Ornithology Commons^™

Breeding Abundance And Nest-Site Distribution Of The Altamira Oriole At Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge, Texas, Timothy Brush, Christopher R. Hathcock

School of Integrative Biological & Chemical Sciences (Formerly Dept. of Biology)

The distribution of the Altamira oriole (Icterus gularis) in the United States is restricted to the Lower Rio Grande Valley of southernmost Texas. Our objective was to assess the current breeding status of this species at and near Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge (SANWR), a principal nesting area in the region. During each breeding season from 1997 to 1999, we attempted to find and monitor all Altamira oriole nests in and within 0.5 km of SANWR to determine annual breeding-pair abundance, annual nest-site distribution, and nest distribution among tree species. We estimated that there were 6 or 7, 8 or …

Diet Quality And Food Limitation Affect The Dynamics Of Body Composition And Digestive Organs In A Migratory Songbird (Zonotrichia Albicollis), Barbara J. Pierce, Scott R. Mcwilliams

Biology Faculty Publications

Migrating songbirds interrupt their feeding to fly between stopover sites that may vary appreciably in diet quality. We studied the effects of fasting and food restriction on body composition and digestive organs in a migratory songbird and how these effects interacted with diet quality to influence the rate of recovery of nutrient reserves. Food limitation caused whitethroated sparrows to reduce both lean and fat reserves, with about 20% of the decline in lean mass represented by a decline in stomach, small intestine, and liver. During refeeding on diets similar in nutrient composition to either grain or fruit, foodlimited grain-fed birds …

Hooded Oriole Nest Failure Associated With A Novel Nest Site, Kevin Ellison, Timothy Brush

School of Integrative Biological & Chemical Sciences (Formerly Dept. of Biology)

Ecological traps occur where species are attracted to use a resource that exposes them to greater than normal risk of mortality or reproductive failure. We observed complete failure of Hooded Oriole (Icterus cucullatus) nests in streetlights in a south Texas suburb where use of such nest sites was relatively common. This is of concern as streetlights functioned essentially as traps: orioles built their nests within them but all these nests failed, evidently because the eggs were exposed to lethal temperatures. Moreover, Hooded Oriole nesting success on all other substrates in this area was low (31%, n -- 69). Therefore, sufficient …

Predicting Dynamics Of Aggregate Loafing Behavior In Glaucous-Winged Gulls (Larus Glaucescens) At A Washington Colony, Shandelle M. Henson, James L. Hayward, Christina M. Burden, Clara J. Logan, Joseph G. Galusha

Faculty Publications

Seabirds move throughout the day in changing, patchy environments as they engage in various behaviors. We studied the diurnal abundance dynamics of Glaucous-winged Gulls (Larus glaucescens) in a habitat patch dedicated to loafing in the Strait of Juan de Fuca, Washington. We constructed three differential equation models as alternative hypotheses and then used model selection techniques to choose the one that most accurately described the system. We validated the model on an independent data set, made a priori model predictions, and conducted a field test of the predictions. Clear dynamic patterns emerged in the abundance of loafing gulls, even though …

Do Rhinoceros Auklet, Cerorhinca Monocerata, Fledglings Fly To The Sea From Their Natal Burrows?, James L. Hayward, Jere K. Clayburn

Faculty Publications

The mode of departure of Rhinoceros Auklet fledglings from their nest burrows has remained uncertain. Both walk-down and fly-down hypotheses have been proposed. Here we use the unique geography of Protection Island, Washington, to evaluate the fly-down hypothesis. Some fledglings raised on Protection Island do appear to walk to the water, but our results suggest that many of the island's fledgling Rhinoceros Auklets fly to the sea.

Subscription And Organization Information [December 2003]

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 Mary Lou Pritchard, NOU Librarian, c/o University of Nebraska State Museum, W-436 Nebraska Hall, Lincoln, NE 68588-0514.

