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M. R. Miller

Publications and source records attributed to M. R. Miller.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
USGS1989

Rice available to waterfowl in harvested fields in the Sacramento Valley, California

Rice fields in the Sacramento Valley, California were sampled in 1985 and 1986 to determine the weight of rice seed remaining in the fields immediately after harvest and again after the fields were burned. No significant differences were found between years (P>0.05). The pooled mean was 388 kg/ha in harvested fields and 276 kg/ha in burned fields. These values are less than estimates previously available. The values for harvested fields both years were no different (P>0.05) than values obtained by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Surveys of rice fields in December both years showed that most fields were left either harvested (26-32%) or burned (37-40%) through the winter. Fields flooded for duck hunting made up 15% of the total. The proportion of fields plowed by December increased from 14% in 1985 to 22% in 1986. Sixty-three percent of all fields that had been flooded for hunting were drained within two weeks after the end of the hunting season. Harvest yield field size levee type (contour, lasered), straw status (spread, windrowed), harvest date, and rice variety did not affect the quantity of seeds remaining after harvest (P>0.05). One harvester model, the Hardy Harvester, left more rice in fields than did others we tested (P<0.001). Specific management programs are recommended to mitigate annual variation in rice seed availability to waterfowl caused by differences in total hectares grown (15% less in 1986) and in the proportion of fields burned and plowed.

California Fish and Game↗
USGS1988

Dabbling duck harvest dynamics in the Central Valley of California--implications for recruitment

Age and sex ratios and body weights were obtained for northern pintails (Anas acuta), mallards (A. platyrhynchos), American wigeon (A. americana), green-winged teal (A. crecca), and northern shovelers (A. clypeata) shot at Mendota State Wildlife Area in the San Joaquin Valley (SANJV) and at Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge in the Sacramento Valley (SACV) during 1982-83 and 1983-84. Age ratios were determined for pintails at four locations during 1980-83. Cooperative Waterfowl Parts Collection Survey (1982-84; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service) and California preseason-banding data (1973-77, for mallards and pintails) also were used to measure age ratios of the California harvest. Harvest rate (ducks shot per day) was obtained and summed from all SACV and SANJV public hunting areas in 1982-84. All species except female wigeon and adult female mallards lost weight between October and January. Except for wigeon, harvest rate was high in October when hunting began. Harvest rates were low in November and December but rose markedly in January in the SACV for all species and for all except pintails in the SANJV. Proportion of adults in the bag as measured by all methods increased progressively through the hunting season. Proportion of adults in the harvest was higher in 1982-83 than in 1983-84 and was greater in the SACV than the SANJV both years for most species. Adult females formed a small component of total kill but 50% or more of female kill. The harvest of pintails at a SACV and a SANJV location consistently contained about half as many immatures per adult as that at two other California locations for 1980-83. The substantial harvest of adults in January eliminates the most productive breeders from the population. Thus, winter hunting mortality may influence age composition of the spring flight and, hence, recruitment potential of the breeding population.

Book chapter↗