DOCSLIB.ORG

AN ANNOTATED CHECKLIST of the BIRDS of ISLA SOCORRO, MEXICO WALTER WEHTJE and HARTMUT S

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
AN ANNOTATED CHECKLIST of the BIRDS of ISLA SOCORRO, MEXICO WALTER WEHTJE and HARTMUT S WESTERN BIRDS Volume 24, Number 1, 1993 AN ANNOTATED CHECKLIST OF THE BIRDS OF ISLA SOCORRO, MEXICO WALTER WEHTJE and HARTMUT S. WALTER, Departmentof Geography,Uni- versity of California, Los Angeles, California 90024-1524 (present addressof Wehtje:Western Foundation of VertebrateZoology, 439 Calle San Pablo,Camarillo, California 93010) RICARDO RODRIGUEZ ESTRELLA, JORGE LLINAS and ARADIT CASTE- LLANOS VERA, Centro de InvestigacionesBio16gicas de Baja California Sur, Apartado Postal 128, La Paz, Baja CaliforniaSur 23000, Mexico In recentyears, ornithologists have devoted increased attention to insular avifaunasand the problemsthey face (Scott et al. 1986). Many island speciesare criticallyendangered and require human intervention in orderto survive.Island species also provide the opportunityto testdiffering ecologi- cal and biogeographicaltheories (MacArthur and Wilson 1967, Jonesand Diamond 1976). However,many remote islandsare not visitedfrequently enoughor for periodslong enoughto provideinformation on population trendsand the lossand/or gain of breedingspecies. Such has been the case for the lslasRevillagigedo of Mexico(Figure 1). The IslasRevillagigedo are a group of four islandslying off the Pacific coastof Mexico. In ascendingorder of sizethey are Roca Partida,Isla San Benedicto, lsla Clari6n, and Isla Socorro. The last is located at 18 ø 47' N, 110 ø 57' W, about 460 km south of Baja California(Figure 2). In the absenceof a goodtopographic map, we estimatethe sizeof IslaSocorro as 110 km2. The maximumelevation of the island,Cerro Evermann,is 1040 m. The flora of the islandhas been describedby Levin and Moran (1989) and consistsof at least 117 native speciesof plants, 30 of which are endemic.There are six principalplant associations(Le6n de la Luz pers. comm.): mixed scrub, dominated by Dodonaea viscosaand Pteridium caudatum(0-700 m), deciduousscrub, dominated by Croton masonii(0- 250 m), sheep-inducedprairie, mainlywith Mitracarpus hirtus, Aristida spp., and Boerhavia spp. (250-400 m), the shore habitats with Conocarpuserecta, woodlandsdominated by Bumelia socorrensis,Ficus cotonifolia, Ilex socorrensis,Guettarda insularis, and Psidium sp. (350- 850 m), and highland prairie, dominated by Castilleja socorrensis, Gnaphalium attenuatum, Heterotoma cordifolia, and Linaria canadensis(850-950 m). Western Birds 24:1-16. 1993 1 BIRDS OF ISLA SOCORRO The mixedscrub, up to 3 m high,covers much of the islandbelow 700 m elevation.Where it is undamaged,this extremelythick brusheffectively restrictsaccess. The vegetationof the southernhalf of the island,however, has been severelydamaged by feral sheep,introduced during the 1860s. We estimatethe presentsheep population at 2000 individuals.The damage causedby sheepranges from inhibitingregrowth in forestat mid-elevations to the completeremoval of vegetationon someslopes and hilltops.Soil erosionis a major problemin severalareas. In additionto sheep,feral domestic cats and housemice are alsopresent on IslaSocorro. The lattertwo speciesare believedto havearrived on the Miles Los Angeles 0 100 200 300 i i i ,I UNITED STATES Kilometers 0 100 200 300 400 I I I I I -30* I$1Jde Guadalupe MEXICO -25* La Paz Tropic of Can Mazatlan ;abo San Lucas PACIFIC OCEAN Islas% Marias ' San Benedicto Roca Partida. Clari6n- Soc•rro I ISLASREVILLAGIGEDO 115' 1•0ø 105' Figure 1. Location of lsla Socorro in the Pacific Ocean to the south of Baja California. BIRDS OF ISLA SOCORRO islandwhen the Mexican navy establisheda basethere in 1958 (Jehl and Parkes 1982). Miraculously,rats have not invadedIsla