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United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

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Articles 1261 - 1290 of 1529

Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics

Thamnophis Radix (Plains Garter Snake) Brood Size, Richard M. Engeman, Isabel M. Engeman, Alexander N. Engeman Jul 2002

Thamnophis Radix (Plains Garter Snake) Brood Size, Richard M. Engeman, Isabel M. Engeman, Alexander N. Engeman

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Brood sizes for Thamnophis radix show much geographical variation (Fitch 1985. Misc. Publ. Univ. Kansas Mus. Nat. Hist. 76:l- 76). While brood sizes can range up to 60 (Fitch, up. cit.; Collins 1993. Amphibians and Reptiles in Kansas. Univ. Kansas Mus. Nat. Hist., Lawerence, Kansas, 397 pp.), the brood sizes reported for Colorado have fallen far short of this. Hammerson (1999. Amphibians and Reptiles in Colorado, Second Edition. University Press of Colorado, Niwot, Colorado, 480 pp.) observed brood sizes in Colorado of 16-21 (N = 9), with a mean of 16. Rossman et al. (1996. The Garter Snakes: Evolution and …

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Seasonal Marking Efficacy Of Dupont Oil Blue A Dye On Steam-Rolled Oat Groat Baits For Valley Pocket Gophers, Craig A. Ramey, George H. Matschke, Richard M. Engeman Jul 2002

Seasonal Marking Efficacy Of Dupont Oil Blue A Dye On Steam-Rolled Oat Groat Baits For Valley Pocket Gophers, Craig A. Ramey, George H. Matschke, Richard M. Engeman

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

We examined if Valley pocket gophers (Thomomys bottae) exhibited a seasonal preference for consuming steamed-rolled oat (SRO) groat bait treated with 1.6% Dupont oil blue A (fat-marking dye). Field tests were conducted in California alfalfa fields during winter, summer, and fall, and in walnut orchards during winter and summer. Five treatment units (TUs) were established each with 60 burrows for each season and habitat studied during 1997–1999. SRO groat marker bait (4 g) was placed inside each active burrow. All bait sites were re-opened about 96 h later and examined for the presence (all or some) or absence …

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Safe Efficacy Of Three Strychnine Alkaloid Bait Concentrations For Hand-Baiting Control Of Plains Pocket Gophers, Craig A. Ramey, George H. Matschke, Paul L. Hegdal, Geraldine R. Mccann, Richard M. Engeman Jul 2002

Safe Efficacy Of Three Strychnine Alkaloid Bait Concentrations For Hand-Baiting Control Of Plains Pocket Gophers, Craig A. Ramey, George H. Matschke, Paul L. Hegdal, Geraldine R. Mccann, Richard M. Engeman

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

In November 1990, field efficacy studies using milo baits formulated with 0.35%, 0.75%, or 1.30% strychnine alkaloid were compared to a placebo (0.0% strychnine) for controlling plains pocket gophers (Geomys bursarius) near Pleasanton, Texas. These data were required by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as partial fulfillment for the maintenance of the rodenticide registrations of the US Department of Agriculture. Each of four treatment units (TUs) within a block (2) was randomly assigned one of the four baits. Within each TU, 15 gophers were captured (balanced roughly for gender) and instrumented with radio transmitters. Following a pretreatment …

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Wildlife Damage Management Research Needs: Perceptions Of Scientists, Wildlife Managers, And Stakeholders Of The Usda/Wildlife Services Program, Richard L. Bruggers, Richard Owens, Thomas Hoffman Jul 2002

Wildlife Damage Management Research Needs: Perceptions Of Scientists, Wildlife Managers, And Stakeholders Of The Usda/Wildlife Services Program, Richard L. Bruggers, Richard Owens, Thomas Hoffman

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

This paper presents the results of a nationwide research needs assessment of the important wildlife-human conflict issues and associated research needs of the USDA:APHIS-Wildlife Services (WS) program and its stakeholders. Thirty-six WS State Directors, 23 WS/National Wildlife Research Center (NWRC) scientists and 6 members of the National Wildlife Services Advisory Committee (NWSAC) to the US Secretary of Agriculture responded to a request for participation. This paper compares these current research needs with previous regional and national research needs assessments for wildlife damage management in the United States. Important national problems identified included issues related to aviation, timber, agriculture, aquaculture, and …

