Thesis (M.S.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1976. / Title from title screen (viewed July 7, 2009). Includes bibliographical references (p. 142-144).

Thesis--Wisconsin. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 142-144).

Thesis--Wisconsin. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 100-105).

No description available.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1982. / Typescript. Vita. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.S.)--Oregon State University, 2008. / Printout. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 31-38). Also available on the World Wide Web.

The purpose of this study was to document the occurrence, habitat, and diet of sandhill cranes that breed in coastal British Columbia, a population believed to belong to the subspecies rowani. Specific objectives were to: 1) locate cranes and their nests in selected coastal areas of the central and north coasts (5138’N, 12805’W - 5400’N, 13037’W) and foster observer expertise in conducting aerial crane surveys; 2) describe sandhill crane nest habitat using a range of stand- and site-level characteristics; and, 3) identify diet content of breeding cranes from faecal samples. Helicopter surveys were conducted within 1.5 km of the coastline during May 2007 and 2008. Twenty nest sites were visited in 2008 to collect data on nest habitat characteristics. Satellite imagery was used to measure stand-level and landscape features for 29 nests. Faecal samples were collected at 6 nest and roost sites. During the 2008 survey, 104 cranes and 19 nests were counted over a 430 km2 area (average survey effort = 2.0 km2/min.). Crane nests were located in bog habitat, while cranes frequented bogs, shorelines, and marshes. Nests were in bog pools under 0.5 ha in size with the exception of one that occured in a 1.2 ha beaver-dammed pond (median = 0.10 ha, inter-quartile range (IQR) = 0.037 – 0.17 ha, n = 29), and had median water depth of 56 cm around nest islets (IQR = 49 – 77 cm, n = 21). Bog pools were in forest or woodland bog openings with median distance from the pool edge to the nearest treeline of 46 m (IQR – 24 – 160 m, n = 25) and median forest buffer width of 150 m (IQR = 93 – 260 m, n = 25). Forested habitat may serve as a corridor for cranes with pre-fledged young connecting bog nest and roost sites with shoreline foraging areas. Median distance from nest to shoreline was 400 m (IQR = 200 – 500 m, n = 28). Food items characteristic of faecal samples (n = 138) included mussel (Mytilus edulis), periwinkle (Littorina littorea) and limpet shells, insects, sedge (Carex spp.) and crowberry (Empetrum nigrum), plant remains, and crab remains. Changes in the probability of observing periwinkle and limpet in samples were observed between sites, while the frequency of occurrence of insects differed between time periods and that of sedge, crowberry, and mussels differed between time periods and sites. Sandhill cranes were sparsely distributed on inner and outer coastal islands with bog nesting habitat and sheltered intertidal foraging habitat. / Graduate

Populations of Lesser Sandhill Crane (Grus canadensis canadensis) have been increasing during the last decades in Eastern Siberia, an area historically known as breeding grounds of endangered Siberian Cranes (G. leucogeranus). Significant overlap in niche dimensions between the two species may occur and could lead to competition between them. Therefore, this study of comparative breeding ecology of common Lesser Sandhill Cranes and endangered Siberian Cranes was performed. From late May to early August 2000, I studied Lesser Sandhill and Siberian cranes within a 30,000-ha part of Kytalyk Resource Reserve in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), Russia. My main objective was to compare dispersion patterns and resource use of breeding Lesser Sandhill and Siberian cranes in areas of distribution overlap. Lesser Sandhill Cranes used moderate-wet (polygon) areas as their nest sites and main foraging areas, where terrestrial foods were scattered. In contrast, Siberian Cranes were nesting and foraging on low-basin wet areas, where aquatic foods were concentrated and dominant. Inter-nest distances were less for heterospecific cranes than for conspecific cranes, and more territorial behavior was projected toward conspecifics than toward heterospecifics. Lesser Sandhill Cranes were more mobile and used moderate-wet (polygon) areas more than Siberian Cranes; however, both species spent similar time foraging and being alert. The two crane species used different vegetation types for nesting and foraging, had different time-activity budgets, and used different resources in the Siberian tundra. While the population of Lesser Sandhill Cranes in the study area has the potential to increase, both species may simultaneously share the same geographic area due to differences in ecological requirements.

In this study, I modeled the suitability of habitat on the Mississippi Sandhill Crane National Wildlife Refuge for the federally endangered Mississippi Sandhill Crane (Grus Canadensis pulla). Habitat type and suitability changed over time due to seasonality of vegetation and succession in the absence of burning. Cranes used highly suitable habitat more in the non-growing than in the growing season, and may have been more constrained by resource availability during winter months. Cranes used some less-suitable areas including cypress drains, which provide roosting sites, and supplemental food plots. The mismatch between predicted quality and crane use suggests that no single habitat provides all resources required for the population to persist. Prescribed burning to maintain grassland habitat is essential for maintaining high quality habitat for cranes. The relative availability of food on supplemental food plots and grasslands, as well as the behavior of cranes toward roads, require additional investigation.

A substantial portion of the remaining coastal pine savanna in the southeastern U.S. is burned periodically to maintain habitat for the endangered Mississippi Sandhill Crane (Grus canadensis pulla). However, the effects of this burning on other species of birds are unknown. Therefore, a one-summer study was conducted to determine the short-term response of non-target bird species to changes in vegetation structure due to winter prescribed burning of coastal pine savanna. Eight 25-ha study plots were censused using the spot-mapping technique from May - July 1995 at the Mississippi Sandhill Crane National Wildlife Refuge. More species were observed on old burn sites (burned 1.5 - 3.5 yr prior to the study) than new burn sites (burned the previous winter). Gross vegetation features did not differ between treatments. A total of 17 breeding species were recorded during the study. Although there were no significant differences within individual species' densities, seven species were observed only on old burn sites. Winter prescribed burning affected the presence of only shrub-characteristic species. / Department of Biology