Socorro. The navybase is locatedon the southernmosttip of the islandand houses closeto 200 military personneland dependents.There is also a landing strip and radar station, constructedon the eastern side of the island in 1978. The only roadson the islandare one connectingthe airstripto the navybase and anotherleading from this main road to the southernplateau region, terminatingat approximately500 m elevation on the southern slope of Cerro Evermann. Previous authors (Jehl and Parkes 1982, Brattstromand Howell 1956) mentioneda temporarylake calledLaguna Escondidaon the southernside of the island.It hasnever been filled during our visits.There are a numberof deep potholesin the canyonsthat contain limitedquantities of fresh water after the rainy season(July-November). Apart from the navy base and a springlocated in the tidal zone at Caleta Grayson,no known permanentsources of water existon the island. 111ø00'W Cabo Middleton ISLA SOCORRO NW NE QUADRANT QUADRANT • RocaO'Neal Cabo Tosca Caleta 18ø45'N Bahia Cornwallis sw QUADRANT •'•':•....{•iLavaFlow O•,'' Bahia ////•Woodland{•' ' ' •kilometer Braithwaite Cabo Rule SE Contours in intervals of 500 feel QUADRANT Figure2. SocorroIsland. The northeast-southwestline partitions the island into the sheep-freenorthern half and the sheep-degradedsouthern half. BIRDS OF ISLA SOCORRO The Revillagigedosbelong to the federalgovernment of Mexicoand are currently administeredby its navy. Access to Isla Socorro is severely restricted because of the lack of facilities for visitors. The absence of roads limitsthe area that can be easilyvisited. Two trailslead to the peak of the islandfrom the end of the mountainroad. Areas affectedby sheepare also fairlyeasily traversed by humans.The ruggedterrain, lava flows, and nearly impenetrablevegetation of the northernside of the islandmake much of the islanddifficult to survey.Because of these conditions,most earlier reports were based upon studiesin severelyaltered habitat. Time con- straintskept mostresearchers in the pastfrom spendingany lengthof time in undisturbedareas. We have been able to explorea larger portion of the islandfor a greaterlength of time, and over differentseasons during the same year. AlthoughIsla Socorrowas first discoveredby the Spanishin 1533, the firstnatural history expeditions to the islandwere madeby AndrewJackson Graysonin 1865 and 1867. Shipwreckedthere for 10 days(19-28 May 1867), he and his sondiscovered and collectedspecimens of all the island's endemicbirds (Grayson 1872). Ornithologicalassessments of other early expeditionscan be foundin Anthony(1898), McLellan(1926), Brattstrom and Howell (1956), and Jehl and Parkes(1982). Interestin the avifaunaof the IslasRevillagigedo has increasedduring the past decade,and severalarticles dealing with these islandshave recently been published(Jehl and Parkes 1982 and 1983, Jehl 1982, Brattstrom 1990, Howell and Webb 1990, Parkes 1990, Santaella and Sada 1991). The last comprehensiveannotated bird list for the archipelagowas that of Jehl and Parkes(1982). Most visits to Isla Socorro have been ship-based,limiting the time observerscan spendashore. As membersof a joint conservationproject of the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), the Centro de InvestigacionesBio16gicas (CIB) in La Paz, and the World WildlifeFund, we visitedthis ruggedisland repeatedly by airplanein April, July, September, November,and December 1988, February,May, and November1990, and August1991, spendinga total of 62 dayson the island.During these visits we improved our understandingof the populationstatus of the resident speciesand other visitors,and observed23 previouslyunrecorded bird species.Here we providean updatedannotated checklist for the avifaunaof Isla Socorro. An asteriskbefore a speciesname specifiesa new