In the United States, a growing number of young people are failing to launch into self-sufficiency, a characteristic of adulthood recognized by most cultural groups. These â??boomerang childrenâ?? return home and interrupt the life course development of their â??empty nestâ?? mothers who must suspend plans for self-development. How mothers from different socioeconomic backgrounds cope with this countertransitional phenomenon while preparing their children for successful relaunch is not well known. Elder's life course paradigm provided the theoretical framework for this phenomenological study. Perceptions were collected from an ethnically diverse group of 23 empty nest mothers with 30 boomerang children and seven boomerang grandchildren from five U.S. states, recruited using criterion-based convenience sample. Data were collected through recorded telephone interviews that were transcribed verbatim, and analyzed using Saldana's codes-categories-emergent themes model. The findings revealed that boomerang children caused emotional and financial distress, a reassessment of parenting skills, and that boomerang grandchildren reinvigorated the mother's prime identity as a caregiver. These findings were consistent regardless of ethnicity or socioeconomic status. This study contributes to the empirical literature by depicting the boomerang phenomenon as a shift in cultural expectations which represents a new phase in the life course development paradigm. Findings from this study can also guide the work of future researchers, assist mental health counselors who deal with these issues, and inform school guidance counselors who design career trajectories for students.

No description available.

In our ever more populated world, the rapid expansion and intensification of agriculture is driving worldwide biodiversity loss, and the interactions between production landscapes and wildlife conservation are becoming increasingly important. Farming systems depend on ecosystem services such as biological control, while conservationists are calling for the establishment of conservation initiatives in non-preserve landscapes. Despite this, the goals of agriculture and the goals of predator-conservation are rarely mutual. Here, I demonstrate one of the first examples of a mutually beneficial scenario between agriculture and predator conservation. I used, as a case study, a reintroduction project that translocated individuals of the threatened New Zealand falcon (Falco novaeseelandiae) from the hills of Marlborough into vineyards, to determine if predators can survive within an agricultural landscape while simultaneously providing that landscape with biological control services. Examples of vertebrates providing biological control to agriculture are rare. I show that the presence of falcons in vineyards caused an economically important reduction in grape damage worth over US $230/ ha. Falcon presence caused a 78- 83% reduction in the number of introduced European pest birds, which resulted in a 95% reduction in the damage caused by these species. Falcon presence did not cause a reduction in the abundance of the native silvereye (Zosterops lateralis), but did halve the damage caused by this species. To assess the conservation value of the falcon translocations, I used remote videography, direct observations and prey analysis to measure the behavioural changes associated with the relocation of falcons from their natural habitat in the hills and into vineyards. Falcons in vineyard nests had higher nest attendance, higher brooding rates, and higher feeding rates than falcons in hill nests. Additionally, parents in vineyard nests fed their chicks a greater amount of total prey and larger prey items compared to parents in hill nests. I also found an absence of any significant diet differences between falcons in hill and vineyard habitats, suggesting that the latter may be a suitable alternative habitat for falcons. Because reintroduced juvenile falcons were released in areas devoid of adult falcons, it was possible that they were missing essential training normally provided by their parents. I used direct observations to demonstrate that the presence of siblings had similar effects to the presence of parents on the development of juvenile behaviour, with individuals flying, hunting, and playing more often when conspecifics were present. Finally, through the use of artificial nests and remote videography, I identified that falcons nesting in vineyards are likely to suffer lower predation rates. I also found that falcons in vineyards are predated by a less dangerous suite of animals (such as hedgehogs, Erinaceus europaeus, and avian predators), than their counterparts in the hills, which are predated by more voracious species (such as stoats, Mustela erminea, and feral cats, Felis catus). The work presented in this thesis has also added to the current knowledge of New Zealand falcon breeding behaviour, prey preferences, and behavioural development. Although agricultural regions globally are rarely associated with raptor conservation, and the ability of raptors to control the pests of agricultural crops has not been previously quantified, these results suggest that translocating New Zealand falcons into vineyards has potential for both the conservation of this species, and for providing biological control services to agriculture

In 1996 and 1997, I studied the nest site selection of the yellow-billed cuckoo (Coccyzus americanus) in the George Washington National Forest, southwestern Virginia. Data were collected from nine 30 ha plots. I compared the habitat features of nest sites with two types of nonnest sites (nonuse and systematically random). Habitat features were measured at 3 spatial scales: nest tree, nest tree area (0.0049 ha centered on the nest), and nest stand (forest stand surrounding the nest). Yellow-billed cuckoo nests were oriented in a nonrandom direction (mean angle = 114°, r = 0.43, P = 0.05) with respect to the bole and were concealed more from above than from below (n = 14, M = 5, p = 0.01) or from the side (n = 14, M = 4, p = 0.04). Slope aspect was nonrandom at yellow-billed cuckoo nest sites (mean angle = 143°, r = 0.52, P < 0.05). Small stem density in the nest tree area was greater (P = 0.029) at nest sites than nonuse sites but species composition was similar. The density of grape (Vitus spp.) and dogwood (Cornus spp.) snags was greater at nest sites than random sites (P < 0.001). Total basal area at yellow-billed cuckoo nest stands was lower than nonuse or random sites with (P = 0.033, and 0.016, respectively) or without (P = 0.014, and 0.004, respectively) snags. Nest sites also occurred in areas with less (P = 0.008) canopy cover but more (P = 0.038) ground cover than random sites. Yellow-billed cuckoos appeared to select nest sites based on the structure and composition of the understory vegetation. Periodic disturbance that promotes the growth of shade intolerant species, but maintains the general structure of the stand may be beneficial for this species that appears to select disturbed areas in mature forests. / Department of Biology

