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Nebraska Bird Review (June 2012) 80(2), Whole Issue

Nebraska Bird Review

Spring Field Report, March 2012 to May 2012 ... 46

Snowy Owl Invasion of 2011–12 ... 72

Spring Field Days and Annual Meeting at Broken Bow, May 18–20, 2012 ... 77

[Correction … 77]

Subscription and Organization Information ... 83

Spring Field Days And Annual Meeting At Broken Bow

Nebraska Bird Review

The 113th Annual Meeting and Spring Field Days were held in Broken Bow May 18–20, 2011. Meetings and meals took place at the Mid-Plains Community College and were hosted by Tim Hajda. Despite the unseasonably warm spring weather that had preceded the meeting, the 50+ members and friends in attendance found 164 species. Expected species from the Sandhills and surrounding habitats that were seen included Sharp-tailed Grouse, Greater Prairie Chicken, American Bittern, Black-crowned Night Heron, White-faced Ibis, Long-billed Curlew, Ovenbird, and Northern Waterthrush. Less common species observed included Glossy Ibis, Merlin, Peregrine Falcon, Black-necked Stilt, Whimbrel, Alder Flycatcher, Wood Thrush, …

Spring Field Report, March 2012 To May 2012, W. Ross Silcock

Nebraska Bird Review

This spring was a definite mixed bag ornithologically, in large part due to the mixed bag of weather conditions. Spring Beauty flowers bloomed 10–14 days early at Fontenelle Forest (RBa). Observers were decidedly mixed in their assessments of the season; veteran observers commenting on the passerine migration noted “poorest spring for passerines that I can recall” (LE) and “the sheer numbers of birds seemed ridiculously high for this early date of May 3rd” (JR). It should be noted that the 3 May date saw record counts of a few passerine species at Fontenelle Forest: 65 American Redstarts, 60 Blackpoll Warblers, …

Correction [June 2012]

Nebraska Bird Review

Correction: In the Winter Field Report, December 2011 to February 2012, two Golden Eagles were reported from the Ponca S.P. Christmas Bird Count (March 2012 NBR, page 9). This is incorrect; no Golden Eagles were seen on the Ponca Christmas Bird Count.

Snowy Owl Invasion Of 2011–12, Joel G. Jorgensen, Lauren R. Dinan, Thomas J. Walker Jr.

Nebraska Bird Review

The Snowy Owl (Bubo scandiacus) is an Arctic breeder that regularly migrates to and winters in southern Canada and the northern United States (Parmalee 1992). The number of Snowy Owls moving south and the extent and timing of southward movements in any one year are believed to be dependent on interactions between populations of Snowy Owls and lemmings, the owls’ principal food resource (Parmalee 1992). Infrequently, relatively large numbers of Snowy Owls are observed in areas or regions where few are typically observed, and individuals are observed well south of the normal winter range. These occurrences are often …

Subscription And Organization Information [June 2012]

Nebraska Bird Review

The Nebraska Bird Review is published quarterly by the Nebraska Ornithologists' Union, Inc., as its official journal, and is sent to members not in arrears of dues. Annual subscription rates (on a calendar-year basis only): $15 in the United States, $18 in Canada and $30 in all other countries, payable in advance. Single copies are $4 each, postpaid, in the United States, $5 in Canada, and $8 elsewhere. Send orders for back issues to Anita Breckbill, NOU Librarian, c/o Music Library, WMB 30, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68588-0101 (or at the email address listed below).

Memberships in the NOU …

Kentucky Warbler (Vol. 88, No. 2), Kentucky Library Research Collections

The Kentucky Warbler

No abstract provided.

Nest And Brood Site Selection And Survival Of Greater Prairie-Chickens In The Eastern Sandhills Of Nebraska, Lars Anderson

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Greater prairie-chickens (Tympanuchus cupido pinnata) are a grassland bird species of conservation concern. Although greater prairie-chickens have declined over much of their range, the Nebraska Sandhills has the largest population in North America. However, the responses of nest and brood site selection and survival to vegetation characteristics are unknown. I studied prairie-chickens on private rangelands in Rock and Brown Counties from 2009-2011. I fitted 139 females with radio collars to locate nest and brood sites and to determine nest and brood survival rates. Females were trapped on leks during the breeding season and I monitored them throughout the …

See No, Smell No, Taste No Evil: How Sage-Grouse Detect Toxic Sagebrush, K. Gehlken, B. Robb, S. Agafonov, J. Forbey

