Methane flux from boreal peatlands

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Crill, P.; Bartlett, K.; Roulet, N.

1992-01-01

The peatlands in the boreal zone (roughly 45 deg - 60 degN) store a significant reservoir of carbon, much of which is potentially available for exchange with the atmosphere. The anaerobic conditions that cause these soils to accumulate carbon also makes wet, boreal peatlands significant sources of methane to the global troposphere. It is estimated that boreal wetlands contribute approximately 19.5 Tg methane per year. The data available on the magnitude of boreal methane emissions have rapidly accumulated in the past twenty years. This paper offers a short review of the flux measured (with range roughly 1 - 2000 mg methane/m2d), considers environmental controls of the flux and briefly discusses how climate change might affect future fluxes

Bird and bat predation services in tropical forests and agroforestry landscapes.

Science.gov (United States)

Maas, Bea; Karp, Daniel S; Bumrungsri, Sara; Darras, Kevin; Gonthier, David; Huang, Joe C-C; Lindell, Catherine A; Maine, Josiah J; Mestre, Laia; Michel, Nicole L; Morrison, Emily B; Perfecto, Ivette; Philpott, Stacy M; Şekercioğlu, Çagan H; Silva, Roberta M; Taylor, Peter J; Tscharntke, Teja; Van Bael, Sunshine A; Whelan, Christopher J; Williams-Guillén, Kimberly

2016-11-01

Understanding distribution patterns and multitrophic interactions is critical for managing bat- and bird-mediated ecosystem services such as the suppression of pest and non-pest arthropods. Despite the ecological and economic importance of bats and birds in tropical forests, agroforestry systems, and agricultural systems mixed with natural forest, a systematic review of their impact is still missing. A growing number of bird and bat exclosure experiments has improved our knowledge allowing new conclusions regarding their roles in food webs and associated ecosystem services. Here, we review the distribution patterns of insectivorous birds and bats, their local and landscape drivers, and their effects on trophic cascades in tropical ecosystems. We report that for birds but not bats community composition and relative importance of functional groups changes conspicuously from forests to habitats including both agricultural areas and forests, here termed 'forest-agri' habitats, with reduced representation of insectivores in the latter. In contrast to previous theory regarding trophic cascade strength, we find that birds and bats reduce the density and biomass of arthropods in the tropics with effect sizes similar to those in temperate and boreal communities. The relative importance of birds versus bats in regulating pest abundances varies with season, geography and management. Birds and bats may even suppress tropical arthropod outbreaks, although positive effects on plant growth are not always reported. As both bats and birds are major agents of pest suppression, a better understanding of the local and landscape factors driving the variability of their impact is needed. © 2015 Cambridge Philosophical Society.

The U.S. Geological Survey Bird Banding Laboratory: an integrated scientific program supporting research and conservation of North American birds

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Gregory J.

2013-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Bird Banding Laboratory (BBL) was established in 1920 after ratification of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act with the United Kingdom in 1918. During World War II, the BBL was moved from Washington, D.C., to what is now the USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center (PWRC). The BBL issues permits and bands to permittees to band birds, records bird band recoveries or encounters primarily through telephone and Internet reporting, and manages more than 72 million banding records and more than 4.5 million records of encounters using state-of-the-art technologies. Moreover, the BBL also issues bands and manages banding and encounter data for the Canadian Bird Banding Office (BBO). Each year approximately 1 million bands are shipped from the BBL to banders in the United States and Canada, and nearly 100,000 encounter reports are entered into the BBL systems. Banding data are essential for regulatory programs, especially migratory waterfowl harvest regulations. The USGS BBL works closely with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) to develop regulations for the capture, handling, banding, and marking of birds. These regulations are published in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR). In 2006, the BBL and the USFWS Division of Migratory Bird Management (DMBM) began a comprehensive revision of the banding regulations. The bird banding community has three major constituencies: Federal and State agency personnel involved in the management and conservation of bird populations that include the Flyway Councils, ornithological research scientists, and avocational banders. With increased demand for banding activities and relatively constant funding, a Federal Advisory Committee (Committee) was chartered and reviewed the BBL program in 2005. The final report of the Committee included six major goals and 58 specific recommendations, 47 of which have been addressed by the BBL. Specifically, the Committee recommended the BBL continue to support science

National recovery strategy for woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou, boreal population, in Canada

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dave Hervieux

2007-04-01

Full Text Available Recovery planning for the boreal population of woodland caribou is a complex task, spanning eight Canadian provinces and territories. To accommodate unique situations across the country, recovery planning for this Species at Risk Act-listed threatened species is occurring at both provincial/ territorial and national levels. The national recovery strategy strives to identify nationally important issues and provide direction for provinces and territories as they plan and implement boreal caribou recovery within their jurisdictions. The national vision is to conserve and recover boreal caribou and their habitat across Canada. Specific goals are to: 1 Prevent extirpation of local boreal caribou populations from all existing caribou ranges; and 2 Maintain or enhance local boreal caribou populations at or to self-sustaining levels within all existing caribou ranges; and 3 Maintain or enhance boreal caribou habitat to support self-sustaining local populations. Nineteen broad national approaches are identified. These approaches include items relating to: habitat planning and management, caribou population monitoring and management, management of human-caused mortality, management of other wildlife species, consideration of government legislation and policy,promotion of stewardship and public outreach, and research. Specific outcomes are provided for each stated recovery approach. For more information on Canada's national recovery strategy for the boreal population of woodland caribou please see www.speciesatrisk.gc.ca/recovery/default_e.cfm

Field irradiator gamma: pre-irradiation occurrence of breeding birds in three boreal habitats

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Seabloom, R.W.

1975-10-01

A trail census was conducted of the breeding birds found in three major habitats in the Field Irradiator Gamma area at the Whiteshell Nuclear Research Establishment, Pinawa, Manitoba. The area sampled was about 10.50 ha in size, and included 4.25 ha of upland forest, 4.75 ha of lowland conifers, and 1.50 ha of black spruce-tamarack bog. Forty-four species of birds were identified, of which 24 were considered to be resident in the study area. The highest population density was observed in the bog, followed by upland forest and lowland conifer respectively. In contrast, species diversity was greatest in the upland forest, while it decreased markedly in the relatively monotypic lowland conifer and bog habitats. (author)

Boreal forests

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Essen, P.A.; Ericson, L.; Ehnstroem, B.; Sjoeberg, K.

1997-01-01

We review patterns and processes important for biodiversity in the Fennoscandian boreal forest, describe man's past and present impact and outline a strategy for conservation. Natural disturbances, particularly forest fire and gap formation, create much of the structural and functional diversity in forest ecosystems. Several boreal plants and animals are adapted to fire regimes. In contrast, many organisms (epiphytic lichens, fungi, invertebrates) require stable conditions with long continuity in canopy cover. The highly mechanized and efficient Fennoscandian forest industry has developed during the last century. The result is that most natural forest has been lost and that several hundreds of species, mainly cryptograms and invertebrates, are threatened. The forestry is now in a transition from exploitation to sustainable production and has recently incorporated some measures to protect the environment. Programmes for maintaining biodiversity in the boreal forest should include at least three parts. First, the system of forest reserves must be significantly improved through protection of large representative ecosystems and key biotopes that host threatened species. Second, we must restore ecosystem properties that have been lost or altered. Natural disturbance regimes must be allowed to operate or be imitated, for example by artificial fire management. Stand-level management should particularly increase the amount of coarse woody debris, the number of old deciduous trees and large, old conifers, by using partial cutting. Third, natural variation should also be mimicked at the landscape level, for example, by reducing fragmentation and increasing links between landscape elements. Long-term experiments are required to evaluate the success of different management methods in maintaining biodiversity in the boreal forest. (au) 260 refs

Thresholds for boreal biome transitions.

Science.gov (United States)

Scheffer, Marten; Hirota, Marina; Holmgren, Milena; Van Nes, Egbert H; Chapin, F Stuart

2012-12-26

Although the boreal region is warming twice as fast as the global average, the way in which the vast boreal forests and tundras may respond is poorly understood. Using satellite data, we reveal marked alternative modes in the frequency distributions of boreal tree cover. At the northern end and at the dry continental southern extremes, treeless tundra and steppe, respectively, are the only possible states. However, over a broad intermediate temperature range, these treeless states coexist with boreal forest (∼75% tree cover) and with two more open woodland states (∼20% and ∼45% tree cover). Intermediate tree covers (e.g., ∼10%, ∼30%, and ∼60% tree cover) between these distinct states are relatively rare, suggesting that they may represent unstable states where the system dwells only transiently. Mechanisms for such instabilities remain to be unraveled, but our results have important implications for the anticipated response of these ecosystems to climatic change. The data reveal that boreal forest shows no gradual decline in tree cover toward its limits. Instead, our analysis suggests that it becomes less resilient in the sense that it may more easily shift into a sparse woodland or treeless state. Similarly, the relative scarcity of the intermediate ∼10% tree cover suggests that tundra may shift relatively abruptly to a more abundant tree cover. If our inferences are correct, climate change may invoke massive nonlinear shifts in boreal biomes.

The geography of hotspots of rarity-weighted richness of birds and their coverage by Natura 2000.

Science.gov (United States)

Albuquerque, Fábio Suzart de; Gregory, Andrew

2017-01-01

A major challenge for biogeographers and conservation planners is to identify where to best locate or distribute high-priority areas for conservation and to explore whether these areas are well represented by conservation actions such as protected areas (PAs). We aimed to identify high-priority areas for conservation, expressed as hotpots of rarity-weighted richness (HRR)-sites that efficiently represent species-for birds across EU countries, and to explore whether HRR are well represented by the Natura 2000 network. Natura 2000 is an evolving network of PAs that seeks to conserve biodiversity through the persistence of the most patrimonial species and habitats across Europe. This network includes Sites of Community Importance (SCI) and Special Areas of Conservation (SAC), where the latter regulated the designation of Special Protected Areas (SPA). Distribution maps for 416 bird species and complementarity-based approaches were used to map geographical patterns of rarity-weighted richness (RWR) and HRR for birds. We used species accumulation index to evaluate whether RWR was efficient surrogates to identify HRRs for birds. The results of our analysis support the proposition that prioritizing sites in order of RWR is a reliable way to identify sites that efficiently represent birds. HRRs were concentrated in the Mediterranean Basin and alpine and boreal biogeographical regions of northern Europe. The cells with high RWR values did not correspond to cells where Natura 2000 was present. We suggest that patterns of RWR could become a focus for conservation biogeography. Our analysis demonstrates that identifying HRR is a robust approach for prioritizing management actions, and reveals the need for more conservation actions, especially on HRR.

A distribution-oriented approach to support landscape connectivity for ecologically distinct bird species.

Science.gov (United States)

Herrera, José M; Alagador, Diogo; Salgueiro, Pedro; Mira, António

2018-01-01

Managing landscape connectivity is a widely recognized overarching strategy for conserving biodiversity in human-impacted landscapes. However, planning the conservation and management of landscape connectivity of multiple and ecologically distinct species is still challenging. Here we provide a spatially-explicit framework which identifies and prioritizes connectivity conservation and restoration actions for species with distinct habitat affinities. Specifically, our study system comprised three groups of common bird species, forest-specialists, farmland-specialists, and generalists, populating a highly heterogeneous agricultural countryside in the southwestern Iberian Peninsula. We first performed a comprehensive analysis of the environmental variables underlying the distributional patterns of each bird species to reveal generalities in their guild-specific responses to landscape structure. Then, we identified sites which could be considered pivotal in maintaining current levels of landscape connectivity for the three bird guilds simultaneously, as well as the number and location of sites that need to be restored to maximize connectivity levels. Interestingly, we found that a small number of sites defined the shortest connectivity paths for the three bird guilds simultaneously, and were therefore considered key for conservation. Moreover, an even smaller number of sites were identified as critical to expand the landscape connectivity at maximum for the regional bird assemblage as a whole. Our spatially-explicit framework can provide valuable decision-making support to conservation practitioners aiming to identify key connectivity and restoration sites, a particularly urgent task in rapidly changing landscapes such as agroecosystems.

Avian malaria in a boreal resident species: long-term temporal variability, and increased prevalence in birds with avian keratin disorder

Science.gov (United States)

Wilkinson, Laura C.; Handel, Colleen M.; Van Hemert, Caroline R.; Loiseau, Claire; Sehgal, Ravinder N. M.

2016-01-01

The prevalence of vector-borne parasitic diseases is widely influenced by biological and ecological factors. Environmental conditions such as temperature and precipitation can have a marked effect on haemosporidian parasites (Plasmodium spp.) that cause malaria and those that cause other malaria-like diseases in birds. However, there have been few long-term studies monitoring haemosporidian infections in birds in northern latitudes, where weather conditions can be highly variable and the effects of climate change are becoming more pronounced. We used molecular methods to screen more than 2,000 blood samples collected from black-capped chickadees (Poecile atricapillus), a resident passerine bird. Samples were collected over a 10 year period, mostly during the non-breeding season, at seven sites in Alaska, USA. We tested for associations between Plasmodium prevalence and local environmental conditions including temperature, precipitation, site, year and season. We also evaluated the relationship between parasite prevalence and individual host factors of age, sex and presence or absence of avian keratin disorder. This disease, which causes accelerated keratin growth in the beak, provided a natural study system in which to test the interaction between disease state and malaria prevalence. Prevalence of Plasmodium infection varied by year, site, age and individual disease status but there was no support for an effect of sex or seasonal period. Significantly, birds with avian keratin disorder were 2.6 times more likely to be infected by Plasmodium than birds without the disorder. Interannual variation in the prevalence of Plasmodium infection at different sites was positively correlated with summer temperatures at the local but not statewide scale. Sequence analysis of the parasite cytochrome b gene revealed a single Plasmodiumspp. lineage, P43. Our results demonstrate associations between prevalence of avian malaria and a variety of biological and

Interspecific competition and the structure of bird guilds in boreal Europe: the importance of doing fieldwork in the right season.

Science.gov (United States)

Oksanen, L

1987-12-01

Bird studies have gained a central role in the debate on the importance of interspecific competition in nature. Thus, the negative results reported from a breeding bird community in a North American shrubsteppe area have created ripples throughout community ecology. However, the set of coexisting breeding birds might be an inappropriate operational definition of a bird community, because the intensity of interspecific competition can be expected to peak in autumn-winter. A review of North European data on wintering birds suggests that the case for the competition theory remains strong when bird communities are defined on the basis of winter coexistence. Copyright © 1987. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Maintaining animal assemblages through single-species management: the case of threatened caribou in boreal forest.

Science.gov (United States)

Bichet, Orphé; Dupuch, Angélique; Hébert, Christian; Le Borgne, Hélène Le; Fortin, Daniel

2016-03-01

With the intensification of human activities, preserving animal populations is a contemporary challenge of critical importance. In this context, the umbrella species concept is appealing because preserving a single species should result in the protection of multiple co-occurring species. Practitioners, though, face the task of having to find suitable umbrellas to develop single-species management guidelines. In North America, boreal forests must be managed to facilitate the recovery of the threatened boreal caribou (Rangifer tarandus). Yet, the effect of caribou conservation on co-occurring animal species remains poorly documented. We tested if boreal caribou can constitute an effective umbrella for boreal fauna. Birds, small mammals, and insects were sampled along gradients of post-harvest and post-fire forest succession. Predictive models of occupancy were developed from the responses of 95 species to characteristics of forest stands and their surroundings. We then assessed the similarity of species occupancy expected between simulated harvested landscapes and a 90 000-km2 uncut landscape. Managed landscapes were simulated based on three levels of disturbance, two timber-harvest rotation cycles, and dispersed or aggregated cut-blocks. We found that management guidelines that were more likely to maintain caribou populations should also better preserve animal assemblages. Relative to fragmentation or harvest cycle, we detected a stronger effect of habitat loss on species assemblages. Disturbing 22%, 35%, and 45% of the landscape should result, respectively, in 80%, 60%, and 40% probability for caribou populations to be sustainable; in turn, this should result in regional species assemblages with Jaccard similarity indices of 0.86, 0.79, and 0.74, respectively, relative to the uncut landscape. Our study thus demonstrates the value of single-species management for animal conservation. Our quantitative approach allows for the evaluation of management guidelines prior

Ecology of Avian Influenza Virus in Wild Birds in Tropical Africa.

Science.gov (United States)

Gaidet, Nicolas

2016-05-01

Several ecologic factors have been proposed to describe the mechanisms whereby host ecology and the environment influence the transmission of avian influenza viruses (AIVs) in wild birds, including bird's foraging behavior, migratory pattern, seasonal congregation, the rate of recruitment of juvenile birds, and abiotic factors. However, these ecologic factors are derived from studies that have been conducted in temperate or boreal regions of the Northern Hemisphere. These factors cannot be directly translated to tropical regions, where differences in host ecology and seasonality may produce different ecologic interactions between wild birds and AIV. An extensive dataset of AIV detection in wildfowl and shorebirds sampled across tropical Africa was used to analyze how the distinctive ecologic features of Afrotropical regions may influence the dynamics of AIV transmission in wild birds. The strong seasonality of rainfall and surface area of wetlands allows testing of how the seasonality of wildfowl ecology (reproduction phenology and congregation) is related to AIV seasonal dynamics. The diversity of the African wildfowl community provides the opportunity to investigate the respective influence of migratory behavior, foraging behavior, and phylogeny on species variation in infection rate. Large aggregation sites of shorebirds in Africa allow testing for the existence of AIV infection hot spots. We found that the processes whereby host ecology influence AIV transmission in wild birds in the Afrotropical context operate through ecologic factors (seasonal drying of wetlands and extended and nonsynchronized breeding periods) that are different than the one described in temperate regions, hence, resulting in different patterns of AIV infection dynamics.

Effects of Boreal Timber Rafting on the Composition of Arctic Driftwood

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Hellmann, L.; Kirdyanov, A. V.; Büntgen, Ulf

2016-01-01

Roč. 7, č. 11 (2016), č. článku 257. ISSN 1999-4907 Institutional support: RVO:67179843 Keywords : boreal rivers * Arctic driftwood * timber logging * industrial floating * Siberia Subject RIV: GK - Forestry Impact factor: 1.951, year: 2016

Regional coherency of boreal forest growth defines Arctic driftwood provenancing

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Hellmann, L.; Agafonov, L.; Churakova (Sidorova), O.; Düthorn, E.; Eggertsson, O.; Esper, J.; Kirdyanov, A. V.; Knorre, A. A.; Moiseev, P.; Myglan, V. S.; Nikolaev, A. N.; Reinig, F.; Schweingruber, F.; Solomina, O.; Tegel, W.; Büntgen, Ulf

2016-01-01

Roč. 39, sep (2016), s. 3-9 ISSN 1125-7865 Institutional support: RVO:67179843 Keywords : mackenzie river driftwood * tree-ring data * central siberia * origin * archipelago * holocene * ocean * sea * ice * circulation * Driftwood * Arctic * Dendro-provenancing * Boreal Subject RIV: EF - Botanics Impact factor: 2.259, year: 2016

Harvesting interacts with climate change to affect future habitat quality of a focal species in eastern Canada's boreal forest.

Science.gov (United States)

Tremblay, Junior A; Boulanger, Yan; Cyr, Dominic; Taylor, Anthony R; Price, David T; St-Laurent, Martin-Hugues

2018-01-01

Many studies project future bird ranges by relying on correlative species distribution models. Such models do not usually represent important processes explicitly related to climate change and harvesting, which limits their potential for predicting and understanding the future of boreal bird assemblages at the landscape scale. In this study, we attempted to assess the cumulative and specific impacts of both harvesting and climate-induced changes on wildfires and stand-level processes (e.g., reproduction, growth) in the boreal forest of eastern Canada. The projected changes in these landscape- and stand-scale processes (referred to as "drivers of change") were then assessed for their impacts on future habitats and potential productivity of black-backed woodpecker (BBWO; Picoides arcticus), a focal species representative of deadwood and old-growth biodiversity in eastern Canada. Forest attributes were simulated using a forest landscape model, LANDIS-II, and were used to infer future landscape suitability to BBWO under three anthropogenic climate forcing scenarios (RCP 2.6, RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5), compared to the historical baseline. We found climate change is likely to be detrimental for BBWO, with up to 92% decline in potential productivity under the worst-case climate forcing scenario (RCP 8.5). However, large declines were also projected under baseline climate, underlining the importance of harvest in determining future BBWO productivity. Present-day harvesting practices were the single most important cause of declining areas of old-growth coniferous forest, and hence appeared as the single most important driver of future BBWO productivity, regardless of the climate scenario. Climate-induced increases in fire activity would further promote young, deciduous stands at the expense of old-growth coniferous stands. This suggests that the biodiversity associated with deadwood and old-growth boreal forests may be greatly altered by the cumulative impacts of natural and

Harvesting interacts with climate change to affect future habitat quality of a focal species in eastern Canada's boreal forest.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Junior A Tremblay

Full Text Available Many studies project future bird ranges by relying on correlative species distribution models. Such models do not usually represent important processes explicitly related to climate change and harvesting, which limits their potential for predicting and understanding the future of boreal bird assemblages at the landscape scale. In this study, we attempted to assess the cumulative and specific impacts of both harvesting and climate-induced changes on wildfires and stand-level processes (e.g., reproduction, growth in the boreal forest of eastern Canada. The projected changes in these landscape- and stand-scale processes (referred to as "drivers of change" were then assessed for their impacts on future habitats and potential productivity of black-backed woodpecker (BBWO; Picoides arcticus, a focal species representative of deadwood and old-growth biodiversity in eastern Canada. Forest attributes were simulated using a forest landscape model, LANDIS-II, and were used to infer future landscape suitability to BBWO under three anthropogenic climate forcing scenarios (RCP 2.6, RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5, compared to the historical baseline. We found climate change is likely to be detrimental for BBWO, with up to 92% decline in potential productivity under the worst-case climate forcing scenario (RCP 8.5. However, large declines were also projected under baseline climate, underlining the importance of harvest in determining future BBWO productivity. Present-day harvesting practices were the single most important cause of declining areas of old-growth coniferous forest, and hence appeared as the single most important driver of future BBWO productivity, regardless of the climate scenario. Climate-induced increases in fire activity would further promote young, deciduous stands at the expense of old-growth coniferous stands. This suggests that the biodiversity associated with deadwood and old-growth boreal forests may be greatly altered by the cumulative impacts of

Adaptive temperature regulation in the little bird in winter: predictions from a stochastic dynamic programming model.

Science.gov (United States)

Brodin, Anders; Nilsson, Jan-Åke; Nord, Andreas

2017-09-01

Several species of small birds are resident in boreal forests where environmental temperatures can be -20 to -30 °C, or even lower, in winter. As winter days are short, and food is scarce, winter survival is a challenge for small endothermic animals. A bird of this size will have to gain almost 10% of its lean body mass in fat every day to sustain overnight metabolism. Birds such as parids (titmice and chickadees) can use facultative hypothermia, a process in which body temperature is actively down-regulated to a specific level, to reduce heat loss and thus save energy. During cold winter nights, these birds may decrease body temperature from the normal from 42 ° down to 35 °C, or even lower in some species. However, birds are unable to move in this deep hypothermic state, making it a risky strategy if predators are around. Why, then, do small northern birds enter a potentially dangerous physiological state for a relatively small reduction in energy expenditure? We used stochastic dynamic programming to investigate this. Our model suggests that the use of nocturnal hypothermia at night is paramount in these biomes, as it would increase winter survival for a small northern bird by 58% over a winter of 100 days. Our model also explains the phenomenon known as winter fattening, and its relationship to thermoregulation, in northern birds.

Predicting Climate Change Impacts to the Canadian Boreal Forest

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Trisalyn A. Nelson

2014-03-01

Full Text Available Climate change is expected to alter temperature, precipitation, and seasonality with potentially acute impacts on Canada’s boreal. In this research we predicted future spatial distributions of biodiversity in Canada’s boreal for 2020, 2050, and 2080 using indirect indicators derived from remote sensing and based on vegetation productivity. Vegetation productivity indices, representing annual amounts and variability of greenness, have been shown to relate to tree and wildlife richness in Canada’s boreal. Relationships between historical satellite-derived productivity and climate data were applied to modelled scenarios of future climate to predict and map potential future vegetation productivity for 592 regions across Canada. Results indicated that the pattern of vegetation productivity will become more homogenous, particularly west of Hudson Bay. We expect climate change to impact biodiversity along north/south gradients and by 2080 vegetation distributions will be dominated by processes of seasonality in the north and a combination of cumulative greenness and minimum cover in the south. The Hudson Plains, which host the world’s largest and most contiguous wetland, are predicted to experience less seasonality and more greenness. The spatial distribution of predicted trends in vegetation productivity was emphasized over absolute values, in order to support regional biodiversity assessments and conservation planning.

Sources and sinks of carbon in boreal ecosystems of interior Alaska: a review

Science.gov (United States)

Douglas, Thomas A.; Jones, Miriam C.; Hiemstra, Christopher A.

2014-01-01

Boreal regions store large quantities of carbon but are increasingly vulnerable to carbon loss due to disturbance and climate warming. The boreal region, underlain by discontinuous permafrost, presents a challenging landscape for itemizing current and potential carbon sources and sinks in the boreal soil and vegetation. The roles of fire, forest succession, and the presence (or absence) of permafrost on carbon cycle, vegetation, and hydrologic processes have been the focus of multidisciplinary research in this area for the past 20 years. However, projections of a warming future climate, an increase in fire severity and extent, and the potential degradation of permafrost could lead to major landscape process changes over the next 20 to 50 years. This provides a major challenge for predicting how the interplay between land management activities and impacts of climate warming will affect carbon sources and sinks in Interior Alaska. To assist land managers in adapting and managing for potential changes in the Interior Alaska carbon cycle we developed this review paper incorporating an overview of the climate, ecosystem processes, vegetation types, and soil regimes in Interior Alaska with a focus on ramifications for the carbon cycle. Our objective is to provide a synthesis of the most current carbon storage estimates and measurements to support policy and land management decisions on how to best manage carbon sources and sinks in Interior Alaska. To support this we have surveyed relevant peer reviewed estimates of carbon stocks in aboveground and belowground biomass for Interior Alaska boreal ecosystems. We have also summarized methane and carbon dioxide fluxes from the same ecosystems. These data have been converted into the same units to facilitate comparison across ecosystem compartments. We identify potential changes in the carbon cycle with climate change and human disturbance including how compounding disturbances can affect the boreal system. Finally, we provide

Global warming considerations in northern Boreal forest ecosystems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Slaughter, C.W.

1993-01-01

The northern boreal forests of circumpolar lands are of special significance to questions of global climate change. Throughout its range, these forests are characterized by a relatively few tree species, although they may exhibit great spatial heterogeneity. Their ecosystems are simpler than temperate systems, and ecosystem processes are strongly affected by interactions between water, the landscape, and the biota. Northern boreal forest vegetation patterns are strongly influenced by forest fires, and distribution of forest generally coincides with occurrence of permafrost. Boreal forest landscapes are extremely sensitive to thermal disruption; global warming may result in lasting thermal and physical degradation of soils, altered rates and patterns of vegetation succession, and damage to engineered structures. A change in fire severity and frequency is also a significant concern. The total carbon pool of boreal forests and their associated peatlands is significant on a global scale; this carbon may amount to 10-20% of the global carbon pool. A change in latitudinal or elevational treeline has been suggested as a probable consequence of global warming. More subtle aspects of boreal forest ecosystems which may be affected by global warming include the depth of the active soil layer, the hydrologic cycle, and biological attributes of boreal stream systems. 48 refs., 2 figs

Harvesting interacts with climate change to affect future habitat quality of a focal species in eastern Canada’s boreal forest

Science.gov (United States)

Boulanger, Yan; Cyr, Dominic; Taylor, Anthony R.; Price, David T.; St-Laurent, Martin-Hugues

2018-01-01

Many studies project future bird ranges by relying on correlative species distribution models. Such models do not usually represent important processes explicitly related to climate change and harvesting, which limits their potential for predicting and understanding the future of boreal bird assemblages at the landscape scale. In this study, we attempted to assess the cumulative and specific impacts of both harvesting and climate-induced changes on wildfires and stand-level processes (e.g., reproduction, growth) in the boreal forest of eastern Canada. The projected changes in these landscape- and stand-scale processes (referred to as “drivers of change”) were then assessed for their impacts on future habitats and potential productivity of black-backed woodpecker (BBWO; Picoides arcticus), a focal species representative of deadwood and old-growth biodiversity in eastern Canada. Forest attributes were simulated using a forest landscape model, LANDIS-II, and were used to infer future landscape suitability to BBWO under three anthropogenic climate forcing scenarios (RCP 2.6, RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5), compared to the historical baseline. We found climate change is likely to be detrimental for BBWO, with up to 92% decline in potential productivity under the worst-case climate forcing scenario (RCP 8.5). However, large declines were also projected under baseline climate, underlining the importance of harvest in determining future BBWO productivity. Present-day harvesting practices were the single most important cause of declining areas of old-growth coniferous forest, and hence appeared as the single most important driver of future BBWO productivity, regardless of the climate scenario. Climate-induced increases in fire activity would further promote young, deciduous stands at the expense of old-growth coniferous stands. This suggests that the biodiversity associated with deadwood and old-growth boreal forests may be greatly altered by the cumulative impacts of natural and

Bird communities of the arctic shrub tundra of Yamal: habitat specialists and generalists.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vasiliy Sokolov

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: The ratio of habitat generalists to specialists in birds has been suggested as a good indicator of ecosystem changes due to e.g. climate change and other anthropogenic perturbations. Most studies focusing on this functional component of biodiversity originate, however, from temperate regions. The Eurasian Arctic tundra is currently experiencing an unprecedented combination of climate change, change in grazing pressure by domestic reindeer and growing human activity. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Here we monitored bird communities in a tundra landscape harbouring shrub and open habitats in order to analyse bird habitat relationships and quantify habitat specialization. We used ordination methods to analyse habitat associations and estimated the proportions of specialists in each of the main habitats. Correspondence Analysis identified three main bird communities, inhabiting upland, lowland and dense willow shrubs. We documented a stable structure of communities despite large multiannual variations of bird density (from 90 to 175 pairs/km(2. Willow shrub thickets were a hotspot for bird density, but not for species richness. The thickets hosted many specialized species whose main distribution area was south of the tundra. CONCLUSION/SIGNIFICANCE: If current arctic changes result in a shrubification of the landscape as many studies suggested, we would expect an increase in the overall bird abundance together with an increase of local specialists, since they are associated with willow thickets. The majority of these species have a southern origin and their increase in abundance would represent a strengthening of the boreal component in the southern tundra, perhaps at the expense of species typical of the subarctic zone, which appear to be generalists within this zone.

Silviculture's role in managing boreal forests

Science.gov (United States)

Russell T. Graham; Theresa B. Jain

1998-01-01

Boreal forests, which are often undeveloped, are a major source of raw materials for many countries. They are circumpolar in extent and occupy a belt to a width of 1000 km in certain regions. Various conifer and hardwood species ranging from true firs to poplars grow in boreal forests. These species exhibit a wide range of shade tolerance and growth characteristics,...

Detect to Avoid: Supporting Aviation Safety with Bird Movement Information

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Metz, I.C.; Muhlhausen, Thorsten; Ellerbroek, J.; Hoekstra, J.M.; Kügler, D.

2017-01-01

The presented research evaluates the concept of providing an airport’s Air Traffic Control with a bird strike advisory system. Such a system informs the controller about current and predicted bird movements in the arrival and departure corridors. Based on this information, the controller can decide

A method for investigating population declines of migratory birds using stable isotopes: origins of harvested lesser scaup in North America.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Keith A Hobson

2009-11-01

Full Text Available Elucidating geographic locations from where migratory birds are recruited into adult breeding populations is a fundamental but largely elusive goal in conservation biology. This is especially true for species that breed in remote northern areas where field-based demographic assessments are logistically challenging.Here we used hydrogen isotopes (deltaD to determine natal origins of migrating hatch-year lesser scaup (Aythya affinis harvested by hunters in the United States from all North American flyways during the hunting seasons of 1999-2000 (n = 412 and 2000-2001 (n = 455. We combined geospatial, observational, and analytical data sources, including known scaup breeding range, deltaD values of feathers from juveniles at natal sites, models of deltaD for growing-season precipitation, and scaup band-recovery data to generate probabilistic natal origin landscapes for individual scaup. We then used Monte Carlo integration to model assignment uncertainty from among individual deltaD variance estimates from birds of known molt origin and also from band-return data summarized at the flyway level. We compared the distribution of scaup natal origin with the distribution of breeding population counts obtained from systematic long-term surveys.Our analysis revealed that the proportion of young scaup produced in the northern (above 60 degrees N versus the southern boreal and Prairie-Parkland region was inversely related to the proportions of breeding adults using these regions, suggesting that despite having a higher relative abundance of breeding adults, the northern boreal region was less productive for scaup recruitment into the harvest than more southern biomes. Our approach for evaluating population declines of migratory birds (particularly game birds synthesizes all available distributional data and exploits the advantages of intrinsic isotopic markers that link individuals to geography.

Early Paleocene landbird supports rapid phylogenetic and morphological diversification of crown birds after the K-Pg mass extinction

Science.gov (United States)

Ksepka, Daniel T.; Stidham, Thomas A.; Williamson, Thomas E.

2017-07-01

Evidence is accumulating for a rapid diversification of birds following the K-Pg extinction. Recent molecular divergence dating studies suggest that birds radiated explosively during the first few million years of the Paleocene; however, fossils from this interval remain poorly represented, hindering our understanding of morphological and ecological specialization in early neoavian birds. Here we report a small fossil bird from the Nacimiento Formation of New Mexico, constrained to 62.221-62.517 Ma. This partial skeleton represents the oldest arboreal crown group bird known. Phylogenetic analyses recovered Tsidiiyazhi abini gen. et sp. nov. as a member of the Sandcoleidae, an extinct basal clade of stem mousebirds (Coliiformes). The discovery of Tsidiiyazhi pushes the minimum divergence ages of as many as nine additional major neoavian lineages into the earliest Paleocene, compressing the duration of the proposed explosive post-K-Pg radiation of modern birds into a very narrow temporal window parallel to that suggested for placental mammals. Simultaneously, Tsidiiyazhi provides evidence for the rapid morphological (and likely ecological) diversification of crown birds. Features of the foot indicate semizygodactyly (the ability to facultatively reverse the fourth pedal digit), and the arcuate arrangement of the pedal trochleae bears a striking resemblance to the conformation in owls (Strigiformes). Inclusion of fossil taxa and branch length estimates impacts ancestral state reconstructions, revealing support for the independent evolution of semizygodactyly in Coliiformes, Leptosomiformes, and Strigiformes, none of which is closely related to extant clades exhibiting full zygodactyly.

Competitive interactions among raptors in boreal forests.

Science.gov (United States)

Hakkarainen, Harri; Mykrä, Sakari; Kurki, Sami; Tornberg, Risto; Jungell, Sven

2004-11-01

We examined inter-specific interactions among goshawks ( Accipiter gentilis), common buzzards (Buteo buteo) and honey buzzards (Pernis apivorus) in western Finland in 1983-1996. Because goshawks are among the largest birds of prey species in boreal forests they may take over the nest of smaller and less-competitive forest-dwelling raptors when searching for suitable places for breeding. Accordingly, more than half of newly established goshawk territories were found on the territories previously occupied by the common buzzard and the honey buzzard. Otherwise, territory sharing between these species was rare. Fledgling production of honey buzzards was not associated with the presence of goshawks, probably owing to the almost 2 months later onset of breeding. This probably decreases competitive interactions between these two species. An intensive interference competition, instead, seemed to be evident between common buzzards and goshawks, because the fledgling production of common buzzards was decreased by 20% as a result of failures during incubation and nestling period in the vicinity (nests. Similarly, territory occupancy of common buzzards till the next breeding season was significantly reduced in the presence of goshawks. Relatively high proportions of occupied buzzard territories (17%) in the study area were shared by breeding goshawks on the same territory. This suggests that although their diets are dissimilar they inhabit similar habitats and might compete for the available prime nesting habitats within forest landscapes. In addition, goshawks benefit from taking over the complete nests of other raptors, imposing upon the original owners of the nest, because building a large stick nest is probably energetically costly. As a large raptor, the goshawk apparently has a competitive advantage over smaller ones, and may have an ever-increasing impact on smaller birds of prey, if there is a lack of sheltered forests inducing competition for the available nest sites.

Calcium metabolism in birds.

Science.gov (United States)

de Matos, Ricardo

2008-01-01

Calcium is one of the most important plasma constituents in mammals and birds. It provides structural strength and support (bones and eggshell) and plays vital roles in many of the biochemical reactions in the body. The control of calcium metabolism in birds is highly efficient and closely regulated in a number of tissues, primarily parathyroid gland, intestine, kidney, and bone. The hormones with the greatest involvement in calcium regulation in birds are parathyroid hormone, 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D(3) (calcitriol), and estrogen, with calcitonin playing a minor and uncertain role. The special characteristics of calcium metabolism in birds, mainly associated with egg production, are discussed, along with common clinical disorders secondary to derangements in calcium homeostasis.

Native Roadside Vegetation that Enhances Soil Erosion Control in Boreal Scandinavia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Annika K. Jägerbrand

2014-07-01

Full Text Available This study focused on identifying vegetation characteristics associated with erosion control at nine roadside sites in mid-West Sweden. A number of vegetation characteristics such as cover, diversity, plant functional type, biomass and plant community structure were included. Significant difference in cover between eroded and non-eroded sub-sites was found in evergreen shrubs, total cover, and total above ground biomass. Thus, our results support the use of shrubs in order to stabilize vegetation and minimize erosion along roadsides. However, shrubs are disfavored by several natural and human imposed factors. This could have several impacts on the long-term management of roadsides in boreal regions. By both choosing and applying active management that supports native evergreen shrubs in boreal regions, several positive effects could be achieved along roadsides, such as lower erosion rate and secured long-term vegetation cover. This could also lead to lower costs for roadside maintenance as lower erosion rates would require less frequent stabilizing treatments and mowing could be kept to a minimum in order not to disfavor shrubs.

Preliminary Assessment of JERS-1 SAR to Discriminating Boreal Landscape Features for the Boreal Forest Mapping Project

Science.gov (United States)

McDonald, Kyle; Williams, Cynthia; Podest, Erika; Chapman, Bruce

1999-01-01

This paper presents an overview of the JERS-1 North American Boreal Forest Mapping Project and a preliminary assessment of JERS-1 SAR imagery for application to discriminating features applicable to boreal landscape processes. The present focus of the JERS-1 North American Boreal Forest Mapping Project is the production of continental scale wintertime and summertime SAR mosaics of the North American boreal forest for distribution to the science community. As part of this effort, JERS-1 imagery has been collected over much of Alaska and Canada during the 1997-98 winter and 1998 summer seasons. To complete the mosaics, these data will be augmented with data collected during previous years. These data will be made available to the scientific community via CD ROM containing these and similar data sets compiled from companion studies of Asia and Europe. Regional landscape classification with SAR is important for the baseline information it will provide about distribution of woodlands, positions of treeline, current forest biomass, distribution of wetlands, and extent of major rivercourses. As well as setting the stage for longer term change detection, comparisons across several years provides additional baseline information about short-term landscape change. Rapid changes, including those driven by fire, permafrost heat balance, flooding, and insect outbreaks can dominate boreal systems. We examine JERS-1 imagery covering selected sites in Alaska and Canada to assess quality and applicability to such relevant ecological and hydrological issues. The data are generally of high quality and illustrate many potential applications. A texture-based classification scheme is applied to selected regions to assess the applicability of these data for distinguishing distribution of such landcover types as wetland, tundra, woodland and forested landscapes.

Bird distributional patterns support biogeographical histories and are associated with bioclimatic units in the Atlantic Forest, Brazil.

Science.gov (United States)

Carvalho, Cristiano DE Santana; Nascimento, Nayla Fábia Ferreira DO; Araujo, Helder F P DE

2017-10-17

Rivers as barriers to dispersal and past forest refugia are two of the hypotheses proposed to explain the patterns of biodiversity in the Atlantic Forest. It has recently been shown that possible past refugia correspond to bioclimatically different regions, so we tested whether patterns of shared distribution of bird taxa in the Atlantic Forest are 1) limited by the Doce and São Francisco rivers or 2) associated with the bioclimatically different southern and northeastern regions. We catalogued lists of forest birds from 45 locations, 36 in the Atlantic forest and nine in Amazon, and used parsimony analysis of endemicity to identify groups of shared taxa. We also compared differences between these groups by permutational multivariate analysis of variance and identified the species that best supported the resulting groups. The results showed that the distribution of forest birds is divided into two main regions in the Atlantic Forest, the first with more southern localities and the second with northeastern localities. This distributional pattern is not delimited by riverbanks, but it may be associated with bioclimatic units, surrogated by altitude, that maintain current environmental differences between two main regions on Atlantic Forest and may be related to phylogenetic histories of taxa supporting the two groups.

Nitrogen alters carbon dynamics during early succession in boreal forest

Science.gov (United States)

Steven D. Allison; Tracy B. Gartner; Michelle C. Mack; Krista McGuire; Kathleen. Treseder

2010-01-01

Boreal forests are an important source of wood products, and fertilizers could be used to improve forest yields, especially in nutrient poor regions of the boreal zone. With climate change, fire frequencies may increase, resulting in a larger fraction of the boreal landscape present in early successional stages. Since most fertilization studies have focused on mature...

Analysis of Bird Diversity for Supporting Ecotourism Development in Rajegwesi, Meru Betiri National Park

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hafid Zain Muttaqien

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Potential ecotourism attraction in Rajegwesi Village, Meru Betiri National Park is high due to its high biodiversity, especially bird diversity, in the form of bird watching activity. This study was aimed to determine the species, level of abundance, and diversity of birds found in the Rajegwesi area. Further, this basic information is important to develop the bird watching track at Rajegwesi. We used Quantum-GIS to create the land classification and observation mapping. Bird observation used point count method in the morning and evening with three periods of hour and three repetitions. The study confirmed about 76 species of 39 bird families was found in Rajegwesi. The highest abundance was Pygnonotus goiavier (E:Yellow-vented Bulbul, at the meadows, village, and rehabilitation land. The diversity index showed that the highest diversity was found at the heterogeneous forest (H’ index 3.745, followed by homogenous forest (H’ index 3.150, rehabilitation land (H’ index 2.845, village (H’ index 2.693, paddy fields (H’ index 2.529, and savanna (H’ index 1.880. The observation track was divided into 3 lines based on the bird’s distribution, the Village – Rehabilitation Land track (6.5 Km, Village track (2.3 Km, and Village – Rafflessia Park track (7.5 Km. Total of 25 bird species were found at the Village – Rehabilitation Land track, 22 species were found at the Village track, and 29 bird species were found at the Village – Rafflessia Park track. For the future of ecotourism development through birding development program, there are several issues that should be promoted: promoting birds conservation in the community through bird watching and birds observation competition (Bird race, training on conservation and ecotourism for the community, and strengthening the capacity and capability of Rajegwesi Ecotourism Society (RES on the ecotourism program management. Keywords: bird watching, conservation, ecotourism development, RES

Browning boreal forests of western North America

Science.gov (United States)

Verbyla, David

2011-12-01

The GIMMS NDVI dataset has been widely used to document a 'browning trend' in North American boreal forests (Goetz et al 2005, Bunn et al 2007, Beck and Goetz 2011). However, there has been speculation (Alcaraz-Segura et al 2010) that this trend may be an artifact due to processing algorithms rather than an actual decline in vegetation activity. This conclusion was based primarily on the fact that GIMMS NDVI did not capture NDVI recovery within most burned areas in boreal Canada, while another dataset consistently showed post-fire increasing NDVI. I believe that the results of Alcaraz-Segura et al (2010) were due simply to different pixel sizes of the two datasets (64 km2 versus 1 km2 pixels). Similar results have been obtained from tundra areas greening in Alaska, with the results simply due to these pixel size differences (Stow et al 2007). Furthermore, recent studies have documented boreal browning trends based on NDVI from other sensors. Beck and Goetz (2011) have shown the boreal browning trend derived from a different sensor (MODIS) to be very similar to the boreal browning trend derived from the GIMMS NDVI dataset for the circumpolar boreal region. Parent and Verbyla (2010) found similar declining NDVI patterns based on NDVI from Landsat sensors and GIMMS NDVI in boreal Alaska. Zhang et al (2008) found a similar 'browning trend' in boreal North America based on a production efficiency model using an integrated AVHRR and MODIS dataset. The declining NDVI trend in areas of boreal North America is consistent with tree-ring studies (D'Arrigo et al 2004, McGuire et al 2010, Beck et al 2011). The decline in tree growth may be due to temperature-induced drought stress (Barber et al 2000) caused by higher evaporative demands in a warming climate (Lloyd and Fastie 2002). In a circumpolar boreal study, Lloyd and Bunn (2007) found that a negative relationship between temperature and tree-ring growth occurred more frequently in warmer parts of species' ranges

Wind power and bird kills

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Raynolds, M.

1998-01-01

The accidental killing of birds by wind generators, and design improvements in the towers that support the turbines that might cut down on the bird killings were discussed. The first problem for the industry began in the late 1980s when the California Energy Commission reported as many as 160 birds (the majority being raptors, including the protected golden eagle) killed in one year in the vicinity of wind power plants. The key factor identified was the design of the towers as birds of prey are attracted to lattice towers as a place to hunt from. Tubular towers do not provide a place for the birds to perch, therefore they reduce the potential for bird strikes. Bird strikes also have been reported in Spain and the siting of the towers have been considered as the principal cause of the bird strikes. In view of these incidents, the wind power industry is developing standards for studying the potential of bird strikes and is continuing to study bird behaviour leading to collisions, the impact of topography, cumulative impacts and new techniques to reduce bird strikes. Despite the reported incidents, the risk of bird strikes by wind turbines, compared to other threats to birds such as pollution, oil spills, and other threats from fossil and nuclear fuels, is considered to be negligible. With continuing efforts to minimize incidents by proper design and siting, wind power can continue to grow as an environmentally sound and efficient source of energy

Wind power and bird kills

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Raynolds, M.

1998-12-01

The accidental killing of birds by wind generators, and design improvements in the towers that support the turbines that might cut down on the bird killings were discussed. The first problem for the industry began in the late 1980s when the California Energy Commission reported as many as 160 birds (the majority being raptors, including the protected golden eagle) killed in one year in the vicinity of wind power plants. The key factor identified was the design of the towers as birds of prey are attracted to lattice towers as a place to hunt from. Tubular towers do not provide a place for the birds to perch, therefore they reduce the potential for bird strikes. Bird strikes also have been reported in Spain and the siting of the towers have been considered as the principal cause of the bird strikes. In view of these incidents, the wind power industry is developing standards for studying the potential of bird strikes and is continuing to study bird behaviour leading to collisions, the impact of topography, cumulative impacts and new techniques to reduce bird strikes. Despite the reported incidents, the risk of bird strikes by wind turbines, compared to other threats to birds such as pollution, oil spills, and other threats from fossil and nuclear fuels, is considered to be negligible. With continuing efforts to minimize incidents by proper design and siting, wind power can continue to grow as an environmentally sound and efficient source of energy.

9 CFR 93.104 - Certificate for pet birds, commercial birds, zoological birds, and research birds.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 9 Animals and Animal Products 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Certificate for pet birds, commercial birds, zoological birds, and research birds. 93.104 Section 93.104 Animals and Animal Products ANIMAL... (INCLUDING POULTRY) AND ANIMAL PRODUCTS IMPORTATION OF CERTAIN ANIMALS, BIRDS, FISH, AND POULTRY, AND CERTAIN...

Virginia ESI: BIRDS (Bird Polygons)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This data set contains sensitive biological resource data for wading birds, shorebirds, waterfowl, raptors, diving birds, pelagic birds, passerine birds, and gulls...

The changing effects of Alaska's boreal forest on the climate system

Science.gov (United States)

E.S. Euskirchen; A.D. McGuire; F.S. Chapin; T.S. Rupp

2010-01-01

In the boreal forests of Alaska, recent changes in climate have influenced the exchange of trace gases, water, and energy between these forests and the atmosphere. These changes in the structure and function of boreal forests can then feed back to impact regional and global climates. We examine the type and magnitude of the climate feedbacks from boreal forests in...

Population structure and genetic diversity in North American Hedysarum boreale Nutt.

Science.gov (United States)

Bradley S. Bushman; Steven R. Larson; Michael D. Peel; Michael E. Pfrender

2007-01-01

Hedysarum boreale Nutt. is a perennial legume native to western North America, with robust foliage in the late spring season. Due to its wide native range, forage value, and N2 fixation, H. boreale is of interest for rangeland revegetation and production. Seed cost is a major obstacle for utilization of H. boreale, primarily due to seed shattering and unreliable seed...

Host-pathogen metapopulation dynamics suggest high elevation refugia for boreal toads

Science.gov (United States)

Mosher, Brittany A.; Bailey, Larissa L.; Muths, Erin L.; Huyvaert, Kathryn P

2018-01-01

Emerging infectious diseases are an increasingly common threat to wildlife. Chytridiomycosis, caused by the fungal pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd), is an emerging infectious disease that has been linked to amphibian declines around the world. Few studies exist that explore amphibian-Bd dynamics at the landscape scale, limiting our ability to identify which factors are associated with variation in population susceptibility and to develop effective in situdisease management. Declines of boreal toads (Anaxyrus boreas boreas) in the Southern Rocky Mountains are largely attributed to chytridiomycosis but variation exists in local extinction of boreal toads across this metapopulation. Using a large-scale historic dataset, we explored several potential factors influencing disease dynamics in the boreal toad-Bd system: geographic isolation of populations, amphibian community richness, elevational differences, and habitat permanence. We found evidence that boreal toad extinction risk was lowest at high elevations where temperatures may be sub-optimal for Bd growth and where small boreal toad populations may be below the threshold needed for efficient pathogen transmission. In addition, boreal toads were more likely to recolonize high elevation sites after local extinction, again suggesting that high elevations may provide refuge from disease for boreal toads. We illustrate a modeling framework that will be useful to natural resource managers striving to make decisions in amphibian-Bdsystems. Our data suggest that in the southern Rocky Mountains high elevation sites should be prioritized for conservation initiatives like reintroductions.

Scoping the evidence for EarlyBird and EarlyBird Plus, two United Kingdom-developed parent education training programmes for autism spectrum disorder.

Science.gov (United States)

Dawson-Squibb, John-Joe; Davids, Eugene Lee; de Vries, Petrus J

2018-03-01

EarlyBird and EarlyBird Plus are parent education and training programmes designed by the UK National Autistic Society in 1997 and 2003, having been delivered to more than 27,000 families in 14 countries. These group-based programmes aim to (1) support parents immediately after diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder, (2) empower parents, encouraging a positive perception of their child's autism spectrum disorder and (3) help parents establish good practice. In the absence of any previous comprehensive review, we performed a scoping review of all peer-reviewed publications on EarlyBird/EarlyBird Plus. A search was conducted between February and June 2016 using EbscoHost, Sabinet, SAGE Journals, Directory of Open Access Journals, BioMed Central, Scopus, ScienceDirect and grey literature. Two reviewers independently screened titles and abstracts for inclusion. In total, 18 articles were identified: 16 from the United Kingdom and 2 from New Zealand. We reviewed the context, study populations, design, outcome measures, whether focus was on parental perception, parental change or child changes and programme feasibility. Strong parental support for the acceptability but lower level evidence of efficacy of EarlyBird/EarlyBird Plus was found. Future research should consider randomised controlled trials. There is no research on EarlyBird/EarlyBird Plus in low-resource settings; therefore, we recommend broader feasibility evaluation of EarlyBird/EarlyBird Plus including accessibility, cultural appropriateness and scalability.

Alabama ESI: BIRDS (Bird Polygons)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This data set contains sensitive biological resource data for wading birds, shorebirds, waterfowl, raptors, diving birds, seabirds, passerine birds, gulls, and terns...

Maryland ESI: BIRDS (Bird Polygons)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This data set contains sensitive biological resource data for wading birds, shorebirds, waterfowl, raptors, diving birds, seabirds, passerine birds, and gulls and...

Lead and zinc intoxication in companion birds.

Science.gov (United States)

Puschner, Birgit; Poppenga, Robert H

2009-01-01

Although the toxicity of lead and zinc to birds is widely recognized by veterinarians and bird owners, these metals are frequently found in the environments of pet and aviary birds, and intoxications are common. Clinical signs exhibited by intoxicated birds are often nonspecific, which makes early diagnosis difficult. Fortunately, lead and zinc analyses of whole blood and serum or plasma, respectively, are readily available and inexpensive; elevated concentrations can confirm intoxication. Once diagnosed, intoxication can be effectively treated by (1) preventing further exposure, (2) administering chelating drugs, and (3) providing symptomatic and supportive care.

Densities of breeding birds and changes in vegetation in an alaskan boreal forest following a massive disturbance by spruce beetles

Science.gov (United States)

Matsuoka, S.M.; Handel, C.M.; Ruthrauff, D.R.

2001-01-01

We examined bird and plant communities among forest stands with different levels of spruce mortality following a large outbreak of spruce beetles (Dendroctonus rufipennis (Kirby)) in the Copper River Basin, Alaska. Spruce beetles avoided stands with black spruce (Picea mariana) and selectively killed larger diameter white spruce (Picea glauca), thereby altering forest structure and increasing the dominance of black spruce in the region. Alders (Alnus sp.) and crowberry (Empetrum nigrum) were more abundant in areas with heavy spruce mortality, possibly a response to the death of overstory spruce. Grasses and herbaceous plants did not proliferate as has been recorded following outbreaks in more coastal Alaskan forests. Two species closely tied to coniferous habitats, the tree-nesting Ruby-crowned Kinglet (Regulus calendula) and the red squirrel (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus), a major nest predator, were less abundant in forest stands with high spruce mortality than in low-mortality stands. Understory-nesting birds as a group were more abundant in forest stands with high levels of spruce mortality, although the response of individual bird species to tree mortality was variable. Birds breeding in stands with high spruce mortality likely benefited reproductively from lower squirrel densities and a greater abundance of shrubs to conceal nests from predators.

Development of biogenic VOC emission inventories for the boreal forest

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tarvainen, V.

2008-07-01

The volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emitted by vegetation, especially forests, can affect local and regional atmospheric photochemistry through their reactions with atmospheric oxidants. Their reaction products may also participate in the formation and growth of new particles which affect the radiation balance of the atmosphere, and thus climate, by scattering and absorbing shortwave and longwave radiation and by modifying the radiative properties, amount and lifetime of clouds. Globally, anthropogenic VOC emissions are far surpassed by the biogenic ones, making biogenic emission inventories an integral element in the development of efficient air quality and climate strategies. The inventories are typically constructed based on landcover information, measured emissions of different plants or vegetation types, and empirical dependencies of the emissions on environmental variables such as temperature and light. This thesis is focused on the VOC emissions from the boreal forest, the largest terrestrial biome with characteristic vegetation patterns and strong seasonality. The isoprene, monoterpene and sesquiterpene emissions of the most prevalent boreal tree species in Finland, Scots pine, have been measured and their seasonal variation and dependence on temperature and light have been studied. The measured emission data and other available observations of the emissions of the principal boreal trees have been used in a biogenic emission model developed for the boreal forests in Finland. The model utilizes satellite landcover information, Finnish forest classification and hourly meteorological data to calculate isoprene, monoterpene, sesquiterpene and other VOC emissions over the growing season. The principal compounds emitted by Scots pine are DELTA3-carene and alpha-pinene in the south boreal zone and alpha- and beta-pinene in the north boreal zone. The monoterpene emissions are dependent on temperature and have a clear seasonal cycle with high emissions in spring

Diverse growth trends and climate responses across Eurasia's boreal forest

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Hellmann, L.; Agafonov, L.; Ljungqvist, F. C.; Churakova (Sidorova), O.; Duethorn, E.; Esper, J.; Hulsmann, L.; Kirdyanov, A. V.; Moiseev, P.; Myglan, V. S.; Nikolaev, A. N.; Reinig, F.; Schweingruber, F. H.; Solomina, O.; Tegel, W.; Büntgen, Ulf

2016-01-01

Roč. 11, č. 7 (2016), č. článku 074021. ISSN 1748-9326 R&D Projects: GA MŠk(CZ) LO1415 Institutional support: RVO:67179843 Keywords : 20th-century summer warmth * tree-ring chronology * scots pine * 2 millennia * temperature variability * northern-hemisphere * central siberia * worlds forests * white spruce * carbon-cycle * boreal forest * climate variability * dendroecology * Eurasia * forest productivity * global warming * high northern latitudes Subject RIV: EH - Ecology, Behaviour Impact factor: 4.404, year: 2016

Rock, Paper, Protest: The Fight for the Boreal Forest

Science.gov (United States)

Gunz, Sally; Whittaker, Linda

2016-01-01

Canada's boreal forests are second only to the Amazon in producing life-giving oxygen and providing a habitat for thousands of species, from the large woodland caribou to the smallest organisms. The boreal forests are the lifeblood of many Aboriginal communities and the thousands of workers, Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal, who harvest and process…

Net-bottom Cage Inserts for Water Bird Casualties

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jackie Belle

2017-10-01

Full Text Available My Bright Idea is a net-bottomed cage insert, which is used to support pelagic avian casualties. The idea was designed and modified by the International Bird Rescue in California (Bird Rescue.

Resilience of Alaska's Boreal Forest to Climatic Change

Science.gov (United States)

Chapin, F. S., III; McGuire, A. D.; Ruess, R. W.; Hollingsworth, T. N.; Mack, M. C.; Johnstone, J. F.; Kasischke, E. S.; Euskirchen, E. S.; Jones, J. B.; Jorgenson, M. T.;

Boreal forest biomass classification with TanDEM-X

OpenAIRE

Torano Caicoya, Astor; Kugler, Florian; Papathanassiou, Kostas; Hajnsek, Irena

2013-01-01

High spatial resolution X-band interferometric SAR data from the TanDEM-X, in the operational DEM generation mode, are sensitive to forest structure and can therefore be used for thematic boreal forest classification of forest environments. The interferometric coherence in absence of temporal decorrelation depends strongly on forest height and structure. Due to the rather homogenous structure of boreal forest, forest biomass can be derived from forest height, on the basis of allometric equati...

Resilience of Alaska's boreal forest to climatic change

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chapin, F.S. III; Ruess, R.W.; Euskirchen, E.S.; Jones, J.B.; Kielland, K.; Taylor, D.L. [Alaska Univ., Fairbanks, AK (United States). Dept. of Biology, Inst. of Arctic Biology; McGuire, A.D. [United Sates Geological Survey, Fairbanks, AK (United States). Alaska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit; Alaska Univ., Fairbanks, AK (United States); Hollingsworth, T.N. [United States Dept. of Agriculture, Portland, OR (United States). Forest Services, Pacific Northwest Research Station; Alaska Univ., Fairbanks, AK (United States); Mack, M.C. [Florida Univ., Gainesville, FL (United States). Dept. of Botany; Johnstone, J.F. [Saskatchewan Univ., Saskatoon, SK (Canada). Dept. of Biology; Kasischke, E.S. [Maryland Univ., College Park, MD (United States). Dept. of Geography; Jorgenson, M.T. [Alaska Ecoscience, Fairbanks, AK (United States); Kofinas, G.P. [Alaska Univ., Fairanks, AK (United States). School of Natural Resources and Agricultureal Sciences, Inst. of Arctic Biology; Turetsky, M.R. [Guelph Univ., Guelph, ON (Canada). Dept. of Integrative Biology; Yarie, J. [Alaska Univ., Fairbanks, AK (United States). Dept. of Forest Sciences, Forest Soils Laboratory; Lloyd, A.H. [Middlebury College, Middlebury, VT (United States). Dept. of Biology

2010-07-15

This paper reported on a study that evaluated the resilience of Alaska's boreal forest system to rapid climatic change. As the most northern and coldest forested biome, the boreal forest is underlain by discontinuous permafrost. High-latitude amplification of global warming has caused Alaska's boreal forest to warm twice as rapidly as the global average. Recent warming has resulted in reduced growth of dominant tree species, plant disease, insect outbreaks, thawing of permafrost, drying of lakes and increased wildfires. These changes have modified key structural features in the boreal forest, including long-term landscape-scale change in carbon stocks. This study reviewed the findings of the Bonanza Creek Long-Term Ecological Research program and determined that the Alaskan boreal system remains quite resilient but is undergoing changes in ecosystem and landscape structure, feedbacks, and interactions that, with continued warming, will likely cause reorganization or potentially transformation to a fundamentally different system. Permafrost will also remain relatively resilient to continued warming except in high-ice-content lowlands and in areas burned by severe wildfires. The greatest sources of uncertainty are changes in snow cover, which will influence the rate at which these changes occur. 71 refs., 2 figs.

Controls on moss evaporation in a boreal black spruce forest

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Heijmans, M.M.P.D.; Arp, W.J.; Chapin, F.S.

2004-01-01

[1] Mosses are an important component of the boreal forest, but little is known about their contribution to ecosystem carbon, water, and energy exchange. We studied the role of mosses in boreal forest evapotranspiration by conducting two experiments in a black spruce forest in Fairbanks, Alaska.

Columbia River ESI: BIRDS (Bird Polygons)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This data set contains sensitive biological resource data for wading birds, shorebirds, waterfowl, diving birds, seabirds, passerine birds, gulls, and terns in...

