A finite element groundwater flow model was used to support a hydrologic assessment for a study area in the Lower San Pedro River Basin which contains the Bingham Cienega. Consolidated sedimentary rocks associated with an extension of the Catalina Core Complex truncate the floodplain aquifer system in the study area. The elevated water table produced by this "hardrock" results in spring discharge at the cienega and a locally gaining reach of the San Pedro River. The steady -state model suggests that recharge (and discharge) components for the floodplain aquifer sum to 3.10 cfs. Mountain front recharge, underflow, and stream leakage are the primary recharge mechanisms, while stream leakage, evapotranspiration, spring flow, and underflow out are sources for groundwater discharge. A steady -oscillatory model was used to account for seasonal periodicity in the system's boundary conditions. Monthly variation in the evapotranspiration rate was offset primarily by storage changes in the aquifer. Due to a lack of measured hydrologic data within the study area, results from the model simulations are only preliminary. Model development and the subsequent sensitivity analyses have provided insight into what type of data needs to be collected. Head measurements are most needed in the area just downstream from Bingham Cienega. The mountain front recharge and evapotranspiration rates are shown to be highly sensitive parameters in the model; improved estimation of these values would be helpful. Spring discharge would be a valuable calibration tool if it could be accurately measured. A more extensive record of stream baseflow in the San Pedro River should be established. After more hydrologic data is collected, the model could be recalibrated so as to better represent the system. Eventually, this tool may be used in direct support of management and/or restoration decisions.

This report is in two parts. The first part covers the ecological processes pertinent to the restoration of Bingham Cienega. The second part presents a subregional groundwater flow model for analyzing the water budget, stream and spring behavior, and water table configuration. Because of the sparsity of ecological and hydrologic data, both parts must be considered as preliminary studies.

Landscapes are changing environments. Conservation of the amenities associated with landscapes must take into account the tendency of a landscape to change over time. Change is considered to be influenced by both cultural land use practices and natural resource processes which act on the landscape. A technique is developed which demonstrates an approach to measure the stability of landscapes. This approach also provides a means to qualify the importance of the elements which make up the landscape, thus defining the matrix of the landscape. A case study of the San Pedro National Conservation Area is used to demonstrate the technique. Sampled at three intervals 1935, 1973 and 1986 the landscape is shown to be stable, identifying this area with intrinsic value for conservation. Landscape scale assessments are shown to be inappropriate for ecosystem scale changes.

Funerary ritual in San Pedro de Atacama: evidence for Tiwanaku interment?Given the homogeneous nature of mortuary practices among the Prehispanic residents of San Pedro de Atacama, Chile, atypical graves have been interpreted as evidence for foreigners buried among the local dead in San Pedro cemeteries. This study reexamines graves generally attributed to colonizers from Tiwanaku (AD 500-1000). Emphasizing contexts with gold and silver, detailed comparison is made between the mortuary practices of San Pedro and Tiwanaku. These analyses and data coincide in challenging the efficacy of the colonization model, and support instead the model of indirect Tiwanaku presence that Berenguer (1998) termed "clientage". Confirmation of Tiwanaku tombs similar to the San Pedro graves is lacking, given the importance of Tiwanaku pottery in altiplano tombs, in comparison with the placement of individual Tiwanaku objects in San Pedro graves that otherwise contain only objects of local origin, as well as the possibility that gold and silver objects found in San Pedro graves came from places other than Tiwanaku, it is premature to assign Tiwanaku identity to San Pedro's atypical tombs. / Dada la homogeneidad de las prácticas funerarias de los habitantes prehispánicos de San Pedro de Atacama, Chile, los entierros de carácter excepcional han sido interpretados como producto de la presencia de individuos foráneos en la zona. El presente trabajo retoma los casos y objetos típicamente asociados a la colonización tiwanaku (entre 500 y 1000 d.C.), y poniendo énfasis sobre todo en los contextos con oro y plata, hace una comparación detallada entre los patrones funerarios sanpedrinos y tiwanaku. Los datos presentados coinciden para rechazar el modelo colonizador y apoyan al modelo indirecto de presencia tiwanaku de "clientelaje" (Berenguer 1998). Se establece que, dada la escasez de información sobre prácticas funerarias estatales, la importancia de la cerámica en los entierros altiplánicos recuperados cuando los ejemplos sanpedrinos carecen de la misma, la incorporación casi exclusiva del material cultural tiwanaku en contextos de carácter local y la posibilidad de que los objetos de oro puedan proceder de otros lugares no basta para confirmar una identidad tiwanaku a estos entierros excepcionales.