College of Arts and Sciences Poster Presentations

There is increasing evidence that sage-grouse selectively consume individual and species of sagebrush that have the lowest concentrations of chemical defenses, or toxins. We propose that this selection requires the ability to see, smell or taste specific chemicals or groups of chemicals that vary quantitatively and qualitatively in sagebrush available throughout the winter range of sage-grouse. We are developing methods to determine if and how selected and avoided sagebrush may differ in color, smell and taste. We used ultraviolet and near infrared detectors to determine the variation in the "color" of phenolics in sagebrush. We used gas chromatography to determine …

Fine-Scale Population Structure And Asymmetrical Dispersal In An Obligate Salt-Marsh Passerine, The Saltmarsh Sparrow (Ammodramus Caudacutus), Jennifer Walsh, Adrienne I. Kovach, Kimberly J. Babbitt, Kathleen M. O'Brien

New Hampshire Agricultural Experiment Station Publications

Understanding the spatial scale of gene flow can yield valuable insight into the ecology of an organism and guide conservation strategies. Fine-scale genetic structure is uncommon in migratory passerines because of their high vagility and presumed high dispersal abilities. Aspects of the behavior and ecology of some migratory species, however, may promote structure on a finer scale in comparison to their mobility. We investigated population genetic structure in the Saltmarsh Sparrow (Ammodramus caudacutus), a migratory passerine that breeds along the northeastern coast of the United States, where it is restricted exclusively to a narrow strip of patchily distributed tidal marsh …

Channel Width And Least Tern And Piping Plover Nesting Incidence On The Lower Platte River, Nebraska, Joel G. Jorgensen, Mary Bomberger Brown, Andrew J. Tyre

Great Plains Research: A Journal of Natural and Social Sciences (through 2013)

Endangered interior least terns (Sternula antillarum athalassos) and threatened northern Great Plains piping plovers (Charadrius melodus) nest together on midstream sandbars in large rivers in the interior of North America. We investigated the relationship between river channel width and tern and plover nesting incidence on the lower Platte River, Nebraska, using a model-based logistic regression analysis. Multiple channel width measurements and a long-term nesting data set were used in the analysis. Nesting incidence was positively associated with increasing river channel width proximal to the nesting site. At a greater distance, up to 802 m away from …

Wetland Hydrodynamics And Long-Term Use Of Spring Migration Areas By Lesser Scaup In Eastern South Dakota, Sharon N. Kahara, Steven R. Chipps

Great Plains Research: A Journal of Natural and Social Sciences (through 2013)

Lesser scaup (Aythya affinis [Eyton]) populations remain below their long-term average despite improved habitat conditions along spring migration routes and at breeding grounds. Scaup are typically associated with large, semipermanent wetlands and exhibit regional preferences along migration routes. Identifying consistently used habitats for conservation and restoration is complicated by irregular wetland availability due to the dynamic climate. We modeled long-term wetland use by lesser scaup in eastern South Dakota based on surveys conducted during below-average (1987-1989) and above-average (1993-2002) water condition years. Wetland permanence, longitude, and physiographic region were all significant determinants of use (P < 0.01). Long-term use was best described by a quadratic equation including wetland surface area variability, an index of wetland hydrodynamics that is linked to productivity, biodiversity, and value to waterfowl. Contrary to previous findings, our study shows that over the long term, lesser scaup are more than twice as likely to use permanent wetlands as they are semipermanent wetlands. The northern region of South Dakota's Prairie Coteau, which holds the highest density of hydrologically dynamic permanent wetlands, should be considered an area of conservation concern for lesser scaup. The criteria we identified may be used to identify important lesser scaup habitats in other regions of the Prairie Pothole Region.

Wpa News 89 (2012), World Pheasant Association

Galliformes Specialist Group and Affiliated Societies: Newsletters

WPA News (Spring 2012), number 89

Published by the World Pheasant Association

Potential For Barn Owl As Rodent Biological Control In Central California Vineyards, Hannah Tillmann

Biological Sciences

The pocket gopher (Thomomys bottae) and voles (Microtus spp.) cause significant economic damage to vineyards. In response, many growers have taken steps to attract Barn Owls (Tyto alba) to their properties to help keep these rodent populations in check. This research project investigated Barn Owl consumption of pocket gophers and voles in Central California vineyards in order to assess the efficiency of this integrated pest management strategy. I collected a total of 715 owl pellets from five vineyard locations in Templeton and Paso Robles, California over an eight-month period during nesting and post-fledging seasons. I …

