Researchers at the University of Central Arkansas and the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville will receive a combined $386,235 in National Science Foundation grants to conduct research that will help improve management of the Ozark Highland streams near Fayetteville by determining the impact that phosphorus in the stream has on aquatic wildlife.
U.S. Senators Blanche Lincoln and Mark Pryor and U.S. Representative Vic Snyder (AR-02) announced the grant Tuesday morning.
The University of Arkansas was awarded $302,258 in National Science Foundation funds while the University of Central Arkansas received $83,977. Biology professors Michelle Evans-White and Thad Scott of the University of Arkansas along with Sally Entrekin, assistant professor of biology at UCA, will lead the project.
The funds will support three graduate research assistant positions—two from the University of Arkansas and one from the University of Central Arkansas—as well as provide summer salary support for faculty and hourly compensation for undergraduate researchers involved in the project. In addition, funds will be used to purchase research supplies and reimburse researchers for travel to study sites and professional meetings.
Researchers will look into what impact phosphorus in the Ozark Highland streams has on insects and other organisms that feed on leaf litter in the streams. Researchers hypothesize that high phosphorus levels in streams negatively impact the diversity of detritivores—aquatic species that feed on decomposing organic matter—by causing them to grow smaller and reproduce less. Ozark stream ecosystems depend on a strong population of detritivores so that fish and other wildlife can feed on them. Results of the project will be distributed to watershed groups and state agencies to improve management of Ozark Highland streams and other Arkansas ecosystems.
“I am pleased that Arkansas researchers will be leading the way on this study that will inform us how best to protect the Ozark Highlands region,” Lincoln said. “I applaud University of Arkansas and University of Central Arkansas researchers for earning this award that will enhance the studies of students involved in the project, and I will continue working to secure resources that support research and enhance education at Arkansas’s universities.”
Pryor said Arkansas’s natural resources provide enjoyment and economic development opportunities to the surrounding communities.
“These federal dollars will help Arkansas researchers gain the information we need to protect critical ecosystems in the Ozark Highland streams and preserve our environment for generations to come,” he said.
Education is key to conservation, said Synder.
“I applaud these Arkansas universities for their efforts to get these grants,” he said. “Better management can help protect Arkansas’s stream ecosystems, and keep our state…natural.”
