Digital Commons Network^™

The Role Of Energy Pipelines And Research In The United States, Cheryl J. Trench, Thomas O. Miesner

United States Department of Transportation: Publications

Energy from oil and natural gas is essential, and will continue to be essential, to all facets of our daily lives. It fuels most of our transportation needs, heats our homes, schools, offices and shops, and even generates a share of our electricity. Oil and natural gas together supply approximately two-thirds of the U.S. energy needs.

Crude oil and natural gas are generally produced in regions located far from consumption centers. This means crude oil must be moved to refineries, and refined products and natural gas must be moved from producing regions to consumption centers.

The U.S. pipeline infrastructure is …

Status And Harvests Of Sandhill Cranes: Mid-Continent And Rocky Mountain Populations 2006, David E. Sharp, Kammie L. Kruse, James A. Dubovsky

United States Fish and Wildlife Service: Publications

Compared to the increases that were recorded in the 1970s, annual indices to abundance of the Mid-Continent Population (MCP) of Sandhill Cranes has been relatively stable since the early 1980s. The Central Platte River Valley, Nebraska spring index for 2006, uncorrected for visibility bias, was 183,000. The photo-corrected 3-year average for 2003-05 was 422,133, which is within the established population-objective range of 349,000-472,000 cranes. All Central Flyway states, except Nebraska, allowed crane hunting in portions of their respective states during 2005-06. About 9,950 hunters participated in these seasons, which was 8% higher than the number that participated in the 2004- …

2005 Annual Report: Migratory Bird Conservation Commission

United States Fish and Wildlife Service: Publications

Report of the Migratory Bird Conservation Commission for the Fiscal Year 2005:
Approvals During Fiscal Year 2005
Migratory Bird Conservation Fund
Summary of Fiscal Year 2005 MBCF Land Acquisitions
New National Wildlife Refuge Boundary Approvals
Membership of the Migratory Bird Conservation Commission
Map Showing National Migratory Bird Refuge Areas
Map Showing Waterfowl Production Areas by State and County
Notes on Tables One and Two
Table One––National Migratory Bird Refuge Areas
Table Two––Waterfowl Production Areas by State and County
North American Wetlands Conservation Fund
Table Three––U.S. Wetland Conservation Proposals Approved by the Migratory Bird Conservation Commission for FY 2005
Table Four––Canadian …

A Health Risk Evaluation For Pallid Sturgeon (Scaphirhynchus Albus) In The Lower Platte River Using Shovelnose Sturgeon (Scaphirhynchus Platorynchus) As A Surrogate, Matthew S. Schwarz, Christina D. Lydick, Donald E. Tillit, Diana M. Papoulias, Timothy S. Gross

United States Fish and Wildlife Service: Publications

Most sturgeon species worldwide have been in steep decline since the 1900s. This research evaluated shovelnose sturgeon health, reproduction, and exposure to environmental contamination in the lower Platte River. Shovelnose sturgeon served as a surrogate species for the endangered pallid sturgeon and their health was assessed by incorporating measurements of general health with hepatic, immune, and reproductive system biomarkers. Environmental contaminants were measured in water, potential pallid sturgeon food items (cyprinid minnows), and shovelnose sturgeon digesta, liver, and blood plasma. Contaminants detected in shovelnose sturgeon at concentrations of concern included PCBs, selenium, and atrazine. Total PCBs in carcasses (n = …

American Woodcock Population Status, 2006, James R. Kelley Jr., Rebecca D. Rau

United States Fish and Wildlife Service: Publications

Singing-ground Survey data indicated that the numbers of displaying American woodcock (Scolopax minor) in the Eastern Region in 2006 was unchanged from 2005; however, the Central Region experienced an 8% decline. There was no significant trend in woodcock heard in either the Eastern or Central Region during 1996-06. This represents the third consecutive year since 1992 that the 10-year trend estimate did not indicate a significant decline. There were longterm (1968-06) declines of 1.9% per year in the Eastern Region and 1.8% per year in the Central Region. The 2005 recruitment index for the U.S. portion of the …

Intercontinental Biotic Invasions: What Can We Learn From Native Populations And Habitats?, Qinfeng Guo

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

The effectiveness of management strategies for invasive species is often hampered by a lack of clear understanding of the factors that limit species distributions. The distribution of exotic species, especially those that are invasive, are often so dynamic that limiting factors are difficult to identify. Comparisons of exotic species between their native ranges, where they are presumably close to equilibrium with controlling factors, and their ranges in areas of introduction can circumvent this difficulty. Such studies would help identify (1) limiting factors for distributions in native ranges, (2) factors associated with a high degree of invasiveness, (3) changes in genetics …

