Publications

There has been considerable debate in the ecological and evolutionary literature over the relative importance and rate by which microevolutionary processes operating at the population level result in separation and differentiation of lineages and populations, and ultimately in speciation. Our understanding of evolutionary processes have need greatly enhances through the study of...

Seward Peninsula (Fig. 1) may be divided into two geologic terranes (Fig. 2) on the basis of stratigraphy, structure, and metamorphic history. The Seward terrane, an area 150 by 150 km in the central and eastern peninsula, is dominated by Precambrian(?) and early Paleozoic blueschist-, greenschist-, and amphibolite-facies schist and marble, and intruded by three suites of granitic rocks...

South-central Alaska is defined as the region bounded by the Kuskokwim Mountains to the northwest, the basins north of the Alaska Range to the north, the Canadian border to the east, and the Chugach Mountains to the south (Fig. 1). This region, hereafter called the study area, includes the Alaska Range, the Wrangell, Nutzotin, and Talkeetna mountains, the Copper River and the Susitna...

We developed an intersection model to integrate parameters estimated from three distinct data sets that resulted from the Exxon Valdez oil spill: (1) the distribution, amount, and movements of spilled oil; (2) the distribution and abundance of sea otters along the Kenai Peninsula; and (3) the estimates of site-specific sea otter mortality relative to oil exposure from otters captured for

1. The stable isotopes of nitrogen (δ15N) and carbon (δ13C) were analysed in 22 species of marine birds from coastal waters of the northeast Pacific Ocean. Analyses confirm that stable nitrogen isotopes can predict seabird trophic positions. 2. Based on δ15N analyses, seabird trophic-level inferences generally agree with those of conventional dietary studies, but suggest that lower...

Management of tundra swans (Cygnus columbianus) is hampered by a lack of information on their nesting and brood-rearing ecology. We studied tundra swan nesting and brood-rearing ecology on the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR), Alaska, 1988-90. Nest success was 58% (n = 31) in 1988, 83% (n = 36) in 1989, 84% (n = 43) in 1990, and 76% (n = 110) for the 3 years. Nests were located...

We studied Black-legged Kittiwakes (Rissa tridactyla) in an Alaskan colony where movement of young among nests was possible because of moderate terrain and close nest spacing. Thirty-three percent of chicks in a focal group departed their nests prior to fledging, and seven of the vagrant chicks (58%) were adopted by foster parents. The overall frequency of adoption in three years was 8%...

The dynamics of mitochondrial and multilocus nuclear genotypic frequencies were monitored for 2 yr in experimental populations established with equal numbers of two poeciliid fishes (Gambusia affinis and Gambusia holbrooki) that hybridize naturally in the southeastern United States. In replicated "small-pool" populations (experiment I), 1018 sampled individuals at six time periods...

Experimental laboratory crosses and population experiments reveal significant differences in individual life-history traits and population demography between two related species of mosquitofish, Gambusia affinis and G. holbrooki. With respect to life-history traits, progeny from G. holbrooki exhibit larger size at birth and earlier age at sexual maturity than do progeny from G. affinis...

Decoy traps and rocket-nets were compared for capturing Northern Pintails (Anas acuta: hereafter pintails) during May 1991 on the Yukon Flats, Alaska. Males were captured at similar rates using both methods (1.38 vs. 1.07 males/trap d, respectively), but baited rocket-nets were more efficient than decoy traps for capturing females (0.52 vs. 0.12 females/trap d). There were no significant

We compared trends in breeding population size among cormorants, gulls, alcids, and others, among the Farallon Islands, and sites in northern California and Washington, Gulf of Alaska, and Bering Sea, but in most cases only during the last two decades. For a given species, trends were usually concordant within the same oceanographic domain, except for Rhinoceros Auklet, which increased...

No abstract available.