Digital Commons Network^™

Flea News 58 (June 1999), Robert E. Lewis

Flea News

Obituary: Lindolpho Rocha Guimarães (January 24, 1908-November 7, 1998)

Miscellanea

Siphonaptera literature

Analysis Of Intraguild Predation With A Consideration Of Adaptive Foraging, Toshinori Okuyama

School of Biological Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Identification of interactive units in food webs is particularly important in population and community ecology. Intraguild predation has gained much attention recently with the recognition of its prevalence in the field, although its significance has not been fully studied. Nature contains much more complex interactions than a simple food chain. Yet, much theory still focuses on the trophic levels connected in a single linear chain. In this thesis, I study intraguild predation including the consideration of animal behavior whose importance is also often neglected in population and community ecology.

First, the concepts of intraguild predation and animal behavior are introduced. …

Life History, Ecology, And Low Ph Tolerance Of The Freshwater Prawn, Palaemonetes Kadiakensis Rathbun, In A Mitigated Wetland Of The Green Bottom Wildlife Management Area, West Virginia, Jennifer Ann Aderman

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

An ecological life history study of the freshwater prawn Palaemonetes kadiakensis was conducted at the mitigated wetland of the Green Bottom Wildlife management Area (GBWMA). Monthly samples were collected from November 1996 through November 1997. In addition, weekly samples were collected from May through November for growth and reproductive analysis. Monthly samples yielded 520 prawns. Palaemonetes kadiakensis had a one-year life cycle, with all adults dying by September. Males averaged 23.82 mm (range = 14.15 to 36.75 mm) and females averaged 26.78mm (range = 15.06 to 38.60 mm) in length. Males averaged 0.087g (range = 0.014to 0.293 g) and females …

Flea News 55 (January 1998), Robert E. Lewis

Flea News

Miscellanea

Flea species

Material request

Siphonaptera literature

The Role Of Bowfin, Amia Calva, In Multiple Species Management Plans, Benjamin Jacob Hausmann

Masters Theses

The major challenge to fisheries managers of the 21st century will be to maintain the diversity, not only of fishing opportunity, but also of traditionally non-game and economically unimportant species. With the relatively recent understanding of the importance of ecosystem level management, attention is being focused on native species that were often ignored or eradicated under past management practices. One such fish that has been largely ignored is the bowfin, Amia calva. Ecological data pertaining to bowfin natural history are limited and to date no attempt has been made to integrate bowfin into fisheries management decisions within the species native …

Ecological Relationships Between The Marsh Rice Rat (Oryzomys Palustris) And The Meadow Vole (Microtus Pennsylvanicus) In Two Virginia Tidal Marshes, Christopher P. Bloch

Biological Sciences Theses & Dissertations

Small mammals were trapped for 23 months on two live trap grids in tidal marshes in Northampton County, on the Eastern Shore of Virginia, to examine ecological relationships between the marsh rice rat (Oryzomys palustris) and the meadow vole (Microtus pennsylvanicus). Population density, survival rates, capture probability, recruitment, residence time, and home range size were calculated for each species. Patterns of reproductive activity and fluctuations in mean weight were also observed.

There were considerable differences in population dynamics between the two sites. At Grid 2, where vegetative cover was more abundant, population densities of rice rats and meadow voles …

Flea News 54 (June 1997), Robert E. Lewis

Flea News

Miscellanea

Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) update

Nomenclatural tidbits

Siphonaptera literature

An Ecological Study Of Shale Barren Rock Cress (Arabis Serotina Steele) At Little Fork Shale Barren, Pendleton County, West Virginia, Robert J. Jarrett

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Shale Barren Rock Cress (Arabis serotina Steele) was listed as a federally endangered species by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in August 1989. As part of a cooperative agreement between the West Virginia Natural Heritage Program and the U.S. Navy, research was conducted in 1994 and 1995 at Little Fork Shale Barren (LFSB) to provide baseline information on the population dynamics of A. serotina and to study the vegetation and physical parameters associated with this shale barren community. Soil samples and plant community data were collected from 40 1-m² circular plots for herbaceous vegetation and six 0.02-ha …

Diet And Growth Of Larval And Juvenile Grass Pickerel, Esox Americanus Vermiculatus, And Central Mudminnow, Umbra Limi, In The Green Bottom Wildlife Management Area, Cabell County, West Virginia, Erica Midkiff

