Recent Literature

J. Field Ornithol., 68(3):482-502

RECENT LITERATURE

Edited by Robert C. Beason

RESEARCH TECHNIQUES 1. DNA analysesin avian ecologicalstudies. K. Ishida. 1996.J. YamashinaInst. Orni- thol. 28:51-80. (Japanese,English summary.)--This extensive review of the useof DNA analysesin avian studiesfocuses heavily on North American work, discussesthe tools of DNA analyses,ethical problems,and future possibilities.Ishida identifiesthree major, though in- terrelatedfields of study:molecular phylogeny, molecular genetics, and conservationgenet- ics. He notes that although RFLP of mitochondrial DNA has been the method of choicefor detectingpolymorphism, PCR-directed sequencing technique is becomingcommon and Mi- crosatelliteDNA and MHC are anticipated to become important in the near future. Illustra- tionsborrowed from the North Americanliterature include the sapsucker(Sphyrapicus) poly- morphismwork of Ciceroand Johnson (1995, Auk 112:547-563)and the chickadee(Parus) work of Gill et al. (1993, Evolution47:195-212). While theJapanese text will be of little value to most North American ornithologists,the 5 pagesof literature citations(most in English) are a wonderfulgateway to this excitingfield. Perhapsan Englishtranslation is forthcoming? [Univ. Forestin Chichibu,Univ. of Tokyo,Hinoda-machi, Chichibu, Saitama, 368, Japan.]-- Jerome A. Jackson.

BEHAVIOR

(see also 9, 16, 17, 18, 21, 24, 26, 35, 38) 2. Sentinelbehavior, seasonality, and the structureof bird flocksin a Braziliansavanna. Ornithol. Neotropical7:43-51.--Mixed-species flocks occur in the Braziliansavanna throughout the year,but were most commonin the dry season(March-July). Fruit productionwas highestduring the birds' reproductiveseason, when mixed-speciesflocks were least common. Twenty-fivespecies were observedin mixed-speciesflocks inchiding permanent resident, migratory transientsand seasonallyresident species.Most of the speciesin these flockswere passetines,especially tyrannid flycatchers.The nuclearspecies of the flockswere the White- bandedTanager (Neothraupisfasciata)and the Suiriri Flycatcher(Suiriri suirirO. Four other specieswere commonlyobserved in the flocks:Narrow-billed Woodcreeper (Lepidocolaptes angustirostris),Grassland Sparrow (Myospizahumeralis), Plain-crested Elaenia (Elaenia cris- tara) and House Wren (Troglodytesaedon). Flock compositionvaried seasonally,especially with the arrivaland departtireof migratoryspecies. Male and femaleWhite-banded Tanager served as sentinels,usually one at a time. Participationin a mixed-speciesflock restiltedin the tanagersspending less time on sentinelduty comparedto conspecificflocks. Participation in mixed-speciesflocks did not result in changesof foraging behavior or substrateby the commonspecies. [Dept. de Zoologia,Univ. de Brasilia,70910 Brasfiia,DF, Brasil.]--Robert C. Beason.

3. Female aggressionin the EuropeanStarling during the breedingseason. M. I. Sandell and H. G. Smith. 1997. Anim. Behav.53:13-23.--It has been suggestedthat female-female aggressionis usedby mated femalesto maintain their monogamousstatus. Sandell and Smith examined the intensity of intraspecificcompetition in the European Starling (Sturnus vul- garis) to determine what role it playedin the mating systemof this species.A cagedstarling, either a male or female, was placed near the nest box of an already mated pair during different parts of the breeding cycleand aggressiveresponses were examined.Additionally, in one colony every secondmale receivedan additional nestbox,and the location of the mated male and female relative to the added nest box was examined. Females were most aggressivetoward other femalesand the intra-sexualaggression peaked during the relaying period of the breeding cycle.Furthermore, femalesspent more time near their nest site during the relayingperiod when their mateshad accessto additionalnest boxes than when they did not. Three hypotheseswere advancedthat may explain the intra-sexualfemale aggressionobserved by the authors:defense of resources,defense against brood parasitism, and defense of paternal care, of which the latter was proposed to explain the aggression

482 Vol.68, •o. 3 RecentLiterature [483 observed.It wassuggested that this aggressionis used by female starlingsto maintain monogamy. [EcologyBldg., S-223 62 Lund, Sweden.]--JeffreyP. Duguay. 4. Artificial colour mutation: do red-painted Great Tits experience increased or de- creasedpredation? F. Gotmark and J. Olsson.1997. Anim. Behav.53:83-91.--Although fa- vored by sexual selectionand other processes,the conspicuousbright colorsof many birds are assumedto be disfavoredby increasedpredation. A controversialhypothesis suggests that bright birds are aposematicor unprofitable,by being distasteful,vigilant, or agile. Gotmark and Olssonused live manipulatedGreat Tits (Parus major)to examinehow bright coloration influencesthe risk of predation. During the two yearsof this study 1655 Great Tit nestlings weremanipulated. Nestlings were either painted red (treatment--approximately40% of nestlings in a brood) or painted yellow (control-•approximately60%) on all yellowand white feathers (under parts, cheek, neck patch, wingbandand outermosttail feathers) and were banded with an aluminum band. A metal detector wasused to searchfor bandsin Sparrow- hawk (Accipiternisus) nests and at sitesknown to be frequentedby the hawks.The hypothesis that novel bright mutantsare avoidedby predatorswas not supported,red tits were taken at a higher rate than controls.These findings contrastthose of other studiesusing stuffed mounts with conspicuousbright markings.However, Gotmark and Olsson'sstudy was the first to use manipulated live birds. Possibleexplanations for the disparitybetween their study and that of others are given. [Dept. of Zoology,Univ. of Goteborg, Medicinaregatan18, S-413 90 Goreborg, Sweden.]--JeffreyP. Duguay. 5. Assortivemating in captive cowbirdsis predicted by social experience.T. M. Free- berg. 1996. Anim. Behav. 52:1129-1142. To examine the effects of social experience on assortativemating in adult Brown-headedCowbirds (Molothrus ater), the author housedfour groupsof juvenile male and female cowbirdsfrom a South Dakota population in aviaries either with adultsfrom the samepopulation or with adultsfrom an Indiana population.The South Dakota and Indiana populationsof cowbirdsare different subspeciesand the com- municativecultures of the two populationsare distinct.During both yearsof the study,both malesand femalespaired with unfamiliarbirds of the samecultural backgroundmost often, 71.4% in year 1 and 86.2% in year 2. Additionally,during year 2 77.3% of the observed copulationswere betweenbirds of the same cultural background.Freeberg concludes that social experience predicts assortativepairing and mating in cowbirds. [Dept. of Biology, Indiana Univ.,Jordan Hall, Bloomington,IN 47405, USA.I--Jeffrey P. Duguay. 6. Temporary male removal increasesextra-pair paternity in Eastern Bluebirds. E. A. Macdougall-Shackleton,R.J. Robertson,and P.T. Boag.1996. Anim. Behav.52:1177-1183.- The authorsconducted a male removal experiment to determine if male absenceincreases extra-pairpaternity in EasternBluebirds (Sialia sialis).Eleven experimental and 14 comparison familieswere studiedduring the summersof 1992 and 1993. DNA analysisof youngand putativeparents revealed that malesthat had been detainedfor two daysduring their mate's fertile period were more likely to be cuckolded than control males. Three potential explanationsfor the greaterfrequencies of extra-pairyoung in experimentalnests were advanced. (1) The mate replacementhypothesis suggests females whose mates were detainedmay have been behavingas if widowed or deserted;(2) the mate guarding hypothesisproposes that femaleswhose mates were removed may have been freed from the constraintsthat being guardedplaces upon their mating decisions;and (3) the supplementalcopulation hypothesis in whichremoved males have a reducedopportunity to dilute and devaluerival sperm.[Dept. of Ecologyand EvolutionaryBiology, Princeton Univ., Princeton,NJ 08544, U.S.A.]--Jeffrey P. Duguay. 7. Males on guard:paternity defences in Violet-greenSwallows and Tree Swallows.B. A. Beasley.1996. Anim. Behav.52:1211-1224.--Violet-green Swallows (Tachycineta thalassina) and Tree Swallows(T. bicolor)are both secondarycavity nesters and both forage on aerial insectsaway from their nests.Beasley wanted to determine if the paternity-defensestrategies of thesetwo congerswere similar.It wasrevealed that male Violet-greenSwallows used mate guardingas a paternitydefense, whereas male Tree Swallowsused frequent within-pair cop- ulations. Additionally, the author conducted male and female removal experiments to examine ecologicalfactors that alter the trade-off between guarding mates versusnests and 484] RecentLiterature J.Field Ornithol. Summer 1997 thereby determine the use of alternativepaternity defenses.Removal experiments suggested that male Violet-greenSwallows compete for femalesdirectly. Detained maleshad a low risk of nest usurpationand a high risk of cuckoldry.Male Tree Swallows,in contrast,were found to compete for resourcesrequired by females.Removed male Tree Swallowssuffered high risksof both nest lossand paternity loss.Female removalsconfirmed this. Detained female Tree Swallowswere replaced by unmated female floaters, but detained female Violet-green Swallowswere not. It was concluded that differences in paternity defense between Violet- green Swallowsand Tree Swallowsdepends on different availabilitiesof nest sitesand mates. [BarnfieldMarine Station,Barnfield, British Columbia, Canada V0R 1B0.]--JeffreyP. Duguay. 8. Gargle vocalizationsof Black-cappedChickadees: test of repertoire and video stim- uli. M. C. Baker,T. T. Tracy,and L. E. Miyasato.1996. Anim. Behav.52:1171-1175.--Fifteen captiveBlack-capped Chickadees (Parus atricapillus)were tested usingvideo imaging and garglevocalizations to determine if threat is communicatedby the gargle repertoire. Birds were testedusing video imagesof a gargling Black-cappedChickadee or no bird paired with different gargle repertoire sizes.The responseof test birds to the video of a stimulusbird with three gargle typeswas significantly more aversivethan the responseto both three gargle typeswithout a stimulusbird and a stimulusbird alone. The authors conclude that Black- cappedChickadees find the presenceof a potentialrival that is garglingwith multiple gargle typesto be more threatening than one using a single-garglerepertoire. [BiologyDept., Col- orado State Univ., Fort Collins,CO 80523, U.S.A.]--Jeffrey P. Duguay.