TALL-HERB BOREAL FORESTS ON NORTH URAL

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. A. Aleinikov

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Background. One of the pressing aims of today’s natural resource management is its re-orientation to preserving and restoring ecological functions of ecosystems, among which the function of biodiversity maintenance plays an indicator role. The majority of today’s forests have not retained their natural appearance as the result of long-standing human impact. In this connection, refugia studies are becoming particularly interesting, as they give us an insight into the natural appearance of forests. Materials and methods. Studies were performed in dark conifer forests of the Pechora–Ilych reserve, in the lower reaches of the Bol’shaya Porozhnyaya River in 2013 yr. Vegetation data sampling was done at 50 temporary square plots of a fixed size (100 m2 randomly placed within a forest type. A list of plant species with species abundance was made for each forest layer. The overstorey (or tree canopy layer was denoted by the Latin letter A. The understorey layer (indicated by the letter B included tree undergrowth and tall shrubs. Ground vegetation was subdivided into the layers C and D. Layer C (field layer comprised the herbaceous species (herbs, grasses, sedges and dwarf shrubs together with low shrubs, tree and shrub seedlings. The height of the field layer was defined by the maximal height of the herbaceous species, ferns, and dwarf shrubs; the height varied from several cm to more than 200 cm in the ‘tall-herb’ forest types. Layer D (bottom layer included cryptogamic species (bryophytes and lichens. Species abundance in the each layer was usually assessed using the Braun-Blanquet cover scale (Braun-Blanquet 1928. The nomenclature used follows Cherepanov’s (1995 for vascular plants, and Ignatov & Afonina’s (1992. Results. The present article contains descriptions of unique tall-herb boreal forests of European Russia preserved in certain refugia which did not experience prolonged anthropogenic impact or any other catastrophes

A positive relationship between spring temperature and productivity in 20 songbird species in the boreal zone.

Science.gov (United States)

Meller, Kalle; Piha, Markus; Vähätalo, Anssi V; Lehikoinen, Aleksi

2018-03-01

Anthropogenic climate warming has already affected the population dynamics of numerous species and is predicted to do so also in the future. To predict the effects of climate change, it is important to know whether productivity is linked to temperature, and whether species' traits affect responses to climate change. To address these objectives, we analysed monitoring data from the Finnish constant effort site ringing scheme collected in 1987-2013 for 20 common songbird species together with climatic data. Warm spring temperature had a positive linear relationship with productivity across the community of 20 species independent of species' traits (realized thermal niche or migration behaviour), suggesting that even the warmest spring temperatures remained below the thermal optimum for reproduction, possibly due to our boreal study area being closer to the cold edge of all study species' distributions. The result also suggests a lack of mismatch between the timing of breeding and peak availability of invertebrate food of the study species. Productivity was positively related to annual growth rates in long-distance migrants, but not in short-distance migrants. Across the 27-year study period, temporal trends in productivity were mostly absent. The population sizes of species with colder thermal niches had decreasing trends, which were not related to temperature responses or temporal trends in productivity. The positive connection between spring temperature and productivity suggests that climate warming has potential to increase the productivity in bird species in the boreal zone, at least in the short term.

Wetlands in Canada's western boreal forest: Agents of change

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Foote, L.; Krogman, N. [University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB (Canada). Dept. of Renewable Resources

2006-11-15

Wetlands of the western boreal forest are poorly studied. In the last decade (1990-2000) there were approximately 1810 northern hemisphere scientific papers published addressing boreal wetlands, tundra, taiga, or bogs. We explore the extent of understanding and impacts of six major agents of change affecting forested wetlands of the boreal zone: (1) commercial forestry, (2) petroleum extraction, (3) mining (bitumen, coal, peat, ore, and diamonds), (4) agriculture, (5) climate change, and (6) hydrologic alteration. Finally, we address the social context, costs, and recommendations for wetland maintenance.

Urban and rural habitats differ in number and type of bird feeders and in bird species consuming supplementary food.

Science.gov (United States)

Tryjanowski, Piotr; Skórka, Piotr; Sparks, Tim H; Biaduń, Waldemar; Brauze, Tomasz; Hetmański, Tomasz; Martyka, Rafał; Indykiewicz, Piotr; Myczko, Łukasz; Kunysz, Przemysław; Kawa, Piotr; Czyż, Stanisław; Czechowski, Paweł; Polakowski, Michał; Zduniak, Piotr; Jerzak, Leszek; Janiszewski, Tomasz; Goławski, Artur; Duduś, Leszek; Nowakowski, Jacek J; Wuczyński, Andrzej; Wysocki, Dariusz

2015-10-01

Bird feeding is one of the most widespread direct interactions between man and nature, and this has important social and environmental consequences. However, this activity can differ between rural and urban habitats, due to inter alia habitat structure, human behaviour and the composition of wintering bird communities. We counted birds in 156 squares (0.25 km(2) each) in December 2012 and again in January 2013 in locations in and around 26 towns and cities across Poland (in each urban area, we surveyed 3 squares and also 3 squares in nearby rural areas). At each count, we noted the number of bird feeders, the number of bird feeders with food, the type of feeders, additional food supplies potentially available for birds (bread offered by people, bins) and finally the birds themselves. In winter, urban and rural areas differ in the availability of food offered intentionally and unintentionally to birds by humans. Both types of food availability are higher in urban areas. Our findings suggest that different types of bird feeder support only those species specialized for that particular food type and this relationship is similar in urban and rural areas.

National Audubon society's technology initiatives for bird conservation: a summary of application development for the Christmas bird count

Science.gov (United States)

Kathy Dale

2005-01-01

Since 1998, Audubon's Christmas Bird Count (CBC) has been supported by an Internet-based data entry application that was initially designed to accommodate the traditional paper-based methods of this long-running bird monitoring program. The first efforts to computerize the data and the entry procedures have informed a planned strategy to revise the current...

Main dynamics and drivers of boreal forests fire regimes during the Holocene

Science.gov (United States)

Molinari, Chiara; Lehsten, Veiko; Blarquez, Olivier; Clear, Jennifer; Carcaillet, Christopher; Bradshaw, Richard HW

2015-04-01

Forest fire is one of the most critical ecosystem processes in the boreal megabiome, and it is likely that its frequency, size and severity have had a primary role in vegetation dynamics since the Last Ice Age (Kasischke & Stocks 2000). Fire not only organizes the physical and biological attributes of boreal forests, but also affects biogeochemical cycling, particularly the carbon balance (Balshi et al. 2007). Due to their location at climatically sensitive northern latitudes, boreal forests are likely to be significantly affected by global warming with a consequent increase in biomass burning (Soja et al. 2007), a variation in vegetation structure and composition (Johnstone et al. 2004) and a rise in atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration (Bond-Lamberty et al. 2007). Even if the ecological role of wildfire in boreal forest is widely recognized, a clearer understanding of the environmental factors controlling fire dynamics and how variations in fire regimes impact forest ecosystems is essential in order to place modern fire processes in a meaningful context for projecting ecosystem behaviour in a changing environment (Kelly et al. 2013). Because fire return intervals and successional cycles in boreal forests occur over decadal to centennial timescales (Hu et al. 2006), palaeoecological research seems to be one of the most promising tool for elucidating ecosystem changes over a broad range of environmental conditions and temporal scales. Within this context, our first aim is to reconstruct spatial and temporal patterns of boreal forests fire dynamics during the Holocene based on sedimentary charcoal records. As a second step, trends in biomass burning will be statistically analysed in order to disentangle between regional and local drivers. The use of European and north-American sites will give us the unique possibility to perform a large scale analysis on one of the broadest biome in the world and to underline the different patterns of fire in these two

Birds' species diversity measurement of Uchali Wetland (Ramsar site Pakistan

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Taofik Oyedele Dauda

2017-06-01

Full Text Available We carried out this study to evaluate bird species diversity and to model bird species abundance using Uchali Wetland, Pakistan (32°33′N, 72°01′E. Data obtained were subjected to summary statistics, Simpson diversity, Shannon evenness index, and rank abundance curve and model. The watershed supports 25,361 birds of 47 species, which is appreciably less than the number of bird species supported by the same wetland in the past year (1991. Total evenness could be obtained as the ranks increases and this differed annually. Evenness index (EI analysis showed that EI for 2011 was 0.0231, for 2012, it was 0.02, for 2013, it was 0.01, and for the annual mean, it was 0.046 indicating functional abundance of the species. Bird species diversity measurement could be enhanced by the use of the modified rank–abundance curve and would clearly present the true picture of the bird species abundance.

The effects of boreal forest expansion on the summer Arctic frontal zone

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Liess, Stefan; Snyder, Peter K.; Harding, Keith J. [University of Minnesota, Department of Soil, Water, and Climate, Saint Paul, MN (United States)

2012-05-15

Over the last 100 years, Arctic warming has resulted in a longer growing season in boreal and tundra ecosystems. This has contributed to a slow northward expansion of the boreal forest and a decrease in the surface albedo. Corresponding changes to the surface and atmospheric energy budgets have contributed to a broad region of warming over areas of boreal forest expansion. In addition, mesoscale and synoptic scale patterns have changed as a result of the excess energy at and near the surface. Previous studies have identified a relationship between the positioning of the boreal forest-tundra ecotone and the Arctic frontal zone in summer. This study examines the climate response to hypothetical boreal forest expansion and its influence on the summer Arctic frontal zone. Using the Weather Research and Forecasting model over the Northern Hemisphere, an experiment was performed to evaluate the atmospheric response to expansion of evergreen and deciduous boreal needleleaf forests into open shrubland along the northern boundary of the existing forest. Results show that the lower surface albedo with forest expansion leads to a local increase in net radiation and an average hemispheric warming of 0.6 C at and near the surface during June with some locations warming by 1-2 C. This warming contributes to changes in the meridional temperature gradient that enhances the Arctic frontal zone and strengthens the summertime jet. This experiment suggests that continued Northern Hemisphere high-latitude warming and boreal forest expansion might contribute to additional climate changes during the summer. (orig.)

Modeling the Impacts of Boreal Deforestation on the Near-Surface Temperature in European Russia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zhihui Li

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Boreal deforestation plays an important role in affecting regional and global climate. In this study, the regional temperature variation induced by future boreal deforestation in European Russia boreal forest region was simulated based on future land cover change and the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF model. This study firstly tested and validated the simulation results of the WRF model. Then the land cover datasets in different years (2000 as baseline year, 2010, and 2100 was used in the WRF model to explore the impacts of boreal deforestation on the near-surface temperature. The results indicated that the WRF model has good ability to simulate the temperature change in European Russia. The land cover change in European Russia boreal forest region, which will be characterized by the conversion from boreal forests to croplands (boreal deforestation in the future 100 years, will lead to significant change of the near-surface temperature. The regional annual temperature will decrease by 0.58°C in the future 100 years, resulting in cooling effects to some extent and making the near-surface temperature decrease in most seasons except the spring.

Effects of food supplementation on a tropical bird.

Science.gov (United States)

Class, Alexandra M; Moore, Ignacio T

2013-10-01

Tropical birds typically exhibit a 'slow pace of life' relative to higher latitude species. This is often manifested as slow development, low fecundity, and high survival. Following from this, it is predicted that tropical birds may be more likely to trade current reproductive effort to favor self-maintenance, thus supporting survival and future reproduction. To test this idea, we conducted two food supplementation experiments on tropical rufous-collared sparrows (Zonotrichia capensis) in the eastern Andes of Ecuador. In the first experiment, we food-supplemented pairs during the non-breeding life-history stage, and in the second experiment, we food-supplemented pairs that were provisioning fledglings. In both experiments, a larger proportion of food-supplemented birds exhibited pre-basic molt (replacement of feathers) than in a control group. To our knowledge, this is the first study to experimentally demonstrate that a food-supplemented bird invests extra resources into molt, a form of self-maintenance, and contrasts with the majority of food supplementation studies in high latitude birds that show they typically advance the initiation of, or extend the period of, reproduction. Our results are consistent with the syndrome of the slow pace of life in the tropics and support the concept of fundamental differences between temperate-zone and tropical birds.

Growth Decline Linked to Warming-Induced Water Limitation in Hemi-Boreal Forests

OpenAIRE

Wu, Xiuchen; Liu, Hongyan; Guo, Dali; Anenkhonov, Oleg A.; Badmaeva, Natalya K.; Sandanov, Denis V.

2012-01-01

Hemi-boreal forests, which make up the transition from temperate deciduous forests to boreal forests in southern Siberia, have experienced significant warming without any accompanying increase in precipitation during the last 80 years. This climatic change could have a profound impact on tree growth and on the stability of forest ecosystems in this region, but at present evidence for these impacts is lacking. In this study, we report a recent dramatic decline in the growth of hemi-boreal fore...

Resilience of Alaska’s boreal forest to climatic change

Science.gov (United States)

Chapin, F.S.; McGuire, A. David; Ruess, Roger W.; Hollingsworth, Teresa N.; Mack, M.C.; Johnstone, J.F.; Kasischke, E.S.; Euskirchen, E.S.; Jones, J.B.; Jorgenson, M.T.; Kielland, K.; Kofinas, G.; Turetsky, M.R.; Yarie, J.; Lloyd, A.H.; Taylor, D.L.

2010-01-01

This paper assesses the resilience of Alaska’s boreal forest system to rapid climatic change. Recent warming is associated with reduced growth of dominant tree species, plant disease and insect outbreaks, warming and thawing of permafrost, drying of lakes, increased wildfire extent, increased postfire recruitment of deciduous trees, and reduced safety of hunters traveling on river ice. These changes have modified key structural features, feedbacks, and interactions in the boreal forest, including reduced effects of upland permafrost on regional hydrology, expansion of boreal forest into tundra, and amplification of climate warming because of reduced albedo (shorter winter season) and carbon release from wildfires. Other temperature-sensitive processes for which no trends have been detected include composition of plant and microbial communities, long-term landscape-scale change in carbon stocks, stream discharge, mammalian population dynamics, and river access and subsistence opportunities for rural indigenous communities. Projections of continued warming suggest that Alaska’s boreal forest will undergo significant functional and structural changes within the next few decades that are unprecedented in the last 6000 years. The impact of these social–ecological changes will depend in part on the extent of landscape reorganization between uplands and lowlands and on policies regulating subsistence opportunities for rural communities.

The Netherlands Bird Avoidance Model, Final Report

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Shamoun-Baranes, J.; Bouten, W.; Sierdsema, H.; van Belle, J.; van Gasteren, J.R.; van Loon, E.E.

2006-01-01

The NL-BAM was developed as a web-based decision support tool to be used by the bird hazard avoidance experts in the ecology unit of the Royal Netherlands Air Force. The NL-BAM will be used together with the ROBIN 4 radar system to provide BirdTAMS, for real time warnings and flight planning and to

Mosaic boreal landscapes with open and forested wetlands

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sjoeberg, K.; Ericson, L.

1997-01-01

We review patterns and processes important for biodiversity in the Fennoscandian boreal forest, describe man's past and present impact and outline a strategy for conservation. The boreal landscape was earlier characterized by a mosaic of open and forested wetlands and forests. Drainage and felling operation have largely changed that pattern. Several organisms depend upon the landscape mosaic. Natural ecotones between mire and forest provide food resources predictable in space and time contrasting to unpredictable edges in the silvicultured landscape. The mosaic is also a prerequisite for organisms dependent on non-substitutable resources in the landscape. The importance of swamp forests has increased as they function as refugia for earlier more widespread old-growth species. Programmes for maintaining biodiversity in the boreal landscape should include the following points. First, the natural mosaic with open and forested wetlands must be maintained. Second, swamp forests must receive a general protection as they often constitute the only old-growth patches in the landscape. Third, we need to restore earlier disturbance regimes. Present strategy plans for conservation are insufficient, as they imply that a too large proportion of boreal organisms will not be able to survive outside protected areas. Instead, we need to focus more on how to preserve organisms in the man-influenced landscape. As a first step we need to understand how organisms are distributed in landscapes at various spatial scales. We need studies in landscapes where the original mosaic has faced various degrees of fragmentation. (au) 124 refs

Birds on the move in the face of climate change: High species turnover in northern Europe.

Science.gov (United States)

Virkkala, Raimo; Lehikoinen, Aleksi

2017-10-01

Species richness is predicted to increase in the northern latitudes in the warming climate due to ranges of many southern species expanding northwards. We studied changes in the composition of the whole avifauna and in bird species richness in a period of already warming climate in Finland (in northern Europe) covering 1,100 km in south-north gradient across the boreal zone (over 300,000 km 2 ). We compared bird species richness and species-specific changes (for all 235 bird species that occur in Finland) in range size (number of squares occupied) and range shifts (measured as median of area of occupancy) based on bird atlas studies between 1974-1989 and 2006-2010. In addition, we tested how the habitat preference and migration strategy of species explain species-specific variation in the change of the range size. The study was carried out in 10 km squares with similar research intensity in both time periods. The species richness did not change significantly between the two time periods. The composition of the bird fauna, however, changed considerably with 37.0% of species showing an increase and 34.9% a decrease in the numbers of occupied squares, that is, about equal number of species gained and lost their range. Altogether 95.7% of all species (225/235) showed changes either in the numbers of occupied squares or they experienced a range shift (or both). The range size of archipelago birds increased and long-distance migrants declined significantly. Range loss observed in long-distance migrants is in line with the observed population declines of long-distance migrants in the whole Europe. The results show that there is an ongoing considerable species turnover due to climate change and due to land use and other direct human influence. High bird species turnover observed in northern Europe may also affect the functional diversity of species communities.

Energy crop cultivations of reed canary grass - An inferior breeding habitat for the skylark, a characteristic farmland bird species

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Vepsaelaeinen, Ville [Finnish Museum of Natural History, P.O. Box 17, University of Helsinki, FI-00014 Helsinki (Finland)

2010-07-15

Here, I present the first comparison of the abundance of farmland birds in energy grass fields and in cereal-dominated conventionally cultivated fields (CCFs). I demonstrate that in boreal farmland, skylark (Alauda arvensis) densities were significantly lower in reed canary grass (RCG) (Phalaris arundinacea) fields than in CCFs. I found that during the early breeding season RCG fields and CCFs are equally good habitats, but over the ensuing couple of weeks RCG rapidly grows too tall and dense for field-nesting species. Consequently, RCG is an inferior habitat for skylark for laying replacement clutches (after failure of first nesting) or for a second clutch after one successful nesting. The results imply that if RCG cultivation is to be expanded, the establishment of large monocultures should be avoided in farmland landscapes; otherwise the novel habitat may affect detrimentally the seriously depleted skylark population, and probably also other field-nesting bird species with similar breeding habitats. (author)

Workshop: Western hemisphere network of bird banding programs

Science.gov (United States)

Celis-Murillo, A.

2007-01-01

Purpose: To promote collaboration among banding programs in the Americas. Introduction: Bird banding and marking provide indispensable tools for ornithological research, management, and conservation of migratory birds on migratory routes, breeding and non-breeding grounds. Many countries and organizations in Latin America and the Caribbean are in the process of developing or have expressed interest in developing national banding schemes and databases to support their research and management programs. Coordination of developing and existing banding programs is essential for effective data management, reporting, archiving and security, and most importantly, for gaining a fuller understanding of migratory bird conservation issues and how the banding data can help. Currently, there is a well established bird-banding program in the U.S.A. and Canada, and programs in other countries are being developed as well. Ornithologists in many Latin American countries and the Caribbean are interested in using banding and marking in their research programs. Many in the ornithological community are interested in establishing banding schemes and some countries have recently initiated independent banding programs. With the number of long term collaborative and international initiatives increasing, the time is ripe to discuss and explore opportunities for international collaboration, coordination, and administration of bird banding programs in the Western Hemisphere. We propose the second ?Western Hemisphere Network of Bird Banding Programs? workshop, in association with the SCSCB, to be an essential step in the progress to strengthen international partnerships and support migratory bird conservation in the Americas and beyond. This will be the second multi-national meeting to promote collaboration among banding programs in the Americas (the first meeting was held in October 8-9, 2006 in La Mancha, Veracruz, Mexico). The Second ?Western Hemisphere Network of Bird Banding Programs

Factors limiting the recovery of boreal toads (Bufo b. boreas)

Science.gov (United States)

Carey, C.; Corn, P.S.; Jones, M.S.; Livo, L.J.; Muths, E.; Loeffler, C.W.; Lannoo, M.

2005-01-01

Boreal toads (Bufo b. boreas) are widely distributed over much of the mountainous western United States. Populations in the Southern Rocky Mountains suffered extensive declines in the late 1970s through early 1980s (Carey, 1993). At the time, these mass mortalities were thought to be associated with a bacterial infection (Carey, 1993). Although the few populations that survived the mass die-offs were not systematically monitored until at least 1993, no mass mortalities had been observed until 1996 when die-offs were observed. A mycotic skin infection associated with a chytrid fungus is now causing mortality of toads in at least two of the populations (M.S. Jones and D.E. Green, unpublished data; Muths et al., 2003). Boreal toads are now absent throughout large areas of their former distribution in Colorado and southern Wyoming and may be extinct in New Mexico (Corn et al., 1989; Carey, 1993; Stuart and Painter, 1994). These toads are classified as “endangered” by Colorado and New Mexico and are designated as a protected non-game species in Wyoming. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has categorized the Southern Rocky Mountain populations for federal listing and is currently reviewing their designation as a “warranted but precluded” species for possible listing in the next few years. For the management of boreal toads and their habitats, a Boreal Toad Recovery Team was formed by the Colorado Division of Wildlife in 1995 as part of a collaborative effort with federal agencies within the United States’ departments of the Interior and Agriculture and with agencies in two adjoining states. To date, conservation agreements have been signed by eight state and federal agencies and by the Colorado Natural Heritage Program. Although boreal toads were considered common throughout their range in Colorado, no comprehensive surveys of the numbers and sizes of their populations were conducted prior to mass die-offs in the 1970s. Surveys completed in the late 1980s to

Potential for enhancing nongame bird habitat values on abandoned mine lands of western North Dakota

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Burley, J.B.; Hopkins, R.B.

1984-01-01

Throughout western North Dakota the number of unreclaimed surface coal and coal-uranium mines might total over 1100. We examined the potential for enhancing the nongame bird habitat values of unreclaimed mine lands in the arid, western region of North Dakota. Generally, the greatest variety of birds occurred in natural and planted woodlands, while fewer birds occurred in unreclaimed mine lands, grasslands, shrublands and croplands. Deciduous woodland types supported more species of birds than coniferous types. Planted woodlands supported about the same number of bird species as some natural deciduous woodland types and more species than coniferous woods. Unreclaimed mine lands supported more species than grasslands and croplands, and about the same number of species as native shrublands. The highest bird densities were in planted woodlands. Bird diversity varied positively with habitat diversity. The bird fauna of unreclaimed mine lands can be enhanced by creating more diverse habitats. Seventeen guidelines to enhance unreclaimed mine lands for nongame birds are presented. These guidelines can be used in preserving habitats threatened by surface mining and reclaiming previously mined lands

The changing effects of Alaska’s boreal forests on the climate system

Science.gov (United States)

Euskirchen, E.S.; McGuire, A. David; Chapin, F.S.; Rupp, T.S.

2010-01-01

In the boreal forests of Alaska, recent changes in climate have influenced the exchange of trace gases, water, and energy between these forests and the atmosphere. These changes in the structure and function of boreal forests can then feed back to impact regional and global climates. In this manuscript, we examine the type and magnitude of the climate feedbacks from boreal forests in Alaska. Research generally suggests that the net effect of a warming climate is a positive regional feedback to warming. Currently, the primary positive climate feedbacks are likely related to decreases in surface albedo due to decreases in snow cover. Fewer negative feedbacks have been identified, and they may not be large enough to counterbalance the large positive feedbacks. These positive feedbacks are most pronounced at the regional scale and reduce the resilience of the boreal vegetation – climate system by amplifying the rate of regional warming. Given the recent warming in this region, the large variety of associated mechanisms that can alter terrestrial ecosystems and influence the climate system, and a reduction in the boreal forest resilience, there is a strong need to continue to quantify and evaluate the feedback pathways.

Tree and forest water use under elevated CO2 and temperature in Scandinavian boreal forest

Science.gov (United States)

Berg Hasper, Thomas; Wallin, Göran; Lamba, Shubhangi; Sigurdsson, Bjarni D.; Laudon, Hjalmar; Medhurst, Jane L.; Räntfors, Mats; Linder, Sune; Uddling, Johan

2014-05-01

According to experimental studies and models, rising atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration ([CO2]) and temperature have the potential to affect stomatal conductance and, consequently, tree and forest transpiration. This effect has in turn the capacity to influence the terrestrial energy and water balance, including affecting of the magnitude of river runoff. Furthermore, forest productivity is currently water-limited in southern Scandinavia and in a near future, under the projected climatic change, this limitation may become a reality in the central and northern parts of Scandinavia. In this study we examine the water-use responses in 12 40-year old native boreal Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst.) trees exposed to a factorial combination of two levels of [CO2] (ambient and doubled) and temperature (ambient and +2.8 °C in summer / +5.6 °C in winter), as well as of entire boreal forests to temporal variation in [CO2], temperature and precipitation over the past 50 years in central and northern Sweden. The controlled factorial CO2 and temperature whole-tree chamber experiment at Flakaliden study site demonstrated that Norway spruce trees lacked elevated [CO2]-induced water savings at guard cell, shoot, and tree levels in the years of measurements. Experimentally, elevated temperature did not result in increased shoot or tree water use as stomatal closure fully cancelled the effect of higher vapour pressure deficit in warmed air environment. Consistent with these results, large scale river runoff data and evapotranspiration estimates from large forested watersheds in central Sweden supported lack of elevated CO2-mediated water savings, and rather suggested that the increasing evapotranspiration trend found in this study was primarily linked to increasing precipitation, rising temperature and more efficient forest management. The results from the whole-tree chamber experiment and boreal forested watersheds have important implications for more accurate

Identifying forest patterns from space to explore dynamics across the circumpolar boreal

Science.gov (United States)

Montesano, P. M.; Neigh, C. S. R.; Feng, M.; Channan, S.; Sexton, J. O.; Wagner, W.; Wooten, M.; Poulter, B.; Wang, L.

2017-12-01

A variety of forest patterns are the result of interactions between broad-scale climate and local-scale site factors and history across the northernmost portion of the circumpolar boreal. Patterns of forest extent, height, and cover help describe forest structure transitions that influence future and reflect past dynamics. Coarse spaceborne observations lack structural detail at forest transitions, which inhibits understanding of these dynamics. We highlight: (1) the use of sub-meter spaceborne stereogrammetry for deriving structure estimates in boreal forests; (2) its potential to complement other spaceborne estimates of forest structure at critical scales; and (3) the potential of these sub-meter and other Landsat-derived structure estimates for improving understanding of broad-scale boreal dynamics such as carbon flux and albedo, capturing the spatial variability of the boreal-tundra biome boundary, and assessing its potential for change.

Spectral contribution of understory to forest reflectance in a boreal site: an analysis of EO-1 Hyperion data

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Rautianien, M.; Lukeš, Petr

2015-01-01

Roč. 171, dec (2015), s. 98-104 ISSN 0034-4257 R&D Projects: GA MŠk(CZ) LO1415 Institutional support: RVO:67179843 Keywords : forest reflectance model * hyperspectral * boreal * leaf area index * understory Subject RIV: EH - Ecology, Behaviour Impact factor: 5.881, year: 2015

The Bird.

Science.gov (United States)

Hannon, Jean

2001-01-01

Students use a dead bird to learn about bird life, anatomy, and death. Students examine a bird body and discuss what happened to the bird. Uses outdoor education as a resource for learning about animals. (SAH)

Species Diversity and Bird Feed in Residential Complex

Science.gov (United States)

Hadinoto; Suhesti, Eni

2017-12-01

Bird is one component of the ecosystem which has an important role in supporting the occurrence of an organism's life cycle. Therefore, the presence of birds in an area is important, because it can affect the existence and distribution of plant species. The purpose of this study is to calculate the diversity of bird species and identify the source of bird feed in the compound. This study was conducted by field surveys in the residential complex. In addition to the birds as a research object vegetation as habitat / foraging birds were also observed. Data were analyzed by using the bird diversity index, richenes index, bundance index, dominance analysis, analysis of bird distribution and analysis of the level of meeting types, while vegetation will be analyzed based on the type and part of what is eaten by birds. In Pandau Jaya housing complex, found as many as 12 species of birds which consists of seven families. Bird species often present is Cucak Kutilang (Pycnonotus aurigaster) of 20 individuals, Bondol Peking (Lonchura punctulata) 14 individuals and Perkutut Jawa (Geopelia striata) 10 individuals. Bird species diversity (H ‘) in Pandau Jaya housing complex is still relatively moderate with a value of 2.27, while the Evenness Index (E) of 0.91 and Richenes Index (R) of 2.45. Types of vegetation as a food source, among others: mango, guava, cherry, jackfruit, ketapang, coconut, areca, palm, banana, papaya, flowers and grasses.

A Passive Microwave L-Band Boreal Forest Freeze/Thaw and Vegetation Phenology Study

Science.gov (United States)

Roy, A.; Sonnentag, O.; Pappas, C.; Mavrovic, A.; Royer, A.; Berg, A. A.; Rowlandson, T. L.; Lemay, J.; Helgason, W.; Barr, A.; Black, T. A.; Derksen, C.; Toose, P.

2016-12-01

The boreal forest is the second largest land biome in the world and thus plays a major role in the global and regional climate systems. The extent, timing and duration of seasonal freeze/thaw (F/T) state influences vegetation developmental stages (phenology) and, consequently, constitute an important control on how boreal forest ecosystems exchange carbon, water and energy with the atmosphere. The effective retrieval of seasonal F/T state from L-Band radiometry was demonstrated using satellite mission. However, disentangling the seasonally differing contributions from forest overstory and understory vegetation, and the soil surface to the satellite signal remains challenging. Here we present initial results from a radiometer field campaign to improve our understanding of the L-Band derived boreal forest F/T signal and vegetation phenology. Two L-Band surface-based radiometers (SBR) are installed on a micrometeorological tower at the Southern Old Black Spruce site in central Saskatchewan over the 2016-2017 F/T season. One radiometer unit is installed on the flux tower so it views forest including all overstory and understory vegetation and the moss-covered ground surface. A second radiometer unit is installed within the boreal forest overstory, viewing the understory and the ground surface. The objectives of our study are (i) to disentangle the L-Band F/T signal contribution of boreal forest overstory from the understory and ground surface, (ii) to link the L-Band F/T signal to related boreal forest structural and functional characteristics, and (iii) to investigate the use of the L-Band signal to characterize boreal forest carbon, water and energy fluxes. The SBR observations above and within the forest canopy are used to retrieve the transmissivity (γ) and the scattering albedo (ω), two parameters that describe the emission of the forest canopy though the F/T season. These two forest parameters are compared with boreal forest structural and functional

Global climate change adaptation: examples from Russian boreal forests

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Krankina, O.N.; Dixon, R.K.; Kirilenko, A.P.; Kobak, K.I.

1997-01-01

The Russian Federation contains approximately 20% of the world's timber resources and more than half of all boreal forests. These forests play a prominent role in environmental protection and economic development at global, national, and local levels, as well as, provide commodities for indigenous people and habitat for a variety of plant and animal species. The response and feedbacks of Russian boreal forests to projected global climate change are expected to be profound. Current understanding of the vulnerability of Russian forest resources to projected climate change is discussed and examples of possible adaptation measures for Russian forests are presented including: (1) artificial forestation techniques that can be applied with the advent of failed natural regeneration and to facilitate forest migration northward; (2) silvicultural measures that can influence the species mix to maintain productivity under future climates; (3) identifying forests at risk and developing special management adaption measures for them: (4) alternative processing and uses of wood and non-wood products from future forests; and (5) potential future infrastructure and transport systems that can be employed as boreal forests shift northward into melting permafrost zones. Current infrastructure and technology can be employed to help Russian boreal forests adapt to projected global environmental change, however many current forest management practices may have to be modified. Application of this technical knowledge can help policymakers identify priorities for climate change adaptation

Evaluation of a new battery of toxicity tests for boreal forest soils: assessment of the impact of hydrocarbons and salts.

Science.gov (United States)

Princz, Juliska I; Moody, Mary; Fraser, Christopher; Van der Vliet, Leana; Lemieux, Heather; Scroggins, Rick; Siciliano, Steven D

2012-04-01

The ability to assess the toxic potential of soil contamination within boreal regions is currently limited to test species representative of arable lands. This study evaluated the use of six boreal plant species (Pinus banksiana, Picea glauca, Picea mariana, Populus tremuloides, Calamagrostis Canadensis, and Solidago canadensis) and four invertebrate species (Dendrodrilus rubidus, Folsomia nivalis, Proisotoma minuta, and Oppia nitens) and compared their performance to a suite of standard agronomic soil test species using site soils impacted by petroleum hydrocarbon (PHC) and salt contamination. To maintain horizon-specific differences, individual soil horizons were collected from impacted sites and relayered within the test vessels. Use of the boreal species was directly applicable to the assessment of the contaminated forest soils and, in the case of the hydrocarbon-impacted soil, demonstrated greater overall sensitivity (25th percentile of estimated species sensitivity distribution [ESSD25] = 5.6% contamination: 10,600 mg/kg fraction 3 [F3; equivalent hydrocarbon range of >C16 to C34] Of/Oh horizon, and 270 mg/kg F3 Ahg horizon) relative to the standard test species (ESSD25 = 23% contamination: 44,000 mg/kg F3 Of/Oh horizon, and 1,100 mg/kg F3 Ahg horizon). For salinity, there was no difference between boreal and standard species with a combined ESSD25 = 2.3%, equating to 0.24 and 0.25 dS/m for the Ah and Ck horizons. The unequal distribution of soil invertebrates within the layered test vessels can confound test results and the interpretation of the toxic potential of a site. The use of test species relevant to boreal eco-zones strengthens the applicability of the data in support of realistic ecological risk assessments applicable to the boreal regions. Copyright © 2012 SETAC.

Carbon Dioxide Evasion from Boreal Lakes: Drivers, Variability and Revised Global Estimate

Science.gov (United States)

Hastie, A. T.; Lauerwald, R.; Weyhenmeyer, G. A.; Sobek, S.; Verpoorter, C.; Regnier, P. A. G.

2016-12-01

Carbon dioxide evasion (FCO2) from lakes and reservoirs is established as an important component of the global carbon (C) cycle, a fact reflected by the inclusion of these waterbodies in the most recent IPCC assessment report. In this study we developed a statistical model driven by environmental geodata, to predict CO2 partial pressure (pCO2) in boreal lakes, and to create the first high resolution map (0.5°) of boreal (50°- 70°) lake pCO2. The resulting map of pCO2 was combined with lake area (lakes >0.01km2) from the recently developed GLOWABO database (Verpoorter et al., 2014) and estimates of gas transfer velocity k, to produce the first high resolution map of boreal lake FCO2. Before training our model, the geodata as well as approximately 27,000 samples of `open water' (excluding periods of ice cover) pCO2 from the boreal region, were gridded at 0.5° resolution and log transformed where necessary. A multilinear regression was used to derive a prediction equation for log10 pCO2 as a function of log10 lake area, net primary productivity (NPP), precipitation, wind speed and soil pH (r2= 0.66), and then applied in ArcGIS to build the map of pCO2. After validation, the map of boreal lake pCO2 was used to derive a map of boreal lake FCO2. For the boreal region we estimate an average, lake area weighted, pCO2 of 930 μatm and FCO2 of 170 (121-243) Tg C yr-1. Our estimate of FCO2 will soon be updated with the incorporation of the smallest lakes (<0.01km2). Despite the current exclusion of the smallest lakes, our estimate is higher than the highest previous estimate of approximately 110 Tg C yr-1 (Aufdenkampe et al, 2011). Moreover, our empirical approach driven by environmental geodata can be used as the basis for estimating future FCO2 from boreal lakes, and their sensitivity to climate change.

Hawaiian forest bird trends: using log-linear models to assess long-term trends is supported by model diagnostics and assumptions (reply to Freed and Cann 2013)

Science.gov (United States)

Camp, Richard J.; Pratt, Thane K.; Gorresen, P. Marcos; Woodworth, Bethany L.; Jeffrey, John J.

2014-01-01

Freed and Cann (2013) criticized our use of linear models to assess trends in the status of Hawaiian forest birds through time (Camp et al. 2009a, 2009b, 2010) by questioning our sampling scheme, whether we met model assumptions, and whether we ignored short-term changes in the population time series. In the present paper, we address these concerns and reiterate that our results do not support the position of Freed and Cann (2013) that the forest birds in the Hakalau Forest National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) are declining, or that the federally listed endangered birds are showing signs of imminent collapse. On the contrary, our data indicate that the 21-year long-term trends for native birds in Hakalau Forest NWR are stable to increasing, especially in areas that have received active management.

Traditional use of medicinal plants in the boreal forest of Canada: review and perspectives

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Uprety Yadav

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The boreal forest of Canada is home to several hundred thousands Aboriginal people who have been using medicinal plants in traditional health care systems for thousands of years. This knowledge, transmitted by oral tradition from generation to generation, has been eroding in recent decades due to rapid cultural change. Until now, published reviews about traditional uses of medicinal plants in boreal Canada have focused either on particular Aboriginal groups or on restricted regions. Here, we present a review of traditional uses of medicinal plants by the Aboriginal people of the entire Canadian boreal forest in order to provide comprehensive documentation, identify research gaps, and suggest perspectives for future research. Methods A review of the literature published in scientific journals, books, theses and reports. Results A total of 546 medicinal plant taxa used by the Aboriginal people of the Canadian boreal forest were reported in the reviewed literature. These plants were used to treat 28 disease and disorder categories, with the highest number of species being used for gastro-intestinal disorders, followed by musculoskeletal disorders. Herbs were the primary source of medicinal plants, followed by shrubs. The medicinal knowledge of Aboriginal peoples of the western Canadian boreal forest has been given considerably less attention by researchers. Canada is lacking comprehensive policy on harvesting, conservation and use of medicinal plants. This could be explained by the illusion of an infinite boreal forest, or by the fact that many boreal medicinal plant species are widely distributed. Conclusion To our knowledge, this review is the most comprehensive to date to reveal the rich traditional medicinal knowledge of Aboriginal peoples of the Canadian boreal forest. Future ethnobotanical research endeavours should focus on documenting the knowledge held by Aboriginal groups that have so far received less attention

The changing effects of Alaska's boreal forests on the climate system

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Euskirchen, E.S.; Chapin, F.S. III [Alaska Univ., Fairbanks, AK (United States). Dept. of Biology, Inst. of Arctic Biology; McGuire, A.D. [United Sates Geological Survey, Fairbanks, AK (United States). Alaska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit; Alaska Univ., Fairbanks, AK (United States); Rupp, T.S. [Alaska Univ., Fairbanks, AK (United States). Dept. of Forest Sciences

2010-07-15

The boreal forest is the northernmost forested biome and is expected to be sensitive to global warming. Recent climate warming in the boreal forests of Alaska has influenced the exchange of trace gases, water, and energy between the forests and the atmosphere. In turn, these changes in the structure and function of boreal forests can influence regional and global climates. This study examined the type and magnitude of the climate feedbacks from boreal forests in Alaska. Biogeophysical and biogeochemical feedbacks were examined with particular reference to surface energy balance across boreal ecosystems and over the full annual cycle. The impact of ground heat exchange on permafrost was studied in terms of vegetation dynamics and disturbance regimes such as fires and insect outbreaks. In general, research has indicated that the net effect of a warming climate is a positive regional feedback to warming. The main positive climate feedbacks are currently related to decreases in surface albedo due to decreases in snow cover. Fewer negative feedbacks have been identified, and they may not be large enough to counterbalance the large positive feedbacks. These positive feedbacks are most dominant at the regional scale and reduce the resilience of the boreal vegetation by amplifying the rate of regional warming. This paper also described carbon and methane release from permafrost degradation, changes in lake area, changes in land use and snow season changes. The role of earth system models in representing climate feedbacks from Alaskan boreal forests was discussed. It was concluded that although the boreal forest provides climate regulation as an ecosystem service, the net effect of the climate feedbacks to climate warming are not fully understood. As such, there is a need to continue to evaluate feedback pathways, given the recent warming in Alaska and the large variety of associated mechanisms that can change terrestrial ecosystems and affect the climate system. 59 refs

Private lands habitat programs benefit California's native birds

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ryan T. DiGaudio

2015-10-01

Full Text Available To address the loss of wetlands and riparian forests in California, private lands habitat programs are available through U.S. federal and state government agencies to help growers, ranchers and other private landowners create and enhance wildlife habitat. The programs provide financial and technical assistance for implementing conservation practices. To evaluate the benefits of these programs for wildlife, we examined bird use of private wetlands, postharvest flooded croplands and riparian forests enrolled in habitat programs in the Central Valley and North Coast regions of California. We found that private Central Valley wetlands supported 181 bird species during the breeding season. During fall migration, postharvest flooded croplands supported wetland-dependent species and a higher density of shorebirds than did semipermanent wetlands. At the riparian sites, bird species richness increased after restoration. These results demonstrated that the programs provided habitat for the species they were designed to protect; a variety of resident and migratory bird species used the habitats, and many special status species were recorded at the sites.

Coastal Resources Atlas: Long Island: BIRDS (Bird Polygons)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This data set contains sensitive biological resource data for wading birds, shorebirds, waterfowl, raptors, diving birds, seabirds, passerine birds, and gulls and...

Chapter 11. Conservation status of boreal owls in the United States

Science.gov (United States)

Gregory D. Hayward

1994-01-01

Previous chapters outlined the biology and ecology of boreal owls as well as the ecology of important vegetation communities based on literature from North America and Europe. That technical review provides the basis to assess the current conservation status of boreal owls in the United States. By conservation status, we mean the demographic condition of the species as...

Birds of sacred groves of northern Kerala, India

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

K. M. Jyothi

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Sacred groves are patches of vegetation preserved due to  religious or cultural tradition.  They are protected through spiritual beliefs.  Sacred groves provide an excellent abode to the biodiversity of the region where they are located.   Scientific exploration of fauna from sacred groves of India is few and far between.  The present study was conducted to explore the bird diversity and abundance in 15 selected sacred groves of northern Kerala, eight from Kannur District and seven from Kasargod District each.  A total of 111 bird species were observed belonging to 49 families and 16 orders.  The sacred groves of northern Kerala support many of the ‘forest-birds’ such as the Grey Junglefowl Gallus sonneratii, Asian Fairy-bluebird Irena puella, Tickell’s Blue-flycatcher Cyornis tickelliae, Malabar Trogon Harpactes fasciatus, Heart-spotted Woodpecker Hemicircus canente, Malabar Whistling-Thrush Myophonus horsfieldii, Little Spiderhunter Arachnothera longirostra, etc.  The sacred groves of northern Kerala also support two endemic bird species of the Western Ghats, such as the Malabar Grey Hornbill Ocyceros griseus and Rufous Babbler Turdoides subrufa. Five species of raptors and four owl species were reported from the sacred groves of north Kerala during the present study.  The breeding of the White-bellied Sea-Eagle has been reported at Edayilakadu Kavu, a sacred grove in Kasargod District.  The sacred groves of northern Kerala also supported 17 species of long distant migratory birds.  Thazhe Kavu, recorded the Black-headed Ibis Threskiornis melanocephalus, a Near-Threatened bird according to IUCN. 

Carbon dynamics in lakes of the boreal forest under a changing climate

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Benoy, G.; Wrona, F. [Environment Canada, Saskatoon, SK (Canada). National Water Research Inst.; Cash, K. [Environment Canada, Saskatoon, SK (Canada). Prairie and Northern Wildlife Research Centre; McCauley, E. [Calgary Univ., AB (Canada). Dept. of Biology

2007-09-15

This article reviewed factors influencing lake ecosystem carbon dynamics in boreal forest regions and identified research areas needed to accurately forecast the impacts of climate change on carbon pools and flux rates. The review suggested that carbon pools in profundal and littoral sediments across the boreal forest should be identified. Climate change experiments should be conducted to quantify ecosystem carbon dynamics as well as changes in aquatic food web structures. Whole system experiments are also needed to examine the hydrologic and bio-geochemical conditions in which allochthonous carbon is integrated into food webs in potentially drier climates. Results also indicated the need for a watershed-scale assessment of carbon budgets for lakes in transitional zones between boreal forests, prairies, parklands, forests, and tundra. It was concluded that studies are also needed to investigate the integration of lacustrine carbon pools and flux rates on carbon budgets at both the local watershed and boreal forest biome scale. 113 refs., 3 figs.

Proceedings of the 1999 Sustainable Forest Management Network conference: science and practice : sustaining the boreal forest

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Veeman, S.; Smith, D.W.; Purdy, B.G.; Salkie, F.J.; Larkin, G.A. [eds.

1999-05-01

The wide range and complex nature of research in sustainable forest management, supported cooperatively by the forest products industry, governments, the universities, First Nations and other groups, is reflected in the 128 papers presented at this conference. The range of topics discussed include historical perspectives of forest disturbances, including fires and harvesting, biological diversity, gaseous, liquid and solid wastes, community sustainability, public involvement, land aquatic interfaces, forest management planning tools, contaminant transfer, First Nations issues, certification, monitoring and resource trade-offs. The theme of the conference {sup S}cience and practice: sustaining the boreal forest` was selected to identify the key efforts of the Sustainable Forest Management (SFM) Network on boreal forest research. The objective of the conference was to exchange knowledge and integrate participants into a better working network for the improvement of forest management. refs., tabs., figs.

Newtonian boreal forest ecology

OpenAIRE

Hari, Pertti; Aakala, Tuomas; Aalto, Juho; Bäck, Jaana; Hollmén, Jaakko; Jõgiste, Kalev; Koupaei, Kourosh Kabiri; Kähkönen, Mika A.; Korpela, Mikko; Kulmala, Liisa; Nikinmaa, Eero; Pumpanen, Jukka; Salkinoja-Salonen, Mirja; Schiestl-Aalto, Pauliina; Simojoki, Asko

2017-01-01

Isaac Newton's approach to developing theories in his book Principia Mathematica proceeds in four steps. First, he defines various concepts, second, he formulates axioms utilising the concepts, third, he mathematically analyses the behaviour of the system defined by the concepts and axioms obtaining predictions and fourth, he tests the predictions with measurements. In this study, we formulated our theory of boreal forest ecosystems, called NewtonForest, following the four steps introduced by...

Boreal Tree Light- and Water-Use: Asynchronous, Diverging, yet Complementary

Science.gov (United States)

Pappas, C.; Baltzer, J. L.; Barr, A.; Black, T. A.; Bohrer, G.; Detto, M.; Maillet, J.; Matheny, A. M.; Roy, A.; Sonnentag, O.; Stephens, J.

2017-12-01

Water stress has been suggested as a key mechanism behind the contemporary increase in tree mortality rates in northwestern North America. However, a detailed analysis of boreal tree light- and water-use strategies as well as their interspecific differences are still lacking. Here, we examine the tree hydraulic behaviour of co-occurring larch (Larix laricina) and black spruce (Picea mariana), two characteristic boreal tree species, near the southern limit of the boreal ecozone in central Canada. Sap flux density (Js) and concurrently recorded stem radius fluctuations and meteorological conditions are used to quantify tree hydraulic functioning and to scrutinize tree light- and water-use strategies. Our analysis reveals an asynchrony in the diel hydrodynamics of the two species with the initial rise in Js occurring two hours earlier in larch than in black spruce. Structural differences in the crown architecture of larch and black spruce lead to interspecific differences in light harvesting that can explain the observed asynchrony in their hydraulic function. Furthermore, the two species exhibit diverging stomatal regulation strategies with larch employing relatively isohydric whereas black spruce anisohydric behaviour. Such asynchronous and diverging tree-level light- and water-use strategies provide new insights into the ecosystem-level complementarity of tree form and function, with implications for understanding boreal forests' water and carbon dynamics and resilience to environmental stress.

Light-Activated Magnetic Compass in Birds

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Solov'yov, Ilia; Greiner, Walter

2013-01-01

Migrating birds fly thousand miles without having a map, or a GPS unit. But they may carry their own sensitive navigational tool, which allows them "see" the Earth’s magnetic field. Here we review the important physical and chemical constraints on a possible compass sensor and discuss the suggest......Migrating birds fly thousand miles without having a map, or a GPS unit. But they may carry their own sensitive navigational tool, which allows them "see" the Earth’s magnetic field. Here we review the important physical and chemical constraints on a possible compass sensor and discuss...... the suggestion that radical pairs in a photoreceptor cryptochrome might provide a biological realization for a magnetic compass. Finally, we review the current evidence supporting a role for radical pair reactions in the magnetic compass of birds....

Foliar flavonoids from Tanacetum vulgare var. boreale and their geographical variation.

Science.gov (United States)

Uehara, Ayumi; Akiyama, Shinobu; Iwashina, Tsukasa

2015-03-01

Foliar flavonoids of Tanacetum vulgare var. boreale were isolated. Eight flavonoid glycosides, 7-O-glucosides of apigenin, luteolin, scutellarein and 6- hydroxyluteolin, and 7-O-glucuronides of apigenin, luteolin, chrysoeriol and eriodictyol were identified. Moreover, eight flavonoid aglycones, apigenin, luteolin, hispidulin, nepetin, eupatilin, jaceosidin, pectolinarigenin and axillarin were also isolated and identified. The flavonoid composition of two varieties of T. vulgare, i.e. var. boreale and var. vulgare, were compared. All samples of var. boreale and one sample of var. vulgare had the same flavonoid pattern, and could be distinguished from almost all the samples of var. vulgare. Thus, the occurrence of chemotypes, which are characterized by either the presence or absence of scutellarein 7-O-glucoside, eriodictyol 7-O-glucuronide and pectolinarigenin was shown in T. vulgare sensu lato.

Russian boreal peatlands dominate the natural European methane budget

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schneider, Julia; Jungkunst, Hermann F; Wolf, Ulrike; Schreiber, Peter; Kutzbach, Lars; Gazovic, Michal; Miglovets, Mikhail; Mikhaylov, Oleg; Grunwald, Dennis; Erasmi, Stefan; Wilmking, Martin

2016-01-01

About 60% of the European wetlands are located in the European part of Russia. Nevertheless, data on methane emissions from wetlands of that area are absent. Here we present results of methane emission measurements for two climatically different years from a boreal peatland complex in European Russia. Winter fluxes were well within the range of what has been reported for the peatlands of other boreal regions before, but summer fluxes greatly exceeded the average range of 5–80 mg CH 4 m −2 d −1 for the circumpolar boreal zone. Half of the measured fluxes ranged between 150 and 450 mg CH 4 m −2 d −1 . Extrapolation of our data to the whole boreal zone of European Russia shows that theses emissions could amount to up to 2.7 ± 1.1 Tg CH 4 a −1 , corresponding to 69% of the annual emissions from European wetlands or 33% of the total annual natural European methane emission. In 2008, climatic conditions corresponded to the long term mean, whereas the summer of 2011 was warmer and noticeably drier. Counterintuitively, these conditions led to even higher CH 4 emissions, with peaks up to two times higher than the values measured in 2008. As Russian peatlands dominate the areal extend of wetlands in Europe and are characterized by very high methane fluxes to the atmosphere, it is evident, that sound European methane budgeting will only be achieved with more insight into Russian peatlands. (letter)

Comparative analysis of vestibular ecomorphology in birds.

Science.gov (United States)

Benson, Roger B J; Starmer-Jones, Ethan; Close, Roger A; Walsh, Stig A

2017-12-01

The bony labyrinth of vertebrates houses the semicircular canals. These sense rotational accelerations of the head and play an essential role in gaze stabilisation during locomotion. The sizes and shapes of the semicircular canals have hypothesised relationships to agility and locomotory modes in many groups, including birds, and a burgeoning palaeontological literature seeks to make ecological interpretations from the morphology of the labyrinth in extinct species. Rigorous tests of form-function relationships for the vestibular system are required to support these interpretations. We test the hypothesis that the lengths, streamlines and angles between the semicircular canals are related to body size, wing kinematics and flying style in birds. To do this, we applied geometric morphometrics and multivariate phylogenetic comparative methods to a dataset of 64 three-dimensional reconstructions of the endosseous labyrinth obtained using micro-computed tomography scanning of bird crania. A strong relationship between centroid size of the semicircular canals and body size indicates that larger birds have longer semicircular canals compared with their evolutionary relatives. Wing kinematics related to manoeuvrability (and quantified using the brachial index) explain a small additional portion of the variance in labyrinth size. We also find strong evidence for allometric shape change in the semicircular canals of birds, indicating that major aspects of the shape of the avian labyrinth are determined by spatial constraints. The avian braincase accommodates a large brain, a large eye and large semicircular canals compared with other tetrapods. Negative allometry of these structures means that the restriction of space within the braincase is intense in small birds. This may explain our observation that the angles between planes of the semicircular canals of birds deviate more strongly from orthogonality than those of mammals, and especially from agile, gliding and flying

The effect of fire intensity on soil respiration in Siberia boreal forest

Science.gov (United States)

S. Baker; A. V. Bogorodskaya

2010-01-01

Russian boreal forests have an annual wildfire activity averaging 10 to 20 million ha, which has increased in recent years. This wildfire activity, in response to changing climate has the potential to significantly affect the carbon storage capacity of Siberian forests. A better understanding of the effect of fire on soil respiration rates in the boreal forest of...

Fire impacts on European Boreal soils: A review

Science.gov (United States)

Pereira, Paulo; Oliva, Marc; Cerda, Artemi

2016-04-01

Fire is an important natural disturbance in boreal ecosystems, fundamental to understand plant distribution (Ryan, 2002; Wallenius et al., 2004; Granstrom, 2001). Nevertheless, nowadays the intense and successful, fire suppression measures are changing their ecological role (Pereira et al., 2013a,b). This is consequence of the lack of understanding of stakeholders and decision makers about the role of the fire in the ecosystems (Mierasukas and Pereira, 2013; Pereira et al., 2016). This fire suppression measures are increasing the amount of fuel accumulation and the risk of severe wildfires, which can increase of frequency and severity in a context of climate change. Fire is a good tool for landscape management and restoration of degraded ecosystems (Toivanen and Kotiaho, 2007). Fire is considered a soil forming factor (Certini, 2014) and in boreal environments it has been observed that low fire severities, do not change importantly soil properties, mean fire severities induce positive impacts on soil, since add an important amounts of nutrients into soil profile and high severity fires had negative impacts due to the high consumption of organic matter (Vanha-Majamaa et al., 2007; Pereira et al., 2014). References Certini, G., 2014. Fire as a soil-forming factor. Ambio, 43, 191-195 Granstrom A. 2001. Fire management for biodiversity in the European Boreal forest. Scandinavian Journal of Forest Research 3: 62-69. Mierauskas, P., Pereira, P. (2013) Stakeholders perception about prescribed fire use in Lithuania. First results, Flamma, 4(3), 157-161. Pereira, P., Cerdà, A., Jordán, A., Bolutiene, V., Úbeda, X., Pranskevicius, M., Mataix-Solera, J. (2013) Spatio-temporal vegetation recuperation after a grassland fire in Lithuania, Procedia Environmental Sciences, 19:856-864 Pereira, P., Mierauskas, P., Ubeda, X., Mataix-Solera, J.,Cerda, A. (2012) Fire in protected areas - the effect of the protection and importance of fire management, Environmental Research

Assessment of Methods for Estimating Risk to Birds from ...

Science.gov (United States)

The U.S. EPA Ecological Risk Assessment Support Center (ERASC) announced the release of the final report entitled, Assessment of Methods for Estimating Risk to Birds from Ingestion of Contaminated Grit Particles. This report evaluates approaches for estimating the probability of ingestion by birds of contaminated particles such as pesticide granules or lead particles (i.e. shot or bullet fragments). In addition, it presents an approach for using this information to estimate the risk of mortality to birds from ingestion of lead particles. Response to ERASC Request #16

Indirect effects of rodents on arthropods in a Scandinavian boreal forest

OpenAIRE

Malá, Barbora

2016-01-01

Rodents in boreal forest are an important component of food webs. Their role as drivers of the boreal forest ecosystem is debated. As herbivores they affect plant communities and alter qualities of plants. Consequently availability of food resources for other herbivorous species is altered. In my thesis I studied whether rodents indirectly influence communities of arthropods via plant resources. It is assumed that phytophagous arthropods respond to changes in plant resources by different feed...

The impact of boreal forest fire on climate warming

Science.gov (United States)

Randerson, J.T.; Liu, H.; Flanner, M.G.; Chambers, S.D.; Jin, Y.; Hess, P.G.; Pfister, G.; Mack, M.C.; Treseder, K.K.; Welp, L.R.; Chapin, F.S.; Harden, J.W.; Goulden, M.L.; Lyons, E.; Neff, J.C.; Schuur, E.A.G.; Zender, C.S.

2006-01-01

We report measurements and analysis of a boreal forest fire, integrating the effects of greenhouse gases, aerosols, black carbon deposition on snow and sea ice, and postfire changes in surface albedo. The net effect of all agents was to increase radiative forcing during the first year (34 ?? 31 Watts per square meter of burned area), but to decrease radiative forcing when averaged over an 80-year fire cycle (-2.3 ?? 2.2 Watts per square meter) because multidecadal increases in surface albedo had a larger impact than fire-emitted greenhouse gases. This result implies that future increases in boreal fire may not accelerate climate warming.

The impact of boreal forest fire on climate warming.

Science.gov (United States)

Randerson, J T; Liu, H; Flanner, M G; Chambers, S D; Jin, Y; Hess, P G; Pfister, G; Mack, M C; Treseder, K K; Welp, L R; Chapin, F S; Harden, J W; Goulden, M L; Lyons, E; Neff, J C; Schuur, E A G; Zender, C S

2006-11-17

We report measurements and analysis of a boreal forest fire, integrating the effects of greenhouse gases, aerosols, black carbon deposition on snow and sea ice, and postfire changes in surface albedo. The net effect of all agents was to increase radiative forcing during the first year (34 +/- 31 Watts per square meter of burned area), but to decrease radiative forcing when averaged over an 80-year fire cycle (-2.3 +/- 2.2 Watts per square meter) because multidecadal increases in surface albedo had a larger impact than fire-emitted greenhouse gases. This result implies that future increases in boreal fire may not accelerate climate warming.

NPP Boreal Forest: Schefferville, Canada, 1974, R1

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — This data set contains two files (.txt format). One file provides above- and below-ground biomass, soil, and nutrient data for a mature boreal ecosystem (subarctic...

NPP Boreal Forest: Schefferville, Canada, 1974, R1

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — ABSTRACT: This data set contains two files (.txt format). One file provides above- and below-ground biomass, soil, and nutrient data for a mature boreal ecosystem...

Disentangling Modern Fire-Climate-Vegetation Relationships across the Boreal Forest Biome

Science.gov (United States)

Young, A. M.; Boschetti, L.; Duffy, P.; Hu, F.; Higuera, P.

2015-12-01

Fire regimes differ between Eurasian and North American boreal forests, due in part to differences in climate and the dominant forest types. While North American boreal forests are dominated by stand-replacing fires, much of the Eurasian boreal forest is characterized by lower intensity surface fires. These different fire regimes have important consequences for continental-scale biogeochemical cycling and surface-energy fluxes1. Here, we use generalized linear models (GLM) and boosted regression trees (BRT) to explore the relative importance of vegetation, annual climatic factors, and their interactions in determining annual fire occurrence across Eurasian and North American boreal forests. We use remotely sensed burned area (MCD64A1), land cover (MCD12Q1), and observed climate data (CRU) from 2002-2012 at 0.25° spatial resolution to quantify these relationships at annual temporal scales and continental spatial scales. The spatial distribution of boreal fire occurrence was well explained with climate and vegetation variables, with similarities and differences in fire-climate-vegetation relationships between Eurasia and North America. For example, while GLMs indicate vegetation is a significant factor determining fire occurrence in both continents, the effect of climate differed. Spring temperature and precipitation are significant factors explaining fire occurrence in Eurasia, but no climate variables were significant for explaining fire occurrence in North America. BRTs complement this analysis, highlighting climatic thresholds to fire occurrence in both continents. The nature of these thresholds can vary among vegetation types, even within each continent, further implying regional sensitivity to climate-induced shifts in wildfire activity. To build on these results and better understand regional sensitivity of northern-high latitude fire regimes, future work will explore these relationships in forest-tundra and arctic tundra ecosystems, and apply historical

Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands ESI: BIRDS (Bird Polygons)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This data set contains sensitive biological resource data for pelagic birds, shorebirds, wading birds, waterfowl, gulls, terns, and passerine birds in Guam and the...

Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, and New Jersey ESI: BIRDS (Bird Polygons)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This data set contains sensitive biological resource data for wading birds, shorebirds, waterfowl, raptors, diving birds, pelagic birds, passerine birds, gulls and...

Natural glyphosate tolerance in sweetvetch Hedysarum boreale

Science.gov (United States)

Sweetvetch (Hedysarum boreale Nutt.) a legume native to the western USA and Canada, is purported to have tolerance to glyphosate {N-(phosphonomethyl) glycine} herbide. Eight rates of glyphosate were tested for their effect on biomass yield (BMY) and survival of seedlings and mature plants. Treatme...

Drug metabolism in birds

Science.gov (United States)

Pan, Huo Ping; Fouts, James R.

1979-01-01

Papers published over 100 years since the beginning of the scientific study of drug metabolism in birds were reviewed. Birds were found to be able to accomplish more than 20 general biotransformation reactions in both functionalization and conjugation. Chickens were the primary subject of study but over 30 species of birds were used. Large species differences in drug metabolism exist between birds and mammals as well as between various birds, these differences were mostly quantitative. Qualitative differences were rare. On the whole, drug metabolism studies in birds have been neglected as compared with similar studies on insects and mammals. The uniqueness of birds and the advantages of using birds in drug metabolism studies are discussed. Possible future studies of drug metabolism in birds are recommended.

Proceedings of the Wind Energy and Birds/Bats Workshop: Understanding and Resolving Bird and Bat Impacts

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Schwartz, Susan Savitt (ed.)

2004-09-01

Most conservation groups support the development of wind energy in the US as an alternative to fossil and nuclear-fueled power plants to meet growing demand for electrical energy. However, concerns have surfaced over the potential threat to birds, bats, and other wildlife from the construction and operation of wind turbine facilities. Co-sponsored by the American Bird Conservancy (ABC) and the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), the Wind Energy and Birds/Bats Workshop was convened to examine current research on the impacts of wind energy development on avian and bat species and to discuss the most effective ways to mitigate such impacts. On 18-19 May 2004, 82 representatives from government, non-government organizations, private business, and academia met to (1) review the status of the wind industry and current project development practices, including pre-development risk assessment and post-construction monitoring; (2) learn what is known about direct, indirect (habitat), and cumulative impacts on birds and bats from existing wind projects; about relevant aspects of bat and bird migration ecology; about offshore wind development experience in Europe; and about preventing, minimizing, and mitigating avian and bat impacts; (3) review wind development guidelines developed by the USFWS and the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife; and (4) identify topics needing further research and to discuss what can be done to ensure that research is both credible and accessible. These Workshop Proceedings include detailed summaries of the presentations made and the discussions that followed.

