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Large-Scale Rodent Control Reduces Pre- And Post-Dispersal Seed Predation Of The Endangered Hawaiian Lobeliad, Cyanea Superba Subsp. Superba (Campanulaceae), Richard J. Pender, Aaron B. Shiels, Lalasia Bialic-Murphy, Stephen M. Mosher

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Large-scale rodent control can help to manage endangered species that are vulnerable to invasive rodent consumption. A 26 ha rodent snap-trap grid was installed in montane forest on Oahu Island, Hawaii, in order to protect endangered snails and plants. To assess the effectiveness of this trapping operation in reducing fruit consumption and seed predation of the endangered Hawaiian lobeliad, Cyanea superba subsp. superba, pre- and post-dispersal C. superba fruit consumption were monitored for 36 plants at the site with rodent control (Kahanahaiki) and 42 plants at an adjacent site without rodent control (Pahole).Over 47 % of all monitored fruit …

Intranasal Inoculation Of White-Tailed Deer (Odocoileus Virginianus) With Lyophilized Chronic Wasting Disease Prion Particulate Complexed To Montmorillonite Clay, Tracy A. Nichols, Terry R. Spraker, Tara D. Rigg, Crystal Meyerett-Reid, Clare Hoover, Brady Michel, Jifeng Bian, Edward Hoover, Thomas Gidlewski, Aru Balachandran, Katherine O'Rourke, Glenn C. Telling, Richard Bowen, Mark D. Zabel, Kurt C. Vercauteren

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Chronic wasting disease (CWD), the only known prion disease endemic in wildlife, is a persistent problem in both wild and captive North American cervid populations. This disease continues to spread and cases are found in new areas each year. Indirect transmission can occur via the environment and is thought to occur by the oral and/or intranasal route. Oral transmission has been experimentally demonstrated and although intranasal transmission has been postulated, it has not been tested in a natural host until recently. Prions have been shown to adsorb strongly to clay particles and upon oral inoculation the prion/clay combination exhibits increased …

Is Propagule Size The Critical Factor In Predicting Introduction Outcomes In Passeriform Birds?, Michael P. Moulton, Wendell P. Cropper Jr., Michael L. Avery

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Influential analyses of the propagule pressure hypothesis have been based on multiple bird species introduced to one region (e.g. New Zealand). These analyses implicitly assume that species-level and site-level characteristics are less important than the number of individuals released. In this study we compared records of passerine introductions with propagule size information across multiple regions (New Zealand, Australia, and North America). We excluded species introduced to just one of the three regions or with significant uncertainty in the historical record, as well as species that succeeded or failed in all regions. Because it is often impossible to attribute success to …

Assignment Of Measurable Costs And Benefits To Wildlife Conservation Projects, S. A. Shwiff, A. M. Anderson, R. Cullen, P. C. L. White, S. S. Shwiff

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Success of wildlife conservation projects is determined by a suite of biological and economic factors. Donor and public understanding of the economic factors is becoming increasingly central to the longevity of funding for conservation efforts. Unlike typical economic evaluation, many costs and benefits related to conservation efforts are realised in nonmonetary terms. We identify the types of benefits and costs that arise from conservation projects and examine several well developed techniques that economists use to convert benefits and costs into monetary values so they may be compared in a common metric. Costs are typically more readily identifiable than benefits, with …

Response Of Palila And Other Subalpine Hawaiian Forest Bird Species To Prolonged Drought And Habitat Degradation By Feral Ungulates, Paul C. Banko, Richard J. Camp, Chris Farmer, Kevin W. Brinck, David L. Leonard, Robert M. Stephens

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Extinction has claimed half of all historically-known Hawaiian passerines, and today many extant species are increasingly threatened due to the combined effects of invasive species and climate change. Habitat disturbance has affected populations of feeding specialists most profoundly, and our results indicate that specialists continue to be most vulnerable, although even some abundant, introduced, generalist species also may be affected. Surveys of passerines during 1998–2011 in subalpine woodland habitat on Mauna Kea Volcano, Island of Hawai'i, revealed that the abundance of the critically endangered palila (Loxioides bailleui), a seed specialist, declined by 79% after 2003. The 'akiapōlā'au ( …

