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Skip to Search Results- 2Zhao, Richard
- 1Andermatt, Matthias
- 1Bakker, Nicola A. K.
- 1Belanger, Robert J
- 1Bell, Aaron J
- 1Belter, Pamela R.
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Genetic diversity and selection in North American red squirrels (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus): A Hamiltonian perspective into the processes and mechanisms of evolution
DownloadFall 2013
The theory of natural selection has advanced our understanding in every aspect of biological sciences, yet despite this seeming ubiquity, there remain some components that are not fully resolved. Natural selection predicts the “selfish” advancement of genes that are optimally suited for their...
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Spring 2014
The worldwide biodiversity crisis has intensified the need to better understand how biodiversity and human disturbance are related. Yet this relationship lacks both consensus in theoretical expectations and consistency in observed empirical patterns. I present one of the largest extent studies...
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Fall 2009
The use of rayon in 1920s and 1930s garments confronts conservators with new challenges: definitive fibre identification involves more than basic microscopy and treatment can be difficult with little available research on early rayon and its conservation. Rayon is expected to degrade similarly to...
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Identifying seasonal Lake Sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens) movement patterns and habitat selection in the South Saskatchewan River Basin
DownloadFall 2016
Lake Sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens Rafinesque 1817) have experienced population declines throughout their range. In Alberta, low density age-class distributions, irregular recruitment, critically low spawning potential ratios and other factors led to a 2007 designation of “Threatened” for this...
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Landscape Ecology of Mule Deer (Odocoileus hemionus) and White-tailed Deer (O. virginianus) with Implications for Chronic Wasting Disease
DownloadFall 2012
Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a fatal prion disease of cervids that continues to spread into new regions of Canada despite containment efforts. I examine the importance of landscape connectivity using circuit theory and source/sink habitats that are based on selection, survival and...
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Mapping a Species-level Trophic and Non-trophic Multilayer Network of Known Interactions for Boreal Tetrapods of North America
DownloadFall 2021
Mapping trophic and non-trophic species interactions and mapping ecosystem-wide ecological networks have become important research avenues in network ecology, but until recently these two avenues have been separate endeavors. Now, a framework exists to combine multiple interaction types into...
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Fall 2014
Microbiota are ubiquitous in nature. Similarities as well as differences are present between microbiota in animals and fermentation systems. The aim of the PhD project was to investigate factors affects microbial ecology in rodent and sourdough models. To determine how compromised health of the...
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Natural regeneration in the boreal forest: seedling establishment and success in western North American and European boreal forests
DownloadFall 2014
As the costs and ecological implications of intensive forest management rise, alternative management strategies that minimize intervention become more desirable options, particularly natural regeneration. Two locations were studied: the boreal mixedwoods of western North America (Alberta) and...
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Fall 2010
Because of their high strength to weight ratio, stiffened steel plates are often used in light structures where plates are placed into compression. The stability of steel plates stiffened with longitudinal tee-shaped stiffeners and subjected to uniaxial compression or combined axial compression...
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Spring 2013
The Rocky Mountain apollo butterfly, Parnassius smintheus, and its host-plant Sedum lanceolatum, are endemic to open alpine meadows threatened by the encroachment of trees. I explore variability in interactions between P. smintheus and S. lanceolatum relative to the treeline-delimited meadow...