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Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences
Impact Of Sagebrush Nutrients And Monoterpenes On Greater Sage-Grouse Vital Rates, Brian R. Wing, Terry A. Messmer
Impact Of Sagebrush Nutrients And Monoterpenes On Greater Sage-Grouse Vital Rates, Brian R. Wing, Terry A. Messmer
Human–Wildlife Interactions
Greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus; sage-grouse) depend on sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) to complete its annual life cycle. The winter diet for sage-grouse consists almost entirely of sagebrush leaves, and individual birds may gain weight while foraging on sagebrush. Previous studies have reported higher crude protein and lower monoterpene concentrations in the sagebrush species selected as winter forage by sagegrouse. However, no studies have attempted to link female sage-grouse vital rates (i.e., nest initiation and success, egg fertility, clutch size, and adult survival) to crude protein or monoterpene concentrations of sagebrush plants browsed during pre-nesting periods. From March …
Declining Populations Of Greater Sage-Grouse: Where And Why, Michael R. Conover, Anthony J. Roberts
Declining Populations Of Greater Sage-Grouse: Where And Why, Michael R. Conover, Anthony J. Roberts
Human–Wildlife Interactions
Scientists have been predicting the extinction of greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) since 1916, and sage-grouse populations have declined relentlessly during the last century despite attempts to reverse the decline. In this review paper, we examined the scientific literature to evaluate hypotheses about why sage-grouse populations have declined. There is little support for the hypotheses that the decline is due to overhunting, parasites, food shortages, or collisions with power lines or fences. West Nile Virus (WNV) reduced sagegrouse up to 25% when the virus first reached the West during 2002, but sage-grouse have developed resistance to the virus since …