Artificial reef plan for sport fish enhancement

Hard bottom substrate provides habitat for a multitude of marine fishes, invertebrates, and plants - particularly giant kelp - which are of direct and indirect importance to sport and commercial fisheries. These reefs also enhance esthetic uses of the marine environment. This document sets forth the plan of the California Department of Fish and Game (CDFG) for the construction of artificial reefs. The plan includes an outline for defining the purpose of reef construction, gathering information pertinent to reef placement and design, selecting a reef site, preparing a project narrative, obtaining permits and approvals for reef construction, developing a general permit for reef construction, and establishing a system of fisheries habitat enhancement areas. Procedures for constructing and mapping reefs are discussed and an outline for conducting short- and long-term biological studies of reef communities is presented. Since 1958, CDFG has constructed 31 reefs off southern California. Thirteen of the largest and most frequently used reefs were mapped using hydroacoustic and radio-locating techniques. Maps of these reefs were published in a 1989 CDFG booklet entitled "A Guide to the Artificial Reefs of Southern California". Since 1978, seven developmental reefs have been constructed: 1) Pendleton Artificial Reef (1980) - San Diego County; 2) Pitas Point Artificial Reef (1984) Ventura County; 3) Marina Del Rey Artificial Reef (1985) - Los Angeles County; 4)Oceanside Artificial Reef (1987) - San Diego County; 5) Pacific Beach Artificial Reef (1987) - San Diego County; 6) Santa Monica Artificial Reef (1987) - Los Angeles County; and 7) Topanga Artificial Reef (1987) - Los Angeles County. These reefs were built to improve habitat for sport fishes and associated fauna and to evaluate the enhancement characteristics of reefs related to geographic location, depth, height, rock size, and reef spacing. Short-term studies revealed that all reefs have provided shelter, food, nesting, and nursery areas for important fish species and have increased sport fishing opportunities. Furthermore, giant kelp has been observed on all reefs built at suitable depths. More extensive long-term studies are planned in 1998 when reef communities will be at successional equilibrium. These studies will provide additional information concerning the long-term potential of artificial reefs as habitat for sport fish, invertebrates, and plants. The plan discusses different types of man-made reefs, including developmental, production, and fishing access reefs, and provides examples of each. It documents CDFG policy regarding the use of reefs as mitigation for impacts on rocky habitat and kelp. It also documents the laws authorizing CDFG to administer reef construction and studies in California. The activities involved in designing, permitting, constructing, and evaluating Pendleton Artificial Reef are provided as an example of the reef building and study process. A list of reefs is provided to document the location, depth, area, materials, and funding sources for all reefs constructed and/or augmented in California. (85pp.

An analysis of the law of the sea and outer space law : claims over the natural resources of the commons

As new areas of the world and outer space have been discovered and explored, man has had to develop regulations to govern the use of these new areas. However, it was not until man possessed the technological means of extracting or using the resources of these new areas that there was an urgent need to develop regulations for the oceans and space. Although some regulations have been established in regards to such areas as the deep sea-bed and remote sensing, there is still a need for the international community\u27s acceptance of these laws. Under-developed nations view the resources discovered within these two areas as the common heritage of mankind. In other words, these natural resources should belong not to one country, but to all nations to be used and studied for the benefit of mankind. Because of their immensely complex nature, it is impossible to touch upon every debatable aspect of LOS and OSL. I have devoted my attention to the obstacles facing the common heritage of mankind principle

The Effect of Virtual Clinical Gaming Simulations on Student Learning Outcomes in Medical-Surgical Nursing Education Courses

