The American Midland Naturalist articles from July 2000

The American Midland Naturalist archives from July 2000

Nectar Plant Selection by the Karner Blue Butterfly (Lycaeides melissa samuelis) at the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore.(Statistical Data Included)
July 1, 2000... RALPH GRUNDEL [1] ABSTRACT.--The Karner blue butterfly, Lycaeides melissa samuelis, is an endangered species residing in savanna and barrens habitats in the Midwest and Northeast United States. To improve our understanding of nectar...

Aggregating Behavior During Oviposition in the Dragonfly Sympetrum vicinum (Hagen) (Odonata: Libellulidae).(Statistical Data Included)
July 1, 2000... ABSTRACT.--This study examined the adaptive significance of ovipositing near conspecifics by pairs of the dragonfly Sympetrum vicinum. Studies were conducted at two artificial ponds in New York using a series of 1 [m.sup.2] plots along their...

Interspecific Competition in the Laboratory between Drosophila subobscura and D. azteca.
July 1, 2000... MARTA PASCUAL [1] ABSTRACT.--Drosophila subobscura and D. azteca are closely related species that have co-existed on the west coast of North America since that area was colonized by D. subobscura in the late 1970s. We have studied...

Detecting Area Sensitivity: A Comment on Previous Studies.
July 1, 2000... ABSTRACT.--SEVERAL studies have reported that some grassland birds are area sensitive; they exhibit a nonrandom avoidance of small fields. The methods used to test for area sensitivity, however, differed among studies. Some investigators...

Effects of the Exotic Invasive Shrub Lonicera maackii on the Survival and Fecundity of Three Species of Native Annuals.(Statistical Data Included)
July 1, 2000... DAVID L. GORCHOV [1] ABSTRACT.--Negative effects on native plant populations are often attributed to invasions by exotic plants, but experimental evidence is lacking to support many of these claims. Lonicera maackii, an exotic shrub with...

Canopy Architecture, Light Extinction and Self-shading of a Prairie Grass, Andropogon gerardii.(Statistical Data Included)
July 1, 2000... THOMAS W. JURIK [1] ABSTRACT.--The three-dimensional characteristics of canopy structure and light environment of clones of a common tallgrass prairie species, Andropogon gerardii (big bluestem), were analyzed in native and reconstructed...

An 11-year Ecological Study of a Rare Prairie Perennial (Asclepias meadii): Implications for Monitoring and Management.(Statistical Data Included)
July 1, 2000... W. DEAN KETTLE [1] HELEN M. ALEXANDER [2,3] GALEN L. PITTMAN [1] ABSTRACT.--Mead's milkweed, Asclepias meadii, is a rare long-lived perennial of North American tallgrass prairies. Stems of this clonal species are spatially...

Impact of Grazing and Desertification in the Chihuahuan Desert: Plant Communities, Granivores and Granivory.(Statistical Data Included)
July 1, 2000... GRAHAM I. H. KERLEY [1] WALTER G. WHITFORD [2] ABSTRACT.--Livestock effects on plant communities through overgrazing (desertification) should affect the structure and functioning of semarid rangeland communities. We measured plant,...

Competition Between Alien Annual Grasses and Native Annual Plants in the Mojave Desert.(Statistical Data Included)
July 1, 2000... United States Geological Survey, Western Ecological Research Center Box Springs Field Station, 6221 Box Springs Blvd., Riverside, California 92507 [1] ABSTRACT.--Alien annual grasses in the genera Bromus and Schismus are widespread and...

Browsing of Antelope Bitterbrush (Purshia tridentata: Rosaceae) in the South Okanagan Valley, British Columbia: Age Preferences and Seasonal Differences.(Statistical Data Included)
July 1, 2000... P. G. KRANNITZ [1] S. L. HICKS [2] ABSTRACT. -- We compared browsing on twigs of small and large antelope bitterbrush (Purshia tridentata) shrubs among ten sites in the south Okanagan valley, British Columbia. We tested whether there...

Diel Variation of Sugar Amount in Nectar from Pitchers of Sarracenia purpurea L. with and without Insect Visitors.(Statistical Data Included)
July 1, 2000... JILL L. DEPPE [1] WILLIAM J. DRESS [2] SANDRA J. NEWELL [3] ABSTRACT.--Sarracenia purpurea L. is a carnivorous pitcher plant that attracts insect prey by producing nectar. We compared amount of sugar in different samples of...

