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Nebraska Bird Review Whole Issue June 2003 Volume 71 Number 2

Nebraska Bird Review

Table of Contents

Spring Field Report, March-May 2003
Compiled by W. Ross Silcock ..........................58

Species Accounts ..........................62

2001 (13th) Report of the NOU Records Committee
Compiled by Joel G. Jorgensen..........................97

The Xenarthrans Of Nicaragua, Hugh H. Genoways, Robert M. Timm

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

The mammalian fauna of Nicaragua includes seven species in the order Xenarthra, including the brown-throated three-toed sloth (Bradypus variegatus) in the family Bradypodidae, Hoffmann's two-toed sloth (Choloepus hoffmanni) in the family Megalonychidae, the northern naked-tailed armadillo (Cabassous centralis) and nine-banded armadillo (Dasypus novemcinctus) in the family Dasypodidae, and the silky anteater (Cyclopes didactylus) and northern tamandua (Tamandua mexicana) in the family Myrmecophagidae. Additionally, the giant anteater (Myrmecophaga tridactyla) in the family Myrmecophagidae is (or was) certainly part of the fauna of Nicaragua but has yet to …

Masthead From Nebraska Bird Review March 2003

Nebraska Bird Review

The Nebraska Bird Review (http://rip.physics.unk.edu/NOUI) 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): $ 14.00 in the United States; $ 18.00 for all foreign countries, payable in advance. Single copies are $4.00 each, postpaid, in the United States, and $5.00 elsewhere. Send orders for back issues to Mary Prichard, NOU Librarian, University of Nebraska State Museum, Lincoln, NE 68588-0514.

Memberships in NOU (on a calendar year basis only): Active, $ 15.00; Sustaining, $25.00; Student, $ 10.00; Family …

2002 Christmas Bird Counts

Nebraska Bird Review

2002 Christmas Bird Counts compiled by Janis Paseka

The 2002 Christmas Bird Count period included 11 counts, down one from the previous year, as no count was held in Harlan County. Ten of these counts took place in Nebraska, and one, which includes the DeSoto National Wildlife Refuge and Boyer Chute, straddles the Nebraska-Iowa border. A total of 237 counters participated in this year's count, 208 in the field and 29 at feeders.

The overall weather this year was balmy, with over half the counts ending their day in the 50's or 60's. The weather had also been mild in …

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 …

Nebraska Bird Review Whole Issue March 2003 Volume 71 Number 1

Nebraska Bird Review

Table of Contents

Fall Field Report, August-November 2002 Compiled
by W. Ross Silcock ............... 2

Species Accounts ...............6

Newspaper Bird History Of Miles Greenleaf,
An Omaha Newsman by James E. Ducey ...............25

2002 CBC, compiled by Janis Paseka...............31

Ecology Of The Missouri River: Missouri River Creel Survey, Bellevue Bridge To Camp Creek, 30 March Through 11 October 2002. Supplement I, Gerald Mestl

Nebraska Game and Parks Commission: White Papers, Conference Presentations, and Manuscripts

This report describes Missouri River activities and results related to a channelized Missouri River creel survey conducted from 30 March through 11 October 2002. This is the third of a planned annual creel survey to be conducted on alternating sections of the channelized Missouri River to measure changes in recreational fishing activity, especially those changes due to large scale habitat restoration efforts. Future reports will contain additional analyses of these data. Anglers spent over 42,000 hours fishing the Missouri River from Bellevue (rkm 967.7) to Camp Creek (rkm 883.5) during the survey period. Effort was steady from late spring (4/27 …

Survival Of The Western Pond Turtle (Emys Marmorata) In An Urban California Environment, Phillip Q. Spinks, Gregory B. Pauly, John J. Crayon, H. Bradley Shaffer

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

The western pond turtle Emys (formerly Clemmys marmorata) is declining throughout its range, primarily due to loss of habitat via urbanization and conversion to agriculture. Urban waterways present several important challenges to freshwater turtle populations, but they also present an opportunity to maintain declining species in a ubiquitous habitat that has high public visibility. The arboretum waterway on the University of California, Davis campus is an example of an extensively altered urban habitat that supports a relatively large E. marmorata population. Over the last 6 years, we monitored the turtle population inhabiting the arboretum waterway to determine the …

Bats Of Nevis, Northern Lesser Antilles, Scott C. Pedersen, Hugh H. Genoways, Matthew N. Morton, James W. Johnson, Siân E. Courts

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

Only one species of bat, Molossus molossus, previously has been documented as occurring on the northern Lesser Antillean island of Nevis. Field research and reviews of existing museum collections have provided documentation based on voucher specimens for an additional seven species occurring on the island — Noctilio leporinus, Brachyphylla cavernarum, Monophyllus plethodon, Ardops nichollsi, Artibeus jamaicensis, Natalus stramineus, and Tadarida brasiliensis. The biological diversity of the chiropteran fauna on Nevis is similar to that found on other islands in the northern Lesser Antilles. Ecologically, this is a simple chiropteran fauna, including one …

Nebraska's Sandhill Crane Population, Past, Present, And Future, Paul A. Johnsgard

Nebraska Bird Review

Although the spring concentrations of Sandhill Cranes in Nebraska's Platte Valley are now an avian phenomenon known nationwide, a general appreciation and inventory of this unique concentration of birds has only been attempted in the last few decades. I am often asked how long this largest of all crane concentrations has been occurring in the Platte Valley, and why it has developed only there. Here I will try to summarize the little-known history of this marvelous assemblage, but not dwell on the ecological reasons for it. The latter are now generally well understood to revolve around abundant spring food supplies …

Masthead From Nebraska Bird Review

Nebraska Bird Review

The Nebraska Bird Review (http://rip.physics.unk.edu/NOU/) 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): $14.00 in the United States; $18.00 for all foreign countries, payable in advance. Single copies are $4.00 each, postpaid, in the United States, and $5.00 elsewhere. Send orders for back issues to Mary Prichard, NOU Librarian, University of Nebraska State Museum, Lincoln, NE 68588-0514.

Memberships in NOU (on a calendar year basis only): Active, $15.00; Sustaining, $25.00; Student, $10.00; Family Active, $20.00; Family Sustaining, …

Nou Fall Field Days

Nebraska Bird Review

Nou Fall Field Pays

The annual NOU Fall Field Pays were held the weekend of September 6-8 at the 4-H Camp at Halsey. The count included Logan, Blain, Brown, Cherry, and Thomas Counties as well as the Nebraska National Forest. The count included 11 9 species.

Fall Field Report, August-November 2002, W. Ross Silcock

Nebraska Bird Review

A few words on documentation of sightings reported is in order. I receive many reports each season of rare or hard-to-identify birds. If they fit a pattern that has developed over the years (see "Birds of Nebraska"), I tend to accept them as correct. However, if they fall outside the range of prior reports, I usually email the observer and ask for some details about the identification and circumstances of the sighting. Everyone has been very nice about this process; observers sometimes take these requests as a questioning of their ability, but I haven't run into this problem with Nebraska …

Nebraska Bird Review- Whole Issue December 2002 Volume 70 Number 4

Nebraska Bird Review

Table of Contents

Fall Field Report, August-November 2002
Compiled by W. Ross Silcock................130

Species Accounts...............134

Nou Fall Field Days......................168

Nebraska's Sandhill Crane Populations, Past, Present,
and Future by Paul A. Johnsgard.......................175

Index for Volume 70.1-4......................178

Contributions To The Mammalogy Of Mongolia, With A Checklist Of The Species Of The Country, David S. Tinnin, Jon L. Dunnum, Jorge A. Salazar-Bravo, Nyamsuren Batsaikhan, M. Scott Burt, Scott Lyell Gardner, Terry L. Yates

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty Publications

We present accounts for 40 species of mammals collected from 15 localities in the Mongolian People's Republic. Accounts include taxonomic, morphometric, reproductive and ecological information, as well as trap effort and success. In addition, we include a brief history of mammalogical work within Mongolia, a taxonomically updated species list for the country, and a list of institutions with holdings of Mongolian mammals.

Hermit Warbler In Knox County: First Accepted Record For Nebraska, Mark A. Brogie

Nebraska Bird Review

The 2002 Nebraska Ornithologists' Union Record Committee has reviewed the following record and accepted it as a Class III. This Knox County sighting constitutes the first confirmed record of Hermit Warbler in Nebraska.

