Thesis (M.E.S.)--York University, 2000. Graduate Programme in Environmental Studies. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 157-167). Also available on the Internet. MODE OF ACCESS via web browser by entering the following URL: http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/yorku/fullcit?pMQ59545.

Thesis (M.E.S.)--The Evergreen State College, 2009. / Title from title screen (viewed 2/24/2010). Includes bibliographical references (leaves 98-107).

<p> Invasive phragmites (<i>Phragmites australis</i>) has encroached on the central Platte River in recent years potentially out-competing native stands of phragmites. Invasive stands are thought to have an overall negative impact on ecosystems, but do provide ecological benefits to some species as food or shelter. Little research has been conducted on its impacts on small mammals. The goals of this project were to identify potential native and invasive stands along the central Platte River and determine small mammals use of invasive phragmites. I examined 35 phragmites samples along the central Platte River using restriction fragment length polymorphism. I used molecular sequencing and morphological features to identify stands. All samples were determined to be invasive. Four study sites along the Platte River were selected to evaluate phragmites use and potential impacts on small mammals. Each study site was in a wooded grassland area and consisted of three patches of invasive phragmites and three patches of wooded grassland vegetation. Study sites were sampled using Sherman live traps from April to October 2014. I found no significant difference in overall small mammal use between vegetation types and no seasonal difference between use of phragmites and wooded grassland stands. I did, however, catch fewer individuals in both habitat types during August. Deer mice (<i> Peromyscus maniculatus</i>) selected native vegetation whereas the white-footed mouse (<i>Peromyscus leucopus</i>), meadow vole (<i>Microtus pennsylvanicus</i>) hispid cotton rat (<i>Sigmodon hispidus</i>) and meadow jumping mouse (<i>Zapus hudsonius</i>) selected phragmites. Capture of hispid cotton rat was the first documentation of this species in Dawson County, Nebraska. Differences in selection by these species could be attributed to their different life histories or habitat preferences. The focus of management for invasive phragmites may not need to focus on total eradication. Additional sampling would be required to document the spatial extent of native phragmites stands along the central Platte River.</p>

<p> Interest in renewable energy and governmental mandates has motivated land managers to consider cellulosic feedstocks for bioenergy. I investigated plant community response to a system including switchgrass (<i> Panicum virgatum</i>) as a feedstock intercropped with loblolly pine (<i>Pinus taeda</i>). I estimated plant species evenness, richness, and diversity and biomass production, with emphasis on white-tailed deer (<i> Odocoileus virginianus</i>) forages. I detected 225 species in 2,220 1-m² quadrats, and 7,495 biomass samples (96.4 kg dry weight) from 960 quadrats. Intercropping reduced plant species diversity, total non-pine tree biomass, and biomass of deer forages during switchgrass establishment. These effects were no longer apparent at treatment level two years after switchgrass establishment, except that deer browse and total deer forage biomass remained less in intercropped interbeds. Intercropping in managed pines may temporarily effect plant communities but further studies are needed to examine longer term effects and to quantify effects on nutritional carrying capacity for deer.</p>

<p> The extent of human disturbance is increasing, even in protected areas. I evaluated human disturbance impacts in Murchison Falls Conservation Area (MFCA), Uganda, a park in the Albertine Rift biodiversity hotspot, using two approaches. First, I quantified vegetation patterns and edge effects using remote sensing data in the MFCA interior, a boundary zone, and exterior zone. I observed abrupt changes in productivity between the park and adjacent unprotected areas, indicating a "hard edge", and found evidence of edge effects that extended 4-6 km into MFCA. Second, I evaluated the impact of restored oil pads, roads, the park boundary, and anthropogenic noise on mammal distribution using camera traps and occupancy modeling. Few species avoided, and some were attracted to, more disturbed sites, where restoration may have provided food resources. As human populations continue growing around MFCA and oil production begins, evaluating human disturbance impacts on the landscape will be increasingly important.</p>

This thesis focuses upon Clyde River Inuit knowledge, concerns, and attitudes to community tourism development and protected area establishment. The findings suggest that a cross-section of residents have a positive attitude toward community tourism development because it may provide local economic benefits. Residents also support the Igalirtuuq Conservation Proposal because it protects the endangered bowhead whale and its critical habitat, while at the same time stimulating tourism development. Clyde Inuit are reluctant to attribute social and environmental costs to these initiatives but are, nevertheless, able to point out some specific negative impacts that such projects might have on their village. Most felt that few problems would materialise as long as residents were intimately involved in all aspects of a controlled and gradual development. The study illustrates the importance of this type of community oriented approach in providing guidelines for tourism and conservation area development policy makers.

<p>Amphibian populations have been declining at higher rates than bird and mammal populations. Agriculture, urbanization, including roads, and resource extraction continue to put pressure on all species. Roads in particular, are major sources of mortality. The Santa Cruz long-toed salamander (<i> Ambystoma macrodactylum croceum</i>), one of the most critically endangered species in the US, is one amphibian that is declining as a result of anthropogenic impacts, especially habitat loss and fragmentation due to urban development. Migration across roads puts these salamanders at risk from road-related death. This thesis quantified the rate of road mortality to these salamanders and other common amphibians during two A. m. croceum breeding-migration seasons in 2011&ndash;13 in a portion of the subspecies' range. Vehicular traffic was a major source of mortality to the salamander. Through traffic doubled the overall vehicle load on roads where the <i>A. m. croceum</i> migrated to and from breeding ponds. The Pacific chorus frog was also killed on the roads. This common species can be used as an indicator of road mortality risk for rarer amphibians. This study indicated that measures to reduce road mortality to the Santa Cruz long-toed salamander could include restricting vehicular traffic on roads adjacent to salamander ponds by limiting traffic to residential use only during breeding migrations, installing structures to protect <i>A. m. croceum</i> while crossing roads, and potentially assisting animals crossing roads at nighttime during the breeding migrations. </p>

