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This thesis examines the space use, movement and contact rate patterns of a high- density, group-living, Eurasian badger (Meles meles) population in the UK naturally infected with bovine tuberculosis (bTB). Recently developed proximity logging devices were deployed on a representative sample of 51 badgers from eight different social groups to track their movements using radio-telemetry and to quantify their within- and between-group contact rates. Whilst interactions within social groups accounted for more than 90% of contacts, the entire study population was ultimately connected through interactions among individuals from neighbouring groups. Both within and between-group contacts, and also the use of denning sites, were heavily influenced by seasonal and demographic factors, which appear to be motivated to a large extent by reproductive behaviours. Nevertheless, by using social network analysis I found that badgers that tested positive for bTB were found to interact with fewer of their group members and for a shorter amount of time. Specifically these test-positive individuals were found to associate with test-negative group members significantly less than would be expected by chance. Those animals testing positive for bTB were also found to use outlying setts significantly more frequently than those that tested negative. The within and between-group contact rates of individuals were found to correlate with their sett use patterns. Those animals that spent less time interacting with group members and those that spent more time interacting with members of foreign social groups, were found to spend a greater proportion of their time at outlier setts. The findings in this thesis suggest a link between wider roaming behaviour and the disease status of an individual. This adds support to the argument that the social disruption of badger populations, for example through culling, may promote rather than alleviate the spread of bTB as a result of increased movement and contacts between groups. State-of-the-art technology has enabled me to demonstrate the strong influence that badger social organisation may have on the transmission of an economically significant infectious disease. My findings suggest that disease control measures might be enhanced by taking into account seasonal and individual-level variation in ranging behaviour and use of outlier setts, for example, by identifying and targeting functional groups of individuals, specific areas, or times of the year that contribute disproportionately to disease spread.

<p>In Sweden live badgers are used in tests in order to train and prepare earth dogs for hunting underneath ground. This has for several years causeddebate concerning the welfare of the badgers. It is questioned whether the purpose of the dog training, i.e. to reduce injuries in both dogs and prey, is worth the suffering that is reflected on the badgers. </p><p>The aim of this investigation was to study </p><p>1) stress levels in badgers when used in earth dog training, </p><p>2) if the stress load differs when the badgers are exposed to dogs with varying aggression levels (low, moderate, high). </p><p>Behaviour, body temperature and heart rate were studied during the different treatments and for three consecutive nights following each treatment. These nights were compared to undisturbed conditions. Several effects of the treatments were found on behaviour, body temperature and heart rate. The result from this study suggest that badgers are likely to be affected (possible stressed) when used in earth dog training and that they react differently when exposed to dogs with varying levels of aggression.</p>

In Sweden live badgers are used in tests in order to train and prepare earth dogs for hunting underneath ground. This has for several years causeddebate concerning the welfare of the badgers. It is questioned whether the purpose of the dog training, i.e. to reduce injuries in both dogs and prey, is worth the suffering that is reflected on the badgers. The aim of this investigation was to study 1) stress levels in badgers when used in earth dog training, 2) if the stress load differs when the badgers are exposed to dogs with varying aggression levels (low, moderate, high). Behaviour, body temperature and heart rate were studied during the different treatments and for three consecutive nights following each treatment. These nights were compared to undisturbed conditions. Several effects of the treatments were found on behaviour, body temperature and heart rate. The result from this study suggest that badgers are likely to be affected (possible stressed) when used in earth dog training and that they react differently when exposed to dogs with varying levels of aggression.

Syftet med föreliggande studie är att med utgångspunkt i relevant forskning analysera förekomsten av olika verbala kommunikationsstrategier i några lärares engelskundervisning i 5 utvalda klasser i Sverige, bl.a. för att kunna bidra med fakta som kan inspirera lärare att utveckla sin egen undervisning. Metoden som använts består dels av observationer av engelsklektioner och dels av intervjuer med de undervisande lärarna och har genererat data av kvalitativ och kvantitativ karaktär. Inspirationen till de aspekter av kommunikation som har observerats är hämtad från den så-kallade SETT-modellen som kan hjälpa lärare att själva utveckla sin undervisning genom att den synliggör de interaktionsprocesser som pågår i klassrummet (Walsh, 2013). Resultatet visar att lärarna främst använde sig av det svenska språket i engelskundervisningen och att slutna frågor var den vanligaste förekommande interakturen, dvs. lärarnas sätt att kommunicera med elever, av de totalt 17 interakturstyper som undersökts. Dessutom visar resultatet att lärarna hade en god inställning till att undervisa i ämnet samtidigt som att undervisningen medför vissa utmaningar för dem. Slutligen belyser studien hur SETT-modellen ytterligare kan utvecklas, anpassas och användas i den svenska skolan och dess engelskundervisning.

