Digital Commons Network^™

Environmental And Health Studies Of Kentucky Blackbird Roosts, Burt L. Monroe Jr., Lois S. Cronholm

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

At the present time we are under contract from the Kentucky Environmental Quality Commission to study three aspects of Kentucky starling-blackbird roost problems: (1) a study of birds killed this coming winter through PA-14 treatments, to obtain more accurate data on species composition, sex ratios, kill success and food items; (2) a compilation of breeding and wintering data on Kentucky populations through analysis of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service summer bird counts and banding returns; and (3) a study of spore dispersal of various fungal species, most notably Histoplasma capsulatum, from roost sites. The winter sampling is yet to be …

A Method Of Evaluating Blackbird Depredation Using Food Habits, Robert E. Williams

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

An accurate economic analysis of pest species, such as birds depredating agricultural systems, would entail a thorough understanding of the species1 ecological relationships with all components of their environment. Understanding behavioral patterns (e.g., seasonal territorialism and gregariousness, reproductive characteristics, and annual food habits), population dynamics (e.g., natality, mortality, and sex ratios), and environmental pressures (e.g., carrying capacity and interspecific competition) would only begin to provide a base for a valid evaluation. No single parameter could integrate the complex interactions which affect agricultural production. However, evaluation of one such parameter, food habits analysis, could provide enough useful information for estimating one …

Redwinged Blackbird Flock Feeding Behavior In Response To Repellent Stress, M. I. Dyer

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

The use of 4-Aminopyridine (Avitrol, a Phillips Petroleum trade-name, or AFCC 99, a name designated by Environmental Protection Agency) as an avian repellent when placed on agricultural crops has been reported upon (DeGrazio, et al., 1971, 1972; Stickley, et al., 1972, 1976); and its status in the United States and elsewhere has been recently reviewed (Bessek, 1976). Much more information has been collected; but unfortunately, it has not been made accessible in published form (see Besser, 1976). Thus, much of the information and opinions about this repellent material is anecdotal, and the scientific community must rely upon relatively sparse information …

Aircraft And Birds, Victor E. F. Solman

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

At the third seminar I reported that our work on ecological changes at airports was a useful method of controlling bird hazards to aircraft. At the fifth seminar I talked about our studies of bird migration by radar and the use of that knowledge to keep flying aircraft away from bird concentrations. Those techniques are still effective. Since then we have: sought ground cover less attractive to birds than grass; developed methods of controlling earthworms to reduce bird attraction; improved radar data handling; improved bird hazard forecasts; studied light effects on birds; quantified bird spacing in flocks; studied the relation …

Examination Of Redwinged Blackbird Nestling Growth Rates Using The Logistic Model: A Case For R And K Selection?, M. I. Dyer, Z. Abramsky

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

One of the few processes of an avian population that presents the opportunity to collect sensitive information about the performance of that population is growth rates of young throughout the brooding period. Growth rate data are sensitive to many conditions of the breeding cycle: proximate influences, such as food availability and weather (Francis, et al., in prep.), and ultimate factors, such as species-specific characteristics, (Ricklefs, 1968). Additionally, the measurements themselves can be obtained with precision. The ability to make such detailed observations is extremely useful and is not always possible for other population parameters, such as determining life table data. …

Studies On Diet Overlap Among Icterids, Crows, And Starlings, M. I. Dyer, N. J. Kakalec

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

Some of the problems that have been publicized for the past two to three years about blackbirds and Starlings in the southeastern United States are concerned with what these birds eat and the degree to which these granivores compete on their wintering grounds. The assumption by agriculturists has been that these birds cause severe depredations. Futhermore it is presumed by some that food supplies are unlimited and that these birds are simply living off the “fat of the land”; others consider that food is limited and that the birds are “pressured” into direct competition with man's food or food destined …

The Need For Practical And Objective Test Protocols For Bird Damage Control Chemicals, E. W. Schafer Jr.