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

The grass pickerel, Esox americanus vermiculatus, is listed as Undetermined on the Vertebrate Species List of Concern in West Virginia. The central mudminnow, Umbra limi, is a disjunct population in Green Bottom Swamp. The lentic, vegetated areas that are required for spawning for the grass pickerel and the central mudminnow have been reduced by residential, agricultural, and industrial developments. Green Bottom Swamp, a naturally occurring wetland of 58 ha, and a nearby mitigated wetland of 29 ha, provides spawning habitat for the grass pickerel and the mudminnow. Fishes were collected in beds of Potamogetan crispus and Ceratophyllum demursum …

Woody Vegetation Expansion And Continuing Declines In Open Channel Habitat On The Platte River In Nebraska, Paul J. Currier

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

Aerial videography in 1988 and 1994 of the same selected segments of the Big Bend reach of the Platte River in central Nebraska was compared. During this 6-year period, channel area declined 4 to 41 % (median 26%). In river segments where the channel had already narrowed significantly and at sites where channel habitat is actively managed declines were less (17-18%). These substantial changes occurred during a time that included a relatively low flow period (1990-92). Flows during the summer gertttination and establishment period (mid-May through August) for cottonwood (Populus deltoides) and willow (Salix spp.), the …

The Diet Of Oryzomys Palustris Based On Stomach Content Analysis, Shannon L. Wright

Biological Sciences Theses & Dissertations

Oryzomys palustris (Harlan) is unusual in that it is one of two carnivorous mammals in the Family Muridae in North America. A diet analysis of Oryzomys palustris. the marsh rice rat, was done based on stomach contents. This was accomplished by taking the animals from two study areas located on the Eastern Shore of Virginia. The animals were taken monthly for one year. Once caught, the animals were sacrificed and their stomach contents were identified to the lowest taxonomic level possible. This study showed that rice rats were omnivorous mammals, eating a variety of foods, including dicots, monocots, crabs, …

Ultrastructure Of Cepedietta Virginiensis (Protista: Haptophrynidae), From The Gall Bladder Of The Pickerel Frog, Rana Palustris, In Arkansas, Chris T. Mcallister, Stanley E. Trauth

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

No abstract provided.

One-Year Study Of The Species Diversity And Relative Abundance Of Snakes And Lizards In The Jack Mountain Region Of Hot Springs County, Arkansas, Vincent A. Cobb, Jeff A. Summerhill

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

No abstract provided.

The Challenge And Opportunity Of Recovering Wolf Populations, L. David Mech

United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Publications

The gray wolf once inhabited a wide variety of habitats throughout most of the northern hemisphere north of 20°N latitude. Because the animal preyed on livestock and competed with humans for wild prey, it was extirpated from much of its range outside of wilderness areas. Environmental awareness in the late 1960s brought for the wolf legal protection, increased research, and favorable media coverage. The species has increased in both Europe and North America, is beginning to reoccupy semiwilderness and agricultural land, and is causing increased damage to livestock. Because of the wolfs high reproductive rate and long dispersal tendencies, the …

Getting The Lay Of The Land: Introducing North American Native Grasslands, Anthony Joern, Kathleen H. Keeler

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

The expected catastrophic extinction of species (already under way in many places) will alter the planet’s biological diversity so profoundly that, at the known rate of extinction, it will take millions of years to recover. Yet few ecologists study extinction. Indeed, very little ecology deals with any processes that last more than a few years, involve more than a handful of species, and cover an area of more than a few hectares. The temporal, spatial and organizational scales of most ecological studies are such that one can read entire issues of major journals and see no hint of impending catastrophe. …

Eutrophication And Macrobenthic Communities Of The Lower Chesapeake Bay: Effects Of Organic Enrichment In Pocomoke Sound, Saxis Virginia, Janice D. Mcdonnell

Biological Sciences Theses & Dissertations

The effects of organic enrichment on benthic community structure were evaluated in a field study conducted in Pocomoke Sound in the vicinity of a seafood processing plant. The empirically derived Species Abundance and Biomass (SAB) curves of Pearson and Rosenberg (1978) were used to model patterns of organic enrichment at the study site, called Pig Point, as well as two reference sites located within Pocomoke Sound. The Split Moving Windows (SMW) method was used to detect the ecotone point as defined in the Pearson and Rosenberg (1978) model and the Two Term Local Quadrat Variance (TTLQV) method was used to …

Reproductive Biology And Early Life History Of Fishes In The Ohio River Drainage, Vol. 2, Larry K. Kay, Robert Wallus, Bruce L. Yeager

Ohio River Fish

No abstract provided.