record. ANNOTATED SPECIES LIST Pied-billedGrebe (Podilyrnbus podiceps). Brattstrom found a deadspecimen on the beach at Cabo Henslow on 14 November 1971 (Jehl and Parkes 1982). LaysanAlbatross (Diornedea imrnutabilis). Howell and Webb (1990) observedan individualover Cabo Henslow on 16 February 1988. Two birds on 7 May 1990 (Walter)and one on the followingday (Wehtje)were seenflying over the navybase. This speciesis extendingits range, with breedingrecorded on lsla Claribn and lsla Guadalupeand nesting behavior observed on lslaSan Benedicto, 55 km northof lsla Socorro (Howell and Webb 1990). BIRDS OF ISLA SOCORRO Wedge-tailedShearwaters (_Puffinus pacificus) have been observednear Isla Socorro in moderate numbers(10-130) in March, April, May, and November (Anthony1898, Brattstromand Howell 1956, Jehland Parkes 1982, Santaellaand Sada1991). The lackof sightingsin othermonths is probablydue to the absenceof observers.This speciesbreeds on IslaSan Benedicto(Jehl and Parkes1982). Townsend'sShearwater (_Puffinus auricularis). Jehl (1982) is the bestsource for informationon this species,but here we add a few observationsthat confirm and elaborateon hisfindings. Jehl statedthat breedingbirds arrive in Decemberand leave byJune. We spentthe nightof 20 November1990 in a forestedcanyon on the north sideof the islandat 750 m elevationand foundourselves in the midstof a verynoisy shear0vatercolony. This suggeststhat the birdsarrive at leastby mid-November.We capturedand photographedone individualat the mouthof a burrowunder a large boulder.Other birdswere heard insidetheir burrowsduring daylight hours. Most of the burrowswere locatedon steepslopes that were difficultto reach.We alsoheard betweenone and five shearwaterscalling over land on 25 August1991, indicating that this speciesmay visit its breedingcolonies throughout the year. Shearwaters were commonlyseen from shorein numbersof up to a dozenin August. In the eveningof 23 February1990 we foundanother colony, northeast of Cerro Evermannat 500 m elevation,where we estimatedhearing close to 100 birdscalling simultaneously.Because of the impenetrabilityof the vegetation,we were unableto approachit. On 24 FebruaryRodriguez heard a similarnumber
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Preliminary Report Tropical Storm Bud 13 - 17 June 2000
    Preliminary Report Tropical Storm Bud 13 - 17 June 2000 Jack Beven National Hurricane Center 21 July 2000 a. Synoptic history The origins of Bud can be traced to a tropical wave that emerged from the coast of Africa on 22 May. The wave generated little convection as it moved across the Atlantic and Caribbean. The wave moved into the eastern Pacific on 6 June, but showed few signs of organization until 11 June when a broad low pressure area formed a few hundred miles southwest of Acapulco, Mexico. The initial Dvorak intensity estimates were made that day. Further development was slow, as the low exhibited multiple centers for much of 11-12 June. As one center emerged as dominant, the system became a tropical depression near 0600 UTC 13 June about 370 n mi south-southwest of Manzanillo, Mexico (Table 1). The depression became Tropical Storm Bud six hours later as it moved northwestward. Bud reached a peak intensity of 45 kt early on 14 June while turning north-northwestward. The peak intensity was maintained for 12 hr, followed by slow weakening due to a combination of increasing vertical shear and cooler sea surface temperatures. Bud passed just northeast of Socorro Island on 15 June as a 40 kt tropical storm. It weakened to a depression on 16 June as it slowed to an erratic drift about 70 n mi north of Socorro Island. Bud dissipated as a tropical cyclone on 17 June about 90 n mi north-northeast of Socorro Island; however, the remnant broad low persisted until 19 June.