Nebraska Bird Review (March 2012) 80(1), Whole Issue

Nebraska Bird Review

NOU Annual Treasurer’s Report for 2011 ... 2

Winter Field Report, December 2011–February 2012 ... 3

2011–2012 Christmas Bird Counts in Nebraska ... 17

Report of a Nesting Sora (Porzana carolina) … 40

Subscription and Organization Information ... 43

2011–2012 Christmas Bird Counts

Nebraska Bird Review

Fifteen counts, one more than last year, were held during the period, and a total of 139 species, 10 fewer than last year, were found. This was a count season of record totals for the state for a number of species. Factors contributing to this include the number of counts, the number of participants and the weather. More counts (15) were run than in any previous year, and several counts (Lake McConaughy in particular) had a much greater than average number of participants. The weather prior to the count period was mild, and most of the circles had unusually warm …

Report Of A Nesting Sora (Porzana Carolina), William M. Lemburg, Wayne J. Mollhoff

Nebraska Bird Review

During the summer of 2008, long-time NOU member and former NOU Treasurer William (Bill) Lemburg of Cairo, Howard Co., Nebraska, discovered the nest of a Sora (Porzana carolina). On 29 July 2008, while using a small flat-bottomed boat to gather duckweed (Spirodela polyrhiza) on a small pond near his bird pens to feed the exotic waterfowl he raises, he noted a pair of Sora walking about, foraging atop the dense growth of duckweed. The pair ignored his presence even though, as he later discovered, he was within 10 feet of their nest. The following evening, 30 …

Color Photo Section [March 2012, Pp. 19–27]

Nebraska Bird Review

Killdeer eggs and hatchlings, Cordilleran Flycatcher, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Black-necked Stilt nest (p. 19); Cape May Warbler, Black-and-white Warbler, Bay-breasted Warbler (p. 20); Long-billed Curlew, Black-bellied Whistling Duck, Wood Duck, American White Pelicans (p. 21); Mew Gull, juvenile Northern Goshawk, Broad-winged Hawk (p. 22); Rufous Hummingbird, Yellow-breasted Chat, Cedar Waxwings, Sanderlings (p. 23); Baltimore Orioles, Red Crossbill, young Rose-breasted Grosbeak (p. 24); Henslow’s Sparrow, Vesper Sparrow, Le Conte’s Sparrow (p. 25); Snowy Owl, Long-eared Owl, Great-horned Owl, Easter Screech-Owl, Burrowing Owl, and Short-eared Owl (p.26).

Winter Field Report, December 2011 To February 2012, W. Ross Silcock

Nebraska Bird Review

The most obvious feature of this winter’s avian movements was the number of Snowy Owls, unprecedented in living memory, that invaded the state. A tally maintained by Joel Jorgensen and Lauren Dinan of Nebraska Game and Parks indicated that over 200 snowies were found in the state, and most were documented. Not as popular with the public, but perhaps of greater scientific interest were the mid-winter reports of species normally rare at this time of year. Most notable in this respect were waterfowl, grebes, cranes, and sparrows. A read-through of these species suggests the very mild winter experienced over most …

Nebraska Ornithologists’ Union Treasurer’S Report, December 31, 2011

Nebraska Bird Review

One-page spreadsheet constituting the Nebraska Ornithologists' Union treasurer's report at year end (December 31) of 2011. The grand total is $57,901.29.

Subscription And Organization Information [March 2012]

Nebraska Bird Review

The Nebraska Bird Review is published quarterly by the Nebraska Ornithologists' Union, Inc., as its official journal, and is sent to members not in arrears of dues. Annual subscription rates (on a calendar-year basis only): $15 in the United States, $18 in Canada and $30 in all other countries, payable in advance. Single copies are $4 each, postpaid, in the United States, $5 in Canada, and $8 elsewhere. Send orders for back issues to Anita Breckbill, NOU Librarian, c/o Music Library, WMB 30, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68588-0101 (or at the email address listed below).

Memberships in the NOU …

Prairie Dog Lesson, Paul A. Johnsgard

Paul Johnsgard Collection

It seems to me, in view of all the concerted efforts of our state's elective officers to enact a set of morals for every Nebraskan to live by - especially relative to marriage and reproduction - they could take a lesson from prairie dogs, rather than passing a law requiring the poisoning of entire colonies at the whim of an unhappy neighbor. ...

Kentucky Warbler (Vol. 88, No. 1), Kentucky Library Research Collections

The Kentucky Warbler

No abstract provided.

2012 Interior Least Tern And Piping Plover Monitoring, Research, Management, And Outreach Report For The Lower Platte River, Nebraska, Mary Bomberger Brown, Joel G. Jorgensen, Lauren R. Dinan

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

This document reports on our monitoring, research, management, and outreach activities during the past 12 months (2012). We prepared it to inform our partners, cooperating agencies, funding sources, and other interested parties of our activities and to provide a preliminary summary of our results.

