Poultry or Avian Science Commons^™

Subscription And Organization Information [June 2016]

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): $25 in the United States and $35 in all other countries, payable in advance. Single copies are $7 each, postpaid, in the United States and $9 elsewhere. Send orders for back issues to Anita Breckbill, NOU Librarian, c/o Music Library, WMB 30, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68588-0101.

Memberships in the NOU (on a calendar-year basis only): Active Household (one or more people) $25; Sustaining …

The Second Nebraska Breeding Bird Atlas, Wayne J. Mollhoff, Bulletin Of The University Of Nebraska State Museum, Vol. 29, 2016 [Book Review], W. Ross Silcock

Nebraska Bird Review

As suggested by its title, this book (“Second Atlas”) presents the results of a follow-up to the first Nebraska breeding bird atlas, The Nebraska Breeding Bird Atlas 1984–89 (“First Atlas”), also authored by Wayne Mollhoff. In this Second Atlas, Mollhoff acknowledges the foresight of John J. Dinan, Nongame Bird Program Manager at Nebraska Game and Parks Commission during the time of the First Atlas, in working toward a “follow-up project.” As Mollhoff says in the foreword to the Second Atlas, "His persistence in pursuing that goal ultimately led to the current project.”

The best feature of the Second Atlas is …

Low Permeability Triple-Layer Plastic Bags Prevent Losses Of Maize Caused By Insects In Rural On-Farm Stores, Jeremiah Ng’Ang’A, Christopher Mutungi, Samuel M. Imathiu, Hippolyte Affognon

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

Participatory on-farm trials were conducted to assess effectiveness of Purdue Improved Crop Storage (PICS™) bags for storage of maize in small-scale farmers’ stores in rural villages in eastern Kenya. A PICS bag is a three-layered hermetic bag-system that forms a barrier against the influx of oxygen and the escape of carbon dioxide. Jute, woven polypropylene or PICS bags were filled with shelled maize grain, purchased from the participating farmers, and the three sets of bags kept in the farmers’ own stores for 35 weeks. Oxygen and carbon dioxide levels in the PICS bags were monitored, as well as the temperature …

Spring Field Report, March 2016 To May 2016, W. Ross Silcock

Nebraska Bird Review

In contrast to the fairly routine spring of 2015, this year saw an almost unbelievable parade of early arrivals. About 49 species, including virtually all taxonomic groups, had arrival dates at the early end of expected arrival dates, and a few species set record early dates. Notable early birds were Calidris shorebirds, flycatchers, and swallows, species which depend on available insect and pond-edge life, suggesting that organisms are "waking up" earlier than in previous years, helped, of course, by the mild 2015–2016 winter. On the other hand, there was only one late species: Purple Finch, which remained into mid-May at …

Nou Spring Field Days And Annual Meeting, Kimball, May 20–22, 2016, Janis Paseka

Nebraska Bird Review

The annual meeting of the Nebraska Ornithologists' Union was held at the Kimball Event Center on May 20–22, 2016, and was organized by Robin Harding and Betty Grenon. Although it was a long drive for most, 75 birders attended, including guests from Iowa, South Dakota, Wyoming, Colorado, and Arkansas.

On Friday evening, President Dan Leger presented a Michael Forsberg photograph of Burrowing Owls to Betty Grenon in appreciation for her many years of service as Treasurer. The evening program continued with a presentation by Angela Dwyer and Larry Snyder of the Bird Conservancy of the Rockies, formerly known as the …

Nebraska Bird Review (June 2016) 84(2), Whole Issue

Nebraska Bird Review

Spring Field Report, March 2016 to May 2016 ... 58

The Mute Swan in Nebraska: History and Current Status … 86

Gyrfalcon in Boyd County, Nebraska … 96

The Second Nebraska Breeding Bird Atlas, Wayne J. Mollhoff [book review] … 97

Answers to the Photo Quiz (The Nebraska Bird Review, March 2016) … 100

NOU Spring Field Days and Annual Meeting, Kimball, May 20–22, 2016 … 102

Subscription and Organization Information ... 107

Bone-Associated Gene Evolution And The Origin Of Flight In Birds, Joao P. Machado, Warren E. Johnson, M. Thomas P. Gilbert, Guojie Zhang, Erich D. Jarvis, Stephen J. O'Brien, Agostinho Antunes

Biology Faculty Articles

Background

Bones have been subjected to considerable selective pressure throughout vertebrate evolution, such as occurred during the adaptations associated with the development of powered flight. Powered flight evolved independently in two extant clades of vertebrates, birds and bats. While this trait provided advantages such as in aerial foraging habits, escape from predators or long-distance travels, it also imposed great challenges, namely in the bone structure.