Memberships in the NOU (on a calendar-year basis only): …

Another Sandhill Crane Breeding Record In The Eastern Rainwater Basin, Joel G. Jorgensen

Nebraska Bird Review

Jorgensen (2002) recently summarized breeding-season occurrences of the Sandhill Crane (Grus canadensis) in the Eastern Rainwater Basin (eRWB). Summering birds were first detected in 1992 (The Nebraska Bird Review 60: 145). Breeding first occurred in 1994 with four additional nesting or breeding records in subsequent years. The most recent breeding records were in 1999 when breeding activity was detected at both Kissinger Basin Wildlife Management Area (WMA) (Hoffman 1999) and Harvard Waterfowl Production Area (WPA) (Silcock and Jorgensen 1999), both in Clay County. Since late 1999 the eRWB has experienced persistent drought. This has affected wetland conditions …

Breeding Black-Necked Stilts At Funk Waterfowl Production Area, Jeff Drahota

Nebraska Bird Review

On 21 July 2003, I was mapping wetland vegetation on Funk Waterfowl Production Area (WPA), Phelps County, when I encountered two adult Black-necked Stilts and two young on the Teal Unit, NE 1/4 of Section 16, T-6-N, R-17-W. I was using an airboat to map pockets of open water throughout the WPA. When I launched the airboat on the Teal Unit, I immediately noticed an adult Black-necked Stilt flying above the small pool. While driving the perimeter of this pool, I noticed two adult Black-necked Stilts continually flying over a small point of cattails surrounded by shallow water. As I …

Halsey Fall Field Days, Alice Kenitz

Nebraska Bird Review

Forty-one NOU members and friends gathered at the 4-H Camp at Halsey in the Nebraska National Forest on September 26–28, 2003, for the annual Fall Field Days. Fall colors were beautiful and the weather was generally good except for a brisk wind on Friday and Saturday. The ongoing drought was evident in the low level of lakes and ponds, with some of the smaller bodies of water being completely dry.

Index To Volume 71

Nebraska Bird Review

Index to Volume 71

Fall Field Report, August-November 2003, W. Ross Silcock

Nebraska Bird Review

New in this Seasonal Report, direct from the American Ornithologists' Union (along with Wilson's Snipe, Rock Pigeon, etc.), is the modified checklist order, featuring geese, swans, and ducks at the beginning, followed by gallinaceous birds, then resuming the familiar order with loons.

Perhaps the most important use for these reports, in addition to their incorporation into the Southern Great Plains Region summary in North American Birds, is the noting of significant avian events in Nebraska. Some are of obvious importance, but the meaning of others is obscure, perhaps only to be revealed as subsequent reports show a trend, or …

Nebraska Bird Review (December 2003) 71(4), Whole Issue

Nebraska Bird Review

Fall Field Report, August–November 2003 ... 146

Breeding Black-necked Stilts at Funk Waterfowl Production Area ... 166

Another Sandhill Crane Breeding Record in the Eastern Rainwater Basin ... 167

Halsey Fall Field Days ... 169

Index to Volume 71 ... 173

Subscription and Organization Information ... 183

Sibley's New Twins: Book Review, Paul A. Johnsgard

Papers in Ornithology

Review of
The Sibley Field Guide to Birds of Eastern North America and The Sibley Field Guide to Birds of Western North America by David Allen Sibley (Knopf, 2003, $19.95 each).
Sibley has taken up the mantle of Roger Tory Peterson, who gave birth to the modem avian field guide in the 1930s and guided its development for more than half a century. I think that Roger would be pleased with the direction that David Sibley is taking it. The Sibley guides are so good that further editions are a dead certainty. As with the Peterson guides, I will likely …

Kentucky Warbler (Vol. 79, No. 4), Kentucky Library Research Collections

The Kentucky Warbler

No abstract provided.

Subscription And Organization Information [September 2003]

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 Mary Lou Pritchard, NOU Librarian, c/o University of Nebraska State Museum, W-436 Nebraska Hall, Lincoln, NE 68588-0514.

