Environmental Health and Protection Commons^™

In Memory: Paul Eugene Bucklin, Kraig L. Glazier

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Paul Eugene “Gene” Bucklin (1942–2008), a wildlife specialist with USDA/APHIS/Wildlife Services, was killed in a fatal car accident near his home in Chinook, Montana, on February 16, 2008. Born in Billings, Montana, he was raised on a sheep and cattle ranch in Redstone, Montana, where he learned to trap and hunt. Gene spent his life on the prairies of the “Highline,” the northern part of Montana that stretches from the Rocky Mountains of Glacier National Park to the North Dakota border. In 1979 he began a lifelong career with USDA/APHIS/ Wildlife Services in Chinook.

Evaluation Of Physical Barriers To Prevent Prairie Dog Colony Expansion, Gary Witmer, James Gionfriddo, Michael Pipas

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Expansion of black-tailed prairie dog (Cynomys ludovicianus) colonies on public and private lands can result in damage to property. Physical barriers to prairie dogs can be used to minimize human–wildlife conflicts. We evaluated 17 existing barriers in the Fort Collins and Boulder, Colorado, areas. Most barriers were made of a single row of vinyl material; these barriers sustained high levels of damage, primarily from wind, and were frequently breached by prairie dogs digging underneath them. Barriers that included a vegetation and a vinyl barrier or a double-vinyl barrier were wind damaged and breached less frequently than the single-vinyl …

Assessment Of Costs Associated With Deer–Vehicle Collisions: Human Death And Injury, Vehicle Damage, And Deer Loss, John A. Bissonette, Christine A. Kassar, Lawrence J. Cook

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Collisions between large vertebrates and vehicles along roadways are an increasing concern, not only because of ecological consequences, but also because of associated economic and social costs. We used a large-scale, long-term data set comprising several databases from Utah to summarize and analyze these costs. The overall cost for 13,020 collisions from 1996 to 2001 in Utah was approximately $45,175,454, resulting in an estimated average per year cost of about $7,529,242 and a mean collision cost of $3,470. These figures include human fatality costs of $24 million (53% of total costs); vehicle damage costs of $18 million (39%); loss of …

Echinacea And Deer Whistles: Science And Trust In The Wildlife Arena, Ben C. West

Human–Wildlife Interactions

“We must educate the public.” Few mantras have been used as often in the wildlife management profession, particularly in the arena of human–wildlife conflicts. In a modern era where people increasingly are separated from the natural world, wildlife professionals frequently note a lack of basic understanding about ecological systems among our stakeholders and cooperators. In response, we have created a plethora of educational programs and yet continue to call for more.

Demographics Of Non-Hunted White-Tailed Deer Populations In Suburban Areas, Anthony J. Denicola, Dwayne R. Etter, Thomas Almendinger

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Burgeoning deer populations in urban and suburban areas, along with the inherent problems stemming from this increase, are becoming increasingly widespread. To address these problems, wildlife biologists need quality baseline data of herd composition for harvest and treatment forecasts for management and fertility control research programs. In this study, we provide white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) population data from 4 areas where localized suburban white-tailed deer populations were substantially reduced utilizing sharpshooting as a management tool. In each area, legal hunting was nonexistent for >10 years preceding the sharpshooting program. The areas ranged in size from 300 ha to …

Refuge Update – November/December 2007, Volume 4, Number 6

RefugeUpdate (USFWS-NWRS)

Table of Contents:

Celebrating 20 Years of Science on the M/ V Tiglax, page 5 Kevin Bell is honored as Captain of the largest ship operated by the National Wildlife Refuge System.

Focus on…A River Runs Through It, pages 8-15 Rivers on refuges are managed for recreation, habitat restoration, water rights and sheer beauty.

The Fight Against Giant Salvinia, page 18 Caddo Lake National Wildlife Refuge in Texas is fighting a weed that can travel three-quarters of a mile in 24 hours.

