Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology Commons^™

Land Use Status And Trends Of Potential Whooping Crane Release Sites In Central Florida, Mary Anne Bishop

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

Three areas in central Florida, identified as potential sites for the reintroduction of a nonmigratory flock of whooping cranes (Grus americana), were evaluated. and ranked as to their priority for reintroduction based on their land use status and trends. The Kissimmee Prairie, including Three Lakes Wildlife Management Area, Prairie-Lakes State Preserve, and the National Audubon Society's Kissimmee Prairie Sanctuary was ranked first, the Webb Wildlife Management Area second, and Myakka River State Park third. Primary criteria used for each site and its surrounding lands included acreage, ownership, management, public use, access, potential threats, and the potential to support …

Relationship Of Channel Maintenance Flows To Whooping Crane Use Of The Platte River, Craig A. Faanes, David B. Bowman

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

Periodic high flows in the Platte River are necessary to scour vegetation and redistribute sediment in the stream channel. Peak and mean annual flows have been reduced by as much as 70% from pre-development times, but channel maintenance flows still occur, although at a much reduced frequency and magnitude of occurrence. Use of the Platte River by migrant whooping cranes (Grus americana) in recent years appears to be related to the recent occurrence of flows in excess of 8,000 cfs for 5 or more consecutive days.

Release Of Sandhill Crane Chicks Hand-Reared With Artificial Stimuli, Robert H. Horwich, John Wood, Ray Anderson

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

Greater sandhlll crane chicks (Grus canadensis tabida) were hand-reared using moveable puppets and vocalizing crane models as substitute parents. Their parental attachment was transferred to a crane-costumed human who introduced them to a wild environment and to wild foods. Five chicks were gentle-released in Wisconsin when 3.5 months old, a period of high sociality, and all successfully joined wild cranes. Following their first few weeks in association with wild cranes, their behavior was normal and comparable to that of wild chicks and they achieved normal flight distance from humans. Four of the 5 were relocated in Wisconsin the …

Whooping Cranes At The San Antonio Zoo, Jacqueline A. Lauver

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

Since April, 1956, when an injured whooping crane (Grus americana) was received for rehabilitation, the San Antonio Zoo has maintained these birds in the collection and is 1 of only 2 zoos to have raised them. The zoo's management efforts, combined with favorable climatic cbnditions and water sources have contributed to a successful breeding program. The whooping crane is 1 of 7 crane species successfully bred, and 1 of 8 crane species currently in the collection.

The Contingency Plan For Federal-State Cooperative Protection Of Whooping Cranes, James C. Lewis

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

A "Contingency Plan for Federal-State Cooperative Protection of Whooping Cranes" was developed in 1985 to protect migrating whooping cranes (Grus americana). Thirteen states and the U.s. Fish and Wildlife Service implemented the plan in summer 1985. One state and one feq,eral employee, and alternates, are appointed as the "key contact" individuals within each state. Reports of sightings of whooping cranes are forwarded to these key contacts and they coordinate the response to sightings. An important part of the plan is education activities designed to increase the public's ability to identify whooping cranes and to encourage the reporting of …

Introduction Of Whooping Cranes In Eastern North America, James C. Lewis, F. Graham Cooch

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

Whooping cranes (Grus americana) historically occurred throughout most of North America. A migration route last used prior to 1857 crossed the Appalachians to Atlantic Coast wintering grounds in coastal areas of New Jersey, South Carolina and river deltas farther south. The species disappeared from most eastern North American locations in the late 1800's. The winter 1987 population consisted of 43 captive birds and 154 in 2 wild subpopulations. Pursuant to both Canadian and u.s. recovery plans, sites in Michigan-Ontario, Georgia and Rorida are being considered as potential release locations for establishing an eastern population. Cross-fostering, gentle release and …

