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Notes on some winter birds of north central New Mexico
The observations recorded below were made in Santa Fe, Sandoval and Rio Arriba counties during the winter of 1939-1940. Occasional specimens, 54 in all, collected for racial identification, are deposited in the Museum of Zoology, University of Michigan.
Molting of northern yellow-throat in southern Michigan
During the summer of 1938, detailed studies were made of the molts of the Northern Yellow-throat, Geothlypis trichas brachidactyla , in southern Michigan. Observations of the post-natal molt were made each day on nestlings found near Geddes Pond, one mile east of Ann Arbor. Studies of the post-juvenal and post-nuptial molts were from fresh specimens collected at Portage Lake in Jackson County.
Ecological study of ruffed grouse broods in Virginia
The Ruffed Grouse ( Bonasa umbellus ), commonly called "pheasant" throughout the southern Appalachian region, is a popular game bird in the mountains of Virginia. Unfortunately, however, the grouse populations in this State have declined noticeably during the past fifty years. Because of this, special field studies were designed through the cooperation of the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service and U. S. Forest Service, which would provide information that could be used in devising more efficient grouse management practices. As part of this program, I was assigned to investigate the ecology and habits of this species in the Shenandoah Mountains during the spring and summer of 1941. These studies were conducted within the George Washington National Forest in northwestern Augusta County, southwestern Rockingham County, and northeastern Highland County, Virginia.
Notes on the courtship behavior of the king rail
The King Rail ( Rallus elegans ) has been well known to collectors, hunters, and bird watchers ever since its discovery by Audubon in the early 1800's but few detailed behavior studies have been made of this species. The present paper, the third in a series based on observations in the rice fields of eastern Arkansas (Meanley, 1953 and 1956), presents information concerning the courtship behavior of this rail.
Eastern glossy ibis nesting in southeastern Maryland
On June 25, 1956, Don P. Fankhauser and I investigated a large heron colony of mixed species, on Mills Island in Chincoteague Bay, Worcester County, Maryland. Large numbers of American Egrets ( Casmerodius albus ), Snowy Egrets ( Leucophoyx thula ), Louisiana Herons ( Hydranassa tricolor ), Little Blue Herons ( Florida caerulea ), and Black-crowned Night Herons ( Nycticorax nycticorax ) were found, all nesting in a dense grove of young red cedar ( Juniperus virginiana ). Much to our surprise, the colony also included at least two pairs of the Eastern Glossy Ibis ( Plegadis falcinellus ). Four adults of this species were repeatedly observed flying low overhead and frequently perching in nearby tree-tops. In addition, two young ibis, about three-fourths grown, were found. These two birds, still unable to fly, would hop and flutter among the tree branches whenever they were approached too closely. The large white crown patch and the peculiar barred markings of the bill were especially noticeable on both of the young.
Notes on Bachman's sparrow in Central Louisiana
Notes on the ecology of Bachman’s Sparrow ( Aimophila aestivalis ) were obtained during a study of birds in relation to the direct or artificial seeding of Longleaf Pine ( Pinus palustris ) and Loblolly Pine ( P. taeda ) in central Louisiana from 1955 to 1957. Stoddard (in Burleigh, “Georgia Birds,” pp. 667-668, 1958) has presented an account of the ecology of this species in the pine woods of southern Georgia. Detailed studies in Louisiana have not been reported. Observations were made on experimental lands of the Kisatchie National Forest, about 25 miles southwest of Alexandria, Rapides Parish.
Distribution and ecology of whistling swans in the Chesapeake Bay region
The Whistling Swan, Olor columbianus , is of particular significance in the Chesapeake Bay region, since major wintering and transient populations occur here regularly, constituting in some years more than half the total population of the species. Some of these concentrations are so large that they attract many bird-watchers, who often travel long distances to see them. Whistling Swans are also of concern to the local shell-fish gatherers, who claim that depredations by these birds cause considerable damage to the supply of commercially valuable long ("soft-shelled") clams. During recent years, there has been an increasing demand from some sources for an open hunting season. It has been suggested that the swan populations may be of sufficient numerical size, to withstand a limited harvest. Because of these considerations, a special effort was made to obtain more information concerning the local distribution, numerical status and ecology of Whistling Swans throughout the Chesapeake Bay region.
Post-copulatory display in fulvous and black-bellied tree ducks
The courtship display of tree ducks has been characterized as simple, resembling that of the swan (Delacour, 'Waterfowl of the World', vol. 1, p. 32, London, 1954). However F. Finn ('Bird Behaviour', p. 262, London, 1919) called attention briefly to the fact that "there is frequently a marked display after, but not before, pairing, both parties executing a step-dance in the water with one wing held aloft." So far as we know, this curious display has not been described in detail nor pictured.
Growth and development of the king rail
Growth and development of the King Rail ( Rallus elegans ) from hatching to first flight were studied by observations and measurements of captive birds and by observations of natural nests in the field. This is the fourth in a series of reports on the life history of the King Rail (Meanley 1953, 1956, and 1957). Information in this paper is intended to supplement the data of Bent (1925) on growth and development and the description of juvenal plumage given by Friedmann (1941).
Clutch size of the clapper rail
Incidental information concerning the clutch size of the Clapper Rail ( Rallus longirostris ) was obtained during other studies of this species in the extensive salt marshes near Chincoteague, Virginia. Clutches were considered complete when repeated visits to the nest showed no additional eggs or when embryonic development could be clearly detected.
