Sample records for fish crows corvus

  1. DNA Vaccine for West Nile Virus Infection in Fish Crows (Corvus ossifragus)

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2003-09-01

    SUBJECT TERMS west Nile virus, vaccine , efficacy , crows 16. SECURITY CLASSIFICATION OF: 17. LIMITATION OF ABSTRACT SAR 18. NUMBER OF PAGES 5 19a...A DNA vaccine for West Nile virus (WNV) was evaluat- ed to determine whether its use could protect fish crows (Corvus ossifragus) from fatal WNV...infection. Captured adult crows were given 0.5 mg of the DNA vaccine either orally or by intramuscular (IM) inoculation; control crows were inoculated or

  2. Mitochondrial genomes of the jungle crow Corvus macrorhynchos (Passeriformes: Corvidae) from shed feathers and a phylogenetic analysis of genus Corvus using mitochondrial protein-coding genes.

    PubMed

    Krzeminska, Urszula; Wilson, Robyn; Rahman, Sadequr; Song, Beng Kah; Seneviratne, Sampath; Gan, Han Ming; Austin, Christopher M

    2016-07-01

    The complete mitochondrial genomes of two jungle crows (Corvus macrorhynchos) were sequenced. DNA was extracted from tissue samples obtained from shed feathers collected in the field in Sri Lanka and sequenced using the Illumina MiSeq Personal Sequencer. Jungle crow mitogenomes have a structural organization typical of the genus Corvus and are 16,927 bp and 17,066 bp in length, both comprising 13 protein-coding genes, 22 transfer RNA genes, 2 ribosomal subunit genes, and a non-coding control region. In addition, we complement already available house crow (Corvus spelendens) mitogenome resources by sequencing an individual from Singapore. A phylogenetic tree constructed from Corvidae family mitogenome sequences available on GenBank is presented. We confirm the monophyly of the genus Corvus and propose to use complete mitogenome resources for further intra- and interspecies genetic studies.

  3. AN EPIZOOTIC OF EMERGING NOVEL AVIAN POX IN CARRION CROWS (CORVUS CORONE) AND LARGE-BILLED CROWS (CORVUS MACRORHYNCHOS) IN JAPAN.

    PubMed

    Fukui, Daisuke; Nakamura, Makiko; Yamaguchi, Tsuyoshi; Takenaka, Makiko; Murakami, Mami; Yanai, Tokuma; Fukushi, Hideto; Yanagida, Kazumi; Bando, Gen; Matsuno, Keita; Nagano, Masashi; Tsubota, Toshio

    2016-04-28

    In 2006-10, an epizootic of emerging avian pox occurred in Carrion Crows ( Corvus corone ) and Large-billed Crows ( Corvus macrorhynchos ), leading to mortality of juvenile crows in Hokkaido, the northernmost island of Japan. We diagnosed 27 crows with proliferative skin lesions (19 carcasses and eight biopsied cases [one in zoo captivity]) as avian pox clinically, histopathologically by detection of Avipoxvirus-specific 4b core protein (P4b) gene, and epidemiologically. The fatal cases demonstrated intensively severe infection and aggressive lesions with secondary bacterial infection. Since the first identification of avian pox in Sapporo, Japan, in 2006, the frequency of mortality events has increased, peaking in 2007-08. Mortalities have subsequently occurred in other areas, suggesting disease expansion. In Sapporo, prevalence of avian pox evaluated by field censuses during 2007-12 was 17.6% (6.6-27.2%), peaked during 2007-08 and 2008-09, and then decreased. All diseased crows were juveniles, except for one adult. The number of crows assembling in the winter roosts had been stable for >10 yr; however, it declined in 2007-08, decreased by about 50% in 2008-09, and recovered to the previous level in 2009-10, correlated with the avian pox outbreak. Thus, avian pox probably contributed to the unusual crow population decline. All P4b sequences detected in six specimens in Sapporo were identical and different from any previously reported sequences. The sequence detected in the zoo-kept crow was distinct from any reported clades, and interspecies transmission was suspected. This report demonstrates an emerging novel avian pox in the Japanese avifauna and in global populations of Carrion Crows and Large-billed Crows. Longitudinal monitoring is needed to evaluate its impact on the crow population.

  4. Comparative phylogeography of two crow species: jungle crow Corvus macrorhynchos and carrion crow Corvus corone.

    PubMed

    Kryukov, Alexey; Spiridonova, Liudmila; Nakamura, Sumio; Haring, Elisabeth; Suzuki, Hitoshi

    2012-08-01

    The jungle crow Corvus macrorhynchos Wagler, 1827, and the carrion crow Corvus corone L., 1758, are two closely related species with similar ecological requirements that occupy wide distribution ranges in the Palearctic. We studied patterns of their genetic variation by using sequences of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene. Corvus macrorhynchos demonstrates a low level of variation and differentiation throughout its range, except for a highly diverged population of Cheju Island (Korea). The haplotype network shows two haplogroups. The island group comprises populations of Sakhalin, Hokkaido, Honshu, and Kyushu, while the haplotypes of Taiwan and Ryukyu Islands proved to be closer to the mainland group, which also includes populations from the Primorye, Khabarovsk, Amur, and Magadan regions in the Russian Far East. This pattern allowed us to develop a phylogeographic hypothesis regarding the two modes of settling of the island populations. Concerning C. corone, the presence of two distinct haplogroups was confirmed within the range of C. c. orientalis. Both haplogroups are found within the same populations in Kamchatka and North Sakhalin, which implies secondary contacts there. Populations of C. corone are found to be rather stable in the western parts of its range, while in the Far East populations experienced recent growth, as was observed for C. macrorhynchos in general. The two species appear to have passed through different evolutionary scenarios.

  5. On the evolutionary and ontogenetic origins of tool-oriented behaviour in New Caledonian crows (Corvus moneduloides)

    PubMed Central

    KENWARD, BEN; SCHLOEGL, CHRISTIAN; RUTZ, CHRISTIAN; WEIR, ALEXANDER A. S.; BUGNYAR, THOMAS; KACELNIK, ALEX

    2015-01-01

    New Caledonian crows (Corvus moneduloides) are prolific tool users in captivity and in the wild, and have an inherited predisposition to express tool-oriented behaviours. To further understand the evolution and development of tool use, we compared the development of object manipulation in New Caledonian crows and common ravens (Corvus corax), which do not routinely use tools. We found striking qualitative similarities in the ontogeny of tool-oriented behaviour in New Caledonian crows and food-caching behaviour in ravens. Given that the common ancestor of New Caledonian crows and ravens was almost certainly a caching species, we therefore propose that the basic action patterns for tool use in New Caledonian crows may have their evolutionary origins in caching behaviour. Noncombinatorial object manipulations had similar frequencies in the two species. However, frequencies of object combinations that are precursors to functional behaviour increased in New Caledonian crows and decreased in ravens throughout the study period, ending 6 weeks post-fledging. These quantitative observations are consistent with the hypothesis that New Caledonian crows develop tool-oriented behaviour because of an increased motivation to perform object combinations that facilitate the necessary learning. PMID:25892825

  6. [Differences in vocalization and morphology of the syrinx between Carrion crows (Corvus corone) and Jungle crows (C. macrorhynchos)].

    PubMed

    Tsukahara, Naoki; Aoyama, Masato; Sugita, Shoei

    2007-12-01

    The vocal characteristics and the morph of the syrinx in Carrion crows (Corvus corone) and those in Jungle crows (C. macrorhynchos) were compared. The vocalizations of both species of crow were recorded into sonograms and analyzed. The appearance and inner configuration of the syrinx were observed using stereoscopic microscope. In addition, the inside diameter of the syrinx, the sizes of the labia and the attached position of the syringeal muscles were measured. The attached figures of syringeal muscles were different between the two species. The vocalizations of Carrion crows were noisier than possibly because their labias were noticeably smaller than those of Jungle crows. The attachment patterns of the syringeal muscles in Jungle crows suggested that they allow for more flexibility on the inside structure of the syrinx. The inner space of the syrinx in Jungle crows was also wider than those of Carrion crows. These results suggested that Jungle crows may be able to make various vocalizations because of these morphological characteristics.

  7. 50 CFR 10.13 - List of Migratory Birds.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ..., Oreomystis mana CROSSBILL, Red, Loxia curvirostra White-winged, Loxia leucoptera CROW, American, Corvus... caurinus Tamaulipas, Corvus imparatus White-necked, Corvus leucognaphalus CUCKOO, Black-billed, Coccyzus... DOVE, Inca, Columbina inca Mourning, Zenaida macroura White-tipped, Leptotila verreauxi White-winged...

  8. Feather microstructure of the black-billed magpie (Pica pica sericea) and jungle crow (Corvus macrorhynchos).

    PubMed

    Lee, Eunok; Lee, Hang; Kimura, Junpei; Sugita, Shoei

    2010-08-01

    The jungle crow (Corvus macrorhynchos) distribution stretches from eastern Eurasia continent to southeastern Asia. The distribution of the black-billed magpie (Pica pica sericea) stretches from Korea and China to the Kyushu area in Japan. They are both in the Family, Corvidae, and have iridescent feather colors, but the iridescent feather color of the black-billed magpie is more remarkable than that of the jungle crow. We observed the feather microstructure of these birds using electron microscope. On the barbules surface, the barbules twist and prong between the jungle crow and black-billed magpie were not similar. In the barbules cross section, the black-billed magpie showed a complex structure of melanin granules, the jungle crow showed a simple structure of melanin granules.

  9. Lateralization of tool use in New Caledonian crows (Corvus moneduloides).

    PubMed Central

    Weir, Alex A S; Kenward, Ben; Chappell, Jackie; Kacelnik, Alex

    2004-01-01

    We studied laterality of tool use in 10 captive New Caledonian (NC) crows (Corvus moneduloides). All subjects showed near-exclusive individual laterality, but there was no overall bias in either direction (five were left-lateralized and five were right-lateralized). This is consistent with results in non-human primates, which show strong individual lateralization for tool use (but not for other activities), and also with observations of four wild NC crows by Rutledge & Hunt. Jointly, these results contrast with observations that the crows have a population-level bias for manufacturing tools from the left edges of Pandanus sp. leaves, and suggest that the manufacture and use of tools in this species may have different neural underpinnings. PMID:15504013

  10. Susceptibility of Carrion Crows to Experimental Infection with Lineage 1 and 2 West Nile Viruses.

    PubMed

    Lim, Stephanie M; Brault, Aaron C; van Amerongen, Geert; Bosco-Lauth, Angela M; Romo, Hannah; Sewbalaksing, Varsha D; Bowen, Richard A; Osterhaus, Albert D M E; Koraka, Penelope; Martina, Byron E E

    2015-08-01

    West Nile virus (WNV) outbreaks in North America have been characterized by substantial die-offs of American crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos). In contrast, a low incidence of bird deaths has been observed during WNV epidemic activity in Europe. To examine the susceptibility of the western European counterpart of American crows, we inoculated carrion crows (Corvus corone) with WNV strains isolated in Greece (Gr-10), Italy (FIN and Ita09), and Hungary (578/10) and with the highly virulent North American genotype strain (NY99). We also inoculated American crows with a selection of these strains to examine the strains' virulence in a highly susceptible bird species. Infection with all strains, except WNV FIN, resulted in high rates of death and high-level viremia in both bird species and virus dissemination to several organs. These results suggest that carrion crows are highly susceptible to WNV and may potentially be useful as part of dead bird surveillance for early warning of WNV activity in Europe.

  11. Susceptibility of Carrion Crows to Experimental Infection with Lineage 1 and 2 West Nile Viruses

    PubMed Central

    Lim, Stephanie M.; Brault, Aaron C.; van Amerongen, Geert; Bosco-Lauth, Angela M.; Romo, Hannah; Sewbalaksing, Varsha D.; Bowen, Richard A.; Osterhaus, Albert D.M.E.; Koraka, Penelope

    2015-01-01

    West Nile virus (WNV) outbreaks in North America have been characterized by substantial die-offs of American crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos). In contrast, a low incidence of bird deaths has been observed during WNV epidemic activity in Europe. To examine the susceptibility of the western European counterpart of American crows, we inoculated carrion crows (Corvus corone) with WNV strains isolated in Greece (Gr-10), Italy (FIN and Ita09), and Hungary (578/10) and with the highly virulent North American genotype strain (NY99). We also inoculated American crows with a selection of these strains to examine the strains’ virulence in a highly susceptible bird species. Infection with all strains, except WNV FIN, resulted in high rates of death and high-level viremia in both bird species and virus dissemination to several organs. These results suggest that carrion crows are highly susceptible to WNV and may potentially be useful as part of dead bird surveillance for early warning of WNV activity in Europe. PMID:26197093

  12. Patterns of evolution of MHC class II genes of crows (Corvus) suggest trans-species polymorphism

    PubMed Central

    Townsend, Andrea K.; Sepil, Irem; Nishiumi, Isao; Satta, Yoko

    2015-01-01

    A distinguishing characteristic of genes that code for the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) is that alleles often share more similarity between, rather than within species. There are two likely mechanisms that can explain this pattern: convergent evolution and trans-species polymorphism (TSP), in which ancient allelic lineages are maintained by balancing selection and retained by descendant species. Distinguishing between these two mechanisms has major implications in how we view adaptation of immune genes. In this study we analyzed exon 2 of the MHC class IIB in three passerine bird species in the genus Corvus: jungle crows (Corvus macrorhynchos japonensis) American crows (C. brachyrhynchos) and carrion crows (C. corone orientalis). Carrion crows and American crows are recently diverged, but allopatric, sister species, whereas carrion crows and jungle crows are more distantly related but sympatric species, and possibly share pathogens linked to MHC IIB polymorphisms. These patterns of evolutionary divergence and current geographic ranges enabled us to test for trans-species polymorphism and convergent evolution of the MHC IIB in crows. Phylogenetic reconstructions of MHC IIB sequences revealed several well supported interspecific clusters containing all three species, and there was no biased clustering of variants among the sympatric carrion crows and jungle crows. The topologies of phylogenetic trees constructed from putatively selected sites were remarkably different than those constructed from putatively neutral sites. In addition, trees constructed using non-synonymous substitutions from a continuous fragment of exon 2 had more, and generally more inclusive, supported interspecific MHC IIB variant clusters than those constructed from the same fragment using synonymous substitutions. These phylogenetic patterns suggest that recombination, especially gene conversion, has partially erased the signal of allelic ancestry in these species. While clustering of positively selected amino acids by supertyping revealed a single supertype shared by only jungle and carrion crows, a pattern consistent with convergence, the overall phylogenetic patterns we observed suggest that TSP, rather than convergence, explains the interspecific allelic similarity of MHC IIB genes in these species of crows. PMID:25802816

  13. Population Abundance of Potentially Pathogenic Organisms in Intestinal Microbiome of Jungle Crow (Corvus macrorhynchos) Shown with 16S rRNA Gene-Based Microbial Community Analysis

    PubMed Central

    Maeda, Isamu; Siddiki, Mohammad Shohel Rana; Nozawa-Takeda, Tsutomu; Tsukahara, Naoki; Tani, Yuri; Naito, Taki; Sugita, Shoei

    2013-01-01

    Jungle Crows (Corvus macrorhynchos) prefer human habitats because of their versatility in feeding accompanied with human food consumption. Therefore, it is important from a public health viewpoint to characterize their intestinal microbiota. However, no studies have been involved in molecular characterization of the microbiota based on huge and reliable number of data acquisition. In this study, 16S rRNA gene-based microbial community analysis coupled with the next-generation DNA sequencing techniques was applied to the taxonomic classification of intestinal microbiome for three jungle crows. Clustering of the reads into 130 operational taxonomic units showed that at least 70% of analyzed sequences for each crow were highly homologous to Eimeria sp., which belongs to the protozoan phylum Apicomplexa. The microbiotas of three crows also contained potentially pathogenic bacteria with significant percentages, such as the genera Campylobacter and Brachyspira. Thus, the profiling of a large number of 16S rRNA gene sequences in crow intestinal microbiomes revealed the high-frequency existence or vestige of potentially pathogenic microorganisms. PMID:24058905

  14. Population abundance of potentially pathogenic organisms in intestinal microbiome of jungle crow (Corvus macrorhynchos) shown with 16S rRNA gene-based microbial community analysis.

    PubMed

    Maeda, Isamu; Siddiki, Mohammad Shohel Rana; Nozawa-Takeda, Tsutomu; Tsukahara, Naoki; Tani, Yuri; Naito, Taki; Sugita, Shoei

    2013-01-01

    Jungle Crows (Corvus macrorhynchos) prefer human habitats because of their versatility in feeding accompanied with human food consumption. Therefore, it is important from a public health viewpoint to characterize their intestinal microbiota. However, no studies have been involved in molecular characterization of the microbiota based on huge and reliable number of data acquisition. In this study, 16S rRNA gene-based microbial community analysis coupled with the next-generation DNA sequencing techniques was applied to the taxonomic classification of intestinal microbiome for three jungle crows. Clustering of the reads into 130 operational taxonomic units showed that at least 70% of analyzed sequences for each crow were highly homologous to Eimeria sp., which belongs to the protozoan phylum Apicomplexa. The microbiotas of three crows also contained potentially pathogenic bacteria with significant percentages, such as the genera Campylobacter and Brachyspira. Thus, the profiling of a large number of 16S rRNA gene sequences in crow intestinal microbiomes revealed the high-frequency existence or vestige of potentially pathogenic microorganisms.

  15. Bilateral innervation of syringeal muscles by the hypoglossal nucleus in the jungle crow (Corvus macrorhynchos).

    PubMed

    Tsukahara, Naoki; Kamata, Naoki; Nagasawa, Miyuki; Sugita, Shoei

    2009-08-01

    Bird vocalizations are produced by contractions of syringeal muscles, which are controlled by the hypoglossal nucleus. In oscines, syringeal muscles are controlled by the hypoglossal nucleus ipsilaterally, whereas syringeal innervation is bilateral in non-oscines. We have determined the course of hypoglossal nerves in the jungle crow Corvus macrorhynchos. Our results indicate a cross-over of the hypoglossal nerve from the left side to the right side on the trachea 7 mm rostral to the Musculus sternotrachealis. We also investigated the innervation of the syringeal muscles of jungle crows from the hypoglossal nucleus using the horseradish peroxidase (HRP) method. After HRP was injected into the syringeal muscles on each side, HRP-labeled cells were found bilaterally in the hypoglossal nerve. These results suggest that the syringeal muscles of jungle crows are innervated bilaterally from the hypoglossal nucleus, although these birds are categorized as oscines.

  16. Bilateral innervation of syringeal muscles by the hypoglossal nucleus in the jungle crow (Corvus macrorhynchos)

    PubMed Central

    Tsukahara, Naoki; Kamata, Naoki; Nagasawa, Miyuki; Sugita, Shoei

    2009-01-01

    Bird vocalizations are produced by contractions of syringeal muscles, which are controlled by the hypoglossal nucleus. In oscines, syringeal muscles are controlled by the hypoglossal nucleus ipsilaterally, whereas syringeal innervation is bilateral in non-oscines. We have determined the course of hypoglossal nerves in the jungle crow Corvus macrorhynchos. Our results indicate a cross-over of the hypoglossal nerve from the left side to the right side on the trachea 7 mm rostral to theMusculus sternotrachealis. We also investigated the innervation of the syringeal muscles of jungle crows from the hypoglossal nucleus using the horseradish peroxidase (HRP) method. After HRP was injected into the syringeal muscles on each side, HRP-labeled cells were found bilaterally in the hypoglossal nerve. These results suggest that the syringeal muscles of jungle crows are innervated bilaterally from the hypoglossal nucleus, although these birds are categorized as oscines. PMID:19490396

  17. Formation of linear dominance relationship in captive jungle crows (Corvus macrorhynchos): implications for individual recognition.

    PubMed

    Izawa, Ei-Ichi; Watanabe, Shigeru

    2008-05-01

    Jungle crows (Corvus macrorhynchos) flexibly change their social forms depending on their age, time of the day, and the season. In the daytime, paired adults behave territorially and unpaired subadults form small flocks of ten birds, whereas at night hundreds of birds roost together. In the breeding season, pairings remain in their nest all day. This fission-fusion raises questions about the underlying social structure and the cognitive capability of jungle crows. In this study, dyadic encounters were used to investigate dominance relationships (linear or non-linear) and the underlying mechanisms in captive jungle crows. Fourteen crows were tested in 455 encounters (i.e., 5 encounters per dyad), and a stable linear dominance relationship emerged. Sex and aggressiveness were determinants as individual characteristics for dominance formation. Males dominated females, and more aggressive individuals dominated less aggressive ones. Aggressive interactions in dyads occurred primarily during the first encounter and drastically declined during subsequent encounters without any signs of a confidence effect. These results suggest that, in captive jungle crow, a linear form of dominance is intrinsically determined by sex and aggressiveness and maintained extrinsically by memories of past outcomes associated with specific individuals, implying individual recognition.

