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Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons™
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- South Dakota (3)
- Nebraska (2)
- Adaptive management (1)
- Amphibian conservation (1)
- Area sensitivity (1)
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- Behavioral ecology (1)
- Biodiversity inventory (1)
- Cervus elaphus (1)
- Channel width (1)
- Charadrius melodus (1)
- Conceptual models (1)
- Conservation Reserve Program (1)
- Conspecific attraction (1)
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- Landscape ecology (1)
Articles 1 - 10 of 10
Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences
Review Of Conspecific Attraction And Area Sensitivity Of Grassland Birds, David R.W. Bruinsma, Nicola Koper
Review Of Conspecific Attraction And Area Sensitivity Of Grassland Birds, David R.W. Bruinsma, Nicola Koper
Great Plains Research: A Journal of Natural and Social Sciences
Many species of grassland birds are area sensitive, which may exacerbate the ecological effects of the extensive loss and fragmentation of grasslands that has taken place across the northern Great Plains. However, the reasons for this area sensitivity are unclear, as vegetation structure, matrix composition, and restriction of movements among patches do not seem to provide viable explanations for species native to grasslands. Con specific attraction, whereby species are behaviorally stimulated to select habitat or establish territories near individuals of the same species, may help explain this area sensitivity. We review and discuss theoretical and empirical research on avian conspecific …
Review Of Birds Of Southwestern Nebraska: An Annotated Check-List Of Species In The North And South Platte River Valleys And At Lake Mcconaughy. By Mary Bomberger Brown, Stephen J. Dinsmore, And Charles R. Brown., Wayne Mollhoff
Great Plains Research: A Journal of Natural and Social Sciences
Opening with a map of the region under study, Birds of Southwestern Nebraska proceeds, in its introduction, to a summary of the presettlement landscape and a description of the large-scale habitat changes occurring since then, along with avian responses to those changes. While crediting previous avian studies in southwestern Nebraska, often not readily available to the public, the authors note this area initially received little attention from ornithologists, who tended to focus on other biologically unique parts of the state, such as the Sandhills, forests, and Pine Ridge. The body of the book consists of a list of species reported …
Channel Width And Least Tern And Piping Plover Nesting Incidence On The Lower Platte River, Nebraska, Joel G. Jorgensen, Mary Bomberger Brown, Andrew J. Tyre
Channel Width And Least Tern And Piping Plover Nesting Incidence On The Lower Platte River, Nebraska, Joel G. Jorgensen, Mary Bomberger Brown, Andrew J. Tyre
Great Plains Research: A Journal of Natural and Social Sciences
Endangered interior least terns (Sternula antillarum athalassos) and threatened northern Great Plains piping plovers (Charadrius melodus) nest together on midstream sandbars in large rivers in the interior of North America. We investigated the relationship between river channel width and tern and plover nesting incidence on the lower Platte River, Nebraska, using a model-based logistic regression analysis. Multiple channel width measurements and a long-term nesting data set were used in the analysis. Nesting incidence was positively associated with increasing river channel width proximal to the nesting site. At a greater distance, up to 802 m away from …
Wetland Hydrodynamics And Long-Term Use Of Spring Migration Areas By Lesser Scaup In Eastern South Dakota, Sharon N. Kahara, Steven R. Chipps
Wetland Hydrodynamics And Long-Term Use Of Spring Migration Areas By Lesser Scaup In Eastern South Dakota, Sharon N. Kahara, Steven R. Chipps
Great Plains Research: A Journal of Natural and Social Sciences
Lesser scaup (Aythya affinis [Eyton]) populations remain below their long-term average despite improved habitat conditions along spring migration routes and at breeding grounds. Scaup are typically associated with large, semipermanent wetlands and exhibit regional preferences along migration routes. Identifying consistently used habitats for conservation and restoration is complicated by irregular wetland availability due to the dynamic climate. We modeled long-term wetland use by lesser scaup in eastern South Dakota based on surveys conducted during below-average (1987-1989) and above-average (1993-2002) water condition years. Wetland permanence, longitude, and physiographic region were all significant determinants of use (P < 0.01). Long-term use was best described by a quadratic equation including wetland surface area variability, an index of wetland hydrodynamics that is linked to productivity, biodiversity, and value to waterfowl. Contrary to previous findings, our study shows that over the long term, lesser scaup are more than twice as likely to use permanent wetlands as they are semipermanent wetlands. The northern region of South Dakota's Prairie Coteau, which holds the highest density of hydrologically dynamic permanent wetlands, should be considered an area of conservation concern for lesser scaup. The criteria we identified may be used to identify important lesser scaup habitats in other regions of the Prairie Pothole Region.
