Digital Commons Network^™

Haematopoiesis In The European Common Toad Bufo Bufo (Linnaeus, 1758): New Methodological Insights To Study General, Seasonal, And Sexual Haematopoietic Distribution And Maturation Pattern, Damir Suljevic, Muhamed Focak, Filip Filipic, Alen Hamzic, Nadja Zubcevic, Andi Alijagic

Turkish Journal of Zoology

Peripheral blood and haematopoiesis in bone marrow and liver tissue were investigated in Bufo bufo during the sexual cycle. A combined touch and imprinting tissue method were applied for the haematopoietic cell isolation. The liver is the primary site of erythropoiesis and partial lymphopoiesis. There was a positive correlation between body mass and liver mass, but it was not significant (P > 0.05). The primary role of yellow bone marrow is the maturation of haematopoietic cells, while red bone marrow is responsible for the production of blood cells. The largest surface, and therefore the largest dimensions, was established for erythrocytes. Significant …

Does The Location Of Coastal Brackish Waters Determine Diversityand Abundance Of Zooplankton Assemblages?, Agnieszka Gutkowska, Ewa Paturej, Jacek Koszalka

Turkish Journal of Zoology

Habitat conditions may shape the abundance and community structure of planktonic fauna. In this study, we investigated whether reservoirs with different locations and drainage basins also differed in the structure and abundance of zooplankton. The studies were conducted in 2010-2011 between June and October in the Vistula Lagoon and Lake Lebsko. The zooplankton was dominated mainly by small eurytopic organisms belonging to Rotifera. Plankton crustaceans showed a limited diversity of species. Copepods were predominant, while Cladocera were observed sporadically in more freshwater habitats. In the first experimental season (2010), the Vistula Lagoon and Lake Lebsko showed a comparable taxonomic structure …

Biochemical Blood Parameters And Hormone Levels Of Foraging, Nesting,And Injured Loggerhead Sea Turtles (Caretta Caretta) In Turkey, Doğan Sözbi̇len, Yakup Kaska

Turkish Journal of Zoology

The biochemical blood parameters of 22 (7 foraging, 7 nesting, and 8 injured) loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) from the southwest coast of Turkey were investigated. A total of 27 blood variables were analyzed in three groups (plasma enzymes, plasma metabolites, and plasma ions), and 4 steroid hormones: testosterone (T), estradiol (E2), progesterone (Pro), and corticosterone (B). Triglyceride, cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein, very low-density lipoprotein, magnesium, and phosphorus were higher in nesting females; urea was high in foraging individuals; and sodium, potassium, and chloride were lower while estradiol levels were higher in injured individuals. In addition, plasma steroid hormone levels T, …

Morphological Characterization Of Hemocyte Types In Some Species Belonging Totettigoniidae And Pamphagidae (Insecta: Orthoptera), Gürhan Öztürk, Özlem Çakici, Hüseyi̇n Arikan

Turkish Journal of Zoology

In the present study, the species Eupholidoptera smyrnensis (Brunner von Wattenwyl, 1882) (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae), Decticus verrucivorus (Linnaeus, 1758) (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae), and Glyphotmethis spp. (Orthoptera: Pamphagidae) were studied in order to determine hemocyte types. To that end, hemolymph smear preparations were stained using Wright's stain. According to light microscopic examinations, five hemocyte types, prohemocytes, plasmatocytes, granulocytes, spherulocytes, and oenocytoids, were determined in each species. Prohemocytes are basic and the smallest cell type in the hemolymph. Plasmatocytes show polymorphism and they may have pseudopodia. Granulocytes are characterized by granules in their cytoplasm. Spherulocytes typically include spherical vacuoles. Oenocytoids are the largest cells …

Diet Composition And Prey Diversity Of Tengmalm's Owl Aegolius Funereus(Linnaeus, 1758; Aves: Strigidae) In Central Serbia During Breeding, Drazenko Z. Rajkovic

