{"id":{"repo_id":"uiuc","oai_identifier":"oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/121531"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/uiuc/oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/121531","repository":{"repo_id":"uiuc","name":"University of Illinois - Urbana-Champaign","base_url":"https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/oai-pmh"},"display":{"title":"Overwintering habitat modeling and eDNA detection for the Eastern Massasauga (Sistrurus catenatus) in a southwestern mesic prairie","abstract":"Submission original under an indefinite embargo labeled 'Open Access'. The submission was exported from vireo on 2023-12-04 without embargo terms","abstract_html":"Submission original under an indefinite embargo labeled 'Open Access'. The submission was exported from vireo on 2023-12-04 without embargo terms","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Sunnucks, Emily"],"institution":"University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign","degree_name":"M.S.","degree_level":"Thesis","degree_discipline":"Natural Res & Env Sciences","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Dreslik, Michael J","Larson, Eric R","Spear, Stephen F"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2023,"date_issued":"2023-08","date_published":"2023-08","updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:25:00Z","subjects":["Rattlesnake","Maxent Model","Suitable Habitat","Environmental Dna","Endangered Species Detection"],"languages":["en","eng"],"rights":["Copyright 2023 Emily Sunnucks"],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://hdl.handle.net/2142/121531","outbound_label":"Handle","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Dreslik, Michael J","Larson, Eric R","Spear, Stephen F"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Sunnucks, Emily"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date","label":"Dc Date","values":["2023-08","2023-07-19"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["text"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Natural Res & Env Sciences"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["M.S."]},{"key":"thesis:institution_name","label":"Thesis Institution Name","values":["University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Rattlesnake","Maxent Model","Suitable Habitat","Environmental Dna","Endangered Species Detection"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language","label":"Dc Language","values":["en","eng"]},{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["Copyright 2023 Emily Sunnucks"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://hdl.handle.net/2142/121531"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description","label":"Description","values":["Submission original under an indefinite embargo labeled 'Open Access'. The submission was exported from vireo on 2023-12-04 without embargo terms","The student, Emily Sunnucks, accepted the attached license on 2023-07-14 at 18:39.","The student, Emily Sunnucks, submitted this Thesis for approval on 2023-07-14 at 18:40.","This Thesis was approved for publication on 2023-07-19 at 16:59.","DSpace SAF Submission Ingestion Package generated from Vireo submission #19700 on 2023-12-04 at 17:02:40","As global biodiversity declines, long-term and complete datasets become increasingly important for wildlife conservation. Collecting sufficient data can be difficult, especially for rare or endangered species. Many snake species face extinction, but due to their cryptic nature, limited activity patterns, and often inaccessible habitat, snakes represent one of the most data-deficient groups. Traditional monitoring methods, such as capture-recapture surveys, can be costly and time-consuming and may miss hard-to-detect species. Consequently, new surveying methods should be considered to reduce data deficiencies for snake species. To assess new surveying methods, I studied Eastern Massasauga (Sistrurus catenatus) overwintering sites in Carlyle, Clinton County, Illinois. The Eastern Massasauga is a small to medium-sized rattlesnake distributed throughout the Great Lakes region and is facing range-wide declines due to habitat loss, fragmentation, and synergistic effects. Extirpation rates are exceptionally high in southwestern populations because of the loss of important prairie and wetland habitats. To provide methods for reducing data deficiencies, I assessed habitat niche modeling and eDNA detection for the Eastern Massasauga in the southern portion of their range. I developed a habitat suitability model to identify vital overwintering sites in the Carlyle Lake region. I found soil characteristics and distance to water and medium-height vegetation were the strongest environmental predictors of species presence. I identified locations to prioritize for protection, restoration, and future surveys. My results provide information on the effectiveness of non-traditional survey methods and guide future conservation for Eastern Massasaugas in other southwestern mesic prairies. I also optimized an eDNA assay to detect target DNA in sediment and water samples collected from crayfish burrows. Due to low detections in my results and previous studies, I found eDNA is not as effective as visual surveys for monitoring the species."]},{"key":"dc:format","label":"Dc Format","values":["application/pdf"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Overwintering habitat modeling and eDNA detection for the Eastern Massasauga (Sistrurus catenatus) in a southwestern mesic prairie"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Dreslik, Michael J","Larson, Eric R","Spear, Stephen F"],"dc:creator":["Sunnucks, Emily"],"dc:date":["2023-08","2023-07-19"],"dc:description":["Submission original under an indefinite embargo labeled 'Open Access'. The submission was exported from vireo on 2023-12-04 without embargo terms","The student, Emily Sunnucks, accepted the attached license on 2023-07-14 at 18:39.","The student, Emily Sunnucks, submitted this Thesis for approval on 2023-07-14 at 18:40.","This Thesis was approved for publication on 2023-07-19 at 16:59.","DSpace SAF Submission Ingestion Package generated from Vireo submission #19700 on 2023-12-04 at 17:02:40","As global biodiversity declines, long-term and complete datasets become increasingly important for wildlife conservation. Collecting sufficient data can be difficult, especially for rare or endangered species. Many snake species face extinction, but due to their cryptic nature, limited activity patterns, and often inaccessible habitat, snakes represent one of the most data-deficient groups. Traditional monitoring methods, such as capture-recapture surveys, can be costly and time-consuming and may miss hard-to-detect species. Consequently, new surveying methods should be considered to reduce data deficiencies for snake species. To assess new surveying methods, I studied Eastern Massasauga (Sistrurus catenatus) overwintering sites in Carlyle, Clinton County, Illinois. The Eastern Massasauga is a small to medium-sized rattlesnake distributed throughout the Great Lakes region and is facing range-wide declines due to habitat loss, fragmentation, and synergistic effects. Extirpation rates are exceptionally high in southwestern populations because of the loss of important prairie and wetland habitats. To provide methods for reducing data deficiencies, I assessed habitat niche modeling and eDNA detection for the Eastern Massasauga in the southern portion of their range. I developed a habitat suitability model to identify vital overwintering sites in the Carlyle Lake region. I found soil characteristics and distance to water and medium-height vegetation were the strongest environmental predictors of species presence. I identified locations to prioritize for protection, restoration, and future surveys. My results provide information on the effectiveness of non-traditional survey methods and guide future conservation for Eastern Massasaugas in other southwestern mesic prairies. I also optimized an eDNA assay to detect target DNA in sediment and water samples collected from crayfish burrows. Due to low detections in my results and previous studies, I found eDNA is not as effective as visual surveys for monitoring the species."],"dc:format":["application/pdf"],"dc:identifier":["https://hdl.handle.net/2142/121531"],"dc:language":["en","eng"],"dc:rights":["Copyright 2023 Emily Sunnucks"],"dc:subject":["Rattlesnake","Maxent Model","Suitable Habitat","Environmental Dna","Endangered Species Detection"],"dc:title":["Overwintering habitat modeling and eDNA detection for the Eastern Massasauga (Sistrurus catenatus) in a southwestern mesic prairie"],"dc:type":["text"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Natural Res & Env Sciences"],"thesis:degree_level":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["M.S."],"thesis:institution_name":["University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:25:00Z"}