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Sustained Evaluation Of The Effectiveness Of Detector Dogs For Locating Brown Tree Snakes In Cargo Outbound From Guam, Richard M. Engeman, Daniel S. Vice, Darryl York, Kenneth S. Gruver Jul 2002

Sustained Evaluation Of The Effectiveness Of Detector Dogs For Locating Brown Tree Snakes In Cargo Outbound From Guam, Richard M. Engeman, Daniel S. Vice, Darryl York, Kenneth S. Gruver

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

The accidental introduction of the brown tree snake (Boiga irregularis) to Guam has resulted in the extirpation of most of the island's native terrestrial vertebrates, has created a health hazard to infants and children, and has resulted in economic losses. The high brown tree snake population densities on Guam, the species' adaptations for successful dispersal, and Guam's position as a focal point for commercial and military cargo shipments have created a high level of concern that brown tree snakes could spread from Guam to colonize other vulnerable locations. Cargo inspections using teams of handlers and their detector dogs …

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Estimating Deer Damage Losses In Cabbage, Richard M. Engeman, Brian K. Maedke, Scott F. Beckerman Jul 2002

Estimating Deer Damage Losses In Cabbage, Richard M. Engeman, Brian K. Maedke, Scott F. Beckerman

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

A standardized procedure for estimating deer damage in cabbage is used to settle claims for compensation of losses in the state of Wisconsin. By completely enumerating all damaged heads of cabbage in a field. We validated the standard procedure for accuracy. The general paradigm used for assessing losses requires a subjective examination of the field to define strata with and without damage, obtaining representative samples of undamaged heads in each strata with 3 quadrants. then converting the difference in density of undamaged heads between strata into an estimate of damage for the entire field. Weighing a sample of undamaged heads …

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Caffeine As A Repellent For Slugs And Snails, Robert G. Hollingsworth, John W. Armstrong, Earl Campbell Jun 2002

Caffeine As A Repellent For Slugs And Snails, Robert G. Hollingsworth, John W. Armstrong, Earl Campbell

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Most commercial products for snail and slug control contain either metaldehyde or methiocarb as the active ingredient, the residues of which are not permitted in food crops in the United States. We have discovered that solutions of caffeine are effective in killing or repelling slugs and snails when applied to foliage or the growing medium of plants. Because caffeine is a natural product and is classified by the US Food and Drug Administration as a GRAS (‘generally recognized as safe’) compound, it has potential as an environmentally acceptable alternative toxicant for the control of slugs and snails on food crops. …

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A Comparison Of Four Rodent Control Methods In Philippine Experimental Rice Fields, Md. Sayed Ahmed, Lynwood A. Fiedler Jun 2002

A Comparison Of Four Rodent Control Methods In Philippine Experimental Rice Fields, Md. Sayed Ahmed, Lynwood A. Fiedler

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Four rodent control techniques-sustained baiting (SB) with coumachlor. pulsed baiting (PB) with brodifacoum. a lethal electrified barrier (LEB), and a nonlethal electrified barrier (NLEB)-were evaluated on the experimental farm of the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in the Philippines. A fifth treatment (no experimental rodent control) was established for reference. Mean tiller damage and rodent activity, respectively. near harvest were 1.00%1 and 1.5% in the LEB plots, 1.6% and 18.0% in the SB plots, 2.1% and 16.0 % in the PB plots, and 4.1% and 32.5% in the NLEB plots. Highest mean tiller damage (9.3%) and rodent activity (56.0%) occurred …

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Methyl Anthranilate Aerosol For Dispersing Birds From The Flight Lines At Homestead Air Reserve Station, Richard M. Engeman, Jeffrey Peterla, Bernice Constantin Jun 2002

Methyl Anthranilate Aerosol For Dispersing Birds From The Flight Lines At Homestead Air Reserve Station, Richard M. Engeman, Jeffrey Peterla, Bernice Constantin

