Northern Portion (northern + portion)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


Evidence for a single clay/temper source for the manufacture of Middle and Late Helladic Aeginetan pottery from Asine, Greece

GEOARCHAEOLOGY: AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL, Issue 7 2004
Michael J. Dorais
In an effort to further characterize the Middle and Late Helladic pottery industry on Aegina, we have analyzed amphibole in 23 sherds imported to the coastal settlement of Asine. The sherds derive from vessels of different classes and shapes and range in age from MH I-II to LH IIIB-IIIC Early. All sherds come from vessels that carry manufacturing marks, and their amphiboles have compositions that are incompatible with those of Methana, Poros, and Melos. Twenty of the sherds have amphiboles that are identical in composition and overlap a narrow range of amphibole compositions found in specific lava flows on the northern portion of Aegina. Given that the dacites across Aegina contain amphiboles with a wide range in compositions, we suggest that the narrow range of amphibole compositions in the sherds indicates that they were derived from either a specific clay source on the island, located in a stream system southeast of the prehistoric settlement at Kolonna, or that the potters used a specific temper source along the same stream system. Multiple clay or temper sources would have produced sherds with a broader range of amphibole compositions reflecting the diversity of amphibole compositions found on Aegina. One sherd has amphibole compositions indicative of an additional Aeginetan component that is not found in the other sherds. Two sherds have amphiboles with compositions that do not match any known reference amphiboles for Aegina, Methana, Poros, or Melos. These may have been derived from still unsampled dacites on Aegina or have been manufactured from materials located outside the Saronic Gulf. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source]


Use of tree rings to study the effect of climate change on trembling aspen in Québec

GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY, Issue 7 2010
MARIE-PIERRE LAPOINTE-GARANT
Abstract In this paper, we present a new approach, based on a mixed model procedure, to quantify the tree-ring-based growth-climate relationship of trembling aspen along a latitudinal gradient from 46 to 54 °N in eastern Canada. This approach allows breaking down the growth response into general intersite and local climatic responses, and analyzing variations of absolute ring width as well as interannual variations in tree growth. The final model also integrates nonclimatic variables such as soil characteristics and the occurrence of insect outbreaks into the growth predictions. Tree level random effects on growth were important as intercepts but were nonsignificant for the climatic variables, indicating that a single climate,growth relationship was justified in our case. The response of tree growth to climate showed, however, a strong dependence on the spatial scale at which the analysis was performed. Intersite variations in tree growth were mostly dependent on variations in the thermal heat sum, a variable that showed low interannual and high intersite variation. When variation for a single site was analyzed, other variables showed up to be important while the heat sum was unimportant. Finally, future growth under six different climate change scenarios was simulated in order to study the potential impact of climate change. Results suggest only moderate growth increases in the northern portion of the gradient and a growth decrease in the southern portion under future climatic conditions. [source]


Use of communal roosts by Andean Condors in northwest Patagonia, Argentina

JOURNAL OF FIELD ORNITHOLOGY, Issue 2 2008
Sergio A. Lambertucci
ABSTRACT Andean Condors (Vultur gryphus) are endangered in the northern portion of their South American range, but populations are larger further south. However, throughout their range, little is known about current population sizes and dynamics. Andean Condors use cliffs with shelves as communal roosts and, from 1999 to 2001, we surveyed three of these roosts in northwestern Patagonia, Argentina, to estimate population sizes and trends. The minimum population of Andean Condors in our study area was 196, one of the highest populations recorded for this species. The maximum number of condors observed increased during our 3-yr study. However, there was a strong seasonal pattern in roost use and use also varied among roosts, possibly due to differences in their environmental characteristics, size, and room available for roosting, as well as proximity to nest sites and stage of the breeding season. In 1999 and 2000, more adults were observed than juveniles, but proportions were similar in 2001. Because we observed differential use of roosts among age classes, spatial segregation seems probable. We conclude that intensive censuses of communal roosts can provide useful information about the size, status, and dynamics of local populations. However, the large aggregations we observed may represent a potential risk for the conservation of the species because a single threat could affect multiple individuals. We suggest that a suitable conservation strategy for condors must involve the design and protection of a network of communal roosts. SINOPSIS El Cóndor Andino (Vultur gryphus) es una especie en peligro de extinción en el norte de su distribución Sudamericana, pero sus poblaciones son más abundantes hacia el sur. Sin embargo, poco se conoce sobre los tamaños de las poblaciones y sus dinámicas a lo largo de su distribución. El cóndor usa acantilados con repisas para descansar y pernoctar comunalmente a lo largo del año. Entre 1999-2001 censamos tres de estos dormideros en el noroeste de la Patagonia Argentina para estimar el tamaño poblacional y los patrones de uso. El tamaño poblacional mínimo de la especie en nuestra área de estudio fue de 196 individuos, el cual es de los más grandes registrados para el Cóndor Andino. Aunque el número máximo de cóndores aumentó durante los tres años de estudio, hubo un fuerte patrón estacional del uso de los dormideros. También encontramos variación en el uso entre dormideros posiblemente debida a las diferencias en sus características ambientales, tamaño, espacio disponible para perchar, proximidad a sitios de nidificación y la fase del período reproductivo. En 1999 y 2000 observamos más adultos que juveniles, pero las proporciones fueron similares en 2001. Observamos diferencias en el uso de cada dormidero entre estadios etarios, por lo cual es factible la segregación espacial por edades. Concluimos que los censos intensivos de dormideros comunales pueden proveer información útil sobre el tamaño, estatus y las dinámicas de las poblaciones locales. Sin embargo, grandes agregaciones como las observadas podrían representar un riesgo para la conservación de esta especie, ya que una sola una amenaza podría afectar a muchos individuos. Sugerimos que una estrategia de conservación adecuada para el Cóndor Andino debería involucrar el diseño y protección de una red de dormideros comunales. [source]


