Publications
These publications showcase the significant science conducted in our Science Centers.
Filter Total Items: 16785
New England salt marsh pools: A quantitative analysis of geomorphic and geographic features
New England salt marsh pools provide important wildlife habitat and are the object of on-going salt marsh restoration projects; however, they have not been quantified in terms of their basic geomorphic and geographic traits. An examination of 32 ditched and unditched salt marshes from the Connecticut shore of Long Island Sound to southern Maine, USA, revealed that pools from ditched and unditched
Authors
Susan C. Adamowicz, Charles T. Roman
Estimating moist-soil seeds available to waterfowl with double sampling for stratification
No abstract available.
Authors
Kenneth J. Reinecke, Kevin M. Hartke
Correlates of vernal pool occurrence in the Massachusetts USA, landscape
Vernal pool wetlands are at risk of destruction across the northeast United States, due in part to their diminutive size and short hydroperiolds. These characteristics make it difficult to locate vernal pool habitats in the landscape during much of the year, and no efficient method exists for predicting their occurrence. A logistic regression procedure was used to identify large-scale variables th
Authors
Evan H. Campbell Grant
Double-observer approach to estimating egg mass abundance of vernal pool breeding amphibians
Interest in seasonally flooded pools, and the status of associated amphibian populations, has initiated programs in the northeastern United States to document and monitor these habitats. Counting egg masses is an effective way to determine the population size of pool-breeding amphibians, such as wood frogs (Rana sylvatica) and spotted salamanders (Ambystoma maculatum). However, bias is associated
Authors
Evan H. Campbell Grant, Robin E. Jung, James D. Nichols, James E. Hines
Auditory brainstem responses in the Eastern Screech Owl: An estimate of auditory thresholds
The auditory brainstem response (ABR), a measure of neural synchrony, was used to estimate auditory sensitivity in the eastern screech owl (Megascops asio). The typical screech owl ABR waveform showed two to three prominent peaks occurring within 5 ms of stimulus onset. As sound pressure levels increased, the ABR peak amplitude increased and latency decreased. With an increasing stimulus prese
Authors
E.F. Brittan-Powell, B. Lohr, D.C. Hahn, R.J. Dooling
Efficient statistical mapping of avian count data
We develop a spatial modeling framework for count data that is efficient to implement in high-dimensional prediction problems. We consider spectral parameterizations for the spatially varying mean of a Poisson model. The spectral parameterization of the spatial process is very computationally efficient, enabling effective estimation and prediction in large problems using Markov chain Monte Carlo t
Authors
J. Andrew Royle, C. K. Wikle
The role of thyroxine on the production of plumage in the American Kestrel (Falco sparterius)
No abstract available.
Authors
M.J. Quinn, J.B. French, F.M.A. McNabb, M. A. Ottinger
Pathogenicity of Metarhizium anisopliae (Deuteromycetes) and permethrin to Ixodes scapularis (Acari: Ixodidae) nymphs
Effectiveness of the entomopathogenic fungus Metarhizium anisopliae, for controlling nymphal Ixodes scapularis, was tested in laboratory and field trials. In the laboratory, M. anisopliae (Metschnikoff) Sorokin strain ESC1 was moderately pathogenic, with an LC50 of 107 spores/ml and induced 70% mortality at 109 spores/ml. In a field study, however, 109 spores/ml M. anisopliae did not effectively c
Authors
V.L. Hornbostel, Elyes Zhioua, Michael A. Benjamin, Howard S. Ginsberg, Richard S. Ostfeld
Estimating size and composition of biological communities by modeling the occurrence of species
We develop a model that uses repeated observations of a biological community to estimate the number and composition of species in the community. Estimators of community-level attributes are constructed from model-based estimators of occurrence of individual species that incorporate imperfect detection of individuals. Data from the North American Breeding Bird Survey are analyzed to illustrate the
Authors
Robert Dorazio, J. Andrew Royle
Effects of forest structure and composition on food availability for Varecia variegata at Ranomafana National Park, Madagascar
We present a summary of a long-term field study that examined the effects of forest disturbance on the availability of palatable fruit and its utilization by V. variegata. Forest structure and tree species composition were measured in three adjacent study areas, with different histories of disturbance, in Ranomafana National Park (RNP), Madagascar. V. variegata abundance was monitored by frequent
Authors
E.A. Balko, H.B. Underwood
Reservoir competence of native North American birds for the Lyme disease spirochete, Borrelia burgdorferi
Reservoir competence for the Lyme disease spirochete, Borrelia burgdorferi, was tested for six species of native North American birds: American robin, gray catbird, brown thrasher, eastern towhee, song sparrow, and northern cardinal. Wild birds collected by mist netting on Fire Island, NY, were held in a field laboratory in cages over water and locally collected larval ticks were placed on the bir
Authors
Howard S. Ginsberg, P. A. Buckley, Maxon G. Balmforth, Elyes Zhioua, Shaibal Mitra, Francine G. Buckley
Head-bobbing behavior in foraging whooping cranes favors visual fixation
No abstract available.
Authors
Thomas M. Cronin, Matthew R. Kinloch, Glenn H. Olsen