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

The registration and reregistration process for vertebrate pesticides is difficult at best and is becoming more complicated and time consuming each year, particularly for bird-damage control chemicals. Although much of the information that is required for U.S. registrations (such as toxicology, general chemistry, and analytical methodology) is beyond our purview at this seminar, there are some areas where research and management personnel can have a favorable impact on present and future requirements of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). I am speaking in particular of the methodology used to determine the laboratory and field efficacy of bird damage control chemicals. Because …

Experimental Tree Trimming To Control An Urban Winter Blackbird Roost, Heidi B. Good, Dan M. Johnson

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

Every fall millions of blackbirds come down the Mississippi Flyway to return to their winter roosts in Arkansas, Louisiana, and East Texas. When these roosts are located in urban areas, public pressure makes the more common chemical means of control impractical. A less destructive and more permanent method of control was sought. At Rice University, in Houston, Texas, there has been a blackbird roost of various sizes and durations since 1956. For the past two years we have had the opportunity both to study roosting blackbird biology and experiment with habitat alteration as a control method. This particular report concentrates …

An Overview Of Depredating Bird Damage Control In California, Dell O. Clark

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

To many people, California is synonomous with Disneyland, freeways, Los Angeles smog, Yosemite, the California missions, or for you bird aficionados, the California Condor. But do you think about California when you eat strawberry shortcake? You should -- California leads the nation in strawberry production. How about artichokes? California produces over 98% of the artichokes raised in the United States. Dates? California produces over 99% of the dates in the United States.

Yes, California is all of these, and it is much more. California may well be the most diverse state in the United States. Within its 100.2 million acres, …

Reducing A Local Population Of Starlings With Nest-Box Traps, C. E. Knittle, J. L. Guarino

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

Many fruit-growing areas in the United States and Canada suffer considerable economic losses to local breeding and postbreeding Starling (sturnus vulgaris) populations. Wine grapes in California (DeHaven, 1974), cherries in Michigan (Stone, 1973), and blueberries in several states (Mott and Stone, 1973) are seriously damaged by Starlings. Since more than one method is often useful in protecting fruit crops, we conducted a study in 1974 to deter- mine the number of breeding Starlings that could be captured with a given number of nest-box traps to evaluate the potential of using this control method to minimize damage in small fruit-growing areas. …

Water Current, Volume 8, No. 6, November/December 1976

Water Current Newsletter

From the Desk of the Director
Deadline for Submitting Annual Allotment Proposals
Matching Grants Submitted to OWRT
FAO Fellow from India
Staff Appointee from Poland
Rural Water Conference
Water Research in Nebraska
Ogallala Study Approved
Interior Signs Water Marketing Agreement with Montana
Discount Rate Set at 6 3/8%
Research Review: A Mechanism for Saving Energy and Water

Wetting As A Means Of Bird Control, Sheldon Lustick

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

That birds are homeotherms is demonstrated by their ability to maintain a relatively constant body temperature over a wide range of ambient temperatures. An important com- ponent of this ability to maintain a constant body temperature in a cold environment is the feather layer. Birds have been shown to acclimate to cold by increasing their plum- age 20-30 percent and, hence, increasing their insulation (Kendeigh, 1934; Scholander, et al., 1950; West, 1962). Hutchinson (1954) states that oil secreted by uropygial (preen) glands maintains the ability of the feathers to shed water and, therefore, aids in maintaining the insulating layer. Since …

Pod Faculty Development Conference, October 17-19, 1976 -- Airlie House, Karen Hardiman, Glenn R. Erickson, Bette Lasere Erickson

Professional and Organizational Development Network in Higher Education: Conference Materials

The idea for this booklet came from the Lilly Endowment Incorporated's Faculty Development Conference in Indianapolis earlier this year. Before that conference, we each received a booklet which included the program schedule, a list of participants and single paragraph bios, and a one-page description of each program represented at the conference. I was fascinated by the diversity of "faculty development" programs, and by the varied backgrounds and interests of their staffs. We decided, therefore, to put together a similar booklet for participants in this POD Conference as a part of our "Information Fair." This booklet includes all of the program …

Characterization Of Biological Types Of Cattle Iii. Carcass Composition, Quality And Palatability, R. M. Koch, M. E. Dikeman, D. M. Allen, M. May, J. D. Crouse, D. R. Campion

Department of Animal Science: Faculty Publications

Composition and quality characteristics of 1,121 steer carcasses obtained after mating Hereford and Angus cows to Hereford, Angus, Jersey, South Devon, Limousin, Charolais and Simmental sires were compared at a (1) constant age, (2) constant weight, and (3) constant percentage of fat in the longissimus muscle. Taste panel evaluation was made on a subsample of 496 carcasses. Growth rate of retail product, fat trim and bone differed significantly among sire breed groups. Breed group differences in relative proportions of retail product, fat trim and bone were largest when compared at a constant carcass weight and smallest when compared at equal …

Fabespora Vermicola Sp. N., The First Myxosporidan From A Platyhelminth, Robin M. Overstreet

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty Publications

The myxosporidan Fabespora vermicola sp. n., tentatively placed in the family Myxidiidae, is described from the digenean Crassicutis archosargi in an estuarine fish. The myxosporidan becomes the first known from a platyhelminth and the third from an invertebrate. It differs from the only other member of the genus primarily by having polar filaments 32 to 44 μm long rather than about 8 μm, and an infection with it can stop reproduction in the digenean host either by physical means or by necrosis of gametes.