Mate Recognition And Fidelity In Captive Sandhill Cranes, Peter W. Shannon

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

Two pairs of greater sandhill cranes (Grus canadensis tabida) were maintained at Audubon Park Zoo in separate but adjacent exhibits. The male of pair #2 was killed and due to medical problems associated with the female of pair #1, male #1 and female #2 were placed together. These birds subsequently bonded but did not nest. Following a 17 month separation, female #1 was moved to an area where she could hear but not see male #1 and female #2 . Almost immediately, male #1 began attempting to move himself closer to female #1 . They were placed together, …

Whooping Crane Habitat Alteration Analysis At Aransas National Wildlife Refuge, Texas, C. Lee Sherrod, Richard Medina

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

Aquatic, wetland, and upland habitat changes were quantified within the approximate critical habitat of the endangered whooping crane (Grus americana) along the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW) through Aransas National Wildlife Refuge and San Antonio, Bay, Texas. Study procedures employed comparative analysis of pre-GIWW (1930) and present (1986) aerial photography to provide a basis for the assessment of positive and negative impacts of the construction, operation and maintenance of the GIWW, principally on the whooping crane, but also on biota in general. Thirteen habitat mapping categories were utilized to describe an approximately 1,830 m wide corridor along the GIWW …

Lead Poisoning In A Whooping Crane, S. Bret Synder, Michael J. Richard, John P. Thilsted, Roderick C. Drewien, James C. Lewis

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

The first known incident of lead poisoning in a whooping crane (Grus americana) occurred as the affected bird completed its second migration from Grays Lake National Wildlife Refuge (NWR), Idaho to Bosque del Apache NWR, New Mexico. It fell ill about 4 1/2 weeks after reaching the winter site and was captured. The bird exhibited signs of anorexia and starvation, weakness with drooped wings, greenish watery diarrhea and an unusual gaping of the mouth with abnormal swallowing motions. Blood showed marked polychromasia (>50%) and reticulocytosis (>80%) of RBC's. Serum chemistry values were not diagnostic. A radiograph …

Crane Migration In Northern New Mexico, Dale W. Stahlecker

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

Greater sandhill cranes (Grus canadensis tabida) and foster-reared whooping cranes (G. americana) were monitored on a 345 km migration between their traditional stopover in southcentral Colorado and their winter grounds in central New Mexico during 4 autumns (1984-87) and 1 spring (1985). Autumn sandhill crane counts totaled 17,363 in 1984, 9,317 in 1985, 29,053 in 1986, and 26,552 in 1987. Peak flights of over 7,000 cranes in 1 day were recorded in both 1986 and 1987. More than 50% of the cranes were counted on just 4 days in 1984, 1986 and 1987. At least 27% …

Nesting Of Greater Sandhill Cranes On Seney National Wildlife Refuge, Richard P. Urbanek, Theodore A. Bookhout

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

During 1987, 59 nests of 57 pairs of greater sandhill cranes (Grus canadensis tabida) were located, mainly from the air, on or near the Seney National Wildlife Refuge, Michigan, and 52 nests were ground-checked. Nests were in available palustrine classes without tree canopies. Only 19% were in Sphagnum bogs, in which most nests from other areas of the Upper Peninsula have been found. Cattail (Typha latifolia) marshes, most prevalent in the managed area of the refuge, contabed 44% of the nests, and sedge (Carex spp.) marshes accounted for 37%. Important co-dominant plant species were leatherleaf …

Renesting Of Mississippi Sandhill Cranes In Jackson County, Mississippi 1965–1989, Jacob M. Valentine Jr.

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

Among 118 active nests of Mississippi sandhill cranes (Grus canadensis pulla) in Jackson County, Mississippi, 1%5-1989, 13 were renests. Three chicks from 19 wild and 3 from 3 Patuxent Wildlife Research Center (PWRC) switched eggs hatched in 13 first nests, but 5 died early and 1 after 2 weeks. Ten eggs were dead (infertile or the embryos died) in or at the nest. Two clutches (3 eggs) were destroyed by mammalian predators, 2 eggs were taken for captive propagation, and 1 was pecked and destroyed by the crane pair. Three chicks hatched from 22 wild eggs and 1 …