  18. DNA Vaccination of the American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) Provides Partial Protection Against Lethal Challenge with West Nile Virus

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2007-01-01

    mortality but did not provide sterile immunity. RESUMEN. La vacunación del cuervo Americano (Corvus brachyrhynchos) con vacuna de ADN proporciona...casi 100% fatal en el cuervo Americano (Corvus brachyrhynchos). Evaluamos cuatro formulaciones de vacunas en cuervos Americanos, incluyendo una vacuna de...ADN, una vacuna de ADN con adyuvante, ambas aplicadas por la vı́a intramuscular, una vacuna de ADN microencapsulada aplicada por la vı́a oral, y una

  19. Chemotherapeutic reactions of Chandlerella hawkingi, the filarial parasite of the Indian jungle crow, Corvus macrorhynchos (Wagler)

    PubMed Central

    Chatterjee, R. K.; Sen, A. B.

    1969-01-01

    1. A high percentage of Indian jungle crows (Corvus macrorhynchos Wagler), found in and around Lucknow, harbour a natural filarial infection Chandlerella hawkingi. The microfilariae of this species are sheathed and show nocturnal periodicity. 2. Fourteen compounds active against other kinds of filariae, especially against Litomosoides carinii, were tested against Ch. hawkingi in jungle crows to find whether this infection would be suitable for routine filarial chemotherapy. This is apparently the first report of systematic screening of antifilarial compounds against an avian filariasis. 3. Tartar emetic (10 mg/kg intravenously, daily for 6 days) and arsenamide (5 mg/kg intraperitoneally, daily for 6 days) proved to be effective in killing adult worms. Trivalent tryparsamide, though effective, was toxic in the doses tried. Diethylcarbamazine and other compounds tested were ineffective. 4. The chemotherapeutic susceptibilities of Ch. hawkingi differ considerably from those of L. carinii and Wuchereria bancrofti. PMID:5774047

  20. The Numerical Competency of Two Bird Species (Corvus splendens and Acridotheres tristis).

    PubMed

    Rahman, Nor Amira Abdul; Fadzly, Nik; Dzakwan, Najibah Mohd; Zulkifli, Nur Hazwani

    2014-08-01

    We conducted a series of experiments to test the numerical competency of two species of birds, Corvus splendens (House Crow) and Acridotheres tristis (Common Myna). Both species were allowed to choose from seven different groups of mealworms with varying proportions. We considered the birds to have made a correct choice when it selected the food group with the highest number of mealworms. Our overall results indicated that the Common Myna is able to count numbers (161 successful choices out of 247 trials) better than House Crows (133 successful choices out of 241 trials). We suspect that House Crows do not rely on a numerical sense when selecting food. Although House Crows mostly chose the cup with more mealworms (from seven food item proportions), only one proportion was chosen at rate above random chance. The Common Myna, however, were slow performers at the beginning but became increasingly more capable of numerical sense during the remainder of the experiment (four out of seven food proportion groups were chosen at a rate above random chance).

  1. The Numerical Competency of Two Bird Species (Corvus splendens and Acridotheres tristis)

    PubMed Central

    Rahman, Nor Amira Abdul; Fadzly, Nik; Dzakwan, Najibah Mohd; Zulkifli, Nur Hazwani

    2014-01-01

    We conducted a series of experiments to test the numerical competency of two species of birds, Corvus splendens (House Crow) and Acridotheres tristis (Common Myna). Both species were allowed to choose from seven different groups of mealworms with varying proportions. We considered the birds to have made a correct choice when it selected the food group with the highest number of mealworms. Our overall results indicated that the Common Myna is able to count numbers (161 successful choices out of 247 trials) better than House Crows (133 successful choices out of 241 trials). We suspect that House Crows do not rely on a numerical sense when selecting food. Although House Crows mostly chose the cup with more mealworms (from seven food item proportions), only one proportion was chosen at rate above random chance. The Common Myna, however, were slow performers at the beginning but became increasingly more capable of numerical sense during the remainder of the experiment (four out of seven food proportion groups were chosen at a rate above random chance). PMID:25210590

  2. Microstructure of the feather in Japanese Jungle Crows (Corvus macrorhynchos) with distinguishing gender differences.

    PubMed

    Lee, Eunok; Aoyama, Masato; Sugita, Shoei

    2009-09-01

    Assessing gender difference in Japanese Jungle Crows (Corvus macrorhynchos) is difficult by gross observation because both sexes have black plumage colors. Careful observation of the plumage, however, reveals that it is actually iridescent glossy purple and dark-green in color, and that these colors are more marked in adult males than in females. In birds, such iridescent structural colors are generally produced in the feather barbules, where light is scattered constructively by laminar arrays consisting of alternating layers of materials with different refractive indices, namely keratin, melanin and air. We have investigated differences in the microstructure of the feathers of male and female Jungle Crows by means of scanning and transmission electron microscopy. Male birds had more barbs than females, and the length of the prongs was shorter in males than in females. The density of the melanin granules in the cross-section of barbules was higher in males than in females. Moreover, only in males did the melanin granules show an ordered arrangement beneath a keratin cortex layer at the edges of barbules. These results demonstrate that there are microstructural differences in the feathers of male and female Jungle Crows and suggest that the Jungle Crows' feathers may have iridescent coloring that differs according to gender.

  3. The variety and nutritional value of foods consumed by Hawaiian crow nestlings, an endangered species

    Treesearch

    H.F. Sakai; J.R. Carpenter

    1990-01-01

    Research was conducted to determine the food habits of Hawaiian Crow (Corvus hawaiiensis) nestlings, variety of food items ingested relative to their age, and the nutritional composition of ingested fruits. Knowledge of the fruits’ nutritive value and the nestlings’ diet allowed us to determine what plants best meet nutritional...

  4. Elements in whole blood of Northwestern Crows (Corvus caurinus) in Alaska: No evidence for an association with beak deformities

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Van Hemert, Caroline R.; Handel, Colleen M.

    2016-01-01

    A recent outbreak of beak deformities among resident birds in Alaska has raised concern about environmental contamination as a possible underlying factor. We measured whole blood concentrations of 30 essential and nonessential elements to determine whether any were associated with beak deformities in Northwestern Crows (Corvus caurinus). We tested for differences between 1) adults with versus those without beak deformities and 2) unaffected adults versus juveniles. Crows with beak deformities had slightly higher levels of barium, molybdenum, and vanadium (all P<0.05), but concentrations were generally low and within the range of values reported from other apparently healthy wild birds. Concentrations of several elements, including selenium, were higher in birds without versus birds with beak deformities (all P<0.05), a difference that may be explained in part by compromised foraging ability associated with the deformities. Adult crows had higher concentrations of cadmium, silicon, and zinc than juveniles (all P<0.05), although differences were relatively small and values were similar to those from other wild birds. Our results suggest that neither selenium nor other tested elements are likely to be causing beak deformities in Alaskan crows. We also provide the first data on elemental concentrations in Northwestern Crows. Levels of selenium far exceeded those typically found in passerine birds and were similar to those in marine-associated waterfowl, suggesting that background levels should be interpreted relative to a species's environment.

  5. Corvus

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Murdin, P.

    2000-11-01

    (the Crow; abbrev. Crv, gen. Corvi; area 184 sq. deg.) A southern constellation which lies between Virgo and Hydra, and culminates at midnight in late March. It represents the crow that in Greek mythology was sent by the god Apollo with a cup for water but loitered at a fig tree until the fruit became ripe and then returned, having eaten its fill, with a water-snake which it blamed for delaying i...

  6. Erysipelas in a free-ranging Hawaiian crow (Corvus hawaiiensis)

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Work, Thierry M.; Ball, Donna; Wolcott, Mark

    1999-01-01

    We describe a case of erysipelas in a free-ranging endangered Hawaiian crow. The partially scavenged carcass exhibited gross emaciation and petechial hemorrhages in both lungs. Microscopy revealed multiple necrotic foci associated with gram-positive rods in the liver and adrenal, diffuse acute proximal tubular necrosis of kidney, diffuse necrosis and inflammation of proventricular mucosa associated with gram-positive rods, and multiple intravascular aggregates of gram-positive rods associated with thrombi. Culture of the kidney revealed the bacterium to be Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae. The implications of this finding to free-ranging crows remain unclear.

  7. The use of feather as an indicator for heavy metal contamination in house crow (Corvus splendens) in the Klang area, Selangor, Malaysia.

    PubMed

    Janaydeh, Mohammed; Ismail, Ahmad; Zulkifli, Syaizwan Zahmir; Bejo, Mohd Hair; Aziz, Nor Azwady Abd; Taneenah, Ayat

    2016-11-01

    The Klang area of Peninsular Malaysia has experienced rapid industrial growth with intense activities, which can increase the concentration of pollutants in the environment that significantly impact on habitats and the human health. The purpose of this study was to determine the levels of selected heavy metals (Cu, Zn, Ni, Fe, and Pb) in the heart, lung, brain, liver, kidney, muscle tissues, and feathers of house crow, Corvus splendens, in Klang, Peninsular Malaysia. House crow samples were collected from the Klang area through the Department of Public Health at Majlis Perbandaran Klang. Quantitative determination of heavy metals was carried out using atomic absorption spectrophotometer (AAS). The result shows the presence of heavy metals in all biological samples of house crows. For heavy metals in all the house crow tissues analyzed, Fe concentrations were the highest, followed by those of Zn, Cu, Pb, and Ni. The feathers and kidney accumulated high concentrations of Pb, whereas the liver accumulated high concentrations of essential heavy metals (Fe > Zn > Cu > Ni). Significant variations were also detected in the concentrations of Pb among adult and juvenile and male and female bird samples. The results also revealed significant positive correlations between Pb metal concentration in the breast feathers and all internal organs. Accumulation of toxic heavy metals in feathers reflected storing and elimination processes, while the accumulation of toxic heavy metals in the kidney can be consequential to chronic exposure. The present study clearly shows the usefulness of house crow breast feather as a suitable indicator for heavy metal accumulation in the internal organs of house crows in the Klang area.

  8. Design complexity in termite-fishing tools of chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes)

    PubMed Central

    Sanz, Crickette; Call, Josep; Morgan, David

    2009-01-01

    Adopting the approach taken with New Caledonian crows (Corvus moneduloides), we present evidence of design complexity in one of the termite-fishing tools of chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) in the Goualougo Triangle, Republic of Congo. Prior to termite fishing, chimpanzees applied a set of deliberate, distinguishable actions to modify herb stems to fashion a brush-tipped probe, which is different from the form of fishing tools used by chimpanzees in East and West Africa. This means that ‘brush-tipped fishing probes’, unlike ‘brush sticks’, are not a by-product of use but a deliberate design feature absent in other chimpanzee populations. The specialized modifications to prepare the tool for termite fishing, measures taken to repair non-functional brushes and appropriate orientation of the modified end suggest that these wild chimpanzees are attentive to tool modifications. We also conducted experimental trials that showed that a brush-tipped probe is more effective in gathering insects than an unmodified fishing probe. Based on these findings, we suggest that chimpanzees in the Congo Basin have developed an improved fishing probe design. PMID:19324641

  9. Population mitogenomics provides insights into evolutionary history, source of invasions and diversifying selection in the House Crow (Corvus splendens).

    PubMed

    Krzemińska, Urszula; Morales, Hernán E; Greening, Chris; Nyári, Árpád S; Wilson, Robyn; Song, Beng Kah; Austin, Christopher M; Sunnucks, Paul; Pavlova, Alexandra; Rahman, Sadequr

    2018-04-01

    The House Crow (Corvus splendens) is a useful study system for investigating the genetic basis of adaptations underpinning successful range expansion. The species originates from the Indian subcontinent, but has successfully spread through a variety of thermal environments across Asia, Africa and Europe. Here, population mitogenomics was used to investigate the colonisation history and to test for signals of molecular selection on the mitochondrial genome. We sequenced the mitogenomes of 89 House Crows spanning four native and five invasive populations. A Bayesian dated phylogeny, based on the 13 mitochondrial protein-coding genes, supports a mid-Pleistocene (~630,000 years ago) divergence between the most distant genetic lineages. Phylogeographic patterns suggest that northern South Asia is the likely centre of origin for the species. Codon-based analyses of selection and assessments of changes in amino acid properties provide evidence of positive selection on the ND2 and ND5 genes against a background of purifying selection across the mitogenome. Protein homology modelling suggests that four amino acid substitutions inferred to be under positive selection may modulate coupling efficiency and proton translocation mediated by OXPHOS complex I. The identified substitutions are found within native House Crow lineages and ecological niche modelling predicts suitable climatic areas for the establishment of crow populations within the invasive range. Mitogenomic patterns in the invasive range of the species are more strongly associated with introduction history than climate. We speculate that invasions of the House Crow have been facilitated by standing genetic variation that accumulated due to diversifying selection within the native range.

  10. Counting with Colours? Effect of Colours on the Numerical Abilities of House Crows (Corvus splendens) and Common Myna (Acridotheres tristis).

    PubMed

    Rahman, Nor Amira Abdul; Ali, Zalila; Zuharah, Wan Fatma; Fadzly, Nik

    2016-08-01

    We conducted several aviary experiments to investigate the influence of colours in quantity judgments of two species of birds; house crow (Corvus splendens) and common myna (Acridotheres tristis). Different quantity (in seven different food proportions) of mealworms were presented nonsequentially to all birds using artificially coloured red mealworms, for experiment 1, and using artificially coloured green mealworms, for experiment 2. Both red and green coloured mealworms have no significant effect on house crow's quantity judgments (red: F6,30 = 1.748, p = 0.144; and green: F6,30= 1.085, p = 0.394). Common myna, however, showed a strong influence of red colour in their quantity judgment ( F6,30 = 2.922, p = 0.023) as they succeeded in choosing the largest amount of food between two cups, but not when offered food using green coloured mealworms ( F6,30 = 1.183, p = 0.342). In the next experiment, we hypothesised that both house crow and common myna will prefer red coloured food items over green coloured food items, when factors such as the amount of food is equal. We chose to test red and green colours because both colours play an important role in most avian food selections. Results showed that there were no significant differences in the selection of red or green coloured mealworms for both house crows ( F6,30 = 2.310, p = 0.06) and common myna ( F6,30 = 0.823, p = 0.561).

  11. Histological properties of the nasal cavity and olfactory bulb of the Japanese jungle crow Corvus macrorhynchos.

    PubMed

    Yokosuka, Makoto; Hagiwara, Akiko; Saito, Toru R; Tsukahara, Naoki; Aoyama, Masato; Wakabayashi, Yoshihiro; Sugita, Shoei; Ichikawa, Masumi

    2009-09-01

    The nasal cavity and olfactory bulb (OB) of the Japanese jungle crow (Corvus macrorhynchos) were studied using computed tomography (CT) and histochemical staining. The nasal septum divided the nasal cavity in half. The anterior and maxillary conchae were present on both sides of the nasal cavity, but the posterior concha was indistinct. A small OB was present on the ventral surface of the periphery of the cerebrum. The OB-brain ratio--the ratio of the size of the OB to that of the cerebral hemisphere--was 6.13. The olfactory nerve bundles projected independently to the OB, which appeared fused on gross examination. Histochemical analysis confirmed the fusion of all OB layers. Using a neural tracer, we found that the olfactory nerve bundles independently projected to the olfactory nerve layer (ONL) and glomerular layer (GL) of the left and right halves of the fused OB. Only 4 of 21 lectins bound to the ONL and GL. Thus, compared with mammals and other birds, the jungle crow may have a poorly developed olfactory system and an inferior sense of olfaction. However, it has been contended recently that the olfactory abilities of birds cannot be judged from anatomical findings alone. Our results indicate that the olfactory system of the jungle crow is an interesting research model to evaluate the development and functions of vertebrate olfactory systems.

  12. Behavioural Type Affects Space Use in a Wild Population of Crows (Corvus corone).

    PubMed

    Deventer, Sarah A; Uhl, Florian; Bugnyar, Thomas; Miller, Rachael; Fitch, W Tecumseh; Schiestl, Martina; Ringler, Max; Schwab, Christine

    2016-11-01

    While personality-dependent dispersal is well studied, local space use has received surprisingly little attention in this context, despite the multiple consequences on survival and fitness. Regarding the coping style of individuals, recent studies on personality-dependent space use within a habitat indicate that 'proactive' individuals are wider ranging than 'reactive' ones. However, such studies are still scarce and cover limited taxonomic diversity, and thus, more research is needed to explore whether this pattern generalises across species. We examined the link between coping style and space use in a population of crows ( Corvus corone ) freely inhabiting the urban zoo of Vienna, Austria. We used a binary docility rating (struggle during handling vs. no struggle) and a tonic immobility test to quantify individual coping style. Individual space use was quantified as the number of different sites at which each crow was observed, and we controlled for different number of sightings per individual by creating a space use index. Only the binary docility rating showed repeatability over time, and significantly predicted space use. In contrast to previous studies, we found that reactive crows (no struggle during handling) showed wider ranging space use within the study site than proactive individuals (who struggled during handling). The discrepancy from previous results suggests that the relationship between behavioural type and space use may vary between species, potentially reflecting differences in socioecology.

  13. Peculiarities of RFLP of highly repetitive DNA in crow genomes

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Chelomina, G.N.; Kryukov, A.P.; Ivanov, S.V.

    1995-02-01

    We present a study of the structural organization of highly repetitive DNA in genomes of hooded crow Corvus cornix L., carrion crow C. corone L., and jungle crow C. macrorhynchos Wagl. RFLP and blot-hybridization with {sup 32}P-labeled Msp I fragment from hooded crow nDNA suggest the interspecific structural conservatism of the most repetitive DNA. The family of repeats we studied had tandem organization and the same (210 bp) period of reiteration for a set of restriction enzymes. However, in parallel to the general similarity of restriction patterns, there are species-specific peculiarities. The repetitive family revealed (Alu I, BsuR I, andmore » Msp I fragments) has quantitative RFLP of nDNA and interspecific differences in the extent of the multimer {open_quotes}ladder{close_quotes} pattern of Msp I fragments. The latter is more pronounced in nDNA of carrion crow than in that of phylogenetically distant jungle crow and closely related hooded crow. This suggests a recent amplification event for highly organized homological repeats in crow genomes. 10 refs., 2 figs.« less

  14. Plastic and the nest entanglement of urban and agricultural crows.

    PubMed

    Townsend, Andrea K; Barker, Christopher M

    2014-01-01

    Much attention has been paid to the impacts of plastics and other debris on marine organisms, but the effects of plastic on terrestrial organisms have been largely ignored. Detrimental effects of terrestrial plastic could be most pronounced in intensively human-modified landscapes (e.g., urban and agricultural areas), which are a source of much anthropogenic debris. Here, we examine the occurrence, types, landscape associations, and consequences of anthropogenic nest material in the American crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos), a North American species that breeds in both urban and agricultural landscapes. We monitored 195 nestlings in 106 nests across an urban and agricultural gradient in the Sacramento Valley, California, USA. We found that 85.2% of crow nests contained anthropogenic material, and 11 of 195 nestlings (5.6%) were entangled in their nests. The length of the material was greater in nests in agricultural territories than in urban territories, and the odds of entanglement increased 7.55 times for each meter of anthropogenic material in the nest. Fledging success was significantly lower for entangled than for unentangled nestlings. In all environments, particularly urban, agricultural, and marine, careful disposal of potential hazards (string, packing and hay bale twine, balloon ribbon, wire, fishing line) could reduce the occurrence of entanglement of nestling birds.

  15. Plastic and the Nest Entanglement of Urban and Agricultural Crows

    PubMed Central

    Townsend, Andrea K.; Barker, Christopher M.

