For decades, Borneo's once extensive and pristine forests have been increasingly exposed to a suite of anthropogenic disturbance and deforestation processes as a result of selective and illegal logging, hunting, droughts, fires and the conversion to plantations, chiefly oil palm. Such disturbance is likely impacting the Sunda clouded leopard, Neofelis diardi, and other threatened, sympatric Bornean felids, yet few studies have attempted to address these issues. In this thesis, I used data from intensive camera trap surveys throughout Sabah, Malaysian Borneo and high-resolution GPS data from tagged Sunda clouded leopards to examine the influence of forest disturbance on the abundance, distribution, movements and population connectivity of Sunda clouded leopards and other sympatric felids on Borneo, and to provide some of the first data regarding the ecological interactions and patterns of coexistence among this felid assemblage. I showed that Sunda clouded leopard movement was facilitated by forest cover with high canopy closure, and highly resisted by oil palm plantations with low canopy closure. Models of population connectivity across Sabah identified a number of isolated populations of these felids, which may be particularly threatened with extinction. Analysis of camera trap detection data revealed that the Bornean felids exhibit evidence of resource segregation along the temporal, spatial and prey niche axes, and showed that Sunda clouded leopards, bay cats, Catopuma badia, and marbled cats, Pardofelis marmorata exhibited broad scale avoidance of disturbed habitats but varied in their selection of optimal foraging habitat at fine scales. Conversely, leopard cats, Prionailurus bengalensis, were associated with forest disturbance and likely benefit from such changes. I developed some of the first estimates of population density for Sunda clouded leopards and the first such data for marbled cats. The results are discussed in the context of the conservation of these felids on Borneo.

Submitted by Jorge Silva (jorgelmsilva@ufrrj.br) on 2017-07-18T19:02:44Z No. of bitstreams: 1 2003 - Claudio Henrique Pereira.pdf: 2629935 bytes, checksum: cf92eea06cad9ee7de82cfdd184bbe04 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-07-18T19:02:44Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 2003 - Claudio Henrique Pereira.pdf: 2629935 bytes, checksum: cf92eea06cad9ee7de82cfdd184bbe04 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2003-04-09 / Studies to observe insects of the family Scolytidae (Coleoptera) in mangrove essences were carried in the city of Rio de Janeiro, Barra da Tijuca, Parque da Gleba "E" (Area 1) and Barra de Guaratiba (Area 2) during 25 months from August 1999 to August 2001, based on weekly observations of stems of three essences occurring in these areas: Rhysophora mangle L. (Rhysophoraceae), Avicennia schaueriana STAPFT & LEECHM (Acanthaceae) and Hibiscus pernambucensis L. (Malvaceae). It was utilized 120 stems of each essence in each area. After the observation of occurrence of Scolytidae attack in essences samples of 10cm of each stem were take biweekly for laboratory observation. The numbers of perforations, the number of insects captured, number of galleries and larvae were analyzed statistically and graphically compared to weather data collected from the Esta??o Meteorol?gica do Aeroporto de Jacarepagu? (?rea 1) and the Esta??o Experimental do Instituto Nacional de Meteorologia, INMET, RJ, located in Barra de Guaratiba (area 2). Were captured nine species of Scolytidae, distributed in six genera: Xileborus, Hypotenemus, Premnobius, Ambrosiodmus, Cryptocaremus and Cnesinus. The most significant species in the two areas were Xileborus affinis (29.70%), Hypothenemus eruditos (23.17%) and Ambrosiodmus haguedorni (20.78%). There was significant correlation between population density and climatic variations for the three species of Scolytidae with the highest percentage of occurrence. The peak of occurrence was observed in January and February and decreased in June, July and August. There was significant variation in the incidence of beetles preference regarding botanical essences, Rhysophora mangle being the most attacked and Hibiscus pernambucensis unless attacked. Were also used traps baited with alcohol Modelo Carvalho - 47, to catch the Scolytidae. The observations and collections of insects were held weekly. The data underwent the same statistical methods. The results obtained with the traps did not differ from those obtained with the use of stem. It was verified that the area with the highest incidence of insects was the area 2, which presents more degraded vegetation at the expense of area 1 which presents a more preserved mangrove. / Estudos para observa??o de insetos da fam?lia Scolytidae (Coleoptera), em ess?ncias de mangue, foram realizados no Munic?pio do Rio de Janeiro, Barra da Tijuca, Parque da Gleba ?E? ? ?rea 1 e Barra de Guaratiba ? ?rea 2, durante 25 meses, de agosto de 1999 ? agosto de 2001, baseando-se na observa??o semanal de toletes de tr?s ess?ncias ocorrentes nestas ?reas: Rhysophora mangle L. (Rhysophoraceae), Avicennia schaueriana STAPFT & LEECHM (Acanthaceae) e Hibiscus pernambucensis L. (Malvaceae). Foram utilizados 120 toletes de cada ess?ncia em cada ?rea. Posteriormente ? observa??o da ocorr?ncia do ataque dos Scolytidae ?s ess?ncias, foram retirados, quinzenalmente amostras de 10 cm de cada tolete, para observa??o em laborat?rio. Os n?meros de perfura??es, n?mero de insetos capturados, n?mero de galerias e de larvas foram analisados estat?stica e graficamente em rela??o aos dados clim?ticos coletados junto ? Esta??o Meteorol?gica do Aeroporto de Jacarepagu? (?rea 1) e a Esta??o Experimental do Instituto Nacional de Meteorologia, INMET, RJ, localizada na Barra de Guaratiba (?rea 2). Foram capturadas nove esp?cies de Scolytidae, distribu?das em seis g?neros: Xileborus, Hypotenemus, Premnobius, Ambrosiodmus, Cryptocaremus e Cnesinus. As esp?cies mais significativas nas duas ?reas foram Xileborus affinis (29,70%), Hypothenemus eruditos (23,17%) e Ambrosiodmus haguedorni (20,78%). Houve correla??o significativa entre a densidade populacional e as varia??es clim?ticas para as tr?s esp?cies de Scolytidae com maior percentual de ocorr?ncia. Obsevou-se picos de ocorr?ncia nos meses de janeiro e fevereiro e queda nos meses de junho, julho e agosto. Houve varia??o significativa na prefer?ncia de incid?ncia dos cole?pteros em rela??o ?s ess?ncias bot?nicas, sendo Rhysophora mangle a mais atacada e Hibiscus pernambucensis a menos atacada. Ainda foram utilizadas armadilhas com isca de etanol Modelo Carvalho ? 47, para a captura dos Scolytidae. As observa??es e coletas dos insetos foram realizadas semanalmente. Os dados sofreram os mesmos tratamentos estat?sticos. Os resultados obtidos com as armadilhas n?o diferiram dos obtidos com a utiliza??o dos toletes. Constatou-se que a ?rea com maior incid?ncia dos insetos foi a ?rea 2, que apresenta uma vegeta??o mais degradada em detrimento da ?rea 1 a qual apresenta um manguezal mais preservado.

