Thesis (M.S.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1968. / eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Adelaide, School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Discipline of Environmental Biology, 2005. / "April 2005" Bibliography: leaves 222-248. Also available in a print form.

Thesis (M.S.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1984. / Typescript. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references.

The breeding behaviour of the Blue-throated Bee-eater was studied at two colonies in Peninsula Malaysia during 3 breeding seasons, with particular emphasis on pair behaviour, mixed reproductive strategies and nestling competition. This is the first study of vertebrate social behaviour and ecology to contain the documentation of a relational database. This was designed to store and manipulate all data obtained from regular captures and biometric measurements of adults and nestlings and from observations of adults. DNA fingerprinting was used to establish the true genetic relationships between nestlings and their social parents: most nestlings were genetic offspring (72%). Nestlings were classified as illegitimate offspring using 95% confidence intervals of the band sharing coefficient and number of unexplained nestling bands as criteria. Very few if any nestlings were sired by an extra-pair male (fewer than 5%). Behavioural evidence of strong cooperation between pair members throughout the breeding season supports the DNA fingerprinting results of no confirmed case of offspring fathered by extra-pair males (extra-pair offspring; EPO). The Blue-throated Bee-eater probably has a near monogamous mating system. Most illegitimate nestlings had been 'dumped'. They were either the result of intra-specific nest parasitism (INP; 7%) or of 'quasi' parasitism (the offspring of the pair-male and an extra-pair female; 7-12%). INP by relatives of the hosts could have explained some intermediate band sharing coefficients. Anti-INP behaviour was demonstrated when experimentally 'dumped' eggs were almost always expelled before the onset of laying, but never afterwards. DNA fingerprinting showed that relatives may roost together and that related males may nest close together. Compared with other colonial Bee-eaters, M. viridis had low levels of helping-at-the-nest and EPO, but similar or higher levels of INP. The high nestling mortality in Blue-throated Bee-eaters was explained by a combination of three hypotheses, some of which were tested by experiment. (1) Insurance: extra-eggs are needed to counter hatch failure. (2) Brood reduction (including resource tracking): in times of food constraint, the laterhatched nestlings in asynchrously hatched broods starve. (3) Anti-INP hypothesis: these later-hatched nestlings are eliminated because they are likely to be illegitimate. Hatching failure was about 1 in 3 eggs overall. Help from the male allows an early onset of incubation which results in asynchronous hatching. Nestling hunger was shown to be a proximate factor affecting runt mortality both directly through competition and indirectly through nestling aggression. The demise of runts was delayed when conditions improved. Blue-throated Bee-eater broods are severely limited by food. Under this severe brood size constraint, breeding females may increase reproductive output by 'dumping' their last egg. This leads to the high frequency of INP observed in Blue-throated Bee-eaters. An early onset of incubation also gives the first-laid egg(s) a temporal developmental advantage over subsequently 'dumped' parasitic eggs. The 'dumped' nestlings are eliminated by starvation and siblicide, which may itself be an adaptation to INP to eliminate of unrelated nestlings.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 1998. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 138-169). Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 1998. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 138-169). Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Carleton University, 2001. / Also available in electronic format on the Internet.

The conservation of biotic diversity is a growing challenge within southern Africa at the beginning of the 21st century. Growing populations and trends toward a questionable Western development model place demands on the use of land for food, fiber, and fuel production. The traditional establishment and use of formal conservation areas is being challenged against the needs of humans and the past unbalances created by colonial rule. Conservation areas, as isolated islands in a sea of change driven by interconnected economic and social systems, may not be a basis for sustainable biodiversity conservation. This thesis examines characteristics of avian species diversity response to abiotic environmental variables and land transformation. Environmental and land-use correlates of species gradients, species diversity patterns, and the spatial patterning of bird assemblages varied with location. The findings supported a conceptual model of multi-scaled controls on bird distribution, and the related notion that local community structure is the result of both regional environmental and local-scale landscape pattern that must be taken in to account in regional conservation planning assessments. An analytical framework including an landscape model, use of complementary-based reserve selection procedures, gradient analysis, and inclusion of the total spatial economy and development needs of the KwaZulu-Natal Province proved to be important for developing an integrated conservation plan for sustainable avian conservation. Pattern recognition results of the spatial economy and landscape pattern revealed the strong dichotomy in Western economic versus rural African landscapes, which have lead to strong differences in avian assemblage patterns. The research described in this thesis targets specific objectives of the Sustainable Biosphere Initiative by addressing requirements for landscape level analysis of humans and ecosystems in an integrated analytical framework. The development of a co-evolutionary landscape ecology framework for examining human-ecosystem interaction provides a strong basis for supporting targeted conservation planning within regions rather than supporting a generic conservation planning framework. / Thesis (DPhil (Sustainable Ecological Management))--University of Pretoria, 2007. / Zoology and Entomology / unrestricted

This report presents the fmdings of an exploratory study into the perceived benefits and subjective experiences of Local Bird Guides along the Zululand Birding Route, an avitourism project, sponsored by Rio-Tinto, managed by BirdLife South Africa (BLSA), one of the largest conservation Non-Governmental Organisations in South Africa. The report explores the impact development and empowerment, through training, offered by BLSA as part of a conservation initiative, has had on the every day lives of Local Bird Guides. The fmdings are based on research generated by conducting qualitative, semistructured interviews with eight Local Bird Guides operating along the Zululand Birding Route. Recorded interviews were transcribed, and analysed using theory led thematic analysis. The results of the study provide insight into the perceived benefits and expectations of participants, their experiences, perceptions, expectations and disappointments in respect of the project. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2007.

The three South African crane species, namely, the Wattled Crane (Bugeranus carunculatus), the Blue Crane (Anthropoides paradisea) and the Grey Crowned Crane (Balearica regulorum regulorum) are all threatened. South African legislation protects the cranes, however eggs and/or fledglings are sometimes illegally collected from the wild. These are then sold, often by registered breeders, who falsely claim them as the offspring of their captive breeding pair. DNA fingerprinting is one method to detect this crime. Fifteen RAPD primers were screened for polymorphism in the three species. Seven primers produced polymorphic profiles in the Blue Crane and eight each in the Grey Crowned Crane and Wattled Crane, with an average of 14.57, 12.38 and 5.88 scorable loci per primer, respectively. The Band Sharing Coefficient for unrelated individuals was found to be 0.665, 0.745 and 0.736 for the Blue, Grey Crowned and Wattled Crane respectively. Five microsatellite primers, originally developed for use in Whooping Cranes (Grus american), had previously been shown to be polymorphic in the Wattled Crane. This was also the case in this study with an average of 3.6 alleles per primer. Although all primers cross amplified, only a single primer each showed polymorphism in the Blue Crane (showing 6 alleles) and the Grey Crowned Crane (showing 5 alleles). The RAPDs were found to be irreproducible, show high numbers of novel bands and had parent: offspring BSC values that were not significantly higher than those of unrelated individuals. Statistics showed that, in the Blue Crane, the probability that misassigned parents would be detected was low whilst there was an almost certainty that true parents would be incorrectly excluded. The five microsatellite primers examined gave exclusionary powers of 0.869 and 0.641 where one or two parents were unknown in the Wattled Crane. The exclusionary powers for the Blue Crane and Grey Crowned Crane calculated at only one locus were much lower. It was concluded that RAPDs were totally inappropriate for parentage analyses, however, microsatellites are a suitable technique and recommendations are made that other microsatellites, developed for other species of crane, should be examined for their potential in this respect. / Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2004.