FOOD AND FEEDING

(see also 4, 38) 9. A northern population of Willow Tits (Parus montanus)did not store more food than southern ones. A. Brodin, K. Lahti, L. Lens and J. Suhonen. 1996. Ornis Fennica 73: 114-118.--For many speciesof birds over-winteringin colder climates,energy stored either in the form of body fat or food cachingprovides birds with the reservesnecessary to survive through the cold winter months. Birds living in higher latitudeswith longer colder winters would be expectedto hoard food at a greater rate than conspecificsliving further south. The geographicdistribution of Willow Tits makes them well suited to a studyto determine if food hoarding intensitiesdiffer between populationsin different climatic zones. Obser- vationswere conductedon 93 birds from three different climatic regions.Observation periods were broken into 60 s time frames during which the number of food items eaten and stored were recorded. It was expected that individualsin the northern climes, where the winterstend to be harsher,would hoard food at a greater intensitythan conspecificsto the south. However, it was found that tits in the central region hoarded food more intensely than the populationsto the N and S. This reflectssimilar findings in a comparablestudy of CrestedTits (P. cristatus)in which hoarding intensitieswere found to be the greatestin the population occupyingthe central part of the range. The authorssuggest that the observed differencesin hoarding intensityin the Willow Tits could be attributedto the overallsupply of storable food items encountered. Willow Tits in the central study area were observedto have encountered food at a higher rate than did those in either the north or south. The eating intensitieswere similar in all studyareas, leading the authorsto concludethat eating intensityis closelylinked with hoarding,with individualsstoring food only after theyfulfilled their maintenancerequirement. First year birds (subordinates)in the north were observed to hoard food at a higher intensitycompared to adultsin the samearea. Interestingly,this phenomenon was not observedin central and southern populations.While the causefor this behaviorwas not determined, the authorsthought that foraging at a higher intensity may be more energeticallydemanding. Subordinates such as the first year birds have secondary accessto food and have higher mortality during the wintersin the colder areas.Thus, the subordinatemembers of the populationmay have to workharder to build up an adequate food supplyto last them through the winter months. [Dept. of Zoology,Stockholm Univ., S-10691 Stockholm, Sweden.]--Sue Bennett. 10. Food choice by seed-eatingbirds in relation to seed chemistry.M. Diaz. 1996. Comp. Biochem. Physiol. 113A:239-246.--This is a review paper in which the author ex- Vol.68, No. 3 RecentLiterature [485 amines the effectsof nutrients and energy content of seedsand the presenceof secondary compoundson food choiceby granivorousbirds. Seedselection by birds appearsto depend more on seed size and the ability of the bird to digest it than on the nutritional or energy valueit contains.Small birds take more energy-richseeds, but only small-sizedseeds because of mechanicalconstraints (i.e., a smallbill), but larger birds preferentiallytook larger seeds without selectingfor nutritionalvalue. Seeds that are avoidedcontain toxic compoundssuch as tanninsand especiallyalkaloids. Seeds from Malvaceae,Convolvulaceae, Rubiaceae and mostLeguminosae are rarelyor nevereaten becauseof the amountof secondarycompounds they contain. Most of the data on seed choice in birds is circumstantial.There is a need for manipulativestudies (in addition to observationalstudies) on seed choice using wild seeds rather than cultivatedgrains and on a varietyof species.Questions that remain unanswered include whether switchingbetween granivorous and insectivorousdiets is facultativeor based on nutritional needs. [Dept. de Biolog/aAnimal I, Facultadde Biolog/a,Univ. Complutense de Madrid, E-28040,Madrid, Spain.E-mail: [email protected].]--Robert C. Bea- son.

11. Nestlingfood of the Great, Coal, Willow and CrestedTits in the subalpineLarici- Cembretumof the Upper Engadine,Switzerland. [Die Nestlingsnahrungvon Kohl-,Tannen-, Alpen- und Haubenmeisenim LSrchen-Arvenwolddes Engadins.]H. Mattes,J. Tumbrinck and M. Fischbacher.1996. Ornithol. Beob. 93:293-324. (German, English summary)---The nestlingfood of Great (Parus major),Coal (Pater), Willow (P montannus)and CrestedTits (P cristatus)was studiedin the Upper EngadineValley using neck ligatureson the young from 1982-1992. The greatestsimilarity was between Coal and Willow Tits;which mostlytook bugs (Sternorrhyncha)and spiders,but flies (Diptera) were also important. An important component of CrestedTit nestling diet was beetles,especially weevils (Otiorhynchus). Great Tits showed the greatest difference in diet from the other species,offering their young beetlesand moths and objectsthat resemblethem suchas seedsand soil.Consequently, this specieshad a high nestlingmortality rate. Caterpillarswere lessimportant in the dietsof the Engadine tits than in those of the lowlands.The size of food items fed to nestling was dependenton what wasavailable. The small tits had a large overlapin prey sizes,but were different from the Great Tit. tinst. ffir Landschafts6kologie,Robert Koch-Str.26, D-48149 Mfinster, Switzerland. I--Robert C. Beason.

12. Predation at intermountain west fish hatcheries. W. C. Pitt and M. R. Conoven 1996.J. Wildl. Manage.60:616-624.--In an attemptto assessthe impactsof avianpredation on fish at hatcheries,the authors surveyedhatchery managersand conductedfield obser- vations.Both stateand private hatcherymanagers in Utah, Wyoming,and Idaho were ques- tioned regardingfish predatorsand annual productionlosses. From May 1993 to September 1994, surveyswere conductedat two state-ownedUtah hatcheries.During 24-hour observation periods, the authors recorded speciespresent, the amount of time spent foraging, foraging behavior of individuals,and the number of predated or wounded fish. The estimated annual fish lossresulting from avian predation was calculated.Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias),Black-crowned Night Heron (Nycticorax nycticorax), California Gull ( Larus califor- nicus),Caspian Tern (Sternacaspia), Osprey (Pandion haliaetus), and BeltedKingfisher (Me- gacerylealcyon) preyed upon hatcheryfish. Lossesfrom mammalianpredators, which fed primarily on dead fish, were lessthan those from birds. Avian predation lossesaccounted for 7.1% and 0.5% of totalproduction at the twotested hatcheries, resulting in annuallosses of $40,469and $1971,respectively. When surveyed,hatchery managers had estimated15% annual lossesattributable to avian depredation. Becausebirds were reluctant to forage near people or buildings,the authorssuggest that hatcheriesencourage visitors and locate ex- pensiveor vulnerablefish near buildingsor areaswith high human activity.Although effec- tive, netting exclosuresare costly,especially to small private hatcheries.[Berryman Inst., Dept. of Fisheriesand Wildlife, Utah State Univ., Logan, UT 84322, USA.]--Sherry Meyer. 15. Diet compositionand prey size of the Great Cormorant (Phalacrocoraxcarbo nero'/s)wintering in riversand gravel-pitsof centralSpain. [Composici6n de la dietay tamafio de presadel cormoran grande (Phalacrocoraxcarbo sinensis) durante su inviernadaen rios y graverasdel centro de Espafia.]G. Blanco,F. Gomez,andJ. Morato. 1995.Ardeola 42:125- 131. (Spanish,English summary.)--With increasingnumbers of breeding Great Cormorants 486] RecentLiterature J.Field Ornithol. Summer 1997 in Europe, wintering populationsin Spain have also increased.Blanco et al. studied a wintering populationsoutheast of Madrid and collectedprey remainsand regurgitatedpellets beneathroost sites in poplars(Populus alba) and tamarisk( Tamarixgallica), October-March 1993-94. Number of birds using the roost averagedbetween 83 (in March) and 460 (in December).Carp ( Cyprinuscarpio) constituted 64.7% of preyindividuals identified from 107 pelletsand were found in 64.5% of the pellets;they alsoconstituted 87% of the 139 regur- gitatedfishes recovered. Pellets also included Barbus spp. (16.5% of prey;20.6% of pellets) and blackbullheads (Ictalurus melas (5% of prey;4.7% of pellets),and thesetaxa constituted 9.3 and 3.7% of regurgitatedfish. Other fish prey were unidentified. [Dept. de Biologia Animal, Univ. de Alcala de Henares,E-28871, Madrid, Spain.]--JeromeA. Jackson. 14. Foragingbehavioural ecology of the SuperbLyrebird. A. Lill. 1996. Corella 20:77- 87.--The Superb Lyrebird (Menura novaehollandiae),restricted to moist forestsof south- easternAustralia, is vulnerablebecause it nestsand forageson the ground, hasa low repro- ductiverate, and is a poor flyer.The authorreports on a studyof food availabilityand forging behavioraimed at determining how lyrebirdsexploit their soil invertebratefood resources, how food availabilityis relatedto the initiatingof breeding,and to provideinformation useful for the conservationof the species.Foraging behavior observationswere made on birds in the SherbrookeForest Park, Victoria, population, someof which were color-banded.A number of foraging parameterswere recorded (e.g., prey capture rate, digging bout duration, digging rate), defecationintervals were timed, faecescollected and energy densitiesdeter- mined, and the soil invertebratefauna wasextensively sampled and identified to the taxo- nomic level of order. A wealth of data are presentedin a seriesof tables.Invertebrate biomass and densityshowed substantial clumping and temporalvariation. Male and femaleLyrebirds had similar time-activitybudgets, and representativeforaging routes for six males and six femalesare presenteddiagrammatically. Lyrebirds appear to exhibit low selectivityamong prey which would be expectedof birdsthat utilize concealed,spatially patchy resources, and may find food by trial-and-errorsearching (as suggestedby highly variabledigging bout durationsand prey capturerates). Their low defecationrate and mean faecalenergy density suggestthat lyrebirdsare efficient in energy assimilationand have a slowgut passagerate. The data suggestthat maximizingfood availabilityfor fledglingsmay influence the time of initiation of breeding.Lyrebirds have large territoriesthat accommodatetheir energetically costlyforaging for a patchyand slowrenewing food resource,and thus may be particularly vulnerableto effectsof forestfragmentation. This is a paper loadedwith foragingdata about a vulnerableand fascinatingbird, but it leavesmany questions partially answered and should produce heuristiceffects. [Dept. of Ecologyand EvolutionaryBiology and Psychology,Mon- tash Univ., Clayton,Victoria 3168 Australia.]--William E. Davis,Jr. 15. The effect of predator presenceon body massin captive Greenfinches.K. Lillien- dahl. 1997. Anim. Behav. 53:75--81.--The size of fat reserves in birds has been viewed as a trade-off between redation risksand starvation.Lilliendahl exposedtwo separateflocks of captiveGreenfinches ( Carduelischloris) to either two rotating plasticbottles suspended from strings (control) or a rotating stuffed Sparrowhawk(Accipiter nisus) and a plasticbottle (treatment) to examine the relationship between body mass of finches and the level of predation risk. The rotating device was set up such that a cardboard box hid one object (bottle or hawk) from the finches. In this way, it seemed as though the hawk suddenly appearedduring the trial. Birds exposedto the Sparrowhawktook significantlymore time to resumefeeding than when exposedto bottlesonly, indicating that the hawkwas perceived as a threat. Additionally,the increasedpredation risk resultedin a reductionin body mass of the finches,supporting the idea that an elevatedbody massis costly.[Dept. of Zoology, StockholmUniv., S-10691 Stockholm,Sweden.]--Jeffrey P. Duguay.

