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Opportunistic Foraging By The Kangaroo Rat Dipodomys Deserti Stephens (Rodentia: Heteromyidae), Richard W. Rust

Great Basin Naturalist

The kangaroo rat, Dipodomys deserti Stephens, was observed capturing and killing insects that were flying about an ultraviolet lamp. The white-lined sphinx moth, Hyles lineate (F.), and the carrot beetle, Bothynus gibbosus (DeGeer), were put into the cheek pouches and carried away from the collection area.

Role Of Post-Pleistocene Dispersal In Determining The Modern Distribution Of Abert's Squirrel, Russell Davis, David E. Brown

Great Basin Naturalist

Abert's squirrel is a forest-dwelling mammal, dependent upon ponderosa pine, that now ranges from southern Wyoming to northern Mexico. During the late Pleistocene, ponderosa pine and this squirrel occurred no further north than central Arizona and New Mexico. In consequence, the present range of the squirrel north of the 36th parallel must have been the result of post-Pleistocene (Holocene) dispersal. If such dispersal took place after the fragmentation of the northern montane conifer forest, at least some leakage across barriers of unsuitable (non-ponderosa pine) habitat must have occurred. Dispersal following transplanting "experiments" has shown that such barriers can be crossed; …

Science And Theology: A Search For The Uncommon Denominator, A. Lester Allen

BYU Studies

No abstract provided.

A Proposal For Reallocation Of Federal Grazing-Revisited, B. Delworth Gardner

Faculty Publications

Over a quarter of a century ago, I analyzed the allocation procedures utilized by the federal agencies which administer livestock grazing on the public lands (Gardner 1962). Two factors contributing to grazing misallocation and reduced range productivity were identified: (1) the "eligibility" requirements that qualify permittees for grazing privileges prevented the utilization of forage by ranchers who would value it most, and (2) use-tenure insecurity resulting from cuts in permitted grazing impeded private investment in range improvements on the public ranges. In a second paper, I proposed that the grazing privilege system be reformed such that efficient allocation of forage …

Diatom Flora Of Mink Creek, Idaho, Usa, Christopher T. Robinson, Samuel R. Rushforth

Great Basin Naturalist

Diatoms were collected from an open-canopy and closed-canopy site on Mink Creek, Bannock County, Idaho, a third-order Rocky Mountain stream. Ninety diatom taxa were identified. Achnanthes minutissima Kuetz. and Navicula lanceolata (Ag. ) Kuetz. dominated the open-canopy site, whereas Cocconeis placentula var. euglypta (Ehr.) CI. comprised greater than 40% of the diatom assemblage at the closed-canopy site. Seven of the 10 most important diatoms were present at both sites. A high degree of similarity was evident between natural and artificial substrates at both sites. Although most taxa were present at both sites, it is apparent from this study that differences …

Species Composition, Emergence, And Habitat Preferences Of Trichoptera Of The Sagehen Creek Basin, California, Usa, Nancy A. Erman

Great Basin Naturalist

An extensive study of larvae and adult Trichoptera of the Sagehen Creek basin, Sierra Nevada, California, USA, revealed 77 species representing 14 families and 41 genera. Twenty-six species were restricted to small water bodies (spring sources, seeps, spring streams, temporary ponds, and intermittent streams); 27 were restricted to Sagehen Creek, a second-order stream, and the mouths of two large spring streams. Similarity between species caught at black lights and those in emergence traps was 43%. There were two major peaks in adult emergence by species, midsummer and late summer-fall. A few species emerged during winter or throughout most of the …

Influence Of Substrate Water Content On Neonate Size In The Prairie Skink, Eumeces Septentrionalis, Louis A. Somma

Great Basin Naturalist

The microenvironment of the nest surrounding most reptilian eggs is known to have a strong influence on the growth and development of embryos. This is particularly true of substrate moisture content. The results of this study suggest that neonatal body size (SVL) increases with increasing substrate wetness in the prairie skink, Eumeces septentrionalis. These results agree with studies conducted on other species of reptiles. This study is the first to provide evidence for this relationship in a scineid lizard.

Review Of Selenium In Soils, Plants, And Animals In Nevada, Stephen C. Poole, Verle R. Bohman, James A. Young

Great Basin Naturalist

Selenium is critical in livestock nutrition; forage can be either potentially deficient or toxic in this element. Selenium is accumulated in excessive amounts by a relatively few species of plants. Several of these plants, termed indicator species, occur in the western Great Basin; however, selenium toxicity is not a problem in Nevada for domestic livestock. The detection of marginal dietary deficiencies of selenium is of much greater economic importance to the livestock industry than an excess of this element.

Selenium occurs as a trace element in the composition of various minerals. Selenium levels are very low in volcanic rocks of …

Front Matter, Vol. 49 No. 2

Great Basin Naturalist

No abstract provided.

End Matter, Vol. 49 No. 2

Great Basin Naturalist

No abstract provided.

