Greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) currently inhabit about 56% of pre-settlement distribution of potential habitat. In 2005, the Castle Country Adaptive Resources Management Local Working Group (CaCoARM) was formed to address concerns regarding local sage-grouse populations in Carbon and Emery counties. In 2006-2007, CaCoARM identified the Wildcat Knolls and Horn Mountain as areas of special concern for greater sage-grouse conservation. Both sites selected by the group were inhabited by what appeared to be small isolated sage-grouse populations. Factors limiting small isolated greater sage-grouse populations throughout its range are diverse and largely site-specific. During 2008-2009, I captured, radio-collared, and monitored 43 sage-grouse between the two populations to document their ecology and seasonal habitat use patterns. The sites are only 24 km apart, but the populations appear to be isolated from each other. Sage-grouse on Horn Mountain and Wildcat Knolls are one-stage migratory and non-migratory, respectively. Although nesting and brooding success varied between sites, my results were comparable to those published in studies throughout the species' range. Overall male survival was lower on the Wildcat Knolls than Horn Mountain (P = 0.003). Hens that selected brood sites exhibiting increased shrub cover and grass height were more successful than hens that selected sites with lower shrub cover and lower grass height. Potential nesting habitat on the Wildcat Knolls and Horn Mountain were estimated at 2,329 and 5,493 ha, respectively. Hens that selected nest sites farther from non-habitat edge were more successful than hens that selected nest sites that were closer to non-habitat edge on the Wildcat Knolls. Higher nest success observed on the Wildcat Knolls was attributed to less habitat fragmentation. Isolated populations of greater sage-grouse are more susceptible to lower amounts of genetic diversity that may lead to inbreeding depression and increased rates of disease and parasites. I collected mitochondrial DNA samples from both the Wildcat Knolls and Horn Mountain populations. Although the haplotype frequencies recorded in the Wildcat Knolls and Horn Mountain populations were low, one was shared with several Utah populations. The documented low genetic diversity (especially on Horn Mountain) confirmed the isolation suspected by the local working group. Microsatellite tests may provide insights to enhance understanding of genetic differences among sites, and assist managers in determining whether or not translocations are necessary to maintain population genetic diversity. Biologists should not only continue to take samples for genetic comparison, but also record morphometric and behavior data.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 2004. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 224-264). Also available on the Internet.

World War II affected individuals across the nation, both on the home front and on the front lines. Manti, Utah received a new industry, a parachute plant, in connection with the war. Hundreds of women from Sanpete County and neighboring counties were employed through the duration of the war in everything from sewing and inspection to supervision of production. Some of the women utilized childcare facilities, some formed a union, and many found community and familial support. For many of them, this wartime wage work provided a welcomed alternative to the work usually found in rural areas, such as farm work, housework, and café work. Women were primarily motivated to work out of patriotic duty and economic opportunity. In many wartime industries, women were in previously male-dominated occupations and lost their jobs at the conclusion of the war. In contrast, the parachute plant offered its women workers the opportunity to continue working when the plant began manufacturing clothing after the war, and the surrounding rural community was largely supportive of its working women. This study makes a case for the long-term impact of wartime work upon individual women. Work experience outside the home affected the women's estimation and definition of themselves. The war period was a crucial event in women's lives, not just an important passing stage. Oral histories allow interpretation in the context of their adult lives from a long-term perspective. By delving into community and family situations and looking at these women on an individualized basis in the long-term, this study goes deeper than surveys and makes substantive contributions to our understanding of the war's influence. The period of wartime work, when viewed in the long-term context of the women's lives, was significant especially in that women had additional economic resources at their disposal and acquired new-found confidence and skills. Women's work experiences provoked desire for future work and served as a source of confidence to them. Personal, individualized victories for women, often ignored or concealed by aggregate statistics on women's work during and immediately following the war, were a reality for women in Manti and likely elsewhere in America.