The Use of Saline-soluble Tissue-proteins in Systematic Serology

In recent years the emphasis of taxonomic studies in many animal groups has been at or near the species level, with often little done to clarify the relationships of the higher taxonomic units. This was either because it was felt that these units needed no revision, or that there was not enough new information at hand to warrant any revision. In many cases, groups of genera have been placed in a family simply because of some superficial resemblance

Notes on the Vertebrate-collection in the Department of Biology, Southern Methodist University

Several years ago, it became obvious that any sort of work with vertebrates undertaken at Southern Methodist University would require some sort of permanent collections serving as a basis for study. It was apparent, also, that collections of this sort would be useful in other ways to the community in general: to groups interested in nature study and conservation, to Scout groups, and to other educational organizations. The Dallas Museum of Natural History is an excellent museum from the standpoint of display of larger mammals and birds in their natural habitats, and it also houses a fine study-collection of birds representative of Texas and the Dallas area. As there were available, however, very few amphibian, reptile, and small-mammal specimens for study purposes, we decided to establish permanent collections of amphibians, reptiles, and mammals in the Department of Biology at the University. Those charged with this task felt that a collection of birds would unnecessarily duplicate the work of the staff at the Dallas Museum of Natural History. The present collecting program was begun in the summer of 1954. It has not been carried out on a large scale. Most of the collecting has been done in connection with classes in vertebrate zoology, and by such individuals as were interested enough to spend their free time in collecting and preserving specimens. I am particularly indebted to several former students whose efforts have added many specimens to the collections; Mr. Dilford Carter, Mr. Larry Roberts, and Mr. Warry Williams. The numbers of vertebrate specimens have increased slowly but steadily. At present, the specimens total 1,226, belonging to 47 families and 160 species. Each specimen bears a label that includes date and place of capture, the collector\u27s name, and other pertinent information. Mammal specimens, in most cases, include both skin and skull

Distribution of the Barnacle Chthamalus dalli Pilsbry at Cabrillo Point, Monterey Bay, California

In this work, I tried to learn the vertical distribution of Chthamalus dalli in the Monterey Bay intertidal zone, and its distribution in such areas as receive, or are protected from, wave impact

Observations on a Partially-White English Sparrow, Passer domesticus domesticus

Reports in ornithological literature concerning albino- or partially-white birds are not rare. Few of these reports, however, include details of the actual coloration or of the behavior of such individuals

Weight-Carrying Ability of the Red Bat

On June 14, 1954, I collected a female red bat, Lasiurus borealis borealis (Muller), with two offspring, from a bush on the campus of Southern Methodist University

Relationships of Some Families of the Suborder Passeres (Songbirds) as Indicated by Comparisons of Tissue Proteins

Ornithologists agree that any classification of birds that attempts to reflect relationship and phylogeny presents many uncertainties. This is particularly true in regard to the Order Passeriformes, which includes more living species than all other orders combined, and of which but few fossil forms are known. Within this order the greatest taxonomic problem is posed by those species assigned to the Suborder Passeres (Oscines), the true songbirds. Opinions vary widely as to the relationships of the families in this suborder and, therefore, schemes of classification. This is because these birds form a morphologically homogeneous group, and because their slight anatomical differences have been variously interpreted by different workers. Although studies of physiology, life history, and behavior patterns (in addition to the more conventional studies of morphology) have yielded useful and important data, there remains no clear understanding of the relationships of many groups; and even when data from new and little explored fields are obtained, there will still be arguments in this regard. This fact ought not to discourage, however, the search for other kinds of information that might be of some use in establishing a natural classification. This paper includes the results of a study of the relationships of fifteen oscine families (Table 1) which involves comparison of saline-soluble tissue proteins by serological techniques. This work was made possible by a research grant, NSF-G2904, from the National Science Foundation. Serological techniques have been used in the study of problems of animal relationships (with varying degrees of success) over a period of some 60 years; but not extensively in ornithology. What has been done has been briefly reviewed in an earlier paper (Stallcup, 1954) and is not repeated here