Color of the tarsi and toes of the black rail
Examination of two fresh specimens of the Black Rail ( Laterallus jamaicensis ) has prompted us to call attention to the color of the tarsi and toes of this species, since our observations do not agree with published accounts. Audubon (Ornithological Biography, vol. IV; 361, 1838) and Friedmann (Birds of North and Middle America, U.S. Nat'l. Mus. Bull., 50: 154, 1941) state that the tarsi and toes are bright yellowish-green. Descriptions in other publications are similar. Prominent bird artists, including Fuertes, have depicted the color of these appendages as yellowish-green, yellow, or green; while Allan Brooks' illustration of this species (The Book of Birds, vol. I, National Geographic Society, p. 291, 1932) shows pink legs. An adult female specimen was collected by J. A. Hagar, C. S. Robbins, and R. E. Stewart near Elliott Island, Maryland, on 8 June 1958. A second adult Black Rail, presumed to be a female by its dull color and call, was caught alive by the authors in the same area on 17 June 1958, and is still held in captivity. The tarsi and toes of these two birds show no trace of yellow or green. They appear grayish, matching "Flint" (plate 56-1C) or "Gunmetal" (plate 48-2C) in Maerz and Paul's "A Dictionary of Color" (1930), and "blackish-brown" in the color charts provided with Palmer and Reilly's "A Concise Color Standard" (Am. Ornith. Union Handbook Fund, 1956). A grayed-off blackish-brown would seem to be an appropriate description.
Pellet casting by king and clapper rails
The King Rail ( Rallus elegans ) and Clapper Rail ( Rallus longirostris ), whose major food is crustaceans, reject the exoskeletal fragments of these animals through the regurgitation of pellets. Seven King Rail pellets collected in Dorchester County, Maryland, averaged 2.0 cm long by 1.5 cm wide.
Yellow-billed cuckoo in stomach of tiger shark
On 20 May 1961 an immature female tiger shark ( Galeocerdo cuvier ), 2.3 meters in length and weighing 52 kg, was caught in the Gulf of Mexico several miles offshore from Sarasota, Florida, by personnel of the Cape Haze Marine Laboratory. The contents of its stomach included a leg and some feathers of a land bird. The leg was sent to the Bird and Mammal Laboratories, Bureau of Sport Fisheries and Wildlife, Washington, D.C., where it was identified by Mrs. R. C. Laybourne as that of a Yellow-billed Cuckoo ( Coccyzus americanus ). In addition to this bird, the stomach contained a blue crab, several sea catfishes ( Galeichthys felis ), and part of a black nose shark ( Carcharhinus acronatus ).
Ecological notes on mixed populations of king rails and clapper rails in Delaware Bay marshes
The closely related King Rail ( Rallus elegans ) and Clapper Rail ( Rallus longirostris ) are characteristic of distinct types of habitat in the coastal plain along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts. Ordinarily, King Rails are found in both fresh and brackish tidal marshes, and Clapper Rails in tidal salt marshes. In a few areas, however, intermediate brackish-salt marshes occur where King and Clapper rails may be found together.
Pre-nesting activity of the purple gallinule near Savannah, Georgia
Observations on the pre-nesting activity of the Purple Gallinule ( Porphyrula martinica ) were made by me at the Savannah National Wildlife Refuge, Jasper County, South Carolina from 9 to 16 April 1960, 12 to 23 April 1961, and 28 to 30 April 1963. Jasper County is in extreme southeastern South Carolina. The Refuge headquarters is approximately 10 miles (16 km) up the Savannah River from the port of Savannah, and about 20 miles from the ocean.
Some aspects of breeding biology of the blue-winged teal
The Blue-winged Teal ( Anas discors ) was the subject of one of the first publications dealing with the breeding biology of a species of North American waterfowl (Bennett, 1938). Recent studies of the nesting chronology, clutch size, and incubation period of this species include the works of Hochbaum (1944), Sowls (1955), and Glover (1956). The present paper supplements information on these aspects of breeding biology. Field work was done during the summers of 1961, 1962, and 1963 at the Delta Waterfowl Research Station (15 miles north of Portage la Prairie, Manitoba) which is adjacent to the Delta marsh at the south edge of Lake Manitoba. The climate in the area is subhumid. The mean annual temperature is 45.3°F and the annual precipitation is 20.1 inches at Winnipeg (60 miles ESE of Delta). The spring warming trend is variable and influences the time of spring arrival and the start of nesting of waterfowl (Sowls, 1955) and, as will be shown, the temperature may also influence the nesting chronology once a species has begun to nest. The daily mean temperatures and the daily lows at Winnipeg for the springs of 192 and 1963 are graphed in Figures 1 and 2. Daily records kept by nan Multer at Delta show that the temperatures there are similar to those at Winnipeg.
Nesting of hooded mergansers of the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Laurel, Maryland
The first known record of Hooded Mergansers ( Lophodytes cucullatus ) nesting on the coastal plain of Maryland was in 1961, when Mr. Francis Uhler (pers. comm) found two clutches in Wood Duck nest boxes in impoundments at the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, about five miles southeast of Laurel, Maryland. R.E. Stewart and C.S. Robbins (“Birds of Maryland and the District of Columbia,” N. Amer. Fauna no. 62, 1958; see p. 102) reported two records of broods for Maryland, one for the Piedmont and one for the mountains.