Animal Sciences Commons^™

On The Notion That Insectivory Is A Specialized Condition, Patricia W. Freeman

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

Insectivory as a specialized feeding condition in mammals has not been explored as has been carnivory or herbivory. Insect-feeding, non-edentate mammals have dilambdodont teeth and modifications in the craniomandibular joint which distinguish them from other mammals such as carnivores, herbivores, and omnivores. Variation in a family of insectivorous bats, Molossidae, can be likened functionally to the kinetic-inertial and static-pressure jaw systems noted in rhipidistians, amphibians, and reptiles. Food data show that the bats with the kinetic-inertial system eat moths and ones with the static-pressure system eat beetles. Not only do these insectivorous mammals eat insects, they also are modified to …

1977 Fall Field Day

Nebraska Bird Review

1977 Fall Field Day

The 1977 Fall Field Day started Saturday night with a get-together at the home of the George W. Browns in Kearney. Sunday, 2 October, started out gray and chilly, but eventually developed into the fine fall day which had been ordered and promised. The trip started at the Newark Township building and went north on Nebraska 10 to the north bank of the Platte River and explored eastward along the river. After that area had been covered the group went to an area northeast of Fort Kearney. After the lunch at the Newark Township building, at …

Sixty-Five Years Of Whooping Crane Records In Nebraska, Paul A. Johnsgard, Richard Redfield

Nebraska Bird Review

In 1933, Myron Swenk determined the status of the Whooping Crane in Nebraska by summarizing all of the records then available to him, and established the general pattern of timing and geographic distribution of Whooping Crane occurrence in this state. Although the population of this species has remained very low since that time, a sufficient number of observations have been made to warrant updating his analysis and comparing the more recent records with these earlier ones. During the summer of 1977 the junior author undertook such a summary as a class project, by extracting such records from all of the …

Masthead From Nebraska Bird Review (December 1977) 45(4).

Nebraska Bird Review

Published quarterly in March, June, September, and December by the Nebraska Ornithologists' Union Inc. as its official journal and sent free to all members who are not in arrears for dues. Subscriptions (on a calendar year basis only) at $5.00 per year in the United States and $5.25 in all other counties, payable in advance. Single numbers $1.25 each.

Memberships (on a calendar year basis only): Student, $3.00; Active, $5.00; Sustaining, $7.00; Family Active, $7.00; Family Sustaining, $9.00; Life, $75.00.

All dues and subscriptions should be remitted to the Treasurer, A. W. Madison, Box 505, Sutherland, Nebraska 69165. Orders for …

Whole Issue Nebraska Bird Review (December 1977) 45(4)

Nebraska Bird Review

Table of Contents

Sixty-five Years of Whooping Crane Records in Nebraska .......... 54

1977 Fall Field Day ............................... 56

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

Index of Volume XXXXV ....................................... 58

Morphometric Variation In The Tropical Pocket Gopher (Geomys Tropicalis), Stephen L. Williams, Hugh H. Genoways

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

The tropical pocket gopher (Geomys tropicalis). which exhibits no chromosomal or genic variation, was examined for variability at the morphometrical level. Univariate and multivariate analyses were used to determine age, sexual, and geographical variation. Significant differences were found between different age classes and between sexes. The amount of individual variation was comparable with other rodents and did not exhibit the reduced variation expressed at the chromosomal and genic levels, G. tropicalis is considered to be a monotypic species.

Entomological Studies At The Uwm Field Station, Eugene L. Lange

Field Station Bulletins

Although the invertebrate fauna represents the greatest number of species and individuals within most animal communities, little work on them has been done at the UWM Field Station. Most of the invertebrate work which has been done used insects, which are the largest class of animals. This reflects the orientation of the invertebrate zoologists at UWM towards the Center for Great Lakes Studies and the lack of an entomologist orientated to field work. This report is a statement of where we stand at the Field Station as far as past entomological research is concerned and where we are going in …

A Management Plan For A Swamp Forest Based On Vegetation Analysis, Bonnie Swartz

Field Station Bulletins

Many natural areas in Wisconsin have been preserved by the state legislature, acting through the Scientific Areas Preservation Council, and by public and private organizations such as the Nature Conservancy. The Field Station's beech-maple woods and Cedarburg Bog are good examples. Once a natural area has been preserved, decisions must be made about how to maintain or manage it. Management is defined as any activity directed toward maintaining a given condition in plant and/or animal populations and/or habitats in accordance with the conservation plan for an area (Leopold, et. aI., 1963). Since many biological communities are constantly changing due to …