Dietary Niche Differentiation Among Three Species Of Invasive Rodents (Rattus Rattus, R. Exulans, Mus Musculus), Aaron B. Shiels, Caitlin A. Flores, Arthur Khamsing, Paul D. Krushelnycky, Stephen M. Mosher, Donald R. Drake

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

The diets of sympatric rodents partially define their realized niches. Identifying items in stomachs of introduced rodents helps determine rodents’ trophic positions and species most at risk of consumption. In the Hawaiian Islands, which lacked rodents prior to human arrival, three rodents (Rattus rattus or black rat, R. exulans or Pacific rat, Mus musculus or house mouse) commonly coexist in native habitats where they consume a wide range of plants and animals. These three rodent species were trapped in montane forest for 2.5 years; their stomach contents were analyzed to determine short-term diets (n = 12–95 indiv. per species), …

The Effects Of Vitamin K1-Rich Plant Foods On The Efficacy Of The Anticoagulant Rodenticides Chlorophacinone And Diphacinone, Used Against Montane Voles (Microtus Montanus), Gary W. Witmer, Nathan P. Snow, Rachael S. Moulton

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Voles can cause significant losses to agriculture and wood fibre production. California growers typically rely on baits containing chlorophacinone and diphacinone to reduce vole population densities, but the efficacy of those rodenticides has been decreasing. One hypothesis suggests that voles are consuming high levels of an antidote (vitamin K1) to the anticoagulants, contained within green leafy plants. We tested that hypothesis by first feeding Montane Voles (Microtus montanus) diets that were high in vitamin K1, and then providing the animals with either: (1) chlorophacinone-containing bait, (2) diphacinone-containing bait, or (3) a control diet. We found that the chlorophacinone-containing …

Managing Turfgrass To Reduce Wildlife Hazards At Airports, Brian E. Washburn, Thomas W. Seamans

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Multiple factors-including safety regul at ions, economic considerations, location, and attrae· tiveness to wildlife recognized as hazardous to avia· tion-influence the choice of land cover at airports. The principal land cover at airports within North America has historically been turfgrass. usually cool· season perennial grass species native to Europe. However, recent research has determined that, from a wildlife perspective, not all turfgrasses are alike. Some grasses are more palatable to herbivorous hazardous wildlife (e.g., Canada geese [Branta canadensis]) than others, and thus are more likely to increase the potential for wildlife-aircraft collisions when planted near critical airport operating …

Foraging Ecology Of Four Gull Species At A Coastal–Urban Interface, Brian E. Washburn, Glen E. Bernhardt, Lisa Kutschbach-Brohl, Richard B. Chipman, Laura C. Francoeur

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Coastal urban environments provide a potentially diverse source of food for gulls, including items of marine, terrestrial, and anthropogenic origin. Our objective was to examine variation in the diet and use of feeding habitat of four species of gulls, the Laughing (Leucophaeus atricilla), Herring (Larus argentatus), Great Blackbacked (L. marinus), and Ring-billed (L. delawarensis), at a coastal–urban interface. We necropsied, identified the sex and age class, and quantified the stomach contents of 1053 Laughing, 249 Herring, 67 Great Black-backed, and 31 Ring-billed Gulls collected near the New York City metropolitan area in …

Index From Landslide Ecology, Lawrence R. Walker, Aaron B. Shiels

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

No abstract provided.

Glossary From Landslide Ecology, Lawrence R. Walker, Aaron B. Shiels

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

No abstract provided.

Chapter 7 Large Scales And Future Directions For Landslide Ecology From Landslide Ecology, Lawrence R. Walker, Aaron B. Shiels

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

1. Landslide ecology is an emerging discipline that provides insights into both scientific and management issues. Scientifically, it explores nutrient cycling and soil development, plant physiological adaptations, dispersal and colonization dynamics, novel mixes of native and nonnative species, and successional trajectories in an often inhospitable environment. Landslide ecology also integrates biological aspects of landslides into efforts to manage slope hydrology, soil erosion, and the stabilization of slopes.

2. Human-landslide interactions are becoming more common as human populations expand into mountainous terrain and climate change increases landslide frequency.

3. A landscape-level approach to landslide rehabilitation integrates topography, broad-scale climatic conditions, landslide …

Chapter 5 Biotic Interactions And Temporal Patterns Forlandslide Ecology, Lawrence R. Walker, Aaron B. Shiels

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

1. Landslide succession is the sequential replacement of plant communities following landslide creation. It is affected by biotic interactions and abiotic conditions and occurs in the intervals between recurrent erosion events.

