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Nebraska Bird Review- Whole Issue September 1981 Volume 49 Number 3

Nebraska Bird Review

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1981 (Fifty-sixth) Spring Migratlon and Occurrence Report.........38

Breeding Season Occurrence of Sharp-Shinned Hawks in Southeast Nebraska.........44

Breeding of the Least Tern and Piping Plover on the lower Platte River, Nebraska.........45

Breeding of the Great tailed Grackle In Lancaster County.........52

Notes.........53

Additional Christmas Count......... 54

Book Review......... 56

Results Of The Alcoa Foundation-Suriname Expeditions. V. Noteworthy Records Of Surinamese Mammals, Hugh H. Genoways, Stephen L. Williams, Jane A. Groen

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

The occurrence of seven species of mammals previously unknown in Suriname is documented. The new taxa recorded include Didelphis albiventris, Peropteryx macrotis, Lonchorhina aurita, Micronycteris hirsuta, Vampyrodes caraccioli, Furipterus horrens, and Thyroptera discifera . Additional information is provided on several species already known to occur in Suriname, including Metachirus nudicaudatus, Peronymus leucopterus, Mimon bennettii, Tonatia carrikeri, T. schulzi, Anoura geoffroyi, Choerniscus intermedius, Mesophylla macconnelli, Neaeomys guianae, Holochilus brasiliensis, and Potos fiavus.

Results Of The Alcoa Foundation-Suriname Expeditions. Vi. Additional Chromosomal Data For Bats (Mammalia: Chiroptera) From Suriname, Robert J. Baker, Hugh H. Genoways, Paisley A. Seyfarth

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

As part of ongoing studies of the bats of Suriname, karyotypic information is presented for seventeen species. Chromosomal data are presented for the first time for Peronymus leucopterus, Peropteryx macrotis, Mimon bennettii, Artibeus concolor, Furipterus horrens, and Thyroptera discifera. Additional chromosomal data are presented for eleven other species of bats for which some information was available previously.

Reproduction In A Nebraska Sandhills Population Of The Northern Prairie Lizard Sceloporus Undulatus Garmani, Royce E. Ballinger, Dale L. Droge, Steven M. Jones

Papers in Herpetology

The reproductive cycle of Sceloporus undulatus was studied in western Nebraska. Females mature in the 1st year following hatching at a size of 45 mm SVL. Two clutches averaging 5.5 eggs each are produced. Egg sizes are similar to other grassland populations and contain approximately 650 g-cal. per egg. Egg weight to body weight ratios of 0.33 were the highest which have been reported for any S. undulatus population. Variation in life history characteristics within and between grassland and eastern woodland habitat types are explicable given a knowledge of the growing season, predation intensity and demographic environment.

Crossbreeding In Swine: Experimental Results, Rodger K. Johnson

Department of Animal Science: Faculty Publications

A review of recent swine crossbreeding experiments is presented and integrated with earlier work. Variation among experiments in observed heterosis for specific crosses was large for reproduction and sow productivity traits. However, standard errors of estimates were also large. It seems likely that heterosis, expressed in absolute values or in percentage units, is different for specific crosses. It is unclear whether these differences are large enough to warrant the use of unique parameter values for comparisons of alternate mating systems. In addition to average heterosis values, average direct and maternal genetic effects are given.

Deer Social Organization And Wolf Predation In Northeastern Minnesota, Michael E. Nelson, L. David Mech

United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Publications

The white-tailed deer Odocoileus virginianus has been subject to intensive research and management, yet we are just beginning to understand its social organization. Little is known about home range formation, migration, social bonds, and traditions in this deer, what functions they serve, and what selective forces have affected them.

Predation by wolves Canis lupus, in particular, has not been examined as a factor in deer evolution, yet the intimate interactions between deer and wolf through the millennia no doubt strongly influenced major morphological and behavioral adaptations in both species. It is a reasonable assumption that wolf predation has been …

Lewis' Woodpeckers In Western Nebraska, Doris Gates

Nebraska Bird Review

On 30 August 1980, Dr. Randy Lawson from Chadron State College reported to me that Lewis' Woodpeckers (Asyndesmus lewis) were in a dead elm tree about eight miles south of Chadron on the west side of U.S. Highway 385. We observed them for about an hour, and in the afternoon, Marj Blinde and I watched them for about an hour more. They numbered at least 12 and flew from the elm to fence posts and telephone posts nearby.