On 15 May, 2002, while birding with Ben Brogie, we stopped at an isolated planting of mixed hardwoods and Ponderosa Pine (Pinus ponderosa) on a high hill 5.5 miles north (Road 530) of Creighton. We noticed several birds moving among the branches along the roadside and upon "spishing" for just a few seconds we attracted a female Cape May Warbler (Dendroica tigrina) and …

The Changing Status Of Sandhill Crane Breeding In The Eastern Rainwater Basin, Joel G. Jorgensen

Nebraska Bird Review

Prior to extirpation as a breeder before 1 900, the Sandhill Crane (Grus canadensis) formerly bred throughout Nebraska (Bruner et al. 1 904; Ducey 1988; Sharpe et al. 2001). During the 1990s, several summer observations of Sandhill Crane in the Eastern Rainwater Basin region of south-central Nebraska suggested the probability of breeding. In 1999, I discovered direct breeding evidence at Harvard Waterfowl Production Area, Clay County. This breeding record, along with another by different observers in the same county during the same season are the first modern breeding records for Nebraska. In this note, I describe my observations, …

Masthead From Nebraska Bird Review

Nebraska Bird Review

The Nebraska Bird Review (http://rip.physics.unk.edu/NOU/) 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): $14.00 in the United States; $18.00 for all foreign countries, payable in advance. Single copies are $4.00 each, postpaid, in the United States, and $5.00 elsewhere. Send orders for back issues to Mary Prichard, NOU Librarian, University of Nebraska State Museum, Lincoln, NE 68588-0514.

Memberships in NOU (on a calendar year basis only): Active, $ 15.00; Sustaining, $25.00; Student, $ 10.00; Family Active, $20.00; …

Summer Field Report Last Page September 2002

Nebraska Bird Review

White-winged Crossbill: The remarkable winter influx persisted into the summer period, with one seen in Omaha- the last at the observer's feeders- on 1 June (NR), and a female identified as late as 20 June at a Bassett feeder where none had showed since 9 June (CH). These sightings signify record late spring dates (although there are a few isolated summer records); both locations had hosted significant wintering flocks.

Pine Siskin: Routine reports

American Goldfinch: Routine reports

House Sparrow: Routine reports

Summer Field Report, June-July 2002, W. Ross Silcock

Nebraska Bird Review

The big news this summer was the drought which affected most of southern and western Nebraska. Conditions were particularly severe in the southern Panhandle and in the southwest. As one observer (DP) wryly noted: "The cool, cloudy weather in the sixties this morning was a welcome contrast to the stinkin' hot dirt blowing blast furnace in the low one hundreds that was in south central Nebraska Sunday afternoon [June 3]." Some comments from western Kansas by birder-rancher Scott Seltman are pertinent: "I think there's no question that because of the ongoing drought most farmers delayed their fieldwork this spring" perhaps …

Nebraska Bird Review September 2002 Volume 70 Number 3

Nebraska Bird Review

Table of Contents

Summer Field Report, June-July 2002
compiled by W. Ross Silcock .................................94

Species Accounts.................................99

Hermit Warbler In Knox County: First Accepted Record
For Nebraska by Mark A. Brogie................................. 119

The Changing Status of the Sandhill Crane in the Eastem
Rainwater Basin by Joel G. Jorgensen.................................122

Nebraska Bird Review Cover And Contents June 2002 Volume 70 Number 2

Nebraska Bird Review

The Nebraska Bird Review

A Magazine of Ornithology of the Nebraska Region

Volume 70 June 2002 Number 2 Published by

Nebraska Ornithologists' Union, Inc.

Founded 1899

SSSN 0028-1816

Table of Contents

2002 (12th) Report Of The Nou Records Committee, Joel G. Jorgensen

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 has been appended eleven times (Mollhoff 1989, Grenon 1990, Grenon 1991, Gubanyi 1996a, Gubanyi 1996b, Gubanyi 1996c, Brogie 1997, Brogie 1998, Brogie 1999). An update of the OFFICIAL LIST OF THE BIRDS OF NEBRASKA was first published in 1997 (NOU …

Masthead From Nebraska Bird Review June 2002 Volume 70 Number 2

Nebraska Bird Review

The Nebraska Bird Review (http://rip.physics.unk.edu/NOU/) 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): $14.00 in the United States; $18.00 for all foreign countries, payable in advance. Single copies are $4.00 each, postpaid, in the United States, and $5.00 elsewhere. Send orders for back issues to Mary Prichard, NOU Librarian, University of Nebraska State Museum, Lincoln, NE 68588-0514.