Forest fires may cause cooling in boreal Canada

Science.gov (United States)

Bhattacharya, Atreyee

2012-08-01

As climate in North America continues to become warmer and drier through the 21st century, a new study finds that fire may be playing an increasingly important role in shaping the climate of the boreal regions of Canada. Forest fires change the amount of shortwave radiation absorbed by Earth's surface by reducing vegetation cover and changing the composition of plant species, thereby changing the reflectivity of the surface (albedo). Fires also affect other ecosystem processes and increase aerosol (particularly soot) emission and deposition, all of which alter regional climate through a series of feedbacks mechanisms. Jin et al. used satellite observations of surface albedo from 2000 to 2011 and fire perimeter data since 1970 to study how forest fires affect surface albedo and associated shortwave radiation at the surface, across forests in boreal Canada.

Multi-trophic resilience of boreal lake ecosystems to forest fires.

Science.gov (United States)

Lewis, Tyler L; Lindberg, Mark S; Schmutz, Joel A; Bertram, Mark R

2014-05-01

Fires are the major natural disturbance in the boreal forest, and their frequency and intensity will likely increase as the climate warms. Terrestrial nutrients released by fires may be transported to boreal lakes, stimulating increased primary productivity, which may radiate through multiple trophic levels. Using a before-after-control-impact (BACI) design, with pre- and postfire data from burned and unburned areas, we examined effects of a natural fire across several trophic levels of boreal lakes, from nutrient and chlorophyll levels, to macroinvertebrates, to waterbirds. Concentrations of total nitrogen and phosphorus were not affected by the fire. Chlorophyll a levels were also unaffected, likely reflecting the stable nutrient concentrations. For aquatic invertebrates, we found that densities of three functional feeding groups did not respond to the fire (filterers, gatherers, scrapers), while two groups increased (shredders, predators). Amphipods accounted for 98% of shredder numbers, and we hypothesize that fire-mediated habitat changes may have favored their generalist feeding and habitat ecology. This increase in amphipods may, in turn, have driven increased predator densities, as amphipods were the most numerous invertebrate in our lakes and are commonly taken as prey. Finally, abundance of waterbird young, which feed primarily on aquatic invertebrates, was not affected by the fire. Overall, ecosystems of our study lakes were largely resilient to forest fires, likely due to their high initial nutrient concentrations and small catchment sizes. Moreover, this resilience spanned multiple trophic levels, a significant result for ecologically similar boreal regions, especially given the high potential for increased fires with future climate change.

Scale dependence of biotic homogenisation by urbanisation: a comparison of urban bird communities between central Argentina and northern Finland

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Leveau Lucas M.

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Recent studies showed contrasting results about the homogenising force of urbanisation on bird community composition at large and regional scales. We studied whether urbanisation promotes the homogenisation of wintering bird communities and if this varies when comparing towns located within a specific region and towns located in two different biomes of two countries. We used both similarity indices based on the presence/absence data and the abundance data in comparing communities. Processes governing bird community dissimilarity between urbanisation levels were examined with the partitioning of Sörensen index in species turnover and nestedness. We made bird surveys in town centres and suburban habitats of three cities located in the Pampean region of Argentina and in the boreal region of Finland using a single-visit study plot method. Rarefacted species richness did not differ amongst the town centres between the countries, but it was higher in the suburban areas of Argentina than in Finland. At the country-level comparison, we found a higher similarity amongst the town centres than amongst the suburban areas; whereas at the regional comparison, similarity between town centres was comparable to the similarity between suburban areas. The use of an abundance-based index produced a higher similarity between town centre communities of both countries than when using a presence-based index. The dissimilarity between habitats in Argentina was related to nestedness and to species turnover in Finland. Our results indicate that urban-based biotic homogenisation of bird communities is dependent on the scale used, being more evident when comparing cities of different biomes where the same and abundant bird species, such as sparrows and doves, dominate. At the regional scale, quite a high beta-diversity can still be found within urban habitats. Processes of community dissimilarity between urban habitats may differ according to the regional pool of species

Climate-Induced Boreal Forest Change: Predictions versus Current Observations

Science.gov (United States)

Soja, Amber J.; Tchebakova, Nadezda M.; French, Nancy H. F.; Flannigan, Michael D.; Shugart, Herman H.; Stocks, Brian J.; Sukhinin, Anatoly I.; Parfenova, E. I.; Chapin, F. Stuart, III; Stackhouse, Paul W., Jr.

2007-01-01

For about three decades, there have been many predictions of the potential ecological response in boreal regions to the currently warmer conditions. In essence, a widespread, naturally occurring experiment has been conducted over time. In this paper, we describe previously modeled predictions of ecological change in boreal Alaska, Canada and Russia, and then we investigate potential evidence of current climate-induced change. For instance, ecological models have suggested that warming will induce the northern and upslope migration of the treeline and an alteration in the current mosaic structure of boreal forests. We present evidence of the migration of keystone ecosystems in the upland and lowland treeline of mountainous regions across southern Siberia. Ecological models have also predicted a moisture-stress-related dieback in white spruce trees in Alaska, and current investigations show that as temperatures increase, white spruce tree growth is declining. Additionally, it was suggested that increases in infestation and wildfire disturbance would be catalysts that precipitate the alteration of the current mosaic forest composition. In Siberia, five of the last seven years have resulted in extreme fire seasons, and extreme fire years have also been more frequent in both Alaska and Canada. In addition, Alaska has experienced extreme and geographically expansive multi-year outbreaks of the spruce beetle, which had been previously limited by the cold, moist environment. We suggest that there is substantial evidence throughout the circumboreal region to conclude that the biosphere within the boreal terrestrial environment has already responded to the transient effects of climate change. Additionally, temperature increases and warming-induced change are progressing faster than had been predicted in some regions, suggesting a potential non-linear rapid response to changes in climate, as opposed to the predicted slow linear response to climate change.

Use of middle infrared radiation to estimate the leaf area index of a boreal forest

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Boyd, D.S. [Kingston Univ., Surrey (United Kingdom). Centre for Earth and Environmental Science Research, School of Geography; Wicks, T. E.; Curran, P.J. [Southampton Univ., Southampton, Hampshire (United Kingdom). Dept. of Geography

2000-06-01

Reflected radiation recorded by satellite sensors is a common procedure to estimate the leaf area index (LAI) of boreal forest. The normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), derived from measurements of visible and near infrared radiation were commonly used to estimate LAI. But research in tropical forest has shown that LAI is more closely related to radiation of middle infrared wavelengths than that of visible wavelengths. This research calculated a vegetation index (VI3) using radiation from vegetation recorded at near and middle infrared wavelengths. In the case of boreal forest, VI3 and LAI displayed a closer relationship than NDVI and LAI. Also, the use of VI3 explained approximately 76 per cent of the variation in field estimates of LAI, versus approximately 46 per cent for NDVI. The authors concluded that consideration should be given to information provided by middle infrared radiation to estimate the leaf area index of boreal forest. The research area was located in the Southern Study Area (SSA) of the BOReal Ecosystem-Atmospher Study (BOREAS), situated on the southern edge of the Canadian boreal forest, 40 km north of Prince Albert, Saskatchewan. 1 tab., 4 figs., 46 refs.

Winter climate controls soil carbon dynamics during summer in boreal forests

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Haei, Mahsa; Öquist, Mats G; Ilstedt, Ulrik; Laudon, Hjalmar; Kreyling, Juergen

2013-01-01

Boreal forests, characterized by distinct winter seasons, store a large proportion of the global terrestrial carbon (C) pool. We studied summer soil C-dynamics in a boreal forest in northern Sweden using a seven-year experimental manipulation of soil frost. We found that winter soil climate conditions play a major role in controlling the dissolution/mineralization of soil organic-C in the following summer season. Intensified soil frost led to significantly higher concentrations of dissolved organic carbon (DOC). Intensified soil frost also led to higher rates of basal heterotrophic CO 2 production in surface soil samples. However, frost-induced decline in the in situ soil CO 2 concentrations in summer suggests a substantial decline in root and/or plant associated rhizosphere CO 2 production, which overrides the effects of increased heterotrophic CO 2 production. Thus, colder winter soils, as a result of reduced snow cover, can substantially alter C-dynamics in boreal forests by reducing summer soil CO 2 efflux, and increasing DOC losses. (letter)

When Winners Become Losers: Predicted Nonlinear Responses of Arctic Birds to Increasing Woody Vegetation.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sarah J Thompson

Full Text Available Climate change is facilitating rapid changes in the composition and distribution of vegetation at northern latitudes, raising questions about the responses of wildlife that rely on arctic ecosystems. One widely observed change occurring in arctic tundra ecosystems is an increasing dominance of deciduous shrub vegetation. Our goals were to examine the tolerance of arctic-nesting bird species to existing gradients of vegetation along the boreal forest-tundra ecotone, to predict the abundance of species across different heights and densities of shrubs, and to identify species that will be most or least responsive to ongoing expansion of shrubs in tundra ecosystems. We conducted 1,208 point counts on 12 study blocks from 2012-2014 in northwestern Alaska, using repeated surveys to account for imperfect detection of birds. We considered the importance of shrub height, density of low and tall shrubs (i.e. shrubs >0.5 m tall, percent of ground cover attributed to shrubs (including dwarf shrubs <0.5 m tall, and percent of herbaceous plant cover in predicting bird abundance. Among 17 species considered, only gray-cheeked thrush (Catharus minimus abundance was associated with the highest values of all shrub metrics in its top predictive model. All other species either declined in abundance in response to one or more shrub metrics or reached a threshold where further increases in shrubs did not contribute to greater abundance. In many instances the relationship between avian abundance and shrubs was nonlinear, with predicted abundance peaking at moderate values of the covariate, then declining at high values. In particular, a large number of species were responsive to increasing values of average shrub height with six species having highest abundance at near-zero values of shrub height and abundance of four other species decreasing once heights reached moderate values (≤ 33 cm. Our findings suggest that increases in shrub cover and density will negatively

Black (pyrogenic carbon: a synthesis of current knowledge and uncertainties with special consideration of boreal regions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

C. M. Preston

2006-01-01

wildfires, and little direct information on rates and mechanisms for PyC loss. Structural characterization of charred biomass and forest floor from wildfires generally indicates a low level of thermal alteration, with the bulk of the material having H/C ratios still >0.2, and small aromatic cluster sizes. Especially for the more oxidation-resistant BC fraction, a variety of mainly circumstantial evidence suggests very slow decomposition, with turnover on a millennial timescale (in the order of 5–7 ky, also dependent on environmental conditions. However, there is also evidence that some PyC may be lost in only tens to hundreds of years due to a combination of lower thermal alteration and environmental protection. The potential for long-term PyC storage in soil may also be limited by its consumption by subsequent fires. Degraded, functionalized PyC is also incorporated into humified soil organic matter, and is transported eventually to marine sediments in dissolved and particulate form. Boreal production is estimated as 7–17 Tg BC y−1 of solid residues and 2–2.5 Tg BC y−1 as aerosols, compared to global estimates of 40–240 and 10–30 Tg BC y−1, respectively. Primary research needs include basic field data on PyC production and stocks in boreal forests and peatlands, suitable to support C budget modeling, and development of standardized analytical methods and of improved approaches to assess the chemical recalcitrance of typical chars from boreal wildfires. To accomplish these goals effectively will require much greater emphasis on interdisciplinary cooperation.

Management effect on bird and arthropod interaction in suburban woodlands

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-01

Background Experiments from a range of ecosystems have shown that insectivorous birds are important in controlling the populations of their invertebrate prey. Here, we report on a large field experiment testing the hypothesis that management for enhancing recreational values in suburban woodlands affects the intensity of bird predation on canopy-living arthropods. Bird exclosures were used in two types of management (understory clearance and dense understory) at two foraging heights in oak Quercus robur canopies and the experiment was replicated at two sites. Results The biomass and abundance of arthropods were high on net-enclosed branches but strongly reduced on control branches in both types of management. In woods with dense understory, the effect of bird predation on arthropod abundance was about twice as high as in woods with understory clearance. The effect of bird predation on arthropod biomass was not significantly affected by management. Conclusions Our data provide experimental evidence to support the idea that bird predation on arthropods can be affected by forest management. We suggest that the mechanism is twofold: reduction of bird abundance and shift of foraging behaviour. In urban woodlands, there may be a management trade-off between enhancing recreational values and promoting bird predation rates on arthropods. PMID:21362174

Birds of Sabaki Birds of Sabaki

African Journals Online (AJOL)

CJ

2005-02-25

Feb 25, 2005 ... covers approximately 250ha.The area encompassed by this study extends from Mambrui to the north, the sea to the east, the opposite bank of the estuary to the south and the Sabaki bridge and Malindi-Garsen road to the west. The area is defined as an Important Bird Area(IBA) by BirdLife International in ...

Temporal genomic evolution of bird sex chromosomes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wang, Zongji; Zhang, Jilin; Yang, Wei

2014-01-01

BACKGROUND: Sex chromosomes exhibit many unusual patterns in sequence and gene expression relative to autosomes. Birds have evolved a female heterogametic sex system (male ZZ, female ZW), through stepwise suppression of recombination between chrZ and chrW. To address the broad patterns and complex...... driving forces of Z chromosome evolution, we analyze here 45 newly available bird genomes and four species' transcriptomes, over their course of recombination loss between the sex chromosomes. RESULTS: We show Z chromosomes in general have a significantly higher substitution rate in introns and synonymous...... ('fast-Z' evolution). And species with a lower level of intronic heterozygosities tend to evolve even faster on the Z chromosome. Further analysis of fast-evolving genes' enriched functional categories and sex-biased expression patterns support that, fast-Z evolution in birds is mainly driven by genetic...

A nearly modern amphibious bird from the Early Cretaceous of northwestern China.

Science.gov (United States)

You, Hai-Lu; Lamanna, Matthew C; Harris, Jerald D; Chiappe, Luis M; O'connor, Jingmai; Ji, Shu-An; Lü, Jun-Chang; Yuan, Chong-Xi; Li, Da-Qing; Zhang, Xing; Lacovara, Kenneth J; Dodson, Peter; Ji, Qiang

2006-06-16

Three-dimensional specimens of the volant fossil bird Gansus yumenensis from the Early Cretaceous Xiagou Formation of northwestern China demonstrate that this taxon possesses advanced anatomical features previously known only in Late Cretaceous and Cenozoic ornithuran birds. Phylogenetic analysis recovers Gansus within the Ornithurae, making it the oldest known member of the clade. The Xiagou Formation preserves the oldest known ornithuromorph-dominated avian assemblage. The anatomy of Gansus, like that of other non-neornithean (nonmodern) ornithuran birds, indicates specialization for an amphibious life-style, supporting the hypothesis that modern birds originated in aquatic or littoral niches.

The pollination ecology of Hedysarum boreale Nutt. (Fabaceae) and evaluation of its pollinating bees for restoration seed production

Science.gov (United States)

Katharine A. Swoboda

2007-01-01

Federal land managers desire a consistent and cost-effective source of Hedysarum boreale Nutt. seed for rangeland restoration in the Great Basin and adjacent ecosystems. The breeding biology of H. boreale was assessed via hand pollination experiments at 2 sites in Cache County, Utah, USA in 2003. H. boreale was found to be self-compatible, but did not produce fruit and...

NPP Boreal Forest: Kuusamo, Finland, 1967-1971, R1

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — ABSTRACT: This data set contains three files (.txt format). One file provides stand characteristics, biomass, and production allocation data for an old-growth boreal...

NPP Boreal Forest: Kuusamo, Finland, 1967-1972, R1

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — This data set contains three files (.txt format). One file provides stand characteristics, biomass, and production allocation data for an old-growth boreal forest...

Survival rates of birds of tropical and temperate forests: will the dogma survive?

Science.gov (United States)

Karr, J.R.; Nichols, J.D.; Klimkiewicz, M.K.; Brawn, J.D.

1990-01-01

Survival rates of tropical forest birds are widely assumed to be high relative to the survival rates of temperate forest birds. Much life-history theory is based on this assumption despite the lack of empirical data to support it. We provide the first detailed comparison of survival rates of tropical and temperate forest birds based on extensive data bases and modern capture-recapture models. We find no support for the conventional wisdom. Because clutch size is only one component of reproductive rate, the frequently assumed, simple association between clutch size and adult survival rates should not necessarily be expected. Our results emphasize the need to consider components of fecundity in addition to clutch size when comparing the life histories of tropical and temperate birds and suggest similar considerations in the development of vertebrate life-history theory.

Recent Changes to the Strength of the CO2 Sink in Boreal Land Regions (Invited)

Science.gov (United States)

Hayes, D. J.; McGuire, A. D.; Kicklighter, D. W.; Gurney, K. R.; Melillo, J. M.

2009-12-01

Studies suggest that high-latitude terrestrial ecosystems have had a significant influence on the global carbon budget by acting as a substantial sink of atmospheric CO2 over the latter part of the 20th Century. However, recent changes in the controlling factors of this sink, including surface air temperature warming and increases in the frequency and severity of disturbances, have the potential to alter the C balance of boreal land regions. Whether these ecosystems continue to sequester atmospheric CO2 in the face of these changes is a key question in global change science and policy, as any changes to the strength of this major terrestrial sink will have important implications for the global C budget and climate system. Here, we diagnose and attribute contemporary terrestrial CO2 sink strength in the boreal land regions using a biogeochemical process model within a simulation framework that incorporates the impacts of recent changes in atmospheric chemistry and climate variability, as well as fire, forest management and agricultural land use regimes. The simulations estimate that the boreal land regions acted as a net sink of 102 TgC yr-1 from 1960 to 1980 that declined in strength to 28 TgC yr-1 for the 1990s and switched to a source of 99 TgC yr-1 from years 2000 to 2006. The weakening sink strength in the 1990s was largely a result of C losses from Boreal North American tundra and forest ecosystems through increasing decomposition of soil organic matter in response to warmer temperatures. Compared to previous decades, a near doubling of fire emissions was the major factor causing the boreal land regions to switch to a net C source since 2000 when large burn years occurred across the region, particularly in forests of Boreal Asia. A steady sink averaging 23 TgC yr-1 was estimated for Boreal European ecosystems from 1960 to 2006, with the ‘fertilization’ effects of increasing atmospheric CO2 concentration and N deposition primarily responsible for the

A new empirical method to predict carbon dioxide evasion from boreal lakes

Science.gov (United States)

Hastie, Adam; Lauerwald, Ronny; Weyhenmeyer, Gesa; Sobek, Sebastian; Regnier, Pierre

2016-04-01

Carbon dioxide evasion from lakes (F CO2) is an important component of the global carbon budget. In this study, empirical models have been developed to predict CO2 partial pressure (pCO2) in boreal lakes at the 0.5° grid scale, with the aim of producing the first map of F CO2 from these high latitude aquatic systems. Approximately 57,000 samples of lake pCO2 from Sweden and Finland were used to train the models. Significant seasonality in pCO2 was identified and thus data were split into two categories based on water temperature; 0-4.5° C and >4.5° C. The lake pCO2 data and various globally available, environmental parameters such as elevation, terrestrial net primary production (NPP) and climate (temperature T, rainfall R) were spatially aggregated to a 0.5° resolution. Preliminary results from multiple regression analyses suggest that a significant proportion of the variability in boreal lake pCO2 can be explained using these globally available parameters. For water temperatures above 4.5° C, the explained proportion of the variability in lake pCO2 is particularly high (r2= 0.7). Following further refinement and validation, a map of estimated lake pCO2 for the entire boreal region will be established. This map will then be combined with lake surface area data from the GLObal WAter BOdies database (GLOWABO, Verpoorter et al., 2014), and a calculation of gas exchange velocity k to produce the first map of boreal lake F CO2. Finally, IPCC projections of the selected environmental predictors (T, NPP, and R) will be used to estimate future F CO2 from boreal lakes and their sensitivity to climate change.

Carbonaceous aerosols from prescribed burning of a boreal forest ecosystem

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mazurek, M.A.; Cofer, W.R. III; Levine, J.S.

1991-01-01

Smoke aerosol and background aerosol particles were collected from the controlled burning of boreal forest where vegetation species and relative mass distributions are known. Chemical mass balances were constructed for the total mass of carbonaceous aerosol particles emitted during the prescribed burn. In addition, a carbonaceous species inventory was developed for aerosol particles presnt under background, smoldering, and full-fire conditions; the production of organic carbon and elemental carbon particles is noted for these two fire regimes. Distributions of the solvent-soluble organic components of the sampled aerosols were generated to identify molecular properties that can be traced to unburned and pyrolyzed materials present in the boreal forest fuels

Birds and music

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

L Amini

2009-03-01

Through research in old mythological narrations, and literary texts, one could assume an intrinsic relationship between music and such sweet-singing mythological birds as phoenix, sphinx, Song-song, holy birds like Kership-tah, and other birds including swan and ring dove.

Nesting ecology of Townsend's warblers in relation to habitat characteristics in a mature boreal forest

Science.gov (United States)

Matsuoka, S.M.; Handel, Colleen M.; Roby, D.D.

1997-01-01

We investigated the nesting ecology of Townsend's Warblers (Dendroica townsendi) from 1993-1995 in an unfragmented boreal forest along the lower slopes of the Chugach Mountains in southcentral Alaska. We examined habitat characteristics of nest sites in relation to factors influencing reproductive success. Almost all territory-holding males (98%, n = 40) were successful in acquiring mates. Nest success was 54% (n = 24 nests), with nest survivorship greater during incubation (87%) than during the nestling period (62%). Most nesting failure (80%) was attributable to predation, which occurred primarily during the nestling period. Fifty-five percent of nests containing nestling were infested with the larvae of bird blow-flies (Protocalliphora braueri and P. spenceri), obligatory blood-feeding parasites. The combined effects of Protocalliphora infestation and inclement weather apparently resulted in nestling mortality in 4 of the 24 nests. Nests that escaped predation were placed in white spruce with larger diameter than those lost to predation: nests that escaped blow-fly parasitism were located higher in nest trees and in areas with lower densities of woody shrubs than those that were infested. The availability of potential nest sites with these key features may be important in determining reproductive success in Townsend's Warblers.

Effects of land use on bird populations and pest control services on coffee farms.

Science.gov (United States)

Railsback, Steven F; Johnson, Matthew D

2014-04-22

Global increases in both agriculture and biodiversity awareness raise a key question: Should cropland and biodiversity habitat be separated, or integrated in mixed land uses? Ecosystem services by wildlife make this question more complex. For example, birds benefit agriculture by preying on pest insects, but other habitat is needed to maintain the birds. Resulting land use questions include what areas and arrangements of habitat support sufficient birds to control pests, whether this pest control offsets the reduced cropland, and the comparative benefits of "land sharing" (i.e., mixed cropland and habitat) vs. "land sparing" (i.e., separate areas of intensive agriculture and habitat). Such questions are difficult to answer using field studies alone, so we use a simulation model of Jamaican coffee farms, where songbirds suppress the coffee berry borer (CBB). Simulated birds select habitat and prey in five habitat types: intact forest, trees (including forest fragments), shade coffee, sun coffee, and unsuitable habitat. The trees habitat type appears to be especially important, providing efficient foraging and roosting sites near coffee plots. Small areas of trees (but not forest alone) could support a sufficient number of birds to suppress CBB in sun coffee; the degree to which trees are dispersed within coffee had little effect. In simulations without trees, shade coffee supported sufficient birds to offset its lower yield. High areas of both trees and shade coffee reduced pest control because CBB was less often profitable prey. Because of the pest control service provided by birds, land sharing was predicted to be more beneficial than land sparing in this system.

Northwest Boreal Landscape Conservation Cooperative strategic plan 2015 - 2025

Science.gov (United States)

Markon, Carl; Schroff, Eric

2016-01-01

The Northwest Boreal Landscape Conservation Cooperative (NWB LCC) is a voluntary, diverse, self-directed management-science partnership, informing and promoting integrated science, sustainable natural and cultural resource management, and conservation to address impacts of climate change and other stressors within and across ecosystems. The NWB LCC area includes parts of Alaska, Yukon, Northwest Territories, and British Columbia. Our partnership reflects both the broad geographic scope and an extensive array of active and engaged participants including resource management organizations, government representatives, policy makers, Tribes and First Nations, industry leaders, researchers, non-governmental organizations, and research/education institutions. Bringing together diverse partners will help assure the northwest boreal is a functioning, sustainable landscape. We live in an era of profound conservation challenges, including the loss and fragmentation of habitats, genetic isolation, invasive species, and unnatural wildfire. The effects of rapidly changing climate are already evident on the landscape. In these circumstances, it is imperative that natural resource management agencies, science providers, Tribes, First Nations, conservation organizations, and other stakeholders work together to understand the drivers and impacts of landscape change and to determine how best to address those challenges. Further, it is essential that the public and communities receive clear communication about the vision and activities of the NWB LCC. Open public access to NWB LCC activities and products will promote acceptance and support of the science that guides potential changes in management action and conservation strategy. This strategic plan provides a great opportunity for the NWB LCC to share our approach and intentions to the LCC members, collaborators, communities, and the public at large.

Timing of plant phenophases since 1752 in the boreal forest environment

Science.gov (United States)

Kubin, Eero; Tolvanen, Anne; Karhu, Jouni; Valkama, Jari

2016-04-01

Global warming and climate change will significantly affect on forest environment in northern latitudes. There is the strong evidence that increase of early spring and late autumn temperatures will have impacts on growth and growth cycles. In Finland the Finnish Forest Research Institute (Luke since 2015) established in 1996 National Phenological Network to study changes of phenophases all over the country representing southern, middle and northern boreal forest zones. Continuous detailed scientific monitoring includes eleven forest plant species and it forms an excellent basis to evaluate responses of forest vegetation in respect to climate change. Monitoring is done together with Universities and other Institutes. Prior to the establishment of the Finnish National Phenological Network observations has been made solely based on volunteers since 1752. This citizen-science data is very important to analyze phenophases together with the results of the National Network. The long-term data since 1752 shows e.g. an advancement in the onset of Prunus padus flowering by five days per 100 years and correspondingly three days in the rowan (Sorbus aucuparia). The latest results of the Finnish National Network (1996 - 2014) fits well to this long term trend. In the Finnish National Phenological Network we have monitored phenophases of forest spieces throughout the growth period, focusing on nine forest tree species and two dwarf shrubs. The results can be followed in real time at: http://www.metla.fi/metinfo/fenologia/index-en.htm. We have observed big differences in phenophases between southern and northern boreal zone. Onset of downy birch leafing happens one month later in the north compared with southern boreal zone. Coming into leaf has clearly occurred earlier during the research period since 1996 in the northern boreal zone compared with southern boreal zone. This indicates the response of climate change. The timing of leaf colouring and leaf fall was observed remained

Changes in Arctic and Boreal ecosystems of North America: Integrating Recent Results from the Field, Remote Sensing and Ecosystem Models

Science.gov (United States)

Goetz, S. J.; Rogers, B. M.; Mack, M. C.; Goulden, M.; Pastick, N. J.; Berner, L. T.; Fisher, J.

2017-12-01

The Arctic and boreal forest biomes have global significance in terms of climate feedbacks associated with land surface interactions with the atmosphere. Changes in Arctic tundra and boreal forest ecosystem productivity and fire disturbance feedbacks have been well documented in recent years, but findings are often only locally relevant and are sometimes inconsistent among research teams. Part of these inconsistencies lie in utilization of different data sets and time periods considered. Integrated approaches are thus needed to adequately address changes in these ecosystems in order to assess consistency and variability of change, as well as ecosystem vulnerability and resiliency across spatial and temporal scales. Ultimately this can best be accomplished via multiple lines of evidence including remote sensing, field measurements and various types of data-constrained models. We will discuss some recent results integrating multiple lines of evidence for directional ecosystem change in the Arctic and boreal forest biomes of North America. There is increasing evidence for widespread spatial and temporal variability in Arctic and boreal ecosystem productivity changes that are strongly influenced by cycles of changing fire disturbance severity and its longer-term implications (i.e legacy effects). Integrated, multi-approach research, like that currently underway as part of the NASA-led Arctic Boreal Vulnerability Experiment (above.nasa.gov), is an effective way to capture the complex mechanisms that drive patterns and directionality of ecosystem structure and function, and ultimately determine feedbacks to environmental change, particularly in the context of global climate change. Additional ongoing ABoVE research will improve our understanding of the consequences of environmental changes underway, as well as increase our confidence in making projections of the ecosystem responses, vulnerability and resilience to change. ABoVE will also build a lasting legacy of

Iowa Breed Bird Atlas 2, 2008-2012

Data.gov (United States)

Iowa State University GIS Support and Research Facility — These are the locations of Iowa's Second Breeding Bird Atlas. Blocks are 3 by 3 miles in size. Some of the blocks are the same as those surveyed in the first BBA,...

The effect of wind turbines on the bird population at Blyth Harbour

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Still, D.; Little, B.; Lawrence, S.

1996-01-01

Bird monitoring was carried out at Blyth Harbour Wind Farm which consists of a line of nine 300kW wind turbines distributed at 200m intervals along a 1.2km breakwater. The harbour breakwater is designated as part of a Site of Special Scientific Interest as it supports an internationally important winter population of Purple Sandpipers. The Blyth estuary is to be designated as part of a Special Protection Area under the EC Habitats Directive and as part of a proposed RAMSAR site due to its peak periods up to c.5000 bird movements/day occur adjacent to the windfarm. Mortality surveys (at one week intervals) were carried out on adjacent beaches to the wind farm in order to assess the background numbers of bird corpses and locate wind farm casualties. Supplementary mortality searches were carried out near power lines less than 2.5 km upstream from the wind farm. Tests of the efficiency of the mortality surveys have been carried out in order to assess the likely impact on the local bird populations. In spite of the large bird population supported by the harbour and its close proximity to the wind farm there have been relatively few collision victims (31) since the windfarm was commissioned. This is equivalent to less than 1.34 bird strike/wind turbine per annum. (author)

Vulnerability to climate-induced changes in ecosystem services of boreal forests

Science.gov (United States)

Holmberg, Maria; Rankinen, Katri; Aalto, Tuula; Akujärvi, Anu; Nadir Arslan, Ali; Liski, Jari; Markkanen, Tiina; Mäkelä, Annikki; Peltoniemi, Mikko

2016-04-01

Boreal forests provide an array of ecosystem services. They regulate climate, and carbon, water and nutrient fluxes, and provide renewable raw material, food, and recreational possibilities. Rapid climate warming is projected for the boreal zone, and has already been observed in Finland, which sets these services at risk. MONIMET (LIFE12 ENV/FI/000409, 2.9.2013 - 1.9.2017) is a project funded by EU Life programme about Climate Change Indicators and Vulnerability of Boreal Zone Applying Innovative Observation and Modeling Techniques. The coordinating beneficiary of the project is the Finnish Meteorological Institute. Associated beneficiaries are the Natural Resources Institute Finland, the Finnish Environment Institute and the University of Helsinki. In the MONIMET project, we use state-of-the-art models and new monitoring methods to investigate the impacts of a warming climate on the provision of ecosystem services of boreal forests. This poster presents results on carbon storage in soil and assessment of drought indices, as a preparation for assessing the vulnerability of society to climate-induced changes in ecosystem services. The risk of decreasing provision of ecosystem services depends on the sensitivity of the ecosystem as well as its exposure to climate stress. The vulnerability of society, in turn, depends on the risk of decreasing provision of a certain service in combination with society's demand for that service. In the next phase, we will look for solutions to challenges relating to the quantification of the demand for ecosystem services and differences in spatial extent and resolution of the information on future supply and demand.

Effects of wind turbines on upland nesting birds in Conservation Reserve Program grasslands

Science.gov (United States)

Leddy, K.L.; Higgins, K.F.; Naugle, D.E.

1999-01-01

Grassland passerines were surveyed during summer 1995 on the Buffalo Ridge Wind Resource Area in southwestern Minnesota to determine the relative influence of wind turbines on overall densities of upland nesting birds in Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) grasslands. Birds were surveyed along 40 m fixed width transects that were placed along wind turbine strings within three CRP fields and in three CRP fields without turbines. Conservation Reserve Program grasslands without turbines and areas located 180 m from turbines supported higher densities (261.0-312.5 males/100 ha) of grassland birds than areas within 80 m of turbines (58.2-128.0 males/100 ha). Human disturbance, turbine noise, and physical movements of turbines during operation may have disturbed nesting birds. We recommend that wind turbines be placed within cropland habitats that support lower densities of grassland passerines than those found in CRP grasslands.

Chapter 8. Current management situation: Boreal owls

Science.gov (United States)

Jon Verner

1994-01-01

The range of boreal owls (Aegolius funereus) in the United States includes Alaska, the mountains of the western United States, and the northern tier states from the Atlantic to Pacific (see Chapter 9). Based on the species' documented distribution (see National Geographic Society 1987, Hayward et al. 1987, Johnsgard 1988, and others) the owl may...

76 FR 32224 - Migratory Birds; Take of Migratory Birds by the Armed Forces

Science.gov (United States)

2011-06-03

... DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Fish and Wildlife Service Migratory Birds; Take of Migratory Birds by... Forces to incidentally take migratory birds during approved military readiness activities without violating the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA). The Authorization Act provided this interim authority to...

Effects of high latitude protected areas on bird communities under rapid climate change.

Science.gov (United States)

Santangeli, Andrea; Rajasärkkä, Ari; Lehikoinen, Aleksi

2017-06-01

Anthropogenic climate change is rapidly becoming one of the main threats to biodiversity, along with other threats triggered by human-driven land-use change. Species are already responding to climate change by shifting their distributions polewards. This shift may create a spatial mismatch between dynamic species distributions and static protected areas (PAs). As protected areas represent one of the main pillars for preserving biodiversity today and in the future, it is important to assess their contribution in sheltering the biodiversity communities, they were designated to protect. A recent development to investigate climate-driven impacts on biological communities is represented by the community temperature index (CTI). CTI provides a measure of the relative temperature average of a community in a specific assemblage. CTI value will be higher for assemblages dominated by warm species compared with those dominated by cold-dwelling species. We here model changes in the CTI of Finnish bird assemblages, as well as changes in species densities, within and outside of PAs during the past four decades in a large boreal landscape under rapid change. We show that CTI has markedly increased over time across Finland, with this change being similar within and outside PAs and five to seven times slower than the temperature increase. Moreover, CTI has been constantly lower within than outside of PAs, and PAs still support communities, which show colder thermal index than those outside of PAs in the 1970s and 1980s. This result can be explained by the higher relative density of northern species within PAs than outside. Overall, our results provide some, albeit inconclusive, evidence that PAs may play a role in supporting the community of northern species. Results also suggest that communities are, however, shifting rapidly, both inside and outside of PAs, highlighting the need for adjusting conservation measures before it is too late. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Atmospheric deposition, retention, and stream export of dioxins and PCBs in a pristine boreal catchment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bergknut, Magnus; Laudon, Hjalmar; Jansson, Stina; Larsson, Anna; Gocht, Tilman; Wiberg, Karin

2011-01-01

The mass-balance between diffuse atmospheric deposition of organic pollutants, amount of pollutants retained by the terrestrial environment, and levels of pollutants released to surface stream waters was studied in a pristine northern boreal catchment. This was done by comparing the input of atmospheric deposition of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and furans (PCDD/Fs) and PCBs with the amounts exported to surface waters. Two types of deposition samplers were used, equipped with a glass fibre thimble and an Amberlite sampler respectively. The measured fluxes showed clear seasonality, with most of the input and export occurring during winter and spring flood, respectively. The mass balance calculations indicates that the boreal landscape is an effective sink for PCDD/Fs and PCBs, as 96.0-99.9 % of received bulk deposition was retained, suggesting that organic pollutants will continue to impact stream water in the region for an extended period of time. - Graphical abstract: Display Omitted Highlights: → The fluxes of organic pollutants in a pristine boreal catchment were measured. → Most of the input and export occurred during winter and spring flood. → 96.0-99.9% of received bulk deposition was retained by the landscape. → Organic pollutants will impact boreal stream waters for an extended period of time. - The boreal landscape is effective in retaining diffuse atmospheric deposition of dioxins and PCBs, slowly releasing these pollutants into nearby streams.

Quantification of bird-to-bird and bird-to-human infections during 2013 novel H7N9 avian influenza outbreak in China.

Science.gov (United States)

Hsieh, Ying-Hen; Wu, Jianhong; Fang, Jian; Yang, Yong; Lou, Jie

2014-01-01

From February to May, 2013, 132 human avian influenza H7N9 cases were identified in China resulting in 37 deaths. We developed a novel, simple and effective compartmental modeling framework for transmissions among (wild and domestic) birds as well as from birds to human, to infer important epidemiological quantifiers, such as basic reproduction number for bird epidemic, bird-to-human infection rate and turning points of the epidemics, for the epidemic via human H7N9 case onset data and to acquire useful information regarding the bird-to-human transmission dynamics. Estimated basic reproduction number for infections among birds is 4.10 and the mean daily number of human infections per infected bird is 3.16*10-5 [3.08*10-5, 3.23*10-5]. The turning point of 2013 H7N9 epidemic is pinpointed at April 16 for bird infections and at April 9 for bird-to-human transmissions. Our result reveals very low level of bird-to-human infections, thus indicating minimal risk of widespread bird-to-human infections of H7N9 virus during the outbreak. Moreover, the turning point of the human epidemic, pinpointed at shortly after the implementation of full-scale control and intervention measures initiated in early April, further highlights the impact of timely actions on ending the outbreak. This is the first study where both the bird and human components of an avian influenza epidemic can be quantified using only the human case data.

Differentiating moss from higher plants is critical in studying the carbon cycle of the boreal biome.

Science.gov (United States)

Yuan, Wenping; Liu, Shuguang; Dong, Wenjie; Liang, Shunlin; Zhao, Shuqing; Chen, Jingming; Xu, Wenfang; Li, Xianglan; Barr, Alan; Andrew Black, T; Yan, Wende; Goulden, Mike L; Kulmala, Liisa; Lindroth, Anders; Margolis, Hank A; Matsuura, Yojiro; Moors, Eddy; van der Molen, Michiel; Ohta, Takeshi; Pilegaard, Kim; Varlagin, Andrej; Vesala, Timo

2014-06-26

The satellite-derived normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), which is used for estimating gross primary production (GPP), often includes contributions from both mosses and vascular plants in boreal ecosystems. For the same NDVI, moss can generate only about one-third of the GPP that vascular plants can because of its much lower photosynthetic capacity. Here, based on eddy covariance measurements, we show that the difference in photosynthetic capacity between these two plant functional types has never been explicitly included when estimating regional GPP in the boreal region, resulting in a substantial overestimation. The magnitude of this overestimation could have important implications regarding a change from a current carbon sink to a carbon source in the boreal region. Moss abundance, associated with ecosystem disturbances, needs to be mapped and incorporated into GPP estimates in order to adequately assess the role of the boreal region in the global carbon cycle.

Differentiating moss from higher plants is critical in studying the carbon cycle of the boreal biome

Science.gov (United States)

Yuan, Wenping; Liu, Shuguang; Dong, Wenjie; Liang, Shunlin; Zhao, Shuqing; Chen, Jingming; Xu, Wenfang; Li, Xianglan; Barr, Alan; Black, T. Andrew; Yan, Wende; Goulden, Michael; Kulmala, Liisa; Lindroth, Anders; Margolis, Hank A.; Matsuura, Yojiro; Moors, Eddy; van der Molen, Michiel; Ohta, Takeshi; Pilegaard, Kim; Varlagin, Andrej; Vesala, Timo

2014-01-01

The satellite-derived normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), which is used for estimating gross primary production (GPP), often includes contributions from both mosses and vascular plants in boreal ecosystems. For the same NDVI, moss can generate only about one-third of the GPP that vascular plants can because of its much lower photosynthetic capacity. Here, based on eddy covariance measurements, we show that the difference in photosynthetic capacity between these two plant functional types has never been explicitly included when estimating regional GPP in the boreal region, resulting in a substantial overestimation. The magnitude of this overestimation could have important implications regarding a change from a current carbon sink to a carbon source in the boreal region. Moss abundance, associated with ecosystem disturbances, needs to be mapped and incorporated into GPP estimates in order to adequately assess the role of the boreal region in the global carbon cycle.

Who is the new sheriff in town regulating boreal forest growth?

Science.gov (United States)

Park Williams, A.; Xu, Chonggang; McDowell, Nate G.

2011-12-01

the wettest 20 sites (green line), 19 sites with intermediate annual precipitation (black line) and the driest 20 sites (brown line). Error bars in (a)-(c) are standard errors. Perhaps an even bigger mystery is what the future has in store at the cold ecotone where boreal forest gives way to arctic tundra. Just as for warmer sites, there tends to be a temperature threshold at cold and intermediate sites, above which further warming no longer positively influences growth rate (figures 1(a) and (b)). Rather than reverse sign once this threshold is surpassed, growth-temperature relationships at cold and intermediate sites tend to simply disappear or at least diminish. This is because metabolic rates are slow in the cold, but are optimal under moderately warmer conditions (Tjoelker et al 2009). As temperature increases into a range of variability that no longer limits metabolic rate, a host of other climatic and soil-related factors can limit or promote growth and seedling recruitment. At some cool treeline sites, rapidly rising temperatures may have already surpassed the level that supports optimal growth, as negative relationships have emerged between temperature and growth rate in most decades (McGuire et al 2010). In a recent contribution to this important body of research, Andreu-Hayles et al (2011) studied growth-temperature relations within a white spruce population growing at the northern treeline in Alaska. Consistent with observations elsewhere in boreal forests, Andreu-Hayles et al discovered that a positive and significant relationship between ring widths and June-July temperature during 1901-1950 disappeared during 1951-2000. Interestingly, ring widths and temperature both increased throughout the 20th century at this treeline site, in contrast to recent trends at many other sites in Alaska where warming is outpacing ring widths (e.g., D'Arrigo et al 2008). At the site studied by Andreu-Hayles et al, it seems recent warming has caused a release of white

Sensitivity of Coastal Environments and Wildlife to Spilled Oil: South Florida: BIRDS (Bird Polygons)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This data set contains sensitive biological resource data for diving birds, gulls, terns, passerine birds, pelagic birds, raptors, shorebirds, wading birds, and...

Sensitivity of Coastal Environments and Wildlife to Spilled Oil: Central California: BIRDS (Bird Polygons)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This data set contains sensitive biological resource data for alcids, diving birds, gulls, terns, passerine birds, pelagic birds, raptors, shorebirds, wading birds,...

Spatially explicit estimation of aboveground boreal forest biomass in the Yukon River Basin, Alaska

Science.gov (United States)

Ji, Lei; Wylie, Bruce K.; Brown, Dana R. N.; Peterson, Birgit E.; Alexander, Heather D.; Mack, Michelle C.; Rover, Jennifer R.; Waldrop, Mark P.; McFarland, Jack W.; Chen, Xuexia; Pastick, Neal J.

2015-01-01

Quantification of aboveground biomass (AGB) in Alaska’s boreal forest is essential to the accurate evaluation of terrestrial carbon stocks and dynamics in northern high-latitude ecosystems. Our goal was to map AGB at 30 m resolution for the boreal forest in the Yukon River Basin of Alaska using Landsat data and ground measurements. We acquired Landsat images to generate a 3-year (2008–2010) composite of top-of-atmosphere reflectance for six bands as well as the brightness temperature (BT). We constructed a multiple regression model using field-observed AGB and Landsat-derived reflectance, BT, and vegetation indices. A basin-wide boreal forest AGB map at 30 m resolution was generated by applying the regression model to the Landsat composite. The fivefold cross-validation with field measurements had a mean absolute error (MAE) of 25.7 Mg ha−1 (relative MAE 47.5%) and a mean bias error (MBE) of 4.3 Mg ha−1(relative MBE 7.9%). The boreal forest AGB product was compared with lidar-based vegetation height data; the comparison indicated that there was a significant correlation between the two data sets.

Ecosystem Responses to Partial Harvesting in Eastern Boreal Mixedwood Stands

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Brian D. Harvey

2013-05-01

Full Text Available Partial harvesting has been proposed as a key aspect to implementing ecosystem management in the Canadian boreal forest. We report on a replicated experiment located in boreal mixedwoods of Northwestern Quebec. In the winter of 2000–2001, two partial harvesting treatments, one using a dispersed pattern, and a second, which created a (400 m2 gap pattern, were applied to a 90-year-old aspen-dominated mixed stand. The design also included a clear cut and a control. Over the course of the following eight years, live tree, coarse woody debris, regeneration and ground beetles were inventoried at variable intervals. Our results indicate that all harvesting treatments created conditions favorable to balsam fir (Abies balsamea sapling growth and trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides sapling recruitment. However, balsam fir and trembling aspen regeneration and ground beetles response to gap cuts were closer to patterns observed in clear cuts than in dispersed harvesting. The underlying reasons for these differing patterns can be linked to factors associated with the contrasting light regimes created by the two partial harvesting treatments. The study confirms that partially harvesting is an ecologically sound approach in boreal mixedwoods and could contribute to maintaining the distribution of stand ages at the landscape level.

Influence of restored koa in supporting bird communities

Science.gov (United States)

Camp, Richard J.; Paxton, Eben H.; Yelenik, Stephanie G.

2017-01-01

Deforestation of Hawaiian forests has adversely impacted native wildlife, including forest birds, bats and arthropods. Restoration activities have included reforestation with the native koa (Acacia koa), a dominant canopy tree species that is easy to propagate, has high survivorship, and has fast growth rates. We review recent research describing the ecological benefits of koa restoration on wildlife colonization/use, plant dispersal, and native plant recruitment. In general, planting monotypic koa stands can provide forest habitats for species that need them but does not automatically lead to natural regeneration of a diverse forest species assemblage and may require additional restoration activities such as outplanting of other native plants and alien grass control to achieve more natural forest systems. Although early signs of forest and wildlife recovery have been encouraging, the goals of restoration for wildlife conservation versus commercial grade harvesting require different restoration methods.

Screamy Bird

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Tarby, Sara; Cermak, Daniel

2016-01-01

Sara Tarby, Daniel Cermak-Sassenrath. Screamy Bird. Digital game. Kulturnatten 2016, Danish Science Ministry, Copenhagen, DK, Oct 14, 2016.......Sara Tarby, Daniel Cermak-Sassenrath. Screamy Bird. Digital game. Kulturnatten 2016, Danish Science Ministry, Copenhagen, DK, Oct 14, 2016....

Post-breeding migration and connectivity of red knots in the Western Atlantic

Science.gov (United States)

Lyons, James E.; Winn, Bradford; Keyes, Timothy; Kalasz, Kevin S.

2018-01-01

Red knots (Calidris canutus rufa) have 3 distinct nonbreeding regions: 1 in the southeastern United States and Caribbean, another on the northeast coast of Brazil in the Maranhão region, and a third along the Patagonian coasts of Chile and Argentina. Effective conservation and recovery of this threatened long-distance migrant will require knowledge of population structure, migration ecology, and abundance and distribution throughout the annual cycle. We conducted a stopover population and biogeographic assessment of knots at the Altamaha River Delta, Georgia, an important stopover area in the southeastern United States. We estimated stopover population size and stopover duration during post-breeding migration in 2011 at the Altamaha study area using mark-resight data, and we inferred nonbreeding regions for this stopover population using stable isotope ratios of carbon and nitrogen in feathers, and observations (sightings and captures) during boreal winter from across the hemisphere. With an integrated Bayesian analysis of all these data, we also estimated the number of birds in the southeastern United States and northern Brazil during boreal winter. For mark-resight analyses in Georgia, we made observations of marked individuals during 14 weeks from early August to early November 2011 and detected 814 individually marked birds. We used the Jolly-Seber mark-recapture model and estimated the southbound passage population at approximately 23,400 red knots. In ongoing studies elsewhere, isotope samples were collected from 175 (21%) of the 814 birds detected in our study, and ≥1 sighting or capture record during boreal winter was located in data repositories for 659 birds (81%). Isotopic signatures and boreal winter records indicate that the majority (82–96%) of the birds that stopped at the Altamaha Delta spend the boreal winter in the northern part of the nonbreeding range (southeast USA, Caribbean, and northern Brazil). Knots migrating to the southeastern

Remote Sensing Techniques in Monitoring Post-Fire Effects and Patterns of Forest Recovery in Boreal Forest Regions: A Review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Thuan Chu

2013-12-01

Full Text Available The frequency and severity of forest fires, coupled with changes in spatial and temporal precipitation and temperature patterns, are likely to severely affect the characteristics of forest and permafrost patterns in boreal eco-regions. Forest fires, however, are also an ecological factor in how forest ecosystems form and function, as they affect the rate and characteristics of tree recruitment. A better understanding of fire regimes and forest recovery patterns in different environmental and climatic conditions will improve the management of sustainable forests by facilitating the process of forest resilience. Remote sensing has been identified as an effective tool for preventing and monitoring forest fires, as well as being a potential tool for understanding how forest ecosystems respond to them. However, a number of challenges remain before remote sensing practitioners will be able to better understand the effects of forest fires and how vegetation responds afterward. This article attempts to provide a comprehensive review of current research with respect to remotely sensed data and methods used to model post-fire effects and forest recovery patterns in boreal forest regions. The review reveals that remote sensing-based monitoring of post-fire effects and forest recovery patterns in boreal forest regions is not only limited by the gaps in both field data and remotely sensed data, but also the complexity of far-northern fire regimes, climatic conditions and environmental conditions. We expect that the integration of different remotely sensed data coupled with field campaigns can provide an important data source to support the monitoring of post-fire effects and forest recovery patterns. Additionally, the variation and stratification of pre- and post-fire vegetation and environmental conditions should be considered to achieve a reasonable, operational model for monitoring post-fire effects and forest patterns in boreal regions.

Effects of land use on bird populations and pest control services on coffee farms

Science.gov (United States)

Railsback, Steven F.; Johnson, Matthew D.

2014-01-01

Global increases in both agriculture and biodiversity awareness raise a key question: Should cropland and biodiversity habitat be separated, or integrated in mixed land uses? Ecosystem services by wildlife make this question more complex. For example, birds benefit agriculture by preying on pest insects, but other habitat is needed to maintain the birds. Resulting land use questions include what areas and arrangements of habitat support sufficient birds to control pests, whether this pest control offsets the reduced cropland, and the comparative benefits of “land sharing” (i.e., mixed cropland and habitat) vs. “land sparing” (i.e., separate areas of intensive agriculture and habitat). Such questions are difficult to answer using field studies alone, so we use a simulation model of Jamaican coffee farms, where songbirds suppress the coffee berry borer (CBB). Simulated birds select habitat and prey in five habitat types: intact forest, trees (including forest fragments), shade coffee, sun coffee, and unsuitable habitat. The trees habitat type appears to be especially important, providing efficient foraging and roosting sites near coffee plots. Small areas of trees (but not forest alone) could support a sufficient number of birds to suppress CBB in sun coffee; the degree to which trees are dispersed within coffee had little effect. In simulations without trees, shade coffee supported sufficient birds to offset its lower yield. High areas of both trees and shade coffee reduced pest control because CBB was less often profitable prey. Because of the pest control service provided by birds, land sharing was predicted to be more beneficial than land sparing in this system. PMID:24711377

Birds and Bird Habitat: What Are the Risks from Industrial Wind Turbine Exposure?

Science.gov (United States)

Sprague, Terry; Harrington, M. Elizabeth; Krogh, Carmen M. E.

2011-01-01

Bird kill rate and disruption of habitat has been reported when industrial wind turbines are introduced into migratory bird paths or other environments. While the literature could be more complete regarding the documentation of negative effects on birds and bird habitats during the planning, construction, and operation of wind power projects,…

Avian Influenza in wild birds from Chile, 2007-2009.

Science.gov (United States)

Mathieu, Christian; Moreno, Valentina; Pedersen, Janice; Jeria, Julissa; Agredo, Michel; Gutiérrez, Cristian; García, Alfonso; Vásquez, Marcela; Avalos, Patricia; Retamal, Patricio

2015-03-02

Aquatic and migratory birds, the main reservoir hosts of avian influenza viruses including those with high pathogenic potential, are the wildlife species with the highest risk for viral dissemination across countries and continents. In 2002, the Chilean poultry industry was affected with a highly pathogenic avian influenza strain, which created economic loss and triggered the establishment of a surveillance program in wild birds. This effort consisted of periodic samplings of sick or suspicious animals found along the coast and analyses with standardized techniques for detection of influenza A virus. The aim of this work is to report the detection of three avian influenza strains (H13N2, H5N9, H13N9) in gulls from Chile between 2007-2009, which nucleotide sequences showed highest similitudes to viruses detected in wild birds from North America. These results suggest a dissemination route for influenza viruses along the coasts of Americas. Migratory and synanthropic behaviors of birds included in this study support continued monitoring of avian influenza viruses isolated from wild birds in The Americas and the establishment of biosecurity practices in farms. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Dynamics of low-temperature acclimation in temperate and boreal conifer foliage in a mild winter climate

Science.gov (United States)

G. Richard Strimbeck; Trygve D. Kjellsen; Paul G. Schaberg; Paula F. Murakami

2008-01-01

To provide baseline data for physiological studies of extreme low-temperature (LT) tolerance in boreal conifers, we profiled LT stress responses, liquid nitrogen (LN2)-quench tolerance, and sugar concentrations in foliage of boreal-temperate species pairs in the genera Abies, Picea and Pinus, growing in an...

Potential for long-term transfer of dissolved organic carbon from riparian zones to streams in boreal catchments.

Science.gov (United States)

Ledesma, José L J; Grabs, Thomas; Bishop, Kevin H; Schiff, Sherry L; Köhler, Stephan J

2015-08-01

Boreal regions store most of the global terrestrial carbon, which can be transferred as dissolved organic carbon (DOC) to inland waters with implications for both aquatic ecology and carbon budgets. Headwater riparian zones (RZ) are important sources of DOC, and often just a narrow 'dominant source layer' (DSL) within the riparian profile is responsible for most of the DOC export. Two important questions arise: how long boreal RZ could sustain lateral DOC fluxes as the sole source of exported carbon and how its hydromorphological variability influences this role. We estimate theoretical turnover times by comparing carbon pools and lateral exports in the DSL of 13 riparian profiles distributed over a 69 km(2) catchment in northern Sweden. The thickness of the DSL was 36 ± 18 (average ± SD) cm. Thus, only about one-third of the 1-m-deep riparian profile contributed 90% of the lateral DOC flux. The 13 RZ exported 8.7 ± 6.5 g C m(-2) year(-1) , covering the whole range of boreal stream DOC exports. The variation could be explained by local hydromorphological characteristics including RZ width (R(2) = 0.90). The estimated theoretical turnover times were hundreds to a few thousands of years, that is there is a potential long-lasting supply of DOC. Estimates of net ecosystem production in the RZ suggest that lateral fluxes, including both organic and inorganic C, could be maintained without drawing down the riparian pools. This was supported by measurements of stream DO(14) C that indicated modern carbon as the predominant fraction exported, including streams disturbed by ditching. The transfer of DOC into boreal inland waters from new and old carbon sources has a major influence on surface water quality and global carbon balances. This study highlights the importance of local variations in RZ hydromorphology and DSL extent for future DOC fluxes under a changing climate. © 2015 The Authors. Global Change Biology Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

BOREAS TE-04 Gas Exchange Data from Boreal Tree Species

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — Contains TE-04 data on gas exchange studies of photosynthesis, respiration and stomatal conductance of boreal forest species using the MPH-1000 system.

Biosecurity and bird movement practices in upland game bird facilities in the United States.

Science.gov (United States)

Slota, Katharine E; Hill, Ashley E; Keefe, Thomas J; Bowen, Richard A; Pabilonia, Kristy L

2011-06-01

Since 1996, the emergence of Asian-origin highly pathogenic avian influenza subtype H5N1 has spurred great concern for the global poultry industry. In the United States, there is concern over the potential of a foreign avian disease incursion into the country. Noncommercial poultry operations, such as upland game bird facilities in the United States, may serve as a potential source of avian disease introduction to other bird populations including the commercial poultry industry, backyard flocks, or wildlife. In order to evaluate how to prevent disease transmission from these facilities to other populations, we examined biosecurity practices and bird movement within the upland game bird industry in the United States. Persons that held a current permit to keep, breed, or release upland game birds were surveyed for information on biosecurity practices, flock and release environments, and bird movement parameters. Biosecurity practices vary greatly among permit holders. Many facilities allow for interaction between wild birds and pen-reared birds, and there is regular long-distance movement of live adult birds among facilities. Results suggest that upland game bird facilities should be targeted for biosecurity education and disease surveillance efforts.

Functional ecology of advance regeneration in relation to light in boreal forests

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Messier, C.; Claveau, Y.; Kelly, C. [Quebec Univ., Montreal, PQ (Canada); Doucet, R. [Quebec Ministere des Ressources Naturelles, Ste. Foy, PQ (Canada); Ruel, J.C. [Laval Univ., Quebec, PQ (Canada); Lechowicz, M.J. [McGill Univ., Montreal, PQ (Canada). Dept. of Biology

1999-06-01

A comparative and functional approach is adopted that stresses the morphological and physiological qualities that may favor greater or lesser capacity to grow in the shaded understory. The current understanding of the functional basis for variation in the shade tolerance of the main boreal trees is reviewed, and a consideration is given to how shade tolerance is linked to the ability to respond effectively to small canopy openings. The most commercially important shade tolerant conifers in the boreal forests of North America are concentrated on including: balsam fir, black spruce, and white spruce. The functional basis of shade tolerance and competition among boreal trees are examined for understanding, by comparing these species to their most important shade intolerant counterparts: jack pine, lodgepole pine, trembling aspen, and paper birch. The functional basis for growth and survival of established seedlings and saplings up to pole size are stressed. The ability of boreal tree genera to grow and survive in shade up to pole size depends on the functional responses of saplings to the changing biotic and abiotic variables in the understory as overstory canopy changes over time. At the leaf level, the only consistent differences among boreal tree genera are in specific leaf mass and maximum photosynthetic capacity. At the shoot and crown levels, clear structural differences exist among conifer tree genera. Shoot and crown structural traits exhibit most plasticity in relation to light availability for firs and least for pines. At the whole-plant level, shade intolerant tree species such as pines tend to be more affected by shading than shade tolerant ones. Considering these main qualities, a framework is advanced for determining advance regeneration in sapling performance that relates interspecific differences in crown structural plasticity, growth strategies, and light requirements as size increases with the size and frequency of canopy gaps. Fir and spruce co

The Design of Compass/BeiDou Navigation Satellite Terminal for Migrant Bird Research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yaohui Li

2014-01-01

Full Text Available A terminal of Compass Navigation Satellite System (CNSS, which can not only support BeiDou-1 and BeiDou-2 but also support Global Positioning System (GPS, is designed to research the activities of the migrant birds, with our novel design of a multiband antenna. By a high-density integration, this terminal is designed with a compact size and light weight. When the terminal is assembled to a whooper swan, its flying trace is recorded by the CNSS, which is in agreement with that of GPS. The flying route map based on the CNSS is useful to check the situation and habit of the migrant bird, which is important for animal protection and bird flu outbreak prediction.

Phylogenomic analyses support the position of turtles as the sister group of birds and crocodiles (Archosauria)

Science.gov (United States)

2012-01-01

Background The morphological peculiarities of turtles have, for a long time, impeded their accurate placement in the phylogeny of amniotes. Molecular data used to address this major evolutionary question have so far been limited to a handful of markers and/or taxa. These studies have supported conflicting topologies, positioning turtles as either the sister group to all other reptiles, to lepidosaurs (tuatara, lizards and snakes), to archosaurs (birds and crocodiles), or to crocodilians. Genome-scale data have been shown to be useful in resolving other debated phylogenies, but no such adequate dataset is yet available for amniotes. Results In this study, we used next-generation sequencing to obtain seven new transcriptomes from the blood, liver, or jaws of four turtles, a caiman, a lizard, and a lungfish. We used a phylogenomic dataset based on 248 nuclear genes (187,026 nucleotide sites) for 16 vertebrate taxa to resolve the origins of turtles. Maximum likelihood and Bayesian concatenation analyses and species tree approaches performed under the most realistic models of the nucleotide and amino acid substitution processes unambiguously support turtles as a sister group to birds and crocodiles. The use of more simplistic models of nucleotide substitution for both concatenation and species tree reconstruction methods leads to the artefactual grouping of turtles and crocodiles, most likely because of substitution saturation at third codon positions. Relaxed molecular clock methods estimate the divergence between turtles and archosaurs around 255 million years ago. The most recent common ancestor of living turtles, corresponding to the split between Pleurodira and Cryptodira, is estimated to have occurred around 157 million years ago, in the Upper Jurassic period. This is a more recent estimate than previously reported, and questions the interpretation of controversial Lower Jurassic fossils as being part of the extant turtles radiation. Conclusions These results

Phylogenomic analyses support the position of turtles as the sister group of birds and crocodiles (Archosauria

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chiari Ylenia

2012-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The morphological peculiarities of turtles have, for a long time, impeded their accurate placement in the phylogeny of amniotes. Molecular data used to address this major evolutionary question have so far been limited to a handful of markers and/or taxa. These studies have supported conflicting topologies, positioning turtles as either the sister group to all other reptiles, to lepidosaurs (tuatara, lizards and snakes, to archosaurs (birds and crocodiles, or to crocodilians. Genome-scale data have been shown to be useful in resolving other debated phylogenies, but no such adequate dataset is yet available for amniotes. Results In this study, we used next-generation sequencing to obtain seven new transcriptomes from the blood, liver, or jaws of four turtles, a caiman, a lizard, and a lungfish. We used a phylogenomic dataset based on 248 nuclear genes (187,026 nucleotide sites for 16 vertebrate taxa to resolve the origins of turtles. Maximum likelihood and Bayesian concatenation analyses and species tree approaches performed under the most realistic models of the nucleotide and amino acid substitution processes unambiguously support turtles as a sister group to birds and crocodiles. The use of more simplistic models of nucleotide substitution for both concatenation and species tree reconstruction methods leads to the artefactual grouping of turtles and crocodiles, most likely because of substitution saturation at third codon positions. Relaxed molecular clock methods estimate the divergence between turtles and archosaurs around 255 million years ago. The most recent common ancestor of living turtles, corresponding to the split between Pleurodira and Cryptodira, is estimated to have occurred around 157 million years ago, in the Upper Jurassic period. This is a more recent estimate than previously reported, and questions the interpretation of controversial Lower Jurassic fossils as being part of the extant turtles radiation

Palaeodata-informed modelling of large carbon losses from recent burning of boreal forests

Science.gov (United States)

Kelly, Ryan; Genet, Helene; McGuire, A. David; Hu, Feng Sheng

2016-01-01

Wildfires play a key role in the boreal forest carbon cycle1, 2, and models suggest that accelerated burning will increase boreal C emissions in the coming century3. However, these predictions may be compromised because brief observational records provide limited constraints to model initial conditions4. We confronted this limitation by using palaeoenvironmental data to drive simulations of long-term C dynamics in the Alaskan boreal forest. Results show that fire was the dominant control on C cycling over the past millennium, with changes in fire frequency accounting for 84% of C stock variability. A recent rise in fire frequency inferred from the palaeorecord5 led to simulated C losses of 1.4 kg C m−2 (12% of ecosystem C stocks) from 1950 to 2006. In stark contrast, a small net C sink of 0.3 kg C m−2 occurred if the past fire regime was assumed to be similar to the modern regime, as is common in models of C dynamics. Although boreal fire regimes are heterogeneous, recent trends6 and future projections7 point to increasing fire activity in response to climate warming throughout the biome. Thus, predictions8 that terrestrial C sinks of northern high latitudes will mitigate rising atmospheric CO2 may be over-optimistic.