A Conceptual Model To Facilitate Amphibian Conservation In The Northern Great Plains, David M. Mushet, Ned H. Euliss Jr., Craig A. Stockwell
A Conceptual Model To Facilitate Amphibian Conservation In The Northern Great Plains, David M. Mushet, Ned H. Euliss Jr., Craig A. Stockwell
Great Plains Research: A Journal of Natural and Social Sciences
As pressures on agricultural landscapes to meet worldwide resource needs increase, amphibian populations face numerous threats including habitat destruction, chemical contaminants, disease outbreaks, wetland sedimentation, and synergistic effects of these perturbations. To facilitate conservation planning, we developed a conceptual model depicting elements critical for amphibian conservation in the northern Great Plains. First, we linked upland, wetland, and landscape features to specific ecological attributes. Ecological attributes included adult survival; reproduction and survival to metamorphosis; and successful dispersal and recolonization. Second, we linked ecosystem drivers, ecosystem stressors, and ecological effects of the region to each ecological attribute. Lastly, we summarized information on …
Reproduction And Population Characteristics Of White-Tailed Jackrabbits In South Dakota, Charles Dieter, Dustin Schaible
Reproduction And Population Characteristics Of White-Tailed Jackrabbits In South Dakota, Charles Dieter, Dustin Schaible
Great Plains Research: A Journal of Natural and Social Sciences
We evaluated the reproductive biology of314 white-tailed jackrabbits (Lepus townsendii) in 44 counties throughout South Dakota from June 2004 to September 2005. We classified jackrabbits as juveniles or adults based on the closure of the proximal epiphysis of the humerus using X-ray analysis. We determined annual reproductive activity through fluctuations in measured weights of reproductive organs for both sexes. The 2005 breeding season started in late February and proceeded until mid-July, approximately 142 days, allowing for females to potentially produce 3.3 litters. We found four distinct breeding periods by the overlap of estimated conception and parturition dates. Mean …
Historic And Contemporary Trends Of The Conservation Reserve Program And Ring-Necked Pheasants In South Dakota, Christopher R. Laingen
Historic And Contemporary Trends Of The Conservation Reserve Program And Ring-Necked Pheasants In South Dakota, Christopher R. Laingen
Great Plains Research: A Journal of Natural and Social Sciences
Over the past century, the interactions between agricultural land use and government cropland retirement programs have affected pheasant population change. Two government land retirement programs that returned croplands to grasslands, Soil Bank in the 1960s and the current Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), help to illustrate these connections. From 2007 to 2010, South Dakota lost 41% of its CRP lands and experienced an 18% decline in pheasants per mile. However, because of where CRP expirations have occurred and where pheasant populations are found, some regional variability is seen. Western South Dakota (Region 1) had an 80% increase in pheasants per mile …
Engineer Cantonment, Missouri Territory, 1819-1820: America's First Biodiversity Ineventory, Hugh H. Genoways, Brett C. Ratcliffe
Engineer Cantonment, Missouri Territory, 1819-1820: America's First Biodiversity Ineventory, Hugh H. Genoways, Brett C. Ratcliffe
Great Plains Research: A Journal of Natural and Social Sciences
It is our thesis that members of the Stephen Long Expedition of 1819-20 completed the first biodiversity inventory undertaken in the United States at their winter quarters, Engineer Cantonment, Missouri Territory, in the modern state of Nebraska. This accomplishment has been overlooked both by biologists and historians, but it should rank among the most significant accomplishments of the expedition. The results of this inventory allow us to evaluate the environmental, faunal, and floral changes along the Missouri River in the intervening nearly 190 years. The historical records form a visual image of a dynamic riverine system in which a highly …
Historic And Recent Distributions Of Elk In Nebraska, Kent A. Fricke, Michael A. Cover, Scott E. Hygnstrom, Scott R. Groepper, Hugh H. Genoways, Kit M. Hams, Kurt C. Vercauteren
Historic And Recent Distributions Of Elk In Nebraska, Kent A. Fricke, Michael A. Cover, Scott E. Hygnstrom, Scott R. Groepper, Hugh H. Genoways, Kit M. Hams, Kurt C. Vercauteren
Great Plains Research: A Journal of Natural and Social Sciences
Elk (Cervus elaphus) were historically found throughout North America but were extirpated from Nebraska and much of the Great Plains in the 1880s due to consumptive uses by settlers, miners, market hunters, and others. Elk began to reappear in Nebraska in the 1950s and 1960s, and established a stable, nonmigratory population that currently consists of seven herds and an estimated 1,400 individuals throughout western and central Nebraska. The reappearance and subsequent persistence of elk in Nebraska suggests there is adequate habitat to support a self-sustaining population. The general movement of elk eastward may lead to an eventual statewide …
Availability Of Suitable Habitat For Northern River Otters In South Dakota, Alyssa M. Kiesow, Charles D. Dieter
Availability Of Suitable Habitat For Northern River Otters In South Dakota, Alyssa M. Kiesow, Charles D. Dieter
Great Plains Research: A Journal of Natural and Social Sciences
Currently, the northern river otter (Lontra canadensis) is listed as a threatened species in South Dakota. We determined whether adequate habitat was available for reintroducing river otters in South Dakota. The 17 rivers/creeks included in the analysis were selected according to stream size, water gradient, and water permanence. A vegetation transect was conducted and a water sample was collected at each study site, ranging from one to four per river. Rivers/creeks were rated (1 = least suitable to 5 = most suitable) according to habitat requirements of river otters in the following categories: stream characteristics, watershed features, water …