Responses Of Utah Deer Hunters To A Checking Station Questionnaire, Dennis D. Austin, Lucy Jordan

Great Basin Naturalist

During the 1987 deer hunt 4,250 card questionnaires were distributed to Utah hunters at nine checking stations. Return rates varied from a mean 23% when cards were simply handed to hunters, to 50% when hunters' names and telephone numbers were taken. Results concerning methodology suggest that questionnaire surveys conducted from checking stations are efficient and accurate in obtaining hunter opinions. Questionnaire results indicated that most hunters rated the Utah deer hunt as moderately satisfactory, but may prefer alternative options that would result in a higher quality hunt. The majority of hunters indicated that hunter numbers should be limited to current …

Gerridae (Water Striders) Of Idaho (Heteroptera), R. C. Biggam, M. A. Brusven

Great Basin Naturalist

A biosystematic study on the Gerridae of Idaho was undertaken to clarify and describe the taxonomy, species distribution, and biology of this aquatic hemipteran family. Three genera and 7 species were collected in the state. Keys to three genera and 10 species are provided. General descriptions, diagnoses, and distributional ranges are given for species occurring within and adjacent to Idaho.

Foods And Feeding Periodicity Of The White River Springfish, Crenichthys Baileyi, Gene R. Wilde

Great Basin Naturalist

White River springfish collected in August and December 1966 from Hot Creek Spring, Nevada, fed primarily on amphipods, ostracods, plant fragments, and detritus. Compostition of the diet was similar in both months. However, amphipods were the most important food in August, while in December amphipods, ostacods, plant fragments, and detritus were of approximately equal importance. Comparison of diel feeding periodicity and activity patterns suggests that most of the daily activity of White River springfish is related to feeding.

Syntactic Complexity In Virgil's Aeneid, Russell Bateman

Deseret Language and Linguistic Society Symposium

No abstract provided.

For The Want Of A Nail: Should We Teach Pronunciation To Teach Grammar?, Alan Carter Covell

Deseret Language and Linguistic Society Symposium

No abstract provided.

Is "He" Considered A Gender Neutral Pronoun?, Joni Marie Kroepelin

Deseret Language and Linguistic Society Symposium

No abstract provided.

Amphibians Of Western Chihuahua, Wilmer W. Tanner

Great Basin Naturalist

This third report on the herpetofauna of Chihuahua deals exclusively with amphibians. The first plethodonid salamander is reported, species Ambystoma rosaceum is discussed in greater detail than before, and two subspecies are recognized. Spea is elevated from subgeneric to generic rank, and S. stagnalis Cope is removed from synonymy and is recognized as a subspecies of hammondii. The species listed include the following: 2 salamanders and 19 anurans (1 Scaphiopus, 2 Spea, 9 Bufo, 1 Eleutherodactylus, 2 Hyla, 3 Rana, and 1 Microhyla).

Reference is made to vaious habitats that are associated …

Competition Between Adult And Seedling Shrubs Of Ambrosia Dumosa In The Mojave Desert, Nevada, Richard Hunter

Great Basin Naturalist

Seeds of the perennial shrub Ambrosia dumosa germinated in abundance following 11 days of rain during August 1983 at a study site in the northern Mojave Desert. Seedling establishment, growth, and reproduction were observed in natural vegetation and in an area that had been previously cleared of vegetation. For 5,527 A. dumosa seedlings, percent survival in April 1986 averaged 3% in the undisturbed vegetation and 58% in the denuded area. Seedlings occupying the cleared area had grown to sizes up to 0. 1 m³ m by October 1984; some produced flowers and fruit in the spring of 1985. Surviving …

Associations Of Small Mammals Occurring In A Pluvial Lake Basin, Ruby Lake, Nevada, Mark A. Ports, Lois K. Ports

Great Basin Naturalist

Ruby Lake is a highly mesic and vegetationally diverse pluvial lake basin of east central Nevada. Small mammal associations were examined in six plant communities at Ruby Lake using transects of live traps. Small mammal activity was recorded for these six habitats plus an additional three other specialized habitats. A total of 11 species of small mammals were trapped from the six habitat types; from the entire study area 26 species were trapped or observed. Two greasewood shrub habitats and a shadscale-spiny hopsage habitat held the highest number of trapped species, 6, 5, and 7, respectively. The mesic haymeadow and …

Pisolithus Tinctorius, A Gasteromycete, Associated With Jeffrey And Sierra Lodgepole Pine On Acid Mine Spoils In The Sierra Nevada, R. F. Walker

Great Basin Naturalist

Basidiocarps of Pisolithus tinctorius, a gasteromycetous fungus adapted to harsh sites, were observed in association with Jeffrey and Sierra lodgepole pine on acid mine spoils in northeastern California. Subterranean mycelial strands were traced from these basidiocarps to the root systems of the two pine species, which had ectomycorrhizae characteristics of those formed by this fungus in symbiotic relationships with conifer hosts.

