Digital Commons Network^™

Forest Habitat Improvement Planning On The Blackfoot-Clearwater Wildlife Management Area: A Case Study In Multiple Criteria Decision-Analysis, Christine Ann Paulu

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The forests of western Montana were historically characterized by mixed-severity fire regimes, which have been mostly absent due to fire suppression policies of the 20th century. This has changed stand structure and forest composition, resulting in a high risk of wildfire, loss of heterogeneity in forest types, and loss of valuable wildlife habitat. As a result forest stewardship, or holistic forest management, and long-term planning have been used widely by forest managers and landowners to improve forest health, to use resources efficiently, and to satisfy stakeholders. This case study shows how one agency, Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks (FWP), could …

Building Social Relationships Building Business : A Case Study Of Vendors At The Missoula Farmers' Market, Kathryn E. Bradford

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

No abstract provided.

Age Estimation Of Fetal Skeletal Remains From The Forensic Context, Jennifer Ellen Sanders

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This study tested the efficacy of the traditional method (Fazekas and Kosa, 1978) of aging fetal remains from the forensic context against ultrasound (Chevernak et al., 1998)and radiographic (Sherwood et al., 2000) methods to determine which was most accurate. Two data sets were used in this study. The first consisted of measurements from historic (1902-1917) fetal remains of known age. The second consisted of measurements from modern fetal remains of known age from the forensic context. Using these samples in the different prediction models for aging fetal remains, the accuracy of each was determined.

The Public Land Manager In Collaborative Conservation Planing: A Comparative Analysis Of Three Case Studies In Montana, Lawrence Allen Byrd

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Collaborative Conservation Planning (CCP) has proven to create solutions to challenges many Montana and Americans face with protecting or restoring their natural resources and rural lifestyles from previous non-sustainable land use practices and rural land development. This planning model has proven to be successful when organized groups consisting of multiple stakeholders come together to find common ground and address decreased biodiversity, fragmented habitat, threatened traditional farming, timber, and ranching rural lifestyles through open space protection and restoration efforts. The Public Land Manager’s (PLM) part in the CCP process is seemingly important because of their influence and the unique and diverse …

The Effects Of Grazing On Deer Mice Movements Into Peridomestic Settings With Implications To Human Exposure To Sin Nombre Virus, Abigail Jean Leary

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The effects of deer mouse immigration into buildings in response to horse grazing were examined during this study. Treatment (grazing) and control (no grazing) pastures were created to simulate interactions between peridomestic (in or around buildings or structures in close proximity to humans) and sylvan settings. Each pasture was 0.6 ha in size and contained two small buildings. Twelve experimental trials were conducted from April through June 2005; October through November 2005; February 2006; June through August 2007; and May through July 2008. During these trials, mouse movements into buildings were monitored using a passive integrated transponder (PIT) tag transceiver …

Lithofacies And Microfacies Of A Fossil Hot Spring System: Mcginness Hills, Nevada, Bonnie Jean Ertel

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Ertel, Bonnie, M.S., Spring 2009 Geology Microfacies and Morphology of a Fossil Hot Spring System, McGinness Hills, Nevada Chairperson or Co-Chairperson: Dr. Nancy Hinman The Miocene McGinness Hills sinters are a well-preserved, fossil hot spring system in Nevada. The sinter in McGinness Hills is comparable with the fossil hot spring system in the Drummond Basin, Queensland, Australia (Farmer and Hinman, 1998), Artist Point in Yellowstone National Park (Hinman and Walter, 2005) and with modern systems in Yellowstone. Further The purpose of this study was to further our understanding microfacies preserved in hot springs systems after diagenesis thus facilitating the identification …

