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International and Area Studies

University of Nebraska - Lincoln

United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Publications

2007

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Protocol For Investigating Displacement Effects Of Wind Facilities On Grassland Songbirds, Wallace Erickson, Dale Strickland, Jill A. Shaffer, Douglas H. Johnson Feb 2007

Protocol For Investigating Displacement Effects Of Wind Facilities On Grassland Songbirds, Wallace Erickson, Dale Strickland, Jill A. Shaffer, Douglas H. Johnson

United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Publications

Populations of grassland and shrub-steppe bird species are declining more precipitously than any other group of North American bird species (Peterjohn and Sauer 1999). Much of the decline appears associated with habitat loss, fragmentation, and degradation of grassland and shrub-steppe habitats. Agricultural development is the greatest cause of grassland loss (Knopf 1994). Urban development and range management practices also contribute to loss of grasslands and biodiversity within remaining grasslands (Vickery et al. 1999, Fuhlendorf and Engle 2001). Because of the permanence and fragmenting nature of urban development, this form of grassland conversion may have more severe and longer-term negative effects …


Sandhill Crane Abundance And Nesting Ecology At Grays Lake, Idaho, Jane Austin, Adonia Henry, I. Joseph Hall Jan 2007

Sandhill Crane Abundance And Nesting Ecology At Grays Lake, Idaho, Jane Austin, Adonia Henry, I. Joseph Hall

United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Publications

We examined population size and factors influencing nest survival of greater sandhill cranes (Grus canadensis tabida) at Grays Lake National Wildlife Refuge, Idaho, USA, during 1997–2000. Average local population of cranes from late April to early May, 1998–2000, was 735 cranes, 34% higher than that reported for May 1970–1971. We estimated 228 (SE = 30) nests in the basin core (excluding renests), 14% higher than a 1971 estimate. Apparent nest success in our study (x = 60%, n = 519 nests) was lower than reported for Grays Lake 30–50 years earlier. Daily survival rates (DSRs) of all nests …


Survey Of Selected Pathogens And Blood Parameters Of Northern Yellowstone Elk: Wolf Sanitation Effect Implications, Shannon M. Barber-Meyer, P. J. White, L. David Mech Jan 2007

Survey Of Selected Pathogens And Blood Parameters Of Northern Yellowstone Elk: Wolf Sanitation Effect Implications, Shannon M. Barber-Meyer, P. J. White, L. David Mech

United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Publications

The restoration or conservation of predators could reduce seroprevalences of certain diseases in prey if predation selectively removes animals exhibiting clinical signs. We assessed disease seroprevalences and blood parameters of 115 adult female elk (Cervus elaphus) wintering on the northern range of Yellowstone National Park [YNP] during 2000– 2005 and compared them to data collected prior to wolf (Canis lupus) restoration (WR) in 1995 and to two other herds in Montana to assess this prediction. Blood parameters were generally within two standard deviations of the means observed in other Montana herds (Gravelly-Snowcrest [GS] and Garnet Mountain …


Testing Global Positioning System Telemetry To Study Wolf Predation On Deer Fawns, Dominic Demma, Shannon Barber-Meyer, L. David Mech Jan 2007

Testing Global Positioning System Telemetry To Study Wolf Predation On Deer Fawns, Dominic Demma, Shannon Barber-Meyer, L. David Mech

United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Publications

We conducted a pilot study to test the usefulness of Global Positioning System (GPS) collars for investigating wolf (Canis lupus) predation on white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) fawns. Using GPS collars with short location-attempt intervals on 5 wolves and 5 deer during summers 2002–2004 in northeastern Minnesota, USA, demonstrated how this approach could provide new insights into wolf hunting behavior of fawns. For example, a wolf traveled ≥1.5–3.0 km and spent 20–22 hours in the immediate vicinity of known fawn kill sites and ≥0.7 km and 8.3 hours at scavenging sites. Wolf travel paths indicated that wolves …


Femur-Marrow Fat Of White-Tailed Deer Fawns Killed By Wolves, L. David Mech Jan 2007

Femur-Marrow Fat Of White-Tailed Deer Fawns Killed By Wolves, L. David Mech

United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Publications

I present marrow fat (MF) data from a large sample of white-tailed deer fawns killed by wolves and a sample of fawns that died by accident in a single area, and I use these data to explore the extent that poor nutritional condition may have predisposed fawns to wolf predation. Percent MF of 110 5–10-month-old white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) fawns killed by wolves (Canis lupus) from November through April 1984–2002 in northeastern Minnesota, USA, was lower than MF for 23 fawns killed by accidents in the same area and period. The MF of both male and …


A Proposed Ethogram Of Large-Carnivore Predatory Behavior, Exemplified By The Wolf, Daniel Macnulty, L. David Mech, Douglas Smith Jan 2007

A Proposed Ethogram Of Large-Carnivore Predatory Behavior, Exemplified By The Wolf, Daniel Macnulty, L. David Mech, Douglas Smith

United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Publications

Although predatory behavior is traditionally described by a basic ethogram composed of 3 phases (search, pursue, and capture), behavioral studies of large terrestrial carnivores generally use the concept of a ‘‘hunt’’ to classify and measure foraging. This approach is problematic because there is no consensus on what behaviors constitute a hunt. We therefore examined how the basic ethogram could be used as a common framework for classifying large carnivore behavior. We used >2,150 h of observed wolf (Canis lupus) behavior in Yellowstone National Park, including 517 and 134 encounters with elk (Cervus elaphus) and American bison …


Interleukin-6 And Tumor Necrosis Factor-Alpha Values In Elk Neonates, Shannon M. Barber-Meyer, Craig R. Johnson, Michael P. Murtaugh, L. David Mech, P. J. White Jan 2007

Interleukin-6 And Tumor Necrosis Factor-Alpha Values In Elk Neonates, Shannon M. Barber-Meyer, Craig R. Johnson, Michael P. Murtaugh, L. David Mech, P. J. White

United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Publications

Serological indicators of general condition would be helpful for monitoring or assessing ungulate wildlife. Toward that end, we report the 1st reference values for 2 cytokines, interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), in neonatal elk (Cervus elaphus). We obtained blood samples from 140 calves ≤ 6 days old in Yellowstone National Park during summer 2003–2005. IL-6 values ranged from 0 to 1.21 pg/ml with a median of 0.03 pg/ml. TNF-α values ranged from 0 to 225.43 pg/ml with a median of 1.85 pg/ml. IL-6 and TNF-α concentrations were not significant predictors of elk calf survival through 21 …


Defining Space Use And Movements Of Canada Lynx With Global Positioning System Telemetry, Christopher Burdett, Ron Moen, Gerald J. Niemi, L. David Mech Jan 2007

Defining Space Use And Movements Of Canada Lynx With Global Positioning System Telemetry, Christopher Burdett, Ron Moen, Gerald J. Niemi, L. David Mech

United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Publications

Space use and movements of Canada lynx (Lynx canadensis) are difficult to study with very-high-frequency radiocollars. We deployed global positioning system (GPS) collars on 11 lynx in Minnesota to study their seasonal space-use patterns. We estimated home ranges with minimum-convex-polygon and fixed-kernel methods and estimated core areas with area/probability curves. Fixed-kernel home ranges of males (range = 29–522 km2) were significantly larger than those of females (range = 5–95 km2) annually and during the denning season. Some male lynx increased movements during March, the month most influenced by breeding activity. Lynx core areas were …