Turkish Journal of Zoology

Annual variation in the diet, composition, and prey diversity of Tengmalm's owl Aegolius funereus (Linnaeus, 1758) was investigated in high-mountain coniferous forests of Mt. Kopaonik (central Serbia) during 3 consecutive years. Prey remains and decomposed pellets (detritus) were collected at the bottom of nest-boxes during 2 separate periods: during mating and after nesting. Prey remains such as maxillae, mandibles, beaks, or feathers were used for prey identification. In total, 438 prey items were separated and identified. Small mammals represented the most numerous class of prey (87.23%). The most frequent prey item was bank vole Myodes glareolus (23.29%). During the nesting …

Potential Distribution Of The Guava Psyllid Triozoida Limbata (Hemiptera, Psylloidea), Today And In Global Climate Change Scenarios, Dalva Queiroz, Marcos Silveira Wrege, Talita Benedcta Santos Künast, Marilice Cordeiro Garrastazu, Daniel Burckhardt

Turkish Journal of Zoology

The jumping plant-louse Triozoida limbata is monophagous on guava (Psidium guajava), inducing leaf galls. Guava is planted today in warmer regions around the world but T. limbata is restricted to Central and South America. Recently, the latter has become a key pest in commercial plantations in Brazil (Pernambuco and São Paulo). Modeling of potential distributions is a good tool for developing control strategies of insect pests. Based on distributional data from the Americas, we created models for the psyllids for the present and future using different scenarios of climate change. The OpenModeller eco-niche modeling program was used with the Environmental …

Two Fallacies In Comparisons Between Humans And Non-Humans, Don Ross

Animal Sentience

The hypothesis that humans are superior to non-humans by virtue of higher cognitive powers is often supported by two recurrent fallacies: (1) that any competence shown by humans but not by our closest living relatives (apes) must be unique to humans; and (2) that grades of intelligence can be inferred from behavior without regard to motivational structures.

Opportunities And Challenges For Big Data Ornithology, Frank A. La Sorte, Christopher A. Lepczyk, Jessica L. Burnett, Allen H. Hurlbert, Morgan W. Tingley, Benjamin Zuckerberg

Nebraska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit: Staff Publications

Recent advancements in information technology and data acquisition have created both new research opportunities and new challenges for using big data in ornithology. We provide an overview of the past, present, and future of big data in ornithology, and explore the rewards and risks associated with their application. Structured data resources (e.g., North American Breeding Bird Survey) continue to play an important role in advancing our understanding of bird population ecology, and the recent advent of semistructured (e.g., eBird) and unstructured (e.g., weather surveillance radar) big data resources has promoted the development of new empirical perspectives that are generating novel …

A Framework For Tracing Social–Ecological Trajectories And Traps In Intensive Agricultural Landscapes, Daniel R. Uden, Craig R. Allen, Francisco Munoz-Arriola, Gengxin Ou, Nancy Shank

Nebraska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit: Staff Publications

Charting trajectories toward sustainable agricultural development is an important goal at the food–energy–water–ecosystem services (FEWES) nexus of agricultural landscapes. Social–ecological adaptation and transformation are two broad strategies for adjusting and resetting the trajectories of productive FEWES nexuses toward sustainable futures. In some cases, financial incentives, technological innovations, and/or subsidies associated with the short-term optimization of a small number of resources create and strengthen unsustainable feedbacks between social and ecological entities at the FEWES nexus. These feedbacks form the basis of rigidity traps, which impede adaptation and transformation by locking FEWES nexuses into unsustainable trajectories characterized by control, stability, and efficiency, …

Quantifying Uncertainty And Trade-Offs In Resilience Assessments, Craig R. Allen, Hannah E. Birgé, David G. Angeler, Craig A. Arnold, Brian C. Chaffin, Daniel A. Decaro, Ahjond S. Garmestani, Lance Gunderson

Nebraska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit: Staff Publications