Aspects Of The Ecology Of The Wood Turtle, Clemmys Insculpta (Leconte), In West Virginia, Allan J. Niederberger

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

An ecological study of the wood turtle, Clemmys insculpta (LeConte), was conducted in West Virginia from May 1991 to March 1993. Population structure at the primary study area (WV #1) was estimated to be 46% juvenile (H-8 yrs. old), 26% female and 28% male. Total population estimate for WV #1 was 337 wood turtles, with an aquatic density of 1,980 turtles per Hectare of river and a terrestrial density of 22.5 turtles per ha of terrestrial habitat. Growth measurements and estimates indicate rapid initial growth tapering off at year 8 and gradually declining through year 16. Males grow slightly faster …

Population Studies Of Migratory Birds In Virgin Islands National Park, Robert A. Askins, David N. Ewert

Biology Faculty Publications

The majority of the individual songbirds nesting in the deciduous forests of eastern North America migrate to the West Indies, Central America and South America during the winter. They typically spend more than six months in tropical winter habitats. Until recently relatively little was known about their habitat requirements during the winter, but increasing concern about declining pcpulations of many migratory songbirds combined with widespread alarm about the rapid destruction of tropical forests has led to a flurry of research on this subject (Terborgh, 1989; Askins et al. 1990). In 1987 we initiated a study of the ecology and behavior …

Status Of The Ozark Hellbender, Cryptobranchus Bishopi (Urodela: Cryptobranchidae), In The Spring River, Fulton County, Arkansas, Stanley E. Trauth, J. D. Wilhide, Patrick Daniel

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

We conducted a tag and release study of the Ozark hellbender along a 26 km stretch of the Spring River from mid-July through mid-November, 1991, to determine current population levels. Salamanders were collected by hand with the aid of scuba diving equipment. Thirteen visits(36 dive hrs.) to10 selected access sites yielded 20 animals. Compared to previously published data of the early 1980's which indicated large, striving populations of C. bishopi(in some cases, > 300 individuals) in the Spring River, our study found perilously low numbers of salamanders. This drastic decline may be attributed to over collection of specimens for scientific or …

Unobstructed Visibility At Whooping Crane Roost Sites On The Platte River, Nebraska, Craig A. Faanes

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

Unobstructed visibility is an important component of whooping crane (Grus americana) roosting habitat. Recent habitat modeling efforts suggest that unobstructed horizontal visibility is suitable at a minimum of 335 m. Unobstructed upstream and downstream visibility is also an important part of whooping crane roosting habitat, but quantification of that parameter has not been reported previously, or incorporated into species models. Data from the Platte River suggest that a minimum of 732 m of unobstructed upstream and downstream visibility is needed at whooping crane roost sites.

Contaminant Residues In Sandhill Cranes Killed Upon Striking Powerlines In Central Nebraska, Timothy E. Fannin

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

In 1989 and 1990, 58 sandhill cranes (Grus canadensis) were collected along the central Platte River in Nebraska during a study of mortality caused by powerline impact. Brains were assayed for acetylcholinesterase activity; gut contents were analyzed for residues of 25 organophosphate and 6 carbamate compounds; and livers were analyzed for 20 inorganics (including lead, mercury, and boron) and 22 organochlorine chemicals. Brain acetylcholinesterase activities appeared to be within normal ranges, and no measurable organophosphate or carbamate residues were found in the gut contents of 5 birds with the lowest brain enzyme activities. Heptachlor epoxide, oxychlordane. p,p' -DDE, …

Sandhill Crane Collisions With Power Lines In Southcentral Nebraska, John P. Ward, Stanley H. Anderson

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

Sandhill crane (Grus canadensis) collisions with power lines were studied in southcentral Nebraska in 1986 and 1987. Approximately 596 km of power lines were surveyed for dead cranes in 1986, and 210 km of power lines in 1987. A total of 135 dead cranes were located. Cranes collided 4 times more with transmission lines than distribution lines, although distribution lines were twice as abundant. We believe cranes collided with the static wires on the transmission lines. Juveniles and Canadian sandhill cranes (G.c. rowani) had a higher probability of colliding with power lines than other age groups …

