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Results for “California Fish and Game”

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At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
USGS1975

California condor plumage and molt as field study aids

An analysis is made of the reliability of plumage and molt characteristics of the California condor for estimating age and identifying individual birds. Neither character seems sufficiently reliable to use in more than a general way.

California Fish and Game↗
USGS1980

Estimating the size and trend of the California condor population, 1965-1978

During 1965-1978, three principal methods were used to measure the size and trend of the California Condor (Gymnogyps californianus) population. An October survey conducted by as many as 136 observers had limited value because daily activity patterns of condors were unpredictable and because analysis of results could not be standardized. Evaluation of 4,381 condor observations by cooperators, and results of comparative surveys done in 1970-1971 and 1977-1978 show declines in numbers of condor sightings, numbers of condors per sighting, and in the numbers of sightings including more than one immature-plumaged bird. The data cannot be evaluated statistically, but they suggest a marked decline in the condor population between 1965 and 1978. Future refinements of survey techniques are dependent on having individually recognizable condors in the population.

California Fish and Game↗
USGS1985

Effects on wildlife of ethyl and methyl parathion applied to California rice fields

Selected rice fields on the Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge Complex were aerially sprayed one time during May or June 1982 with either ethyl (0.11 kg Al/ha) or methyl (0.84 kg AI/ha) parathion for control of tadpole shrimp, Triops longicaudatus . No sick or dead vertebrate wildlife were found or adjacent to the treated rice fields after spraying. Specimens of the following birds and mammals were assayed for brain cholinesterase (ChE) activity to determine exposure to either form of parathion; house mouse, Mus musculus ; black-tailed jackrabbit, Lepus californicus ; mallard, Anas platyrhynchos ; ring-necked pheasant, Phasianus colchicus ; American coot, Fulica americana ; and red-winged blackbird, Agelaius phoeniceus . Both mice and pheasants from methyl parathion-treated fields had overall mean ChE activities that were significantly (P < 0.05) inhibited compared with controls, and 7, 40, 54 and 57% of individual blackbirds, pheasant, mice, and coots, respectively, had inhibited brain ChE activities (i.e., less than -2 SD of control mean). Although no overall species effect was detected for ethyl parathoid treatment, pheasants (43%), coots (33%), and mice (37%) had significantly inhibited brain ChE activities. Neither of the parathion treatment appeared acutely hazardous to wildlife in or adjacent to rice fields, but sufficient information on potential hazards was obtained to warrant caution in use of these chemicals, especially methyl parathion, in rice fields.

California↗
USGS1990

Organochlorines, mercury, and selenium in wintering shorebirds from Washington and California

Dunlins Caldris alpina, and black-bellied plovers, Pluvialis squatarola, were collected in Washington and California during the winter of 1984-85; long-billed dowitchers, Limnodromus scolopaceus, were collected in California. Pooled breast muscles (by species, location, and date) were analyzed for organochlorines and pooled livers for mercury and selenium. DDE was detected in all eight dunlin, three of five dowitcher, and two of nine plover muscle pools. Estimated DDE concentrations in dunlin carcasses at two sites in California were greater than 3 ppm wet wt, a dietary concentration associated with eggshell thinning and decreased reproductive success in raptors. Detectable concentrations of mercury and selenium were found in all liver pools. Selenium concentrations in plovers from two sites in Washington were elevated (26.9 and 29.9 ppm dry wt), but below concentrations shown to affect reproductive success in black-necked stilts, Himantopus mexicanus. Elevated mercury concentrations in livers of dunlin from Bodega Bay (18.9 ppm dry wt) and Salinas River (16.3 ppm dry wt), California were below levels associated with acute toxicity.

California Fish and Game↗
USGS1993

Environmental contaminants in canvasbacks wintering on San Francisco Bay, California

The concentrations of 11 trace elements, 21 organochlorines, 13 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and 13 aliphatic hydrocarbons were determined in canvasbacks (Aythya valisineria) wintering on San Francisco Bay, California during 1988. With the exception of Se, concentrations of potentially toxic elements were low. Similarly, concentrations of most organic compounds were near or below detection limits. Aliphatic hydrocarbons, PCBs, and DDE were common, but at levels lower than those known to be harmful to waterfowl. Innocuous trace elements (Cu, Fe, and Zn), which are often associated with anthropogenic contamination, occurred at high levels. Concentrations of toxic elements were several times lower and those of benign elements were similar or greater than concentrations reported for surf scoters (Melanitta perspicillata) or greater scaup (Aythya marila) from San Francisco Bay.

