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Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences

Revised Checklist Of North American Mammals North Of Mexico, 1979, J. Knox Jones Jr., Dilford C. Carter, Hugh H. Genoways Dec 1979

Revised Checklist Of North American Mammals North Of Mexico, 1979, J. Knox Jones Jr., Dilford C. Carter, Hugh H. Genoways

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

Faunal checklists provide useful ready references for many kinds of endeavors, both in the laboratory and in the field, and are particularly helpful to students. Since publication more than four years ago of a "Revised checklist of North American mammals north of Mexico" (Jones et al., 1975), demand for that list has exceeded the supply set aside for general distribution; additionally, systematic studies of mammals published since 1974 necessitate changes in the list. Primarily for these reasons, a newly revised checklist of mammalian species occurring in the Nearctic to the north of Mexico is here presented. As in this and …


Variation In Pappogeomys Castanops (Geomyidae) On The Llano Estacado Of Texas And New Mexico, Robert C. Dowler, Hugh H. Genoways Dec 1979

Variation In Pappogeomys Castanops (Geomyidae) On The Llano Estacado Of Texas And New Mexico, Robert C. Dowler, Hugh H. Genoways

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

Nongeographic and geographic variation in the yellow-cheeked pocket gopher, Pappogeomys castanops, were analyzed in specimens collected in northwestern Texas and eastern New Mexico. Univariate and multivariate methods of analysis were utilized to assess variation in morphometric characters among 12 samples of P. castanops. Because of significant variation with age, only adult specimens were used in analyses. Adult males were significantly larger than females in all 13 characters studied. Our analyses of geographic variation reveal that those specimens previously assigned to the subspecies P. c. simulans are not sufficiently distinct to warrant subspecific designation.


Whole Issue Nebraska Bird Review (December 1979) 47(4) Dec 1979

Whole Issue Nebraska Bird Review (December 1979) 47(4)

Nebraska Bird Review

Table of Contents

Great Gray Owl Distribution, Winter 1977-78 ....................................... 62

Book Reviews .................................................................. 65

Notes ......................................................................... 66

Index of Volume 47 ............................................................. 70


Concurrent Drinking By Pigeons On Fixed-Interval Reinforcement Schedules, Robert H.I. Dale Nov 1979

Concurrent Drinking By Pigeons On Fixed-Interval Reinforcement Schedules, Robert H.I. Dale

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

Three experienced pigeons were exposed to at least ten consecutive 100-min sessions on each of three food-reinforced fixed-interval (FI) schedules: FI 50-sec, FI 100-sec and FI 200-sec. Water was freely available. Drinking was largely confined to the first third of each fixed interval, and the mean sessional water intake was directly related to the food-reinforcement rate for each animal. The animals drank very quickly, i.e., 3-4 ml/sec, but the drinking bouts were brief, i.e., 0.8-1.4 sec, and infrequent, i.e., 2-5/hr. The parameters describing concurrent drinking in the pigeon are strikingly different from those describing rats’ drinking under similar reinforcement schedules, …


Dragonflies At The Uwm Cedar-Sauk Field Station, Tom Pleyte Oct 1979

Dragonflies At The Uwm Cedar-Sauk Field Station, Tom Pleyte

Field Station Bulletins

When visitors and classes utilize the Field Station facilities during the summer months, they seldom fail to notice dragonflies coursing the old fields or hawking mosquitoes over the little ponds. Their beauty and strong powers of flight have long fascinated observers, but few casual on-lookers are aware of the number of species present at the Field Station and the complexity of their behavior and annual cycles. This report will attempt to familiarize the reader with some aspects of the biology of dragonflies, the species of dragonflies present at the UWM Field Station and the times of the year when each …


Leachable Phosphorus Levels Of Urban Street Trees: Contributions To Urban Runoff, John R. Dorney Oct 1979

Leachable Phosphorus Levels Of Urban Street Trees: Contributions To Urban Runoff, John R. Dorney

Field Station Bulletins

Intelligent environmental management of urban areas depends upon a thorough understanding of urban ecosystem properties, such as structure, energy flow and materials cycles. This report examines the phosphorous cycle in urban runoff - a portion of the urban phosphorous cycle - which is involved in diffuse (non-point) source pollution from urban areas. The goals of my research were to determine if street tree leaves and seeds are a source of phosphorous in urban runoff and if so, how these levels varied between tree species.


Records Of Bats (Mammalia: Chiroptera) From Suriname, Hugh H. Genoways, Stephen L. Williams Sep 1979

Records Of Bats (Mammalia: Chiroptera) From Suriname, Hugh H. Genoways, Stephen L. Williams

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

Ten species are added to the 60 species of bats already known to occur in Suriname. The species added include Micronycteris minuta, M. nicefori, Phylloderma stenops, Tonatia bidens, T. brasiliense, Carollia brevicauda, Chiroderma trinitatum, Vampyressa bidens, Promops centralis, and P. nasutus. Additional information is presented on five species previously recorded from Suriname, including Pteronotus parnellii, Mimon crenulatum, Artibeus concolor, Chiroderma villosum, and Sturnira tildae.