The Allometry Of Bird Flight Performance, Brandon Edward Jackson

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Avian flight performance decreases with body size in birds, but previous work has been unable to define the underlying mechanism. Wingbeat frequency is hypothesized to ultimately constrain flight performance via muscular mechanical power output because frequency decreases with body size. I measured maximal burst take-off and vertical accelerating flight in 32 species of songbirds (Passeriformes), including the entire range of body mass in this clade (5-900 g). Jump forces against the ground were recorded with a forceplate. High-speed digital video captured the movement of morphological landmarks in order to estimate aerodynamic power requirements and dynamic morphology in flight. Surgically implanted …

The Development And Testing Of A Relational Model Of Competence In The Context Of Nature-Based Tourism, Christine Marie Oschell

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Communication competence is a framework that has been used in many disciplines to understand communication events and their success or failure in achieving objectives. The model most often used to describe competence is the relational model proposed by Spitzberg & Cupach (1984) which includes three elements: knowledge, knowing what behavior is best suited for a given situation; skill, having the ability to apply that behavior in the given context; and motivation having the desire to communicate in a competent manner. This study used the model of relational competence to understand the communication process between guide and client in a nature-based …

Examining The Role Of Grief In The Etiology Of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (Ptsd) Symptoms In American Indian Adolescents, Aaron Morsette

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The prevalence of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is reported to be comparatively high in child and adolescent populations (Reinherz, Gaiconia, Leftkowitz, Pakiz, & Frost,1993). However, recent research has suggested that there may be differing etiological factors, specifically, Child Traumatic Grief (CTG), that contributes to the development of PTSD symptoms in American Indian adolescents (Morsette, at al., 2007). First this study demonstrated that CTG symptoms predicted PTSD symptoms above and beyond that which was predicted by violence exposure. Second, it was found that CTG predicted depression above and that which was predicted by PTSD symptoms. Third, it found that grief was …

A Methodology For Planning Road Best Management Practices Combining Wepp: Road Erosion Modeling And Simulated Annealing Optimization, James Anderson Efta

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Erosion from forest roads is a known problem in mountainous terrain. To abate these negative consequences, physical Best Management Practices (BMPs) are implemented, sometimes with no knowledge of erosion hot spots. With the need to minimize water quality impacts while at the same time accounting for multiple considerations and constraints, road BMP planning at the watershed scale is a difficult task. To assist in this planning process, a methodology is presented here that combines WEPP: Road erosion predictions with simulated annealing optimization. Under this methodology, erosion predictions associated with BMP options for a segment comprise the objective function of an …

Cumulative Effects Analysis In U.S. Forest Service Decision-Making, Courtney Allison Schultz

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This dissertation investigates the U.S. Forest Service's (USFS) implementation of the cumulative effects analysis (CEA) requirement under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The CEA regulation requires federal agencies to provide an analysis of environmental effects, with consideration of past, present, and foreseeable future actions by both public and private parties, often on broad geographic scales. Studies in the late 1990's found that compliance with CEA requirement was highly variable across agencies. Of late, judicial enforcement of the CEA requirement has been on the rise with the USFS the focal agency in the majority of decisions.

This study investigates USFS …

Consequences Of Aryl Hydrocarbon Receptor Activation In Dendritic Cells, Jaishree Bankoti

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

TCDD (dioxin) causes immunosuppression via activation of the Aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR). Dendritic cells (DCs), the professional antigen-presenting cells in the immune system, are adversely affected by TCDD. However, limited information exists regarding the effects of AhR activation on DCs. We evaluated the consequences of AhR activation by TCDD on both steady-state and inflammatory DCs using in vivo and in vitro approaches, respectively. We hypothesized that AhR activation alters DC homeostasis and differentiation leading to generation of immunosuppression. C57Bl/6 mice gavaged with an immunosuppressive dose of TCDD (15 ug/kg) displayed decreased frequency and number of splenic CD11c^high DCs on …

Effects Of A Yeast Β-Glucan Supplement On Symptoms Of Upper Respiratory Tract Infection In Free-Living College-Aged Males, Casey E. Gorham