Fat Dynamics Of Arctic-Nesting Sandpipers During Spring In Mid-Continental North America, Gary Krapu, Jan Eldridge, Cherri Grato-Trevor, Deborah Buhl

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

We measured fresh body mass, total body fat, and fat-free dry mass (FFDM) of three species of Arctic-nesting calidrid sandpipers (Baird’s Sandpiper [Calidris bairdii], hereafter “BASA”; Semipalmated Sandpiper [C. pusilla], hereafter “SESA”; and White-rumped Sandpiper [C. fuscicollis], hereafter “WRSA”) during spring stopovers in the Prairie Pothole Region (PPR) of North Dakota, and evaluated the contribution of stored fat to (1) energy requirements for migration to their Arctic-breeding grounds and (2) nutrient needs for reproduction. All spring migrant WRSA (n = 124) and BASA (n = 111), and all but 2 of 99 SESA we …

A Preliminary Biological Assessment Of Long Lake National Wildlife Refuge Complex, North Dakota, Murray K. Laubhan, Robert A. Gleason, Gregory A. Knutsen, Rachel A. Laubhan, N. H. Euliss Jr.

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

This report represents an initial biological assessment of wetland conditions on Long Lake National Wildlife Refuge (NWR), Slade NWR, and Florence Lake NWR that was conducted as part of the pre-planning phase for development of a Comprehensive Conservation Plan (CCP). According to the 1997 National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act (NWRSIA), decisions guiding NWR management should be based on the best available scientific information. Therefore, this report attempts to integrate relevant information from many different scientific disciplines (e.g., geology, hydrology, biology) to assist the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) in identifying ecological constraints and opportunities imposed by the land …

Survey Of Community Knowledge, Attitudes, And Practices During A Malaria Epidemic In Central Java, Indonesia, Parsa Sanjana, Mazie J. Barcus, Michael J. Bangs, Sahat Ompusunggu, Iqbal Elyazar, Harijani Marwoto, Sekar Tuti, Mohammed Sururi, Soesanto Tjokrosonto, J. Kevin Baird

United States Navy: Publications

We surveyed adults in a randomly selected sample of 1,000 households in 50 villages in nine malarial sub-districts in Purworejo, central Java, Indonesia from May to July 2001. The survey assessed malaria knowledge, attitudes, and practices in communities experiencing epidemic malaria to begin exploring broad strategies for controlling the disease in the region. A pre-tested survey instrument consisting of 93 questions addressed demographic characteristics, socioeconomic factors, knowledge and perceptions of malaria, burden and severity of disease, treatment-seeking behavior, malaria prevention practices, and perceptions of government malaria control efforts. The survey was taken by in-person interview of all subjects. Most (97%) …

Divergent Patterns Of Abundance And Age-Class Structure Of Headwater Stream Tadpoles In Burned And Unburned Watersheds, Blake R. Hossack, Paul Stephen Corn, Daniel B. Fagre

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Wildfire is a potential threat to many species with narrow environmental tolerances like the Rocky Mountain tailed frog (Ascaphlls montanlls Mittleman and Myers, 1949), which inhabits a region where the frequency and intensity of wildfires are expected to increase. We compared pre- and post-fire counts of tadpoles in eight streams in northwestem Montana to determine the effects of wildfire on A. montanus. All streams were initially sampled in 2001, 2 years before four of them bumed in a large wildfire, and were resampled during the 2 years follo\ving the fire. Counts of tadpoles were similar in the 1\\'0 …

Gastrointestinal Morphology Of Female White-Tailed And Mule Deer: Effects Of Fire, Reproduction, And Feeding Type, Teresa J. Zimmerman, Jonathan A. Jenks, David M. Leslie Jr.

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

We assessed variation in length, width, density, and surface enlargement factor of papillae; rumen and intestinal digesta weight; intestinal length; and intestinal tissue weight of reproductive and nonreproductive female white-tailed (Odocoileus virginianus) and mule deer (O. hemionus) using similar burned and unburned habitat. Deer were collected from study areas in Custer and Pennington counties, South Dakota, in and adjacent to a wildfire burn. Length of papillae and enlargement factor of papillae surface of white-tailed deer and mule deer were greater in burned than unburned habitat, and dry weight of rumen digesta of white-tailed deer was greater …

Ice Sheets And Sea Level, Johannes Oerlemans, Dorthe Dahl-Jensen, Valérie Masson-Delmotte, Jonathan T. Overpeck, Bette L. Otto-Bliesner, Gifford H. Miller, Richard B. Alley, Daniel R. Muhs, Shawn J. Marshall

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

The estimate of the contribution of the Greenland Ice Sheet (GIS) to the higher sea level stand in the Eemian interglacial (between 2.2 and 3.4 m) is based on the assumption that there was no ice at the location of the Dye-3 ice core in southern Greenland. However, Eemian ice has been found at the base of this ice core. The presence of Eemian ice in south and coastal Greenland implies that the GIS was essentially intact in a much warmer climate and could not have contributed more than 1 to 2 m to sea-level rise.

