Browsing by Author "Bombaci, Sara, committee member"

Now showing 1 - 3 of 3

Open Access
Exploring Latino and Latina anglers' motivations, constraints, and negotiation strategies for recreational fishing in Colorado to improve participation and experience
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2023) Basto Eyzaguirre, Arianna, author; Lavoie, Anna, advisor; Teel, Tara, committee member; Quartuch, Mike, committee member; Bombaci, Sara, committee member
This study aimed to inform efforts to improve diversity of and access to recreational fishing with a focus on Latino communities in Colorado. To fill the gap in the literature, this study to explore the motivations, constraints, and negotiation strategies of Latino(a) anglers, and how the interaction of these factors, and ethnicity and gender identity shaped their fishing participation and experience. The analysis was informed by the Outdoor Recreation Framework, and from which we adapted two leisure constraint models. Sixteen men and twelve women were interviewed using a semi-structured questionnaire. Major motivations to fish were being outdoors, for relaxation, socialization, and to be role models for Latinos and women. Spending time with others was reported by participants as a motivation, constraint, and negotiation strategy, and family is prioritized when negotiating fishing versus their needs. The main constraints reported were time management and financial resources, of which participants had strategies in place to successfully negotiate them or modify plans enabling them to go fishing. However, participants experienced harassment and dismissal and felt unwelcome at fishing sites which they attributed to their Latino ethnicity. They also reported constraints impacting the broader Latino community, including immigration status, licensing barriers, and racism. While these constraints did not prevent Latinos completely from fishing, they may permanently inhibit or diminish their participation and experience. There was very little difference in factors effecting participation among genders, but constraints expressed by women, such as being dismissed, being harassed at fishing sites, or not having women role-models or teachers, were attributed to the intersection of their ethnicity and gender. Our findings unique to Latinos can inform natural resource management agency recruitment, and education and outreach efforts, and future studies focused on minoritized groups to help identify and potentially remove barriers to angling and other outdoor activities.
Open Access
Neighborhood income, landscape, and local factors relate to differences in pollinator biodiversity in Denver city parks
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2025) Bailey, Nicole Isabel, author; Mola, John, advisor; Hufbauer, Ruth, committee member; Bombaci, Sara, committee member
Urbanization is a growing influence on pollinator species worldwide, benefiting some species while threatening others. Urban areas have high cover of impervious surfaces, inconsistent access to floral resources, and competition from non-native honeybees. Urban areas can also be impacted by a "luxury effect", where greater biodiversity is found in more affluent areas. Despite these threats, city parks could be a crucial refuge for pollinator biodiversity. In this study, we investigated how pollinator species richness and community composition differed across Denver city parks depending on landscape-level factors, (neighborhood income and land cover surrounding a park), and local factors, (floral traits and honeybee abundance). After visiting 25 city parks three times during the summer of 2023, we found that income did not strongly relate to wild bee species richness or community composition, but floral species richness and origin did. We found that lower-income parks had a higher proportion of non-native weedy plants and lower wild bee species richness than parks with primarily native plantings. Wild bee communities differed in parks with high compared to low honeybee abundances, with more bumble bees observed in higher honeybee parks. Increased cover of impervious surfaces and income negatively related to butterfly species richness, but butterfly communities remained similar across parks. These findings suggest that managers can implement diverse native plantings in parks to support biodiverse pollinator communities regardless of neighborhood income level.
Open Access
Western spruce budworm outbreak associated with wet periods in the Colorado Front Range: a multicentury reconstruction
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2022) Santiago, Olivia, author; Hart, Sarah, advisor; Redmond, Miranda, committee member; Bombaci, Sara, committee member
Western spruce budworms (WSB) are one of the most important native defoliators of coniferous forests in North America, causing widespread reductions in tree growth and elevated levels of tree mortality during outbreak. Like other eruptive insects, outbreaks of WSBs are thought to be influenced by a broad regional driver such as climate. Documentation of WSB outbreak is limited to the mid-20th century, constraining our understanding of how climate may influence outbreak. Previous research has linked periods of outbreak with both anomalously wet and dry periods in the Southwest and Pacific Northwest, respectively. To assess this relationship in the Colorado Front Range, I used tree ring methods to reconstruct periods of WSB outbreak over 437 years (1564-2001) at 15 sites. I detected 102 outbreak periods lasting on average 9.7 years (±1.0) with 27.7 years (±7.2) between outbreak periods. These outbreaks were regionally synchronous and were most common during wet periods that followed periods of average or low moisture. Considering the potential impacts of WSB defoliation on the provisioning of key ecosystem services, including carbon sequestration, provisioning of timber, and wildlife habitat, the findings provide valuable information for forest scientists and managers responsible for promoting forest health and resilience.