Natural Resources and Conservation Commons^™

The Prairie Naturalist, Volume 39, No.1, March 2007

The Prairie Naturalist

CONTENTS

MALLARD BROOD MOVEMENTS IN THE CANADIAN PRAIRIE PARKLANDS G. H. Raven, T. W. Arnold, D. W. Howerter, and L. M. Armstrong

WOODLAND BIRD USE OF IN-CHANNEL ISLANDS IN THE CENTRAL PLATTE RIVER, NEBRASKA, W. C. Scharf

PARTIAL CHARACTERIZATION OF TWO MODERATELY HALOPHILIC BACTERIA FROM A KANSAS SALT MARSH, A. M. Johnson, L. R. Thurlow, S. R. Zwenger, and E. T. Gillock

INTRASPECIFIC AND INTERSPECIFIC TERRITORIALITY IN MICROTUS OCHROGASTER AND M. PENNSYLVANICUS, D. J. Tazik and L. L. Getz

VEGETATIVE CHARACTERISTICS OF PRONGHORN BED SITES IN WIND CAVE NATIONAL PARK, SOUTH DAKOTA, C. N. Jacques, J. A. Jenks, J. D. …

Fisheries Research Report No.159 - A 12-Month Survey Of Recreational Estuarine Fishing In The South Coast Bioregion Of Western Australia During 2002/03, C.B. Smallwood, N. R. Sumner

Fisheries Research Reports

The Recreational Fisheries Program of the Department of Fisheries, Western Australia, has a strategic plan to conduct comprehensive creel surveys of recreational fishing in each of the state’s marine bioregions (Penn et al., 2003). These bioregions are the West Coast, Gascoyne, Pilbara/ Kimberley and South Coast (Figure 1). To record and monitor changes in recreational catch and fishing effort, an integrated approach where all bioregions are to be surveyed on a regular basis was proposed. Until this study, the South Coast was the only bioregion in which a survey of recreational fishing had not been undertaken. Although originally intended to …

Dental Wash: A Problematic Method For Extracting Microfossils From Teeth (Galley Proofs), Célia H. C. Boyadjian, Sabine Eggers, Karl J. Reinhard

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

A variety of microfossils, originating from plant foods, become trapped in the dental calculus matrix. Processing of dental calculus allows extraction of these microfossils. The resulting data can be used to reconstruct diet at the individual and population levels as the identification of microfossils like starch grains and phytoliths to the generic level, and sometimes to the species level, is possible. However, in some archaeological sites, dental calculus deposits do not preserve well enough to be processed. To prevent the loss of information in such cases, we present a technique, called ‘‘dental wash’’. It permits extracting microfossils from cryptic dental …

Comment On Reinterpreting The Pollen Data From Dos Cabezas, Karl J. Reinhard, Vaughn M. Bryant, Sheila Dorsey Vinton

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

The published pollen analysis of the Dos Cabezas giants, Geyer et al. ([2003]), lists a variety of purported dietary pollen types. The paper also hypothesizes that the giants were poisoned with plant toxins. We have severe reservations about the pollen evidence of diet and poisoning. We suggest that the analysts made several errors in their interpretation. Firstly, some of the discovered pollen types are not prehistoric endemics to the Dos Cabezas region of coastal Peru. These include the pollen of fava beans (cultivated in the Old World), and specified species of agave and sage. We believe that some or all …

Handle With Care, Minnesota State University, Mankato

Conservation/Energy Alternatives

Bibliography and photographs of a display of government documents from Minnesota State University, Mankato.

Energy Conservation, St. Mary's University, Texas

Conservation/Energy Alternatives

Bibliography and photographs of a display of government documents from St. Mary's University, Texas.

