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Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences

Genetic Analyses Reveal Cryptic Introgression In Secretive Marsh Bird Populations, Stephanie S. Coster, Amy B. Welsh, Gary Costanzo, Sergio R. Harding, James T. Anderson, Susan B. Mcrae, Todd E. Katzner Jan 2018

Genetic Analyses Reveal Cryptic Introgression In Secretive Marsh Bird Populations, Stephanie S. Coster, Amy B. Welsh, Gary Costanzo, Sergio R. Harding, James T. Anderson, Susan B. Mcrae, Todd E. Katzner

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

Hybridization is common in bird populations but can be challenging for management, especially if one of the two parent species is of greater conservation concern than the other. King rails (Rallus elegans) and clapper rails (R. crepitans) are two marsh bird species with similar morphologies, behaviors, and overlapping distributions. The two species are found along a salinity gradient with the king rail in freshwater marshes and the clapper in estuarine marshes. However, this separation is not absolute; they are occasionally sympatric, and there are reports of interbreeding. In Virginia, USA, both king and clapper rails are …


Assessing The Vulnerability Of Coastal Marsh Birds To Sea Level Rise In The South Atlantic Coast, Nicolette Roach May 2015

Assessing The Vulnerability Of Coastal Marsh Birds To Sea Level Rise In The South Atlantic Coast, Nicolette Roach

All Theses

Global wetland degradation and loss is occurring at a rapid rate, and in the United States over 50% of wetlands in the lower 48 states have been altered since European settlement. In some cases, wetlands that were historically transformed for agriculture are now managed as wetland habitat. We conducted occupancy surveys for black rails (Latterallus jamaicensis) in managed and unmanaged areas of coastal South Carolina. We modeled landscape and local factors potentially influencing occupancy and we assessed whether these habitat associations indicated vulnerability following expected alterations from sea level rise. Black rails occupied 17 of 344 sites surveyed. Landscape factors …


Feathers As Bioindicators Of Pcb Exposure In Clapper Rails, Jay W. Summers, Karen F. Gaines, N. Garvin, Warren L. Stephens Jr., James C. Cumbee Jr., Gary L. Mills Jan 2010

Feathers As Bioindicators Of Pcb Exposure In Clapper Rails, Jay W. Summers, Karen F. Gaines, N. Garvin, Warren L. Stephens Jr., James C. Cumbee Jr., Gary L. Mills

Karen F. Gaines

In this study we used feathers to biomonitor exposure to the polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) Aroclor 1268 congener mixture in clapper rails (Rallus longirostris). This species has been used as an indicator species of environmental damage for the LCP superfund site located in Brunswick, GA, USA which is contaminated with Aroclor 1268, a congener mixture that has been used in limited amounts elsewhere and therefore can be used as a contaminant marker. The Aroclor 1268 congener mixture, including congener profiles, were quantified in feathers using gas chromatography (GC). Concurrently, each sample was quantified for the total Aroclor 1268 congener mixture using …


Feathers As Bioindicators Of Pcb Exposure In Clapper Rails, Jay W. Summers, Karen F. Gaines, N. Garvin, Warren L. Stephens Jr., James C. Cumbee Jr., Gary L. Mills Jan 2010

Feathers As Bioindicators Of Pcb Exposure In Clapper Rails, Jay W. Summers, Karen F. Gaines, N. Garvin, Warren L. Stephens Jr., James C. Cumbee Jr., Gary L. Mills

Faculty Research & Creative Activity

In this study we used feathers to biomonitor exposure to the polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) Aroclor 1268 congener mixture in clapper rails (Rallus longirostris). This species has been used as an indicator species of environmental damage for the LCP superfund site located in Brunswick, GA, USA which is contaminated with Aroclor 1268, a congener mixture that has been used in limited amounts elsewhere and therefore can be used as a contaminant marker. The Aroclor 1268 congener mixture, including congener profiles, were quantified in feathers using gas chromatography (GC). Concurrently, each sample was quantified for the total Aroclor 1268 congener mixture using …


Clapper Rails As Indicators Of Mercury And Pcb Bioavailability In A Georgia Saltmarsh System, James C. Cumbee Jr., Karen F. Gaines, Gary L. Mills, N. Garvin, Warren L. Stephens Jr., James N. Novak, I. L. Brisbin Jr. Jan 2008

Clapper Rails As Indicators Of Mercury And Pcb Bioavailability In A Georgia Saltmarsh System, James C. Cumbee Jr., Karen F. Gaines, Gary L. Mills, N. Garvin, Warren L. Stephens Jr., James N. Novak, I. L. Brisbin Jr.

