Ornithology Commons^™

Comparative Genomics Reveals Insights Into Avian Genome Evolution And Adaptation, Guojie Zhang, Cai Li, Qiye Li, Bo Li, Dennis M. Larkin, Chul Lee, Jay F. Storz, Agostinho Antunes, Matthew J. Greenwold, Robert W. Meredith, Anders Ödeen, Jie Cui, Qi Zhou, Luohao Xu, Hailin Pan, Zongji Wang, Lijun Jin, Pei Zhang, Haofu Hu, Wei Yang, Jiang Hu, Jin Xiao, Zhikai Yang, Yang Liu, Qiaolin Xie, Hao Yu, Jinmin Lian, Ping Wen, Fang Zhang, Hui Li, Yongli Zeng, Zijun Xiong, Shiping Liu, Long Zhou, Zhiyong Huang, Na An, Jie Wang, Quimei Zheng, Yingqi Xiong, Guangbiao Wang, Bo Wang, Jingjing Wang, Yu Fan, Rute R. Da Fonseca, Alonzo Alfaro-Núñez, Mikkel Schubert, Ludovic Orlando, Tobias Mourier, Jason T. Howard, Ganeshkumar Ganapathy, Andreas Pfenning, Osceola Whitney, Miriam V. Rivas, Erina Hara, Julia Smith, Marta Farré, Jitendra Narayan, Gancho Slavov, Michael N. Romanov, Rui Borges, João Paulo Machado, Imran Khan, Mark S. Springer, John Gatesy, Federico G. Hoffmann, Juan C. Opazo, Olle Håstad, Roger H. Sawyer, Heebal Kim, Kyu-Won Kim, Hyeon Jeong Kim, Seoae Cho, Ning Li, Yinhua Huang, Michael W. Bruford, Xiangjiang Zhan, Andrew Dixon, Mads F. Bertelsen, Elizabeth Derryberry, Wesley Warren, Richard K. Wilson, Shengbin Li, David A. Ray, Richard E. Green, Stephen J. O'Brien, Darren Griffin, Warren E. Johnson, David Haussler, Oliver A. Ryder, Eske Willerslev, Gary R. Graves, Per Alström, Jon Fjeldså, David P. Mindell, Scott V. Edwards, Edward L. Braun, Carsten Rahbek, David W. Burt, Peter Houde, Yong Zhang, Huanming Yang, Jian Wang, Avian Genome Consortium, Erich D. Jarvis, M. Thomas P. Gilbert, Jun Wang

Jay F. Storz Publications

Birds are the most species-rich class of tetrapod vertebrates and have wide relevance across many research fields. We explored bird macroevolution using full genomes from 48 avian species representing all major extant clades. The avian genome is principally characterized by its constrained size, which predominantly arose because of lineage-specific erosion of repetitive elements, large segmental deletions, and gene loss. Avian genomes furthermore show a remarkably high degree of evolutionary stasis at the levels of nucleotide sequence, gene synteny, and chromosomal structure. Despite this pattern of conservation, we detected many non-neutral evolutionary changes in protein-coding genes and noncoding regions. These analyses …

Geographic Segregation And Evidence Of Density-Dependent Changes In Sex Ratios In An Abundant Colonial Waterbird, Brian S. Dorr, Katie C. Hanson-Dorr, Travis L. Devault, Alban Guillaumet, Scott C. Barras

Brian S Dorr

Demographic information, such as geographic segregation of sexes and sex ratio data, is needed to develop, model and evaluate conservation and management strategies for wildlife. A variety of physiological, behavioral and environmental factors can influence segregation of sexes and sex ratios, many of which originate with density- dependent processes. Departure from 50:50 sex ratios of double-crested cormorants (Phalacrocorax auritus) collected during control efforts in breeding and wintering areas across their eastern range of the USA were evaluated using using a Z-test as well as Stouffer’s weighted Z-tests. In addition, a specifically-designed randomization test was used to evaluate density-dependent effects on …

Summary Of Raptor Banding Efforts At Hitchcock Nature Center, Fall 2014, Jerry Toll

Nebraska Bird Review

The 2014 season was by far the most unusual and frustrating season since the inception of raptor banding and hawk watch at the Hitchcock Nature Center in Pottawatomie County, Iowa, just north of Crescent. Banding diurnal raptors commenced on September 7th on schedule. The month of September was typical as far as capture rates and weather systems, although we were stymied somewhat by the lack of availability of European Starlings for lure birds. House Sparrows proved a nearly adequate substitute.

