The land use problem that exists in Cathedral Park and the area on either side has been described and enough background information has been obtained to identify the existing problems and propose possible solutions. Cathedral Park was created as a Class 'A' Provincial Park in 1968, mainly due to the efforts of a Parks Society, the Okanagan-Similkameen Parks Society (OSPS). The 18,217 acres included at present in the Park are considered by the Society to be insufficient to afford adequate protection to the delicate features in the Park. It has been suggested that a buffer zone would, among other things, provide the required protection, would enlarge the Park to meet future increased demands for outdoor recreation areas, and through the use of natural boundaries would facilitate the management of the area for recreation. The OSPS has proposed that the present Park boundaries be extended to include an area of about 83,000 acres. On both sides of the Park, grazing and forestry are at present in practice. There also are a few mineral claims. Most of the region's natural resource users would rather see a combined use made of this area with recreation, grazing, and forestry being practiced simultaneously. To protect their interests they have grouped themselves into the British Columbia Interior Resource Users Council. The conflict between the preservationists (recreationists) and the traditional resource users has been in existance for a few years with both organizations exerting pressure on the government at different levels. This thesis sums up the situation and after an overall look at the problem proposes solutions to the conflict. Initially it was intended to evaluate economically several alternatives, but as the situation was studied in depth, new problems unrelated to the economics of the different alternatives emerged. Because many aspects are social and political the economics of this land use problem have been relegated to a secondary position. Revenues that would be lost as a result of reservation of the 83,000 acres for recreation and exclusion of other natural resource users, are important nonetheless. They ought to play an important role in developing solutions to the problem and are associated with several long standing contractual obligations to resource users that should not be dismissed lightly. In the initial stages of research many references were consulted. Once a general idea had been obtained of the problems and groups involved in the conflict, several trips were made to the region and taperecordings were made of interviews held. Four visits were made to the Park in order to gain familiarity with the area. Correspondence was maintained with government officials and concerned parties. As a result of the investigation it was concluded that at present it would be politically difficult and probably socially and economically undesirable to increase park acreage. It is suggested an integrated use of the area be practiced and that it be used as a case study in which the government can demonstrate its capacity to anticipate, meet, and solve land use problems effectively. / Forestry, Faculty of / Graduate

This thesis studies the use and management of a portion of the backcountry in Manning Provincial Park, located 140 miles east of the Vancouver area. Like many other North American wildlands near urban centres. Manning Park is experiencing increased pressure due to population growth in the surrounding area and the current popularity of hiking and camping activities. Demand for backcountry recreation areas appears to be increasing faster than new lands are added to park systems. The result: trails and campsites become more crowded, with possible negative effects on both the physical environment and on the "wilderness experience" of hikers. Environmental quality deterioration, which may indicate that a given area's biophysical carrying capacity has been exceeded, can include pollution of streams, presence of litter, and the chopping of live trees for firewood. Psychological consequences of heavy use have been recognized more recently as important for backcountry management. These refer to the hiker's tolerance for other humans in the area, for some backpackers the wilderness experience is enhanced by social encounters, while for certain individuals, the mere evidence of another camping party can ruin a trip. Little information on Manning Park's backcountry— biophysical characteristics and problems, and visitor numbers, types and needs—has been collected. Additionally, it is felt managers and planners have not given adequate attention to the preferences and opinions of backcountry visitors. Thus, the following steps were undertaken: 1) An examination of various management choices available in planning for backcountry hiking areas, through a review of relevant literature; 2) A case study of the backcountry of Manning Park, focusing on the Heather Trail. First, data were obtained regarding visitors--their backgrounds, preferences for backcountry facilities, numbers of visitors, and management alternatives. Half-hour personal interviews were conducted at campsites in the summer of 1975, followed up with mailed questionnaires in October 1975. Second, information about present management practices, planned future developments, and the opinions of managers on backcountry use and development, was obtained. Personal interviews were conducted with naturalists, administrators, and planners, and the conceptual plan developed fox the area by the Parks Branch planners was examined. 3) Suggestion of practicable management procedures which would help to create a backcountry environment meeting user needs and desires, while aiding in the maintenance of environmental quality. The case study revealed that managers lack the data on use levels, visitor opinions, and environmental conditions, which would greatly assist future management and planning efforts. Visitors, too, lack information concerning the park, its features, and facilities. Additionally, they are not exposed to information about the proper types of behaviour, those least likely to damage the biophysical environment. Two primary reasons exist for this deficiency: the park supplies little information, and visitors tend to avoid the Nature House, thus not receiving the available information. The following recommendations were set forward: 1) That a hiker registration system be implemented; 2) That mere extensive information be made available, and that visitors be encouraged to take advantage of it; *3 That a naturalist be hired to hike the Heather Trail loop during peak use times; *4 That unobtrusive physical measures be taken to curb trail erosion and widening; *5 That a new lec-p trail be constructed connecting the Three Brothers peaks; and *6 That park managers participate in seminars and workshops dealing with biophysical and psychological carrying capacity problems in the backccuntry, and various workable solutions to them. / Applied Science, Faculty of / Community and Regional Planning (SCARP), School of / Graduate