The purpose of this study was to determine what the effects of virtual clinical simulation instruction were on the learning outcomes of students in higher education medical-surgical nursing education courses. This study fills a gap in the literature by adding data to the body of knowledge related to the use of this strategy for practical application in the classroom. This study used a causal comparative design. Data were acquired from the ATI Content Mastery Series (CMS) 2.1 Medical Surgical Examination ™ information for the fall 2006 through fall 2008 academic semesters. Additionally, data were collected using a pre- and post-course Medical-Surgical Nursing Self-Assessment Survey administered to the medical-surgical virtual clinical simulation comparison group during the fall 2008 semester. Participants were higher education undergraduate medical surgical nursing students at one urban private university enrolled during the 2008-2009 academic year. Students were fluent English speakers and had a grade point average (GPA) of 2.5 or greater in nursing coursework. Participation in the survey was voluntary. Benefits of the research included positive effects of using virtual clinical simulation to deliver medical-surgical nursing content. Findings revealed that students who received virtual clinical simulation instruction significantly demonstrated (p = .000) for medical surgical content mastery and 100% of students demonstrated positive growth (p = .000) in perceived competency. Results empower nursing stakeholders such as administrators, program chairs, faculty, and students with information for decision-making about learning outcomes, limitations, and recommendations related to the use of virtual clinical simulations in medical-surgical nursing education courses

Another look at the savannah conundrum : evidence of niche segregation and competition avoidance with grasses in establishing trees

Includes bibliographical references.The savannah vegetation, although iconic, is a curiosity due to the coexistence of the two dominant, but remarkably different life-forms: trees and grasses. However, despite an apparent competitive advantage grasses do not dominate over trees in these systems and this presents a conundrum: how are savannah trees are able to establish in the face of such strong competition from grasses? As this is when trees are most susceptible to competition from grasses. This makes the knowledge of establishment phase critical for understanding the tree-grass co-existence. Despite this, there is a paucity of knowledge of this phase and the long-term aspects of the competitive interactions between trees and grasses, where the focus should be on seedling establishment and survival rather than biomass accumulation This study investigated the natural levels of tree establishment amongst differing amounts of grass as we sought to identify the limitation, both aboveground for light and belowground for resources, imposed by grasses on tree establishment. To uncover this limitation we searched for naturally established Acacia nigrescens (the dominant savannah tree species in our research area) seedlings at 12 sites in the Limpopo Province, South Africa. We also collected data on seedling health to determine the effect of proximate grass canopy on their performance. Finally, we compared the root lengths of established seedlings and co-occurring grasses to determine if seedlings were rooted in the same soil horizons as grasses. We hypothesised that tree establishment would be facilitated by low levels of grass biomass, as the lower the grass biomass, the more gaps would be present in the grass layer for seedlings to establish. We found that establishing seedlings were more resilient to grass competition than had previously been appreciated, as we found established seedlings (at a density of 9 seedlings per 100m2) with a grass canopy cover of 65%. We also found no correlation between our measure of grass competition and seedling performance. Finally, we found that even very young tree seedlings consistently root deeper than co-occurring grasses, despite establishing on different geologies, soils and across a rainfall gradient (p < 0.0001) - demonstrating that this resilience to grass competition is due to a specialised rooting strategy present in seedlings that allows them avoid belowground competition with grasses. In light of this, we propose a dynamic two-niche hypothesis of savannah tree-grass co-existence

Elementary Principals as Reading Instructional Leaders in Selected West Virginia Schools

This study examined the reading instructional leadership practices of 56 principals in West Virginia K-5 public elementary schools. The purpose of this study was to compare the reading instructional leadership practices and professional development of 40 Reading First principals with 40 non-Reading First principals in West Virginia. The study also compared the percentage of students who have scored mastery or above as measured by the third grade Reading/Language Arts West Virginia Educational Standards Test (WESTEST) in the years 2005, 2006, and 2007. An electronic survey with Likert-type items was distributed to all 40 Reading First Principals and 303 K-5 public elementary principals in West Virginia. There was a 70% response rate from the Reading First Principals. The survey was a self-reporting, web-based survey, developed utilizing Survey Monkey. Study results reveal that reading First Principals were better Resource Providers than non-Reading First Principals. Additionally, Reading First Principals support reading professional development activities for teachers at the school level at a statistically significantly higher rate than did the non-Reading First. Finally, there was no statically significantly impact on student achievement as measured by standardized test scores in the Reading First Schools