Comparison Of Coyote And Coyote × Dog Hybrid Food Habits In Southeastern Nebraska, Brian R. Mahan

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

The recent taxonomic study by Mahan et al. (1978) documented the occurrence of coyote (Canis latrans) x dog (c. familiaris) hybrids in Nebraska. This study, and those by Freeman (1976) in Oklahoma and Gipson et al. (1974) in Arkansas show coyote x dog hybrids, though not abundant, to be numerous in some areas. The purpose of the present study was to compare the stomach contents of coyote x dog hybrids collected by Mahan et al. (1978) from southeastern Nebraska with those of contemporary coyotes.

Stomachs of 12 coyote x dog hybrids and 16 coyotes collected November 1975 …

Whole Issue Nebraska Bird Review (September 1977) 45(3)

Nebraska Bird Review

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1977 (Fifty-second) Spring Migration and Occurrence Report .............................34

Poor-wills in Lancaster and Saunders Counties............................42

The Swanskin ............................................. 45

Book Reviews .................................................................. 50

Notes ......................................................................... 51

Phylogeny, Convergence, And Snake Behavior, Harry Walter Greene

Doctoral Dissertations

Comparative studies of snake behavior were used to confront three related conceptual issues in ethology: (i) Can behavior evolve? (ii) If so, how can the origins of similarities and differences in behavior among animals be assessed? (iii) What is the significance of this information for evolutionary biology?

Some workers have recently asserted that behavior does not evolve and that behavioral homologies are generally not discernible. A consideration of genetics and developmental biology suggests that both points of view reflect an unrealistic structure-function dualism. In a strict sense, only transcriptional products are genetically determined; all other aspects of the phenotype are …

Larval Taxonomy Of The Caddisfly Genus Hydropsyche In Eastern North America, With Notes On Biology And Distribution, Guenter A. Schuster

Doctoral Dissertations

Larvae of caddisfly genus Hydropsyche are among the most encountered and abundant organisms in lotic environments in eastern North America. Yet, little is known of the larval stages of this genus. Previously, the larvae of only 12 species were known. In addition to these 12, descriptions of the larvae of additional 27 species are presented here for the first time.

Larval-adult associations were made by simutaneously collecting mature pupae (metamorphotypes) and larvae. Species determination is based on the cleared male genitalia of the mature pupae. The abdomen was cleared in strong KOH so that sclerotized structures lying beneath surrounding tissues …

Meeting Of The Elephant Interest Group At Michigan State University, June 21, 1977, Jeheskel Shoshani

Elephant

Digest of the minutes of the first informal meeting of the Elephant Interest Group at the 57th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Mamalogists (ASM).

Whole Issue Nebraska Bird Review (June 1977) 45(2)

Nebraska Bird Review

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Great-tailed Grackles Nesting in Nebraska ......................................... 18

1976 (Nineteenth) Fall Occurrence Report ......................................... 18

The Seventy-sixth Annual Meeting ................................................ 30

Book Reviews .......................................................... 31

Note ....................................32

The Effects Of An Altered Photoperiod Upon The Migratory Orientation In The White-Throated Sparrow (Zonoirichia Albicollis), Larry J. Miller, Charles M. Weise

Field Station Bulletins

A variety of cues are available that a nocturnal migratory bird might use to orient during its journey. Perhaps the best established is their use of the information available in the celestial sky. But how much information do they gain? Experiments have shown that the apparent nightly movement of the stars caused by the earth's rotation aids in providing the bird a north-south axis or compass information (Emlen, 1967b; Gauthreaux, 1969). In addition, certain constellations in the northern circumpolar region are crucial for this axis determination (Emlen, 1967b). The celestial sky also changes in a regular manner with the seasons. …

Seasonal Climates At The Cedar-Sauk Field Station, David Miller

Field Station Bulletins

The climate of the Cedar-Sauk Field Station in its annual cycle can be described in terms of (a) energy inputs and their consequences, (b) water inputs and budget, and (c) weather phenomena. All these aspects of climate express a marked seasonality between long, snowy, and cold winters, and fully developed, warm summers. Let us look first at the energy factors in its climate.