    2014-01-01

    Much attention has been paid to the impacts of plastics and other debris on marine organisms, but the effects of plastic on terrestrial organisms have been largely ignored. Detrimental effects of terrestrial plastic could be most pronounced in intensively human-modified landscapes (e.g., urban and agricultural areas), which are a source of much anthropogenic debris. Here, we examine the occurrence, types, landscape associations, and consequences of anthropogenic nest material in the American crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos), a North American species that breeds in both urban and agricultural landscapes. We monitored 195 nestlings in 106 nests across an urban and agricultural gradient in the Sacramento Valley, California, USA. We found that 85.2% of crow nests contained anthropogenic material, and 11 of 195 nestlings (5.6%) were entangled in their nests. The length of the material was greater in nests in agricultural territories than in urban territories, and the odds of entanglement increased 7.55 times for each meter of anthropogenic material in the nest. Fledging success was significantly lower for entangled than for unentangled nestlings. In all environments, particularly urban, agricultural, and marine, careful disposal of potential hazards (string, packing and hay bale twine, balloon ribbon, wire, fishing line) could reduce the occurrence of entanglement of nestling birds. PMID:24498238

  16. Long-term memory of color stimuli in the jungle crow (Corvus macrorhynchos).

    PubMed

    Bogale, Bezawork Afework; Sugawara, Satoshi; Sakano, Katsuhisa; Tsuda, Sonoko; Sugita, Shoei

    2012-03-01

    Wild-caught jungle crows (n = 20) were trained to discriminate between color stimuli in a two-alternative discrimination task. Next, crows were tested for long-term memory after 1-, 2-, 3-, 6-, and 10-month retention intervals. This preliminary study showed that jungle crows learn the task and reach a discrimination criterion (80% or more correct choices in two consecutive sessions of ten trials) in a few trials, and some even in a single session. Most, if not all, crows successfully remembered the constantly reinforced visual stimulus during training after all retention intervals. These results suggest that jungle crows have a high retention capacity for learned information, at least after a 10-month retention interval and make no or very few errors. This study is the first to show long-term memory capacity of color stimuli in corvids following a brief training that memory rather than rehearsal was apparent. Memory of visual color information is vital for exploitation of biological resources in crows. We suspect that jungle crows could remember the learned color discrimination task even after a much longer retention interval.

  17. Distribution of retinal cone photoreceptor oil droplets, and identification of associated carotenoids in crow (Corvus macrorhynchos).

    PubMed

    Rahman, Mohammad Lutfur; Yoshida, Kazuyuki; Maeda, Isamu; Tanaka, Hideuki; Sugita, Shoei

    2010-06-01

    The topography of cone oil droplets and their carotenoids were investigated in the retina of jungle crow (Corvus macrorhynchos). Fresh retina was sampled for the study of retinal cone oil droplets, and extracted retinal carotenoids were saponified using methods adapted from a recent study, then identified with reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). To assess the effects of saponification conditions on carotenoid recovery from crow retina, we varied base concentration and total time of saponification across a wide range of conditions, and again used HPLC to compare carotenoid concentrations. Based on colors, at least four types of oil droplets were recognized, i.e., red, orange, green, and translucent, across the retina. With an average of 91,202 /mm(2), density gradually declines in an eccentric manner from optic disc. In retina, the density and size of droplets are inversely related. In the peripheral zone, oil droplets were significantly larger than those of the central area. The proportion of orange oil droplets (33%) was higher in the central area, whereas green was predominant in other areas. Three types of carotenoid (astaxanthin, galloxanthin and lutein), together with one unknown carotenoid, were recovered from the crow retina; astaxanthin was the dominant carotenoid among them. The recovery of carotenoids was affected by saponification conditions. Astaxanthin was well recovered in weak alkali (0.06 M KOH), in contrast, xanthophyllic carotenoids were best recovered in strong alkali (0.6 M KOH) after 12 h of saponification at freeze temperature.

  18. Social learning spreads knowledge about dangerous humans among American crows.

    PubMed

    Cornell, Heather N; Marzluff, John M; Pecoraro, Shannon

    2012-02-07

    Individuals face evolutionary trade-offs between the acquisition of costly but accurate information gained firsthand and the use of inexpensive but possibly less reliable social information. American crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos) use both sources of information to learn the facial features of a dangerous person. We exposed wild crows to a novel 'dangerous face' by wearing a unique mask as we trapped, banded and released 7-15 birds at five study sites near Seattle, WA, USA. An immediate scolding response to the dangerous mask after trapping by previously captured crows demonstrates individual learning, while an immediate response by crows that were not captured probably represents conditioning to the trapping scene by the mob of birds that assembled during the capture. Later recognition of dangerous masks by lone crows that were never captured is consistent with horizontal social learning. Independent scolding by young crows, whose parents had conditioned them to scold the dangerous mask, demonstrates vertical social learning. Crows that directly experienced trapping later discriminated among dangerous and neutral masks more precisely than did crows that learned through social means. Learning enabled scolding to double in frequency and spread at least 1.2 km from the place of origin over a 5 year period at one site.

  19. Duplicated growth hormone genes in a passerine bird, the jungle crow (Corvus macrorhynchos).

    PubMed

    Arai, Natsumi; Iigo, Masayuki

    2010-07-02

    Molecular cloning, molecular phylogeny, gene structure and expression analyses of growth hormone (GH) were performed in a passerine bird, the jungle crow (Corvus macrorhynchos). Unexpectedly, duplicated GH cDNA and genes were identified and designated as GH1A and GH1B. In silico analyses identified the zebra finch orthologs. Both GH genes encode 217 amino acid residues and consist of five exons and four introns, spanning 5.2 kbp in GH1A and 4.2 kbp in GH1B. Predicted GH proteins of the jungle crow and zebra finch contain four conserved cysteine residues, suggesting duplicated GH genes are functional. Molecular phylogenetic analysis revealed that duplication of GH genes occur after divergence of the passerine lineage from the other avian orders as has been suggested from partial genomic DNA sequences of passerine GH genes. RT-PCR analyses confirmed expression of GH1A and GH1B in the pituitary gland. In addition, GH1A gene is expressed in all the tissues examined. However, expression of GH1B is confined to several brain areas and blood cells. These results indicate that the regulatory mechanisms of duplicated GH genes are different and that duplicated GH genes exert both endocrine and autocrine/paracrine functions. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  20. Crow deaths as a sentinel surveillance system for West Nile virus in the northeastern United States, 1999

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Eidson, M.; Komar, N.; Sorhage, F.; Nelson, R.; Talbot, T.; Mostashari, F.; McLean, R.; ,

    2001-01-01

    In addition to human encephalitis and meningitis cases, the West Nile (WN) virus outbreak in the summer and fall of 1999 in New York State resulted in bird deaths in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. From August to December 1999, 295 dead birds were laboratory-confirmed with WN virus infection; 262 (89%) were American Crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos). The New York State Department of Health received reports of 17,339 dead birds, including 5,697 (33%) crows; in Connecticut 1,040 dead crows were reported. Bird deaths were critical in identifying WN virus as the cause of the human outbreak and defining its geographic and temporal limits. If established before a WN virus outbreak, a surveillance system based on bird deaths may provide a sensitive method of detecting WN virus.

  1. Video cameras on wild birds.

    PubMed

    Rutz, Christian; Bluff, Lucas A; Weir, Alex A S; Kacelnik, Alex

    2007-11-02

    New Caledonian crows (Corvus moneduloides) are renowned for using tools for extractive foraging, but the ecological context of this unusual behavior is largely unknown. We developed miniaturized, animal-borne video cameras to record the undisturbed behavior and foraging ecology of wild, free-ranging crows. Our video recordings enabled an estimate of the species' natural foraging efficiency and revealed that tool use, and choice of tool materials, are more diverse than previously thought. Video tracking has potential for studying the behavior and ecology of many other bird species that are shy or live in inaccessible habitats.

  2. Stationing a U.S. Army Reserve Black Hawk Helicopter Company at Joint Forces Training Base Los Alamitos, California

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2011-03-01

    include the American crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos), northern mockingbird (Mimus polyglotos), black phoebe (Saynoris nigricans), house finch (Carpodacus...cumulative impacts. Any wildlife killed during aviation activities is reported to the JFTB Los Alamitos Environmental Office for proper identification

  3. Structure of the syringeal muscles in jungle crow (Corvus macrorhynchos).

    PubMed

    Tsukahara, Naoki; Yang, Qian; Sugita, Shoei

    2008-09-01

    Birds' vocalizations are produced by the syrinx, which is located between the trachea and the two primary bronchi. Oscine birds have multiple pairs of syringeal muscles in the syrinx. To determine the detailed structure of the syringeal muscle in jungle crows, an oscine bird, a histological study and gross examination of the syrinx were performed. In the histological study, sections of the syrinxes from four jungle crows were stained with Azan and observed. Each syringeal muscle was classified by the limit of the fascia from neighbor fascicules. From the gross examination a 3-D image of the structure of the syringeal muscles was generated. The combined histological and anatomical results show that there are seven pairs of syringeal muscles in jungle crows. Muscle fusions were observed in some of the syringeal muscles. It is likely that each syringeal muscle has a specific role. Jungle crows may be able to generate various calls because they have several pairs of syringeal muscles.

  4. Self-Rehabilitation of a Captive American Crow at Binghamton Zoo.

    PubMed

    Davie, Clara; Clark, Anne B

    2017-01-01

    The behavioral transition from an entirely unflighted-to-flighted, female yearling American crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) in captivity in a specially designed exhibit was documented at the Binghamton Zoo at Ross Park in Binghamton, NY. Upon arrival, the focal crow had no complete primary feathers or retrices and had been in captivity since fledging. She apparently had never flown successfully and was using her legs and an abnormal body orientation to cushion her landing on the ground. In a social and physical environment with 3 flying companion crows and staggered perches, she developed and appeared to "practice" routines that ultimately resulted in her recovering normal body posture and flight ability. The crow's practice routine was recorded during daily observations using an ethogram of social and locomotor behaviors. Both enclosure design and the social environment may have provided an ideal setting for the self-motivation of practice and this recovery. Attention to the potential for such practice could facilitate rehabilitation in individuals for whom rehabilitation was not thought possible.

  5. Social and Foraging Behavior in Northwestern Crows (Corvus caurinus): Incorporating New Analyses and Technology

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Xu, Carol K.

    Both foraging and social decisions impact animals in important ways. We investigate the effects of age on foraging efficiency and sociality on Northwestern Crows (Corvus caurinus) at the beach, and use the growing field of social network analysis (SNA) to further examine social behavior in these birds. Specifically, we predict that 1) adults are more efficient foragers than juveniles, 2) juveniles interact with larger numbers of social partners than adults, 3) juveniles and adults prefer to associate with each other rather than within their own age classes, 4) crows are not associating randomly while on the beach (aka they have preferred social partners), and 5) pairs of individuals engaging in more affiliative behaviors with each other are less likely to also behave agonistically to one another, and vice versa. We also explore the uses of a remote radio detection system Encounternet by testing the validity of pilot data collected through this system against live observations conducted simultaneously. There is no effect of age on foraging efficiency; however, juveniles were found to interact with more total partners than adults, and most social associations occur between juveniles and adults. Our results also suggest crows are engaging in preferential social associations, though there is no evidence that affiliative pairs and agonistic pairs are mutually exclusive. Finally, it appears Encounternet can be useful for data collection when paired with live observations, as long as certain limitations are kept in mind. Our pilot study could be beneficial to anyone considering the use of remote detection tools in data collection on animals.

  6. Counting with Colours? Effect of Colours on the Numerical Abilities of House Crows (Corvus splendens) and Common Myna (Acridotheres tristis)

    PubMed Central

    Rahman, Nor Amira Abdul; Ali, Zalila; Zuharah, Wan Fatma; Fadzly, Nik

    2016-01-01

    We conducted several aviary experiments to investigate the influence of colours in quantity judgments of two species of birds; house crow (Corvus splendens) and common myna (Acridotheres tristis). Different quantity (in seven different food proportions) of mealworms were presented nonsequentially to all birds using artificially coloured red mealworms, for experiment 1, and using artificially coloured green mealworms, for experiment 2. Both red and green coloured mealworms have no significant effect on house crow’s quantity judgments (red: ANOVA: F6,30 = 1.748, p = 0.144; and green: ANOVA: F6,30= 1.085, p = 0.394). Common myna, however, showed a strong influence of red colour in their quantity judgment (ANOVA: F6,30 = 2.922, p = 0.023) as they succeeded in choosing the largest amount of food between two cups, but not when offered food using green coloured mealworms (ANOVA: F6,30 = 1.183, p = 0.342). In the next experiment, we hypothesised that both house crow and common myna will prefer red coloured food items over green coloured food items, when factors such as the amount of food is equal. We chose to test red and green colours because both colours play an important role in most avian food selections. Results showed that there were no significant differences in the selection of red or green coloured mealworms for both house crows (ANOVA: F6,30 = 2.310, p = 0.06) and common myna (ANOVA: F6,30 = 0.823, p = 0.561). PMID:27688847

  7. Experimental infection of Carrion crows (Corvus corone) with two European West Nile virus (WNV) strains.

    PubMed

    Dridi, Maha; Vangeluwe, Didier; Lecollinet, Sylvie; van den Berg, Thierry; Lambrecht, Bénédicte

    2013-07-26

    West Nile virus (WNV) has become a wide-spread arbovirus in Europe and the Mediterranean Basin countries. This emerging zoonotic disease disseminated 13 years ago in North America where its impact on animal and public health has been considerable. Although American corvids have been the most reliable avian sentinels for WN surveillance in the United States, there is so far no data available about the susceptibility of their Western European counterparts to WNV. Clinical follow-up and serum, oral swabs and feathers viral RNA load monitoring was herein performed on wild-caught Carrion crows (Corvus corone) experimentally inoculated with two WNV strains, Is98 that was isolated from a stork in Israel where it elicited high rates of avian deaths in 1998, and Fr2000 which was only associated to sporadic equine cases in Camargue, France in 2000. Inoculated crows were sensitive to both WNV infections and, as expected from the available epidemiological data, Is98 induced a higher mortality rate (100% vs. 33%) and a quicker fatal outcome, with higher viral RNA loads detected in the serum, oral swabs and feathers than in the Fr2000 group. Therefore, Carrion crows should also be a target species for WNV surveillance in Western Europe, where reporting for abnormal mortalities could be completed by viral detection in the herein described avian matrices. These experimental findings also emphasize the peculiarity of the European situation where a large spectrum of WNV genetic and pathotypic variants have been so far isolated despite limited WN disease reports in wild birds. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  8. Population trends of Mariana Crow Corvus kubaryi on Rota, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Plentovich, S.; Morton, J.M.; Bart, J.; Camp, R.J.; Lusk, M.; Johnson, N.; VanderWerf, E.

    2005-01-01

    Endemic to the islands of Guam and Rota in the Mariana Islands, Mariana Crow Corvus kubaryi is the only corvid in Micronesia. Currently, it survives on Guam only because of translocation of individuals from Rota (1999-2003). Island-wide surveys in 1982 and 1995 on Rota yielded population estimates of 1,348 and 592 respectively, indicating a 56% decrease in only 13 years. A sharp decline in the only viable Mariana Crow population has serious implications for conservation efforts on Rota and for efforts to re-establish the Guam population. However, the validity of the apparent decline has been debated among scientists and government management agencies. We augmented the 1982 and 1995 island-wide VCP surveys with (1) an additional island-wide survey conducted in 1998, and (2) roadside surveys conducted during 1991-1993 and again during 1999-2002. We also outline historical changes in Rota's limestone forest based on aerial photographs and historical information. Data from all surveys indicate a significant decline in the Mariana Crow population. Declines occurred especially along the north-central coast and in the area east of the airport known as As Dudo in the 1990s, but the data indicate an island-wide decline over the entire span of the surveys. introduced predators, human persecution, and habitat loss and degradation by anthropogenic and natural causes have all contributed to the decline. Long-term preservation of this species will require effective brown treesnake Boiga irregularis control, habitat protection, continued monitoring and research, and increased public education and awareness of Rota's rare and endangered species. ?? BirdLife International 2005.

  9. Social learning spreads knowledge about dangerous humans among American crows

    PubMed Central

    Cornell, Heather N.; Marzluff, John M.; Pecoraro, Shannon

    2012-01-01

    Individuals face evolutionary trade-offs between the acquisition of costly but accurate information gained firsthand and the use of inexpensive but possibly less reliable social information. American crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos) use both sources of information to learn the facial features of a dangerous person. We exposed wild crows to a novel ‘dangerous face’ by wearing a unique mask as we trapped, banded and released 7–15 birds at five study sites near Seattle, WA, USA. An immediate scolding response to the dangerous mask after trapping by previously captured crows demonstrates individual learning, while an immediate response by crows that were not captured probably represents conditioning to the trapping scene by the mob of birds that assembled during the capture. Later recognition of dangerous masks by lone crows that were never captured is consistent with horizontal social learning. Independent scolding by young crows, whose parents had conditioned them to scold the dangerous mask, demonstrates vertical social learning. Crows that directly experienced trapping later discriminated among dangerous and neutral masks more precisely than did crows that learned through social means. Learning enabled scolding to double in frequency and spread at least 1.2 km from the place of origin over a 5 year period at one site. PMID:21715408

  10. Restricted gene flow and fine-scale population structuring in tool using New Caledonian crows

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Rutz, C.; Ryder, T. B.; Fleischer, R. C.

    2012-04-01

    New Caledonian crows Corvus moneduloides are the most prolific avian tool users. It has been suggested that some aspects of their complex tool use behaviour are under the influence of cultural processes, involving the social transmission—and perhaps even progressive refinement—of tool designs. Using microsatellite and mt-haplotype profiling of crows from three distinct habitats (dry forest, farmland and beachside habitat), we show that New Caledonian crow populations can exhibit significant fine-scale genetic structuring. Our finding that some sites of <10 km apart were highly differentiated demonstrates considerable potential for genetic and/or cultural isolation of crow groups. Restricted movement of birds between local populations at such small spatial scales, especially across habitat boundaries, illustrates how specific tool designs could be preserved over time, and how tool technologies of different crow groups could diverge due to drift and local selection pressures. Young New Caledonian crows have an unusually long juvenile dependency period, during which they acquire complex tool-related foraging skills. We suggest that the resulting delayed natal dispersal drives population-divergence patterns in this species. Our work provides essential context for future studies that examine the genetic makeup of crow populations across larger geographic areas, including localities with suspected cultural differences in crow tool technologies.

  11. Shape discrimination and concept formation in the jungle crow (Corvus macrorhynchos).

    PubMed

    Bogale, Bezawork Afework; Sugita, Shoei

    2014-01-01

    We investigated whether jungle crows can learn concepts by using printouts of shapes in a simultaneous two-alternative task. Jungle crows were first trained with a red triangle and red square until they reached the discrimination criterion (80% of correct choices in two blocks of 10 trials each). Then, we tested crows with successive transfer tests to investigate both the discrimination cues being used and concept formation ability, by using novel triangular and non-triangular stimuli. All of the jungle crows learnt to discriminate between the triangle and square during training. The discrimination performance was generally not affected either by changes in the colour of the stimuli or when both shape and colour cues conflicted, with the previously non-rewarded shape but matching colour (red square) versus rewarded shape but non-matching colour (green triangle). The use of only outlines of the familiar stimuli also did not affect discrimination behaviour of crows. In addition, crows significantly discriminated novel triangular shapes during the limited trials given, suggesting their ability to form the concept of triangularity. However, failure to discriminate when the novel stimuli size deviated from the original suggests that there is a limit to shape concept formation in a familiar-novel context in the jungle crow.

