Poultry or Avian Science Commons^™

Notes On The Birds Of The Lower Niobrara Valley In 1902 As Recorded By Myron H. Swenk

Nebraska Bird Review

An expedition consisting of Messrs. J.C. Crawford, Jr., W.D. Pierce, and myself, was sent out by the Department of Entomology and Ornithology of the University of Nebraska during the summer of 1902, into the lower Niobrara valley in order to examine and collect specimens of the fauna of that region After August 1, Professor Bruner also worked with us. Although essentially an entomological expedition, considerable attention was paid by different members of the party to the birds, and some fairly interesting and valuable ornithological notes were secured.

The party started from Long Pine on June 14, and proceeded down the …

Whole Issue Nebraska Bird Review (March 1983) 51(1)

Nebraska Bird Review

Table of Contents

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

1982 (Twenty·third) Fall Occurrence Report....................3

1982 Christmas Count....................14

Two Additions to the Nebraska List ....................18

A Winter Roadside Survey of Hawks etc.....................19

Notes....................22

"Notes," From Nebraska Bird Review (March 1983) 51(1).

Nebraska Bird Review

CATTLE VS. WATERFOWL. After three years of comparatively dry weather that kept our rainwater basins dry most of the time, in 1982 we had lots of rain and lots of water in our basins. The rains started the latter part of April and the waterfowl and shorebirds came in great numbers. Although the water levels raised with each rain, the vegetation grew fast enough to keep most of the water covered. This is where the nesting population of Coots, Pied-billed Grebes, etc., hide their nests, and it is hard to guess how many birds are nesting or where the nests …

Masthead From Nebraska Bird Review (March 1983) 51(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 calendar year basis only) are $7.00 per year in the United States and $9.00 per year in all other countries, payable in advance Single copies are $2.25 each, postpaid.

Memberships (on a calendar year basis only): Student, $3.00; Active, $7.00; Sustaining, $15.00; Family Active. $10.00; Family Sustaining, $20.00; Life, $100.00,

A Winter Roadside Survey Of Hawks In Eastern Nemaha County, Nebraska, Steve Shupe, Robert Collins

Nebraska Bird Review

During the winters of 1980-81 and 1981-82 roadside surveys of hawks were conducted on 76 square miles (196.8 square kilometers) of Nemaha County, Nebraska. Forty surveys were conducted each winter to acquire baseline data on distribution and populations. Ten species were observed, with the Red-tailed Hawk (49.7%) and the American Kestrel (21.5%) comprising more than 70%of all sightings. Population estimates for each species were determined by using square mile extrapolation and the bounded count method. Intervals of confidence were calculated in an attempt to determine upper and lower winter population limits.

1982 Treasurer's Report

Nebraska Bird Review

1982 Treasurer's Report

1982 Christmas Count

Nebraska Bird Review

One hundred and one species (thirteen more than last year) were reported in the 1982 Christmas Count, and one species (the same as last year) was reported present during the count period but not recorded on the count day on any count. Eight localities reported this year, one more than last year, Kearney being the addition. Two additional races (Flickers were not shown on the tabulation) were reported; the same as last year, and one hybrid was reported this year, with none last year. The total individual count this year was 302,646 compared to 64,054. The Snow Goose count accounted …

Two Additions To The Nebraska List, Rick Wright, Doug G. Thomas

Nebraska Bird Review

OLIVACEOUS CORMORANT The University of Nebraska State Museum has in its possession a specimen of Olivaceous Cormorant (Phalacrocorx olivaceus) taken 2 October 1982 in Sutherland County, Nebraska. The bird was confiscated and turned over to us by a game warden.

Rick Wright, W504 B Nebraska Hall, Lincoln, Nebraska 68588

PHAINOPEPLA On 1 January 1983, at 8 A.M. I'd just chipped out the birdbath and refilled it with warm water. I was kneeling in the doorway of the garage, preparing goodies for the "children", when stroboscopic flashes of white outside the door caught my eye. I looked back toward the …

1982 (Twenty-Fifth) Fall Occurrence Report

Nebraska Bird Review

Two hundred sixty-nine species, from 10 localities, are listed in this report. Comparable figures for previous years are: 277 species from 14 localities in 1981,281 (and a possible Veery) from 12 localities in 1980, and 284 from 11 in 1979.