Documentation Of Uncertainties And Biases Associated With Surface Temperature Measurement Sites For Climate Change Assessment, Roger A. Pielke Sr., John Nielsen-Gammon, Christopher Davey, Jim Angel, Odie Bliss, Nolan Doesken, Ming Cal, Souleymane Fall, Dev Niyogi, Kevin Gallo, Robert Hale, Kenneth Hubbard, Xiaomao Lin, Hong Li, Sethu Raman

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Davey and Pielke (2005) presented photographic documentation of poor observation sites within the U.S. Historical Climate Reference Network (USHCN) with respect to monitoring long-term surface air temperature trends. [These photographs were first shown to the community at the 2002 Asheville, North Carolina, meeting of the American Association of State Climatologists (see information online at www. stateclimate.org/meetings/minutes/2002minutes).] Peterson (2006) compared the adjusted climate records of many of these stations and concluded that the similarity between the homogeneity adjusted time series from the good and poorly sited stations supports the view that even stations that do not, upon visual inspection, appear to …

Development Of The Soil Moisture Index To Quantify Agricultural Drought And Its “User Friendliness” In Severity-Area-Duration Assessment, Venkataramana Sridhar, Kenneth Hubbard, Jinshing You, Eric D. Hunt

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

This paper examines the role of soil moisture in quantifying drought through the development of a drought index using observed and modeled soil moisture. In Nebraska, rainfall is received primarily during the crop-growing season and the supply of moisture from the Gulf of Mexico determines if the impending crop year is either normal or anomalous and any deficit of rain leads to a lack of soil moisture storage. Using observed soil moisture from the Automated Weather Data Network (AWDN), the actual available water content for plants is calculated as the difference between observed or modeled soil moisture and wilting point, …

Impacts Of Predators On Northern Bobwhites In The Southeast, John P. Carroll, Susan N. Ellis-Felege, William E. Palmer

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

The northern bobwhite quail (Colinus virginianus) is an important game bird that is intensively managed for hunting recreation in the southeastern United States. Despite interest regionwide, populations have been declining for much of the last 40 years (Brennan 1999). Population declines in the Southeast have occurred as a result of widespread habitat loss associated with land-use changes (Brennan 1999). These land-use changes include both conversion from agricultural to forest landscapes and changes in forest management practices, which result in dense forest canopies that shade required ground vegetation (Brennan 1999, Rollins and Carroll 2001). In addition, low-quality habitats may …

Vegetative And Invertebrate Community Characteristics Of Conservation Reserve Program Fields Relative To Gamebirds In Western Kansas, Elizabeth D. Doxon, John P. Carroll

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

We examined vegetation and invertebrate characteristics, including insect biomass, insect-prey, six Families and seven Orders in four varieties of Conservation Reserve Program (CP10, improved CP10, CP2 and CP25) and wheat fields in western Kansas during Jun. and Jul., 2004 and 2005 relative to gamebird chick ecology. CP10 fields had less bare ground and forbs compared to the other Conservation Practices and CP25 fields had lost much of their original forb component by the end of the study. Although there was little forb component, CP10 fields had high invertebrate biomass. However, CP10 fields demonstrated sizeable declines in the estimated effect size …

Nutrient Cycling In Forage Production Systems, David A. Wedin, Michael P. Russelle

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

In most forage production systems, the nutrients needed for plant growth are provided by microbially mediated breakdown and release of plant-available mineral nutrients from dead plant tissues, livestock excreta, soil organic matter, and geochemically bound mineral forms. Even in fertilized forage systems, determining appropriate fertilizer application rates requires a "systems" approach on the part of the manager (e.g., Di and Cameron, 2000; Rotz et al., 2002). Fertilizer additions are simply one input in the system of inputs, outputs, pools, and fluxes that characterize nutrient cycling in a particular ecosystem.

