Publications
USGS Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center staff publish results of their research in USGS series reports and in peer-reviewed journals. Publication links are below. Information on all USGS publications can be found at the USGS Publications Warehouse.
Filter Total Items: 1952
Delineation of sandhill crane subspecies Delineation of sandhill crane subspecies
No abstract available.
Authors
Douglas H. Johnson, J. E. Austin
Holocene climate in the western Great Lakes national parks and lakeshores: Implications for future climate change Holocene climate in the western Great Lakes national parks and lakeshores: Implications for future climate change
We reconstruct Holocene climate history (last 10,000 years) for each of the U.S. National Park Service units in the western Great Lakes region in order to evaluate their sensitivity to global warming. Annual precipitation, annual temperature, and July and January temperatures were reconstructed by comparing fossil pollen in lake sediment with pollen in surface samples, assuming that...
Authors
Margaret Davis, Christine Douglas, K.L. Cole, Marge Winkler, Robyn Flaknes
Declines of greater and lesser scaup populations: issues, hypotheses, and research needs Declines of greater and lesser scaup populations: issues, hypotheses, and research needs
The population estimate for greater (Aythya marila) and lesser (Aythya affinis) scaup (combined) has declined dramatically since the early 1980s to record lows in 1998. The 1998 estimate of 3.47 million scaup is far below the goal of 6.3 million set in the North American Waterfowl Management Plan (NAWMP), causing concern among biologists and hunters. We summarize issues of concern...
Authors
J. E. Austin, A. D. Afton, M.G. Anderson, R. G. Clark, Christine M. Custer, J. Lawrence, J.B. Pollard, J.K. Ringelman
Weather monitoring protocol for two prairie parks Weather monitoring protocol for two prairie parks
No abstract available.
Authors
F.A. Akyuz, P. Guinan, G.D. Willson
The North American Reporting Center for Amphibian Malformations The North American Reporting Center for Amphibian Malformations
No abstract available.
Authors
Douglas H. Johnson, S.C. Fowle, J.A. Jundt
Predictable interregional movements by female northern pintails during winter Predictable interregional movements by female northern pintails during winter
Factors influencing initiation of regional and interregional movements by nonbreeding ducks are poorly understood, especially during winter. During winters 1990-1991 through 1992-1993, we radiotagged 347 female Northern Pintails (Anas acuta) in southwestern Louisiana and monitored their movements to three regions: (1) the Gulf Coast Region of Louisiana and Texas (outside of southwestern...
Authors
R. R. Cox, A. D. Afton
Effects of temperature anomalies on the Palmer Drought Severity Index in the central United States Effects of temperature anomalies on the Palmer Drought Severity Index in the central United States
The purpose of this study is to improve our understanding of temperature and precipitation effects on the Palmer Drought Severity Index (PDSI). Both theoretical and observational analyses were applied to separate and compare temperature and precipitation effects on PDSI. The results showed that because of the dependence of PDSI on the ‘climatologically appropriate rainfall’, which is a...
Authors
Qi Hu, Gary D. Willson
Prolonged winter undernutrition and the interpretation of urinary allantoin:creatinine ratios in white-tailed deer Prolonged winter undernutrition and the interpretation of urinary allantoin:creatinine ratios in white-tailed deer
The urinary allantoin:creatinine (A:C) ratio (expressed in micromoles of allantoin to micromoles of creatinine) has shown potential as an index of recent winter energy intake in preliminary controlled studies of elk (Cervus elaphus) involving mild condition deterioration (up to 11% loss of body mass). To ensure reliable nutritional assessments of free-ranging cervids by measuring A:C...
Authors
Glenn D. DelGiudice, Ken D. Kerr, L. David Mech, Ulysses S. Seal
Effects of management practices on grassland birds: Eastern Meadowlark Effects of management practices on grassland birds: Eastern Meadowlark
Information on the habitat requirements and effects of habitat management on grassland birds were summarized from information in more than 4,000 published and unpublished papers. A range map is provided to indicate the relative densities of the species in North America, based on Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) data. Although birds frequently are observed outside the breeding range indicated...
Authors
Scott D. Hull
Temporal flexibility of reproduction in temperate-breeding dabbling ducks Temporal flexibility of reproduction in temperate-breeding dabbling ducks
I compared nesting intervals during three consecutive years in five species of temperate-nesting dabbling ducks (Mallard [Anas platyrhynchos], Northern Pintail [Anas acuta], Northern Shoveler [Anas clypeata], Blue-winged Teal [Anas discors], Gadwall [Anas strepera]) and assessed whether differences existed in timing of refractoriness. Most nesting by females of all five species ended by...
Authors
Gary L. Krapu
Cowbird parasitism in grassland and cropland in the northern Great Plains Cowbird parasitism in grassland and cropland in the northern Great Plains
The landscape of the Great Plains has been greatly altered by human activities in the past century, and several grassland passerines have experienced significant population declines in recent decades. We explore here whether brood parasitism by Brown-headed Cowbirds, which are abundant in the Great Plains, has contributed to these declines. We measured the frequency of cowbird parasitism...
Authors
Rolf R. Koford, B. S. Bowen, John T. Lokemoen, Arnold D. Kruse
Coyote, Canis latrans, use of commercial sunflower, Helianthus spp., Seeds as a food source in western Kansas Coyote, Canis latrans, use of commercial sunflower, Helianthus spp., Seeds as a food source in western Kansas
Food habits of Coyotes (Canis latrans) were determined by analysis of scats collected in western Kansas in 1996. Mammals were the most frequently occurring food of Coyotes (100% of scats), followed by plants (39%), insects (30%) and birds (9%). Commercial sunflower (Helianthus spp.) seeds were found in 9 of 23 scats. When present, they composed a high volume of individual scats (X= 31%)
Authors
M.A. Sovada, D.J. Telesco, C.C. Roy