Holocene patterns of sediment yield reconstructed from sediments in four lakes are used to assess the geomorphic sensitivity of four alpine-subalpine basins in Cathedral Provincial Park, British Columbia. A three stage process was used to assess basin sensitivity. Stage one involved appraisal of the potential generalisability over the landscape of the results to be derived from the lake basins. The four lakes, Quiniscoe , Glacier, Pyramid and Lake of the Woods lie at or just below treeline. Glacier, Pyramid and Quiniscoe lakes lie in cirque basins. Slope frequency analyses show that whilst slopes in these basins are representative of those in the cirques of Cathedral park they differ significantly from the wider landscape. Stage two of the process involved identification of Holocene variability in the sediment yield record. Cores from each of the lakes were correlated using magnetic susceptibility measurements and lithostratigraphy to define chronostratigraphic units. The mass of allochthonous mineral sediment deposited in each of these units was estimated using measured sediment density, carbonate content, loss on ignition, and biogenic silica. Sediment yield to the lake for each unit was calculated based on dating of zone boundaries, estimates of trap efficiency, and the mineral mass estimate. In order to identify significant variations in the record, a new method was developed for estimating error associated sediment yield estimates derived from lake sediments. Sediment yield estimates were compared with the published Holocene climate record to make an initial assessment of sensitivity. Stage three involved discriminating between true sensitivity to climate change in the record and coincidental correlation. The approach was to identify process linkages between the observed changes in sediment yield and the climate change record. Two methods of inferring process were used. Firstly process change was inferred directly from the sedimentology of the lake sediments. Secondly magnetic and mineralogical characterisations of lake and catchment sediments were used to identify changing sediment sources. The results show considerable variability in the patterns of Holocene sediment yield amongst the study basins. In particular, Glacier and Quiniscoe Lakes show a marked increase in sediment yield under cooler conditions ca. 3390 BP, which is not apparent at Pyramid and Lake of the Woods. The increase is driven by increased surface erosion in the two higher basins under cooler conditions, and with retreating treeline. The results suggest that the sensitivity of alpine and subalpine basins is both temporally and spatially contingent. The links between climate change, process change and variation in sediment yield are not simple, rather they is mediated by a series of 'resistances'. The variability in sediment yield was compared with the variable nature of the catchments and four important controls were identified: Sediment production, vegetation, relief, and the extent of fluvial development in the catchment. Maximum sensitivity was observed in steep ecotonal sites with a well developed fluvial system.

Holocene patterns of sediment yield reconstructed from sediments in four lakes are used to assess the geomorphic sensitivity of four alpine-subalpine basins in Cathedral Provincial Park, British Columbia. A three stage process was used to assess basin sensitivity. Stage one involved appraisal of the potential generalisability over the landscape of the results to be derived from the lake basins. The four lakes, Quiniscoe , Glacier, Pyramid and Lake of the Woods lie at or just below treeline. Glacier, Pyramid and Quiniscoe lakes lie in cirque basins. Slope frequency analyses show that whilst slopes in these basins are representative of those in the cirques of Cathedral park they differ significantly from the wider landscape. Stage two of the process involved identification of Holocene variability in the sediment yield record. Cores from each of the lakes were correlated using magnetic susceptibility measurements and lithostratigraphy to define chronostratigraphic units. The mass of allochthonous mineral sediment deposited in each of these units was estimated using measured sediment density, carbonate content, loss on ignition, and biogenic silica. Sediment yield to the lake for each unit was calculated based on dating of zone boundaries, estimates of trap efficiency, and the mineral mass estimate. In order to identify significant variations in the record, a new method was developed for estimating error associated sediment yield estimates derived from lake sediments. Sediment yield estimates were compared with the published Holocene climate record to make an initial assessment of sensitivity. Stage three involved discriminating between true sensitivity to climate change in the record and coincidental correlation. The approach was to identify process linkages between the observed changes in sediment yield and the climate change record. Two methods of inferring process were used. Firstly process change was inferred directly from the sedimentology of the lake sediments. Secondly magnetic and mineralogical characterisations of lake and catchment sediments were used to identify changing sediment sources. The results show considerable variability in the patterns of Holocene sediment yield amongst the study basins. In particular, Glacier and Quiniscoe Lakes show a marked increase in sediment yield under cooler conditions ca. 3390 BP, which is not apparent at Pyramid and Lake of the Woods. The increase is driven by increased surface erosion in the two higher basins under cooler conditions, and with retreating treeline. The results suggest that the sensitivity of alpine and subalpine basins is both temporally and spatially contingent. The links between climate change, process change and variation in sediment yield are not simple, rather they is mediated by a series of 'resistances'. The variability in sediment yield was compared with the variable nature of the catchments and four important controls were identified: Sediment production, vegetation, relief, and the extent of fluvial development in the catchment. Maximum sensitivity was observed in steep ecotonal sites with a well developed fluvial system. / Arts, Faculty of / Geography, Department of / Graduate