Conservation Status of the Eastern Spotted Skunk Spilogale putorius in the Appalachian Mountains of Tennessee.(Statistical Data Included)
July 1, 2000... AARON W. REED [1,2] ABSTRACT.--The conservation status of the eastern spotted skunk (Spilogale putorius) was assessed in the Appalachian Mountains of Tennessee from November 1995 through June 1997. Population status and seasonal...

Social Organization of Nine-banded Armadillos (Dasypus novemcinctus) in a Riparian Habitat.(Statistical Data Included)
July 1, 2000... COLLEEN M. McDONOUGH [1] ABSTRACT.--I investigated spatial relationships and mating in a population of individually marked nine-banded armadillos, Dasypus novemcinctus, in a riparian habitat in south Texas. Adults had larger home ranges...

Use of Artificial Nest Sites as a Function of Age of Litter in Peromyscus leucopus.(Statistical Data Included)
July 1, 2000... ABSTRACT.--Relocation of nest sites is common among mice of the genus Peromyscus. We documented the occupation of artificial nest boxes by litters of white-footed mice (P. leucopus) at different stages of development to determine if nest...

Wallowing Behavior of American Bison (Bos bison) in Tallgrass Prairie: an Examination of Alternate Explanations.(Statistical Data Included)
July 1, 2000... BROCK R. McMILLAN [1] Division of Biology, Kansas State University, Manhattan 66506 ABSTRACT.--Wallowing is a common behavior of American bison (Bos bison). Past explanations and current hypotheses suggested for wallowing behavior...

Use of PVC Pipe Refugia as a Sampling Technique for Hylid Treefrogs.(Statistical Data Included)
July 1, 2000... ROBIN G. BOUGHTON [1] ABSTRACT.--We used retreats made from white polyvinyl chloride (PVC) pipes to capture hylids and determined how pipe design and placement influenced the frequency with which hylids used pipes as retreats. Pipes were...

Swimming Performance of the Topeka Shiner (Notropis topeka) an Endangered Midwestern Minnow.(Statistical Data Included)
July 1, 2000... S. REID ADAMS [1] ABSTRACT.--The Topeka shiner (Notropis topeka) is imperiled by extensive changes in stream hydrology. Responses of shiners to changes or variation in stream hydraulics, however, have not been quantified, hampering...

Spawning Behaviors in the Bluehead Chub, Nocomis leptocephalus, River Chub, N. micropogon and Central Stoneroller, Campostoma anomalum.(Statistical Data Included)
July 1, 2000... MARK H. SABAJ [1] EUGENE G. MAURAKIS [2] WILLIAM S. WOOLCOTT [3] ABSTRACT.--Spawning behaviors were filmed and observed in the nest-building minnows, the bluehead chub, Nocomis leptocephalus, and river chub, N. micropogon....

Seed Dispersal of the Chinese Tallow Tree (Sapium sebiferum (L.) Roxb.) by Birds in Coastal South Carolina.(Statistical Data Included)
July 1, 2000... ABSTRACT.--We used seed traps (n = 119) to quantify seed dispersal of the Chinese tallow tree (Sapium sebiferum (L.) Roxb.) by birds in South Carolina during the October 1995 to April 1996 fruiting season. We tested if crop size, habitat type...

Nestling Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor) Diets in an Upland Old Field in Western Michigan.(Statistical Data Included)
July 1, 2000... MICHAEL P. LOMBARDO [1] ABSTRACT.--We collected and identified 1852 prey items from 89 boluses delivered to 62 nestling tree swallows (Tachsycineta bicolor) at 14 nests in an upland old field in western Michigan. We found that 90.8% of...

Microhabitat Selection by Golden Mice (Ochrotomys nuttalli) at Arboreal Nest Sites.
July 1, 2000... DAVID M. WAGNER [1] JONATHAN A. NEWMAN [2] ABSTRACT.-We measured habitat characteristics at 34 arboreal nest sites of golden mice (Ochrotomys nuttalli) and 34 paired random Sites from May-Sept. 1997. Microhabitat was significantly...