California Fish and Game↗
USGS1991

Mammal mortality at Arizona, California, and Nevada gold mines using cyanide extraction

Five-hundred nineteen mammals were reported dead at cyanide-extraction gold mines in Arizona [USA], California, and Nevada from 1984 through 1989. Most numerous were rodents (34.9%) and bats (33.7%); 'bat' was the most often reported category among 24 species or species groups. There are an estimated 160 cyanide-extraction gold mines in these three states, and the number is increasing. Ten mammal species listed as endangered, threatened, rare, protected, or species of special concern are known to have cyanide-extraction gold mines within their geographic ranges.

California Fish and Game↗
USGS2010

Mechanical suppression of northern pike (Esox lucius) populations in small Arizona reservoirs

Introduced populations of northern pike Esox lucius have provided angling opportunities in the western United States (McMahon and Bennett 1996). However, the northern pike is a voracious piscivore and its large size, high fecundity, and broad physiological tolerance make it capable of drastically altering ecosystems it invades (Marchetti et al. 2004). Indeed, predation by northern pike has been shown to significantly alter fish community structure and put native fishes at a higher extinction risk (He and Kitchell 1990, Findlay et al. 2000). Predation by northern pike is viewed as a significant threat to native stocks of salmonids in Washington, British Columbia, and California (McMahon and Bennett 1996, California Department of Fish and Game [CDFG] 2003).

Arizona↗
USGS1998

California Wildlife Habitat Relationships System: A test in coastal scrub and annual grassland habitats

We tested predictions of the California Wildlife Habitat Relationships (CWHR) System in coastal scrub and annual grassland. We detected a total of 28 species of terrestrial vertebrates: 18 mammals, 9 reptiles, and 1 amphibian. The CWHR System prediction omitted 4 of these species: 3 domestic mammals and 1 reptile. For the 2 habitats combined, CWHR predicted a total of 38 species: 23 mammals, 13 reptiles, and 2 amphibians. We detected 64% of these predicted grassland species and 71% of predicted coastal scrub species. For the habitats combined, we detected 65% of the species predicted to be present by the CWHR System. We detected 68% of the mammals, 62% of the reptiles, and 50% of the amphibians predicted for these habitats. The CWHR System theoretically predicts absence rather than presence, since it is assumed that all 288 regularly occurring mammals, reptiles, and amphibians occur anywhere unless one can argue that a specific habitat, location, or habitat element is not available. By including predictions of species absence in the assessment of model performance, observed accuracy of the CWHR model predictions increased to 96% for both habitats.

California Fish and Game↗
USGS2000

Molecular analysis of population genetic structure and recolonization of rainbow trout following the Cantara spill

Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequence and allelic frequency data for 12 microsatellite loci were used to analyze population genetic structure and recolonization by rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss , following the 1991 Cantara spill on the upper Sacramento River, California. Genetic analyses were performed on 1,016 wild rainbow trout collected between 1993 and 1996 from the mainstem and in 8 tributaries. Wild trout genotypes were compared to genotypes for 79 Mount Shasta Hatchery rainbow trout. No genetic heterogeneity was found 2 years after the spill (1993) between tributary populations and geographically proximate mainstem fish, suggesting recolonization of the upper mainstem directly from adjacent tributaries. Trout collections made in 1996 showed significant year-class genetic variation for mtDNA and microsatellites when compared to fish from the same locations in 1993. Five years after the spill, mainstem populations appeared genetically mixed with no significant allelic frequency differences between mainstem populations and geographically proximate tributary trout. In our 1996 samples, we found no significant genetic differences due to season of capture (summer or fall) or sampling technique used to capture rainbow trout, with the exception of trout collected by electrofishing and hook and line near Prospect Avenue. Haplotype and allelic frequencies in wild rainbow trout populations captured in the upper Sacramento River and its tributaries were found to differ genetically from Mount Shasta Hatchery trout for both years, with the notable exception of trout collected in the lower mainstem river near Shasta Lake, where mtDNA and microsatellite data both suggested upstream colonization by hatchery fish from the reservoir. These data suggest that the chemical spill in the upper Sacramento River produced significant effects over time on the genetic population structure of rainbow trout throughout the entire upper river basin.

California↗