The Study Of Relatedness And Genetic Diversity In Cranes, George F. Gee, Herbert C. Dessauer, Jonathan Longmire, W. Elwood Briles, Raymond C. Simon

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) is responsible for recovery of endangered species in the wild and, when necessary, maintenance in captivity. These programs provide an immediate measure of insurance against extinction. A prerequisite inherent in all of these programs is the preservation of enough genetic diversity to maintain a viable population and to maintain the capacity of the population to respond to change. Measures of genetic diversity examine polymorphic genes that are not influenced by selection pressures. Examples of these techniques and those used to determine relatedness are discussed. Studies of genetic diversity, electrophoresis of blood proteins, relatedness, …

Phyletic Coevolution Between Subterranean Rodents Of The Genus Ctenomys (Rodentia: Hystricognathi) And Nematodes Of The Genus Paraspidodera (Heterakoidea: Aspidoderidae) In The Neotropics: Temporal And Evolutionary Implications, Scott Lyell Gardner

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty Publications

Coevolution was studied in six species of rodents of the genus Ctenomys and their parasitic nematodes of the genus Paraspidodera, collected in Bolivia. Representatives of the families Octodontidae and Caviidae were used as outgroups for the mammals, and nematodes from caviids were used as outgroups of the nematodes from ctenomyids. For the nematodes, quantitative and qualitative morphological characteristics of both males and females and electrophoretic characters of both sexes were used to generate phylogenetic hypotheses of evolutionary relationships of the OTUs occurring in hosts of different species. Concordance estimates of cladograms generated from biochemical-genetic and morphological data of the …

The Distribution And Reproductive Phenology Of The Milkweeds (Asclepiadaceae: Asclepias And Cynanchum) In Nebraska, Robert B. Kaul, Steven B. Rolfsmeier, Jeffrey J. Esch

Transactions of the Nebraska Academy of Sciences and Affiliated Societies

The Asclepiadaceae are represented in Nebraska by seventeen native species of Asclepias and one of Cynanchum. Two species are here added to the State's flora: Asclepias asperula and A. purpurascens. Detailed county distribution maps are presented for all species based upon our extensive field and herbarium work, and numerous additions and corrections are made to the maps published in the Atlas of the Flora of the Great Plains in 1977. A map is presented showing the zone of hybridization of A. speciosa with A. syriaca in central Nebraska. Data are given on flowering and fruiting phenology for each …

New And Corrected Floristic Records For Nebraska, Steven B. Rolfsmeier, Robert B. Kaul, David M. Sutherland

Transactions of the Nebraska Academy of Sciences and Affiliated Societies

Nineteen species (including eight Eurasian ones) are newly recorded for Nebraska: Alopecurus arundinaceus, Amaranthus californicus, Asclepias asperula, A. purpurascens, Cardamine {lexuosa*, Centaurea diffusa, Dipsacus laciniatus, Eriochloa villosa, Euclidium syriacum, Gentiana alba, Geranium viscosissimum, Geum vernum, Goodyera oblongifolia, Haplopappus multicaulis, Heterotheca latifolia, Lathyrus tuberosus, Polygonum douglasii, Scirpus saximontanus, Veronica biloba. Twenty-one others are shown to be more widespread in Nebraska than previously known, one has a more restricted range than previously reported, two (Scirpus smithii, S. torreyi) are deleted from the flora based upon corrected identifications, and the status of some rarely-collected species is updated. Thirty-two additions, two …

Slope Effects On Shortwave Radiation Components And Net Radiation: Interim Report For Period April 1, 1991- December 31, 1991, E. A. Walter-Shea, B. L. Blad, C. J. Hays, M. A. Mesarch

School of Natural Resources: Documents and Reviews

No abstract provided.