  12. Categorical learning between 'male' and 'female' photographic human faces in jungle crows (Corvus macrorhynchos).

    PubMed

    Bogale, Bezawork Afework; Aoyama, Masato; Sugita, Shoei

    2011-01-01

    We trained jungle crows to discriminate among photographs of human face according to their sex in a simultaneous two-alternative task to study their categorical learning ability. Once the crows reached a discrimination criterion (greater than or equal to 80% correct choices in two consecutive sessions; binomial probability test, p<.05), they next received generalization and transfer tests (i.e., greyscale, contour, and 'full' occlusion) in Experiment 1 followed by a 'partial' occlusion test in Experiment 2 and random stimuli pair test in Experiment 3. Jungle crows learned the discrimination task in a few trials and successfully generalized to novel stimuli sets. However, all crows failed the greyscale test and half of them the contour test. Neither occlusion of internal features of the face, nor randomly pairing of exemplars affected discrimination performance of most, if not all crows. We suggest that jungle crows categorize human face photographs based on perceptual similarities as other non-human animals do, and colour appears to be the most salient feature controlling discriminative behaviour. However, the variability in the use of facial contours among individuals suggests an exploitation of multiple features and individual differences in visual information processing among jungle crows. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  13. Associative learning rapidly establishes neuronal representations of upcoming behavioral choices in crows

    PubMed Central

    Veit, Lena; Pidpruzhnykova, Galyna; Nieder, Andreas

    2015-01-01

    The ability to form associations between behaviorally relevant sensory stimuli is fundamental for goal-directed behaviors. We investigated neuronal activity in the telencephalic area nidopallium caudolaterale (NCL) while two crows (Corvus corone) performed a delayed association task. Whereas some paired associates were familiar to the crows, novel associations had to be learned and mapped to the same target stimuli within a single session. We found neurons that prospectively encoded the chosen test item during the delay for both familiar and newly learned associations. These neurons increased their selectivity during learning in parallel with the crows' increased behavioral performance. Thus, sustained activity in the NCL actively processes information for the upcoming behavioral choice. These data provide new insights into memory representations of behaviorally meaningful stimuli in birds, and how such representations are formed during learning. The findings suggest that the NCL plays a role in learning arbitrary associations, a cornerstone of corvids’ remarkable behavioral flexibility and adaptability. PMID:26598669

  14. Condition, innate immunity and disease mortality of inbred crows

    PubMed Central

    Townsend, Andrea K.; Clark, Anne B.; McGowan, Kevin J.; Miller, Andrew D.; Buckles, Elizabeth L.

    2010-01-01

    Cooperatively breeding American crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos) suffer a severe disease-mediated survival cost from inbreeding, but the proximate mechanisms linking inbreeding to disease are unknown. Here, we examine indices of nestling body condition and innate immunocompetence in relationship to inbreeding and disease mortality. Using an estimate of microsatellite heterozygosity that predicts inbreeding in this population, we show that inbred crows were in relatively poor condition as nestlings, and that body condition index measured in the first 2–33 days after hatching, in addition to inbreeding index, predicted disease probability in the first 34 months of life. Inbred nestlings also mounted a weaker response along one axis of innate immunity: the proportion of bacteria killed in a microbiocidal assay increased as heterozygosity index increased. Relatively poor body condition and low innate immunocompetence are two mechanisms that might predispose inbred crows to ultimate disease mortality. A better understanding of condition-mediated inbreeding depression can guide efforts to minimize disease costs of inbreeding in small populations. PMID:20444716

  15. Threat-sensitive anti-predator defence in precocial wader, the northern lapwing Vanellus vanellus.

    PubMed

    Królikowska, Natalia; Szymkowiak, Jakub; Laidlaw, Rebecca Anne; Kuczyński, Lechosław

    2016-01-01

    Birds exhibit various forms of anti-predator behaviours to avoid reproductive failure, with mobbing-observation, approach and usually harassment of a predator-being one of the most commonly observed. Here, we investigate patterns of temporal variation in the mobbing response exhibited by a precocial species, the northern lapwing ( Vanellus vanellus ). We test whether brood age and self-reliance, or the perceived risk posed by various predators, affect mobbing response of lapwings. We quantified aggressive interactions between lapwings and their natural avian predators and used generalized additive models to test how timing and predator species identity are related to the mobbing response of lapwings. Lapwings diversified mobbing response within the breeding season and depending on predator species. Raven Corvus corax , hooded crow Corvus cornix and harriers evoked the strongest response, while common buzzard Buteo buteo , white stork Ciconia ciconia , black-headed gull Chroicocephalus ridibundus and rook Corvus frugilegus were less frequently attacked. Lapwings increased their mobbing response against raven, common buzzard, white stork and rook throughout the breeding season, while defence against hooded crow, harriers and black-headed gull did not exhibit clear temporal patterns. Mobbing behaviour of lapwings apparently constitutes a flexible anti-predator strategy. The anti-predator response depends on predator species, which may suggest that lapwings distinguish between predator types and match mobbing response to the perceived hazard at different stages of the breeding cycle. We conclude that a single species may exhibit various patterns of temporal variation in anti-predator defence, which may correspond with various hypotheses derived from parental investment theory.

  16. Is primate tool use special? Chimpanzee and New Caledonian crow compared

    PubMed Central

    McGrew, W. C.

    2013-01-01

    The chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) is well-known in both nature and captivity as an impressive maker and user of tools, but recently the New Caledonian crow (Corvus moneduloides) has been championed as being equivalent or superior to the ape in elementary technology. I systematically compare the two taxa, going beyond simple presence/absence scoring of tool-using and -making types, on four more precise aspects of material culture: (i) types of associative technology (tools used in combination); (ii) modes of tool making; (iii) modes of tool use; and (iv) functions of tool use. I emphasize tool use in nature, when performance is habitual or customary, rather than in anecdotal or idiosyncratic. On all four measures, the ape shows more variety than does the corvid, especially in modes and functions that go beyond extractive foraging. However, more sustained field research is required on the crows before this contrast is conclusive. PMID:24101630

  17. West Nile virus transmission and ecology in birds

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    McLean, R.G.; Ubico, S.R.; Docherty, D.E.; Hansen, W.R.; Sileo, L.; Mcnamara, T.S.

    2001-01-01

    The ecology of the strain of West Nile virus (WNV) introduced into the United States in 1999 has similarities to the native flavivirus, St. Louis encephalitis (SLE) virus, but has unique features not observed with SLE virus or with WNV in the old world. The primary route of transmission for most of the arboviruses in North America is by mosquito, and infected native birds usually do not suffer morbidity or mortality. An exception to this pattern is eastern equine encephalitis virus, which has an alternate direct route of transmission among nonnative birds, and some mortality of native bird species occurs. The strain of WNV circulating in the northeastern United States is unique in that it causes significant mortality in exotic and native bird species, especially in the American crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos). Because of the lack of information on the susceptibility and pathogenesis of WNV for this species, experimental studies were conducted at the USGS National Wildlife Health Center. In two separate studies, crows were inoculated with a 1999 New York strain of WNV, and all experimentally infected crows died. In one of the studies, control crows in regular contact with experimentally inoculated crows in the same room but not inoculated with WNV succumbed to infection. The direct transmission between crows was most likely by the oral route. Inoculated crows were viremic before death, and high titers of virus were isolated from a variety of tissues. The significance of the experimental direct transmission among captive crows is unknown.

  18. Responses of urban crows to con- and hetero-specific alarm calls in predator and non-predator zoo enclosures.

    PubMed

    Bílá, Kateřina; Beránková, Jana; Veselý, Petr; Bugnyar, Thomas; Schwab, Christine

    2017-01-01

    Urban animals and birds in particular are able to cope with diverse novel threats in a city environment such as avoiding novel, unfamiliar predators. Predator avoidance often includes alarm signals that can be used also by hetero-specifics, which is mainly the case in mixed-species flocks. It can also occur when species do not form flocks but co-occur together. In this study we tested whether urban crows use alarm calls of conspecifics and hetero-specifics (jackdaws, Corvus monedula) differently in a predator and a non-predator context with partly novel and unfamiliar zoo animal species. Birds were tested at the Tiergarten Schönbrunn in the city of Vienna by playing back con- and hetero-specific alarm calls and control stimuli (great tit song and no stimuli) at predator (wolf, polar bear) and non-predator (eland antelope and cranes, peccaries) enclosures. We recorded responses of crows as the percentage of birds flying away after hearing the playback (out of those present before the playback) and as the number of vocalizations given by the present birds. A significantly higher percentage of crows flew away after hearing either con- or hetero-specific alarm calls, but it did not significantly differ between the predator and the non-predator context. Crows treated jackdaw calls just as crow calls, indicating that they make proper use of hetero-specific alarm calls. Responding similarly in both contexts may suggest that the crows were uncertain about the threat a particular zoo animal represents and were generally cautious. In the predator context, however, a high percentage of crows also flew away upon hearing the great tit control song which suggests that they may still evaluate those species which occasionally killed crows as more dangerous and respond to any conspicuous sound.

  19. Histological and morphometric analyses of seasonal testicular variations in the Jungle Crow (Corvus macrorhynchos).

    PubMed

    Islam, Muhammad Nazrul; Zhu, Xiao Bo; Zhu, Ziao Bo; Aoyama, Masato; Sugita, Shoei

    2010-09-01

    A histological and morphometric study was conducted to examine the seasonal testicular variations in the Jungle Crow (Corvus macrorhynchos) of the Kanto area, Japan, from January to July. The paired testes mass, diameter and number of germ cells of the seminiferous tubules, and proportion of seminiferous tubule area and interstitium were examined. Hematoxylin and eosin-stained testis sections and ImageJ Software were used. Paired testes weight was found to increase by 55-fold from January to late March-early May, thereafter declining by 18-fold by June-July. Seminiferous tubule diameter increased fivefold from January to late March-early May, followed a fourfold decrease in June-July. The increase in testes weight correlated well with the increase in the diameter of the seminiferous tubule. In January, the seminiferous tubules constituted 56% of the testicular tissue and the interstitium 44%. During late March-early May, there was very little testicular interstitium (7.9%), and the seminiferous tubules were significantly enlarged (P < 0.05) (92%); this was followed by a gradual increase in the interstitial regression of testes. In January, the seminiferous epithelium contained a single layer of spermatogonia and Sertoli cells. The number of spermatogonia, primary and secondary spermatocytes, spermatids, and maturing spermatozoa were significantly increased (P < 0.05) in late March-early May, followed by regression from mid May. Our results indicate that the Jungle Crow has a non-breeding season in January, a pre-breeding season during February-mid March, a main breeding season during late March-early May, a transition period during mid May-late May, and a post-breeding season beginning in June.

  20. Microstructure characteristics of the cornea in birds and mammals.

    PubMed

    Tsukahara, Naoki; Tani, Yuri; Lee, Eunok; Kikuchi, Hideyuki; Endoh, Kentaroh; Ichikawa, Masumi; Sugita, Shoei

    2010-09-01

    In this study, the microstructure of the cornea was compared among chickens (Gallus gallus), jungle crows (Corvus macrorhynchos), rats (Rattus norvegicus) and rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus). The density of keratocytes in the mammals was over 3 times that in the birds. The size of the keratocytes in the birds and rat were significantly lower than those in the rabbit. Using scanning and transmission electron microscopy, the bundles of collagen fibers in the birds were found to be well arranged, while those in the mammals were arranged randomly. The collagen lamellae of the birds were significantly thicker than those of the mammals, and the numbers of collagen lamellae in the birds were significantly smaller than in the mammals. The center-to-center distances between the collagen fibrils of the chicken and rabbit were significantly larger than those of the crow and rat. The densities of collagen fibrils in the chicken and rabbit were significantly less than those of the crow and rat.

  1. Human-like, population-level specialization in the manufacture of pandanus tools by New Caledonian crows Corvus moneduloides.

    PubMed Central

    Hunt, G R

    2000-01-01

    The main way of gaining insight into the behaviour and neurological faculties of our early ancestors is to study artefactual evidence for the making and use of tools, but this places severe constraints on what knowledge can be obtained. New Caledonian crows, however, offer a potential analogous model system for learning about these difficult-to-establish aspects of prehistoric humans. I found new evidence of human-like specialization in crows' manufacture of hook tools from pandanus leaves: functional lateralization or 'handedness' and the shaping of these tools to a rule system. These population-level features are unprecedented in the tool behaviour of free-living non-humans and provide the first demonstration that a population bias for handedness in tool-making and the shaping of tools to rule systems are not concomitant with symbolic thought and language. It is unknown how crows obtain their tool behaviour. Nevertheless, at the least they can be studied in order to learn about the neuropsychology associated with early specialized and/or advanced population features in tool-making such as hook use, handedness and the shaping of tools to rule systems. PMID:10722223

  2. Relationship between Pb and Cd accumulations in house crow, their habitat, and food content from Klang area, Peninsular Malaysia.

    PubMed

    Janaydeh, Mohammed; Ismail, Ahmad; Omar, Hishamuddin; Zulkifli, Syaizwan Zahmir; Bejo, Mohd Hair; Aziz, Nor Azwady Abd

    2017-12-27

    Heavy metal pollution has become a global concern due to accumulation in tissue and transferable effects to humans via the food chain. This study focused on monitoring the accumulation of cadmium (Cd) and lead (Pb) in surface soil and body content: bone, heart, brain, liver, lung, muscle, kidney, feathers, feces, and gizzard contents of house crow Corvus splendens in the Klang region, Malaysia. The results revealed the occurrence of Pb and Cd in all biological samples from house crows, food contents, and surface soil samples. Heart and kidney accrued high amounts of Cd, while high amounts of Pb were found to accumulate in bones and feathers. Major discrepancies were also discovered in the concentrations of metals between juvenile and adults, as well as female and male bird samples. Concentrations of Pb and Cd in house crow internal tissues correlated significantly with that of bird feathers, but none could be established with that of surface soil. In addition, a significant correlation was observed between Pb concentration in the internal tissues to that of the feces, but the same was not the case when compared with the surface soil concentration. Metal accrual in the house crows feathers and feces may be through a long-term transmission via the food chain, which are eliminated from feathers via molting. This may suggest the utility of molted breast feathers of house crow in the bio-monitoring of Cd and Pb contamination, whereas feces of house crow appear only to be suitable for the bio-monitoring of Pb contamination.

  3. Vancomycin resistant Enterococcus spp. from crows and their environment in metropolitan Washington State, USA: Is there a correlation between VRE positive crows and the environment?

    PubMed

    Roberts, Marilyn C; No, David B; Marzluff, John M; Delap, Jack H; Turner, Robert

    2016-10-15

    Vancomycin-resistant enterococci [VRE] have been isolated from municipal, hospital and agricultural wastewater, recreational beaches, wild animals, birds and food animals around the world. In this study, American crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos) from sewage treatment plants (WWTP), dairy farms, and a large roost in a restored wetland with corresponding environmental samples were cultured for VRE. A total of 245 samples [156 crows, 89 environmental] were collected and screened for acquired vanA, vanB and/or intrinsic vanC1 genes. Samples were enriched overnight in BHI supplemented with 20μg/mL aztreonam, 4μg/mL vancomycin and plated on m-Enterococcus agar media supplemented with 6μg/mL vancomycin. Selected colonies were grown on BHI media supplemented with 18μg/mL vancomycin. Of these, 24.5% of the crow and 55% the environmental/cow samples were VRE positive as defined by Enterococcus spp. able to grow on media supplemented with 18μg/mL vancomycin. A total of 122 VRE isolates, 43 crow and 79 environmental isolates were screened, identified to species level using 16S sequencing and further characterized. Four vanA E. faecium and multiple vanC1 E. gallinarum were identified from crows isolated from three sites. E. faecium vanA and E. gallinarum vanC1 along with other Enterococcus spp. carrying vanA, vanB, vanC1 were isolated from three environments. All enterococci were multidrug resistant. Crows were more likely to carry vanA E. faecium than either the cow feces or wetland waters/soils. Comparing E. gallinarum vanC1 from crows and their environment would be useful in determining whether crows share VRE strains with their environment. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  4. Factors associated with the risk of West Nile Virus among crows in New York State

    PubMed Central

    DeCarlo, C. H.; Clark, A. B.; McGowan, K. J.; Ziegler, P. E.; Glaser, A. L.; Szonyi, B.; Mohammed, H. O.

    2010-01-01

    West Nile virus (WNV) is transmitted between avian hosts in enzootic cycles by a mosquito vector. The virus has significant disease effects on humans and equines when it bridges into an epizootic cycle. Since the initial epidemic of WNV in 1999, perennial outbreaks in New York State suggest the local establishment of natural foci with perpetuation of the virus among susceptible hosts rather than reintroduction of the virus. The factors that play a role in the perpetuation of the virus are not fully understood. American crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos) are known to be highly susceptible to infection with the virus. We investigate the factors that put crows at risk of infection in Tompkins County, New York during the period of 2000 through 2008 in a case-control study. Cases were crow carcasses that were found dead and tested positive for WNV using real time reverse transcription (RT-PCR) or VecTestR. Data on putative risk factors were collected and assessed for significance of association with the presence of WNV using logistic regression analysis to evaluate the significance of each factor while simultaneously controlling for the effect of others. The risk of a crow carcass testing WNV positive varied with age, season of the year, and ecological area where the carcass was found. Crows that were more than one year old were 4 times more likely to be WNV positive in comparison to birds that were less than one year of age. It was three times more likely to find WNV positive carcasses in residential areas in comparison to rural areas. The risk of testing WNV positive did not vary by sex of the crow carcasses. PMID:20707862

  5. A Cultural Resource Inventory of Portions of Lake Oahe, Corson County, South Dakota. Volume 1.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1987-07-01

    Haliaetus ecocephalus), golden eagle (Auiachrsaetos), hawk (Accipiter spp.), prairie chicken (Tympanuchus cupido), raven (Corvus corax), crow...1945, pp. 46-49) cite a passage from Warren’s History of the Ojlbway In which there is a description of the spread or-sii pox to that tribe by a war...of the Mission Pueblos in New Mexico . The occurrence of 23 epidemics in the Southwest and the Middle Missouri subarea in the same years raises the

  6. Occurrence of plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance genes in Escherichia coli and Klebsiella spp. recovered from Corvus brachyrhynchos and Corvus corax roosting in Canada.

    PubMed

    Janecko, Nicol; Halova, Dana; Jamborova, Ivana; Papousek, Ivo; Masarikova, Martina; Dolejska, Monika; Literak, Ivan

    2018-04-19

    The spread of antimicrobial resistance from human activity derived sources to natural habitats implicates wildlife as potential vectors of antimicrobial resistance transfer. Wild birds, including corvid species can disseminate mobile genetic resistance determinants through feces. This study aimed to determine the occurrence of plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance (PMQR) genes in Escherichia coli and Klebsiella spp. isolates obtained from winter roosting sites of American crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos) and common ravens (Corvus corax) in Canada. Fecal swabs were collected at five roosting sites across Canada. Selective media isolation and multiplex PCR screening was utilized to identify PMQR genes followed by gene sequencing, PFGE and MLST to characterize isolates. Despite the low prevalence of E. coli containing PMQR (1.3%, 6/449), qnrS1, qnrB19, qnrC, oqxAB and aac(6')-Ib-cr genes were found in five sequence types (ST), including E. coli ST 131. Conversely, one isolate of Klebsiella pneumoniae contained the plasmid-mediated resistance gene qnrB19. Five different K. pneumoniae STs were identified, including two novel types. The occurrence of PMQR genes and STs of public health significance in E. coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae recovered from corvids gives further evidence of the anthropogenic derived dissemination of antimicrobial resistance determinants at the human activity-wildlife-environment interface. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

  7. Role of bird movements in the epidemiology of West Nile and avian influenza virus

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Muzaffar, Sabir Bin; Hill, Nichola J.; Takekawa, John Y.; Perry, William M.; Smith, Lacy M.; Boyce, Walter M.

    2012-01-01

    Avian infl uenza virus (AIV) is infl uenced by site fi delity and movements of bird hosts. We examined the movement ecology of American crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos) as potential hosts for West Nile virus (WNV) and greater white-fronted geese (Anser albifrons frontalis) as potential hosts for AIVs. Research was based on radio-telemetry studies conducted in the Central Valley of California, USA. While crows were restricted to a small area of only a few square kilometers, the distribution of the geese encompassed the northern Central Valley. The crows used 1.5 to 3.5 different roosting areas monthly from February through October, revealing lower roost fi delity than the geese that used 1.1 to 1.5 roosting areas each month from November through March. The crows moved a mean distance of 0.11 to 0.49 km/month between their roosting sites and 2.5 to 3.9 km/month between roosting and feeding sites. In contrast, the geese moved 4.2 to 19.3 km/month between roosting areas, and their feeding range varied from 13.2 to 19.0 km/month. Our comparison of the ecological characteristics of bird movements suggests that the limited local movements of crows coupled with frequent turnover of roosts may result in persistence of focal areas for WNV infection. In contrast, widespread areas used by geese will provide regular opportunities for intermixing of AIVs over a much greater geographic area.

  8. Assessing Animal Welfare Impacts in the Management of European Rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus), European Moles (Talpa europaea) and Carrion Crows (Corvus corone)

    PubMed Central

    Baker, Sandra E.; Sharp, Trudy M.; Macdonald, David W.