Auf der Ostseeinsel Rügen wurde eine 3-jährige Untersuchung zur Siedlungsstruktur, Raum- und Habitatnutzung des Dachses (Meles meles L., 1758) unter besonderer Berücksichtigung der Landschaftszerschneidung und des Landnutzungsmusters durchgeführt. Über 70 % der Inselfläche ist landwirtschaftlich, überwiegend ackerbaulich, genutzt und nur knapp ein Fünftel wird von Wald bedeckt. Während die Zersiedelung und Zerschneidung der Landschaft durch Siedlungs- und Verkehrsfläche im bundesdeutschen Vergleich als sehr gering einzustufen war, ist nach der ?Wende? eine stete Verdichtung des Straßennetzes zu beobachten, die von einem enormen Anstieg der Verkehrsdichte begleitet wird. Die Auswirkungen dieser Rahmenbedingungen wurden anhand von Nahrungsanalysen, eines inselweiten Baukatasters, Fang und Telemetrie einiger Dachse sowie einer Erfassung verkehrstoter Dachse untersucht. Die erfassten Totfunde dienten einer Abschätzung des Gefährdungspotentials unterschiedlicher Straßentypen (Bundesstraße, Landesstraße usw.). Zusätzlich wurde auf Grundlage des Baukatasters, des Totfundkatasters und von Verkehrszählungen der Zusammenhang zwischen Verkehrslast, Siedlungsdichte (des Dachses) und Verkehrsmortalität des Dachses mit Hilfe eines einfachen Modells ermittelt. / On the baltic island of Rügen investigations had been carried for 3 years with regard to distribution, space use and habitat utilization of the European badger (Meles meles L., 1758). Special attention was focused on landscape fragmentation and patterns of land use. More than 70 % of the island is agricultural, almost arable land and just under a fifth is woodland. Before 1990, fragmentation and dessection of the landscape due to housing and roads was low compared with the german average, but after the political &amp;quot;turn&amp;quot; the road system has increased constantly combined with an enormous increase in traffic density. The effect of these conditions on badgers was investigated studying diet composition, surveying and registrating badger setts all over the island, badger-watching and trapping, radio-tracking some badgers and collecting all reported badgers fallen victim to traffic accidents. Relating the road-killed badgers to the length and traffic density of the different road categories, potential danger to be killed by car was estimated. Relating the density of traffic, the density of the badger's local population and its road-mortality was done by simply using data of the sett survey, the road-killed badgers and traffic census.