SONGS AND VOCALIZATIONS

(see also 8, 45, 46) 16. Responseof American Redstarts(suborder Passeri) and Least Flycatchers(suborder Tyranni) to heterospecificplayback: the role of song in aggressiveinteractions and interference competition. P. R. Martin, J. R. Fotheringham, L. Ratcliffe, and R. J. Robertson. Vol.68, No. 3 RecentLiterature [487

1996.Behav. Ecol. Sociobiol.39:227-235.--Interspecific response to songin distantlyrelated competitorbird speciesis consideredrare and occursonly in speciesthat engagein inter- specificaggression. Least Flycatchers(Empidonax minimus) and American Redstarts(Seto- phaga ruticilla) are distantlyrelated avian taxa but showsimilarities in their morphologies relatedto food acquisitionand foragingbehavior, and thusengage each other in competitive interference interactions.Here, the authorsexamined the role of songin interspecificag- gressionbetween Least Flycatchers and AmericanRedstarts using playback tapes during one breedingseason in Ontario. LeastFlycatchers were dominantin all interactionswith redstarts and respondedto redstartsong by aggressivelyapproaching the sourceof the songwhich in turn facilitatedvisual location and subsequentattack of a redstartin the flycatcher'sterritory. Redstartsrepsonded to flycatchersong in their territoryby decreasingthe frequencyof their flights and song rates. The authors suggestthat reduced redstart song and flight in the presenceof flycatchersserves as a defensivebehavior, and they presentobservational data that suggestthat flycatcherswere dependent on redstart flight for visualrecognition of red- startsprior to attacking them. The resultsof this study clearly demonstratethat Least Fly- catchersand American Redstartsare able to recognize each other's songs (which are ex- tremely different from each other) and respond to them in a specificway. The specific responsesof both speciesto each other'ssongs suggest that heterospecificsong recognition in thiscase is an adaptivebehavior rather than misplacedintraspecific aggression. [Montana CooperativeWildlife ResearchUnit, Univ. of Montana, Missoula,MT 59812, USA.]--Danny J. Ingold. 17. Songbehaviour and reproductivestrategies in a duettingwren, Thryothorusnig•q- capilium.I. Removalexperiments. R. N. Levin. 1996. Anim. Behav.52:1093-1106.--Mate removalexperiments were conductedon five malesand five femalesfrom 10 pairsof BayWrens ( Thryothorusnigricapillus) to determineif vocalduetting functions in pair bond maintenance and/or territory defensein this species.Neither males nor femaleschanged their song phraserepertoire when singingwith a new mate. Additionally,duet precisiondid not change followinga mate change.These resultsindicate that duettingdoes not functionin pair bond maintenancein the BayWren. Mate removaldid not resultin lossof territory.All 10 birds whosemates were removed successfullydefended their territories, suggestingthat duetting does not function in joint territorial defense in the this species.It was suggestedthat unpaired males use song to attract females.This is supportedby an increasedsong rate of greater than 4-fold when males were unpaired following removal of their mate. It alsowas suggestedthat malesmay participatein duetsto accessand/or investin a mate in someway. The function of duetting by malesin establishedpairs remainsunclear. [Dept. of Biology, PomonaCollege, Claremont, CA 91711, USA.]--JeffreyP. Duguay.