Women's Autonomy in India and Pakistan: The Influence of Religion and Region

POPULATION AND DEVELOPMENT REVIEW, Issue 4 2001
Shireen J. Jejeebhoy
This article compares the lives of women and explores dimensions of their autonomy in different regions of South Asia,Punjab in Pakistan, and Uttar Pradesh in north India and Tamil Nadu in south India. It explores the contextual factors underlying observed differences and assesses the extent to which these differences could be attributed to religion, nationality, or north,south cultural distinctions. Findings suggest that while women's autonomy,in terms of decision-making, mobility, freedom from threatening relations with husband, and access to and control over economic resources,is constrained in all three settings, women in Tamil Nadu fare considerably better than other women, irrespective of religion. Findings lend little support to the suggestion that women in Pakistan have less autonomy or control over their lives than do Indian women. Nor do Muslim women,be they Indian or Pakistani,exercise less autonomy in their own lives than do Hindu women in the subcontinent. Rather, findings suggest that in the patriarchal and gender-stratified structures governing the northern portion of the subcontinent, women's control over their lives is more constrained than in the southern region. [source]


GRATELOUPIA DORYPHORA HAS ESTABLISHED RESIDENCY IN RHODE ISLAND WATERS

JOURNAL OF PHYCOLOGY, Issue 2000
M. M. Harlin
Since 1994, when Grateloupia doryphora (Halymeniaceae, Rhodophyta) was first detected in Rhode Island, the species has spread to the northern portions of Narragansett Bay and onto the open coast of Rhode Island Sound. Specimens collected at 5 m depths off North Prudence Island reached 175 cm in length and establish this alga as the largest member of the Florideophyceae on North Atlantic shores. Percent cover of populations is seasonal: highest in fall (September through November) and lowest in spring (March through May). Monthly measurements at three stations in Narragansett Bay show significant seasonal differences (p < 0.01) over two annual cycles. Artificial substrata placed in the field at known periods allowed measurements of growth rates on individual thalli. Laboratory culture clarified the sequence of life history stages that make this species a successful contender for space. [source]


Services for immigrant women: an evaluation of locations

THE CANADIAN GEOGRAPHER/LE GEOGRAPHE CANADIEN, Issue 2 2000
MARIE TRUELOVE
The Toronto region receives one-quarter of new immigrants to Canada and they become widely dispersed throughout the metropolitan area. Most immigrants arrive with language, social and cultural needs, creating demand for social services from existing agencies. ,How can agencies choose locations that meet the needs of new immigrants?' is the central focus. The results of a study in Metropolitan Toronto of 68 nonprofit agencies that provide a variety of settlement services for immigrant and refugee women are discussed. Immigrant and language groups and the agencies serving them are mapped; the locations of agencies are evaluated. While service agencies are responding to the arrival of new groups and the spatial dispersion of new immigrants, more services in the northern portions of the study area are required. The spatial dispersion of some language groups means that they have poorer access to services than groups that are concentrated in the traditional immigrant reception area. La région de Toronto accueille le quart des immigrants au Canada, et ceux-ci sont dispersés dans l'agglomération torontoise. La plupart d'entre eux ont des exigences linguistiques, sociales et culturelles qui augmentent la demande en services sociaux dispensés par les organismes en place. Ce document porte essentiellement sur la façon dont ces derniers determinent les lieux de prestation de services qui répondront le mieux aux besoins des immigrants. II est également question des résultats d'une étude menée dans la communauté urbaine de Toronto auprés de 68 organismes à but non lucratif offrant un éventail de services d'établissement pour les immigrantes et les réfugiées. Les immigrants et les groupes linguistiques, ainsi que les organismes qui les servent, y sont répertoriés géographiquement. La localisation de ces organismes fait aussi l'objet d'une évaluation. La plupart répondent déjà aux besoins des nouveaux venus et tiennent compte de leur dispersion mais, selon cette étude, il faudrait plus de services dans le nord de l'agglomération torontoise. En raison de cet éparpillement, certains groupes linguistiques ont plus difficilement accès à des services que d'autres qui se trouvent dans les zones d'ancrage habituelles. [source]