Awards, page 21 From protecting the land to going “green,” awards recognize excellence.

Scwds Briefs: Volume 23, Number 3 (October 2007), Gary L. Doster , Editor, Scwds Briefs, Michael J. Yabsley

Southeastern Cooperative Wildlife Disease Study: Publications

Table of Contents:

Hemorrhagic Disease in 2007

Gone with the Pigs? VS on Ossabaw Island

Theileriosis in Alabama Reindeer

Cryptosporidium in Wildlife

TWS Addresses Baiting and Feeding of Wildlife

SCWDS Awards at WDA Meeting

SCWDS Anniversary Honored

AFWA Resolution 2007-1

Integration And Validation Of Networked Avian Radar (Ivar), Marissa Brand

Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada Joint Annual Meeting: 9th (2007)

A team of scientists and engineers from the federal government, industry, and academia is evaluating the ability of digital radar systems to identify and track biological targets and then validating these systems under realistic operational conditions. The Integration and Validation of Avian Radars (IVAR) project is funded by the Department of Defense Environmental Security Technology Certification Program. The eBirdRad radar unit utilizes off the shelf X-band marine radar coupled with advanced digital signal processing and tracking algorithms to process target information. The overall objectives of the IVAR project include: 1) the use of independent visual, thermal and other observations to …

Using Zena™ Prototypes As Perching Deterrents On Airfield Signage, Noel K. Jinings

Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada Joint Annual Meeting: 9th (2007)

Airfields often provide very attractive habitat for many avian species, including a variety of raptor species. Avian wildlife at the Portland International Airport (PDX) poses the greatest wildlife strike risk to aircraft. More specifically, raptors at PDX are designated as “very high” for both the probability of a strike occurrence and the potential for extreme damage [Ref. 2004 PDX WHMP risk assessment based on model by Dr. J R Allan of the United Kingdom]. As such, raptors are the focus of much of the management efforts on this airfield. One of the biggest concerns for wildlife managers on the PDX …

Further Discussion Of Bird Strike Design Issues For Engines With Obscured Fans, Julian M. Reed

Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada Joint Annual Meeting: 9th (2007)

A previous conference presentation (Baltimore, 2004) introduced the subject of obscured turbo-fans and discussed it in the context of bird strikes. In such a case, the bird will have significant interaction with the internal structure of the aircraft intake during its passage from intake lip to fan and damage to the bird may well occur causing it to pose a significantly different threat to the integrity of the engine. This paper explores the possible interactions that take place in such an installation prior to the bird reaching the fan face and makes use of engine and bird structural test data …

Managing Bird Populations At An Incompatible Land Use Near An Airport: Dike 10b Confined Disposal Facility, Craig R. Hicks, Randy J. Outward, Jonathon D. Cepek, Thomas W. Seamans

Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada Joint Annual Meeting: 9th (2007)

Many airports throughout the world have been built on or adjacent to bodies of water. Due to their location, they are often negatively impacted by wildlife attracted to surrounding areas such as harbors, arenas, beaches, and parks. These same lakes and rivers often serve as shipping channels that support the city to which the airport services. Such is the case at Burke Lakefront Airport (BKL) in Cleveland, Ohio. In 1998, the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) constructed Dike 10B, a 64-acre confined disposal facility (CDF) adjacent to BKL to manage contaminated dredge materials removed from the shipping channels …

Facing Bird Attracting Factors Outside Airports: The Italian Approach, Valter Battistoni

Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada Joint Annual Meeting: 9th (2007)

When in 1994 an important CAA executive and former boss of mine, just appointed Chairperson of Bird Strike Committee Italy, telephoned me and in a “friendly” manner “ordered” me to prepare a paper and a presentation for a bird strike meeting which was going to be held soon in Palermo, three things immediately appeared clear to me: 1) Palermo was a beautiful town that I hadn’t visited since I was a teenager, therefore a Government paid week-end was not so bad. 2) I had no idea what to say at the meeting as my ignorance about bird strikes was almost …

