African wildcats on unprotected land in the Northern Cape, South Africa: potential prey and conflict status
- Authors: Stadler, Cindy
- Date: 2021-10-29
- Subjects: African wildcat South Africa Northern Cape , African wildcat Effect of human beings on South Africa Northern Cape , Predation (Biology) South Africa Northern Cape , Livestock Predators of South Africa Northern Cape , Human-animal relationships South Africa Northern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/191012 , vital:45049
- Description: The African wildcat (Felis lybica cafra) is the most common and widely distributed of all wildcats. The southern Kalahari in South Africa offers favourable conditions for African wildcats and supports high wildcat densities on protected and unprotected land. African wildcats have been reported as livestock predators on South African farms, however wildcat-livestock predation is usually reported as infrequent and to have a low financial impact on the farmer. The aim of this study was, firstly, to determine what natural prey species were available for African wildcats on unprotected land and, secondly, to determine the extent of human-wildcat conflict on unprotected land in the southern Kalahari. The frequency of occurrence of potential African wildcat prey was determined through small mammal trapping, camera trap surveys and direct observations. The results indicated that a variety of the African wildcat’s natural prey species occurred on unprotected land and that the dune and adjacent ‘street' habitats most likely supported the majority of small mammals which are preferred prey for African wildcats. The African wildcat’s human-predator conflict status was determined through interview questionnaires (n = 22) with participants who owned or managed farms in the southern Kalahari. African wildcats were perceived to occur on 100% of farms, to be common in the region, to be the top livestock predator on 68% of farms and to be responsible for 46% (n = 1542 newborn lambs) of all livestock deaths in 2020. African wildcats were, however, not viewed in the same negative light as black-backed jackals (Canis mesomelas) and caracals (Caracal caracal), who received more negativity from participants and who had the highest persecution rates in my study area. This result could potentially be explained by a combination of generationally taught hatred towards certain species and due to the perceived livestock loss (e.g. livestock size and species) caused by each predator species. It is important to research and monitor wildcats outside protected areas to obtain a deeper knowledge of wildcat behaviour, abundance, population dynamics and other aspects of their ecology. By doing this, specific conservation and management questions can be addressed and through the knowledge of the natural history of a species, conservation failures can be avoided. , Thesis (MSc) -- Faculty of Science, Zoology and Entomology, 2021
- Full Text:
- Authors: Stadler, Cindy
- Date: 2021-10-29
- Subjects: African wildcat South Africa Northern Cape , African wildcat Effect of human beings on South Africa Northern Cape , Predation (Biology) South Africa Northern Cape , Livestock Predators of South Africa Northern Cape , Human-animal relationships South Africa Northern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/191012 , vital:45049
- Description: The African wildcat (Felis lybica cafra) is the most common and widely distributed of all wildcats. The southern Kalahari in South Africa offers favourable conditions for African wildcats and supports high wildcat densities on protected and unprotected land. African wildcats have been reported as livestock predators on South African farms, however wildcat-livestock predation is usually reported as infrequent and to have a low financial impact on the farmer. The aim of this study was, firstly, to determine what natural prey species were available for African wildcats on unprotected land and, secondly, to determine the extent of human-wildcat conflict on unprotected land in the southern Kalahari. The frequency of occurrence of potential African wildcat prey was determined through small mammal trapping, camera trap surveys and direct observations. The results indicated that a variety of the African wildcat’s natural prey species occurred on unprotected land and that the dune and adjacent ‘street' habitats most likely supported the majority of small mammals which are preferred prey for African wildcats. The African wildcat’s human-predator conflict status was determined through interview questionnaires (n = 22) with participants who owned or managed farms in the southern Kalahari. African wildcats were perceived to occur on 100% of farms, to be common in the region, to be the top livestock predator on 68% of farms and to be responsible for 46% (n = 1542 newborn lambs) of all livestock deaths in 2020. African wildcats were, however, not viewed in the same negative light as black-backed jackals (Canis mesomelas) and caracals (Caracal caracal), who received more negativity from participants and who had the highest persecution rates in my study area. This result could potentially be explained by a combination of generationally taught hatred towards certain species and due to the perceived livestock loss (e.g. livestock size and species) caused by each predator species. It is important to research and monitor wildcats outside protected areas to obtain a deeper knowledge of wildcat behaviour, abundance, population dynamics and other aspects of their ecology. By doing this, specific conservation and management questions can be addressed and through the knowledge of the natural history of a species, conservation failures can be avoided. , Thesis (MSc) -- Faculty of Science, Zoology and Entomology, 2021
- Full Text:
& salt the earth behind you
- Authors: Naidoo, Prenesa
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Creative writing (Higher education) -- South Africa , South African fiction (English) -- 21st century , South African poetry (English) -- 21st century , Short stories, South African (English) -- 21st century , Diaries -- Authorship , Korean fiction -- 21st century -- History and criticism , Short stories, Argentine -- 21st century -- History and criticism , Arabic fiction -- Palestine 21st century -- History and criticism , Argentine fiction -- 21st century -- History and criticism
- Language: English
- Type: thesis , text , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/178212 , vital:42921
- Description: My thesis is a collection of prose pieces in the form of short stories, flash fiction and prose poetry drawing on memory and lived experiences to explore the trauma of death, grief and displacement, solace and the paroxysms of home. As a young woman from an Indian South Africa community, Hindu superstitions and folktales are my second skin, and shape both my worldview and my writing. I am inspired by Lidia Yuknavitch’s observation that, “all artists see things that are not there”, and by Dambudzo Marechera’s belief that, “Beneath reality, there is always fantasy: the writer’s task is to reveal it, to open it out, to feel it, to experience it.” In my stories about trauma and grief, I often distort the line between seen and unseen worlds, where, for example, hauntings are taken seriously as lived experiences. I have also been influenced by Han Kang’s The White Book, Kali Fajardo-Anstine’s Sabrina & Corina, and Sandra Cisneros’ The House on Mango Street. Read together, Kang’s stand-alone short stories form part of a greater collective ‘memory’ or ‘life’; Fajardo-Anstine’s collection illustrates how to write about a specific female Latina community while still telling individual stories; and Cisneros’ fragments of memories tell the story of a person’s life in narratives which are as long or short as they need to be. , Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Humanities, School of Languages and Literatures, 2021
- Full Text:
- Authors: Naidoo, Prenesa
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Creative writing (Higher education) -- South Africa , South African fiction (English) -- 21st century , South African poetry (English) -- 21st century , Short stories, South African (English) -- 21st century , Diaries -- Authorship , Korean fiction -- 21st century -- History and criticism , Short stories, Argentine -- 21st century -- History and criticism , Arabic fiction -- Palestine 21st century -- History and criticism , Argentine fiction -- 21st century -- History and criticism
- Language: English
- Type: thesis , text , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/178212 , vital:42921
- Description: My thesis is a collection of prose pieces in the form of short stories, flash fiction and prose poetry drawing on memory and lived experiences to explore the trauma of death, grief and displacement, solace and the paroxysms of home. As a young woman from an Indian South Africa community, Hindu superstitions and folktales are my second skin, and shape both my worldview and my writing. I am inspired by Lidia Yuknavitch’s observation that, “all artists see things that are not there”, and by Dambudzo Marechera’s belief that, “Beneath reality, there is always fantasy: the writer’s task is to reveal it, to open it out, to feel it, to experience it.” In my stories about trauma and grief, I often distort the line between seen and unseen worlds, where, for example, hauntings are taken seriously as lived experiences. I have also been influenced by Han Kang’s The White Book, Kali Fajardo-Anstine’s Sabrina & Corina, and Sandra Cisneros’ The House on Mango Street. Read together, Kang’s stand-alone short stories form part of a greater collective ‘memory’ or ‘life’; Fajardo-Anstine’s collection illustrates how to write about a specific female Latina community while still telling individual stories; and Cisneros’ fragments of memories tell the story of a person’s life in narratives which are as long or short as they need to be. , Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Humanities, School of Languages and Literatures, 2021
- Full Text:
An Archive of Upset : the Shift from Commissioning to Curating through South Africa’s Representations at the Bienal de São Paulo and the Interstitial Nexus of Leonard Tshehla Mohapi Matsoso
- Authors: Dantas, Nancy Isabel
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Bienal Internacional de São Paulo , Curatorship , Art -- Commissioning , Art -- Political aspects , Matsoso, Leonard Tshehla Mohapi
- Language: English
- Type: thesis , text , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/174492 , vital:42482 , https://doi.org/10.21504/10962/174492
- Description: This thesis explores the distinction between commissioning and curating, adopting the Bienal de São Paulo (or Bienal) as its conceptual propeller and point of departure. The thesis regards exhibitions as palimpsests, in other words, platforms built on previous conscious or sublimated models, beyond the Venetian model inaugurated in 1895. By looking at world expositions, particularly the Cape presence at the Colonial and Indian Exhibition of 1886, this project traces a lineage of commissioners, from Sir Henry Cole to Sydney Cowper through to the Director of the Pretoria Art Museum, Albert Werth. It distinguishes these men, their vision and allegiances from the curatorial model instantiated in South Africa by the late Okwui Enwezor as a consequence of the Second Johannesburg Biennale, held in 1997. The aim of this research has been to provide a partial but crucial account of this shift, and to remain attentive to the silences and deletions, to what happens in the interstice, at transitionary moments of ‘betweenness.’ I ask that readers consider the 1979 Bienal as an instance of an interstice where the occluded and silenced ghost of modernist artist Leonard Tshehla Mohapi Matsoso, who represented South Africa at the 1973 edition of the Bienal, garnering a substantial award for his work in drawing, resides. Matsoso was the first and only Black South African artist to receive this accolade. This thesis posits that Matsoso’s absence from the exhibition in 1979, an exhibition where he would rightly have featured, constitutes a curatorial haunting, wedged in the archive of the Bienal’s history, and an opportunity for revision and evaluation of commissioning vis-àvis curating. In reading the exhibition histories’ archive “along the grain” (Stoler 2002), the commissioner emerges as a man of letters, a privileged social category found in the archive; a colonial authority whose status was founded as much on his display of European learning as on his studied ignorance of local knowledge; an implementer of the taxonomic state and modernist art historical canon (in the case of Werth); a cultivator of the fine arts of deference, dissemblance and persuasion. At a later stage and moment of dissonance and disruption, the independent curator emerges to reconsider, question and expand the canon, distancing him/herself from the (South African) State to serve the artist or artists and a wider community. This research aims to contribute, albeit in a small way, to a reappraisal of the position of Leonard Tshehla Mohapi Matsoso in South African modernism, and the distinction between commissioning and curating. , Thesis (PhD)--Rhodes University, Faculty of Humanities, Department of Fine Art, 2021
- Full Text:
- Authors: Dantas, Nancy Isabel
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Bienal Internacional de São Paulo , Curatorship , Art -- Commissioning , Art -- Political aspects , Matsoso, Leonard Tshehla Mohapi
- Language: English
- Type: thesis , text , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/174492 , vital:42482 , https://doi.org/10.21504/10962/174492
- Description: This thesis explores the distinction between commissioning and curating, adopting the Bienal de São Paulo (or Bienal) as its conceptual propeller and point of departure. The thesis regards exhibitions as palimpsests, in other words, platforms built on previous conscious or sublimated models, beyond the Venetian model inaugurated in 1895. By looking at world expositions, particularly the Cape presence at the Colonial and Indian Exhibition of 1886, this project traces a lineage of commissioners, from Sir Henry Cole to Sydney Cowper through to the Director of the Pretoria Art Museum, Albert Werth. It distinguishes these men, their vision and allegiances from the curatorial model instantiated in South Africa by the late Okwui Enwezor as a consequence of the Second Johannesburg Biennale, held in 1997. The aim of this research has been to provide a partial but crucial account of this shift, and to remain attentive to the silences and deletions, to what happens in the interstice, at transitionary moments of ‘betweenness.’ I ask that readers consider the 1979 Bienal as an instance of an interstice where the occluded and silenced ghost of modernist artist Leonard Tshehla Mohapi Matsoso, who represented South Africa at the 1973 edition of the Bienal, garnering a substantial award for his work in drawing, resides. Matsoso was the first and only Black South African artist to receive this accolade. This thesis posits that Matsoso’s absence from the exhibition in 1979, an exhibition where he would rightly have featured, constitutes a curatorial haunting, wedged in the archive of the Bienal’s history, and an opportunity for revision and evaluation of commissioning vis-àvis curating. In reading the exhibition histories’ archive “along the grain” (Stoler 2002), the commissioner emerges as a man of letters, a privileged social category found in the archive; a colonial authority whose status was founded as much on his display of European learning as on his studied ignorance of local knowledge; an implementer of the taxonomic state and modernist art historical canon (in the case of Werth); a cultivator of the fine arts of deference, dissemblance and persuasion. At a later stage and moment of dissonance and disruption, the independent curator emerges to reconsider, question and expand the canon, distancing him/herself from the (South African) State to serve the artist or artists and a wider community. This research aims to contribute, albeit in a small way, to a reappraisal of the position of Leonard Tshehla Mohapi Matsoso in South African modernism, and the distinction between commissioning and curating. , Thesis (PhD)--Rhodes University, Faculty of Humanities, Department of Fine Art, 2021
- Full Text:
Biology, ecology and management of the Keurboom moth, Leto venus Cramer and the leafhopper Molopopterus sp. Jacobi in cultivated Honeybush (Cyclopia spp.)
