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Density And Diversity Of Overwintering Birds In Managed Field Borders In Mississippi, Stephen J. Dinsmore, Mark D. Smith, Philip J. Barbour, L. Wes Burger Jr. Sep 2005

Density And Diversity Of Overwintering Birds In Managed Field Borders In Mississippi, Stephen J. Dinsmore, Mark D. Smith, Philip J. Barbour, L. Wes Burger Jr.

Stephen J Dinsmore

Grassland bird populations are sharply declining in North America. Changes in agricultural practices during the past 50 years have been suggested as one of the major causes of this decline. Field-border conservation practices encouraged by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Conservation Buffer Initiative meet many of the needs of sustainable agriculture and offer excellent opportunities to enhance local grassland bird populations within intensive agricultural production systems. Despite the abundant information on avian use of, and reproductive success in, strip habitats during the breeding season, few studies have examined the potential value of field borders for wintering birds. We planted …


The Potential Role Of Sheep In Dryland Grain Production Systems, H. B. Goosey, P. G. Hatfield, Andrew W. Lenssen, Sue L. Blodgett, R. W. Kott Aug 2005

The Potential Role Of Sheep In Dryland Grain Production Systems, H. B. Goosey, P. G. Hatfield, Andrew W. Lenssen, Sue L. Blodgett, R. W. Kott

Andrew W. Lenssen

In dryland farming areas of Montana, annual precipitation is not sufficient for annual planting of cereal grains. Instead, a crop-summer fallow farming system is used to conserve soil moisture and increase available nitrogen for subsequent crop growth. Managing this summer fallow, either by mechanical means or with herbicides, is the highest variable cost associated with dryland grain production in Montana. Wheat stem sawfly, Cephus cinctus (Hymenoptera: Cephidae) is the most damaging insect pest to Montana’s US$ 1 billion per year grain industry. Weed management is the largest variable cost associated with dryland grain production and summer fallow management. Six fields, …