Members Of The Arabidopsis Fae1-Like 3-Ketoacyl-Coa Synthase Gene Family Substitute For The Elop Proteins Of Saccharomyces Cerevisiae, Shilpi Paul, Kenneth Gable, Frédéric Beaudoin, Edgar Cahoon, Jan Jaworski, Johnathan A. Napier, Teresa M. Dunn

Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences

Several 3-keto-synthases have been studied, including the soluble fatty acid synthases, those involved in polyketide synthesis, and the FAE1-like 3-ketoacyl-CoA synthases. All of these condensing enzymes have a common ancestor and an enzymatic mechanism that involves a catalytic triad consisting of Cys, His, and His/Asn. In contrast to the FAE1-like family of enzymes that mediate plant microsomal fatty acid elongation, the condensation step of elongation in animals and in fungi appears to be mediated by the Elop homologs. Curiously these proteins bear no resemblance to the well characterized 3-keto-synthases. There are three ELO genes in yeast that encode the homologous …

Evolution Of The Snow Area Index Of The Subarctic Snowpack In Central Alaska Over A Whole Season. Consequences For The Air To Snow Transfer Of Pollutants, A.S. Taillandier, F. Domine, W.R. Simpson, M. Sturm, T.A. Douglas, K Severin

United States Army: Publications

The detailed physical characteristics of the subarctic snowpack must be known to quantify the exchange of adsorbed pollutants between the atmosphere and the snow cover. For the first time, the combined evolutions of specific surface area (SSA), snow stratigraphy, temperature, and density were monitored throughout winter in central Alaska. We define the snow area index (SAI) as the vertically integrated surface area of snow crystals, and this variable is used to quantify pollutants’ adsorption. Intense metamorphism generated by strong temperature gradients formed a thick depth hoar layer with low SSA (90 cm² g^-1) and density (200 kg …

University Of Nebraska- Lincoln: Fact Book 2005-2006

University of Nebraska-Lincoln Administration: Reports, Papers, Publications, and Presentations

Fact Book 2005-2006 Table of Contents

General Information

Role and Mission Statement.............................

Institutional & Professional Accreditations .....................................................7

UNL Organizational Chart............................................................................9

Student Credit Hours

UNL Student Credit Hours Total Fall & Spring Semester, by College, 5 Year Trend...........................10

UNL Student Credit Hours Total Fall, by College, 5 Year Trend................................11

UNL Student Credit Hours Total Spring, By College, 5 Year Trend................................12

Summer Sessions Student Credit Hours..........................................................13

Retention, Degrees and Majors

UNL Student Retention & Graduation Rate Analysis............................................14

Total Degrees conferred by UNL Fiscal Year, 10 Year Trend.......................................15

Degrees Conferred by College, Type & Number.............................................................16

Types of Degrees Currently Offered at UNL...............................................................17

Academic …

The Case Against Evening-Up Litters Until Weaning, Duane Reese, Barbara Straw

Nebraska Swine Reports

A literature review on the effect of fostering or moving individual piglets from one litter to another after they are 24 to 48 hours of age was conducted. Late fostering disrupts nursing, increases fighting, and impairs the growth rate of adopted piglets and their littermates. Pig body weight at weaning was reduced 13 to 24% in extensively fostered litters vs. those where no piglets were fostered after 48 hours of age. No evidence was found that late fostering improves preweaning survival. For the greater good of all piglets, producers are encouraged to resist the urge to even-up litters or foster …

Genes Expressed In Response To Prrsv, Derek Petry, Rodger K. Johnson, Joan Lunney

Nebraska Swine Reports

Gene maps of livestock are rapidly being developed and have led to an explosion of knowledge in recent years about genes affecting economic traits. One potential application of this information that would have major economic value is in selection of livestock for resistance to disease. Even though much has been learned about Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome Virus (PRRSV) since it was first identified, PRRSV continues to cause significant economic losses in many herds. Traditional approaches to manage PRRSV can be effective, but may be costly and have not always resulted in permanent control. This is a disease for which …

Freezing Swine Embryos: Do Success Rates Differ Between Breeds?, Marcelo Montagner, Paulo B. D. Gonçalves, Ginger Mills, Ronald K. Christenson, Brett R. White