Whole Issue Nebraska Bird Review (September 1979) 47(3) Sep 1979

Whole Issue Nebraska Bird Review (September 1979) 47(3)

Nebraska Bird Review

Table of Contents

1979 (Fifty-fourth) Spring Migration and Occurrence Report .......................... 42

The Seventy-eight Annual Meeting ................................................ 54

1979 Fall Field Day................................. 55

Book Reviews.............................................................. 56

Successful Golden Eagle Nest in Southwest Nebraska ............................... 57

Notes ......................................................................... 57


Distribution And Natural History Of Amphibians And Reptiles In Western Nebraska With Ecological Notes On The Herpetiles Of Arapaho Prairie, Royce E. Ballinger, John D. Lynch, Patrick H. Cole Sep 1979

Distribution And Natural History Of Amphibians And Reptiles In Western Nebraska With Ecological Notes On The Herpetiles Of Arapaho Prairie, Royce E. Ballinger, John D. Lynch, Patrick H. Cole

Papers in Herpetology

Introduction: The distribution and natural history of amphibians and reptiles have been little studied in the northern states of the great plains. Relative to other vertebrate groups, the herpetofauna of grasslands is depauperate particularly at higher latitudes where temperature becomes a limiting factor to poikilotherms. Nevertheless, certain species of amphibians and reptiles are common in specific habitats and thus form a conspicuous component of the prairie fauna. The purposes of the present study were to document the distributions of herpetiles in a specified region of western Nebraska and to describe general aspects of their natural history. We hope such information …


Specialized Insectivory: Beetle-Eatinga Nd Moth-Eating Molossid Bats, Patricia W. Freeman Aug 1979

Specialized Insectivory: Beetle-Eatinga Nd Moth-Eating Molossid Bats, Patricia W. Freeman

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

The structure and mechanics of insectivores have been little studied. An effort is made here to compare and contrast jaw characteristics of insectivorous bats with those of herbivores and carnivores. Further, in one particular family of bats (Molossidae) jaw modifications are such that animals that take hard-shelled insect prey can be distinguished from those that take soft-shelled insect prey. Beetle-eaters generally have thick jaws, well-developed cranial crests, and fewer but bigger teeth, whereas moth-eaters have thin jaws, little crest build-up, and more but smaller teeth.


Whole Issue Nebraska Bird Review (June 1979) 47(2) Jun 1979

Whole Issue Nebraska Bird Review (June 1979) 47(2)

Nebraska Bird Review

Table of Contents

1978 (Twenty-first) Fall Occurrence Report ........................................ 22

Addition to 1978 Spring Migration Report .......................................... 33

1978 Christmas Count........................................................... 33

Some Comments on "The Breeding Birds of Nebraska”............................. 38

A Second Nesting Record for Merlins in Nebraska .................................. 39

Great Black-backed Gull near Omaha............................................. 39


Acid Precipitation: A Potential Environmental Problem At The Uwm Field Station, Nicholas P. Kobriger Apr 1979

Acid Precipitation: A Potential Environmental Problem At The Uwm Field Station, Nicholas P. Kobriger

Field Station Bulletins

Emissions into the atmosphere from man-related sources are changing precipitation quality and chemical climate over many parts of the United States, especially those areas downwind from highly urbanized and industrialized sections. Soils, vegetation and surface waters act as passive sinks for many elements found in the atmosphere (Oden, 1976). These elements are not fixed but are transferred from one component to the next at varying rates. High acidity in precipitation is a growing environmental problem (Oden, 1976, Cogbill, 1975b and USDI, 1973). Acids and other pollutants in the atmosphere which are washed out by rainfall can affect soil processes, plant …


Sex Identification In Black-Capped Chickadees, Charles M. Weise Apr 1979

Sex Identification In Black-Capped Chickadees, Charles M. Weise

Field Station Bulletins

At the UWM Field Station we have been banding chickadees since 1965, and color banding since 1967. Since 1970, I have conducted an intensive study of the population ecology of this species involving observations of the winter flock organization, dominance orders in flocks, territorial behavior in spring and summer, nesting success, dispersal of fledged young and survival of young from summer to winter. The objective is to understand how the chickadee population is regulated. The population occupies 750 acres of upland forests and bog forests and, at any one time, consists of 200-300 birds, virtually all color-banded for individual recognition. …