- Authors: Mushore, Tapiwa Gift
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Legumes , Legumes -- Diseases and pests , Hepialidae , Leafhoppers , Pests -- Biological control , Entomopathogenic fungi , Leafhoppers -- Biological control , Hepialidae -- Biological control , Keurboom moth (Leto venus Cramer) , Molopopterus sp. Jacobi , Honeybush (Cyclopia spp.)
- Language: English
- Type: thesis , text , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/177125 , vital:42792
- Description: Honeybush, Cyclopia spp. Vent (Fabaceae), farmers have raised pest concerns following commercial cultivation. The Keurboom moth Leto venus Cramer (Lepidoptera: Hepialidae) and the leafhopper Molopopterus sp. Jacobi (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae), are two of the major pests identified in cultivated Honeybush. Laboratory and field studies were conducted to gain an understanding of the biology of these two pests to inform future pest management solutions. Additionally, entomopathogenic fungi were isolated from Honeybush farms and screened for virulence against Molopopterus sp. as a possible management strategy. This study showed that the L. venus infestation on Honeybush was a product of four fixed effects; stem diameter, species of Cyclopia, Farm location and age of the plants. Cyclopia subternata, had the highest likelihood of infestation. Increase in age of the plants resulted in an increase in the stem diameter and therefore a higher probability of infestation. Stem diameter was also shown to be a significant predictor of infestation likelihood. Infestation severity, determined by the number of larvae per plant, was shown to be influenced by three fixed effects; stem diameter, plant species and Farm location. The results also showed that L. venus prefers to initiate penetration at, or just aboveground level. Laboratory studies showed that the leafhopper Molopopterus sp. undergoes five nymphal instars with an average egg incubation time of 20 days, development time from 1st instar to adult of 26 days and average generation time of 47 days. Laboratory experiments revealed variations in host preference by the leafhopper over a period of 15 days. Cyclopia longifolia was identified to be the most preferred species for feeding compared to the two other commonly cultivated species, C. subternata and C. maculata. The results were consistent with those obtained from the field survey which showed that leafhopper density was influenced by four fixed effects; plant species, age of the plant, Farm location and harvesting practices. There were significant differences in leafhopper density in different species with C. longifolia having the highest number of leafhoppers per plant. There were differences in leafhopper density in different farms as 57% of the sampled farms had leafhopper infestations, of these farms, Lodestone and Kurland had the highest leafhopper densities. Harvested plants were shown to have significantly higher leafhopper density than non-harvested plants. Age was also shown to influence leafhopper density, which reduced with an increase in the age of the plants. A total of 20 fungal isolates were recovered from 98 soil samples of which 70% were from Honeybush fields and 30% were from surrounding refugia. Fusarium oxysporum isolates comprised 20% of the recovered isolates, with Metarhizium anisopliae isolates making up the remainder. Laboratory bioassays against adults and nymphs of the leafhopper, Molopopterus sp., showed that F. oxysporum isolates induced 10 – 45% mortality and M. anisopliae isolates induce 30 – 80% mortality. Metarhizium anisopliae isolates J S1, KF S3, KF S11, KF S13, LS1 and LS2 were the most virulent and induced over 60% mortality in both Molopopterus sp. nymphs and adults. The results of this study showed pest preference towards different Cyclopia species. As such, they should be managed differently. Furthermore, L. venus was observed to occur in low densities, hence, it cannot be considered a major pest. However, Molopopterus sp. recorded high population densities making it a major pest in Honeybush production. Positive results indicated that some of the isolated fungal isolates have potential for control, an avenue worth investigating further. , Thesis (MSc) -- Faculty of Science, Department of Zoology and Entomology, 2021
- Full Text:
- Authors: Mushore, Tapiwa Gift
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Legumes , Legumes -- Diseases and pests , Hepialidae , Leafhoppers , Pests -- Biological control , Entomopathogenic fungi , Leafhoppers -- Biological control , Hepialidae -- Biological control , Keurboom moth (Leto venus Cramer) , Molopopterus sp. Jacobi , Honeybush (Cyclopia spp.)
- Language: English
- Type: thesis , text , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/177125 , vital:42792
- Description: Honeybush, Cyclopia spp. Vent (Fabaceae), farmers have raised pest concerns following commercial cultivation. The Keurboom moth Leto venus Cramer (Lepidoptera: Hepialidae) and the leafhopper Molopopterus sp. Jacobi (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae), are two of the major pests identified in cultivated Honeybush. Laboratory and field studies were conducted to gain an understanding of the biology of these two pests to inform future pest management solutions. Additionally, entomopathogenic fungi were isolated from Honeybush farms and screened for virulence against Molopopterus sp. as a possible management strategy. This study showed that the L. venus infestation on Honeybush was a product of four fixed effects; stem diameter, species of Cyclopia, Farm location and age of the plants. Cyclopia subternata, had the highest likelihood of infestation. Increase in age of the plants resulted in an increase in the stem diameter and therefore a higher probability of infestation. Stem diameter was also shown to be a significant predictor of infestation likelihood. Infestation severity, determined by the number of larvae per plant, was shown to be influenced by three fixed effects; stem diameter, plant species and Farm location. The results also showed that L. venus prefers to initiate penetration at, or just aboveground level. Laboratory studies showed that the leafhopper Molopopterus sp. undergoes five nymphal instars with an average egg incubation time of 20 days, development time from 1st instar to adult of 26 days and average generation time of 47 days. Laboratory experiments revealed variations in host preference by the leafhopper over a period of 15 days. Cyclopia longifolia was identified to be the most preferred species for feeding compared to the two other commonly cultivated species, C. subternata and C. maculata. The results were consistent with those obtained from the field survey which showed that leafhopper density was influenced by four fixed effects; plant species, age of the plant, Farm location and harvesting practices. There were significant differences in leafhopper density in different species with C. longifolia having the highest number of leafhoppers per plant. There were differences in leafhopper density in different farms as 57% of the sampled farms had leafhopper infestations, of these farms, Lodestone and Kurland had the highest leafhopper densities. Harvested plants were shown to have significantly higher leafhopper density than non-harvested plants. Age was also shown to influence leafhopper density, which reduced with an increase in the age of the plants. A total of 20 fungal isolates were recovered from 98 soil samples of which 70% were from Honeybush fields and 30% were from surrounding refugia. Fusarium oxysporum isolates comprised 20% of the recovered isolates, with Metarhizium anisopliae isolates making up the remainder. Laboratory bioassays against adults and nymphs of the leafhopper, Molopopterus sp., showed that F. oxysporum isolates induced 10 – 45% mortality and M. anisopliae isolates induce 30 – 80% mortality. Metarhizium anisopliae isolates J S1, KF S3, KF S11, KF S13, LS1 and LS2 were the most virulent and induced over 60% mortality in both Molopopterus sp. nymphs and adults. The results of this study showed pest preference towards different Cyclopia species. As such, they should be managed differently. Furthermore, L. venus was observed to occur in low densities, hence, it cannot be considered a major pest. However, Molopopterus sp. recorded high population densities making it a major pest in Honeybush production. Positive results indicated that some of the isolated fungal isolates have potential for control, an avenue worth investigating further. , Thesis (MSc) -- Faculty of Science, Department of Zoology and Entomology, 2021
- Full Text:
Economic impact of climate change on maize production in the Free State Province, South Africa
- Authors: Johnson, Richard Cowper
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Corn -- Climatic factors -- South Africa -- Free State , Climatic changes -- Economic aspects -- South Africa -- Free State , Climate change mitigation -- South Africa -- Free State , Agriculture -- Economic aspects -- South Africa -- Free State
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MCom
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/174365 , vital:42471
- Description: Higher concentrations of CO2 in the atmosphere is a major influence on climate change globally. Climate change is caused by greenhouse gases trapping too much heat from the sun in the atmosphere and thus, altering the climate through a rise in global surface temperatures and changing precipitation patterns. CO2 is the most prominent greenhouse gas found in the atmosphere and it is reported that by the turn of the century the CO2 concentration levels will have doubled if the current rate of emissions continues. However, the increase in atmospheric levels of the gas has been found to increase the capacity of maize plants and their water use efficiency to achieve higher yields through CO2 fertilisation. Simulation experiments conducted by the Rhodes University Botany Department found that the effect of elevated levels of CO2 of double the current concentration offsets the negative effects of drought on maize. A case study was conducted on commercial maize farmers in two regions of the Free State province in South Africa to estimate the economic impact of climate change on maize production. Although production is increasing in the province, adaptation to the changing climate is key to the sustainability of production. There is a trade-off between the negative effects of higher CO2 levels changing the climate and the positive effect of CO2 fertilisation. As predicted, the economic impact of climate change is the disruption of farming practices and the increase in costs of production as a result of adapting to climate change. Using a gross margin analysis, the study found that the larger maize farmers who benefit from economies of scale are able to adapt and grow their production whilst the smaller farmers are being pushed out of the market.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Johnson, Richard Cowper
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Corn -- Climatic factors -- South Africa -- Free State , Climatic changes -- Economic aspects -- South Africa -- Free State , Climate change mitigation -- South Africa -- Free State , Agriculture -- Economic aspects -- South Africa -- Free State
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MCom
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/174365 , vital:42471
- Description: Higher concentrations of CO2 in the atmosphere is a major influence on climate change globally. Climate change is caused by greenhouse gases trapping too much heat from the sun in the atmosphere and thus, altering the climate through a rise in global surface temperatures and changing precipitation patterns. CO2 is the most prominent greenhouse gas found in the atmosphere and it is reported that by the turn of the century the CO2 concentration levels will have doubled if the current rate of emissions continues. However, the increase in atmospheric levels of the gas has been found to increase the capacity of maize plants and their water use efficiency to achieve higher yields through CO2 fertilisation. Simulation experiments conducted by the Rhodes University Botany Department found that the effect of elevated levels of CO2 of double the current concentration offsets the negative effects of drought on maize. A case study was conducted on commercial maize farmers in two regions of the Free State province in South Africa to estimate the economic impact of climate change on maize production. Although production is increasing in the province, adaptation to the changing climate is key to the sustainability of production. There is a trade-off between the negative effects of higher CO2 levels changing the climate and the positive effect of CO2 fertilisation. As predicted, the economic impact of climate change is the disruption of farming practices and the increase in costs of production as a result of adapting to climate change. Using a gross margin analysis, the study found that the larger maize farmers who benefit from economies of scale are able to adapt and grow their production whilst the smaller farmers are being pushed out of the market.
