Use of decoy traps to protect blueberries from juvenile European starlings

Fruit consumption by large flocks of juvenile European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) is a serious problem for growers of strawberries, grapes, apples, cherries, blueberries, and other small fruit. This study examined if numbers of juvenile European starlings foraging in blueberry orchards could be reduced by catching them in decoy traps and relocating the birds elsewhere. From late July through August of 1989, 620 juvenile starlings were captured in 2 decoy traps at a blueberry orchard in Connecticut. A similar number were caught during the same period in 1990. During these 2 years, numbers of juvenile starlings foraging daily in the orchard dropped from \u3e500 before the traps were opened to \u3c100 afterwards. During 1987 and 1988, when no trapping was conducted, starling numbers at the orchard remained high throughout the summer. Trapped starlings were banded and released unharmed 50–100 km away, and none were seen again at the blueberry orchard. During the 2 years of operation, traps caught only 19 nontarget birds of 6 species; all were released unharmed. Decoy traps were specific for juvenile starlings; no adult starlings were captured. These results indicate that decoy traps can be used in a nonlethal manner to reduce berry losses to flocks of juvenile starlings

Raccoons: Wildlife Damage Management Series

Raccoons (Procyon lotor) are found across the United States largely due to their excellent ability to adapt and take advantage of new habitats. Raccoons, although not native to Utah, are abundant throughout much of the state. They are most commonly found in wooded areas along rivers, marshes or lakes. In urban areas, raccoons will make dens in attics, chimneys, under houses, in abandoned buildings, and in woodpiles

Using wedelia as ground cover on tropical airports to reduce bird activity

aircraft collisions (i.e., bird strikes) are a major problem at airports worldwide, often because birds are attracted to airfields to feed on seeds, insects, or rodents that abound in the grassy areas near runways and taxiways. We compared an alternative ground cover, wedelia (Wedelia trilobata), to existing vegetation (control plots) on the airfield at Lihue Airport, Kauai, Hawaii, to determine if bird populations on the airport could be reduced by eliminating their forage base. We studied wedalia because it is a low-growing plant that did not need mowing, was easily established in plots, and out-competed other plants, resulting in a significant decrease in plant diversity. Thus, wedelia indirectly results in a decreased seed base for granivorous birds. Total invertebrate biomass was 41% lower in wedelia plots than in other vegetation plots (control plots). Rodent populations were 67% lower in wedelia than in control plots. Zebra doves (Geopelia striata), spotted doves (Streptopelia chinensis), and mannikins (Lonchura spp.) used wedelia plots significantly less than control plots, whereas, the lesser Pacific golden-plover (Pluvialis fulva) was unaffected. By reducing seed production, insect densities, and rodant populations, wedalia should be a useful ground cover on tropical airports to reduce bird use and, ultimately, bird strikes on the airport

WEDELIA: A POTENTIAL GROUND COVER FOR REDUCING THE ATTRACTIVENESS OF TROPICAL AIRFIELDS TO BIRDS

Airport environments frequently provide ideal feeding and loafing habitats for many bird species. Bird strikes at most airports involve predominantly insectivorous species. However, the Lihue Airport on the island of Kauai, Hawaii has had a severe problem with bird strikes involving 4 granivorous species: the zebra dove (Geopelia striata), spotted dove (Streptopelia chinensis), chestnut mannikin (Lonchura malacca), and nutmeg mannikin (L. punctulato). Two owl species, the common barn owl (Tyto alba) and Hawaiian short-eared owl (Asio flammeus sandwhichensis), have also been involved in aircraft collisions at Lihue. Shooting and hazing techniques to disperse birds have proven ineffective or unacceptable; therefore, an alternative ground cover, wedelia (Wedelia trilobata), was tested to determine if the airfield environment could be rendered unattractive to birds. Volunteer stands of wedelia throughout the airfield were delineated and additional plantings established. We used bird activity, exclusion of seed-producing plants, rodent abundance, and invertebrate populations as indicators of effectiveness. Utilization of test plots by rodents and the four major seed-eating birds was significantly lower than in the corresponding control plots. The nearly monotypic stands of wedelia resulted in decreased seed availability to birds and rodents. Because of the ease of establishing and maintaining wedelia on airfields, its dominance over palatable seed producing plants, exclusion of rodent populations, low fire hazard, and decreased utilization by critical bird species, wedelia shows great promise as an alternative ground cover in tropical airfield environments

High connectivity among locally adapted populations of a marine fish (Menidia menidia)

Author Posting. © Ecological Society of America, 2010. This article is posted here by permission of Ecological Society of America for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Ecology 91 (2010): 3526–3537, doi:10.1890/09-0548.1.Patterns of connectivity are important in understanding the geographic scale of local adaptation in marine populations. While natural selection can lead to local adaptation, high connectivity can diminish the potential for such adaptation to occur. Connectivity, defined as the exchange of individuals among subpopulations, is presumed to be significant in most marine species due to life histories that include widely dispersive stages. However, evidence of local adaptation in marine species, such the Atlantic silverside, Menidia menidia, raises questions concerning the degree of connectivity. We examined geochemical signatures in the otoliths, or ear bones, of adult Atlantic silversides collected in 11 locations along the northeastern coast of the United States from New Jersey to Maine in 2004 and eight locations in 2005 using laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and isotope ratio monitoring mass spectrometry (irm-MS). These signatures were then compared to baseline signatures of juvenile fish of known origin to determine natal origin of these adult fish. We then estimated migration distances and the degree of mixing from these data. In both years, fish generally had the highest probability of originating from the same location in which they were captured (0.01–0.80), but evidence of mixing throughout the sample area was present. Furthermore, adult M. menidia exhibit highly dispersive behavior with some fish migrating over 700 km. The probability of adult fish returning to natal areas differed between years, with the probability being, on average, 0.2 higher in the second year. These findings demonstrate that marine species with largely open populations are capable of local adaptation despite apparently high gene flow.This work was funded by the National Science Foundation (grant OCE-0425830 to D. O. Conover and grant OCE- 0134998 to S. R. Thorrold) and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation