Publications

Information on the size, distribution, and productivity of the California sea otter population is broadly relevant to two federally mandated goals: removing the population’s listing as threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and obtaining an “optimal sustainable population” under the Marine Mammal Protection Act. Except for the population in central California, sea otters...

Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) satellite data were acquired and composited into twice-a-month periods from 1 May 1991 to 15 October 1991 in order to map vegetation characteristics of the Alaskan landscape. Unique spatial and temporal qualities of the AVHRR data provide information that leads to a better understanding of regional biophysical characteristics of vegetation

The Texas coast has experienced considerable urban, industrial, and agricultural growth during the 20th Century. The region provides important wintering habitat to many avian species, including lesser snow geese Chen caerulescens caerulescens. This paper draws the biological and ecological fields into an historical perspective by examining available literature on the development of the...

Population estimates of Spectacled Eiders (Somateria fischeri) on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta (YKD), Alaska, suggest that by 1992 the number of birds on this major nesting area had declined to 1,721 pairs, 4% of that estimated in the 1970s (Stehn st al 1993). Consequently, Spectacled Eiders were listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. As nesting habitats for this species are...

We measured apparent metabolizability of organic matter, gross energy, nitrogen and cell wall constituents of pelleted alfalfa by Lesser Snow Geese (Chen caerulescens caerulescens. We also used simultaneous measurements of energy expenditure and apparent metabolizable energy intake to estimate heat increment of feeding and net energy for production and maintenance. Apparent...

Alaskan sockeye salmon Oncorhynchus nerka typically spawn in lake tributaries during summer (early run) and along clear‐water lake shorelines and outlet rivers during fall (late run). Production at the glacially turbid Tustumena Lake and its outlet, the Kasilof River (south‐central Alaska), was thought to be limited to a single run of sockeye salmon that spawned in the lakeˈs clear‐water

The March-April issue of American Scientist contains a commentary by Julia K. Parrish and P. Dee Boersma (Macroscope, "Muddy Waters") that purports to "assess the validity of the claims made concerning seabird mortality as a result of the [Exxon Valdez oil] spill." Parrish and Boersma would have us believe that estimates of seabird mortality made in 1990 by myself and colleagues were...

Brown bears (Ursus arctos middendorffi) on the Kodiak Archipelago are famous for their large size and seasonal concentrations at salmon streams. Sport hunting of Kodiak bears has been popular since World War II. Their value as captivating subjects to observe or photograph is a more recent development that is increasing rapidly; visitors from around the world come to experience brown...

Originally conceived as a modified Schnabel (1938) design mark-recapture study, the unique random sampling regime of this long line tagging study has allowed us to describe habitat correlates of Pacific halibut (Hippoglossus stenolepis) and other demersal fishes. Pacific halibut and other fish were captured by longline sets of constant length and hook number distributed in a random...

Using satellite telemetry, we monitored the movements of an adult female polar bear (Ursus maritimus) as she traveled from the Alaskan Beaufort Sea coast to northern Greenland. She is the first polar bear known to depart the Beaufort Sea region for an extended period, and the first polar bear known to move between Alaska and Greenland. This bear traveled for four months across the polar...

Previous studies of waterfowl have measured nest attendance and nest temperature separately using a variety of methods. A device was developed that monitors nest attendance and temperature simultaneously. The device consists of an artificial egg with a microswitch that records nest attendance and a thermistor probe that records temperature. Data are stored in a single-channel data logger...

Following a massive wreck of guillemots (Uria aalge) in late winter and spring of 1993, we monitored the deposition and subsequent disappearance of 398 beachcast guillemot carcasses on two beaches in Resurrection Bay, Alaska, during a 100 day period. Deposition of carcasses declined logarithmically with time after the original event. Since fresh carcasses were more likely to be removed...