- Full Text:
Framing realities : a critical analysis of perspectival distortion in the film Alice by Czech Surrealist Jan Švankmajer
- Authors: Soutter, Simone
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Švankmajer, Jan, 1934- -- Criticism and interpretation , Depression, Mental -- Exhibitions , Perception , Frames (Sociology) , Surrealism -- Influence , Cubism -- Influence , Surrealism in motion pictures , Depression, Mental in art
- Language: English
- Type: thesis , text , Masters , MFA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/178365 , vital:42933
- Description: My MFA exhibition Through the looking glass; altered states of perception, explores my experience of mental distress: Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), through the medium of painting and multimedia collage. Situated in the Main Fine Art building on Rhodes University campus, this practical submission takes the form of a collection of oil paintings accompanied by an immersive wall of collaged experimentations, depicting the perspectival shifts I have experienced in coping with mental distress. The paintings explore concepts of framing and perspective, both literally and metaphorically in unpacking how our perceptions are manipulated by the way in which situations and concepts are framed. I use strategies and techniques drawn from the Surrealist and Cubist movements in order to depict my distorted experience of time and space, but also to tap into my own unconscious. In this mini-thesis: Framing realities; A critical analysis of perspectival distortion in the film Alice by Czech Surrealist Jan Švankmajer, I explore the strategies and concepts developed during the Surrealist and Cubist movements in relation to strategies used by Švankmajer in his disturbing interpretation of Alice’s Adventures into Wonderland. Here, he visually explores the psyche of an imaginative child. His unique interpretation is expressed through the combination of live-action film and stop-motion animation. I position my work in relation to themes proposed by Maurice Merleau-Ponty, Ernst Jentch, Sigmund Freud and Julia Kristeva. In the first Chapter: Framing and Perspectival shifts, I unpack framing and perspectival shifts exhibited in the Cubist (a physical shift), Dadaist (a social shift), and Surrealist (an unconscious shift) movements. In Chapter Two: A critical analysis of Alice by Jan Švankmajer, I engage in an analysis of themes (examined in the above art movements) relative to the film Alice. These are found objects and assemblages, ambiguity, distortion of scale, the Unconscious, the uncanny and multi-sensory modalities. Chapter Three: Through the Looking Glass; Altered states of perception, I discuss how the themes discussed in Chapter Two apply to my own body of work and how these themes are addressed with regards to my lived experience of mental disorder and distress. , Thesis (MFA) -- Faculty of Humanities, Fine Arts, 2021
- Full Text:
- Authors: Soutter, Simone
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Švankmajer, Jan, 1934- -- Criticism and interpretation , Depression, Mental -- Exhibitions , Perception , Frames (Sociology) , Surrealism -- Influence , Cubism -- Influence , Surrealism in motion pictures , Depression, Mental in art
- Language: English
- Type: thesis , text , Masters , MFA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/178365 , vital:42933
- Description: My MFA exhibition Through the looking glass; altered states of perception, explores my experience of mental distress: Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), through the medium of painting and multimedia collage. Situated in the Main Fine Art building on Rhodes University campus, this practical submission takes the form of a collection of oil paintings accompanied by an immersive wall of collaged experimentations, depicting the perspectival shifts I have experienced in coping with mental distress. The paintings explore concepts of framing and perspective, both literally and metaphorically in unpacking how our perceptions are manipulated by the way in which situations and concepts are framed. I use strategies and techniques drawn from the Surrealist and Cubist movements in order to depict my distorted experience of time and space, but also to tap into my own unconscious. In this mini-thesis: Framing realities; A critical analysis of perspectival distortion in the film Alice by Czech Surrealist Jan Švankmajer, I explore the strategies and concepts developed during the Surrealist and Cubist movements in relation to strategies used by Švankmajer in his disturbing interpretation of Alice’s Adventures into Wonderland. Here, he visually explores the psyche of an imaginative child. His unique interpretation is expressed through the combination of live-action film and stop-motion animation. I position my work in relation to themes proposed by Maurice Merleau-Ponty, Ernst Jentch, Sigmund Freud and Julia Kristeva. In the first Chapter: Framing and Perspectival shifts, I unpack framing and perspectival shifts exhibited in the Cubist (a physical shift), Dadaist (a social shift), and Surrealist (an unconscious shift) movements. In Chapter Two: A critical analysis of Alice by Jan Švankmajer, I engage in an analysis of themes (examined in the above art movements) relative to the film Alice. These are found objects and assemblages, ambiguity, distortion of scale, the Unconscious, the uncanny and multi-sensory modalities. Chapter Three: Through the Looking Glass; Altered states of perception, I discuss how the themes discussed in Chapter Two apply to my own body of work and how these themes are addressed with regards to my lived experience of mental disorder and distress. , Thesis (MFA) -- Faculty of Humanities, Fine Arts, 2021
- Full Text:
Hierdie keer gaan nie maklik wees nie
- Authors: Visser, Deon Claudius
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Creative writing (Higher education) -- South Africa , Diaries -- Authorship , Short stories, Afrikaans -- 21st century , Afrikaans fiction -- 21st century , Afrikaans fiction -- History and criticism
- Language: Afrikaans
- Type: thesis , text , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/178317 , vital:42929
- Description: My tesis bestaan uit twee versamelings van prosa wat verwant en in noue verband met mekaar tree. Die prosa is fragmentaries en kort maar verbind met ‟n oorkoepelende storie wat in beide Afrikaans en Engels voorgelê word. Die Afrikaanse deel van my tesis ondersoek die verlede, en die Engels die toekoms. My algemene bron van inspirasie vir die struktuur en voorlegging van die tesis word verkry vanaf die klassieke raamverteller konvensie soos gebruik in One Thousand and One Nights, hierdie konvensie maak gebruik van raamfragmente wat binne ‟n groter geheel gevind kan word. Dit is juis hierdie komplekse struktuur wat dit moontlik maak om tyd, hede en verlede asook die toekoms, te kan ondersoek en uit te beeld. Verder maak dit dit ook moontlik om gekoppelde herinneringe, gedagteneigings, en fantasieverhale te kan gebruik as die dryfkrag van die oorkoepelende storie. Met betrekking tot kontemporêre fiksie vind ek die meeste aanklank en invloed by Sandra Cisneros se boek House on Mango Street. Ek het by hierdie verhaal geleer hoe om vignette en kortverhale onafhanklik maar met ‟n motief-verbinding aan mekaar te koppel. Tematies gesproke handel my tesis oor herinneringe, nostalgie, familieverhoudings, die dood asook afsluiting en aanbeweging. In terme van hierdie temas vind ek dat Nathan Trantraal se Chokers en Survivors, en Noudat Slapende Honde deur Ronelda S. Kamfer my die meeste insae gee oor die verhouding tussen Afrikaans en Engels in die literatuur. Verder is Loftus Marais se taalgebruik en die vermenging van taal in Staan in die Algemeen Nader aan Vensters ook insiggewend. , Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Humanities, School of Languages and Literatures, 2021
- Full Text:
- Authors: Visser, Deon Claudius
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Creative writing (Higher education) -- South Africa , Diaries -- Authorship , Short stories, Afrikaans -- 21st century , Afrikaans fiction -- 21st century , Afrikaans fiction -- History and criticism
- Language: Afrikaans
- Type: thesis , text , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/178317 , vital:42929
- Description: My tesis bestaan uit twee versamelings van prosa wat verwant en in noue verband met mekaar tree. Die prosa is fragmentaries en kort maar verbind met ‟n oorkoepelende storie wat in beide Afrikaans en Engels voorgelê word. Die Afrikaanse deel van my tesis ondersoek die verlede, en die Engels die toekoms. My algemene bron van inspirasie vir die struktuur en voorlegging van die tesis word verkry vanaf die klassieke raamverteller konvensie soos gebruik in One Thousand and One Nights, hierdie konvensie maak gebruik van raamfragmente wat binne ‟n groter geheel gevind kan word. Dit is juis hierdie komplekse struktuur wat dit moontlik maak om tyd, hede en verlede asook die toekoms, te kan ondersoek en uit te beeld. Verder maak dit dit ook moontlik om gekoppelde herinneringe, gedagteneigings, en fantasieverhale te kan gebruik as die dryfkrag van die oorkoepelende storie. Met betrekking tot kontemporêre fiksie vind ek die meeste aanklank en invloed by Sandra Cisneros se boek House on Mango Street. Ek het by hierdie verhaal geleer hoe om vignette en kortverhale onafhanklik maar met ‟n motief-verbinding aan mekaar te koppel. Tematies gesproke handel my tesis oor herinneringe, nostalgie, familieverhoudings, die dood asook afsluiting en aanbeweging. In terme van hierdie temas vind ek dat Nathan Trantraal se Chokers en Survivors, en Noudat Slapende Honde deur Ronelda S. Kamfer my die meeste insae gee oor die verhouding tussen Afrikaans en Engels in die literatuur. Verder is Loftus Marais se taalgebruik en die vermenging van taal in Staan in die Algemeen Nader aan Vensters ook insiggewend. , Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Humanities, School of Languages and Literatures, 2021
- Full Text:
Indigenous knowledge of ecosystem services in rural communities of the Eastern Cape, South Africa
- Authors: Murata, Chenai
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Ethnoscience -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Ecosystem management -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Nature -- Effect of human beings on -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Human ecology -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Human beings -- Effect of environment on -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , South Africa -- Eastern Cape -- Rural conditions
- Language: English
- Type: thesis , text , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/177929 , vital:42891 , 10.21504/10962/177929
- Description: This thesis is on indigenous knowledge of ecosystem services. The ecosystem service framework and its associated concepts are fairly young, having been introduced in the ecological discipline in the 1980s. The ecosystem service framework posits that the wellbeing of humans and their communities is dependent on services supplied by ecosystems. It emphasises that for the ecosystems to be able to supply the services, they need to be in a well-functioning state. This idea of well-functioning is predicated on the argument that the ecosystem service framework enjoins resource users to exercise responsible stewardship to prevent degradation and overharvesting. Moreover, the concept of dependence suggests that ecosystem services are of value to humans. The dominant means of measuring the value of ecosystem services has been the economic valuation method in which the contribution that each service makes to human wellbeing is quantified into monetary units. The framework disaggregates the services into four groups, namely provisioning, cultural, supporting and regulatory and seeks to all the pillars of human wellbeing including health, subsistence and spirituality into each of these groups. In doing all this, the framework significantly reconfigures the way we look at and present human-nature relations. This change has the potential to influence significant shifts in how ecological research and intervention programmes are conducted in the foreseeable future. However, the reality that the ecosystem service framework was formulated within, and is informed by the scientific epistemology begs the question: what do traditional rural communities who depend mainly on indigenous knowledge systems (IKS) for shaping and interoperating their relations with nature know of the ecosystem service concept? Rural communities are the ones who interact directly with nature on a day-to-day basis. This makes them a very critical component in the ecosystem service framework. Although South Africa has had studies in the ecosystem service theme, little has been done to attempt to investigate and document indigenous knowledge of ecosystem services that rural communities possess. By focusing only on scientific knowledge of ecosystem services, the South African literature does not do justice to the plural epistemologies of the ecosystem service users in the country. More importantly, the continued dearth of public information on indigenous knowledge of ecosystem services can potentially obstruct implementation of locally sensitive intervention programmes because nothing is known about how the local communities conceptualise the ecosystem service framework. All this presents a crucial gap in the South African research; one that unless effort is made to contribute towards filling it, our knowledge of how communities experience the ecosystem service framework in South Africa will remain skewed. This study set out to investigate and document indigenous knowledge of ecosystem services in order to contribute towards filling this gap. Indigenous knowledge system is an umbrella epistemic system that includes lay ecological knowledge (LEK), traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) and many other related organized systems of knowing. Although the thesis has a chapter on LEK, its primary focus was TEK because the thesis was interested in unravelling how aspects of tradition including taboos, customs, traditional rules and belief in ancestral forces influence local communities’ knowledge of some key aspects of the ecosystem service framework including knowledge of various ecosystem services, valuation of ecosystem services, management of ecosystem services and perceptions of the management practices. The decision to focus on TEK was based on the reasoning that rural communities of the Eastern Cape boast a strong reputation of being traditional, recognizing ancestral spirits, legends and taboos as critical