Memberships in the NOU (on a calendar-year basis only): …

Summer Field Report, June-July 2003, W. Ross Silcock

Nebraska Bird Review

To begin on a sad note, I want to mention the passing of Roger Sharpe, senior author with Joel Jorgensen and me of Birds of Nebraska. Roger was great to work with, enthusiastic, and, of course, extremely knowledgeable in many areas. Joel and I both learned a lot from Roger, in different ways, not just ornithologically. We miss Roger.

This summer was, of course, hot and waterless. Any spot with water was a hotspot. Lake McConaughy, even more than usual, was worth a look, as were Sandhills ponds that generally fared well waterwise. Joel Jorgensen kept us posted on …

2002 (14th) Report Of The Nou Records Committee, Mark A. Brogie

Nebraska Bird Review

The functions and methods of the NOU Records Committee are described in its bylaws (NOU Records Committee 1986). The committee's purpose is to provide a procedure for documenting unusual bird sightings and to establish a list of all documented birds for Nebraska. "The Official List of the Birds of Nebraska" was first published in 1988 (NOU Records Committee 1988) and an update was published in 1997 (NOU Records Committee 1997).

The "Official List" has been appended twelve times: (Mollhoff 1989, Grenon 1990, 1991, Gubanyi 1996a, 1996b, 1996c, Brogie 1997,1998,1999, Jorgensen 2001, 2002, 2003). This report includes all accounts submitted during …

Nebraska Bird Review (September 2003) 71(3), Whole Issue

Nebraska Bird Review

Summer Field Report, June–July 2003 ... 106

Autumn Roosting Habitat for Chimney Swifts in Eastern Omaha ... 127 [Article not included at the request of the author]

2002 (14th) Report of the NOU Records Committee ... 136

Subscription and Organization Information ... 143

Effects Of Management Practices On Grassland Birds: Greater Prairie-Chicken, W. D. Svedarsky, J. E. Toepfer, R. L. Westemeier, R. J. Robel

United States Geological Survey: Effects of Management Practices on Grassland Birds

Information on the habitat requirements and effects of habitat management on grassland birds were summarized from information in more than 5,500 published and unpublished papers. A range map is provided to indicate the breeding distribution of Greater Prairie-Chicken in the United States and southern Canada. Although birds frequently are observed outside the breeding range indicated, the maps are intended to show areas where managers might concentrate their attention. It may be ineffectual to manage habitat at a site for a species that rarely occurs in an area. The species account begins with a brief capsule statement, which provides the fundamental …

Kentucky Warbler (Vol. 79, No. 3), Kentucky Library Research Collections

The Kentucky Warbler

No abstract provided.

Wpa News 71 (2003), World Pheasant Association

Galliformes Specialist Group and Affiliated Societies: Newsletters

WPA News (Summer 2003), number 71

Published by the World Pheasant Association

Kentucky Warbler (Vol. 79, No. 2), Kentucky Library Research Collections

The Kentucky Warbler

No abstract provided.

Thermoregulation In Swimming Mallard Ducklings (Anas Platyrhynchos), Aaron James Lynott

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Temperature regulation in birds has been studied for several decades. However, most studies have been limited to the thermal effects of air. This is surprising considering the abundance of waterfowl and the significant amount of time that many birds spend immersed in water. While we do know that water has a thermal conductivity that is 23 times that of air, the effect of water temperature on temperature regulation remains unknown. Though the thermal effect of water seemingly has a strong influence on the thermoregulation of birds, neonatal aquatic birds seem particularly susceptible. Many aquatic neonates, such as mallard ducklings, enter …

Great Gathering On The Great Plains, Paul A. Johnsgard, Michael Forsberg

Paul Johnsgard Collection

Early spring along the Platte River is sheer magic. For more than a month migratory sandhill cranes pour into central Nebraska, attracted by the shallow river’s abundant roosting sites and nearby meadows and farms for feeding. Looking like legions of gray ghosts from a distance, the birds often cover wet meadows and cornfields from one end to the other. Flocks of a thousand or more fly low over the river, their voices rising and falling as they approach, pass overhead and disappear. With nearly a half-million cranes stopping here each spring, the placid Platte is transformed into the site of …

Winter Field Report, December 2002 To February 2003, W. Ross Silcock

Nebraska Bird Review

Overall, this winter season was pretty quiet. There were no major weather events, no major invasions Gust one minor incursion), and, with one big exception, no real rarities. Indeed, one observer (JJ) said: "I don't think I've ever had such a poor winter with bird sightings." Thus I stoop to the point of mentioning the presence of a kangaroo in Crawford, dutifully recorded on the CBC there on 28 December (BW). It was not identified to species, unfortunately.

