Thesis (Ph. D.)--Cornell University, 1929. / From Bird-banding, vol. I, no. 4, 1930, and vol. II, no. 1-2, 1931. "Literature cited" at end of each part.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Cornell University, 1929. / From Bird-banding, vol. I, no. 4, 1930, and vol. II, no. 1-2, 1931. "Literature cited" at end of each part.

Thesis (M.S.)--Oregon State University, 1969. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 63-65). Also available on the World Wide Web.

The ability to accurately identify individuals is required for the detailed study of animals. Numerous artificial markers have been developed for this purpose. Negative effects on survival, reproductive success and behavior have been reported for most marking methods, significantly affecting the very parameters being studied. / Birds of prey have suffered the shortcomings of artificial marking methods. In light of the known and potential deleterious effects of marking, attention has been focused on developing new techniques to identify individual raptors without attaching artificial markers. / This study investigated the use of tarsal scale patterns as unique individual identifiers in birds of prey. The American kestrel (Falco sparverius) was chosen as a model. Both legs of seventy-five kestrels were photographed over a two-year period. / Photographic comparisons of 150 scale patterns demonstrated the uniqueness of each and therefore its ability to be used as an individual's natural identifier. Furthermore, patterns were found to remain unchanged from one year to the next. These findings support the hypotheses that tarsal scale patterns are unique to each bird and do not change over time. / A method of coding the tarsal scale patterns was developed. These codes can be used in a computerized data base to significantly enhance the speed of pattern searches.

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No description available.

Black vulture (Coragyps atratus) and turkey vulture (Cathartes aura) roosting dynamics were studied at eight roosts near Radford, Virginia. Black vulture numbers at a permanent roost ranged from low monthly means in June 1982 and 1983 to peak monthly means in December 1981 and 1982. Turkey vulture numbers ranged from low monthly means in July 1982 and 1983 to peaks in December 1981 and 1983. Vultures used two temporary roosts at nearby landfills from March through October in 1983. Vultures marked with cattle eartags were observed moving among roosts. Road counts were poorly correlated (r = 0.39, P = 0.05, r = 0.39, P = 0.12, black vultures and turkey vultures respectively) with roosting vulture numbers, and may not be good indicators of vulture numbers. Long term monitoring of vulture populations is best accomplished by six counts in December, on the same date each year, as vultures leave permanent roosts. Movement of problem roosts may be most effective when accompanied by removal of attractants. Accretion of fecal material on metal leg bands constricted tarsi of black and turkey vultures. Teflon bands did not constrict the tarsus, but tag loss was high. Adult black vultures had longer tarsi and shorter wing chords than juveniles. Two nests were used in 1983 and 1984 by two pairs of black vultures, consisting of one marked and one unmarked bird. / Master of Science