tools of knowledge generation and transmission. Using both mixed methods in some chapters and the qualitative approach alone in others, the study collected data in five villages of Mgwalana, Mahlungulu, Colana, Gogela and Nozitshena located in the north eastern part of Eastern Cape Province of South Africa, a region formerly called Transkei. The data were collected not on ecosystem services; but on the local people’s knowledge of ecosystem services. Although literature was consulted, the study regarded respondents as the primary source of data, hence the findings and conclusions presented in this thesis are about what local people know about ecosystem services. The study uses critical realist theoretical lenses to interpret respondents’ reports. The lenses included the principle of the separation between ontology and epistemology, the iceberg metaphor of ontology, epistemological pluralism and the hermeneutic dimension. These lenses were used to make sense of both the knowledge system of local people and the things about which their knowledge was. As part of discussing the local people’s knowledge, the study sometimes refers to science. This is not because I expected them to demonstrate knowledge similar to science. Instead, it was a critical realist dialectical way of explaining what something is by demonstrating what it is not. The study made a couple of key findings that can potentially enhance the growth of the South African ecosystem service discipline. First, respondents demonstrated knowledge of ecosystem services by mentioning a range of them such as drinking water, medicinal plants, cultural plants and fuelwood and how they affect the wellbeing of humans. However, what they did not have good knowledge of is that nature services can be classified into the four groups of supporting, regulatory, cultural and provisioning. Among the four ecosystem services groups, respondents could identify two only; provisional and cultural. Second, local communities depend heavily on ecosystem services for their well-being. The services include fuelwood, construction timber, medicinal plants, wild fruits, wild fish, cultural services and thatch grass. Although they appreciate that ecosystem services have value to their wellbeing, local people found it difficult to represent the value in monetary units. The conditions that make it difficult for local people to perceive ecosystem services as commodities include the absence of well-defined property system, lack of a quantitative consumer tradition and absence of an economic conception of nature. Third, local people understand the need to keep ecosystems in a well-functioning state hence they implement several traditional practices to manage ecosystem services. These practices include taboos, designating certain resources as sacred, legends, customary law, as well as some secular practices including gelesha and stone terracing. However, it is not easy to understand how traditional management practices work because they are not empirically observable. Fourth, local people possess knowledge of the reality that if not well managed, ecosystems can undergo degradation and hence fail to supply the services needed for human wellbeing. However, they explain the causes of degradation in terms of changes observable at the empirical level and the invisible causal power of supernatural forces. The inclusion of natural forces in degradation explanations marks a departure from the scientific explanations that revolve around biophysical processes. Fifth, the use of traditional management practices such as taboos to management ecosystems is under threat at the local communities. The threat can be attributed to three groups of causes, namely changes in worldviews due to adoption of formal education and Christianity, institutional disharmony playing out between the state and local traditional leadership, and lifestyle changes. These challenges constrain the opportunity for local people to apply traditional management practices to prevent the degradation of ecosystems. The net implication of this is that it renders it difficult for researchers and policy makers to assess the effectiveness of traditional management practices because they are not being implemented in full. In light of all these findings, the thesis concludes that TEK is underlabouring for the ecosystem service framework in the sense that it is used by local communities to generate knowledge of ecological concepts and phenomena. This means that TEK does not exist for the sake of its own self. Drawing from this finding, the study proposes a framework of analysing TEK as an underlabourer for social-ecological triggers or issues. Nonetheless, there are few factors that can be sources of limitation to the study. These include the reality that it was difficult to access pure traditional knowledge because over the years the local communities have received many state-sponsored ecological intervention programmes and a possible personal bias given the reality that I grew up in a traditional household and my father was a key holder or TEK. , Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Science, Environmental Science, 2021 , Thesis chapter to be published in 'Green and Low-Carbon Economy'. Journal available: https://ojs.bonviewpress.com/index.php/GLCE/index
- Full Text:
- Authors: Murata, Chenai
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Ethnoscience -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Ecosystem management -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Nature -- Effect of human beings on -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Human ecology -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Human beings -- Effect of environment on -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , South Africa -- Eastern Cape -- Rural conditions
- Language: English
- Type: thesis , text , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/177929 , vital:42891 , 10.21504/10962/177929
- Description: This thesis is on indigenous knowledge of ecosystem services. The ecosystem service framework and its associated concepts are fairly young, having been introduced in the ecological discipline in the 1980s. The ecosystem service framework posits that the wellbeing of humans and their communities is dependent on services supplied by ecosystems. It emphasises that for the ecosystems to be able to supply the services, they need to be in a well-functioning state. This idea of well-functioning is predicated on the argument that the ecosystem service framework enjoins resource users to exercise responsible stewardship to prevent degradation and overharvesting. Moreover, the concept of dependence suggests that ecosystem services are of value to humans. The dominant means of measuring the value of ecosystem services has been the economic valuation method in which the contribution that each service makes to human wellbeing is quantified into monetary units. The framework disaggregates the services into four groups, namely provisioning, cultural, supporting and regulatory and seeks to all the pillars of human wellbeing including health, subsistence and spirituality into each of these groups. In doing all this, the framework significantly reconfigures the way we look at and present human-nature relations. This change has the potential to influence significant shifts in how ecological research and intervention programmes are conducted in the foreseeable future. However, the reality that the ecosystem service framework was formulated within, and is informed by the scientific epistemology begs the question: what do traditional rural communities who depend mainly on indigenous knowledge systems (IKS) for shaping and interoperating their relations with nature know of the ecosystem service concept? Rural communities are the ones who interact directly with nature on a day-to-day basis. This makes them a very critical component in the ecosystem service framework. Although South Africa has had studies in the ecosystem service theme, little has been done to attempt to investigate and document indigenous knowledge of ecosystem services that rural communities possess. By focusing only on scientific knowledge of ecosystem services, the South African literature does not do justice to the plural epistemologies of the ecosystem service users in the country. More importantly, the continued dearth of public information on indigenous knowledge of ecosystem services can potentially obstruct implementation of locally sensitive intervention programmes because nothing is known about how the local communities conceptualise the ecosystem service framework. All this presents a crucial gap in the South African research; one that unless effort is made to contribute towards filling it, our knowledge of how communities experience the ecosystem service framework in South Africa will remain skewed. This study set out to investigate and document indigenous knowledge of ecosystem services in order to contribute towards filling this gap. Indigenous knowledge system is an umbrella epistemic system that includes lay ecological knowledge (LEK), traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) and many other related organized systems of knowing. Although the thesis has a chapter on LEK, its primary focus was TEK because the thesis was interested in unravelling how aspects of tradition including taboos, customs, traditional rules and belief in ancestral forces influence local communities’ knowledge of some key aspects of the ecosystem service framework including knowledge of various ecosystem services, valuation of ecosystem services, management of ecosystem services and perceptions of the management practices. The decision to focus on TEK was based on the reasoning that rural communities of the Eastern Cape boast a strong reputation of being traditional, recognizing ancestral spirits, legends and taboos as critical tools of knowledge generation and transmission. Using both mixed methods in some chapters and the qualitative approach alone in others, the study collected data in five villages of Mgwalana, Mahlungulu, Colana, Gogela and Nozitshena located in the north eastern part of Eastern Cape Province of South Africa, a region formerly called Transkei. The data were collected not on ecosystem services; but on the local people’s knowledge of ecosystem services. Although literature was consulted, the study regarded respondents as the primary source of data, hence the findings and conclusions presented in this thesis are about what local people know about ecosystem services. The study uses critical realist theoretical lenses to interpret respondents’ reports. The lenses included the principle of the separation between ontology and epistemology, the iceberg metaphor of ontology, epistemological pluralism and the hermeneutic dimension. These lenses were used to make sense of both the knowledge system of local people and the things about which their knowledge was. As part of discussing the local people’s knowledge, the study sometimes refers to science. This is not because I expected them to demonstrate knowledge similar to science. Instead, it was a critical realist dialectical way of explaining what something is by demonstrating what it is not. The study made a couple of key findings that can potentially enhance the growth of the South African ecosystem service discipline. First, respondents demonstrated knowledge of ecosystem services by mentioning a range of them such as drinking water, medicinal plants, cultural plants and fuelwood and how they affect the wellbeing of humans. However, what they did not have good knowledge of is that nature services can be classified into the four groups of supporting, regulatory, cultural and provisioning. Among the four ecosystem services groups, respondents could identify two only; provisional and cultural. Second, local communities depend heavily on ecosystem services for their well-being. The services include fuelwood, construction timber, medicinal plants, wild fruits, wild fish, cultural services and thatch grass. Although they appreciate that ecosystem services have value to their wellbeing, local people found it difficult to represent the value in monetary units. The conditions that make it difficult for local people to perceive ecosystem services as commodities include the absence of well-defined property system, lack of a quantitative consumer tradition and absence of an economic conception of nature. Third, local people understand the need to keep ecosystems in a well-functioning state hence they implement several traditional practices to manage ecosystem services. These practices include taboos, designating certain resources as sacred, legends, customary law, as well as some secular practices including gelesha and stone terracing. However, it is not easy to understand how traditional management practices work because they are not empirically observable. Fourth, local people possess knowledge of the reality that if not well managed, ecosystems can undergo degradation and hence fail to supply the services needed for human wellbeing. However, they explain the causes of degradation in terms of changes observable at the empirical level and the invisible causal power of supernatural forces. The inclusion of natural forces in degradation explanations marks a departure from the scientific explanations that revolve around biophysical processes. Fifth, the use of traditional management practices such as taboos to management ecosystems is under threat at the local communities. The threat can be attributed to three groups of causes, namely changes in worldviews due to adoption of formal education and Christianity, institutional disharmony playing out between the state and local traditional leadership, and lifestyle changes. These challenges constrain the opportunity for local people to apply traditional management practices to prevent the degradation of ecosystems. The net implication of this is that it renders it difficult for researchers and policy makers to assess the effectiveness of traditional management practices because they are not being implemented in full. In light of all these findings, the thesis concludes that TEK is underlabouring for the ecosystem service framework in the sense that it is used by local communities to generate knowledge of ecological concepts and phenomena. This means that TEK does not exist for the sake of its own self. Drawing from this finding, the study proposes a framework of analysing TEK as an underlabourer for social-ecological triggers or issues. Nonetheless, there are few factors that can be sources of limitation to the study. These include the reality that it was difficult to access pure traditional knowledge because over the years the local communities have received many state-sponsored ecological intervention programmes and a possible personal bias given the reality that I grew up in a traditional household and my father was a key holder or TEK. , Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Science, Environmental Science, 2021 , Thesis chapter to be published in 'Green and Low-Carbon Economy'. Journal available: https://ojs.bonviewpress.com/index.php/GLCE/index
