Top predators in aquatic ecosystems often have strong top-down effects on the ecosystem. Northern pike (Esox lucius) has been documented to cause whitefish (Coregonus lavaretus) populations to diverge into different ecomorphs. This can facilitate piscivory in other predators as a novel resource becomes available to them in the form of dwarf whitefish. The aim of this study is to examine whether the presence of pike causes Eurasian perch (Perca fluviatilis) to shift their diet from insectivory to piscivory, and whether this is directly driven by whitefish polymorphism. Stomach contents of 147 perch from lakes with and without pikes were analyzed. The results show that the presence of pike has a clear influence on the diet of the perch. In lakes without pike, perch are mostly insectivorous, and in lakes with pike, they are mostly piscivorous. This diet shift appears to be driven by whitefish availability, as a majority of the diet of perch in pike lakes consisted of whitefish, while none of the fish eaten by perch in non-pike lakes was whitefish. In addition, the results showed that perch undergo the diet shift from insectivory to piscivory at a smaller size when coexisting with pike. This study can be added to the growing body of evidence for the ecological significance of pike.

Social intelligence is thought to have evolved as an adaptation to the complex situations group-living animals encounter in their daily lives. High levels of sociality provide individuals with opportunities to learn from one another. Social learning provides individuals with a relatively cheap and quick alternative to individual learning. This thesis investigated social learning in three corvid species: gregarious rooks (Corvus frugilegus) and jackdaws (Corvus monedula) and nongregarious, territorial Eurasian jays (Garrulus glandarius). In addition to that, the species' social structure was analysed and individual differences between members of each species were determined. Introducing the field of social learning research, I presented a new framework for investigating social learning, combining ecology, ethology and evolution. Experiments were conducted within that framework. I found that rooks and jackdaws develop social bonds and dominance hierarchies, whereas Eurasian jays do not. This is most likely related to their territoriality. In two experiments using two-action tasks, jackdaws learned socially. The underlying social learning mechanism was enhancement, which fits in with their feeding ecology. Rooks did not show social learning when presented with videos of conspecifics opening an apparatus. This might have been due to the difficulty of transferring information from videos or due to an ingrained 'affinity' to innovation and/or rapid trial-and-error learning overriding social learning processes. Individual differences along the bold/shy axis existed in all three species, but they were not stable across contexts. Thus, it seemed that the individuals perceived the two seemingly similar contexts that were designed to investigate neophobia and exploration (novel object in familiar environment; novel environment) as two different situations. The information may therefore have been processed by two distinct underlying mechanisms, which elicited different responses in each of the contexts. The implications of the findings of this thesis are discussed with regard to the new framework, integrating sociality, social learning and individual differences with the species' ecology.

Collapse of Soviet Union caused a snap in relations between ex-soviet states, but simultaneously started the new wave of integration collaboration. This wave brings us such integrations as CIS, EurAsEC, Customs Union, Common Economic Space. Eurasian union, which is planning to become fully functional in 2015, becomes the most real of what happened in this field before. Main goal of diploma thesis is to find out, how could Eurasian union work in connection with organization moments of other deep integrations. Can Eurasian union become a deep integration? Other goal is to find out economic possibilities of integration development due to results of research, and suggest improvements of present situation. Last goal is to discover the way of developing of external trade policy and to determine the role of Eurasian union in the world.