During the peak period of October, weather systems that drive diurnal raptor migration worked against monitoring efforts by forcing migration …

Holdrege Fall Field Days, Janis Paseka

Nebraska Bird Review

The 2014 NOU Fall Field Days took place in Holdrege at the Super 8 Motel on Sept. 19–21. There were about 35 in attendance at the meeting, which was organized by Dave Heidt and Betty Grenon.

On Friday evening Dave Heidt led a humor-filled discussion on bird songs and calls and ways to remember them, as audience members suggested their own mnemonic devices. On Saturday evening, T. J. Walker gave a presentation on the Nebraska Game and Parks' program of habitat rehabilitation to benefit Ring-necked Pheasants and other species. Field trip destinations on Saturday and on Sunday morning included Harlan …

Fall Field Report, August–November 2014, W. Ross Silcock

Nebraska Bird Review

My first paragraph from last year's fall report read as follows: "In most ways, this was a routine fall season. Most interesting from an ongoing point of view were quite a large number of sightings of passerines at rather late dates, notably among Empidonax flycatchers, wood warblers, native sparrows, tanagers, towhees, grosbeaks, and buntings." This fall was no different; the trend seems to be that final sighting dates for many species are pushing against their latest expected dates.

There were several tidbits of interest, more or less unrelated, but perhaps most notable takeaways for the season were the number of …

Index To Volume 82

Nebraska Bird Review

Abegglen, Jeff 192
Abraham, K. F. 85
Aderman, T. 80
Addy, Darren 47
Adrian, Brad 47
Ahlschwede, Carla 40
Akers, Danny 100
Alberts: Byron 143; Deb 143
Alisaukis, R. T. 85
Allen: Edward 3, 48, 143, 153; Jan 48
Allison, Scott 49
American Ornithologists' Union 192

. . .

Wright, Rick 49
Wylie, Bruce 41

Yantachka, Jennifer 143
Yellowlegs: Greater 55, 88, 108, 160, 183; Lesser 56, 88, 108, 160, 183
Yellowtbroat, Common 26, 67, 91, 117, 175, 184

Zahurones, Penny 41
Ziolkowski, D. J. 80

In Memory Of Margaret Triplett

Nebraska Bird Review

The NOU lost a longtime member in Kearney on August 7, 2014, when Margaret Sealing Triplett died.

First Documented Nest Of Northern Saw-Whet Owl In Nebraska, Wayne J. Mollhoff

Nebraska Bird Review

Northern Saw-whet Owl was added to our avifauna with a list prepared by Taylor and Van Vleet (1889). The first suggestion of breeding was a second-hand report included in a paper presented at the first meeting of the Nebraska Ornithologists' Union in 1899 by M. A. Carriker, Jr., who "was told of a set of five eggs collected near Nebraska City about seven years ago" (1900), but which included no other details. At the next meeting, Bruner (1901) cited that report to include the species on a list of birds that breed in the state. Bruner, Swenk, and Walcott later …

Subscription And Organization Information [December 2014]

Nebraska Bird Review

The Nebraska Bird Review is published quarterly by the Nebraska Ornithologists' Union, Inc., as its official journal, and is sent to members not in arrears of dues. Annual subscription rates (on a calendar-year basis only): $25 in the United States and $35 in all other countries, payable in advance. Single copies are $7 each, postpaid, in the United States and $9 elsewhere. Send orders for back issues to Anita Breckbill, NOU Librarian, c/o Music Library, WMB 30, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68588-0101.