Moss-nitrogen input to boreal forest soils

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rousk, Kathrin; Jones, Davey; DeLuca, Thomas

2014-01-01

Cyanobacteria living epiphytically on mosses in pristine, unpolluted areas fix substantial amounts of atmospheric nitrogen (N) and therefore represent a primary source of N in N-limited boreal forests. However, the fate of this N is unclear, in particular, how the fixed N2 enters the soil and bec...... and that transfer of N to the soil is not facilitated by fungal hyphae....

Conceptual ecological model for management of breeding shrubland birds in the Mid-Atlantic Region

Science.gov (United States)

Peterjohn, Bruce G.

2006-01-01

While grassland birds have become the focus of increased conservation activities, the status of birds occupying shrubland habitats has received relatively little attention (Hunter et al. 2001). Yet, in eastern North America, shrubland birds exhibited consistent population declines during the past 40 years, based on data from the North American Breeding Bird Survey (Pardieck and Sauer 2001). These population declines primarily reflect large-scale changes in land use patterns during the previous century (Lorimer 2001). Large areas of marginal farmland were abandoned and underwent secondary succession during the first half of the twentieth century, producing abundant successional habitats favored by shrubland birds. As these habitats matured, combined with strict fire-suppression policies (Hunter et al. 2001), shrublands succeeded into mature forests, and shrubland bird communities were replaced by woodland birds (Irland 1982; Askins 1993). For example, while nearly 29% of New England forests were classified as sapling stage in 1950, only 8% remained at that stage in the 1980s (Askins 1993). The trend towards forest maturation and loss of shrubland habitats continues, yet concerted conservation activities have not been directed to benefit declining shrubland bird populations. The National Park Service (NPS) could contribute to shrubland bird conservation in the Mid- Atlantic Region. The NPS maintains a number of historic sites and former battlefields managed for their cultural significance but also support wildlife populations. Many of these “cultural parks” maintain open landscapes, recreating land use patterns existing at the times of the historical events. While these open landscapes are frequently managed grasslands, some parks also support successional habitats that could be managed to benefit shrubland birds. In 2005, the NPS initiated a project exploring the potential of “cultural parks” to support significant breeding grassland and shrubland bird

76 FR 19875 - Migratory Bird Hunting; Proposed 2011-12 Migratory Game Bird Hunting Regulations (Preliminary...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-04-08

..., carriage, or export of any * * * bird, or any part, nest, or egg'' of migratory game birds can take place... 50 CFR Part 20 Migratory Bird Hunting; Proposed 2011-12 Migratory Game Bird Hunting Regulations (Preliminary) With Requests for Indian Tribal Proposals and Requests for 2013 Spring and Summer Migratory Bird...

BOREAS TE-04 Branch Bag Data from Boreal Tree Species

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — ABSTRACT: Contains 1996 TE-04 data of branch bag studies of photosynthesis, respiration and stomatal conductance of boreal forest species using the open MPH-1000...

Annotated Bibliography of Bird Hazards to Aircraft: Bird Strike Committee Citations 1967-1997

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Short, Jeffrey

1998-01-01

.... This annotated bibliography of bird hazards to aircraft, termed ABBHA, is a compilation of citations with abstracts on a wide range of related topics such as bird strike tolerance engineering, bird...

78 FR 53217 - Migratory Bird Hunting; Migratory Bird Hunting Regulations on Certain Federal Indian Reservations...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-08-28

..., and by what means such birds or any part, nest, or egg thereof may be taken, hunted, captured, killed... Service 50 CFR Part 20 Migratory Bird Hunting; Migratory Bird Hunting Regulations on Certain Federal...-FXMB1231099BPP0] RIN 1018-AY87 Migratory Bird Hunting; Migratory Bird Hunting Regulations on Certain Federal...

Birds and wind turbines: can they co-exist?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Still, David.

1996-01-01

The wind farm is situated along an exposed pier at Blyth Harbour and has now been designated as part of a SSI and part of a proposed RAMSAR site. The bird activity within the harbour is high and is also the wintering home of the Purple Sandpiper. An offshore wind farm is proposed for the area, one kilometre from the pier. Two turbines will be erected with the support of the European Commission THERMIE Programme. The bird study at Blyth has been funded by Border Wind, Blyth Harbour Wind Farm Company and the DTI as part of an ETSU funded study. (UK)

Active farmsteads are year-round strongholds for farmland birds

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Šálek, Martin; Bažant, M.; Żmihorski, M.

(2018) ISSN 0021-8901 Institutional support: RVO:68081766 Keywords : biodiversity * birds * conservation * farmland * farmsteads * hotspots * landscape structure * red-listed species * species richness Subject RIV: EG - Zoology Impact factor: 5.301, year: 2016

Canopy interaction with precipitation and sulphur deposition in two boreal forests of Quebec, Canada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marty, C.; Houle, D.; Duchesne, L.; Gagnon, C.

2012-01-01

The interaction of atmospheric sulphur (S) was investigated within the canopies of two boreal forests in Québec, Canada. The net canopy exchange approach, i.e. the difference between S–SO 4 in throughfall and precipitation, suggests high proportion of dry deposition in winter (up to 53%) as compared to summer (1–9%). However, a 3.5‰ decrease in δ 18 O–SO 4 throughfall in summer compared to incident precipitation points towards a much larger proportion of dry deposition during the warm season. We suggest that a significant fraction of dry deposition (about 1.2 kg ha −1 yr −1 , representing 30–40% of annual wet S deposition) which contributed to the decreased δ 18 O–SO 4 in throughfall was taken up by the canopy. Overall, these results showed that, contrary to what is commonly considered, S interchanges in the canopy could be important in boreal forests with low absolute atmospheric S depositions. - Highlights: ► We investigated sulphur interactions with the canopy of two boreal forests, Québec. ► Sulphur interchanges within the canopy were large and vary with seasons. ► About 1.2 kg S–SO 4 ha −1 yr −1 was taken up by the canopy during warm seasons. ► This represents 30–40% of annual wet S–SO 4 deposition. ► Canopy uptake must be considered for sulphur budget estimations in boreal forests. - The equivalent of 30–40% of annual wet S–SO 4 deposition was taken up by the canopy of two boreal forests during warm seasons.

Simulating Changes in Fires and Ecology of the 21st Century Eurasian Boreal Forests of Siberia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ksenia Brazhnik

2017-02-01

Full Text Available Wildfires release the greatest amount of carbon into the atmosphere compared to other forest disturbances. To understand how current and potential future fire regimes may affect the role of the Eurasian boreal forest in the global carbon cycle, we employed a new, spatially-explicit fire module DISTURB-F (DISTURBance-Fire in tandem with a spatially-explicit, individually-based gap dynamics model SIBBORK (SIBerian BOReal forest simulator calibrated to Krasnoyarsk Region. DISTURB-F simulates the effect of forest fire on the boreal ecosystem, namely the mortality of all or only the susceptible trees (loss of biomass, i.e., carbon within the forested landscape. The fire module captures some important feedbacks between climate, fire and vegetation structure. We investigated the potential climate-driven changes in the fire regime and vegetation in middle and south taiga in central Siberia, a region with extensive boreal forest and rapidly changing climate. The output from this coupled simulation can be used to estimate carbon losses from the ecosystem as a result of fires of different sizes and intensities over the course of secondary succession (decades to centuries. Furthermore, it may be used to assess the post-fire carbon storage capacity of potential future forests, the structure and composition of which may differ significantly from current Eurasian boreal forests due to regeneration under a different climate.

Carbon sequestration from boreal wildfires via Pyrogenic Carbon production

Science.gov (United States)

Santin, Cristina; Doerr, Stefan; Preston, Caroline

2014-05-01

Fire releases important quantities of carbon (C) to the atmosphere. Every year, an average of 460 Million ha burn around the globe, generating C emissions equivalent to a third of the current annual contribution from fossil fuel combustion. Over the longer-term wildfires are widely considered as 'net zero C emission events', because C emissions from fires, excluding those associated with deforestation and peatland fires, are balanced by C uptake by regenerating vegetation. This 'zero C emission' scenario, however, may be flawed, as it does not consider the production of pyrogenic C (PyC). During fire, part of the biomass C burnt is emitted to the atmosphere but part is transformed into PyC (i.e. charcoal). The enhanced resistance of PyC to environmental degradation compared to unburnt biomass gives it the potential to sequester C over the medium/long term. Therefore, after complete regeneration of the vegetation, the PyC generated may represent an additional C pool and, hence, recurring fire-regrowth cycles could represent net sinks of atmospheric C. To estimate the quantitative importance of PyC production, accurate data on PyC generation with respect to the fuel combusted are needed. Unfortunately, detailed quantification of fuel prior to fire is normally only available for prescribed and experimental fires, which are usually of low-intensity and therefore not representative of higher-intensity wildfires. Furthermore, what little data is available is usually based on only a specific fraction of the PyC present following burning rather than the whole range of PyC products and pools (i.e. PyC in soil, ash, downed wood and standing vegetation). To address this research gap, we utilized the globally unique FireSmart experimental forest fires in Northwest Canada. They are aimed to reproduce wildfire conditions typical for boreal forest and, at the same time, allow pre-fire fuel assessment, fire behaviour monitoring and immediate post-fire fuel and PyC inventory. This

Cook Inlet and Kenai Peninsula, Alaska ESI: BIRDS (Bird Polygons)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This data set contains biological resource data for alcids, shorebirds, waterfowl, diving birds, pelagic birds, gulls and terns in Cook Inlet and Kenai Peninsula,...

The role of fire in the boreal carbon budget

Science.gov (United States)

Harden, J.W.; Trumbore, S.E.; Stocks, B.J.; Hirsch, A.; Gower, S.T.; O'Neill, K. P.; Kasischke, E.S.

2000-01-01

To reconcile observations of decomposition rates, carbon inventories, and net primary production (NPP), we estimated long-term averages for C exchange in boreal forests near Thompson, Manitoba. Soil drainage as defined by water table, moss cover, and permafrost dynamics, is the dominant control on direct fire emissions. In upland forests, an average of about 10-30% of annual NPP was likely consumed by fire over the past 6500 years since these landforms and ecosystems were established. This long-term, average fire emission is much larger than has been accounted for in global C cycle models and may forecast an increase in fire activity for this region. While over decadal to century times these boreal forests may be acting as slight net sinks for C from the atmosphere to land, periods of drought and severe fire activity may result in net sources of C from these systems.

14 CFR 33.76 - Bird ingestion.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... single bird, the single largest medium bird which can enter the inlet, and the large flocking bird must...) (d) Large flocking bird. An engine test will be performed as follows: (1) Large flocking bird engine.... (4) Ingestion of a large flocking bird under the conditions prescribed in this paragraph must not...

Coordinated bird monitoring: Technical recommendations for military lands

Science.gov (United States)

Bart, Jonathan; Manning, Ann; Fischer, Richard; Eberly, Chris

2012-01-01

The Department of Defense (DoD) is subject to several rules and regulations establishing responsibilities for monitoring migratory birds. The Sikes Act requires all military installations with significant natural resources to prepare and implement Integrated Natural Resources Management Plans (INRMPs). These plans guide the conservation and long-term management of natural resources on military lands in a manner that is compatible with and sustains the military mission. An INRMP also supports compliance with all legal requirements and guides the military in fulfilling its obligation to be a good steward of public land.The management and conservation of migratory birds is addressed in installation INRMPs. The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requires federal agencies to evaluate and disclose the potential environmental impacts of their proposed actions. More recently, DoD signed an MOU (http://www.dodpif.org/downloads/EO13186_MOU-DoD.pdf) for migratory birds, under Executive Order 13186, with the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) in July 2006 and a Migratory Bird Rule (http://www.dodpif.org/downloads/MigBirdFINALRule_FRFeb2007.pdf) was passed by Congress in February 2007. The Migratory Bird Rule addresses the potential impacts of military readiness activities on populations of migratory birds and establishes a process to implement conservation measures if and when a military readiness activity is expected to have a significant adverse impact on a population of migratory bird species (as determined through the NEPA process). The MOU states that for nonmilitary readiness activities, prior to initiating any activity likely to affect populations of migratory birds DoD shall (1) identify the migratory bird species likely to occur in the area of the proposed action and determine if any species of concern could be affected by the activity, and (2) assess and document, using NEPA when applicable, the effect of the proposed action on species of concern. By

Bats as prey of diurnal birds: a global perspective.

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Mikula, P.; Morelli, Federico; Lučan, R. K.; Jones, D. N.; Tryjanowski, P.

2016-01-01

Roč. 46, č. 3 (2016), s. 160-174 ISSN 0305-1838 Institutional support: RVO:60077344 Keywords : avian predation hypothesis * bats * diurnal birds * nocturnality * predation Subject RIV: EG - Zoology Impact factor: 3.286, year: 2016

Modelling atmospheric OH-reactivity in a boreal forest ecosystem

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mogensen, D.; Smolander, S.; Sogachev, Andrey

2011-01-01

We have modelled the total atmospheric OH-reactivity in a boreal forest and investigated the individual contributions from gas phase inorganic species, isoprene, monoterpenes, and methane along with other important VOCs. Daily and seasonal variation in OH-reactivity for the year 2008 was examined...

Link between the Barents Oscillation and recent boreal winter cooling over the Asian midlatitudes

Science.gov (United States)

Shu, Qi; Qiao, Fangli; Song, Zhenya; Song, Yajuan

2018-01-01

The link between boreal winter cooling over the midlatitudes of Asia and the Barents Oscillation (BO) since the late 1980s is discussed in this study, based on five datasets. Results indicate that there is a large-scale boreal winter cooling during 1990-2015 over the Asian midlatitudes, and that it is a part of the decadal oscillations of long-term surface air temperature (SAT) anomalies. The SAT anomalies over the Asian midlatitudes are significantly correlated with the BO in boreal winter. When the BO is in its positive phase, anomalously high sea level pressure over the Barents region, with a clockwise wind anomaly, causes cold air from the high latitudes to move over the midlatitudes of Asia, resulting in anomalous cold conditions in that region. Therefore, the recent increasing trend of the BO has contributed to recent winter cooling over the Asian midlatitudes.

Trimodal distribution of ozone and water vapor in the UT/LS during boreal summer

Science.gov (United States)

Dunkerton, T. J.

2004-12-01

The relation of ozone and water vapor in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere (UT/LS) is strongly influenced by the off-equatorial Asian and North American monsoons in boreal summer. Both regions experience hydration, presumably as a result of deep convection. This behavior contrasts sharply with the apparent dehydrating influence of near-equatorial deep convection in boreal winter. There is also a striking difference in ozone between Asia and North America in boreal summer. Over Asia, ozone concentrations are low, evidently a result of ubiquitous deep convection and the vertical transport of ozone-poor air, while over North America, ozone concentrations are much higher. Since deep convection also occurs in the North American monsoon, it appears that the difference in ozone concentration between Asia and North America in boreal summer reflects a differing influence of the large-scale circulation in the two regions: specifically, (i) isolation of the Tibetan anticyclone versus (ii) the intrusion of filaments of ozone-rich air from the stratosphere over North America. During boreal summer, as in winter, near-equatorial concentrations of ozone and water vapor are low near the equator. The result of these geographical variations is a trimodal distribution of ozone and water-vapor correlation. Our talk reviews the observational evidence of this trimodal distribution and possible dynamical and microphysical causes, focusing primarily on the quality and possible sampling bias of satellite and aircraft measurements. A key issue is the ability of HALOE to sample areas of ubiquitous deep convection. Other issues include the vertical structure of tracer anomalies, isentropic stirring in the UT/LS, horizontal transport of biomass burning products lofted by deep convection, and connections to the moist phase of the tropical `tape recorder' signal in water vapor.

Birds Kept as Pets

Science.gov (United States)

... your pet’s health Visit a veterinarian who has experience with pet birds for routine check-ups to keep your bird healthy and prevent infectious diseases. If your bird becomes sick or dies within a month after purchase or adoption: Contact your veterinarian. Inform the pet ...

Comparing aerodynamic efficiency in birds and bats suggests better flight performance in birds.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Florian T Muijres

Full Text Available Flight is one of the energetically most costly activities in the animal kingdom, suggesting that natural selection should work to optimize flight performance. The similar size and flight speed of birds and bats may therefore suggest convergent aerodynamic performance; alternatively, flight performance could be restricted by phylogenetic constraints. We test which of these scenarios fit to two measures of aerodynamic flight efficiency in two passerine bird species and two New World leaf-nosed bat species. Using time-resolved particle image velocimetry measurements of the wake of the animals flying in a wind tunnel, we derived the span efficiency, a metric for the efficiency of generating lift, and the lift-to-drag ratio, a metric for mechanical energetic flight efficiency. We show that the birds significantly outperform the bats in both metrics, which we ascribe to variation in aerodynamic function of body and wing upstroke: Bird bodies generated relatively more lift than bat bodies, resulting in a more uniform spanwise lift distribution and higher span efficiency. A likely explanation would be that the bat ears and nose leaf, associated with echolocation, disturb the flow over the body. During the upstroke, the birds retract their wings to make them aerodynamically inactive, while the membranous bat wings generate thrust and negative lift. Despite the differences in performance, the wake morphology of both birds and bats resemble the optimal wake for their respective lift-to-drag ratio regimes. This suggests that evolution has optimized performance relative to the respective conditions of birds and bats, but that maximum performance is possibly limited by phylogenetic constraints. Although ecological differences between birds and bats are subjected to many conspiring variables, the different aerodynamic flight efficiency for the bird and bat species studied here may help explain why birds typically fly faster, migrate more frequently and migrate

Comparing aerodynamic efficiency in birds and bats suggests better flight performance in birds.

Science.gov (United States)

Muijres, Florian T; Johansson, L Christoffer; Bowlin, Melissa S; Winter, York; Hedenström, Anders

2012-01-01

Flight is one of the energetically most costly activities in the animal kingdom, suggesting that natural selection should work to optimize flight performance. The similar size and flight speed of birds and bats may therefore suggest convergent aerodynamic performance; alternatively, flight performance could be restricted by phylogenetic constraints. We test which of these scenarios fit to two measures of aerodynamic flight efficiency in two passerine bird species and two New World leaf-nosed bat species. Using time-resolved particle image velocimetry measurements of the wake of the animals flying in a wind tunnel, we derived the span efficiency, a metric for the efficiency of generating lift, and the lift-to-drag ratio, a metric for mechanical energetic flight efficiency. We show that the birds significantly outperform the bats in both metrics, which we ascribe to variation in aerodynamic function of body and wing upstroke: Bird bodies generated relatively more lift than bat bodies, resulting in a more uniform spanwise lift distribution and higher span efficiency. A likely explanation would be that the bat ears and nose leaf, associated with echolocation, disturb the flow over the body. During the upstroke, the birds retract their wings to make them aerodynamically inactive, while the membranous bat wings generate thrust and negative lift. Despite the differences in performance, the wake morphology of both birds and bats resemble the optimal wake for their respective lift-to-drag ratio regimes. This suggests that evolution has optimized performance relative to the respective conditions of birds and bats, but that maximum performance is possibly limited by phylogenetic constraints. Although ecological differences between birds and bats are subjected to many conspiring variables, the different aerodynamic flight efficiency for the bird and bat species studied here may help explain why birds typically fly faster, migrate more frequently and migrate longer distances

Sensitivity of Coastal Environments and Wildlife to Spilled Oil: Upper Coast of Texas: BIRDS (Bird Polygons)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This data set contains sensitive biological resource data for diving birds, gulls, terns, passerine birds, pelagic birds, raptors, shorebirds, wading birds,...

Sensitivity of Coastal Environments and Wildlife to Spilled Oil: Northern California: BIRDS (Bird Polygons)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This data set contains sensitive biological resource data for alcids, diving birds, gulls, terns, passerines, pelagic birds, raptors, shorebirds, wading birds, and...

Caesium-137 in a boreal forest ecosystem. Aspects on the long-term behaviour

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bergman, R.; Nylen, T.; Nelin, P.; Palo, T.

1993-11-01

Cycling of radioactive caesium, particularly the isotope Cs-137, is studied in boreal forest biotopes mainly located at the Vindeln experimental forest, 60 km NW of Umeaa, Sweden, (64 degrees 16'N, 19 degrees 48'E). The distribution of radioactive caesium in this forest ecosystem, prior to and in different periods after the Chernobyl accident, reflects the existence of fast changes particularly at an early stage after the deposition, superimposed on slow redistribution over long time periods. The definite causes to this complex dynamic behaviour are not yet unambiguously established. In this work we use the specific results from local field studies as a basis to describe the general pattern and time dependence of Cs-137 redistribution in a boreal forest. We raise the hypothesis that: 'Cs-137 present in a boreal forest tends towards a homogenous distribution among the living cells of that system'. This hypothesis is based on physiological characteristics concerning transport over cell membranes and intracellular distribution in comparison to potassium, and the apparently conservative conditions prevailing for caesium in boreal ecosystems - e.g. the facts that very little of the radioactive caesium deposited over the forest area is lost from the system by run off, more than 90% of the total deposition of Cs-137 resides in the upper organic horizon in podzol areas, and that the availability in the ecosystem, as can be seen from the Cs-137 concentration in moose meat, is not significantly different in 1985 (i.e. prior to the Chernobyl accident) in comparison to the period 1986-1990. The aim of this work is to elucidate how predictions, based on our hypothesis about redistribution processes in the boreal forest, corroborates with the main features in the time-dependent change of Cs-137 activity, according to measurements on perennial vegetation from the local sites. In particular the implicit dependence of the dynamics of the redistribution processes on primary

The full annual carbon balance of Eurasian boreal forests is highly sensitive to precipitation

Science.gov (United States)

Öquist, Mats; Bishop, Kevin; Grelle, Achim; Klemedtsson, Leif; Köhler, Stephan; Laudon, Hjalmar; Lindroth, Anders; Ottosson Löfvenius, Mikaell; Wallin, Marcus; Nilsson, Mats

2013-04-01

Boreal forest biomes are identified as one of the major sinks for anthropogenic atmospheric CO2 and are also predicted to be particularly sensitive to climate change. Recent advances in understanding the carbon balance of these biomes stems mainly from eddy-covariance measurements of the net ecosystem exchange (NEE). However, NEE includes only the vertical CO2 exchange driven by photosynthesis and ecosystem respiration. A full net ecosystem carbon balance (NECB) also requires inclusion of lateral carbon export (LCE) through catchment discharge. Currently LCE is often regarded as negligible for the NECB of boreal forest ecosystems of the northern hemisphere, commonly corresponding to ~5% of annual NEE. Here we use long term (13 year) data showing that annual LCE and NEE are strongly correlated (p=0.003); years with low C sequestration by the forest coincide with years when lateral C loss is high. The fraction of NEE lost annually through LCE varied markedly from solar radiation caused by clouds. The dual effect of precipitation implies that both the observed and the predicted increases in annual precipitation at high latitudes may reduce NECB in boreal forest ecosystems. Based on regional scaling of hydrological discharge and observed spatio-temporal variations in forest NEE we conclude that our finding is relevant for large areas of the boreal Eurasian landscape.

Bird guard

Science.gov (United States)

Fairchild, Dana M [Armour, SD

2010-03-02

The bird guard provides a device to protect electrical insulators comprising a central shaft; a clamp attached to an end of the shaft to secure the device to a transmission tower; a top and bottom cover to shield transmission tower insulators; and bearings to allow the guard to rotate in order to frighten birds away from the insulators.

The North Sea Bird Club

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Doyle, P.A.T.; Gorman, M.L.; Patterson, I.J.; Howe, S.

1991-01-01

This paper reports that the creation of a club for the purpose of encouraging oil and gas workers to watch birds may not at first seem a viable proposition. To the layperson, birds offshore conjures up an image of hundreds of seagulls following fishing boats, and very little else. Also, the act of birdwatching is not seen as a typical offshore worker's activity. Anyone who has worked on an installation offshore and who has any interest in wildlife will be aware of the occasional presence of land-birds. Two decades ago, prompted by some keen offshore workers, a single oil company set up a monitoring program, which quickly became popular with a number of its employees. Birds seem offshore were recorded on data forms and collected together. At this stage the club was purely another recreation facility; however, when the data were collated it was soon realized that installations offshore were being used as staging posts by birds on migration, and that the information being collected would be of great interest in the study of bird movements. All over Britain, at strategic points on the coastline, there are bird observatories which record the arrival and departure of migrating birds. The presence of several hundred solid structures up and down the North Sea, which are used by birds en route, represents a huge, unique bird observatory, capable of uncovering facts about bird migration which have long eluded land-based scientists. Eleven years ago, the North Sea Bird Club began, composed of eight member companies, a recorder from Aberdeen University and a representative from the Nature Conservancy Council. The club received data from 41 installations, and the recorder collated these on Aberdeen University's computer and produced an annual report of sightings

76 FR 59298 - Migratory Bird Hunting; Migratory Bird Hunting Regulations on Certain Federal Indian Reservations...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-09-26

... such birds or any part, nest, or egg thereof may be taken, hunted, captured, killed, possessed, sold...-0014; 91200-1231-9BPP-L2] RIN 1018-AX34 Migratory Bird Hunting; Migratory Bird Hunting Regulations on... Service, Interior. ACTION: Final rule. SUMMARY: This rule prescribes special late-season migratory bird...

Archaeopteryx: Bringing the Dino-Bird to Life

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bergmann, Uwe

2011-01-01

Some 150 million years ago, a strange creature died in a tropical lagoon that today is located in Bavaria, Germany. In 1861, a single feather of this creature was discovered. Not long afterward, a complete fossil was found with the same bird-like feathers but dinosaur-like anatomical features. Darwin had just published 'On the Origin of Species'; could this be the missing link that Darwin's supporters hoped to find? Recently, two of the now eleven discovered Archaeopteryx fossils, and that first feather, were brought to SLAC, where, using the intense X-ray beam, researchers searched for the chemical remains of the original living creatures. Please join us for this lecture, which will explain how the studies attempt to bring the original dino-bird back to life.

Hawaii ESI: BIRDS (Bird Polygons)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This data set contains sensitive biological resource data for endangered waterbirds and passerine birds, migratory shorebirds and waterfowl, gulls and terns,...

78 FR 65578 - Migratory Bird Permits; Depredation Order for Migratory Birds in California

Science.gov (United States)

2013-11-01

...-0037; FF09M21200-134-FXMB1231099BPP0] RIN 1018-AY65 Migratory Bird Permits; Depredation Order for Migratory Birds in California AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior. ACTION: Final rule. SUMMARY: We revise the regulations that allow control of depredating birds in California. We specify the counties in...

Habitat Requirements of Breeding Black-Backed Woodpeckers (Picoides arcticus in Managed, Unburned Boreal Forest

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Junior A. Tremblay

2009-06-01

Full Text Available We investigated home-range characteristics and habitat selection by Black-backed Woodpeckers (Picoides arcticus in an unburned, boreal forest landscape managed by mosaic harvesting in Quebec, Canada. Habitat selection by this species was specifically examined to determine home-range establishment and foraging activities. We hypothesized that Black-backed Woodpeckers would respond to harvesting by adjusting their home-range size as a function of the amount of dead wood available. Twenty-two birds were tracked using radiotelemetry, and reliable estimates of home-range size were obtained for seven breeding individuals (six males and one female. The average home-range size was 151.5 ± 18.8 ha (range: 100.4-256.4 ha. Our results indicate that this species establishes home ranges in areas where both open and forested habitats are available. However, during foraging activities, individuals preferentially selected areas dominated by old coniferous stands. The study also showed that the spatial distribution of preferred foraging habitat patches influenced space use, with home-range area increasing with the median distance between old coniferous habitat patches available within the landscape. Finally, these data show that Black-backed Woodpeckers may successfully breed in an unburned forest with at least 35 m3 • ha-1 of dead wood, of which 42% (15 m3 • ha-1 is represented by dead wood at the early decay stage.

Modeling birds on wires.

Science.gov (United States)

Aydoğdu, A; Frasca, P; D'Apice, C; Manzo, R; Thornton, J M; Gachomo, B; Wilson, T; Cheung, B; Tariq, U; Saidel, W; Piccoli, B

2017-02-21

In this paper we introduce a mathematical model to study the group dynamics of birds resting on wires. The model is agent-based and postulates attraction-repulsion forces between the interacting birds: the interactions are "topological", in the sense that they involve a given number of neighbors irrespective of their distance. The model is first mathematically analyzed and then simulated to study its main properties: we observe that the model predicts birds to be more widely spaced near the borders of each group. We compare the results from the model with experimental data, derived from the analysis of pictures of pigeons and starlings taken in New Jersey: two different image elaboration protocols allow us to establish a good agreement with the model and to quantify its main parameters. We also discuss the potential handedness of the birds, by analyzing the group organization features and the group dynamics at the arrival of new birds. Finally, we propose a more refined mathematical model that describes landing and departing birds by suitable stochastic processes. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Variation in clutch size in relation to nest size in birds

OpenAIRE

Moller Anders P.; Adriaensen Frank; Artemyev Alexandr; Banbura Jerzy; Barba Emilio; Biard Clotilde; Blondel Jacques; Bouslama Zihad; Bouvier Jean-Charles; Camprodon Jordi; Cecere Francesco; Charmantier Anne; Charter Motti; Cichon Mariusz; Cusimano Camillo

2014-01-01

© 2014 The Authors. Nests are structures built to support and protect eggs and/or offspring from predators, parasites, and adverse weather conditions. Nests are mainly constructed prior to egg laying, meaning that parent birds must make decisions about nest site choice and nest building behavior before the start of egg-laying. Parent birds should be selected to choose nest sites and to build optimally sized nests, yet our current understanding of clutch size-nest size relationships is limited...

Photochemical Reactivity of Dissolved Organic Matter in Boreal Lakes

Science.gov (United States)

Gu, Y.; Vuorio, K.; Tiirola, M.; Perämäki, S.; Vahatalo, A.

2016-12-01

Boreal lakes are rich in dissolved organic matter (DOM) that terrestrially derived from forest soil and wetland, yet little is known about potential for photochemical transformation of aquatic DOM in boreal lakes. Transformation of chromophoric dissolved organic matter (CDOM) can decrease water color and enhance microbial mineralization, affecting primary production and respiration, which both affect the CO2 balance of the lakes. We used laboratory solar radiation exposure experiments with lake water samples collected from 54 lakes located in Finland and Sweden, representing different catchment composition and watershed location to assess photochemical reactivity of DOM. The pH of water samples ranged from 5.4 to 8.3, and the concentrations of dissolved iron (Fe) were between samples received simulated solar radiation corresponding to a daily dose of sunlight, and photomineralization of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) to dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) was measured for determination of spectral apparent quantum yields (AQY). During irradiation, photobleaching decreased the absorption coefficients of CDOM at 330 nm between 4.9 and 79 m-1 by 0.5 to 11 m-1. Irradiation generated DIC from 2.8 to 79 μmol C L-1. The AQY at 330 nm ranged between 31 and 273 ×10-6 mol C mol photons-1 h-1, which was correlated positively with concentration of dissolved Fe, and negatively with pH. Further statistical analyze indicated that the interaction between pH and Fe may explain much of the photochemical reactivity of DOM in the examined lakes, and land cover concerns main catchment areas also can have impact on the photoreaction process. This study may suggest how environmental conditions regulate DOM photomineralization in boreal lakes.

Endophagy of biting midges attacking cavity-nesting birds.

Science.gov (United States)

Votýpka, J; Synek, P; Svobodová, M

2009-09-01

Feeding behaviour, host preferences and the spectrum of available hosts determine the role of vectors in pathogen transmission. Feeding preferences of blood-feeding Diptera depend on, among others factors, the willingness of flies to attack their hosts either in the open (exophagy) or in enclosed places (endophagy). As far as ornithophilic blood-feeding Diptera are concerned, the biting midges (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) and blackflies (Diptera: Simuliidae) are generally considered to be strictly exophagous. We determined which blood-sucking Diptera enter nest cavities and feed on birds by placing sticky foil traps inside artificial nest boxes. A total of 667 females of eight species of biting midges of the genus Culicoides (Latreille, 1809) were captured on traps during 2006-2007, with Culicoides truncorum (Edwards, 1939) being the dominant species. DNA blood analyses of blood-engorged females proved that midges actually fed on birds nesting in the boxes. Three species were identified as endophagous: Culicoides truncorum, Culicoides pictipennis (Staeger, 1839), and Culicoides minutissimus (Zetterstedt, 1855). Our study represents the first evidence that ornithophilic biting midges are endophagous. The fact that we caught no blackflies in the bird boxes supports the exophagy of blackflies. We believe that our findings are important for surveillance programmes focusing on Diptera that transmit various bird pathogens.

Vulnerability of shortgrass prairie bird assemblages to climate change

Science.gov (United States)

Skagen, Susan K.; Dreitz, Victoria; Conrey, Reesa Y.; Yackel, Amy; Panjabi, Arvind O.; Knuffman, Lekha

2016-01-01

The habitats and resources needed to support grassland birds endemic to North American prairie ecosystems are seriously threatened by impending climate change. To assess the vulnerability of grassland birds to climate change, we consider various components of vulnerability, including sensitivity, exposure, and adaptive capacity (Glick et al. 2011). Sensitivity encompasses the innate characteristics of a species and, in this context, is related to a species’ tolerance to changes in weather patterns. Groundnesting birds, including prairie birds, are particularly responsive to heat waves combined with drought conditions, as revealed by abundance and distribution patterns (Albright et al. 2010). To further assess sensitivity, we estimated reproductive parameters of nearly 3000 breeding attempts of a suite of prairie birds relative to prevailing weather. Fluctuations in weather conditions in eastern Colorado, 1997-2014, influenced breeding performance of a suite of avian species endemic to the shortgrass prairie, many of which have experienced recent population declines. High summer temperatures and intense rain events corresponded with lower nest survival for most species. Although dry conditions favored nest survival of Burrowing Owls and Mountain Plovers (Conrey 2010, Dreitz et al. 2012), drought resulted in smaller clutch sizes and lower nest survival for passerines (Skagen and Yackel Adams 2012, Conrey et al. in review). Declining summer precipitation may reduce the likelihood that some passerine species can maintain stable breeding populations in this region of the shortgrass prairie.

The Use of Various Vegetation Level by Bird Community on Mbarek Spring, Gedangan, Malang

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Suparno Suparno

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Study of correlation between vegetation and birds could show how great the impact of Figs (Ficus spp. towards wildlife. Mbarek spring has a unique microhabitat by Figs. These trees expected to provide a high potential role and benefit related to supporting bird life. This study aims to analyze the use of vegetation by birds in the sphere of Mbarek’s spring microhabitat. Study was held in Mulyosari sub-village, Sumberejo village, Gedangan subdistrict, Malang regency. The study was conducted from 26-29 October 2017. Bird observation point was chosen on Ficus racemosa, known locally as ‘Lo’, which suspected to have a major influence on the presence of birds. Each of observation results were identified, counted, and recorded. Documentation were done incidentally. The results are visualized by descriptive representations of the use of vegetation composition on 4 vegetation classifications : seedling (high = 0-1.5 m, sapling (high≥1.5 m, pole (diameter = 10-20 cm, tree (diameter> 20 cm. Sooty-headed Bulbul (Pycnonotus aurigaster is the dominant bird during observation. Most of birds observed at the canopy  with the activity of sunbathing. Figs became a favorite location for birds to rest and parenting during the day. Sedges (Cyperus sp. is the greatest importance on study site. Keywords: Birds, Figs, Mbarek, Sedges

Application of models to conservation planning for terrestrial birds in North America

Science.gov (United States)

Fitzgerald, Jane A.; Thogmartin, Wayne E.; Dettmers, Randy; Jones, Tim; Rustay, Christopher; Ruth, Janet M.; Thompson, Frank R.; Will, Tom; Millspaugh, Joshua J.; Thompson, Frank R.

2009-01-01

Partners in Flight (PIF), a public–private coalition for the conservation of land birds, has developed one of four international bird conservation plans recognized under the auspices of the North American Bird Conservation Initiative (NABCI). Partners in Flight prioritized species most in need of conservation attention and set range-wide population goals for 448 species of terrestrial birds. Partnerships are now tasked with developing spatially explicit estimates of the distribution, and abundance of priority species across large ecoregions and identifying habitat acreages needed to support populations at prescribed levels. The PIF Five Elements process of conservation design identifies five steps needed to implement all bird conservation at the ecoregional scale. Habitat assessment and landscape characterization describe the current amounts of different habitat types and summarize patch characteristics, and landscape configurations that define the ability of a landscape to sustain healthy bird populations and are a valuable first step to describing the planning area before pursuing more complex species-specific models. Spatially linked database models, landscape-scale habitat suitability models, and statistical models are viable alternatives for predicting habitat suitability or bird abundance across large planning areas to help assess conservation opportunities, design landscapes to meet population objectives, and monitor change in habitat suitability or bird numbers over time.Bird conservation in the United States is a good example of the use of models in large-scale wildlife conservation planning because of its geographic extent, focus on multiple species, involvement of multiple partners, and use of simple to complex models. We provide some background on the recent development of bird conservation initiatives in the United States and the approaches used for regional conservation assessment and planning. We focus on approaches being used for landscape

Dominant Tree Species and Soil Type Affect the Fungal Community Structure in a Boreal Peatland Forest

Science.gov (United States)

Terhonen, Eeva; Kovalchuk, Andriy; Tuovila, Hanna; Chen, Hongxin; Oghenekaro, Abbot O.; Heinonsalo, Jussi; Kohler, Annegret; Kasanen, Risto; Vasander, Harri; Asiegbu, Fred O.

2016-01-01

Boreal peatlands play a crucial role in global carbon cycling, acting as an important carbon reservoir. However, little information is available on how peatland microbial communities are influenced by natural variability or human-induced disturbances. In this study, we have investigated the fungal diversity and community structure of both the organic soil layer and buried wood in boreal forest soils using high-throughput sequencing of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region. We have also compared the fungal communities during the primary colonization of wood with those of the surrounding soils. A permutational multivariate analysis of variance (PERMANOVA) confirmed that the community composition significantly differed between soil types (P peatlands; it further provides a baseline for the investigation of the dynamics of the fungal community in the boreal peatlands. PMID:26896139

Audubon Bird Study Program.

Science.gov (United States)

National Audubon Society, New York, NY.

Included are a student reader, "The Story of Birds," a leaders' guide, a large colored Audubon bird chart, and a separate guide for the chart. The student reader is divided into eleven sections which relate to the various physical and behavioral features of birds such as feathers, feeding habits as related to the shape of bills and feet, nests,…

Characterizing Early Succession Following Wildfires at Different Severities in Boreal Bog and Fen Peatlands

Science.gov (United States)

Ernst, E. J.; Bourgeau-Chavez, L. L.; Kane, E. S.; Wagenbrenner, J. W.; Endres, S.

2016-12-01

The Arctic-boreal region is experiencing changes in climate, trending toward warmer summers, resulting in a greater occurrence of wildfires with longer burning periods and higher intensities. Drought-like conditions have dried surface fuels, leading to a higher probability of ignition, even in lowland peatlands. Previous work has been done to characterize post-fire succession rates in Arctic-boreal upland sites, but much less is known of fire effects and early successional dynamics in lowlands. Wildland fires are the number one disturbance in Canada's Northwest Territories (NWT), which characteristically burn at high intensities with large flame fronts, and result in some of the biggest wildfires in the world. Areas surrounding the Great Slave Lake, NWT—including parts of the Taiga Plains, Taiga Shield, and Boreal Plains ecozones—experienced exceptional wildfire activity in 2014 and 2015. We characterized burn severity of the bog and fen peat surface and canopy layers at several burned sites. To determine if the severe ground or crown wildfires were stand-replacing events, we characterized post-fire vegetation in peatlands in 2015 and 2016 based on seedling regeneration. We stratified sites according to estimated water residence times across the three ecozones and made comparisons between data collected at the same sites across years. This work adds much needed context for post-fire succession in boreal peatland ecosystems, as the susceptibility of these systems to burning will continue to increase with a warming climate.

Sensitivity of Coastal Environments and Wildlife to Spilled Oil: Northwest Arctic, Alaska: BIRDS (Bird Polygons)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This data set contains sensitive biological resource data for wading birds, shorebirds, waterfowl, raptors, diving birds, pelagic birds, and gulls/terns in Northwest...

Hidden components of biodiversity: bird-parasite associations in five continents

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Čapek, Miroslav; Literák, I.; Sychra, O.; Najer, T.; Kounek, F.; Havlíček, M.

2016-01-01

Roč. 43, č. 1 (2016), s. 103 ISSN 1336-5266. [Aplikovaná ornitológia /27./. 11.12.2015-12.12.2015, Zvolen] Institutional support: RVO:68081766 Keywords : Parasites * Birds Subject RIV: EG - Zoology

Risk of Agricultural Practices and Habitat Change to Farmland Birds

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

David Anthony. Kirk

2011-06-01

addition of 63 m of hedgerow could increase abundance and richness of short distance migrants by 50% (3.0 to 4.8 and 1.3 to 2.0, respectively. Increasing the proportion of hay on nonorganic farms to 50% could increase abundance of primary grassland bird by 40% (6.7 to 9.4. Our results provide support for alternative farmland designs and agricultural management systems that could enhance select bird species in farmland.

Birds as predators in tropical agroforestry systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Van Bael, Sunshine A; Philpott, Stacy M; Greenberg, Russell; Bichier, Peter; Barber, Nicholas A; Mooney, Kailen A; Gruner, Daniel S

2008-04-01

Insectivorous birds reduce arthropod abundances and their damage to plants in some, but not all, studies where predation by birds has been assessed. The variation in bird effects may be due to characteristics such as plant productivity or quality, habitat complexity, and/or species diversity of predator and prey assemblages. Since agroforestry systems vary in such characteristics, these systems provide a good starting point for understanding when and where we can expect predation by birds to be important. We analyze data from bird exclosure studies in forests and agroforestry systems to ask whether birds consistently reduce their arthropod prey base and whether bird predation differs between forests and agroforestry systems. Further, we focus on agroforestry systems to ask whether the magnitude of bird predation (1) differs between canopy trees and understory plants, (2) differs when migratory birds are present or absent, and (3) correlates with bird abundance and diversity. We found that, across all studies, birds reduce all arthropods, herbivores, carnivores, and plant damage. We observed no difference in the magnitude of bird effects between agroforestry systems and forests despite simplified habitat structure and plant diversity in agroforests. Within agroforestry systems, bird reduction of arthropods was greater in the canopy than the crop layer. Top-down effects of bird predation were especially strong during censuses when migratory birds were present in agroforestry systems. Importantly, the diversity of the predator assemblage correlated with the magnitude of predator effects; where the diversity of birds, especially migratory birds, was greater, birds reduced arthropod densities to a greater extent. We outline potential mechanisms for relationships between bird predator, insect prey, and habitat characteristics, and we suggest future studies using tropical agroforests as a model system to further test these areas of ecological theory.

Deciduous trees are a large and overlooked sink for snowmelt water in the boreal forest

Science.gov (United States)

Young, Jessica; Bolton, W. Robert; Bhatt, Uma; Cristobal, Jordi; Thoman, Richard

2016-01-01

The terrestrial water cycle contains large uncertainties that impact our understanding of water budgets and climate dynamics. Water storage is a key uncertainty in the boreal water budget, with tree water storage often ignored. The goal of this study is to quantify tree water content during the snowmelt and growing season periods for Alaskan and western Canadian boreal forests. Deciduous trees reached saturation between snowmelt and leaf-out, taking up 21–25% of the available snowmelt water, while coniferous trees removed <1%. We found that deciduous trees removed 17.8–20.9 billion m3 of snowmelt water, which is equivalent to 8.7–10.2% of the Yukon River’s annual discharge. Deciduous trees transpired 2–12% (0.4–2.2 billion m3) of the absorbed snowmelt water immediately after leaf-out, increasing favorable conditions for atmospheric convection, and an additional 10–30% (2.0–5.2 billion m3) between leaf-out and mid-summer. By 2100, boreal deciduous tree area is expected to increase by 1–15%, potentially resulting in an additional 0.3–3 billion m3 of snowmelt water removed from the soil per year. This study is the first to show that deciduous tree water uptake of snowmelt water represents a large but overlooked aspect of the water balance in boreal watersheds.

Archaeopteryx: Bringing the Dino-Bird to Life

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bergmann, Uwe

2011-01-25

Some 150 million years ago, a strange creature died in a tropical lagoon that today is located in Bavaria, Germany. In 1861, a single feather of this creature was discovered. Not long afterward, a complete fossil was found with the same bird-like feathers but dinosaur-like anatomical features. Darwin had just published 'On the Origin of Species'; could this be the missing link that Darwin's supporters hoped to find? Recently, two of the now eleven discovered Archaeopteryx fossils, and that first feather, were brought to SLAC, where, using the intense X-ray beam, researchers searched for the chemical remains of the original living creatures. Please join us for this lecture, which will explain how the studies attempt to bring the original dino-bird back to life.

Modeling Lake Storage Dynamics to support Arctic Boreal Vulnerability Experiment (ABoVE)

Science.gov (United States)

Vimal, S.; Lettenmaier, D. P.; Smith, L. C.; Smith, S.; Bowling, L. C.; Pavelsky, T.

2017-12-01

The Arctic and Boreal Zone (ABZ) of Canada and Alaska includes vast areas of permafrost, lakes, and wetlands. Permafrost thawing in this area is expected to increase due to the projected rise of temperature caused by climate change. Over the long term, this may reduce overall surface water area, but in the near-term, the opposite is being observed, with rising paludification (lake/wetland expansion). One element of NASA's ABoVE field experiment is observations of lake and wetland extent and surface elevations using NASA's AirSWOT airborne interferometric radar, accompanied by a high-resolution camera. One use of the WSE retrievals will be to constrain model estimates of lake storage dynamics. Here, we compare predictions using the lake dynamics algorithm within the Variable Infiltration Capacity (VIC) land surface scheme. The VIC lake algorithm includes representation of sub-grid topography, where the depth and area of seasonally-flooded areas are modeled as a function of topographic wetness index, basin area, and slope. The topography data used is from a new global digital elevation model, MERIT-DEM. We initially set up VIC at sites with varying permafrost conditions (i.e., no permafrost, discontinuous, continuous) in Saskatoon and Yellowknife, Canada, and Toolik Lake, Alaska. We constrained the uncalibrated model with the WSE at the time of the first ABoVE flight, and quantified the model's ability to predict WSE and ΔWSE during the time of the second flight. Finally, we evaluated the sensitivity of the VIC-lakes model and compared the three permafrost conditions. Our results quantify the sensitivity of surface water to permafrost state across the target sites. Furthermore, our evaluation of the lake modeling framework contributes to the modeling and mapping framework for lake and reservoir storage change evaluation globally as part of the SWOT mission, planned for launch in 2021.

Use of bird carcass removals by urban scavengers to adjust bird-window collision estimates

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Justine A. Kummer

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Carcass removal by scavengers has been identified as one of the largest biases in estimating bird mortality from anthropogenic sources. Only two studies have examined carcass removal by scavengers in an urban environment, and previous estimates of bird-window collision mortality at houses have relied on carcass removal rates from wind turbine studies. We placed a bird carcass and time-lapse camera at 44 houses in Edmonton, Alberta. In total, 166 7-day trials were conducted throughout 2015. Time-to-event (survival analysis was used to identify covariates that affected removal. The carcass removal rate was determined for use in estimating the number of birds killed from bird-window collisions at houses in Alberta. In total, 67.5% of carcasses were removed. The date the carcass was placed, the year the house was built, and the level of development within 50 m of the house were the covariates that had the largest effect on carcass removal. In calculating our removal rate, the number of detected carcasses in the first 24 hours was adjusted by 1.47 to account for removal by scavengers. Previously collected citizen science data were used to create an estimate of 957,440 bird deaths each year in Alberta as a result of bird-window collisions with houses. This number is based on the most detailed bird-window collision study at houses to date and a carcass removal study conducted in the same area. Similar localized studies across Canada will need to be completed to reduce the biases that exist with the previous bird-window collision mortality estimate for houses in Canada.

Declining plant nitrogen supply and carbon accumulation in ageing primary boreal forest ecosystems

Science.gov (United States)

Högberg, Mona N.; Yarwood, Stephanie A.; Trumbore, Susan; Högberg, Peter

2016-04-01

Boreal forest soils are commonly characterized by a low plant nitrogen (N) supply. A high tree below-ground allocation of carbon (C) to roots and soil microorganisms in response to the shortage of N may lead to high microbial immobilisation of N, thus aggravating the N limitation. We studied the N supply at a Swedish boreal forest ecosystem chronosequence created by new land rising out of the sea due to iso-static rebound. The youngest soils develop with meadows by the coast, followed by a zone of dinitrogen fixing alder trees, and primary boreal conifer forest on ground up to 560 years old. With increasing ecosystem age, the proportion of microbial C out of the total soil C pool from the youngest to the oldest coniferous ecosystem was constant (c. 1-1.5%), whereas immobilised N (microbial N out of total soil N) increased and approached the levels commonly observed in similar boreal coniferous forests (c. 6-7 %), whereas gross N mineralization declined. Simultaneously, plant foliar N % decreased and the natural abundance of N-15 in the soil increased. More specifically, the difference in N-15 between plant foliage and soil increased, which is related to greater retention of N-15 relative to N-14 by ectomycorrhizal fungi as N is taken up from the soil and some N is transferred to the plant host. In the conifer forest, where these changes were greatest, we found increased fungal biomass in the F- and H-horizons of the mor-layer, in which ectomycorrhizal fungi are known to dominate (the uppermost horizon with litter and moss is dominated by saprotrophic fungi). Hence, we propose that the decreasing N supply to the plants and the subsequent decline in plant production in ageing boreal forests is linked to high tree belowground C allocation to C limited ectomycorrhizal fungi (and other soil microorganisms), a strong sink for available soil N. Data on organic matter C-14 suggested that the largest input of recently fixed plant C occurred in the younger coniferous forest

Epidemiologic characterization of Colorado backyard bird flocks.

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Emily I; Reif, John S; Hill, Ashley E; Slota, Katharine E; Miller, Ryan S; Bjork, Kathe E; Pabilonia, Kristy L

2012-06-01

Backyard gallinaceous bird flocks may play an important role in the spread of infectious diseases within poultry populations as well as the transmission of zoonotic diseases to humans. An epidemiologic characterization was conducted of Colorado backyard flocks to gather information on general flock characteristics, human movement of birds, human-bird interaction, biosecurity practices, and flock health. Our results suggest that backyard poultry flocks in Colorado are small-sized flocks (68.6% of flocks had meat or egg) production for the family (86.44%) or as pet or hobby birds (42.27%). The backyard flock environment may promote bird-to-bird transmission as well as bird-to-human transmission of infectious disease. Birds are primarily housed with free access to the outside (96.85%), and many are moved from the home premises (46.06% within 1 yr). Human contact with backyard flocks is high, biosecurity practices are minimal, and bird health is negatively impacted by increased movement events. Increased knowledge of backyard bird characteristics and associated management practices can provide guidelines for the development of measures to decrease disease transmission between bird populations, decrease disease transmission from birds to humans, and increase the overall health of backyard birds.

Future inhibition of ecosystem productivity by increasing wildfire pollution over boreal North America

Science.gov (United States)

Yue, X.; Strada, S.; Unger, N.

2017-12-01

Biomass burning is an important source of tropospheric ozone (O3) and aerosols, which can affect vegetation photosynthesis through stomatal uptake (for O3) and light scattering and meteorological variations (for aerosols). Climate change will significantly increase wildfire activity in boreal North America by the midcentury, while little is known about the impacts of enhanced emissions on the terrestrial carbon budget. Here, combining site-level and satellite observations and a carbon-chemistry-climate model, we estimate the impacts of fire emitted O3 and aerosols on net primary productivity (NPP) over boreal North America. Fire emissions are calculated based on an ensemble projection from 13 climate models. In the present day, wildfire enhances surface O3 by 2 ppbv (7%) and aerosol optical depth (AOD) at 550 nm by 0.03 (26%) in the summer. By midcentury, boreal area burned is predicted to increase by 66%, contributing more O3 (13%) and aerosols (37%). Fire O3 causes negligible impacts on NPP because ambient O3 concentration is far below the damaging thresholds. Fire aerosols reduce surface solar radiation but enhance atmospheric absorption, resulting in enhanced air stability and intensified regional drought. The domain of this drying is confined to the North in the present day, but extends southward by 2050 due to increased fire emissions. Consequently, wildfire aerosols enhance NPP by 72 Tg C yr-1 in the present day but decrease NPP by 118 Tg C yr-1 in the future, mainly because of the soil moisture perturbations. Our results suggest that future wildfire may accelerate boreal carbon loss, not only through direct emissions, but also through the biophysical impacts of fire aerosols.

Tracking progress toward EU Biodiversity Strategy targets: EU policy effects in preserving its common farmland birds

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Gamero, A.; Brotons, L.; Brunner, A.; Foppen, R.; Fornasari, L.; Gregory, R. D.; Herrando, S.; Hořák, D.; Jiguet, F.; Kmecl, P.; Lehikoinen, A.; Lindström, Å.; Paquet, J. Y.; Reif, J.; Sirkiä, P. M.; Škorpilová, J.; van Strien, A.; Szép, T.; Telenský, Tomáš; Teufelbauer, N.; Trautmann, S.; Van Turnhout, C. A. M.; Vermouzek, Z.; Vikstrøm, T.; Voříšek, P.

2017-01-01

Roč. 10, č. 4 (2017), s. 395-402 ISSN 1755-263X Institutional support: RVO:68081766 Keywords : Agricultural intensification * Agrienvironmental schemes * Bird monitoring * Birds directive * Common agriculture policy * Natura 2000 * SPA Subject RIV: EG - Zoology OBOR OECD: Biodiversity conservation Impact factor: 7.020, year: 2016

Anthropogenic nitrogen deposition enhances carbon sequestration in boreal soils.

Science.gov (United States)

Maaroufi, Nadia I; Nordin, Annika; Hasselquist, Niles J; Bach, Lisbet H; Palmqvist, Kristin; Gundale, Michael J

2015-08-01

It is proposed that carbon (C) sequestration in response to reactive nitrogen (Nr ) deposition in boreal forests accounts for a large portion of the terrestrial sink for anthropogenic CO2 emissions. While studies have helped clarify the magnitude by which Nr deposition enhances C sequestration by forest vegetation, there remains a paucity of long-term experimental studies evaluating how soil C pools respond. We conducted a long-term experiment, maintained since 1996, consisting of three N addition levels (0, 12.5, and 50 kg N ha(-1) yr(-1) ) in the boreal zone of northern Sweden to understand how atmospheric Nr deposition affects soil C accumulation, soil microbial communities, and soil respiration. We hypothesized that soil C sequestration will increase, and soil microbial biomass and soil respiration will decrease, with disproportionately large changes expected compared to low levels of N addition. Our data showed that the low N addition treatment caused a non-significant increase in the organic horizon C pool of ~15% and a significant increase of ~30% in response to the high N treatment relative to the control. The relationship between C sequestration and N addition in the organic horizon was linear, with a slope of 10 kg C kg(-1) N. We also found a concomitant decrease in total microbial and fungal biomasses and a ~11% reduction in soil respiration in response to the high N treatment. Our data complement previous data from the same study system describing aboveground C sequestration, indicating a total ecosystem sequestration rate of 26 kg C kg(-1) N. These estimates are far lower than suggested by some previous modeling studies, and thus will help improve and validate current modeling efforts aimed at separating the effect of multiple global change factors on the C balance of the boreal region. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Hydro-climatic forcing of dissolved organic carbon in two boreal lakes of Canada.

Science.gov (United States)

Diodato, Nazzareno; Higgins, Scott; Bellocchi, Gianni; Fiorillo, Francesco; Romano, Nunzio; Guadagno, Francesco M

2016-11-15

The boreal forest of the northern hemisphere represents one of the world's largest ecozones and contains nearly one third of the world's intact forests and terrestrially stored carbon. Long-term variations in temperature and precipitation have been implied in altering carbon cycling in forest soils, including increased fluxes to receiving waters. In this study, we use a simple hydrologic model and a 40-year dataset (1971-2010) of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) from two pristine boreal lakes (ELA, Canada) to examine the interactions between precipitation and landscape-scale controls of DOC production and export from forest catchments to surface waters. Our results indicate that a simplified hydrologically-based conceptual model can enable the long-term temporal patterns of DOC fluxes to be captured within boreal landscapes. Reconstructed DOC exports from forested catchments in the period 1901-2012 follow largely a sinusoidal pattern, with a period of about 37years and are tightly linked to multi-decadal patterns of precipitation. By combining our model with long-term precipitation estimates, we found no evidence of increasing DOC transport or in-lake concentrations through the 20th century. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Music for the birds: effects of auditory enrichment on captive bird species.

Science.gov (United States)

Robbins, Lindsey; Margulis, Susan W

2016-01-01

With the increase of mixed species exhibits in zoos, targeting enrichment for individual species may be problematic. Often, mammals may be the primary targets of enrichment, yet other species that share their environment (such as birds) will unavoidably be exposed to the enrichment as well. The purpose of this study was to determine if (1) auditory stimuli designed for enrichment of primates influenced the behavior of captive birds in the zoo setting, and (2) if the specific type of auditory enrichment impacted bird behavior. Three different African bird species were observed at the Buffalo Zoo during exposure to natural sounds, classical music and rock music. The results revealed that the average frequency of flying in all three bird species increased with naturalistic sounds and decreased with rock music (F = 7.63, df = 3,6, P = 0.018); vocalizations for two of the three species (Superb Starlings and Mousebirds) increased (F = 18.61, df = 2,6, P = 0.0027) in response to all auditory stimuli, however one species (Lady Ross's Turacos) increased frequency of duetting only in response to rock music (X(2) = 18.5, df = 2, P < 0.0001). Auditory enrichment implemented for large mammals may influence behavior in non-target species as well, in this case leading to increased activity by birds. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Effects of disturbance and climate change on ecosystem performance in the Yukon River Basin boreal forest

Science.gov (United States)

Wylie, Bruce K.; Rigge, Matthew B.; Brisco, Brian; Mrnaghan, Kevin; Rover, Jennifer R.; Long, Jordan

2014-01-01

A warming climate influences boreal forest productivity, dynamics, and disturbance regimes. We used ecosystem models and 250 m satellite Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) data averaged over the growing season (GSN) to model current, and estimate future, ecosystem performance. We modeled Expected Ecosystem Performance (EEP), or anticipated productivity, in undisturbed stands over the 2000–2008 period from a variety of abiotic data sources, using a rule-based piecewise regression tree. The EEP model was applied to a future climate ensemble A1B projection to quantify expected changes to mature boreal forest performance. Ecosystem Performance Anomalies (EPA), were identified as the residuals of the EEP and GSN relationship and represent performance departures from expected performance conditions. These performance data were used to monitor successional events following fire. Results suggested that maximum EPA occurs 30–40 years following fire, and deciduous stands generally have higher EPA than coniferous stands. Mean undisturbed EEP is projected to increase 5.6% by 2040 and 8.7% by 2070, suggesting an increased deciduous component in boreal forests. Our results contribute to the understanding of boreal forest successional dynamics and its response to climate change. This information enables informed decisions to prepare for, and adapt to, climate change in the Yukon River Basin forest.

Hovering and intermittent flight in birds

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tobalske, Bret W

2010-01-01

Two styles of bird locomotion, hovering and intermittent flight, have great potential to inform future development of autonomous flying vehicles. Hummingbirds are the smallest flying vertebrates, and they are the only birds that can sustain hovering. Their ability to hover is due to their small size, high wingbeat frequency, relatively large margin of mass-specific power available for flight and a suite of anatomical features that include proportionally massive major flight muscles (pectoralis and supracoracoideus) and wing anatomy that enables them to leave their wings extended yet turned over (supinated) during upstroke so that they can generate lift to support their weight. Hummingbirds generate three times more lift during downstroke compared with upstroke, with the disparity due to wing twist during upstroke. Much like insects, hummingbirds exploit unsteady mechanisms during hovering including delayed stall during wing translation that is manifest as a leading-edge vortex (LEV) on the wing and rotational circulation at the end of each half stroke. Intermittent flight is common in small- and medium-sized birds and consists of pauses during which the wings are flexed (bound) or extended (glide). Flap-bounding appears to be an energy-saving style when flying relatively fast, with the production of lift by the body and tail critical to this saving. Flap-gliding is thought to be less costly than continuous flapping during flight at most speeds. Some species are known to shift from flap-gliding at slow speeds to flap-bounding at fast speeds, but there is an upper size limit for the ability to bound (∼0.3 kg) and small birds with rounded wings do not use intermittent glides.