They performed the fly catching actions for which they are noted, but it seemed the attraction of this particular location …

1981 Bald Eagle Count, George W. Brown

Nebraska Bird Review

A Bald Eagle count was made 10 January 198L The temperature was 18° to 46°F.; cloudy, to clear in the afternoon; no snow; wind SSW 18 mph, to calm in the afternoon; river open; 3 parties, headed by John CW, Bliese, George W. Brown, and Stan Longfellow.

Nebraska Bird Review Last Page 49(2) June 1981

Nebraska Bird Review

Table of Contents

1980 (Twenty-third Fall Occurrence Report) …………….14

Correction to 1980 Spring Migration Report …………….20

Correction to 1980 Nebraska Nesting Survey …………….20

The Eightieth Annual Meeting……………. 21

Notes……………. 23

Captive Breeding of Barn Owls in Nebraska- Initial Efforts……………. 31

Lewis' Woodpeckers in Western Nebraska …………….33

1981 Bald Eagle Count …………….34

Wintering Bald Eagles at Southwest Nebraska Reservoirs……………. 34

Masthead From Nebraska Bird Review (June 1981) 49(2)

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) are $6.00 per year In the United States and $7.00 per year in all other countries, payable in advance. Single numbers are $1.75 each, postpaid.

Memberships (on a calendar year basis only): Student, $3.00; Active, $7.00; Sustaining, $15.00; Family Active, $10.00; Family Sustaining, $2000; Life, $100.00.

All dues and subscriptions should be remitted to the Treasurer, W.W. Lemburg, RR. 1, Box 96, …

The Eightieth Annual Meeting

Nebraska Bird Review

THE EIGHTIETH ANNUAL MEETING

Fifty-one persons registered for the eightieth Annual Meeting, and related activities, which took place in Grand Island 15 and 16 May 1981, and on the Lemburg farm, north of Cairo, 17 May. During the Friday night get-together and slide show rain began to fall, and there was almost continuous light to moderate rain for the rest of the period, for a total of two inches or so. At the Annual Meeting, held Saturday afternoon, the following officers were elected: Dr. Stanley Longfellow, Kearney, president; Mr. C. Fred Zeillemaker, Crescent Lake NWR, vice-president; Mrs. Emma Johnson, Omaha, …

Herpetofauna Of Mormon Island Preserve Hall County, Nebraska, Royce E. Ballinger, Steven M. Jones, J. W. Nietfeldt

Papers in Herpetology

Introduction: Studies of reptiles and amphibians in the grasslands of North America have primarily concerned the compilation of state faunal lists (e.g. Smith 1956, Hudson 1942, Webb 1970, Wheeler and Wheeler 1966). There have been a large number of reports on range extensions to augment this basic data. With the exception of the extensive studies by Fitch (1954, 1956, 1958, 1960, 1963) primarily on reptiles and Bragg (1940a, 1940b, 1943, 1953) primarily on anurans, the ecology of the herpetiles of the grasslands are not well studied. Lynch (1978) provided an excellent analysis of the ecological distributions of the leopard frogs …

Whole Issue Nebraska Bird Review (June 1981) 49(2)

Nebraska Bird Review

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1980 (Twenty-third) Fall Occurrence Report. ................ 14

Correction to 1980 Spring Migration Report ................ 20

Correction to 1980 Nebraska Nesting Survey ................20

The Eightieth Annual Meeting ................21

Notes ................23

Captive Breeding of Barn Owls in Nebraska ~ Initial Efforts ................31

Lewis' Woodpeckers in Western Nebraska ................ 33

1981 Bald Eagle Count ................ 34

Wintering Bald Eagles at Southwest Nebraska Reservoirs................34

1980 (Twenty-Third) Fall Occurrence Report

Nebraska Bird Review

Two hundred eighty-one species (plus a possible Veery) are listed in this report, from 12 localities. Comparable figures for prior years are: 284 species from 11 localities in 1979, 269 from 12 in 1978, and 267 from 11 in 1977.