On a more serious note, it is important to keep in mind that what we do as birders can make a significant …

Temperature Regulation And The Constraints Of Climate In The Eared Grebe, Hugh I. Ellis, Joseph R. Jehl Jr

Biology: Faculty Scholarship

Eared Grebes (Podiceps nigricollis) encounter a variety of climatic regimes in their annual cycle. The most dramatic occur while on staging areas in autumn. We investigated the thermoregulatory abilities of the Eared Grebe to determine how they coped with these climate changes during staging. The basal metabolic rate (BMR) was higher than predicted. Mass-specific BMR was 1.212 mL O2/g·h for birds averaging 317 g. The thermoneutral zone is wide and extended from 15°C to 38°C. Minimal thermal conductance and average body temperature were not unusual. We conclude that Eared Grebes live most of the year under thermoneutral conditions and that …

Kentucky Warbler (Vol. 79, No. 1), Kentucky Library Research Collections

The Kentucky Warbler

No abstract provided.

Annual Review Of The World Pheasant Association 2002/2003, World Pheasant Association

Galliformes Specialist Group and Affiliated Societies: Reports and Other Materials

Chairman of Trustees' report, Dick Potts

Treasurer's report and accounts, Ian Hoggarth

Conservation activities in 2002/2003 (including South Asia Office), Philip J. K. McGowan and Rahul Kaul

WPA around the world: Highlights from the chapters

Cracid Specialist Group report, Daniel M. Brooks

Grouse Specialist Group report, Ilse Storch

Megapode Specialist Group report, René Dekker

Partridge, Quail and Francolin Specialist Group report, John P. Carroll

Pheasant Specialist Group report, Peter J. Garson

Galliformes in captivity: Results of the United Kingdom Galliformes Census 2002, Gary Robbins and John Corder

Cracids in coastal Alagoas State, northeastern Brazil, Luís Fábio Silveira and Fábio Olmos …

Megapode Newsletter 17(1)-21(2) (2003-2008), World Pheasant Association, Birdlife International, Ssc Megapode Specialist Group

Galliformes Specialist Group and Affiliated Societies: Newsletters

Volume 17, Number 1 (April 2003)

Editors: René W. R. J. Dekker and Darryl N. Jones

Viable population of Bruijn's Brush-turkey Aepypodius bruijnii discovered, Iwein Mauro

A new, a forgotten and a lost specimen of Bruijn's Brush-turkey Aepypodius bruijnii, C. W. Moeliker, C. J. Heij, J. N. J. Post, and E. J. O. Kompanje

Successful synanthropy in an Australian megapode, Darryl N. Jones

Monitoring the Nicobar megapode Megapodius nicobariensis: Phase I, Current status and conservation of the Nicobar megapode Megapodius nicobariensis, K. Sivakumar

Megapode Genetics Project proposal, Gillian C. Baker

Polynesian megapode Megapodius pritchardii status survey on …

Avian Population Trends Within The Evolving Agricultural Landscape Of The Eastern And Central United States, Michael T. Murphy

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

State-level Breeding Bird Survey (1980-1998) and U.S. Department of Agriculture statistics were used to test the hypothesis that changes in agricultural land use within the eastern and central U.S. have driven population trends of grassland and shrub habitat birds over the past two decades. The degree to which population trends differed between grassland and shrub habitats was evaluated with respect to migratory and nesting behavior. Grassland birds declined significantly between 1980 and 1999, but, on average, shrub habitat species did not. Grassland-breeding, long-distance migrants exhibited the strongest negative trends. Most species (78%; n = 63) exhibited at least one significant …