Hovering and intermittent flight in birds

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tobalske, Bret W, E-mail: bret.tobalske@mso.umt.ed [Field Research Station at Fort Missoula, Division of Biological Sciences, University of Montana, Missoula, MT 59812 (United States)

2010-12-15

Two styles of bird locomotion, hovering and intermittent flight, have great potential to inform future development of autonomous flying vehicles. Hummingbirds are the smallest flying vertebrates, and they are the only birds that can sustain hovering. Their ability to hover is due to their small size, high wingbeat frequency, relatively large margin of mass-specific power available for flight and a suite of anatomical features that include proportionally massive major flight muscles (pectoralis and supracoracoideus) and wing anatomy that enables them to leave their wings extended yet turned over (supinated) during upstroke so that they can generate lift to support their weight. Hummingbirds generate three times more lift during downstroke compared with upstroke, with the disparity due to wing twist during upstroke. Much like insects, hummingbirds exploit unsteady mechanisms during hovering including delayed stall during wing translation that is manifest as a leading-edge vortex (LEV) on the wing and rotational circulation at the end of each half stroke. Intermittent flight is common in small- and medium-sized birds and consists of pauses during which the wings are flexed (bound) or extended (glide). Flap-bounding appears to be an energy-saving style when flying relatively fast, with the production of lift by the body and tail critical to this saving. Flap-gliding is thought to be less costly than continuous flapping during flight at most speeds. Some species are known to shift from flap-gliding at slow speeds to flap-bounding at fast speeds, but there is an upper size limit for the ability to bound ({approx}0.3 kg) and small birds with rounded wings do not use intermittent glides.

Transmission of influenza reflects seasonality of wild birds across the annual cycle

Science.gov (United States)

Hill, Nichola J.; Ma, Eric J.; Meixell, Brandt W.; Lindberg, Mark S.; Boyce, Walter M.; Runstadler, Jonathan A.

2016-01-01

Influenza A Viruses (IAV) in nature must overcome shifting transmission barriers caused by the mobility of their primary host, migratory wild birds, that change throughout the annual cycle. Using a phylogenetic network of viral sequences from North American wild birds (2008–2011) we demonstrate a shift from intraspecific to interspecific transmission that along with reassortment, allows IAV to achieve viral flow across successive seasons from summer to winter. Our study supports amplification of IAV during summer breeding seeded by overwintering virus persisting locally and virus introduced from a wide range of latitudes. As birds migrate from breeding sites to lower latitudes, they become involved in transmission networks with greater connectivity to other bird species, with interspecies transmission of reassortant viruses peaking during the winter. We propose that switching transmission dynamics may be a critical strategy for pathogens that infect mobile hosts inhabiting regions with strong seasonality.

Birds as biodiversity surrogates

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Larsen, Frank Wugt; Bladt, Jesper Stentoft; Balmford, Andrew

2012-01-01

1. Most biodiversity is still unknown, and therefore, priority areas for conservation typically are identified based on the presence of surrogates, or indicator groups. Birds are commonly used as surrogates of biodiversity owing to the wide availability of relevant data and their broad popular...... and applications.?Good surrogates of biodiversity are necessary to help identify conservation areas that will be effective in preventing species extinctions. Birds perform fairly well as surrogates in cases where birds are relatively speciose, but overall effectiveness will be improved by adding additional data...... from other taxa, in particular from range-restricted species. Conservation solutions with focus on birds as biodiversity surrogate could therefore benefit from also incorporating species data from other taxa....

The role of boreal forests and forestry in the global carbon budget : a synthesis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fyles, I.H.; Shaw, C.H.; Apps, M.J.; Karjalainen, T.; Stocks, B.J.; Running, S.W.; Kurz, W.A.; Weyerhaeuser, G.Jr.; Jarvis, P.G.

2002-10-01

This paper provides a synthesis of all papers presented at the conference on the role of boreal forests in the global carbon budget. The scientific community is recognizing the critical links between boreal forest ecosystems, carbon dynamics and global climate change. This paper addresses the five main topics discussed at the conference including: (1) carbon stocks and fluxes, (2) the effects of natural disturbances on carbon dynamics, (3) effects of management practices on carbon dynamics, (4) afforestation and carbon sequestration, and (5) effects of climate change and elevated carbon dioxide concentration on carbon dynamics. Large-scale model simulations suggest that increased global temperatures will result in increased net ecosystem productivity (NEP). Several model simulations also indicate that net primary productivity (NPP) will increase. While most forest stands are currently carbon sinks, disturbances such as fire, insects and tree harvesting make forests susceptible to becoming a source of carbon. In contrast, some studies suggest that climate change will cause shifting vegetation patterns, increased soil carbon and higher forest productivity that may result in higher sequestration of carbon in the boreal forest. 84 refs.

Boreal Forests of Kamchatka: Structure and Composition

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Markus P. Eichhorn

2010-09-01

Full Text Available Central Kamchatka abounds in virgin old-growth boreal forest, formed primarily by Larix cajanderi and Betula platyphylla in varying proportions. A series of eight 0.25–0.30 ha plots captured the range of forests present in this region and their structure is described. Overall trends in both uplands and lowlands are for higher sites to be dominated by L. cajanderi with an increasing component of B. platyphylla with decreasing altitude. The tree line on wet sites is commonly formed by mono-dominant B. ermanii forests. Basal area ranged from 7.8–38.1 m2/ha and average tree height from 8.3–24.7 m, both being greater in lowland forests. Size distributions varied considerably among plots, though they were consistently more even for L. cajanderi than B. platyphylla. Upland sites also contained a dense subcanopy of Pinus pumila averaging 38% of ground area. Soil characteristics differed among plots, with upland soils being of lower pH and containing more carbon. Comparisons are drawn with boreal forests elsewhere and the main current threats assessed. These forests provide a potential baseline to contrast with more disturbed regions elsewhere in the world and therefore may be used as a target for restoration efforts or to assess the effects of climate change independent of human impacts.

Robird : a robotic bird of prey

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Folkertsma, Gerrit Adriaan; Straatman, Wessel; Nijenhuis, Nico; Venner, Cornelis H.; Stramigioli, Stefano

2017-01-01

Ever since the start of aviation, birds and airplanes have posed a mutual risk: Birds are killed when struck by aircraft, but, in return, bird strikes cause billions in damage to the aviation industry. Airports employ bird-control methods such as audiovisual deterrents (like scarecrows, lasers, and

Climate change implications of shifting forest management strategy in a boreal forest ecosystem of Norway.

Science.gov (United States)

Bright, Ryan M; Antón-Fernández, Clara; Astrup, Rasmus; Cherubini, Francesco; Kvalevåg, Maria; Strømman, Anders H

2014-02-01

Empirical models alongside remotely sensed and station measured meteorological observations are employed to investigate both the local and global direct climate change impacts of alternative forest management strategies within a boreal ecosystem of eastern Norway. Stand-level analysis is firstly executed to attribute differences in daily, seasonal, and annual mean surface temperatures to differences in surface intrinsic biophysical properties across conifer, deciduous, and clear-cut sites. Relative to a conifer site, a slight local cooling of −0.13 °C at a deciduous site and −0.25 °C at a clear-cut site were observed over a 6-year period, which were mostly attributed to a higher albedo throughout the year. When monthly mean albedo trajectories over the entire managed forest landscape were taken into consideration, we found that strategies promoting natural regeneration of coniferous sites with native deciduous species led to substantial global direct climate cooling benefits relative to those maintaining current silviculture regimes – despite predicted long-term regional warming feedbacks and a reduced albedo in spring and autumn months. The magnitude and duration of the cooling benefit depended largely on whether management strategies jointly promoted an enhanced material supply over business-as-usual levels. Expressed in terms of an equivalent CO2 emission pulse at the start of the simulation, the net climate response at the end of the 21st century spanned −8 to −159 Tg-CO2-eq., depending on whether near-term harvest levels increased or followed current trends, respectively. This magnitude equates to approximately −20 to −300% of Norway's annual domestic (production) emission impact. Our analysis supports the assertion that a carbon-only focus in the design and implementation of forest management policy in boreal and other climatically similar regions can be counterproductive – and at best – suboptimal if boreal forests are to be used as a

[Hemoparasites in wild birds in Madagascar].

Science.gov (United States)

Raharimanga, V; Soula, F; Raherilalao, M J; Goodman, S M; Sadonès, H; Tall, A; Randrianarivelojosia, M; Raharimalala, L; Duchemin, J B; Ariey, F; Robert, V

2002-01-01

This study aims to evaluate the prevalence and density of haemoparasites in native Malagasy birds. Among the 387 birds, belonging to 43 species sampled at six localities in different bio-climatic zones of the island, 139 (35.9%) showed at least 1 hemoparasite with, by order of frequency, Plasmodium and/or Haemoproteus (19.9%), microfilariae (13.7% of 387 birds), Leucocytozoon (11.1%) and Trypanosoma (1.0%). An analysis to further elucidate these observations took into account the interaction of different environmental variables (altitude, season, site of collection) or aspects of the birds (age, weight, sex). There is evidence that some parasites preferentially infect some bird species or families. The largest male birds harboured the highest prevalences and densities of haemoparasite, regardless of species. These findings extend knowledge of bird/blood parasite relationships of Malagasy birds and provide interesting insights, especially concerning the pathogenicity of this type of parasitism and the parasite transmission by insect vectors.

Breeding Ecology of Birds -22 ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

or drive the birds away. However, the droppings of the birds provide a rich source of fertilizer and this ... birds of India are under severe threat and require urgent protection. he~ries'(Box 1), can ... there will be no fish and then suddenly a school.

21 CFR 1240.65 - Psittacine birds.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Psittacine birds. 1240.65 Section 1240.65 Food and... DISEASES Specific Administrative Decisions Regarding Interstate Shipments § 1240.65 Psittacine birds. (a) The term psittacine birds shall include all birds commonly known as parrots, Amazons, Mexican double...

Effects of warming on N2O fluxes in a boreal peatland of Permafrost region, Northeast China.

Science.gov (United States)

Cui, Qian; Song, Changchun; Wang, Xianwei; Shi, Fuxi; Yu, Xueyang; Tan, Wenwen

2018-03-01

Climate warming is expected to increasingly influence boreal peatlands and alter their greenhouse gases emissions. However, the effects of warming on N 2 O fluxes and the N 2 O budgets were ignored in boreal peatlands. Therefore, in a boreal peatland of permafrost zone in Northeast China, a simulated warming experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of warming on N 2 O fluxes in Betula. Fruticosa community (B. Fruticosa) and Ledum. palustre community (L. palustre) during the growing seasons from 2013 to 2015. Results showed that warming treatment increased air temperature at 1.5m aboveground and soil temperature at 5cm depth by 0.6°C and 2°C, respectively. The average seasonal N 2 O fluxes ranged from 6.62 to 9.34μgm -2 h -1 in the warming plot and ranged from 0.41 to 4.55μgm -2 h -1 in the control plots. Warming treatment increased N 2 O fluxes by 147% and transformed the boreal peatlands from a N 2 O sink to a source. The primary driving factors for N 2 O fluxes were soil temperature and active layer depth, whereas soil moisture showed a weak correlation with N 2 O fluxes. The results indicated that warming promoted N 2 O fluxes by increasing soil temperature and active layer depth in a boreal peatland of permafrost zone in Northeast China. Moreover, elevated N 2 O fluxes persisted in this region will potentially drive a noncarbon feedback to ongoing climate change. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Diseases Transmitted by Birds.

Science.gov (United States)

Levison, Matthew E

2015-08-01

Although many people these days actually work very hard at leisure time activities, diseases are most commonly acquired from birds during the course of work in the usual sense of the term, not leisure. However, travel for pleasure to areas where the diseases are highly endemic puts people at risk of acquiring some of these bird-related diseases (for example, histoplasmosis and arbovirus infections), as does ownership of birds as pets (psittacosis).

Long-term change in limnology and invertebrates in Alaskan boreal wetlands

Science.gov (United States)

Corcoran, R.M.; Lovvorn, J.R.; Heglund, P.J.

2009-01-01

Climate change is more pronounced at high northern latitudes, and may be affecting the physical, chemical, and biological attributes of the abundant wetlands in boreal forests. On the Yukon Flats, located in the boreal forest of northeast Alaska, wetlands originally sampled during 1985-1989 were re-sampled for water chemistry and macroinvertebrates in summer 2001-2003. Wetlands sampled lost on average 19% surface water area between these periods. Total nitrogen and most metal cations (Na, Mg, and Ca, but not K) increased between these periods, whereas total phosphorus and chlorophyll a (Chl a) declined. These changes were greater in wetlands that had experienced more drying (decreased surface area). Compared with 1985-1989, densities of cladocerans, copepods, and ostracods in both June and August were much higher in 2002-2003, whereas densities of amphipods, gastropods, and chironomid larvae were generally lower. In comparisons among wetlands in 2002-2003 only, amphipod biomass was lower in wetlands with lower Chl a, which might help explain the decline of amphipods since the late 1980s when Chl a was higher. The decline in Chl a corresponded to greatly increased zooplankton density in June, suggesting a shift in carbon flow from scrapers and deposit-feeders to water-column grazers. Declines in benthic and epibenthic deposit-feeding invertebrates suggest important food web effects of climate change in otherwise pristine wetlands of the boreal forest. ?? 2008 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.

Habitat associations drive species vulnerability to climate change in boreal forests

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mazziotta, Adriano; Triviño, María; Tikkanen, Olli-Pekka

2016-01-01

if species sensitivity, the species ability to tolerate climatic variations determined by traits, plays a key role in determining vulnerability. We analyse the role of species’ habitat associations, a proxy for sensitivity, in explaining vulnerability for two poorly-known but species-rich taxa in boreal...... forest, saproxylic beetles and fungi, using three IPCC emissions scenarios. Towards the end of the 21st century we projected an improvement in habitat quality associated with an increase of deadwood, an important resource for species, as a consequence of increased tree growth under high emissions...... scenarios. However, climate change will potentially reduce habitat suitability for ~9–43 % of the threatened deadwood-associated species. This loss is likely caused by future increase in timber extraction and decomposition rates causing higher deadwood turnover, which have a strong negative effect on boreal...

Sex Reversal and Comparative Data Undermine the W Chromosome and Support Z-linked DMRT1 as the Regulator of Gonadal Sex Differentiation in Birds.

Science.gov (United States)

Hirst, Claire E; Major, Andrew T; Ayers, Katie L; Brown, Rosie J; Mariette, Mylene; Sackton, Timothy B; Smith, Craig A

2017-09-01

The exact genetic mechanism regulating avian gonadal sex differentiation has not been completely resolved. The most likely scenario involves a dosage mechanism, whereby the Z-linked DMRT1 gene triggers testis development. However, the possibility still exists that the female-specific W chromosome may harbor an ovarian determining factor. In this study, we provide evidence that the universal gene regulating gonadal sex differentiation in birds is Z-linked DMRT1 and not a W-linked (ovarian) factor. Three candidate W-linked ovarian determinants are HINTW, female-expressed transcript 1 (FET1), and female-associated factor (FAF). To test the association of these genes with ovarian differentiation in the chicken, we examined their expression following experimentally induced female-to-male sex reversal using the aromatase inhibitor fadrozole (FAD). Administration of FAD on day 3 of embryogenesis induced a significant loss of aromatase enzyme activity in female gonads and masculinization. However, expression levels of HINTW, FAF, and FET1 were unaltered after experimental masculinization. Furthermore, comparative analysis showed that FAF and FET1 expression could not be detected in zebra finch gonads. Additionally, an antibody raised against the predicted HINTW protein failed to detect it endogenously. These data do not support a universal role for these genes or for the W sex chromosome in ovarian development in birds. We found that DMRT1 (but not the recently identified Z-linked HEMGN gene) is male upregulated in embryonic zebra finch and emu gonads, as in the chicken. As chicken, zebra finch, and emu exemplify the major evolutionary clades of birds, we propose that Z-linked DMRT1, and not the W sex chromosome, regulates gonadal sex differentiation in birds. Copyright © 2017 Endocrine Society.

WT-BIRD. Bird collision monitoring system for multi-megawatt wind turbines

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wiggelinkhuizen, E.J.; Rademakers, L.W.M.M.; Barhorst, S.A.M. [ECN Wind Energy, Petten (Netherlands); Den Boon, H.J. [E-Connection Project, Bunnik (Netherlands); Dirksen, S. [Bureau Waardenburg, Culemborg (Netherlands)

2007-05-15

A new method for detection and registration of bird collisions has been developed that is suitable for continuous remote operation in both onshore and offshore wind farms. The characteristic sound of a collision is detected by sensors in the blades, which triggers the storage of video registrations and sends an alert message to the operator. A prototype has been tested successfully on a Nordex N80/2.5MW turbine at ECN's Wind turbine Test park Wieringermeer. Compared to other methods employed so far this monitoring system will reduce the uncertainty in the number of birds killed by collisions with wind turbines. Further, the system enables the operator to identify species and to study the collision mechanisms. It has been found that this system can also be used for monitoring of other events in order to save costs for inspection and repair after incidents. For offshore wind farms, the WT-Bird system is currently the only alternative to count the number of bird collisions. Functional tests with tennis balls that were shot against rotating blades showed that the majority of the impacts were detected. The flight track of these dummies and the collision events were clearly visible on the video registrations. During the monitoring period of about one year two bird collisions were detected. The video recordings confirmed that a collision took place and showed that the location of both collisions was near the blade root, which resulted that in both cases the bird was not (immediately) killed. Therefore no corpses could be found beneath the turbine after these events. Also during the rest of the monitoring period no corpses were found beneath the turbine.

Tissue radionuclide concentrations in water birds and upland birds on the Hanford Site (USA) from 1971-2009

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Delistraty, Damon; Van Verst, Scott

2011-01-01

Historical operations at the Hanford Site (Washington State, USA) have released a wide array of non-radionuclide and radionuclide contaminants into the environment. As a result, there is a need to characterize contaminant effects on site biota. Within this framework, the main purpose of our study was to evaluate radionuclide concentrations in bird tissue, obtained from the Hanford Environmental Information System (HEIS). The database was sorted by avian group (water bird vs. upland bird), radionuclide (over 20 analytes), tissue (muscle, bone, liver), location (onsite vs. offsite), and time period (1971-1990 vs. 1991-2009). Onsite median concentrations in water birds were significantly higher (Bonferroni P < 0.05) than those in onsite upland birds for Cs-137 in muscle (1971-1990) and Sr-90 in bone (1991-2009), perhaps due to behavioral, habitat, or trophic species differences. Onsite median concentrations in water birds were higher (borderline significance with Bonferroni P = 0.05) than those in offsite birds for Cs-137 in muscle (1971-1990). Onsite median concentrations in the earlier time period were significantly higher (Bonferroni P < 0.05) than those in the later time period for Co-60, Cs-137, Eu-152, and Sr-90 in water bird muscle and for Cs-137 in upland bird muscle tissue. Median concentrations of Sr-90 in bone were significantly higher (Bonferroni P < 0.05) than those in muscle for both avian groups and both locations. Over the time period, 1971-2009, onsite median internal dose was estimated for each radionuclide in water bird and upland bird tissues. However, a meaningful dose comparison between bird groups was not possible, due to a dissimilar radionuclide inventory, mismatch of time periods for input radionuclides, and lack of an external dose estimate. Despite these limitations, our results contribute toward ongoing efforts to characterize ecological risk at the Hanford Site. - Highlights: → Radionuclides evaluated in bird tissues on the Hanford Site

Tissue radionuclide concentrations in water birds and upland birds on the Hanford Site (USA) from 1971-2009

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Delistraty, Damon, E-mail: DDEL461@ecy.wa.gov [Washington State Department of Ecology, N. 4601 Monroe Street, Spokane, WA 99205-1295 (United States); Van Verst, Scott [Washington State Department of Health, Olympia, WA (United States)

2011-08-15

Historical operations at the Hanford Site (Washington State, USA) have released a wide array of non-radionuclide and radionuclide contaminants into the environment. As a result, there is a need to characterize contaminant effects on site biota. Within this framework, the main purpose of our study was to evaluate radionuclide concentrations in bird tissue, obtained from the Hanford Environmental Information System (HEIS). The database was sorted by avian group (water bird vs. upland bird), radionuclide (over 20 analytes), tissue (muscle, bone, liver), location (onsite vs. offsite), and time period (1971-1990 vs. 1991-2009). Onsite median concentrations in water birds were significantly higher (Bonferroni P < 0.05) than those in onsite upland birds for Cs-137 in muscle (1971-1990) and Sr-90 in bone (1991-2009), perhaps due to behavioral, habitat, or trophic species differences. Onsite median concentrations in water birds were higher (borderline significance with Bonferroni P = 0.05) than those in offsite birds for Cs-137 in muscle (1971-1990). Onsite median concentrations in the earlier time period were significantly higher (Bonferroni P < 0.05) than those in the later time period for Co-60, Cs-137, Eu-152, and Sr-90 in water bird muscle and for Cs-137 in upland bird muscle tissue. Median concentrations of Sr-90 in bone were significantly higher (Bonferroni P < 0.05) than those in muscle for both avian groups and both locations. Over the time period, 1971-2009, onsite median internal dose was estimated for each radionuclide in water bird and upland bird tissues. However, a meaningful dose comparison between bird groups was not possible, due to a dissimilar radionuclide inventory, mismatch of time periods for input radionuclides, and lack of an external dose estimate. Despite these limitations, our results contribute toward ongoing efforts to characterize ecological risk at the Hanford Site. - Highlights: > Radionuclides evaluated in bird tissues on the Hanford Site

75 FR 27143 - Migratory Bird Hunting; Proposed 2010-11 Migratory Game Bird Hunting Regulations (Preliminary...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-05-13

... Convention and the subsequent 1936 Mexico Convention for the Protection of Migratory Birds and Game Mammals... Part III Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service 50 CFR Part 20 Migratory Bird Hunting; Proposed 2010-11 Migratory Game Bird Hunting Regulations (Preliminary) With Requests for Indian...

Aerodynamics of bird flight

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dvořák Rudolf

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Unlike airplanes birds must have either flapping or oscillating wings (the hummingbird. Only such wings can produce both lift and thrust – two sine qua non attributes of flying.The bird wings have several possibilities how to obtain the same functions as airplane wings. All are realized by the system of flight feathers. Birds have also the capabilities of adjusting the shape of the wing according to what the immediate flight situation demands, as well as of responding almost immediately to conditions the flow environment dictates, such as wind gusts, object avoidance, target tracking, etc. In bird aerodynamics also the tail plays an important role. To fly, wings impart downward momentum to the surrounding air and obtain lift by reaction. How this is achieved under various flight situations (cruise flight, hovering, landing, etc., and what the role is of the wing-generated vortices in producing lift and thrust is discussed.The issue of studying bird flight experimentally from in vivo or in vitro experiments is also briefly discussed.

Ecophysiological modeling of photosynthesis and carbon allocation to the tree stem in the boreal forest

Science.gov (United States)

Gennaretti, Fabio; Gea-Izquierdo, Guillermo; Boucher, Etienne; Berninger, Frank; Arseneault, Dominique; Guiot, Joel

2017-11-01

A better understanding of the coupling between photosynthesis and carbon allocation in the boreal forest, together with its associated environmental factors and mechanistic rules, is crucial to accurately predict boreal forest carbon stocks and fluxes, which are significant components of the global carbon budget. Here, we adapted the MAIDEN ecophysiological forest model to consider important processes for boreal tree species, such as nonlinear acclimation of photosynthesis to temperature changes, canopy development as a function of previous-year climate variables influencing bud formation and the temperature dependence of carbon partition in summer. We tested these modifications in the eastern Canadian taiga using black spruce (Picea mariana (Mill.) B.S.P.) gross primary production and ring width data. MAIDEN explains 90 % of the observed daily gross primary production variability, 73 % of the annual ring width variability and 20-30 % of its high-frequency component (i.e., when decadal trends are removed). The positive effect on stem growth due to climate warming over the last several decades is well captured by the model. In addition, we illustrate how we improve the model with each introduced model adaptation and compare the model results with those of linear response functions. Our results demonstrate that MAIDEN simulates robust relationships with the most important climate variables (those detected by classical response-function analysis) and is a powerful tool for understanding how environmental factors interact with black spruce ecophysiology to influence present-day and future boreal forest carbon fluxes.

Growth decline linked to warming-induced water limitation in hemi-boreal forests.

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Xiuchen; Liu, Hongyan; Guo, Dali; Anenkhonov, Oleg A; Badmaeva, Natalya K; Sandanov, Denis V

2012-01-01

Hemi-boreal forests, which make up the transition from temperate deciduous forests to boreal forests in southern Siberia, have experienced significant warming without any accompanying increase in precipitation during the last 80 years. This climatic change could have a profound impact on tree growth and on the stability of forest ecosystems in this region, but at present evidence for these impacts is lacking. In this study, we report a recent dramatic decline in the growth of hemi-boreal forests, based on ring width measurements from three dominant tree-species (Pinus sylvestris, Larix sibirica and Larix gmelinii), sampled from eight sites in the region. We found that regional tree growth has become increasingly limited by low soil water content in the pre- and early-growing season (from October of the previous year to July of the current year) over the past 80 years. A warming-induced reduction in soil water content has also increased the climate sensitivity of these three tree species. Beginning in the mid-1980s, a clear decline in growth is evident for both the pine forests and the larch forests, although there are increasing trends in the proxy of soil water use efficiencies. Our findings are consistent with those from other parts of the world and provide valuable insights into the regional carbon cycle and vegetation dynamics, and should be useful for devising adaptive forest management strategies.

Ectomycorrhizal fungi contribute to soil organic matter cycling in sub-boreal forests.

Science.gov (United States)

Phillips, Lori A; Ward, Valerie; Jones, Melanie D

2014-03-01

Soils of northern temperate and boreal forests represent a large terrestrial carbon (C) sink. The fate of this C under elevated atmospheric CO2 and climate change is still uncertain. A fundamental knowledge gap is the extent to which ectomycorrhizal fungi (EMF) and saprotrophic fungi contribute to C cycling in the systems by soil organic matter (SOM) decomposition. In this study, we used a novel approach to generate and compare enzymatically active EMF hyphae-dominated and saprotrophic hyphae-enriched communities under field conditions. Fermentation-humus (FH)-filled mesh bags, surrounded by a sand barrier, effectively trapped EMF hyphae with a community structure comparable to that found in the surrounding FH layer, at both trophic and taxonomic levels. In contrast, over half the sequences from mesh bags with no sand barrier were identified as belonging to saprotrophic fungi. The EMF hyphae-dominated systems exhibited levels of hydrolytic and oxidative enzyme activities that were comparable to or higher than saprotroph-enriched systems. The enzymes assayed included those associated with both labile and recalcitrant SOM degradation. Our study shows that EMF hyphae are likely important contributors to current SOM turnover in sub-boreal systems. Our results also suggest that any increased EMF biomass that might result from higher below-ground C allocation by trees would not suppress C fluxes from sub-boreal soils.

Relationship between bird-of-prey decals and bird-window collisions on a Brazilian university campus

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Thaís Brisque

2017-10-01

Full Text Available ABSTRACT Bird-window collisions are a dramatic cause of bird mortality globally. In Latin America, statistics are generally very scarce and/or inaccessible so the frequency of such incidents is still poorly understood. Nevertheless, civilians have applied preventive methods (e.g. adhesive bird-of-prey decals sparsely but, to our knowledge, no study has evaluated their effectiveness in Brazil. Here, we estimated the mortality rate of bird-window collisions and tested the effectiveness of bird-of-prey decals at preventing such accidents. We undertook daily searches for bird carcasses, presumably resulting from window collisions, near all buildings on a university campus over seven months. Adhesive bird-of-prey decals were then applied to the two buildings with the highest mortality rates and surveys continued for over 12 more months. The mortality rates before and after the application of decals and between seasons were then compared using Friedman test. We recorded 36 collisions, 29 around the two buildings with the highest collision rates 19 prior and 10 after our intervention with associated collision rates of 0.08 and 0.04 collisions/day. Although mortality was reduced by almost half, this difference was not statistically significant. The Blue-black grassquit, Volatinia jacarina (Linnaeus, 1766, and Ruddy ground dove, Columbina talpacoti (Temminck, 1810 suffered the highest number of collisions, followed by the Rufous-collared sparrow, Zonotrichia capensis (P. L. Statius Müller, 1776. Our bird-of-prey decals and efforts were insufficient to prevent or dramatically reduce the number of bird-window collisions. Therefore, we recommend that different interventions be used and additional long-term studies undertaken on their efficacy.

Threatened bird species on two little-known mountains (Chiperone ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The montane forests of northern Mozambique and southern Malawi support several bird species of global conservation concern, and particularly in Malawi are seriously threatened by deforestation. However, the status of these in northern Mozambique remains poorly known. We report that some 1 600 ha of mid-altitude and ...

Hatching synchrony in birds

OpenAIRE

Tippeltová, Zuzana

2011-01-01

This bachelor thesis is about hatching synchrony in birds. Generally, among birds there are two types of hatching - asynchronous and synchronous- and the type of hatching is primarily determined by the time of the onset of incubation. In many bird species, including most precocial ones, incubation does not begin until the last egg has been laid, which results in hatching of all the eggs within a few hours. In synchronously-hatched broods, all the chicks are about the same age. Thus no single ...

Boreal Forests of Kamchatka: Structure and Composition

OpenAIRE

Eichhorn, Markus P.

2010-01-01

Central Kamchatka abounds in virgin old-growth boreal forest, formed primarily by Larix cajanderi and Betula platyphylla in varying proportions. A series of eight 0.25–0.30 ha plots captured the range of forests present in this region and their structure is described. Overall trends in both uplands and lowlands are for higher sites to be dominated by L. cajanderi with an increasing component of B. platyphylla with decreasing altitude. The tree line on wet sites is commonly formed by mono-domi...

Soil surface CO2 flux in a boreal black spruce fire chronosequence

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Chuankuan; Bond-Lamberty, Ben; Gower, Stith T.

2003-02-01

Understanding the effects of wildfire on the carbon (C) cycle of boreal forests is essential to quantifying the role of boreal forests in the global carbon cycle. Soil surface CO2 flux (Rs), the second largest C flux in boreal forests, is directly and indirectly affected by fire and is hypothesized to change during forest succession following fire. The overall objective of this study was to measure and model Rs for a black spruce (Picea mariana [Mill.] BSP) postfire chronosequence in northern Manitoba, Canada. The experiment design was a nested factorial that included two soil drainage classes (well and poorly drained) × seven postfire aged stands. Specific objectives were (1) to quantify the relationship between Rs and soil temperature for different aged boreal black spruce forests in well-drained and poorly drained soil conditions, (2) to examine Rs dynamics along postfire successional stands, and (3) to estimate annual soil surface CO2 flux for these ecosystems. Soil surface CO2 flux was significantly affected by soil drainage class (p = 0.014) and stand age (p = 0.006). Soil surface CO2 flux was positively correlated to soil temperature (R2 = 0.78, p aged stand combination. Soil surface CO2 flux was significantly greater at the well-drained than the poorly drained stands (p = 0.007) during growing season. Annual soil surface CO2 flux for the 1998, 1995, 1989, 1981, 1964, 1930, and 1870 burned stands averaged 226, 412, 357, 413, 350, 274, and 244 g C m-2 yr-1 in the well-drained stands and 146, 380, 300, 303, 256, 233, and 264 g C m-2 yr-1 in the poorly drained stands. Soil surface CO2 flux during the winter (from 1 November to 30 April) comprised from 5 to 19% of the total annual Rs. We speculate that the smaller soil surface CO2 flux in the recently burned than the older stands is mainly caused by decreased root respiration.

Functional and phylogenetic structure of island bird communities.

Science.gov (United States)

Si, Xingfeng; Cadotte, Marc W; Zeng, Di; Baselga, Andrés; Zhao, Yuhao; Li, Jiaqi; Wu, Yiru; Wang, Siyu; Ding, Ping

2017-05-01

Biodiversity change in anthropogenically transformed habitats is often nonrandom, yet the nature and importance of the different mechanisms shaping community structure are unclear. Here, we extend the classic Theory of Island Biogeography (TIB) to account for nonrandom processes by incorporating species traits and phylogenetic relationships into a study of faunal relaxation following habitat loss and fragmentation. Two possible mechanisms can create nonrandom community patterns on fragment islands. First, small and isolated islands might consist of similar or closely related species because they are environmentally homogeneous or select for certain shared traits, such as dispersal ability. Alternatively, communities on small islands might contain more dissimilar or distantly related species than on large islands because limited space and resource availability result in greater competitive exclusion among species with high niche overlap. Breeding birds were surveyed on 36 islands and two mainland sites annually from 2010 to 2014 in the Thousand Island Lake region, China. We assessed community structure of breeding birds on these subtropical land-bridge islands by integrating species' trait and evolutionary distances. We additionally analysed habitat heterogeneity and variance in size ratios to distinguish biotic and abiotic processes of community assembly. Results showed that functional-phylogenetic diversity increased with island area, and decreased with isolation. Bird communities on the mainland were more diverse and generally less clustered than island bird communities and not different than randomly assembled communities. Bird communities on islands tend to be functionally similar and phylogenetically clustered, especially on small and isolated islands. The nonrandom decline in species diversity and change in bird community structure with island area and isolation, along with the relatively homogeneous habitats on small islands, support the environmental

Waterfowl populations are resilient to immediate and lagged impacts of wildfires in the boreal forest

Science.gov (United States)

Lewis, Tyler; Schmutz, Joel A.; Amundson, Courtney L.; Lindberg, Mark S.

2016-01-01

Summary 1. Wildfires are the principal disturbance in the boreal forest, and their size and frequency are increasing as the climate warms. Impacts of fires on boreal wildlife are largely unknown, especially for the tens of millions of waterfowl that breed in the region. This knowledge gap creates significant barriers to the integrative management of fires and waterfowl, leading to fire policies that largely disregard waterfowl. 2. Waterfowl populations across the western boreal forest of North America have been monitored annually since 1955 by the Waterfowl Breeding Population and Habitat Survey (BPOP), widely considered the most extensive wildlife survey in the world. Using these data, we examined impacts of forest fires on abundance of two waterfowl guilds – dabblers and divers. We modelled waterfowl abundance in relation to fire extent (i.e. amount of survey transect burned) and time since fire, examining both immediate and lagged fire impacts. 3. From 1955 to 2014, >1100 fires in the western boreal forest intersected BPOP survey transects, and many transects burned multiple times. Nonetheless, fires had no detectable impact on waterfowl abundance; annual transect counts of dabbler and diver pairs remained stable from the pre- to post-fire period. 4. The absence of fire impacts on waterfowl abundance extended from the years immediately following the fire to those more than a decade afterwards. Likewise, the amount of transect burned did not influence waterfowl abundance, with similar pair counts from the pre- to post-fire period for small (1–20% burned), medium (21–60%) and large (>60%) burns. 5. Policy implications. Waterfowl populations appear largely resilient to forest fires, providing initial evidence that current policies of limited fire suppression, which predominate throughout much of the boreal forest, have not been detrimental to waterfowl populations. Likewise, fire-related management actions, such as prescribed burning or targeted suppression

A Changing Number of Alternative States in the Boreal Biome: Reproducibility Risks of Replacing Remote Sensing Products.

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Chi; Holmgren, Milena; Van Nes, Egbert H; Hirota, Marina; Chapin, F Stuart; Scheffer, Marten

2015-01-01

Publicly available remote sensing products have boosted science in many ways. The openness of these data sources suggests high reproducibility. However, as we show here, results may be specific to versions of the data products that can become unavailable as new versions are posted. We focus on remotely-sensed tree cover. Recent studies have used this public resource to detect multi-modality in tree cover in the tropical and boreal biomes. Such patterns suggest alternative stable states separated by critical tipping points. This has important implications for the potential response of these ecosystems to global climate change. For the boreal region, four distinct ecosystem states (i.e., treeless, sparse and dense woodland, and boreal forest) were previously identified by using the Collection 3 data of MODIS Vegetation Continuous Fields (VCF). Since then, the MODIS VCF product has been updated to Collection 5; and a Landsat VCF product of global tree cover at a fine spatial resolution of 30 meters has been developed. Here we compare these different remote-sensing products of tree cover to show that identification of alternative stable states in the boreal biome partly depends on the data source used. The updated MODIS data and the newer Landsat data consistently demonstrate three distinct modes around similar tree-cover values. Our analysis suggests that the boreal region has three modes: one sparsely vegetated state (treeless), one distinct 'savanna-like' state and one forest state, which could be alternative stable states. Our analysis illustrates that qualitative outcomes of studies may change fundamentally as new versions of remote sensing products are used. Scientific reproducibility thus requires that old versions remain publicly available.

Green Light for Nocturnally Migrating Birds

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hanneke Poot

2008-12-01

Laboratory experiments have shown the magnetic compass to be wavelength dependent: migratory birds require light from the blue-green part of the spectrum for magnetic compass orientation, whereas red light (visible long-wavelength disrupts magnetic orientation. We designed a field study to test if and how changing light color influenced migrating birds under field conditions. We found that nocturnally migrating birds were disoriented and attracted by red and white light (containing visible long-wavelength radiation, whereas they were clearly less disoriented by blue and green light (containing less or no visible long-wavelength radiation. This was especially the case on overcast nights. Our results clearly open perspective for the development of bird-friendly artificial lighting by manipulating wavelength characteristics. Preliminary results with an experimentally developed bird-friendly light source on an offshore platform are promising. What needs to be investigated is the impact of bird-friendly light on other organisms than birds.

Climate change alters the structure of arctic marine food webs due to poleward shifts of boreal generalists.

Science.gov (United States)

Kortsch, Susanne; Primicerio, Raul; Fossheim, Maria; Dolgov, Andrey V; Aschan, Michaela

2015-09-07

Climate-driven poleward shifts, leading to changes in species composition and relative abundances, have been recently documented in the Arctic. Among the fastest moving species are boreal generalist fish which are expected to affect arctic marine food web structure and ecosystem functioning substantially. Here, we address structural changes at the food web level induced by poleward shifts via topological network analysis of highly resolved boreal and arctic food webs of the Barents Sea. We detected considerable differences in structural properties and link configuration between the boreal and the arctic food webs, the latter being more modular and less connected. We found that a main characteristic of the boreal fish moving poleward into the arctic region of the Barents Sea is high generalism, a property that increases connectance and reduces modularity in the arctic marine food web. Our results reveal that habitats form natural boundaries for food web modules, and that generalists play an important functional role in coupling pelagic and benthic modules. We posit that these habitat couplers have the potential to promote the transfer of energy and matter between habitats, but also the spread of pertubations, thereby changing arctic marine food web structure considerably with implications for ecosystem dynamics and functioning. © 2015 The Authors.

Habitat use and movements of breeding male Boreal Owls (Aegolius funereus) in northeast Minnesota as determined by radio telemetry

Science.gov (United States)

William H. Lane; David E. Andersen; Thomas H. Nicholls

1997-01-01

To determine habitat use and movements of male Boreal Owls (Aegolius funereus) in northeast Minnesota, we monitored 10 radio-equipped owls from 1990-1992. We used mist nets, bal-chartris, and the taped playback recording of the primary song of the male Boreal Owl to trap territorial male owls during the springtime breeding season.

A diminutive perinate European Enantiornithes reveals an asynchronous ossification pattern in early birds.

Science.gov (United States)

Knoll, Fabien; Chiappe, Luis M; Sanchez, Sophie; Garwood, Russell J; Edwards, Nicholas P; Wogelius, Roy A; Sellers, William I; Manning, Phillip L; Ortega, Francisco; Serrano, Francisco J; Marugán-Lobón, Jesús; Cuesta, Elena; Escaso, Fernando; Sanz, Jose Luis

2018-03-05

Fossils of juvenile Mesozoic birds provide insight into the early evolution of avian development, however such fossils are rare. The analysis of the ossification sequence in these early-branching birds has the potential to address important questions about their comparative developmental biology and to help understand their morphological evolution and ecological differentiation. Here we report on an early juvenile enantiornithine specimen from the Early Cretaceous of Europe, which sheds new light on the osteogenesis in this most species-rich clade of Mesozoic birds. Consisting of a nearly complete skeleton, it is amongst the smallest known Mesozoic avian fossils representing post-hatching stages of development. Comparisons between this new specimen and other known early juvenile enantiornithines support a clade-wide asynchronous pattern of osteogenesis in the sternum and the vertebral column, and strongly indicate that the hatchlings of these phylogenetically basal birds varied greatly in size and tempo of skeletal maturation.

n-Alkane distributions as indicators of novel ecosystem development in western boreal forest soils

Science.gov (United States)

Norris, Charlotte; Dungait, Jennifer; Quideau, Sylvie

2013-04-01

Novel ecosystem development is occurring within the western boreal forest of Canada due to land reclamation following surface mining in the Athabasca Oil Sands Region. Sphagnum peat is the primary organic matter amendment used to reconstruct soils in the novel ecosystems. We hypothesised that ecosystem recovery would be indicated by an increasing similarity in the biomolecular characteristics of novel reconstructed soil organic matter (SOM) derived from peat to those of natural boreal ecosystems. In this study, we evaluated the use of the homologous series of very long chain (>C20) n-alkanes with odd-over-even predominance as biomarker signatures to monitor the re-establishment of boreal forests on reconstructed soils. The lipids were extracted from dominant vegetation inputs and SOM from a series of natural and novel ecosystem reference plots. We observed unique very long n-alkane signatures of the source vegetation, e.g. Sphagnum sp. was dominated by C31 and aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.) leaves by C25. Greater concentrations of very long chain n-alkanes were extracted from natural than novel ecosystem SOM (puse of n-alkanes as biomarkers of ecosystem development is a promising method.

The natural infection of birds and ticks feeding on birds with Rickettsia spp. and Coxiella burnetii in Slovakia.

Science.gov (United States)

Berthová, Lenka; Slobodník, Vladimír; Slobodník, Roman; Olekšák, Milan; Sekeyová, Zuzana; Svitálková, Zuzana; Kazimírová, Mária; Špitalská, Eva

2016-03-01

Ixodid ticks (Acari: Ixodidae) are known as primary vectors of many pathogens causing diseases in humans and animals. Ixodes ricinus is a common ectoparasite in Europe and birds are often hosts of subadult stages of the tick. From 2012 to 2013, 347 birds belonging to 43 species were caught and examined for ticks in three sites of Slovakia. Ticks and blood samples from birds were analysed individually for the presence of Rickettsia spp. and Coxiella burnetii by PCR-based methods. Only I. ricinus was found to infest birds. In total 594 specimens of bird-attached ticks were collected (451 larvae, 142 nymphs, 1 female). Altogether 37.2% (16/43) of bird species were infested by ticks and some birds carried more than one tick. The great tit, Parus major (83.8%, 31/37) was the most infested species. In total, 6.6 and 2.7% of bird-attached ticks were infected with Rickettsia spp. and C. burnetii, respectively. Rickettsia helvetica predominated (5.9%), whereas R. monacensis (0.5%) was only sporadically detected. Coxiella burnetii was detected in 0.9%, Rickettsia spp. in 8.9% and R. helvetica in 4.2% of bird blood samples. The great tit was the bird species most infested with I. ricinus, carried R. helvetica and C. burnetti positive tick larvae and nymphs and was found to be rickettsaemic in its blood. Further studies are necessary to define the role of birds in the circulation of rickettsiae and C. burnetii in natural foci.

Resumes of the Bird mission

Science.gov (United States)

Lorenz, E.; Borwald, W.; Briess, K.; Kayal, H.; Schneller, M.; Wuensten, Herbert

2004-11-01

The DLR micro satellite BIRD (Bi-spectral Infra Red Detection) was piggy- back launched with the Indian Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle PSLV-C3 into a 570 km circular sun-synchronous orbit on 22 October 2001. The BIRD mission, fully funded by the DLR, answers topical technological and scientific questions related to the operation of a compact infra- red push-broom sensor system on board of a micro satellite and demonstrates new spacecraft bus technologies. BIRD mission control is conducted by DLR / GSOC in Oberpfaffenhofen. Commanding, data reception and data processing is performed via ground stations in Weilheim and Neustrelitz (Germany). The BIRD mission is a demonstrator for small satellite projects dedicated to the hazard detection and monitoring. In the year 2003 BIRD has been used in the ESA project FUEGOSAT to demonstrate the utilisation of innovative space technologies for fire risk management.

Source tracing of natural organic matter bound mercury in boreal forest runoff with mercury stable isotopes.

Science.gov (United States)

Jiskra, Martin; Wiederhold, Jan G; Skyllberg, Ulf; Kronberg, Rose-Marie; Kretzschmar, Ruben

2017-10-18

Terrestrial runoff represents a major source of mercury (Hg) to aquatic ecosystems. In boreal forest catchments, such as the one in northern Sweden studied here, mercury bound to natural organic matter (NOM) represents a large fraction of mercury in the runoff. We present a method to measure Hg stable isotope signatures of colloidal Hg, mainly complexed by high molecular weight or colloidal natural organic matter (NOM) in natural waters based on pre-enrichment by ultrafiltration, followed by freeze-drying and combustion. We report that Hg associated with high molecular weight NOM in the boreal forest runoff has very similar Hg isotope signatures as compared to the organic soil horizons of the catchment area. The mass-independent fractionation (MIF) signatures (Δ 199 Hg and Δ 200 Hg) measured in soils and runoff were in agreement with typical values reported for atmospheric gaseous elemental mercury (Hg 0 ) and distinctly different from reported Hg isotope signatures in precipitation. We therefore suggest that most Hg in the boreal terrestrial ecosystem originated from the deposition of Hg 0 through foliar uptake rather than precipitation. Using a mixing model we calculated the contribution of soil horizons to the Hg in the runoff. At moderate to high flow runoff conditions, that prevailed during sampling, the uppermost part of the organic horizon (Oe/He) contributed 50-70% of the Hg in the runoff, while the underlying more humified organic Oa/Ha and the mineral soil horizons displayed a lower mobility of Hg. The good agreement of the Hg isotope results with other source tracing approaches using radiocarbon signatures and Hg : C ratios provides additional support for the strong coupling between Hg and NOM. The exploratory results from this study illustrate the potential of Hg stable isotopes to trace the source of Hg from atmospheric deposition through the terrestrial ecosystem to soil runoff, and provide a basis for more in-depth studies investigating the

High autumn temperature delays spring bud burst in boreal trees, counterbalancing the effect of climatic warming

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Heide, O. M. [Agricultural Univesity of Norway, Department of Biology and Nature Conservation, As (Norway)

2003-09-01

The effect of temperature during short-day dormancy induction on the duration and stability of bud dormancy was examined in three boreal tree species (2 birches and 1 alder) grown in a controlled environment. The phenology of the latitudinal range of birch populations, and the relationship between spring bud burst and autumn and spring temperatures were also studied. Results showed that during short-day dormancy induction in the autumn high temperatures delayed bud burst in the following spring in both controlled and natural environments. It is suggested that this response to higher autumn temperatures may be a manifestation of a general synergism between high temperature and short-day photoperiodic processes, and may be an adaptive mechanism common to boreal trees. It is further conjectured that this mechanism may be important in counterbalancing the potentially adverse effects of higher winter temperatures on dormancy stability of boreal trees during climate warming. 23 refs., 2 tabs., 4 figs.

Structure of the community of nesting birds in a ravine oak wood in the valley of the Oskol river

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. A. Atemasov

2016-10-01

nesting in the crown were 32.3% and ground-nesting species 25.3%. The geographical and genesis structure of the communities of nesting birds are characterized by predominance of species from Nemoral and Ancient-Nemoral faunal assemblage (in some years up to 90.9% of the population. The species from the forest-steppe faunistic complex of the European type of fauna account for 3.6% to 9.48% of the population of nesting birds, and most of these have the status of third-degree (rare species. The composition of the group of third-degree species is highly diverse: in addition to the elements of Nemoral, Ancient-Nemoral and forest-steppe complexes, it includes species from the tropical and boreal groups. Among third-degree species there is a tendency to decrease in some species from the Nemoral faunal complex with a simultaneous increase in the forest-steppe faunistic component and increase in the homogeneity of the geography-genesis structure as a whole. The significant share of the population from the Nemoral and Ancient-Nemoral species complex, which formed in deciduous forests, is evidence of the origin of the  researched ravine oak wood as a remnant of the once vast oak-forest areas.

Aging in Birds.

Science.gov (United States)

Travin, D Y; Feniouk, B A

2016-12-01

Rodents are the most commonly used model organisms in studies of aging in vertebrates. However, there are species that may suit this role much better. Most birds (Aves), having higher rate of metabolism, live two-to-three times longer than mammals of the same size. This mini-review briefly covers several evolutionary, ecological, and physiological aspects that may contribute to the phenomenon of birds' longevity. The role of different molecular mechanisms known to take part in the process of aging according to various existing theories, e.g. telomere shortening, protection against reactive oxygen species, and formation of advanced glycation end-products is discussed. We also address some features of birds' aging that make this group unique and perspective model organisms in longevity studies.

Priority setting for bird conservation in Mexico: the role of the Important Bird Areas program

Science.gov (United States)

Ma. del Coro Arizmendi; Laura Marquez Valdelamar; Humberto Berlanga

2005-01-01

Many species in Mexico are threatened and in need of protection. At least seventy species are considered to be globally threatened, yet conservation actions have been scarce and not coordinated. In 1996 BirdLife International’s Important Bird Areas Program was initiated in Mexico to identify a network of the most important places in Mexico for birds, with the...

Public support for conserving bird species runs counter to climate change impacts on their distributions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lundhede, Thomas; Jacobsen, Jette Bredahl; Hanley, Nick

2014-01-01

believing climate change to be man-made and people more knowledgeable about birds tended to have higher WTP for conservation of native species, relative to other people, whereas their preferences for conserving immigrant species generally resembled those of other people. Conservation investments rely...

WT-Bird. Bird collision recording for offshore wind farms

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wiggelinkhuizen, E.J.; Rademakers, L.W.M.M.; Barhorst, S.A.M. [ECN Wind Energy, Petten (Netherlands); Den Boon, H.J. [E-Connection Project, Bunnik (Netherlands); Dirksen, S. [Bureau Waardenburg, Culemborg (Netherlands); Schekkerman, H. [Alterra, Wageningen (Netherlands)

2006-03-15

A new method for registration of bird collisions has been developed using video cameras and microphones combined with event triggering by acoustic vibration measurement. Remote access to the recorded images and sounds makes it possible to count the number of collisions as well as to identify the species. Currently a prototype system is being tested on an offshore-scale land-based wind turbine using bird dummies. After these tests we planned to perform endurance tests on other land-based turbines under offshore-like conditions.

Transcriptional analysis of liver from chickens with fast (meat bird), moderate (F1 layer x meat bird cross) and low (layer bird) growth potential.

Science.gov (United States)

Willson, Nicky-Lee; Forder, Rebecca E A; Tearle, Rick; Williams, John L; Hughes, Robert J; Nattrass, Greg S; Hynd, Philip I

2018-05-02

Divergent selection for meat and egg production in poultry has resulted in strains of birds differing widely in traits related to these products. Modern strains of meat birds can reach live weights of 2 kg in 35 d, while layer strains are now capable of producing more than 300 eggs per annum but grow slowly. In this study, RNA-Seq was used to investigate hepatic gene expression between three groups of birds with large differences in growth potential; meat bird, layer strain as well as an F1 layer x meat bird. The objective was to identify differentially expressed (DE) genes between all three strains to elucidate biological factors underpinning variations in growth performance. RNA-Seq analysis was carried out on total RNA extracted from the liver of meat bird (n = 6), F1 layer x meat bird cross (n = 6) and layer strain (n = 6), males. Differential expression of genes were considered significant at P layers (19%), 2935 DE between meat birds and the cross (9.6%) and 493 DE between the cross and layers (1.6%). Comparisons between the three groups identified 155 significant DE genes. Gene ontology (GO) enrichment and Kyoto Encyclopaedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analysis of the 155 DE genes showed the FoxO signalling pathway was most enriched (P = 0.001), including genes related to cell cycle regulation and insulin signalling. Significant GO terms included 'positive regulation of glucose import' and 'cellular response to oxidative stress', which is also consistent with FoxOs regulation of glucose metabolism. There were high correlations between FoxO pathway genes and bodyweight, as well as genes related to glycolysis and bodyweight. This study revealed large transcriptome differences between meat and layer birds. There was significant evidence implicating the FoxO signalling pathway (via cell cycle regulation and altered metabolism) as an active driver of growth variations in chicken. Functional analysis of the FoxO genes is required to

Birds' nesting parameters in four forest types in the Pantanal wetland

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

JB Pinho

Full Text Available We tested the heterogeneity/productivity hypothesis with respect to the abundance and richness of birds and the vegetation density hypothesis with respect to birds' nest predation rates, and determined the relative importance of forested vegetation formations for the conservation of birds in the Pantanal. We estimated the apparent nesting success, and the abundance and richness of nesting birds' in four forest types, by monitoring nests during two reproductive seasons in four forested physiognomies (two high productivity/heterogeneity evergreen forests = Cambará and Landi; two low productivity/heterogeneity dry forests = Cordilheira and Carvoeiro in the Pantanal wetland in Poconé, State of Mato Grosso, Brazil. We found 381 nests of 46 species (35 Passeriformes and 11 non-Passeriformes in the four forest types. Of these, we monitored 220 active nests belonging to 44 species, 101 during the reproductive season of 2001 and 119 in 2002. We supported the productivity/heterogeneity hypothesis since the two evergreen forests had higher nest abundance and one of them (Cambará had higher nesting species richness than the dry forests. The number of nests found in each habitat differed with most nests monitored in the Cambará forest (82%, followed by Landi (9%, Cordilheira (6% and Carvoeiro (3% forests. The total number of nests monitored was significantly higher in evergreen forests than in dry forests. Also, more species nested in evergreen (37 species than in dry (16 species forests. A Correspondence Analysis revealed that only Carvoeiros had a different nesting bird community. The overall apparent nesting success of 220 nests was 26.8%. We did not support the vegetation density hypothesis since nest predation rates were similar between evergreen (73.5% and dry (70% forests, and were higher in the Landi (85% than in the other three forests (69.2 to 72.2%. Our data indicate that Cambará forests seem to be a key nesting habitat for many bird species

Birds' nesting parameters in four forest types in the Pantanal wetland.

Science.gov (United States)

Pinho, J B; Marini, M A

2014-11-01

We tested the heterogeneity/productivity hypothesis with respect to the abundance and richness of birds and the vegetation density hypothesis with respect to birds' nest predation rates, and determined the relative importance of forested vegetation formations for the conservation of birds in the Pantanal. We estimated the apparent nesting success, and the abundance and richness of nesting birds' in four forest types, by monitoring nests during two reproductive seasons in four forested physiognomies (two high productivity/heterogeneity evergreen forests = Cambará and Landi; two low productivity/heterogeneity dry forests = Cordilheira and Carvoeiro) in the Pantanal wetland in Poconé, State of Mato Grosso, Brazil. We found 381 nests of 46 species (35 Passeriformes and 11 non-Passeriformes) in the four forest types. Of these, we monitored 220 active nests belonging to 44 species, 101 during the reproductive season of 2001 and 119 in 2002. We supported the productivity/heterogeneity hypothesis since the two evergreen forests had higher nest abundance and one of them (Cambará) had higher nesting species richness than the dry forests. The number of nests found in each habitat differed with most nests monitored in the Cambará forest (82%), followed by Landi (9%), Cordilheira (6%) and Carvoeiro (3%) forests. The total number of nests monitored was significantly higher in evergreen forests than in dry forests. Also, more species nested in evergreen (37 species) than in dry (16 species) forests. A Correspondence Analysis revealed that only Carvoeiros had a different nesting bird community. The overall apparent nesting success of 220 nests was 26.8%. We did not support the vegetation density hypothesis since nest predation rates were similar between evergreen (73.5%) and dry (70%) forests, and were higher in the Landi (85%) than in the other three forests (69.2 to 72.2%). Our data indicate that Cambará forests seem to be a key nesting habitat for many bird species of the

Understanding how birds navigate

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Solov'yov, Ilia; Schulten, Klaus

2009-01-01

A proposed model for migrating birds' magnetic sense can withstand moderate orientational disorder of a key protein in the eye.......A proposed model for migrating birds' magnetic sense can withstand moderate orientational disorder of a key protein in the eye....

Ecophysiological modeling of photosynthesis and carbon allocation to the tree stem in the boreal forest

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

F. Gennaretti

2017-11-01

Full Text Available A better understanding of the coupling between photosynthesis and carbon allocation in the boreal forest, together with its associated environmental factors and mechanistic rules, is crucial to accurately predict boreal forest carbon stocks and fluxes, which are significant components of the global carbon budget. Here, we adapted the MAIDEN ecophysiological forest model to consider important processes for boreal tree species, such as nonlinear acclimation of photosynthesis to temperature changes, canopy development as a function of previous-year climate variables influencing bud formation and the temperature dependence of carbon partition in summer. We tested these modifications in the eastern Canadian taiga using black spruce (Picea mariana (Mill. B.S.P. gross primary production and ring width data. MAIDEN explains 90 % of the observed daily gross primary production variability, 73 % of the annual ring width variability and 20–30 % of its high-frequency component (i.e., when decadal trends are removed. The positive effect on stem growth due to climate warming over the last several decades is well captured by the model. In addition, we illustrate how we improve the model with each introduced model adaptation and compare the model results with those of linear response functions. Our results demonstrate that MAIDEN simulates robust relationships with the most important climate variables (those detected by classical response-function analysis and is a powerful tool for understanding how environmental factors interact with black spruce ecophysiology to influence present-day and future boreal forest carbon fluxes.

75 FR 18764 - Migratory Bird Subsistence Harvest in Alaska; Harvest Regulations for Migratory Birds in Alaska...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-13

... rulemaking, accomplishments since the Migratory Bird Treaties with Canada and Mexico were amended, and a... the spring and summer months. The Canada and Mexico migratory bird treaties were recently amended for... rural Alaska. The amendments to the Migratory Bird Treaties with Canada and Mexico recognize the...

Simulation of Forest Cover Dynamics for Eastern Eurasian Boreal Forests

Science.gov (United States)

Shugart, H. H.; Yan, X.; Zhang, N.; Isaev, A. S.; Shuman, J. K.

2006-12-01

We are developing and testing a boreal zone forest dynamics model capable of simulating the forest cover dynamics of the Eurasian boreal forest, a major biospheric ecosystem with potentially large roles in the planetary carbon cycle and in the feedback between terrestrial surface and the atmosphere. In appreciating the role of this region in the coupling between atmosphere and terrestrial surface, on must understand the interactions between CO2 source/sink relationships (associated with growing or clearing forests) and the albedo effects (from changes in terrestrial surface cover). There is some evidence that in the Eurasian Boreal zone, the Carbon budget effects from forest change may oppose the albedo changes. This creates complex feedbacks between surface and atmosphere and motivates the need for a forest dynamics model that simultaneous represents forest vegetation and carbon storage and release. A forest dynamics model applied to Eastern Eurasia, FAREAST, has been tested using three types of information: 1. Direct species composition comparisons between simulated and observed mature forests at the same locations; 2. Forest type comparisons between simulated and observed forests along altitudinal gradients of several different mountains; 3. Comparison with forest stands in different succession stages of simulated forests. Model comparisons with independent data indicate the FAREAST model is capable of representing many of the broad features of the forests of Northeastern China. After model validation in the Northeast China region, model applications were developed for the forests of the Russian Far East. Continental-scale forest cover can be simulated to a relatively realistic degree using a forest gap model with standard representations of individual-plant processes. It appears that such a model, validated relatively locally in this case, in Northeastern China, can then be applied over a much larger region and under conditions of climatic change.

Modeling Alaska boreal forests with a controlled trend surface approach

Science.gov (United States)

Mo Zhou; Jingjing Liang

2012-01-01

An approach of Controlled Trend Surface was proposed to simultaneously take into consideration large-scale spatial trends and nonspatial effects. A geospatial model of the Alaska boreal forest was developed from 446 permanent sample plots, which addressed large-scale spatial trends in recruitment, diameter growth, and mortality. The model was tested on two sets of...

75 FR 3888 - Migratory Bird Subsistence Harvest in Alaska; Harvest Regulations for Migratory Birds in Alaska...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-25

...-0082; 91200-1231-9BPP-L2] RIN 1018-AW67 Migratory Bird Subsistence Harvest in Alaska; Harvest Regulations for Migratory Birds in Alaska During the 2010 Season AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior... Service, are reopening the public comment period on our proposed rule to establish migratory bird...

Growth decline linked to warming-induced water limitation in hemi-boreal forests.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xiuchen Wu

Full Text Available Hemi-boreal forests, which make up the transition from temperate deciduous forests to boreal forests in southern Siberia, have experienced significant warming without any accompanying increase in precipitation during the last 80 years. This climatic change could have a profound impact on tree growth and on the stability of forest ecosystems in this region, but at present evidence for these impacts is lacking. In this study, we report a recent dramatic decline in the growth of hemi-boreal forests, based on ring width measurements from three dominant tree-species (Pinus sylvestris, Larix sibirica and Larix gmelinii, sampled from eight sites in the region. We found that regional tree growth has become increasingly limited by low soil water content in the pre- and early-growing season (from October of the previous year to July of the current year over the past 80 years. A warming-induced reduction in soil water content has also increased the climate sensitivity of these three tree species. Beginning in the mid-1980s, a clear decline in growth is evident for both the pine forests and the larch forests, although there are increasing trends in the proxy of soil water use efficiencies. Our findings are consistent with those from other parts of the world and provide valuable insights into the regional carbon cycle and vegetation dynamics, and should be useful for devising adaptive forest management strategies.

