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Publications

These publications showcase the significant science conducted in our Science Centers.

Filter Total Items: 16786

An integrated analysis of the effects of past land use on forest herb colonization at the landscape scale

A framework that summarizes the direct and indirect effects of past land use on forest herb recolonization is proposed, and used to analyse the colonization patterns of forest understorey herbaceous species in a 360-ha mixed forest, grassland and arable landscape in the Dijle river valley (central Belgium).Fine-scale distribution maps were constructed for 14 species. The species were mapped in 15 
Authors
K. Verheyen, Glenn R. Guntenspergen, B. Biesbrouck, M. Hermy

Establishing appropriate measures for monitoring aging in birds: comparing short and long lived species

In order to reveal patterns of reproductive aging in birds we focus on a short lived species, the Japanese quail and the American kestrel, which has a life span of medium length. Quail have been studied extensively in the laboratory as models for understanding avian endocrinology and behavior, and as a subject for toxicological research and testing. In the lab, Japanese quail show age-related dete
Authors
M. A. Ottinger, E. Reed, J. Wu, N. Thompson, J.B. French

Annual survival and recruitment in a Ruby-throated Hummingbird population, excluding the effect of transient individuals

We estimated annual apparent survival, recruitment, and rate of population growth of breeding Ruby-throated Hummingbirds (Archilochus colubris), while controlling for transients, by using 18 years of capture-mark-recapture data collected during 1984-2001 at Hilton Pond Center for Piedmont Natural History near York, South Carolina. Resident males had lower apparent survival (0.30 ± 0.05 SE) than fe
Authors
B. Hilton, M.W. Miller

Distribution, abundance, and habitat affinities of the Coastal Plain Swamp Sparrow

We examined the distribution and abundance of the Coastal Plain Swamp Sparrow (Melospiza georgiana nigrescens) at previously occupied sites and points within potential habitat. We found Swamp Sparrows throughout their formerly documented range except in southern Chesapeake Bay. Swamp Sparrows were most common in the Mullica River region of New Jersey where we detected individuals at 78% of syste
Authors
J. Beadell, R. Greenberg, Sam Droege, J. Andrew Royle

Genetic variation in natural and translocated populations of the endangered Delmarva fox squirrel (Sciurus niger cinereus)

The Delmarva fox squirrel, Sciurus niger cinereus, is a federally listed endangered subspecies whose range has been reduced by 90%. In an attempt to increase both population size and range, translocation sites were established beginning in the 1960's by moving squirrels from the natural range to sites outside the current range. Although translocations have served as the primary component of the DF
Authors
S.L. Lance, J.E. Maldonado, Carol I. Bocetti, O. H. Pattee, J.D. Ballou, R.C. Fleischer

Demographic analysis from summaries of an age-structured population

Demographic analyses of age-structured populations typically rely on life history data for individuals, or when individual animals are not identified, on information about the numbers of individuals in each age class through time. While it is usually difficult to determine the age class of a randomly encountered individual, it is often the case that the individual can be readily and reliably assig
Authors
William A. Link, J. Andrew Royle, Jeff S. Hatfield

The eastern box turtle at the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center 1940s to the present: another view

Several long-term mark recapture studies have been conducted on box turtles (Terrapene c. carolina) providing valuable information on life span, basic demography, home range, and apparent effects of environmental changes on box turtle survival. One of the longest studied populations was first marked in 1942 on the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center in Maryland, and has been surveyed every 10 years
Authors
P.F.P. Henry

Nonidentifiability of population size from capture-recapture data with heterogeneous detection probabilities

Heterogeneity in detection probabilities has long been recognized as problematic in mark-recapture studies, and numerous models developed to accommodate its effects. Individual heterogeneity is especially problematic, in that reasonable alternative models may predict essentially identical observations from populations of substantially different sizes. Thus even with very large samples, the analyst
Authors
W. A. Link

Landscape change in the southern Piedmont: challenges, solutions, and uncertainty across scales

The southern Piedmont of the southeastern United States epitomizes the complex and seemingly intractable problems and hard decisions that result from uncontrolled urban and suburban sprawl. Here we consider three recurrent themes in complicated problems involving complex systems: (1) scale dependencies and cross-scale, often nonlinear relationships; (2) resilience, in particular the potential for
Authors
M.J. Conroy, Craig R. Allen, J.T. Peterson, L.J. Pritchard, C. T. Moore

Windows of opportunity: white-tailed deer and the dynamics of northern hardwood forests of the northeastern US

Herbivory, lighting regimes, and site conditions are among the most important determinants of forest regeneration success, but these are affected by a host of other factors such as weather, predation, human exploitation, pathogens, wind and fire. We draw together > 50 years of research on the Huntington Wildlife Forest in the central Adirondack Mountains of New York to explore regeneration of nor
Authors
R.W. Sage, W.F. Porter, H.B. Underwood

Chrysotherapy: a synoptic review

Chrysotherapy--the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients with monovalent gold drugs possessing anti-inflammatory and other properties--has been used with some success for more than 70 years; however, the metabolites generated from gold drugs have not been identified positively and the mechanisms of action are not known with certainty. This account selectively reviews recent available li
Authors
R. Eisler