This study investigates the distribution and functional guild structure of the bee community in hardwood stands of Algonquin Provincial Park under different logging regimes, assessing both the role of different aspects of the habitat in affecting this distribution and structure, as well as the use of different sampling techniques. The distribution of bee individuals and species was most dependent on the abundance of raspberry (Rubus strigosus), an important floral and nesting resource. Also of importance were total floral resources, microclimate, and habitat heterogeneity. The functional guild structure of the bee community, which was relatively resilient to habitat variation, was related to a greater variety of factors, reflecting wide-ranging behaviours and requirements of different guilds. Malaise traps, pan traps and nets varied in their effectiveness at collecting different bee genera and a high percentage of species were collected only with one trap type. Malaise traps performed relatively poorly in forested environments, though very well in more disturbed, open habitats. Pan traps and nets performed better in forested environments. Trap nests were an inefficient sampling technique in forests, but were effective at collecting some species of cavity-nesting bees. These findings underline the importance of raspberry for bee communities of northern hardwood forests, and the importance of heterogeneity, both of habitat types and sampling techniques, to attain the highest species richness of bees.

No description available.

No description available.

Habitat selection by, ecological energetics of, and the effects of changes in white pine (Pinus strobus L.) forests on Red Crossbills (Loxia curvirostra) were studied in Algonquin Provincial Park, Ontario. Birds were surveyed in several forest habitats and daily activities were observed during the breeding season in the autumn of 1998, a good year for white pine seed production. During the autumn of 1997 and summer of 1998, surveys of white pine stumps from trees harvested in the mid-late 1800s were conducted. Breeding birds foraged in stands with a minimum of 40% white pine, and appeared to prefer stands, both mixed deciduous-coniferous (40--70% white pine) and pine (>70% white pine) along roads. Possible reasons for this were: (1) seeds from trees along the road were more available to birds; (2) open-grown trees along the road had larger crowns with more seeds; and (3) the road provided grit and was adjacent to a favorite foraging area. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)

The Slate Islands caribou (Rangifer tarandis caribou) is an insular population which has experienced several population crashes and has been described as likely to succumb to extirpation. While a great deal of research has been conducted on mainland woodland caribou, factors which influence caribou distributions may differ between island and main land populations. In this thesis, I investigate relationships between habitat, landscape, anthropogenic features, population size, predation and spatial distribution of woodland caribou across the Slate Islands Provincial Park (Ontario) at the forest-patch spatial scale. Generalized linear models were used to compare observed caribou locations to available locations across the park, based on data from 1978 to 1995. Results indicated that the Slate Islands caribou selected deciduous cover, larger forest patches, areas further to water, flatter areas, lower elevations and areas closer to anthropogenic features. Population size had a limited effect on caribou distributions. / October 2015

The purpose of this study was to develop management guidelines to ensure the long term ecological sustainability of the beach and sand dune area of Grand Beach Provincial Park. A qualitative approach was taken including interviews of individuals who use Grand Beach. A literature review was completed describing the history of use at Grand Beach Provincial Park, ecological processes specific to the park, and management guidelines in other jurisdictions in Canada with similar natural features. Aerial imagery provided a temporal look at intensely used areas in the park. Recommendations include: 1) completion of a biophysical study of the park including an inventory of flora and fauna species 2) development of a monitoring plan incorporating the natural environment with the human dimension of the park 3) engagement of park visitors through signage, education and awareness, and 4) engage the scientific community to form partnerships for further research studies in the park.