This dissertation examined the natal origins, home-range, and in-situ foraging behavior of an aggregation of sub-adult hawksbill turtles (Eretmochelys imbricata) found off the coast of Palm Beach County, Florida. Surveys were conducted on approximately 30 linear km of reef between 15 and 30 m in depth. Tissue samples were retrieved from 112 turtles for mtDNA haplotype determination. GPS-linked satellite transmitters were deployed on six resident sub-adults, resulting in both minimum convex polygon (MCP) and 95%, 50%, and 25% kernel density estimates (KDE) of home-range size. A foraging ethogram was developed, and sequential analysis performed on thirty videos (141 total minutes) of in-situ foraging behavior. Seventeen total haplotypes were identified in this aggregation, the majority (75%) of which represented rookeries on Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula. Other sources, from most to least important, include Barbados, Costa Rica, Puerto Rico, Antigua, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. / Includes bibliography. / Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2014. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

Following nest emergence, sea turtle hatchling dispersal can be disrupted by artificial light or skyglow from urban areas. Mis- or disorientation increases exposure to predation, thermal stress, and dehydration, could consume valuable energy, and thus influence the likelihood of survival. This study utilized laboratory simulations of extended crawl distances and field observations to investigate the energy cost of disorientation crawling on loggerhead (Caretta caretta) and green (Chelonia mydas) sea turtle hatchlings and the impact on the subsequent swim frenzy. Extended crawls increased oxygen consumption, decreased plasma glucose, and reduced green hatchling swim performance following a 200m crawl. Surprisingly, plasma lactate concentrations did not increase with crawl distance, likely due to frequent rest periods that would, however, increase time on the beach and thus exposure to predators. This research may provide managers with physiological data to determine best practices for sea turtle conservation and adds to the biological knowledge of these animals. / Includes bibliography. / Thesis (M.S.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2016. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

The reproductive success of leatherback turtles (Dermochelys coriacea) is typically the lowest of the seven sea turtle species. Why this vital rate is decreased has remained unanswered for nearly a century. Recently, detailed postmortem examination of leatherback hatchlings identified muscular pathologies that suggested possible selenium deficiency. High bodily burdens of mercury compounds are associated with selenium depletion. Selenium is a necessary detoxifying nutrient that itself can be toxic at elevated concentrations. Mercury compounds are toxicants with no known biological function. High bodily concentrations of mercury can be detrimental to marine organismal health, reproduction and survival, both directly and indirectly through inducing selenium depletion. The goals of this dissertation are to evaluate several related hypotheses to explain low leatherback nest success. ... Because leatherbacks take in high volumes of prey, high tissue concentrations of mercury and selenium can result. This study provides the first evidence that chemical contaminants may explain low reproductive success in leatherback sea turtles. / by Justin R. Perrault. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2013. / Includes bibliography. / Mode of access: World Wide Web. / System requirements: Adobe Reader.

In examining the intentional relationship between the conservationist and the shark in South Florida, this thesis considers the latter as both a scarce natural resource - caught up in what Clifford Geertz citing Weber referred to as "webs of significance" (Geertz 1973:5) - and as a reflection of dynamic human conceptions of nature : a meta shark. This complex relationship is described by interpretations of conservation discourse recorded through ethnographic interviews that demonstrate how these perceptions have been influenced by factors such as personal experiences, film and text, and broad changes in the relationship between humans and nature since the early days of the environmental movement. By linking these perceptual changes with changes in American shark conservation policy, this work not only explains a relationship between culture, perception, and policy, but also celebrates the emergence of a multispecies marine community. / by Patrick Nason. / Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2012. / Includes bibliography. / Mode of access: World Wide Web. / System requirements: Adobe Reader.

The bald eagle, Haliaeetus leucocephalus, population declined dramatically in the early 20th century reducing the population from tens of thousands of birds within the lower 48 states, to <450 pairs of birds, effectively inducing a population bottleneck. The overall population has recovered and was removed from the endangered species list in 2007. This study investigates whether such overall population statistics are appropriate descriptors for this widespread species. I investigated the genetic differentiation between three populations of bald eagles from Alaska, North Florida and Florida Bay using both mitochondrial and nuclear DNA loci to determine whether discrete subpopulations comprise the broad range. Significant FST values, for both mtDNA and microsatellites, were found between both Florida populations and Alaska, but not within Florida populations. Results indicate that there is strong population structure, rejecting the null hypothesis of a panmictic population. Future conservation efforts should focus on subpopulations rather than the overall population. / by Ericka Elizabeth Helmick. / Thesis (M.S.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2011. / Includes bibliography. / Electronic reproduction. Boca Raton, Fla., 2011. Mode of access: World Wide Web.