A New Species Of Asclepias (Asclepiadaceae) From Northwestern New Mexico, Kenneth D. Heil, J. Mark Porter, Stanley L. Welsh

Great Basin Naturalist

Asclepias sanjuanensis Heil, Porter, & Welsh, a new species from the pinyon-juniper woodlands of the San Juan River Valley, San Juan County, New Mexico, is described and illustratred. The species appears to be local and rare. Similar to A. ruthiae Maguire, it is distinguished by the greater number of flowers per inflorescence, the larger number of stems, and the pubescence characters.

Effect Of Timing Of Grazing On Soil-Surface Crytogamic Communities In A Great Basin Low-Shrub Desert: A Preliminary Report, James R. Marble, Kimball T. Harper

Great Basin Naturalist

Cover and species richness of vascular and cryptogamic components of the plant community were inventoried in experimental grazing paddocks at the USDA/FS Desert Range Experimental Station, Millard County, Utah. The grazing treatments considered have been applied continuously for over 50 years. The effects of heavy (ca 17 sheep days/acre) grazing treatment applied in two different seasons (early winter versus a split between early and late winter) differed significantly between seasons. Cryptogamic cover and cryptogamic species richness both showed larger decreases under early-late as opposed to early winter only grazing. Vascular plant cover (relative to controls) was also reduced by early-late …

Spatial And Temporal Variability In Perennial And Annual Vegetation At Chaco Canyon, New Mexico, Anne C. Cully, Jack F. Cully Jr.

Great Basin Naturalist

Annual plant populations in northwestern New Mexico were found to be spatially and temporally highly variable. During favorable years annual plant species have patterns of dominance and diversity that are different from those of perennial species. Measurement of perennial plant diversity in plant communities is a poor predictor of productivity. Both perennial and annual components of plant communities should be considered in measurements of diversity and productivity.

Utah Chub (Gila Atraria) From The Latest Pleistocene Gilbert Shoreline, West Of Corrine, Utah, Stuart B. Murchison

Great Basin Naturalist

A bulk sampling of gastropods collected near Great Salt Lake, Utah, revealed several fish bones of Gila atraria (Girard). The early date of this find, coupled with the relationship of the Gilbert lake transgression and successive regression of approximately 11,000 years B.P., reveals a death assemblage induced by a series of saline inundations into the freshwater paludal environment.

Front Matter, Vol. 49 No. 1

Great Basin Naturalist

No abstract provided.

End Matter, Vol. 49 No. 1

Great Basin Naturalist

No abstract provided.

Aquatic Insects In Montezuma Well, Arizona, Usa: A Travertine Spring Mound With High Alkalinity And Dissolved Carbon Dioxide, Dean W. Blinn, Milton W. Sanderson

Great Basin Naturalist

An annotated list of aquatic insects from the high carbonate system of Montezuma Well, Arizona, USA, is presented for collections taken during 1976–1986. Fifty-seven taxa in 16 families are reported, including new distribution records for Arizona (Anacaena signaticollis, Laccobius ellipticus, and Crenitulus sp. [nr. debilis]) and the USA (Enochrus sharpi). Larval stages for Trichoptera, Lepidoptera, Megaloptera, Neuroptera, Chironomidae, and Anisoptera were absent even though the habitat lacks fish, and water temperature, dissolved oxygen, available food, and substrata appear adequate in Montezuma Well. The potential importance of alkalinity in restricting these insect groups is discussed.

Size And Overlap Of Townsend Ground Squirrel Home Ranges, Nicholas C. Nydegger, Donald R. Johnson

Great Basin Naturalist

We evaluated movement distance (an index of home range size) based on capture histories of 32 postbreeding Townsend ground squirrels (Spermophilus townsendii) on a 15 × 15 trap grid in southwestern Idaho. Capture frequencies and movement distances of adult males were significantly greater than those of other sex/age groups. Members of the same sex/age group were rarely captured at the same grid location, evidence of mutual avoidance within sex/age groups. These results are compared with those for other species of ground squirrels.

Locality, Habitat, And Elevation Records For The Desert Shrew, Notiosorex Crawfordi, Russell Davis, Ronnie Sidner

Great Basin Naturalist

Two specimens of Notiosorex crawfordi (Coues) were obtained from Rincon Mountains in southeastern Arizona. Elevations were 2,438 and 2,618 m. At the lower-elevation site the habitat was a meadow in a ponderosa pine forest.

Paul R. Cheesman, Ed., Assisted By S. Kent Brown And Charles D. Tate, Jr., The Book Of Mormon: The Keystone Scripture, Lavina Fielding Anderson

Review of Books on the Book of Mormon 1989–2011

Review of The Book of Mormon: The Keystone Scripture (1988), edited by Paul R. Cheesman and assisted by S. Kent Brown and Charles D. Tate Jr.