2. Plant species can facilitate or inhibit landslide succession by direct species interactions or indirectly by the alteration of resources including light levels, soil stability, soil moisture, or soil nutrients. Species replacements may also occur due to differences in the life histories of landslide colonizers.

3. Herbivores, pathogens, and non-native species influence landslide succession and contribute to the variety of successional trajectories found on landslides, potentially with long-term consequences. …

Chapter 4 Biological Consequences For Landslide Ecology, Lawrence R. Walker, Aaron B. Shiels

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

1. Landslide colonists have adaptations to survive low-nutrient, unstable substrates, where they may also experience temperature and water stress. Many of the species that colonize landslides are found exclusively in disturbed habitats and are known as gap specialists. Other colonists are common species in the adjacent undisturbed environment where their proximity to the landslide may have enabled rapid dispersal.

2. Microbes (including bacteria and fungi) are probably the first organisms to disperse to and colonize landslides. Symbiotic relationships, such as lichens, and plants with mycorrhizal fungi or nitrogen fixing bacteria, represent adaptations for survival in newly exposed, lownutrient landslide substrates. …

Chapter 3 Physical Causes And Consequences For Landslide Ecology, Lawrence R. Walker, Aaron B. Shiels

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

1. The propensity for a landslide to occur is largely determined by potential slip planes, or weakness planes in the geological substrate, where the driving forces exceed resisting forces.

2. Landslide occurrence across the landscape is often unpredictable; substrates can be resistant to slippage for centuries and then suddenly experience instability that may result from human or non-human changes that disrupt the balance between driving and resisting forces at a slip plane.

3. Post-landslide erosion is common and can contribute as much as 33% of the total sediment loss from the site of landslide initiation. Such post-landslide erosion can continue …

Chapter 2 Spatial Patterns For Landslide Ecology, Lawrence R. Walker, Aaron B. Shiels

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

1. Remote sensing tools have greatly improved the mapping of both terrestrial and submarine landslides, particularly at global scales. At regional and local scales, environmental correlates are being found that help interpret spatial patterns and related ecological processes on landslides.

2. Landslides are frequent on only 4% of the terrestrial landscape and coverage varies over time because new landslides do not occur at a constant rate.

3. Multiple landslides triggered by the same event, such as an earthquake or severe rainstorm, can vary in physical characteristics. This variety contributes to a mosaic of landslide conditions across the landscape.

4. A …

The Floodplain Food Web Mosaic: A Study Of Its Importance To Salmon And Steelhead With Implications For Their Recovery, J. Ryan Bellmore, Colden V. Baxter, Kyle Martens, Patrick J. Connolly

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Although numerous studies have attempted to place species of interest within the context of food webs, such efforts have generally occurred at small scales or disregard potentially important spatial heterogeneity. If food web approaches are to be employed to manage species, studies are needed that evaluate the multiple habitats and associated webs of interactions in which these species participate. Here, we quantify the food webs that sustain rearing salmon and steelhead within a floodplain landscape of the Methow River, Washington, USA, a location where restoration has been proposed to restore side channels in an attempt to recover anadromous fishes. We …

Wildlife In Airport Environments: Chapter 6 Wildlife Translocation As A Management Alternative At Airports, Paul D. Curtis, Jonathon D. Cepek, Rebecca Mihalco, Thomas W. Seamans, Scott R. Craven

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Wildlife in urban settings may be a welcome sight for many, but negative interactions between people and various wild species are increasing (Conover et al. 1995, Conover 2002). Wildlife populations are commonly managed in part to reduce these conflicts, particularly in high-risk areas such as roadways and airports (Conover 2002). However, the public often opposes lethal control or management methods perceived as causing harm to nuisance animals (Reiter et al. 1999, Conover 2002, Treves et al. 2006), and attitudes vary considerably depending on the particular wildlife species involved (Kretser et al. 2009). Consequently, a variety of nonlethal management approaches are …

Wildlife In Airport Environments: Chapter 11 Wildlife Conservation And Alternative Land Uses At Airports, James A. Martin, Tara J. Conkling, Jerrold L. Belant, Kristin M. Biondi, Bradley F. Blackwell, Travis L. Devault, Esteban Fernandez-Juricic, Paige M. Schmidt, Thomas W. Seamans

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Given all the attention paid throughout this book to minimizing the risk of wildlife-aircraft strikes, the title of this chapter may seem like an oxymoron. This book has emphasized management as related to the hazardous (to aircraft) sector of biodiversity. In this chapter we focus on the issue of protection and management of less hazardous taxa, and how altering land use at airports might, in limited circumstances, contribute to this objective.