Vegetation Forest Island Edges: A Preliminary Report, Marc C. Bruner, James B. Levenson

Field Station Bulletins

As the original native forest has been dissected by roads and replaced by farms or towns, the amount of forest edge relative to the area of forest interior has greatly increased. Today forest edge communities are widespread in many man-modified landscapes. However, the role the edge community plays in the regional landscape, and the extent of and variation in the edge community are relatively undefined. The purpose of this study is to determine the nature of forest edge communities. The specific objectives of the study are to: (1) quantitatively survey and assess the forest edge community; (2) determine how forest …

Whole Issue Nebraska Bird Review (March 1977) 45(1)

Nebraska Bird Review

Table of Contents

1976 Treasurers Report ...................2

1976 Nebraska Nesting Survey ...................3

Wild Turkeys in the Fontenelle Forest Area ...................6

1976 Christmas Count ...................7

A Groove-billed Ani and other Birds in Cuming and Doge Counties ...................13

Book Reviews ...................14

Notes ...................15

Continuation Of Spider Research In Arkansas: Ouachita Mountain Area, Peggy Rae Dorris, Fred L. Burnside Jr.

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

No abstract provided.

Anomalies Of Limb Regeneration In The Adult Salamander, Ambystoma Annulatum, Henry E. Young

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

Regeneration in the adult salamander, Ambystoma annulatum, parallels that of the adult newt (Iten & Bryant, 1973). However, a number of unique features become apparent upon examination of anomalies of adult regenerates. Two regenerates which displayed gross abnormalities revealed, upon histological examination, unique features which give insight into a possible pattern of digit formation in this species of adult salamander. Normal regenerates show 4 or 5 digits radiating distal to the same respective number of bones (distal carpals) present in the distal row of wrist bones. The first anomaly showed only two large, fused distal carpals and two lateral digits. …

Epidermal Ridge Formation During Limb Regeneration In The Adult Salamander, Ambystoma Annulatum, Henry E. Young

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

Regeneration was studied in the Ambystoma annulatum by the amputation of the right forearm of twenty-four adults, over a twelve month period. At the termination of the experiment the limbs were reamputated 1-2 mm proximal to the original amputation site. The regenerated portions were staged, examined at the gross morphological level, and prepared for histological examination. Gross examination revealed a thickened, ridge-like projection along the distal edge of all regenerating forelimbs at the Early Bud through Middle Palette Stages. Histological examination confirmed the existence of this structure as early as Wound Healing and continuing through Middle Palette to a pseudo-epidermal …

Immunization Of Rats Against Mesocestoides Corti (Cestoda) By Subcutaneous Vaccination Of Living Tetrathyridia And By Passive Transfer With Serum, Jerry Y. Niederkorn

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

Laboratory rats were subcutaneously vaccinated with 100 live tetrathyridia of Mesocestoides corti (Cestoda) and subsequently intraperitoneally challenged with 50 tetrathyridia. Necropsy 30 days postinfection revealed that vaccinated rats harbored 97.4% fewer worms compared to control rats. In a second experiment, passive transfer of immunity was accomplished by immune serum from subcutaneously vaccinated rats. Rats receiving immune serum harbored 33.4% lighter worm burdens compared to normal serum recipients.

Mosquitofish, Gambusia Affinis (Baird And Girard) Production In Extensive Polyculture System, Scott H. Newton, Andrew J. Merkowsky, Ambus J. Handcock, Max V. Miesch

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

During 1976, mosquitofish, Gambusia affinis Baird and Girard, were reared in combination with food and game fishes in 0.1 ha culture ponds at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff fisheries research facility. Mosquitofish production was 218 kg/ha, with 1683 fish per kilogram, in ponds that were also stocked with channel catfish, Ictalurus punctatus Rafinesque, bigmouth buffalo, Ictiobus cyprinellus Valenciennes, grass carp, Ctenopharyngodon idella Valenciennes, and silver carp, Hypophthalmichthys molitrix Valenciennes. In another similar stocked pond, hybrid sunfish fingerlings depressed mosquitofish yield by 79%. No mosquitofish production was obtained in ponds stocked with 250 largemouth bass, Xficropterus salmoides Lacepede, fry …