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

The failure of traditional hazing methods to provide a lasting dispersal of birds from the flight lines at Homestead Air Reserve Station, Florida led to trials with Rejex-it® TP-40 methyl anthranilate (MA) formulation as an aerosol. A variety of civil, military and other government aircraft use the base, including combat aircraft which are particularly prone to bird air strikes due to low altitude, high speed flights. Migrating swallows and killdeer congregate at the airfield to forage on insects, and the large numbers of birds cause restrictions in airfield operations because of potential strike hazards with aircraft. MA applied by fogger …

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Aerosolized Essential Oils And Individual Natural Product Compounds As Brown Treesnake Repellents , Larry Clark, John Shivik Jun 2002

Aerosolized Essential Oils And Individual Natural Product Compounds As Brown Treesnake Repellents , Larry Clark, John Shivik

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Chemical irritants useful as repellents for brown treesnakes (Boiga irregularis) were identified. Exposure to various compounds produced a range of intensities for locomotory behavior in snakes. Essential oils comprised of 10 g liter -1 solutions of cedarwood, cinnamon, sage, juniper berry, lavender and rosemary each were potent snake irritants. Brown treesnakes exposed to a 2-s burst of aerosol of these oils exhibited prolonged, violent undirected locomotory behavior. In contrast, exposure to a 10 g liter-1 concentration of ginger oil aerosol caused snakes to locomote, but in a deliberate, directed manner. We also tested specific compounds, all derivative …

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Ornithological Literature, Robert C. Beason Jun 2002

Ornithological Literature, Robert C. Beason

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

BIRDS OF THE SOUTHWEST. By John H. Rappole.

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Reproduction In Captive Wild-Caught Coyotes (Canis Latrans), Jeffrey S. Green, Frederick F. Knowlton, William C. Pitt May 2002

Reproduction In Captive Wild-Caught Coyotes (Canis Latrans), Jeffrey S. Green, Frederick F. Knowlton, William C. Pitt

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

We assessed reproductive patterns of coyotes (Canis latrans) from a 12-year data set involving 24 pairs of captive animals acquired from Latah County, Idaho. None of the females had placental scars (fetal implantation sites) at 1 year of age, but over 80% had placental scars by 2 years of age. The fraction with placental scars remained at 80–90% through age 9 years and then declined to ,40% by age 12 years. Similarly, mean number of placental scars per female rose rapidly through 2–3 years of age, remained stable until age 8 years, and then progressively declined to a …

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Uncertainty Of Exploitation Estimates Made From Tag Returns, L.E. Miranda, R.E. Brock, B.S. Dorr Apr 2002

Uncertainty Of Exploitation Estimates Made From Tag Returns, L.E. Miranda, R.E. Brock, B.S. Dorr

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Over 6,000 crappies Pomoxis spp. were tagged in five water bodies to estimate exploitation rates by anglers. Exploitation rates were computed as the percentage of tags returned after adjustment for three sources of uncertainty: post-release mortality due to the tagging process, tag loss, and the reporting rate of tagged fish. Confidence intervals around exploitation rates were estimated by re-sampling from the probability distributions of tagging mortality, tag loss, and reporting rate. Estimates of exploitation rates ranged from 17% to 54% among the five study systems. Uncertainty around estimates of tagging mortality, tag loss, and reporting resulted in 90% confidence intervals …

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High-Performance Liquid Chromatography-Based Determination Of Nicarbazin Excretion In Waterfowl, Randal S. Stahl, John J. Johnston Mar 2002

High-Performance Liquid Chromatography-Based Determination Of Nicarbazin Excretion In Waterfowl, Randal S. Stahl, John J. Johnston

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

A method for the high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) determination of nicarbazin uptake and excretion in ducks is presented. The method uses few clean-up steps and provides a rapid assessment of nicarbazin excretion by measuring the analyte 4,4’-dinitrocarbanalide (DNC). During method development the effect of extraction volume, number of extractions, mobile phase composition, column temperature, and injection volume were varied to optimize sensitivity and achieve as short a run time as possible. For our purposes, a 2 x 5.0 ml 1:1 dimethyl formamide (DMF):acetonitrile (ACN) extraction injected (40 ml) into an HPLC system equipped with a Keystone octadecylsilyl (ODS) C column …

