Hi folks,

Just received the Winter 1997 issue (Vol 68 No 1) of the Journal of =
Field Ornithology, published quarterly by the Association of Field =
Ornithologists. Here's what's inside....

Jon. Anderson
Olympia, Washington
festuca at olywa.net


Effects of Nasal Discs on Nesting by Mallards. David W Howerter, Brian =
L Joynt, Robert B Emery and Tomasz P Sankowski. pp 1-6. Study from =
Saskatchewan and Manitoba; Nasal discs did not influence the proportion =
of birds remaining on study area, proportion of birds that nested, =
number of nests initiated per bird, or the proportion of birds that =
successfully hatched a nest; Compared to unmarked birds, nasal-marked =
birds did significantly delay their first nest by 2-6 days.

A Long-Term Study of the Breeding Success of Eastern Bluebirds by Year =
and Cavity Type. Lorissa A Radunzel, Domma M Muschitz, Vincent M =
Bauldry and Peter Arcese. pp 7-18. Breeding success near Green Bay, =
Wisconsin was significantly greater in Open Top than in Standard boxes =
for all measures except return rate; Total nest failure was lower in =
Open Top Boxes than in Standard boxes, probably because House Sparrows =
and House Wrens prefer cavities with closed tops.

Using Post-Ovulatory Follicles to Determine Laying Histories of American =
Coots: Implications for Nutrient-Reserve Studies. Todd W Arnold, =
Jonathan E Thompson and C Davison Ankney. pp 19-25. POFs used to =
estimate egg production of collected birds; small errors in POF counts =
are unlikely to have any serious effects given adequate sample size.

Evidence of Newell's Shearwater Breeding in Puna District, Hawaii. =
Michelle H Reynolds and George L Ritchotte. pp 26-32. Nocturnal =
surveys using auditory cues and night-vision equipment used to determine =
use of inland areas by 'A'o in 1993.

Cover Characteristics and Success of Natural and Artificial Duck Nests. =
Karla L Guyn and Robert G Clark. pp 33-41. Results obtained with =
artificial nests sometimes used to predict success of natural nests; =
Study in Saskatchewan found no correlation between success of natural =
and artificial nests; vegetative characteristics of natural nest sites =
difficult to emulate.

Occurrence of Migrant Shorebirds in the Marianna Islands. Derek W =
Stinson, Gary J Wiles and James D Reichel. pp 42-55. Summary of data =
on seasonality and relative abundance of 46 species (only Pacific =
Golden-plover is abundant) based on bi-weekly surveys on Saipan and =
Guam.

Field Techniques for Studying Breeding Yellow Rails. Michel Robert and =
Pierre Laporte. pp 56-63. Methods and success of capturing rails =
(night-lighting while waiting, approaching) and searching for nests =
(using dogs) in Quebec were discussed.

Radio Transmitters do not Affect Nestling Feeding Rates by Female Hooded =
Warblers. Diane L Neudorf and Trevor E Pitcher. pp 64-68. Use of 0.8g =
and 0.67g transmitters on warblers in Pennsylvania did not affect an =
energetically demanding activity such as feeding young; suggests that =
other aspects of female behavior also not adversely affected.

A Motorized Food Box for Use in Supplemental Feeding Experiments. =
Johanna M Ward, Robert Booth and Patricia L Kennedy. pp 69-74. =
Researchers in New Mexico wished to conduct a supplemental feeding study =
with N Goshawk but wished to avoid attracting Great Horned Owls to nest =
site; developed motorized cover of feeding box to close feeding box at =
night.

Low Infection Prevalence of Blood Parasites in Hooded Warblers. Scott A =
Tarof, Bridget J Stutchbury and Gordon F Bennet. pp 75-78. Breeding =
birds in Pennsylvania and wintering birds in Quintana Roo sampled; 13% =
of birds infected with Leucocytozooan, Plasmodium, Haemoproteus and =
microfilariae; a markedly low prevalence of blood parasites.