Nebraska Swine Reports

Successful freezing, or cryopreservation, of embryos could greatly impact the pork industry, serving as a tool for conservation of valuable germplasm and enhancing biosecurity for transfer of genetic material. Pig embryos are very sensitive to cooling and few reports have shown successful developmental rates following freezing. The objectives of this study were to determine the efficiency of freezing pig embryos using a microdroplet vitrification method and to investigate in vitro development of embryos from Chinese Meishan and occidental white crossbred females following cryopreservation at different stages of embryonic development. Preliminary studies using the microdroplet vitrification method for cryopreservation and embryo …

Producers’ Decisions, Allen Prosch

Nebraska Swine Reports

The business decisions pork producers make are extremely important. Decisions increase in importance at the same time they become harder to make. In business management studies, time has been devoted to learn how such decisions can be made. Less study has been expended on how producers currently make decisions. In the United States, family producers have traditionally made decisions with information they could gather independently. The ability to create decision making information is difficult. Producers need to remember the key success item — that of effective management led by sound decisions. The process of decision making involves skills and abilities …

Effect Of Diet And Sire Line On Grow-Finish Performance, Mike Brumm, Larry Himmelberg, Tom Rathje, John Sonderman

Nebraska Swine Reports

Two experiments were conducted to determine the influence of sire line and dietary energy levels on grow-finish pig performance. In each experiment, dietary treatments were corn-soybean meal based diets with no added fat and corn-soybean meal based diets with fat added and soybean meal adjusted to maintain a similar lysine: calorie ratio. Fat additions to the added fat diets ranged from 3.75% for the 40 to 70 pound body weight period to 1.5% for pigs over 220 pounds body weight. Within each of five phases during the growing-finishing period, feed budgets were used to maintain a similar total caloric intake …

Patterns Of Drinking Water Use In Pork Production Facilities, Mike Brumm

Nebraska Swine Reports

The amount of drinking water needed daily by the pig depends on numerous influences, including temperature, diet, stage of production and health. Within a 24-hour period under thermal-neutral conditions, grow-finish and gestating swine demonstrate a peak in water usage in late afternoon while lactating females consume water more consistently throughout the day. In times of heat stress, grow-finish pigs alter their water usage pattern with a peak between 8 to 9 a.m. and second peak around 5 to 8 p.m. Daily drinking water needs for pigs range from less than 0.5 gal/pig/day for newly weaned pigs to greater than 1.5 …

Regulation Of Pituitary Gene Expression In Lines Of Swine With Different Ovulation Rates, Benjamin Bass, Rebecca Cederberg, Ginger Mills, Brett R. White

Nebraska Swine Reports

Litter size plays a major role in the economics of pork production. Even modest increases in average litter size can have considerable effects on overall profitability. Two major components of litter size – ovulation rate and embryonic survival – have been used in a selection index project ongoing for several generations at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln (UNL). Additionally, the Chinese Meishan breed is one of the most prolific breeds, producing four to five more pigs per litter than white crossbred females. We investigated the role of the gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) receptor and gonadotropin subunit genes in determination of ovulation rate …

Impact Of Repeated Out-Of-Feed Events And Fineness Of Grind On Grow-Finish Performance, Mike Brumm, Sheryl Colgan

Nebraska Swine Reports

Out-of-feed events are a growing problem in nursery and grow-finish­ facilities due to issues associated with feed delivery to bulk bins and bridging of feed in bulk bins. Reports of bridging are increasing as producers continue to reduce the fineness of grind for complete diets in order to improve feed conversion. A study was conducted to examine the effect of repeated out-of-feed events and diet particle size on barrow performance in a wean-to-finish facility beginning six weeks after weaning. Corn-soybean meal based diets were either coarse (1,266 microns) or medium ground (1,019 microns) for the duration of the experiment. Within …

Effects Of Feeding Increased Levels Of Vitamin B12 To Weanling Pigs, Laura Albrecht, Robert Fischer, Phillip S. Miller

Nebraska Swine Reports

Increasing concentrations of vitamin B₁₂ were fed to 144 weanling pigs (weaned 13-14 days) in two, five-week trials. Pigs were fed one of six diets: NC, negative control, basal diet without supplemented vitamin B₁₂; or the basal diet with the inclusion of 100% (1X, 7.94 μg/lb), 200% (2X, 15.87 μg/lb), 400% (4X, 31.75 μg/lb), 800% (8X, 63.49 μg/lb), or 1,600% (16X, 126.98 μg/lb) of NRC requirements for the 11- to 22-lb pig. Each trial was divided into two phases: phase 1, day 0 - day 14 and phase 2, day 14 - day 35. Throughout phase 1, …