A Redescription Of Crassicutis Archosargi, A Digenean Exhibiting An Unusual Tegumental Attachment, Robin M. Overstreet

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty Publications

The homalometrine Crassicutis archosargi from the northern Gulf of Mexico is redescribed, and some related digeneans are discussed. Numerous unidentified refractile bodies occurred in the tegument and other tissues of a few specimens of C. archosargi, and an intimate relationship between the parasite and its piscine host resulting from a modified tegument is reported for others. Binding by the described adhesive tegument increases the number of known ways digeneans attach to their hosts. Several specimens also harbored a histozoic myxosporidan in several tissues and a flagellate, Hexamita sp., in their ceca.

Water Current, Volume 8, No. 5, September/October 1976

Water Current Newsletter

From the Desk of the Director
Matching Grant Proposal Deadline
Water Research in Nebraska
Water Measures Dead Until Next October
Section 80(c) Dispute Continues
House Subcommittee Considers Easing Irrigation Limitation
USGS 1977 Budget Tops $300 Million
Request for Information on Flood Flow Frequency Techniques for Ungaged Areas
Research Review: Validation and Implementation of a Simplified Streamflow Simulator
Warren D. Fairchild to Leave Council

Mosses Of The Great Plains: Introduction And Catalogue, Steven P. Churchill

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

This account initiates a series of articles concerning the mosses of the Great Plains. The boundary of this region (Fig. 1) is adopted in part from a parallel study currently in progress on vascular plants (McGregor et aI., 1977). However, in addition, this moss study includes that region of Canada studied by Bird (1962). The total area included in this study of the Great Plains thus occupies about 665 thousand square miles, extending from southern Manitoba to southeastern Alberta, south to northeastern New Mexico and northwestern Oklahoma.

Crum, Steere and Anderson (1973) have listed 1,170 species, 267 genera, and 58 …

Supralinearity Of Thermoluminescent Dosimeters, Leif Larsson, Robert Katz

Robert Katz Publications

The supralinear response of thermoluminescent dosimeters (TLDs) after irradiation with gamma- or beta-rays can be decomposed by use of the cumulative Poisson distribution into a sum of 1-or-more and 2-or-more hit components, suggesting the coexistence of both types of trap structures. Following the response of other 1-hit detectors, and of biological cells to energetic heavy ions, we expect and find that the supralinear response tends to disappear with alpha particle, and with neutron irradiation, and that the supralinear, or 2-hit, component tends to be more responsive to high LET (Linear Energy Transfer) radiations. Since the response of biological cells to …

Agricultural Experiment Station News August 1976

Agricultural Research Division: News and Annual Reports

CONTENTS:
FROM THE ACTING DIRECTOR'S DESK
PERSONNEL ACTIONS
GRANTS AND CONTRACTS
GENERAL NOTES
NEBRASKA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION PUBLICATIONS - July 1976

Performance Of Certified Seed Lots Of Dawson Alfalfa, W. R. Kehr, G. R. Manglitz

Nebraska Agricultural Experiment Station: Historical Research Bulletins

Breeder, foundation, and certified seed lots of Dawson alfalfa, Medicago sativa L., were tested to determine stability in performance during three generations of seed increase under certification. Two field experiments were conducted, a seeded forage yield test and a space-planted test. Greenhouse experiments included separate tests for resistance to pea aphids, spotted alfalfa aphids, and bacterial wilt. Results obtained on certified Dawson alfalfa seed classes in field and greenhouse experiments were in agreement with the original variety description.

An Evaluation Of Treatment Recommendations For The Greenbug, Schizaphis Graminum, On Susceptible Grain Sorghum In The Clay County, Nebraska Pest Management Project, Bruce John Monke

Open Access Master's Theses (through 2010)

All fields involved in this study were located in Clay County, Nebraska and were farmed by cooperators in the Pest Management Project. Many of the field procedures were adapted from those used by the University of Nebraska Agronomy Department Outstate Testing Service. The purpose of this study was to examine, under Nebraska conditions, the accuracy of the currently accepted guidelines for determining the necessity of greenbug control on grain sorghum.

