Despite the recent resurgence of interest in the Chaco system, it continues to be readily apparent that the implications of the tiered-hierarchical organization of the Chaco system cannot be indiscriminately applied to the Chacoan interaction sphere. In the Limekiln Canyon locality of the Mt. Taylor District a plausible explanation for settlement and use of the landscape during the Pueblo period has been that population organization and cultural affinity were that of a late-surviving population of Archaic-like peoples who apparently only become completely absorbed into the far-reaching exchange network of the Chaco system after abandonment of the locality. This assumption is tested informally against two hypotheses that challenge such commonly accepted explanations as resource depletion for abandonment and reorganization within the Chaco region. The result is a narrative of the culture history of the locality that demonstrates the benefit of using an eclectic theoretical approach combining elements of culture history, cultural evolution and postprocessual theory. / Department of Anthropology

During autumn 1993, the U. S. Forest Service began implementing a program of prescribed surface fire in the Fork Ridge region of Hoosier National Forest. To determine the effects of the prescribed surface fire on ground- and shrub-nesting nearctic migrants, I conducted vegetation structure sampling, bird abundance surveys, and nest searches during the 1996 and 1997 breeding seasons. The prescribed surface fire drastically reduced understory vegetative cover from 0.0 to 2.5 m above ground and the density of live stems < 5.0 cm dbh. Herbaceous cover < 0.5 m tall in the burned site returned to levels similar to the unburned site within 2 years of the burn.Prescribed burning had little effect on overall avian species diversity, but altered the community composition. In 1996, there were 12 species present in the unburned site which were absent in the burned site and 9 species present in the burned site which were absent in the unburned site. In 1997, there were 9 species present in the unburned site which were absent in the burned site and 7 species present in the burned site which were absent in the unburned site. As a guild, ground- and shrub-nesting nearctic migrants and residents were less abundant in the burned site compared to the unburned site. Conversely, species such as Indigo Buntings (Passerina cyanea) and White-breasted Nuthatches (Sitter carolinensis) were more abundant in the burned site.Nests in the burned site had a 25% success rate, whereas nests in the unburned site had a 44% success rate. Nest parasitism did not differ between the burned site (1.2 cowbird eggs/nest) and unburned site (0.9 cowbird eggs/nest). Worm-eating Warblers (Helmitheros vermivorus) were the only ground- and shrunb-nesting nearctic migrant found in the burned site. Worm-eating Warbler nests in the burned site were characterized as having greater understory cover than surrounding burned areas. My results suggest that prescribed surface fires in Fork Ridge may be negatively impacting some ground- and shrub-nesting migrants by altering nesting habitat. / Department of Biology

This project is submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the Masters Degree in Landscape Architecture at Ball State University. It involves the creation of a Concept Master Plan for a 16-acre parcel of privately owned land located in the northern Hoosier National Forest (the "Project Site"). The Project Site includes about eight acres of wooded hills and approximately eight acres of gently sloping cleared area, which had been previously farmed, two creeks and a one-acre pond.The Concept Plan presented in this paper attempts to achieve the clients' program, i.e., enhancing the aesthetics of the Project Site and enriching the environmental complexity of its ecosystem through an integrated set of interventions that have as their focus maintaining a clearing in the woods.The design process includes a historical and contextual analysis of the Project Site and the region; identifying strong points, opportunities for enhancement and problems to be solved. Various alternatives to address issues are evaluated; and specific projects are then integrated into the Concept Plan.The two key dualities of the Project Site from which all else flows are: (i) hills/valley and (ii) clearing/forest. Enhancing and articulating these two pairs of complementary elements are the core opportunities at the Project Site. All other problems and opportunities are subordinate to these two unifying elements. Among the key near-term problems to be solved are: (1) stabilizing the pond; (2) minimizing the presence of alien invasives and opportunistic native species; (3) introducing appropriate native plant species which encourage a more varied fauna; (4) enhancing the functionality and aesthetics of wetlands; (5) developing naturalistic vistas based on existing topography; and (6) providing for an enriched diverse environment that requires a minimum of ongoing maintenance and intervention.The Concept Plan is composed of two elements:1.Description of specific "capital" projects which were selected during the evaluation process described above; and2.Management/maintenance plan, which is programmatic in nature and deals with ongoing activities such as monitoring, managing the growth of alien invasives and opportunistic natives, replacement and augmenting planting, etc.Measures proposed in the Concept Plan will arrest succession at the savanna stage to maintain a continuous, layered forest edge. New native plant species will be introduced, generating a more diverse landscape than would otherwise exist. Man-made elements such as a shelter and bridge will meet the clients' functional needs and serve as focal points and aesthetic elements. / Department of Landscape Architecture

Thesis (M.S.)--Oregon State University, 1997. / Typescript (photocopy). Includes bibliographical references (leaves 46-48). Also available on the World Wide Web.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--West Virginia University, 2008. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains xiv, 258 p. : ill., maps. Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (PHD)--University of Montana, 2009. / Contents viewed on April 9, 2010. Title from author supplied metadata. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.S.)--Oregon State University, 1996. / Typescript (photocopy). Includes bibliographical references (leaves 141-145). Also available on the World Wide Web.

Thesis (M.S.) -- Mississippi State University. Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work. / Title from title screen. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.S.)--Oregon State University, 1992. / Typescript (photocopy). Includes bibliographical references (leaves 80-89). Also available on the World Wide Web.

Thesis (M.S.)--West Virginia University, 2005. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains xi, 278 p. : ill. (some col.), maps (some col.). Vita. Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 85-108).