The Lower Platte River and its major tributaries provide important nesting habitat for two state and federally protected bird species, the Interior Least Tern (Sternula antillarum athalassos) and Piping Plover (Charadrius melodus). The Tern and Plover Conservation Partnership (TPCP), based at the University of Nebraska-School of Natural Resources, and the Nongame Bird …

Mid-Contract Management Of Conservation Reserve Program Grasslands Provides Benefits For Ring-Necked Pheasant Nest And Brood Survival, Ty W. Matthews, J. Scott Taylor, Larkin A. Powell

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) fields may provide good habitat for nesting and brood-rearing ring-necked pheasants (Phasianus colchicus) during early stages of succession. But, the success of hens in early successional CRP, relative to late successional CRP and other grassland habitats, has yet to be evaluated. The reproductive period is especially critical for populations of pheasants, and CRP’s benefits to hens and chicks may decrease as fields age because of loss of vegetative diversity, decrease in vegetation density, and accumulation of residual litter. During 2005– 2006, we evaluated spatial and temporal variation in nest and brood survival for radio-marked hen pheasants …

Patterns Of Incubation Behavior In Northern Bobwhites (Colinus Virginianus), Jonathan S. Burnam, Gretchen Turner, Susan Ellis-Felege, William E. Palmer, D. Clay Sisson, John P. Carroll

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Patterns of incubation and nesting behavior for many species of birds, especially those with cryptic nests, have been difficult to obtain due to logistical and technological limitations. As a result, little is known about the daily attendance rhythms and behavioral patterns of many species, including the Northern Bobwhite (Colinus virginianus), despite this species being one of the most studied birds in the world. Incubation represents parental investment in offspring, and a multitude of factors may affect investment behaviors, including reproductive ecology, sex and age of parent, habitat quality, clutch age, and timing in the nesting season. Most Northern Bobwhite nests …

Male Savannah Sparrows Provide Less Parental Care With Increasing Paternity Loss, Noah G. Perlut, Lindsay M. Kelly, Nathan J. Zalik, Allan M. Strong

Environmental Studies Faculty Publications

Male parental care can significantly affect fledging success and, therefore, is a strong target of both natural and sexual selection. However, for songbird species that exhibit extra-pair paternity, males may reduce parental care based on how much paternity they have lost in a brood. We studied Passerculus sandwichensis (Savannah Sparrow) male parental care relative to the proportion of extra-pair young in the nest, to see if males adjusted care in response to increasing loss of paternity. Males brought less food (mass) with increasing rates of extra-pair paternity, although male provisioning did not influence fledging success. These results contrast with a …

Feather Biomechanics Of Penguins And Other Seabirds, Katherine Elizabeth Johnson

Theses Digitization Project

Although many aspects of penguin biology have been studied, the feathers have received less attention except with regard to thermoregulation. The biomechanics of penguin feathers are the focus of this thesis. By studying penguins in comparison to other wing-propelled aquatic fliers, it may be possible to understand how penguin feathers evolved. Fourteen species were sampled, including aerial flyers, aerial flyers that are also wing propelled divers, as well as flightless wing propelled divers.

Bird Red List And Its Future Development In Mongolia, Sundev Gombobaatar, D. Samiya, Jonathan M. Baillie

Erforschung biologischer Ressourcen der Mongolei / Exploration into the Biological Resources of Mongolia, ISSN 0440-1298

With the involvement of the World Bank, Zoological Society of London, Dutch Government and National University of Mongolia, the volumes of Mongolian Red Lists of Fish, Amphibians and Reptiles, Birds and Mammals were completed, and Mongolia is now among the few nations that have up-to-date conservation assessments for all vertebrates. Of the 476 assessed native bird species of Mongolia, 10% were categorized as regionally threatened including Near Threatened. A further 0.6% were categorized as Critically Endangered (CR), 1.7% as Endangered (EN), 3.3% as Vulnerable (VU), and 4.4% as Near Threatened (NT). Almost 90% of Mongolian birds are categorized as Least …

Nestling Food In The Desert Wheatear Oenanthe Deserti In The Dzungarian Gobi, Mongolia, Ueli Rehsteiner

Erforschung biologischer Ressourcen der Mongolei / Exploration into the Biological Resources of Mongolia, ISSN 0440-1298

The quality and size of nestling food of the Desert Wheatear Oenanthe deserti ssp. atrogularis were investigated in the spring of 2001 in the Dzungarian Gobi in Mongolia. Data are based on observations of nine pairs. Nestling food consisted of several taxa caught on the ground and in the air. Diptera, Coleoptera larvae, and Hymenoptera were the most frequent prey, that is, they contributed 17 to 30% of all food items each. The food composition changed with nestling age and season.

Food item size decreased with date. A higher proportion of multiple prey loadings were brought to nestlings in the …