| relatively high prevalence of pox-like lesions in henslow's sparrow (ammodrammus henslowii) among nine species of migratory grassland passerines in wisconsin, usa. | globally, avipoxvirus species affect over 230 species of wild birds and can significantly impair survival. during banding of nine grassland songbird species (n=346 individuals) in southwestern wisconsin, usa, we noted species with a 2-6% prevalence of pox-like lesions (possible evidence of current infection) and 4-10% missing digits (potential evidence of past infection). these prevalences approach those recorded among island endemic birds (4-9% and 9-20% for the galapagos and hawaii, respective ... | 2014 | 25121409 |
| impacts of tree rows on grassland birds and potential nest predators: a removal experiment. | globally, grasslands and the wildlife that inhabit them are widely imperiled. encroachment by shrubs and trees has widely impacted grasslands in the past 150 years. in north america, most grassland birds avoid nesting near woody vegetation. because woody vegetation fragments grasslands and potential nest predator diversity and abundance is often greater along wooded edge and grassland transitions, we measured the impacts of removing rows of trees and shrubs that intersected grasslands on potenti ... | 2013 | 23565144 |
| avian use of perennial biomass feedstocks as post-breeding and migratory stopover habitat. | increased production of biomass crops in north america will require new agricultural land, intensify the cultivation of land already under production and introduce new types of biomass crops. assessing the potential biodiversity impacts of novel agricultural systems is fundamental to the maintenance of biodiversity in agricultural landscapes, yet the consequences of expanded biomass production remain unclear. we evaluate the ability of two candidate second generation biomass feedstocks (switchgr ... | 2011 | 21390274 |