Several frameworks have been developed to assess the resilience of social-ecological systems, but most require substantial data inputs, time, and technical expertise. Stakeholders and practitioners often lack the resources for such intensive efforts. Furthermore, most end with problem framing and fail to explicitly address trade-offs and uncertainty. To remedy this gap, we developed a rapid survey assessment that compares the relative resilience of social-ecological systems with respect to a number of resilience properties. This approach generates large amounts of information relative to stakeholder inputs. We targeted four stakeholder categories: government (policy, regulation, management), end users (farmers, ranchers, landowners, industry), agency/public …

A Method To Detect Discontinuities In Census Data, Chris Barichievy, David G. Angeler, Tarsha Eason, Ahjond S. Garmestani, Kirsty L. Nash, Craig A. Stow, Shana Sundstrom, Craig R. Allen

Nebraska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit: Staff Publications

The distribution of pattern across scales has predictive power in the analysis of complex systems. Discontinuity approaches remain a fruitful avenue of research in the quest for quantitative measures of resilience because discontinuity analysis provides an objective means of identifying scales in complex systems and facilitates delineation of hierarchical patterns in processes, structure, and resources. However, current discontinuity methods have been considered too subjective, too complicated and opaque, or have become computationally obsolete; given the ubiquity of discontinuities in ecological and other complex systems, a simple and transparent method for detection is needed. In this study, we present a method …

Effects Of Large-Scale Wetland Loss On Network Connectivity Of The Rainwater Basin, Nebraska, Bram H. F. Verheijen, Dana M. Varner, David A. Haukos

Nebraska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit: Staff Publications

Context The Rainwater Basin region in south-central Nebraska supports a complex network of spatiallyisolated wetlands that harbor diverse floral and faunal communities. Since European settlement, many wetlands have been lost from the network, which has increased distances among remaining wetlands. As a result, populations of wildlife species with limited dispersal capabilities may have become isolated and face greater local extinction risks.

Objectives We compared the pre-European settlement and current extent of the Rainwater Basin network to assess the effects of wetland losses on network connectivity for a range of maximum dispersal distances.

Methods We constructed network models for a range …

Endoparasitism Of Rehabilitating Grey Crowned Cranes In Rwanda, Barry K. Hartup, Deo Ruhgazi, Haynes Werner, Oliver Nsengimana

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

Diseases such as parasitism can limit the effectiveness of conservation translocations depending on host-parasite dynamics at the site of release. The Rwanda Wildlife Conservation Association and the Rwandan government are rehabilitating and repatriating grey crowned cranes (Balearica regulorum) from illegal captivity to the wild at Akagera National Park in large numbers. Monitoring of cranes at the fenced soft-release site during 4 time points in 2017 showed 50-67% of fecal samples tested were positive for 1 or more parasites, most commonly nematodes (roundworms) of the Order Ascaridida. The prevalences and species diversity observed in the fecal samples were not …

Habitat Selection And Con- And Heterospecific Associations Of Wintering Whooping Cranes At Wheeler National Wildlife Refuge, Alabama, Andrew W. Cantrell, Yong Wang

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

Winter ecology of the Eastern Migratory Population of whooping cranes (Grus americana) has received less detailed study than that of other life stages or the Aransas-Wood Buffalo Population. Increased winter use of novel sites by these cranes makes understanding the mechanisms contributing to habitat selection and use important for efficient conservation. As a subset of a larger and ongoing project, this study examined the individual and temporal variations of occupancy times, habitat types used, and co-occurrence with con- and heterospecifics during winters 2014-15 and 2015-16 at Wheeler National Wildlife Refuge, Alabama, while considering the effect of individual life …

Bipartite Networks Improve Understanding Of Effects Of Waterbody Size And Angling Method On Angler–Fish Interactions, Christopher J . Chizinski, Dustin R. Martin, Daizaburo Shizuka, Kevin L. Pope

Nebraska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit: Staff Publications

