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This thesis is an investigation of the biophysical controls on the three modes of methane (CH4 ) release from a boreal peatland: diffusion, plant-mediated transport and ebullition. My objectives were to (1) quantify the total CH4 flux of a permafrost thaw-affected peatland, (2) establish the relative importance of the three modes of CH4 release in these systems, and (3) identify key biotic and abiotic controls on individual transport mechanisms. Results showed that ebullition and plant-mediated transport were the dominant pathways for CH4 release and that traditional approaches for measuring total CH4 flux from peatland soils underestimated total efflux by not capturing ebullition. Further, results from a laboratory...
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Interpretations of "wilderness" in North America are widely varied. As such, the values attributed to wilderness also vary. The most common approach to wilderness protection-protected area planning and management-generally attempts to strictly define wilderness, or restricts its definitions unintentionally, thereby limiting the capacity of the protected area to protect the diversity of interpretations of wilderness. This study uses techniques of literary criticism to examine the management plans of six protected areas in northern Canada and Alaska to understand the possibility of the persistence of this interpretive diversity within the language of the plans. Because of the inability of the plans, as legal documents,...
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This thesis is an investigation of the application of DNA barcoding in improving the taxonomy and systematics of Lepidoptera. I present case studies to demonstrate the use of DNA barcoding as a powerful tool in species discovery, in identification of immature stages, for refining historically problematic taxonomy in various groups of Lepidoptera, in regional biodiversity surveys, and in inferring phylogenies alongside other mitochondrial and nuclear markers. In chapter one, I follow the traditional methodology using genital morphology to describe 25. new species of Nearctic Coleophora discovered through DNA barcoding. In Chapter Two I refine the disputed taxonomy of Melanargia , a widely distributed Palaearctic...
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A number of characteristics, unique to northern Canada, have together resulted in the adoption of fundamentally different processes for establishing protected areas in that region from those traditionally utilised in the south. Governmental recognition of these characteristics, in combination with the 1993 settlement of the Yukon Umbrella Final Agreement (UFA) comprehensive land claim, has led to the development of unique arrangements in the Yukon for protected area co-management by state and aboriginal interests. This study aims to evaluate changes to Yukon protected area management strategies pursuant to the settlement of aboriginal claims and increased local community involvement. Based on primary data, recommendations...
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The participation of the Yukon First Nations in the development of the Kluane Land Use plan is examined. On the basis of key informant interviews, reviews of planning documents, legislation and relevant literature, the formulation of the Kluane Land Use plan will be examined, focusing specifically on the involvement of the Yukon First Nations. The development of the Greater Kluane Plan is an example of normative planning; the public participates in decision-making, to help determine what ought to be done. This was reflected in increased opportunities for Yukon First Peoples. First Nations had objectives that they wanted fulfilled namely involvement in decision-making, recognition of their traditional knowledge,...
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