    2016-01-01

    Human-wildlife conflict is a global issue. Attempts to manage this conflict impact upon wild animal welfare, an issue receiving little attention until relatively recently. Where human activities harm animal welfare these effects should be minimised where possible. However, little is known about the welfare impacts of different wildlife management interventions, and opinions on impacts vary widely. Welfare impacts therefore need to be assessed objectively. Our objectives were to: 1) establish whether an existing welfare assessment model could differentiate and rank the impacts of different wildlife management interventions (for decision-making purposes); 2) identify and evaluate any additional benefits of making formal welfare assessments; and 3) illustrate issues raised by application of the model. We applied the welfare assessment model to interventions commonly used with rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus), moles (Talpa europaea) and crows (Corvus corone) in the UK. The model ranked interventions for rabbits (least impact first: fencing, head shot, chest shot) and crows (shooting, scaring, live trapping with cervical dislocation). For moles, managing molehills and tunnels scored least impact. Both spring trapping, and live trapping followed by translocation, scored greater impacts, but these could not be compared directly as they scored on different axes of the model. Some rankings appeared counter-intuitive, highlighting the need for objective formal welfare assessments. As well as ranking the humaneness of interventions, the model highlighted future research needs and how Standard Operating Procedures might be improved. The model is a milestone in assessing wildlife management welfare impacts, but our research revealed some limitations of the model and we discuss likely challenges in resolving these. In future, the model might be developed to improve its utility, e.g. by refining the time-scales. It might also be used to reach consensus among stakeholders about relative welfare impacts or to identify ways of improving wildlife management practice in the field. PMID:26726808

  9. Assessing Animal Welfare Impacts in the Management of European Rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus), European Moles (Talpa europaea) and Carrion Crows (Corvus corone).

    PubMed

    Baker, Sandra E; Sharp, Trudy M; Macdonald, David W

    2016-01-01

    Human-wildlife conflict is a global issue. Attempts to manage this conflict impact upon wild animal welfare, an issue receiving little attention until relatively recently. Where human activities harm animal welfare these effects should be minimised where possible. However, little is known about the welfare impacts of different wildlife management interventions, and opinions on impacts vary widely. Welfare impacts therefore need to be assessed objectively. Our objectives were to: 1) establish whether an existing welfare assessment model could differentiate and rank the impacts of different wildlife management interventions (for decision-making purposes); 2) identify and evaluate any additional benefits of making formal welfare assessments; and 3) illustrate issues raised by application of the model. We applied the welfare assessment model to interventions commonly used with rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus), moles (Talpa europaea) and crows (Corvus corone) in the UK. The model ranked interventions for rabbits (least impact first: fencing, head shot, chest shot) and crows (shooting, scaring, live trapping with cervical dislocation). For moles, managing molehills and tunnels scored least impact. Both spring trapping, and live trapping followed by translocation, scored greater impacts, but these could not be compared directly as they scored on different axes of the model. Some rankings appeared counter-intuitive, highlighting the need for objective formal welfare assessments. As well as ranking the humaneness of interventions, the model highlighted future research needs and how Standard Operating Procedures might be improved. The model is a milestone in assessing wildlife management welfare impacts, but our research revealed some limitations of the model and we discuss likely challenges in resolving these. In future, the model might be developed to improve its utility, e.g. by refining the time-scales. It might also be used to reach consensus among stakeholders about relative welfare impacts or to identify ways of improving wildlife management practice in the field.

  10. West Nile Virus Activity in a Winter Roost of American Crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos): Is Bird-To-Bird Transmission Important in Persistence and Amplification?

    PubMed

    Hinton, M G; Reisen, W K; Wheeler, S S; Townsend, A K

    2015-07-01

    Since its emergence in North America, West Nile virus (WNV) has had a large impact on equines, humans, and wild bird communities, yet gaps remain in our understanding of how the virus persists at temperate latitudes when winter temperatures preclude virus replication and host-seeking activity by mosquito vectors. Bird-to-bird transmission at large communal American Crow roosts could provide one mechanism for WNV persistence. Herein, we describe seasonal patterns of crow and Culex mosquito abundance, WNV infection rates, and the prevalence of WNV-positive fecal samples at a winter crow roost to test the hypothesis that bird-to-bird transmission allows WNV to persist at winter crow roosts. Samples were collected from large winter crow roosts in the Sacramento Valley of California from January 2013 until August 2014, encompassing two overwintering roost periods. West Nile virus RNA was detected in local crow carcasses in both summer [13/18 (72% WNV positive)] and winter [18/44 (41% WNV positive)] 2013-2014. Winter infections were unlikely to have arisen by recent bites from infected mosquitoes because Culex host-seeking activity was very low in winter and all Culex mosquitoes collected during winter months tested negative for WNV. Opportunities existed for fecal-oral transfer at the overwintering roost: most carcasses that tested positive for WNV had detectable viral RNA in both kidney and cloacal swabs, suggesting that infected crows were shedding virus in their feces, and >50% of crows at the roost were stained with feces by mid-winter. Moreover, 2.3% of fecal samples collected in late summer, when mosquitoes were active, tested positive for WNV RNA. Nevertheless, none of the 1,119 feces collected from three roosts over two winters contained detectable WNV RNA. This study provided evidence of WNV infection in overwintering American crows without mosquito vector activity, but did not elucidate a mechanism of WNV transmission during winter. © The Authors 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  11. Morphologic and molecular study of hemoparasites in wild corvids and evidence of sequence identity with Plasmodium DNA detected in captive black-footed penguins (Spheniscus demersus).

    PubMed

    Leclerc, Antoine; Chavatte, Jean-Marc; Landau, Irène; Snounou, Georges; Petit, Thierry

    2014-09-01

    A morphologic and molecular epidemiologic investigation was conducted on a captive African black-footed penguin (Spheniscus demersus) colony with a history of Plasmodium infections at La Palmyre Zoo (France). Each penguin received 12.5 mg of pyrimethamine twice a week as a prophylaxis every year from April to November. Although Plasmodium parasites were not detected in blood smears and tissues collected from the penguins, various blood parasites were recorded in blood smears from wild Eurasian magpies (Pica pica) and carrion crows (Corvus corone) sampled at the same time in the study area. These parasites consisted of several Plasmodium spp. (P. lenoblei, P. dorsti, P bioccai, P. relictum, P. dherteae, P. beaucournui, P. maior, P. tranieri, and P. snounoui), Parahaemoproteus spp., Trypanosoma spp., and Leucocytozoon spp. On the other hand, nested polymerase chain reaction enabled detection of Plasmodium DNA in 28/44 (64%) penguins, 15/25 (60%) magpies, and 4/9 (44%) crows. Sequencing and phylogenetic analyses indicated that the parasite DNA amplified from the penguins, magpies, and crows were similar. Magpies and crows could therefore act as a reservoir for penguin Plasmodium infections, which may be more prevalent than previously thought. Morphologic characterization of the Plasmodium spp. detected in the penguins, as well as further biological and epidemiologic studies, are needed to fully understand the transmission of Plasmodium parasites to captive penguins.

  12. Morphological and molecular genetic characterization of three Capillaria spp. (Capillaria anatis, Capillaria pudendotecta, and Capillaria madseni) and Baruscapillaria obsignata (Nematoda: Trichuridae: Capillariinae) in avians.

    PubMed

    Tamaru, Masae; Yamaki, Seiya; Jimenez, Lea Angsinco; Sato, Hiroshi

    2015-11-01

    Morphological and genetic analyses were performed on four avian species of the subfamily Capillariinae (Nematoda: Trichuridae), i.e., Capillaria anatis from chickens (Gallus gallus domesticus) in Japan and the Philippines, Baruscapillaria obsignata from chickens and captive swans (Cygnus olor and Cygnus atratus) in Japan, Capillaria pudendotecta from captive swans in Japan, and Capillaria madseni from carrion and jungle crows (Corvus corone and Corvus macrorhynchos) in Japan. Although morphometric variations of male and female worms from different hosts and/or localities made the species identification difficult, the 18S ribosomal RNA gene (rDNA) sequences clarified their taxonomic position and phylogenetic relationships. Species of the same genus clustered robustly into a single clade in the phylogenetic tree based on the 18S rDNA, demonstrating to the extent possible the validity of the latest classification of the subfamily following Moravec's rearrangement in 1982. Male worms of C. pudendotecta are described here for the first time.

  13. Reduced avian virulence and viremia of West Nile virus isolates from Mexico and Texas.

    PubMed

    Brault, Aaron C; Langevin, Stanley A; Ramey, Wanichaya N; Fang, Ying; Beasley, David W C; Barker, Christopher M; Sanders, Todd A; Reisen, William K; Barrett, Alan D T; Bowen, Richard A

    2011-10-01

    A West Nile virus (WNV) isolate from Mexico (TM171-03) and BIRD1153, a unique genotype from Texas, have exhibited reduced murine neuroinvasive phenotypes. To determine if murine neuroinvasive capacity equates to avian virulence potential, American crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) and house sparrows (Passer domesticus) were experimentally inoculated with representative murine neuroinvasive/non-neuroinvasive strains. In both avian species, a plaque variant from Mexico that was E-glycosylation competent produced higher viremias than an E-glycosylation-incompetent variant, indicating the potential importance of E-glycosylation for avian replication. The murine non-neuroinvasive BIRD1153 strain was significantly attenuated in American crows but not house sparrows when compared with the murine neuroinvasive Texas strain. Despite the loss of murine neuroinvasive properties of nonglycosylated variants from Mexico, our data indicate avian replication potential of these strains and that unique WNV virulence characteristics exist between murine and avian models. The implications of reduced avian replication of variants from Mexico for restricted WNV transmission in Latin America is discussed.

  14. Reduced Avian Virulence and Viremia of West Nile Virus Isolates from Mexico and Texas

    PubMed Central

    Brault, Aaron C.; Langevin, Stanley A.; Ramey, Wanichaya N.; Fang, Ying; Beasley, David W. C.; Barker, Christopher M.; Sanders, Todd A.; Reisen, William K.; Barrett, Alan D. T.; Bowen, Richard A.

    2011-01-01

    A West Nile virus (WNV) isolate from Mexico (TM171-03) and BIRD1153, a unique genotype from Texas, have exhibited reduced murine neuroinvasive phenotypes. To determine if murine neuroinvasive capacity equates to avian virulence potential, American crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) and house sparrows (Passer domesticus) were experimentally inoculated with representative murine neuroinvasive/non-neuroinvasive strains. In both avian species, a plaque variant from Mexico that was E-glycosylation competent produced higher viremias than an E-glycosylation–incompetent variant, indicating the potential importance of E-glycosylation for avian replication. The murine non-neuroinvasive BIRD1153 strain was significantly attenuated in American crows but not house sparrows when compared with the murine neuroinvasive Texas strain. Despite the loss of murine neuroinvasive properties of nonglycosylated variants from Mexico, our data indicate avian replication potential of these strains and that unique WNV virulence characteristics exist between murine and avian models. The implications of reduced avian replication of variants from Mexico for restricted WNV transmission in Latin America is discussed. PMID:21976584

  15. Neural-activity mapping of memory-based dominance in the crow: neural networks integrating individual discrimination and social behaviour control.

    PubMed

    Nishizawa, K; Izawa, E-I; Watanabe, S

    2011-12-01

    Large-billed crows (Corvus macrorhynchos), highly social birds, form stable dominance relationships based on the memory of win/loss outcomes of first encounters and on individual discrimination. This socio-cognitive behaviour predicts the existence of neural mechanisms for integration of social behaviour control and individual discrimination. This study aimed to elucidate the neural substrates of memory-based dominance in crows. First, the formation of dominance relationships was confirmed between males in a dyadic encounter paradigm. Next, we examined whether neural activities in 22 focal nuclei of pallium and subpallium were correlated with social behaviour and stimulus familiarity after exposure to dominant/subordinate familiar individuals and unfamiliar conspecifics. Neural activity was determined by measuring expression level of the immediate-early-gene (IEG) protein Zenk. Crows displayed aggressive and/or submissive behaviour to opponents less frequently but more discriminatively in subsequent encounters, suggesting stable dominance based on memory, including win/loss outcomes of the first encounters and individual discrimination. Neural correlates of aggressive and submissive behaviour were found in limbic subpallium including septum, bed nucleus of the striae terminalis (BST), and nucleus taeniae of amygdala (TnA), but also those to familiarity factor in BST and TnA. Contrastingly, correlates of social behaviour were little in pallium and those of familiarity with exposed individuals were identified in hippocampus, medial meso-/nidopallium, and ventro-caudal nidopallium. Given the anatomical connection and neural response patterns of the focal nuclei, neural networks connecting pallium and limbic subpallium via hippocampus could be involved in the integration of individual discrimination and social behaviour control in memory-based dominance in the crow. Copyright © 2011 IBRO. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  16. New Caledonian crows attend to multiple functional properties of complex tools

    PubMed Central

    St Clair, James J. H.; Rutz, Christian

    2013-01-01

    The ability to attend to the functional properties of foraging tools should affect energy-intake rates, fitness components and ultimately the evolutionary dynamics of tool-related behaviour. New Caledonian crows Corvus moneduloides use three distinct tool types for extractive foraging: non-hooked stick tools, hooked stick tools and tools cut from the barbed edges of Pandanus spp. leaves. The latter two types exhibit clear functional polarity, because of (respectively) a single terminal, crow-manufactured hook and natural barbs running along one edge of the leaf strip; in each case, the ‘hooks’ can only aid prey capture if the tool is oriented correctly by the crow during deployment. A previous experimental study of New Caledonian crows found that subjects paid little attention to the barbs of supplied (wide) pandanus tools, resulting in non-functional tool orientation during foraging. This result is puzzling, given the presumed fitness benefits of consistently orienting tools functionally in the wild. We investigated whether the lack of discrimination with respect to (wide) pandanus tool orientation also applies to hooked stick tools. We experimentally provided subjects with naturalistic replica tools in a range of orientations and found that all subjects used these tools correctly, regardless of how they had been presented. In a companion experiment, we explored the extent to which normally co-occurring tool features (terminal hook, curvature of the tool shaft and stripped bark at the hooked end) inform tool-orientation decisions, by forcing birds to deploy ‘unnatural’ tools, which exhibited these traits at opposite ends. Our subjects attended to at least two of the three tool features, although, as expected, the location of the hook was of paramount importance. We discuss these results in the context of earlier research and propose avenues for future work. PMID:24101625

  17. New Caledonian crows attend to multiple functional properties of complex tools.

    PubMed

    St Clair, James J H; Rutz, Christian

    2013-11-19

    The ability to attend to the functional properties of foraging tools should affect energy-intake rates, fitness components and ultimately the evolutionary dynamics of tool-related behaviour. New Caledonian crows Corvus moneduloides use three distinct tool types for extractive foraging: non-hooked stick tools, hooked stick tools and tools cut from the barbed edges of Pandanus spp. leaves. The latter two types exhibit clear functional polarity, because of (respectively) a single terminal, crow-manufactured hook and natural barbs running along one edge of the leaf strip; in each case, the 'hooks' can only aid prey capture if the tool is oriented correctly by the crow during deployment. A previous experimental study of New Caledonian crows found that subjects paid little attention to the barbs of supplied (wide) pandanus tools, resulting in non-functional tool orientation during foraging. This result is puzzling, given the presumed fitness benefits of consistently orienting tools functionally in the wild. We investigated whether the lack of discrimination with respect to (wide) pandanus tool orientation also applies to hooked stick tools. We experimentally provided subjects with naturalistic replica tools in a range of orientations and found that all subjects used these tools correctly, regardless of how they had been presented. In a companion experiment, we explored the extent to which normally co-occurring tool features (terminal hook, curvature of the tool shaft and stripped bark at the hooked end) inform tool-orientation decisions, by forcing birds to deploy 'unnatural' tools, which exhibited these traits at opposite ends. Our subjects attended to at least two of the three tool features, although, as expected, the location of the hook was of paramount importance. We discuss these results in the context of earlier research and propose avenues for future work.

  18. KSC-06pd0995

    NASA Image and Video Library

    2006-06-05

    KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - This black bird photographed at the Press Site at NASA's Kennedy Space Center is likely a fish crow, somewhat smaller than the American Crow. Fish crows inhabit low coastal country, as well as lakes, rivers and swamps inland. They are common around KSC. The Center shares a boundary with the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, which is a habitat for more than 310 species of birds, 25 mammals, 117 fishes and 65 amphibians and reptiles. In addition, the Refuge supports 19 endangered or threatened wildlife species on Federal or State lists, more than any other single refuge in the U.S. Photo credit: NASA/Ken Thornsley

  19. 75 FR 75153 - Migratory Bird Permits; Removal of Rusty Blackbird and Tamaulipas (Mexican) Crow From the...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-12-02

    ...-1231-9BPP] RIN 1018-AV66 Migratory Bird Permits; Removal of Rusty Blackbird and Tamaulipas (Mexican) Crow From the Depredation Order for Blackbirds, Cowbirds, Grackles, Crows, and Magpies, and Other.... Fish and Wildlife Service, change the regulations governing control of depredating blackbirds, cowbirds...

  20. Next-generation sequencing shows West Nile virus quasispecies diversification after a single passage in a carrion crow (Corvus corone) in vivo infection model.

    PubMed

    Dridi, M; Rosseel, T; Orton, R; Johnson, P; Lecollinet, S; Muylkens, B; Lambrecht, B; Van Borm, S

    2015-10-01

    West Nile virus (WNV) occurs as a population of genetic variants (quasispecies) infecting a single animal. Previous low-resolution viral genetic diversity estimates in sampled wild birds and mosquitoes, and in multiple-passage adaptation studies in vivo or in cell culture, suggest that WNV genetic diversification is mostly limited to the mosquito vector. This study investigated genetic diversification of WNV in avian hosts during a single passage using next-generation sequencing. Wild-captured carrion crows were subcutaneously infected using a clonal Middle-East WNV. Blood samples were collected 2 and 4 days post-infection. A reverse-transcription (RT)-PCR approach was used to amplify the WNV genome directly from serum samples prior to next-generation sequencing resulting in an average depth of at least 700 ×  in each sample. Appropriate controls were sequenced to discriminate biologically relevant low-frequency variants from experimentally introduced errors. The WNV populations in the wild crows showed significant diversification away from the inoculum virus quasispecies structure. By contrast, WNV populations in intracerebrally infected day-old chickens did not diversify from that of the inoculum. Where previous studies concluded that WNV genetic diversification is only experimentally demonstrated in its permissive insect vector species, we have experimentally shown significant diversification of WNV populations in a wild bird reservoir species.

  1. Apoptosis-mediated seasonal testicular regression in the Japanese Jungle Crow (Corvus macrorhynchos).

    PubMed

    Islam, M Nazrul; Tsukahara, N; Sugita, S

    2012-06-01

    The present study investigated effects of apoptosis observed during seasonal testicular regression in Japanese Jungle Crows. The study was conducted during January to June 2008, 2009. Testes from adults captured during non-breeding (January), prebreeding (February to mid-March), main-breeding (late March to early May), transition (mid-May to late May), and post-breeding (June) seasons were analyzed. Apoptosis was assessed by in situ terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end-labeling (TUNEL) assay. Paired-testis volume increased 95-fold from the non-breeding to the main-breeding season (P < 0.05), and subsequently decreased 26-fold from the main breeding to the post-breeding season (P < 0.05). Testicular activity was evaluated from the total germ cell count and sperm index, which increased 42- and 5-fold, respectively, in the main-breeding season, and subsequently decreased 33- and 5-fold in the post-breeding season. In testes, TUNEL-positive germ cells were at low levels in the non-breeding season, absent in the prebreeding and the main-breeding seasons, and highest in mid-May (P < 0.05). In contrast, TUNEL-positive Sertoli cells occurred only in late-April. In addition, TUNEL-positive fibroblast-like cells were observed in the outer zone of the tunica albuginea in the post-breeding season. Collectively, these data suggested that the seasonal rise in the testicular competence occurred slowly in Japanese Jungle Crows; however, testis function was terminated rapidly after the breeding season. Furthermore, we concluded, similar to other avian species, Sertoli cell apoptosis followed by massive germ cell death was responsible for rapid testicular regression in Jungle Crows. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  2. Star-Hopping

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Garfinkle, Robert A.