NESTING AND REPRODUCTION (see also 3, 5, 6, 7, 11, 28, 33, 40, 42, 44) 18. Parental care in the European Starling, Sturnusvulgar•,, nestlingprovisioning. M. I. Sandell, H. G. Smith and M. Bruun. 1996. Behav. Ecol. Sociobiol. 39:301-309.--The amount of energymale birds investin offspringis determined in large part by their mating status.In polygynousspecies, the extent to which malesfeed nestlingsfrom different nests is highlyvariable. The wayin whichpolygynous males divide their nesteffort betweenprimary and secondarynests has a profound influence on the evolutionof polygynyin birds.In this study,the authorsexamined EuropeanStarlings during three breedingseasons in southern Swedento determine how males assistwith feeding nestlingsin relation to their mating status,and to analyzethe effect of parental care on reproductivesuccess. Polygynous males fed nestlingsas much asmonogamous males, but theydivided their effortsdisproportionately among broods.Polygynous males predominately fed the nestlingsof their primary female, and they apparentlyused the amount of time that lapsedbetween the onsetof the primary and secondarynest as a cue to determine how much to investin secondarynests. Polygynous males proportioned their investmentbetween primary and secondarynests more equally during incubation than during nestlingfeeding, a trend also shownin the Pied Flycatcher (Ficedulahypoleuca). A negativerelationship was detected between male and female feeding frequencyat polygynousnests demonstrating that femalescompensated for reducedhelp by 488] RecentLiterature J.Field Ornithol. Summer 1997 increasing their feeding rate; however,this compensationwas incomplete since the total feedingfrequency at primary and secondarynests was lower than that at monogamousnests. These data strengthenthe idea that in many instancespolygyny decreases female fitnessas a result of reducedmale supportin feeding nestlings.In contrastto Belgianpopulations of European Starlings,secondary female starlingsof polygynousmales in this studywere unable to settleand initiate nestingasynchronously in relation to the primary female, and were thus unable to significantlyreduce the costsassociated with their mating status.[Dept. of Animal Ecology,Lund Univ., S-22362 Lund, Sweden.]--DannyJ. Ingold. 19. Paternal expenditure is related to brood sex ratio in polygynousGreat Reed War- biers. I. Nishiumi, S. Yamagishi,H. Maekawa,and C. Shimoda.1996. Behav.Ecol. Sociobiol. 211-217.--Trivetsand otherspredicted that in poly•gynous animals in whichthere isvariation in the reproductivesuccess among adultsinfluenced by parental investment,parents should invest a greater proportion of their energy in male offspring versusfemale offspring. Al- though this theory has been supportedby severalstudies, it has often been difficult to dis- tinguishwhether differencesin offspringinvestment result from sex differencesin the de- mand of offspringrelated to sexualsize dimorphism (i.e., male offspringmay be more vig- orously), or whether differencesare truly a consequenceof parental manipulation.The authorsof this studyaddress this questionby examining the relationshipbetween parental feeding ratio, sex-broodratio, and brood size in Great Reed Warblers (Acrocephalusarun- dinaceus)during three breeding seasonsin centralJapan. Young warblerswere sexedusing the polymorphicmicrosatellite loci located on the Z chromosome.A significantpositive correlation between male parental expenditure and sex brood ratio, independent of an increasein nestling food demandsassociated with sex size dimorphism,was detected.Con- versely,maternal feeding frequencieswere not related to either brood size or brood sex ratio. Female feeding frequencieswere also independent of male feeding frequenciesand brood status(e.g., monogamy or polygyny).These data seemto demonstratethat male Great Reed Warblers preferentially invest more energy in their sonsversus their daughters.The authorsdiscuss a varietyof hypothesesthat addressthe difference betweenmale and female feeding patterns in Reed Warblers and the trade-off in males between parental effort and mating effort. Basedon their findings, the authors suggestthat sex-biasedprovisioning may occurin speciesin whichpaternal feeding does not differentiallyaffect the survivalof chicks of either sex. [Dept. of Zoology,National ScienceMuseum, 3-23-1 Hyakunin-cho, Shinjuku- ku, Tokyo 169,Japan.]--DannyJ. Ingold. 20. Seasonaltrends in observationsof raptorsin the centralSwedish mountains. A. A. Smith. 1996. Ornis Svecica6:123-126.--Predation is a primary causeof mortality in most Lagopidgrouse populations, however relatively little researchhas been conductedregarding the effectsof predationon the Lagopidpopulation and predator abundance,largely because of the inhospitableterrain and severeclimatic conditions associated with Lagopidbreeding and winteringgrounds. Surveys conducted between May 1993 and August1995 revealedthat raptorswere more likely to be observedduring the 4 summermonths than in the 8 winter months.No raptorswere observedin Novemberor Decemberof anyyear. The generaltrend wasof high raptor abundancein spring and late summer,followed by few sightingsin winter when the raptorsmigrated away from the mountain areas.Late winter (February) sightings were believedto be mostlymigrant or dispersingjuvenile birds. The absenceof sightingsin June andJuly was postulated to reflectchanges in the energeticrequirements of adultraptors as they hunted closerto the nest (awayfrom the studyarea) to feed young.The increasein observationsin late summer is probablydue to the influx of fledged young. This is the time when young grouseare fledging, leading to increasedrisk of predation of grouseof all age classes.The author cautionsthat resultsfrom non-systematicobservations such as this are greatly influenced by severalinimical factorsmaking betweenyear differencesdifficult to interpret. [EdwardGrey Inst., Dept. of Zoology,South Parks Road, Oxford OXI 3PS,U.K.]-- Sue Bennett. 21. Hatching asynchronyand survival of insuranceoffspring in an obligate brood reducing species,the American White Pelican. R. M. Evans.1996. Behav.Ecol. Sociobiol.39: 203-209.--Brood reduction in most avian speciesis facultativeand is consideredto be an adaptation that resultsin the demise of last-hatchedoffspring during yearswhen food is Vol.68, •o. • RecentLiterature [489 particularlyscarce. White Pelicans(Pelecanus erythrohynchos) lay a clutchof two eggsand are an obligatebrood reducingspecies (species in which over 90% of broodsare reduced) in whichbrood reductionoccurs independent of variationsin food supplies.In this study,the author examined White Pelicansduring two breeding seasonsin Manitoba to test the hy- pothesisthat the B-chick(last-hatched chick) contributesto parentalfitness by servingas a potential replacementfor failed A-offspring (first-hatchedchicks). This "insurancehypothesis" predictsa high probabilityof B-chicksurvival only up to a point in which A-chick offspringare most likely to fail. Only one of 94 unmanipulatedtwo-egg broods and one of 84 manipulatedtwo-egg broods (1.1% combined) producedtwo fledged chicks;B-chick mortality was primarily the result of starvationassociated with harassmentbrought on by the older chick.A-chick mortality occurred at 13.5% of unmanipulatednests where the A-egg hatched.The massof A-chicksat thesenests was not significantlyaffected by hatchingasyn- chronyat any point during the nestlingphase. One-week weights of B-chicksthat died within the next three dayswere significantlylower than the weightsof thosethat survivedbeyond this period. Hatching asynchrony(0-4 daysin White Pelicans)had a profound effect on B-chicksurvival, with mortalityoccuring at a significantlyyounger age as hatching asynchrony increased.These data support the common notion that size differenceswithin a brood re- suitingfrom hatchingasynchrony result in the competitivedemise of the last-hatchednest- lings.The failure of hatchedA-chicks to survivewas most notable during the first 5-7 days post hatch. It wasduring this period that a robustmean B-chicksurvival of over 80% (when expressedas daysafter hatching of the A-chick) also occurred;however, this initial period of concomitantsurvival was followed by a rapid drop in B-chicksurvival relative to the day that the A-chickhatched. These data supportthe "insurancehypothesis" in thisspecies since brood reductionwas timed to insurethe survivalof B-chicksduring the first 5-7 dayspost hatch to be availableto replace failed A-eggsor chicks.The author suggeststhat it is uncer- tain whether hatching asynchronyin White Pelicansis an adaptation that resultedfrom selection pressuresto achieve this result and discussessome possiblealternative selection pressures.[Dept. of Zoology,Univ. of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB R3T 2N2, Canada.l--Danny J. Ingold. 22. Reproductivesuccess of grasslandbirds at east-centralIHinois airports. E. L. Kershner and E. Bollinger. 1996. Am. Midi. Nat. 136:358-366.--The authorssurveyed seven grasslands surrounding small- to medium-sizedairports (3 ha to 1200 ha) in order to determine the nest density,reproductive success and the effectsof moving on grassland-nestingbirds from mid-April to mid-August.One-hundred and forty-seventotal nestswere found, the majority of which (71%) were from EasternMeadowlarks (Sturnella magna). Other nestingspecies includedGrasshopper Sparrows (Ammodramus savannarum; 8.2 %), SavannahSparrows (Pas- serculussandwichensic, 8.2 %), and Red-wingedBlackbirds (Agelaius phoeniceus; 7.5 %). Overall nestdensity for all airportswas 0.79 nests/ha;nest density was 0.56 nests/hafor meadowlarks and 0.06 nests/ha for both Grasshopperand SavannahSparrows. Overall nest densityand nest successdeclined as mowing height decreasedand mowingfrequency increased; mowing resultedin 44% of all nest failureswhile nest predation wasa distantsecond (23%). Nest successcombined for all specieswas 14%, ranging from 6% in Red-wingedBlackbirds to 100% in Horned Larks (Eremophiliaalpestris). Eastern Meadowlarks had a nestsuccess rate of 14%. Averagepopulation densities for grasslandbirds were generallyhigh (1.16 meadowlarks/ha; 1.14 GrasshopperSparrows/ha; 1.91 SavannahSparrows/ha) suggestingthat these specieswere attracted to airport grasslands.However, the overall nest successfor all species(14%) waseven lower than what is consideredtypical for grasslandbirds (25-55%), and the authorssuggest that theseand other airport grasslandsmay be ecologicaltraps. The reasoningis that airport grasslandsare often fairly large and thusattract a varietyof grassland- nestingbirds; however, numerous confounding factors (e.g., mowingand other disturbances) preventsuccessful nesting efforts such that theseareas are reallypopulation sinks rather than sources.Since F.A.A. regulations stipulate that vegetationaround runwaysshould not reach heightsthat create ",•4]d]ifehabitat," the authorsrecommend that for small to meduim-sized rural airports,grassland birds be discouragedfrom nestingthere in the firstplace. Although this might seemcounterproductive, birds wouldbe forced to seekother nestinghabitat that should lead to greater reproductivesuccess. An increasedmowing regime could be used to 490] RecentLiterature J.Field Ornithol. Summer 1997 discouragebirds from initiating nest attemptsat airports. [Dept. of Animal Sciences,Univ. of Illinois, Urbana, IL 61801, USA.]--DannyJ. Ingold. 23. Utilization of artificial floatingobjects as nest platforms by Little Grebesand Eur- asian Coots in Lake Teganuma, Central Japan. T. Hiraoka. 1996.J. YamashinaInst. Ornithol. 28:108-112.--Three Little Grebe (Podicepsruficollis) and 2 EurasianCoot (Fulica atra) nests were found atop floating objectswithin standsof natural vegetation.The objectsranged from a natural log, to a polystyrenefoam board, to wooden boards,to an old automobile tire. At least 2 of the grebe nestsappeared successful and one of the coot nestsmay have been successful.The potential for developmentof artificial nest platformsfor these species is suggested.Eurasian Coots are known to use artificial nest platformsin the westernPale- arctic. [YamashinaInstitute for Ornithology,115 Konoyama,Abiko, Chiba Pref., 270-11Ja- pan.]--Jerome A. Jackson. 24. Dispersion, size and orientation of bowers of the Great Bowerbird Chlamydera nuchalis(Ptilonorhynchidae) in TownsvilleCity, tropical Queensland.C. B. Frith, D. W. Frith, andJ. Wieneke. 1996. Corella 20:45-55.--The Great Bowerbirdis the largestof the 19 species of bowerbirds,in 16 of which malesclear and decoratedisplay courts and constructbowers of sticks--externalizedsecondary male sex characteristics.Great Bowerbirdsconstruct an 'avenue' bower, usuallyof two parallel rows of upright sticks.Typically there is a display platform at each end of the avenuewith one platform more profuselydecorated with an assortmentof snail shells, bones, flowers, etc. This paper is a preliminary report on an intensivestudy of 54 of 80 Great Bowerbird bowersin TownsvilleCity. Variationsin bower size, structure, and orientation were examined and compared to reports in the literature with a primary goal of stimulatingfurther studyof avenue-buildingbowerbirds. Subjective assessmentsof bowergeometric and decorationqualities supplemented direct measurements, and the authorsfound, for example, that larger bowerswere generallyof higher geometric and constructionquality and better decorated.About two-thirdsof the avenueswere oriented within 45ø of a NNW-SSEaxis which would providedmaximum sunlightexposure for morning displayon the southern displayplatform, and for afternoon displayon the northern platform. Red decorationsare predominatelyplaced on the E sideof the avenuewhere they would receive maximum light in the morning when most displayingoccurs. This paper presentsa fascinatingarray of detailed observationand inferencesabout Great Bowerbirdbow- ers and behavior,and thorough comparisonswith the literature. It should have its desired heuristiceffect and be of interest to studentsof arian mating systemsand evolution. ['Prion- odura', P.O. Box 581, Malanda, Queensland4885, Australia.] --William E. Davis,Jr. 25. Observationson colour-bandedRegent HoneyeatersXanthomyza phrygia. A.J. Ley, D. L. Oliver, and B. Williams. 1996. Corella 20:88-92.--The biology--especiallythe movements--of the endangeredRegent Honeyeateris poorly known, which makesconservation and recoverystrategies problematical. From 1991-1995, 46 Regent Honeyeaterswere banded in northern New SouthWales, Australia. The authorspresent a preliminaryreport on sightings of the marked birds and the new information that the sightingsprovide. Two birds banded the sameday in April, 1995, were observednesting in November,one 42 km away, the other at the banding site. One bird banded in November, 1993, after nesting, was observed nesting again at the banding site two years later. These observationssuggest some degree of breeding site fidelity, and other sightingssuggest some level of regional fidelity throughout the year.At least two pairs nested twice in a single seasonat the same location, indicating monogamyand site fidelity at least through a single breeding season.Observed local movementsalso indicate the use of a wide range of habitatsand suggeststhat conservation effortsmay need to focuson more thanjust localizedbreeding sites. The sex of 15 marked birds was establishedby observingnesting behavior,and confirmed that males are larger than femalesin all body measurements.This studyemphasizes the enormousadvan- tage of having individually marked birds in avian studies.[19 LynchesRoad, Armidale, NSW 2350, Australia.]-•William E. Davis,Jr. 26. Nest-siteselection in SavannahSparrows: using gulls as scarecrows?N. T. Wheel- wright,J. j. Lawler, and J. H. Weinstein.1997. Anim. Behav.53:197-208.--Although there may be substantialrisks involved, birds often nest near predators.Two explanationsfor this Vol.68, No. 3 RecentLiterature [491 behaviorhave been advanced:(1) Birds•nay be constrainedin acquiringsafer nests and are thus forced to nest near predators.(2) The benefitsof nestingnear predatorsoutweigh the costs.To evaluatepossible advantages and disadvantagesof nesting near predators,the authors compared the behavior and reproductive successof SavannahSparrows (Passerculus sandwichensis)nesting in the presenceof Herring Gulls (Larus argentams).A marked, known population of SavannahSparrows in which reproductivesuccess and heritabilityof behavior could be estimatedover an eight year period wasused. This studywas conducted on Kent Island in the Bay of Fundy,New Brunswick,Canada. With no mammalianpredators on this island,Herring Gulls and AmericanCrows (Corvus brachyrhynchos) are the mostimportant predators,with crowsbeing more efficient than gulls.Crow and Herring Gull modelswere presentedto nestingSavannah Sparrows and the sparrow'sbehavior was monitored. Female sparrowsperceived the modelsas a threat. Additionally,they were able to distinguishpred- ators and consideredcrows a greater threat than gulls.Nesting gulls alsowere exposedto crowmodels. Gulls responded aggressively to crowmodels, often (62.5% of the time) making physicalcontact with the crow model. Overall, the number of sparrownests was negatively correlated (P = 0.02) with gull density.However, sparrows nesting near gullsreproduced as successfullyor better than sparrowsthat avoided gulls. Given that SavannahSparrows are able to distinguishbetween the two predatorsand that nestingnear gullsconferred a repro- ductiveadvantage to nestingsparrows, why did they tend to avoidgulls? The authorssuggest that the heritable trait to nest near gulls is low and the strength of directional selection favoringit relativelyweak. It is suggestedthat the decisionto nest near a predator requires overcominginnate and adaptivefears and that the short-livedSavannah Sparrow (2 years) may have insufficienttime to learn that "the enemyof one's enemyis one's friend". [Dept. of Biology,Bowdoin College, Brunswick, ME 04011, USA.I--Jeffrey P. Duguay. 27. Nest predation:the relativeeffects of nestcharacteristics, clutch size and parental behaviour.W. Cresswell.1997. Anim. Behav.53:93-103.--The effectof parentalnesting behavior on the probabilityof nest predation wasexamined by comparingthe failure rate of 145 natural Blackbird (Turdus merula) nestswith parental care with that of the samenests with artificial clutchesbut without parental care during the 1995 breeding seasonin Edin- burgh, Scotland.Mortality ratesfor experimentaland natural nestsdid not differ significantly during either the egg or chick stage.The chick stagefor experimentalnests contained eggs, but wasthe sameduration as the chick stagefor natural nestswith nestlings.The probability of nest failure for natural nestswas independent of its physicalcharacteristics when Black- birdswere present.However, when Blackbirdswere absentfrom the samenests, the probability of nest failure was determined by its detectabilityand height. Cresswellprovides an argumentfor lowerpredation rates on natural nestsbeing due to nestdefense by the parental birds. Those interestedin studyingvegetation characteristics associated with successfuland predated nestswould do well to read this paper. [Applied Ornithology Unit, Graham Kerr Bldg.,Div. of Environmental& EvolutionaryBiology, IBLS, GlasgowUniv., Glasgow G12 8QO• U.K.]--Jeffrey P. Duguay.