The term "conservation" often leads to confusion and perceived conflicting goals of management. In fact, many of the direct management techniques used at airports (e.g., deterrents, translocation, etc.) could …

Wildlife In Airport Environments: Understanding Animal Movements At And Near Airports, Jerrold L. Belant, Brian E. Washburn, Travis L. Devault

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Understanding movements of hazardous wildlife species at and near airports is critical to formulating effective management strategies for reducing aviation risk. Animal movements vary daily, seasonally, and annually and are based on broad biological and ecological concepts, including foraging, reproduction, habitat characteristics, dispersal, and migration. As an energy conservation strategy, most animals minimize their movements to meet life requisites, which in turn presumably improves fitness. Animal movements in relation to airports can be direct; for example, Canada geese (Branta canadensis) flying onto an airfield because grass height and composition are suitable for loafing sites and as food. Animal movements in …

Wildlife In Airport Environments: Chapter 4 Tactile And Auditory Repellents To Reduce Wildlife Hazards To Aircraft, Thomas W. Seamans, James A. Martin, Jerrold L. Belant

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Wildlife within the airport environment are hazards to human safety. Lethal removal of targeted individuals reduces the immediate threat, but other approaches should be integrated into control programs to make them more effective and to help meet legal and ethical considerations (Dolbeer et al. 1995). When negative media attention, special interest groups, or calls for restrictive legislation influence public opinion, the resulting public pressure can preclude effective wildlife management and lead to subsequent population control problems (Torres et al. 1996, Coolahan and Snider 1998, Conover 2001). Nonlethal management activities to reduce wildlife use of airports may include habitat modification, exclusion …

Disease In A Dynamic Landscape: Host Behavior And Wildfire Reduce Amphibian Chytrid Infection, Blake R. Hossack, Winsor H. Lowe, Joy L. Ware, Paul Stephen Corn

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Disturbances are often expected to magnify effects of disease, but these effects may depend on the ecology, behavior, and life history of both hosts and pathogens. In many ecosystems, wildfire is the dominant natural disturbance and thus could directly or indirectly affect dynamics of many diseases. To determine how probability of infection by the aquatic fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) varies relative to habitat use by individuals, wildfire, and host characteristics, we sampled 404 boreal toads (Anaxyrus boreas boreas) across Glacier National Park, Montana (USA). Bd causes chytridiomycosis, an emerging infectious disease linked with widespread amphibian declines, including the …

Wildlife In Airport Environments: Chapter 7 Population Management To Reduce The Risk Of Wildlife-Aircraft Collisions, Richard A. Dolbeer, Alan B. Franklin

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Four basic control strategies mitigate the risks to aviation caused by wildlife at airports: (1) aircraft flight schedule modification (primarily at military airbases) and enhancement of aircraft visibility to avoid interactions with wildlife (e.g., Blackwell et al. 2009b, 2012); (2) habitat modification and elimination of food, water, and cover that attract wildlife (Cleary and Dolbeer 2005, Blackwell et al. 2009a; Chapters 5,8-10); (3) repellent and harassment techniques to disperse wildlife (Cleary and Dolbeer 2005; Chapters 2-4); and (4) wildlife population management (e.g., Dolbeer 1998). As discussed throughout this book, successful efforts to mitigate the risk of wildlife-aircraft strikes at airports …

Wildlife In Airport Environments: Chapter 9 Managing Airport Stormwater To Reduce Attraction To Wildlife, Bradley F. Blackwell, David Felstul, Thomas W. Seamans

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

An airport is a component of the landscape, contributing to and subject to local- and landscapelevel factors that affect wildlife populations and the hazards that these species pose to aviation (Blackwell et al. 2009, Martin et al. 2011). Water resources at and near an airport, in the form of both surface water and contained runoff, are recognized by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) as potential attractants to wildlife that pose hazards to aviation safety (FAA 2007). Surface water, including aboveground stormwater detention/retention facilities (see U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 2006), can represent a substantial proportion of the area within siting criteria …