Effect of inundation, oxygen and temperature on carbon mineralization in boreal ecosystems.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Youngil; Ullah, Sami; Roulet, Nigel T; Moore, Tim R

2015-04-01

The inundation of boreal forests and peatlands through the construction of hydroelectric reservoirs can increase carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4) emission. To establish controls on emission rates, we incubated samples of forest and peat soils, spruce litter, forest litter and peatland litter collected from boreal ecosystems in northern Quebec for 16 weeks and measured CO2 and CH4 production rates under flooded or non-flooded conditions and varying oxygen concentration and temperature. CO2 production under flooded conditions was less than under non-flooded conditions (5-71 vs. 5-85 mg Cg(-1) C), but CH4 production under flooded conditions was larger than under non-flooded conditions (1-8158 vs. 0-86 μg Cg(-1) C). The average CO2 and CH4 production rate factor for flooded:non-flooded conditions was 0.76 and 1.32, respectively. Under flooded conditions, high oxygen concentrations increased CO2 production in peat soils but decreased CH4 production in forest and peat soils and spruce litter. Warmer temperatures (from 4 to 22°C) raised both CO2 production in peat soils and peatland litter, and CH4 production in peat soils and spruce litter. This study shows that the direction and/or strength of CO2 and CH4 fluxes change once boreal forests and peatlands are inundated. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Permafrost thaw and wildfire: Equally important drivers of boreal tree cover changes in the Taiga Plains, Canada

Science.gov (United States)

Helbig, M.; Pappas, C.; Sonnentag, O.

2016-02-01

Boreal forests cover vast areas of the permafrost zones of North America, and changes in their composition and structure can lead to pronounced impacts on the regional and global climate. We partition the variation in regional boreal tree cover changes between 2000 and 2014 across the Taiga Plains, Canada, into its main causes: permafrost thaw, wildfire disturbance, and postfire regrowth. Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer Percent Tree Cover (PTC) data are used in combination with maps of historic fires, and permafrost and drainage characteristics. We find that permafrost thaw is equally important as fire history to explain PTC changes. At the southern margin of the permafrost zone, PTC loss due to permafrost thaw outweighs PTC gain from postfire regrowth. These findings emphasize the importance of permafrost thaw in controlling regional boreal forest changes over the last decade, which may become more pronounced with rising air temperatures and accelerated permafrost thaw.

Plant hydraulic strategies and their variability at high latitudes: insights from a southern Canadian boreal forest site

Science.gov (United States)

Pappas, C.; Matheny, A. M.; Maillet, J.; Baltzer, J. L.; Stephens, J.; Barr, A.; Black, T. A.; Sonnentag, O.

2016-12-01

Boreal forests cover about one third of the world's forested area with a large part of the boreal zone located in Canada. These high-latitude ecosystems respond rapidly to environmental changes. Plant water stress and the resulting drought-induced mortality has been recently hypothesised as a major driver of forest changes in western Canada. Although boreal forests often exhibit low floristic complexity, local scale abiotic heterogeneities may lead to highly variable plant functional traits and thus to diverging plant responses to environmental changes. However, detailed measurements of plant hydraulic strategies and their inter- and intra-specific variability are still lacking for these ecosystems. Here, we quantify plant water use and hydraulic strategies of black spruce (Picea mariana) and larch (Larix laricina), that are widespread in the boreal zone, at a long-term monitoring site located in central Saskatchewan (53.99° N, 105.12° W; elevation 628.94 m a.s.l.). The site is characterized by a mature black spruce overstorey that dominates the landscape with few larch individuals. The ground cover consists mainly of mosses with some peat moss and lichens over a rich soil organic layer. Tree-level sap flux density, measured with Granier-style thermal dissipation probes (N=39), and concurrently recorded radial stem dynamics, measured with high frequency dendrometers (N=13), are used to quantify plant hydraulic functioning during the 2016 growing season. Hydrometeorological measurements, including soil moisture and micrometeorological data, are used to describe environmental constraints in plant water use. Tree-level dynamics are then integrated to the landscape and compared with ecosystem-level evapotranspiration measurements from an adjacent eddy-covariance flux tower. This experimental design allows us to quantify the main environmental drivers that shape plant hydraulic strategies in this southern boreal zone and to provide new insights into the inter- and

Calcareous nannofossils from the Boreal upper Campanian-Maastrichtian Chalk of Denmark

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Thibault, Nicolas Rudolph

2010-01-01

Boreal calcareous nannofossil assemblages have been documented from three sections in Denmark. from the Upper Campanian to Upper Maastrichtian (nannofossil zones UC16a(BP) to UC20d(BP)): the Stevns-1 borehole, next to the Cretaceous/Palaeogene boundary section of Stevns Klint, eastern Sjaelland...

Pelvis morphology suggests that early Mesozoic birds were too heavy to contact incubate their eggs.

Science.gov (United States)

Charles Deeming, D; Mayr, Gerald

2018-02-27

Numerous new fossils have driven an interest in reproduction of early birds, but direct evidence remains elusive. No Mesozoic avian eggs can be unambiguously assigned to a species, which hampers our understanding of the evolution of contact incubation, which is a defining feature of extant birds. Compared to living species, eggs of Mesozoic birds are relatively small, but whether the eggs of Mesozoic birds could actually have borne the weight of a breeding adult has not yet been investigated. We estimated maximal egg breadth for a range of Mesozoic avian taxa from the width of the pelvic canal defined by the pubic symphysis. Known elongation ratios of Mesozoic bird eggs allowed us to predict egg mass and hence the load mass an egg could endure before cracking. These values were compared to the predicted body masses of the adult birds based on skeletal remains. Based on 21 fossil species, we show that for nonornithothoracine birds body mass was 187% of the load mass of the eggs. For Enantiornithes, body mass was 127% greater than the egg load mass, but some early Cretaceous ornithuromorphs were 179% heavier than their eggs could support. Our indirect approach provides the best evidence yet that early birds could not have sat on their eggs without running the risk of causing damage. We suggest that contact incubation evolved comparatively late in birds. © 2018 European Society For Evolutionary Biology. Journal of Evolutionary Biology © 2018 European Society For Evolutionary Biology.

High-resolution records detect human-caused changes to the boreal forest wildfire regime in interior Alaska

Science.gov (United States)

Gaglioti, Benjamin V.; Mann, Daniel H.; Jones, Benjamin M.; Wooller, Matthew J.; Finney, Bruce P.

2016-01-01

Stand-replacing wildfires are a keystone disturbance in the boreal forest, and they are becoming more common as the climate warms. Paleo-fire archives from the wildland–urban interface can quantify the prehistoric fire regime and assess how both human land-use and climate change impact ecosystem dynamics. Here, we use a combination of a sedimentary charcoal record preserved in varved lake sediments (annually layered) and fire scars in living trees to document changes in local fire return intervals (FRIs) and regional fire activity over the last 500 years. Ace Lake is within the boreal forest, located near the town of Fairbanks in interior Alaska, which was settled by gold miners in AD 1902. In the 400 years before settlement, fires occurred near the lake on average every 58 years. After settlement, fires became much more frequent (average every 18  years), and background charcoal flux rates rose to four times their preindustrial levels, indicating a region-wide increase in burning. Despite this surge in burning, the preindustrial boreal forest ecosystem and permafrost in the watershed have remained intact. Although fire suppression has reduced charcoal influx since the 1950s, an aging fuel load experiencing increasingly warm summers may pose management problems for this and other boreal sites that have similar land-use and fire histories. The large human-caused fire events that we identify can be used to test how increasingly common megafires may alter ecosystem dynamics in the future.

Modelling Holocene carbon accumulation and methane emissions of boreal wetlands – an Earth system model approach

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

R. J. Schuldt

2013-03-01

Full Text Available Since the Last Glacial Maximum, boreal wetlands have accumulated substantial amounts of peat, estimated at 180–621 Pg of carbon. Wetlands have significantly affected the atmospheric greenhouse gas composition in the past and will play a significant role in future changes of atmospheric CO2 and CH4 concentrations. In order to investigate those changes with an Earth system model, biogeochemical processes in boreal wetlands need to be accounted for. Thus, a model of peat accumulation and decay was developed and included in the land surface model JSBACH of the Max Planck Institute Earth System Model (MPI-ESM. Here we present the evaluation of model results from 6000 yr BP to the pre-industrial period. Over this period of time, 240 Pg of peat carbon accumulated in the model in the areas north of 40° N. Simulated peat accumulation rates agree well with those reported for boreal wetlands. The model simulates CH4 emissions of 49.3 Tg CH4 yr−1 for 6000 yr BP and 51.5 Tg CH4 yr−1 for pre-industrial times. This is within the range of estimates in the literature, which range from 32 to 112 Tg CH4 yr−1 for boreal wetlands. The modelled methane emission for the West Siberian Lowlands and Hudson Bay Lowlands agree well with observations. The rising trend of methane emissions over the last 6000 yr is in agreement with measurements of Antarctic and Greenland ice cores.

Bird on a (live) wire

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Farr, M.

2003-09-30

Bird mortality as a result of contact with power lines is discussed. U. S. statistics are cited, according to which 174 million birds annually die as a result of contact with power lines, specifically when birds touch two phases of current at the same time. Raptors are particularly vulnerable to power-line electrocution due to their habit of perching on the highest vantage point available as they survey the ground for prey. Hydro lines located in agricultural areas, with bodies of water on one side and fields on the other, also obstruct flight of waterfowl as dusk and dawn when visibility is low. Various solutions designed to minimize the danger to birds are discussed. Among these are: changing the configuration of wires and cross arms to make them more visible to birds in flight and less tempting as perches, and adding simple wire markers such as flags, balloons, and coloured luminescent clips that flap and twirl in the wind. There is no evidence of any coordinated effort to deal with this problem in Ontario. However, a report is being prepared for submission to Environment Canada outlining risks to birds associated with the growing number of wind turbine power generators (negligible compared with power lines and communications towers), and offering suggestions on remedial measures. The Fatal Light Awareness Program (FLAP) also plans to lobby the Canadian Wildlife Service to discuss the possibility of coordinating efforts to monitor, educate about and ultimately reduce this form of bird mortality.

High Upward Fluxes of Formic Acid from a Boreal Forest Canopy

Science.gov (United States)

Schobesberger, Siegfried; Lopez-Hilifiker, Felipe D.; Taipale, Ditte; Millet, Dylan B.; D'Ambro, Emma L.; Rantala, Pekka; Mammarella, Ivan; Zhou, Putian; Wolfe, Glenn M.; Lee, Ben H.;

Nepal’s National Red List of Birds

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carol Inskipp

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The main objectives of the Nepal National Bird Red Data Book were to provide comprehensive and up-to-date accounts of all the bird species found in Nepal, assess their status applying the IUCN Guidelines at Regional Levels, identify threats to all bird species and recommend the most practical measures for their conservation.  It is hoped that the Bird RDB will help Nepal achieve the Convention on Biological Diversity target of preventing the extinction of known threatened species and improving their conservation status.  As population changes of Nepal’s birds have been studied for only a few species, assessments of species’ national status were mainly made by assessing changes in distribution.  Species distribution maps were produced for all of Nepal’s bird species except vagrants and compared to maps that were produced in 1991 using the same mapping system.  Of the 878 bird species recorded, 168 species (19% were assessed as nationally threatened. These comprise 68 (40% Critically Endangered species, 38 (23% Endangered species and 62 (37% Vulnerable species.  A total of 62 species was considered Near Threatened and 22 species Data Deficient.  Over 55% of the threatened birds are lowland grassland specialists, 25% are wetland birds and 24% tropical and sub-tropical broadleaved forest birds.  Larger birds appear to be more threatened than smaller birds with 98 (25% non-passerine species threatened and 67 (14% passerine species.  Habitat loss, degradation and fragmentation are the most important threats.  Other threats include chemical poisoning, over-exploitation, climate change, hydropower, invasive species, intensification of agriculture, disturbance, and limited conservation measures and research.  Measures to address these threats are described.  It was also concluded that re-assessments of the status of certain bird groups carried out every five years and the setting up of a national online system for storing and reporting

Bird Flu (Avian Influenza)

Science.gov (United States)

Bird flu (avian influenza) Overview Bird flu is caused by a type of influenza virus that rarely infects humans. More than a ... for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that seasonal influenza is responsible for ... heat destroys avian viruses, cooked poultry isn't a health threat. ...

Nanoscale magnetoreceptors in birds

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Solov'yov, Ilia; Greiner, Walter

2012-01-01

The Earth's magnetic field provides an important source of directional information for many living organisms, especially birds, but the sensory receptor responsible for magnetic field detection still has to be identified. Recently, magnetic iron oxide particles were detected in dendritic endings...... field, by a bird....

LINKING THE COMMUNITY IN THE MIGRATORY RAPTOR BIRDS COUNTS (BIRDS: FALCONIFORM IN EASTERN CUBA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Naylien Barreda-Leyva

2010-09-01

Full Text Available Through interviews, workshops, conferences and sociocultural meeting, is carried out the linking of three communities from the high area of Gran Piedra to the studies and counts of migratory raptors birds developed in the east of Cuba. These small communities are near to one of the two points of count of migratory raptors of the region. During the interviews we could verify that some residents possessed basic knowledge on the raptors birds, but didn't know about the migration of these birds. 100 % of the interviewees coincided in that the main local problematic is the loss of birds of pen due to the attack of raptors, specifically the endemic Cuban threatened Accipitter gundlachi. The workshops were able to create spaces of exchange and reflection about the importance of the raptor’s conservation in the region. This linkage of cooperation and increasing awareness, allow an approaching between the communitarians and the researchers and volunteers that work in the counts of raptor birds in Cuba and the feedback of the scientific knowledge with the popular knowledge.

The hand of birds revealed by early ostrich embryos

Science.gov (United States)

Feduccia, Alan; Nowicki, Julie

2002-08-01

The problem of resolving the homology of the digits of the avian hand has been framed as a conflict between paleontological and embryological evidence, the former thought to support a hand composed of digits I, II, III, because of similarity of the phalangeal formulae of the earliest known bird Archaeopteryx to that of Mesozoic pentadactyl archosaurs, while embryological evidence has traditionally favored a II, III, IV avian hand. We have identified the critical developmental period for the major features of the avian skeleton in a primitive bird, the ostrich. Analysis of digit anlagen in the avian hand has revealed those for digits/metacarpals I and V, thus confirming previous embryological studies that indirectly suggested that the avian hand comprises digits II, III, IV, and was primitively pentadactyl.

Opportunistic nectar-feeding birds are effective pollinators of bird-flowers from Canary Islands: experimental evidence from Isoplexis canariensis (Scrophulariaceae).

Science.gov (United States)

Rodríguez-Rodríguez, María C; Valido, Alfredo

2008-11-01

Insular floras, characterized by simple pollination networks, sometimes include novel mutualistic agents such as nonspecialist nectarivores. In this study we confirmed the effective pollination of Isoplexis canariensis by opportunistic nectar-feeding birds in Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain. This plant is among the ornithophilous species of the Canarian flora that lack past and present specialist nectarivorous birds. Experimental hand pollinations revealed self-compatibility, but cross-pollinated flowers produced a greater percentage of viable seeds than self-pollinated ones. Flowers were visited by five species of birds (Phylloscopus canariensis, Parus caeruleus, Sylvia melanocephala, Serinus canarius, and Fringilla coelebs) and by the endemic lizard (Gallotia galloti, Lacertidae). Insect pollination was absent, and the few insect visitors acted as nectar thieves or secondary nectar robbers. Birds represented 93.1% of total visits, with the Canarian Chiffchaff, Ph. canariensis, being the most frequent visitor. Flowers visited by birds set more, larger, and heavier fruit than flowers from which birds were excluded. Bird visitation also enhanced seed viability. These results demonstrate the active role of these opportunistic birds as effective pollinators of this Canarian bird-flower species. Further, the results reveal the need to consider the effect of these birds on the evolution of ornithophilous floral traits in absence of specialist nectarivores.

Sex Reversal in Birds.

Science.gov (United States)

Major, Andrew T; Smith, Craig A

2016-01-01

Sexual differentiation in birds is controlled genetically as in mammals, although the sex chromosomes are different. Males have a ZZ sex chromosome constitution, while females are ZW. Gene(s) on the sex chromosomes must initiate gonadal sex differentiation during embryonic life, inducing paired testes in ZZ individuals and unilateral ovaries in ZW individuals. The traditional view of avian sexual differentiation aligns with that expounded for other vertebrates; upon sexual differentiation, the gonads secrete sex steroid hormones that masculinise or feminise the rest of the body. However, recent studies on naturally occurring or experimentally induced avian sex reversal suggest a significant role for direct genetic factors, in addition to sex hormones, in regulating sexual differentiation of the soma in birds. This review will provide an overview of sex determination in birds and both naturally and experimentally induced sex reversal, with emphasis on the key role of oestrogen. We then consider how recent studies on sex reversal and gynandromorphic birds (half male:half female) are shaping our understanding of sexual differentiation in avians and in vertebrates more broadly. Current evidence shows that sexual differentiation in birds is a mix of direct genetic and hormonal mechanisms. Perturbation of either of these components may lead to sex reversal. © 2016 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Birds and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons

Science.gov (United States)

Albers, P.H.

2006-01-01

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) are present throughout the global environment and are produced naturally and by activities of humans. Effects of PAH on birds have been determined by studies employing egg injection, egg immersion, egg shell application, single and multiple oral doses, subcutaneous injection, and chemical analysis of field-collected eggs and tissue. The four-to six-ring aromatic compounds are the most toxic to embryos, young birds, and adult birds. For embryos, effects include death, developmental abnormalities, and a variety of cellular and biochemical responses. For adult and young birds, effects include reduced egg production and hatching, increased clutch or brood abandonment, reduced growth, increased organweights, and a variety of biochemical responses. Trophic level accumulation is unlikely. Environmental exposure to PAH in areas of high human population or habitats affected by recent petroleum spills might be sufficient to adversely affect reproduction. Evidence of long-term effects of elevated concentrations of environmental PAH on bird populations is very limited and the mechanisms of effect are unclear.

Characterizing Zinc Speciation in Soils from a Smelter-Affected Boreal Forest Ecosystem.

Science.gov (United States)

Hamilton, Jordan G; Farrell, Richard E; Chen, Ning; Feng, Renfei; Reid, Joel; Peak, Derek

2016-03-01

HudBay Minerals, Inc., has mined and/or processed Zn and Cu ore in Flin Flon, MB, Canada, since the 1930s. The boreal forest ecosystem and soil surrounding these facilities have been severely impacted by mixed metal contamination and HSO deposition. Zinc is one of the most prevalent smelter-derived contaminants and has been identified as a key factor that may be limiting revegetation. Metal toxicity is related to both total concentrations and speciation; therefore, X-ray absorption spectroscopy and X-ray fluorescence mapping were used to characterize Zn speciation in soils throughout the most heavily contaminated areas of the landscape. Zinc speciation was linked to two distinct soil types. Group I soils consist of exposed soils in weathered positions of bedrock outcrops with Zn present primarily as franklinite, a (ZnFeO) spinel mineral. Group II soils are stabilized by an invasive metal-tolerant grass species, with Zn found as a mixture of octahedral (Fe oxides) and tetrahedral Mn oxides) adsorption complexes with a franklinite component. Soil erosion influences Zn speciation through the redistribution of Zn and soil particulates from Group I landscape positions to Group II soils. Despite Group II soils having the highest concentrations of CaCl-extractable Zn, they support metal-tolerant plant growth. The metal-tolerant plants are probably preferentially colonizing these areas due to better soil and nutrient conditions as a result of soil deposition from upslope Group I areas. Zinc concentration and speciation appears to not influence the colonization by metal-tolerant grasses, but the overall soil properties and erosion effects prevent the revegetation by native boreal forest species. Copyright © by the American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and Soil Science Society of America, Inc.

Differentiating moss from higher plants is critical in studying the carbon cycle of the boreal biome

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Yuan, Wenping; Liu, Shuguang; Dong, Wenjie

2014-01-01

The satellite-derived normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), which is used for estimating gross primary production (GPP), often includes contributions from both mosses and vascular plants in boreal ecosystems. For the same NDVI, moss can generate only about one-third of the GPP...... that vascular plants can because of its much lower photosynthetic capacity. Here, based on eddy covariance measurements, we show that the difference in photosynthetic capacity between these two plant functional types has never been explicitly included when estimating regional GPP in the boreal region, resulting...

[Leukosis in captive wild birds].

Science.gov (United States)

Loupal, G

1984-10-01

Among 2589 captive wild birds, examined between 1974 and 1983, we found leukosis in 26 birds belonging to 13 different species and five orders. We diagnosed lymphoid leukosis in 11 birds (two Melopsittacus undulatus, two Psittacus erithacus one Platycerus eximius, one Columba livia, one Streptopelia decaocto, one Polyplectron bicalcaratum, one Pavo cristatus, one Aptenodytes patachonia and one finch, species unknown), myeloid leukosis in 14 (nine Melopsittacus undulatus, two Agapomis personata fischeri, two Urgeainthus bengalus and one Neophemia pulchella) and stem cell leukosis in one bird (Serinus canaria). Among the cases with lymphoid leukosis we distinguished between lymphoblastic (four cases) and prolymphocytic forms (seven). Myeloid leukosis was subdivided into poorly differentiated (12 cases) and well differentiated myeloblastosis (two).

Effects of warming on the structure and function of a boreal black spruce forest

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Stith T.Gower

2010-03-03

A strong argument can be made that there is a greater need to study the effect of warming on boreal forests more than on any other terrestrial biome. Boreal forests, the second largest forest biome, are predicted to experience the greatest warming of any forest biome in the world, but a process-based understanding of how warming will affect the structure and function of this economically and ecologically important forest biome is lacking. The effects of warming on species composition, canopy structure and biogeochemical cycles are likely to be complex; elucidating the underlying mechanisms will require long-term whole-ecosystem manipulation to capture all the complex feedbacks (Shaver et al. 2000, Rustad et al. 2001, Stromgren 2001). The DOE Program for Ecosystem Research funded a three year project (2002-2005) to use replicated heated chambers on soil warming plots in northern Manitoba to examine the direct effects of whole-ecosystem warming. We are nearing completion of our first growing season of measurements (fall 2004). In spite of the unforeseen difficulty of installing the heating cable, our heating and irrigation systems worked extremely well, maintaining environmental conditions within 5-10% of the specified design 99% of the time. Preliminary data from these systems, all designed and built by our laboratory at the University of Wisconsin, support our overall hypothesis that warming will increase the carbon sink strength of upland boreal black spruce forests. I request an additional three years of funding to continue addressing the original objectives: (1) Examine the effect of warming on phenology of overstory, understory and bryophyte strata. Sap flux systems and dendrometer bands, monitored by data loggers, will be used to quantify changes in phenology and water use. (2) Quantify the effects of warming on nitrogen and water use by overstory, understory and bryophytes. (3) Compare effects of warming on autotrophic respiration and above- and belowground

Nesting bird "host funnel" increases mosquito-bird contact rate.

Science.gov (United States)

Caillouët, Kevin A; Riggan, Anna E; Bulluck, Lesley P; Carlson, John C; Sabo, Roy T

2013-03-01

Increases in vector-host contact rates can enhance arbovirus transmission intensity. We investigated weekly fluctuations in contact rates between mosquitoes and nesting birds using the recently described Nest Mosquito Trap (NMT). The number of mosquitoes per nestling increased from nesting season. Our evidence suggests the coincidence of the end of the avian nesting season and increasing mosquito abundances may have caused a "host funnel," concentrating host-seeking mosquitoes to the few remaining nestlings. The relative abundance of mosquitoes collected by the NMT suggests that significantly more Aedes albopictus (Skuse) and Culex pipiens (L.) /restuans (Theobald) sought nesting bird bloodmeals than were predicted by their relative abundances in CO2-baited Centers for Disease Control and Prevention light and gravid traps. Culex salinarius (Coquillett) and Culex erraticus Dyar and Knab were collected in NMTs in proportion to their relative abundances in the generic traps. Temporal host funnels and nesting bird host specificity may enhance arbovirus amplification and explain observed West Nile virus and St. Louis encephalitis virus amplification periods.

Vulnerability of carbon storage in North American boreal forests to wildfires during the 21st century

Science.gov (United States)

Balshi, M. S.; McGuire, Anthony David; Duffy, P.; Flannigan, M.; Kicklighter, David W.; Melillo, J.

2009-01-01

The boreal forest contains large reserves of carbon. Across this region, wildfires influence the temporal and spatial dynamics of carbon storage. In this study, we estimate fire emissions and changes in carbon storage for boreal North America over the 21st century. We use a gridded data set developed with a multivariate adaptive regression spline approach to determine how area burned varies each year with changing climatic and fuel moisture conditions. We apply the process-based Terrestrial Ecosystem Model to evaluate the role of future fire on the carbon dynamics of boreal North America in the context of changing atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration and climate in the A2 and B2 emissions scenarios of the CGCM2 global climate model. Relative to the last decade of the 20th century, decadal total carbon emissions from fire increase by 2.5–4.4 times by 2091–2100, depending on the climate scenario and assumptions about CO2fertilization. Larger fire emissions occur with warmer climates or if CO2 fertilization is assumed to occur. Despite the increases in fire emissions, our simulations indicate that boreal North America will be a carbon sink over the 21st century if CO2 fertilization is assumed to occur in the future. In contrast, simulations excluding CO2 fertilization over the same period indicate that the region will change to a carbon source to the atmosphere, with the source being 2.1 times greater under the warmer A2 scenario than the B2 scenario. To improve estimates of wildfire on terrestrial carbon dynamics in boreal North America, future studies should incorporate the role of dynamic vegetation to represent more accurately post-fire successional processes, incorporate fire severity parameters that change in time and space, account for human influences through increased fire suppression, and integrate the role of other disturbances and their interactions with future fire regime.

Pet birds II. Complementary diagnostic procedures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beregi, A.; Molnar, V.; Felkai, F.; Biro, F.

1997-01-01

Microscopical examinations are useful in detecting bacteria from droppings and body fluids. Antimicrobial susceptibility tests are also used to perform antimicrobial therapy. Parasitological examinations can also be done on pet birds. Hematological examinations are not very common because of the difficulties in determining the normal serum values that might vary by species and sexes. The vena cutanea ulnaris is the best vein for drawing blood from a pet bird but nail clipping for this purpose is also widely used. The most common and basic complementary examination method is radiology. Birds can be radiographed without anesthesia. Ventrodorsal and latero-lateral pictures are required. The right positioning and setting the adequate values is the most important. Contrast radiographs can also be made on birds. Endoscopy is widely used for sex determination but also can be used for the examination of abdominal organs. Ultrasound examination of pet birds is not a common method because of the difficulties provided by the air sacs. ECG is not a widely used method either because of the high heart beat frequency of birds. Other methods such as necropsy, cytological, histological and toxicological examinations can also be performed on pet birds

North Slope, Alaska ESI: BIRDS (Bird Polygons)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This data set contains sensitive biological resource data for diving birds, gulls and terns, seabirds, shorebirds, and waterfowl for the North Slope of Alaska....

First Polarimetric GNSS-R Measurements from a Stratospheric Flight over Boreal Forests

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hugo Carreno-Luengo

2015-10-01

Full Text Available The first-ever dual-frequency multi-constellation Global Navigation Satellite Systems Reflectometry (GNSS-R polarimetric measurements over boreal forests and lakes from the stratosphere are presented. Data were collected during the European Space Agency (ESA sponsored Balloon Experiments for University Students (BEXUS 19 stratospheric balloon experiment using the P(Y and C/A Reflect Ometer (PYCARO instrument operated in closed-loop mode. Maps of the polarimetric ratio for L1 and L2 Global Positioning System (GPS and GLObal Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS, and for E1 Galileo signals are derived from the float phase at 27,000 m height, and the specular points are geolocalized on the Earth’s surface. Polarimetric ratio ( maps over boreal forests are shown to be in the range 2–16 dB for the different GNSS codes. This result suggests that the scattering is taking place not only over the soil, but over the different forests elements as well. Additionally to the interpretation of the experimental results a theoretical investigation of the different contributions to the total reflectivity over boreal forests is performed using a bistatic scattering model. The simulated cross- (reflected Left Hand Circular Polarization LHCP and co-polar (reflected Right Hand Circular Polarization RHCP reflectivities are evaluated for the soil, the canopy, and the canopy–soil interactions for three different biomass densities: 725 trees/ha, 150 trees/ha and 72 trees/ha. For elevation angles larger than the Brewster angle, it is found that the cross-polar signal is dominant when just single reflections over the forests are evaluated, while in the case of multiple reflections the co-polar signal becomes the largest one. The first-ever dual-frequency multi-constellation Global Navigation Satellite Systems Reflectometry (GNSS-R polarimetric measurements over boreal forests and lakes from the stratosphere are presented. Data were collected during the European Space

Contrasting patterns of survival and dispersal in multiple habitats reveal an ecological trap in a food-caching bird.

Science.gov (United States)

Norris, D Ryan; Flockhart, D T Tyler; Strickland, Dan

2013-11-01

A comprehensive understanding of how natural and anthropogenic variation in habitat influences populations requires long-term information on how such variation affects survival and dispersal throughout the annual cycle. Gray jays Perisoreus canadensis are widespread boreal resident passerines that use cached food to survive over the winter and to begin breeding during the late winter. Using multistate capture-recapture analysis, we examined apparent survival and dispersal in relation to habitat quality in a gray jay population over 34 years (1977-2010). Prior evidence suggests that natural variation in habitat quality is driven by the proportion of conifers on territories because of their superior ability to preserve cached food. Although neither adults (>1 year) nor juveniles (conifer territories, both age classes were less likely to leave high-conifer territories and, when they did move, were more likely to disperse to high-conifer territories. In contrast, survival rates were lower on territories that were adjacent to a major highway compared to territories that did not border the highway but there was no evidence for directional dispersal towards or away from highway territories. Our results support the notion that natural variation in habitat quality is driven by the proportion of coniferous trees on territories and provide the first evidence that high-mortality highway habitats can act as an equal-preference ecological trap for birds. Reproductive success, as shown in a previous study, but not survival, is sensitive to natural variation in habitat quality, suggesting that gray jays, despite living in harsh winter conditions, likely favor the allocation of limited resources towards self-maintenance over reproduction.

78 FR 11988 - Migratory Bird Subsistence Harvest in Alaska; Harvest Regulations for Migratory Birds in Alaska...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-02-21

..., accomplishments since the Migratory Bird Treaties with Canada and Mexico were amended, and a history, was... purposes during the spring and summer months. The Canada and Mexico migratory bird treaties were amended...-0066; FF09M21200-123-FXMB1231099BPP0L2] RIN 1018-AY70 Migratory Bird Subsistence Harvest in Alaska...

Population trends of Goričko agricultural landscape birds

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Denac Katarina

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Due to numerous bird surveys in the past 20 years, the avifauna of Goričko is relatively well known. For some species, the very first national ecological researches were conducted in this area. The article summarizes all bird surveys so far. It presents population trends of farmland species which is one of the most threatened bird groups in Europe. Most of the qualifying species of this habitat that are protected within the Natura 2000 network have suffered a decline at Goričko, specifically Quail Coturnix coturnix, Scops Owl Otus scops, Hoopoe Upupa epops, Woodlark Lullula arborea and White Stork Ciconia ciconia. The number of breeding pairs of the latter has not changed, but its fecundity has decreased. Furthermore, populations of other farmland bird species have decreased, for example Skylark Alauda arvensis, Stonechat Saxicola rubicola, Serin Serinus serinus and Common Linnet Linaria cannabina, as well as butterfly populations and tracts of grassland habitat types. National agricultural and nature conservation policies are evidently inefficient in protecting the biodiversity of Goričko. The most probable cause for bird population decline is agricultural intensification, which manifests itself at Goričko as disappearance and intensification of meadows, land consolidation, degradation of traditional orchards and use of pesticides. As a result of land consolidation hedges, uncultivated strips between fields, individual trees and bushes and minority habitat types are disappearing, whereas the surface of arable fields is increasing. Nature conservation measures performed by the Public Institute Goričko Nature Park with the support of DOPPS – BirdLife Slovenia volunteers seem to be efficient, but are spatially and temporally constrained. For this reason, they cannot serve as a substitute for insufficient systemic financing which could be improved by substantive and financial reform of the agri-environmental scheme. Currently, a negligible

Recreation and tourism induced changes in northern boreal environments

OpenAIRE

Kangas, K. (Katja)

2009-01-01

Abstract The popularity of nature-based tourism has increased worldwide and peripheral areas with conservational value, like protected areas, are attractive destinations. The recreational use and construction of tourism facilities can cause environmental degradation and decrease the conservational and recreational value of areas if not well planned and managed. The aim of this thesis was to improve our knowledge of recreation and tourism induced changes in northern boreal environments. Dir...

Urban Bird Feeding: Connecting People with Nature.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daniel T C Cox

Full Text Available At a time of unprecedented biodiversity loss, researchers are increasingly recognizing the broad range of benefits provided to humankind by nature. However, as people live more urbanized lifestyles there is a progressive disengagement with the natural world that diminishes these benefits and discourages positive environmental behaviour. The provision of food for garden birds is an increasing global phenomenon, and provides a readily accessible way for people to counter this trend. Yet despite its popularity, quite why people feed birds remains poorly understood. We explore three loosely defined motivations behind bird feeding: that it provides psychological benefits, is due to a concern about bird welfare, and/or is due to a more general orientation towards nature. We quantitatively surveyed households from urban towns in southern England to explore attitudes and actions towards garden bird feeding. Each household scored three Likert statements relating to each of the three motivations. We found that people who fed birds regularly felt more relaxed and connected to nature when they watched garden birds, and perceived that bird feeding is beneficial for bird welfare while investing time in minimising associated risks. Finally, feeding birds may be an expression of a wider orientation towards nature. Overall, we found that the feelings of being relaxed and connected to nature were the strongest drivers. As urban expansion continues both to threaten species conservation and to change peoples' relationship with the natural world, feeding birds may provide an important tool for engaging people with nature to the benefit of both people and conservation.

Mapping global diversity patterns for migratory birds.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marius Somveille

Full Text Available Nearly one in five bird species has separate breeding and overwintering distributions, and the regular migrations of these species cause a substantial seasonal redistribution of avian diversity across the world. However, despite its ecological importance, bird migration has been largely ignored in studies of global avian biodiversity, with few studies having addressed it from a macroecological perspective. Here, we analyse a dataset on the global distribution of the world's birds in order to examine global spatial patterns in the diversity of migratory species, including: the seasonal variation in overall species diversity due to migration; the contribution of migratory birds to local bird diversity; and the distribution of narrow-range and threatened migratory birds. Our analyses reveal a striking asymmetry between the Northern and Southern hemispheres, evident in all of the patterns investigated. The highest migratory bird diversity was found in the Northern Hemisphere, with high inter-continental turnover in species composition between breeding and non-breeding seasons, and extensive regions (at high latitudes where migratory birds constitute the majority of the local avifauna. Threatened migratory birds are concentrated mainly in Central and Southern Asia, whereas narrow-range migratory species are mainly found in Central America, the Himalayas and Patagonia. Overall, global patterns in the diversity of migratory birds indicate that bird migration is mainly a Northern Hemisphere phenomenon. The asymmetry between the Northern and Southern hemispheres could not have easily been predicted from the combined results of regional scale studies, highlighting the importance of a global perspective.

Impact of wind turbines on birds

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Clausager, I.; Nohr, H.

1996-01-01

The paper is a review of the present knowledge on impacts of wind turbines on birds, requested by the Danish Ministry of the Environment and Energy. The main conclusions of the review are, that in nearly all the studies so far the numbers of birds recorded colliding with wind turbines have been limited. Some studies indicate that stationary (breeding) birds inside the wind turbine area in the short run habituate to wind turbines, especially the noise and visual impacts, and that the risk for collision becomes low. However, some of the few more long term studies indicate that a negative impact may occur in later generations of breeding birds. In some studies a disturbance effect on bird species, which temporarily stay inside a wind turbine area in order to forage or rest, is observed. The degree of impact is species-specific. An effect is typically recorded inside a zone of up to 250-800 m, with geese and waders as the most sensitive groups of birds. (author)

AirSWOT flights and field campaigns for the 2017 Arctic-Boreal Vulnerability Experiment (ABoVE)

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, L. C.; Pavelsky, T.; Lettenmaier, D. P.; Gleason, C. J.; Pietroniro, A.; Applejohn, A.; Arvesen, J. C.; Bjella, K.; Carter, T.; Chao, R.; Cooley, S. W.; Cooper, M. G.; Cretaux, J. F.; Douglass, T.; Faria, D.; Fayne, J.; Fiset, J. M.; Goodman, S.; Hanna, B.; Harlan, M.; Langhorst, T.; Marsh, P.; Moreira, D. M.; Minear, J. T.; Onclin, C.; Overstreet, B. T.; Peters, D.; Pettit, J.; Pitcher, L. H.; Russell, M.; Spence, C.; Topp, S.; Turner, K. W.; Vimal, S.; Wilcox, E.; Woodward, J.; Yang, D.; Zaino, A.

2017-12-01

Some 50% of Canada and 80% of Alaska is thought to be underlain by permafrost, influencing the hydrology, ecology and carbon cycles of Arctic-Boreal landscapes. This influence includes enhanced presence of millions of lakes and wetlands, which release trace gases while supporting critical ecosystems and traditional subsistence economies. Permafrost is challenging to infer from remote sensing and difficult to sample in the field. A series of 2017 AirSWOT flights flown for the NASA Arctic-Boreal Vulnerability Experiment (ABoVE) will study whether small variations in water surface elevations (WSEs) of Arctic-Boreal lakes are sensitive to presence and/or disturbance of permafrost. AirSWOT is an experimental NASA airborne radar designed to map WSE and a precursor to SWOT, a forthcoming NASA/CNES/CSA satellite mission to map WSE globally with launch in 2021. The ABoVE AirSWOT flight experiments adopted long flight lines of the broader ABoVE effort to traverse broad spatial gradients of permafrost, climate, ecology, and geology. AirSWOT acquisitions consisted of long (1000s of kilometers) strips of Ka-band interferometric radar imagery, and high resolution visible/NIR imagery and DEMs from a digital Cirrus CIR camera. Intensive AirSWOT mapping and ground-based GPS field surveys were conducted at 11 field sites for eight study areas of Canada and Alaska: 1) Saint-Denis, Redberry Lake, North Saskatchewan River (Saskatchewan); 2) Peace-Athabasca Delta (Alberta); 3) Slave River Delta (N.W.T.); 4) Canadian Shield (Yellowknife area, Daring Lake, N.W.T.); 5) Mackenzie River (Inuvik-Tuktoyaktuk corridor, N.W.T.); 6) Old Crow Flats (Yukon Territory); 7) Sagavanirktok River (Alaska); 8) Yukon Flats (Alaska). Extensive ground campaigns were conducted by U.S. and Canadian collaborators to collect high quality surveys of lake WSE, river WSE and discharge, and shoreline locations. Field experiments included traditional and novel GPS surveying methods, including custom-built GPS buoys

9 CFR 95.30 - Restrictions on entry of products and byproducts of poultry, game birds, or other birds from...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... byproducts of poultry, game birds, or other birds from regions where highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI... THE UNITED STATES § 95.30 Restrictions on entry of products and byproducts of poultry, game birds, or other birds from regions where highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) subtype H5N1 exists. (a...

Future inhibition of ecosystem productivity by increasing wildfire pollution over boreal North America

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

X. Yue

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Biomass burning is an important source of tropospheric ozone (O3 and aerosols. These air pollutants can affect vegetation photosynthesis through stomatal uptake (for O3 and light scattering and absorption (for aerosols. Wildfire area burned is projected to increase significantly in boreal North America by the mid-century, while little is known about the impacts of enhanced emissions on the terrestrial carbon budget. Here, combining site-level and satellite observations and a carbon–chemistry–climate model, we estimate the impacts of fire emitted O3 and aerosols on net primary productivity (NPP over boreal North America. Fire emissions are calculated based on an ensemble projection from 13 climate models. In the present day, wildfire enhances surface O3 by 2 ppbv (7 % and aerosol optical depth (AOD at 550 nm by 0.03 (26 % in the summer. By mid-century, area burned is predicted to increase by 66 % in boreal North America, contributing more O3 (13 % and aerosols (37 %. Fire O3 causes negligible impacts on NPP because ambient O3 concentration (with fire contributions is below the damage threshold of 40 ppbv for 90 % summer days. Fire aerosols reduce surface solar radiation but enhance atmospheric absorption, resulting in enhanced air stability and intensified regional drought. The domain of this drying is confined to the north in the present day but extends southward by 2050 due to increased fire emissions. Consequently, wildfire aerosols enhance NPP by 72 Tg C yr−1 in the present day but decrease NPP by 118 Tg C yr−1 in the future, mainly because of the soil moisture perturbations. Our results suggest that future wildfire may accelerate boreal carbon loss, not only through direct emissions increasing from 68 Tg C yr−1 at present day to 130 Tg C yr−1 by mid-century but also through the biophysical impacts of fire aerosols.

Mercury evasion from a boreal peatland shortens the timeline for recovery from legacy pollution.

Science.gov (United States)

Osterwalder, Stefan; Bishop, Kevin; Alewell, Christine; Fritsche, Johannes; Laudon, Hjalmar; Åkerblom, Staffan; Nilsson, Mats B

2017-11-22

Peatlands are a major source of methylmercury that contaminates downstream aquatic food webs. The large store of mercury (Hg) in peatlands could be a source of Hg for over a century even if deposition is dramatically reduced. However, the reliability of Hg mass balances can be questioned due to missing long-term land-atmosphere flux measurements. We used a novel micrometeorological system for continuous measurement of Hg peatland-atmosphere exchange to derive the first annual Hg budget for a peatland. The evasion of Hg (9.4 µg m -2 yr -1 ) over the course of a year was seven times greater than stream Hg export, and over two times greater than wet bulk deposition to the boreal peatland. Measurements of dissolved gaseous Hg in the peat pore water also indicate Hg evasion. The net efflux may result from recent declines in atmospheric Hg concentrations that have turned the peatland from a net sink into a source of atmospheric Hg. This net Hg loss suggests that open boreal peatlands and downstream ecosystems can recover more rapidly from past atmospheric Hg deposition than previously assumed. This has important implications for future levels of methylmercury in boreal freshwater fish and the estimation of historical Hg accumulation rates from peat profiles.

The role of indicator species: Neotropical migratory song birds

Science.gov (United States)

Theodore R. Simons; Kerry N. Rabenold; David A. Buehler; Jaime A. Collazo; Kathleen E. Franzreb

1999-01-01

Southern Appalachian forests support some of the richest avian diversity in North America, including some 75 species of Neotropical migrants, birds that perform the remarkable feat of making much of the Western Hemisphere their home. This diverse group includes the swallows, kingbirds, and other flycatchers that feed in the air on flying insects. The Eastern kingbird...

WT Bird. Bird collision recording for offshore wind farms

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wiggelinkhuizen, E.J.; Rademakers, L.W.M.M.; Barhorst, S.A.M. [ECN Wind Energy, Petten (Netherlands); Den Boon, H. [E-Connection Project, Bunnik (Netherlands); Dirksen, S. [Bureau Waardenburg, Culemborg (Netherlands); Schekkerman, H. [Alterra, Wageningen (Netherlands)

2004-11-01

A new method for monitoring of bird collisions has been developed using video and audio registrations that are triggered by sound and vibration measurements. Remote access to the recorded images and sounds makes it possible to count the number of collisions as well as to identify the species. After the successful proof of principle and evaluation on small land-based turbines the system is now being designed for offshore wind farms. Currently the triggering system and video and audio registration are being tested on large land-based wind turbines using bird dummies. Tests of three complete prototype systems are planned for 2005.

Documenting PyroCb Development on High-Intensity Boreal Fires: Implications for the Arctic Atmosphere

Science.gov (United States)

Stocks, B. J.; Fromm, M. D.; Servranckx, R.; Lindsey, D.

2007-12-01

The recent confirmation that smoke from high-intensity boreal forest fires can reach the Upper Troposphere/Lower Stratosphere (UTLS) through pyroconvection and be transported long distances has raised concern over the wider-scale environmental impact of boreal fire smoke. This concern is further elevated as climate change projections indicate a significant increase in the frequency and severity of boreal forest fires over the next century. Smoke in the UTLS is frequently transported to the Arctic and may have important implications for the radiative energy budget in the polar region. Soot deposition from fires may lead to enhanced melting of sea ice and glaciers, and the chemical impact of fire emissions at high altitudes is largely unknown. This knowledge gap will be addressed during the International Polar Year (IPY), as boreal fire emissions will be tracked and documented in detail through aerial, satellite and ground-based measurements, as a key component of the POLARCAT (Polar Study using Aircraft, Remote Sensing, Surface Measurements and Models, of Climate, Chemistry, Aerosols, and Transport) and ARCTAS (Arctic Research of the Composition of the Troposphere from Aircraft and Satellites) projects to be conducted in 2008. A large fire in the Canadian Northwest Territories burned throughout the month of June 2007, in a remote region where forest fires are not actively suppressed, eventually reaching 90,000 hectares in size. This fire was monitored for blowup one week in advance; it erupted into pyroconvection on June 25, 2007. We present an analysis of this event combining satellite data with ground-based measurements to document the development and impact of this classic pyroCb event. Under extreme fire danger conditions, the fire burned close to 20,000 hectares on that day. Fire behavior was consistent with predictions using the Canadian Fire Behavior Prediction System, with the fire spreading at 2.7 km/hr, consuming 33,000 kg of fuel hourly, generating an

Impacts of Sublethal Mercury Exposure on Birds: A Detailed Review.

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Whitney, Margaret C; Cristol, Daniel A

Mercury is a ubiquitous environmental contaminant known to accumulate in, and negatively affect, fish-eating and oceanic bird species, and recently demonstrated to impact some terrestrial songbirds to a comparable extent. It can bioaccumulate to concentrations of >1 μg/g in tissues of prey organisms such as fish and insects. At high enough concentrations, exposure to mercury is lethal to birds. However, environmental exposures are usually far below the lethal concentrations established by dosing studies.The objective of this review is to better understand the effects of sublethal exposure to mercury in birds. We restricted our survey of the literature to studies with at least some exposures >5 μg/g. The majority of sublethal effects were subtle and some studies of similar endpoints reached different conclusions. Strong support exists in the literature for the conclusion that mercury exposure reduces reproductive output, compromises immune function, and causes avoidance of high-energy behaviors. For some endpoints, notably certain measures of reproductive success, endocrine and neurological function, and body condition, there is weak or contradictory evidence of adverse effects and further study is required. There was no evidence that environmentally relevant mercury exposure affects longevity, but several of the sublethal effects identified likely do result in fitness reductions that could adversely impact populations. Overall, 72% of field studies and 91% of laboratory studies found evidence of deleterious effects of mercury on some endpoint, and thus we can conclude that mercury is harmful to birds, and the many effects on reproduction indicate that bird population declines may already be resulting from environmental mercury pollution.

Strategic Plan for the North American Breeding Bird Survey: 2006-2010

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,

2007-01-01

Executive Summary The mission of the North American Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) is to provide scientifically credible measures of the status and trends of North American bird populations at continental and regional scales to inform biologically sound conservation and management actions. Determining population trends, relative abundance, and distributions of North American avifauna is critical for identifying conservation priorities, determining appropriate conservation actions, and evaluating those actions. The BBS program, jointly coordinated by the U.S. Geological Survey and Environment Canada?s Canadian Wildlife Service, provides the U.S. and Canadian Federal governments, state and provincial agencies, other conservation practitioners, and the general public with science-based avian population trend estimates and other information for regional and national species' population assessments. Despite the demonstrated value of the BBS for furthering avian conservation across North America, its importance is often underappreciated, and it is underfunded compared with many other government-supported programs that report on status of the environment. Today, BBS resources, adjusted for inflation, are below the amount allocated in the 1970s and are still only sufficient to support two biologists. Yet the number of routes, participants, data, and data requests has quadrupled. Data and information management and delivery requirements and security concerns, non-existent in 1966, impose further demands on BBS resources. In addition, the Mexican expansion of the BBS offers new hope for a truly continental approach to avian conservation, but also brings additional challenges. Meeting the goals of this plan will take cooperation among myriad stakeholders; yet, even with collaboration, most objectives of this plan will be unattainable if BBS program support is not increased. The BBS developed this strategic plan to help set priorities and identify resources required for the

Outbreaks of Tularemia in a Boreal Forest Region Depends on Mosquito Prevalence

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Rydén, Patrik; Björk, Rafael; Schäfer, Martina L.; Lundström, Jan O.; Petersén, Bodil; Lindblom, Anders; Forsman, Mats; Sjöstedt, Anders

2012-01-01

Background. We aimed to evaluate the potential association of mosquito prevalence in a boreal forest area with transmission of the bacterial disease tularemia to humans, and model the annual variation of disease using local weather data. Methods. A prediction model for mosquito abundance was built using weather and mosquito catch data. Then a negative binomial regression model based on the predicted mosquito abundance and local weather data was built to predict annual numbers of humans contracting tularemia in Dalarna County, Sweden. Results. Three hundred seventy humans were diagnosed with tularemia between 1981 and 2007, 94% of them during 7 summer outbreaks. Disease transmission was concentrated along rivers in the area. The predicted mosquito abundance was correlated (0.41, P tularemia (temporal correlation, 0.76; P tularemia in a tularemia-endemic boreal forest area of Sweden and that environmental variables can be used as risk indicators. PMID:22124130

Overseas seed dispersal by migratory birds.

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Viana, Duarte S; Gangoso, Laura; Bouten, Willem; Figuerola, Jordi

2016-01-13

Long-distance dispersal (LDD) promotes the colonization of isolated and remote habitats, and thus it has been proposed as a mechanism for explaining the distributions of many species. Birds are key LDD vectors for many sessile organisms such as plants, yet LDD beyond local and regional scales has never been directly observed nor quantified. By sampling birds caught while in migratory flight by GPS-tracked wild falcons, we show that migratory birds transport seeds over hundreds of kilometres and mediate dispersal from mainland to oceanic islands. Up to 1.2% of birds that reached a small island of the Canary Archipelago (Alegranza) during their migration from Europe to Sub-Saharan Africa carried seeds in their guts. The billions of birds making seasonal migrations each year may then transport millions of seeds. None of the plant species transported by the birds occurs in Alegranza and most do not occur on nearby Canary Islands, providing a direct example of the importance of environmental filters in hampering successful colonization by immigrant species. The constant propagule pressure generated by these LDD events might, nevertheless, explain the colonization of some islands. Hence, migratory birds can mediate rapid range expansion or shifts of many plant taxa and determine their distribution. © 2016 The Author(s).

Impact of estuarine pollution on birds

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Blus, L.J.; Wiemeyer, Stanley N.; Kerwin, J.A.; Stendell, R.C.; Ohlendorf, H.M.; Stickel, L.F.

1977-01-01

Pollution of estuaries affects bird populations indirectly through changes in habitat and food supply. The multi-factor pollution of Chesapeake Bay has resulted in diminution of submerged aquatic plants and consequent change in food habits of the canvasback duck. Although dredge-spoil operations can improve wildlife habitat, they often result in its demise. Pollution of estuaries also affects birds directly, through chemical toxication, which may result in outright mortality or in reproductive impairment. Lead from industrial sources and roadways enters the estuaries and is accumulated in tissues of birds. Lead pellets deposited in estuaries as a result of hunting are consumed by ducks with sufficient frequency .to result m large annual die-offs from lead poisoning. Fish in certain areas, usually near industrial sources, may contain levels of mercury high enough to be hazardous to birds that consume them. Other heavy metals are present in estuarine birds, but their significance is poorly known. Oil exerts lethal or sublethal effects on birds by oiling their feathers, oiling eggs and young by contaminated parents, and by ingestion of oil-contaminated food. Organochlorine chemicals, of both agricultural and industrial origin, travel through the food chains and reach harmful levels in susceptible species of birds in certain estuarine ecosystems. Both outright mortality and reproductive impairment have occurred.

Seasonal associations with urban light pollution for nocturnally migrating bird populations.

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La Sorte, Frank A; Fink, Daniel; Buler, Jeffrey J; Farnsworth, Andrew; Cabrera-Cruz, Sergio A

2017-11-01

The spatial extent and intensity of artificial light at night (ALAN) has increased worldwide through the growth of urban environments. There is evidence that nocturnally migrating birds are attracted to ALAN, and there is evidence that nocturnally migrating bird populations are more likely to occur in urban areas during migration, especially in the autumn. Here, we test if urban sources of ALAN are responsible, at least in part, for these observed urban associations. We use weekly estimates of diurnal occurrence and relative abundance for 40 nocturnally migrating bird species that breed in forested environments in North America to assess how associations with distance to urban areas and ALAN are defined across the annual cycle. Migratory bird populations presented stronger than expected associations with shorter distances to urban areas during migration, and stronger than expected association with higher levels of ALAN outside and especially within urban areas during migration. These patterns were more pronounced during autumn migration, especially within urban areas. Outside of the two migration periods, migratory bird populations presented stronger than expected associations with longer distances to urban areas, especially during the nonbreeding season, and weaker than expected associations with the highest levels of ALAN outside and especially within urban areas. These findings suggest that ALAN is associated with higher levels of diurnal abundance along the boundaries and within the interior of urban areas during migration, especially in the autumn when juveniles are undertaking their first migration journey. These findings support the conclusion that urban sources of ALAN can broadly effect migratory behavior, emphasizing the need to better understand the implications of ALAN for migratory bird populations. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Boreal mire Green House Gas exchange in response to global change perturbations

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Nilsson, Mats

2017-04-01

High latitude boreal peatlands contribute importantly to the land-atmosphere-hydrosphere exchange of carbon and GHG, i.e. carbon dioxide, methane and dissolved organic carbon. High latitude biomes are identified as most vulnerable to changing climate. High latitudes are also characterized by a strong seasonality in incoming solar radiation, weather conditions and thus also in biogeochemical processes. The strong seasonality in incoming solar radiation, not to change in response to a changing climate, constitute firm constraints on how changes in air temperature, evapotranspiration and precipitation will affect biogeochemical processes underlying the land atmosphere and land hydrosphere exchange of green house gases. In this presentation I combine data from long-term monitoring, long-term field manipulations and detailed chemical analysis to understand how changes in atmosphere and weather conditions influence the major carbon fluxes of a boreal mire Net Ecosystem Carbon Balance. The long-term monitoring data contains >12 years of continuous Eddy Covariance CO2 data, growing season chamber CH4 data and continuous measurements of discharge export of DOC, CO2 and CH4. Data from long-term field snow removal manipulations and growing season temperature increase manipulations are used to further understand the impact of climate on mire carbon and GHG fluxes. Finally we uses Nuclear Magnetic Spectroscopy (NMR) to reveal how century scale changes in atmospheric CO2 from 300 to 400 pm CO2 and temperature have influenced the net photosynthetic capacity of Sphagnum mosses, the single most important plant genus for boreal mire carbon sequestration.

Grassland birds wintering at U.S. Navy facilities in southern Texas

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Woodin, Marc C.; Skoruppa, Mary Kay; Bryan, Pearce D.; Ruddy, Amanda J.; Hickman, Graham C.

2010-01-01

transects during the study were Species of Conservation Concern: Le Conte’s Sparrow, Sedge Wren (Cistothorus platensis), Grasshopper Sparrow (Ammodramus savannarum), Long-billed Curlew (Numenius americanus), Sprague’s Pipit (Anthus spragueii), Cassin’s Sparrow (Aimophila cassinii), and Loggerhead Shrike (Lanius ludovicianus). Native grasslands consistently supported greater bird species richness than exotic grasslands. In one winter, exotic grasslands supported more birds than native grasslands.Native grasslands were determined to have more forb cover, more bare ground, and greater plant species richness than exotic grasslands, whereas exotic grasslands were characterized by more grass cover and relatively greater vegetation density during dry years. Not only did these individual measures differ between native and exotic grasslands, but components of variation also differed. In native grasslands, grass density and cover contributed more to variation, whereas in exotic grasslands, non-grass vegetation was a greater component of variation. Total bird numbers and bird species richness in native grasslands were related to the principal component that contained a measure of litter cover. Total bird numbers and bird species richness in exotic grasslands indicated no significant relationships with any of the principal components of variation.The two most common insect orders in native grasslands were Hymenoptera and Coleoptera, which accounted for 42 percent of all insects. The two most common insect orders in exotic grasslands were Hemiptera and Homoptera, which accounted for about 80 percent of all insects. Insect family richness was greater in exotic grasslands than in native grasslands in two of four seasons. Proportions of arachnid families were similar in native and exotic grasslands, but arachnid family richness was greater in exotic grasslands than in native grasslands.Abundance of seeds was greater in exotic than in native grasslands. However, seed diversity was

Quaternary Landforms and Basin Morphology Control the Natural Eutrophy of Boreal Lakes and Their Sensitivity to Anthropogenic Forcing

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Mira Tammelin

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Both natural and anthropogenic changes in boreal lakes have been studied utilizing paleolimnological methods, but the spatial variation in the natural conditions of lakes and its connection to geological factors has drawn less attention. Our aims were to examine the spatial distribution of naturally eutrophic lakes on the previously glaciated terrain of central-eastern Finland and the relationship between pre-human disturbance water quality and geological factors related to the basins and their catchments. Furthermore, we studied the pre- to post-human disturbance changes in the diatom assemblages and water quality of 48 lakes (51 sampling sites across the pre-disturbance phosphorus gradient by using the top-bottom sampling approach and multivariate statistics. According to our results, naturally eutrophic boreal lakes are more common than previously thought, occurring on fine-grained and organic Quaternary landforms, including fine-grained till. Our study emphasizes the importance of the previously overlooked matter of till grain-size variation as a driver behind the spatial variation in the natural trophic states of boreal lakes. The location of a lake in the hydrologic landscape and basin morphology appear to be important factors as well. Shallow, naturally eutrophic lakes with short water residence times and high catchment area to lake area and volume ratios have been particularly sensitive to anthropogenic forcing. Our results indicate that cultural eutrophication is not the only water protection challenge for the relatively remote and dilute boreal lakes, but salinization and alkalinization are also serious threats that should be taken into account. Therefore, it is crucial to consider the notable variation in the natural conditions of boreal lakes in addition to mitigating the effects of anthropogenic forcing, such as nutrient loading, catchment erosion, salt pollution, and climate change, in order to achieve efficient water protection.

Cryptococcosis outbreak in psittacine birds in Brazil.

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Raso, T F; Werther, K; Miranda, E T; Mendes-Giannini, M J S

2004-08-01

An outbreak of cryptococcosis occurred in a breeding aviary in São Paulo, Brazil. Seven psittacine birds (of species Charmosyna papou, Lorius lory, Trichoglossus goldiei, Psittacula krameri and Psittacus erithacus) died of disseminated cryptococcosis. Incoordination, progressive paralysis and difficulty in flying were seen in five birds, whereas superficial lesions coincident with respiratory alterations were seen in two birds. Encapsulated yeasts suggestive of Cryptococcus sp. were seen in faecal smears stained with India ink in two cases. Histological examination of the birds showed cryptococcal cells in various tissues, including the beak, choana, sinus, lungs, air sacs, heart, liver, spleen, kidneys, intestines and central nervous system. High titres of cryptococcal antigen were observed in the serum of an affected bird. In this case, titres increased during treatment and the bird eventually died. Yeasts were isolated from the nasal mass, faeces and liver of one bird. Cryptococcus neoformans var. gattii serovar B was identified based on biochemical, physiological and serological tests. These strains were resistant (minimum inhibitory concentration 64 microg/ml) to fluconazole. This is the first report of C. neoformans var. gattii occurring in psittacine birds in Brazil.

Habitat fragmentation effects on birds in grasslands and wetlands: A critique of our knowledge

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Johnson, D.H.

2001-01-01

Habitat fragmentation exacerbates the problem of habitat loss for grassland and wetland birds. Remaining patches of grasslands and wetlands may be too small, too isolated, and too influenced by edge effects to maintain viable populations of some breeding birds. Knowledge of the effects of fragmentation on bird populations is critically important for decisions about reserve design, grassland and wetland management, and implementation of cropland set-aside programs that benefit wildlife. In my review of research that has been conducted on habitat fragmentation, I found at least five common problems in the methodology used. The results of many studies are compromised by these problems: passive sampling (sampling larger areas in larger patches), confounding effects of habitat heterogeneity, consequences of inappropriate pooling of data from different species, artifacts associated with artificial nest data, and definition of actual habitat patches. As expected, some large-bodied birds with large territorial requirements, such as the northern harrier (Circus cyaneus), appear area sensitive. In addition, some small species of grassland birds favor patches of habitat far in excess of their territory size, including the Savannah (Passerculus sandwichensis), grasshopper (Ammodramus savannarum) and Henslow's (A. henslowii) sparrows, and the bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus). Other species may be area sensitive as well, but the data are ambiguous. Area sensitivity among wetland birds remains unknown since virtually no studies have been based on solid methodologies. We need further research on grassland bird response to habitat that distinguishes supportable conclusions from those that may be artifactual.

Relative roles of grey squirrels, supplementary feeding, and habitat in shaping urban bird assemblages.

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Bonnington, Colin; Gaston, Kevin J; Evans, Karl L

2014-01-01

Non-native species are frequently considered to influence urban assemblages. The grey squirrel Sciurus carolinensis is one such species that is widespread in the UK and is starting to spread across Europe; it predates birds' nests and can compete with birds for supplementary food. Using distance sampling across the urbanisation intensity gradient in Sheffield (UK) we test whether urban grey squirrels influence avian species richness and density through nest predation and competition for supplementary food sources. We also assess how urban bird assemblages respond to supplementary feeding. We find that grey squirrels slightly reduced the abundance of breeding bird species most sensitive to squirrel nest predation by reducing the beneficial impact of woodland cover. There was no evidence that grey squirrel presence altered relationships between supplementary feeding and avian assemblage structure. This may be because, somewhat surprisingly, supplementary feeding was not associated with the richness or density of wintering bird assemblages. These associations were positive during the summer, supporting advocacy to feed birds during the breeding season and not just winter, but explanatory capacity was limited. The amount of green space and its quality, assessed as canopy cover, had a stronger influence on avian species richness and population size than the presence of grey squirrels and supplementary feeding stations. Urban bird populations are thus more likely to benefit from investment in improving the availability of high quality habitats than controlling squirrel populations or increased investment in supplementary feeding.

