The principal aim of this thesis is to identify and analyse inovative approaches and procedures of low-cost airlines that brought air transport to a broader mass of customers. This work also explores marketing specifics of the airline industry, discusses ticket pricing and ticket distribution issues, advertising opportunities, quality and product range issues. Later, it deals with enviromental challenges facing aviation. The final section formulates recommendations that will enable further revenue increases for low-cost carriers.

14 pp. / Originally published: 2007 / A primary expression of stocking levels on rangeland vegetation is utilization defined as the proportion or degree of current years forage production that is consumed or destroyed by animals (including insects). Utilization may refer either to a single plant species, a group of species, or the vegetation as a whole. Utilization is an important factor in influencing changes in the soil, water, animal, and vegetation resources. The impact of a specific intensity of use on a plant species is highly variable depending on past and present use, period of use, duration of use, inter-specific competition, weather, availability of soil moisture for regrowth, and how these factors interact. Utilization data can be used as a guideline for moving livestock within an allotment with due consideration to season, weather conditions and the availability of forage and water in pastures scheduled for use during the same grazing season. In combination with actual use and climatic data, utilization measurements on key areas and utilization pattern mapping are useful for estimating proper stocking levels under current management. Utilization studies are helpful in identifying key and problem areas, and in identifying range improvements needed to improve livestock distribution. Reviewed 10/2016. Originally published 5/2007.

abstract: Las Cienegas National Conservation Area (LCNCA), located in southeastern Arizona, is a place of ecological and historical value. It is host to rare native, threatened and endangered fauna and flora. as well as the site of the oldest operating ranch in the state. The first chapter of this thesis provides a preliminary flora of vascular plants at LCNCA assembled from field collections, photographs and herbarium specimens, and published through the online database SEINet. This preliminary flora of LCNCA identified 403 species in 76 families. Less than 6% of the flora is non-native, perennial forbs and grasses are the most abundant groups, and over a third of species in the checklist are associated with wetlands. LCNCA has been the target of adaptive management and conservation strategies to preserve its biotic diversity, and results from this study will help inform actions to preserve its rare habitats including cottonwood willow forests, mesquite bosques, sacaton grasslands, and cienegas. The second chapter investigates poorly understood aspects of the life history of the endangered Huachuca Water Umbel (Lilaeopsis schaffneriana subsp. recurva. Apiaceae) (hereafter HWU). This wetland species occurs in scattered cienegas and streams in southeastern Arizona and northern Sonora, Mexico. Three studies were conducted in a greenhouse to investigate seed bank establishment, seed longevity, and drought tolerance. A fourth study compared the reproductive phenology of populations transplanted at LCNCA to populations transplanted at urban sites like the Phoenix Zoo Conservation Center and the Desert Botanical Garden (DBG). Results from the greenhouse studies showed that HWU seeds were capable of germinating 15 years in a dormant state and that HWU seeds are present in the seed banks at sites where populations have been transplanted. Also, greenhouse experiments indicated that colonies of HWU can tolerate up to 3 weeks without flowing water, and up to 2 weeks in dry substrate. Transplanted populations at LCNCA monitored in the fourth study produced a higher abundance of flowers and fruit relative to urban sites (i.e. DBG) suggesting that in-situ conservation efforts may be more favorable for the recovery of HWU populations. Findings from these studies aim to inform gaps in knowledge highlighted in USFWS recovery plan for this species. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Plant Biology and Conservation 2020

abstract: Exchange is fundamental to the establishment and maintenance of social institutions and political economies in all scales of societies. While today people rapidly exchange goods and information over great distances, in the past, long-distance exchange necessitated the mobilization of vast networks of interaction with substantial transport costs. Objects traded over long distances were often valuable and challenging to obtain, granting them multifaceted significance that is difficult to understand using traditional archaeological approaches. This research examines human interactions with scarlet macaws (Ara macao) in the United States (U.S.) Southwest and Mexican Northwest (SW/NW) between 900 and 1450 CE. This period saw large-scale cultural change in the form of migrations, rapid population aggregation, and an expansion of long-distance exchange relations in regional centers at Pueblo Bonito (900-1150 CE) in northwestern New Mexico, Wupatki (1085-1220 CE) in north-central Arizona, and Paquimé (1200-1450 CE) in northern Chihuahua. Despite the distant natural habitat of scarlet macaws, their importation, exchange, and sacrifice appear to have played integral roles in the process of placemaking at these three regional centers. Here, I use an Archaeology of the Human Experience approach and combine radiogenic strontium isotope analysis with detailed contextual analyses using a Material Histories theoretical framework to (1) discern whether macaws discovered in the SW/NW were imported or raised locally, (2) characterize the acquisition, treatment and deposition of macaws at Pueblo Bonito, Wupatki, and Paquimé, and (3) identify patterns of continuity or change in acquisition and deposition of macaws over time and across space in the SW/NW. Findings from radiogenic strontium isotope analysis indicate that scarlet macaws from all case studies were primarily raised locally in the SW/NW, though at Paquimé, macaws were procured from sites in the Casas Grandes region and extra-regionally. Variation in the treatment and deposition of scarlet macaws suggests that despite their prevalence, macaws were interpreted and interacted with in distinctly local ways. Examination of the human experience of transporting and raising macaws reveals previously unconsidered challenges for keeping macaws. Overall, variation in the acquisition and deposition of scarlet macaws indicates changing strategies for placemaking in the SW/NW between 900 and 1450 CE. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Anthropology 2020