Memberships in the NOU (on a calendar-year basis only): Active Household (one or more people) $25; Sustaining …

Nebraska Bird Review (December 2014) 82(4), Whole Issue

Nebraska Bird Review

Fall Field Report, August–November 2014 ... 150

Holdrege Fall Field Days … 181

Summary of Raptor Banding Efforts at Hitchcock Nature Center, Fall 2014 ... 186

First Documented Nest of Northern Saw-whet Owl in Nebraska ... 189

In Memory of Margaret Triplett … 194

Index to Volume 82 … 195

Subscription and Organization Information ... 207

Contact Zone Of The Eastern And Western Marsh Wrens In Nebraska Revisited, Mark B. Robbins

Nebraska Bird Review

Across the northern and coastal United States and southern central Canada the Marsh Wren (Cistothorus palustris) is a widespread breeder in cattail-dominated marshes. Although it has long been considered to be polytypic based on subtle plumage characters (Parkes 1959; Phillips 1986), it was not until Kroodsma (1989, 2005) demonstrated that there was a dramatic break in the primary (song) vocalization in the northern Great Plains that anyone suggested more than one species was involved. In 1986, as part of the delineation of the breeding distribution of both vocal types, Kroodsma (1988; see map therein) audio recorded wrens at …

Stomach Content Analysis Of Recent Snowy Owl (Bubo Scandiacus) Specimens From Nebraska, Rachel L. Valenziano, Thomas E. Labedz

Nebraska Bird Review

The Snowy Owl (Bubo scandiacus) is a circumpolar bird of prey that breeds in extreme northern latitudes, including Canadian and Alaskan tundra. During winter months, some immature and non-breeding birds disperse south. North American birds may travel to southern Canada and northern parts of the United States, and in some extreme cases as far south as Oklahoma and Texas (Parmelee 1992). Although not fully understood, these irruptive events may be caused by the abundance of prey in northern Canada and Alaska (Parmelee 1992).

Prey typical of Snowy Owls are small mammals (e.g., lemmings and hares) of their home range and …

Subscription And Organization Information [September 2014]

Nebraska Bird Review

The Nebraska Bird Review is published quarterly by the Nebraska Ornithologists' Union, Inc., as its official journal, and is sent to members not in arrears of dues. Annual subscription rates (on a calendar-year basis only): $25 in the United States and $35 in all other countries, payable in advance. Single copies are $7 each, postpaid, in the United States and $9 elsewhere. Send orders for back issues to Anita Breckbill, NOU Librarian, c/o Music Library, WMB 30, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68588-0101.

Memberships in the NOU (on a calendar-year basis only): Active Household (one or more people) $25; Sustaining …

Nebraska Bird Review (September 2014) 82(3), Whole Issue

Nebraska Bird Review

Summer Field Report, June–July 2014 ... 98

Stomach Content Analysis of Recent Snowy Owl (Bubo scandiacus) Specimens from Nebraska … 122

Contact Zone of the Eastern and Western Marsh Wrens in Nebraska Revisited ... 128

2013 (25th) Report of the NOU Records Committee ... 131

Subscription and Organization Information ... 147

2013 (25th) Report Of The Nou Records Committee, Mark A. Brogie

Nebraska Bird Review

The "Official List of the Birds of Nebraska" was first published in 1988 (NOU 1988) and has been updated three times (NOURC 1997, 2004, 2009). The "Official List" has been appended twenty-three times: (Mollhoff 1989; Grenon 1990, 1991; Gubanyi 1996a, 1996b, 1996c; Brogie 1997, 1998, 1999, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009a, 2009b, 2011, 2012, 2013; Jorgensen 2001, 2002, 2003).

The American Ornithologists' Union Checklist of North American Birds, Seventh Edition (1998) and its following supplements: (AOU: 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013) contain many taxonomic changes affecting North American birds.

The …

Summer Field Report, June–July 2014, W. Ross Silcock

Nebraska Bird Review

This summer was marked by the "unremarkability," if there is such a thing, of the status of almost all species, especially passerines. A stark exception, however, was the pair of summering hummingbirds in a yard a few miles southeast of Chadron: Juanita Whittecar sent a collection of very good photos of these birds, detailed enough to determine that the pair of supposed Ruby-throated Hummingbirds actually consisted of a female Ruby-throated and a hybrid Ruby-throated x Broad-tailed male. Another odd phenomenon was the number of shorebird species with late Jun records, usually the brief window within which these species are absent …

2014 Nou/Iou Joint Meeting In Bellevue, Clem Klaphake

Nebraska Bird Review

The May 16–18 combined meeting of the Nebraska Ornithologists' Union and the Iowa Ornithologists' Union at Fontenelle Forest Nature Center in Bellevue, Nebraska, was a gigantic success. Over 160 birders from Nebraska, Iowa, and 6 other states attended the 3 day event. Everyone I talked to, from novice to expert, was more than delighted with all of the activities scheduled for this event.

