazing management is practiced.

UC Berkeley's forestry program celebrates 100 years

Editorial UC Berkeley’s forestry program celebrates 100 years I Will Suckow n 2014, UC Berkeley celebrated the centennial of its forestry major. As with many other events in the university’s history, the creation of the forestry program began with a push from student activists. In 1912, a group of agriculture undergraduates started a forestry club that has endured to the present. They pressed UC administrators and state leg- islators to establish a major in the subject, and in 1914 the Berkeley campus welcomed the first cohort of students to its new forestry program. Since then, the forestry issues addressed by UC teaching, research and extension programs have changed, but the tradition of serving society and the environment has continued unabated. This issue of California Agriculture provides an opportunity to reflect on the past 100 years J. Keith Gilless of forestry in California and the important Dean, College of Natural partnership between our campus teaching Resources, UC Berkeley program and the statewide UC Agriculture and Natural Resources (UC ANR) research and ex- tension programs. All of the forestry faculty in UC Berkeley’s College of Natural Resources have appoint- ments in either the Agricultural Experiment Station or UC Cooperative Extension (UCCE). With UC forestry experts addressing They often work closely with the state- issues such as carbon sequestration, wide network of UCCE endangered species, catastrophic forestry and natural wildfire, invasive species and resource advisors based in county of- managing forests to enhance water fices and the UC ANR yield, we are confident that our research and extension centers. partnerships with the people of this The articles in this state will remain relevant long into issue show the range the future. of research being con- ducted by the extended 4 CALIFORNIA AGRICULTURE • VOLUME 69 , NUMBER 1 UC forestry community. Two articles highlight work from our educational partners in the California State University system. As we embark on the next century of forestry education in California, it has never been more important that UC Berkeley, Humboldt State and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo — which host the state’s three accredited forestry educational programs — work together to educate a new generation of forest- ers. They will need a solid foundation to meet the high standards of California’s licensing requirements and work successfully under the close public scrutiny of forest management demanded by the California Forest Practice Act. Two UCCE advisors, Michael De Lasaux in Plumas and Sierra counties and Glenn Nader in Sutter, Yuba and Butte counties, authored an article about exciting grassroots extension partnerships with California’s fire safe councils. The article on the Sierra Nevada Adaptive Management Program (SNAMP) by UC Berkeley Professor Lynn Huntsinger, UCCE Central Sierra Forestry Advisor Susan Kocher and UC Berkeley researcher Adriana Sulak illustrates UC ANR’s effectiveness in bringing cutting-edge science to key forestry issues — fire management, wildlife habitat and water quality — faced by people across the state. The Center for Forestry (ucanr.edu/sites/cff) coor- dinates much of the forestry research and extension work at UC Berkeley and also manages four forest properties. The article by the center’s property man- ager, UC Berkeley Professor Robert York, describes a project in the crown jewel of California’s research forests, Blodgett Forest Research Station in El Dorado County. Blodgett and our other properties are es- sential for outreach activities, helping to ensure that research is adapted and understood by the wide vari- ety of stakeholders in California’s forestland. We are excited for the future of our research forests, and have recently finalized plans to assume title to lands previ- ously managed by Pacific Gas and Electric Co. that will bring our research forest footprint to 10,000 acres. On September 19, 2014, more than 350 of our alumni, faculty, staff and friends gathered at the UC Berkeley Faculty Club to celebrate 100 years of forestry in California and recognize a century of ac- complishments. Now we look forward, embracing the challenges of ensuring sustained uses of California’s 40 million acres of forests and woodlands. With UC forestry experts addressing issues such as carbon se- questration, endangered species, catastrophic wildfire, invasive species and managing forests to enhance wa- ter yield, we are confident that our partnerships with the people of this state will remain relevant long into the future. c

Gallery of Geology - Pennsylvanian paleosol in Sierra County, New Mexico

Gallery of Geology - Pennsylvanian paleosol in Sierra County, New Mexico

Gallery of Geology - Pennsylvanian paleosol in Sierra County, New Mexico

Gallery of Geology - Pennsylvanian paleosol in Sierra County, New Mexico

Effect of Brook Trout Removal from a Spawning Stream on an Adfluvial Population of Lahontan Cutthroat Trout

AbstractIndependence Lake (Nevada and Sierra counties, California) harbors the only extant native population of Lahontan cutthroat trout Oncorhynchus clarkii henshawi in the Truckee River system and one of two extant adfluvial populations in the Lahontan basin. The persistence of this population has been precarious for more than 50 years, with spawning runs consisting of only 30–150 fish. It is assumed that this population was much larger prior to the introduction of nonnative brook trout Salvelinus fontinalis. Brook trout overlap with cutthroat trout in upper Independence Creek, where the cutthroat trout spawn and their resulting progeny emigrate to Independence Lake. In 2005, we began removing brook trout from upper Independence Creek using electrofishers and monitored the cutthroat trout population. Stomach analysis of captured brook trout revealed cutthroat trout fry, and cutthroat trout fry survival increased significantly from 4% to 12% with brook trout removal. Prior to brook trout removal, the only Lahontan cutthroat trout progeny emigrating to Independence Lake were fry; with brook trout removal, juveniles were found entering the lake. In 2010, 237 potential spawners passed a prefabricated weir upstream of Independence Lake. Although the results of this study suggest that brook trout removal from upper Independence Creek has had a positive influence on the population dynamics of Independence Lake Lahontan cutthroat trout, additional years of removal are needed to assess the ultimate effect this action will have upon the cutthroat trout population.Received August 26, 2011; accepted February 29, 2012