Results

We performed comparative genomic analyses of 89 bone-associated genes from 47 avian genomes (including 45 new), 39 mammalian, and 20 reptilian genomes, and demonstrate that birds, after correcting for multiple testing, have an almost …

Cfd Model For Ventilation In Broiler Holding Sheds, Christian Heymsfield

Biological and Agricultural Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

Broiler production in Arkansas was valued at over $3.6 billion in 2013 (University of Arkansas Extension of Agriculture). Consequently, improvement in any phase of the production process can have significant economic impact and animal welfare implications. From the time poultry leave the farm and until they are slaughtered, they can be exposed to harsh environmental conditions, both in winter and in summer. After road transportation, birds are left to wait in holding sheds once they arrive at the processing plant, for periods of approximately 30 minutes to two hours. This project was interested in this holding shed waiting time during …

A Molecular Approach To Understanding The Effects Of Original-Xpc On The Modulation Of The Cecal Microbiota And The Survival Of Salmonella In The Poultry Host, Stephanie Roto

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Salmonella is a foodborne pathogen commonly associated with poultry products; the economic burden to the U.S. is estimated to be approximately $693 million (without factoring in contaminated eggs). Recently, there has been pressure to withdraw sub-therapeutic levels of antibiotics (also known as antibiotic growth promoters; AGP) from poultry due to concern over antibiotic-resistant bacteria spreading to the human population. Therefore, various feed additives have been researched for their ability in providing protection against harmful pathogens and their potential growth promoting effects, both of which were attributes of poultry treated with AGP. This thesis consists of a comprehensive literature review that …

Proteomic Characterization Of Eggshell Membranes And Their Effect On Poultry Physiology And Immunity, Sarbjeet Kaur Makkar

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The use of antibiotics in poultry growth and disease control has led to antibiotics resistant problem in human beings, which is a big concern among consumers. With the necessity for judicious use of antibiotics in poultry production, alternative strategies to improve disease resistance in poultry production are necessary. The research is more inclined towards using the natural products available to grow healthier and antibiotic free meat animals. In the context of exploring natural and sustainable resource of alternative to antibiotics, the biochemical milieu of eggshell membranes (ESM) were analyzed by using mass spectrometry techniques including matrix assisted laser desorption ionization …

Evaluation And Selection Of A Bacillus Based Direct-Fed Microbial Candidate For In Situ Enzyme Production To Improve Gut Health Integrity, Bone Quality And Growth Performance In Poultry, Juan David Latorre Cardenas

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

During the last decade, the increasing interest in renewable energy sources has been changing the distribution of corn utilization from human and animal consumption to biofuel production, leading to a continuous rise in feed costs of livestock diets. Therefore, alternative feed ingredients such as distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS), as well as cereals like wheat, barley, and sorghum have become part of the feed matrix to maintain or reduce production costs. However, these raw materials often contain a higher concentration of antinutritional factors in comparison to corn, including non-starch polysaccharides (NSP) which increase digesta viscosity and reduce nutrient absorption …

Development Of A Biofilm Model For Evaluating Poultry Drinking Water Sanitation Procedures, Pramir Maharjan

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Enclosed water system has created a minimal sanitation focus leading to biofilm issues which are a source of flock health challenges. A series of in vitro tests were conducted to evaluate biofilm growth on polyvinylchloride (PVC) surfaces when exposed to treated/untreated water sources (test water) that are typically supplied in commercial barns. PVC test coupons (15.16 cm2) were immersed in test water in beakers to grow biofilm. Test water supplies were characterized for microbial, mineral and pH content. Temperature of test water was set at 90 °F (32.2 ᵒC) on d1 and then dropping 1°F each day over 7-day period …