Introgression Of Coyote Mitochondrial Dna Into Sympatric North American Gray Wolf Populations, Niles Lehman, Andrew Eisenhawer, Kimberly Hansen, L. David Mech, Rolf O. Peterson, Peter J. P. Gogan, Robert K. Wayne

United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Publications

Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) genotypes of gray wolves and coyotes from localities throughout North America were determined using restriction fragment length polymorphisms. Of the 13 genotypes found among the wolves, 7 are clearly of coyote origin, indicating that genetic transfer of coyote mtDNA into wolf populations has occurred through hybridization. The transfer of mtDNA appears unidirectional from coyotes into wolves because no coyotes sampled have a wolf-derived mtDNA genotype. Wolves possessing coyote-derived genotypes are confined to a contiguous geographic region in Minnesota, Ontario, and Quebec, and the frequency of coyote- type mtDNA in these wolf populations is high (> 500%). The …

Historic Trends In The Distribution And Populations Of Estuarine Marsh Birds Of The Connecticut River, Robert J. Craig

Storrs Agricultural Experiment Station

No abstract provided.

Calibration Of Field Reference Panel And Radiometers Used In Fife 1989: Semi-Annual Report For Period February 1- September 30, 1990, B. L. Blad, E. A. Walter-Shea, C. J. Hays, M. A. Mesarch

School of Natural Resources: Documents and Reviews

No abstract provided.

Pflanzengesellchaften Der Mongolei, Werner Hilbig

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

First paragraphs of the introduction:

In Fortführung der Forschungsreisen der russischen Floristen und Pflanzengeouraphen im vorigen und Anfang dieses Jahrhunderts wurden erste Expeditionen zur systematischen Erforschung der Naturressourcen der Mongolei in den 20er und 30er Jahren durchgeführt. Sie wurden von der Akademie der Wissenschaften der UdSSR und der Akademie der Wissenschaften der MVR (vorher Wissenschaftliches Komitee der MVR) organisiert. Auch die von der Geographischen GeselIschaft und der Akademie der Wissenschaften der UdSSR durchgeführten Expeditionen zur Erforschung der natürlichen Bedingungen und der Landwirtschaft in der Mongolei schufen Möglichkeiten zur Entwicklung der geobotanischen Forschungsrichtung (vgl. GUBANOV u. HILBIG 1989).

Als erste eigenständi"e …

Freshwater Fishes Of Shipstern Nature Reserve, Caspar F. A. Bijleveld

Physiology Faculty Research Publications

A survey of fishes in and around Shipstern Nature Reserve in Northern Belize, Central America, was carried out over a period of eight months, from February to September 1990. Its purpose was to establish a preliminary list of the fishes of Shipstern Nature Reserve, including descriptions, distribution and collecting data and additionally to describe some of the habitats in which the fishes were found. This study focuses on fishes considered to be freshwater species. These occurred for the greater part in brackish habitats. Nevertheless, a few fish considered as marine species were caught in the waters of the reserve and …

Helminth Parasitism In Martens (Martes Americana) And Ermines (Mustela Erminea) From Washington, With Comments On The Distribution Of Trichinella Spiralis, Eric P. Hoberg, Keith B. Aubry, J. David Brittell

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty Publications

Helminths are reported for the first time from ermines (Mustela erminea) and martens (Martes americana) in Washington, USA. Among 22 adult ermines, 41% were infected by one or more of five species (Taenia mustelae, Alaria mustelae, Molineus patens, M. mustelae, and Trichinella spiralis). Among 78 adult martens from three geographic localities, the prevalence was 83%. Nine species were identified (Mesocestoides sp., T. mustelae and T. martis americana, Euryhelmis squamula, M. patens, Baylisascaris devosi, Physaloptera sp., Soboliphyme baturini, and T. spiralis). Trichinella spiralis …

Hawks, Eagles, And Falcons Of North America: Biology And Natural History, Paul A. Johnsgard

Paul Johnsgard Collection

I have tried to present an adequate if far from exhaustive survey of the general biology, ecology, and behavior of all the included species, written so as to be understandable to the interested layman as well as useful to the biologist who might be looking for relevant literature citations or trying to deal with a specific question without resorting to extensive library searches. The larger number of species of North American hawklike birds (31, compared to 19 owl species) has required that I keep the individual species accounts substantially shorter. I have excluded the New World vultures from consideration, primarily …

Wolf Population Survival In An Area Of High Road Density, L. David Mech

United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Publications

Wolf mortality in a high-road-density area of Minnesota exceeds that in an adjacent wilderness, and is primarily human-caused. The wolf population there is maintained primarily by ingress from the adjacent wilderness areas. A road density of 0.58 km/km² can be exceeded and the area still support wolves if it is adjacent to extensive roadless areas.