Memberships in NOU (on a calendar year basis only): Active, $15.00; Sustaining, $25.00; Student, $10.00; Family Active, $20.00; Family Sustaining, …

"Unnamed", David Wyatt

Nebraska Bird Review

"Unnamed"

A yellow and black bird came to the apricot tree
/="/"> this morning. I'd not seen it
/="/"> before, in any of the yards here. I expect
/="/"> to see such birds in the eastern woods,
/="/"> not in these relatively arid tracts.

I couldn't identify it. Grosbeak? I had
/="/">no Guide, only gloomy thoughts
/="/"> of no specific origin.

The bird stayed for no more than seconds.
/="/">It had a chunk of black on its throat,
/="/"> like a thumbprint. Its wings never
/="/"> were quiet.

Then it flew off, shrieking,
/="/"> and the branch …

Spring Field Report, March-May 2002, W. Ross Silcock

Nebraska Bird Review

A significant feature of this report is the fact that 94 observers provided data! E-mail has certainly provided a simple way to report sightings with ease, obviating for many the tedium of compiling a magnum opus four times a year (although the ultra-dedicated Harding and Randolph still filed their standard 40-pager!).

Interesting banding information was, provided for Red-eyed Vireo, Gray Catbird, and Pine Siskin by Ruth Green. The characteristics of the subspecies of Pine Siskin are not well-known anywhere, let alone in Nebraska.

Waterfowl and raptors had few significant sightings, although harriers were noted nesting at a couple of locations …

Nebraska Bird Review Whole Issue Volume 70 Number 2

Nebraska Bird Review

Table of Contents

Spring Field Report, March-May 2002
compiled by W. Ross Silcock..........................46

Species Accounts..........................50

2002 (12th) Report of the NOU Records Committee
compiled by Joel G. Jorgensen ..........................84

"Unnamed" by poem by David Wyatt..........................91

Ecology Of The Missouri River. Progress Report, Dingell-Johnson Project F-75-R-19, Supplement 1- Missouri River Creel Survey, Camp Creek To Kansas State Line, 31 March Through 12 October 2001, Gerald Mestl

Nebraska Game and Parks Commission: White Papers, Conference Presentations, and Manuscripts

This report describes Missouri River activities and results related to a channelized Missouri River creel survey conducted from 31 March through 12 October 2001. This is the second of a planned annual creel survey to be conducted on alternating sections of the channelized Missouri River to measure changes in recreational fishing activity, especially those changes due to large scale habitat restoration efforts. Future reports will contain additional analyses of these data. Anglers spent over 22,000 hours fishing the Missouri River from Camp Creek (rkm 883.5) to the Kansas state line (rkm 790.2) during the survey period. Effort peaked during the …

Masthead From Nebraska Bird Review March 2002 Volume 70 Number 1

Nebraska Bird Review

The Nebraska Bird ReYiew (http://rip.physics.unk.edu/NOU/) 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): $14.00 in the United States; $18.00 for all foreign countries, payable in advance. Single copies are $4.00 each, postpaid, in the United States, and $5.00 elsewhere. Send orders for back issues to Mary Prichard, NOU Librarian, University of Nebraska State Museum, Lincoln, NE 68588-0514.

Memberships in NOU (on a calendar year basis only): Active, $15.00; Sustaining, $25.00; Student, $10.00; Family Active, $20.00; Family Sustaining, …

2001-2002 Christmas Bird Counts

Nebraska Bird Review

A total of 12 counts are recorded on Tables Two and Three, three more than last year's effort. The Beaver Valley and Grand Island counts are run most years, but we sometimes miss receiving data from them. DeSotoBoyer is run every year but does not always get published here, perhaps because the tally is listed as an Iowa count according to the Audubon Society; however, the area covered is partially in Nebraska, and the participants are mostly Nebraska birders.

The counts reported a total of 138 species this year, up from 133 in 1999 and from 117 in 2000. Nearly …