Use Of A Blunt Version Of Meullenet-Owens Razor Shear To Analyze Meat Qualities Of Broilers With Woody Breast Myopathy And Reared To Various Ages, Famous Lue Yang

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Broiler breast meat tenderness is an important meat quality attribute. There has been an increase in incidences of woody breast along with white striping as meat quality defects. These defects have been found to negatively impact meat qualities of broiler breast fillets. Woody breast can be classified by the degree of hardness into normal (NORM) and severe (SEV). The Meullenet-Owens Razor Shear (MORS) method was developed to assess broiler meat tenderness and a blunt version (BMORS) has been reported to be more sensitive at higher degrees of toughness. The present study was intended to determine the effect of age, debone …

Meat Quality And Sensory Analysis Of Broiler Breast Fillets With Woody Breast Muscle Myopathy, Jessica Solo

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Recently, the poultry industry has encountered an emerging muscle myopathy known as woody breast (WB), which is characterized by hardness throughout the Pectoralis major muscle. Two experiments were performed to assess sensory characteristics and acceptability of WB meat and to determine the effect of broiler age on meat quality factors in varying severities of WB. Fillets were categorized as normal (NORM), moderate (MOD), or severe (SEV) WB. In Experiment 1 (Exp. 1), descriptive (n=9 trained panelists) and consumer (n=74 panelists) sensory analysis was conducted with NORM and SEV fillets at hot and cold serving temperatures (HOTNORM, COLDNORM, HOTSEV, COLDSEV). In …

Is Diet Selection By Greater Sage-Grouse Influenced By Biomass Availability Or Toxins?, Jacqueline Peña, Marcella Fremgen

McNair Scholars Research Journal

Foraging herbivores must meet nutritional requirements by not only finding enough plant biomass to consume, but also finding plants with high protein content and low concentrations of potentially toxic plant secondary metabolites (PSMs). Greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus; hereafter, sage-grouse) are sagebrush obligate herbivores that consume relatively high concentrations of PSMs. To meet their nutritional needs and avoid ingesting high amounts of PSMs, sage-grouse may select species of sagebrush for food that have lower concentrations of PSMs than a more abundant species with higher concentration of PSMs. Diet selection by sage-grouse may also be driven by chemical factors at finer scales …

Population And Morphological Changes In American Kestrels Through Space And Time, Teresa E. Ely

School of Biological Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

A once common raptor, the American kestrel (Falco sparverius) has experienced population declines in the last two decades throughout North America. Many hypotheses exist about the decline, including mortality from West Nile virus, rodenticide poisoning, climate change, an increase in predators, and core habitat loss or degradation, which could influence food availability. Food availability is key to raptor survival and reproduction, and changes in food availability throughout the year can have lifelong effects on size and body condition. Here we examine how morphology, specifically mass and wing chord, has changed at seven migration sites throughout North America as …

Avifaunal Community Composition In A Tropical Forest Corridor: A Case Study From The Atherton Tableland, North Queensland, Don Jones

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Bird communities in tropical forest ecosystems are highly threatened by habitat loss and fragmentation. Replanted corridors connecting isolated forest remnants are a popular method of ameliorating certain negative impacts of habitat fragmentation. Such linkages can theoretically facilitate greater dispersal, increase gene flow, and reduce the risk of local extinctions in forest birds. However, relatively few studies have examined the utilization of reforested corridors by birds, and little hard data exists to support claims that this type of resource and time intensive project is the best use of often scarce funding for conservation. This study examined the avifaunal community present in …

Subscription And Organization Information [March 2016]

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): $25 in the United States and $35 in all other countries, payable in advance. Single copies are $7 each, postpaid, in the United States and $9 elsewhere. Send orders for back issues to Anita Breckbill, NOU Librarian, c/o Music Library, WMB 30, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68588-0101.

