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    The urban release of captive-reared Kaka at Karori Wildlife Sanctuary : a thesis presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Master of Science in Ecology at Massey University, Palmerston North
    (Massey University, 2004) Belcher, Sara
    This study investigates the first reintroduction of captive-reared Kaka (Nestor meridionalis), an endangered parrot endemic to New Zealand, at Karori Wildlife Sanctuary, a predator free privately run sanctuary in the same vein as the Department of Conservation's mainland islands. Three Kaka from Auckland Zoo and three Kaka from Hamilton Zoo were released into Karori Sanctuary in August 2002 and followed until August 2003. The Kaka were fitted with radio transmitters, and coloured bands before release. Before release, the consumption of supplementary foods was monitored and the Kaka were introduced to natural foods. The Kaka showed no significant temporal trends, and no correlation between the two groups. The Kaka showed marked preferences for some foods and very varied consumption of others. The Kaka instinctively foraged on natural foods that were provided. Provisioning of natural foods may have reduced neo-phobic responses and assisted successful transition to the wild. Five of the six Kaka remained at the sanctuary 13 Months after release. The Hamilton Kaka tended to disperse further than the Auckland Kaka. All the Hamilton Kaka left the valley where as non of the Auckland birds did. RP-P left the valley and few to Island Bay eventually to return, RR-P went west to beyond Makara peak, and RW-P is the only Kaka to leave and not return. An un-banded wild male arrived at the sanctuary in January 2002 and has reminded since. RP-P and P-WY nested in December 2003 and 3 chicks fledged in March 2003, the pair nested again in 2004 along with RR-P and P-WB. The largest part of the Kaka activity budget is foraging. Supplementary food is a large part of the Kaka diet and the more time a bird spent foraging on natural foods the less time they spent at the feeder. The Kaka at Karori developed a unique location call, and there was evidence of this being taught to the Auckland Kaka by the Hamilton Kaka. Use of the feeder was taught to the wild Kaka that arrived and to the chicks. These results suggest that captive-reared Kaka adapt well to release and supports Berry's (1998) findings. Captive-reared Kaka showed an ability to forage effectively on natural foods, had a high level of site fidelity, and formed stable population. Using captive-reared Kaka is an effective management tool, and the presence of an urban environment did not reduce the success of the release.
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    Cooperative learning : undergraduate students' perceptions of their learning : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Education at Massey University
    (Massey University, 2000) Kirk, P. K
    This study explores undergraduate students' perceptions of their learning when working in a cooperative and collaborative learning environment. Although the literature reports on the effectiveness of these approaches, there is little research available on how university students make sense and meaning of their experiences while learning in this environment. Forty-four participants were drawn from an Introduction to Research Methods course. They were asked to journal their perceptions, and send them electronically to the researcher. One hundred and ninety-seven journal entries were received over a twelve-week period. Major themes were extracted from the data drawing on a phenomenographic approach, which considers the interaction between the students, the content of the learning material, and the overall learning environment. The major findings were that cooperative and collaborative learning groups: • require students to shift their thinking from working independently to working interdependently; • require more emotional energy than traditional forms of learning; • require students to have a range of positive, interpersonal and problem-solving skills; and • require lecturers and students to have the appropriate skills, values and attitudes to achieve their academic tasks. This study has implications for teaching practice, in particular the development, design and planning of cooperative and collaborative course work.
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    Beach morphology and sediments of the West Wellington coast, Wanganui to Paekakariki : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Geography
    (Massey University, 1972) Gibbard, Ronald Graeme
    During the past two decades the coastal districts of New Zealand have received increasing attention, in terms of recreation, settlement, pollution and the evaluation of mineral deposits. This trend is clearly in evidence along the west Wellington coast, especially in relation to the pressure of a rapidly increasing population on coastal facilities. The region considered in this thesis as the west Wellington coast is shown in Figure 1. For the southern coastal section, recently-mooted development proposals include the offshore siting of a Jumbo Jet airport and the establishment of a marina complex, with accompanying breakwater, in the vicinity of Kapiti Island. This southern section has a documented history of incipient erosion since the 1930's, the consequences of which have been accentuated by widespread road, housing and property development on the foredunes. In recent months there has been renewed discussion on groyne and breakwater construction to protect these beaches.
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    Sexual pleasures and dangers : a history of sexual cultures in Wellington, 1900-1920 : a thesis presented in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts by thesis only in History at Massey University
    (Massey University, 1998) Gillingham, Mary
    This thesis examines sexual cultures between 1900 and 1920. It is based on court records of trials for 'sex crime' in the Wellington Supreme Court district, which covered the lower north island. Although sex crimes were an extreme manifestation of sexual practice, and court records represent only partial and constructed accounts of it, the sources can provide insight into attitudes toward sexuality in the past. In this thesis, a crime is posited as an 'extraordinary moment', capable of illuminating a variety of cultural beliefs about sexuality. Victims, their families, the accused men, criminal justice authorities and many others expressed views about codes of sexual behaviour in response to sex crimes. Combined, they form a multi-layered and, at times, contested grid of understandings about sexual mores. This thesis is focused on the reconstruction of these codes of sexual behaviour. To do this, a case study method has been employed which traces the construction of sexuality by individuals and within the courts. The possibilities of sexual pleasure and sexual danger - autonomy and victimisation - framed the meaning attached to sexual encounters by the parties involved, and by others. Such understandings were predominantly shaped by the variables of age and gender. Very young children lacked sufficient sexual knowledge to identify a sexual encounter as either sexually pleasurable or dangerous; they labelled it a physical attack. By adolescence, girls and boys were increasingly sexually aware. For them, and for adults, sexual experiences were characterised by the possibility for sexual pleasure or danger, or a mix of the two. This potential for sexuality to be experienced as pleasure shaped observers' understandings of codes of sexual behaviour. Observers often conflated sexual maturity with consent: childhood was predominantly constructed as a time of sexual innocence and adulthood as times of sexual activity and agency. But codes of sexual behaviour were also mediated by gender. Gendered constructions of character shaped self-representations and observers' understandings of sexual mores. While the double standard of sexual morality set the backdrop for the understanding of sexual mores in the wider Wellington area during the early twentieth century, there were considerable variations in levels of acceptance of it. This thesis examines constructions of sexuality in relation to children, adolescents, and adults of both sexes.