Attraction Of Aerial Insects As A Fish Food Supplement, Andrew J. Merkowsky, Ambus J. Handcock, Scott H. Newton

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

Insect populations over a 1.2 hectare southeast Arkansas livestock pond were sampled to consider the possibility of their use as a fish food supplement. A commercial insect attraction unit was suspended above the pond, and attracted insects were collected. Insect populations were sampled 3-4 nights each month, January-December, 1976. Insects collected were identified and analyses were performed to determine nutritional composition and pesticide content. Insect samples were variable, however, 62% of the insects identified were in the Order Diptera and 97% of these were in the Family Chironomidae. Nutritional analyses revealed insects were more than 60% crude protein. Pesticide analysis …

Cave Fauna Of Arkansas: Vertebrate Taxa, V. Rick Mcdaniel, James E. Gardner

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

The second in a series of papers describing the fauna of Arkansas caves includes distributional records and ecological status (as a cavernicole) of 53 vertebrate taxa, including: 3 fishes, 7 salamanders, 6 frogs, 3 lizards, 7 snakes, one turtle, 3 birds, and 23 mammals. Several of the taxa occur on state lists of endangered species, but records accumulated during the past 5 years indicate the need for a reevaluation of the actual populational status of these organisms.

Role Of Olfaction In "Taste-Aversion" To Ptc In Mice, Richard C. Lewis

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

The objective of most taste research involving choice is to eliminate from the experiment all cues to the animal except those that are strictly gustatory. Among those potentially confounding cues, one of the most obvious is olfaction, although it often remains uncontrolled in taste experiments. The present report clearly demonstrates the role played by olfaction in a discrimination experiment with C57B1/6 and CFW mice as regards their response to phenylthiocarbamide (PTC) when paired with water. The results have implications for conclusions drawn by other investigators who have attributed differences in PTC sensitivity in mice to taste alone.

Utilization Of Nest Boxes By The Southern Flying Squirrel, Glaucomys Volans, In Central Arkansas, Gary A. Heidt

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

Thirty-five nest boxes were placed 4.5-5.5 meters above the ground in an eight acre mixed pine-hardwood plot 20 km SE of Bryant, Saline County, Arkansas. These boxes were monitored from February, 1972, to May, 1975. Flying squirrels used the boxes between October and May, probably returning to den trees during the hotter period of the year. A total of 30 squirrels (18 males and 12 females) were marked by ear notching during the three year period. The winter population of the study area was estimated to be between 10 and 15 squirrels. It was not uncommon to find eight or …

Effects Of 2, 4, 5-Trichlorophenoxyacetic Acid On Swiss-Webster Mice, Gerald S. Greer

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

Pure and Commercial samples of the herbicide 2,4,5-trichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4,5- T) were tested on Swiss-Webster mice for: (1) interruption of the estrus cycle and (2) teratogenic effects. The estrus cycle of mice administered Commercial 2,4,5-T was interrupted in 42.9% of the animals and in 12.5% of the animals given Pure 2,4,5-T. No fetal abnormalities were found in pregnant animals treated with Commercial or Pure 2,4,5-T. Fetal resorptions were found in both treatment groups. Treatment with Pure 2,4,5-T produced a significant decrease in viable fetal weight and increased fetal deaths.

Yolk-Periblast Junction In Fundulus Heteroclitus, Claudia F. Bailey

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

The yolk of teleost eggs becomes covered with a syncytial periblast during embryonic development. Nutrients must be transported through the periblast before they are available to the embryo. Tranmission electron micrographs of thin sections and of freeze-fractured replicas show a number of features at the yolk-periblast junction which may be correlated with yolk transport. These features include vesicle formation and exchange, channelization and interdigitation.

Transmission Reconnaissance Study : Dickey-Lincoln School Lakes Project, United States Department Of Interior

Dickey-Lincoln School Lakes Project

Two dams are proposed on the St. John River in northern Maine: Dickey, a high earth filled dam immediately above the confluence of the Allagash with the St. John, will have an installed generating capacity of 760 MW; and Lincoln School Dam, 11 miles downstream, a capacity of 70 MW. These dams are scheduled for completion during the mid 1980's. The U.S. Corps of Engineers, New England Division, has been allocated funds to design the project and prepare their own environmental impact statement. This report (Transmission Reconnaissance Studies) discusses alternative transmission facilities needed to connect the project with the New …