- Full Text:
Larval fish dynamics within the coastal nearshore of the Eastern Cape, South Africa
- Authors: Sotshongaye, Oko
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Fishes -- Larvae -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Fishes -- Larvae -- Development -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Fishes -- Larvae -- Ecology -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Coastal ecology -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Fishes -- Larvae -- Dispersal -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: thesis , text , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/176977 , vital:42776
- Description: The coastal nearshore is important for the early development of fishes as it is used for spawning and/or as a nursery. One of the central concerns in coastal ecology is understanding the role of the nearshore for larvae, ultimately providing key knowledge on population dynamics and hence helping in making decisions pertaining to conservation and resource management. The aim of this study was to investigate the alongshore and cross-shore distribution of larval fishes and the links to the physio-chemical conditions (including prevailing winds) and hydrodynamics in the region of Algoa Bay, situated on the south east coast in the warm temperate region of South Africa. Fish larvae were sampled at nine sites for the first component of the study (January 2016 –March 2017) and at four sites for the second component (November 2019), near the surface and bottom (15-50 m) of the water column as well as at two different distances from shore (~400 m/~3 km) using a set of bongo plankton nets towed behind a boat. Environmental data were simultaneously collected using and acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP) and conductivity, temperature, depth (CTD) profiler. Larval fish abundance generally decreased with increasing distance from the shore, however, this varied in space and time, with some larval species recorded in high abundances offshore. Close inshore the larvae of coastal fish species producing benthic eggs (CBE) including the Blenniidae and Gobiesocidae mostly dominated, while offshore the larvae of coastal fish species producing pelagic eggs (CPE) i.e. Sparidae and Cynoglossidae, as well as pelagic fish species producing pelagic eggs (PPE) i.e. Clupeidae and Engraulidae mostly dominated. Vertical distribution of larvae differed according to taxon, with the Callionymidae (CPE), Cynoglossidae and Gobiesocidae occurring at high densities at the bottom of the water column, while the Blenniidae dominated near the surface. Fluorescence, temperature and salinity varied with depth (surface/bottom), being particularly high at the surface; currents moved faster at the surface than the bottom of the water column. Increased abundances of larval fishes were evident after upwelling events (associated with easterly winds) in the Bay, while during downwelling (associated with westerly winds), low densities were generally recorded, except for the sites situated near headlands/capes where there were higher densities of fish larvae during downwelling events. Overall, the results of this study suggest that spawning mode of the adults, oceanography and environmental conditions coupled with what is known of the behaviour of fish larvae, were important in shaping the larval fish community of the Algoa Bay region. These results highlight the importance of incorporating multiple biological (developmental stage, reproductive mode, species) and physical (currents, fluorescence, wind-driven up/down-welling) factors when addressing the mechanims of transport of larval fish in the coastal nearshore. , Thesis (MSc) -- Faculty of Science, Department of Zoology and Entomology, 2021
- Full Text:
- Authors: Sotshongaye, Oko
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Fishes -- Larvae -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Fishes -- Larvae -- Development -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Fishes -- Larvae -- Ecology -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Coastal ecology -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Fishes -- Larvae -- Dispersal -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: thesis , text , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/176977 , vital:42776
- Description: The coastal nearshore is important for the early development of fishes as it is used for spawning and/or as a nursery. One of the central concerns in coastal ecology is understanding the role of the nearshore for larvae, ultimately providing key knowledge on population dynamics and hence helping in making decisions pertaining to conservation and resource management. The aim of this study was to investigate the alongshore and cross-shore distribution of larval fishes and the links to the physio-chemical conditions (including prevailing winds) and hydrodynamics in the region of Algoa Bay, situated on the south east coast in the warm temperate region of South Africa. Fish larvae were sampled at nine sites for the first component of the study (January 2016 –March 2017) and at four sites for the second component (November 2019), near the surface and bottom (15-50 m) of the water column as well as at two different distances from shore (~400 m/~3 km) using a set of bongo plankton nets towed behind a boat. Environmental data were simultaneously collected using and acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP) and conductivity, temperature, depth (CTD) profiler. Larval fish abundance generally decreased with increasing distance from the shore, however, this varied in space and time, with some larval species recorded in high abundances offshore. Close inshore the larvae of coastal fish species producing benthic eggs (CBE) including the Blenniidae and Gobiesocidae mostly dominated, while offshore the larvae of coastal fish species producing pelagic eggs (CPE) i.e. Sparidae and Cynoglossidae, as well as pelagic fish species producing pelagic eggs (PPE) i.e. Clupeidae and Engraulidae mostly dominated. Vertical distribution of larvae differed according to taxon, with the Callionymidae (CPE), Cynoglossidae and Gobiesocidae occurring at high densities at the bottom of the water column, while the Blenniidae dominated near the surface. Fluorescence, temperature and salinity varied with depth (surface/bottom), being particularly high at the surface; currents moved faster at the surface than the bottom of the water column. Increased abundances of larval fishes were evident after upwelling events (associated with easterly winds) in the Bay, while during downwelling (associated with westerly winds), low densities were generally recorded, except for the sites situated near headlands/capes where there were higher densities of fish larvae during downwelling events. Overall, the results of this study suggest that spawning mode of the adults, oceanography and environmental conditions coupled with what is known of the behaviour of fish larvae, were important in shaping the larval fish community of the Algoa Bay region. These results highlight the importance of incorporating multiple biological (developmental stage, reproductive mode, species) and physical (currents, fluorescence, wind-driven up/down-welling) factors when addressing the mechanims of transport of larval fish in the coastal nearshore. , Thesis (MSc) -- Faculty of Science, Department of Zoology and Entomology, 2021
- Full Text:
Perceptions of the role of Lantana camara on human well-being and rural livelihoods in Vhembe Biosphere Reserve, South Africa
- Authors: Mhlongo, Edward Swazi
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Lantana camara -- South Africa -- Vhembe District Municipality , Introduced organisms -- South Africa -- Vhembe District Municipality , Biological invasions -- South Africa -- Vhembe District Municipality , Plant invasions -- South Africa -- Vhembe District Municipality , Lantana camara -- Control -- South Africa -- Vhembe District Municipality , South Africa -- Rural conditions , Ethnoscience -- South Africa -- Vhembe District Municipality
- Language: English
- Type: thesis , text , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/177952 , vital:42893
- Description: In the past, social aspects on biological invasions were less documented, this hindered the development of sound and effective management of Invasive Alien Species (IAS). However, there has been a shift in trends with more studies on biological invasions integrating local knowledge together with ecological studies to develop effective management interventions. Invasive Alien Species are widespread throughout Southern Africa and are usually prevalent in the rural areas. Limpopo province consists of large rural areas where people depend on natural resources, wild and exotic species for their livelihoods. Lantana camara is one of the major invaders that is problematic worldwide having detrimental impacts on biodiversity, ecosystem functions, and economies. This study assessed the perceptions of the role of L. camara on the well-being and rural livelihoods of local communities in the Vhembe Biosphere Reserve using household surveys. A total of 300 surveys were administered in six villages. The study further used a two-pronged approach to examine invasion extent and management options. The two-pronged approach included (i) detailed vegetation surveys in 50 household yards within each village, and (ii) focus group to solicit local knowledge of invasion extent and managing L. camara by the rural communities. The results of the study showed that almost all the respondents knew L. camara and could describe it. Most of the respondents were of the view that L. camara had no negative impacts on their livelihoods. Other respondents stated costs associated with L. camara were more than benefits and wanted a reduction in L. camara densities in the area. Most respondents wanted more government intervention to help in managing L. camara, this is because of the perceived future impacts of L. camara. Vegetation survey results showed no significant difference in L. camara abundances and plant heights among the six study villages. The average number of L. camara counted per household yard in all villages was (2.41 ± 0.20) plants, with average plant basal diameter of (0.94 ± 0.02 cm). There were significant differences in canopy width of L. camara among the six study villages. Plant basal diameter was high in Tshakhuma (1.05 ± 0.04 m) and Duthuni (1.00 ± 0.04 m) villages, and low in Ha Mutsha village (0.82 ± 0.03 m). Lantana camara canopy width at household level across all villages averaged 1.34 ± 0.03 m. Canopy cover was high in Tshakhuma village (1.70 ± 0.09 m) and low at Ha Mutsha village (1.03 ± 0.03 m). In all six village focus group discussions, it was noted that mechanical clearing of L. camara was the most used method, but they reported minimum help from the government particularly Working for Water (WfW). The study concludes that L. camara has no substantial adverse impacts to most of the respondents. The study further noted that L. camara is dominant in most household yards ii and that management is taking place however current control options are not enough on their own. Suggestions for further research are to explore more alternative indigenous species present or easily accessible to the community members which may offer the same benefits as IAS. Furthermore, additional research at local level is required for implementing management techniques best suited for the area. , Thesis (MSc) -- Faculty of Science, Environmental Science, 2021
- Full Text:
- Authors: Mhlongo, Edward Swazi
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Lantana camara -- South Africa -- Vhembe District Municipality , Introduced organisms -- South Africa -- Vhembe District Municipality , Biological invasions -- South Africa -- Vhembe District Municipality , Plant invasions -- South Africa -- Vhembe District Municipality , Lantana camara -- Control -- South Africa -- Vhembe District Municipality , South Africa -- Rural conditions , Ethnoscience -- South Africa -- Vhembe District Municipality
- Language: English
- Type: thesis , text , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/177952 , vital:42893
- Description: In the past, social aspects on biological invasions were less documented, this hindered the development of sound and effective management of Invasive Alien Species (IAS). However, there has been a shift in trends with more studies on biological invasions integrating local knowledge together with ecological studies to develop effective management interventions. Invasive Alien Species are widespread throughout Southern Africa and are usually prevalent in the rural areas. Limpopo province consists of large rural areas where people depend on natural resources, wild and exotic species for their livelihoods. Lantana camara is one of the major invaders that is problematic worldwide having detrimental impacts on biodiversity, ecosystem functions, and economies. This study assessed the perceptions of the role of L. camara on the well-being and rural livelihoods of local communities in the Vhembe Biosphere Reserve using household surveys. A total of 300 surveys were administered in six villages. The study further used a two-pronged approach to examine invasion extent and management options. The two-pronged approach included (i) detailed vegetation surveys in 50 household yards within each village, and (ii) focus group to solicit local knowledge of invasion extent and managing L. camara by the rural communities. The results of the study showed that almost all the respondents knew L. camara and could describe it. Most of the respondents were of the view that L. camara had no negative impacts on their livelihoods. Other respondents stated costs associated with L. camara were more than benefits and wanted a reduction in L. camara densities in the area. Most respondents wanted more government intervention to help in managing L. camara, this is because of the perceived future impacts of L. camara. Vegetation survey results showed no significant difference in L. camara abundances and plant heights among the six study villages. The average number of L. camara counted per household yard in all villages was (2.41 ± 0.20) plants, with average plant basal diameter of (0.94 ± 0.02 cm). There were significant differences in canopy width of L. camara among the six study villages. Plant basal diameter was high in Tshakhuma (1.05 ± 0.04 m) and Duthuni (1.00 ± 0.04 m) villages, and low in Ha Mutsha village (0.82 ± 0.03 m). Lantana camara canopy width at household level across all villages averaged 1.34 ± 0.03 m. Canopy cover was high in Tshakhuma village (1.70 ± 0.09 m) and low at Ha Mutsha village (1.03 ± 0.03 m). In all six village focus group discussions, it was noted that mechanical clearing of L. camara was the most used method, but they reported minimum help from the government particularly Working for Water (WfW). The study concludes that L. camara has no substantial adverse impacts to most of the respondents. The study further noted that L. camara is dominant in most household yards ii and that management is taking place however current control options are not enough on their own. Suggestions for further research are to explore more alternative indigenous species present or easily accessible to the community members which may offer the same benefits as IAS. Furthermore, additional research at local level is required for implementing management techniques best suited for the area. , Thesis (MSc) -- Faculty of Science, Environmental Science, 2021