On The Halophytic Nature Of Mangroves, Ken W. Krauss, Marilyn C. Ball

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Scientists have discussed the halophytic nature of intertidal plants for decades, and have generally suggested that inherent differentiation of an obligate halophyte from a facultative halophyte relates strongly to whether the plant can survive in fresh water, and not much else. In this minireview, we provide additional insight to support the pervasive notion that mangroves as a group are truly facultative halophytes, and thus add discourse to the alternate view that mangroves have an obligate salinity requirement. Indeed, growth and physiological optima are realized at moderate salinity concentrations in mangroves, but we maintain the notion that current evidence suggests that …

Wildlife In Airport Environments: Chapter 8 Identification And Management Of Wildlife Food Resources At Airports, Travis L. Devault, Brian E. Washburn

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Wildlife use airport habitats for a variety of reasons, including breeding, raising young, resting, taking refuge from predators, and locating sources of water. But the chief motivation for most individuals to encroach on airports is food. Depending on the specific habitat types present and habitat management strategies employed, airports can harbor large numbers of small mammals, insects, earthworms, and palatable vegetation that attract many species hazardous to aircraft. Often the best way to reduce populations of hazardous wildlife at airports is to determine which sources of food are being used, and then remove or modify those foods to make them …

The Malthusian–Darwinian Dynamic And The Trajectory Of Civilization, Jeffrey C. Nekola, Craig D. Allen, James H. Brown, Joseph R. Burger, Ana D. Davidson, Trevor S. Fristoe, Marcus J. Hamilton, Sean T. Hammond, Astrid Kodric-Brown, Norman Mercado-Silva, Jordan G. Okie

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Two interacting forces influence all populations: the Malthusian dynamic of exponential growth until resource limits are reached, and the Darwinian dynamic of innovation and adaptation to circumvent these limits through biological and/or cultural evolution. The specific manifestations of these forces in modern human society provide an important context for determining how humans can establish a sustainable relationship with the finite Earth.

Wildlife In Airport Environments: Chapter 15 Conclusions And Future Directions, Jerrold L. Belant, Travis L. Devault, Bradley F. Blackwell

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Although the management of wildlife at airports has seen great progress in recent decades, wildlife collisions with aircraft continue to pose risks to human safety and economic losses to the aviation industry and military (Allan 2002, Dolbeer 2009). Our understanding of physiological and behavioral responses of wildlife to various types of repellents and harassment techniques has grown tremendously. Substantial inroads have been made in developing and optimizing exclusion devices, particularly for mammals. Research and management have increased considerably in recent years, allowing us to better understand aspects of resource use (e.g., cover, food) by wildlife and the spatial scales at …

Projecting Future Grassland Productivity To Assess The Sustainability Of Potential Biofuel Feedstock Areas In The Greater Platte River Basin, Yingxin Gu, Bruce K. Wylie, Stephen P. Boyte, Khem P. Phuyal

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

This study projects future (e.g., 2050 and 2099) grassland productivities in the Greater Platte River Basin (GPRB) using ecosystem performance (EP, a surrogate for measuring ecosystem productivity) models and future climate projections. The EP models developed from a previous study were based on the satellite vegetation index, site geophysical and biophysical features, and weather and climate drivers. The future climate data used in this study were derived from the National Center for Atmospheric Research Community Climate System Model 3.0 ‘SRES A1B’ (a ‘middle’ emissions path). The main objective of this study is to assess the future sustainability of the potential …

Effects Of Linking A Soil-Water-Balance Model With A Groundwater-Flow Model, Jennifer S. Stanton, Derek W. Ryter, Steven M. Peterson

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

A previously published regional groundwater-flow model in north-central Nebraska was sequentially linked with the recently developed soil-water-balance (SWB) model to analyze effects to groundwater-flow model parameters and calibration results. The linked models provided a more detailed spatial and temporal distribution of simulated recharge based on hydrologic processes, improvement of simulated groundwater-level changes and base flows at specific sites in agricultural areas, and a physically based assessment of the relative magnitude of recharge for grassland, nonirrigated cropland, and irrigated cropland areas. Root-mean-squared (RMS) differences between the simulated and estimated or measured target values for the previously published model and linked models …