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Effect Of Roost Harassment On Cormorant Movements And Roosting In The Delta Region Of Mississippi, Mark E. Tobin, D. Tommy King, Brian S. Dorr, Scott J. Werner, David S. Reinhold Feb 2002

Effect Of Roost Harassment On Cormorant Movements And Roosting In The Delta Region Of Mississippi, Mark E. Tobin, D. Tommy King, Brian S. Dorr, Scott J. Werner, David S. Reinhold

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Double-crested Cormorant (Phalacrocorax auritus) predation on Channel Catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) at commercial farms has been estimated to cost the Mississippi aquaculture industry approximately $5 million annually to replace consumed fingerlings. In 1997, catfish producers assumed responsibility for the dispersal of cormorants in night roosts in the eastern (interior) delta region of Mississippi, where catfish farms are concentrated. We documented movements of 50 cormorants marked with radio transmitters in the delta region from January through March 1997. We obtained 161 post-capture day locations and 176 post-capture night roost locations. Cormorants that were harassed at their night roost …

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Ornithological Literature , Robert C. Beason Feb 2002

Ornithological Literature , Robert C. Beason

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Review of BIRDS OF THE TEXAS PANHANDLE. By Kenneth D. Seyffert.

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Distribution, Abundance And Habitat Use Of American White Pelicans In The Delta Region Of Mississippi And Along The Western Gulf Of Mexico Coast, D. Tommy King, Thomas C. Michot Feb 2002

Distribution, Abundance And Habitat Use Of American White Pelicans In The Delta Region Of Mississippi And Along The Western Gulf Of Mexico Coast, D. Tommy King, Thomas C. Michot

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Aerial surveys of American White Pelicans (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos) were conducted over coastal Louisiana and the delta region of Mississippi on 1-2 days during December, February, and April each year from 1997 to 1999. Additional surveys were conducted in coastal Texas and Mexico during January 1998 and 1999. The numbers, location, and habitat of all pelicans observed were recorded. The coastal zone of Louisiana consistently had higher numbers of pelicans (18,000 to 35,000 birds) than other areas surveyed (3,000 to 8,000 birds), indicating that Louisiana may be the most important wintering area for American White Pelicans east of the …

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Ornithological Literature, Robert C. Beason Feb 2002

Ornithological Literature, Robert C. Beason

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

BEHAVIORAL ECOLOGY OF TROPICAL BIRDS. By B. J. M. Stutchbury and E. S. Morton.

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Oral Rabies Vaccination: A National Perspective On Program Development And Implementation, Dennis Slate, Richard B. Chipman, Charles E. Rupprecht, Thomas J. Deliberto Feb 2002

Oral Rabies Vaccination: A National Perspective On Program Development And Implementation, Dennis Slate, Richard B. Chipman, Charles E. Rupprecht, Thomas J. Deliberto

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Persistence of unique rabies virus variants in a diverse array of terrestrial carnivores and insectivorous bats makes rabies control in the US. a complex task The public health system in the U.S. is effective in keeping human deaths near zero each year in the face of enzootic wildlife rabies, but the annual cost of coexistence with the disease is high, exceeding $300 million. In addition, each year tens of thousands of people are impacted by anxiety, fear, and trauma associated with potential or actual rabies exposure to themselves and their domestic animals. Exclusion, proper storage and disposal of garbage, and …

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Have Population Increases Of Large Birds Outpaced Airworthiness Standards For Civil Aircraft?, Richard A. Dolbeer, Paul Eschenfelder Feb 2002

Have Population Increases Of Large Birds Outpaced Airworthiness Standards For Civil Aircraft?, Richard A. Dolbeer, Paul Eschenfelder

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Bird-aircraft collisions (bird strikes) are an increasing safety and economic concern to the USA civil aviation industry, costing over $400 million each year. One approach to reducing risks associated with strikes is to require commercial aircraft components to meet certain standards of safe performance in the event of a bird strike. The Federal Aviation Administration has developed airworthiness standards for airframes, windshields and engines using a single 4-lb (1.82-kg) bird mass as the maximum that must be tested (with the exception of a single 8-lb bird for the empennage, 6-lb bird for certain mid-sized engines that may be developed in …