Functional divergence between Vachellia and Senegalia could underpin differences in invasiveness and Eltonian niche partitioning in African savannas

For several decades Vachellia and Senegalia have been assumed to be ecological equivalents in African savannas. Their supposedly close evolutionary relationship has, however, been totally revised in light of recent molecular phylogenetic data. These data highlight the deep divergence (± 30 Ma) between these genera and also their independent transitions into African savannas. Distant divergence and independent transitions into savannas between Vachellia and Senegalia suggest their possible ecological niche divergence, which could explain the observed differences in invasiveness between them. This thesis provides the first ecophylogenetic study to assess the level of ecological niche divergence between these economically, socioeconomically and ecologically important tree genera in Africa. I address this question by first determining the scale(s) of coexistence between Vachellia and Senegalia and determine their phylogenetic community structure at both the landscape-regional scale and the plot-scale. I then conduct a large glasshouse experiment using seven species from each genus to determine conserved functional differences between them during seedling establishment in the presence, and also the absence, of grass competition. While I find evidence of some Grinnellian niche differentiation between Vachellia and Senegalia at the landscape-regional scale, their greater-than-expected co-occurrence in plots suggests they generally partition an Eltonian niche in savannas. Glasshouse trait data also reveal that Vachellia has a conserved strategy for rapid vertical growth when free from grass competition and Senegalia has a conserved root tissue density response to grass competition. I argue that the rapid growth (bolting) strategy of Vachellia in the absence of grass competition provides a functional explanation for why this genus is observed to be relatively more invasive in grassy ecosystems. I also argue that the root tissue density response of Senegalia enables stable coexistence at the plot scale with Vachellia as it increases competitive ability among grasses leaving establishment less tied to times of low grass biomass. I conclude that this study provides overwhelming support for ecological niche divergence between Vachellia and Senegalia and that this divergence may underpin their observed differences in invasiveness. That the coexistence of these genera is largely attributable to Eltonian niche partitioning also provides fresh support for the contention that tree-tree competition structures tree communities in African savannas. Finally, niche divergence suggests that, when promoting diversity and managing invasion, Vachellia and Senegalia species will require different management practices

Changing hearts and minds: examining student nurses' experiences and perceptions of a general practice placement through a 'community of practice' lens

The recent UK Government paper 'Five year forward view' describes the need to move much patient management from secondary to primary care, and this will require a significant increase in the numbers of General Practice Nurses (GPNs). Until recently, there has been no clear recruitment strategy to address this. There have however been a number of proposed solutions to address the impending GPN recruitment crisis and to increase the numbers of new GPNs in post. General Practitioners (GPs) working in the Advanced Training Practice Scheme (ATPS) have been commissioned by Health Education England to provide placements for student nurses. This paper reports upon the findings of a study evaluating the South Yorkshire ATPS network in relation to nursing students' perceptions of general practice as a placement and a potential career option post-graduation. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews with 18 nursing students. Qualitative data analysis used a framework approach and themes were cross-checked within the team. The research had ethical approval and anonymity and confidentiality were maintained throughout. Using the Communities of Practice (CoP) framework as a theoretical lens, two main themes emerged from the data: 'Myths and misunderstandings' outlined some of the misconceptions that abounded in the absence of an established CoP in general practice. These included perceptions of what constitutes a 'good' placement, an apparent lack of relevant content in the curriculum, and the widespread use of social media by students as a means of information gathering. 'Changing hearts and minds' referred to the need to positively influence the culture within general practice by addressing some of the longstanding myths. Through the fledgling CoP, the students' perceptions of the GPN role in particular were positively revised, as was the prospect of a career in general practice upon graduation. The CoP that is emerging through the ATPS placements appear to be gradually changing the socio-cultural landscape within general practice by enabling student nurses to experience the reality of life in general practice nursing, and to view the GPN role as a viable career option upon graduation