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 Om for the months

Scaring Of Carrion Crows (Corvus Corone Corone) By Species-Specific Distress Calls And Suspended Bodies Of Dead Crows, Luzia Naef-Daenzer

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

In Switzerland, carrion crows can cause considerable damage to sprouting corn fields when feeding on the germinated corn. I tried to evaluate a method to prevent these damages. The use of species-specific distress calls, for the first time described by Frings and Jumber (1954), seemed to be the most promising method. Agronomes and biologists have applied it in field studies to several different bird species causing damage in agriculture and on airports (e.g., Gramet, 1962; Brough, 1968). However, the literature either describes single actions or several different scaring devices being used together. To be able to judge the method, quantitative …

Whole Issue Nebraska Bird Review (December 1982) 50(4)

Nebraska Bird Review

TABLE OF CONTENTS

The New A.O.U. Checklist and Nebraska Birds .................74

Book Review .................87

1982 Fall Field Day .................87

Louisiana Waterthrush Nesting in Fontenelle Forest .................88

Notes .................89

Index of Volume 50 .................90

Book Review- Nebraska Bird Review (December 1982)

Nebraska Bird Review

The Kingfisher, David Boag, 120 pp. 6 ½ x 9 ½, Blandford Press, England, Sterling Publishing Co. Inc. New York Hardbound, indexed. $17.95.

This is a handsome book -thick paper, 66 color photographs (of various sizes) by the author. It is about the Kingfisher, Alcedo atthis, of Europe, about half the size of our Belted Kingfisher, and much more colorful. The text is interesting reading, giving the life history of the bird; description and distribution; territory and aggression; courtship and nest-building; eggs and young; food and feeding habits; mortality; myths and legend. And an appendix on photographic techniques, …

1982 Fall Field Day

Nebraska Bird Review

Those who came in Friday to the 4-H Camp at Halsey National Forest ran into rain there or on the way in, but Saturday and Sunday, 2 and 3 October, were bright, but a little too windy and a little too chilly to be perfect. Sixty-three registered for the meeting. Of the birds submitted for consideration, the directors selected the Scarlet Tanager at Scotts Bluff as the best and the Cattle Egret in Sioux Co. as second. (NBR 50:65 and 67). It was decided to have a new field card, on stiffer stock and smaller sized than the present …

"Index Of Volume 50," From Nebraska Bird Review (December 1982) 50(4)

Nebraska Bird Review

Index of Volume 50 (8 pages)

Accipter sp. 22

Adcock, Dorothy 7, 64

Alexander, Irene 19

Albino 60

Alfalfa 27

Anhinga 75

Ani, Groove-billed 80

Ash, green 29( 4)

Avocet, American 3,7,9, 26, 31, 38, 56, 78

............

Yellowlegs
Greater 8, 26, 31, 55, 79
Lesser n, 26, 31, 55, 79

Yellowthroat, Common 17, 26, 33, 35, 64, 85, 87

Zeillemaker, C. Fred 4(2), 7, 11
Melly 4, 7, 11

Masthead From Nebraska Bird Review (December 1982) 50(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 calendar year basis only) are $7.00 per year in the United States and $9.00 per year in all other countries, payable in advance. Single copies are $2.25 each, postpaid.

Memberships (on a calendar year basis only): Student, $3.00; Active. $7.00; Sustaining, $15.00; Family Active, $10.00; Family Sustaining, $20.00; Life, $100.00.