abstract: Desert ecosystems of the southwest United States are characterized by hot and arid climates, but hibernating bats can be found at high altitudes. The emerging fungal infection, white-nose syndrome, causes mortality in hibernating bat populations across eastern North America and the pathogen is increasingly observed in western regions. However, little is known about the ecology of hibernating bats in the southwest, which can help predict how these populations may respond to the fungus. My study investigated hibernating bats during two winters (2018-2019/2019-2020) at three caves in northern Arizona to: (1) describe diversity and abundance of hibernating bats using visual internal surveys and photographic documentation, (2) determine the duration of hibernation by recording bat echolocation call sequences outside caves and recording bat activity in caves using visual inspection, and (3) describe environmental conditions where hibernating bats are roosting. Adjacent to bats, I collected temperature and relative humidity, which I converted into absolute humidity. I documented hibernation status (i.e. active vs. not active) and roosting body position (i.e. open, partially hidden, and hidden). Between September 2018 and April 2019, 246 bat observations were recorded across the three caves. The majority of bats were identified as Myotis spp. (45.9\%, n=113), followed by Corynorhinus townsendii (45.5\%, n=112), Parastrellus hesperus (4.8\%, n=12), Eptesicus fuscus (3.6\%, n=9). Between September 2019 and April 2020, I documented a total of 361 bat observations across the three caves. C. townsendii was most prevalent (52.9\%, n=191), followed by the category P. hesperus/Myotis spp. (25.7\%, n=93), Myotis spp. (12.4\%, n=45), P. Hesperus (4.4\%, n=16), E. fuscus (3.6\%, n=13) and Unknown (0.8\%, n=3). Average conditions adjacent to bats were, temperature=12.5ºC, relative humidity=53\%, and absolute humidity=4.9 g/kg. Hibernating bats were never observed in large clusters and the maximum hibernating population size was 24, suggesting low risk for pathogen transmission among bats. Hibernation lasted approximately 120 days, with minimal activity documented inside and outside caves. Hibernating bats in northern Arizona may be at low risk for white-nose syndrome based on population size, hibernation length, roosting behavior, and absolute humidity, but other variables (e.g. temperature) indicate the potential for white-nose syndrome impacts on these populations. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Biology 2020

The problem of this study concerns the values, beliefs, and characteristics of Hispanic students attending a large urban southwestern university. The study is qualitative and utilizes the constant comparative research method. Data is gathered from interviews with 21 Hispanic students, campus surveys, university records, a census report, and observation of campus activities. The literature review spans organizational culture, campus culture and subcultures, as well as studies regarding Hispanic students. The findings introduce the students and report their perspectives in both their own words and in summarized themes for each research question. In summary, Hispanic students and their college experiences are diverse. They major in a wide range of disciplines, come from varying socio-economic households, have parents with varying levels of education, are surprised by various aspects of college, and they do not all speak Spanish.