    1997-07-01

    Introduction; Preface; Acknowledgements; 1. How to use this book and what you are going to see; 2. How the sky works, determining your field of view, observing tips and how to navigate in the night sky; 3. January - Taurus and Orion: the bull and hunter; 4. February - Canis Minor, Canis Major, and Puppis: dog days in February and Jason's Argo; 5. March - Cancer, Leo, and Corvus: a crab, the king of the beasts, and a crow; 6. April - Ursa Major: a dipper round tripper; 7. May - Coma Berenices and Virgo: the sparkling hair of Berenice and the wheat maiden and her bushel of galaxies; 8. June - Libra and Lupus: the balance scales and the wolf; 9. July - Scorpius, Sagittarius, and Scutum: the scorpion, archer, and shield of John Sobieski; 10. August - Draco: following the trail of the dragon; 11. September - Cygnus, Lyra, Vulpecula, and Sagitta: the swan, lyre, fox, and arrow; 12. October - Andromeda and Perseus: the chained lady and her rescuer; 13. November - Cepheus and Cassiopeia: the king and queen of Joppa; 14. December - Pisces, Triangulum, and Aries: of fishes, a triangle, and a ram; 15. Messier Marathon, a sundown to sunup hop across the skies; Appendix A: Classification tables; Appendix B: The constellations; Appendix C: The Greek alphabet; Appendix D: Decimalization of the day; Glossary; Bibliography; Index.

  3. Rhinoceros beetles suffer male-biased predation by mammalian and avian predators.

    PubMed

    Kojima, Wataru; Sugiura, Shinji; Makihara, Hiroshi; Ishikawa, Yukio; Takanashi, Takuma

    2014-03-01

    Male sexually-selected traits often impose an increased risk of predation on their bearers, causing male-biased predation. We investigated whether males of the sap-feeding Japanese rhinoceros beetle Trypoxylus dichotomus were more susceptible to predation than females by comparing the morphology of beetles caught in bait traps with the remains of beetles found on the ground. The males of this species are larger than the females and have a horn on the head. We found that predation pressure was greater for males than for females, and that larger individuals of both sexes were more vulnerable to predation. We identified two predators, the raccoon dog Nyctereutes procyonoides and jungle crow Corvus macrorhynchos, by monitoring sap-site trees with infrared video cameras. Raccoon dogs visited sap-site trees at night, while crows came after daybreak. The highest frequency of visits by both predators was observed in the first half of August, which matches the peak season of T. dichotomus. Raccoon dogs often left bite marks on the remains of prey, whereas crows did not. Bite marks were found on most of the remains collected at two distant localities, which suggested that predation by raccoon dogs is common. Size- and sex-dependent differences in the conspicuousness and active period of T. dichotomus probably explain these biased predation patterns. Our results suggest that having a large horn/body is costly in terms of the increased risk of predation. Predation cost may act as a stabilizing selection pressure against the further exaggeration of male sexual traits.

  4. Point counts from clustered populations: Lessons from an experiment with Hawaiian crows

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Hayward, G.D.; Kepler, C.B.; Scott, J.M.

    1991-01-01

    We designed an experiment to identify factors contributing most to error in counts of Hawaiian Crow or Alala (Corvus hawaiiensis) groups that are detected aurally. Seven observers failed to detect calling Alala on 197 of 361 3-min point counts on four transects extending from cages with captive Alala. A detection curve describing the relation between frequency of flock detection and distance typified the distribution expected in transect or point counts. Failure to detect calling Alala was affected most by distance, observer, and Alala calling frequency. The number of individual Alala calling was not important in detection rate. Estimates of the number of Alala calling (flock size) were biased and imprecise: average difference between number of Alala calling and number heard was 3.24 (.+-. 0.277). Distance, observer, number of Alala calling, and Alala calling frequency all contributed to errors in estimates of group size (P < 0.0001). Multiple regression suggested that number of Alala calling contributed most to errors. These results suggest that well-designed point counts may be used to estimate the number of Alala flocks but cast doubt on attempts to estimate flock size when individuals are counted aurally.

  5. The brown tree snake, an introduced pest species in the central Pacific Islands

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Fritts, Thomas H.; Rodda, Gordon H.

    1989-01-01

    The reproduction of endangered Mariana crows (Corvus kubaryi) is intensively monitored, nests are protected, and (when necessary) eggs or young are moved to the safety of lab conditions until they are less vulnerable to the threats in natural habitats. Barriers on tree trunks and judicious pruning of adjacent trees are used in attempts to exclude snakes from nest trees. Two birds unique to Guam--the Micronesian kingfisher (Halcyon cinnamomina cinnamomina) and Guam rail (Gallirallus owstoni)-- are maintained at captive propagation facilities on Guam and in mainland zoos. Studies of these and other species, in captivity and on nearby islands, are underway to bolster our biological understanding of their behavior, reproduction, habitat use, and population biology.

  6. Outbreak of type C botulism in birds and mammals in the Emilia Romagna region, northern Italy.

    PubMed

    Defilippo, Francesco; Luppi, Andrea; Maioli, Giulia; Marzi, Dario; Fontana, Maria Cristina; Paoli, Federica; Bonilauri, Paolo; Dottori, Michele; Merialdi, Giuseppe

    2013-10-01

    Over a 7-day period beginning 8 August 2011, a large number of wild birds of several species were found dead or with neurologic clinical signs along the shore of Crostolo stream, in the Emilia Romagna region, Italy. Twenty-eight Mallards (Anas platyrhynchos), two Hooded Crows (Corvus corone cornix), and three coypus (Myocastor coypus) were found moribund on the Crostolo stream bank, collected, and sent to Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Lombardia e dell'Emilia Romagna, Reggio Emilia Section. The cause of mortality was determined to be Clostridium botulinum type C toxin. The toxin was identified by a mouse bioassay for botulinum toxins and confirmed in bird sera and blowfly larvae (Lucilia caesar) collected from the stomachs of birds.

  7. A simple, inexpensive video camera setup for the study of avian nest activity

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Sabine, J.B.; Meyers, J.M.; Schweitzer, Sara H.

    2005-01-01

    Time-lapse video photography has become a valuable tool for collecting data on avian nest activity and depredation; however, commercially available systems are expensive (>USA $4000/unit). We designed an inexpensive system to identify causes of nest failure of American Oystercatchers (Haematopus palliatus) and assessed its utility at Cumberland Island National Seashore, Georgia. We successfully identified raccoon (Procyon lotor), bobcat (Lynx rufus), American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos), and ghost crab (Ocypode quadrata) predation on oystercatcher nests. Other detected causes of nest failure included tidal overwash, horse trampling, abandonment, and human destruction. System failure rates were comparable with commercially available units. Our system's efficacy and low cost (<$800) provided useful data for the management and conservation of the American Oystercatcher.

  8. 50 CFR 20.133 - Hunting regulations for crows.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ... 50 Wildlife and Fisheries 9 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Hunting regulations for crows. 20.133 Section 20.133 Wildlife and Fisheries UNITED STATES FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR... WILDLIFE AND PLANTS (CONTINUED) MIGRATORY BIRD HUNTING Administrative and Miscellaneous Provisions § 20.133...

  9. 50 CFR 20.133 - Hunting regulations for crows.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... 50 Wildlife and Fisheries 9 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Hunting regulations for crows. 20.133 Section 20.133 Wildlife and Fisheries UNITED STATES FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR... WILDLIFE AND PLANTS (CONTINUED) MIGRATORY BIRD HUNTING Administrative and Miscellaneous Provisions § 20.133...

  10. Problems in separating species with similar habits and vocalizations

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Robbins, C.S.; Stallcup, R.W.; Ralph, C. John; Scott, J. Michael

    1981-01-01

    The possibilities for species misidentification based on vocalization or habitat association are high. However, the magnitude of the errors actually perpetrated is generally within an acceptable range in most types of bird survey work. Examples of problems discussed are: congeners that are similar in appearance or in song (such as Chimney and Vaux's Swifts, Chaetura pelagica, C. vauxi; Hammond's, Dusky and Gray Flycatchers, Empidonax hammondii, E. oberholseri, E. wrightii; Willow and Alder Flycatchers, E. traillii, E. alnorum; Common and Fish Crows, Corvus brachyrhynchos, C. ossifragus); birds that are misidentified because they are not expected by the observer (House Finches, Carpodacus mexicanus, invading new areas of eastern U.S.); birds that imitate other species (especially Starling, Sturnus vulgaris, and Mockingbird, Mimus polyglottos); birds in mixed flocks; birds with geographic differences in vocalizations (Solitary Vireo, Vireo solitarius); woodpeckers that are only heard drumming; and nests or eggs that are misidentified. Equally serious problems are the errors resulting from undetected species and from careless recording or failure to check manuscripts against original data. The quality of published count work can be improved considerably by (1) recognizing the problems that exist, (2) standardizing techniques for dealing with situations where not all birds can be identified, and (3) routinely applying all appropriate safeguards such as verification by mist netting and measuring, photography, tape recording or playback, additional observations, and careful verification of all entries in the final manuscript.

  11. Influence of age and splanchnic nerve on the action of melatonin in the adrenomedullary catecholamine content and blood glucose level in the avian group.

    PubMed

    Mahata, S K; Mandal, A; Ghosh, A

    1988-01-01

    A single intraperitoneal (IP) melatonin injection (0.5 mg/100 g body wt.) caused an increase in norepinephrine (NE) fluorescence and elevation of NE content in newly-hatched pigeons (Columba livia), but a reduction of NE fluorescence and depletion of NE content in the adrenal medulla of newly-hatched crows (Corvus splendens) after 0.5 h of treatment. In contrast, in adults melatonin caused increase in NE fluorescence and elevation of NE content only in the parakeet (Psittacula krameri). Half an hour of IP melatonin treatment (0.5 mg/100 g body wt.) induced release of epinephrine (E) from the adrenal medulla of newly-hatched pigeon and parakeet. In contrast, in the adults melatonin caused more than a two-fold increase in E in the pigeon, and a significant increase in the crow. Single IP melatonin injection (0.5 mg/100 g body wt.) caused hypoglycemia in the newly-hatched parakeet and adult pigeon, and hyperglycemia in newly-hatched pigeon after 0.5 h of treatment. Melatonin failed to regulate glucose homoeostasis in newly-hatched and adult crow. Splanchnic denervation of the left adrenal gland was performed in the adult pigeon. The right adrenal served as the innervated gland. Melatonin-induced modulation of catecholamines following a single IP injection (0.5 mg/100 g body wt.) revealed significant increases in NE fluorescence and NE content at 4 and 12 h after treatment in the denervated gland only, which gradually approached normal levels 9 days after treatment.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

  12. Occurrence of keratinophilic fungi on Indian birds.

    PubMed

    Dixit, A K; Kushwaha, R K

    1991-01-01

    Keratinophilic fungi were isolated from feathers of most common Indian birds, viz. domestic chicken (Gallus domesticus), domestic pigeon (Columba livia), house sparrow (Passer domesticus), house crow (Corvus splendens), duck (Anas sp.), rose-ringed parakeet (Psittacula krameri). Out of 87 birds, 58 yielded 4 keratinophilic fungal genera representing 13 fungal species and one sterile mycelium. The isolated fungi were cultured on Sabouraud's dextrose agar at 28 +/- 2 degrees C. Chrysosporium species were isolated on most of the birds. Chrysosporium lucknowense and Chrysosporium tropicum were the most common fungal species associated with these Indian birds. Maximum occurrence of fungi (47%) was recorded on domestic chickens and the least number of keratinophilic fungi was isolated from the domestic pigeon and duck. The average number of fungi per bird was found to be the 0.44.

  13. Adaptive bill morphology for enhanced tool manipulation in New Caledonian crows

    PubMed Central

    Matsui, Hiroshi; Hunt, Gavin R.; Oberhofer, Katja; Ogihara, Naomichi; McGowan, Kevin J.; Mithraratne, Kumar; Yamasaki, Takeshi; Gray, Russell D.; Izawa, Ei-Ichi

    2016-01-01

    Early increased sophistication of human tools is thought to be underpinned by adaptive morphology for efficient tool manipulation. Such adaptive specialisation is unknown in nonhuman primates but may have evolved in the New Caledonian crow, which has sophisticated tool manufacture. The straightness of its bill, for example, may be adaptive for enhanced visually-directed use of tools. Here, we examine in detail the shape and internal structure of the New Caledonian crow’s bill using Principal Components Analysis and Computed Tomography within a comparative framework. We found that the bill has a combination of interrelated shape and structural features unique within Corvus, and possibly birds generally. The upper mandible is relatively deep and short with a straight cutting edge, and the lower mandible is strengthened and upturned. These novel combined attributes would be functional for (i) counteracting the unique loading patterns acting on the bill when manipulating tools, (ii) a strong precision grip to hold tools securely, and (iii) enhanced visually-guided tool use. Our findings indicate that the New Caledonian crow’s innovative bill has been adapted for tool manipulation to at least some degree. Early increased sophistication of tools may require the co-evolution of morphology that provides improved manipulatory skills. PMID:26955788

  14. Reproductive partitioning and the assumptions of reproductive skew models in the cooperatively breeding American crow

    PubMed Central

    Townsend, Andrea K.; Clark, Anne B.; McGowan, Kevin J.; Lovette, Irby J.

    2009-01-01

    Understanding the benefits of cooperative breeding for group members of different social and demographic classes requires knowledge of their reproductive partitioning and genetic relatedness. From 2004-2007, we examined parentage as a function of relatedness and social interactions among members of 21 American crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) family groups. Paired female breeders monopolized maternity of all offspring in their broods, whereas paired male breeders sired 82.7% of offspring, within-group auxiliary males sired 6.9% of offspring, and extragroup males sired 10.4% of offspring. Although adult females had fewer opportunities for direct reproduction as auxiliaries than males, they appeared to have earlier opportunities for independent breeding. These different opportunities for direct reproduction probably contributed to the male biased adult auxiliary sex ratio. Patterns of reproductive partitioning and conflict among males were most consistent with a synthetic reproductive skew model, in which auxiliaries struggled with breeders for a limited reproductive share, beyond which breeders could evict them. Counter to a frequent assumption of reproductive skew models, female breeders appeared to influence paternity, although their interests might have agreed with the interests of their paired males. Unusual among cooperative breeders, close inbreeding and incest occurred in this population. Incest avoidance between potential breeders did not significantly affect reproductive skew. PMID:20126287

  15. Habitat selection and management of the Hawaiian crow

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Giffen, J.G.; Scott, J.M.; Mountainspring, S.

    1987-01-01

    The abundance and range of the Hawaiian crow, or alala, (Corvus hawaiiensis) have decreased drastically since the 1890's. Fewer than 10 breeding pairs remained in the wild in 1985. A sample of 82 nests during 1970-82 were used to determine habitat associations. Two hundred firty-nine alala observations were used to estimate densities occurring in different vegetation types in 1978. Compared to available habitat, more nests and higher bird densities during the breeding season occurred in areas where: (1) canopy cover was > 60%; (2) koa (Acacia koa) and ohia (Metrosideros polymorpha) were dominant species in the crown layer; (3) native plants constituted > 75% of the understory cover; and (4) the elevation was 1,100-1,500 m. Compared to breeding habitat, nonbreeding habitat tended to lie at lower elevations and in wetter forests having the crown layer dominated by ohia but lacking koa. Habitat loss is a major factor underlying the decline of this species although predation on fledgings, avian disease, and shooting also have reduced the population. Remaining key habitat areas have little or no legal protection through zoning and land ownership. Preserves should be established to encompass the location of existing pairs and to assure the provision of optimum breeding habitat and suitable nonbreeding habitat.

  16. Bumpus in the snake den: effects of sex, size, and body condition on mortality of red-sided garter snakes.

    PubMed

    Shine, R; LeMaster, M P; Moore, I T; Olsson, M M; Mason, R T

    2001-03-01

    Huge breeding aggregations of red-sided garter snakes (Thamnophis sirtalis parietalis) at overwintering dens in Manitoba provide a unique opportunity to identify sources of mortality and to clarify factors that influence a snake's vulnerability to these factors. Comparisons of sexes, body sizes, and body condition of more than 1000 dead snakes versus live animals sampled at the same time reveal significant biases. Three primary sources of mortality were identified. Predation by crows, Corvus brachyrhynchos (590 snakes killed), was focussed mostly on small snakes of both sexes. Crows generally removed the snake's liver and left the carcass, but very small snakes were sometimes brought back to the nest. Suffocation beneath massive piles of other snakes within the den (301 dead animals) involved mostly small males and (to a lesser extent) large females; snakes in poor body condition were particularly vulnerable. Many emaciated snakes (n = 142, mostly females) also died without overt injuries, probably due to depleted energy reserves. These biases in vulnerability are readily interpretable from information on behavioral ecology of the snakes. For example, sex biases in mortality reflect differences in postemergence behavior and locomotor capacity, the greater attractiveness of larger females to males, and the high energy costs of reproduction for females.

  17. Seasonal morphological changes in the ovary of the Jungle crow (Corvus macrorhynchos).

    PubMed

    Islam, Muhammad Nazrul; Zhu, Xiao Bo; Aoyama, Masato; Sugita, Shoei

    2010-12-01

    Morphometric and histological studies were conducted to examine the seasonal ovarian changes in the Jungle crow of the Kanto area, Japan, from December to June. The ovary weights, largest diameters and atresias of the ovarian follicles and steroid-producing cells were examined. Hematoxylin and eosin-stained ovary sections and ImageJ software were used. The most developed ovary weight increased 373-fold in April, compared to those in December, followed by a 29-fold decrease in June. The average largest follicle diameter of the December and the January ovaries were 1.03 ± 0.35 and 1.05 ± 0.3 mm, respectively. The average largest follicle diameter increased by 2-fold in February, 4-fold in March and 8-fold in April, compared to those of December and January. Thereafter, the average largest follicle diameter declined by 6-fold in June. The average ovary weight and the largest follicle diameter in April increased significantly (P < 0.05) compared to those of December and January, followed by a significant decrease (P < 0.05) in June. The ovary weight correlated well with the expansion of the largest follicular diameter. Non-bursting and bursting atresias of smaller follicles were more common in the December, January, February and June ovaries, and bursting atresias of larger follicles were more common in the March, April and May ovaries. Ovarian steroidogenic cells became heavily charged with lipids in December, January, February and June, and they depleted their lipids in March and April, which might be due to steroid synthesis. Our results indicate that there are significant seasonal histomorphologic variations in the Jungle crow ovary.

  18. Characterization of poxviruses from forest birds in Hawaii

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Tripathy, Deoki N.; Schnitzlein, William M.; Morris, Patrick J.; Janssen, Don L.; Zuba, Jeffery K.; Massey, Greg; Atkinson, Carter T.

    2000-01-01

    Two strains of avian pox viruses were isolated from cutaneous lesions in Hawaiian crows (Corvus hawaiiensis) examined in 1994 and a third from a biopsy obtained in 1992 from an infected bird of the Apapane species (Himatione sanguinea) by inoculation of the chorioallantoic membranes (CAM) of developing chicken embryos. The resulting proliferative CAM lesions contained eosinophilic cytoplasmic inclusion bodies characteristic of pox virus infection. The pathogenicity of these three viruses in domestic chickens was mild as evidenced by the development of relatively minor lesions of short duration at the sites of inoculation. Their virulence in this host was similar to that of a fowlpox virus (FPV) vaccine strain and contrasted greatly with the ability of two field strains of FPV to produce extensive proliferative lesions. One of the Hawaiian crow pox virus isolates as well as the one originating from the Apapane species could be propagated in two secondary avian cell lines, QT-35 and LMH. A comparison of the restriction fragment length polymorphisms (RFLP) of the genomes of the two cell line-adapted viruses, generated by EcoRI digestion, revealed a limited degree of similarity. Moreover, neither profile was comparable to those of the two field isolates of FPV, which were almost indistinguishable from each other. Thus, based on the genetic distinctness of the two Hawaiian bird viruses, they appear to represent different strains of avipoxvirus.

