Thesis (M.S.) in Wildlife Ecology--University of Maine, 2005. / Includes vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 60-64).

No description available.

The primary purpose of the thesis is to evaluate the need for a container handling facility in the Port of Vancouver. During the late 1960's, the shipping industry has been urging construction of a container berth to protect its position against losing traffic to nearby ports which already have container facilities in operation. The National Harbours Board, on the other hand, has been reluctant to commit funds to a long-term project for construction and operating of a facility when the need for a facility is still poorly defined. The majority of claims by either the shipping industry or the port authority have been based on observation and in no instance has an in-depth study been presented covering all aspects that would support the contentions of either side. The study reviews the history of containerization in world trade and describes the developments in containerization at major seaports. Criteria for port planning are discussed, followed by a review of containerization taking place in Canadian ports. Recent studies undertaken to forecast potential containerizable cargo were examined to determine the significance of containerization in the intermodal systems and to highlight developments in world trade, fleet expansion, and in port planning. The studies also provided a framework in which to develop the method for determining the potential container traffic in Vancouver. The method, described herein as a Container Calculation Model, determines the potential containerizable tonnage and number of containerloads in major trade routes serving Vancouver. Input data for all import-export commodities on a route-by-route basis were obtained from the National Harbours Board. Each commodity was classified by its suitability to containerization by using both economic and physical criteria. Results of the Container Calculation Model showed the maximum number of loaded containers which would have been handled in the Port of Vancouver during 1967 would have been 87,700 20-foot containers. This includes both inbound and outbound traffic for all classes of containerization. In terms of total potential tonnage, the port would have handled 785,000 tons import, and 381,000 tons export in containers. Total import tons amounted to 1,969,000 tons of which 39.9 per cent was potentially containerizable. Only 3.5 per cent of 12,130,000 tons outbound was suitable for containerization. In the study, only 'Prime' commodities are used as the basis of evaluation of a container facility. During 1967, 43,100 units would have been handled on thirteen major trade routes. Japan, Europe, and Southeast Asia account for the majority of traffic. In terms of containerloads, the overall imbalance is almost 5:1 in favour of inbound traffic. On the Orient route, the imbalance is 10:1. Results of the computer analysis for potential containerized cargo was compared with the volume of actual container traffic during 1967, 1968 and early 1969. In 1967, only about two per cent of the potential was being realized. In terms of both container tonnage and number of containerloads, the study concluded that there is a definite potential for increased container traffic in the Port of Vancouver 'Prime' container traffic is sufficient to consider one container berth, served by one container crane, and thirty acres of backup area. One container berth would be sufficient to handle port requirements up until at least the mid 1970's. / Business, Sauder School of / Graduate

Snug Harbor is a collection of poetry dealing with a collective working history and the personal working history of growing up in various restaurants around Upstate New York.

The waters off the west coast of Scotland have one of the highest densities of harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) in Europe. Harbour porpoise are listed under Annex II of the EU Habitats Directive, requiring the designation of Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) for the species’ protection and conservation. The main aim of this thesis is to identify habitat preferences for harbour porpoise, and key regions that embody these preferences, which could therefore be suitable as SACs; and to determine how harbour porpoise use these regions over time and space. Designed visual and acoustic line-transect surveys were conducted between 2003 and 2008. Generalised Estimating Equations (GEEs) were used to determine relationships between the relative density of harbour porpoise and temporally and spatially variable oceanographic covariates. Predictive models showed that depth, slope, distance to land and spring tidal range were all important in explaining porpoise distribution. There were also significant temporal variations in habitat use. However, whilst some variation was observed among years and months, consistent preferences for water depths between 50 and 150 m and highly sloped regions were observed across the temporal models. Predicted surfaces revealed a consistent inshore distribution for the species throughout the west coast of Scotland. Regional models revealed similar habitat preferences to the full-extent models, and indicated that the Small Isles and Sound of Jura were the most consistently important regions for harbour porpoise, and that these regions could be suitable as SACs. The impacts of seal scarers on distribution and habitat use were also investigated, and there were indications that these devices have the potential to displace harbour porpoise. These results should be considered in the assessment of sites for SAC designation, and in implementing appropriate conservation measures for harbour porpoise.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of California, Davis, 2002. / Includes bibliographical references. Also available via the World Wide Web. (Restricted to UC campuses).