Memberships in the NOU (on a calendar-year basis only): Active Household (one or more people) $25; Sustaining …

Nebraska Bird Review (March 2016) 84(1), Whole Issue

Nebraska Bird Review

Winter Field Report, December 2015 to February 2016 … 2

Color Photo Section (Woodland birds) … 25

Eight Years of Bird Banding at Nebraska’s Chadron State Park … 33

2015–2016 Christmas Bird Counts … 39

Nebraska Ornithologists’ Union Treasurer’s Report, December 31, 2015 … 54

Subscription and Organization Information ... 55

Winter Field Report, December 2015 To February 2016, W. Ross Silcock

Nebraska Bird Review

As has been the trend in recent years, many species are lingering later in fall and even arriving earlier in spring. Along with lingering birds, mid-winter and overwintering records have increased. This winter was phenomenal in this respect, especially in that records were across the board in terms of species, suggesting that water conditions have moderated (more open water) and temperatures in general have also (passerines). Unprecedented records included first wintering White-winged Scoter and first Jan or Feb record of Orange-crowned Warbler. Second or third such records were set by Blue-winged Teal, Surf Scoter, Ruddy Duck, Eared Grebe, Greater Yellowlegs, …

Woodland Birds, Color Photo Section [March 2016, Pp. 25–32]

Nebraska Bird Review

Photographs of Swainson’s Thrush, Prothonotary Warbler, Acadian Flycatcher, and Varied Thrush and Hairy Woodpecker (p. 25); White-eyed Vireo, Long-eared Owl, Great Crested Flycatcher, and Broad-winged Hawk (p. 26); Chestnut-sided Warbler, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Yellow-rumped Warbler, and Bay-breasted Warbler (p. 27); Blackpoll Warbler, Tennessee Warbler, Eastern Towhee, Eastern Screech-Owl, and Green Heron (p. 28); quiz (four birds) (p. 29); Caspian Tern, Great Blue Heron, Buff-breasted Sandpipers, and Cattle Egret (p. 30); Mississippi Kite, Snow Buntings, White-winged Dove, and Black-bellied Plover (p. 31); and intermediate Northern Flicker, Dark-eyed (Pink-sided) Junco, Mourning Doves, and Eastern Phoebe (p. 32).

2015–2016 Christmas Bird Counts, Don Paseka

Nebraska Bird Review

Fifteen counts were held during the 2015–16 Christmas Bird Count season, which is one more than last season when the Harrison count was canceled. The Grand Island count was held on December 12, two days prior to the start of the officially sanctioned CBC time slot, but its results are included in this discussion.

Ten of the counts were done on or before December 22 under mild conditions with little snow cover and mostly to entirely open water. While the weather became more seasonable toward the end of the period, it was still fairly benign. As a result, most of …

Eight Years Of Bird Banding In Nebraska’S Chadron State Park, Josh Lefever

Nebraska Bird Review

Each autumn since 2008, the Bird Conservancy of the Rockies has sent a trained biologist to capture, band, and collect data on the birds that make use of the Pine Ridge region on their journey south. Eight years of mist-netting at Chadron State Park, in the heart of the Pine Ridge, has given insights into the unique assemblage of birds found there, and how alteration by fire can affect birds' use of the habitat. The Chadron State Park banding station is located on a hillside near the west edge of the park, with an overstory of Ponderosa Pines and a …

Nebraska Ornithologists’ Union Treasurer’S Report, December 31, 2015

Nebraska Bird Review

One-page spreadsheet constituting the Nebraska Ornithologists' Union treasurer's report at year end (December 31) of 2015. The grand total is $59,997.24.

Swans: Their Biology And Natural History, Paul A. Johnsgard

Zea E-Books Collection

The seven species of swans of the world are an easily and universally recognized group of waterfowl, which have historically played important roles in the folklore, myths and legends in many of the world’s cultures. Among the largest of all flying birds, they have also almost universally been used as symbols of royalty, grace and beauty, and largely for these reasons swans have only rarely been considered acceptable as targets for sport hunting. Swans occur on all the continents except Africa, although most species are associated with the temperate and arctic zones of North America and Eurasia. Among birds, swans …