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The focus of previous research has demonstrated that both oat and yeast ß-glucan benefits immunosuppressed populations. However, previous research has not, to our knowledge, investigated the effects of a yeast ß-glucan on the ummune functioning of healthy, free-living human populations. PURPOSE: The goal of this research was to evaluate the effects of a yeast ß-glucan on symptoms of upper respiratory tract infection in healthy, free-living, college-aged males. METHODOLOGY: The WURSS-44, a reliable, validated survey used for determining symptoms of upper respiratory tract infection was filled out online daily by 79 male subjects between the ages of 18 and 40. Subjects …

Enhancing Motivation To Change In Clients With Alcohol Use Disorders: Video Feedback As A Brief Intervention, Wendy M. Rothman

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This research examined whether videotaped self-observation of drinking behavior combined with a one-session motivationally-based interview resulted in higher levels of motivation to change drinking behavior, lower levels of quantity and frequency of alcohol consumption, decreases in alcohol-related problem behaviors, and expectations of the positive effects of alcohol for individuals mandated to treatment for alcohol-use disorders. DUI offenders (n = 8) and heavy drinking college students (n = 13) mandated to treatment were randomly assigned to receive treatment as usual at their respective agencies or an experimental video intervention in addition to their regular treatment requirements. Participants were assessed at baseline …

Genetic Population Structure And Dispersal Of Two North American Woodpeckers In Ephemeral Habitats, Jennifer Christy Pierson

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Disturbance-dependent species regularly colonize ephemeral habitat patches. In this research, I used patterns of genetic variation to estimate the dispersal dynamics of black-backed woodpeckers (Picoides arcticus), a fire specialist, and compared these patterns to hairy woodpeckers (Picoides villosus), a generalist. I then examined how frequent colonization of ephemeral habitat patches versus stable migration among static habitat patches shapes the genetic structure of species.

I examined patterns of genetic variation in mtDNA and microsatellites in both black-backed and hairy woodpeckers to determine large-scale spatial structure. Black-backed woodpeckers have high genetic connectivity across the boreal forest and lower genetic connectivity among sites …

Monitoring Noxious Weeds Invasions In Riparian Areas Following Livestock Exclusion Of The Upper Big Hole River Valley: Adaptive Management Under The Candidate Conservation Agreement With Assurances Project, Ana Ingrid Pederson

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

As a 2008 summer intern working for the Nature Conservancy, I arrived in the Big Hole Valley and was introduced to an innovative federal land management program initiated to benefit government land managers, local ranchers, and the general public while increasing ecological integrity in the valley and recovering the fluvial Arctic grayling species. The government program offered funding assistance to local ranchers for conservation projects that would help recover the species, but the landowner had to agree to a few stipulations; among them are riparian enclosures fenced for 5 years to exclude all domestic grazing. The goal of this project …

On The Road: Struggling, Searching And Opportunities Young Asians In Missoula Seek Their Cultural Identities, Suhan Chen

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Where are you from? When do you use ¡°we?¡± The answers to these two questions are easy for people from a single cultural background, but may not be so simple for those young Asians who have grown up and lived in the U.S. but aren¡¯t sure where they belong. This project includes two stories of two young women from Missoula. They have been searching for their cultural identities and have found that the searching will never end. They will probably always be on the road back and forth between the U.S. and their ancestry countries.

Sage-Grouse And The Human Footprint: Implications For Conservation Of Small And Declining Populations, Jason Duane Tack

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Implementing conservation in the face of unprecedented landscape change requires an understanding of processes and scales that limit wildlife populations. We assessed landscape-level processes influencing sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus), to a migratory population in the Milk River Basin (MRB), northeast Montana, USA, and south-central Saskatchewan, Canada. A regional analysis of leks (e.g., communal breeding sites) documented that populations impacted by the increasing extent of agricultural tillage, roads, and energy development out to spatial scales larger than previously known. Using bird abundance as a novel way to evaluate human impacts revealed relationships that would have been missed had we not incorporated lek …

Scale Dependent Genetic Structure Of Idaho Giant Salamanders (Dicamptodon Aterrimus) In Stream Networks, Lindy Beth Mullen