Distribution and phenology of Rhagoletis fausta (Osten Sacken 1877) and Rhagoletis indifferens Curren 1932 (Diptera: Tephritidae) in California

Abstract We determined the distribution of Rhagoletis fausta (Osten Sacken 1877) and Rhagoletis indifferens Curren 1932 (Diptera: Tephritidae) in California outside the state interior quarantine area. Our data confirmed the historical records of R. fausta in Alpine, Amador, El Dorado, Fresno, Kern, Mariposa, Mendocino, Modoc, Mono, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Sierra, Tehama, Tulare, and Tuolumne counties and we trapped R. fausta for the first time in Butte, Calavaras, Glenn, Inyo, Lassen, Madera, and Yuba counties. We confirmed the historical records of R. indifferens in Amador, El Dorado, Fresno, Mendocino, Modoc, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, and Sierra counties and we trapped R. indifferens for the first time in Butte, Calaveras, Lassen, Madera, Mariposa, Tulare, Tuolumne, and Yuba counties. No R. fausta were trapped in Lake, Los Angeles, or San Bernardino counties and no R. indifferens were trapped in Alpine, Glenn, Inyo, Lake, Mono, or Tehama counties. The lower altitude at which we trapped both flies increase...

John Mackay: Silver King in the Gilded Age (review)

2010Book Reviews415 Texas. These pioneers helped found communities and served proudly during the Texas Revolution and Civil War. However, by the late 1 860s the two families were clearly organized in opposition to one another. Parsons remains uncertain as to what exact incident spawned the feud. It could have been the killing of Daniel Chisholm by the Taylors or the deadi ofa Taylor relative at the hands ofa posse led by Bill Sutton. Moving on from those incidents, Parsons proceeds chronologically and presents an image of bloody and lawless Reconstruction Texas. The Taylors, often categorized as cattle thieves, come off as oppressed citizens within Parsons's work. Creed Taylor, the generally recognized leader of the Taylor family, is described by Parsons as a "Texas hero" (81). The Suttons do not appear quite as favorably as it is clear throughout the text that Parsons believes they were generally corrupt officials bent on personal retribution. Instead of curbing the violence, Parsons argues that Sutton affiliates Captain Charles S. Bell and John Jackson Marshall "Jack" Helm initiated a "reign of terror" (62) across Texas characterized by large numbers of fugitives—often Taylor men—being killed during supposed escape attempts. In the end, it is difficult to entirely agree with Parsons's attempts to rehabilitate the Taylors due, in part, to his reliance uponJohn Wesley Hardin's self-serving and Taylor-praising autobiography. Hardin, drawn into an alliance with the Taylor family out of allegiance to his cousins, played his part in the violence that consumed DeWitt, Gonzales, Karnes, and Bastrop counties, until he decided to relocate to Florida, most likely to avoid capture and prosecution for murder. When authorities finally apprehended Hardin in 1877, the feud was winding down with Parsons stating that it officially ended with an 1899 pardon of one feudist. Parsons's account of the feud highlights the individual personalities of the feudists while also providing a plausible description of how life in Reconstruction Texas resembled "in many respects a continuation of the declared war" (257). The usefulness of Parsons's text lies in its accounts of deadly gunplay that serve not only to titillate but to reinforce the interpretation ofa Reconstruction Texas ruled by brute force and not force of law. Rice UniversityRobin Sager John Mackay: Silver King in the Gilded Age. By Michael J. Makley. (Reno: University of Nevada Press, 2009. Pp. 284. Illustrations, notes, bibliography, index. ISBN 9780874177701, $34.95 cloth.) John Mackay was a man almost bigger than life. This biography offers us insights into the man and his times as the exploitation of the Comstock Lode was turned into a symbol of wealth and excess. He presided over an environmental disaster twenty-five miles east of the high ridge of the Sierra Nevada during a time of intense human exploitation and corrupt business dealings. However, in this interesting book diat contains a wealth of local detail, Mackay emerges as an almost heroic figure. Born in 1831, he emigrated from Ireland in 1840 with his parents and lived as a boy in New York City. In 1851 he arrived in the gold fields along the American 416 Southwestern Historical QuarterlyJanuary River and then moved on to Sierra County. In 1 859 word of the Comstock discoveries lured him to that site. Mackay married the widow Louise Bryant when he was in his mid thirties. It was a lifelong but largely long distance relationship since she chose Paris and London as her principal domiciles. During the course of the marriage he was sued at least once by a woman after a failed relationship. The author shows Mackay's struggles with local cartels and banking interests that exploited small-scale mine operators while depicting the growth of his own business. As an inquiring reader I would like to know more about Mackay's financing and where it came from, if it did not come from the same sources as the others . At the highest levels Mackay interfaced with New York financiers including J. P. Morgan, but no analysis of that relationship is offered. In die later phases of his career he expanded into the transoceanic cable and land communications industries. This would have meant competition, cooperation, or both...