The Birdstrike Identification Program At The Smithsonian Institution And New Recommendations For Dna Sampling, Carla J. Dove, Marcy Heacker, Nancy Rotzel

Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada Joint Annual Meeting: 9th (2007)

The U.S. Air Force (USAF) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) have been supporting a free-of-charge birdstrike identification program at the Smithsonian Institution for many years. Approximately 50% of the birdstrike cases received are identified to species level using whole feathers, or feather fragments in comparison with museum specimens. The remaining cases are identified using microscopic analysis and/or DNA “barcoding”. DNA barcoding is the newest tool in the birdstrike identification toolbox and involves extracting mtDNA (cytochrome c oxides subunit 1, COI, cox1, “barcode gene”) from birdstrike samples that consist of blood and tissue and then matching the …

Bald Eagle Nest Removal: Making A Case And Building Consensus Among Various Agencies And Organizations For Amicable Removal, Johnny C. Metcalf

Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada Joint Annual Meeting: 9th (2007)

The bald eagle is an iconic symbol representing strength and freedom throughout the Americas and evokes strong public emotion and sentiment. Despite tremendous population recovery in the United States resulting in its removal from the U.S. Department of Interiors Endangered Species list, state and federal agencies are hesitant to approve activity that could be interpreted as detrimental to eagles. Florida accounts for more than 85% of the entire southern bald eagle population and has between 1000 to 1200 mated pairs. Habitat loss and expanding populations are forcing eagles to adopt alternative nesting sites including the airport environment. Eagle / aviation …

An Advanced Avian Radar Display For Automated Bird Strike Risk Determination For Airports And Airfields, T. Adam Kelly, Ron Merritt, Gary W. Andrews

Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada Joint Annual Meeting: 9th (2007)

Over the past ten years, development of bird detection radars for use as real time aircraft birdstrike avoidance systems has moved beyond research and development into active deployment of the technology as an operational tool in a BASH program (Kelly 2006). A key challenge in use of avian radars at both military and commercial airfields however has been integration of the greatly expanded level of risk information provided by avian radar technology into the current procedures and methods for setting bird strike risk conditions at airports and airfields. Over the past two years, much of the effort at DeTect, Inc. …

Dead Bird Effigies: A Nightmare For Gulls?, Thomas W. Seamans, Craig R. Hicks, Kenneth J. Preusser

Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada Joint Annual Meeting: 9th (2007)

Bird control at and around airfields is critical to safe airfield operation. Numerous bird-control products and strategies are available, all of which have limitations because of rapid habituation, ineffectiveness, expense or other factors. There is a need for new methods to manage birds at airports and other locations. In recent years, realistic effigies of dead turkey vultures (Cathartes aura) have proven effective as a species-specific means to disperse roosting vultures. To determine if this concept can be expanded to deter other birds that are a problem at airfields, we conducted trials using prepared ring-billed (Larus delawarensis) …

Airport Bird Hazard Risk Assessment Process, Richard Sowden, Terry Kelly, Stewart Dudley

Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada Joint Annual Meeting: 9th (2007)

This paper presents an overview of Transport Canada’s airport bird hazard risk assessment process (ABRAP), which will be published in 2007.1 ABRAP examines and categorizes the relationship between airport-area land uses and bird species to predict risks to aircraft in various phases of flight. The result is the creation of customized bird hazard zones that accommodate the unique features and challenges at each airport, and that differ dramatically from the circular zoning patterns traditionally drawn from an airport’s geographic centre.