Networks used to study interactions could provide insights to fisheries. We compiled data from 27 297 interviews of anglers across waterbodies that ranged in size from 1 to 12 113 ha. Catch rates of fish species among anglers grouped by species targeted generally differed between angling methods (bank or boat). We constructed angler–catch bipartite networks (angling method specific) between anglers and fish and measured several network metrics. There was considerable variation in networks among waterbodies, with multiple metrics influenced by waterbody size. Number of species-targeting angler groups and number of fish species caught increased with increasing waterbody size. Mean number …

Population Characteristics Of Shovelnose Sturgeon During Low- And High-Water Conditions In The Lower Platte River, Nebraska, Jeremy J. Hammen, Martin J. Hamel, Matthew L. Rugg, Edward J. Peters, Mark A. Pegg

Nebraska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit: Staff Publications

Cycles of low- and high-water periods (i.e., years) in river systems are natural occurrences, but understanding how cyclical climatological patterns affect fishes, especially long-lived species, is unclear. We assessed Shovelnose Sturgeon population dynamics between a period of low- (2001-2004) and high- (2009-2012) water years in the lower Platte River, Nebraska. Low-flow periods in the lower Platte River can cause disconnection(s) between upstream and downstream reaches resulting in isolated pools and elevated water temperatures leading to stressful situations for aquatic life and possible mortality. Our data show no measurable differences between key population indices between flow condition periods which is consistent …

Resilience Concepts In Psychiatry Demonstrated With Bipolar Disorder, David G. Angeler, Craig R. Allen, Maj-Liz Persson

Nebraska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit: Staff Publications

Background: The term resilience describes stress–response patterns of subjects across scientific disciplines. In ecology, advances have been made to clearly distinguish resilience definitions based on underlying mechanistic assumptions. Engineering resilience (rebound) is used for describing the ability of subjects to recover from adverse conditions (disturbances), and is the rate of recovery. In contrast, the ecological resilience definition considers a systemic change: when complex systems (including humans) respond to disturbances by reorganizing into a new regime (stable state) where structural and functional aspects have fundamentally changed relative to the prior regime. In this context, resilience is an emergent property of complex …

Proceedings Of The Fourteenth North American Crane Workshop, 11–15 January 2017, Chattanooga, Tennessee, Frontmatter, Jane E. Austin, Richard P. Urbanek

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

List of Previous Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshops:

Suggested citation formats

PREFACE

Memorials: ROBERT H. HORWICH 1940-2017; WILLIAM A. LISHMAN 1939-2017; THEODORE A. BOOKHOUT 1931-2018; JAMES T. HARRIS 1950-2018

CONTENTS

Front and back covers

The North American Crane Working Group (NACWG) is an organization of professional biologists, aviculturists, land managers, non-professional crane enthusiasts, and others interested in and dedicated to the conservation of cranes and crane habitats in North America. Our group meets approximately every 3 years to exchange information pertaining to sandhill cranes and whooping cranes and occasionally reports about some of the other cranes species. The …

Color-Band Identification System Of The Reintroduced Eastern Migratory Whooping Crane Population, Richard Urbanek

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

A reintroduction of whooping cranes (Grus americana) migrating between Wisconsin and the southeastern U.S. was initiated in 2001. A color-band system to uniquely identify individuals was necessary for monitoring and evaluation of that population. The system provided 336 individual unduplicated color combinations consisting of 3 base and 1 additional colors on plastic bands. The band combination on 1 leg carried a VHF transmitter and provided additional information on hatch year. Bands on the other leg were either small bands that were part of a permanent code or they were temporary and supported a remotely monitored (satellite or cellular) …

Examining Whooping Crane Breeding Season Foraging Behavior In The Eastern Migratory Population, Hillary L. Thompson, Anik Levac, Megan J. Fitzpatrick