Relative roles of grey squirrels, supplementary feeding, and habitat in shaping urban bird assemblages.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Colin Bonnington

Full Text Available Non-native species are frequently considered to influence urban assemblages. The grey squirrel Sciurus carolinensis is one such species that is widespread in the UK and is starting to spread across Europe; it predates birds' nests and can compete with birds for supplementary food. Using distance sampling across the urbanisation intensity gradient in Sheffield (UK we test whether urban grey squirrels influence avian species richness and density through nest predation and competition for supplementary food sources. We also assess how urban bird assemblages respond to supplementary feeding. We find that grey squirrels slightly reduced the abundance of breeding bird species most sensitive to squirrel nest predation by reducing the beneficial impact of woodland cover. There was no evidence that grey squirrel presence altered relationships between supplementary feeding and avian assemblage structure. This may be because, somewhat surprisingly, supplementary feeding was not associated with the richness or density of wintering bird assemblages. These associations were positive during the summer, supporting advocacy to feed birds during the breeding season and not just winter, but explanatory capacity was limited. The amount of green space and its quality, assessed as canopy cover, had a stronger influence on avian species richness and population size than the presence of grey squirrels and supplementary feeding stations. Urban bird populations are thus more likely to benefit from investment in improving the availability of high quality habitats than controlling squirrel populations or increased investment in supplementary feeding.

Bird sexing by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy

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Steiner, Gerald; Bartels, Thomas; Krautwald-Junghanns, Maria-Elisabeth; Koch, Edmund

2010-02-01

Birds are traditionally classified as male or female based on their anatomy and plumage color as judged by the human eye. Knowledge of a bird's gender is important for the veterinary practitioner, the owner and the breeder. The accurate gender determination is essential for proper pairing of birds, and knowing the gender of a bird will allow the veterinarian to rule in or out gender-specific diseases. Several biochemical methods of gender determination have been developed for avian species where otherwise the gender of the birds cannot be determined by their physical appearances or characteristics. In this contribution, we demonstrate that FT-IR spectroscopy is a suitable tool for a quick and objective determination of the bird's gender. The method is based on differences in chromosome size. Male birds have two Z chromosomes and female birds have a W-chromosome and a Z-chromosome. Each Z-chromosome has approx. 75.000.000 bps whereas the W-chromosome has approx. 260.00 bps. This difference can be detected by FT-IR spectroscopy. Spectra were recorded from germ cells obtained from the feather pulp of chicks as well as from the germinal disk of fertilized but non-bred eggs. Significant changes between cells of male and female birds occur in the region of phosphate vibrations around 1080 and 1120 cm-1.

Canadian boreal forest greening and browning trends: an analysis of biogeographic patterns and the relative roles of disturbance versus climate drivers

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Sulla-Menashe, Damien; Woodcock, Curtis E.; Friedl, Mark A.

2018-01-01

Recent studies have used satellite-derived normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) time series to explore geographic patterns in boreal forest greening and browning. A number of these studies indicate that boreal forests are experiencing widespread browning, and have suggested that these patterns reflect decreases in forest productivity induced by climate change. Here we use NDVI time series from Landsat, which has much higher quality and spatial resolution than imagery used in most previous studies, to characterize biogeographic patterns in greening and browning across Canada’s boreal forest and to explore the drivers behind observed trends. Our results show that the majority of NDVI changes in Canada’s boreal forest reflect disturbance-recovery dynamics not climate change impacts, that greening and browning trends outside of disturbed forests are consistent with expected ecological responses to regional changes in climate, and that observed NDVI changes are geographically limited and relatively small in magnitude. By examining covariance between changes in NDVI and temperature and precipitation in locations not affected by disturbance, our results isolate and characterize the nature and magnitude of greening and browning directly associated with climate change. Consistent with biogeographic theory, greening and browning unrelated to disturbance tended to be located in ecotones near boundaries of the boreal forest bioclimatic envelope. We observed greening to be most prevalent in Eastern Canada, which is more humid, and browning to be most prevalent in Western Canada, where forests are more prone to moisture stress. We conclude that continued long-term climate change has the potential to significantly alter the character and function of Canada’s boreal forest, but recent changes have been modest and near-term impacts are likely to be focused in or near ecotones.

Passerine birds breeding under chronic noise experience reduced fitness.

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Julia Schroeder

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Fitness in birds has been shown to be negatively associated with anthropogenic noise, but the underlying mechanisms remain obscure. It is however crucial to understand the mechanisms of how urban noise impinges on fitness to obtain a better understanding of the role of chronic noise in urban ecology. Here, we examine three hypotheses on how noise might reduce reproductive output in passerine birds: (H1 by impairing mate choice, (H2 by reducing territory quality and (H3 by impeding chick development. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We used long-term data from an island population of house sparrows, Passer domesticus, in which we can precisely estimate fitness. We found that nests in an area affected by the noise from large generators produced fewer young, of lower body mass, and fewer recruits, even when we corrected statistically for parental genetic quality using a cross-fostering set-up, supporting H3. Also, individual females provided their young with food less often when they bred in the noisy area compared to breeding attempts by the same females elsewhere. Furthermore, we show that females reacted flexibly to increased noise levels by adjusting their provisioning rate in the short term, which suggests that noise may be a causal factor that reduces reproductive output. We rejected H1 and H2 because nestbox occupancy, parental body mass, age and reproductive investment did not differ significantly between noisy and quiet areas. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: OUR RESULTS SUGGEST A PREVIOUSLY UNDESCRIBED MECHANISM TO EXPLAIN HOW ENVIRONMENTAL NOISE CAN REDUCE FITNESS IN PASSERINE BIRDS: by acoustically masking parent-offspring communication. More importantly, using a cross-fostering set-up, our results demonstrate that birds breeding in a noisy environment experience significant fitness costs. Chronic noise is omnipresent around human habitation and may produces similar fitness consequences in a wide range of urban bird species.

Avifaunal diversity and bird community responses to man-made habitats in St. Coombs Tea Estate, Sri Lanka

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J. Dananjaya Kottawa-Arachchi

2015-02-01

Full Text Available A survey on birds was conducted at St. Coombs Tea Estate, Talawakelle, Sri Lanka with the objective of assessing the avifaunal diversity of a given tea plantation ecosystem. Bird populations were sampled in man-made habitats such as home garden, wetland, tea plantation, Eucalyptus plantation and small scale reservoir. Hundred-and-twenty counts were made for each habitat and in addition, activities of birds, feeding habits and food recourses were also observed. A total of 87 species, including 11 endemic and 11 migrant species of birds, was recorded, which included one globally threatened species, Kashmir Flycatcher Ficedula subrubra and 16 nationally threatened species. A majority of the bird species were observed in home gardens (75%, followed by reservoirs (57%, wetlands (48%, tea plantations (43% and in Eucalyptus plantations (23%. Home gardens support bird diversity while the species richness of endemic bird species increases thereby enabling these findings to be used as guidelines in long term conservational practices. Several conservation measures such as increasing plant diversity, introduction of shade trees and prevention of fire are recommended to conserve and enhance avifaunal diversity in tea plantations.

Patterns of NPP, GPP, respiration, and NEP during boreal forest succession

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Goulden, M.L.; Mcmillan, A.M.S.; Winston, G.C.; Rocha, A.V.; Manies, K.L.; Harden, J.W.; Bond-Lamberty, B. P.

2011-01-01

We combined year-round eddy covariance with biometry and biomass harvests along a chronosequence of boreal forest stands that were 1, 6, 15, 23, 40, 74, and 154 years old to understand how ecosystem production and carbon stocks change during recovery from stand-replacing crown fire. Live biomass (Clive) was low in the 1 and 6 year old stands, and increased following a logistic pattern to high levels in the 74 and 154year old stands. Carbon stocks in the forest floor (Cforest floor) and coarse woody debris (CCWD) were comparatively high in the 1year old stand, reduced in the 6 through 40year old stands, and highest in the 74 and 154year old stands. Total net primary production (TNPP) was reduced in the 1 and 6year old stands, highest in the 23 through 74year old stands and somewhat reduced in the 154year old stand. The NPP decline at the 154year old stand was related to increased autotrophic respiration rather than decreased gross primary production (GPP). Net ecosystem production (NEP), calculated by integrated eddy covariance, indicated the 1 and 6 year old stands were losing carbon, the 15year old stand was gaining a small amount of carbon, the 23 and 74year old stands were gaining considerable carbon, and the 40 and 154year old stands were gaining modest amounts of carbon. The recovery from fire was rapid; a linear fit through the NEP observations at the 6 and 15year old stands indicated the transition from carbon source to sink occurred within 11-12 years. The NEP decline at the 154year old stand appears related to increased losses from Clive by tree mortality and possibly from Cforest floor by decomposition. Our findings support the idea that NPP, carbon production efficiency (NPP/GPP), NEP, and carbon storage efficiency (NEP/TNPP) all decrease in old boreal stands. ?? 2010 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Testing the environmental Kuznets curve hypothesis with bird populations as habitat-specific environmental indicators: evidence from Canada.

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Lantz, Van; Martínez-Espiñeira, Roberto

2008-04-01

The traditional environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) hypothesis postulates that environmental degradation follows an inverted U-shaped relationship with gross domestic product (GDP) per capita. We tested the EKC hypothesis with bird populations in 5 different habitats as environmental quality indicators. Because birds are considered environmental goods, for them the EKC hypothesis would instead be associated with a U-shaped relationship between bird populations and GDP per capita. In keeping with the literature, we included other variables in the analysis-namely, human population density and time index variables (the latter variable captured the impact of persistent and exogenous climate and/or policy changes on bird populations over time). Using data from 9 Canadian provinces gathered over 37 years, we used a generalized least-squares regression for each bird habitat type, which accounted for the panel structure of the data, the cross-sectional dependence across provinces in the residuals, heteroskedasticity, and fixed- or random-effect specifications of the models. We found evidence that supports the EKC hypothesis for 3 of the 5 bird population habitat types. In addition, the relationship between human population density and the different bird populations varied, which emphasizes the complex nature of the impact that human populations have on the environment. The relationship between the time-index variable and the different bird populations also varied, which indicates there are other persistent and significant influences on bird populations over time. Overall our EKC results were consistent with those found for threatened bird species, indicating that economic prosperity does indeed act to benefit some bird populations.

Birds of isolated small forests in Uganda | Dranzoa | Scopus: Journal ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

There is also a strong indication of species turnover amongst the forest interior birds in these forests. The fact that, together and over time these small forests supported 37 forest interior species, suggests that, collectively, small forests (of which there are many in Uganda) do have conservation value. The evidence of species ...

Linking the evolution of body shape and locomotor biomechanics in bird-line archosaurs.

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Allen, Vivian; Bates, Karl T; Li, Zhiheng; Hutchinson, John R

2013-05-02

Locomotion in living birds (Neornithes) has two remarkable features: feather-assisted flight, and the use of unusually crouched hindlimbs for bipedal support and movement. When and how these defining functional traits evolved remains controversial. However, the advent of computer modelling approaches and the discoveries of exceptionally preserved key specimens now make it possible to use quantitative data on whole-body morphology to address the biomechanics underlying this issue. Here we use digital body reconstructions to quantify evolutionary trends in locomotor biomechanics (whole-body proportions and centre-of-mass position) across the clade Archosauria. We use three-dimensional digital reconstruction to estimate body shape from skeletal dimensions for 17 archosaurs along the ancestral bird line, including the exceptionally preserved, feathered taxa Microraptor, Archaeopteryx, Pengornis and Yixianornis, which represent key stages in the evolution of the avian body plan. Rather than a discrete transition from more-upright postures in the basal-most birds (Avialae) and their immediate outgroup deinonychosauria, our results support hypotheses of a gradual, stepwise acquisition of more-crouched limb postures across much of theropod evolution, although we find evidence of an accelerated change within the clade Maniraptora (birds and their closest relatives, such as deinonychosaurs). In addition, whereas reduction of the tail is widely accepted to be the primary morphological factor correlated with centre-of-mass position and, hence, evolution of hindlimb posture, we instead find that enlargement of the pectoral limb and several associated trends have a much stronger influence. Intriguingly, our support for the onset of accelerated morpho-functional trends within Maniraptora is closely correlated with the evolution of flight. Because we find that the evolution of enlarged forelimbs is strongly linked, via whole-body centre of mass, to hindlimb function during

Disturbance in boreal forest ecosystems: human impacts and natural processes. Proceedings of the International Boreal Forest Research Association 1997 annual meeting; 1997 August 4-7; Duluth, Minnesota.

Science.gov (United States)

2000-01-01

The papers in these proceedings cover a wide range of topics related to human and natural disturbance processes in forests of the boreal zone in North America and Eurasia. Topics include historic and predicted landscape change; forest management; disturbance by insects, fire, air pollution, severe weather, and global climate change; and carbon cycling.

Characteristics of Urban Natural Areas Influencing Winter Bird Use in Southern Ontario, Canada

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Paul G. R.

2007-03-01

Characteristics of urban natural areas and surrounding landscapes were identified that best explain winter bird use for 28 urban natural areas in southern Ontario, Canada. The research confirms for winter birds the importance of area (size) and natural vegetation, rather than managed, horticultural parkland, within urban natural areas as well as percent urban land use and natural habitat in surrounding landscapes. Alien bird density and percent ground feeding species increased with percent surrounding urban land use. Higher percent forest cover was associated with higher percentages of forest, bark feeding, small (species. Natural area size (ha) was related to higher species richness, lower evenness and higher percentages of insectivorous, forest interior, area-sensitive, upper canopy, bark feeding, and non-resident species. Higher number of habitat types within natural areas and percent natural habitat in surrounding landscapes were also associated with higher species richness. Common, resident bird species dominated small areas (20 ha start to support some area-sensitive species. Areas similar to rural forests had >25% insectivores, >25% forest interior species, >25% small species, and species. Indicator species separated urban natural areas from rural habitats and ordination placed urban natural areas along a gradient between urban development and undisturbed, rural forests. More attention is needed on issues of winter bird conservation in urban landscapes.

Neospora caninum in birds: A review.

Science.gov (United States)

de Barros, Luiz Daniel; Miura, Ana Carolina; Minutti, Ana Flávia; Vidotto, Odilon; Garcia, João Luis

2018-08-01

Neospora caninum is an obligate intracellular protozoan parasite that infects domestic and wild animals. Canids are considered to be definitive hosts since they may shed oocysts into the environment through their feces. The disease is recognized as one of the major causes of bovine abortion worldwide, leading to important economic losses in the dairy and beef cattle industries. Previous studies have reported N. caninum infection in different species of birds; infection in birds has been associated with increased seroprevalence and reproductive problems in dairy cattle. Although the role of birds in the epidemiological cycle of neosporosis is unknown, birds are exposed to infection because they feed on the ground and could thus contribute to parasite dissemination. This review is focused on the current state of knowledge of neosporosis in birds. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Variation in clutch size in relation to nest size in birds

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Møller, Anders P.; Adriaensen, Frank; Artemyev, Alexandr; Bańbura, Jerzy; Barba, Emilio; Biard, Clotilde; Blondel, Jacques; Bouslama, Zihad; Bouvier, Jean-Charles; Camprodon, Jordi; Cecere, Francesco; Charmantier, Anne; Charter, Motti; Cichoń, Mariusz; Cusimano, Camillo; Czeszczewik, Dorota; Demeyrier, Virginie; Doligez, Blandine; Doutrelant, Claire; Dubiec, Anna; Eens, Marcel; Eeva, Tapio; Faivre, Bruno; Ferns, Peter N.; Forsman, Jukka T.; García-Del-Rey, Eduardo; Goldshtein, Aya; Goodenough, Anne E.; Gosler, Andrew G.; Góźdź, Iga; Grégoire, Arnaud; Gustafsson, Lars; Hartley, Ian R.; Heeb, Philipp; Hinsley, Shelley A.; Isenmann, Paul; Jacob, Staffan; Järvinen, Antero; Juškaitis, Rimvydas; Korpimäki, Erkki; Krams, Indrikis; Laaksonen, Toni; Leclercq, Bernard; Lehikoinen, Esa; Loukola, Olli; Lundberg, Arne; Mainwaring, Mark C.; Mänd, Raivo; Massa, Bruno; Mazgajski, Tomasz D.; Merino, Santiago; Mitrus, Cezary; Mönkkönen, Mikko; Morales-Fernaz, Judith; Morin, Xavier; Nager, Ruedi G.; Nilsson, Jan-Åke; Nilsson, Sven G.; Norte, Ana C.; Orell, Markku; Perret, Philippe; Pimentel, Carla S.; Pinxten, Rianne; Priedniece, Ilze; Quidoz, Marie-Claude; Remeš, Vladimir; Richner, Heinz; Robles, Hugo; Rytkönen, Seppo; Senar, Juan Carlos; Seppänen, Janne T.; da Silva, Luís P.; Slagsvold, Tore; Solonen, Tapio; Sorace, Alberto; Stenning, Martyn J.; Török, János; Tryjanowski, Piotr; van Noordwijk, Arie J.; von Numers, Mikael; Walankiewicz, Wiesław; Lambrechts, Marcel M.

2014-01-01

Nests are structures built to support and protect eggs and/or offspring from predators, parasites, and adverse weather conditions. Nests are mainly constructed prior to egg laying, meaning that parent birds must make decisions about nest site choice and nest building behavior before the start of

Introducing a boreal wetland model within the Earth System model framework

Science.gov (United States)

Getzieh, R. J.; Brovkin, V.; Reick, C.; Kleinen, T.; Raddatz, T.; Raivonen, M.; Sevanto, S.

2009-04-01

Wetlands of the northern high latitudes with their low temperatures and waterlogged conditions are prerequisite for peat accumulation. They store at least 25% of the global soil organic carbon and constitute currently the largest natural source of methane. These boreal and subarctic peat carbon pools are sensitive to climate change since the ratio of carbon sequestration and emission is closely dependent on hydrology and temperature. Global biogeochemistry models used for simulations of CO2 dynamics in the past and future climates usually ignore changes in the peat storages. Our approach aims at the evaluation of the boreal wetland feedback to climate through the CO2 and CH4 fluxes on decadal to millennial time scales. A generic model of organic matter accumulation and decay in boreal wetlands is under development in the MPI for Meteorology in cooperation with the University of Helsinki. Our approach is to develop a wetland model which is consistent with the physical and biogeochemical components of the land surface module JSBACH as a part of the Earth System model framework ECHAM5-MPIOM-JSBACH. As prototypes, we use modelling approach by Frolking et al. (2001) for the peat dynamics and the wetland model by Wania (2007) for vegetation cover and plant productivity. An initial distribution of wetlands follows the GLWD-3 map by Lehner and Döll (2004). First results of the modelling approach will be presented. References: Frolking, S. E., N. T. Roulet, T. R. Moore, P. J. H. Richard, M. Lavoie and S. D. Muller (2001): Modeling Northern Peatland Decomposition and Peat Accumulation, Ecosystems, 4, 479-498. Lehner, B., Döll P. (2004): Development and validation of a global database of lakes, reservoirs and wetlands. Journal of Hydrology 296 (1-4), 1-22. Wania, R. (2007): Modelling northern peatland land surface processes, vegetation dynamics and methane emissions. PhD thesis, University of Bristol, 122 pp.

Contribution of vegetation and water table on isoprene emission from boreal peatland microcosms

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Tiiva, Päivi; Faubert, Patrick; Räty, Sanna

2009-01-01

emission in these naturally wet ecosystems, although water table is predicted to decline due to climate warming. We studied the relative contribution of mosses vs. vascular plants to isoprene emission in boreal peatland microcosms in growth chambers by removing either vascular vegetation or both vascular...... hollows with intact vegetation, 45 ± 6 µg m-2 h-1, was decreased by 25% under water table drawdown. However, water table drawdown reduced net ecosystem carbon dioxide (CO2) exchange more dramatically than isoprene emission. Isoprene emission strongly correlated with both CO2 exchange and methane emission......Boreal peatlands are substantial sources of isoprene, a reactive hydrocarbon. However, it is not known how much mosses, vascular plants and peat each contribute to isoprene emission from peatlands. Furthermore, there is no information on the effects of declining water table depth on isoprene...

Landscape control of uranium and thorium in boreal streams – spatiotemporal variability and the role of wetlands

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

F. Lidman

2012-11-01

Full Text Available The concentrations of uranium and thorium in ten partly nested streams in the boreal forest region were monitored over a two-year period. The investigated catchments ranged from small headwaters (0.1 km² up to a fourth-order stream (67 km². Considerable spatiotemporal variations were observed, with little or no correlation between streams. The fluxes of both uranium and thorium varied substantially between the subcatchments, ranging from 1.7 to 30 g km⁻² a⁻¹ for uranium and from 3.2 to 24 g km⁻² a⁻¹ for thorium. Airborne gamma spectrometry was used to measure the concentrations of uranium and thorium in surface soils throughout the catchment, suggesting that the concentrations of uranium and thorium in mineral soils are similar throughout the catchment. The fluxes of uranium and thorium were compared to a wide range of parameters characterising the investigated catchments and the chemistry of the stream water, e.g. soil concentrations of these elements, pH, TOC (total organic carbon, Al, Si and hydrogen carbonate, but it was concluded that the spatial variabilities in the fluxes of both uranium and thorium mainly were controlled by wetlands. The results indicate that there is a predictable and systematic accumulation of both uranium and thorium in boreal wetlands that is large enough to control the transport of these elements. On the landscape scale approximately 65–80% of uranium and 55–65% of thorium entering a wetland were estimated to be retained in the peat. Overall, accumulation in mires and other types of wetlands was estimated to decrease the fluxes of uranium and thorium from the boreal forest landscape by 30–40%, indicating that wetlands play an important role for the biogeochemical cycling of uranium and thorium in the boreal forest landscape. The atmospheric deposition of uranium and thorium was also quantified, and its contribution to boreal streams was

The subcatchment- and catchment-scale hydrology of a boreal headwater peatland complex with sporadic permafrost.

Science.gov (United States)

Sonnentag, O.; Helbig, M.; Connon, R.; Hould Gosselin, G.; Ryu, Y.; Karoline, W.; Hanisch, J.; Moore, T. R.; Quinton, W. L.

2017-12-01

The permafrost region of the Northern Hemisphere has been experiencing twice the rate of climate warming compared to the rest of the Earth, resulting in the degradation of the cryosphere. A large portion of the high-latitude boreal forests of northwestern Canada grows on low-lying organic-rich lands with relative warm and thin isolated, sporadic and discontinuous permafrost. Along this southern limit of permafrost, increasingly warmer temperatures have caused widespread permafrost thaw leading to land cover changes at unprecedented rates. A prominent change includes wetland expansion at the expense of Picea mariana (black spruce)-dominated forest due to ground surface subsidence caused by the thawing of ice-rich permafrost leading to collapsing peat plateaus. Recent conceptual advances have provided important new insights into high-latitude boreal forest hydrology. However, refined quantitative understanding of the mechanisms behind water storage and movement at subcatchment and catchment scales is needed from a water resources management perspective. Here we combine multi-year daily runoff measurements with spatially explicit estimates of evapotranspiration, modelled with the Breathing Earth System Simulator, to characterize the monthly growing season catchment scale ( 150 km2) hydrological response of a boreal headwater peatland complex with sporadic permafrost in the southern Northwest Territories. The corresponding water budget components at subcatchment scale ( 0.1 km2) were obtained from concurrent cutthroat flume runoff and eddy covariance evapotranspiration measurements. The highly significant linear relationships for runoff (r2=0.64) and evapotranspiration (r2=0.75) between subcatchment and catchment scales suggest that the mineral upland-dominated downstream portion of the catchment acts hydrologically similar to the headwater portion dominated by boreal peatland complexes. Breakpoint analysis in combination with moving window statistics on multi

Bristol Bay, Alaska Subarea ESI: BIRDS (Bird Polygons)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This data set contains sensitive biological resource data for shorebirds, waterfowl, raptors, diving birds, and seabirds in the Bristol Bay Subarea. The Subarea...

Cross-scale controls on carbon emissions from boreal forest megafires.

Science.gov (United States)

Walker, Xanthe J; Rogers, Brendan M; Baltzer, Jennifer L; Cumming, Steven G; Day, Nicola J; Goetz, Scott J; Johnstone, Jill F; Schuur, Edward A G; Turetsky, Merritt R; Mack, Michelle C

2018-04-26

Climate warming and drying is associated with increased wildfire disturbance and the emergence of megafires in North American boreal forests. Changes to the fire regime are expected to strongly increase combustion emissions of carbon (C) which could alter regional C balance and positively feedback to climate warming. In order to accurately estimate C emissions and thereby better predict future climate feedbacks, there is a need to understand the major sources of heterogeneity that impact C emissions at different scales. Here, we examined 211 field plots in boreal forests dominated by black spruce (Picea mariana) or jack pine (Pinus banksiana) of the Northwest Territories (NWT), Canada after an unprecedentedly large area burned in 2014. We assessed both aboveground and soil organic layer (SOL) combustion, with the goal of determining the major drivers in total C emissions, as well as to develop a high spatial resolution model to scale emissions in a relatively understudied region of the boreal forest. On average, 3.35 kg C m -2 was combusted and almost 90% of this was from SOL combustion. Our results indicate that black spruce stands located at landscape positions with intermediate drainage contribute the most to C emissions. Indices associated with fire weather and date of burn did not impact emissions, which we attribute to the extreme fire weather over a short period of time. Using these results, we estimated a total of 94.3 Tg C emitted from 2.85 Mha of burned area across the entire 2014 NWT fire complex, which offsets almost 50% of mean annual net ecosystem production in terrestrial ecosystems of Canada. Our study also highlights the need for fine-scale estimates of burned area that represent small water bodies and regionally specific calibrations of combustion that account for spatial heterogeneity in order to accurately model emissions at the continental scale. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

International trade of CITES listed bird species in China.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Linlin; Jiang, Zhigang

2014-01-01

Commercial trade of wild birds may devastate wild bird populations. Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) controls the trade of wild species listed in its appendices to avoid these species being threatened by international trade. China used to be one of the major trading countries with significant bird trade with foreign countries; on the other hand, China is a country with unique avian fauna, many Important Bird Areas and critically endangered bird species. What is the role of the country in world wild bird trade? What kind of insights can we extract from trade records for improving future management of wild bird trade in the country? We retrieved and analyzed international trade records of the CITES listed bird species of China from 1981 to 2010 from the CITES Trade Database maintained by United Nations Environment Program and World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC). We found that: (1) International trade of live birds in China peaked during the late 1990s, then decreased to the level before the surge of trade in a few years, the trade dynamics of wild birds may be affected by governmental policy and the outbreak of avian influenza during the period. (2) Most frequently traded CITES Appendix listed birds in China were parrots, most of which were exotic species to the country. (3) Birds were mainly traded for commercial purpose. Exotic birds in trade were mainly captive-bred while the most Chinese birds traded internationally were captured from the wild. Since many bird species in international trade are threatened to extinction, China should take stricter measures on importing of wild-captured birds and should collaborate with the countries of original in the international bird trade to avoid unsustainable harvesting of wild birds. It is urgent for China to carry out population surveys on those domestic bird species once in significant international trade and to make better conservation decisions based on

International Trade of CITES Listed Bird Species in China

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Linlin; Jiang, Zhigang

2014-01-01

Commercial trade of wild birds may devastate wild bird populations. Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) controls the trade of wild species listed in its appendices to avoid these species being threatened by international trade. China used to be one of the major trading countries with significant bird trade with foreign countries; on the other hand, China is a country with unique avian fauna, many Important Bird Areas and critically endangered bird species. What is the role of the country in world wild bird trade? What kind of insights can we extract from trade records for improving future management of wild bird trade in the country? We retrieved and analyzed international trade records of the CITES listed bird species of China from 1981 to 2010 from the CITES Trade Database maintained by United Nations Environment Program and World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC). We found that: (1) International trade of live birds in China peaked during the late 1990s, then decreased to the level before the surge of trade in a few years, the trade dynamics of wild birds may be affected by governmental policy and the outbreak of avian influenza during the period. (2) Most frequently traded CITES Appendix listed birds in China were parrots, most of which were exotic species to the country. (3) Birds were mainly traded for commercial purpose. Exotic birds in trade were mainly captive-bred while the most Chinese birds traded internationally were captured from the wild. Since many bird species in international trade are threatened to extinction, China should take stricter measures on importing of wild-captured birds and should collaborate with the countries of original in the international bird trade to avoid unsustainable harvesting of wild birds. It is urgent for China to carry out population surveys on those domestic bird species once in significant international trade and to make better conservation decisions based on

Gamma-ray irradiation of a boreal forest ecosystem

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Guthrie, J.E.; Dugle, J.R.

1983-01-01

A long-term radiation ecology research project called Field Irradiator - Gamma (FIG) began at the Whiteshell Nuclear Research Establishment in 1968. The experimental area is in southeastern Manitoba and is located on the western edge of the Precambrian shield. The project studies the ecological effects continuous exposure to a gradient of gamma radiation has on a mixed boreal forest ecosystem. The gradient ranges from 1 to 460,000 times the natural background radiation level. This paper describes the forest, the gamma irradiator and its radiation field, and the research program

Coupling of Water and Carbon Cycles in Boreal Ecosystems at Watershed and National Scales

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, J. M.; Ju, W.; Govind, A.; Sonnentag, O.

2009-05-01

The boreal landscapes is relatively flat giving the impression of spatial homogeneity. However, glacial activities have left distinct fingerprints on the vegetation distribution on moderately rolling terrains over the boreal landscape. Upland or lowland forests types or wetlands having various degrees of hydrological connectivitiy to the surrounding terrain are typical of the boreal landscape. The nature of the terrain creates unique hydrological conditions affecting the local-scale ecophysiological and biogeochemical processes. As part of the Canadian Carbon Program, we investigated the importance of lateral water redistribution through surface and subsurface flows in the spatial distribution of the vertical fluxes of water and carbon. A spatially explicit hydroecological model (BEPS-TerrainLab) has been developed and tested in forested and wetland watersheds . Remotely sensed vegetation parameters along with other spatial datasets are used to run this model, and tower flux data are used for partial validation. It is demonstrated in both forest and wetland watersheds that ignoring the lateral water redistribution over the landscape, commonly done in 1-dimensional bucket models, can cause considerable biases in the vertical carbon and water flux estimation, in addition to the distortion of the spatial patterns of these fluxes. The biases in the carbon flux are considerably larger than those in the water flux. The significance of these findings in national carbon budget estimation is demonstrated by separate modeling of 2015 watersheds over the Canadian landmass.

Patchwork policy, fragmented forests: In-situ oil sands, industrial development, and the ecological integrity of Alberta's boreal forest

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

MacCrimmon, G.; Marr-Laing, T.

2000-05-01

Environmental impacts of current oil sands industry activities and the potential cumulative impacts of new in-situ oil sands development on the boreal forest of northeastern Alberta are reviewed. The objective is to improve understanding of the impacts of existing industrial activity on the broader boreal forest ecosystem, and the environmental implications of further disturbance to this ecosystem from future development of heavy and conventional fossil fuel reserves in the province. The report also outlines elements of a boreal forest use framework that could assist in managing industrial activity within ecologically sustainable limits and makes recommendations for specific actions that need to be taken by government and industry to guide future development decisions. The top 50 key landscape areas of interest in the province, identified by the World Wildlife Federation, based primarily on a series of reports by Alberta Environmental Protection, are briefly described. Implications of failure to act are also outlined. 138 end-notes, 8 tabs., 16 figs

Partners in flight bird conservation plan for the Upper Great Lakes Plain (Physiographic Area 16)

Science.gov (United States)

Knutson, M.G.; Butcher, G.; Fitzgerald, J.; Shieldcastle, J.

2001-01-01

oak savannah grasslands already have been converted to agriculture. The conversion to cropland may have benefitted some grassland birds, and forest birds still persist. Rates of cowbird parasitism and nest predation in this heavily fragmented region, however, are extremely high and it is possible that only those bird communities in the few remaining expanses of contiguous habitat are self-sustaining. Forest habitat needs to be retained or restored so that a significant number of patches of sufficient size and quality each support a healthy population of Cerulean Warblers. It is assumed that each of these patches will then support the full range of forest birds. The total area of savannah habitat also should be increased, although the need for large blocks is not as apparent. Those few areas of grassland that still exist should be retained.

Nitrous oxide fluxes from forest floor, tree stems and canopies of boreal tree species during spring

Science.gov (United States)

Haikarainen, Iikka; Halmeenmäki, Elisa; Machacova, Katerina; Pihlatie, Mari

2017-04-01

were 1.4 and 2.2 mg N2O ha-1 h-1, respectively, while the forest floor was a sink of -6.1 mg N2O ha-1 h-1. At the mineral soil site the upscaled N2O emissions from birch trees and forest floor were 3.6 and 8.9 mg N2O ha-1 h-1, respectively, indicating that the emissions from trees significantly contribute to the N2O emissions from boreal forests. The results also indicate that tree canopies contributed up to 89% of the whole-tree N2O emissions. Our findings demonstrate that we urgently need more studies focusing on leaf-level N2O exchange in forest ecosystems. Acknowledgement This research was financially supported by the National Programme for Sustainability I (LO1415), Czech Science Foundation (17-18112Y), ENVIMET (CZ.1.07/2.3.00/20.0246) , Emil Aaltonen Foundation, Academy of Finland Research Fellow projects (292699, 263858, 288494), The Academy of Finland Centre of Excellence (projects 1118615, 272041), and ICOS-Finland (281255). We thank Hyytiälä SMEAR II station staff and Marek Jakubik for technical support.

76 FR 59271 - Migratory Bird Hunting; Late Seasons and Bag and Possession Limits for Certain Migratory Game Birds

Science.gov (United States)

2011-09-26

...-0014; 91200-1231-9BPP-L2] RIN 1018-AX34 Migratory Bird Hunting; Late Seasons and Bag and Possession Limits for Certain Migratory Game Birds AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior. ACTION: Final rule... of migratory birds is prohibited unless specifically provided for by annual regulations. This rule...

The Origin and Diversification of Birds.

Science.gov (United States)

Brusatte, Stephen L; O'Connor, Jingmai K; Jarvis, Erich D

2015-10-05

Birds are one of the most recognizable and diverse groups of modern vertebrates. Over the past two decades, a wealth of new fossil discoveries and phylogenetic and macroevolutionary studies has transformed our understanding of how birds originated and became so successful. Birds evolved from theropod dinosaurs during the Jurassic (around 165-150 million years ago) and their classic small, lightweight, feathered, and winged body plan was pieced together gradually over tens of millions of years of evolution rather than in one burst of innovation. Early birds diversified throughout the Jurassic and Cretaceous, becoming capable fliers with supercharged growth rates, but were decimated at the end-Cretaceous extinction alongside their close dinosaurian relatives. After the mass extinction, modern birds (members of the avian crown group) explosively diversified, culminating in more than 10,000 species distributed worldwide today. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Methylmercury declines in a boreal peatland when experimental sulfate deposition decreases

Science.gov (United States)

Jill K. Coleman Wasik; Carl P.J. Mitchell; Daniel R. Engstrom; Edward B. Swain; Bruce A. Monson; Steven J. Balogh; Jeffrey D. Jeremiason; Brian A. Branfireun; Susan L. Eggert; Randall K. Kolka; James E. Almendinger

2012-01-01

Between 2001 and 2008 we experimentally manipulated atmospheric sulfate-loading to a small boreal peatland and monitored the resulting short and long-term changes in methylmercury (MeHg) production. MeHg concentrations and %MeHg (fraction of total-Hg (HgT) present as MeHg) in the porewaters of the experimental treatment reached peak values within...

The ecology of snowshoe hares in northern boreal forests [Chapter 6

Science.gov (United States)

Karen E. Hodges

2000-01-01

Snowshoe hares exhibit eight to 11 year population fluctuations across boreal North America, typically with an amplitude of 10 to 25 fold. These fluctuations are synchronous across the continent, with the most recent peak densities occurring in 1990 and 1991. The numeric cycle is driven by changes in survival and reproduction, with annual survival of adults...

Quantifying fire severity, carbon, and nitrogen emissions in Alaska's boreal forest

Science.gov (United States)

Leslie A. Boby; Edward A.G. Schuur; Michelle C. Mack; David Verbyla; Jill F. Johnstone

2010-01-01

The boreal region stores a large proportion of the world's terrestrial carbon (C) and is subject to high-intensity, stand-replacing wildfires that release C and nitrogen (N) stored in biomass and soils through combustion. While severity and extent of fires drives overall emissions, methods for accurately estimating fire severity are poorly tested in this unique...

Use of ground-based radiometers for L-Band Freeze/Thaw retrieval in a boreal forest site

Science.gov (United States)

Roy, A.; Sonnentag, O.; Derksen, C.; Toose, P.; Pappas, C.; Mavrovic, A.; El Amine, M.; Royer, A.; Berg, A. A.; Rowlandson, T. L.; Barr, A.; Black, T. A.

2017-12-01

The boreal forest is the second largest land biome in the world and thus plays a major role in the global and regional climate systems. The extent, timing and duration of the seasonal freeze/thaw (F/T) state influences vegetation developmental stages (phenology) and, consequently, constitutes an important control on how boreal forest ecosystems exchange carbon, water and energy with the atmosphere. Recently, new L-Band satellite-derived F/T information has become available. However, disentangling the seasonally differing contributions from forest overstory and understory vegetation, and the ground surface to the satellite signal remains challenging. Here we present results from an ongoing campaign with two L-Band surface-based radiometers (SBR) installed on a micrometeorological tower at the Southern Old Black Spruce site (53.99°N / 105.12°W) in central Saskatchewan. One radiometer unit is installed on top of the tower viewing the multi-layer vegetation canopy from above. A second radiometer unit is installed within the multi-layer canopy, viewing the understory and the ground surface only. The objectives of our study are to (i) disentangle the L-Band F/T signal contribution of boreal forest overstory from the combined understory and ground surface contribution, and (ii) link the L-Band F/T signal to related boreal forest structural and functional characteristics. Analysis of these radiometer measurements made from September to November 2016 shows that when the ground surface is thawed, the main contributor to both radiometer signals is soil moisture. The Pearson correlation coefficient between brightness temperature (TB) at vertical polarization (V-pol) and soil permittivity is 0.79 for the radiometer above the canopy and 0.74 for the radiometer below the canopy. Under cold conditions when the soil was thawed (snow insulation) and the trees were frozen (below 0°C), TB at V-pol is negatively correlated with tree permittivity. The freezing tree contribution to

Variation in clutch size in relation to nest size in birds.

Science.gov (United States)

Møller, Anders P; Adriaensen, Frank; Artemyev, Alexandr; Bańbura, Jerzy; Barba, Emilio; Biard, Clotilde; Blondel, Jacques; Bouslama, Zihad; Bouvier, Jean-Charles; Camprodon, Jordi; Cecere, Francesco; Charmantier, Anne; Charter, Motti; Cichoń, Mariusz; Cusimano, Camillo; Czeszczewik, Dorota; Demeyrier, Virginie; Doligez, Blandine; Doutrelant, Claire; Dubiec, Anna; Eens, Marcel; Eeva, Tapio; Faivre, Bruno; Ferns, Peter N; Forsman, Jukka T; García-Del-Rey, Eduardo; Goldshtein, Aya; Goodenough, Anne E; Gosler, Andrew G; Góźdź, Iga; Grégoire, Arnaud; Gustafsson, Lars; Hartley, Ian R; Heeb, Philipp; Hinsley, Shelley A; Isenmann, Paul; Jacob, Staffan; Järvinen, Antero; Juškaitis, Rimvydas; Korpimäki, Erkki; Krams, Indrikis; Laaksonen, Toni; Leclercq, Bernard; Lehikoinen, Esa; Loukola, Olli; Lundberg, Arne; Mainwaring, Mark C; Mänd, Raivo; Massa, Bruno; Mazgajski, Tomasz D; Merino, Santiago; Mitrus, Cezary; Mönkkönen, Mikko; Morales-Fernaz, Judith; Morin, Xavier; Nager, Ruedi G; Nilsson, Jan-Åke; Nilsson, Sven G; Norte, Ana C; Orell, Markku; Perret, Philippe; Pimentel, Carla S; Pinxten, Rianne; Priedniece, Ilze; Quidoz, Marie-Claude; Remeš, Vladimir; Richner, Heinz; Robles, Hugo; Rytkönen, Seppo; Senar, Juan Carlos; Seppänen, Janne T; da Silva, Luís P; Slagsvold, Tore; Solonen, Tapio; Sorace, Alberto; Stenning, Martyn J; Török, János; Tryjanowski, Piotr; van Noordwijk, Arie J; von Numers, Mikael; Walankiewicz, Wiesław; Lambrechts, Marcel M

2014-09-01

Nests are structures built to support and protect eggs and/or offspring from predators, parasites, and adverse weather conditions. Nests are mainly constructed prior to egg laying, meaning that parent birds must make decisions about nest site choice and nest building behavior before the start of egg-laying. Parent birds should be selected to choose nest sites and to build optimally sized nests, yet our current understanding of clutch size-nest size relationships is limited to small-scale studies performed over short time periods. Here, we quantified the relationship between clutch size and nest size, using an exhaustive database of 116 slope estimates based on 17,472 nests of 21 species of hole and non-hole-nesting birds. There was a significant, positive relationship between clutch size and the base area of the nest box or the nest, and this relationship did not differ significantly between open nesting and hole-nesting species. The slope of the relationship showed significant intraspecific and interspecific heterogeneity among four species of secondary hole-nesting species, but also among all 116 slope estimates. The estimated relationship between clutch size and nest box base area in study sites with more than a single size of nest box was not significantly different from the relationship using studies with only a single size of nest box. The slope of the relationship between clutch size and nest base area in different species of birds was significantly negatively related to minimum base area, and less so to maximum base area in a given study. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that bird species have a general reaction norm reflecting the relationship between nest size and clutch size. Further, they suggest that scientists may influence the clutch size decisions of hole-nesting birds through the provisioning of nest boxes of varying sizes.

Relation between extinction and assisted colonization of plants in the arctic-alpine and boreal regions.

Science.gov (United States)

Pykälä, Juha

2017-06-01

Assisted colonization of vascular plants is considered by many ecologists an important tool to preserve biodiversity threatened by climate change. I argue that assisted colonization may have negative consequences in arctic-alpine and boreal regions. The observed slow movement of plants toward the north has been an argument for assisted colonization. However, these range shifts may be slow because for many plants microclimatic warming (ignored by advocates of assisted colonization) has been smaller than macroclimatic warming. Arctic-alpine and boreal plants may have limited possibilities to disperse farther north or to higher elevations. I suggest that arctic-alpine species are more likely to be driven to extinction because of competitive exclusion by southern species than by increasing temperatures. If so, the future existence of arctic-alpine and boreal flora may depend on delaying or preventing the migration of plants toward the north to allow northern species to evolve to survive in a warmer climate. In the arctic-alpine region, preventing the dispersal of trees and shrubs may be the most important method to mitigate the negative effects of climate change. The purported conservation benefits of assisted colonization should not be used to promote the migration of invasive species by forestry. © 2016 Society for Conservation Biology.

45 CFR 670.20 - Designation of native birds.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 45 Public Welfare 3 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Designation of native birds. 670.20 Section 670.20... CONSERVATION OF ANTARCTIC ANIMALS AND PLANTS Native Mammals, Birds, Plants, and Invertebrates § 670.20 Designation of native birds. The following are designated native birds: Albatross Black-browed—Diomedea...

Carbon dioxide and water vapour exchange from understory species in boreal forest.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Heijmans, M.M.P.D.; Arp, W.J.; Chapin, F.S.

2004-01-01

Although recent eddy covariance measurements in boreal forests provide CO2 and energy exchange data for the whole ecosystem, very little is known about the role of the understory vegetation. We conducted chamber flux measurements in an Alaskan black spruce forest in order to compare CO2 and water

Modelling CO2 emissions from water surface of a boreal hydroelectric reservoir.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Weifeng; Roulet, Nigel T; Kim, Youngil; Strachan, Ian B; Del Giorgio, Paul; Prairie, Yves T; Tremblay, Alain

2018-01-15

To quantify CO 2 emissions from water surface of a reservoir that was shaped by flooding the boreal landscape, we developed a daily time-step reservoir biogeochemistry model. We calibrated the model using the measured concentrations of dissolved organic and inorganic carbon (C) in a young boreal hydroelectric reservoir, Eastmain-1 (EM-1), in northern Quebec, Canada. We validated the model against observed CO 2 fluxes from an eddy covariance tower in the middle of EM-1. The model predicted the variability of CO 2 emissions reasonably well compared to the observations (root mean square error: 0.4-1.3gCm -2 day -1 , revised Willmott index: 0.16-0.55). In particular, we demonstrated that the annual reservoir surface effluxes were initially high, steeply declined in the first three years, and then steadily decreased to ~115gCm -2 yr -1 with increasing reservoir age over the estimated "engineering" reservoir lifetime (i.e., 100years). Sensitivity analyses revealed that increasing air temperature stimulated CO 2 emissions by enhancing CO 2 production in the water column and sediment, and extending the duration of open water period over which emissions occur. Increasing the amount of terrestrial organic C flooded can enhance benthic CO 2 fluxes and CO 2 emissions from the reservoir water surface, but the effects were not significant over the simulation period. The model is useful for the understanding of the mechanism of C dynamics in reservoirs and could be used to assist the hydro-power industry and others interested in the role of boreal hydroelectric reservoirs as sources of greenhouse gas emissions. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Major losses of nutrients following a severe drought in a boreal forest.

Science.gov (United States)

Houle, Daniel; Lajoie, Geneviève; Duchesne, Louis

2016-11-28

Because of global warming, the frequency and severity of droughts are expected to increase, which will have an impact on forest ecosystem health worldwide 1 . Although the impact of drought on tree growth and mortality is being increasingly documented 2-4 , very little is known about the impact on nutrient cycling in forest ecosystems. Here, based on long-term monitoring data, we report nutrient fluxes in a boreal forest before, during and following a severe drought in July 2012. During and shortly after the drought, we observed high throughfall (rain collected below the canopy) concentrations of nutrient base cations (potassium, calcium and magnesium), chlorine, phosphorus and dissolved organic carbon (DOC), differing by one to two orders of magnitude relative to the long-term normal, and resulting in important canopy losses. The high throughfall fluxes had repercussions in the soil solution at a depth of 30 cm, leading to high DOC, chlorine and potassium concentrations. The net potassium losses (atmospheric deposition minus leaching losses) following the drought were especially important, being the equivalent of nearly 20 years of net losses under 'normal' conditions. Our data show that droughts have unexpected impacts on nutrient cycling through impacts on tree canopy and soils and may lead to important episodes of potassium losses from boreal forest ecosystems. The potassium losses associated with drought will add to those originating from tree harvesting and from forest fires and insect outbreaks 5-7 (with the last two being expected to increase in the future as a result of climate change), and may contribute to reduced potassium availability in boreal forests in a warming world.

Palaearctic-African Bird Migration

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Iwajomo, Soladoye Babatola

Bird migration has attracted a lot of interests over past centuries and the methods used for studying this phenomenon has greatly improved in terms of availability, dimension, scale and precision. In spite of the advancements, relatively more is known about the spring migration of trans-Saharan m......Bird migration has attracted a lot of interests over past centuries and the methods used for studying this phenomenon has greatly improved in terms of availability, dimension, scale and precision. In spite of the advancements, relatively more is known about the spring migration of trans...... of birds from Europe to Africa and opens up the possibility of studying intra-African migration. I have used long-term, standardized autumn ringing data from southeast Sweden to investigate patterns in biometrics, phenology and population trends as inferred from annual trapping totals. In addition, I...... in the population of the species. The papers show that adult and juvenile birds can use different migration strategies depending on time of season and prevailing conditions. Also, the fuel loads of some individuals were theoretically sufficient for a direct flight to important goal area, but whether they do so...

Oak Ridge Reservation Bird Records and Population Trends

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Roy, W. K. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Giffen, N. R. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Wade, M. C. [CDM Smith (United States); Haines, A. M. [Xcel Engineering, Inc.(United States); Evans, J. W. [Tennessee WIldlife Resources Agency (WRA), Nashville, TN (United States); Jett, R. T. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

2014-09-01

Bird data have been collected through surveys, environmental assessments, and other observations for decades in the Oak Ridge National Environmental Research Park, located on the US Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge Reservation (ORR) in East Tennessee. Birds were recorded in a variety of habitats, including wetlands, interior forests, grasslands, ponds, corridors, forest edges, and more. Most of the information was gathered from waterfowl surveys conducted from 1990 to 2008, from Partners in Flight (PIF) breeding bird surveys conducted from 1995 to 2013, and from past publications and research on Reservation birds. We have also included our own observations and, in a few instances, credible observations of ORR birds of which we have been made aware through eBird or discussions with area ornithologists and bird watchers. For the period 1950-2014, we were able to document 228 species of birds on the ORR. Several of these species are known from historic records only, while others were not known to have ever occurred on the Reservation until recently. This report does not include PIF breeding bird data from the 2014 season or any records after July 2014. Twenty-two species--approximately 10% of the total number of species observed--have state-listed status in Tennessee as endangered, threatened, or in need of management. Of the 228 species we documented, 120 are believed to be breeding birds on the ORR.

Oak Ridge Reservation Bird Records and Population Trends

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Roy, W. Kelly [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Giffen, Neil R. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Wade, Murray [CDM Smith, Inc., Knoxville, TN (United States); Haines, Angelina [Xcel Engineering, Inc., Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Evans, James W. [Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, Nashville, TN (United States); Jett, Robert Trent [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

2014-11-01

Bird data have been collected through surveys, environmental assessments, and other observations for decades in the Oak Ridge National Environmental Research Park, located on the US Department of Energy s Oak Ridge Reservation (ORR) in East Tennessee. Birds were recorded in a variety of habitats, including wetlands, interior forests, grasslands, ponds, corridors, forest edges, and more. Most of the information was gathered from waterfowl surveys conducted from 1990 to 2008, from Partners in Flight (PIF) breeding bird surveys conducted from 1995 to 2013, and from past publications and research on Reservation birds. We have also included our own observations and, in a few instances, credible observations of ORR birds of which we have been made aware through eBird or discussions with area ornithologists and bird watchers. For the period 1950 2014, we were able to document 228 species of birds on the ORR. Several of these species are known from historic records only, while others were not known to have ever occurred on the Reservation until recently. This report does not include PIF breeding bird data from the 2014 season or any records after July 2014. Twenty-two species approximately 10% of the total number of species observed have state-listed status in Tennessee as endangered, threatened, or in need of management. Of the 228 species we documented, 120 are believed to be breeding birds on the ORR.

Ionizing radiation and wild birds: a review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mellinger, P.J.; Schultz, V.

1975-01-01

Since the first atomic explosion, 16 July 1945 at the Trinity Site in south-central New Mexico, the impact of ionizing radiation on bird populations has been of concern to a few individuals. The proliferation of nuclear power plants has increased public concern as to possible deleterious effects of nuclear power plant operation on resident and migratory bird populations. Literature involving wild birds and ionizing radiation is not readily available, and only a few studies have been anywhere near comprehensive, with most effort directed towards monitoring radionuclide concentration in birds. The objective of the paper is to document the literature on wild birds and ionizing radiation including a brief description of pertinent papers

Actogram analysis of free-flying migratory birds

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bäckman, Johan; Andersson, Arne; Pedersen, Lykke

2017-01-01

The use of accelerometers has become an important part of biologging techniques for large-sized birds with accelerometer data providing information about flight mode, wing-beat pattern, behaviour and energy expenditure. Such data show that birds using much energy-saving soaring/gliding flight like...... frigatebirds and swifts can stay airborne without landing for several months. Successful accelerometer studies have recently been conducted also for free-flying small songbirds during their entire annual cycle. Here we review the principles and possibilities for accelerometer studies in bird migration. We use...... of the life cycle. Accelerometer recording of the annual activity patterns of individual birds will open up a new dimension in bird migration research....

Inhibitory Effects of Chrysanthemum boreale Essential Oil on Biofilm Formation and Virulence Factor Expression of Streptococcus mutans

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Beom-Su; Park, Sun-Ju; Kim, Myung-Kon; Kim, Young-Hoi; Lee, Sang-Bong; Lee, Kwang-Hee; Lee, Young-Rae; Lee, Young-Eun; You, Yong-Ouk

2015-01-01

The aim of the study was to evaluate the antibacterial activity of essential oil extracted from Chrysanthemum boreale (C. boreale) on Streptococcus mutans (S. mutans). To investigate anticariogenic properties, and bacterial growth, acid production, biofilm formation, bacterial adherence of S. mutans were evaluated. Then gene expression of several virulence factors was also evaluated. C. boreale essential oil exhibited significant inhibition of bacterial growth, adherence capacity, and acid production of S. mutans at concentrations 0.1–0.5 mg/mL and 0.25–0.5 mg/mL, respectively. The safranin staining and scanning electron microscopy results showed that the biofilm formation was also inhibited. The result of live/dead staining showed the bactericidal effect. Furthermore, real-time PCR analysis showed that the gene expression of some virulence factors such as gtfB, gtfC, gtfD, gbpB, spaP, brpA, relA, and vicR of S. mutans was significantly decreased in a dose dependent manner. In GC and GC-MS analysis, seventy-two compounds were identified in the oil, representing 85.42% of the total oil. The major components were camphor (20.89%), β-caryophyllene (5.71%), α-thujone (5.46%), piperitone (5.27%), epi-sesquiphellandrene (5.16%), α-pinene (4.97%), 1,8-cineole (4.52%), β-pinene (4.45%), and camphene (4.19%). These results suggest that C. boreale essential oil may inhibit growth, adhesion, acid tolerance, and biofilm formation of S. mutans through the partial inhibition of several of these virulence factors. PMID:25763094

Inhibitory Effects of Chrysanthemum boreale Essential Oil on Biofilm Formation and Virulence Factor Expression of Streptococcus mutans

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Beom-Su Kim

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The aim of the study was to evaluate the antibacterial activity of essential oil extracted from Chrysanthemum boreale (C. boreale on Streptococcus mutans (S. mutans. To investigate anticariogenic properties, and bacterial growth, acid production, biofilm formation, bacterial adherence of S. mutans were evaluated. Then gene expression of several virulence factors was also evaluated. C. boreale essential oil exhibited significant inhibition of bacterial growth, adherence capacity, and acid production of S. mutans at concentrations 0.1–0.5 mg/mL and 0.25–0.5 mg/mL, respectively. The safranin staining and scanning electron microscopy results showed that the biofilm formation was also inhibited. The result of live/dead staining showed the bactericidal effect. Furthermore, real-time PCR analysis showed that the gene expression of some virulence factors such as gtfB, gtfC, gtfD, gbpB, spaP, brpA, relA, and vicR of S. mutans was significantly decreased in a dose dependent manner. In GC and GC-MS analysis, seventy-two compounds were identified in the oil, representing 85.42% of the total oil. The major components were camphor (20.89%, β-caryophyllene (5.71%, α-thujone (5.46%, piperitone (5.27%, epi-sesquiphellandrene (5.16%, α-pinene (4.97%, 1,8-cineole (4.52%, β-pinene (4.45%, and camphene (4.19%. These results suggest that C. boreale essential oil may inhibit growth, adhesion, acid tolerance, and biofilm formation of S. mutans through the partial inhibition of several of these virulence factors.

50 CFR 20.38 - Possession of live birds.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 50 Wildlife and Fisheries 6 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Possession of live birds. 20.38 Section 20... WILDLIFE AND PLANTS (CONTINUED) MIGRATORY BIRD HUNTING Possession § 20.38 Possession of live birds. Every migratory game bird wounded by hunting and reduced to possession by the hunter shall be immediately killed...

Avian Bornavirus in Free-Ranging Psittacine Birds, Brazil

Science.gov (United States)

Encinas-Nagel, Nuri; Enderlein, Dirk; Piepenbring, Anne; Herden, Christiane; Heffels-Redmann, Ursula; Felippe, Paulo A.N.; Arns, Clarice; Hafez, Hafez M.

2014-01-01

Avian bornavirus (ABV) has been identified as the cause of proventricular dilatation disease in birds, but the virus is also found in healthy birds. Most studies of ABV have focused on captive birds. We investigated 86 free-ranging psittacine birds in Brazil and found evidence for natural, long-term ABV infection. PMID:25417715

Testicular biopsy in psittacine birds (Psittaciformes): impact of endoscopy and biopsy on health, testicular morphology, and sperm parameters.

Science.gov (United States)

Hänse, Maria; Krautwald-Junghanns, Maria-Elisabeth; Reitemeier, Susanne; Einspanier, Almuth; Schmidt, Volker

2013-12-01

Histologic examination of a testicular biopsy sample may be required to evaluate the reproductive status of male psittacine birds. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the viability of testicular sampling from live birds by assessing the impact on the birds' health, testicular integrity, and sperm quality. Testicular biopsy samples were obtained by endoscopy 4 times during 12 months from 9 cockatiels (Nymphicus hollandicus) and 7 rose-ringed parakeets (Psittacula krameri). Only 2 of 16 birds showed testicular cicatrization or divided testicular tissue after a single endoscopy. Further complications, such as damage to the air sacs or bleeding, predominantly occurred in subsequent endoscopies. In both species, endoscopy and testicular biopsy caused only minor or transient effects on sperm production and sperm quality. These results support that a single testicular biopsy is a viable method for evaluating the reproductive status of male psittacine birds.

Molecular Ecological Insights into Neotropical Bird-Tick Interactions.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Matthew J Miller

Full Text Available In the tropics, ticks parasitize many classes of vertebrate hosts. However, because many tropical tick species are only identifiable in the adult stage, and these adults usually parasitize mammals, most attention on the ecology of tick-host interactions has focused on mammalian hosts. In contrast, immature Neotropical ticks are often found on wild birds, yet difficulties in identifying immatures hinder studies of birds' role in tropical tick ecology and tick-borne disease transmission. In Panama, we found immature ticks on 227 out of 3,498 individually-sampled birds representing 93 host species (24% of the bird species sampled, and 13% of the Panamanian land bird fauna. Tick parasitism rates did not vary with rainfall or temperature, but did vary significantly with several host ecological traits. Likewise, Neotropical-Nearctic migratory birds were significantly less likely to be infested than resident species. Using a molecular library developed from morphologically-identified adult ticks specifically for this study, we identified eleven tick species parasitizing birds, indicating that a substantial portion of the Panamanian avian species pool is parasitized by a diversity of tick species. Tick species that most commonly parasitized birds had the widest diversity of avian hosts, suggesting that immature tick species are opportunistic bird parasites. Although certain avian ecological traits are positively associated with parasitism, we found no evidence that individual tick species show specificity to particular avian host ecological traits. Finally, our data suggest that the four principal vectors of Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever in the Neotropics rarely, if ever, parasitize Panamanian birds. However, other tick species that harbor newly-discovered rickettsial parasites of unknown pathogenicity are frequently found on these birds. Given our discovery of broad interaction between Panamanian tick and avian biodiversity, future work on tick ecology

Molecular Ecological Insights into Neotropical Bird-Tick Interactions.

Science.gov (United States)

Miller, Matthew J; Esser, Helen J; Loaiza, Jose R; Herre, Edward Allen; Aguilar, Celestino; Quintero, Diomedes; Alvarez, Eric; Bermingham, Eldredge

2016-01-01

In the tropics, ticks parasitize many classes of vertebrate hosts. However, because many tropical tick species are only identifiable in the adult stage, and these adults usually parasitize mammals, most attention on the ecology of tick-host interactions has focused on mammalian hosts. In contrast, immature Neotropical ticks are often found on wild birds, yet difficulties in identifying immatures hinder studies of birds' role in tropical tick ecology and tick-borne disease transmission. In Panama, we found immature ticks on 227 out of 3,498 individually-sampled birds representing 93 host species (24% of the bird species sampled, and 13% of the Panamanian land bird fauna). Tick parasitism rates did not vary with rainfall or temperature, but did vary significantly with several host ecological traits. Likewise, Neotropical-Nearctic migratory birds were significantly less likely to be infested than resident species. Using a molecular library developed from morphologically-identified adult ticks specifically for this study, we identified eleven tick species parasitizing birds, indicating that a substantial portion of the Panamanian avian species pool is parasitized by a diversity of tick species. Tick species that most commonly parasitized birds had the widest diversity of avian hosts, suggesting that immature tick species are opportunistic bird parasites. Although certain avian ecological traits are positively associated with parasitism, we found no evidence that individual tick species show specificity to particular avian host ecological traits. Finally, our data suggest that the four principal vectors of Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever in the Neotropics rarely, if ever, parasitize Panamanian birds. However, other tick species that harbor newly-discovered rickettsial parasites of unknown pathogenicity are frequently found on these birds. Given our discovery of broad interaction between Panamanian tick and avian biodiversity, future work on tick ecology and the dynamics of

75 FR 58993 - Migratory Bird Hunting; Late Seasons and Bag and Possession Limits for Certain Migratory Game Birds

Science.gov (United States)

2010-09-24

... Part V Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service 50 CFR Part 20 Migratory Bird Hunting; Late Seasons and Bag and Possession Limits for Certain Migratory Game Birds; Final Rule #0;#0;Federal...-1231-9BPP-L2] RIN 1018-AX06 Migratory Bird Hunting; Late Seasons and Bag and Possession Limits for...

19 CFR 10.76 - Game animals and birds.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 19 Customs Duties 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Game animals and birds. 10.76 Section 10.76... TREASURY ARTICLES CONDITIONALLY FREE, SUBJECT TO A REDUCED RATE, ETC. General Provisions Animals and Birds § 10.76 Game animals and birds. (a) The following classes of live game animals and birds may be...

Bird migration patterns in the arid southwest-Final report

Science.gov (United States)

Ruth, Janet M.; Felix, Rodney K.; Dieh, Robert H.