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Stream network structure constrains population processes of freshwater organisms, with individual, population and community level consequences. This consistent structure provides a framework in which examination of life-history influences on population genetic structure may provide general insight. I examined how stream network structure affects gene flow and genetic structure of the facultatively paedomorphic Idaho Giant salamander, Dicamptodon aterrimus in Idaho and Montana, USA. I used microsatellite data to test population structure models by (i) examining hierarchical partitioning of genetic variation in stream networks and (ii) testing for genetic isolation by distance along stream corridors versus overland pathways. Replicated sampling of streams …

State-Wide Assessment Of Status, Predicted Distribution, And Landscape-Level Habitat Suitability Of Amphibians And Reptiles In Montana, Bryce Alan Maxell

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Beginning in the late 1980s herpetologists began to realize that amphibians around the world had undergone, and were continuing to undergo, declines, extirpations, and extinctions. In most cases, detections of declines and determinations of the underlying causes has been hampered by a lack of available baseline information on distribution and status. This project was a cooperative effort to address these data deficiencies for amphibians and reptiles in Montana. Watersheds with greater than 30 percent federal or state land ownership were randomly selected for survey in each of 11 geographic strata. Visual encounter and dipnet surveys of all standing water bodies …

An Examination Of Error In The Application Of Pubic Aging Techniques, Ellery Kate Lungmus

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This study examined six methods of skeletal age-at-death estimation from the pubic symphysis in order to determine the significance of sex as a contributing source of error to the inaccuracy of each method. These six methods included Todd (1920), McKern-Stewart (1957), Gilbert-McKern (1973), Hanihara-Suzuki (1978), Suchey-Brooks female-specific (Brooks and Suchey 1990), Suchey-Brooks male-specific (Brooks and Suchey 1990), and the Berg female-specific Suchey-Brooks 7th phase addition (2008). Three hundred and ninety-six individuals were randomly selected from the William M. Bass (WMB) Donated Skeletal Collection housed at The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and were evaluated without knowledge of actual age for age-at-death …

Worlds Apart: Social Mechanisms Of Contrasting Fertility In European American And Native American Populations On The Northern Plains, Janet Mary Bush

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between fertility and household economy on Montana's Northern Plains. Low fertility and outmigration in European American communities have led to dramatic depopulation of the region. At the same time, isolated Indian reservations in the area have grown in population due to high fertility and return migration.

A mixed methods research approach was used to explore the relationship between fertility and social acceptance of communal household economic strategies. Census data and birth records described differences in fertility and household economy between European American and Native American populations in six Plains Indian …

Glucocorticoid Physiology And Behavior During Life History Transitions In Laysan Albatross (Phoebastria Immutabilis), Rachel Seabury Sprague

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Organisms have different life history stages where their energetic priorities differ between the goals of growth, survival, and reproduction. Behavioral decisions within stages and in the transition between stages have significant repercussions for future success so the timing of behaviors is extremely important. In this dissertation, I ask: How do intrinsic and extrinsic factors control the timing of behavioral decisions during tradeoffs within life history stages (the tradeoff between reproduction and self maintenance in breeding adults), and transitions between life history stages (the transition to independence in young animals) in a pelagic seabird, the Laysan Albatross (Phoebastria immutabilis).

First, I …

Synthesis Of Water Soluble Transition Metal Complexes For Applications In Molecular Biology, Rakesh Kumar

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The present thesis work entitled “Synthesis of transition metal complexes for its various applications” and “Key intermediate in a strategy for isoxazole glutamate analogues" includes three rather independent chapters. The idea has been to gain much diverse research experience in at least two different laboratories. The presentation of each of these chapters has been specific and brief.