Our Friday evening speaker, Ty Smedes, had some wonderful photos, especially of warblers, and I heard nothing but positive comments about his program from the attendees. On Saturday afternoon Jerry Toll talked about his experiences banding Red-tailed …

What Are Blue Ross's Geese?, Paul A. Johnsgard

Nebraska Bird Review

The existence of blue morph ("phase") Ross's Geese (Chen rossii) was first well documented by McLandress & McLandress (1979). They reported on several blue-morph birds seen and collected in California and Canada that morphologically appeared to be pure Ross's Geese and on others with intermediate traits that appeared to be hybrids with Lesser Snow Geese (Chen caerulescens caerulescens). They also noted that in the California wintering grounds counts held during 1976–77 there were only 3 blue morphs (0.008 percent) among the 38,825 Ross's Geese counted. At that time, only 0.02 percent of the Lesser Snow Geese …

Double-Crested Cormorant And American White Pelican Abundance At Sandhills Lakes During Fall Migration, Lauren R. Dinan, Joel G. Jorgensen

Nebraska Bird Review

Double-crested Cormorants (DCCO, Phalacrocorax auritus) and American White Pelicans (AWPE, Pelecanus erythrorhynchos) are migratory piscivorous birds that breed in North America. Both species are abundant spring and fall migrants in Nebraska. DCCOs are also common, albeit local, breeders in northwestern Nebraska (Sharpe et al. 2001 ). DCCO and AWPE numbers have increased throughout their range in recent decades (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service [USFWS] 2003, Sauer et al. 2013). Both species, but primarily DCCOs, have become increasingly controversial because of increased numbers and also because their principal food source is fish, a resource humans value. Concentrations of DCCOs, and to …

Spring Field Report, March 2014 To May 2014, W. Ross Silcock

Nebraska Bird Review

This spring period was generally uneventful for most species groups, but there were two major influxes in the east that were likely unprecedented in the memories of most Nebraska ornithologists. First was a major influx of gulls of 10 species at Carter Lake and N.P. Dodge Park in Omaha, including good numbers of California and Thayer's Gulls, as well as Iceland, and most surprisingly, a Glaucous-winged Gull. A bit later in the season was a strong influx of the rarer migrant warblers, such as Golden-winged, Blue-winged, Hooded, Cape May, Bay-breasted, and Black-throated Blue. For spice there was a Worm-eating Warbler …

In Memoriam [June 2014]

Nebraska Bird Review

In memoriam: Alice Rushton, Gertrude Wood, and Mitzi Fox

Subscription And Organization Information [June 2014]

Nebraska Bird Review

The Nebraska Bird Review is published quarterly by the Nebraska Ornithologists' Union, Inc., as its official journal, and is sent to members not in arrears of dues. Annual subscription rates (on a calendar-year basis only): $25 in the United States and $35 in all other countries, payable in advance. Single copies are $7 each, postpaid, in the United States and $9 elsewhere. Send orders for back issues to Anita Breckbill, NOU Librarian, c/o Music Library, WMB 30, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68588-0101.