    [Show full text]
  • Whale Shark Rhincodon Typus Populations Along the West Coast of the Gulf of California and Implications for Management
    Vol. 18: 115–128, 2012 ENDANGERED SPECIES RESEARCH Published online August 16 doi: 10.3354/esr00437 Endang Species Res Whale shark Rhincodon typus populations along the west coast of the Gulf of California and implications for management Dení Ramírez-Macías1,2,*, Abraham Vázquez-Haikin3, Ricardo Vázquez-Juárez1 1Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas del Noroeste, Mar Bermejo 195, Col. Playa Palo de Santa Rita, La Paz, Baja California Sur 23096, Mexico 2Tiburón Ballena México de Conciencia México, Manatí 4802, Col. Esperanza III, La Paz, Baja California Sur 23090, Mexico 3Asociación de Pesca Deportiva y Ecoturismo de Bahía de los Ángeles, Domicilio conocido Bahía de los Ángeles, Baja California 22980, Mexico ABSTRACT: We used photo-identification data collected from 2003 through 2009 to estimate pop- ulation structure, site fidelity, abundance, and movements of this species along the west coast of the Gulf of California to make recommendations for effective conservation and management. Of 251 whale sharks identified from 1784 photographs, 129 sharks were identified in Bahía de Los Ángeles and 125 in Bahía de La Paz. Only juveniles (mostly small) were found in these 2 bays. At Isla Espíritu Santo, we identified adult females; at Gorda Banks we identified 15 pregnant females. High re-sighting rates within and across years provided evidence of site fidelity among juvenile sharks in the 2 bays. Though the juveniles were not permanent residents, they used the areas regularly from year to year. A proportion of the juveniles spent days to a month or more in the coastal waters of the 2 bays before leaving, and periods of over a month outside the study areas before entering the bays again.
    [Show full text]
  • Tinamiformes – Falconiformes
    LIST OF THE 2,008 BIRD SPECIES (WITH SCIENTIFIC AND ENGLISH NAMES) KNOWN FROM THE A.O.U. CHECK-LIST AREA. Notes: "(A)" = accidental/casualin A.O.U. area; "(H)" -- recordedin A.O.U. area only from Hawaii; "(I)" = introducedinto A.O.U. area; "(N)" = has not bred in A.O.U. area but occursregularly as nonbreedingvisitor; "?" precedingname = extinct. TINAMIFORMES TINAMIDAE Tinamus major Great Tinamou. Nothocercusbonapartei Highland Tinamou. Crypturellus soui Little Tinamou. Crypturelluscinnamomeus Thicket Tinamou. Crypturellusboucardi Slaty-breastedTinamou. Crypturellus kerriae Choco Tinamou. GAVIIFORMES GAVIIDAE Gavia stellata Red-throated Loon. Gavia arctica Arctic Loon. Gavia pacifica Pacific Loon. Gavia immer Common Loon. Gavia adamsii Yellow-billed Loon. PODICIPEDIFORMES PODICIPEDIDAE Tachybaptusdominicus Least Grebe. Podilymbuspodiceps Pied-billed Grebe. ?Podilymbusgigas Atitlan Grebe. Podicepsauritus Horned Grebe. Podicepsgrisegena Red-neckedGrebe. Podicepsnigricollis Eared Grebe. Aechmophorusoccidentalis Western Grebe. Aechmophorusclarkii Clark's Grebe. PROCELLARIIFORMES DIOMEDEIDAE Thalassarchechlororhynchos Yellow-nosed Albatross. (A) Thalassarchecauta Shy Albatross.(A) Thalassarchemelanophris Black-browed Albatross. (A) Phoebetriapalpebrata Light-mantled Albatross. (A) Diomedea exulans WanderingAlbatross. (A) Phoebastriaimmutabilis Laysan Albatross. Phoebastrianigripes Black-lootedAlbatross. Phoebastriaalbatrus Short-tailedAlbatross. (N) PROCELLARIIDAE Fulmarus glacialis Northern Fulmar. Pterodroma neglecta KermadecPetrel. (A) Pterodroma
    [Show full text]