This study presents the results of a field study comparing the effects of two forest harvest methods on the Cerulean Warbler, a state-endangered songbird. Population estimates and a breeding study produced no significant differences among groups, although the species was not attracted to forest openings and experienced decreased nest success in treated sites. Additional study on prey influences showed strong correlations with timing of breeding and peak larval lepidopteran abundance, specifically on oak and hickory tree species. Data suggests that these trees are vital to increased probability of nest success due to an increase in prey availability within territories. Further study is recommended to ascertain the long-term effects of forest harvest and the importance of oak and hickory dominated landscapes to the persistence of this species. / Cerulean warbler population response and nesting success in forests with recent silviculture -- Avian nesting ecology and prey abundance using frass drop as an indicator. / Department of Biology

Measuring and assessing vital rates such as births and deaths are prerequisites for understanding population dynamics. Vital rates may be affected by the density of individuals, even though the importance of density dependence on population dynamics has been debated for a long time. The mallard Anas platyrhynchos is one of the foremost game species in the Holarctic, with millions of birds in hunters’ bags annually. Still, basic knowledge about regulation of mallards’ vital rates is poor, and experimental studies on this topic are rare. In this thesis I have studied survival patterns and density dependence in mallards breeding in Sweden and Finland. Long-term ringing data from both countries were analysed for mortality patterns and causation, as well as for e.g. survival rate estimation. Most of the studies were, though, experiments run over two years involving manipulations of the density of nests, broods and/or adults, in southern and northern Sweden, comprising different biotic regions. Common response variables were survival of nests, ducklings and hens, mainly analysed with program MARK. About 90% of the recovered mallards in Finland and Sweden were hunting kills. However, survival rates were high, ranging from 0.66 to 0.81 for most groups (sex*age). The generality of density dependence was evident since such processes were detected in all studies. Consequently, depredation rate was higher in high nest density compared to low nest density. Survival of ducklings was density-dependent in both boreal and nemoral biotic regions, with food limitation being evident in the former region but not in the latter. In spite of their generality, density-dependent patterns varied within as well between years, and for nest predation rates also between landscape types. The findings about density dependence in breeding mallards in this thesis are novel since they are based on experiments. They are potentially of general interest for management because they embrace a variety of lakes in two geographically distant areas, each being representative for large temperate areas in the northern hemisphere. Detection of density dependence at the local scale may be important at larger scales, too, following the principle of ‘ideal preemptive distribution’ in a source-sink dynamic system.

Diss. (sammanfattning) Uppsala : Sveriges lantbruksuniv., 2006. / Härtill 4 uppsatser.