  19. Late Pleistocene songbirds of Liang Bua (Flores, Indonesia); the first fossil passerine fauna described from Wallacea

    PubMed Central

    Sutikna, Thomas; Saptomo, Wahyu; Jatmiko; Wasisto, Sri; Tocheri, Matthew W.; Mayr, Gerald

    2017-01-01

    Background Passerines (Aves: Passeriformes) dominate modern terrestrial bird communities yet their fossil record is limited. Liang Bua is a large cave on the Indonesian island of Flores that preserves Late Pleistocene–Holocene deposits (∼190 ka to present day). Birds are the most diverse faunal group at Liang Bua and are present throughout the stratigraphic sequence. Methods We examined avian remains from the Late Pleistocene deposits of Sector XII, a 2 × 2 m area excavated to about 8.5 m depth. Although postcranial passerine remains are typically challenging to identify, we found several humeral characters particularly useful in discriminating between groups, and identified 89 skeletal elements of passerines. Results At least eight species from eight families are represented, including the Large-billed Crow (Corvus cf. macrorhynchos), the Australasian Bushlark (Mirafra javanica), a friarbird (Philemon sp.), and the Pechora Pipit (Anthus cf. gustavi). Discussion These remains constitute the first sample of fossil passerines described in Wallacea. Two of the taxa no longer occur on Flores today; a large sturnid (cf. Acridotheres) and a grassbird (Megalurus sp.). Palaeoecologically, the songbird assemblage suggests open grassland and tall forests, which is consistent with conditions inferred from the non-passerine fauna at the site. Corvus cf. macrorhynchos, found in the Homo floresiensis-bearing layers, was likely part of a scavenging guild that fed on carcasses of Stegodon florensis insularis alongside vultures (Trigonoceps sp.), giant storks (Leptoptilos robustus), komodo dragons (Varanus komodoensis), and probably H. floresiensis as well. PMID:28828271

  20. Apes (Gorilla gorilla, Pan paniscus, P. troglodytes, Pongo abelii) versus corvids (Corvus corax, C. corone) in a support task: the effect of pattern and functionality.

    PubMed

    Albiach-Serrano, Anna; Bugnyar, Thomas; Call, Josep

    2012-11-01

    Apes (Gorilla gorilla, Pan paniscus, P. troglodytes, Pong abelii) and corvids (Corvus corax, C. corone) are among the most proficient and flexible tool users in the animal kingdom. Although it has been proposed that this is the result of convergent evolution, little is known about whether this is limited to behavior or also includes the underlying cognitive mechanisms. We compared several species of apes (bonobos, chimpanzees, gorillas, and orangutans) and corvids (carrion crows and common ravens) using exactly the same paradigm: a support task with elements from the classical patterned-string tasks. Corvids proved able to solve at least an easy pattern, whereas apes outperformed corvids with respect to the complexity of the patterns solved, the relative number of subjects solving each problem, and the speed to reach criterion. We addressed the question of whether subjects based their choices purely on perceptual cues or on a more abstract understanding of the problem. This was done by using a perceptually very similar but causally different condition where instead of paper strips there were strip shapes painted on a platform. Corvids' performance did not differ between conditions, whereas apes were able to solve the real but not the painted task. This shows that apes were not basing their choices just on spatial or arbitrary perceptual cues. Instead, and unlike corvids, they must have had some causal knowledge of the task.

  1. Wild bird mortality and West Nile virus surveillance: Biases associated with detection, reporting, and carcass persistence

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Ward, M.R.; Stallknecht, D.E.; Willis, J.; Conroy, M.J.; Davidson, W.R.

    2006-01-01

    Surveillance targeting dead wild birds, in particular American crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos), plays a critical role in West Nile virus (WNV) surveillance in the United States. Using crow decoy surrogates, detection and reporting of crow carcasses within urban and rural environments of DeKalb County, Georgia were assessed for potential biases that might occur in the county's WNV surveillance program. In each of two replicated trials, during July and September 2003, 400 decoys were labeled with reporting instructions and distributed along randomly chosen routes throughout designated urban and rural areas within DeKalb County. Information-theoretic methods were used to compare alternative models incorporating the effects of area and trial on probabilities of detection and reporting. The model with the best empirical support included the effects of area on both detection and reporting of decoys. The proportion of decoys detected in the urban area (0.605, SE=0.024) was approximately twice that of the rural area (0.293, SE =0.023), and the proportion of decoys reported in the urban area (0.273, SE =0.023) was approximately three times that of the rural area (0.103, SE=0.028). These results suggest that human density and associated factors can substantially influence dead crow detection and reporting and, thus, the perceived distribution of WNV. In a second and separate study, the persistence and fate of American crow and house sparrow (Passer domesticus) carcasses were assessed in urban and rural environments in Athens-Clarke, Madison, and Oconee counties, Georgia. Two replicated trials using 96 carcasses of each species were conducted during July and September 2004. For a portion of the carcasses, motion sensitive cameras were used to monitor scavenging species visits. Most carcasses (82%) disappeared or were decayed by the end of the 6-day study. Carcass persistence averaged 1.6 days in rural areas and 2.1 days in urban areas. We analyzed carcass persistence rates using a known-fate model framework in program MARK. Model selection based on Akaike's Information Criteria (AIC) indicated that the best model explaining carcass persistence rates included species and number of days of exposure; however, the model including area and number of days of exposure received approximately equal support. Model-averaged carcass persistence rates were higher for urban areas and for crow carcasses. Six mammalian and one avian species were documented scavenging upon carcasses. Dead wild birds could represent potential sources of oral WNV exposure to these scavenging species. Species composition of the scavenger assemblage was similar in urban and rural areas but "scavenging pressure" was greater in rural areas. ?? Wildlife Disease Association 2006.

  2. Geography and Timing of Cases of Eastern Equine Encephalitis in New York State from 1992 to 2012.

    PubMed

    Oliver, JoAnne; Lukacik, Gary; Kramer, Laura D; Backenson, P Bryon; Sherwood, James A; Howard, John J

    2016-04-01

    In New York State (NYS), Eastern equine encephalitis (EEE) was first reported in a human in 1971, in horses in 1970, and in pheasants in 1952. Following work for the interval from 1970 to 1991, we identified cases in vertebrates from 1992 to 2012, through a passive surveillance system involving veterinarians in clinical practice, county health departments, and the Departments of Agriculture and Markets, Environmental Conservation, and Health, of the State of New York. During an 11-year hiatus, from 1992 to 2002, no case in any vertebrate was observed. In a re-emergence, from 2003 to 2012, disease occurred in 12 counties, including 7 counties where disease had never been documented. Vertebrate cases included 4 cases in humans and 77 nonhuman occurrences; in 58 horses, Equus ferus caballus L.; 2 deer, Odocoileus virginianus Zimmermann; 6 dogs, Canis familiaris; 10 birds; and 1 flock of pheasants, Phasianus colchicus L. These were the first reported cases in NYS in white-tailed deer, the domestic dog, and in five species of birds: American crow, Corvus brachyrhynchos Brehm; American goldfinch, Carduelis tristis L.; bald eagle, Haliaeetus leucocephalus L.; blue jay, Cyanocitta cristata (L.); and red-tailed hawk, Buteo jamaicensis Gmelin. One crow was dually infected with EEE virus and West Nile virus. The northern, southern, and southeastern borders of the state were newly affected. The geographic area, time periods, and vertebrate species with risk of EEE disease expanded from 1992 to 2012.

  3. Monocular tool control, eye dominance, and laterality in New Caledonian crows.

    PubMed

    Martinho, Antone; Burns, Zackory T; von Bayern, Auguste M P; Kacelnik, Alex

    2014-12-15

    Tool use, though rare, is taxonomically widespread, but morphological adaptations for tool use are virtually unknown. We focus on the New Caledonian crow (NCC, Corvus moneduloides), which displays some of the most innovative tool-related behavior among nonhumans. One of their major food sources is larvae extracted from burrows with sticks held diagonally in the bill, oriented with individual, but not species-wide, laterality. Among possible behavioral and anatomical adaptations for tool use, NCCs possess unusually wide binocular visual fields (up to 60°), suggesting that extreme binocular vision may facilitate tool use. Here, we establish that during natural extractions, tool tips can only be viewed by the contralateral eye. Thus, maintaining binocular view of tool tips is unlikely to have selected for wide binocular fields; the selective factor is more likely to have been to allow each eye to see far enough across the midsagittal line to view the tool's tip monocularly. Consequently, we tested the hypothesis that tool side preference follows eye preference and found that eye dominance does predict tool laterality across individuals. This contrasts with humans' species-wide motor laterality and uncorrelated motor-visual laterality, possibly because bill-held tools are viewed monocularly and move in concert with eyes, whereas hand-held tools are visible to both eyes and allow independent combinations of eye preference and handedness. This difference may affect other models of coordination between vision and mechanical control, not necessarily involving tools. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  4. Anatomy and histology of the Fibrocartilago humerocapsularis in some species of European wild birds.

    PubMed

    Canova, Marco; Bombardi, Cristiano; De Sordi, Nadia; Clavenzani, Paolo; Grandis, Annamaria

    2014-07-01

    The occurrence and structure of the fibrocartilago humerocapsularis (FHC) in the shoulders of 72 subjects of various species of wild birds were evaluated by gross dissection and histological examination with the purpose of increasing the body of knowledge regarding this structure and verifying the functional hypotheses submitted in the past in other species. The results showed that the FHC has a conical shape with a narrow cavity on the inside. The structure is heterogeneous in the various species and consists of different tissues, such as hyaline cartilage, fibrous cartilage, and bone. From the data obtained in this study, there does not appear to be any correlation between ossification and the weight of the prey lifted, wing shape, and aging. This study also provided interesting preliminary data regarding the ossification of the FHC. In fact, in the Hooded Crow (Corvus cornix), the ossification seemed to be correlated with the mechanical stimulation of flying. Additional studies are necessary to confirm this hypothesis. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  5. Characterization of Chicken Tumor Necrosis Factor-α, a Long Missed Cytokine in Birds

    PubMed Central

    Rohde, Franziska; Schusser, Benjamin; Hron, Tomáš; Farkašová, Helena; Plachý, Jiří; Härtle, Sonja; Hejnar, Jiří; Elleder, Daniel; Kaspers, Bernd

    2018-01-01

    Tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) is a pleiotropic cytokine playing critical roles in host defense and acute and chronic inflammation. It has been described in fish, amphibians, and mammals but was considered to be absent in the avian genomes. Here, we report on the identification and functional characterization of the avian ortholog. The chicken TNF-α (chTNF-α) is encoded by a highly GC-rich gene, whose product shares with its mammalian counterpart 45% homology in the extracellular part displaying the characteristic TNF homology domain. Orthologs of chTNF-α were identified in the genomes of 12 additional avian species including Palaeognathae and Neognathae, and the synteny of the closely adjacent loci with mammalian TNF-α orthologs was demonstrated in the crow (Corvus cornix) genome. In addition to chTNF-α, we obtained full sequences for homologs of TNF-α receptors 1 and 2 (TNFR1, TNFR2). chTNF-α mRNA is strongly induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) stimulation of monocyte derived, splenic and bone marrow macrophages, and significantly upregulated in splenic tissue in response to i.v. LPS treatment. Activation of T-lymphocytes by TCR crosslinking induces chTNF-α expression in CD4+ but not in CD8+ cells. To gain insights into its biological activity, we generated recombinant chTNF-α in eukaryotic and prokaryotic expression systems. Both, the full-length cytokine and the extracellular domain rapidly induced an NFκB-luciferase reporter in stably transfected CEC-32 reporter cells. Collectively, these data provide strong evidence for the existence of a fully functional TNF-α/TNF-α receptor system in birds thus filling a gap in our understanding of the evolution of cytokine systems. PMID:29719531

  6. West Nile virus infection in American singer canaries: An experimental model in a highly susceptible avian species

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Hofmeister, Erik K.; Lund, Melissa; Shearn-Bochsler, Valerie I.

    2018-01-01

    This study investigated the susceptibility of American singer canaries (Serinus canaria) to West Nile virus (WNV) infection. Adult canaries were inoculated with 105, 102, and 101plaque forming units (PFU) of WNV. All birds became infected and mortality occurred by 5 days postinoculation. The load of viral RNA as determined by RT-qPCR was dose dependent, and was higher at all doses than the level of viral RNA detected in American crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos) challenged with 105 PFU of WNV. In a subset of birds, viremia was detected by virus isolation; canaries inoculated with 101 PFU of WNV developed viremia exceeding 1010 PFU/mL serum, a log higher than American crows inoculated with 105 PFU of virus. In canaries euthanized at 3 days postinoculation, WNV was isolated at >107 PFU of virus/100 mg of lung, liver, heart, spleen, and kidney tissues. Pallor of the liver and splenomegaly were the most common macroscopic observations and histologic lesions were most severe in liver, spleen, and kidney, particularly in canaries challenged with 102 and 101 PFU. Immunoreactivity to WNV was pronounced in the liver and spleen. IgG antibodies to WNV were detected in serum by enzyme immunoassay in 11 of 21 (52%) challenged canaries and, in 4 of 5 (20%) of these sera, neutralization antibodies were detected at a titer ≥ 1:20. American singer canaries provide a useful model as this bird species is highly susceptible to WNV infection.

  7. 50 CFR 32.57 - Pennsylvania.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... squirrels, grouse, rabbit, pheasant, quail, woodchuck, crow, fox, raccoon, opossum, skunk, weasel, coyote.... Sport Fishing. [Reserved] Erie National Wildlife Refuge A. Migratory Game Bird Hunting. We allow hunting... hunting of grouse, squirrel, rabbit, woodchuck, pheasant, quail, raccoon, fox, coyote, skunk, and opossum...

  8. Distribution and abundance of predators that affect duck production--prairie pothole region

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Sargeant, A.B.; Greenwood, R.J.; Sovada, M.A.; Shaffer, T.L.

    1993-01-01

    During 1983-88, the relative abundance of 18 species and species-groups of mammalian and avian predators affecting duck production in the prairie pothole region was determined in 33 widely scattered study areas ranging in size from 23-26 km2. Accounts of each studied species and species-group include habitat and history, population structure and reported densities, and information on distribution and abundance from the present study. Index values of undetected, scarce, uncommon, common, or numerous were used to rate abundance of nearly all species in each study area. Principal survey methods were livetrapping of striped skunks (Mephitis mephitis) and Franklin's ground squirrels (Spermophilus franklinii), systematic searches for carnivore tracks in quarter sections (0.65 km2), daily records of sightings of individual predator species, and systematic searches for occupied nests of tree-nesting avian predators. Abundances of predators in individual areas were studied 1-3 years.The distribution and abundance of predator species throughout the prairie pothole region have undergone continual change since settlement of the region by Europeans in the late 1800's. Predator populations in areas we studied differed markedly from those of pristine times. The changes occurred from habitat alterations, human-inflicted mortality of predators, and interspecific relations among predator species. Indices from surveys of tracks revealed a decline in the abundance of red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) and an albeit less consistent decline in the abundance of raccoons (Procyon lotor) with an increase in the abundance of coyotes (Canis latrans). Records of locations of occupied nests revealed great horned owls (Bubo virginianus) and red-tailed hawks (Buteo jamaicensis) tended to nest 0.5 km apart, and American crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos) tended to avoid nesting 0.5 km of nests of red-tailed hawks. Excluding large gulls, for which no measurements of abundance were obtained, the number of predator species averaged 12.2 (SD = 1.60) per study area; common or numerous predator species averaged 6.0 (SD = 1.54) per study area (minimal because the abundance of weasels [Mustela erminea; M. frenata] in all areas and of minks [Mustela vison] and raptors in some areas was not rated). Major changes in relative abundance of individual predator species studied >1 year were few. Predator species most restricted to the aspen parkland were the Franklin's ground squirrel, black-billed magpie (Pica pica), American crow (Corvus brachyrlus), and red-tailed hawk; species most restricted to the prairie were the badger (Taxidea taxus), Swainson's hawk (Buteo swainsoni), and ferruginous hawk (B. regalis). The coyote, black-billed magpie, and American crow were most numerous in Canada, whereas the red fox, raccoon, mink, ferruginous hawk, and great horned owl were most numerous in the United States. The number of common or numerous egg-eating predator species (excludes large gulls and weasels, which were not rated) averaged 4.6 (SD = 0.90) per study area. The average numbers of common or numerous egg-eating species per study area did not differ among provinces and states, but birds gradually replaced mammals from southeast to northwest across the region. Investigators are urged to assess composition of predator populations and relative abundance of predator species for evaluations of waterfowl recruitment.

  9. Novel picornavirus associated with avian keratin disorder in Alaskan birds

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Zylberberg, Maxine; Van Hemert, Caroline R.; Dumbacher, John P.; Handel, Colleen M.; Tihan, Tarik; DeRisi, Joseph L.

    2016-01-01

    Avian keratin disorder (AKD), characterized by debilitating overgrowth of the avian beak, was first documented in black-capped chickadees (Poecile atricapillus) in Alaska. Subsequently, similar deformities have appeared in numerous species across continents. Despite the widespread distribution of this emerging pathology, the cause of AKD remains elusive. As a result, it is unknown whether suspected cases of AKD in the afflicted species are causally linked, and the impacts of this pathology at the population and community levels are difficult to evaluate. We applied unbiased, metagenomic next-generation sequencing to search for candidate pathogens in birds affected with AKD. We identified and sequenced the complete coding region of a novel picornavirus, which we are calling poecivirus. Subsequent screening of 19 AKD-affected black-capped chickadees and 9 control individuals for the presence of poecivirus revealed that 19/19 (100%) AKD-affected individuals were positive, while only 2/9 (22%) control individuals were infected with poecivirus. Two northwestern crows (Corvus caurinus) and two red-breasted nuthatches (Sitta canadensis) with AKD-consistent pathology also tested positive for poecivirus. We suggest that poecivirus is a candidate etiological agent of AKD.

  10. Current land bird distribution and trends in population abundance between 1982 and 2012 on Rota, Mariana Islands

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Camp, Richard J.; Brinck, Kevin W.; Gorresen, P. Marcos; Amidon, Fred A.; Radley, Paul M.; Berkowitz, S. Paul; Banko, Paul C.

    2015-01-01

    The western Pacific island of Rota is the fourth largest human-inhabited island in the Mariana archipelago and designated an Endemic Bird Area. Between 1982 and 2012, 12 point-transect distance-sampling surveys were conducted to assess bird population status. Surveys did not consistently sample the entire island; thus, we used a ratio estimator to estimate bird abundances in strata not sampled during every survey. Trends in population size were reliably estimated for 11 of 13 bird species, and 7 species declined over the 30-y time series, including the island collared-dove Streptopelia bitorquata, white-throated ground-dove Gallicolumba xanthonura, Mariana fruit-dove Ptilinopus roseicapilla, collared kingfisher Todiramphus chloris orii, Micronesian myzomela Myzomela rubratra, black drongo Dicrurus macrocercus, and Mariana crow Corvus kubaryi. The endangered Mariana crow (x̄  =  81 birds, 95% CI 30–202) declined sharply to fewer than 200 individuals in 2012, down from 1,491 birds in 1982 (95% CI  =  815–3,115). Trends increased for white tern Gygis alba, rufous fantail Rhipidura rufifrons mariae, and Micronesian starling Aplonis opaca. Numbers of the endangered Rota white-eye Zosterops rotensis declined from 1982 to the late 1990s but returned to 1980s levels by 2012, resulting in an overall stable trend. Trends for the yellow bittern Ixobrychus sinensis were inconclusive. Eurasian tree sparrow Passer montanus trends were not assessed; however, their numbers in 1982 and 2012 were similar. Occupancy models of the 2012 survey data revealed general patterns of land cover use and detectability among 12 species that could be reliably modeled. Occupancy was not assessed for the Eurasian tree sparrow because of insufficient detections. Based on the 2012 survey, bird distribution and abundance across Rota revealed three general patterns: 1) range restriction, including Mariana crow, Rota white-eye, and Eurasian tree sparrow; 2) widespread distribution, low abundance, including collared kingfisher, island collared-dove, white-throated ground-dove, Mariana fruit-dove, white tern, yellow bittern, black drongo, and Micronesian myzomela; and 3) widespread distribution, high abundance, including rufous fantail and Micronesian starling. The Mariana crow was dispersed around the periphery of the island in steep forested land-cover types. In contrast, the Rota white-eye was restricted to the high-elevation mesa. Only for the white-throated ground-dove was there a significant difference among cover types, with lower occupancy in open field than in forested areas. Vegetation was included in the best-fit occupancy models for yellow bittern, black drongo, Micronesian myzomela, and Micronesian starling, but vegetation type was not a significant variable nor included in the top models for the remaining five species: white tern, island collared-dove, Mariana fruit-dove, collared kingfisher, and rufous fantail. Given declining population trends, the Rota bird-monitoring program could benefit from establishing threshold and alert limits and identifying alternative research and management actions. Continued monitoring and demographic sampling, in conjunction with ecological studies, are needed to understand why most bird species on Rota are declining, identify the causative agents, and assess effectiveness of conservation actions, especially for the Mariana crow.

  11. Breeding productivity of Smith Island black ducks

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Haramis, G.M.; Jorde, Dennis G.; Olsen, Glenn H.; Stotts, D.B.; Harrison, M.K.; Perry, M.C.

