Diversity and Spatial Analysis of Passerine Birds in Relation to Habitat Characteristics of Woods Along the Northern Coast of the Gulf of Mexico.

I studied the ecological diversity and spatial patterns of passerine birds during the springs of 1993, 1994, and 1995 at 3 stopover sites on the Chenier Plains of Louisiana and Texas. A control stand with dense understory vegetation and a reduced stand with modified understory were at each site. Data were collected on the structure and composition of vegetation and on the abundance and location of birds. Species richness, dominance, and diversity indices were computed for both vegetation and birds. Patterns of floristic impoverishment, greater dominance, and greater plant species diversity were found at the reduced stands. Control vegetation did not have greater bird species richness than the reduced stands. Nevertheless, bird species diversity tended to be lower in the reduced plots. This difference was consistent at 2 of the study sites in all 11-week observation periods. Between 30--40% of the bird species considered had dispersion patterns that differed from random. More bird species had clumped patterns on the control stands than at the reduced ones. Therefore, it seems that vegetation composition and structure influenced the spatial use of habitat. A more detailed study of the spatial patterns of 2 target species was carried out with Ripley\u27s K functions. Gray Catbird (Dumetella carolinensis) had clumped patterns at both control and reduced stands in 2 study sites but only in the control stand at the third site; the reduced plot was basically not used there. Hooded Warblers (Wilsonia citrina) had the same pattern at the same stand but a tendency to be more clumped in the control stands at the other 2 sites. A direct link between clumped patterns and specific vegetation characteristics was not found, yet patchiness in birds on the chenier woods seems to result from environmental factors. In short, in this study I present evidence that birds (particularly Neotropical migrants) tend to respond to the overall structure of their spring stopover habitat in the northern coast of the Gulf of Mexico

Get To The “Point”: Improving Location Services in Tippah County Mississippi

Point location using geographic information systems (GIS) technology has become integrated into everyday society and daily decision-making by utilizing addresses to provide goods and services. A need exists at a national, state, and local level for an address database. The objectives of this study were to [1] determine the most suitable address data model to be used in Mississippi, [2] determine how positional accuracy changes between urban and rural areas, and [3] determine spatial variations in aerial imagery. Address data model comparisons were conducted using match rates between street, parcel, and point address models. Positional accuracy was determined for urban and rural areas using GPS points and margin of error. A mean center and standard distance calculation were performed using one standard deviation. [1] The point address data model (93% matched) and parcel data model (93% matched) outperformed the street data model (06%). [2] The results show that 65% of the average mean points fell within 13 feet – 38 feet from the structure. The average distance from mean was 27.87 feet in urban areas and 82.98 feet in rural areas [3] 75% of the total points fell within the margin of error in urban areas and 80% of the total points in rural areas. Match rates were influenced by both the quality of reference and input address datasets. Using an average point location is acceptable for addressing in urban and rural areas. There was no significant shift or change between the 2006 and 2015 imageries. Address collection using the point address data model and high-resolution aerial imagery is an accurate, cost-efficient way to build an address database

The American Academy of Health Behavior 2018 Annual Scientific Meeting: An Equity Approach to Health Behavior Innovations

The American Academy of Health Behavior (AAHB) hosted its 18th Annual Scientific Meeting at the Embassy Suites by Hilton in historic downtown Portland, OR March 4-7, 2018. The meeting’s theme was “An Equity Approach to Health Behavior Innovations.” This publication describes the meeting theme and includes the refereed abstracts presented at the 2018 Annual Scientific Meeting

The American Academy of Health Behavior 2024 Annual Scientific Meeting: Health Communication, (Mis-)Information, and Behavior: Leveraging Technology for Behavioral Interventions and Health Behavior Research

The American Academy of Health Behavior (AAHB) hosted its 24th Annual Scientific Meeting at The DeSoto Hotel in Savannah, Georgia on April 14-17, 2024. The meeting\u27s theme was “Health Communication, (Mis-)Information, and Behavior: Leveraging Technology for Behavioral Interventions and Health Behavior Research . This publication describes the meeting theme and includes the refereed abstracts presented at the 2024 Annual Scientific Meeting

Malaria in Sri Lanka: Current knowledge on transmission and control

Malaria / Disease vectors / Waterborne diseases / Environmental effects / Public health / Economic impact / Social impact / Sri Lanka