MIGRATION, ORIENTATION, AND HOMING (see 37, 39, 49)

HABITAT USE AND TERRITORIALITY

(see also 16, 22, 29, 30) 28. Territorial and breedingbehaviour of the Rufous Treecreeper(Climacteris rufa) in the Stirling Ranges,Western Australia. A.M. Rose. 1996. Cotella 20:55-61.--This is the first studyof the breedingbiology of the RufousTrcccrccpcr. The studytook place in open wandoo (Eucalyptuswandoo) woodland in Stirling RangeNational Park. Forty-oneindividuals wcrc banded during this 3.5 year study,including 26 which wcrc color-banded.The author reportsa wealth of natural historyinformation about RufousTrcccrccpcrs, particularly about territorial and nestingbehavior. Five trcccrccpcrterritories, several of which had subordinate adult males, averagednearly 8 ha. Of 9 young birds banded none rclnaincd in its natal territory and only two remained nearby,suggesting a pattern of emigration.Most pairspro- duccd two broodsfrom Augustto January and one produced three. Femalesdid mostof the 492] RecentLiterature J.Field Ornithol. Summer 1997 nest building (hollowsin live or dead limbs or trunks) and helpers and juveniles did not assist.Only the female incubatedbut malesfed incubatingfemales. Incubation lasted 17 days and young fledged in 28. The author suggeststhat the requirement of hollowsfor nesting and roostingmay be a limiting factor in the species'distribution and may partially account for its precipitousdecline in the severelyfragmented wandoo forests of the wheatbelt region of WesternAustralia. This studydemonstrates the importanceof establishinga color-banded studypopulation, and providesimportant natural history information about this endangered species.[Dept. of Conservationand Land Management,Locked Bag 104, BentleyDelivery Centre, Bently,WA 6983, Australia.] William E. Davis,Jr.

ECOLOGY

(see also 1, 32, 33, 34) 29. Effects of landscapematrix and habitat structure on a bird communityin northern Finland:a multi-scaleapproach. J. Jokim/•keand E. Huhta. 1996. Ornis Fennica73:97-113.-- Increasingdevelopment and the resulting fragmentationof habitat has a substantialimpact on habitat structure and selection for birds. The majority of forest fragmentation studies have been conductedin agriculturaland heavilymanaged landscapes and have largelycon- centratedon patch size,shape and degree of isolation.However, results of such studiesmay have limited applicabilityin the contextof looking at an entire landscapesuch as a forested area. The objectiveof this studywas to attempt to determinethe effectsof scale,i.e., landscape matrix as opposed to local habitat, and its importance to bird-habitat relationships. Three different scaleswere analyzed:large-scale matrix (4 km2), small-scalematrix (4 ha), and within local habitat (<0.79 ha). The analysiscorrelated bird speciesrichness and abundance, and/or ecologicalgroupings to scale,landscape matrix and habitat structureto determine the significanceof and overall relationshipbetween birds and their environment. Forestfragmentation and edge amount were found to have a positiverelationship with man- aged forest species,edge speciesand habitat generalists.However, a negativerelationship wasfound between edge amountsand virgin forest speciesand hole-nesters.Both the landscapematrix and habitat componentswere found to be important for managedforest species, with the landscapematrix being of greater importance.At the habitat level, both the struc- tural and floristic componentswere equally important to managedforest species.Among migratoryspecies habitat componentswere found to be more important than landscape matrix. In observinghabitat generalistsspecies, it wasconcluded that thesebirds benefited most from deciduousforests, whereas virgin forestspecies benefited more from a mixed-tree speciescomposition. The authors concludedthat birds respond to the environmentindivid- ually and the responseis scaledependent. Species composition and abundancewere dependent on large scalefactors other than the individual'simmediate habitat. [Arctic Centre, Univ. of Lapland, P.O. Box 122, FIN-96101 Rovaniemi, Finland.]--Sue Bennett.

POPULATION DYNAMICS

(see also 20, 47) 30. Distribution and abundanceof Hazel Grouse in Hokkaido, Japan, basedon ques- tionnaire.Y. Fujimaki and H. Konishi. 1996.J. YamashinaInst. Ornithol. 28:81-91. (Japanese, Englishsummary and figure and table captions.)--This studyof the distributionand abundance of Bonasa bonasiais based on 1561 responsesfrom 1912 questionnairesthat were distributed--an enviable responserate. Although questionson the questionnaireare not provided in English,from the summaryand tablesit is clear that respondentswere asked about eggs,nests, chicks, and adults, habitat in which the birds were found, and relatively preciselocation as to where the birds were found. It is alsoclear that the questionnairesdid not go specificallyto biologistsor individualswho could identify one bird from another.The authorsreport that averageclutch and brood sizesreported were much smaller than those known for the speciesand suggestthat somereports may havebeen ofNightjar (Caprimulgus indicus)or Woodcock(Scolopax rusticola) eggs or young. Given this sourceof probableerror, the authors still consideredthe data obtained "fairly reliable." Most nestsand eggswere found in May and June. Clutch sizesranged from 2-11; brood sizesfrom 1-10. Birdskilled Vol.68, 2•o. • RecentLiterature [493 by hunters included 532 males and 340 females or sex unknown. Habitats were coniferous or deciduousbroad-leaf forest or larch plantationand were at altitudesbetween 200 and 800 m. [Laboratory of Wildlife Ecology,Obhiro Univ. of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Inada, Obihiro, 080, Japan.I--Jerome A. Jackson.

31. A report on eight yearsof bandingrehabilitated birds. S. Smith. 1996. Corella 20: 20-25.--Since 1985 rehabilitated native birds, including injured and hand-raisedorphaned birds, havebeen banded prior to releaseby the WA Native Bird Hospital (WesternAustralia). The author reportson recoveriesthrough June, 1993. A total of 3578 birds of 124 species were banded and 125 birds of 25 specieswere recovered.Seven birds were recoveredtwice, and the longest recovery distance was 1323 km for a Nankeen Night Heron (Nycticorax caledonicus).Nearly half of the recoverieswere within three monthsof release,but 15 birds were recovered1-2 yrs later. An AustralianMagpie (Gymnorhinatibicen) was recovered 6 yrs after release,a SingingHoneyeater (Lichenostomus virescens) after 6 yrsand 9 mo. In general, the speciesmost frequentlybanded were the mostfrequently recovered. The studyprovides evidencethat rehabilitationis at leastpartially successful. The 3.5% recoveryrate is substan- tially smallerthan the 9% rate for all Australianbirds over a 19 year period, but the time frame for possiblerecovery was only 8.5 yrs for the rehabilitated birds and no comparison on a speciesby speciesbasis was made. [WA Native Bird Hospital Inc., P.O. Box 232, Mun- daring,WA 6073, Australia.]--WilliamE. Davis,Jr.

32. Survival, movementsand habitat use of Aplomado Falconsreleased in southern Texas.C.J. Perez,P.J. Zwank,and D. W. Smith. 1996.J. Raptor Res.30:175-182.---A former breeder in parts of southernArizona, New Mexico, and Texas,the AplomadoFalcon (Falco femoralis)was last documentednesting within the U.S. in 1952. Habitat lossand pesticide contaminationare the probable causesfor the decline of this endangeredspecies. In an effort to reintroduce thesefalcons to their historic range, hatching year birds were released at LagunaAtascosa National Wildlife Refuge in southernTexas during 1993 and 1994. A total of 38 birds were releasedover the two year period. Of these,14 individuals(11 males, 3 females) were radiotaggedto monitor their survival,movements, and habitat use. The releasedfalcons experienced a 24% mortalityrate, possiblycaused by predation.Falcons traveledan averagedaily linear distanceof 34---5 km. At about 75 daysfollowing release, they began to consistentlyuse specificforaging and roostingsites. Roost sites were located in honey mesquite(Prosopis glandulosa), huisache (Acacia smallii) and trecul yucca (Yucca treculeana),frequently on the edgeof open areas.Roosting habitats contained a mean density of 3.6 woodyplants/ha and were approximately46% vegetated.Falcons often foragedin habitatscontaining honey mesquite,sea oxeye (Borrichiatrutescens), prickly-pear (Opuntia lindheimeri),or trecul yucca.Foraging sites contained a mean densityof 2.6 woodyplants/ha and wereapproximately 60% vegetated.Foraging sites were typically located within 2 km of roostinglocations. [New Mexico Coop. Fish and Wildlife ResearchUnit, New Mexico State Univ., Las Cruces,NM 88003, USA.I--Sherry Meyer.

33. A bandingstudy of Cincinnatiarea Great Horned Owls.J. B. Holt, Jr. 1996.J. Raptor Res. 30:194-197.--From 1964 to 1992, Great-hornedOwl (Bubo vir•inianus) nests were located and chicks were banded within a 80 km radius of Cincinnati, Ohio. Of the 1570 nestlingsbanded over the courseof the study,151 bandswere recovered.Forty-two percent werefrom owlsfound dead, 10% werefrom owlscaught in traps,9.3% werefrom roadkilled owls, 6.6% were from shot owls, and the remainder were recovered from live birds or were of tincertainoutcome. Forty-three percent of nestingattempts were locatedin old Red-tailed Hawk (Buteojamaicensis)nests, while another43% werein snagsor cavities.Artificial nesting platformswere usedin 10% of the nestingattempts. Pairs often utilizedthe sameterritory for twoor moreyears. On average,47% of pairsnested successfully, 15% failed, and 38% of pairsdid not attemptto nest.The averageclutch contained 2 young(64%), althoughbroods of 1 (31%) and 3 (5%) alsooccurred. The mean productivityfor successfulnests was 1.7 young.Exceptionally high productivityduring 1970was correlated with a peakin rat populations. [853 JohnsonSt., North Andover,MA 01845-5513,USA. I--Sherry Meyer. 494] RecentLiterature J.Field Ornithol. Summer 1997

ZOOGEOGRAPHY AND DISTRIBUTION

(see also 48, 50) 34. Avian abundancein sun and shade coffee plantationsand remnant pine forest in the Cordillera Central, Dominican Republic.J. M. Wunderle, Jr., and S.C. Latta. 1996. Or- nithol. Neortropical 7:19-34.--Becauseof the large area in the Neotropicsthat is devoted to coffee cultivation, conversionfrom traditional shade coffee plantations to sun coffee is expectedto have significanteffects on the avianspecies diversity. The authorssampled the three forest types,expecting the greatestdiversity in the pine forestwhich is the moststruc- rurally and floristicallydiverse habitat and leastin the sun coffee plantationswhich are the simplesthabitats. There were significantlymore birdsin the pine forestand the shadecoffee than in the sun coffee.The differencewas attributed to permanent residentspecies being more abundant in pine and shade coffee. In contrast,Nearctic-Neotropic migrants were more common in sun coffee. Twenty-fourof the 41 speciesrecorded showedsignificant differencesin distribution: 12 were most common in pine, 6 in sun coffee, and 6 in shade coffee.The native pine forest had more specialistswith 9 speciesfound only in pine forest, 3 speciesin shadecoffee, and only 1 specieswas limited to sun coffee.The estimatedspecies richnesswas much higher in the pine forestthan either type of coffee.Nectivores were more commonin shadecoffee (67% of the individuals)than sun coffee (25%) or pine forest (25%). Fruit and seed eaters were most common in sun coffee (48% of the individuals;26% for pine and 3% for shade coffee). Insectivorousbirds were more common in pine forest (49%) than in shadecoffee (30%) or suncoffee (27%). The authorsconclude that although sun coffee plantationsmay increasea regions' biodiversityby attracting brushland species, these speciesare not the ones most likely to be threatened with habitat loss.The greatest contributionto the biodiversityof an area is from the pine forestfragments and shadecoffee plantationsbecause they providehabitat for forestspecies. [Dept. of BiologicalSciences, 110 Tucker Hall, Univ. of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, USA.]--Robert C. Beason.