Over the last 2000 years, climatic and anthropogenic factors have influenced vegetation in Madagascar, but the contribution of these two factors has been the subject of intense debate, a debate hampered by the scarcity of palaeoecological studies on the island. Southwest Madagascar is semi-arid and comprises fragmented tropical dry forests where human subsistence strategies are diverse. Therefore, it provides a perfect setting to generate new palaeoecological records and investigate vegetation response to changes in human land-use and rainfall variability. The aim of this thesis is to understand how and when land-use changed, and rainfall variability impacted the landscape in the southwest region, using dendroclimatological and palaeoecological approaches. Carbon isotopes in the rings of four baobab trees (Adansonia spp.), were compared with pre-existing palaeoclimate data to produce rainfall records for the past 1700 years. Pollen, carbon isotopes, and charcoal in sediment cores from two lakes namely Lake Longiza and Lake Tsizavatsy (located in the northern and southern sites respectively in southwest Madagascar) were analysed to produce vegetation and fire records during the late Holocene in the region. Combination of the four baobab isotope records yields a new 700-year record for the southwest, which suggests an aridity trend over time, associated with a long-term reduction and increase in the duration of wet and dry periods respectively. Drying was more pronounced for the southern site than the northern site. A comparison with a high-resolution record from the northwest region allowed the rainfall of the southwest to be extended back to the last 1700 years as follows: from AD 300-500, the southwest region experienced a dry period which was followed by a wet period until AD 1000. Subsequently, there was a dry period from AD 1000-1250, followed by a wet period in the southwest. The period from AD 1300-1400 represented the wettest period in the record, followed by a decreasing wet period until AD 1600. The period between AD 1600 and 1800 represented the driest period, peaking around AD 1700. This was followed by a relatively wet period of about 50 years and another 100-year dry period. The last period assessed, from AD 1985 to 2000, was a relatively wet period. Such variability of the rainfall might have affected ecosystems and human land-use in the region. The tropical dry forest biome of southwest Madagascar has taxa from the dry forest, riparian forest and savanna woodland in the pollen records of both sites. In the core from the northern site (Lake Longiza), the pollen record suggests a heterogeneous mosaic of dry forest and riparian forest that was present over the last 2400 years. In the earliest part of the record, the community was dominated by trees from both the dry forest and riparian ecosystems. The onset of changes was recorded around AD 420, with a decrease in dry forest and riparian trees and an increase in grasses and xerophytics, possibly driven by dry conditions. This was followed by a short recovery of trees and C3 plants around AD 870 punctuated by a decrease in dry forest taxa around AD 980, possibly associated with the suggested expansion of pastoralism. After this period, the landscape became more open and grassier, as indicated by the dominance of C4 plants in the stable isotope record. Similar patterns of change in the pollen record, with a further increase in grasses and pioneer taxa, were recorded around AD 1900. Charcoal influx also started to increase drastically at this time, suggesting fire and forest clearance associated with a shift to agriculture. These large shifts in human land-use (probably a combination of both pastoralism and agriculture) coincided with the decline of floral diversity of the landscape, as indicated by pollen rarefaction. However, the diversity of the floral community gradually recovered, because of the persistent heterogeneity of the landscape. The core from the southern site (Lake Tsizavatsy) had a basal date of approximately 700 years BP but presented a hiatus of about 500 years from AD 1420-1910. The preceding period of AD 1300-1420 was marked by a decrease in the abundance of trees during the wettest period in the region, which was most likely because of human activities (foraging and pastoralism), as inferred by the increase in charcoal influx and pioneer taxa. During the second period, from AD 1910- 2010, there was an increase in xerophytic taxa, which suggests a long dry climate, recorded prior to this period. In addition, from AD 1950, trees decreased while pioneer taxa increased, despite the stable influx of charcoal recorded during this period. This possibly indicates the effect of human activities that did not involve the use of fire, probably conducted by ethnicities other than the forager communities, which are still present in the area today. This thesis contributes significantly to the understanding of palaeoclimate, palaeoecology and the history of human subsistence in a biodiverse region of Madagascar, where no other record is currently available. Results from stable isotope analysis from baobabs showed a drying trend over the past 700 years, which has interacted with land-use to affect vegetation structure and composition over time. The pollen and charcoal results suggest the northern site, where vegetation was a mosaic of dry forest and riparian forest, experienced an impact of human activities through a shift to agriculture especially in the last 100 years. The savanna woodland of the southern site, however, was less affected by humans, probably as occupants were subsistence foragers, but the vegetation had a higher response to aridity. The results show that two distinctive human subsistence (pastoralism and foraging) were present simultaneously in the region until modern times. The northern site has evolved possibly from foraging into extensive agriculture, probably related to the fertility of the alluvial soil in the area, while the southern community remained dominated by foragers, while adopting today a seasonal practice of agriculture. From a conservation perspective, strategies of conservation for each ecosystem investigated here are proposed. In the northern site, monitoring and reducing fire-use within the dry forest ecosystem would allow tree recovery. In addition, restoring and establishing protected areas within the riparian forest would allow these ecosystems to act as refugia for regional biodiversity. Such measures will likely reduce the pressure on these ecosystems, where agriculture is a threat due to the availability of both water and fertile soil in their surroundings. Alternative livelihoods are required for the northern populace, for example through the exploitation of invasive aquatic plants such as Typha, which can be used in making of handcrafted artefacts, to reduce pressure on forest ecosystems through agricultural practices. For the southern site, maintaining the resilience of the savanna woodland through reforestation of functional species is also important to allow sustainability of services provided by these ecosystems. These strategies are applicable locally for Madagascar and for worldwide tropical dry forests, one of the globally most threatened vegetation types due to anthropogenic pressure and climate change.