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Assessment Of Hazards To Non-Native Mongooses (Herpestes Auropunctatus) And Feral Cats (Felis Catus) From The Broadcast Application Of Rodenticide Bait In Native Hawaiian Forests, Peter A. Dunlevy, Earl W. Campbell Iii Feb 2002

Assessment Of Hazards To Non-Native Mongooses (Herpestes Auropunctatus) And Feral Cats (Felis Catus) From The Broadcast Application Of Rodenticide Bait In Native Hawaiian Forests, Peter A. Dunlevy, Earl W. Campbell Iii

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Primary non-target hazard assessment can be separated into two basic components: bait acceptance and toxicity. This bait acceptance study investigates the potential primary non-target hazard (direct consumption of bait pellets) that the broadcast application of rodenticide bait may pose to non-native feral cats and mongooses The study was conducted in 4 different forest habitats in Hawaii using 2 different commercial formulations of placebo bait pellets. We documented vertebrates that came to placebo bait pellets at bait monitoring stations to assess bait acceptance. Bait pellets were monitored at each site using 40 infrared (IR) monitors/data loggers and weatherproof automatic cameras. During …

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Human Poisonings And Rodenticides: Evaluation Of Incidents Reported To The American Association Of Poison Control Centers, John D. Eisemann, Brett E. Petersen Feb 2002

Human Poisonings And Rodenticides: Evaluation Of Incidents Reported To The American Association Of Poison Control Centers, John D. Eisemann, Brett E. Petersen

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Accidental human exposure to pesticide products is a major concern of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). One condition of product re-registration is the submission of product-specific incident report summaries £mm the American Association of Poison Control Centers (AAPCC) Toxic Exposure Surveillance System W S ) . Between 1986 and 1998, the AAPCC received a total of 22,921,827 incident reports from telephone calls and physician reports. The total number of incident report per year more than doubled between 1986 and 1998, with 2,241,082 incidents in 1998. While the total number of incidents increased each year, the reporting per year rate …

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An Earlier Report Of The Exotic Northern Curly-Tailed Lizard In Martin County, Florida, Henry T. Smith, Richard M. Engeman Feb 2002

An Earlier Report Of The Exotic Northern Curly-Tailed Lizard In Martin County, Florida, Henry T. Smith, Richard M. Engeman

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

The Palm Beach County introduction of the exotic northern curly-tailed lizard (Leiocephalus carinatus armouri) was reported to have occurred as a result of 20 pairs released in Palm Beach during the 1940s, with an expanded range of approximately 20 city blocks by 1959 (see reviews in Duellman and Sehwartz 1958, King 1960. Weigl et. al. 1969). By 1968, this population had extended 3.2 km north and 5.6 km south (Weigl et al. 1969). By 1986, the species was common farther south at Woolbright Road and the Intracoastal Waterway in Boynton Beach (Smith and Engeman in press); and later was reported …

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An Extraordinary Raccoon, Procyon Lotor; Density At An Urban Park, Henry T. Smith, Richard M. Engeman Feb 2002

An Extraordinary Raccoon, Procyon Lotor; Density At An Urban Park, Henry T. Smith, Richard M. Engeman

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

We report on a high density Raccoon (Procyon lotor) population at a 70.9 ha urban park in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, where in a five-day period 160 raccoons/km2, and is one of the densest Raccoon populations reported. We discuss the ramifications of high density urban Raccoon populations relative to wildlife disease contagions and endangered species protection.

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Responses Of Blackbirds To Aerial Application Of Flight Control Bird Repellent To Ratoon Rice In Cameron Parish, Louisiana, M L. Avery, J. S. Humphrey, E. A. Tillman Feb 2002

Responses Of Blackbirds To Aerial Application Of Flight Control Bird Repellent To Ratoon Rice In Cameron Parish, Louisiana, M L. Avery, J. S. Humphrey, E. A. Tillman

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Blackbird damage to ripening rice is an economically important problem for many producers in Louisiana and elsewhere. Currently, management options for dealing with this problem are limited and generally ineffective. One possible option is the application of a chemical feeding deterrent. in October 1998, we tested the commercial bird repellent Flight Control, which has anthraquinone as its active repellent ingredient. Blackbird use of a 4-ha plot of ratoon rice treated with Flight Control at a rate of 18.7 L ha-I declined dramatically and birds stayed off the plot for 7 d postspray. These results corroborate those obtained in a similar …

