An examination of leaf beetle specimens (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) in the five largest beetle collections in Kentucky, recent inventory work in state nature preserves, and a review of the literature revealed twenty-two species of the subfamily Chrysomelinae present in Kentucky, eight of which were previously unreported for the state. Distribution maps and label data are presented for the twenty-two Kentucky species of the subfamily Chrysomelinae including spatial (state and Kentucky county records), temporal (years and months of collection in Kentucky), and plant association information. The following species are reported from Kentucky for the first time: Chrysolina cribaria (Rogers), Chrysolina quadrigemina (Suffrian), Calligrapha californica coreopsivora Brown, Calligrapha multipunctata (Say), Calligrapha pnirsa Stål, Calligrapha spiraeae (Say), Gastrophysa cyanea F. E. Melsheimer, and Phratora americana americana (Schaeffer).

The results of this study established that Bad Branch State Nature Preserve has at least 64 native land snail species occurring within its boundaries, representing 14 families and 35 genera. Twenty-five of the snail taxa documented at Bad Branch were new records for Letcher County; 19 species or 29% of the new records accounted for snails under 5 mm. In total, micro snail species (<5 mm) represented 45% or 28 species of the documented fauna. Two species, Paravitrea lamellidens Pilsbry and Paravitrea dentilla Hubricht were previously unknown from Kentucky. Stress in the non-metric multidimensional scaling analysis reached an acceptable level (0.118) with a three-dimensional solution. The ordination of the 19 sites indicated strong differences in the species composition of the land snail fauna between limestone and sandstone substrates. Approximately half of the species were restricted to just one substrate, with 14 restricted to sandstone and 19 restricted to limestone. Abundance (individuals/site), species richness (species/site), and percent species in the total sample were two times to almost four times greater on limestone substrate than sandstone (P ≤ 0.001). This suggested that more sandstone habitat is required to sustain the same number of snail species as is limestone habitat and that land snail diversity in the sandstone regions of Bad Branch are working at a much larger ecological scale than in limestone regions. A number of terrestrial gastropods found in Kentucky's Pine Mountain region, in particular Bad Branch, are biogeographically significant, as they represent primary associations with the Great Smoky Mountains-Blue Ridge sections of the Cumberland Province or the Blue Ridge region of West Virginia and Virginia. These interesting snail associations are further supported by the discovery of P. lamellidens and P. dentilla at Bad Branch State Nature Preserve.

Arion intermedius Normand and Arion hortensis Férussac are invasive mollusks in North America, having been previously reported in thirteen and seven U.S. States, respectively. We report here the first records of both species in Kentucky. Because slug species within the genus Arion Férussac show high degrees of intra-specific variation, identifications were confirmed using both morphological and molecular (partial COI gene sequences) methods. These new records are of concern because invasive slugs are major pests in agriculture, horticulture and floriculture, causing considerable damage to wheat, alfalfa, corn, soybean and tobacco that are amongst the most economically important crops in Kentucky. This study also highlights the important need for additional gastropod surveys throughout the U.S.A.

Carter Caves State Resort Park (CCSRP) is comprised of 800 ha in Carter County, Kentucky. A field-based inventory of the pteridophytes of the park was conducted from September 2005–October 2007. Additionally, pteridophyte collections at regional herbaria were examined for specimens from the park. These efforts yielded a pteridophyte flora of 46 species and one hybrid for CCSRP; this is 61% of Kentucky's known pteridophyte flora. Index of similarity values with other published floras ranged from 22.2% to 84.5%. CCSRP had over twice the predicted number (21) of pteridophyte species based on a species-area curve constructed with data from other regional floras.

The objectives of the present study were (1) to compare the frequency of Proterometra macrostoma (Faust) strains and the number of single vs. multiple strain infections in snails, Elimia semicarinata, collected from North Elkhorn Creek during June 2000, 2004, and 2007, (2) to measure selected cercarial strain egg loads and swimming distance under red and white light, and (3) to determine the developmental rate (based on egg stages) of strain I and III adult worms in the bluegill, Lepomis macrochirus. The frequencies of strains I (11.1–28.6%) and III (21.3–35.7%) were the highest, while strains II (4.2–8.8%) and VI (0–1.4%) have been relatively uncommon at North Elkhorn Creek over the last seven years. The majority (76.2–94.3%) of infected snails had multiple strain infections. No significant difference was found between the average egg number (strains I, II, III, IV, V, VII, and VIII) or mean swimming distance (strains I, III, and VIII) of cercariae under red or white light. Similarly, no significant difference was found between the average number of stage I, II, and III eggs, respectively, found in strain I and III adult worms on days 12 and 20 postinfection in experimentally infected bluegill.