Human influence on the environment is becoming increasingly pervasive across the globe, and can drastically impact ecological patterns and processes. For many terrestrial wildlife species, human influence can fragment critical habitat, increase mortality, and threaten habitat connectivity and ultimately the persistence of wildlife populations. This dissertation aims to use multiple conservation ecology methods and tools to test the impact of human influence on the population dynamics of a large carnivore in a human-dominated landscape. To assess the impact of human activity on carnivore ecology, a series of empirical studies were conducted on a small population of American black bear (Ursus americanus) in the Western Great Basin, USA. A long-term dataset including geographic locations of animal habitat choices as well as mortality locations were used in multiple statistical models that tested the response of black bears to human activity. These analyses were conducted at multiple spatial and temporal resolutions to reveal nuances potentially overlooked if analyses were limited to a single resolution. Individual studies, presented as dissertation chapters, examine the relationships between human activity and carnivore ecology. Collectively, the results of these studies find black bear ecology to be highly sensitive to the magnitude and spatial composition of human activity in the Lake Tahoe Basin, observable at both coarse and fine spatial resolutions. The results presented in this study on the influence of human activity on large carnivore population dynamics allow for a more thorough understanding of the various ways common conservation ecology methods and tools can be used to evaluate human-wildlife relationships.

Through common descent, closely-related taxa share many life history traits, some of which can influence extinction-proneness. Thus, examining historical and contemporary genetic patterns is valuable in accounting for evolutionary and ecological processes that may be critical to the successful conservation of threatened species. Unsustainable harvesting of monk seals (tribe Monachini) until the late nineteenth century caused the recent extinction of Caribbean monk seals (Neomonachus tropicalis) and critically low population sizes for Hawaiian and Mediterranean monk seals (Neomonachus schauinslandi and Monachus monachus, respectively). Having lost one branch of its evolutionary lineage, and with a second branch threatened by extinction, the genus Neomonachus can serve as a valuable case for examining evolutionary and ecological linkages that are sensitive to non-random anthropogenic selection pressure. An important foundation for such pursuits is the understanding of evolutionary sequences of speciation and diversification that gave rise to common traits shared by extinct and vulnerable species. Further consideration of the phylogenetic non-randomness of species vulnerability requires examination of genetic variation at the population level to infer the presence of fundamental processes (e.g., migration and reproduction) that directly influence population viability. This dissertation includes three individual studies that make use of molecular systematic and population genetic techniques to address these topics. First, a complete mitochondrial genome sequence of the extinct Caribbean monk seal (N. tropicalis) was assembled and used to resolve long-standing phylogenetic questions regarding the sequence of divergence among monk seal species and sister taxa. Second, novel microsatellite marker assays were developed and used to characterize the extent of population-level variation across 24 polymorphic microsatellite loci of 1192 endangered Hawaiian monk seals (N. schauinslandi) that were sampled during a longitudinal study spanning three decades. Third, resulting genotypes from a subset of individuals (N= 785) were integrated with previously reported genotypes consisting of 18 other loci for the largest ever population-level assessment of N. schauinslandi genetic diversity and population differentiation throughout the Hawaiian archipelago. The new microsatellite data will be of particular value for future individual-level assessment of parentage and relatedness in N. schauinslandi, which will help managers better infer the reproductive mechanisms that factor into population persistence and recovery. Results of this study expand understanding of the evolutionary and conservation genetic status of monk seals, as well as molecular genetic capacity, for future research regarding a unique and highly imperiled New World pinniped lineage.