Thesis (M. Sc.)--University of Hong Kong, 1994. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M. Phil.)--University of Hong Kong, 1995. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 123-126).

It has been assumed that the considerable dispersal ability of many marine species would prevent genetic divergence in the absence of geographic isolation. However, recent work has shown that many marine species often develop differentiation among areas within their known dispersal range. This 'paradox' of marine divergence is particularly important among marine mammal species where behavior can restrict gene flow. To investigate genetic substructure within such a species, I used tissue samples collected from 63 stranded Pacific harbor seals (Phoca vitulina richardsi) in Washington and Oregon between 2006 and 2010 for population stock analysis. DNA was extracted from frozen tissues, and a 551 bp fragment of mtDNA control region sequence and eight microsatellite loci were amplified to investigate localized genetic structure. Minimum spanning network and haplotype frequency analyses of mtDNA sequences indicated that while haplotype lineages are not isolated within a sampling region, there is some evidence of regional differentiation. On the other hand, microsatellite data suggest a lack of substructure among the animals sampled, with only a weak signal of limited gene flow between Puget Sound and coastal areas. Biased dispersal among age classes was also suggested, with juveniles showing less differentiation among areas than adults. Regardless of the historical scenario which has led to this complex pattern of genetic structure in Pacific harbor seals across the Pacific Northwest, my results suggest higher levels of exchange among areas than previously suspected, and will have important consequences for future management considerations for these stocks.

Conventional methods for health assessment of wild-caught and stranded seals were used to describe the disease status of harbor seals in California. Clinical chemistry, infectious disease prevalence, immune function, and contaminant data were collected to evaluate harbor seal health with data collected from three groups of seals. Wild-caught seals of all ages were sampled at two locations: San Francisco Bay (a heavily urbanized estuary) and Tomales Bay (a less developed control site). Stranded seals entered rehabilitation from a more extensive portion of the California coast which included the locations where seals were caught. Hematology reference intervals were generated to provide a baseline for health assessment among the seals. Individual variability in blood variables among seals was affected by age, sex, location, and girth. Disease surveillance focused on pathogens known to cause lesions in harbor seals, zoonoses, and those with terrestrial sources. Specific pathogens of interest were E coli, Clostridium perfringens, Vibrio spp, Campylobacter spp, Salmonella, Giardia, Cryptosporidium, avian influenza virus, Brucella, Leptospira spp., Toxoplasma gondii, Sarcocystis neurona, and Neospora caninum, Leptospira spp, and phocine and canine distemper virus. There was evidence of exposure to all pathogens except for phocine distemper virus. Simple measures of immune response were used to evaluate the immune function of harbor seal pups in rehabilitation that had evidence of previous bacterial infection. The swelling response to a subcutaneous injection of phytohemagglutinin (PHA) was positively associated with growth rate, possibly illustrating the energetic trade-offs between growth and immunity. Blubber contaminant concentrations (PCBs, DDTs, PBDEs, CHLDs, and HCHs) in harbor seal pups were grouped by extent of suckling and strand location. The ratio of PCB:DDT was increased in San Francisco Bay and decreased in Monterey Bay compared with other locations along the coast. Pups that weaned in the wild, lost weight and then stranded had the highest contaminant levels, equivalent to the concentrations detected in stranded adult harbor seals. Dispersal and survival were monitored by satellite telemetry in harbor seal pups released from rehabilitation and recently weaned wild-caught pups to assess the effect of condition, health, and contaminant levels on survival probability. Increased contaminant levels and decreased thyroxine (T4) were associated with decreased survival probability. Increased mass, particularly among the rehabilitated pups, was associated with increased survival probability. This study demonstrates that health and survival of harbor seals pups along the central California coast are impacted by human activities such as contaminant disposal, pathogen pollution and boat traffic, although the variability in individual health measures requires carefully designed studies to detect these effects.