2010-01-01

habitat types at all sites in at least one season. Upland forest habitat in parts of Arizona and New Mexico supported high migrant densities, especially in fall. Developed habitats in areas with little upland forest habitat also supported high migrant densities. Scrub/shrub and grassland habitats supported low to intermediate migrant densities, but because these habitat types dominate the region, they may support large numbers of migratory birds. This may be especially true for species that do not use forested habitats during migration. Target identity remains a challenge for radar-based studies. Presence of bats in the data complicates interpretation of some observations, particularly from central Texas. Based on our results it is simplistic to: (1) consider the arid west as a largely inhospitable landscape in which there are only relatively small oases of habitat that provide the resources needed by all migrants; (2) think of western riparian and upland forest habitat as supporting the majority of migrants in all cases; or (3) consider a particular habitat type unimportant migrant stopover habitat based solely on migrant densities.

Passerine bird communities of Iberian dehesas: a review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tellería, J. L.

2001-01-01

Full Text Available The Iberian dehesas are a man-made habitat composed of scattered oaks (Quercus spp. and extensive grass cover occupying three million ha in south-western Iberia. This paper compares the structure of the passerine bird communities in this region with other bird assemblages of Iberian woodlands. Although forest bird numbers in the southern half of the Iberian peninsula are decreasing, the dehesas show the highest richness in breeding birds, seemingly as the result of the increased presence of border and open-habitat birds. A low intra-habitat turnover of species was observed in the dehesas, with birds recorded at a sampling point accounting for a high percentage of the total richness of the community. This can be related to the low spatial patchiness of this habitat. In winter, the dehesas continued to maintain many bird species, but showed bird densities similar to other woodlands. This pattern, as well as the scarcity of some common forest passerines during the breeding period, could result from the removal of the shrub layer typical of Mediterranean woodlands.

The Flight of Birds and Other Animals

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Colin J. Pennycuick

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Methods of observing birds in flight now include training them to fly under known conditions in wind tunnels, and fitting free-flying birds with data loggers, that are either retrieved or read remotely via satellite links. The performance that comes to light depends on the known limitations of the materials from which they are made, and the conditions in which the birds live. Bird glide polars can be obtained by training birds to glide in a tilting wind tunnel. Translating these curves to power required from the flight muscles in level flight requires drag coefficients to be measured, which unfortunately does not work with bird bodies, because the flow is always fully detached. The drag of bodies in level flight can be determined by observing wingbeat frequency, and shows CD values around 0.08 in small birds, down to 0.06 in small waders specialised for efficient migration. Lift coefficients are up to 1.6 in gliding, or 1.8 for short, temporary glides. In-flight measurements can be used to calculate power curves for birds in level flight, and this has been applied to migrating geese in detail. These typically achieve lift:drag ratios around 15, including allowances for stops, as against 19 for continuous powered flight. The same calculations, applied to Pacific Black-tailed Godwits which start with fat fractions up to 0.55 at departure, show that such birds not only cross the Pacific to New Zealand, but have enough fuel in hand to reach the South Pole if that were necessary. This performance depends on the “dual fuel” arrangements of these migrants, whereby they use fat as their main fuel, and supplement this by extra fuel from burning the engine (flight muscles, as less power is needed later in the flight. The accuracy of these power curves has never been checked, although provision for stopping the bird, and making these checks at regular intervals during a simulated flight was built into the original design of the Lund wind tunnel. The

Windthrow Dynamics in Boreal Ontario: A Simulation of the Vulnerability of Several Stand Types across a Range of Wind Speeds

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kenneth A. Anyomi

2017-06-01

Full Text Available In Boreal North America, management approaches inspired by the variability in natural disturbances are expected to produce more resilient forests. Wind storms are recurrent within Boreal Ontario. The objective of this study was to simulate wind damage for common Boreal forest types for regular as well as extreme wind speeds. The ForestGALES_BC windthrow prediction model was used for these simulations. Input tree-level data were derived from permanent sample plot (PSP data provided by the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources. PSPs were assigned to one of nine stand types: Balsam fir-, Jack pine-, Black spruce-, and hardwood-dominated stands, and, Jack pine-, spruce-, conifer-, hardwood-, and Red and White pine-mixed species stands. Morphological and biomechanical parameters for the major tree species were obtained from the literature. At 5 m/s, predicted windthrow ranged from 0 to 20%, with damage increasing to 2 to 90% for winds of 20 m/s and to 10 to 100% for winds of 40 m/s. Windthrow varied by forest stand type, with lower vulnerability within hardwoods. This is the first study to provide such broad simulations of windthrow vulnerability data for Boreal North America, and we believe this will benefit policy decisions regarding risk management and forest planning.

Effects of seismic lines on the abundance of breeding birds in the Kendall Island Bird Sanctuary, Northwest Territories, Canada

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ashenhurst, A.R.; Hannon, S.J. [Alberta Univ., Edmonton, AB (Canada). Dept. of Biological Sciences

2008-06-15

The effects of oil and gas exploration activities on bird abundance in the Arctic were investigated. The study examined the impacts of new and oil visible seismic lines within the Kendall Island Bird Sanctuary on the abundance of breeding passerines, Lapland longspur, common redpoll, American tree sparrow, and red-necked phalarope in upland tundra region and sedge-willow habitats. Results of the study showed that the effects on abundance with newer seismic lines were not statistically significant for most groups of birds. However, more birds were seen on reference transects than on seismic lines. The seismic lines had a significant impact on passerines grouped in upland tundra, as well as for sparrows in sedge and willows. Along older seismic lines, passerine abundance was lower than on reference transects in upland tundra. The study demonstrated that seismic lines created between 10 and 30 years ago had persistent vegetative changes that have reduced bird abundance. It was concluded that although the birds were not avoiding lines, some birds appeared to have increased the size of their territories in order to compensate for vegetative changes. 34 refs., 4 tabs.

New developmental evidence clarifies the evolution of wrist bones in the dinosaur-bird transition.

Science.gov (United States)

Botelho, João Francisco; Ossa-Fuentes, Luis; Soto-Acuña, Sergio; Smith-Paredes, Daniel; Nuñez-León, Daniel; Salinas-Saavedra, Miguel; Ruiz-Flores, Macarena; Vargas, Alexander O

2014-09-01

From early dinosaurs with as many as nine wrist bones, modern birds evolved to develop only four ossifications. Their identity is uncertain, with different labels used in palaeontology and developmental biology. We examined embryos of several species and studied chicken embryos in detail through a new technique allowing whole-mount immunofluorescence of the embryonic cartilaginous skeleton. Beyond previous controversy, we establish that the proximal-anterior ossification develops from a composite radiale+intermedium cartilage, consistent with fusion of radiale and intermedium observed in some theropod dinosaurs. Despite previous claims that the development of the distal-anterior ossification does not support the dinosaur-bird link, we found its embryonic precursor shows two distinct regions of both collagen type II and collagen type IX expression, resembling the composite semilunate bone of bird-like dinosaurs (distal carpal 1+distal carpal 2). The distal-posterior ossification develops from a cartilage referred to as "element x," but its position corresponds to distal carpal 3. The proximal-posterior ossification is perhaps most controversial: It is labelled as the ulnare in palaeontology, but we confirm the embryonic ulnare is lost during development. Re-examination of the fossil evidence reveals the ulnare was actually absent in bird-like dinosaurs. We confirm the proximal-posterior bone is a pisiform in terms of embryonic position and its development as a sesamoid associated to a tendon. However, the pisiform is absent in bird-like dinosaurs, which are known from several articulated specimens. The combined data provide compelling evidence of a remarkable evolutionary reversal: A large, ossified pisiform re-evolved in the lineage leading to birds, after a period in which it was either absent, nonossified, or very small, consistently escaping fossil preservation. The bird wrist provides a modern example of how developmental and paleontological data illuminate

High-latitude cooling associated with landscape changes from North American boreal forest fires

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

B. M. Rogers

2013-02-01

Full Text Available Fires in the boreal forests of North America are generally stand-replacing, killing the majority of trees and initiating succession that may last over a century. Functional variation during succession can affect local surface energy budgets and, potentially, regional climate. Burn area across Alaska and Canada has increased in the last few decades and is projected to be substantially higher by the end of the 21st century because of a warmer climate with longer growing seasons. Here we simulated changes in forest composition due to altered burn area using a stochastic model of fire occurrence, historical fire data from national inventories, and succession trajectories derived from remote sensing. When coupled to an Earth system model, younger vegetation from increased burning cooled the high-latitude atmosphere, primarily in the winter and spring, with noticeable feedbacks from the ocean and sea ice. Results from multiple scenarios suggest that a doubling of burn area would cool the surface by 0.23 ± 0.09 °C across boreal North America during winter and spring months (December through May. This could provide a negative feedback to winter warming on the order of 3–5% for a doubling, and 14–23% for a quadrupling, of burn area. Maximum cooling occurs in the areas of greatest burning, and between February and April when albedo changes are largest and solar insolation is moderate. Further work is needed to integrate all the climate drivers from boreal forest fires, including aerosols and greenhouse gasses.

Bird communities and biomass yields in potential bioenergy grasslands.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Peter J Blank

Full Text Available Demand for bioenergy is increasing, but the ecological consequences of bioenergy crop production on working lands remain unresolved. Corn is currently a dominant bioenergy crop, but perennial grasslands could produce renewable bioenergy resources and enhance biodiversity. Grassland bird populations have declined in recent decades and may particularly benefit from perennial grasslands grown for bioenergy. We asked how breeding bird community assemblages, vegetation characteristics, and biomass yields varied among three types of potential bioenergy grassland fields (grass monocultures, grass-dominated fields, and forb-dominated fields, and assessed tradeoffs between grassland biomass production and bird habitat. We also compared the bird communities in grassland fields to nearby cornfields. Cornfields had few birds compared to perennial grassland fields. Ten bird Species of Greatest Conservation Need (SGCN were observed in perennial grassland fields. Bird species richness and total bird density increased with forb cover and were greater in forb-dominated fields than grass monocultures. SGCN density declined with increasing vertical vegetation density, indicating that tall, dense grassland fields managed for maximum biomass yield would be of lesser value to imperiled grassland bird species. The proportion of grassland habitat within 1 km of study sites was positively associated with bird species richness and the density of total birds and SGCNs, suggesting that grassland bioenergy fields may be more beneficial for grassland birds if they are established near other grassland parcels. Predicted total bird density peaked below maximum biomass yields and predicted SGCN density was negatively related to biomass yields. Our results indicate that perennial grassland fields could produce bioenergy feedstocks while providing bird habitat. Bioenergy grasslands promote agricultural multifunctionality and conservation of biodiversity in working landscapes.

Influence of different tree-harvesting intensities on forest soil carbon stocks in boreal and northern temperate forest ecosystems

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Clarke, Nicholas; Gundersen, Per; Jönsson-Belyazid, Ulrika

2015-01-01

) stocks. This paper reviews the findings in the scientific literature concerning the effects of harvesting of different intensities on SOC stocks and fluxes in boreal and northern temperate forest ecosystems to evaluate the evidence for significant SOC losses following biomass removal. An overview...... on SOC stocks in boreal and northern temperate forest ecosystems, which is in any case species-, site- and practice-specific. Properly conducted long-term experiments are therefore necessary to enable us to clarify the relative importance of different harvesting practices on the SOC stores, the key...

Predictable evolution toward flightlessness in volant island birds.

Science.gov (United States)

Wright, Natalie A; Steadman, David W; Witt, Christopher C

2016-04-26

Birds are prolific colonists of islands, where they readily evolve distinct forms. Identifying predictable, directional patterns of evolutionary change in island birds, however, has proved challenging. The "island rule" predicts that island species evolve toward intermediate sizes, but its general applicability to birds is questionable. However, convergent evolution has clearly occurred in the island bird lineages that have undergone transitions to secondary flightlessness, a process involving drastic reduction of the flight muscles and enlargement of the hindlimbs. Here, we investigated whether volant island bird populations tend to change shape in a way that converges subtly on the flightless form. We found that island bird species have evolved smaller flight muscles than their continental relatives. Furthermore, in 366 populations of Caribbean and Pacific birds, smaller flight muscles and longer legs evolved in response to increasing insularity and, strikingly, the scarcity of avian and mammalian predators. On smaller islands with fewer predators, birds exhibited shifts in investment from forelimbs to hindlimbs that were qualitatively similar to anatomical rearrangements observed in flightless birds. These findings suggest that island bird populations tend to evolve on a trajectory toward flightlessness, even if most remain volant. This pattern was consistent across nine families and four orders that vary in lifestyle, foraging behavior, flight style, and body size. These predictable shifts in avian morphology may reduce the physical capacity for escape via flight and diminish the potential for small-island taxa to diversify via dispersal.

Fluff-thieving birds sabotage seed dispersal

OpenAIRE

Rohwer, Vanya G.; Pauw, Anton; Martin, Paul R.

2017-01-01

Characterizing many species interactions as mutualisms can be misleading because some members of the interaction derive greater fitness benefits at the expense of other members. We provide detailed natural history data on a suspected bird?plant mutualism in South Africa where many species of birds use fluffy Eriocephalus seed material to construct their nests, potentially dispersing seeds for the plant. We focus on a common bird, Prinia maculosa, which invests heavily in gathering Eriocephalu...

Assessment of contemporary genetic diversity and inter-taxa/inter-region exchange of avian paramyxovirus serotype 1 in wild birds sampled in North America

Science.gov (United States)

Ramey, Andy M.; Goraichuk, Iryna V.; Hicks, Joseph T.; Dimitrov, Kiril M.; Poulson, Rebecca L.; Stallknecht, David E.; Bahl, Justin; Afonso, Claudio L.

2017-01-01

BackgroundAvian paramyxovirus serotype 1 (APMV-1) viruses are globally distributed, infect wild, peridomestic, and domestic birds, and sometimes lead to outbreaks of disease. Thus, the maintenance, evolution, and spread of APMV-1 viruses are relevant to avian health.MethodsIn this study we sequenced the fusion gene from 58 APMV-1 isolates recovered from thirteen species of wild birds sampled throughout the USA during 2007–2014. We analyzed sequence information with previously reported data in order to assess contemporary genetic diversity and inter-taxa/inter-region exchange of APMV-1 in wild birds sampled in North America.ResultsOur results suggest that wild birds maintain previously undescribed genetic diversity of APMV-1; however, such diversity is unlikely to be pathogenic to domestic poultry. Phylogenetic analyses revealed that APMV-1 diversity detected in wild birds of North America has been found in birds belonging to numerous taxonomic host orders and within hosts inhabiting multiple geographic regions suggesting some level of viral exchange. However, our results also provide statistical support for associations between phylogenetic tree topology and host taxonomic order/region of sample origin which supports restricted exchange among taxa and geographical regions of North America for some APMV-1 sub-genotypes.ConclusionsWe identify previously unrecognized genetic diversity of APMV-1 in wild birds in North America which is likely a function of continued viral evolution in reservoir hosts. We did not, however, find support for the emergence or maintenance of APMV-1 strains predicted to be pathogenic to poultry in wild birds of North America outside of the order Suliformes (i.e., cormorants). Furthermore, genetic evidence suggests that ecological drivers or other mechanisms may restrict viral exchange among taxa and regions of North America. Additional and more systematic sampling for APMV-1 in North America would likely provide further inference on viral

Leucocytozoon spp. infection in Accipitriformes birds in Iran.

Science.gov (United States)

Rassouli, Maryam; Aghazamani, Ghazaleh; Ardekani, Abbas Oliya

2017-09-01

Leucocytozoon spp. (Haemosporida, Leucocytozoidae) are vector-borne parasites of various birds. Leucocytozoon can infect different reticuloendothelial tissues and blood cells of birds. In this study peripheral blood samples were collected from Accipitriformes birds [three marsh harriers ( Circus aeruginosus ) and one tawny eagle ( Aquila rapax )] in one birds' garden in Iran. Blood films were observed for identification of hemoparasites. All samples were infected by different Leucocytozoon species. All of the observed species were first reported in Iran in Accipitriformes birds which one of them was described as a new species.

Portrait of a small population of boreal toads (Anaxyrus boreas)

Science.gov (United States)

Muths, Erin; Scherer, Rick D.

2011-01-01

Much attention has been given to the conservation of small populations, those that are small because of decline, and those that are naturally small. Small populations are of particular interest because ecological theory suggests that they are vulnerable to the deleterious effects of environmental, demographic, and genetic stochasticity as well as natural and human-induced catastrophes. However, testing theory and developing applicable conservation measures for small populations is hampered by sparse data. This lack of information is frequently driven by computational issues with small data sets that can be confounded by the impacts of stressors. We present estimates of demographic parameters from a small population of Boreal Toads (Anaxyrus boreas) that has been surveyed since 2001 by using capture-recapture methods. Estimates of annual adult survival probability are high relative to other Boreal Toad populations, whereas estimates of recruitment rate are low. Despite using simple models, clear patterns emerged from the analyses, suggesting that population size is constrained by low recruitment of adults and is declining slowly. These patterns provide insights that are useful in developing management directions for this small population, and this study serves as an example of the potential for small populations to yield robust and useful information despite sample size constraints.

Radiocarbon dating of fluvial organic matter reveals land-use impacts in boreal peatlands

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hulatt, Chris J.; Kaartokallio, Hermanni; Oinonen, Markku

2014-01-01

This study measured the effects of land use on organic matter released to surface waters in a boreal peat catchment using radiocarbon dating of particulate and dissolved organic carbon (POC and DOC), DOC concentration, stable carbon and nitrogen isotope composition, and optical measurements. Undi...

Landscape, Legal, and Biodiversity Threats that Windows Pose to Birds: A Review of an Important Conservation Issue

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daniel Klem Jr.

2014-03-01

Full Text Available Windows in human residential and commercial structures in urban, suburban, and rural landscapes contribute to the deaths of billions of birds worldwide. International treaties, federal, provincial, state, and municipal laws exist to reduce human-associated avian mortality, but are most often not enforced for bird kills resulting from window strikes. As an additive, compared to a compensatory mortality factor, window collisions pose threats to the sustainability and overall population health of common as well as species of special concern. Several solutions to address the window hazard for birds exist, but the most innovative and promising need encouragement and support to market, manufacture, and implement.

Microbial activities in boreal soils: Biodegradation of organic contaminants at low temperature and ammonia oxidation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kurola, J. (University of Helsinki, Faculty of Biosciences, Department of Ecological and Environmental Sciences, Lahti (FI))

2006-07-01

This thesis deals with the response of biodegradation of selected anthropogenic organic contaminants and natural autochthonous organic matter to low temperature in boreal surface soils. Furthermore, the thesis describes activity, diversity and population size of autotrophic ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) in a boreal soil used for landfarming of oil-refinery wastes, and presents a new approach, in which the particular AOB were enriched and cultivated in situ from the landfarming soil onto cation exchange membranes. This thesis demonstrates that rhizosphere fraction of natural forest humus soil and agricultural clay loam soil from Helsinki Metropolitan area were capable of degrading of low to moderate concentrations (0.2 - 50 mug cm-3) of PCP, phenanthrene and 2,4,5-TCP at temperatures realistic to boreal climate (-2.5 to +15 deg C). At the low temperatures, the biodegradation of PCP, phenanthrene and 2,4,5-TCP was more effective (Q10-values from 1.6 to 7.6) in the rhizosphere fraction of the forest soil than in the agricultural soil. Q10-values of endogenous soil respiration (carbon dioxide evolution) and selected hydrolytic enzyme activities (acetate-esterase, butyrate-esterase and beta-glucosidase) in acid coniferous forest soil were 1.6 to 2.8 at temperatures from -3 to +30 deg C. The results indicated that the temperature dependence of decomposition of natural autochthonous soil organic matter in the studied coniferous forest was only moderate. The numbers of AOB in the landfarming (sandy clay loam) soil were determined with quantitative polymerase chain reaction (real-time PCR) and with Most Probable Number (MPN) methods, and potential ammonium oxidation activity was measured with the chlorate inhibition technique. The results indicated presence of large and active AOB populations in the heavily oil-contaminated and urea-fertilised landfarming soil. Assessment of the populations of AOB with denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) profiling and sequence

Reduced inflammation in expanding populations of a neotropical bird species.

Science.gov (United States)

Bailly, Juliette; Garnier, Stéphane; Khimoun, Aurélie; Arnoux, Emilie; Eraud, Cyril; Goret, Jean-Yves; Luglia, Thomas; Gaucher, Philippe; Faivre, Bruno

2016-10-01

The loss of regulating agents such as parasites is among the most important changes in biotic interactions experienced by populations established in newly colonized areas. Under a relaxed parasite pressure, individuals investing less in costly immune mechanisms might experience a selective advantage and become successful colonizers as they re-allocate resources to other fitness-related traits. Accordingly, a refinement of the evolution of increased competitive ability (EICA) hypothesis proposed that immunity of invasive populations has evolved toward a reduced investment in innate immunity, the most costly component of immunity, and an increased humoral immunity that is less costly. Biogeographical approaches comparing populations between native and expansion ranges are particularly relevant in exploring this issue, but remain very scarce. We conducted a biogeographical comparison between populations of Spectacled Thrush ( Turdus nudigenis ) from the native area (South America) and from the expansion range (Caribbean islands). First, we compared haemosporidian prevalence and circulating haptoglobin (an acute-phase protein produced during inflammation). Second, we challenged captive birds from both ranges with Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharides ( LPS ) and measured postchallenge haptoglobin production and body mass change. Birds from the expansion range showed lower haemosporidian prevalence and lower levels of haptoglobin than birds from the native range. In addition, the inflammation elicited by LPS injection and its associated cost in terms of body mass loss were lower in birds from the expansion range than in birds from the native range. In accordance with the enemy release hypothesis, our results suggest that range expansion is associated with a reduced infection risk. Our study also supports the hypothesis that individuals from newly established populations have evolved mechanisms to dampen the inflammatory response and are in accordance with one prediction

Are Agrofuels a conservation threat or opportunity for grassland birds in the United States?

Science.gov (United States)

Robertson, Bruce A.; Rice, Robert A.; Ribic, Christine; Babcock, Bruce A.; Landis, Douglas A.; Herkert, James R.; Fletcher, Robert J.; Fontaine, Joseph J; Doran, Patrick J.; Schemske, Douglas W.

2012-01-01

In the United States, government-mandated growth in the production of crops dedicated to biofuel (agrofuels) is predicted to increase the demands on existing agricultural lands, potentially threatening the persistence of populations of grassland birds they support. We review recently published literature and datasets to (1) examine the ability of alternative agrofuel crops and their management regimes to provide habitat for grassland birds, (2) determine how crop placement in agricultural landscapes and agrofuel-related land-use change will affect grassland birds, and (3) identify critical research and policy-development needs associated with agrofuel production. We find that native perennial plants proposed as feedstock for agrofuel (switchgrass, Panicum virgatum, and mixed grass—forb prairie) have considerable potential to provide new habitat to a wide range of grassland birds, including rare and threatened species. However, industrialization of agrofuel production that maximizes biomass, homogenizes vegetation structure, and results in the cultivation of small fields within largely forested landscapes is likely to reduce species richness and/or abundance of grassland-dependent birds. Realizing the potential benefits of agrofuel production for grassland birds' conservation will require the development of new policies that encourage agricultural practices specifically targeting the needs of grassland specialists. The broad array of grower-incentive programs in existence may deliver new agrofuel policies effectively but will require coordination at a spatial scale broader than currently practiced, preferably within an adaptive-management framework.

Bird species and numbers of birds in oak savannas of the Southwestern Borderlands region including effects of burning

Science.gov (United States)

Peter F. Ffolliott; Hui Chen; Gerald J. Gottfried

2011-01-01

Oak savannas of the Southwestern Borderlands region provide food, cover, and sites for nesting, roosting, and perching for a diversity of bird species. The results of a five-year (2003-2007) study of bird species, numbers of birds, and their diversities in the naturally occurring (unburned) oak savannas of the region are reported in this paper. Effects of cool-season...

77 FR 58627 - Migratory Bird Hunting; Late Seasons and Bag and Possession Limits for Certain Migratory Game Birds

Science.gov (United States)

2012-09-21

... Service 50 CFR Part 20 Migratory Bird Hunting; Late Seasons and Bag and Possession Limits for Certain Migratory Game Birds; Final Rule #0;#0;Federal Register / Vol. 77 , No. 184 / Friday, September 21, 2012... Part 20 [Docket No. FWS-R9-MB-2012-0005; FF09M21200-123-FXMB1231099BPP0L2] RIN 1018-AX97 Migratory Bird...

Interfacing with in-Situ Data Networks during the Arctic Boreal Vulnerability Experiment (ABoVE)

Science.gov (United States)

McInerney, M.; Griffith, P. C.; Duffy, D.; Hoy, E.; Schnase, J. L.; Sinno, S.; Thompson, J. H.

2014-12-01

The Arctic Boreal Vulnerability Experiment (ABoVE) is designed to improve understanding of the causes and impacts of ecological changes in Arctic/boreal regions, and will integrate field-based studies, modeling, and data from airborne and satellite remote sensing. ABoVE will result in a fuller understanding of ecosystem vulnerability and resilience to environmental change in the Arctic and boreal regions of western North America, and provide scientific information required to develop options for societal responses to the impacts of these changes. The studies sponsored by NASA during ABoVE will be coordinated with research and in-situ monitoring activities being sponsored by a number of national and international partners. The NASA Center for Climate Simulation at the Goddard Space Flight Center has partnered with the NASA Carbon Cycle & Ecosystems Office to create a science cloud designed for this field campaign - the ABoVE Science Cloud (ASC). The ASC combines high performance computing with emerging technologies to create an environment specifically designed for large-scale modeling, analysis of remote sensing data, copious disk storage with integrated data management, and integration of core variables from in-situ networks identified by the ABoVE Science Definition Team. In this talk, we will present the scientific requirements driving the development of the ABoVE Science Cloud, discuss the necessary interfaces, both computational and human, with in-situ monitoring networks, and show examples of how the ASC is being used to meet the needs of the ABoVE campaign.

Snake and bird predation drive the repeated convergent evolution of correlated life history traits and phenotype in the Izu Island Scincid lizard (Plestiodon latiscutatus.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Matthew C Brandley

Full Text Available Predation may create strong natural selection pressure on the phenotype and life history characteristics of prey species. The Izu scincid lizards (Plestiodon latiscutatus that inhabit the four Japanese Izu Islands with only bird predators are drab brown, mature later, lay small clutches of large eggs, and hatch large neonates. In contrast, skinks on seven islands with both snake and bird predators are conspicuously colored, mature early, lay large clutches of small eggs, and hatch small neonates. We test the hypothesis that these suites of traits have evolved independently on each island via natural selection pressures from one of two predator regimes--birds-only and birds + snakes. Using two mtDNA genes and a nuclear locus, we infer a time-calibrated phylogeny of P. latiscutatus that reveals a basal split between Mikura and all islands south, and Miyake, all islands north, and the Izu Peninsula. Populations inhabiting Miyake, Niijima, Shikine, and Toshima are not monophyletic, suggesting either multiple colonizations or an artifact of incomplete lineage sorting (ILS. We therefore developed novel phylogenetic comparative analyses that assume either a multiple colonization or more restrictive single colonization ILS scenario and found 1 statistically significant support for the of different suites of phenotypic and life history characteristics with the presence of bird-only or bird + snake predator assemblages, and 2 strong phylogenetic support for at least two independent derivations of either the "bird-only" or "snakes + birds" phenotypes regardless of colonization scenario. Finally, our time-calibrated phylogeographic analysis supports the conclusion that the ancestor to modern Izu Island P. latiscutatus dispersed from the mainland to the Izu proto-islands between 3-7.6 million years ago (Ma. These lineages remained present in the area during successive formation of the islands, with one lineage re-colonizing the mainland 0.24-0.7 Ma.

Occurrence of keratinophilic fungi on Indian birds.

Science.gov (United States)

Dixit, A K; Kushwaha, R K

1991-01-01

Keratinophilic fungi were isolated from feathers of most common Indian birds, viz. domestic chicken (Gallus domesticus), domestic pigeon (Columba livia), house sparrow (Passer domesticus), house crow (Corvus splendens), duck (Anas sp.), rose-ringed parakeet (Psittacula krameri). Out of 87 birds, 58 yielded 4 keratinophilic fungal genera representing 13 fungal species and one sterile mycelium. The isolated fungi were cultured on Sabouraud's dextrose agar at 28 +/- 2 degrees C. Chrysosporium species were isolated on most of the birds. Chrysosporium lucknowense and Chrysosporium tropicum were the most common fungal species associated with these Indian birds. Maximum occurrence of fungi (47%) was recorded on domestic chickens and the least number of keratinophilic fungi was isolated from the domestic pigeon and duck. The average number of fungi per bird was found to be the 0.44.

Neotropical Migratory Bird Communities in a Developing Pine Plantation

Science.gov (United States)

James G. Dickson; Richard N. Conner; J. Howard Williamson

1993-01-01

Birds were censused annually from 4 250-x80-in transects in a young pine plantation from age to 2 to 17 to assess changes in the bird community.Bird abundance was low and the bird communitry was the least diverse when the pine plantation was sparsely vegetated at age 2. As the plantation developed rapidly into the shrub stage, the bird communitry became more abundant...

Building an archive of Arctic-Boreal animal movements and links to remote sensing data

Science.gov (United States)

Bohrer, G.; Handler, M.; Davidson, S. C.; Boelman, N.

2017-12-01

Climate is changing in the Arctic and Boreal regions of North America more quickly than anywhere else on the planet. The impact of climate changes on wildlife in the region is difficult to assess, as they occur over decades, while wildlife monitoring programs have been in place for relatively short periods, have used a variety of data collection methods, and are not integrated across studies and governmental agencies. Further, linking wildlife movements to measures of weather and climate is impeded by the challenge of accessing environmental data products and differences in spatiotemporal scale. To analyze the impact of long-term changes in weather and habitat conditions on wildlife movements, we built an archive of avian, predator and ungulate movements throughout the Arctic-Boreal region. The archive is compiled and hosted in Movebank, a free, web-based service for managing animal movement data. Using Movebank allows us to securely manage data within a single database while supporting project-specific terms of use and access rights. By importing the data to the Movebank database, they are converted to a standard data format, reviewed for quality and completeness, and made easily accessible for analysis through the R package 'move'. In addition, the Env-DATA System in Movebank allows easy annotation of these and related time-location records with hundreds of environmental variables provided by global remote sensing and weather data products, including MODIS Land, Snow and Ice products, the ECMWF and NARR weather reanalyses, and others. The ABoVE Animal Movement Archive includes 6.6 million locations of over 3,000 animals collected by 50 programs and studies, contributed by over 25 collaborating institutions, with data extending from 1988 to the present. Organizing the data on Movebank has enabled collaboration and metaanalysis and has also improved their quality and completeness. The ABoVE Animal Movement Archive provides a platform actively used by data

Laboratory Animal Management: Wild Birds.

Science.gov (United States)

National Academy of Sciences - National Research Council, Washington, DC. Inst. of Lab. Animal Resources.

This is a report on the care and use of wild birds in captivity as research animals. Chapters are presented on procurement and identification, housing, nutrition, health of birds and personnel, reproduction in confinement, and surgical procedures. Also included are addresses of federal, state, and provencial regulatory agencies concerned with wild…

Chewing lice from wild birds in northern Greece.

Science.gov (United States)

Diakou, Anastasia; Pedroso Couto Soares, José Bernardo; Alivizatos, Haralambos; Panagiotopoulou, Maria; Kazantzidis, Savas; Literák, Ivan; Sychra, Oldřich

2017-10-01

Greece represents an important area for wild birds due to its geographical position and habitat diversity. Although the bird species in Greece are well recorded, the information about the chewing lice that infest them is practically non-existent. Thus, the aim of the present study was to record the species of lice infesting wild birds in northern Greece and furthermore, to associate the infestation prevalence with factors such as the age, sex, migration and social behaviour of the host as well as the time of the year. In total 729 birds, (belonging to 9 orders, 32 families and 68 species) were examined in 7 localities of northern Greece, during 9 ringing sessions from June 2013 until October 2015. Eighty (11%) of the birds were found to be infested with lice. In 31 different bird species, 560 specimens of lice, belonging to 33 species were recorded. Mixed infestations were recorded in 11 cases where birds were infested with 2-3 different lice species. Four new host-parasite associations were recorded i.e. Menacanthus curuccae from Acrocephalus melanopogon, Menacanthus agilis from Cettia cetti, Myrsidea sp. from Acrocephalus schoenobaenus, and Philopretus citrinellae from Spinus spinus. Moreover, Menacanthus sinuatus was detected on Poecile lugubris, rendering this report the first record of louse infestation in this bird species. The statistical analysis of the data collected showed no association between parasitological parameters (prevalence, mean and median intensity and mean abundance) in two different periods of the year (breeding vs post-breeding season). However, there was a statistically significant difference in the prevalence of infestation between a) migrating and sedentary passerine birds (7.4% vs 13.2%), b) colonial and territorial birds (54.5% vs 9.6%), and c) female and male birds in breeding period (2.6% vs 15.6%). Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

The Physics of Bird Flight: An Experiment

Science.gov (United States)

Mihail, Michael D.; George, Thomas F.; Feldman, Bernard J.

2008-01-01

This article describes an experiment that measures the forces acting on a flying bird during takeoff. The experiment uses a minimum of equipment and only an elementary knowledge of kinematics and Newton's second law. The experiment involves first digitally videotaping a bird during takeoff, analyzing the video to determine the bird's position as a…

Climbing the Slope of Enlightenment during NASA's Arctic Boreal Vulnerability Experiment

Science.gov (United States)

Griffith, P. C.; Hoy, E.; Duffy, D.; McInerney, M.

2015-12-01

The Arctic Boreal Vulnerability Experiment (ABoVE) is a new field campaign sponsored by NASA's Terrestrial Ecology Program and designed to improve understanding of the vulnerability and resilience of Arctic and boreal social-ecological systems to environmental change (http://above.nasa.gov). ABoVE is integrating field-based studies, modeling, and data from airborne and satellite remote sensing. The NASA Center for Climate Simulation (NCCS) has partnered with the NASA Carbon Cycle and Ecosystems Office (CCEO) to create a high performance science cloud for this field campaign. The ABoVE Science Cloud combines high performance computing with emerging technologies and data management with tools for analyzing and processing geographic information to create an environment specifically designed for large-scale modeling, analysis of remote sensing data, copious disk storage for "big data" with integrated data management, and integration of core variables from in-situ networks. The ABoVE Science Cloud is a collaboration that is accelerating the pace of new Arctic science for researchers participating in the field campaign. Specific examples of the utilization of the ABoVE Science Cloud by several funded projects will be presented.

Lessons learned from research and surveillance directed at highly pathogenic influenza A viruses in wild birds inhabiting North America.

Science.gov (United States)

Ramey, Andrew M; DeLiberto, Thomas J; Berhane, Yohannes; Swayne, David E; Stallknecht, David E

2018-05-01

Following detections of highly pathogenic (HP) influenza A viruses (IAVs) in wild birds inhabiting East Asia after the turn of the millennium, the intensity of sampling of wild birds for IAVs increased throughout much of North America. The objectives for many research and surveillance efforts were directed towards detecting Eurasian origin HP IAVs and understanding the potential of such viruses to be maintained and dispersed by wild birds. In this review, we highlight five important lessons learned from research and surveillance directed at HP IAVs in wild birds inhabiting North America: (1) Wild birds may disperse IAVs between North America and adjacent regions via migration, (2) HP IAVs can be introduced to wild birds in North America, (3) HP IAVs may cross the wild bird-poultry interface in North America, (4) The probability of encountering and detecting a specific virus may be low, and (5) Population immunity of wild birds may influence HP IAV outbreaks in North America. We review empirical support derived from research and surveillance efforts for each lesson learned and, furthermore, identify implications for future surveillance efforts, biosecurity, and population health. We conclude our review by identifying five additional areas in which we think future mechanistic research relative to IAVs in wild birds in North America are likely to lead to other important lessons learned in the years ahead. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Lessons learned from research and surveillance directed at highly pathogenic influenza A viruses in wild birds inhabiting North America

Science.gov (United States)

Ramey, Andy M.; DeLiberto, Thomas J.; Berhane, Yohannes; Swayne, David E.; Stallknecht, David E.

2018-01-01

Following detections of highly pathogenic (HP) influenza A viruses (IAVs) in wild birds inhabiting East Asia after the turn of the millennium, the intensity of sampling of wild birds for IAVs increased throughout much of North America. The objectives for many research and surveillance efforts were directed towards detecting Eurasian origin HP IAVs and understanding the potential of such viruses to be maintained and dispersed by wild birds. In this review, we highlight five important lessons learned from research and surveillance directed at HP IAVs in wild birds inhabiting North America: (1) Wild birds may disperse IAVs between North America and adjacent regions via migration, (2) HP IAVs can be introduced to wild birds in North America, (3) HP IAVs may cross the wild bird-poultry interface in North America, (4) The probability of encountering and detecting a specific virus may be low, and (5) Population immunity of wild birds may influence HP IAV outbreaks in North America. We review empirical support derived from research and surveillance efforts for each lesson learned and, furthermore, identify implications for future surveillance efforts, biosecurity, and population health. We conclude our review by identifying five additional areas in which we think future mechanistic research relative to IAVs in wild birds in North America are likely to lead to other important lessons learned in the years ahead.

76 FR 44729 - Migratory Bird Hunting; Proposed Frameworks for Early-Season Migratory Bird Hunting Regulations...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-07-26

...- 2010 average (3.4 0.03 million). As expected, residual water from summer 2010 precipitation remained in... preliminary 2010 Migratory Bird Harvest Information Program (HIP) estimate of harvest was 84,900 birds. In... trend in the population indices between 1966 and 2010. According to HIP surveys, the preliminary harvest...

Magnetic Orientation in Birds and Other Animals

Science.gov (United States)

Wiltschko, Wolfgang

The use of the geomagnetic field for compass orientation is widespread among animals, with two types of magnetic compass mechanisms described: an shape inclination compass in birds, turtles and salamanders and a shape polarity compass in arthropods, fishes and mammals. Additionally, some vertebrates appear to derive positional information from the total intensity and/or inclination of the geomagnetic field. For magnetoreception by animals, two models are currently discussed, the shape Radical Pair model assuming light-dependent processes by specialized photopigments, and the shape Magnetite hypothesis proposing magnetoreception by crystals of magnetite, Fe304. Behavioral experiments with migratory birds, testing them under monochromatic lights and subjecting them to a brief, strong pulse that could reverse the magnetization of magnetite particles, produced evidence for both mechanisms. However, monochromatic lights affect old, experienced and young birds alike, whereas the pulse affects only experienced birds, leaving young, inexperienced birds unaffected. These observations suggest that a radical pair mechanism provides birds with directional information for their innate magnetic compass and a magnetite-based mechanism possibly mediates information about total intensity for indicating position.

The Impact of Boreal Forest Fire on Climate Warming

OpenAIRE

Randerson, J. T.; Liu, H.; Flanner, M. G.; Chambers, S. D.; Jin, Y.; Hess, P. G.; Pfister, G.; Mack, M. C.; Treseder, K. K.; Welp, L. R.; Chapin, F. S.; Harden, J. W.; Goulden, M. L.; Lyons, E.; Neff, J. C.

2006-01-01

We report measurements and analysis of a boreal forest fire, integrating the effects of greenhouse gases, aerosols, black carbon deposition on snow and sea ice, and postfire changes in surface albedo. The net effect of all agents was to increase radiative forcing during the first year (34 ± 31 Watts per square meter of burned area), but to decrease radiative forcing when averaged over an 80-year fire cycle (–2.3 ± 2.2 Watts per square meter) because multidecadal increases in surface albedo ha...

Density-dependent cladogenesis in birds.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Albert B Phillimore

2008-03-01

Full Text Available A characteristic signature of adaptive radiation is a slowing of the rate of speciation toward the present. On the basis of molecular phylogenies, studies of single clades have frequently found evidence for a slowdown in diversification rate and have interpreted this as evidence for density dependent speciation. However, we demonstrated via simulation that large clades are expected to show stronger slowdowns than small clades, even if the probability of speciation and extinction remains constant through time. This is a consequence of exponential growth: clades, which, by chance, diversify at above the average rate early in their history, will tend to be large. They will also tend to regress back to the average diversification rate later on, and therefore show a slowdown. We conducted a meta-analysis of the distribution of speciation events through time, focusing on sequence-based phylogenies for 45 clades of birds. Thirteen of the 23 clades (57% that include more than 20 species show significant slowdowns. The high frequency of slowdowns observed in large clades is even more extreme than expected under a purely stochastic constant-rate model, but is consistent with the adaptive radiation model. Taken together, our data strongly support a model of density-dependent speciation in birds, whereby speciation slows as ecological opportunities and geographical space place limits on clade growth.

Vulnerability of boreal zone for increased nitrogen loading due to climate change

Science.gov (United States)

Rankinen, Katri; Holmberg, Maria

2016-04-01

The observed rapid warming of the boreal zone that has been observed in Finland (0.14 °C by decade) is expected to continue (http://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar5/wg1/). Also precipitation is assumed to increase in future. These changes may increase nitrogen (N) loading from terrestrial environments to water bodies by accelerating soil organic matter decay and by increasing runoff. Nitrogen is limiting nutrient in the Baltic Sea but also in some lakes, so increased loading may increase eutrophication. Further, high nitrate levels in drinking water may cause methaemoglobin anemia for humans, and nitrate is also connected to increased risk of diabetes and cancer. Thus EU has set upper limits to nitrate concentration in drinking water. MONIMET (LIFE12 ENV/FI/000409) is a project about Climate Change Indicators and Vulnerability of Boreal Zone. We simulated N loading from two boreal catchments to the receiving waters by the dynamic, catchment scale model INCA in different climate change and land use change scenarios. We calculated land use specific N loading values for these two well monitored catchments that belong to the LTER (The Long Term Ecological Research) monitoring network. We upscaled the results to the larger river basin, combining them with the information on drinking water supply to assess the vulnerability. Specific emphasis was paid on nitrate concentrations in soil water and groundwater. In general, land use change has higher influence on N loading than increase in precipitation and temperature alone. Peak runoff will sift from snow melting peak in April to late autumn and winter. Growing season will become longer allowing more efficient vegetation uptake of nutrients. Small groundwater aquifers and private wells in the middle of agricultural fields will be in the risk of increased N concentrations, if agricultural N loading increases due to changes in agricultural patterns and land use change.

An Update on NASA's Arctic Boreal Vulnerability Experiment

Science.gov (United States)

Goetz, S. J.; Miller, C. E.; Griffith, P. C.; Larson, E. K.; Kasischke, E. S.; Margolis, H. A.

2016-12-01

ABoVE is a NASA-led field campaign taking place in Alaska and western Canada over the next 8-10 years, with a wide range of interdisciplinary science objectives designed to address the extent to which ecosystems and society are vulnerable, or resilient, to environmental changes underway and expected. The first phase of ABoVE is underway, with a focus on ecosystem dynamics and ecosystem services objectives. Some 45 core and affiliated projects are currently included, and another 10-20 will be added in late 2016 with initiation of the airborne science component. The ABoVE leadership is fostering partnerships with several other major arctic and boreal research, management and policy initiatives. The Science Team is organized around science themes, with Working Groups (WGs) on vegetation, permafrost and hydrology, disturbance, carbon dynamics, wildlife and ecosystem services, and modeling. Despite the disciplinary science WGs, ABoVE research broadly focuses the complex interdependencies and feedbacks across disciplines. Additional WGs focus on airborne science, geospatial products, core variables and standards, and stakeholder engagement - all supplemented by a range of infrastructure activities such as data management, cloud computing, laboratory and field support. Ultimately ABoVE research will improve our understanding of the consequences of environmental changes occurring across the study domain, as well as increase our confidence in making projections of the ecosystem responses and vulnerability to changes taking place both within and outside the domain. ABoVE will also build a lasting legacy of research through an expanded knowledge base, the provision of key datasets archived for a broader network of researchers and resource managers, and the development of data products and knowledge designed to foster decision support and applied research partnerships with broad societal relevance. We will provide a brief status update of ABoVE activities and plans, including

Fire spread probabilities for experimental beds composed of mixedwood boreal forest fuels

Science.gov (United States)

M.B. Dickinson; E.A. Johnson; R. Artiaga

2013-01-01

Although fuel characteristics are assumed to have an important impact on fire regimes through their effects on extinction dynamics, limited capabilities exist for predicting whether a fire will spread in mixedwood boreal forest surface fuels. To improve predictive capabilities, we conducted 347 no-wind, laboratory test burns in surface fuels collected from the mixed-...

Prediction of the Arctic Oscillation in Boreal Winter by Dynamical Seasonal Forecasting Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Kang, Daehyun; Lee, Myong-In; Im, Jungho; Kim, Daehyun; Kim, Hye-Mi; Kang, Hyun-Suk; Schubert, Siegfried D.; Arribas, Alberto; MacLachlan, Craig

2014-01-01

This study assesses the skill of boreal winter Arctic Oscillation (AO) predictions with state-of-the-art dynamical ensemble prediction systems (EPSs): GloSea4, CFSv2, GEOS-5, CanCM3, CanCM4, and CM2.1. Long-term reforecasts with the EPSs are used to evaluate how well they represent the AO and to assess the skill of both deterministic and probabilistic forecasts of the AO. The reforecasts reproduce the observed changes in the large-scale patterns of the Northern Hemispheric surface temperature, upper level wind, and precipitation associated with the different phases of the AO. The results demonstrate that most EPSs improve upon persistence skill scores for lead times up to 2 months in boreal winter, suggesting some potential for skillful prediction of the AO and its associated climate anomalies at seasonal time scales. It is also found that the skill of AO forecasts during the recent period (1997-2010) is higher than that of the earlier period (1983-1996).

Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato spirochetes in wild birds in northwestern California: associations with ecological factors, bird behavior and tick infestation.

Science.gov (United States)

Newman, Erica A; Eisen, Lars; Eisen, Rebecca J; Fedorova, Natalia; Hasty, Jeomhee M; Vaughn, Charles; Lane, Robert S

2015-01-01

Although Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato (s.l.) are found in a great diversity of vertebrates, most studies in North America have focused on the role of mammals as spirochete reservoir hosts. We investigated the roles of birds as hosts for subadult Ixodes pacificus ticks and potential reservoirs of the Lyme disease spirochete B. burgdorferi sensu stricto (s.s.) in northwestern California. Overall, 623 birds representing 53 species yielded 284 I. pacificus larvae and nymphs. We used generalized linear models and zero-inflated negative binomial models to determine associations of bird behaviors, taxonomic relationships and infestation by I. pacificus with borrelial infection in the birds. Infection status in birds was best explained by taxonomic order, number of infesting nymphs, sampling year, and log-transformed average body weight. Presence and counts of larvae and nymphs could be predicted by ground- or bark-foraging behavior and contact with dense oak woodland. Molecular analysis yielded the first reported detection of Borrelia bissettii in birds. Moreover, our data suggest that the Golden-crowned Sparrow (Zonotrichia atricapilla), a non-resident species, could be an important reservoir for B. burgdorferi s.s. Of 12 individual birds (9 species) that carried B. burgdorferi s.l.-infected larvae, no birds carried the same genospecies of B. burgdorferi s.l. in their blood as were present in the infected larvae removed from them. Possible reasons for this discrepancy are discussed. Our study is the first to explicitly incorporate both taxonomic relationships and behaviors as predictor variables to identify putative avian reservoirs of B. burgdorferi s.l. Our findings underscore the importance of bird behavior to explain local tick infestation and Borrelia infection in these animals, and suggest the potential for bird-mediated geographic spread of vector ticks and spirochetes in the far-western United States.

Traditional Uses of Medicinal Plants from the Canadian Boreal Forest for the Management of Chronic Pain Syndromes.

Science.gov (United States)

Uprety, Yadav; Lacasse, Anaïs; Asselin, Hugo

2016-04-01

Chronic pain is more prevalent in indigenous populations who often prefer traditional remedies over allopathic drugs. Our objective was to investigate the traditional uses of medicinal plants from the Canadian boreal forest for the management of chronic pain syndromes. We reviewed the most extensive database on medicinal plants used by aboriginal people of the Canadian boreal forest to investigate the plants used in the management of 3 of the most common chronic pain syndromes: arthritis/rheumatism; back pain; and headache/migraine. We also reviewed the pharmacology and phytochemistry literature to investigate concordance with indigenous knowledge. A total of 114 medicinal plant species were reported, of which 27 (23.5%) were used to treat more than 1 chronic pain syndrome. Pharmacological or phytochemical evidence to explain plant function as chronic pain remedy was available in the literature for only 38 species (33%), with several species reported to have anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties effective in treating chronic pain syndromes. Our study showed the potential of boreal plants as alternative and complementary medicines for the treatment of chronic pain syndromes that could be enhanced by further research on efficacy and safety issues. © 2015 World Institute of Pain.

Blood protozoa of free-living birds

Science.gov (United States)

Herman, C.M.; McDiarmid, Archibald

1969-01-01

Blood protozoa were first reported from wild birds in 1884. Since then numerous surveys throughout the world have demonstrated their presence in a wide variety of hosts and localities with continuing designations of new species. Taxonomic determinations include parasites in the genera Plasmodium, Haemoproteus, Leucocytozoon, Babesia, Lankesterella and Trypanosoma. Transmission of Plasmodium by mosquitoes was demonstrated with a bird parasite before these insects were proven as vectors of human malaria. All the genera under consideration require an insect vector to complete their life-cycles and susceptible vectors have been demonstrated. Most experimental work on the blood protozoa of birds has been carried on with captive birds. An extensive volume of research has been conducted on Plasmodium because of its close similarity to malaria in man. Field studies that would provide information on the epizootiology of occurrence of these parasites in wild populations have been very limited, mainly confined to single blood film surveys. Such data are inadequate to provide an understanding of true prevalence or incidence or of factual knowledge of their impact on the wild population. Mechanisms for procuring such information are available in some cases and can be developed to fit other situations. Isodiagnosis, inoculation of blood from wild birds into susceptible captive hosts, has revealed a prevalence of over 60 % for Plasmodium in situations where microscope examination of single peripheral blood preparations yielded less than 1 %. Culture of bone marrow collected by biopsy demonstrates high prevalence of trypanosomes even when none are evident from microscopic examination of blood. Often preparations of tissues collected at necropsy reveal Leucocytozoon and Lankesterella when examination of peripheral blood gave no indication of infection. Methods developed by bird ringers provide techniques for obtaining repeat examinations of free-living birds that can yield further

Rickettsia bellii in ticks Amblyomma varium Koch, 1844, from birds in Peru

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Ogrzewalska, M.; Literák, I.; Cárdenas-Callirgos, J. M.; Čapek, Miroslav; Labruna, M. B.

2012-01-01

Roč. 3, č. 4 (2012), s. 254-256 ISSN 1877-959X R&D Projects: GA AV ČR IAA601690901; GA MŠk LC06073 Institutional support: RVO:68081766 Keywords : Rickettsia bellii * ticks * Amblyomma calcaratum * birds * Peru Subject RIV: EG - Zoology Impact factor: 2.353, year: 2012

77 FR 58443 - Migratory Bird Hunting; Final Frameworks for Late-Season Migratory Bird Hunting Regulations

Science.gov (United States)

2012-09-20

... to move toward a more holistic and uniform approach to Canada goose harvest management across the... selections to: Chief, Division of Migratory Bird Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, ms MBSP-4107... address above, or from the Division of Migratory Bird Management's Web site at http://www.fws.gov...

75 FR 47681 - Migratory Bird Hunting; Proposed Migratory Bird Hunting Regulations on Certain Federal Indian...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-08-06

... million). Residual water remains in the Parklands and these were classified as fair to good. Most of the... stabilized at around 100,000 birds; the preliminary 2009 Migratory Bird Harvest Information Program (HIP... and 2009. According to HIP surveys, the preliminary harvest estimate for 2009 was 66,100 white-winged...

Breeding biology and incremental benefits of outcrossing for the restoration wildflower, Hedysarum boreale (Fabaceae)

Science.gov (United States)

Northern sweetvetch, Hedysarum boreale, is an herbaceous perennial of the Rocky Mountains whose seed is desired for rehabilitating degraded plant communities. Through experimental manual pollinations, the necessity of pollinators was shown by the failures of autopollination and wind pollination, ev...

Anthropogenic nitrogen deposition in boreal forests has a minor impact on the global carbon cycle.

Science.gov (United States)

Gundale, Michael J; From, Fredrik; Bach, Lisbet H; Nordin, Annika

2014-01-01

It is proposed that increases in anthropogenic reactive nitrogen (Nr ) deposition may cause temperate and boreal forests to sequester a globally significant quantity of carbon (C); however, long-term data from boreal forests describing how C sequestration responds to realistic levels of chronic Nr deposition are scarce. Using a long-term (14-year) stand-scale (0.1 ha) N addition experiment (three levels: 0, 12.5, and 50 kg N ha(-1)  yr(-1) ) in the boreal zone of northern Sweden, we evaluated how chronic N additions altered N uptake and biomass of understory communities, and whether changes in understory communities explained N uptake and C sequestration by trees. We hypothesized that understory communities (i.e. mosses and shrubs) serve as important sinks for low-level N additions, with the strength of these sinks weakening as chronic N addition rates increase, due to shifts in species composition. We further hypothesized that trees would exhibit nonlinear increases in N acquisition, and subsequent C sequestration as N addition rates increased, due to a weakening understory N sink. Our data showed that understory biomass was reduced by 50% in response to the high N addition treatment, mainly due to reduced moss biomass. A (15) N labeling experiment showed that feather mosses acquired the largest fraction of applied label, with this fraction decreasing as the chronic N addition level increased. Contrary to our hypothesis, the proportion of label taken up by trees was equal (ca. 8%) across all three N addition treatments. The relationship between N addition and C sequestration in all vegetation pools combined was linear, and had a slope of 16 kg C kg(-1)  N. While canopy retention of Nr deposition may cause C sequestration rates to be slightly different than this estimate, our data suggest that a minor quantity of annual anthropogenic CO2 emissions are sequestered into boreal forests as a result of Nr deposition. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Variation in carbon storage and its distribution by stand age and forest type in boreal and temperate forests in northeastern China.

Science.gov (United States)

Wei, Yawei; Li, Maihe; Chen, Hua; Lewis, Bernard J; Yu, Dapao; Zhou, Li; Zhou, Wangming; Fang, Xiangmin; Zhao, Wei; Dai, Limin

2013-01-01

The northeastern forest region of China is an important component of total temperate and boreal forests in the northern hemisphere. But how carbon (C) pool size and distribution varies among tree, understory, forest floor and soil components, and across stand ages remains unclear. To address this knowledge gap, we selected three major temperate and two major boreal forest types in northeastern (NE) China. Within both forest zones, we focused on four stand age classes (young, mid-aged, mature and over-mature). Results showed that total C storage was greater in temperate than in boreal forests, and greater in older than in younger stands. Tree biomass C was the main C component, and its contribution to the total forest C storage increased with increasing stand age. It ranged from 27.7% in young to 62.8% in over-mature stands in boreal forests and from 26.5% in young to 72.8% in over-mature stands in temperate forests. Results from both forest zones thus confirm the large biomass C storage capacity of old-growth forests. Tree biomass C was influenced by forest zone, stand age, and forest type. Soil C contribution to total forest C storage ranged from 62.5% in young to 30.1% in over-mature stands in boreal and from 70.1% in young to 26.0% in over-mature in temperate forests. Thus soil C storage is a major C pool in forests of NE China. On the other hand, understory and forest floor C jointly contained less than 13% and forests respectively, and thus play a minor role in total forest C storage in NE China.

50 CFR 20.62 - Importation of birds of another.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 50 Wildlife and Fisheries 6 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Importation of birds of another. 20.62... WILDLIFE AND PLANTS (CONTINUED) MIGRATORY BIRD HUNTING Importations § 20.62 Importation of birds of another. No person shall import migratory game birds belonging to another person. ...

Challenges in Modeling Disturbance Regimes and Their Impacts in Arctic and Boreal Ecosystems (Invited)

Science.gov (United States)

McGuire, A. D.; Rupp, T. S.; Kurz, W.

2013-12-01

Disturbances in arctic and boreal terrestrial ecosystems influence services provided by these ecosystems to society. In particular, changes in disturbance regimes in northern latitudes have uncertain consequences for the climate system. A major challenge for the scientific community is to develop the capability to predict how the frequency, severity and resultant impacts of disturbance regimes will change in response to future changes in climate projected for northern high latitudes. Here we compare what is known about drivers and impacts of wildfire, phytophagous insect pests, and thermokarst disturbance to illustrate the complexities in predicting future changes in disturbance regimes and their impacts in arctic and boreal regions. Much of the research on predicting fire has relied on the use of drivers related to fire weather. However, changes in vegetation, such as increases in broadleaf species, associated with intensified fire regimes have the potential to influence future fire regimes through negative feedbacks associated with reduced flammability. Phytophagous insect outbreaks have affected substantial portions of the boreal region in the past, but frequently the range of the tree host is larger than the range of the insect. There is evidence that a number of insect species are expanding their range in response to climate change. Major challenges to predicting outbreaks of phytophagous insects include modeling the effects of climate change on insect growth and maturation, winter mortality, plant host health, the synchrony of insect life stages and plant host phenology, and changes in the ranges of insect pests. Moreover, Earth System Models often simplify the representation of vegetation characteristics, e.g. the use of plant functional types, providing insufficient detail to link to insect population models. Thermokarst disturbance occurs when the thawing of ice-rich permafrost results in substantial ground subsidence. In the boreal forest, thermokarst can

Research on an Infectious Disease Transmission by Flocking Birds

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mingsheng Tang

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The swarm intelligence is becoming a hot topic. The flocking of birds is a natural phenomenon, which is formed and organized without central or external controls for some benefits (e.g., reduction of energy consummation. However, the flocking also has some negative effects on the human, as the infectious disease H7N9 will easily be transmited from the denser flocking birds to the human. Zombie-city model has been proposed to help analyzing and modeling the flocking birds and the artificial society. This paper focuses on the H7N9 virus transmission in the flocking birds and from the flocking birds to the human. And some interesting results have been shown: (1 only some simple rules could result in an emergence such as the flocking; (2 the minimum distance between birds could affect H7N9 virus transmission in the flocking birds and even affect the virus transmissions from the flocking birds to the human.

Research on an infectious disease transmission by flocking birds.

Science.gov (United States)

Tang, Mingsheng; Mao, Xinjun; Guessoum, Zahia

2013-01-01

The swarm intelligence is becoming a hot topic. The flocking of birds is a natural phenomenon, which is formed and organized without central or external controls for some benefits (e.g., reduction of energy consummation). However, the flocking also has some negative effects on the human, as the infectious disease H7N9 will easily be transmited from the denser flocking birds to the human. Zombie-city model has been proposed to help analyzing and modeling the flocking birds and the artificial society. This paper focuses on the H7N9 virus transmission in the flocking birds and from the flocking birds to the human. And some interesting results have been shown: (1) only some simple rules could result in an emergence such as the flocking; (2) the minimum distance between birds could affect H7N9 virus transmission in the flocking birds and even affect the virus transmissions from the flocking birds to the human.

Compositional stability of boreal understorey vegetation after overstorey harvesting across a riparian ecotone

Science.gov (United States)

Rebecca L. MacDonald; Han Y.H. Chen; Samuel F. Bartels; Brian J. Palik; Ellie E. Prepas; Frank Gilliam

2015-01-01

Questions: Understanding factors that contribute to the stability of an ecosystem following harvesting is central to predicting responses of boreal ecosystems to increasing human disturbances.While the response of understorey vegetation to harvesting is well understood for upland sites, little is known about compositional stability of riparian understorey vegetation....

Birds of the Mongol Empire

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eugene N. Anderson

2016-09-01

Full Text Available The Mongol Empire, the largest contiguous empire the world has ever known, had, among other things, a goodly number of falconers, poultry raisers, birdcatchers, cooks, and other experts on various aspects of birding. We have records of this, largely in the Yinshan Zhengyao, the court nutrition manual of the Mongol empire in China (the Yuan Dynasty. It discusses in some detail 22 bird taxa, from swans to chickens. The Huihui Yaofang, a medical encyclopedia, lists ten taxa used medicinally. Marco Polo also made notes on Mongol bird use. There are a few other records. This allows us to draw conclusions about Mongol ornithology, which apparently was sophisticated and detailed.

Breeding birds on organic and conventional arable farms

OpenAIRE

Kragten, Steven

2009-01-01

As a result of agricultural intensification, farmland bird populations have been declining dramatically over the past decades. Organic farming is often mentioned to be a possible solution to stop these declines. In order to see whether farmland birds really benefit from organic farming a study was carried out comparing breeding bird densities, breeding success and bird food abundance between organic and conventional arable farms in Flevoland, the Netherlands. skylark (Alauda arvensis) and lap...

East Africa's diminishing bird habitats and bird species

African Journals Online (AJOL)

foreign exchange earnings for each national exchequer. However, recent national census records have .... Dar-es-. Salaam: Wildlife Conservation Society of Tanzania. Bennun, L & Njoroge, P. 1999. Important Bird Areas in Kenya, Nairobi: East Africa Natural. History Society. Byaruhanga, A, Kasoma, P. & Pomeroy, D. 2001.

Assessing collision risk for birds and bats : radar survey

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Brunet, R. [Genivar SEC, Sherbrooke, PQ (Canada)

2010-07-01

This PowerPoint presentation described some of the inventories and instrumentation available for monitoring winged fauna in and around wind farms. In addition to visual observations, bird calls and songs can be recorded to determine the amount and different types of birds located at wind farm sites. Radio-telemetry devices are also used to evaluate bird activities, and nest searches are conducted to determine the amount of eggs or young birds that will soon add to the bird population. Between 90 and 100 percent of birds and bats migrate at night. Acoustic radar, Doppler radar, and maritime surveillance radar instruments are used to monitor night-time activities in wind farm locations. Doppler radar is also used to detect bird and bat migration corridors. Screen-shots of various radar interfaces were presented. tabs., figs.

Assessing Arboreal Adaptations of Bird Antecedents: Testing the Ecological Setting of the Origin of the Avian Flight Stroke

Science.gov (United States)