SYSTEMATICS AND PALEONTOLOGY

(see 1)

EVOLUTION AND GENETICS

(see also 19, 21, 40) 35. Sexual ornamentation, condition, and immune defence in the House SparrowPass- er domesticus.A. P. Moller, R. T. Kimball, and J. Erritzoe. 1996. Behav. Ecol. Sociobiol. 39: 317-322.--Malc secondarysexual characteristics serve as a reliable indicator of a male's health and thusmay alsoreflect a male'sability to copewith parasitesand parasiticinfection. One version of this postulate, the immunocompetencehandicap hypothesis,assumes that the ability of malesto signalfemales is inhibited by the negativeeffects of androgenssuch that they may have to choosetheir levelof signalingshort of what wouldbe optimalin sexual selection.Since relativelylittle emperical information existson the relationshipbetween sexual ornamentation and any measureof immune response,the authors addressedthe followingquestions in 70 male HouseSparrows: (a) is the sizeof the bursaof Fabricius(a region of the cloacathat playsa central role in antibodyproduction in youngbirds) nega- tivelyrelated to badgesize and the level of testosteroneproduction, and (b) is the sizeof the bursarelated to the health of male sparrowsand their current levelsof parasiticinfection. The bursabecame significantly smaller during the first year of life in male House Sparrows and no differencein bursasize was detected between males and females.A significantneg- ative correlationwas detected between badge size and bursavolume (P = 0.005), suchthat maleswith larger badges(and presumbablyhealthier) had smallerbursae. Conversely, badge asymmetry,which could also be an indicator of general condition, was not correlated with bursasize. Relative testis volume and relativebursa volume were not significantlyrelated, but directional asymmetryin testissize (another correlate of badge size) and bursa size were positivelyrelated. Sparrowsin poor conditionmight be expectedto havemore fault barson their feathers.If this is the case,individuals with more fault bars might alsobe expectedto have larger bursa.Indeed the authorsfound a significantpositive correlation between bursa Vol.6a, No. 5 RecentLiterature [495 volumeand the number of fault bars.Fluctuating wing and tarsusasymmetry, on the other hand, did not serve as indicatorsof bursa size. These data generally support the immuno- suppressionhypothesis since they showthat male HouseSparrows with larger badgeshave lowerlevels of immune responsecompared to maleswith smallerbadges, and that healthier males,generally those lacking fault bars,had a relativelysmaller bursa of Fabricus.[Labor- atoire d'Ecologie,CNRS URA 258, Univ. Pierre et Marie Curie, Bat. A, 7eme etage,7 quai St. Bernard, Case237, F-75252 Paris Cedex 5, France.]--DannyJ. Ingold.

PHYSIOLOGY AND DEVELOPMENT

(see also 15, 39) 36. Relationshipof basalto summitmetabolic rate in passerinebirds and the aerobic capacitymodel for the evolutionof endothermy.M. S. Dutenhofferand D. L. Swanson.1996. Physiol.Zool. 69:1232-1254.--Basalmetabolism (BMR) is primarilya functionof the metab- olismof internal organs,while maximalmetabolism is mostlya function of skeletalmuscle metabolism.Basal and maximum (summit) metabolic rates were positivelyrelated to body massfor 10 speciesof passetinesthat were tested.An analysisof the residualsfrom the log- log regressionof basaland maximummetabolic rates relative to bodymass were significantly correlated (r = 0.869, P = 0.001), indicating that the correlation is independent of body mass.Basal metabolic rates were significantlyhigher in winter birds (Dark-eyedJunco[Junco hyemalis], Black-capped Chickadee [Parus atricapillus] , Tree Sparrow[ Spizellapusilla] ) than previouslyreported but may havebeen due to the colderwinter temperatures.Maximum metabolicrates were alsosignificantly higher in juncosand chickadees.These results indicate that there is someplasticity in the winter metabolicrates and variationsin temperatureare probablyresponsible for the different metabolicrates. [D. L. S., Dept. of Biology,Univ. of South Dakota, Vermillion, SD 57069-2390, USA. I--Robert C. Beason. 37. Variabilityin basalmetabolic rate of a long-distancemigrant shorebird (Red Knot, Calidriscanutus) reflects shifts in organsizes. R. Piersma,L. Bruinzeel,R. Drent, M. Kersten, J. Van der Meet, and P. Wiersma.1996. Physiol.Zool. 69:191-217.---Theauthors compared the bodycomposition and basalmetabolic rate (BMR) of two subspeciesof Red Knotsthat breed in the high Arctic. One subspecies(C. c. islandica)spends the nonbreedingseason in temperatewestern Europe and the other (C. c. canutus)in tropicalWest and SouthAfrica. In additionto examiningwild birds,captive birds were alsostudied. Captive birds had lighter lean organs,especially digestive organs (stomach, intestines, kidneys and liver). Wild birds from the temperatelatitudes had larger lean massesthan birds in tropicalAfrica. Knots winteringin the tropicshad lower BMRsthan conspecificswintering at temperatelatitudes. Similarly,birds maintainedin captivitya long time had lower BMRs than their free-living counterparts.The authorsconcluded that long distancemigrants such as knots adjust their metabolicrates and lean massdepending on the demandsof their environmentalconditions. [NetherlandsInst. for Sea Research(NIOZ), P.O. Box 59, 1790 AB Den Burg, Texel, The Netherlands. E-mail: [email protected].]--Robert C. Beason. 38. Fatteningstrategies in dominance-structuredGreenfinch (Carduelis chloris) flocks in winter. M. Hake. 1996. Behav. Ecol. Sociobiol. 39:71-76.--Greenfinches, which form dominance-structuredflocks in winter,were studiedin Januaryin outdoor and indoor aviariesto analyzefattening strategies and to quantifythe adjustmentof reservesby birds of different socialstatus to experimentalchanges of food predictabilityand to weatherchanges. Low- rankedGreenfinches carried larger body reserves than higher ranked individuals, suggesting that subordinates,which had decreasedaccess to food, perceiveda greaterrisk of starvation. Moreover,when food predictabilitywas experimentallydecreased, subordinates increased their fat reservessignificantly more than dominants.In responseto severeweather conditions, dominant birds increasedtheir body reservesmore than subordinates.This demon- stratesthat althoughbirds of lowersocial status had largerreserves than individuals of higher rank, dominant individualshad a greaterpotential to compensateby feedingwhen the risk of starvationincreased. The resultsof this studysuggest that fattening strategiesin Green Finchesis largelydependent on socialstatus and that low-rankedindividuals, which likely incur greatercosts of acquiringand maintainingreserves, experience a lowerprobability of 496] RecentLiterature J.Field Ornithol. Summer 1997 survivingthe winter than dominants. [Dept. of Zoology,Section of Animal Ecol., Univ. of Goteborg, Medicinaregatan18, S-41390 Goteborg, Sweden.]--DannyJ. Ingold.

PLUMAGES AND MOLTS

(see also 35) 39. The timing of post-juvenilemolt and fuel depositionin relation to the onset of autumnmigration in Reed WarblersAcrocephalus scirpaceus and SedgeWarblers Acrocephalus schoenobaenus.S. Hall. 1996. Ornis Svecica6:89-96.--Long distancemigrants, especially those at more northern latitudesmust arrive at the breeding grounds,breed and depart in a relativelyshort spanof time. The pressuresthis time constraintimposes on first year birds requiresthat juveniles fledge and almostimmediately prepare for the long migration.Quickly acquiringa full setof wing and tail feathersand a good qualityof bodyplumage is imperative if the bird is to surviveits first migration.If the postjuvenile molt takesplace quickly enough, departuretime from natal groundsmay alsobe expedited,thereby reducing migratory time pressures.In this studyHall analyzeddata obtainedfrom an 11-yearbanding study in South Central Swedento estimate the time period from juvenile to first winter plumage and departure times.Body mass, visible body fat load andjuvenile molt scorewere recordedfor all birds.Re-trapping data suggestedthat Reed Warblerstook longer to acquiretheir firstwinter plumage than SedgeWarblers (34 vs.22 days).Molt patternsbetween these two specieswere markedlydifferent. Sedgewarblers acquired first winter plumageby filling in only bare body areaswith replacementfeathers whereas reed warblersproceeded through the entire molt sequence.Fuel deposition rates were similar between the two species;Reed warblersregis- tered 0.38 g/day and SedgeWarblers 0.34 g/day. However,fuel storageat time of departure was found to be significantlydifferent between the two. Reed Warblers were observedto leave with a much greater fuel store in relation to lean body masscompared to the sedge warbler (21% vs. 6.2%). One possibleexplanation for this could be different migratory strategiesundertaken by the two species.Time of departure from natal groundsdiffered by about 18 days,with SedgeWarblers leaving earlier. The author notes a previousstudy in southernmostSweden where SedgeWarblers were alsoobserved to havedeparted with lower amountsof stored fat, but in this casethe SedgeWarblers were found to depart severaldays after Reed Warblers.The author cautionsagainst drawing any general conclusionsabout the underlyingreasons or causativeagents for the differencenoted betweenthe Reed and Sedge Warblers.[Kyrk/ingsbacken 8 bv, 141 35 Huddinge, Sweden.I--Sue Bennett. 40. Occurrence of albino chicks from presumablythe same pair of Corvus corone, during continguouseight years.N. Kuroda and T. Kazama.1996. J. YamashinaInst. Ornithol. 28:92-97. (Japanese,English summary.)--How often do we just note with curiositythe oc- currenceof albinosor leucisticbirds in a populationwithout makingany effort to studytheir successas individualsand their interactionswithin a population?Kuroda and Kazamafol- lowed what has presumablybeen the sameunusual pair of Carrion Crowsover 8 years.One adult was normally pigmented, the other (sex not noted) a buff-colored mutant. Between 1986 and 1993, these birds produced an estimated32 chicks,of which 9 were albino and one (illustrated) had extensivewhite on the vanes of its primaries and secondaries.Each year the nest included 1 or 2 abnormallyplumaged chicks. The authorsnoted that the albino chicksdropped from the nest before fully grown and suggestedthat they had not been adequatelyfed. They alsoreported albino fledglings and adultsfrom 3 other localitiesin the region. [YamashinaInst. for Ornithology,Konoyama, Abiko City, Chiba Pref., 270-11Ja- pan.I-Jerome A. Jackson. 41. A sexual difference in plumageof Brown Shrike subspecies,Lanius cristatussu- perciliosus.M. Takagi. 1996.J. YamashinaInst. Ornithol. 28:103-105.--Takagi capturedadult Brown Shrikesduring the breeding season(June, July), 1992-1995, on Hokkaido,Japan.He sexedthe birds by the presenceor absenceof an incubationpatch; females incubate, males do not. Using calipershe measuredthe width of the white band on the forehead to the nearest0.01 mm. Mean width for 12 maleswas 6.46+1.79 mm (range = 3.5-10.45), and for 8 femaleswas 3.47+0.88 (range = 2.59-5.24). The differencereported was significant (P = 0.0005). However measurementstaken shouldbe repeatableand I wonder,given the vagaries Vol.68, No. • RecentLiterature [497 of plumageand caliper positioning,if this measurementcould possiblybe repeatableat an accuracyof 0.01 mm. Dial calipers,electronic balances, etc. are wonderfultools, but often give us a false senseof accuracy.I suggestcontinued examination of the plumagepattern, increasedsample sizesand use of a level of measurementaccuracy that can demonstrated as repeatable.Having said this, I applaud Takagi'srecognition of a plumagecharacter that might be usedin identifyingthe sex of someindividuals•particularly within a matedpair-- withoutcapturing them. The differencesshown in Fig. 1 of the manuscriptare striking,but apparentlythe extremes,since overlap in measurementsof the sexeswas indicated. [Lab. of AppliedZoology, Faculty of Agriculture,Hokkaido Univ., Sapporo, 060, Japan.]--Jerome A. Jackson.