Recoveries of Roseate and Common Terns in South America. Helen Hays, =
Joseph DiCostanzo, Grace Cormons, Paulo de Tarso Zuquim Antas, Joao =
Luis Xavier do Nascimento, Ines de Lima Serrano do Nascimento and =
Ricardo Esteban Bremer. pp 79-90. Survey of coasts of N Argentina, =
Uruguay and Brazil; flock of both species off Alcobaca, Brazil and =
recovery of Roseate Tern banded at Great-Gull-Island, New York provide =
the southernmost wintering record for this species; 20-30,000 common =
terns at Punta Rasa, Argentina; sightings of marked birds suggest that =
older Common Terns occupy the more southern parts of the wintering =
range.

The Breeding Biology of the Pied Water-Tyrant and its Interactions with =
the Shiny Cowbird in Venezuela. Alexander Cruz and Robert W Andrews. pp =
91-97. 53% of nests in llanos of western Venezuela parasitized by =
cowbirds; only 3 of 47 parasitized nests successfully fledged cowbird =
young, however; Water-Tyrant nests mainly in trees and shrubs near water =
in early part of wet season, but nests mainly in emergent marsh =
vegetation during the latter part.

Spider Webs and Windows as Potentially Important Sources of Hummingbird =
Mortality. Devon L Graham. pp 98-101. Three instances of hermit =
hummingbirds (Phaethornis spp) tangled in webs of the spider Nephila =
clavipes at La Selva, Costa Rica; also, hermit hummingbirds may be more =
likely to die from striking windows than other hummingbirds.

Sex Determination of Adult Humboldt Penguins Using Morphometric =
Characters. Carlos B Zavalaga and Rosana Parades. pp 102-112. =
Measurements of 297 penguins at Punta San Juan, Peru; length of the bill =
and width of the head used to determine sex using discriminant function =
analysis.

Non-Breeding Waterbirds of the Delta of the Rio Colorado, Mexico. Eric =
Mellink, Eduardo Palacios and Salvador Gonzalez. pp 113-123. Although =
dams and water removal early in the century caused major habitat =
changes, area is still important to many birds; winter counts of 100,000 =
shorebirds in 1993-94 - mostly Western Sandpipers - using mudflats at =
mouth of the delta.

Distribution of Autumn-Staging Lesser Snow Geese on the Northeast =
Coastal Plain of Alaska. Donna G Robertson, Alan W Brackney, Michael A =
Spindler and Jerry W Hupp. pp 124-134. Between 1982-93, snow geese =
numbers and flock locations at Arctic NWR were highly variable because =
geese moved to different foraging areas during staging; use of this area =
(proposed for oil development) important to staging geese.

Breeding Biology of Aplomado Falcons in Desert Grasslands of Chihuahua, =
Mexico. Angel B Montoya, Phillip J Zwank and Manuel Cardenas. pp =
135-143. Populations in northern Chihuahua 40km from U.S. border; =
authors quantified breeding success (clutch size of 2.6, hatching =
success of 1.6 and fledging success of 0.6), habitat use (6 of 7 nests =
in yucca), and prey selection (Meadowlarks most abundant prey item; also =
brown-headed cowbirds, roadrunners and hummingbirds)

Geese as Frugivores and Probable Seed-Dispersal Mutualists. Mary F =
Willson, Anna Traveset and Carlos Sabag. pp 144-146. Magellan and =
Ashy-headed geese are important frugivores and possible seed dispersers =
in Tierra del Fuego, Chile; these "water birds" may interact =
mutualistically with plants in an area with few passerines.

A Trap for Ducks Using Artificial Nesting Structures. Tina Yerkes. pp =
147-149. Developed trap for incubating hen Mallards and Redheads in =
Manitoba; 95% success rate with no injuries; 2% nest abandonment prior =
to trapping....

Bald Eagle Longevity Record from Southeastern Alaska. Philip F Schempf. =
pp 150-151. In winter of 1965 Fred Robards banded 39 eagles along =
Chilkat River near Haines; recapture of debilitated adult female along =
Chilkat in May 1993 establishes minimum age of 28 years, 0 months.

California Sea Lion Predation on Chicks of the Common Murre. Douglas J =
Long and Lucy Gilbert. pp 152-154. Predation observed on fledgling =
murres at Southeast Farralon Island, California in 1994; murres may be =
vulnerable to pinniped predation at breeding sites.

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