The paper briefly describes ABRAP, lists the diverse ways in which it can be applied, and illustrates how the process …

Bird Strike Risk Assessment At A Proposed U.S. Navy Ootlying Landing Field In Northeastern North Carolina, Greg Netti, Christine M. Sousa, Michael J. Begier, Robert C. Beason, J. Dan Cecchini

Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada Joint Annual Meeting: 9th (2007)

In September 2003, U.S. Department of the Navy (the Navy) decided to homebase its carrier-based squadrons of Super Hornet aircraft at Naval Air Station (NAS) Oceana, in Virginia, and Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Cherry Point, in North Carolina. Prior to that decision, the Navy had determined that these squadrons would need an additional practice landing field, known as an outlying landing field (OLF), to support the number of Field Carrier Landing Practice (FCLP) operations that are part of the pre-deployment training cycle. The FLCP operations are low-level, “touch-and-go” flight patterns to train pilots for landing on aircraft carriers.

The …

Bald Eagles: A Threatened Species Becomes A Threat To Aviation, Sandra E. Wright

Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada Joint Annual Meeting: 9th (2007)

The bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) population in the United States has made a tremendous recovery from fewer than 500 nesting pairs in 1970, to over 10,000 pairs in 2007. It is likely that the population will continue to grow. Every state, except Hawaii, now has nesting bald eagles. Because of the widespread recovery, the U. S. Department of the Interior removed the bald eagle from the Endangered Species List in August 2007. Bald eagles are still protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act as well as by state laws. At …

An Overview Of Avian Radar Developments – Past, Present And Future, Tim J. Nohara, B. Eng, M. Eng, Peter Weber, Andrew Ukrainec, Al Premji, Graeme Jones

Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada Joint Annual Meeting: 9th (2007)

The objective of this paper is to stand back and take an organized look at these developments in avian radar technology, with a view towards improving our understanding of this complex tool set. By reviewing the past, a context will be provided within which one can better appreciate what has been accomplished in the present, and where technology and products still need to go in the future. It is hoped that a better understanding will assist stakeholders in making the best use of these tools, today and tomorrow.

Laser Dispersal Of Gulls From Reservoirs Near Airports, Andy Baxter

Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada Joint Annual Meeting: 9th (2007)

Gull numbers roosting at two waterbodies close to a military airfield in central England were monitored at dusk and dawn for four weeks during November 2006. Approximately 25,000 and 8,000 gulls were present at each site respectively. Two LEM 50 laser torches mounted on tripods were then deployed to disperse the roost at one of the sites. No effect was observed before dusk or after dawn. Beams were scanned approximately 0.5 to 1metre above the surface of the water across an arc of approximately 200o during a three minute period. The process was repeated continuously for one hour from dusk. …

Airport Wildlife Strike Summary And Risk Analysis Report: A New Addition To The Faa’S Wildlife Hazard Mitigation Website, Richard A. Dolbeer, Heather Marriot, Allen Newman

Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada Joint Annual Meeting: 9th (2007)

Aircraft collisions with birds and other wildlife are an increasing concern for the aviation industry. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), through agreements with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Wildlife Services and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, developed a National Wildlife Strike Database to better define the wildlife strike problem. Annual reports that summarize the data (about 72,500 strike records for civil aircraft in USA, 1990-2006) provide a foundation for FAA national policies and guidance regarding research and management efforts to reduce wildlife strikes. However, these national analyses do not provide specific information regarding strikes at individual airports or for other specific …

Www Integration Of Faa And Swa Birdstrike Reporting Systems, Stanley D. Clark

Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada Joint Annual Meeting: 9th (2007)

The Federal Aviation Agency (FAA) Birdstrike Reporting System has historically been a manual, “pen and paper” system since its inception. Because it has been so labor-intensive, birdstrike reporting by Southwest Airline Pilots could best be described as “sporadic” as long as the FAA system operated outside the internal airline system. By using web-based reporting systems, with imbedded checks and balances, Southwest Airlines has achieved a dramatic increase in birdstrikes reported to the FAA.