PARASITES AND DISEASES

(see also 35) 42. Of Great Tits and fieas:sleep baby sleep. P. Christe,H. Richher,and A. Oppliger. 1996. Anita. Behav.52:1087-1092.---This study was conducted to determine how a common hematophagousectoparasite, the hen flea, Ceratophyllusgallinae, affected nest sanitation and sleepingpatterns of Great Tits (Parus major).The authorsalso were interestedin determining if a trade-off betweensleeping at night and foraging during the day existedfor Great Tits. Twelve nestswere kept parasite-freeand 13 nestswere infected three times between layingof the first eggand hatchingof the nestlings.Behavior of femaleparents was recorded during the day and at night. Femalesin infestednests allocated more time to nestsanitation (27.1%) than femalesin parasite-freenests (8.3%). Additionally,between midnight and 0300, femalesin parasite-freenests spent more time in the sleepingposition (73.5%) and had longerbouts of uninterruptedsleep than females in infestednests (48.1% of timein sleeping position),a differencethat wassignificant. No differencein feedingtrips per hour wasfound betweenfemales of infestedand parasite-freenests. Sleep was interrupted in the infested nests,yet the functionof sleepin birdsis poorlyunderstood. The authorssuggest a better understandingof the function of sleepin birds is needed. [Inst. de Zoologieet d'Ecologie Animale, Univ. de Lausanne,CH-1015 Lusanne, Switzerland.]--JeffreyP. Duguay.

WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT AND ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY (see also 12, 22, 23, 32, 47, 48) 43. Managementof humanvisitation to seabirdislands of the Great Barrier Reef Ma- rine Park region.T. Stokes,IC Hulsman,P. Ogilvie,and P. O'Neill. 1996.Corelle 20:1-13.- The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park (GBRMP) extends along the coastof Queenslandfor more than 900 km and 22 speciesof seabirdsnest on more than 78 islandsin the park.In the lastdecade the area hasexperienced radically increased usage, with increasedsettlement in coastalareas and expandedecotourism. In 1987 13% of the islandswere within one-day touristvessel range, in 199459%, and by 2001 a projected86%. This increasehas resulted largelyfrom increasedvessel technology. The GBRMPis a multipleuse park that allowsmost forms of recreationaland commercialusage including resourceextraction. The park is man- aged by both federal and local authoritiesand permits are required for most usage.An increasein tourisminfrastructure has occurredon the 19 resort islandsin the park and in adjacentcoastal areas, and togetherwith increasedvessel range and usagepose substantial managementproblems. A varietyof regulationscurrently restrict usage of seabirdislands, rangingfrom preservationszones surrounding two major islandsthat are closedto all visitation exceptapproved research, to seasonalclosure during nestingseason and strictcontrols on aircraftusage. Aerial surveillancerecords indicate that 12 islandsget high or very high usage,66 moderate or low. The authorshave included a detailed descriptionof permit requirements,assessment criteria for consideringpermits, the principlesof seabird-human interactionused in establishingvisitor management strategies, and usagepermitted on the 15 islandswith highesthuman visitation. The authorsconclude that a generalban on human visitationis impracticaland not warranted,but that more information on privateand unau- thorizedvisitation is needed.They presenta code of conductfor people that visitseabird islandsand make specificrecommendations, e.g., regular accessshould be prohibitedon 498] RecentLiterature J.Field Ornithol. Summer 1997 small islandswhere gull predation is likely to result from human disturbance.This paper presentsa derailed assessmentof the complicatedmanagement problems for a major seabird breeding region which is undergoing substantiallyincreased anthropocentric pressure.It should be of interest to anyonemaking managementdecisions about, or with interestsin, seabirdconservation. [Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority,P.O. Box 1379, Townsville, Qld 4810, Australia.] William E. Davis,Jr. 44. Habituation to human disturbanceby breeding Bridled Terns Sterna anaethetus.J. N. Dnnlop. 1996. Corella 20:13-16.--The author reportson the responseof nestingBridled Terns to human intrusion at two coloniesin WesternAustralia which historicallyhave been exposedto very different levelsof human disturbance.The nesting habitatsand nesting densitieson Penguin and Bridled Islandswere comparable,and adultswere tending chicks on both, althoughthe chickswere older on PenguinI. In the experiment,an observerwalked toward a nesting tern and recorded the distance at which the tern flushed (n = 35 on PenguinI., n = 39 on Bridled I). The ternson PenguinI., which hasbeen subjectto regular human disturbancesince 1918 (currently 80,000 visitorsduring the breeding season),al- lowed significantlycloser approach before flushing than did the terns at Bridled I., which has been rarely visited.The author suggeststhat this is oppositeto the expectedresponse assumingthat site tenacitydeclines as chicksbecome older. Hence the author attributesthe differencesin responseto habituationby the PenguinI. terns.The patternsof human activity at Penguin I. have been generallypredictable and benign, and the population of nesting terns has actuallyincreased in the past two decades.Hence, the author concludesthat management of seabird coloniesfor human accessshould involveestablishment of human pres- ence gradually,with predictablepatterns of human movementand behavior.The suggested managementstrategy conflicts to some degree with more standardcritical distanceguide- lines. This is an interestingpaper which shouldbe of interestto conservationistsand wildlife managers. [162 SwanseaSt. East, East Victoria Park, Western Australia 6101, Australia.]-- William E. Davis,Jr.

PHOTOGRAPHY, RECORDINGS AND SOFTWARE 45. Easternbirds by sight 8c sound. CD-ROM for the Macintosh.1995. NatureWare, 3210 Dudley,Lincoln, NE 68503, $35.--The illustrationsthat are usedon this CD-ROM are mostlyfrom the worksof LouisAgassiz Fuertes and appearedin Birdsof New York,Birds of Massachusetts,Birds of Texas, as well as in National Geographicand Bird Lore magazines. There are additionalpaintings by Allan Brooks,George Sutton, Bruce Horsfalls, Walter We- ber, and Cliff Lemen. Unlike the other CD-ROMs currently on the market, this one does not seemedto be designedfor use as a supplementalfield guide. The picturesare by well- known artistsand very good, but do not indicate field marks.The songsare helpful, but usuallyonly 1 or 2 songsof each specieswith no geographicvariation indicated. The write-up on each speciesis very limited and does not provide any additional cuesto identification. There are three options to using the CD-ROM: flashcards,a matching game, and a lookup for specificbirds, either by speciesor habitat. Flashcardsis an identificationquiz, but of preset groups of birds. There is no option of selectingthe speciesto be quizzed over. The matchinggame is basedon rememberingwhere the two matchingcards are locatedand not useful in learning the birds. The option of looking up a speciesis the one most people will find useful.The user interface is not what most computerusers, especially Macintosh users, have come to expect from their applications.There are no "closeboxes"or "growboxes" for the windows,but some windowscan be dismissedby clicking on their bar, whether in- tentionally or accidentally.If a screen-saverbecomes active with the program is running, often it becomesnecessary to restart the program. There seemsto be some conflictsfor control of the screen. Overall, the CD-ROM provides some nice pictures and vocalizations that birdersmay find usefulas a supplementto learningbird identification,but thisCD-ROM lacks the flexibility and power of other offerings that are on the market; its price is also lower.--Robert C. Beason. 46. North American birds with Roger Tory Petersonmultimedia CD-ROM version1.1, for Windows3.1 and Windows95. 1996. Houghton Mifflin Interactive, Somerville,MA. List price $69.95.--This softwareis recommendedfor personsaged 10 and over,using IBM- Vol.68, No. 3 RecentLiterature [499 compatible486 or higher computershaving at leasta 2X CD-ROM drive, 22 kHz 16-bitsound card, SVGA display,8 megabytesof RAM, 20 megabytesof availablehard drive space,and a mouse.A versionfor Macintoshcomputers is not available.This CD is designedto do all the jobs that a good field guide can do, but better (as long as you don't mind doing it at a computer).Upon command,it will showa largeimage of eachof the 672 birdsthat normally occur in North America (49 statesand 12 Canadian provinces),plus stray,extirpated, and exotic birds, for a total of 949 species.All are illustratedwith a painting, and most with a field photograph.The paintingsare from Roger Tory Peterson'sA Field Guide to the Birds of Eastern and Central North America, fourth edition (1980), and A Field Guide to Western Birds, third edition (1990). The field photographs,from varioussources, are outstanding. The text is from Kenn Kaufman's Lives of North American Birds (1996). All three source books are published by Houghton Mifflin, Boston, MA. Bird names are according to the American Ornithologists'Union. Each illustrationof a regularlybreeding species is accom- panied by a recording of its typical song (mostlyranging from 10 to 22 secondsin length) from the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology. Clicking on a few other buttonson the species screenwill bring up the summer and winter range map, a descriptionof the species'habitat, nestingand feeding behavior,and population status.To help with the field identificationof a species,clicking on a button will apply a set of the Peterson field mark arrows to the painting, pointing out the features that distinguishthis speciesfrom similar species,and choosinganother button will bring multi-speciescolor plates taken from the Petersonfield guides to show this bird in relation to the others on its group page and the group pagesof similar-lookingspecies. Figuring out the name of an unknown bird is simplified by first limiting (filtering) the possibilitiesto speciesthat fit the right habitat, right seasonof the year,and the correct state or province.The user may also specifythe bird's dominant color, approximatesize, and whether the bird is clearly in one of Peterson'sdefined visual categories,such as bird of prey, fowl-like, swimmer,or wader. The program then presentsa short list of all the non- exotic speciesthat meet the restrictionsthat were specified.Each suggestedname is easily matched with its full-color illustrationand songto help determine the correctidentification. State check-listsare simple to create.Just a few clicksof the mouseproduced a list of 325 speciesfor Illinois. In comparison,H. D. Bohlen's book The Birds of Illinois (1989, Indiana UniversityPress, Bloomington, IN) lists297 regularlyoccurring species and 99 reported vagrantsin Illinois. The Houghton Mifflin Interactive CD-ROM has included all the regular breedersand visitors,plus some of the vagrants. The disk alsoincludes a vastarray of bird identificationquizzes, programmable from easy to difficult, with the test speciesavailable by song only, or sight only, or with variouscom- binationsof clues (range, habitat, etc.). Testscan be limited (filtered) to birds from just a single state, habitat, size, color, or other restrictions.Several portions of the disk showRoger Tory Peterson telling about birds, birding, personal advice, and anecdotes.His voice and moving pictures are fairly good, but not nearly the quality of normal televisionand movie productions.There are also illustrateddiscussions (some with movies)on basicornithology, migration, conservation,birding hot spots,etc. One section of the program allows the user to keep a life list, or any number of lists (annual, state, trip, etc.) by simplyselecting bird namesfrom an on-screencheck-list. A nice feature of these listsis that clicking on any bird name on a list will bring its color photo. But there are severalnotable disadvantagesto the life list part of the program. The birds can not be listed in taxonomicorder, but only alphabeticallyby common name or by Latin name. And if two birding companionswanted to create similar but slightlydifferent individual listsafter a big birding trip, there is no way to create the secondlist by modifying the first; each list must be built speciesby species.Any speciesthat is to be entered on a life list or other list must be accompaniedby a date between1970 and 2037. Therefore, sightings before 1970 can not showthe accuratedate, nor will the programallow the date spacesto remain blank. Extensivenotes about each sightingcan be recorded. Once a life list or other list has been created, it can be printed. Unfortunately, however,the program will not print a compactlist, but showsonly four speciesentries on a page,spaced to allowfor the extensive notes on each species(whether any notes were written or not) so a 100-bird trip list prints 500] RecentLiterature J.Field Ornithol. Summer 1997 onto 25 pages.The programdoes not providea tallyof how manybirds are includedon any user-created list. Softwareto accessthe World Wide Web is on the disk, so that userscan easilyconnect to Peterson Online (which can also be contacted by using a search in most web browsers). PetersonOnline leads to birding chats,current birding information, numerousarticles from Bird Watcher'sDigest, daily rare bird alertsby region, birding eventscalendar, commercial productsmarket, activitiesfor young birders, and links to a wealth of bird-related internet addresses.These links include birding organizations,sanctuaries, museums, government agencies,and many others. We found a few minor programmingerrors. Although the individualspecies accounts of the Belted Kingfisher ( Cerylealcyon), Ringed Kingfisher (Ceryletorquata) and Wood Thrush (Hylocichlamustelina) are accurate,including the normal body sizes,these three specieswill not appear in the list for any state or region if a normal body length is specified.Only if a body length of 0 inches is allowedwill these three appear on the list. A similar problem occurswith many of the exotic species.The program is quite easyto install on a computer, and if a user decides to eliminate it, there is a single-clickicon to uninstall it.--Edwin and Evelyn Franks.