Note- Nebraska Bird Review (December 1982), Harold Turner, Steve Shupe

Nebraska Bird Review

Minden Notes. On 14 May 1982 I saw six or so White Pelicans over the Platte, south of Kearney, and a Swainson's Hawk, perched on a fence post, near Minden. I saw Lapland Longspurs 25 December, and then not again until 11 February, when they were present in large numbers. I usually saw Marsh Hawks when I got out this winter, and Rough-legged, and Red-tailed Hawks, and a few Kestrels. Prairie Falcons were not much seen, however. I flushed a Sprague's Pipit, northwest of minden, plus a few Savannah Sparrows. Red Crossbills were common feeders in town, earlier in the …

The New A.O.U. Checklist And Nebraska Birds

Nebraska Bird Review

The Sixth Edition of The A O. U Checklist of North American Birds will be published in 1983. The Fifth Edition was published in 1957, and the last changes in it were by the 33rdSupplement, issued in 1976. The scientific and common names of the birds to be listed in the Sixth Edition, in the order to be used in that edition, are given in a 34th Supplement, published July 1982 as a supplement to The Auk, Vol. 99, No.3. But that supplement, unlike previous ones, contains no explanations or comments. Stuart Keith, Birding XIV (2):40, who in working …

Louisiana Waterthrush Nesting In Fontenelle Forest, Paul Bedell

Nebraska Bird Review

On 5 June 1982, I located a nest of the Louisiana Waterthrush (Seiurus motacilla) in Fontenelle Forest. The location had been determined on 26 April when I, with three others, Tanya Bray, Babs Padelford and B.J. Rose, saw a Waterthrush carrying nesting material. This site was later reported as abandoned. I had first seen a Waterthrush in this area on 15 April and identified it as a Louisiana by its song. On 21 April I saw two foraging together. On the date of the nest building they were silent and easily overlooked; but I heard occasional singing on …

Note--Nebraska Bird Review (September 1982), George W. Brown

Nebraska Bird Review

BARN OWL NEST. A Barn Owl nested 2.5 miles southwest of Sutherland, Lincoln Co. The Owl selected a ledge above an overhead door in a farm grain elevator building, built of steel. The ledge was about 8 inches wide and 12 feet above the driveway. The door was opened and closed during the nesting and that didn't seem to cause a problem. Six eggs were laid and all hatched. The day I observed the site (28 July 1982) two young had left the nest and the other four were about ready to leave. The female was at the nest and …

Book Reviews- Nebraska Bird Review (September 1982), R.G. Cortelyou

Nebraska Bird Review

A Twitcher's Diary. The Birdwatching Year of Richard Millington, Richard Millington, 192 pp., 6½ x 9½, Blandford Press, England, Sterling Publishing Co. Inc, New York. Hardbound, indexed, $24.95.

Twitching is the British term for listing, but Mr. Millington is more than just a lister. He made five visits to get "crippling views" of a Scops Owl, which had been heard and poorly seen on previous attempts. Of course, he is a bird artist (a good one) and a "crippling view" of the Owl is one of the over 200 drawings in the book, including 14in color. The text is …

1982 (Fifty-Seventh) Spring Occurrence Report

Nebraska Bird Review

1982 (Fifty-Seventh) Spring Occurrence Report

Two hundred eighty-seven species are listed in this report, from 15 locations. The comparable figures for 1981 are 298 species from 12 locations; 1980 298 from 14; and 1979 292 from 12.

The symbols used in the tabulation are:

Ja, Fe, Mr, Ap, My, and Je for the months.

Masthead From Nebraska Bird Review (September 1982) 50(3)

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 calendar year basis amy) are $7.00 per year in the United States and $9.00 per year in all other countries, payable in advance. Single copies are $2.25 each, postpaid.

Memberships (on a calendar year basis only): Student, $3.00; Active, $7.00; Sustaining, $15.00; Family Active, $10.00; Family Sustaining, $20.00; Life, $100.00.

Whole Issue Nebraska Bird Review (September 1982) 50(3)

Nebraska Bird Review

Table of Contents

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

Note .....................50

1982 (Fifty-seventh) Spring Occurrence Report .....................51

The 1982 Least Tern and Piping Plover Breeding Season on the Lower Platte River, Nebraska .....................68

Possible Evidence Of Fish-Eating By A Lesser Sandhill Crane From The Central Platte Valley, Nebraska, Myra Mergler Niemeier, Paul E. Niemeier

Nebraska Bird Review

Centrarchid fish scales, probably those of the Green Sunfish (Lepomis cyanellus), were found in the crop of a Lesser Sandhill Crane (Grus canadensis canadensis) from the Central Platte Valley, Nebraska, in March, 1976. Scales were primarily from age class II fish. Fish total length was estimated at 100.60 mm.