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Habitat Management Approaches For Reducing Wildlife Use Of Airfields, Scott C. Barras, Thomas W. Seamans Feb 2002

Habitat Management Approaches For Reducing Wildlife Use Of Airfields, Scott C. Barras, Thomas W. Seamans

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Wildlife-aircraft collisions (wildlife strikes) pose safety risks to aircraft and cost civil aviation over $390 million annually in the USA We reviewed published studies to summarize findings on habitat management techniques that have shown potential for wildlife strike reduction. Habitat components that may attract wildlife to airports include food, cover, water, and loafing areas. Although maintaining tall herbaceous vegetation on airfields may reduce the attractiveness of loafing and feeding sites for some species of birds such as gulls, this strategy may also increase cover and food resources for other hazardous species. Thus, optimum vegetation height management strategies require further research …

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Vegetation Management Approaches For Reducing Wildlife-Aircraft Collisions, Scott C. Barras, Thomas W. Seamans Feb 2002

Vegetation Management Approaches For Reducing Wildlife-Aircraft Collisions, Scott C. Barras, Thomas W. Seamans

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Wildlife-aircraft collisions (wildlife strikes) pose safety risks to aircraft and cost civil aviation over $390 million annually in the USA. We reviewed the results of prior studies to summarize the vegetation management techniques that have proven effective for wildlife strike reduction or have shown potential for achieving the same goal. Habitat components that may affect wildlife use of airports include food, cover, water, and loafing areas. Improperly managed natural and ornamental vegetation on airports can be important attractants for wildlife that pose strike hazards. However, effective vegetation management can reduce these hazards. Maintaining tall herbaceous vegetation may reduce the availability …

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Dispersing Vulture Roosts On Communication Towers, Michael L. Avery, John S. Humphrey, Eric A. Tillman, Kimberly O. Phares, Jane E. Hatcher Feb 2002

Dispersing Vulture Roosts On Communication Towers, Michael L. Avery, John S. Humphrey, Eric A. Tillman, Kimberly O. Phares, Jane E. Hatcher

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Communication towers provide attractive roost sites for Black (Coragyps atratus) and Turkey vultures (Cathartes aura). The birds’ roosting activity creates problems, however, for tower operators, nearby businesses, and adjacent homeowners. To alleviate these problems, at six sites in northern Florida we evaluated the effectiveness of suspending vulture carcasses or taxidermic effigies from towers to disperse vulture roosts. In each case, vulture numbers decreased immediately after installation of the stimulus, and roosts declined 93-100% within nine days. The effect was independent of the composition of the roost and occurred regardless of which vulture species was used as …

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Birds In Pest Management, M L. Avery Feb 2002

Birds In Pest Management, M L. Avery

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

As human activity encroaches on wildlife habitats and natural food sources become increasingly scarce, it is no wonder that birds turn to habitats such as crop fields and aquaculture ponds. Where else can large flocks of birds find sufficient, nutritious, readily available food? Agricultural crops create ideal foraging sites for gregarious bird species, and virtually everything that humans grow or raise for food is subject to some level of bird damage. For most farmers, bird damage is a fact of life, but not a major concern. The unlucky few producers for whom depredations are severe, however, do incur substantial financial …

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Monk Parakeet Management At Electric Utility Facilities In South Florida, Michael L. Avery, Ellis C. Greiner, James R. Lindsay, James R. Newman, Stephen Pruett-Jones Feb 2002

Monk Parakeet Management At Electric Utility Facilities In South Florida, Michael L. Avery, Ellis C. Greiner, James R. Lindsay, James R. Newman, Stephen Pruett-Jones

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

The monk parakeet (Myiopsiirta monachus) is native to South America but has become established in several locations throughout the United States through purposeful and accidental releases. The species is unique among parrots in that it is not a cavity-nester, but instead it builds a bulky nest structure of sticks. Often, in its native range and in the United States, the parakeet selects a electric utility structure as a nest site. Material from the nest then can cause short-circuits that result in damage to the utility structure and a subsequent power outage. In south Florida monk parakeet damage and …

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