The information is presented in a rough west (left) to east (right) order, with locations of about the same longitude listed with the northernmost first. Two dates indicate the first and last records for the period. The symbols used are

Jl, Au, Sp, Ot, No, and Dm for months

P to indicate a species which is present all the year, …

Correction To 1980 Spring Migration Report, Alice Kenitz

Nebraska Bird Review

CORRECTION TO 1980 SPRING MIGRATION REPORT. For Garden County, the departure date for Ring-necked Duck was 27 June, and for Bufflehead it was 25 June. The report showed only the initial dates for these two species. (NBR 48:71 and 72).

Wintering Bald Eagles At Southwest Nebraska Reservoirs, David E. Busch

Nebraska Bird Review

As a part of Water and Power Resources Service (formerly Bureau of Reclamation) compliance with endangered species mandates, a study of Bald Eagle use of Lower Missouri Region reservoirs was initiated during the winter of 1979. The author, headquartered in McCook, surveyed a number of reservoirs in Kansas and Nebraska, including Nebraska's four southwest reservoirs.

While wintering Bald Eagles on the Platte River, Harlan County Reservoir, and the Lewis and Clark Lake area have been the subjects of previous studies, the southwest reservoirs have received little such attention. Since wintering Eagle populations at these four reservoirs are relatively low, this …

Correction To 1980 Nebraska Nesting Survey, Alice Kenitz

Nebraska Bird Review

CORRECTION TO 1980 NEBRASKA NESTING SURVEY. The Cedar Waxwing nesting record (NBR 49:10) was not for Morrill Co., but for the city of Morrill, which is in Scotts Bluff Co. I'm sorry I didn't make this clear.

Notes [June 1981]

Nebraska Bird Review

MISSISSIPPI KITE. At 3:30 p.m. 7 September 1980 Alan Grenon and I observed a Mississippi Kite from the back porch of our house, which is several meters south of Fontenelle Forest and about 1 km. west of the Missouri River, overlooking the flood plain. The bird was coming from the east, about 5 m. above the trees. The flight was extremely buoyant and smooth, rather like that of a light-bodied gull or swallow. When it was above us it began to glide in circles, just above the trees. From time to time it reached with its head for its feet, …

Yellow-Throated Warbler, B.J. Rose

Nebraska Bird Review

On 30 August 1980, Dr. Randy Lawson from Chadron State College reported to me that Lewis' Woodpeckers (Asyndesmus lewis) were in a dead elm tree about eight miles south of Chadron on the west side of U.S. Highway 385. We observed them for about an hour, and in the afternoon, Marj Blinde and I watched them for about an hour more. They numbered at least 12 and flew from the elm to fence posts and telephone posts nearby.

They performed the flycatching actions for which they are noted, but it seemed the attraction of this particular location was …

Effect Of Maternal Dietary Energy Source On Glucose Homeostasis, Liver Glycogen And Carcass Lipid In The Neonatal Pig, R. D. Boyd, B. D. Moser, A. J. Lewis, E. R. Peo Jr., R. K. Johnson, R. D. Nimmo

Department of Animal Science: Faculty Publications

Two experiments were conducted to determine the effects of supplementary dietary energy (carbohydrate versus fat) fed to sows during late gestation on energy storage and glucose homeostasis in neonatal pigs. In the first experiment, 28 crossbred sows received one of two dietary treatments that were initiated on day 100 of gestation. The control group was fed daily 1.82 kg of a corn-soybean meal-based diet plus an additional .18 kg of cornstarch. Their counterparts were fed 1.82 kg of a cornsoybean meal diet containing 8% bleachable fancy tallow. The effect of maternal dietary energy source during late gestation on glucose homeostasis …

Genetic And Phenotypic Relationships Between Pubertal And Growth Characteristics Of Gilts, L. K. Hutchens, R. L. Hintz, R. K. Johnson

Department of Animal Science: Faculty Publications

Data on 737 crossbred and purebred gilts were used to obtain heritability estimates for age at puberty (AGEPUB) and weight at puberty (WTPUB) and their genetic and phenotypic correlations with birth weight (BW), weaning weight (WW), postweaning daily gain (ADG), adjusted age at 90.7 kg (AGE) and adjusted backfat at 90.7 kg (BF). The heritability estimates for AGEPUB were low to moderate (.19 and .40, based upon paternal and maternal half-sib estimates, respectively.) The genetic (rg) and phenotypic (rp) correlations between AGEPUB and BW (r_g = -.07; r_p = -.09), WW (r_g = -.25; r_p = …