IN MEMORIAM: GEORGE A. SANDERSON, JR. (1926-2008)

George Sanderson (with George Verville, background) collecting fusulines at the type Derryan (Pennsylvanian) section in Sierra County, New Mexico. Photo by G. P. Wahlman, 1983. George Albert Sanderson, Jr. was born August 22, 1926 in New Haven, Connecticut. He was raised by his mother and grandparents, who emigrated from Germany at the beginning of the 20th Century. “Sandy,” as he was known to friends and colleagues, attended New Haven High School and served in the U. S. Naval Reserve from 1944 to 1946. He graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut, in 1949, and received a doctorate in geology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1954. Sandy’s dissertation topic was “Studies of magnesium in foraminiferal tests,” conducted under the supervision of Professor M. L. Thompson, the dean of North American fusuline specialists. It was through his association with Thompson that Sandy developed an interest in fusulines, leading to employment as a micropaleontologist with Shell Oil Company (1954–1964) and then as a research micropaleontologist and Paleozoic Group supervisor at the Amoco Production Company Research Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma, from 1964 until his retirement in 1989. While supervisor in the late 1970’s, he oversaw the unprecedented expansion of Paleozoic specialists, melding together with good humor and some cajoling raw rookies, seasoned veterans and support staff into an effective research team. His mentoring skills extended beyond company staff to the greater micropaleontological community as an outside supervisor for fusuline dissertations, including an adjunct professorship at the University of Geneva, Switzerland. Sandy made numerous contributions to the study of fusulines, especially in the areas of systematics and biostratigraphy. Perhaps his most …

Distribution and Habitat of the Arizona Gray Squirrel (Sciurus arizonensis) in New Mexico

Abstract Little is known about the Arizona gray squirrel (Sciurus arizonensis), which is endemic to mid-elevation riparian habitats in Arizona, New Mexico, and Sonora. In New Mexico, previous compilations of specimen records were restricted to the San Francisco River drainage in western Catron County. We compiled information on museum specimens, literature records, and observations by credible persons to document the distribution and habitats of S. arizonensis in New Mexico. Sciurus arizonensis is broadly distributed throughout the southern Mogollon Plateau region of Catron, Grant, and Sierra counties, including the San Francisco, Gila, Mimbres, and Rio Grande river drainages. All records were closely associated with riparian areas and most were from broadleaf riparian habitats. Sciurus arizonensis was observed to interact with other tree squirrels, including the Abert's squirrel (Sciurus aberti) and red squirrel (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus). We conclude that there has been neither a recent range expansion n...

Sexually Transmitted Infections Among California Youth

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to estimate the incidence and the direct medical cost of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among young persons in California and each of its 58 counties, and to better inform discussions about statewide policies and local resources needed for STI prevention and control efforts. Methods: On the basis of the methods developed at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention we estimated the statewide number of new cases of eight major STIs among young persons aged 15 to 24 years in California in 2005: chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis, genital herpes, human papillomavirus (HPV), hepatitis B, trichomoniasis, and HIV. We also calculated the direct medical cost of these STIs using national cost-per-case estimates. To inform local policy discussions about STI control efforts, the statewide estimates were allocated by county. Results: An estimated 1.1 million new cases of STIs occurred among young persons in California in 2005, with a direct medical cost of $1.1 billion. The estimated number of new cases within counties ranged from a low of 82 in Alpine and Sierra counties, at a cost of $38,000, to a high of about 360,000 in Los Angeles County, at a cost of $390 million. Conclusions: These estimates illustrate the widespread and frequently underreported incidence and costs of youth STIs in California and its counties, and provide the foundation for a comprehensive assessment of youth STI prevention needs.

Counterurbanization and Its Socioeconomic Effects in High Mountain Areas of the Sierra Nevada (California/Nevada)

Abstract Resettlement of peripheral areas (“counterurbanization”) is driving population growth in the central Sierra Nevada of California and Nevada. The present study analyzes the impact of “urban refugees” on socio-economic conditions in rural high mountain regions (above 1800 m). From 1960 onward, the High Sierra counties have ranked among Californian high mountain regions with the heaviest relative population growth. Tourism provides the most important impulse for the diffusion of metropolitan populations to high altitude areas, and constitutes the major source of employment there. People who migrate to the study areas (Lake Tahoe region and Mammoth Lakes area) tend to be white, well-educated, with considerable household earnings, but do not fall into the senior citizen category. There is no doubt that their demand for vacation or permanent homes has increased housing prices enormously. Planning problems that tend to come with settlement expansion in high mountain regions represent a certain potential...