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Full-Text Articles in Environmental Sciences

Factors Affecting Greater Sage-Grouse (Centrocercus Urophasianus) Survival And Movement In South-Central Utah, Danny Caudill May 2011

Factors Affecting Greater Sage-Grouse (Centrocercus Urophasianus) Survival And Movement In South-Central Utah, Danny Caudill

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Greater sage-grouse are the largest North American grouse species and are dependent on sagebrush for survival. Sage-grouse populations have declined throughout the west. Habitat fragmentation and degradation are likely the main causes of declining populations, and concern has lead to the petitioning for the sage-grouse to be listed under the Endangered Species Act. Survival of adult and juvenile sage-grouse is thought to be limiting population growth. However, survival of juvenile sage-grouse is poorly understood. I aimed to improve the knowledge gap regarding juvenile sage-grouse survival. With improved knowledge of juvenile survival, management actions can be employed to benefit sage-grouse populations. …


Long-Term Survival Of Humpback Whales Radio-Tagged In Alaska From 1976 Through 1978, Sally A. Mizroch, Michael F. Tillman, Susan Jurasz, Janice M. Straley, Olga Von Ziegesar, Louis M. Herman, Adam A. Pack, Scott Baker, Jim Darling, Debbie Glockner-Ferrari, Mark Ferrari, Dan R. Salden, Phillip J. Clapham Jan 2011

Long-Term Survival Of Humpback Whales Radio-Tagged In Alaska From 1976 Through 1978, Sally A. Mizroch, Michael F. Tillman, Susan Jurasz, Janice M. Straley, Olga Von Ziegesar, Louis M. Herman, Adam A. Pack, Scott Baker, Jim Darling, Debbie Glockner-Ferrari, Mark Ferrari, Dan R. Salden, Phillip J. Clapham

United States Department of Commerce: Staff Publications

Invasive tags designed to provide information on animal movements through radio or satellite monitoring have tremendous potential for the study of whales and other cetaceans. However, to date there have been no published studies on the survival of tagged animals over periods of years or decades. Researchers from the National Marine Mammal Laboratory and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution tracked five humpback whales with implanted radio tags in southeastern Alaska in August 1976 and July 1977, and tracked two humpback whales in Prince William Sound, Alaska, in June 1978. All seven of these individually identified humpback whales were resighted at …


Dramatic Shifts In Hawaiian Monk Seal Distribution Predicted From Divergent Regional Trends, Jason D. Baker, Albert L. Harting, Tracy A. Wurth, Thea C. Johanos Jan 2011

Dramatic Shifts In Hawaiian Monk Seal Distribution Predicted From Divergent Regional Trends, Jason D. Baker, Albert L. Harting, Tracy A. Wurth, Thea C. Johanos

United States Department of Commerce: Staff Publications

Total estimated abundance of Hawaiian monk seals was just 1,161 individuals in 2008 and this number is decreasing. Most monk seals reside in the remote Northwestern Hawaiian Islands (NWHI) where the decline is approximately 4%/yr, whereas relatively fewer seals currently occupy the main Hawaiian Islands (MHI). It is widely accepted that the MHI population is increasing, although there are no formal estimates of total abundance, population growth rate or vital rates. This lack of information has hampered efforts to anticipate future scenarios and plan conservation measures. We present the first estimates of MHI monk seal survival and age-specific reproductive rates. …


Movement Patterns, Survival, And Sightability Of White-Tailed Deer (Odocoileus Virginianus) In Eastern South Dakota, Kevin A. Robling Jan 2011

Movement Patterns, Survival, And Sightability Of White-Tailed Deer (Odocoileus Virginianus) In Eastern South Dakota, Kevin A. Robling

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Limited information is available on white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) movements, survival, density, and resource selection in the Prairie Pothole Region of South Dakota where semi-permanent wetland densities are relatively high. Primary objectives of this study were to develop a sightability model for aerial surveying and document seasonal movement patterns and survival rates for white-tailed deer in this region. Secondary objectives were to calculate seasonal home ranges, daily and seasonal movements relative to management unit boundaries, determine cause specific mortality, and evaluate summer and winter resource use and selection. From February 2009 – February 2010, 43 adult female white-tailed deer along …


Chapter 18- Chick Survival Of Greater Prairie-Chickens, Adam C. Schole, Ty W. Matthews, Larkin A. Powell, Jeffrey J. Lusk, J. Scott Taylor Jan 2011

Chapter 18- Chick Survival Of Greater Prairie-Chickens, Adam C. Schole, Ty W. Matthews, Larkin A. Powell, Jeffrey J. Lusk, J. Scott Taylor

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Chick survival during the first three weeks of life is a critical stage in the demography of Greater Prairie-Chickens (Tympanuchus cupido), but little information is available. Biologists often estimate brood success using periodic flushes of radio-marked females, but it is impossible to determine mortality factors if chicks are not radio-marked. We used sutures to attach 0.5-g transmitters to 1- to 2-day-old chicks in Johnson County, Nebraska, during 2008. Our objectives were to (1) assess causes of mortality of 0- to 21-day-old chicks, (2) estimate daily survival probability for 0- to 21-day-old chicks, and (3) evaluate the effect of applying …


Population Characteristics Of A White-Tailed Deer Herd In An Industrial Pine Forest Of North-Central Louisiana, John Henry Harrelson Jan 2011

Population Characteristics Of A White-Tailed Deer Herd In An Industrial Pine Forest Of North-Central Louisiana, John Henry Harrelson

LSU Master's Theses

White-tailed deer are the most important game species in Louisiana, and throughout the southeastern United States. Likewise, the forest products industry represents the most important agricultural commodity in Louisiana, and industrial landowners frequently lease their properties to sportsmen specifically for white-tailed deer hunting. I conducted research assessing survival, space use, and habitat selection of white-tailed deer on a 3885 ha industrial forest owned by Plum Creek Timber Company. I captured 61 deer in Union Parish, Louisiana in 2009-2010, radio-marked 24 females and 23 males, and ear-tagged 7 females and 6 males. Season and sex interacted to affect home range and …