- Full Text:
Physical activity, physical fitness, sedentary behaviour and screen time profiles of primary school children in a school within the Makana Municipality, Eastern Cape, South Africa
- Authors: Kade, Andréa Gaby
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Sedentary behavior in children -- South Africa -- Makana Municipality , Physical fitness for children -- South Africa -- Makana Municipality , Exercise -- Physiological aspects , Exercise -- Health aspects , Diabetes -- Risk factors , Heart -- Diseases -- Risk factors
- Language: English
- Type: thesis , text , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/177282 , vital:42806
- Description: There is a lack of data on the physical activity, physical fitness and sedentary behaviour of children in South Africa. Furthermore chronic diseases such as type II diabetes and coronary heart disease have been linked to childhood inactivity, and improving cardiorespiratory fitness and increasing levels of physical activity has been shown to be beneficial in reducing the risk of such diseases. In South Africa more broadly there is a lack of information on levels of physical activity and sedentary behaviour as well as physical fitness measures particularly in children. Objective: The purpose of this study was to enhance the existing body of knowledge on this, by measuring the prevalence of physical inactivity, sedentary behaviour and screen time of primary school children in a private school from the Makana Municipal region in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa, where the evidence is most sparse. A secondary aim was to assess levels of physical fitness in this cohort, as well as to compare across grades and sexes. Method: After ethical approval was granted, stature and body mass measurements were taken and body mass index was computed for primary school children (Grade one to seven) from a private school in the Makana Municipality. Sitting stature was measured in order to determine each child’s peak height velocity and maturity offset. Five different physical fitness tests were conducted on the children and blood pressure and heart rate values were measured at rest. Physical activity and screen time questionnaires were completed by the children’s parents for a seven day period. Results: Females were found to mature faster than males. In addition females were more physically active (Females= 916 min/week; Males= 669 min/week) while also accumulating more sedentary time (Females= 1241 min/week; Males= 970 min/week) as compared to males, although no significant differences were found between males and females for these variables. The sample participated in more than 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity and less than two hours of screen time daily, which is in accordance with guidelines. No differences were found between grades and sexes for accumulated screen time. Strength increased significantly with grade and age, and there were also statistical differences between the sexes for all three strength measures with males being stronger than females. Females were more flexible than males and no statistical differences were found between sexes for the shuttle run test. Blood pressure correlated positively with mass, as did all the strength measures as well as maturity offset. No correlations were found between screen time and all other variables. A negative relationship was recorded between screen time and physical activity, although not significant. For females a strong positive correlation was found between sedentary behaviour and physical activity. Conclusion: The study was successful in adding to the body of knowledge regarding the prevalence of physical inactivity, sedentary behaviour and screen time within school children from the Makana Municipality in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. The sample was considered physically active as they accumulated on average more than 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity daily (Males= 96 min/day; Females 130 min/day), which is in accordance with guidelines recommended by the World Health Organization (World Health Organization, 2018). The sample accumulated more sedentary behaviour than physical activity, although not significant. Screen time was below regulations of two hours daily, indicating this population participated in more non screen related sedentary behaviour. More research is needed into the risks presented with different forms of sedentary behaviour. Physical fitness increased with increasing grade and age and males were considerably more fit. The current study did not present any concern with regards to the effects of increased physical activity and fitness levels within school aged children. More research into the current levels of physical activity, physical fitness and sedentary behaviour of school aged children in South Africa in general, and in the Eastern Cape Province, is needed. , Thesis (MSc) -- Faculty of Science, Human Kinetics and Ergonomics, 2021
- Full Text:
- Authors: Kade, Andréa Gaby
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Sedentary behavior in children -- South Africa -- Makana Municipality , Physical fitness for children -- South Africa -- Makana Municipality , Exercise -- Physiological aspects , Exercise -- Health aspects , Diabetes -- Risk factors , Heart -- Diseases -- Risk factors
- Language: English
- Type: thesis , text , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/177282 , vital:42806
- Description: There is a lack of data on the physical activity, physical fitness and sedentary behaviour of children in South Africa. Furthermore chronic diseases such as type II diabetes and coronary heart disease have been linked to childhood inactivity, and improving cardiorespiratory fitness and increasing levels of physical activity has been shown to be beneficial in reducing the risk of such diseases. In South Africa more broadly there is a lack of information on levels of physical activity and sedentary behaviour as well as physical fitness measures particularly in children. Objective: The purpose of this study was to enhance the existing body of knowledge on this, by measuring the prevalence of physical inactivity, sedentary behaviour and screen time of primary school children in a private school from the Makana Municipal region in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa, where the evidence is most sparse. A secondary aim was to assess levels of physical fitness in this cohort, as well as to compare across grades and sexes. Method: After ethical approval was granted, stature and body mass measurements were taken and body mass index was computed for primary school children (Grade one to seven) from a private school in the Makana Municipality. Sitting stature was measured in order to determine each child’s peak height velocity and maturity offset. Five different physical fitness tests were conducted on the children and blood pressure and heart rate values were measured at rest. Physical activity and screen time questionnaires were completed by the children’s parents for a seven day period. Results: Females were found to mature faster than males. In addition females were more physically active (Females= 916 min/week; Males= 669 min/week) while also accumulating more sedentary time (Females= 1241 min/week; Males= 970 min/week) as compared to males, although no significant differences were found between males and females for these variables. The sample participated in more than 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity and less than two hours of screen time daily, which is in accordance with guidelines. No differences were found between grades and sexes for accumulated screen time. Strength increased significantly with grade and age, and there were also statistical differences between the sexes for all three strength measures with males being stronger than females. Females were more flexible than males and no statistical differences were found between sexes for the shuttle run test. Blood pressure correlated positively with mass, as did all the strength measures as well as maturity offset. No correlations were found between screen time and all other variables. A negative relationship was recorded between screen time and physical activity, although not significant. For females a strong positive correlation was found between sedentary behaviour and physical activity. Conclusion: The study was successful in adding to the body of knowledge regarding the prevalence of physical inactivity, sedentary behaviour and screen time within school children from the Makana Municipality in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. The sample was considered physically active as they accumulated on average more than 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity daily (Males= 96 min/day; Females 130 min/day), which is in accordance with guidelines recommended by the World Health Organization (World Health Organization, 2018). The sample accumulated more sedentary behaviour than physical activity, although not significant. Screen time was below regulations of two hours daily, indicating this population participated in more non screen related sedentary behaviour. More research is needed into the risks presented with different forms of sedentary behaviour. Physical fitness increased with increasing grade and age and males were considerably more fit. The current study did not present any concern with regards to the effects of increased physical activity and fitness levels within school aged children. More research into the current levels of physical activity, physical fitness and sedentary behaviour of school aged children in South Africa in general, and in the Eastern Cape Province, is needed. , Thesis (MSc) -- Faculty of Science, Human Kinetics and Ergonomics, 2021
- Full Text:
Reminiscing In Tempo : Ubangulo
- Authors: Tutani, Zodwa
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Creative writing (Higher education) -- South Africa , South African poetry (English) -- 21st century , South African poetry (English) -- History and criticism , Diaries -- Authorship
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/174376 , vital:42472
- Description: My thesis is a collection of poems that focuses on black mothering and motherhood, within the context of the Eastern Cape’s violent history, its oppressive patriarchal cultural traditions and religious structures. Drawing from my own experiences, my poems explore what Toni Morrison calls the historical ‘wounds’ of black women which are transferred to their daughters within everyday spaces like the kitchen and the lounge, through objects like tea cups, chair backs and the various foods that every black girl needs to be able to prepare in order to be ‘marriagable’, and how these continue to hurt and emotionally disfigure us. I also draw influence from Saidiya Hartman, Christina Sharpe and Tina Campt on black lives and the effects of slavery within their daily existences. And I am inspired by the intimacy and care with which Tadeusz Rosewicz writes about his relationship with his mother in Mother Departs and Sandra Cisneros’ use of interconnected vignettes to engage childhood, culture and community within marginalized space. Stylistically I am influenced by the structural innovations in Fred Moten’s The Little Edges and the dreamy landscape in the poetry of Federico Garcia Lorca. My collection includes prose and lyrical poetry, combining more formal sound and rhythmic structures with free verse, to bring to life motherhood and the narratives we carry from childhood into our adult lives.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Tutani, Zodwa
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Creative writing (Higher education) -- South Africa , South African poetry (English) -- 21st century , South African poetry (English) -- History and criticism , Diaries -- Authorship
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/174376 , vital:42472
- Description: My thesis is a collection of poems that focuses on black mothering and motherhood, within the context of the Eastern Cape’s violent history, its oppressive patriarchal cultural traditions and religious structures. Drawing from my own experiences, my poems explore what Toni Morrison calls the historical ‘wounds’ of black women which are transferred to their daughters within everyday spaces like the kitchen and the lounge, through objects like tea cups, chair backs and the various foods that every black girl needs to be able to prepare in order to be ‘marriagable’, and how these continue to hurt and emotionally disfigure us. I also draw influence from Saidiya Hartman, Christina Sharpe and Tina Campt on black lives and the effects of slavery within their daily existences. And I am inspired by the intimacy and care with which Tadeusz Rosewicz writes about his relationship with his mother in Mother Departs and Sandra Cisneros’ use of interconnected vignettes to engage childhood, culture and community within marginalized space. Stylistically I am influenced by the structural innovations in Fred Moten’s The Little Edges and the dreamy landscape in the poetry of Federico Garcia Lorca. My collection includes prose and lyrical poetry, combining more formal sound and rhythmic structures with free verse, to bring to life motherhood and the narratives we carry from childhood into our adult lives.