Karen F. Gaines

Clapper rails (Rallus longirostris) were used as an indicator species of estuarine marsh habitat quality because of their strong site fidelity and predictable diet consisting of mostly benthic organisms. Mercury (Hg) and the polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) Aroclor 1268 concentrations were determined for sediments, crabs, as well as clapper rail adults and chicks collected from salt marshes associated with the LCP Superfund site in Brunswick, Georgia. Home ranges were established for adult rails, and sediment and crab samples were taken from each individual’s range. The study was designed to minimize the spatial variability associated with trophic transfer studies by choosing an …


Clapper Rails As Indicators Of Mercury And Pcb Bioavailability In A Georgia Saltmarsh System, James C. Cumbee Jr., Karen F. Gaines, Gary L. Mills, N. Garvin, Warren L. Stephens Jr., James N. Novak, I. L. Brisbin Jr. Jan 2008

Clapper Rails As Indicators Of Mercury And Pcb Bioavailability In A Georgia Saltmarsh System, James C. Cumbee Jr., Karen F. Gaines, Gary L. Mills, N. Garvin, Warren L. Stephens Jr., James N. Novak, I. L. Brisbin Jr.

Faculty Research & Creative Activity

Clapper rails (Rallus longirostris) were used as an indicator species of estuarine marsh habitat quality because of their strong site fidelity and predictable diet consisting of mostly benthic organisms. Mercury (Hg) and the polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) Aroclor 1268 concentrations were determined for sediments, crabs, as well as clapper rail adults and chicks collected from salt marshes associated with the LCP Superfund site in Brunswick, Georgia. Home ranges were established for adult rails, and sediment and crab samples were taken from each individual’s range. The study was designed to minimize the spatial variability associated with trophic transfer studies by choosing an …


Mineralization Of Clapper Rail Eggshell From A Contaminated Salt Marsh System, Alejandro Rodriguez-Navarro, Karen F. Gaines, Christopher S. Romanek, G. R. Masson Jan 2002

Mineralization Of Clapper Rail Eggshell From A Contaminated Salt Marsh System, Alejandro Rodriguez-Navarro, Karen F. Gaines, Christopher S. Romanek, G. R. Masson

Karen F. Gaines

The effect of contamination on eggshell mineralization has been studied for clapper rails (Rallus longirostris) inhabiting a contaminated salt marsh in coastal Georgia. To assess the impact of contaminants, the thickness, microstructure (crystal orientation), mineral composition, and chemistry of shell material were analyzed from a contaminated site and a nearby reference site using optical microscopy, X-ray diffraction, inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry, and gas chromatography with electron capture detector. Eggshells from the contaminated site were generally thinner than those from the reference site. Also, eggshells from the contaminated site were abnormally brittle and contained anomalous microstructural attributes. The combination of …


Mineralization Of Clapper Rail Eggshell From A Contaminated Salt Marsh System, Alejandro Rodriguez-Navarro, Karen F. Gaines, Christopher S. Romanek, G. R. Masson Jan 2002

Mineralization Of Clapper Rail Eggshell From A Contaminated Salt Marsh System, Alejandro Rodriguez-Navarro, Karen F. Gaines, Christopher S. Romanek, G. R. Masson

Faculty Research & Creative Activity

The effect of contamination on eggshell mineralization has been studied for clapper rails (Rallus longirostris) inhabiting a contaminated salt marsh in coastal Georgia. To assess the impact of contaminants, the thickness, microstructure (crystal orientation), mineral composition, and chemistry of shell material were analyzed from a contaminated site and a nearby reference site using optical microscopy, X-ray diffraction, inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry, and gas chromatography with electron capture detector. Eggshells from the contaminated site were generally thinner than those from the reference site. Also, eggshells from the contaminated site were abnormally brittle and contained anomalous microstructural attributes. The combination of …


Bulletin No. 27: Birds Of Connecticut Salt Marshes - 50th Anniversary, James Stone, J. Susan Cole-Stone, William A. Niering Sep 1981

Bulletin No. 27: Birds Of Connecticut Salt Marshes - 50th Anniversary, James Stone, J. Susan Cole-Stone, William A. Niering

Bulletins

48 pp. 1981. Illustrations and descriptions of 24 birds commonly seen on our tidal marshes.