M.Phil. / In order for developers to provide reasonable engineering services as well as a liveable dwelling unit within the existing housing subsidy, a substantial increase in residential density is required. Increased urban densities will decrease engineering services costs due to a greater sharing ability. This study was undertaken in order to quantify the benefits of urban densification on engineering services. The financial problems of Local Authorities in South Africa due to the entrenched culture of non-payment for services, is causing a rapid decline in the sustainability of engineering services due also to low, or non-existent maintenance. The "housing" currently delivered, its nature and continued sustainability are being severely criticized. Few differences exist between the housing currently being delivered and those provided under the previous government. Houses are provided in areas on affordable land normally far from the work place. The type of housing being constructed consists mostly of the single storey, free standing units on separate erven. These types of developments encourage urban sprawl, require very expensive engineering services and discourage the establishment of an economic public transport system. Possible solutions to the workforce/job opportunity problem include mixed land use and residential densification.

It is the belief in the discipline of Urban Land Economics that as one moves further from the city center population density decreases and average household income increases. These two hypotheses have shown to be accurate in describing cities in the United States, but few studies have been done to see if the two hypotheses are also true for Canadian cities. The general intent of the thesis, therefore, was to properly model the population density pattern and income pattern of Metropolitan Vancouver to see how well they could be explained and to see if they followed the patterns of American cities. In order to address the general intent, several specific issues dealing with density and income studies had to be examined: the functional form of the models, the best proxy of access (straight-line distance or time spent in travel to the city center), whether determinants other than distance should be used in the density equation, and whether Metropolitan Vancouver should be modelled as a monocentric or multi-centric city. The techniques applied to answer these questions and fulfil the general intent included reviewing the literature, applying theory to develop models and then using ordinary least squares to test the models. The results were very good. Although no functional form could be derived for the income pattern, the negative exponential form proved, theoretically and practically, to work well for the density pattern. The distance variable was a better determinant of density than the travel time variable. Two variables, income and distance, proved to be the best determinants of population density by explaining almost half of the variation in population density. Finally, Metropolitan Vancouver was shown to be a multi-centric region but added effects of the extra center did little to help explain the density patterns. The results also showed that population density in Metropolitan Vancouver does decrease and, although not conclusive, income does generally increase with distance from the city center. These facts support the hypotheses and suggest that the density and income patterns are much like those of major U.S. cities. / Business, Sauder School of / Real Estate Division / Graduate