- Full Text:
Salt in my footsteps
- Authors: Radebe, Mxolisi Vusumuzi
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Creative writing (Higher education) -- South Africa , South African poetry (English) -- 21st century , South African fiction (English) -- 21st century
- Language: English
- Type: thesis , text , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/178201 , vital:42920
- Description: My thesis is a collection of poems which focus on human experiences related to my background. I grew up in a countryside village, freely experiencing nature in unrestricted walks to the rivers and mountains; communal living instilled in me the humanitarian values which I uphold to the present. I use short and long lyrical prose poems to bring life and humanise the untold or unexpressed stories of my community. My use of simple everyday language and clear, concrete but surprising images that resonate with deeper meanings and emotions is influenced by Seitlhamo Motsapi’s poems, especially his collection of poems titled earthstepper/the ocean is very shallow and Mxolisi Nyezwa’s poetry book, Song Trials. Spanish poems in English translations by the 20th century Spanish poets: Blas de Otero, Juan Roman Jimenez and Federico Garcia Lorca, published in the book titled Roots and Wings have had a huge impact on my construction of images. I also draw from the free-form and narrative prose poetry experiments of poets: Mangaliso Buzani, vangile gantsho and Ivy Alvarez. , Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Humanities, School of Languages and Literatures, 2021
- Full Text:
- Authors: Radebe, Mxolisi Vusumuzi
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Creative writing (Higher education) -- South Africa , South African poetry (English) -- 21st century , South African fiction (English) -- 21st century
- Language: English
- Type: thesis , text , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/178201 , vital:42920
- Description: My thesis is a collection of poems which focus on human experiences related to my background. I grew up in a countryside village, freely experiencing nature in unrestricted walks to the rivers and mountains; communal living instilled in me the humanitarian values which I uphold to the present. I use short and long lyrical prose poems to bring life and humanise the untold or unexpressed stories of my community. My use of simple everyday language and clear, concrete but surprising images that resonate with deeper meanings and emotions is influenced by Seitlhamo Motsapi’s poems, especially his collection of poems titled earthstepper/the ocean is very shallow and Mxolisi Nyezwa’s poetry book, Song Trials. Spanish poems in English translations by the 20th century Spanish poets: Blas de Otero, Juan Roman Jimenez and Federico Garcia Lorca, published in the book titled Roots and Wings have had a huge impact on my construction of images. I also draw from the free-form and narrative prose poetry experiments of poets: Mangaliso Buzani, vangile gantsho and Ivy Alvarez. , Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Humanities, School of Languages and Literatures, 2021
- Full Text:
The impact of translanguaging and acculturation towards implementation of the Incremental Indigenous African Languages programme in former Model-C schools (Alfred Nzo West District, Eastern Cape)
- Authors: Lepheana, Jeremia
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Translanguaging (Linguistics) , Acculturation -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Model C schools (South Africa) , Multilingual education -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Multicultural education -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Incremental Indigenous African Languages Programme
- Language: English
- Type: thesis , text , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/177236 , vital:42802 , 10.21504/10962/177236
- Description: This thesis explores the possibilities of multilingual language instruction within multi-ethnic classrooms in former Model-C schools shaped by multiple discursive practices. The researcher reviews current research on multilingualism and teaching and proposes strategies for overcoming the English prescriptivism, and monolingual mind-set in education. The research reported in this dissertation is both a qualitative and quantitative study, which sought to investigate the patterns of translanguaging in classrooms in five primary schools in Alfred Nzo West district (Maluti sub-district). In quantitative research, questionnaires were used to gather data from teachers and learners. In the qualitative research methodology, document analysis method of collecting data was employed. Purposive sampling was the major sampling method to ensure that relevant data was collected. Language in Education Policy formed the major analytical framework for this study. The aim of the study was to investigate the impact of translanguaging as it is used by teachers and learners in the class in selected primary schools in Alfred Nzo West district. The research focuses on how primary school learners and their teachers engage with teaching and learning, and the strategies that teachers use to promote the use of two or three languages in classrooms to help learners to understand content and concepts in English, Sesotho and isiXhosa as there are multi-ethnic classrooms in the district. The dissertation concludes with some reflections on the findings, implications of the findings for future research and training, and recommendations to use the languages of school children as rich resources for teaching and learning. The Socio-cultural theory formed the theoretical framework that guided this study. According to Vygotsky’s theory of cognitive development, children learn through social interaction that includes collaborative and cooperative dialogue with someone who is more skilled in tasks they are trying to learn. The findings of this study show the misunderstandings of the LiEP, translanguaging and multilingual education. The study also shows the lack of confidence in the ability of African languages to provide quality education. , Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Humanities, School of Languages, 2021
- Full Text:
- Authors: Lepheana, Jeremia
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Translanguaging (Linguistics) , Acculturation -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Model C schools (South Africa) , Multilingual education -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Multicultural education -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Incremental Indigenous African Languages Programme
- Language: English
- Type: thesis , text , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/177236 , vital:42802 , 10.21504/10962/177236
- Description: This thesis explores the possibilities of multilingual language instruction within multi-ethnic classrooms in former Model-C schools shaped by multiple discursive practices. The researcher reviews current research on multilingualism and teaching and proposes strategies for overcoming the English prescriptivism, and monolingual mind-set in education. The research reported in this dissertation is both a qualitative and quantitative study, which sought to investigate the patterns of translanguaging in classrooms in five primary schools in Alfred Nzo West district (Maluti sub-district). In quantitative research, questionnaires were used to gather data from teachers and learners. In the qualitative research methodology, document analysis method of collecting data was employed. Purposive sampling was the major sampling method to ensure that relevant data was collected. Language in Education Policy formed the major analytical framework for this study. The aim of the study was to investigate the impact of translanguaging as it is used by teachers and learners in the class in selected primary schools in Alfred Nzo West district. The research focuses on how primary school learners and their teachers engage with teaching and learning, and the strategies that teachers use to promote the use of two or three languages in classrooms to help learners to understand content and concepts in English, Sesotho and isiXhosa as there are multi-ethnic classrooms in the district. The dissertation concludes with some reflections on the findings, implications of the findings for future research and training, and recommendations to use the languages of school children as rich resources for teaching and learning. The Socio-cultural theory formed the theoretical framework that guided this study. According to Vygotsky’s theory of cognitive development, children learn through social interaction that includes collaborative and cooperative dialogue with someone who is more skilled in tasks they are trying to learn. The findings of this study show the misunderstandings of the LiEP, translanguaging and multilingual education. The study also shows the lack of confidence in the ability of African languages to provide quality education. , Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Humanities, School of Languages, 2021
- Full Text:
The reproductive performance, demography and spatial ecology of an extralimital white rhinoceros population
- Authors: Truter, Anja
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: White rhinoceros -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , White rhinoceros -- Effect of poaching on -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , White rhinoceros -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape -- Reproduction , White rhinoceros -- Dispersal -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , White rhinoceros -- Food -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , White rhinoceros -- Behavior -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Spatial ecology -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Animal populations -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Endangered species -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Spatial behavior in animals -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Shamwari Game Reserve (South Africa)
- Language: English
- Type: thesis , text , Master , MSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/177975 , vital:42895
- Description: The white rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum) (hereafter rhino) is under threat of becoming extinct due to continued poaching for its horns. In South Africa and elsewhere in Africa private landowners have, over the last few decades, contributed to the conservation of various species, including rhinos, even in areas where they have not occurred historically (i.e., where they are extralimital). Unfortunately, very few studies have investigated the conservation contribution of extralimital white rhinos on private reserves to the overall meta-population and/or their reproductive performance. The first aim of my study was therefore to determine whether or not the white rhinos introduced to a private game reserve in the Eastern Cape Province in 1992 have been successful from a reproductive perspective. I calculated inter-calving intervals, age at first calving, conception period, sex ratio, fecundity and fertility rates for white rhinos over this 28-year period. The average annual population growth rate for the rhinos was 10%, which is higher than the recommended 5% by the Rhino Management Group. Trends in density-dependent parameters such as age at first calving and inter-calving intervals also indicated that my study population is still well below carrying capacity for white rhinos and is contributing positively to white rhino conservation in South Africa. The second aim of my study was to investigate home range size and vegetation preferences of white rhinos. Home ranges were mostly larger for all age groups compared to rhinos in their native range. Previously cultivated lands (dominated by several grass species) were preferred by all rhino age groups. The rehabilitation of these previous agricultural-based pastures has likely contributed to the successful introduction of the white rhino as an extralimital megaherbivore in the Eastern Cape. I conclude that although extralimital white rhino populations in the Eastern Cape can be successful from a reproductive perspective, their potential impact on the indigenous biodiversity of the region should be a key future research priority. , Thesis (MSc) -- Faculty of Science, Zoology and Entomology, 2021
- Full Text:
- Authors: Truter, Anja
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: White rhinoceros -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , White rhinoceros -- Effect of poaching on -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , White rhinoceros -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape -- Reproduction , White rhinoceros -- Dispersal -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , White rhinoceros -- Food -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , White rhinoceros -- Behavior -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Spatial ecology -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Animal populations -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Endangered species -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Spatial behavior in animals -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Shamwari Game Reserve (South Africa)
- Language: English
- Type: thesis , text , Master , MSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/177975 , vital:42895
- Description: The white rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum) (hereafter rhino) is under threat of becoming extinct due to continued poaching for its horns. In South Africa and elsewhere in Africa private landowners have, over the last few decades, contributed to the conservation of various species, including rhinos, even in areas where they have not occurred historically (i.e., where they are extralimital). Unfortunately, very few studies have investigated the conservation contribution of extralimital white rhinos on private reserves to the overall meta-population and/or their reproductive performance. The first aim of my study was therefore to determine whether or not the white rhinos introduced to a private game reserve in the Eastern Cape Province in 1992 have been successful from a reproductive perspective. I calculated inter-calving intervals, age at first calving, conception period, sex ratio, fecundity and fertility rates for white rhinos over this 28-year period. The average annual population growth rate for the rhinos was 10%, which is higher than the recommended 5% by the Rhino Management Group. Trends in density-dependent parameters such as age at first calving and inter-calving intervals also indicated that my study population is still well below carrying capacity for white rhinos and is contributing positively to white rhino conservation in South Africa. The second aim of my study was to investigate home range size and vegetation preferences of white rhinos. Home ranges were mostly larger for all age groups compared to rhinos in their native range. Previously cultivated lands (dominated by several grass species) were preferred by all rhino age groups. The rehabilitation of these previous agricultural-based pastures has likely contributed to the successful introduction of the white rhino as an extralimital megaherbivore in the Eastern Cape. I conclude that although extralimital white rhino populations in the Eastern Cape can be successful from a reproductive perspective, their potential impact on the indigenous biodiversity of the region should be a key future research priority. , Thesis (MSc) -- Faculty of Science, Zoology and Entomology, 2021