A new species of fossil endocarp is described from the Sanying Formation of the upper Pliocene at Fudong Village, Lanping County of northwestern Yunnan Province, Southwest China. The endocarps are elliptic, ovate or oblong elliptic, 2.1-2.5. mm long and 1.2-1.7. mm wide. The dorsal face is convex and the ventral is concave or more flattened. The endocarp surface is loosely, transversely or sinuously furrowed and ridged, forming a reticulate and alveolate pattern on the ridges, and the inner wall of the surface cells on the ridges is flaky and scaly. They are morphologically compared with selected extant genera of Adoxaceae and Caprifoliaceae. The interspecific comparisons show diagnostic differences of the fossil endocarps from the selected modern species and other fossil taxa, supporting their recognition as a new species: Sambucus alveolatisemina Huang, Liu et Zhou, sp. nov. Previous records of the reliable Sambucus fossils were from mid-high latitude regions in Europe, northeastern Asia and northern North America. Therefore, it is interesting to note that S. alveolatisemina represents a fossil record from a low latitude region. Sambucus apparently has existed at low latitudes in China at least since the upper Pliocene. A review of other Sambucus fossil occurrences indicates that plants of this genus have been living at higher latitudes in the geological past than they are at present.

Beginning in 1964, an academic lineage of Robert DuBois and his students, Daniel Wolfman and Jeffrey Eighmy, developed dedicated United States-based archaeomagnetic research programs. Collectively, they analyzed over 5,377 archaeomagnetic sites, primarily from North America, dated to less than 2,000 years old. Yet despite their decades of effort, few journal publications resulted. Most of their published results are embedded in archeological reports, often without technical data, which limits the data's accessibility. Furthermore, when published, the results are generally averaged at the site level using statistical conventions different from today's standards, limiting the data's comparability and (re)usability. In 2015, we undertook a salvage archival study to digitize the surviving data and metadata from the scientists' individual estates and emeritus collections. We digitized measurement data from more than 51,000 specimens, reinterpreted them using modern conventions, and uploaded them to the FAIR-adhering magnetic data repository, earthref.org/MagIC. The reinterpreted site-level results from the three laboratories are mutually consistent, permitting the individual data sets to be combined and analyzed as single regional entities. Through incorporation into the MagIC repository, these legacy data are now accessible for incorporation into archaeomagnetic and global magnetic field modeling efforts, critical to understanding Earth's magnetic field variation through time. In the Four Corners region of the United States Southwest, this digitized archive advances the development of a new regional paleosecular variation curve used in archaeomagnetic dating. This project highlights both the value and complexities of managing legacy data; the many lessons learned to set a precedent for future paleomagnetic data recovery efforts.

The U.S. Southwest Border is associated with highly politicized topics, yet the lived experience of Border Patrol agents is not one of them. Border Patrol agents face risks to their personal safety and security as they attempt to safeguard the national security of the United States while implementing the policies of their organization, which are sometimes at odds with the beliefs and expectations of agents in the field. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore perceptions and lived experiences related to the threats and dangers that Border Patrol agents face as they protect the U.S. Southwest Border. The theoretical framework for this study involved McGregor's organizational behavior theory, Janis's groupthink theory, and the bureaucratic dissonance phenomenon. Data collected through semistructured interviews of 11 former Border Patrol agents with direct experience working along the U.S. Southwest Border were inductively coded and subjected to a thematic analysis procedure. On-duty risks, emotional toll, lack of community support, and separation from family are among the stressors for members of this profession. The key findings regarding threats and dangers included: perceived manpower shortage, fear of assaults, the very nature of the job, political and presidential administration conflicts, and lack of mobility (location and career advancements). The recommendations call for greater policy-and decision-maker understanding of the stresses and conflicts facing Border Patrol agents, which could effect positive social change by encouraging policies and regulations to improve job safety and security, and to inform training programs. The promulgation of the findings may contribute to improvements of the morale and safety of Border Patrol agents and enhance security of the United States.