Whooping Crane Riverine Roosting Habitat Suitability Model, Jerry W. Ziewitz

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

Water development interests on the Platte River in Nebraska and recognition of the importance of this river as migratory bird habitat have prompted studies to determine how much water is needed to maintain wildlife habitat values. The whooping crane (Grus americana) is one of many species that use the Platte. A model was developed to quantify the relationship between river discharge and roosting habitat suitability for whooping cranes, designed to accommodate the data collection and hydraulic simulation techniques of the Instream Flow Incremental Methodology. Results of the model indicate that optimum roosting habitat conditions in the Big Bend …

Prevention Of Eastern Equine Encephalitis Virus In Captive Cranes, James W. Carpenter, Douglas M. Watts, C. L. Crabbs, Gary G. Clark, Thomas W. Scott, Douglas Docherty, Benedict B. Pagac, Jeannine M. Dorothy, James G. Olson, F. Joshua Dein

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

An epizootic of eastern equine encephalitis (EEE) virus infection in 1984 resulted in death for 7 of 39 captive whooping cranes (Grus americana) at the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center. This represented the first known whooping crane deaths associated with this arboviral disease and posed a serious risk to the continued propagation of this endangered species. Subsequent research and surveillance procedures initiated to prevent EEE viral infections in captive whooping cranes included vector surveillance and control, virus surveillance through use of sentinel birds, immunoassays for rapid detection of EEE virus antigen in bird sera and in mosquitoes, and testing …

Factors Influencing The Future Of Whooping Crane Habitat On The Platte River In Nebraska, Craig A. Faanes

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

Lands along 86 km of the Platte River in Nebraska were designated by the U.s. Department of Interior as critical habitat for the endangered whooping crane (Grus americana) in 1978. The designation established the legal basis for the continued protection of lands critical to the survival and recovery of whooping cranes. Currently there are 14 federal, state, and local water projects planned for the Platte River system. If completed, total withdrawal would be about 80% of the remaining 30% of the original flow. In this paper I summarize those projects and discuss their potential impact on whooping crane habitat. …

Measuring Shrubland Vegetational Structure Using Avian Habitats As An Example, Douglas A. James

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

Vegetational sampling of avian habitats stresses the use of methods primarily designed for forest birds. This paper describes a technique for sampling vegetational structure in uneven patchy habitats such as shrublands. Using the method, avian habitats in old field shrublands of northwestern Arkansas were analyzed.

Characteristics Of Whooping Crane Roost Sites In The Platte River, Craig A. Faanes, Douglas H. Johnson, Gary R. Lingle

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

The Big Bend of the Platte River in centraJ Nebraska provides important migration habitat for whooping cranes (Grus americana). River profiles were obtained at 23 confumed nocturnal roost sites occupied by whooping cranes during 1983 -90. Whooping cranes selected roost sites that had shallower water depths than at unused sites. All but 4 roosts were located in channels wider than 150 m; roost sites were an average of 27.8 % of the channel width from the nearer shore. Nearly 90% of the roost sites had a trench of deeper water on both sides. Proper management of the Platte …

History And Economic Impact Of Crane-Watching In Central Nebraska, Gary R. Lingle

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

The first documentation of the Platte and North Platte rivers' importance to sandhill cranes (Grus canadensis) dates from the late 1800's. Except for a few ornithologists, it was not until the mid-1970's that crane-watching became popular. During the last 10 years, this interest has become a multi-million dollar tourist industry that attracts people from around the globe who seek to witness this vernal spectacle of half a million cranes. More than half of the former riverine habitat has been abandoned by the cranes, largely because of irrigation and hydropower projects that drain the river and enable forests to …

Relationship Of Channel Maintenance Flows To Whooping Crane Use Of The Platte River, Craig A. Faanes, David B. Bowman

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

Periodic high flows in the Platte River are necessary to scour vegetation and redistribute sediment in the stream channel. Peak and mean annual flows have been reduced by as much as 70% from pre-development times, but channel maintenance flows still occur, although at a much reduced frequency and magnitude of occurrence. Use of the Platte River by migrant whooping cranes (Grus americana) in recent years appears to be related to the recent occurrence of flows in excess of 8,000 cfs for 5 or more consecutive days.