BOOKS AND MONOGRAPHS

47. Demographyof the Northern SpottedOwl. E. D. Forsman,S. DeStefano,M. G. Raphael and R.J. Guti6rrez, Eds. 1996. Studiesin Avian Biol. 17:1-122. Cooper Ornithol. Soc.$20.00.---This volume is the proceedingsof a workshopheld in Ft. Collins,CO, Decem- ber 1993, and contains 14 papers.The first three provide information on the biology and historyof the speciesand on the researchtechniques used to studyit. The remainingpapers deal with the demographicsof the Northern Spotted Owl (Strix occidentaliscaurina) in variousparts of its range, except the final two papers that provide a synthesisof the demo- graphic analyses.Most of the demographicpapers deal with the different populationsof Oregon, with one paper each on the owlsof Washingtonand California. The annual survival rate of female owls captured as adults has declined significantly,based on both short-term and long-term data. The survivalrates of adult males are also declining, but not as rapidly. The data for juveniles are too sparseto accuratelydetermine their survivalrates, but the overall trend is also a decline in survival.Based on these survivalrates, it appearsthat on most,if not all, of the studyareas, the Northern SpottedOwl populationsare decliningand are not at equilibrium. Furthermore, the rate of population decline is accelerating.The resultsof these studieswere used by PresidentClinton's administrationto develop and im- plement a plan to protect large areasof mature and old-growthforest, but allow somelimited harvestof older forests.This plan wasimmediately challenged in court by industry,as being illegal, and by environmentalgroups, because it wasinadequate to protect the owls.--Robert C. Beason.

48. A checklistof the birds of Chile. S. N. G. Howell. 1996. American Birding Assoc., P.O. Box 6599, ColoradoSprings, CO 80394, USA. 32 pp, paper. $4.95.--Chile, 4200 km long, but never more than 320 km wide, rangesin habitatfrom the AtacamaDesert, to other high Andes habitats, to coastalscrub, to temperate rain forest, to the cold islandsof the extreme south. Within this area 410 speciesof birds have been documented,a pittance comparedto adjacentareas of SouthAmerica, a result of isolationby the Andes.Appendices list 19 additional speciesknown from Chile's distant island territories, and 20 speciesof hypotheticaloccurrence. Each speciesis assignedto 1 or more of 4 biogeographicregions, 10 statuscategories, and 6 abundancecategories. In general the list is utilitarian, providing spacefor ticking off recordson severalvisits and providing enough information to suggest what the birder might encounter and where. A bibliographyof 26 referenceswill also be useful to those interestedin advancepreparation for a trip. I find the avifaunaof Chile fascinating:43 speciesendemic to Chile and adjacentArgentina, 9 strictlyChilean endemics, 3 additional endemicsfrom the Juan Fernandez Islands.The avifaunais dominated by non- Passerines,and within the Passeriformes,by the suboscines(38 tyrant flycatchers).Only 2 wood warblers and one vireo (all North American migrants) are known from Chile. Chile can boastof having the southerncounterpart of our Ivory-billedWoodpecker (Campephilus Vol.68, No. • RecentLiterature [501 principalis),the MagellanicWoodpecker (C. magellanicus)among its endemics--for now. UnfortunatelyNorth Americanforest industriesare heavilyinto clear-cuttingthe southern beech (Nothofaffus)forests it calls home.--Jerome A. Jackson. 49. How birds migrate.Paul Kerlinger.1995. StackpoleBooks, Mechanicsburg, PA. 228 pps.ISBN 0-8117-2444-1.$16.95, paper.--For those looking to expandtheir knowledgeand understandingof the phenomenon of avian migration but have a difficult time wading through the more technicaljournals and books,this latestoffering of Paul Kerlingerwill be more to their liking. This non-technical,easy to read book providesinsights into many of the more technicalaspects of avian migration.Topics are presentedin a way that makes them more comprehensiblefor those that are lessscientifically inclined, or for thosethat want to know more. Each of the fifteen chaptersaddresses questions that we haveall probably pondered at one time or another. Startingwith the "why's" of bird migration, Kerlinger progressesto discussingsuch topics as different modalitiesof study,basic physiology of bird flight, aerodynamics,migratory barriers, rest and refueling,navigation and flight strategies amongseveral others. Each chaptercontains a brief introductionto the topic and alsooffers specific"Case Studies"to further illustratehow the topic actuallyapplies. Pat Archer'sillus- trationsare nicely done and well appointed,contributing to and enhancingthe pointsKer- linger makes.The more technical topicssuch as flight strategies,flight speedand distance, etc., retain enough pertinent factswithout over-simplification.After learning the why'sand how'sof migration, the final chapter leavesthe reader to contemplatewhat is perhapsthe biggestthreat facingmigratory birds today:habitat loss and fragmentationand the resulting consequencessuffered by birds on migration.This chapterillustrates how our actionsaffect the naturalworld, a very appropriateending to the book. Upon discoveringall the amazing featsa smallwarbler must endure during migration,it is discouragingto realizethat despite all our knowledge,habitat is being lost at an alarming rate, threateningpopulations of migratory birds. Finally,for the reader motivatedto learn more, a list of further readingsis provided at the very end, including some keystoneworks in the studyof migration. In his preface,Kerlinger statesthat in writing this book he attemptedto merge scientificand pop- ular writing to allow those interested in migration the opportunity to really understand and appreciatethe phenomenon.Only with understandingand knowledgecan we ever hope for real change to come about in the preservationof migratory bird habitats.--Sue Bennett. 50, The birds of Hungary. G. Gorman. 1996. ChristopherHelm, London. 192 pp. maps of distribution.b&w drawings.ISBN 0-7136-4235-1.œ19.99. The birds of Greece.G. Handri- nos and T. Akriotis. 1997. ChristopherHelm, London. 334 pp. maps of distribution.b&w drawings,b&w photographs.ISBN 0-7136-3929-6.œ25.00.---English-written books on the avi- faunasof EasternEurope have been unavailable,either to the visitorsgoing to watch birds or anyonelooking for more detailedinformation on the birdsof eachof the countries.Two bookspublished in one year by ChristopherHelm havestarted to fill thisniche. Neither The Birdsof Hungary nor The Birdsof Greeceare field guides.Except for severaldozen drawings in each book, a userwill not find color platesdepicting bird. What they will find is the vast amount of data providedin both books,in many cases,first time publisheddata. Both books have similar format and style;the general or introductorypart and the speciesaccounts. The general part deals with topics such as geographicalbackground, climate and vegetation, historyof ornithology,bird habitats,and bird conservation.Many readerswill find the chap- ters on conservationespecially appealing because both of the countriesare refugesfor many endangeredspecies. The introductorypart in the Hungarianbook covers27 pages,and in the Greek book, 92 pages(including 22 pagesof b&w photographs).The heart of both booksis the speciesaccounts. Three-hundred and sixty-threespecies were recordedin Hun- gary as of January 1995, and 422 speciesin Greeceas of December1995. The booksdiffer in this part eventhough they both pro•Sdeup-to-date and accurateinformation. The species in G. Gorman's book are divided into two categories:regularly occurring species,and rare visitorsand vagrants.In the first category,281 speciesare described.Each account starts with a brief general sectionfollowed by its statusin Hungary, statusinternationally, distribution, and timing and range map. All of the speciesin Handrinosand Akriotis'book are arranged in one section.The speciestexts are missingthe headingsused in Gorman'sbook. Hence, orientationin the former book is easier.Regarding the vastamount of informationprovided 502] RecentLiterature J.Field Ornithol. Summer 1997 in each accounton the Greek birds,the headingswould be very useful.The speciesaccounts for the Greek birds are as exhaustiveas they could be. The descriptionof the breedingor migratory statusis supportedby exact dates (day,month, year) and numbersof individuals recordedat differentplaces making the accountstruly impressive.Since the 1970sforeign birdwatchersvisiting Greece provided 482 observationreports with a half million individual bird records.Information in the speciesaccounts also include banding recoveriesand sub- speciesstatus. The book closeswith a checklistof birds (not included in Gorman's book) and bibliographyincluding 1,005 citations.Every birdwatcherwill be pleasedto find that both bookslist exact placeswhere the rare species,large numbersof wintering birds, or migrantsoccur. No doubt both booksmake an important contribution to our knowledgeof the Eastern European avifauna.If you plan a trip to these countries,do not hesitateto own a copy.--JosefKren.