An option is a contract between two parties where the holder has the option to buy or sell some underlying asset after a predefined exercise time. Options where the holder only has the right to buy or sell at the exercise time is said to be of European-style, while options that can be exercised any time before the exercise time is said to be of American-style. Asian options are options where the payoff is determined by some average value of the underlying asset, e.g., the arithmetic or the geometric average. For arithmetic Asian options, there are no closed-form pricing formulas, and one must apply numerical methods. Several methods have been proposed and tested for Asian options. For example, the Monte Carlo method isslowforEuropean-styleAsianoptionsandnotapplicableforAmerican-styleAsian options. In contrast, the finite difference method have successfully been applied to price both European- and American-style Asian options. But from a financial point of view, one is also interested in different measures of sensitivity, called the Greeks, which are hard approximate with the finite difference method. For more accurate approximations of the Greeks, researchers have turned to the finite element method with promising results for European-style Asian options. However, the finite element method has never been applied to American-style Asian options, which still lack accurate approximations of the Greeks. Here we present a study of pricing European- and American-style Asian options using the finite element method. For European-style options, we consider two different pricing PDEs. The first equation we consider is a convection-dominated problem, which we solve by applying the so-called streamline-diffusion method. The second equation comes from modelling Asian options as options on a traded account, which we solve by using the so-called cG(1)cG(1) method. For American-style options, the model based on options on a traded account is not applicable. Therefore, we must consider the first convection-dominated problem. To handle American-style options, we study two different methods, a penalty method and the projected successive over-relaxation method. For European-style Asian options, both approaches give good results, but the model based on options on a traded account show more accurate results. For American-style Asian options, the penalty method give accurate results. Meanwhile, the projected successive over-relaxation method does not converge properly for the tested parameters. Our result is a first step towards an accurate and fast method to calculate the price and the Greeks of both European- and American-style Asian options. Because good estimations of the Greeks are crucial when hedging and trading of options, we anticipate that the ideas presented in this work can lead to new ways of trading with Asian options.

The diploma thesis analyzes the European, Czech and Russian standards and requirements for ensuring safety of machinery and methodical process to ensure safety through certification of machinery and centrifugal pumps specially introduced onto the market in the Eurasian Economic Union and the Russian Federation. The first part describes the legislative documents, their properties and the current legislative requirements of EU and EAES. In the second part is an analysis and described comparison of legislative safety requirements of the European Union, the Czech Republic, the Eurasian Economic Union and the Russian Federation. In the third part is described comparison of standards, and were made updates. In the practical part is an analysis of risks pump manufacturer "SIGMA GROUP" according to the requirements EAES and proposed methods for reducing risk prevention. Also in the practical part is analyzed and is created methodical preparation of certification of machinery and pumps placed on the market in the Eurasian Economic Union and the Russian Federation.

Recreational fishing is a very important leisure activity and one of the most important ways how humans influence freshwater habitats and wild fish populations. Both fish-eating predators and socio-economic trends play a major role in recreational fishing. This thesis found that the Eurasian otter feeds mainly of small (5-10 g) and very abundant fish species of low angling value. In this case, gudgeon Gobio gobio dominated in the otter diet. The overlap between catches of otters and anglers was very low, and commercially important salmonids made up only 10 % of the otter diet by biomass. Cormorants also prey mostly on smaller (10-100 g) a very abundant fish species. In this case, roach Rutilus rutilus dominated in the cormorant diet. The overlap between catches of cormorants and anglers was also quite low. Commercially important fish species made up less than 10 % of the cormorant diet. Even though cormorants consume mostly smaller fish, they are potentially removing fish that serve as prey for piscivores, and they are also removing smaller fish that would grow into angling size. The Atlantic salmon Salmo salar reintroduction programme has not yet been successful. However, cormorant predation is not the main reason for its low success. The main problem is somewhere on the lower River Elbe in...

The Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) emerged more than one year ago but so far there has been no consensus on the nature and the main aspects of the cooperation. Whereas some observers underline pure economic incentives of the integration, others see the regional organization as a tool for increasing the power of the strongest members, and especially Russia. Strongly echoed in public discourse is a comparison to the former Soviet Union. To tackle the issue, the thesis asks: What are the main motives for participation in the project? Which main benefits are expected by the members to be gained? These questions are answered through a content analysis of verbal expressions of five presidents who hold the main decision-making powers in EEU's member states. Based on theoretically generated analytical categories, the thesis conducts a quantitative analysis of the discourse, which is then discussed in the context of the post-Soviet space. The findings reveal the motives which the presidents use to legitimize the membership and show the main cleavages that threaten to undermine the development of the organization.