Farmers' Perceptions And Reactions To Changes In Grain Elevator Size And Location In Central Montana, Jessie June Reynolds

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

In Central Montana, grain elevators serve as the primary market for wheat. What began in the 1910’s as numerous small grain elevators scattered at short intervals along the railroad has now been condensed to a few very large grain elevators at central points in the region, increasing their efficiency and reducing their costs as they can load larger trains in less time with fewer employees. For farmers, this often means reduced competition among elevators that buy grain and an increase in the distance they must transport their grain. Existing literature addressing agricultural markets and transportation costs typically employs a quantitative …

Characterization Of Chlamydia Trachomatis Virulence Factors: Plasticity Zone Macpdf Domain Family Protein Ct153 And Polymorphic Membrane Protein D, Lacey Diane Taylor

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

C. trachomatis is an obligate intracellular pathogen that is a leading cause of sexually transmitted diseases and blinding trachoma worldwide. Genes encoded in the plasticity zone (PZ) and the polymorphic membrane proteins (Pmps) represent major virulence determinants for chlamydiae. Elucidating their roles will be essential for the development of a vaccine to control human chlamydial diseases.

The PZ MACPF domain protein CT153 is expressed as a 91 kDa polypeptide in elementary bodies of all human serovariants suggesting a common function. CT153 is processed during infection into an N-terminal p42 and a C-terminal p59 that contains the MACPF domain. Similar processing …

Investigation Into Regulatory Mechanisms That Limit The Th2 Response In A Mouse Model Of Allergic Asthma, Teri Alyn Girtsman

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The prevalence of asthma has markedly increased in recent decades. Asthma affects approximately ten percent of the population of the United States, and is the leading cause of childhood hospitalization. This epidemic has been attributed to air pollution, childhood immunizations and a more sanitary living environment. Allergic asthma is clinically characterized by airway hyperreactivity (AHR), increased mucus production and airway remodeling. On the cellular level, pulmonary eosinophilic infiltration and augmented levels of serum IgE arise as a consequence of a CD4⁺ Th2 cell response in the airway following exposure to allergen. It has been proposed that the chronic inflammation …

"This Blessed Plot": Negotiating Britishness In Sam Selvon's The Lonely Londoners, Hanif Kureishi's The Buddha Of Suburbia, And Zadie Smith's White Teeth, Kathleen Vickers

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This thesis considers how contemporary British literature helps us negotiate better ways of being in an increasingly diverse world. Britain understood itself as a relatively homogenous white society and reacted badly when commonwealth citizens unexpectedly began to “return” following World War II. Colonial migrants’ increasingly large presence, particularly as many settled and had children, challenged the myth of a “pure” Anglo-Saxon Britain and forced a re-conceiving of what it is to be British. This thesis particularly examines how colonial immigrants found ways to (re)negotiate their identities as British in the face of hostility in their “mother country.” Chapter One looks …

Crossing The Threshold: What Motivates Individuals Who Are Actively Abusing Substances To Enter Treatment?, Katherine Michelle Peavy

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Although there is an abundance of research in the area of substance abuse, much of it samples people who are already enrolled in treatment. The treatment seeking population may differ from people who are actively using substances. One aim of this study is to describe a sample of individuals who have not sought out treatment, but still actively use substances. Specifically, the investigators assessed 51 county detention facility inmates recently arrested on drug- or alcohol-related charges, examining the factors that both inhibit and promote treatment seeking. We hypothesized that motivation levels for seeking treatment would differ based on several factors: …

No Margin For Error: Driving The East Shore Of Flathead Lake, Deborah Brae Tanner

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Tanner, Deborah Brae, M.A., Fall 2009 Journalism, Print No Margin for Error: Driving the East Shore of Flathead Lake Chairperson: Nadia White Controversy currently surrounds truck traffic on the east shore of Flathead Lake, Highway 35. The design, age and surrounding geography of the road contribute to the controversy, and trucks carrying hazardous materials have exacerbated the situation. A trucking accident near Polson, Montana, in April 2008 in which almost 6,400 gallons of fuel was spilled has reinvigorated the debate. The Montana Department of Transportation, trucking companies, residents and the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes have sought a resolution. This …