Overview Of The Endangered Species Program, Glen Smart

United States Geological Survey: Publications

In the late 1950s and early 1960s, we became increasingly aware, as a Nation, of declining populations of birds and mammals. Rates of extinction appeared to be skyrocketing and the situation was becoming critical. The country needed to take action to reverse this trend. The Federal government began to show interest in the problem and acknowledged that it needed to intervene on a hands-on basis. The Washington, D.C., office of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) began to promote a program, championed by Dr. Ray Erickson, senior scientist at headquarters, to initiate captive research and propagation of birds and …

High Throughput Genomic Sequencing Of Bioaerosols In Broiler Chicken Production Facilities, Kate M. O’Brien, Michael S. Chimenti, Morgan Farnell, Tom Tabler, Thomas Bair, Joey Lynn Bray, Matthew W. Nonnenmann

Faculty Publications

Chronic inhalation exposure to agricultural dust promotes the development of chronic respiratory diseases among poultry workers. Poultry dust is composed of dander, chicken feed, litter bedding and microbes. However, the microbial composition and abundance has not been fully elucidated. Genomic DNA was extracted from settled dust and personal inhalable dust collected while performing litter sampling or mortality collection tasks. DNA libraries were sequenced using a paired-end sequencing-by-synthesis approach on an Illumina HiSeq 2500. Sequencing data showed that poultry dust is predominantly composed of bacteria (64–67%) with a small quantity of avian, human and feed DNA (< 2% of total reads). Staphylococcus sp. AL1, Salinicoccus carnicancri and Lactobacillus crispatus were the most abundant bacterial species in personal exposure samples of inhalable dust. Settled dust had a moderate relative abundance of these species as well as Staphylococcus lentus and Lactobacillus salivarius. There was a statistical difference between the microbial composition of aerosolized and settled dust. Unlike settled dust composition, aerosolized dust composition had little variance between samples. These data provide an extensive analysis of the microbial composition and relative abundance in personal inhalable poultry dust and settled poultry dust.

Impacts Of Man-Made Structures On Avian Community Metrics In 4 State Parks In Northwestern Arkansas, R. D. Keith, B. Grooms, R. E. Urbanek

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

Avian community metrics often differ between areas with no human disturbance and areas with high levels of human disturbance. However, the relationships between avian community metrics and smaller-scale disturbances are not as clear. Our goal was to investigate if avian abundance, richness, evenness, and diversity differed in areas with and without small-scale human developments. We used fixed-radius 50-m avian point counts to compare points which contained a man-made structure (n = 47), such as a picnic area, road, or campsite to those that did not contain a man-made structure (n = 181) at 4 state parks in Arkansas during 18 …

Migratory Bird Program At The U.S. Geological Survey Patuxent Wildlife Research Center/U.S. Fish And Wildlife Service Patuxent Research Refuge: Transformations In Management And Research, R. Michael Erwin, Robert Blohm

United States Geological Survey: Publications

The Patuxent Wildlife Research Center (Patuxent), first known as the Patuxent Research Refuge, has a long and rich history of participation in the Department of Interior’s (DOI) cooperative efforts to protect and conserve migratory birds in North America. This chapter describes many of the events and the people involved that constitute this important timeline for international conservation of a shared wildlife resource. The Patuxent Research Refuge, renowned worldwide, is part of the National Wildlife Refuge System of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) that has, at different times and under a variety of organizational iterations, provided the physical location …

Flight Mechanics And Control Of Escape Manoeuvres In Hummingbirds. Ii. Aerodynamic Force Production, Flight Control And Performance Limitations, Bo Cheng, Bret W. Tobalske, Donald R. Powers, Tyson L. Hedrick, Yi Wang, Susan M. Wethington, George T.C. Chiu, Xinyan Deng

Faculty Publications - Department of Biological & Molecular Science

The superior manoeuvrability of hummingbirds emerges from complex interactions of specialized neural and physiological processes with the unique flight dynamics of flapping wings. Escape manoeuvring is an ecologically relevant, natural behaviour of hummingbirds, from which we can gain understanding into the functional limits of vertebrate locomotor capacity. Here, we extend our kinematic analysis of escape manoeuvres from a companion paper to assess two potential limiting factors of the manoeuvring performance of hummingbirds: (1) muscle mechanical power output and (2) delays in the neural sensing and control system. We focused on the magnificent hummingbird (Eugenes fulgens, 7.8 g) and the black-chinned …