Submitted by Deyse Queiroz (deysequeirozz@hotmail.com) on 2018-06-04T13:06:45Z No. of bitstreams: 1 MARIA CÂNDIDA DE ALMEIDA MARIZ DANTAS - DISSERTAÇÃO PPGSA PROFISSIONAL 2016..pdf: 5887085 bytes, checksum: 4543519f96163c18068dfd0fee4498ed (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-06-04T13:06:45Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 MARIA CÂNDIDA DE ALMEIDA MARIZ DANTAS - DISSERTAÇÃO PPGSA PROFISSIONAL 2016..pdf: 5887085 bytes, checksum: 4543519f96163c18068dfd0fee4498ed (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016 / A abelha Jandaíra (Melipona subnitida Ducke), conhecida popularmente por abelhas indígenas sem ferrão, é uma espécie de melipônea típica da caatinga, do semiárido brasileiro. No entanto, está ameaçada de extinção em consequência das alterações de seus ambientes, causadas principalmente pelo desmatamento, uso indiscriminado de agrotóxicos e pela ação predatória de meleiros. Portanto, objetivou-se com este trabalho estudar a arquitetura de ninho e manejo de abelha Jandaíra em criatório comercial, localizado na comunidade Baixio dos Albuquerque, no município de São João do Rio do Peixe, região do alto sertão da Paraíba. Os dados da pesquisa foram coletados durante o manejo de colônias alojadas em caixas racionais, medindo 70 cm de comprimento, 11 cm de largura e 13 cm de altura, no período de novembro de 2014 a julho de 2015. Para caracterização do ninho, foram mensurados os parâmetros relativos à área de crias e área de alimentos. Na área de crias, foram avaliados o número de discos por colônia, comprimento (cm), largura (cm) e altura(cm) dos discos, diâmetro (cm) e altura (cm) das células de crias, número de células de crias por cm2 e volume das células de crias (ml). Na área de alimentos, foram avaliados o número de potes de mel e de pólen por colônia, altura (cm) e diâmetro (cm) dos potes de mel e de pólen, volume dos potes de mel (ml) e peso dos potes de pólen (g). Na área de crias, foram encontrados, em média, 5,10 discos por colônia que apresentaram comprimento e largura 10,42 cm e 5,58 cm, respectivamente. Em relação às células de crias, foram encontradas 4,10 por cm2, cujo diâmetro e altura foram respectivamente de 0,52 e 0,79cm. Foram encontrados, em média, 30,41 potes de mel cuja altura, diâmetro e volume apresentaram, respectivamente, os valores médios de 3,07 cm, 3,05 cm e 6,73 ml. A média de potes de pólen foi de 12,21 unidades por colônia, com altura de 3,04 cm, 2,8 cm de diâmetro e 7,23 g de massa por pote. Potes de mel e de pólen estão diretamente relacionados com produção de mel e desenvolvimento da colônia. Os resultados sugerem que a criação de abelha Jandaíra em caixas racionais proporciona um melhor aproveitamento dos produtos elaborados por estes insetos, sem danificar a área de ninho nem comprometer o desenvolvimento das colônias, oferece melhores condições de manejo ao criador e evita a destruição da vegetação nativa. / Jandaíra bee (Melipona subnitida DUCKE), popularly known by indigenous stingless bees, is a kind of melipona, widespread in the Brazilian northeast, the “caatinga” and the northeastern semi-arid region, although is threatened with extinction as a result of changes in their environment, caused mainly by deforestation, indiscriminate use of pesticides and the predatory actions by “Meleiros”. The objective was to study the nest architecture and management of Jandaíra bee at a commercial breeding facility, located in the community “Baixio dos Albuquerque”, in São João do Rio do Peixe, semi-arid region of Paraíba. The research data were collected during the colonies management housed in rational nesting boxes, measuring 70 cm long, 11cm wide and 13cm high, from November 2014 to July 2015. To characterize the nest, parameters related to brood area and food areawere measured. In the brood area,were evaluated the number of brood combs per colony, length (cm), width (cm) and height (cm) of the brood combs; diameter (cm) and height (cm) of the brood cells, number of brood cells per cm2 and the brood cells volume (ml). In the food area, were evaluated the number of honey pots and pollen pots per colony, height (cm) and diameter (cm) of the honey and pollen pots, honey pots volume (ml) and pollen pots weight (g). In the brood area, were found an average of 5.10 brood combs per colony, with length and width of 10,42cm and 5,58cm, respectively. Regarding the brood cells, were found 4.10 per cm2, with diameter and height of 0.52cm and 0.79cm, respectively. Was found an average of 30.41 honey pots, which height, diameter and volume showed, respectively, the mean values of 3,07cm, 3,05cm and 6,73ml. The mean number of pollen pots was 12.21 units per colony, with 3,04cm in height, 2,8cm in diameter and mass of 7,23g per pot. Honey and pollen pots are directly related with the colony development and honey production. The results suggest that the creation of Jandaíra bee on rational nesting boxes provides a better use of products made by these insects, without damaging the nest area, nor compromising the colonies development, offering better handling conditions to the beekeeper and preventing the destruction of native vegetation.

In the autumn 2013 were set up 50 nest boxes for increasing of density of the Common Goldeneye population (Bucephala clangula) in Třeboň region. The main objectives of this study were to check the nest boxes after breeding season and analyse the results. These nest boxes were checked in the July 2014 and 2015. In the spring 2015 were set up 2 mobile scouting cameras to the selected nest boxes. There was also monitor the occurrence of the Common Goldeney on the Naděje fishpond system and Prátr fishpond system by counting. The Naděje fishpond system is created by 16 different sized fishponds and it is situated approximately 8.5 km to the south of the town Veselí nad Lužnicí. The Prátr fishpond system is situated approximately 1 km to the south of the town Třeboň and it is created by 9 fishponds. The monitor was realised in term from 17. 3. 2015 to 27. 7. 2015. The other species of water birds were also counted. In the year 2014 10 nest boxes were occupied and in the year 2015 17 nest boxes were occupied. The nest boxes which were located on the fishpond´s islands were preferred. Both of the mobile scouting cameras recorded European Pine Marten (Martes martes) devastating the nest. The Common Goldeneye was occurred on the both fishpond systems in 2015. In the year 2015 was observed the female of the Common Goldeneye with 8 ducklings on the Prátr fishpond system.

The aim of this thesis was to find out the extent of the predation of the Eurasian Reed Warbler (Acrocephalus scirpaceus) during the laying period in the South Bohemian Region. The survey was done by means of artificial nests containing fake eggs. Additional goal of the thesis was to evaluate the factors that can influence the predation according to measured nest parameters, such as the distance of the artificial nest from free water surface, the depth of water below the nest and the distance from the nearest tree.