Salt And Milwaukee Street Trees, Susan Van Wyck, Forest Stearns Apr 1979

Salt And Milwaukee Street Trees, Susan Van Wyck, Forest Stearns

Field Station Bulletins

Many trees are not well-adapted to the rigors of urban life. Some are highly susceptible to the effects of S02. Others, such as the oaks, grow too slowly while cottonwood and horse chestnut for example, good city trees, in most respects, produce quantities of fruit or seeds considered a nuisance by many residents. Trees best adapted to urban life appear to be those native to floodplains such as elm, ash, silver maple and sycamore. These species evolved to survive spring floods, summer droughts and therefore are better suited to the poorly aerated city soils. Since the rapid demise of elms …


Oak Island Dynamics In Southeastern Wisconsin, Frank Mudrak Apr 1979

Oak Island Dynamics In Southeastern Wisconsin, Frank Mudrak

Field Station Bulletins

The oak forests of southeastern Wisconsin appear relatively consistent in species composition and probably have shown little change in this regard since European settlement, perhaps because they were originally forest islands in a prairie matrix and remain as islands in an agricultural setting. Elimination of periodic fire permitted the oak savanna to develop into oak forest. Apparently the degree of separation between islands and the xeric nature of the sites restrict invasion by exotic species established as cultivars in nearby villages and farmsteads. Neither tree species richness nor tree species diversity could be predicted from island size, substantiating the belief …


A Study Of Nongeographic Variation In Tatera Leucogaster (Mammalia: Rodentia) From Botswana, Pierre Swanepoel, Duane A. Schlitter, Hugh H. Genoways Mar 1979

A Study Of Nongeographic Variation In Tatera Leucogaster (Mammalia: Rodentia) From Botswana, Pierre Swanepoel, Duane A. Schlitter, Hugh H. Genoways

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

Specimens of Tatera leucogaster from six localities in Botswana were tested for variation with age, secondary sexual variation, and individual variation. Of the six age classes recognized, categories I, II, and III each formed their own group, whereas cat egories IV, V, and VI were not separable on a morphometric basis and were considered to be adults. Significant secondary sexual variation was found only in depth of braincase in which females were larger. The only character exhibiting unusually high individual variation was length of posterior palatal foramen. All other characters exhibited individual variation within acceptable limits.


A Systematic Review Of The Olive-Backed Pocket Mouse, Perognathus Fasciatus (Rodentia, Heteromyidae), Daniel F. Williams, Hugh H. Genoways Mar 1979

A Systematic Review Of The Olive-Backed Pocket Mouse, Perognathus Fasciatus (Rodentia, Heteromyidae), Daniel F. Williams, Hugh H. Genoways

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

Geographic variation in Perognathus fasciatus Wied and the identities of specimens of P. fasciatus and P. flavescens from areas of potential sympatry were investigated. Populations of P. fasciatus from the northern Great Plains, in areas with the highest amounts of precipitation, were the darkest colored and had proportionately the smallest auditory bullae. Size varied clinally in the Great Plains, with larger mice being found in the cooler, northern latitudes. Populations from the arid intermountain basins of Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming were largest in size, had the longest tails, were the palest in color, and had the largest bullae. Two races …


Whole Issue Nebraska Bird Review (March 1979) 47(1) Mar 1979

Whole Issue Nebraska Bird Review (March 1979) 47(1)

Nebraska Bird Review

Table of Contents

1978 Treasurer's Report ........................................ 2

The Breeding Birds of Nebraska. ...........................................3

Book Reviews .............................................................. 17, 19

Notes ..................................................................... 17, 19


Redescription And Comparison Of A Highly Fossorial Mole, Domninoides Mimicus (Insectivora, Talpidae), From The Clarendonian, Patricia W. Freeman Jan 1979

Redescription And Comparison Of A Highly Fossorial Mole, Domninoides Mimicus (Insectivora, Talpidae), From The Clarendonian, Patricia W. Freeman

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

The holotype of the species, Domninoides mimicus, is based on one tooth. Described in the present report is material containing a practically complete dentition and many postcranial elements which definitely belong with the teeth. This species is closely related to Domninoides valentinensis described by Reed (1962), but some of the antemolars in valentinensis are misidentified. The tooth formulas for valentinensis and for mimicus are given. Development of the cingula on the upper and lower molars in mimicus is conspicuous. Because of similar features in the postcranial bones, the Clarendonian mole may be as fossorial as Scalopus, probably the …


Nebraska Rainbow Trout, Nebraska Game And Parks, G. Zeurlein, L. Hesse, J. Seeb, L. Wishard Jan 1979

Nebraska Rainbow Trout, Nebraska Game And Parks, G. Zeurlein, L. Hesse, J. Seeb, L. Wishard

Nebraska Game and Parks Commission: Publications

Chapter 1 Lethal and Preferred Temperatures of Lake McConaughy Rainbow Trout Versus Domestic Strain Rainbow Trout By R. Vancil, G. Zuerlein and L. Hesse