  • Of Extinct Rebuilding the Socorro Dove Population by Peter Shannon, Rio Grande Zoo Curator of Birds
    B BIO VIEW Curator Notes From the Brink of Extinct Rebuilding the Socorro Dove Population by Peter Shannon, Rio Grande Zoo Curator of Birds In terms of conservation efforts, the Rio Grande Zoo is a rare breed in its own right, using its expertise to preserve and breed species whose numbers have dwindled to almost nothing both in the wild and in captivity. Recently, we took charge of a little over one-tenth of the entire world’s population of Socorro doves which have been officially extinct in the wild since 1978 and are now represented by only 100 genetically pure captive individuals that have been carefully preserved in European institutions. Of these 100 unique birds, 13 of them are now here at RGZ, making us the only holding facility in North America for this species and the beginning of this continent’s population for them. After spending a month in quarantine, the birds arrived safe and sound on November 18 from the Edinburgh and Paignton Zoos in England. Other doves have been kept in private aviaries in California, but have been hybridized with the closely related mourning dove, so are not genetically pure. History and Background Socorro doves were once common on Socorro Island, the largest of the four islands making up the Revillagigedo Archipelago in the East- ern Pacific ocean about 430 miles due west of Manzanillo, Mexico and 290 miles south of the tip of Baja, California. Although the doves were first described by 19th century American naturalist Andrew Jackson Grayson, virtually nothing is known about their breeding behavior in the wild.
    [Show full text]
  • New Records for GASTROPODA Class of Species Found in the Rocky Intertidal Zone of the Marine Priority Region 32, Guerrero, Mexico
    Open Journal of Marine Science, 2014, 4, 221-237 Published Online July 2014 in SciRes. http://www.scirp.org/journal/ojms http://dx.doi.org/10.4236/ojms.2014.43021 New Records for GASTROPODA Class of Species Found in the Rocky Intertidal Zone of the Marine Priority Region 32, Guerrero, Mexico Carmina Torreblanca-Ramírez1, Rafael Flores-Garza2, Jesús Emilio Michel-Morfin3, José Luis Rosas-Acevedo1, Pedro Flores-Rodríguez2, Sergio García-Ibáñez2 1Unidad de Ciencias de Desarrollo Regional, Universidad Autónoma de Guerrero, Acapulco, Mexico 2Laboratorio de Ecología Costera y Sustentabilidad, Unidad Académica de Ecología Marina, Universidad Autónoma de Guerrero, Acapulco, Mexico 3Departamento de Estudios para el Desarrollo Sustentable de Zonas Costeras, Universidad de Guadalajara, Melaque, Mexico Email: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected] Received 15 May 2014; revised 22 June 2014; accepted 3 July 2014 Copyright © 2014 by authors and Scientific Research Publishing Inc. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution International License (CC BY). http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Abstract The GASTROPODA class, one of the best known marine environments, is formed by a large number of species and the shape of their shell structure varies greatly. These mollusks are distributed from the intertidal zone all the way to the abyssal zone, and there are also swimming and floating species. This research was conducted at seven sites, located in the Marina Priority Region 32 (MPR 32), located in the State of Guerrero, Mexico. The aim of this report is to document the scope of the geographic distribution of the 34 species of GASTROPODA class.