Analysis Of The Nonlinearity In The Runoff Response To Precipitation Through Numerical Modeling, Jozsef Szilagyi

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

On Diurnal Riparian Zone Groundwater-Level And Streamflow Fluctuations, Jozsef Szilagyi, Zoltan Gribovszki, Peter Kalicz, Mihaly Kucsara

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

On The Inherent Asymmetric Nature Of The Complementary Relationship Of Evaporation, Jozsef Szilagyi

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Estimation Of Catchment-Scale Evapotranspiration From Baseflow Recession Data: Numerical Model And Practical Application Results, Jozsef Szilagyi, Zoltan Gribovszki, Peter Kalicz

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Hungarian National Report On Iahs: 2003-2006, Jozsef Szilagyi

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

On The Inherent Asymmetric Nature Of The Complementary Relationship Of Evaporation, Jozsef Szilagyi

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

An Evaluation Of Modis 250-M Data For Green Lai Estimation In Crops, Anatoly A. Gitelson, Brian D. Wardlow, Galina P. Keydan, Bryan Leavitt

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Green leaf area index (LAI) is an important variable for climate modeling, estimates of primary production, agricultural yield forecasting, and many other diverse applications. Remotely sensed data provide considerable potential for estimating LAI at local, regional, and global scales. The goal of this study was to retrieve green LAI from MODIS 250-m vegetation index (VI) data for irrigated and rainfed maize and soybeans. The performance of both MODIS-derived NDVI and Wide Dynamic Range Vegetation Index (WDRVI) were evaluated across three growing seasons (2002 through 2004) over a wide range of LAI and also compared to the performance of NDVI and …

Taunton River Watershed Reference Map 1 (November 2007 Interactive Public Meetings), Horsley Witten Group, Inc.

Public Meetings

No abstract provided.

Damming Grand Canyon: The 1923 Usgs Colorado River Expedition, Diane E. Boyer, Robert H. Webb

All USU Press Publications

In 1923, America paid close attention, via special radio broadcasts, newspaper headlines, and cover stories in popular magazines, as a government party descended the Colorado to survey Grand Canyon. Fifty years after John Wesley Powell's journey, the canyon still had an aura of mystery and extreme danger. At one point, the party was thought lost in a flood. Something important besides adventure was going on. Led by Claude Birdseye and including colorful characters such as early river-runner Emery Kolb, popular writer Lewis Freeman, and hydraulic engineer Eugene La Rue, the expedition not only made the first accurate survey of the …

Native Communities And Climate Change: Protecting Tribal Resources As Part Of National Climate Policy: Executive Summary, Jonathan M. Hanna, University Of Colorado Boulder. Natural Resources Law Center, Western Water Assessment (Program)

Books, Reports, and Studies

7 p. : col. ill., maps

Native Communities And Climate Change: Protecting Tribal Resources As Part Of National Climate Policy: Report, Jonathan M. Hanna, University Of Colorado Boulder. Natural Resources Law Center, Western Water Assessment (Program)

Books, Reports, and Studies

67 p.

Homestead National Monument Of America Bur Oak Forest Restoration Plan: Reference Condition And Management Considerations, Steven B. Rolfsmeier

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

The Vegetation Management Action Plan for Homestead National Monument of America includes a statement of the desired future condition that states: "The monument's natural resources are managed in such a way as to maintain a heterogeneous landscape composed of a mosaic of high quality remnant and restored tallgrass prairie, lowland bur oak forest and associated ecotones, as well as prairie streams and their hydrologic processes; that reflects the value of the site as a homestead, represents as accurately as possible the environment encountered by early settlers, and preserves native biodiversity" (Bolli 2006). The lowland bur oak forest along Cub Creek …

Selected Lid Projects In New England, New England Environmental Finance Center

Planning

Examples of low impact development (LID) projects in each state in New England.