Chapter 2 A Nitrifying Filter-Cooling Condenser System for Total Water Re-use in Cold-Water Fish Holding or Rearing Applications By L. Hesse, G. Zuerlein and R. Vancil

Chapter 3 Biochemical Genetic Analysis of Two Strains of Nebraska Rainbow Trout By J. Seeb and L. Wishard

The self-sustaining rainbow trout population living in Lake Mcconaughy and the North Platte River tributaries is unique to the Great Plains region. The population spends most of its adult life in the …


Morphometrics [Of Phyllostomatid Bats], Pierre Swanepoel, Hugh H. Genoways Jan 1979

Morphometrics [Of Phyllostomatid Bats], Pierre Swanepoel, Hugh H. Genoways

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

In this paper, we have attempted to cite all relevant literature in which mensural
data pertaining to phyllostomatid bats has appeared. We are not so naive as to
believe this goal was reached, but we do believe most pertinent publications
are listed, including all major works relating to each species. This information
serves as a summary of what currently is known concerning morphometrics of
phyllostomatids and hopefully provides a basis for future morphometric studies
of members of the family.


Niobrara-Missouri River Fishery Investigations, Larry W. Hesse, Gene Zeurlein, Roger Vancil, Leonard Koziol, Brad Newcomb, Leigh Ann Retelsdorf Jan 1979

Niobrara-Missouri River Fishery Investigations, Larry W. Hesse, Gene Zeurlein, Roger Vancil, Leonard Koziol, Brad Newcomb, Leigh Ann Retelsdorf

Nebraska Game and Parks Commission: Publications

The Niobrara River heads in the table lands of eastern Wyoming and flows 786 kilometers (km) eastward across Nebraska joining the Missouri River near the town of Niobrara, Nebraska. The Niobrara is the largest Missouri River tributary between the last two mainstem impoundments (Lake Francis Case and Lewis and Clark Lake). Fish movement up the Niobrara is prevented by Nebraska Public Power District's (NPPD's) Spencer Hydroelectric Dam, 63.3 km upstream from the river mouth. The lower reach of the river is turbid and carries a considerable load of sand, silt, and organic debris into the Missouri River. The mean annual …


Differentiation Of Fourth And Early Fifth Stages Of Parascaris Equorum (Goeze, 1782) Nematoda: Ascaridoidea, P. A. Pilitt, J. R. Lichtenfels, P. A. Madden Jan 1979

Differentiation Of Fourth And Early Fifth Stages Of Parascaris Equorum (Goeze, 1782) Nematoda: Ascaridoidea, P. A. Pilitt, J. R. Lichtenfels, P. A. Madden

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty and Staff Publications

The morphology of Parascaris equorum of horses was studied; light and scanning electron microscopy were used. Late fourth-stage larvae have narrow, rectangular lips bearing few, large. triangular, irregularly spaced denticles and the lips are not markedly set off from the body. The cutick of the late fourth stage is completely transversely striated, with incomplete longitudinal ridges creating a brickwork pattern; longitudinal alae are present. Total body lengths of fourth-stage larvae range from 10 to 32 mm. A single molting fourth-stage male was found to be 33 mm long. Early fifthstage nematodes have wide, trilobate lips with a deep transverse groove …


Rabbits (Genus Sylvilagus) Of Nicaragua, Terry L. Yates, Hugh H. Genoways, J. Knox Jones Jr. Jan 1979

Rabbits (Genus Sylvilagus) Of Nicaragua, Terry L. Yates, Hugh H. Genoways, J. Knox Jones Jr.

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

The rabbits (genus Sylvilagus) of Nicaragua are herein reviewed systematically. Geographic and nongeographic variation has been assessed based on examination of 124 museum specimens constituting 28 samples of Sylvilagus floridanus from Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica, and 15 samples of S. brasiliensis from Nicaragua and Costa Rica. Morphological features of the skin and skull were analyzed using various univariate and multivariate statistical techniques. Analysis of geographic variation in S. floridanus indicates that rabbits of this species in Nicaragua are referable to the subspecies S. f. costaricensis, rather than to S. f. hondurensis as previously believed. Based on our …


Sperm Morphology, G. Lawrence Forman, Hugh H. Genoways Jan 1979

Sperm Morphology, G. Lawrence Forman, Hugh H. Genoways

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

Bishop and Austin (1957) in their study of variation in mammalian spermatozoa suggested that the sperm of each mammalian species was probably unique. Although complete volumes have been written on the ultrastructure of spermatozoa (for example Baccetti, 1970), particularly of humans and domestic animals, there is still relatively little information available on the comparative gross morphology of spermatozoa. McFarlane (1963), Forman (1968), and Forman et at. (1968) made significant contributions to our understanding of the use of sperm morphology in establishing systematic and phylogenetic relationships of birds and mammals. However, there have been very few similar studies published to this …