    [Show full text]
  • A Description of Mixed-Species Insectivorous Bird Flocks in Western Mexico’
    The Condor 89~282-292 0 The Cooper Omithologml Society 1987 A DESCRIPTION OF MIXED-SPECIES INSECTIVOROUS BIRD FLOCKS IN WESTERN MEXICO’ RICHARD L. HUTTO Department of Zoology, Universityof Montana, Missoula, MT 59812 Abstract. Insectivorousbird flockswere observed in all typesof forestedhabitats during the nonbreedingseason in westernMexico. The speciescomposition of flockschanged markedlyand predictablyamong five categoriesof habitat type. The averagenumber of speciesper flockin lowlandhabitats was 4.7, while a mean of 18.6 speciesparticipated in highlandflocks, ranking the latter amongthe most species-richflocks in the world. The meanproportion of the localinsectivorous species that participatedin mixed-speciesflocks wassignificantly greater in the highlands(6 1.3%)than in the lowlands(24.6%). About half of the flock participantsin both undisturbedlowland and highlandhabitats were north temperatemigrants, ranking west Mexican flocks among the mostmigrant-rich in the world as well. In highlandflocks, the maximum numberof individualsper attendantspecies was generallytwo to three,but therewere often six to twelveindividuals belonging to eachof severalnuclear species. The lowlanddeciduous forest flocks seemed to lack nuclearspecies. Key words: Mixed-speciesflocks; insectivorousbirds; Mexico; migratory birds;pine-oak woodlands;tropical deciduous forests. INTRODUCTION mixed-speciesflocks in 26 sites(Appendix I) that Mixed-speciesinsectivorous bird flockshave been were distributed among various habitats described from temperate and tropical areas throughout western Mexico. The habitat types worldwide (Rand 1954), and are known to occur that I surveyed can be roughly classified (after in practically every habitat type (Powell 1985). Pesman 1962) as belonging to either lowland Although mixed-species flocks are quite com- (tropical deciduous and tropical evergreen) or mon in north temperate regions during the non- highland (oak, pine-oak, and boreal) forests.
    [Show full text]
  • Ecology, Morphology, and Behavior in the New World Wood Warblers
    Ecology, Morphology, and Behavior in the New World Wood Warblers A dissertation presented to the faculty of the College of Arts and Sciences of Ohio University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy Brandan L. Gray August 2019 © 2019 Brandan L. Gray. All Rights Reserved. 2 This dissertation titled Ecology, Morphology, and Behavior in the New World Wood Warblers by BRANDAN L. GRAY has been approved for the Department of Biological Sciences and the College of Arts and Sciences by Donald B. Miles Professor of Biological Sciences Florenz Plassmann Dean, College of Arts and Sciences 3 ABSTRACT GRAY, BRANDAN L., Ph.D., August 2019, Biological Sciences Ecology, Morphology, and Behavior in the New World Wood Warblers Director of Dissertation: Donald B. Miles In a rapidly changing world, species are faced with habitat alteration, changing climate and weather patterns, changing community interactions, novel resources, novel dangers, and a host of other natural and anthropogenic challenges. Conservationists endeavor to understand how changing ecology will impact local populations and local communities so efforts and funds can be allocated to those taxa/ecosystems exhibiting the greatest need. Ecological morphological and functional morphological research form the foundation of our understanding of selection-driven morphological evolution. Studies which identify and describe ecomorphological or functional morphological relationships will improve our fundamental understanding of how taxa respond to ecological selective pressures and will improve our ability to identify and conserve those aspects of nature unable to cope with rapid change. The New World wood warblers (family Parulidae) exhibit extensive taxonomic, behavioral, ecological, and morphological variation.
    [Show full text]
  • Ii \ T MEXICAN GRASSES in the UNITED STATES NATIONAL
    ■ . ~+j-,r?7-w- - i i - . \ t MEXICAN GRASSES IN THE UNITED STATES NATIONAL HERBARIUM. By A. S, Hitchcock INTRODUCTION. The following list of grasses, based entirely upon specimens in the United States National Herbarium, is a preliminary paper, in which the scattered data upon Mexican grasses have been brought together and arranged in a convenient form. The species included have been accepted, for the most part, in their traditional sense. It has been impracticable to examine the types of many of the earlier described species since these specimens are located in European herbaria. For this reason the synonymy has been confined mostly to those names that could be fixed by an examination of American types, or concerning the application of which there was little doubt. The largest number of unidentified names are found in Fournier's work on Mexican grasses.1 This results from the incomplete or unsatis- factory descriptions and from the fact that the specimens cited under a given species either may not agree with the diagnosis, or may belong to two or more species, at least in different herbaria. An examination of the original specimens will undoubtedly lead to the identification of the greater part of these names. There are several specimens that have been omitted from the list because they have not been identified and are apparently unde- scribed species. They belong to genera, however, that are much in need of critical revision and further study of them is deferred for the present. In subsequent articles it is hoped to work out the classifi- cation of the tropical American grasses upon a type basis KEY TO THE GENEBA.