Notes--Nebraska Bird Review (June 1982), T. A. Hoffman, Lee Morris, Ida May Heywood, Lee Morris, Jeanne Dueker, Ruth C. Green, Mabel B. Ott, Jeanne Dueker

Nebraska Bird Review

Notes include stories of Goshawks along the Platte River near Morse Bluff in northwest Saunders County; rainwater basins water level up and hosting Snow Geese, White-fronted Goose, Buff-breasted Sandpipers, Golden Plovers, Whimbrels, Soras; Woodcock near Peru; in York County seeing a Prairie Falcon, Eastern Bluebirds, and Northern Shrike, plus an electrocuted Great Horned Owl with a rooster Pheasant in its clutched talons; a Broad-tailed Hummingbird near Chadron; a large flock of crows in Holdrege; bird-banding in the Bellevue area; a Blue Grosbeak banded at Chet Ager Nature Center near Lincoln; a Blackpoll Warbler near Norfolk; and bullsnakes feeding on young …

The Eighty-First Annual Meeting

Nebraska Bird Review

The first two thirds of May 1982 were much wetter than usual in Nebraska, and many of the people coming to the meeting drove in rain Friday until they got to within 150 miles or so of Chadron, and after they got home after the meeting encountered rainy weather again. But 21 and 22 May were dry and sunny in the meeting area. There was the usual get-together Friday night, at the meeting headquarters at Camp Norwesca, just south of Chadron State Park. At the business meeting Saturday afternoon the following officers were elected: Mrs. Ruth Green, Bellevue, president; Mr. …

A Checklist Of The Birds Of Mormon Island Crane Meadows, Gary R. Lingle, Miriam A. Hay

Nebraska Bird Review

Mormon Island Crane Meadows (MICM) was purchased in December 1979 through a cooperative effort of The Nature Conservancy and The Platte River Whooping Crane Critical Habitat Maintenance Trust. This 2,000 acre preserve provides excellent habitat for spring staging migratory water birds and numerous species of other wildlife, In order to determine sound management practices for the area it was necessary to conduct an intensive inventory of the flora and fauna occurring there. This checklist represents the results of the bird inventory.

Notes on the occurrence of avifauna observed on MICM were recorded from 24 March 1980 to 28 July 1981. …

1981 Nebraska Nesting Survey, Esther V. Bennett

Nebraska Bird Review

Data on the 1981 nesting season in Nebraska were received from 14 observers, reporting on 62 species from 25 counties. Counties in the tabulation are listed in a west to east order, with the northernmost of approximately equal locations given first. Numbers represent Nest Record Cards; Y represents young observed; C represents Cowbird eggs found in other nests; N represents nests observed for which no Nest Record Card was submitted; and E represents eggs or egg fragments observed.

Fifty-five species were reported on North American Nest Record Cards. The counties, with column numbers on the tabulation shown in parentheses, and …

Masthead From Nebraska Bird Review (June 1982) 50(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 calendar year basis amy) are $7.00 per year in the United States and $9.00 per year in all other countries, payable in advance. Single copies are $2.25 each, postpaid.

Memberships (on a calendar year basis only): Student, $3.00; Active, $7.00; Sustaining, $15.00; Family Active, $10.00; Family Sustaining, $20.00; Life, $100.00.

Wilson Tout, Secretary, Doris Gates

Nebraska Bird Review

Wilson Tout was secretary of the North Platte Bird Club from 1940 to 1944, and members looked forward to his reading of the minutes. They were hardly the kind most organizations would expect. Recently I was able to get copies of Mr. Tout's minutes and two, selected more or less at random, are given below:

NOVEMBER 16, 1940

The North Platte Bird Club met at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Wilson Tout with 14 members present. Mr. Webster called the meeting to order upon a nod from Mrs. Webster. The minutes of the last meeting were read amid general …