Leaf Optical And Indirect Lai Measurements In Wheat And Alfalfa At Maciv: Agmet Progress Report 89-4, E. A. Walter-Shea, B. L. Blad

School of Natural Resources: Documents and Reviews

Interpretation of remotely sensed vegetative surfaces requires an understanding of the interaction of radiation with the various components of vegetation. Leaves are the most important component. Thus it is important to know the optical properties of individual leaves as well as the amount and distribution of leaves making up the vegetative cover. The objectives of our study were 1) to characterize the reflectance from and transmittance through adaxial and abaxial surfaces of individual wheat and alfalfa leaves and 2) to compare the traditional, time-consuming, destructive method of estimating LAI (direct method) to a relatively quick, indirect estimate of LAI in …

The Status Of Erythronium Albidum And E. Mesochoreum (Liliaceae) In Nebraska, Robert B. Kaul

Transactions of the Nebraska Academy of Sciences and Affiliated Societies

Two species of Erythronium grow in the eastern quarter of Nebraska, but there are none elsewhere in the State. Erythronium albidum is locally abundant, mostly in upland bur oak forests, and has been collected in 18 counties since 1864. Erythronium mesochoreum is becoming rare because its habitat--virgin tall-grass prairie--is disappearing. It is known to grow now in six east-central counties, but it probably could be found in some remnant prairies in all counties south and east of the Platte and Big Blue rivers, respectively. Distributional data about these species is herein brought up to date relative to earlier published reports. …

Colony Survivorship In Pogonomyrmex Occidentalis, Western Harvester Ant, In Western Nebraska, Kathleen H. Keeler

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Little is known about the life span of individual ant colonies (Keeler, 1981), even though the dynamics of some species, such as harvester ants, are crucial to the structure of plant and animal communities (e.g., Brown et al., 1979). This note reports the results of 10 years of observations on a population of harvester ants.

Fifty-six mounds of Pogonomyrmex occidentalis Cresson (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), western harvester ant, were permanently marked with aluminum tags in August 1977. The site, about 1 ha just south of the University of Nebraska's Cedar Point Biological Station, Keith Co., Nebraska, was within a pasture subject to …

New And Corrected Floristic Records For Nebraska, Steven B. Rolfsmeier, Robert B. Kaul, Marjorie M. Garabrandt, David M. Sutherland

Transactions of the Nebraska Academy of Sciences and Affiliated Societies

New distributional data are given for 54 species of vascular plants in Nebraska. Twenty are newly recorded for the State. 23 are shown to be more widespread than was previously known, seven are shown to have more restricted ranges than previously reported. the records of one species attributed to the State are shown to be based on misidentifications. and the presence in the State of three species collected long ago is confirmed by recent collections.

Wolf Distribution And Road Density In Minnesota, L. David Mech, Steven H. Fritts, Glenn L. Radde, William J. Paul

United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Publications

Distribution of the wolf (Canis lupus) in parts of Wisconsin (Thiel 1985) and Michigan and Ontario (Jensen et al. 1986) has been related to the density of roads passable by 2-wheel-drive vehicles. Wolves in those regions generally do not occur where road densities exceed 0.58 km/km², whereas similar areas nearby with fewer roads do contain wolves.

In a small segment of the wolf range in Minnesota, wolves did not have territories where roads exceeded a density of 0.73 km/km² (T. K. Fuller, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, unpublished data). In another small area of Minnesota …