A Multivariate Study Of The Family Molossidae (Mammalia, Chiroptera) : Morphology, Ecology, Evolution, Patricia W. Freeman

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

The purpose of my study is to examine as many species of the family Molossidae as possible and to determine, with the aid of numerical methods, what natural groups exist within the family. Sneath & Sokal (1973) discuss the methods and reasons for this kind of analysis. A natural group of organisms as here defined is one in which its members share a close phenetic relationship. Phenetic relationship is defined as "similarity (resemblance) based on a set of phenotypic characteristics of the objects or organisms under study," (Sneath & Sokal, 1973, p. 29), and is distinct in definition from phylogenetic …

Museums Are More Than Elephant Graveyards, Patricia W. Freeman

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

I suspect many people do not know what natural history museums are all about. These museums hold nature's works of art, instead of just man's. There are not many museums of natural history and those few are usually in big cities.

Field Museum of National History in Chicago is one of the largest in the world, along with the British Museum of Natural History in London, the Smithsonian (U.S. National Museum) in Washington, and the American Museum of Natural History in New York. These are the museums that have the actual skeletons of dinosaurs, or stuffed elephants, poised in combat, …

Notes [March 1981]

Nebraska Bird Review

Notes

WHITE-WINGED SCOTER. On 1 May 1980 I had a White-winged Scoter in the yard, at most times not more than 15 to 20 feet away from me. It was here an hour or so before the neighbor's cat caused it to fly. I take it that it was very tired or sick because it would just keep moving enough that I couldn't get any closer.

-Mrs. Don Lockwood

COOPER'S HAWK. A commotion in the top of a pine tree drew my attention. A Blue Jay was being chased by a hawk, whose wings could be heard beating against the …

1980 Nebraska Nesting Survey, Esther V. Bennett

Nebraska Bird Review

Data on the 1980 nesting season in Nebraska were received from nineteen observers, reporting on fifty-seven species from twenty-four counties. Counties in the tabulation are listed in a west to east order, with the northernmost of approximately equal locations given first.

Book Reviews [March 1981]

Nebraska Bird Review

Reviews of The Mystery of Migration edited by Dr. Robin Baker (Viking Press, 256 pages, 81/2 x 11, indexed, hardbound, $29.95) and How to Control House Sparrows by Don Grussing (Roseville Publishing House, 52 pages, 51/2 x 81/2, paperbound, $3.95).

Masthead From Nebraska Bird Review (March 1981) 49(1)

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) are $6.00 per year in the United States and $7.00 per year in all other countries, payable in advance. Single numbers are $1.75 each, postpaid.

Memberships (on a calendar year basis only): Student. $3.00: Active, $7.00; Sustaining, $tS.DO; Family Active, $10.00; Family Sustaining, $20.00; Life, $100.00.

Whole Issue Nebraska Bird Review (March 1981) 49(1)

Nebraska Bird Review

Table of Contents

1980 Treasurer's Report .....................2

1980 Christmas Count .....................2

Book Reviews..................... 7

1980 Nebraska Nesting Survey .....................8

Notes .....................11

1980 Christmas Count

Nebraska Bird Review

One hundred and two species (three more than last year) were reported in the 1980 Christmas Count, and three species (two more than last year) were reported present during the count week but not seen on the count day. These increases were in spite of one less count Crawford - this year. Two additional races were reported, compared to three last year. The individual count this year was 317,910, compared to 188,102 last year, with the Snow Goose count at Omaha, particularly, and at DeSoto and the Mallard count at DeSoto accounting for more than the difference between the two …

Volume 48 Number 4 Of Review Mis-Marked

Nebraska Bird Review

The last two issues of Volume 48 of the Review were both marked (on the front cover) "Volume 48 September, 1980 Number 3". The page numbers will distinguish between the two issues, but an easy mark is that the true Number 4 shows part of the index on the back cover. Those who save their copies of the Review should correct the entry on the issue containing the index to read "December" and "4" to prevent confusion in the future.