The breeding biology of western grebe was studied at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Utah in 1973 and 1974. More than 300 nests were located and data gathered on nesting habitat and success. Western grebe at Bear River selected nest sites for nearness to open water of approximately 30 em in depth. At least one young was hatching in 21 percent of the nests. Avian predation and abandonment of nests following drops in water levels caused the greatest loss of nests. Chlorinated hydrocarbons monitored in western grebes showed DDE, DDD, PCB, 1260, and PCB 1254 levels in 24 breast muscle samples (wet weight) to average 12. 8, 0. 8, 3. 8, and 3. 5 ppm respectively. Contaminant concentration was found to be correlated to the condition of the bird as determined by visceral fat content. A significant (p<. 01) 2. 3 percent decline in western grebe eggshell thickness between preand post-DDT use periods was found. DDE was significantly (p<. 05) negatively correlated with eggshell thickness in western grebe. Contaminants were not linked to any reproductive failure in western grebe at Bear River MBR.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UTAHS/oai:digitalcommons.usu.edu:etd-5411 |
| Date | 01 May 1976 |
| Creators | Lindvall, Mark L. |
| Publisher | DigitalCommons@USU |
| Source Sets | Utah State University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | All Graduate Theses and Dissertations |
| Rights | Copyright for this work is held by the author. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by copyright beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owner. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user. For more information contact Andrew Wesolek (andrew.wesolek@usu.edu). |
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