Auf der Ostseeinsel Rügen wurde eine 3-jährige Untersuchung zur Siedlungsstruktur, Raum- und Habitatnutzung des Dachses (Meles meles L., 1758) unter besonderer Berücksichtigung der Landschaftszerschneidung und des Landnutzungsmusters durchgeführt. Über 70 % der Inselfläche ist landwirtschaftlich, überwiegend ackerbaulich, genutzt und nur knapp ein Fünftel wird von Wald bedeckt. Während die Zersiedelung und Zerschneidung der Landschaft durch Siedlungs- und Verkehrsfläche im bundesdeutschen Vergleich als sehr gering einzustufen war, ist nach der ?Wende? eine stete Verdichtung des Straßennetzes zu beobachten, die von einem enormen Anstieg der Verkehrsdichte begleitet wird. Die Auswirkungen dieser Rahmenbedingungen wurden anhand von Nahrungsanalysen, eines inselweiten Baukatasters, Fang und Telemetrie einiger Dachse sowie einer Erfassung verkehrstoter Dachse untersucht. Die erfassten Totfunde dienten einer Abschätzung des Gefährdungspotentials unterschiedlicher Straßentypen (Bundesstraße, Landesstraße usw.). Zusätzlich wurde auf Grundlage des Baukatasters, des Totfundkatasters und von Verkehrszählungen der Zusammenhang zwischen Verkehrslast, Siedlungsdichte (des Dachses) und Verkehrsmortalität des Dachses mit Hilfe eines einfachen Modells ermittelt. / On the baltic island of Rügen investigations had been carried for 3 years with regard to distribution, space use and habitat utilization of the European badger (Meles meles L., 1758). Special attention was focused on landscape fragmentation and patterns of land use. More than 70 % of the island is agricultural, almost arable land and just under a fifth is woodland. Before 1990, fragmentation and dessection of the landscape due to housing and roads was low compared with the german average, but after the political &amp;quot;turn&amp;quot; the road system has increased constantly combined with an enormous increase in traffic density. The effect of these conditions on badgers was investigated studying diet composition, surveying and registrating badger setts all over the island, badger-watching and trapping, radio-tracking some badgers and collecting all reported badgers fallen victim to traffic accidents. Relating the road-killed badgers to the length and traffic density of the different road categories, potential danger to be killed by car was estimated. Relating the density of traffic, the density of the badger's local population and its road-mortality was done by simply using data of the sett survey, the road-killed badgers and traffic census.

The aim of this study was to investigate the design and implementation of early intervention programmes used for disadvantaged learners in South Africa. The focus was on the Grade R class since it has been introduced to prepare learners for formal schooling. The extent to which the programme could influence the learner's skills were investigated. The design is defined in terms of the structure, goals, and content of the programme. The implementation strategy in this investigation is explained in broad terms to include ECD policies, delivery structures and modes, teacher preparedness and arrangements made at school level. The investigation was conducted as a case study in disadvantaged school-based Grade R classes of the Gauteng province. It established that the design of the Grade R programme followed the constructivist approach by combining the developmental and behavioural approaches to teaching. The design was commendable with regard to its goals and its duration. However, concerns were raised with regard to the structure and content of the Learning Area Programmes. An alternative design is recommended. The success of any programme depends to a large extent on implementation strategies used for delivery. This investigation established that policy formulation at national level followed international trends. Implementation power was devolved to the provincial departments in order to accommodate provincial diversity. However, structural deficits and undefined line functions were identified at provincial and district levels. The impact of this deficiency was evident in the Grade R classes. Finally this study concluded that although learners showed developmental gains, this cannot be regarded as the influence of the Grade R teaching because this age group is still developing and the change could be ascribed to maturation. The learners did not acquire basic literacy skills. Their poor language and intellectual abilities remain extremely low. / Educational Studies / D.Ed.(Psychology of Education)

The aim of this study was to investigate the design and implementation of early intervention programmes used for disadvantaged learners in South Africa. The focus was on the Grade R class since it has been introduced to prepare learners for formal schooling. The extent to which the programme could influence the learner's skills were investigated. The design is defined in terms of the structure, goals, and content of the programme. The implementation strategy in this investigation is explained in broad terms to include ECD policies, delivery structures and modes, teacher preparedness and arrangements made at school level. The investigation was conducted as a case study in disadvantaged school-based Grade R classes of the Gauteng province. It established that the design of the Grade R programme followed the constructivist approach by combining the developmental and behavioural approaches to teaching. The design was commendable with regard to its goals and its duration. However, concerns were raised with regard to the structure and content of the Learning Area Programmes. An alternative design is recommended. The success of any programme depends to a large extent on implementation strategies used for delivery. This investigation established that policy formulation at national level followed international trends. Implementation power was devolved to the provincial departments in order to accommodate provincial diversity. However, structural deficits and undefined line functions were identified at provincial and district levels. The impact of this deficiency was evident in the Grade R classes. Finally this study concluded that although learners showed developmental gains, this cannot be regarded as the influence of the Grade R teaching because this age group is still developing and the change could be ascribed to maturation. The learners did not acquire basic literacy skills. Their poor language and intellectual abilities remain extremely low. / Educational Studies / D.Ed.(Psychology of Education)