La presente tesis está enfocada en el análisis de la viabilidad del Proyecto Residencial Eco Hogar Solidario, el cual es un proyecto de vivienda de interés social que posee un enfoque de sostenibilidad. Este proyecto se ubica en el distrito de San Pedro de Lloc, departamento de Pacasmayo de la Región La Libertad. El área de emplazamiento del terreno es de 24,799.26 m2 y de acuerdo al certificado de parámetros, la zona es Residencial de Densidad Media. Para el análisis de viabilidad se ha analizado proyectos cercanos que se encuentran en ejecución y/o han sido entregados, que tengan elementos parecidos al producto que ofrecemos como son las viviendas de interés social. Sin embargo, el enfoque de sostenibilidad y acompañamiento social que se pretende añadir al producto, es único para el proyecto Eco Hogar Solidario. De los proyectos de vivienda Techo Propio entregados bajo la modalidad Adquisición de Vivienda Nueva (AVN) y subsidiados por el Estado mediante el Programa Techo Propio, se ha podido apreciar de acuerdo con el estudio de mercado realizado, que la principal deficiencia se da principalmente porque las áreas comunes se encuentran abandonadas, cubiertas por basura y maleza, generando un impacto ambiental social negativo. Además de mostrar una imagen poco atractiva para el referido marketing de las inmobiliarias. El proyecto Residencial Eco Hogar Solidario, considera dentro de su propuesta el desarrollo de 185 unidades de lote y vivienda sostenible, las cuales contarán con un área techada de 35 m2. En la construcción de las mismas, se hará uso de elementos y materiales que cuiden el medio ambiente, contarán con aparatos sanitarios y luces de bajo consumo, buscando ahorros en los recibos de servicios básicos. El proyecto residencial también pretende forjar una cultura sostenible a través de buenas prácticas de reciclaje y cuidado de áreas comunes. Para generar en el propietario el sentido del cuidado de su residencial con miras a dejar un hogar sostenible para las futuras generaciones, el proyecto desarrolla un programa de acompañamiento social “TINKUY”, en el que la inmobiliaria de la mano de la junta de propietarios de la residencial podrá organizar eventos, talleres referentes al cuidado del medio ambiente, principalmente de sus áreas comunes, así como generar la cooperación comunitaria y su participación activa. El target principal al que va dirigido este proyecto son personas que pertenecen al Nivel Socioeconómico (NSE) C2 y D, cuyo ingreso familiar se encuentre entre 1522 a 3715 soles, que no cuenten con propiedad inmobiliaria alguna y que se encuentren ubicados en los departamentos de La Libertad, Cajamarca y Trujillo, cuyo estilo de vida corresponde a los formalistas, conservadores y progresistas. El proyecto Residencial Eco Hogar Solidario para su promoción utilizará un marketing directo a través de paneles publicitarios, recibos de servicio básico, publicaciones en Revista del Fondo Mivivienda donde se respalda el proyecto y publicaciones en redes sociales de la empresa, con la finalidad de dirigir nuestro producto al target identificado, brindarles información clara respecto de los atributos y el financiamiento respectivo a fin de concretar la compra. Cabe resaltar la importancia de lograr que el cliente llegue a la caseta de ventas y pueda visitar el módulo piloto, aprovechando en mostrar las características reales de la vivienda, para así generar un mayor impacto para su decisión definitiva de compra. Allí se aprovechará además en mostrar los recursos impresos y digitales para complementar la información de los atributos del proyecto. Finalmente, el Proyecto Residencial Eco Hogar Solidario permite ofrecer a las personas de menores ingresos económicos una primera vivienda propia con subsidio del Estado, la cual contará con áreas de terreno más grandes respecto a la competencia, materiales de calidad ecoeficientes, y un Plan de acompañamiento Social sostenible, el cual se materializa en los diferentes atributos con los que cuenta el proyecto generando un beneficio total no solo para los clientes sino más aún a nivel de comunidad. Así mismo cumple con la rentabilidad esperada por sus accionistas quienes buscan ser pioneros en este tipo de propuestas, característica de su empresa, por lo cual consideramos que será un proyecto exitoso.