Intimate Partner Violence and COVID-19 Erin G. Siegel, BA, Rachel K. Carpenter, MS, & Jill D. Stinson, PhD Department of Psychology, College of Arts & Sciences, East Tennessee State University, Johnson City, TN Intimate partner violence includes physical, sexual, or psychological harm by a current or former partner or spouse. In the US, a decline in reported rates over the past two decades may have been reversed by the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly during the initial lockdown in March 2020. A majority of Americans were isolated at home, potentially increasing the occurrence of IPV assaults. Few studies have evaluated changes in IPV rates throughout the pandemic. This study aims to estimate and compare the rates of intimate partner assaults during the COVID-19 pandemic to previous years, while also examining the influence of geographic location (e.g., rurality versus urban areas), age of the victim, and nature of the assault type. The hypotheses are as follows: 1) an increase in cases of IPV during the first quartile of the pandemic, followed by a decline in the later recent quartiles (i.e., end of 2020); 2) an increase in IPV during the COVID-19 pandemic being more pronounced in counties with greater rurality; 3) an increase in IPV in persons over 18 during the first quartile of the pandemic compared to those under 18 age (who are less likely to live with a partner); and 4) predominant assault type rates (e.g., forcible rape versus murder) may have changed during the pandemic. Data for this project were obtained from the Tennessee Incident-Based Reporting System (TIBRS) for secondary data analysis. From 2016 to 2020 there were 371,196 reported IPV assaults. Variables of interest include all 95 Tennessee counties, age of victim (e.g., over or under 18), and the type of assault (forcible rape, forcible fondling, forcible sodomy, sexual assault with an object, simple assault, aggravated assault, homicide, intimidation, and stalking). Data describing county rurality were obtained from the online County Health Rankings and Roadmaps. County-level rates of IPV are separated by quartile during the pandemic months (Q1, Q2, Q3, Q4). Descriptive analyses will determine the yearly rates of IPV assaults from 2016-2020, with a specific examination of rates during the pandemic quartiles, age distribution, variability among types of assaults, and which counties demonstrate the highest reports. Percent change analyses will evaluate the previous years and determine if there was a significant change in IPV rates throughout the pandemic. Subsequent analyses will compare rates of IPV in rural and urban counties. This project aims to examine how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected rates of IPV, which may inform current prevention and intervention efforts. Additionally, data from urban and rural communities will potentially highlight treatment disparities, providing valuable information pertaining to resource allocation.

No description available.

To develop effective conservation planning and mitigate biodiversity loss, standardized metrics for monitoring and assessing biodiversity are needed. This information is particularly vital in Botswana, where knowledge of many of the diverse wildlife populations is lacking. To address this knowledge gap, my dissertation research evaluated the distributions, densities, and ecology of the wildlife community in northern Botswana, with a focus on terrestrial carnivore species given their importance both ecologically and economically. My objectives were threefold: 1) estimate the distributions of the mammal community (n = 44 species) and evaluate community, group, and species-specific responses to anthropogenic and environmental variables, 2) test whether the presence of intraguild species or resource availability had a larger influence on the seasonal distributions of carnivore species, and 3) simultaneously estimate the population densities of 7 carnivore species. To accomplish these objectives, I completed a multi-year camera trap survey in a 1,154-km2 study area and analyzed the data using occupancy models (single and multi- species) and spatially explicit capture-recapture models. Estimates of species richness ranged from 8 to 27 unique species, species had a mean occurrence probability of 0.32 (95% credible interval = 0.21–0.45), and estimated densities ranged from 1.8 aardwolves (Proteles cristata) to 12.7 spotted hyenas (Crocuta crocuta) per 100 km2. The occupancy and richness of terrestrial mammals was negatively associated with human disturbance and in general, positively associated with open grasslands/floodplains. Carnivore species, specifically, tended to have greater species richness and larger population densities in open habitats than in closed. I also found carnivore distributions were positively associated with the detection rate of intraguild competitors and predators, suggesting competitor/predator avoidance did not play a large role in shaping carnivore community structure. My research highlights the pivotal role protected areas and grasslands play in conserving wildlife populations in northern Botswana. Additionally, my research helps progress camera trap analyses from single to multi-species assessments. Broader application of this multi-species approach would likely result in a better understanding of wildlife and carnivore communities which in turn, may help inform management actions aimed at addressing the loss of wildlife populations globally. / Ph. D.

published_or_final_version / Urban Planning / Master / Master of Science in Urban Planning

published_or_final_version / Urban Design / Master / Master of Urban Design

Thesis (M. Sc.)--University of Hong Kong, 1993. / "Workshop report." Includes bibliographical references.