Diatom assemblage composition and water chemistry at four springs of different geological origin in western Kentucky and Tennessee (Land-Between-the-Lakes National Recreation Area, LBL) were examined using unglazed quarry tiles as artificial substrates. Significant differences in diatom species composition and water chemistry were found among the four springs. A total of 25 taxa were identified with 9 taxa being common to all springs. Calciphilous Planothidium lanceolata var. lanceolata (Bréb.) Grunow and Cocconeis placentula var. lineata (Ehr.) V. H. were the dominant species in the carbonate streams of limestone geology (Mint and Panther springs). Acidophilous Eunotia intermedia (Krasske ex. Hust), Achnanthidium minutissimum var. saprophila Kobaysi and Mayama, and Fragilariforma virescens (Ralfs) Williams and Round were most abundant in the streams with siliceous and argillaceous geology (Barnett and Brown Springs). Statistical analyses indicated that diatom species composition was most highly correlated with conductivity and suggested that the underlying geology of the springs played a role in periphyton community composition.

This paper examined issues surrounding coal waste and its potential impacts on residential private wells by reviewing the existing literature to identify the possible issues and parameters associated with coal waste and its possible effects on private wells. Using well water data from the Big Sandy Region of Kentucky and West Virginia (n = 42), drinking water quality was examined using standard heavy metal parameters associated with coal waste: arsenic, cadmium, chromium, iron, lead, manganese, zinc, and sulfate. Findings showed significantly more wells in sub-watersheds with coal waste impoundments with iron levels above secondary drinking water standards. A review of similar wells from the Kentucky Groundwater Database Repository showed a similar trend. This pattern warranted further study of Fe as a possible coal slurry waste marker. Other general findings revealed high concentrations of manganese, lead, and arsenic across our sampling of cases. Levels of these metals were high in Appalachian rock, so linking their levels to coal mining is problematic. Overall, findings suggested that residential well water in the coal mining area of the Big Sandy region of Appalachia may be of variable and sometimes unhealthy quality.

Kentucky has a long history of ichthyological collection and study. Voucher specimens are available for collections dating back to 1870 and are housed in various museums and research collections in the United States. In this paper we present a descriptive overview and the current status of a project aimed at building a centralized database for vouchered records of Kentucky fishes. To date, we have entered over 51,000 records into the database. Each of these entries contains at least three vital pieces of information: species identification, georeferenced locality, and time of collection. With increasing recognition of the potential value of museum-based data in biological, ecological and conservation studies such a centralized database will serve as an important scientific resource for the study of Kentucky fishes.

Mössbauer spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction measurements were performed to probe the magnetic properties of Fe_1-xCo_xSi (0 ≤ x ≤ 0.8) compounds at room temperature. X-ray diffraction measurements showed that the crystal structures of the synthesized samples existed as a single phase for all concentrations. Fittings of the Mössbauer spectra revealed that the family of Fe_1-xCo_xSi are weakly ferromagnetic for 0.1 ≤ x < 0.5 and completely lose their magnetic properties when x ≥ 0.5.

The reproductive biology of the northern madtom, Noturus stigmosus Taylor, was examined in the Licking River, Bath and Rowan counties, Kentucky from 2001–2006. Gonadosomatic indices suggest a discrete spawning event in mid-summer, with sexual maturity reached at approximately 60 mm standard length (SL). Clutch size was estimated at 70–110 eggs per female based on examination of mature ovaries. Males and females come into reproductive condition in early summer and exhibit secondary sexual dimorphism typical of madtoms. Four nests were discovered in early to mid-July in water 23–25°C. All nests were in cavities under large slabrocks in a raceway with moderate current (0.36–0.69 m sec⁻²) above a large riffle. Nests contained 40–87 eggs or embryos; no guardian males were found with any nest. Eggs reared in the lab at 21–22°C hatched about 13 days after fertilization, which is the longest reported for madtoms. Embryonic and larval development were similar to those of other madtoms. Hatchlings were 8.1–9.3 mm total length (TL). By 10 days, the yolk sacs were absorbed, and young (now 15.4–15.7 mm TL) had acquired pigmentation diagnostic for the species. Approximately one month after hatching (at ∼20 mm SL), young moved downstream from the raceway into a large riffle.

Fish community studies were carried out in the Little River basin of western Kentucky in 2000 and 2003. Thirteen families and 45 species of fish were collected at 16 sites. Thirty-three percent of all taxa were considered intolerant of high turbidity, siltation, and low dissolved oxygen. The most frequently encountered species were scarlet shiner (15 of 16 sites), striped shiner (14 of 16 sites), bluntnose minnow (13 of 16 sites), and longear sunfish at 13 of 16 sites. Other taxa occurring at 75% of all sites included bluegill, largescale stoneroller, banded sculpin, and green sunfish. The highest number of species (21) was found at Site 11 on the Sinking Fork. No federally threatened or endangered species were found. The Little River continues to be an impaired system for aquatic biota.

The authors add 41 species in 13 families to the list of known moths (Lepidoptera) of Kentucky. The total known from the state is now 2493 species. The number of species in the families including these new records are Gracillariidae (1), Tineidae (1), Elachistidae (1), Gelechiidae (3), Sesiidae (1), Tortricidae (4), Crambidae (6), Pyralidae (3), Pterophoridae (4), Geometridae (5), Sphingidae (1), Arctiidae (1), and Noctuidae (10).