    [Show full text]
  • Aqua Safari and Living Underwater, Cozumel +
    The Private, Exclusive Guide for Serious Divers June 2015 Vol. 30, No. 6 Aqua Safari and Living Underwater, Cozumel Two different dive operators, two different views IN THIS ISSUE: Aqua Safari and Living These days, I get many reader queries about two dive Underwater, Cozumel . 1. destinations in particular -- Raja Ampat and Cozumel. While we periodically cover Raja Ampat, it has been a Your Fellow Divers Need Your while since we’ve written about Cozumel, and because two Reader Reports . 3. of our long-time correspondents were heading there just weeks apart, I decided to run stories with contrasting Dehydration and Diving . 4. views about two different dive operators. I think this can be extremely helpful for divers who have never vis- Could This Diver’s Death Have ited Cozumel, and for those who have, perhaps our writers Been Prevented? . .6 . will offer you new options. Now, go get wet! Little Cayman, Cocos, Palau . 9. -- Ben Davison They Left Without the Dead * * * * * Diver’s Body . 11. Murder of Stuart Cove’s Dock listening for splendid toadfish Manager . 12. Dear Fellow Diver: Rarest Dive Watch Ever? . 13. One of my favorite fish is Cozumel’s endemic splen- Starving Underwater did toadfish, which I look for under low-ceiling recesses Photographers: Part I . 14. on the sand. The vibrant yellow fin borders and gray-, blue- and white-striped body pop out, making its discovery Dive Your Golf Course . 15. a real treat. As a repeat diver with Aqua Safari, I was Bubbles Up . 16. fortunate on this trip to be guided by Mariano, a Yucatan native who has been Bad Night on the Wind Dancer 17 with Aqua Safari for 20 years.
    [Show full text]
  • Radiocarbon Ages of Lacustrine Deposits in Volcanic Sequences of the Lomas Coloradas Area, Socorro Island, Mexico
    Radiocarbon Ages of Lacustrine Deposits in Volcanic Sequences of the Lomas Coloradas Area, Socorro Island, Mexico Item Type Article; text Authors Farmer, Jack D.; Farmer, Maria C.; Berger, Rainer Citation Farmer, J. D., Farmer, M. C., & Berger, R. (1993). Radiocarbon ages of lacustrine deposits in volcanic sequences of the Lomas Coloradas area, Socorro Island, Mexico. Radiocarbon, 35(2), 253-262. DOI 10.1017/S0033822200064924 Publisher Department of Geosciences, The University of Arizona Journal Radiocarbon Rights Copyright © by the Arizona Board of Regents on behalf of the University of Arizona. All rights reserved. Download date 28/09/2021 10:52:25 Item License http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ Version Final published version Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/10150/653375 [RADIOCARBON, VOL. 35, No. 2, 1993, P. 253-262] RADIOCARBON AGES OF LACUSTRINE DEPOSITS IN VOLCANIC SEQUENCES OF THE LOMAS COLORADAS AREA, SOCORRO ISLAND, MEXICO JACK D. FARMERI, MARIA C. FARMER2 and RAINER BERGER3 ABSTRACT. Extensive eruptions of alkalic basalt from low-elevation fissures and vents on the southern flank of the dormant volcano, Cerro Evermann, accompanied the most recent phase of volcanic activity on Socorro Island, and created 14C the Lomas Coloradas, a broad, gently sloping terrain comprising the southern part of the island. We obtained ages of 4690 ± 270 BP (5000-5700 cal BP) and 5040 ± 460 BP (5300-6300 cal BP) from lacustrine deposits that occur within volcanic sequences of the lower Lomas Coloradas. Apparently, the sediments accumulated within a topographic depression between two scoria cones shortly after they formed. The lacustrine environment was destroyed when the cones were breached by headward erosion of adjacent stream drainages.
