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USGS1995

Application of brain cholinesterase reactivation to differentiate between organophosphorus and carbamate pesticide exposure in wild birds

Brain cholinesterase activity was measured to evaluate pesticide exposure in wild birds. Thermal reactivation of brain cholinesterase was used to differentiate between carbamate and organophosphorus pesticide exposure. Brain cholinesterase activity was compared with gas chromatography and mass spectrometry of stomach contents. Pesticides were identified and confirmed in 86 of 102 incidents of mortality from 29 states within the USA from 1986 through 1991. Thermal reactivation of cholinesterase activity was used to correctly predict carbamates in 22 incidents and organophosphates in 59 incidents. Agreement ( P < 0.001) between predictions based on cholinesterase activities and GC/MS results was significant.

Journal of Wildlife Diseases↗

USGS1989

Monitoring bird populations with Breeding Bird Survey and atlas data

The principal means of monitoring avian species in North America since 1966 is the Breeding Bird Survey (BBS). Nearly 2000 random roadside rouleS of 50 3-minule stops each are run once each summer by experienced observers. Two-year and 10ng-lerm population trends have been calculated for 250 of the more common species. We show how Breeding Bird Atlas dala for lWO periods of time can also be used to calculale population nends, and we compare atlas neRds with those from the BBS. If coverage is inlensive and consistent belWeen time periods, atlas dala may be useful for monitoring species that are not adequalely sampled by the BBS.

Book chapter↗

USGS1994

Population trends of woodland birds from the North American Breeding Bird Survey

Population trends of woodland birds were summarized from BBS data over 1966-1991, 1966-1979, and 1982-1991. For the entire woodland bird assemblage, increasing species outnumbered decreasing species in all regions except central North America during 1966-1991. However, the proportion of decreasing species increased in most regions during the 19821991 interval. This population trend was most apparent for Neotropical migrants with 15 increasing and 2 decreasing species during 1966-1979 but only 4 increasing and 16 decreasing species during 1980-1991. Short-distance migrants and permanent residents had nearly equal numbers of increasing and decreasing species during both intervals.

Wildlife Society Bulletin↗

USGS1993

[Book review] Bird trapping and bird banding: A handbook for tapping methods all over the world

This book is a translation of a German edition published in 1978 by Die Neue Brehm-Bucherei, which in turn is a summary of four parts published earlier (1967-1970). Its main title, a direct translation of the German Vogelfang und Vogelberingung is misleading. Only six pages deal with matters one might usually expect in a book with "bird banding" as part of the title. This includes a single paragraph that admonishes against brightly colored clothing, one stating that binoculars are indispensable when checking trapping locations, and a half-page on dangers to the bander such as sinking in marshes and falling from ladders and cliffs. The remaining five pages deal with gathering cages or devices and with handling and releasing birds.

The Auk↗

USGS2008

Combining Breeding Bird Survey and Christmas Bird Count data to evaluate seasonal components of population change in Northern Bobwhite

Annual surveys of wildlife populations provide information about annual rates of change in populations but provide no information about when such changes occur. However, by combining data from 2 annual surveys, conducted in different parts of the year, seasonal components of population change can be estimated. We describe a hierarchical model for simultaneous analysis of 2 continent-scale monitoring programs. The Christmas Bird Count is an early winter survey, whereas the North American Breeding Bird Survey is conducted in June. Combining information from these surveys permits estimation of seasonal population variance components and improves estimation of long-term population trends. The composite analysis also controls for survey-specific sampling effects. We applied the model to estimation of population change in northern bobwhites (Colinus virginianus). Over the interval 1969?2004, bobwhite populations declined, with trend estimate of -3.56% per year (95% CI = [-3.80%, -3.32%]) in the surveyed portion of their range. Our analysis of seasonal population variance components indicated that northern bobwhite populations changed more in the winter and spring portion of the year than in the summer and fall portion of the year.

Journal of Wildlife Management↗

USGS2001

Regional patterns in proportion of bird species detected in the North American Breeding Bird Survey

Counts from the North American Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) underestimate species richness. We use capture-recapture methods to estimate species richness from BBS count data collected in 1996 and show that detection probabilities demonstrate clear regional patterns. Capture-recapture methods should be used to estimate species richness from count data, and failure to use estimation procedures for species richness could result in biased estimates of spatial change in species richness.

Book chapter↗

USGS1977

Bird population trends detected by the North American breeding bird survey

Continental populations of most bird species have remained quite stable since 1966, but there have been many regional changes associated with migration disasters, breeding failures and range expansions, and a few dramatic increases in populations of introduced species. These changes often are better represented by curvilinear than by linear regressions.

Polish Ecological Studies↗

USGS2012

The early bird gets the shrimp: Confronting assumptions of isotopic equilibrium and homogeneity in a wild bird population

1. Because stable isotope distributions in organic material vary systematically across energy gradients that exist in ecosystems, community and population structures, and in individual physiological systems, isotope values in animal tissues have helped address a broad range of questions in animal ecology. It follows that every tissue sample provides an isotopic profile that can be used to study dietary or movement histories of individual animals. Interpretations of these profiles depend on the assumption that metabolic pools are isotopically well mixed and in equilibrium with dietary resources prior to tissue synthesis, and they extend to the population level by assuming isotope profiles are identically distributed for animals using the same proximal dietary resource. As these assumptions are never fully met, studying structure in the variance of tissue isotope values from wild populations is informative. 2. We studied variation in δ 13 C, δ 15 N, δ 2 H and δ 18 O data for feathers from a population of eared grebes (Podiceps nigricollis) that migrate to Great Salt Lake each fall to moult feathers. During this time, they cannot fly and feed almost exclusively on superabundant brine shrimp (Artemia franciscana). The ecological simplicity of this situation minimized the usual spatial and trophic complexities often present in natural studies of feather isotope values. 3. Ranges and variances of isotope values for the feathers were larger than those from previously published studies that report feather isotopic variance, but they were bimodally distributed in all isotope dimensions. Isotope values for proximal dietary resources and local surface water show that some of the feathers we assumed to have been grown locally must have been grown before birds reached isotopic equilibrium with local diet or immediately prior to arrival at Great Salt Lake. 4. Our study provides novel insights about resource use strategies in eared grebes during migration. More generally, it demonstrates the utility of studying variance structures and questioning assumptions implicit in the interpretation of stable isotope data from wild animals.

Utah↗

USGS1941