Resettlement of humans from protected areas conserves habitats for wildlife. However, impacts of resettlement on the well-being of resettled communities and on broader conservation goals at the landscape level have been poorly quantified until now due to inadequate documentation and baseline information. Recent documentation and advances in measurements of human well-being enable studies that examine the impacts of resettlement for both people and conservation. In India, the current standardized resettlement policy by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) is explicit in its goal to create inviolate habitats for tigers within protected areas. More than 70% of the global tiger population lives in protected areas in India. The central Indian national parks hold approximately 40% of Indian tiger populations. Implementation of the NTCA policy provides an opportunity to study resettlement with relatively accurate records of where resettled households moved, a standardized monetary compensation and the potential for replication with large representative groups to study impacts in various landscapes across the country. This dissertation focuses on resettlement in Kanha National Park in central India, one of the most well-known and oldest tiger reserves in the country. The Kanha National Park (KNP) landscape mirrors the realities of many people-park interactions in human-dominated areas with high percentages of indigenous human populations, historical forced displacements, and current resettlements that follow a standardized national policy. From a conservation point of view, connectivity between KNP and other protected areas across central India is crucial for genetically healthy tiger populations. This dissertation consists of three analyses that combine data from field surveys and existing data sources to examine the impacts of resettlement on food security, landscape connectivity for wildlife, and human-wildlife conflict in the KNP landscape. In Chapter 1, I use household surveys to compare the food security and livelihood associations of resettled households compared to their non-resettled neighbors at new settlement locations. I show that resettled households have similar availability and access to foods as their non-resettled neighbors. Increases in off-farm income sources are associated with higher food access for all households. In Chapter 2, I explore the pattern of low food access in the KNP landscape using the five capitals model for sustainable development to illustrate significant associations between livelihood factors and household food access. Salaried stable incomes and kitchen garden diversity are significantly associated with higher food access. Financial capital dwarfs the contributions of social and natural capitals which have supplementary roles in times of financial stress. In Chapter 3, I address resettlement impacts on habitat connectivity between protected areas and human-wildlife conflict that resettled households face after relocating outside the park. Resettled households are not disproportionately moving into corridors between protected areas, especially when compared to the manifold more non-resettled households already residing in these areas. Resettled households however are moving into areas of high human-wildlife conflict due to their continued proximity to KNP. Outcomes from Chapter 3 also confirm that steady incomes can alleviate forest use and lower human activities in forests reducing human-wildlife conflict. In human-dominated landscapes such as KNP, financial capital and the stability of household incomes can aid both food security, lower pressures on non-protected forests and potentially lower human-wildlife conflict. The results counter assumptions that resettled communities continue to follow traditional natural resource reliant livelihoods. Local populations are not likely to engage in livelihoods that are heavily reliant on natural resources as rural populations become integrated into urban economies. The results from this dissertation imply that managers in the KNP landscape can alleviate food security and aid landscape wide conservation goals by increasing off-farm salaried incomes. Finally, in India, there is a high potential for replication of this study around other protected areas, with nationally standardized resettlement in landscapes that vary geographically, ecologically and socially.

No description available.

Notions of ‘wildness' are increasingly relevant to upland management discussions in the Scottish Highlands as several conservation-focused estates embrace a ‘wildland management ethos'. However, while a range of wildland conservation initiatives have embarked upon pathways towards ‘rewilding', this research demonstrates that, although members of this creative conservation movement are widely perceived to share a common vision, they prioritise markedly different wildland qualities. Through a series of triangulated phases, this research explores this ‘spectrum of wildness' and examines the conceptual coherence of wildland restoration discourses. Twenty semi-structured scoping interviews with key stakeholders associated with Scotland's wildest places provide the foundations for an adapted Delphi model, incorporating a Q-methodology study, which utilises insights from seventeen large upland land-holdings to interrogate the disparate discourses associated with Scotland's emergent wildland movement. A taxonomy of management approaches is presented based upon (i) different conceptions of ‘wildness', (ii) differing degrees of concern for ecological and cultural integrity, (iii) conflicting beliefs about the degree of management intervention appropriate and (iv) fundamentally divergent underlying environmental ideologies. A further twenty-three semi-structured interviews exploring wilderness restoration frameworks in the USA, New Zealand and parts of Europe provide an international perspective on Scotland's distinctive approach to wildland management and demonstrate the challenges of multi-dimensional wilderness frameworks which grow out of conflicting mandates; most notably, a critical faultline exists between restoring ‘wildness' (focussed on processes) and naturalness (focussed on endpoints). Given that practical tensions can arise from these different ideological perspectives, understanding and accommodating the social and cultural dimensions which shape multiple (re)wilding discourses is considered critical. As such, place-specific and endogenous social representations are called for, in which wild land is both a physical place and a cultural ideal, and in which (re)wilding comprises a heterogeneous mix of different wilds. This research also critically reflects upon how cultural landscapes with wild qualities present opportunities for rethinking the historical and cultural dimensions of established wilderness values. By exploring the framing of ‘wild' in Scotland's wildland initiatives, a postmodern wildlands narrative which negotiates the conceptual challenges of (re)wilding in a storied, cultural landscape is presented.