- Full Text:
The role of open government data in the repurposing of land administration in postapartheid South Africa : an exploration
- Authors: Manona, Siyabulela Sobantu
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Transparency in government -- South Africa , Land reform -- South Africa , Qualitative research -- Methodology , Postcolonialism -- South Africa , Post-apartheid era -- South Africa , South Africa -- Economic conditions -- 1991- , South Africa -- Social conditions -- 1994- , South Africa -- Politics and government -- 1994- , Open Government Data (OGD)
- Language: English
- Type: thesis , text , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/178397 , vital:42936 , 10.21504/10962/178397
- Description: Almost three decades after the official end of the apartheid, South Africa has been on a sturdy path that is characterised by deepening spatial economic inequalities. A plethora of policy instruments unleashed since 1994 had not only failed to stem the tide of poverty and inequality, but had deepened them. As part of this, South Africa’s most ambitious social engineering programme – land reform -- had disappointing outcomes. Premised on a view that these apartheid continuities were embedded in South Africa’s land administration system – which was incoherent and fragmented and requiring a systemic overhaul -- the study sought to explore the potential role of Open Government Data (OGD) in the repurposing of land administration system in the post-apartheid South Africa. To achieve this goal, the study was guided by the following objectives: to explore the ontology and the state of land governance and administration in the context of the post-apartheid South Africa; to undertake an evaluation or assessment of South Africa’s land data ecosystem; and to explore the potential role of OGD in the repurposing of land administration system in the postapartheid of South Africa. This study was steeped in qualitative research methods, underpinned by primary and secondary literature review. While the study was primarily pitched on a national scale – the combination of the systems and multiple scales approaches – yielded results which dislodges solutions that are required outside of the domain of a single state. This is one glaring example of land governance complexities that straddle beyond national scale – specifically in respect of new policy trajectories on trans-national boundaries and governance of water resources. Based on the holistic ontology of land, this study concludes that land administration and land governance overarching conceptual orientation -- concerned with land use decisions made by humans at various scales from a praxis and policy perspective –constitute two sides of the same coin, the former steeped towards practice and the latter steeped towards policy. Drawing from decolonial theories the study concludes that land does not only have multiple dimensions, but it also has multiple meanings, in a manner that calls for an ontological shift away from the western ontology, towards an inclusive and holistic conceptualisation. Historiography that is anchored in de-colonial thinking of South Africa’s land governance helps us understand how and why – colonial/apartheid norms acrimoniously found their way into the post-apartheid order -- the post-apartheid institutions of modernity rest on the same hierarchies of identities, classification and pathologisation. The study concludes that, while the colonial/apartheid administration may be gone, it’s underlying power matrices continue -- i.e. capitalism/European/patriachal/white – in a manner which explains the continuities of South Africa’s spatial inequalities and the associated economic inequalities. The organising principle for land relations (including opportunities) continues to be underpinned by gender, race and class, in ways that expose the mythical dimensions of the 'post-apartheid' underbelly. While identifying the need for homogenisation and rationalistion of colonial, apartheid and post-apartheid institutions (on a national scale) that is insufficient for the transformation of the colonial situation of what is in essence a part of the global system, the study advocates for the ‘repurposing of land governance and administration’ – underpinned by de-colonial thinking. Repurposing is seen as political imaginary that would entail uncoupling thought processes and praxis from the colonial matrices of power. The study goes on to conclude that there is a definite role for Open Government Data in repurposing of land administration in the post-apartheid South Africa – as a necessary, though in and of it’s own it is an insufficient condition to achieve that ideal -- but presents an opportunity to enhance transdisciplinarity approaches and efficiencies in internal government functioning and evidence-based decision making and policy formulation processes. , Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Science, Geography, 2021
- Full Text:
- Authors: Manona, Siyabulela Sobantu
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Transparency in government -- South Africa , Land reform -- South Africa , Qualitative research -- Methodology , Postcolonialism -- South Africa , Post-apartheid era -- South Africa , South Africa -- Economic conditions -- 1991- , South Africa -- Social conditions -- 1994- , South Africa -- Politics and government -- 1994- , Open Government Data (OGD)
- Language: English
- Type: thesis , text , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/178397 , vital:42936 , 10.21504/10962/178397
- Description: Almost three decades after the official end of the apartheid, South Africa has been on a sturdy path that is characterised by deepening spatial economic inequalities. A plethora of policy instruments unleashed since 1994 had not only failed to stem the tide of poverty and inequality, but had deepened them. As part of this, South Africa’s most ambitious social engineering programme – land reform -- had disappointing outcomes. Premised on a view that these apartheid continuities were embedded in South Africa’s land administration system – which was incoherent and fragmented and requiring a systemic overhaul -- the study sought to explore the potential role of Open Government Data (OGD) in the repurposing of land administration system in the post-apartheid South Africa. To achieve this goal, the study was guided by the following objectives: to explore the ontology and the state of land governance and administration in the context of the post-apartheid South Africa; to undertake an evaluation or assessment of South Africa’s land data ecosystem; and to explore the potential role of OGD in the repurposing of land administration system in the postapartheid of South Africa. This study was steeped in qualitative research methods, underpinned by primary and secondary literature review. While the study was primarily pitched on a national scale – the combination of the systems and multiple scales approaches – yielded results which dislodges solutions that are required outside of the domain of a single state. This is one glaring example of land governance complexities that straddle beyond national scale – specifically in respect of new policy trajectories on trans-national boundaries and governance of water resources. Based on the holistic ontology of land, this study concludes that land administration and land governance overarching conceptual orientation -- concerned with land use decisions made by humans at various scales from a praxis and policy perspective –constitute two sides of the same coin, the former steeped towards practice and the latter steeped towards policy. Drawing from decolonial theories the study concludes that land does not only have multiple dimensions, but it also has multiple meanings, in a manner that calls for an ontological shift away from the western ontology, towards an inclusive and holistic conceptualisation. Historiography that is anchored in de-colonial thinking of South Africa’s land governance helps us understand how and why – colonial/apartheid norms acrimoniously found their way into the post-apartheid order -- the post-apartheid institutions of modernity rest on the same hierarchies of identities, classification and pathologisation. The study concludes that, while the colonial/apartheid administration may be gone, it’s underlying power matrices continue -- i.e. capitalism/European/patriachal/white – in a manner which explains the continuities of South Africa’s spatial inequalities and the associated economic inequalities. The organising principle for land relations (including opportunities) continues to be underpinned by gender, race and class, in ways that expose the mythical dimensions of the 'post-apartheid' underbelly. While identifying the need for homogenisation and rationalistion of colonial, apartheid and post-apartheid institutions (on a national scale) that is insufficient for the transformation of the colonial situation of what is in essence a part of the global system, the study advocates for the ‘repurposing of land governance and administration’ – underpinned by de-colonial thinking. Repurposing is seen as political imaginary that would entail uncoupling thought processes and praxis from the colonial matrices of power. The study goes on to conclude that there is a definite role for Open Government Data in repurposing of land administration in the post-apartheid South Africa – as a necessary, though in and of it’s own it is an insufficient condition to achieve that ideal -- but presents an opportunity to enhance transdisciplinarity approaches and efficiencies in internal government functioning and evidence-based decision making and policy formulation processes. , Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Science, Geography, 2021
- Full Text:
Using the indigenous technology of dyeing and weaving African baskets as a cultural tool to mediate learning of chemical and physical changes
- Authors: Kakambi, William Mafelezo
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Science -- Study and teaching (Secondary) -- Namibia , Chemistry -- Study and teaching (Secondary) -- Namibia , Ethnoscience -- Namibia , Culturally relevant pedagogy , Traditional ecological knowledge -- Namibia , Basket making -- Namibia , Dyes and dyeing -- Namibia , Pedagogical content knowledge
- Language: English
- Type: thesis , text , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/177268 , vital:42805
- Description: Literature has revealed that indigenous learners, especially in many African nations are subjected to learning school science in unfamiliar contexts. Learners in Namibia where this study was conducted are no exception. In consequence, learners experience cognitive conflict between school science and the experiences learnt at home and in the community. This is exacerbated, in part, by the fact that science teachers do not seem to know how to integrate indigenous knowledge in their science teaching. As an attempt to address this problem, some scholars call for the integration of indigenous knowledge into the science curriculum to provide a much needed context for learning science. It is against this background that this study sought to use the indigenous technology of dyeing and weaving baskets as a cultural tool to mediate learning of chemical and physical changes. Underpinned by the interpretivist and Ubuntu paradigms, the study employed a qualitative case study research design. The study was conducted in the Zambezi region in Namibia. Four grade 8 Physical Science teachers, an expert community member, and a critical friend were involved as participants in this study. Data were gathered using semi-structured interviews, workshop discussions, participatory observation, and journal reflections. Vygotsky’s socio-cultural theory and Mavhunga and Rollnick’s topic specific pedagogical content knowledge were used as theoretical and analytical frameworks, respectively. A thematic approach to data analysis was employed to come up with sub-themes and themes. The findings of the study revealed that all the participating teachers in this study had never been exposed to ideas on how to integrate indigenous knowledge in their science teaching. As a result, they all embraced and valued the indigenous technology of dyeing and weaving as relevant and useful in the teaching and learning of chemical and physical changes. This study recommends that there is a need to empower science teachers on how to integrate indigenous knowledge in their science teaching in order to make science accessible and relevant to their learners’ lived worlds. , Thesis (MEd) -- Faculty of Education, Education, 2021
- Full Text:
- Authors: Kakambi, William Mafelezo
- Date: 2021-04
- Subjects: Science -- Study and teaching (Secondary) -- Namibia , Chemistry -- Study and teaching (Secondary) -- Namibia , Ethnoscience -- Namibia , Culturally relevant pedagogy , Traditional ecological knowledge -- Namibia , Basket making -- Namibia , Dyes and dyeing -- Namibia , Pedagogical content knowledge
- Language: English
- Type: thesis , text , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/177268 , vital:42805
- Description: Literature has revealed that indigenous learners, especially in many African nations are subjected to learning school science in unfamiliar contexts. Learners in Namibia where this study was conducted are no exception. In consequence, learners experience cognitive conflict between school science and the experiences learnt at home and in the community. This is exacerbated, in part, by the fact that science teachers do not seem to know how to integrate indigenous knowledge in their science teaching. As an attempt to address this problem, some scholars call for the integration of indigenous knowledge into the science curriculum to provide a much needed context for learning science. It is against this background that this study sought to use the indigenous technology of dyeing and weaving baskets as a cultural tool to mediate learning of chemical and physical changes. Underpinned by the interpretivist and Ubuntu paradigms, the study employed a qualitative case study research design. The study was conducted in the Zambezi region in Namibia. Four grade 8 Physical Science teachers, an expert community member, and a critical friend were involved as participants in this study. Data were gathered using semi-structured interviews, workshop discussions, participatory observation, and journal reflections. Vygotsky’s socio-cultural theory and Mavhunga and Rollnick’s topic specific pedagogical content knowledge were used as theoretical and analytical frameworks, respectively. A thematic approach to data analysis was employed to come up with sub-themes and themes. The findings of the study revealed that all the participating teachers in this study had never been exposed to ideas on how to integrate indigenous knowledge in their science teaching. As a result, they all embraced and valued the indigenous technology of dyeing and weaving as relevant and useful in the teaching and learning of chemical and physical changes. This study recommends that there is a need to empower science teachers on how to integrate indigenous knowledge in their science teaching in order to make science accessible and relevant to their learners’ lived worlds. , Thesis (MEd) -- Faculty of Education, Education, 2021
- Full Text:
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