Sparvugglan (Glaucidium passerinum) är en invasionsfågel som uppvisar årliga fluktuationer i sina invasioner vid Hammarö Fågelstation. Invasioner av denna art utlöses vanligtvis av brist på föda tidigt under hösten, vilket kan orsaka att hundratals fåglar migrerar på ett oförutsägbart sätt. Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka vilka ekologiska faktorer som ligger bakom detta beteende, och om invasioner vid Hammarö Fågelstation sker samtidigt som invasioner i övriga Sverige. Hypoteserna var att 1) sparvugglefångst uppvisar ingen årlig trend vid Hammarö Fågelstation, 2) sparvugglans populationstrender sammanfaller inte med andra ugglors trender, 3) det finns en korrelation mellan sparvugglans populationstrender vid Hammarö Fågelstation och övriga Sverige, och 4) det finns ett samband mellan sparvugglors populationstrender vid Hammarö Fågelstation och årliga fluktueringar i sorkpopulationer samt andra ekologiska faktorer såsom årlig temperatur och snötäcke. Data samlades in från Hammarö Fågelstations årsrapporter över fångst och ringmärkning av migratoriska fågelarter, och data som uppskattar populationstrender över hela Sverige inhämtades från Svensk Fågeltaxering. Korrelationstester utfördes på dessa parametrar mot sorkpopulationer och andra ekologiska faktorer. Studien fann en positiv korrelation mellan sparvugglefångst på Hammarö och populationstrender från hela Sverige under vintermånaderna. Det fanns även en positiv korrelation mellan årliga fluktuationer i sorkpopulationer vid Vindeln och fångst av sparvuggla i Hammarö. Inga korrelationer hittades när sparvugglefångst mättes mot miljömässiga faktorer. Dessa resultat stämmer överens med tidigare litteratur över området, och öppnar för möjligheter till ny forskning gällande miljö- och beteendemässiga aspekter av invasionsmigratoriska mönster, som ännu är en dåligt förstådd aspekt av fågelbeteende. / The Eurasian pygmy owl (Glaucidium passerinum) is an irruptive migrant that shows yearly fluctuations in its invasions at Hammarö Bird Station, Värmland, Sweden. Invasions in this species are usually triggered by a shortage in food supply during early autumn, which can cause hundreds of birds to migrate in an unpredictable manner. The purpose of this study was to explore what ecological factors cause this behaviour, and if invasions at Hammarö Bird Station occur during the same years as invasions in the rest of Sweden. The hypotheses were that: 1) Eurasian pygmy owl captures at Hammarö Bird Station show no inter-annual trend, 2) Eurasian pygmy owl invasions are not correlated with captures of other owl species, 3) there is a correlation between population trends of the Eurasian pygmy owl at Hammarö Bird Station and trends in the rest of Sweden, and 4) there is a correlation between Eurasian pygmy owl captures and annual fluctuations in vole population as well as other environmental factors such as yearly temperature and snow cover. Data was collected from Hammarö Bird Stations annual review of capture and ringing of migratory bird species, and data approximating population trends nationwide were collected from “Svensk Fågeltaxering”. Correlation tests were conducted on these parameters against vole populations and other ecological factors. The study found a positive correlation between owl captures at Hammarö and population trends from all of Sweden during the winter. A positive correlation was also found between annual vole population fluctuations in Vindeln, Västerbotten and owl captures at Hammarö. No correlations were found when measuring owl captures against environmental factors. These results coincide with previous literature on the subject, and open up possibilities for future research regarding the environmental and behavioral aspects of irruptive migration patterns, which is still a poorly-understood aspect of bird behaviour.

No description available.

The eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx) has a wide distribution and occurs in the palearctic region. In Europe, the lynx has been persecuted and exterminated from several of its natural distribution areas and has also been subject to persecution in Sweden, where a high hunting pressure led to a reduced population that almost went extinct. Today, the Swedish lynx population has recovered but is kept down by licensed hunting, which is strictly controlled due to the lynx's protection status. However, Sweden's government has backed a proposal for reduced protection that could potentially lead to higher hunting quotas and thus threaten the lynx's future, because of predators’ vulnerability to high hunting pressures and smaller populations’ vulnerability to stochastic events such as catastrophes. The purpose of this study was to investigate the development of the Swedish lynx population and how high the risk of extinction is now, with increased hunting quotas and if catastrophes would occur both with current hunting quotas and increased hunting quotas. Based on the purpose, the questions that were answered were the following: 1) What does the population development and extinction risk look like for the Swedish lynx population in the next 100 years with current hunting quotas? 2) How do higher hunting quotas affect the Swedish lynx population development and extinction risk in the next 100 years? 3) How would catastrophes with current hunting quotas and increased hunting quotas affect the Swedish lynx population development and extinction risk in the next 100 years? The questions were answered through a population viability analysis performed in Vortex 10 where four scenarios were created. In scenario 1, the null scenario, the Swedish lynx population development and extinction risk over 100 years were investigated in relation to current hunting quotas. In scenario 2, the Swedish lynx population development and extinction risk over 100 years were investigated in relation to current hunting quotas and catastrophes. In scenario 3, the Swedish lynx population development and extinction risk over 100 years were investigated in relation to increased hunting quotas. In scenario 4, the Swedish lynx population development and extinction risk over 100 years were investigated in relation to increased hunting quotas and catastrophes. The scenarios with the largest and smallest average population size after 100 years were scenario 1 and scenario 4, respectively. The growth rate was highest and lowest for scenario 1 and scenario 4, respectively. Scenarios 2, 3 and 4 had a negative growth rate. The extinction risk for scenarios 1 and 2 was 0% and scenarios 3 and 4 had an extinction risk of 1%. To conclude, the results indicate that the current hunting quotas do not threaten the Swedish lynx population, but that catastrophes have a negative impact on population growth at current hunting quotas, and that the increased hunting quotas have a negative impact as they result in a reduced population and a negative growth rate both with and without catastrophes. / Det eurasiska lodjuret (Lynx lynx) har en vid utbredning och förekommer i den palearktiska regionen. Lodjuret har i Europa förföljts och utrotats från flera av dess naturliga utbredningsområden och även i Sverige har lodjuret varit utsatt för förföljelse där ett högt jakttryck ledde till en minskad population som nästan utrotades. Idag har den svenska lodjursstammen återhämtat sig men hålls nere genom licensjakt, som är strikt kontrollerad på grund av lodjurets skyddsstatus. Däremot har Sveriges regering ställt sig bakom ett förslag till minskat skydd som potentiellt kan leda till högre jaktkvoter och därmed hota lodjurets framtid eftersom rovdjur är sårbara för höga jakttryck, samt att mindre populationer är mer sårbara för slumpmässiga händelser såsom katastrofer. Syftet med arbetet var att undersöka den svenska lodjursstammens utveckling och utdöenderisk i nuläget, vid förhöjda jaktkvoter, samt om katastrofer skulle inträffa vid nuvarande jaktkvoter respektive förhöjda jaktkvoter. Utifrån syftet besvarades följande frågeställningar: 1) Hur ser populationsutvecklingen och utdöenderisken ut för den svenska lodjursstammen under kommande 100 år med nuvarande jaktkvoter? 2) Hur påverkar högre jaktkvoter den svenska lodjursstammens populationsutveckling och utdöenderisk under kommande 100 år? 3) Hur skulle katastrofer vid nuvarande jaktkvoter respektive förhöjda jaktkvoter påverka den svenska lodjursstammens populationsutveckling och utdöenderisk under kommande 100 år? Frågeställningarna besvarades genom en sårbarhetsanalys som utfördes i Vortex 10 där fyra scenarier skapades. I scenario 1, grundscenariot, undersöktes den svenska lodjursstammens populationsutveckling och utdöenderisk över 100 år i förhållande till nuvarande jaktkvoter. I scenario 2 undersöktes den svenska lodjursstammens populationsutveckling och utdöenderisk över 100 år i förhållande till nuvarande jaktkvoter och katastrofer. I scenario 3 undersöktes den svenska lodjursstammens populationsutveckling och utdöenderisk över 100 år i förhållande till förhöjda jaktkvoter. I scenario 4 undersöktes den svenska lodjursstammens populationsutveckling och utdöenderisk över 100 år i förhållande till förhöjda jaktkvoter och katastrofer. Största respektive minsta genomsnittlig populationsstorlek efter 100 år fick scenario 1 respektive scenario 4. Tillväxthastigheten var högst respektive lägst för scenario 1 respektive scenario 4. Scenario 2, 3 och 4 hade alla en negativ tillväxthastighet. Utdöenderisken för scenario 1 och 2 blev 0% och scenario 3 och 4 hade en utdöenderisk på 1%. Resultaten tyder på att de nuvarande jaktkvoterna inte hotar den svenska lodjursstammen men att katastrofer ger en negativ påverkan på populationstillväxten vid nuvarande jaktkvoter, samt att de förhöjda jaktkvoterna har en negativ påverkan då de ger en minskad population och en negativ tillväxthastighet både med och utan katastrofer.