Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

An Oceanographic Perspective On Early Human Migrations To The Americas, Thomas C. Royer, Bruce Finney

OES Faculty Publications

Early migrants to the Americas were likely seaworthy. Many archaeologists now agree that the first humans who traveled to the Americas more than 15,000 years before present (yr BP) used a coastal North Pacific route. Their initial migration was from northeastern Asia to Beringia where they settled for thousands to more than ten thousand years. Oceanographic conditions during the Last Glacial Maximum (18,000-24,000 yr BP) would have enhanced their boat journeys along the route from Beringia to the Pacific Northwest because the influx of freshwater that drives the opposing Alaska Coastal Current was small, global sea level was at least …

Biogenic Tracers Through The Holocene On The Alaskan Shelf, Carie A. Curry

OES Theses and Dissertations

Dramatic environmental changes in the Arctic Ocean have been observed for the last two decades including changing the amount of sea ice thickness and extent, and increased river discharge. In order to put these and other current day observations into historical context and perhaps reveal mechanisms controlling them, a suite of paleo-proxies were used to analyze two high resolution cores collected on the 2005 HOTRAX expedition. The goals of this research were: (1) develop an analytical method for determining biogenic calcite, (2) identify the major sources of biogenic matter into the system over the Holocene, and (3) assemble the history …

Bottom-Up Forcing And The Decline Of Steller Sea Lions (Eumetopias Jubatus) In Alaska: Assessing The Ocean Climate Hypothesis, Andrew W. Trites, Arthur J. Miller, Michael A. Alexander, Steven J. Bograd, John A. Calder, Antonietta Capotondi, Kenneth O. Coyle, Emanuele Di Lorenzo, Bruce P. Finney, Edward J. Gregr, Chester E. Grosch, Thomas C. Royer

CCPO Publications

Declines of Steller sea lion ( Eumetopias jubatus) populations in the Aleutian Islands and Gulf of Alaska could be a consequence of physical oceanographic changes associated with the 1976–77 climate regime shift. Changes in ocean climate are hypothesized to have affected the quantity, quality, and accessibility of prey, which in turn may have affected the rates of birth and death of sea lions. Recent studies of the spatial and temporal variations in the ocean climate system of the North Pacific support this hypothesis. Ocean climate changes appear to have created adaptive opportunities for various species that are preyed upon …

Circulation, Summer 1995, Center For Coastal Physical Oceanography, Old Dominion University

CCPO Circulation

Summer 1995 issue of CCPO Circulation featuring article "The U. S. Coastal Ocean Is in Alaska!"

Methods For The Comparison Of Timing Behavior Applied To The Pink Salmon Fisheries Of Prince William Sound, Alaska, Louis J. Rugolo

OES Theses and Dissertations

Harvest control in salmonid fisheries was examined as a problem in the formulation of regulations which restrict time and area of fishing. An ability to rigorously define and compare the form of the progression of migration across time and between harvest areas was judged fundamental to objective harvest decisions. Identification and evaluation of statistical methods appropriate to the comparison of empirical migratory time densities was performed.

The development of the measure of central tendency (mean date) of the time density as the consistent, unbiased estimator of migratory behavior was given. Practical evidence demonstrated that the mean date was highly resistant …