Date of Award
Fall 2025
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science (MS) in Biology
Department
Biology
Committee Chair
Dr. Grover Brown
Abstract
Alabama is home to some of the highest freshwater endemism in the world and ranks near the top in numbers of endangered and extinct species. One of these endangered species is the Flattened Musk Turtle (FMT), only found in the Black Warrior River Drainage of Alabama above the Fall Line. The FMT is listed as “Threatened” by the United State Fish and Wildlife Service under the Endangered Species Act and is considered Critically Endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature due to drastic declines in populations since the 1980s. Declines have been attributed to several factors, including coal mining, fecal/fertilizer runoff, collection for the pet trade, disease, and deterioration in water quality across the drainage. While protected populations of the species on public lands have been relatively well-studied, little work has been conducted on private lands, which comprise most of the species’ range. To bridge this gap, we have worked to gain access to private land in the eastern portion of the species’ range (the Locust Fork of the Black Warrior River), mostly through networking at public outreach events in the area (reaching 8.5% of our focal area) and building relationships in the community. These surveys have been successful in capturing FMTs, documenting >30 individuals in the Locust Fork Watershed plus recruitment of juveniles and hatchlings – a milestone not seen in over four decades of surveys. This project was also the first to conduct a range-wide genomic survey and included samples from every drainage in the Black Warrior establishing the precedent of two evolutionary significant units.
Approval Form