One of the major environmental concerns in the world is the loss of biological diversity due to anthropogenic activities. Of special concern is the conservation of endemic species that are particularly vulnerable to extinction. The Mearns's squirrel (Tamiasciurus mearnsi) is endemic to the Sierra de San Pedro Mártir, Baja California. Federally listed as threatened in Mexico and as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), little is known about the ecology of this southernmost Tamiasciurus. Interestingly, Mearns's squirrels exhibit deviations from common behaviors observed in other congeners such as lack of leaf nests (dreys) and larderhoards (middens), suggesting potentially unique adaptations. Herein, I reviewed the diversity and conservation status of the arboreal squirrels of Mexico. Using radio-telemetry and satellite imagery, I examined if the lack of dreys and middens may be associated with differences observed in nesting behavior, home-range dynamics, and life-history and behavioral tactics between Mearns's squirrels and other arboreal squirrels.Mexico harbors 14 species of arboreal squirrels, of which four are endemic, with the states of Chiapas and San Luis Potosí possessing the greatest diversity. Unfortunately, high deforestation rates in Mexico, and a dearth of information on their ecology, pose serious threats to the persistence of this squirrel diversity. Mearns's squirrels apparently are obligate secondary cavity-nesters with specific nesting requirements and their population possibly limited by the low occurrence of tree cavities in their habitat. The species seems to have lost the territorial behavior that is characteristic of the genus Tamiasciurus. Home-range dynamics of Mearns's squirrels are similar to nonterritorial Sciurus squirrels. Although reproduction and survival are similar to other Tamiasciurus, the species is heavier and apparently larger while exhibiting important variations in their behavior compared to other congeners. The lack of dreys and middens appears to be associated with the unique tactics adopted by Mearns's squirrels to persist in the Sierra de San Pedro Mártir. The species provides an important opportunity to learn more about geographic variation in nesting behavior and the evolution of territoriality. Large trees and snags that facilitate cavity formation are critical for the conservation of this species.

The San Pedro del Gallo area 1.8 in the north-central part of Mexico, between 25°30' and 26°00' N latitude, and 104°00' and 104°20' W longitude. It covers approximately 1,900 square kilometers at the western edge of the Sierra Madre Oriental. The oldest rocks exposed in the area belong to the Villa Juarez Formation of possible Late Triassic age. These rocks, of continental origin, comprise siltstone, sandstone, conglomerate, tuff, and intercalated lavas of characteristic red color. Jurassic and Cretaceous rocks form a section with a maximum thickness of about 3,580 m. The sediments were deposited in the Mexican Geosyncline, west of the Coahuila Peninsula of pre-Aptian age. The Villa Juarez Formation is overlain with angular unconformity by orthoquartzite, quartzose sandstone, and limestone lenses of the La Gloria Formation of Oxfordian age. The La Casita Formation, which is stratigraphically above the La Gloria Formation, probably ranges in age from late Oxfordian to early Neocomian. It consists of thin-bedded limestone, black shale, and varicolored sandstone, with intercalations of coal seams and abundant ammonites. The Lower Cretaceous rocks of the area comprise the Coahuila Series, La Pena Formation, Aurora Limestone, and Cuesta del Cura Formation. Neocomian and upper Aptian rocks are represented by thin-bedded limestone, marl, and shale of the Taraises, Las Vigas, Parritas, and La Pena Formations. This sequence of rocks is overlain with apparent conformity by the medium- to thick-bedded bank-type Aurora Limestone of middle to late Albian age. A notable change of facies occurs laterally in the upper Albian and lower Cenomanian rocks, the lithology of the Aurora Limestone grading westward into the thin-bedded limestone with wavy bedding planes and black chert intercalations that characterize the Cuesta del Cura Formation. An erosional unconformity developed on the surface of the Aurora Limestone and Cuesta del Cura Formation is covered by the Indidura and Caracol Formations of Turonian to Coniacian age. These consist or thin-bedded, platy limestone, shale, and marl beds, which grade upward into a thick sequence of poorly fossiliferous calcareous sandstone, siltstone, and shale. A period of intense folding and erosion preceded the deposit of the non-marine Ahuichila Formation, of probable late Eocene and early Oligocene age. This formation was deposited with marked angular unconformity on all the older rocks, including the Villa Juarez Formation. Both, porphyritic and equigranular igneous rocks in the form of dikes, sills, plugs, and stocks intrude the bedded rocks of the area. They range in composition from quartz rhyolite porphyry to andesite and from granadiorite to monzonite. The rocks around the intrusive bodies have been metamorphosed irregularly as far as 100 m from the igneous contacts. Irregular tactite aureoles occur around intrusive bodies in the Descubridora district, west of Cerritos de Los Victorinos, and in the Sierra del Mimbre. Marble and recrystallized limestone is found west of Descubridora and in the Bajio del Bailon, and hornfels has formed in Cerrito de La Cruz and Cerrito de Las Liebres near San Pedro del Gallo, as well as in the southern part of the Sierra del Mimbre. Folowing emplacement of the intrusive bodies mineralizing solutions reacting with sedimentary rocks gave origin to the different mineralized zones in the region. The beginning of the Laramide Orogeny in the San Pedro del Gallo region is marked by Late Cretaceous uplift, which probably continued until middle or late Eocene time. Compressive forces acting in an east-west to northeast-southwest direction folded the Mesozoic strata into a series of narrow asymmetrical anticlines and synclines overturned to the east, with axial, planes almost parallel to the borders of the Coahuila Peninsula. Thrusting and faulting were important in the vicinity of San Pedro del Gallo. There is no conclusive evidence of large-scale post-Triassic and pre-Laramide deformation in the area. Extrusion of lavas ranging in composition from basalt to rhyolite, accompanied by extensive block faulting, occurred during Miocene and Pliocene time. Late Tertiary uplift began during the Pliocene. The streams were rejuvenated and there was increased erosion, which caused, together with a change of climate, the overloading of some streams and local blocking of drainage by alluvial fans in the valleys, giving rise to the Santa Ines Formation. Erosion, more than deposition is the dominant event at present. Contact metasomatic silver, lead, and copper deposits in the Aurora Limestone have been mined in the Descubridora, Parranderas , and Sierra del Mimbre districts. Fluorite and barite have been extracted from veins in the La Gloria Formation and the Aurora Limestone. Thin beds and seams of coal in the La Casita Formation were mined within the town limits of San Pedro del Gallo. No important mining activity exists at present in the area studied. The area has never been tested for oil.