Textiles From The Canadian Front, J. Penney Burton

Textile Society of America: Symposium Proceedings

The craft of storytelling has all but disappeared from the Western cultural context, and there remain few peoples for whom oral traditions are still a prominent part of their everyday lives. Fiber artists and their work are frequently discussed by craft historians, critics, curators and connoisseurs, but aside from infrequent interviews in monographs and craft journals, their own voices are rarely heard. This is being somewhat addressed with the practice of conducting oral history interviews with leaders in the craft and textile field in the US, through the Smithsonian Institute, with the Nanette L. Laitman Project for Craft and the …

Tracing The Temporary Thread: Decorative And Functional Devoré Textiles Of The Early Twentieth Century, Andie Robertson

Textile Society of America: Symposium Proceedings

The temporary or supplementary thread has been employed as a supportive structure in the manufacture of utilitarian and decorative woven textiles for over a hundred years. First developed by wool cleaners and finishers during the mid 19th century, the technique has been repeatedly employed to aid innovative yarn and fabric development by some of the textile industry’s leading engineers. The devoré technique, also known as burn out, developed from this temporary thread process during the late 1880s. The popularity of devoré with textiles engineers reached its peak in the 1920s when a period of high decoration coincided with innovation in …

Wildlife And Invertebrate Response To Fuel Reduction Treatments In Dry Coniferous Forests Of The Western United States: A Synthesis, David S. Pilliod, Evelyn L. Bull, Jane L. Hayes, Barbara C. Wales

United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

This document is part of the Fuels Planning: Science Synthesis and Integration Project, a pilot project initiated by the USDA Forest Service to respond to the need for tools and information useful for planning site-specific fuel (vegetation) treatment projects. The information addresses fuel and forest conditions of the dry inland forests of the Western United States: those dominated by ponderosa pine, Douglas-fir, dry grand fir/white fir, and dry lodgepole pine potential vegetation types. Information was developed primarily for application at the stand level and is intended to be useful within this forest type regardless of ownership. Portions of the information …

Biology And Biological Control Of Leafy Surface, Rob Bourchier, Rich Hansen, Rodney Lym, Andrew Norton, Denise Olsen, Carol Bell Randall, Mark Schwarzlander, Luke Skinner

United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Leafy spurge (Euphorbia esula L.) is an exotic, deep-rooted, perennial weed native to Europe and Asia. It was first reported in the United States in Newbury, Massachusetts, in 1827, where it likely established from contaminated soil left from ship ballasts. This invasive weed quickly spread westward across North America, accelerated by multiple reintroductions from contaminated crop seed including oat (Avena fatua L.), smooth brome (Bromus inermis Leyss.) and alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) brought by European settlers. Leafy spurge is now abundant on the northern Great Plains of the United States and the prairie provinces of Canada, …

Effects Of Historical Climate Change, Habitat Connectivity, And Vicariance On Genetic Structure And Diversity Across The Range Of The Red Tree Vole (Phenacomys Longicaudus) In The Pacific Northwestern United States, Mark P. Miller, M. Renee Bellinger, Eric D. Forsman, Susan M. Haig

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Phylogeographical analyses conducted in the Pacific Northwestern United States have often revealed concordant patterns of genetic diversity among taxa. These studies demonstrate distinct North/South genetic discontinuities that have been attributed to Pleistocene glaciation. We examined phylogeographical patterns of red tree voles (Phenacomys longicaudus) in western Oregon by analysing mitochondrial control region sequences for 169 individuals from 18 areas across the species’ range. Cytochrome b sequences were also analysed from a subset of our samples to confirm the presence of major haplotype groups. Phylogenetic network analyses suggested the presence of two haplotype groups corresponding to northern and southern regions …

Diet Composition And Terrestrial Prey Selection Of The Laysan Teal On Laysan Island, Michelle H. Reynolds, John W. Slotterback, Jeffrey R. Walters

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

The Laysan teal (Anas laysanensis) is an endangered dabbling duck endemic to the Hawaiian Archipelago but currently restricted to a single breeding population on Laysan Island. We studied its diet using fecal analysis and behavioral observations. Laysan teal fecal samples (N=118) contained prey items in 15 primary prey categories with a mean of 2.9 (range 0-7) taxa per sample. Sixty-two of these fecal samples were quantified with 2,270 prey items identified (mean items per sample 37; range 0-205). Based on fecal analysis and behavioral observations, we learned that the Laysan teal is not strictly a macroinsectivore as previously …