A Successful Case Study: The Bird Control Program Of Waste Management Outer Loop Recycling And Disposal Facility, Louisville, Kentucky, Usa, Russell P. Defusco

Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada Joint Annual Meeting: 9th (2007)

Landfills and airports have a long history of incompatibility. Birds are attracted to landfills for various reasons including food sources, habitat, and orographic lift. Since landfills can be avian attractants, they are required to be sited at least 10,000 feet away from commercial airports in the United States. Waste Management of Kentucky (WMK) operates a municipal landfill and recycling facility -- the Outer Loop Recycling and Disposal Facility (OLRDF) located less than 1.5 miles south of the Louisville Standiford airport which, as the hub airport for United Parcel Service, is the fourth largest cargo airport in the U.S. As part …

Refuge Update – September/October 2007, Volume 4, Number 5

RefugeUpdate (USFWS-NWRS)

Table of Contents:

Searching for Japanese MIAs in Alaska – page 3 Japanese and Americans look for burial sites on Attu Island in Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge.

The Job of a Lifetime – pages 6-7 Meet a 90-year old volunteer and a 31-year old tractor driver.

Crocs Come Back – page 27 American crocodiles are threatened but no longer endangered.

Hazardous Wildlife Attractants On Or Near Airports, Federal Aviation Administration

Other Bird Strike and Aviation Materials

This Advisory Circular (AC) provides guidance on certain land uses that have the potential to attract hazardous wildlife on or near public-use airports. It also discusses airport development projects (including airport construction, expansion, and renovation) affecting aircraft movement near hazardous wildlife attractants. Appendix 1 provides definitions of terms used in this AC.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) recommends that public-use airport operators implement the standards and practices contained in this AC. The holders of Airport Operating Certificates issued under Title 14, Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Part 139, Certification of Airports, Subpart D (Part 139), may use the standards, practices, …

Estimating Business And Residential Water Supply Interruption Losses From Catastrophic Events, Nicholas Brozovic, David L. Sunding, David Zilberman

Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute: Faculty Publications

Following man-made or natural catastrophes, widespread and long-lasting disruption of lifelines can lead to economic impacts for both business and residential lifeline users. As a result, the total economic losses caused by infrastructure damage may be much higher than the value of damage to infrastructure itself. In this paper, we consider the estimation of economic impacts on businesses and residential consumers resulting from water supply disruption. The methodology we present for estimating business interruption losses assumes that marginal losses are increasing in the severity of disruption and that there may be a critical water availability cutoff below which business activity …

Incorporating Results Of Avian Toxicity Tests Into A Model Of Annual Reproductive Success, Richard S. Bennett*, Matthew A. Etterson

United States Environmental Protection Agency: Publications

Modeling the effects of pesticide exposure on avian populations requires knowledge of how the pesticide changes survival and fecundity rates for the population. Although avian reproduction tests are the primary source of information on reproductive effects in the pesticide risk assessment process, current tests cannot provide a direct estimate of the effects of a pesticide on fecundity rates. We present a mathematical model that integrates information on specific types of effects from reproduction tests with information on avian life history parameters, the timing of pesticide applications, and the temporal pattern of pesticide exposure levels to estimate pesticide effects on annual …

Refuge Update – July/August 2007, Volume 4, Number 4

RefugeUpdate (USFWS-NWRS)

Table of Contents:
Counting Alpine Flora, page 3
Focus on Law Enforcement, pages 8–12
Virtual Geocaching, page 15
The Big Sit! at Your Refuge?, page 21

Scwds Briefs: Volume 23, Number 2 (July 2007), Gary L. Doster , Editor, Scwds Briefs, Michael J. Yabsley

Southeastern Cooperative Wildlife Disease Study: Publications

Table of Contents:

SCWDS History Continued: The CapChur Gun

SCWDS Honored

More Interesting HD Events from 2006

Fever Ticks

Ehrlichia in White-tailed Deer

Meningeal Worms in Sika Deer

The Devils’ Disease

Recent SCWDS Publications Available