    [Show full text]
  • The Value of Live Oaks
    The Value of Live Oaks Timothy E. Fulbright, David G. Hewitt, William P. Kuvlesky, Jr., and Thomas M. Langschied © Wyman Meinzer Wildlife Management Bulletin of the Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute Texas A&M University-Kingsville Management Bulletin No. 7 2008 The Value of Live Oaks Timothy E. Fulbright, David G. Hewitt, William P. Kuvlesky, Jr., and Thomas M. Langschied Caesar KIeberg Wildlife Research Institute 700 University Blvd., MSC 218 Texas A&M University-Kingsville, Kingsville, Texas 78363-8202 Abstract: Live oaks are an ecologically important component of the diverse landscape in South Texas. Live oaks are beneficial to wildlife, including many species that are either of economic value or are threatened or endangered. Live oaks provide valuable mast, browse, and cover for white-tailed deer and are an essential component of wild turkey habitat. More than 80% of the 332 species of long-distance North American migrants travel through the Texas Coastal Bend. A reduction in live oak forests potentially could decrease populations of these birds because they are valuable stopover habitats for migrating birds. Live oaks provide nesting habitat for many bird species, some of which have a very limited range in the U.S. Live oak forests should be a high priority for conservation because of their significant role in the ecology of South Texas and their importance for a broad variety of wildlife. INTRODUCTION South Texas. For example, live oak occurs as part of a diverse woody plant complex with mesquite and blue- Live oak forests and mottes are a unique, ecologi- wood in parts of Bee, San Patricio, Goliad, and Refugio cally important, and ancient component of the diverse counties.
    [Show full text]
  • Parque Nacional Revillagigedo
    EVALUATION REPORT Parque Nacional Revillagigedo Location: Revillagigedo Archipelago, Mexico, Eastern Pacific Ocean Blue Park Status: Nominated (2020), Evaluated (2021) MPAtlas.org ID: 68808404 Manager(s): Comisión Nacional de Áreas Naturales Protegidas (CONANP) MAPS 2 1. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA 1.1 Biodiversity Value 4 1.2 Implementation 8 2. AWARD STATUS CRITERIA 2.1 Regulations 11 2.2 Design, Management, and Compliance 13 3. SYSTEM PRIORITIES 3.1 Ecosystem Representation 18 3.2 Ecological Spatial Connectivity 18 SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION: Evidence of MPA Effects 19 Figure 1: Revillagigedo National Park, located 400 km south of Mexico’s Baja peninsula, covers 148,087 km2 and includes 3 zone types – Research (solid blue), Tourism (dotted), and Traditional Use/Naval (lined) – all of which ban all extractive activities. It is partially surrounded by the Deep Mexican Pacific Biosphere Reserve (grey) which protects the water column below 800 m. All 3 zones of the National Park are shown in the same shade of dark blue, reflecting that they all have Regulations Based Classification scores ≤ 3, corresponding with a fully protected status (see Section 2.1 for more information about the regulations associated with these zones). (Source: MPAtlas, Marine Conservation Institute) 2 Figure 2: Three-dimensional map of the Revillagigedo Marine National Park shows the bathymetry around Revillagigedo’s islands. (Source: Comisión Nacional de Áreas Naturales Protegidas, 2018) 3 1.1 Eligibility Criteria: Biodiversity Value (must satisfy at least one) 1.1.1. Includes rare, unique, or representative ecosystems. The Revillagigedo Archipelago is comprised of a variety of unique ecosystems, due in part to its proximity to the convergence of five tectonic plates.
    [Show full text]