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

Agricultural fields may provide an important supplementary foraging habitat for whooping cranes (Grus americana) in the reintroduced Eastern Migratory Population (EMP). We developed methods and gathered preliminary data regarding whooping crane foraging efficiency and habitat use to better understand the use of agricultural fields by breeding cranes. We generated a simple null hypothesis that cranes would spend more time in the habitat type (wetlands vs. agricultural fields) in which they were able to obtain a higher foraging efficiency to maximize food intake, along with several alternative hypotheses pertaining to reasons cranes may prefer wetlands or agricultural fields during …

Working With Land Managers To Identify And Manage Potential Stopover Locations For Whooping Cranes, Chester A. Mcconnell

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

Whooping cranes (Grus americana) of the Aransas-Wood Buffalo Population migrate 4,000 km twice each year between their nesting grounds in northern Canada and their wintering grounds on the Texas Gulf Coast. During migration, whooping cranes must land at suitable ponds or wetlands to feed or rest. The Whooping Crane Recovery Plan calls for the protection and management of whooping crane stopover locations within the migration corridor. While major stopover areas have been protected, many other smaller sites remain to be identified. Moreover, the Recovery Plan offers no specific entity to protect and manage the latter. To address these …

Testing Three Chemicals For Deterring Crop Damage By Cranes, Anne E. Lacy, Jeb A. Barzen, Andrew P. Gossens

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

Damage to planted corn seed by cranes has the potential to cause great economic loss in areas where both intersect. In 2000 the International Crane Foundation (ICF) tested limonene (LIM), methyl anthranilate (MA), and 9,10-anthraquinone (AQ) as possible replacements for the insecticides lindane and diazinon that had been used as deterrents to cranes damaging corn seed and seedlings. LIM, MA, and AQ lowered germination rates (down to 85, 90, and 92%, respectively) as compared to a germination rate of 96% in untreated corn. A 1.0% solution of AQ was effective as a crane deterrent, while LIM and MA were not. …

Antipredator Training For Captive-Reared Mississippi Sandhill Crane Chicks, Jerome J. Howard, Richard A. Dunn, Scott G. Hereford

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

Captive-bred Mississippi sandhill cranes (Grus canadensis pulla) suffer from low recruitment in nature, and poor nest defense ability may significantly contribute to the problem. We hypothesized that a lack of opportunities for social learning by young birds prior to release inhibits the development of appropriate nest defense in later life. Here we report the results of preliminary experiments on conditioning of antipredator behavior in young birds prior to release using predator models. Observing agonistic displays by either costumed technicians or parent birds toward a model raccoon (Procyon lotor) promoted aggressive displays to a wild raccoon, but …

Osteoarthritis In The Pelvic Limb Of Captive Cranes, Barry K. Hartup, Savannah J. Lauer, Alyson R. Manthei

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

We conducted an epidemiological study of osteoarthritis (OA) among the 15 captive crane species managed at the International Crane Foundation from 1973 to 2016. A retrospective review of 714 medical records found 37 cases of OA in 13 species of cranes and a corresponding period prevalence of OA of 5%. An analysis of the living captive crane flock as of 1 October 2016 (n = 115) found 12 active cases of OA (a point prevalence of 10%), and there was a statistical association between geriatric age classification (i.e., advanced age) and the presence of OA (P < 0.01). The mean age of cranes with OA was 14 years greater than cranes without the disease (P < 0.001). The prevalence estimates of OA from this review were somewhat lower than that from study of museum specimens, but this study similarly identified the tarsal joint as the predominant location of OA lesions in cranes.

Our Changing Climate, David R. Easterling, David W. Fahey, Katherine Hayhoe, Sarah Doherty, James P. Kossin, William V. Sweet, Russell S. Vose, Michael F. Wehner, Donald J. Wuebbels

National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration: Technical Reports and Related Materials

This chapter is based on the Climate Science Special Report (CSSR), which is Volume I of the Fourth National Climate Assessment (available at science2017.globalchange.gov). The Key Messages and the majority of the content represent the highlights of CSSR, updated with recent references relevant to these topics. The interested reader is referred to the relevant chapter(s) in CSSR for more detail on each of the Key Messages that follow.

