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University of Nebraska - Lincoln
School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research
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- Anthropogenic disturbance (1)
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Articles 1 - 7 of 7
Full-Text Articles in Animal Sciences
Demographic Consequences Of Off-River Nesting For Piping Plover (Charadrius Melodus) And Interior Least Tern (Sternula Antillarum Athalassos) In The Lower Platte River System, Nebraska, Elsa M. Forsberg
School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research
Piping plovers (Charadrius melodus; hereafter, plovers) and interior least terns (Sternula antillarum athalassos; hereafter, terns) are two avian species that nest along the Lower Platte River system (LPRS) in Nebraska. In the LPRS, river sandbars provide natural nesting habitat, but off-river sites provide substantial nesting habitat especially when sandbar habitat is scarce. Although presumed to be important for the persistence of plovers and terns, off-river habitat is not self-sustaining and predicted to decline. Understanding the vital rates of plovers and terns in the LPRS will inform the role of off- river sites in the future conservation …
Precipitation And Greenness In Pastoral Lands Of East Turkana, Kenya, Paul Akpejeluh
Precipitation And Greenness In Pastoral Lands Of East Turkana, Kenya, Paul Akpejeluh
School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research
Pastoralism has long supported livelihoods and provided essential ecosystem services in landscapes of East Africa. Vegetation productivity is central to the functioning of pastoral systems but may be affected by changes in climate and landuse. Vegetation monitoring is important for understanding the effects of global change in pastoral lands; however, it can be time and resource intensive. Remote sensing provides opportunities for efficient multi-scale monitoring of vegetation and climatic drivers. In this thesis, I explore the utility of satellite and UAV remote sensing for monitoring vegetation and precipitation trends and relationships in the East of Lake Turkana Region of northern …
Spatial Ecology And Resource Selection Of Bighorn Sheep (Ovis Canadensis) Ewes In A Prairie Badlands Population, Erin Wood
School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research
The basic spatial ecology and habitat relationships of female bighorn sheep in Nebraska are poorly understood. Establishing seasonal patterns of space use and resource selection for this population at the margin of their historical and current range addresses a key knowledge gap and provides important baseline information for ongoing conservation efforts in Nebraska. We deployed GPS radio-collars on 56 adult ewes in western Nebraska to quantify seasonal space use, movements, and resource selection of ewes. To investigate spatial ecology, we quantified movements of ewes and the factors that influence home range size, seasonal use, and spatial stability across seasons. Home …
Examining Patterns In Nest Predation Using Artificial Nests, Victoria L. Simonsen
Examining Patterns In Nest Predation Using Artificial Nests, Victoria L. Simonsen
School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research
The use of artificial nests to study the predation of avian nests has faced disregard by ecologists due to inconsistencies found between the survival rates of real and artificial nests across studies and reviews. The negative perception of artificial nests providing an inconsistent assessment of survival has thus fostered the perception that artificial nests are a secondary option to be used to overcome logistical hurdles associated with achieving sufficient sample sizes in systems where study species are rare or elusive, or as merely a preliminary method to study predation across gradients. We argue that the greatest mistake ecologists have made …
A Regional Gis-Based Analysis Of Elk Habitat Suitability In Northwestern Nebraska, Justin W. Fischer
A Regional Gis-Based Analysis Of Elk Habitat Suitability In Northwestern Nebraska, Justin W. Fischer
School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research
The need to accurately assess the use and suitability of elk (Cervus elaphus spp.) habitat at regional scales will continue to increase as human development encroaches into what was once optimum elk habitat. The objectives of this research were to calculate the relative proportions of habitat use by elk in the Pine Ridge region of Northwestern Nebraska from a set of radio-collared elk locations and generate a habitat suitability model. Habitat variables (Iandcover type, aspect, slope, distance to a road, road density, and distance from the ponderosa pine edge) were measured for each elk location (n = 5,787 dating …
A Report On Black-Tailed Prairie Dogs In Nebraska-- Their Biology, Behavior, Ecology, Management, And Responses To A Visual Barrier Fence, Nancy S. Foster
A Report On Black-Tailed Prairie Dogs In Nebraska-- Their Biology, Behavior, Ecology, Management, And Responses To A Visual Barrier Fence, Nancy S. Foster
School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research
I examined the effects of a visual barrier fence, which had a see-through visibility of 600/0, on the foraging, vigilance, and aggressive behaviors of adult female black-tailed prairie dogs from June through August 1990 in central Nebraska. I also examined changes in their home ranges and use of an area in response to this fence. Prairie dogs prefer an open view of their surroundings. Therefore, I expected animals near a visual barrier to spend more time in vigilance and aggression, and less time foraging. Adult female prairie dogs exposed to the visual barrier devoted more time to foraging and less …
Habitat Use And Diet Analysis Of Breeding Common Barn-Owls In Western Nebraska, Joseph A. Gubanyi M.S.
Habitat Use And Diet Analysis Of Breeding Common Barn-Owls In Western Nebraska, Joseph A. Gubanyi M.S.
School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research
I studied barn owl (Tyto alba) breeding biology in western Nebraska 1984-1986. I had greatest success capturing males (56% success) at night using trap doors at nest sites and females (91 % success) using hoop nets at nest sites during the day. Barn owls removed 16 of 23 tail-mounted radios. Eight birds were radio-tracked for 7-14.5 hours. The mean foraging range was 198 ha (32- 299 ha, n = 8) with < 1 % overlap among birds from adjacent nest sites. Field-tested telemetry error was high (mean displacements of radio-locations for 2 birds were 208 and 241 m). I found no relationship between percent cover in foraging habitat and reproductive success. I identified 10,140 prey items from 15 nest sites and found both annual and seasonal variation in barn owl diets. Microtus ochrogaster occurred most frequently (32.7%) and increased in the diet from 17.6 to 27.2 to 43.5% 1984-1986. M. ochrogaster and Perognathus hispidus annual frequencies were …