Hello, Ecologists. Here is a summary of the contents of vol. 39 no. 2 (2008) of the quarterly journal Western Birds, published by Western Field Ornithologists.
* NEST SPACING IN ELEGANT TERMS: HEXAGONAL PACKING REVISITED. * By CHARLES T. COLLINS and MICHAEL D. TAYLOR. * Pp. 62-68. * At a tern-and-skimmer colony in coastal southern California, Elegant Tern nests are placed in a hexagonal array, a configuration that maximizes density; a role for predation in promoting a hexagonal nest array of Elegant Terns is suspected but unclear. * REASSESSMENT OF TROPICAL PARULA SUBSPECIES IN BAJA CALIFORNIA SUR. * By MASHALL J. ILIFF, RICHARD A. ERICKSON, and MARK J. BILLINGS. * Pp. 69-81. * A Tropical Parula at Todos Santos, Baja California Sur, 2006-2008, was determined to be of the subspecies insularis from the Tres Marias Islands, not graysoni from Socorro Island; reanalysis of all previous Tropical Parulas from Baja California Sur (n=3), originally reported as graysoni, likewise establishes that they are of the subspecies insularis. * HABITAT FRAGMENTATION AND SCRUB-SPECIALIST BIRDS: SAN DIEGO FRAGMENTS REVISITED. * By AUTUMN R. SARTAIN and ALLISON C. ALBERTS. * Pp. 82-93. * In 2006 populations of eight non-migratory bird species were surveyed in fragmented coastal scrub that had been previously surveyed in 1985-1987; local extirpations and colonizations were explained by the size and isolation of habitat fragments, as well as by life history traits of the eight species. * FIRST DOCUMENTED BREEDING COLONY OF CASPIAN TERNS IN THE COPPER RIVER DELTA, ALASKA. * By TYEE G. LOHSE, TEAL K. LOHSE, TRAE W. LOHSE, and AARON LANG. * Pp. 94-96. * A Copper River Delta colony containing 118 nests in 2006 represents the largest assemblage of breeding Caspian Terns yet documented in Alaska; the discovery of this colony is consistent with the Caspian Tern's recent population increase and northward expansion along the Pacific Coast. * CASPIAN TERNS NESTING IN ALSKA: PROPHECY, SERENDIPITY, AND IMPLICATIONS FOR REGIONAL CLIMATE-RELATED CHANGE. * By ROBERT E. GILL. * Pp. 97-100. * The limits of the breeding range in Alaska of the Caspian Tern may be limited by habitat availability, which may in turn be limited by the frequency of coastal storms; storm frequency may increase as the climate changes, thus diminishing future prospects for the Caspian Tern in Alaska. * BREEDING BEHAVIOR AND DISPERSAL OF RADIO-MARKED CALIFORNIA CLAPPER RAILS. * By MICHAEL L. CASAZZA, CORY T. OVERTON, JOHN Y. TAKEKAWA, TOBIAS ROHMER, and KENNETH NAVARRE. * Pp. 101-106. * A radio telemetry study of Clapper Rails (n=9) of the endangered subspecies obsoletus resulted in the documentation of long-distance dispersal by a male; tracking by radio telemetry also allowed detailed observations of the breeding behavior of this rare and secretive taxon. * BOOK REVIEW. * Reviewed by RICHARD C. HOYER. * Pp. 107-108. * Review of Birds of the Aleutian Islands, Alaska (Nuttall Ornithological Club and American Ornithologists' Union, 2007), by Daniel D. Gibson and G. Vernon Byrd. * BOOK REVIEW. * Reviewed by NATHAN PIEPLOW. * Pp. 108-109. * Review of Birding Colorado (Globe Pequot Press, 2007), by Hugh Kingery. * FEATURED PHOTO: GREAT GRAY OWLS NESTING IN FRESNO COUNTY, CALIFORNIA. * By DAVID E. QUADY. * Pp. 110-116. * Fresno County, California, is the southernmost location in which breeding has been confirmed for the Great Gray Owl; the species is rare in California, with an estimated population of 300 individuals in the state, most of them believed to occur in the central Sierra Nevada, especially Yosemite National Park. Please note that vols. 1-35 (1970-2004) of Western Birds are permanently archived and fully searchable online: elibrary.unm.edu/sora/index.php. The service is free to the public, and is made available by Western Field Ornithologists (WFO) and the Searchable Ornithological Research Archive (SORA). More information about WFO is available online: westernfieldornithologists.org. More information about the journal Western Birds is also available online: westernfieldornithologists.org/journal.php. Ted Floyd [EMAIL PROTECTED] Lafayette, Boulder County, Colorado _________________________________________________________________ Introducing Live Search cashback . It's search that pays you back! http://search.live.com/cashback/?&pkw=form=MIJAAF/publ=HMTGL/crea=introsrchcashback