abstract: Riparian systems in the arid southwest are heavily altered and, based on relative land-area, provision a disproportionately high number of native wildlife. Amphibians and reptiles are collectively the most threatened vertebrate taxa and, in the Sonoran Desert, are often reliant on riparian habitat. The link between amphibians and environmental water characteristics, as well as the association between lizards and habitat structure, make herpetofauna good organisms for which to examine the effects of environmental change. My objective was to relate capture rates of a fossorial anuran and lizard abundance to aspects of native, invaded, and shrub-encroached riparian habitats in order to forecast the potential winners and losers of riparian habitat xerification and invasion. I measured habitat and monitored herpetofauna at 18 sites near the confluence of the San Pedro River and Gila River in Pinal County, Arizona in 2016 and 2017. Sites were divided into three categories based on dominant tree genus; Populus-Salix, Prosopis, and Tamarix, which represented native riparia, xeric riparia, and invaded riparia, respectively. Habitat measurements indicated that sites varied significantly in structure, and that dominant tree species was a useful descriptor of habitat physiognomy. Results from herpetofauna trapping demonstrated that Scaphiopus couchii, a fossorial anuran, occupy Prosopis sites at a much higher rate than at Tamarix sites, which were almost completely avoided. S. couchii was also found to be closely tied to xero-riparian habitat components present at Prosopis sites and soil analyses indicate that aspects of soil moisture and texture play an important role in the partitioning of this species across altered riparian habitats. Lizard abundance was found to be significantly lower in Tamarix habitat, with the majority of captures attributed to the generalist whiptail Aspidoscelis tigris. Additionally, more than half of lizard species that were analyzed displayed a negative association to Tamarix habitat. Of the three habitat types considered, Populus-Salix supported the greatest abundance of lizards. Based on this study, the deleterious effects of xerfication on a riparian herpetofauna community may be lesser than those of Tamarix invasion. These two forms of riparian habitat shift often co-occur, with the ultimate cause being changes in hydrologic regime. This may imply that a bottom-up approach, wherein historic hydrology is restored to restore or maintain native habitats, to riverine management is appropriate for riparian herpetofauna conservation. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Applied Biological Sciences 2018

Western riparian zones have undergone significant landscape changes over the past several decades, with introduced saltcedar (Tamarix spp.) as a crucial component of this transformation. Saltcedar, now a dominating presence along many western rivers, due to its high tolerance to drought, salinity and stress, is considered to be a high-water-use plant that can desiccate disturbed river systems. Where native and saltcedar plant communities occur together, it is important to understand water use patterns and the physiological responses of each species to environmental stress factors, as a way to project an eventual course of succession processes and management options at a given site. Stress and disturbance in the form of reduced stream flows and land use changes may influence these interactions. Understanding the conditions that allow for saltcedar dominance is critical in determining riparian water budgets, and developing effective management strategies. Sap flux sensors were used to measure the physiological response of co-occurring communities of saltcedar and native trees to these environmental stress factors during the pre-monsoon period in early summer, a time of maximum stress for riparian vegetation. The results suggest that native trees are still competitive with salt cedar so that a mixed plant community is likely to continue on the San Pedro River on the condition that current groundwater levels and river flows are maintained. If base flows and depth to groundwater continue to decline, this competitive balance between saltcedar and native trees likely could change.

No description available.