The data in this study do not support specific guidelines based only on greenbug populations or plant damage sustained due to greenbug feeding, for controlling greenbugs on susceptible grain sorghum. …

Flight Of The Sea Ducks, Paul A. Johnsgard

Papers in Ornithology

Their migration routes have been charted. Their breeding biology is known. Their eggs meat and feathers have long been used by man. But eiders at sea remain an enigma.

Nesting in colonies that can number hundreds of birds, the eiders are among the most conspicuous of tundra-breeding birds. Although female eiders are a study in grays and browns that match the arctic tundra, the males are most boldly patterned in black and white, with striking green head colors. When the nesting season ends, the birds disperse over the vastnesses of the northern oceans, out of range of most human observers. …

Bacteria In The Air Of Housed Swine Units, L.F. Elliot, T.M. Mccalla, J.A. Deshazer

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Two housed, swine-growing-finishing units were studied for numbers of total bacteria, fecal coliforms, Staphylococcus, and Salmonella in the air. At 30.5 and 122 cm from the floor, total colony-forming particles, as tested, averaged 3.4 x 10) and 1.3 x 105/m³ of air, respectively; whereas fecal coliform counts averaged 24 x 103 and 1.9 x 103/m³ of air, respectively. Only 41% of the organisms growing on Staphylococcus 110 medium tested as Staphylococcus. Of 458 Staphylococcus isolates, 5 were coagulase-positive. No Salmonella were detected in the air of the units tested.

90th Annual Report Of The Nebraska Agricultural Experiment Station

Agricultural Research Division: News and Annual Reports

Contents:
Foreword
Administration and Staff
Nebraska Agricultural Experiment Station
Research Projects
Experiment Station Publications
Publications of the Staff
Report of Income and Expenditures

Systematic Evaluation Of Cellular Radiosensitivity Parameters, R. A. Roth, S. C. Sharma, Robert Katz

Robert Katz Publications

Cellular radiosensitivity parameters of the track structure theory of Katz and co-workers are evaluated from a sum of squares minimizing computer program for nonlinear models. Based on these observations, suggestions are presented for efficient experiment design for the determination of these parameters from track-segment bombardments of high LET radiations.

Anatomy Of The Adults Of Loxagrotis Albicosta, C.Y. Oseto, T.J. Helms

University Studies (University of Nebraska) (1888–1984)

LEPIDOPTERA are divided into the major suborders Monotrysia and Ditrysia (Borner, 1939). The vast majority of Lepidoptera belong to the Ditrysia. The Noctuidae, which is the largest family in the order, is probably the most destructive (Metcalf, et aI., 1962). It includes Loxagrotis albicosta (Smith), the western bean cutworm, originally a pest of field beans, which has become a relatively serious pest of corn in southwestern and central Nebraska (Hagen and Roselle, 1972). Adults emerge from early July to late August, and eggs, which are deposited on the upper sides of corn leaves, hatch in approximately I week. The newly …

Germ Plasm Evaluationprogram- Progress Report No. 4, U.S. Meat Animal Research Center

Roman L. Hruska U.S. Meat Animal Research Center: Reports

The cattle Germ Plasm Evaluation Program has been conducted in three cycles. Cycle I involved breeding Hereford, Angus, Jersey, South Devon, Limousin, Simmental and Charolais bulls by artificial insemination (AI) to Hereford and Angus cows to produce three calf crops (Cycle I, Phase2) in the spring of 1970, 1971 and 1972.

Cycle II, initiated with the 1972 breeding season, involved the Hereford and Angus cows used in the first cycle. These cows were bred by AI to Hereford, Angus, Red Poll, Brown Swiss, Ge1bvieh, Maine Anjou and Chianina sires to produce two calf crops (Cycle II, Phase2) in the spring …

Whole Issue Nebraska Bird Review (June 1976) 44(2)

Nebraska Bird Review

Table of Contents

The Seventy-fifth Annual Meeting ..................................... 18

1975 (Eighteenth) Fall Occurrence Report ........................... 19

Brown Towhee Reported ................................. 30

Book Reviews........................................ 31

Notes ................................................ 33

Parasites Of California Marine And Estuarine Fish, Milton S. Love, Mike Moser

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty Publications

While working on the parasites of several California marine fish, it was difficult to find out which parasites had been reported from our fish. Pertinent sources were scattered over a number of journals, covering many years. We compiled this list because we felt there was a need for a single source which would give all the parasites infecting California marine fish. As "marine fish" was a somewhat vague term, we decided to use it in a broad sense and included estuarine and anadromous fish in the survey. In addition, we have included records from landlocked populations of anadromous fish, such …