Memberships in the NOU (on a calendar-year basis only): Active Household (one or more people) $25; Sustaining …

Nebraska Bird Review (June 2014) 82(2), Whole Issue

Nebraska Bird Review

Spring Field Report, March–May 2014 ... 46

Double-crested Cormorant and American White Pelican Abundance at Sandhills Lakes during Fall Migration … 73

What Are Blue Ross’s Geese? ... 81

2014 NOU/IOU Joint Meeting in Bellevue ... 86

In Memoriam: Alice Rushton, Gertrude Wood, and Mitzi Fox … 93

Subscription and Organization Information ... 95

“What Do Birds In Nebraska Eat?” Color Photo Section [March 2014, Pp. 20–26]

Nebraska Bird Review

Photographs of American Robins with Eastern red cedar berry and earthworm and Purple Martins with red admiral butterfly and snowberry clearwing moth (p. 20); Lazuli Bunting with millet, Grasshopper Sparrow with grasshopper, Cedar Waxwing with ornamental crab apples, and Herring Gull with unidentified fish (p. 21); Red-tailed Hawk with Eastern fox squirrel, Sharp-shinned Hawk with Eurasian Collared-Dove, Rough-legged Hawk with small mammal, and Cooper’s Hawk with House Finch (p. 22); Swainson’s Thrush with grain, Orchard Oriole with mulberry, Yellow-throated Vireo with unidentified fly, and Turkey Vulture with unidentified snake (p. 23); Pileated Woodpecker feeding juvenile, Downy Woodpecker feeding juvenile, Northern …

Winter Field Report, December 2013 To February 2014, W. Ross Silcock

Nebraska Bird Review

This was a low-key winter season in terms of reportable phenomena of any significance, although three species provided food for thought: high numbers of Rough-legged Hawks, the possibility of breeding Northern Saw-whet Owls in the cedar canyons of Lincoln Co, and the possible impending demise of Black-billed Magpie over most of the state. Also noteworthy is the continuing increase in midwinter reports of a wide range of species that previously have accounted for very few such records. Notable in this respect are waterfowl, mimids, non-oriole icterids, and sparrows; a Say's Phoebe in December was the most surprising record in this …

Subscription And Organization Information [March 2014]

Nebraska Bird Review

The Nebraska Bird Review is published quarterly by the Nebraska Ornithologists' Union, Inc., as its official journal, and is sent to members not in arrears of dues. Annual subscription rates (on a calendar-year basis only): $25 in the United States and $35 in all other countries, payable in advance. Single copies are $7 each, postpaid, in the United States and $9 elsewhere. Send orders for back issues to Anita Breckbill, NOU Librarian, c/o Music Library, WMB 30, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68588-0101.

Memberships in the NOU (on a calendar-year basis only): Active Household (one or more people) $25; Sustaining …

Nebraska Bird Review (March 2014) 82(1), Whole Issue

Nebraska Bird Review

Winter Field Report, December 2013–February 2014 ... 2

Breeding Season Observations of Sandhill Cranes on the Niobrara River … 16

2013 Christmas Bird Counts in Nebraska ... 27

NOU Annual Treasurer’s Report for 2013 ... 42

Subscription and Organization Information ... 43

2013 Christmas Bird Counts, Don Paseka

Nebraska Bird Review

Fifteen counts were held during the 2013–2014 season. Following a cold snap in early December, the weather was seasonable and mostly dry, but with very limited open water in most circles. An example of the consequences of this can be seen in the Branched Oak–Seward count tally. Although this count has a history of being very productive for water-related birds in most years, only 3 species were found this year: Canada Goose (16), Mallard (2) and Belted Kingfisher (1). The total species count in all the counts was 135, four less than the past two years and historically ranking sixth …

Breeding Season Observations Of Sandhill Cranes On The Niobrara River In Nebraska, Mark Czaplewski, Jim Jenniges, Mark Peyton

Nebraska Bird Review

Central Platte Natural Resources District (CPNRD), Nebraska Public Power District (NPPD), and the Central Nebraska Public Power and Irrigation District (Central) have been involved in the monitoring of Interior Least Terns (Sternula antillarum athalassos) and Piping Plovers (Charadrius melodus) along portions on the lower Niobrara River in northeast Nebraska since 2005. On two occasions, we observed a pair of adult Sandhill Cranes (Grus canadensis) during the breeding season.

A pair of adult cranes was observed on June 8, 2011, on the Niobrara River approximately 7.8 km below the U.S. Route 137 bridge in Holt …

Nebraska Ornithologists’ Union Treasurer’S Report, December 31, 2013

Nebraska Bird Review

One-page spreadsheet constituting the Nebraska Ornithologists' Union treasurer's report at year end (December 31) of 2013. The grand total is $58,106.34.