Aspects Of White-Tailed Deer Ecology And Management: Effects Of Imidacloprid And An Evaluation Of Management At Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, Elise Hughes Berheim

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

White-tail deer (Odocoileus virginianus) are an economically and recreationally important species throughout their range, and understanding their ecology to implement beneficial management techniques is invaluable. This thesis focused on two studies 1) the effect of Imidacloprid on adult female and fawn physiology and 2) an evaluation of techniques to monitor white-tailed deer at Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge (GSNWR). Imidacloprid, a widely-used pesticide, has been linked to lethal and sub-lethal effects in insects and small vertebrates, however, no research has been conducted on white-tailed deer. Twenty captive pregnant adult female and subsequent fawns housed at the South Dakota …

Impacts On Salmonid Rearing Performance With Use Of Dietary Bioprocessed Plant-Based Protein And Water Velocity, Jill Voorhees

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The inclusion of bioprocessed soybean (Glycine max) meal was evaluated in five experiments using either Rainbow Trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) or Brown Trout (Salmo trutta). In the first experiment, adult Erwin x Arlee strain Rainbow Trout were fed diets formulated so that bioprocessed soybean meal (BSM) replaced 0, 60, or 80% of the dietary fishmeal. There were no significant differences in gain, percent gain, feed conversion ratio, specific growth rate, intestinal morphology, relative fin lengths, or organosomatic indices. In the second experiment, juvenile Plymouth strain Brown Trout were fed diets formulated so that BSM replaced 0, 60, 80, or 100% of …

The Molecular Analysis Of Hawaiian Bird Diets, Alissa C. Scinto

Honors Theses and Capstones

The aim of this project is to utilize high-throughput molecular methods to investigate the diets of three non-native and one native Hawaiian bird species. Next-generation sequencing (NGS) has made it possible to produce thousands of sequencing reads of DNA in a relatively short amount of time. This metabarcoding technology has been used to identify a range of different taxa, from bacteria in the human gut to fungi in the soil. More recently, this approach has been used to identify insects in the diets of birds and other species, including bees and bats. Samples underwent genomic sequencing using a targeted approach …

Haematology Of N’Dama And West African Shorthorn Cattle Herds Under Natural Trypanosoma Vivax Challenge In Ghana, Ebenezer Yaw Ganyo, Johnson N. Boampong, Daniel K. Masiga, Jandouwe Villinger, Paa Kobina Turkson

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

Background: Animal trypanosomosis is a major cause of economic loss in livestock production in Africa. A suggested control measure is to use breeds with traits of trypanotolerance. The study examines the effect of natural Trypanosoma vivax challenge on haematological parameters in two trypanotolerant cattle [N’Dama and West African Shorthorn (WASH)] herds. Methods: Trypanosoma vivax-specific primers were used to diagnose T. vivax infection in an N’Dama herd at Cape Coast in southern Ghana and a WASH herd at Chegbani in northern Ghana from May to July 2011 in a cross-sectional study. Levels of haematological parameters comprising packed cell volume (PCV), haemoglobin …

Spatial Variation In Fishery Exploitation Of Mature Female Blue Crabs (C. Sapidus) In Chesapeake Bay, Corey Travis Corrick

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

From 2008 to 2012, the total U.S. commercial landings of blue crabs (Callinectes sapidus Rathbun, 1896) averaged over 173 million lbs. Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries are important contributors to this fishery, providing greater than 30% of national commercial landings annually. In Chesapeake Bay, C. sapidus exhibits a complex life cycle in which mated females migrate to the saline waters of the Bay mouth to spawn. During migration, females can traverse multiple management jurisdictions, complicating effective management of this important fishery. Sustained declines in harvest have led to management strategies focused on protecting the female spawning stock in an …