Publications

Tundra vegetation in the Teshekpuk Lake area of the Alaskan Arctic Coastal Plain was mapped to assess distribution and abundance of waterfowl habitats. Three SPOT satellite scenes were acquired and registered to a 20 m Universal Transverse Mercator grid. Two clustering techniques were used to develop statistical parameters by which the SPOT data were spectrally classified. A maximum likelihood alg

Sage grouse, Centrocercus urophasianus, in an isolated montane basin near Gunnison, Colorado differ in several morphological and behavioural traits from conspecifics studied in other areas of the species' range. Both sexes in Gunnison are smaller than sage grouse elsewhere, and males possess differences in feather morphology as well. The mating behaviour of male sage grouse in three populations wa

No abstract available.

Following the Exxon Valdez oil spill (EVOS), Prudhoe Bay crude oil from the vessel spread on the sea surface and covered coastal shores from western Prince William Sound (PWS) to the Alaska Peninsula. In PWS alone. acute mortality of sca otters at the time of the spill was estimated to be greater than 2000 (Doroff et al. 1993; Garrott et al. 1993).Shoreline oiling was observed on approximately 24%

In the months following the Exxon Valdez oil spill (EVOS), 994 sea otters (Enhydra lutris) from oil-spill-affected areas died (Doroff et al. 1993). Carcasses collected from these areas and otters that died in rehabilitation centers are included in this number. The actual number that died was probably much greater.Within days of the spill, the Exxon Company (USA) funded an effort to rehabilitate oi

On 24 March 1989, the T/V Exxon Valdez ran aground in Prince William Sound (PWS). eventually releasing 11 million gallons of Prudhoe Bay crude oil. The subsequent oil slick extended from PWS southwest along the Kenai Peninsula, past Kodiak Island to the Alaska Peninsula (Galt and Payton 1990). The spill encompassed extensive areas of sea otter (Enhydra lutris) habitat. Estimates of sea otter morta

Two species of mosquitofish (family Poeciliidae) known to hybridize in nature were introduced into freshwater habitats inside Biosphere 2, and their population genetics were monitored after 2 years. Within four to six generations, nuclear and cytoplasmic markers characteristic of Gambusia holbrooki had risen greatly in frequency, although some Gambusia affinis alleles and haplotypes were retained

The genetic divergence and phylogeny of the auks was assessed by mitochondrial DNA sequence comparisons in a study using 19 of the 22 auk species and two outgroup representatives. We compared more than 500 nucleotides from each of two mitochondrial genes encoding 12S rRNA and the NADH dehydrogenase subunit 6. Divergence times were estimated from transversional substitutions. The dovekie (Alle alle

I compared distribution and range of brown bears (Ursus arctos middendorffi) with temporal and spatial distribution of Sitka black-tailed deer (Odocoileus hemionus sitkensis) hunting activity on westside Kodiak Island, Alaska, to examine impacts of deer hunting on bears. Mean number of bears that annually ranged ≤5 km from the coast, >5 km inland from the coast, or in both areas was 10, 8, and 11,

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% of 88 chic

I quantified ovarian rapid follicle growth (RFG) and regression of postovulatory follicles of Northern Pintails (Anas acuta), American Wigeon (A. americana), and Lesser Scaup (Aythya affinis) by a method that accounted for within-day variation in follicle size. Objective methods for identifying onset of RFG also are presented; this is crucial for accurate classification of breeding status. Duratio

We studied morphological and mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) divergence among three populations of Brachyramphus Murrelets: Kittlitz's Murrelets (B. brevirostris), and tree-nesting and ground-nesting Marbled Murrelets (B. marmoratus). We found little morphological divergence in external and skeletal measurements among Marbled Murrelets, but both populations were easily distinguished from Kittlitz's Murr