<p> Factors associated with rank position are poorly understood whereas even fewer studies assessed if benefits were associated with increased rank position when resources were unlimited. I assessed whether age, body mass, size, and testosterone levels were important in rank establishment among 132 captive female white-tailed deer (<i>Odocoileus virginianus</i>. I also assessed if the benefit metrics of improved body condition, decreased stress level, and earlier parturition date were related to rank position. Deer in each of 9 study pens had a linear hierarchy with a mean h' of 0.39 (SD = 0.09). Rank position was moderately related to age (P &lt; 0.1) and was strongly related to body mass and size (P &lt; 0.01). There was no relationship between benefit metrics and rank position (P &lt; 0.1). Although increased body mass, size, and age improved rank position there were no benefits associated with increased rank when resources were unlimited.</p>

<p> For mule deer (<i>Odocoileus hemionus</i>) in the Intermountain West, alterations to habitat are outpacing strategies to mitigate human disturbance on critical seasonal ranges and migration routes. </p><p> Conserving mule deer habitat requires cooperation between a diverse group of stakeholders, state wildlife agencies, and federal land management agencies. The first chapter of this thesis explores the current and historical relationship between state wildlife agencies, citizen stakeholders, and federal agencies in order to highlight opportunities to improve cooperative habitat conservation in the United States. Conservation is a result of social, political, and economic action, but relies upon science to inform policy. The second chapter explores the seasonal habitat use of mule deer in southwestern Wyoming. In response to low fawn recruitment, the Wyoming Game and Fish Department deployed 15 GPS collars on adult female mule deer in an effort to enhance knowledge of mule deer population dynamics, migrations, and habitat use. The study captured two winter climate regimes, with greater winter severity during the 2010-11 winter compared to the winter of 2011-12. Deer migrated an average of 23.9 km (SE = 2.2) between seasonal ranges, and completed spring migrations nearly one month earlier following the milder winter of 2011-12 (<i>t</i>19 = 5.53, df = 19, <i>P</i> &le; 0.001). Pooled, the average area of winter ranges (1057 ha, SE = 103, <i>n</i> = 26) was larger than summer ranges (423 ha, SE = 51 ha, <i>n</i> = 25) (<i>t</i> = &minus;5.44, df = 49, <i>P</i> &amp;le; 0.001), with no increase or decrease in size of seasonal ranges detected between years (<i>P</i> = 0.243) according to a post-hoc Tukey HSD test. Between years, deer were observed to shift the geographic center of winter ranges (2.9 km, SE = 1.1, <i> n</i> = 12) to a larger degree than summer ranges (0.4 km, SE = 0.1, <i> n</i> = 12) (<i>t</i> = &minus;2.20, df = 22, <i>P</i> = 0.040). Survival and pregnancy rates (86% and 96%, respectively) correlated closely with other mule deer studies, and neither factor appears to negatively impact population growth. </p><p> Identifying seasonal ranges and migration routes, and quantifying seasonal habitat use, will assist Wyoming Game and Fish Department efforts to protect mule deer seasonal habitats and migration routes, and direct vegetation manipulations intended to improve the nutritional quality of habitats. On average, winter ranges included a later percentage of shrub-dominated habitat (83.8%, SE = 0.3, <i>n</i> = 26) than summer ranges (57.5%, SE = 2.0, <i> n</i> = 25) (<i>t</i> = &minus;4.42, df = 49, <i>P</i> &le; 0.001). Summer ranges averaged a greater proportion of agricultural lands (2.8%, SE = 1.1, <i>n</i> = 25) and aspen (<i>Populus tremuloides </i>) habitats (9.0%, SE = 2.2, <i>n</i> = 25) than winter ranges (0.1%, SE = 0.1, <i>n</i> = 26 and 0.2%, SE = 0.0, <i> n</i> = 26, respectively) (<i>t</i> = 3.03, df = 49, <i>P</i> = 0.004 and <i>t</i>= 3.86, df = 49, <i> P</i> &le; 0.001, respectively). Mule deer ranges are primarily located on Bureau of Land Management (73%, SE = 2.8, <i>n</i> = 51) and privately owned (17.3%, SE = 2.9, <i>n</i> = 51) lands, highlighting opportunities for cooperative partnerships for mule deer habitat conservation. </p>

<p> Identity and intensity of parasitism have been shown to be correlated to the host genotype at the major histocompatibility complex (MHC), a genomic region involved in the adaptive immune response. However, the evolutionary mechanisms by which parasites exert a selective force on host immune systems are unknown. This thesis investigates the relationship between parasitism and MHC genotype in two bear populations in Southcentral Alaska. We diagnosed infection using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR), targeting the ribosomal subunit of 18S of common blood parasites. Parasitism was detected in half of brown bears and 75% of black bears. We detected <i>Eimeria</i> spp. and several species of apicomplexan and nematode parasites, and we report here the first finding of <i>Trypanosoma cruzi</i> in Alaskan bears. We found no association between MHC genotype and identity or intensity of infection, suggesting that other loci or even non-genetic factors are important covariates in predicting infection status.</p>