I Sinkholes Nella Letteratura Scientifica Internazionale: Una Breve Rassegna, Con Particulare Riferimento Agli Stati Uniti D'America, Lee J. Florea, Mario Parise

Earth, Environmental, and Atmospheric Sciences Faculty Publications

Fenomeni di sinkholes sono diffusi in moltissimi paesi del mondo, in ambiti geologici e morfologici alquanto differenziati, e coinvolgono svariate litologie, sia nelle successioni di copertura che in quelle direttamente affioranti alla superficie. Il presente contributo intende fornire una breve rassegna, certamente non esaustiva, sullo stato dell’arte delle ricerche relative ai sinkholes in ambito internazionale. Esso consiste in una descrizione della più aggiornata e diffusa classificazione dei sinkholes e, a seguire, in descrizioni delle più tipiche casistiche di sinkholes nei vari paesi. Tra questi, viene dato particolare risalto agli Stati Uniti d’America (e, più in particolare, alla Florida), dove le …

International, Cooperative Research In The Apuseni Mountains Of Western Romania, Lee J. Florea, Bogdan P. Onac

Earth, Environmental, and Atmospheric Sciences Faculty Publications

In May of 2006, nine American scientists and cavers from the Karst Research Group at the University of South Florida traveled to western Romania to attend and present at an international conference on records of climate change in caves in the historic Roman town of Baile Hurculane. The conference, co-sponsored by the “Emil Racoviţă” Speleological Institute of Romania and the Karst Waters Institute, drew more than 100 experts in the field of climate change and karst, and was a wonderful time spent alongside the thermal springs and Austro-Hungarian bathhouses nestled within the massive limestone canyon of the Cerna River.

Following …

Sinkhole Distribution Based On Pre-Development Mapping In Urbanized Pinellas County, Florida, Usa, Robert Brinkmann, Kelly Wilson, Nichole Elko, Larry D. Seale, Lee J. Florea, H L. Vacher

Earth, Environmental, and Atmospheric Sciences Faculty Publications

Locating sinkholes in Pinellas County, Florida, is confounded by the presence of a cover of Quaternary sediments that mute the surface appearance of these sinkholes. As a first step in addressing the sinkhole hazard in the county, we analysed aerial photographs from 1926 and 1995 that covered the entire county. We digitized all identifiable sinkholes in each set of photographs in a GIS (Geographical Information System) using a set of criteria established to differentiate between karst depressions and depressions resulting from other geological processes. The 1926 photographs, although of low quality, helped to establish a baseline prior to urbanization. The …

Active Salt Tectonics In The Needles District, Canyonlands (Utah) As Detected By Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar And Point Target Analysis: 1992-2002, M. Furuya, K. Mueller, J. Wahr

Canyonlands Research Bibliography

The Needles District in Canyonlands National Park, Utah, is known for its well-exposed array of extensional faults, which are thought to be produced by gravity-driven extension and downward flexure of a thin sandstone plate into the Colorado River canyon in response to dissolution and flow of underlying evaporites (halite and gypsum). Owing to a lack of precise geodetic data, however, it remains uncertain if and to what extent those extensional faults are currently deforming. In this study we use synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data to search for ongoing, decadal ground displacements, by applying both a stacking interferometric SAR (InSAR) analysis …

Home Range Characteristics Of Mexican Spotted Owls In The Canyonlands Of Utah, D. W. Willey, C. Van Riper

Canyonlands Research Bibliography

We studied home-range characteristics of adult Mexican Spotted Owls (Slyix occidentalis lucida) in southern Utah. Twenty-eight adult owls were radio-tracked using a ground-based telemetry system during 1991-95. Five males arid eight females molted tail feathers and dropped transmitters within 4 wk. We estimated cumulative home ranges for 15 Spotted Owls (12 males, 3 females). The mean estimate of cumulative home-range size was not statistically different between the minimum convex polygon and adaptive kernel (AK) 95% isopleth. Both estimators yielded relatively high SD, and male and fernale range sizes varied widely. For 12 owls tracked during both the breeding and nonbreeding …

Forest Preservation, Minnesota State University, Mankato

Conservation/Energy Alternatives

Bibliography and photographs of a display of government documents from Minnesota State University, Mankato.