    2002-01-01

    We investigated the breeding performance of American black ducks (Anas rubripes) on Smith Island, Chesapeake Bay, to improve our understanding of island black duck breeding ecology and to make management recommendations to enhance productivity. During 1995-96, we implanted 56 female black ducks with 20-g radio transmitters and tracked 35 of the individuals through the breeding season to locate nests, determine nest fate, and identify brood habitat. We also increased preseason banding efforts and compared capture characteristics over 12 years with those from the Deal Island Wildlife Management Area, a banding site on the mainland of Tangier Sound. A low rate of nesting (37%), lack of renesting, and poor hatching success (31%) indicated that island salt marsh habitats present a harsh environment for breeding black ducks. Black ducks located 11 of 13 nests (85%) in black needlerush (Juncus roemerianus) marsh where they were vulnerable to flooding from extreme tides and to egg predators. No nests were found on forested tree hammocks, a feature that distinguishes Smith Island from nearby South Marsh and Bloodsworth Islands. Nest predators included red foxes (Vulpes vulpes), herring gulls (Larus argentams), fish crows (Corvus ossifragus), and, potentially, Norway rats (Rattus norvegicus). Unlike mainland red foxes, foxes radio tracked on Smith Island were found to be capable swimmers and effective low marsh predators. We found shoreline meadows of widgeon grass (Ruppia maritima) to be important foraging sites for black ducks and suspected that the virtual absence of fresh water in this high salinity environment (1217+ ppt) to incur some cost in terms of growth and survival of ducklings. Preseason bandings revealed a high proportion of banded adults and a strong positive correlation in age ratios with the Deal Island banding site. This latter finding strongly suggests a negative universal effect of storm tides on nest success for Tangier Sound black ducks. Management to reduce nest predators, especially gulls and foxes, likely will have the greatest immediate benefit for island breeding black ducks.

  12. Attempts to identify the source of avian vacuolar myelinopathy for waterbirds

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Rocke, T.E.; Thomas, N.J.; Meteyer, C.U.; Quist, C.F.; Fischer, John R.; Augspurger, T.; Ward, S.E.

    2005-01-01

    Attempts were made to reproduce avian vacuolar myelinopathy (AVM) in a number of test animals in order to determine the source of the causative agent for birds and to find a suitable animal model for future studies. Submerged vegetation, plankton, invertebrates, forage fish, and sediments were collected from three lakes with ongoing outbreaks of AVM and fed to American coots (Fulica americana), mallard ducks and ducklings (Anas platyrhynchos), quail (Coturnix japonica), and laboratory mice either via gavage or ad libitum. Tissues from AVM-affected coots with brain lesions were fed to ducklings, kestrels (Falco sparverius), and American crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos). Two mallards that ingested one sample of Hydrilla verticillata along with any biotic or abiotic material associated with its external surface developed brain lesions consistent with AVM, although neither of the ducks had clinical signs of disease. Ingestion of numerous other samples of Hydrilla from the AVM affected lakes and a lake with no prior history of AVM, other materials (sediments, algae, fish, invertebrates, and water from affected lakes), or tissues from AVM-affected birds did not produce either clinical signs or brain lesions in any of the other test animals in our studies. These results suggest that waterbirds are most likely exposed to the causative agent of AVM while feeding on aquatic vegetation, but we do not believe the vegetation itself is the agent. We hypothesize that the causative agent of AVM might either be accumulated by aquatic vegetation, such as Hydrilla, or associated with biotic or abiotic material on its external surfaces. In support of that hypothesis, two coots that ingested Hydrilla sampled from a lake with an ongoing AVM outbreak in wild birds developed neurologic signs within 9 days (ataxia, limb weakness, and incoordination), and one of two coots that ingested Hydrilla collected from the same site 13 days later became sick and died within 38 days. None of these three sick coots had definitive brain lesions consistent with AVM by light microscopy, but they had no gross or histologic lesions in other tissues. It is unclear if these birds died of AVM. Perhaps they did not ingest a dose sufficient to produce brain lesions or the lesions were ultrastructural. Alternatively, it is possible that a separate neurotoxic agent is responsible for the morbidity and mortality observed in these coots.

  13. 78 FR 66759 - Information Collection Request Sent to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Approval...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-11-06

    ...; Depredation Order for Blackbirds, Grackles, Cowbirds, Magpies, and Crows AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service... Information Collection Request (ICR) to OMB for review and approval. We summarize the ICR below and describe...-2482 (telephone). You may review the ICR online at http://www.reginfo.gov . Follow the instructions to...

  14. Estimating the Effects of Habitat and Biological Interactions in an Avian Community

    PubMed Central

    Dorazio, Robert M.; Connor, Edward F.; Askins, Robert A.

    2015-01-01

    We used repeated sightings of individual birds encountered in community-level surveys to investigate the relative roles of habitat and biological interactions in determining the distribution and abundance of each species. To analyze these data, we developed a multispecies N-mixture model that allowed estimation of both positive and negative correlations between abundances of different species while also estimating the effects of habitat and the effects of errors in detection of each species. Using a combination of single- and multispecies N-mixture modeling, we examined for each species whether our measures of habitat were sufficient to account for the variation in encounter histories of individual birds or whether other habitat variables or interactions with other species needed to be considered. In the community that we studied, habitat appeared to be more influential than biological interactions in determining the distribution and abundance of most avian species. Our results lend support to the hypothesis that abundances of forest specialists are negatively affected by forest fragmentation. Our results also suggest that many species were associated with particular types of vegetation as measured by structural attributes of the forests. The abundances of 6 of the 73 species observed in our study were strongly correlated. These species included large birds (American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) and Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus)) that forage on the ground in open habitats and small birds (Red-eyed Vireo (Vireo olivaceus), House Wren (Troglodytes aedon), Hooded Warbler (Setophaga citrina), and Prairie Warbler (Setophaga discolor)) that are associated with dense shrub cover. Species abundances were positively correlated within each size group and negatively correlated between groups. Except for the American Crow, which preys on eggs and nestlings of small song birds, none of the other 5 species is known to display direct interactions, so we suspect that the correlations may have been associated with species-specific responses to habitat components not adequately measured by our covariates. PMID:26287671

  15. 77 FR 13622 - Notice of Intent To Repatriate Cultural Items: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Office of Law...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-03-07

    ... below meet the definition of sacred objects and repatriation to the Indian tribe stated below may occur... definition of sacred objects under 25 U.S.C. 3001. This notice is published as part of the National Park.... Upon review, the USFWS determined that two sacred objects (Item 6: Crow lumpwood dance wand and Item 46...

  16. Northern Goshawk diet in Minnesota: An Analysis using video recording systems

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Smithers, B.L.; Boal, C.W.; Andersen, D.E.

    2005-01-01

    We used video-recording systems to collect diet information at 13 Northern Goshawk (Accipiter gentilis) nests in Minnesota during the 2000, 2001, and 2002 breeding seasons. We collected 4871 hr of video footage, from which 652 prey deliveries were recorded. The majority of prey deliveries identified were mammals (62%), whereas birds (38%) composed a smaller proportion of diet. Mammals accounted for 61% of biomass delivered, and avian prey items accounted for 39% of prey biomass. Sciurids and leporids accounted for 70% of the identified prey. Red squirrel (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus), eastern chipmunk (Tamias striatus), and snowshoe hare (Lepus americanus) were the dominant mammals identified in the diet, while American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) and Ruffed Grouse (Bonasa umbellus) were the dominant avian prey delivered to nests. On average, breeding goshawks delivered 2.12 prey items/d, and each delivery averaged 275 g for a total of 551 g delivered/d. However, daily (P < 0.001) and hourly (P = 0.01) delivery rates varied among nests. Delivery rates (P = 0.01) and biomass delivered (P = 0.038) increased with brood size. Diversity and equitability of prey used was similar among nests and was low throughout the study area, most likely due to the dominance of red squirrel in the diet. ?? 2005 The Raptor Research Foundation, Inc.

  17. Characterization of Two Novel Polyomaviruses of Birds by Using Multiply Primed Rolling-Circle Amplification of Their Genomes

    PubMed Central

    Johne, Reimar; Wittig, Walter; Fernández-de-Luco, Daniel; Höfle, Ursula; Müller, Hermann

    2006-01-01

    Polyomaviruses are small nonenveloped particles with a circular double-stranded genome, approximately 5 kbp in size. The mammalian polyomaviruses mainly cause persistent subclinical infections in their natural nonimmunocompromised hosts. In contrast, the polyomaviruses of birds—avian polyomavirus (APV) and goose hemorrhagic polyomavirus (GHPV)—are the primary agents of acute and chronic disease with high mortality rates in young birds. Screening of field samples of diseased birds by consensus PCR revealed the presence of two novel polyomaviruses in the liver of an Eurasian bullfinch (Pyrrhula pyrrhula griseiventris) and in the spleen of a Eurasian jackdaw (Corvus monedula), tentatively designated as finch polyomavirus (FPyV) and crow polyomavirus (CPyV), respectively. The genomes of the viruses were amplified by using multiply primed rolling-circle amplification and cloned. Analysis of the FPyV and CPyV genome sequences revealed a close relationship to APV and GHPV, indicating the existence of a distinct avian group among the polyomaviruses. The main characteristics of this group are (i) involvement in fatal disease, (ii) the existence of an additional open reading frame in the 5′ region of the late mRNAs, and (iii) a different manner of DNA binding of the large tumor antigen compared to that of the mammalian polyomaviruses. PMID:16537620

  18. Importance of individual species of predators on nesting success of ducks in the Canadian prairie pothole region

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Johnson, Douglas H.; Sargeant, Alan B.; Greenwood, Raymond J.

    1989-01-01

    We followed 3094 upland nests of several species of ducks. Clutches in most nests were lost to predation. We related daily nest predation rates to indices of activity of eight egg-eating predators, precipitation during the nesting season, and measures of wetland conditions. Activity indices of red fox (Vulpes vulpes), striped skunk (Mephitis mephitis), and raccoon (Procyon lotor) activity were positively correlated, as were activity indices of coyote (Canis latrans), Franklin's ground squirrel (Spermophilus franklinii), and black-billed magpie (Pica pica). Indices of fox and coyote activity were strongly negatively correlated (r = -0.51), as were those of badger (Taxidea taxus) and skunk (r = -0.46). Nest predation rates in the early part of the breeding season were positively related to indices of fox, American crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos), and badger activity. Predation rates in the latter part of the season were positively related to indices of fox and skunk activity. Predation rates on early-season nests were lower in areas and years in which larger fractions of seasonal wetlands contained water. For late-season nests, a similar relationship held involving semipermanent wetlands. We suspect that the wetland measures, which reflect precipitation during some previous period, also indicate vegetation growth and the abundance of buffer prey, factors that may influence nest predation rates.

  19. West Nile Virus Temperature Sensitivity and Avian Virulence Are Modulated by NS1-2B Polymorphisms.

    PubMed

    Dietrich, Elizabeth A; Langevin, Stanley A; Huang, Claire Y-H; Maharaj, Payal D; Delorey, Mark J; Bowen, Richard A; Kinney, Richard M; Brault, Aaron C

    2016-08-01

    West Nile virus (WNV) replicates in a wide variety of avian species, which serve as reservoir and amplification hosts. WNV strains isolated in North America, such as the prototype strain NY99, elicit a highly pathogenic response in certain avian species, notably American crows (AMCRs; Corvus brachyrhynchos). In contrast, a closely related strain, KN3829, isolated in Kenya, exhibits a low viremic response with limited mortality in AMCRs. Previous work has associated the difference in pathogenicity primarily with a single amino acid mutation at position 249 in the helicase domain of the NS3 protein. The NY99 strain encodes a proline residue at this position, while KN3829 encodes a threonine. Introduction of an NS3-T249P mutation in the KN3829 genetic background significantly increased virulence and mortality; however, peak viremia and mortality were lower than those of NY99. In order to elucidate the viral genetic basis for phenotype variations exclusive of the NS3-249 polymorphism, chimeric NY99/KN3829 viruses were created. We show herein that differences in the NS1-2B region contribute to avian pathogenicity in a manner that is independent of and additive with the NS3-249 mutation. Additionally, NS1-2B residues were found to alter temperature sensitivity when grown in avian cells.

  20. Invasive rats strengthen predation pressure on bird eggs in a South Pacific island rainforest

    PubMed Central

    Bourguet, Edouard; De Meringo, Hélène; Millon, Alexandre; Vidal, Eric

    2017-01-01

    Abstract Invasive rats (Rattus spp.) are known to have pervasive impacts on island birds, particularly on their nesting success. To conserve or restore bird populations, numerous invasive rat control or eradication projects are undertaken on islands worldwide. However, such projects represent a huge investment and the decision-making process requires proper assessment of rat impacts. Here, we assessed the influence of two sympatric invasive rats (Rattus rattus and R. exulans) on native bird eggs in a New Caledonian rainforest, using artificial bird-nest monitoring. A total of 178 artificial nests containing two eggs of three different sizes were placed either on the ground or 1.5 m high and monitored at the start of the birds’ breeding season. Overall, 12.4% of the nests were depredated during the first 7 days. At site 1, where nests were monitored during 16 days, 41.8% of the nests were depredated. The main predator was the native crow Corvus moneduloides, responsible for 62.9% of the overall predation events. Rats were responsible for only 22.9% of the events, and ate only small and medium eggs at both heights. Our experiment suggests that in New Caledonia, predation pressure by rats strengthens overall bird-nest predation, adding to that by native predators. Experimental rat control operations may allow reduced predation pressure on nests as well as the recording of biodiversity responses after rat population reduction. PMID:29492018

  1. Invasive rats strengthen predation pressure on bird eggs in a South Pacific island rainforest.

    PubMed

    Duron, Quiterie; Bourguet, Edouard; De Meringo, Hélène; Millon, Alexandre; Vidal, Eric

    2017-12-01

    Invasive rats ( Rattus spp.) are known to have pervasive impacts on island birds, particularly on their nesting success. To conserve or restore bird populations, numerous invasive rat control or eradication projects are undertaken on islands worldwide. However, such projects represent a huge investment and the decision-making process requires proper assessment of rat impacts. Here, we assessed the influence of two sympatric invasive rats ( Rattus rattus and R. exulans ) on native bird eggs in a New Caledonian rainforest, using artificial bird-nest monitoring. A total of 178 artificial nests containing two eggs of three different sizes were placed either on the ground or 1.5 m high and monitored at the start of the birds' breeding season. Overall, 12.4% of the nests were depredated during the first 7 days. At site 1, where nests were monitored during 16 days, 41.8% of the nests were depredated. The main predator was the native crow Corvus moneduloides , responsible for 62.9% of the overall predation events. Rats were responsible for only 22.9% of the events, and ate only small and medium eggs at both heights. Our experiment suggests that in New Caledonia, predation pressure by rats strengthens overall bird-nest predation, adding to that by native predators. Experimental rat control operations may allow reduced predation pressure on nests as well as the recording of biodiversity responses after rat population reduction.

  2. Review of Hyperimerus (Pteromalidae: Asaphinae) in North America, with redescription of Hyperimerus corvus (Girault)

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    North American species Hyperimerus (Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae) are reviewed. Hyperimerus corvus Girault is redescribed, a lectotype designated, and the male is described for the first time. Hyperimerus pusillus (Walker) is also briefly redescribed and range extension is proposed. Notes on extralimit...

  3. The highest-ranking rooster has priority to announce the break of dawn.

    PubMed

    Shimmura, Tsuyoshi; Ohashi, Shosei; Yoshimura, Takashi

    2015-07-23

    The "cock-a-doodle-doo" crowing of roosters, which symbolizes the break of dawn in many cultures, is controlled by the circadian clock. When one rooster announces the break of dawn, others in the vicinity immediately follow. Chickens are highly social animals, and they develop a linear and fixed hierarchy in small groups. We found that when chickens were housed in small groups, the top-ranking rooster determined the timing of predawn crowing. Specifically, the top-ranking rooster always started to crow first, followed by its subordinates, in descending order of social rank. When the top-ranking rooster was physically removed from a group, the second-ranking rooster initiated crowing. The presence of a dominant rooster significantly reduced the number of predawn crows in subordinates. However, the number of crows induced by external stimuli was independent of social rank, confirming that subordinates have the ability to crow. Although the timing of subordinates' predawn crowing was strongly dependent on that of the top-ranking rooster, free-running periods of body temperature rhythms differed among individuals, and crowing rhythm did not entrain to a crowing sound stimulus. These results indicate that in a group situation, the top-ranking rooster has priority to announce the break of dawn, and that subordinate roosters are patient enough to wait for the top-ranking rooster's first crow every morning and thus compromise their circadian clock for social reasons.

  4. Involvement of circadian clock in crowing of red jungle fowls (Gallus gallus).

    PubMed

    Ito, Shuichi; Hori, Shuho; Hirose, Makiko; Iwahara, Mari; Yatsushiro, Azusa; Matsumoto, Atsushi; Tanaka, Masayuki; Okamoto, Chinobu; Yayou, Ken-Ichi; Shimmura, Tsuyoshi

    2017-04-01

    The rhythmic locomotor behavior of flies and mice provides a phenotype for the identification of clock genes, and the underlying molecular mechanism is well studied. However, interestingly, when examining locomotor rhythm in the wild, several key laboratory-based assumptions on circadian behavior are not supported in natural conditions. The rooster crowing 'cock-a-doodle-doo' is a symbol of the break of dawn in many countries. Previously, we used domestic inbred roosters and showed that the timing of roosters' crowing is regulated by the circadian clock under laboratory conditions. However, it is still unknown whether the regulation of crowing by circadian clock is observed under natural conditions. Therefore, here we used red jungle fowls and first confirmed that similar crowing rhythms with domesticated chickens are observed in red jungle fowls under the laboratory conditions. Red jungle fowls show predawn crowing before light onset under 12:12 light : dim light conditions and the free-running rhythm of crowing under total dim light conditions. We next examined the crowing rhythms under semi-wild conditions. Although the crowing of red jungle fowls changed seasonally under semi-wild conditions, predawn crowing was observed before sunrise in all seasons. This evidence suggests that seasonally changed crowing of red jungle fowls is under the control of a circadian clock. © 2016 Japanese Society of Animal Science.

  5. [Animal reservoirs of human virulent microsporidian species].

    PubMed

    Słodkowicz-Kowalska, Anna

    2009-01-01

    The main objective of the present study was to determined the occurrence of Encephalitozoon intestinalis, E. hellem, E. cuniculi, and Enterocytozoon bieneusi in Poland in animal faecal using the FISH (Fluorescent In Situ Hybridization) and multiplex FISH techniques. Additional objectives included: (1) identification of animal hosts of microsporidia that are infectious to humans amongst free-ranging, captive, livestock and domestic animals; (2) a molecular analysis of randomly selected parasite isolates and determination of their zoonotic potential; (3) evaluation of the role of animals in the dissemination of microsporidia spores in the environment, and an estimation of the potential risk of infection for other animals and humans. A total of 1340 faecal samples collected from 178 species of animals were examined using conventional staining (chromotrope-2R and calcofluor white M2R staining) and molecular techniques (FISH and multiplex FISH techniques). Microsporidian spores were detected in 33 faecal samples (2.5%) obtained from 17 animal species. Microsporidia were demonstrated more often in birds (6.1%) than in mammals (0.7%); the difference was statistically significant (p < 0.00001). In addition, the prevalence of microsporidian infections in waterfowl was significantly higher than the prevalence of microsporidian infections in other animals (p < 0.03). Animal reservoirs of human infectious microsporidia were disclosed in six of 38 sites where faecal samples were taken from animals. Three species of human virulent microsporidia were identified in animals. Spores of E. hellem were found in 25 faecal samples (1.9%) taken from 12 bird species (6 zoo bird species, 4 free-ranging bird species, 2 livestock bird species). Spores of E. intestinalis were identified in five faecal samples (0.4%) taken from two livestock bird species and two zoo mammal species. In turn, E. bieneusi spores were detected only in three faecal samples (0.2%) taken from three zoo mammal species. It was demonstrated that the new hosts of E. hellem are the following bird species: mallard duck (Anas platyrhynchos), greyleg goose (Anser anser), mute swan (Cygnus olor), black-necked swan (Cygnus melancoryphus), black swan (Cygnus atratus), coscoroba swan (Coscoroba coscoroba), black-crowned crane (Balearica pavonina), nicobar pigeon (Caloenas nicobarica) and carrion crow (Corvus cornix). In addition, E. hellem was found for the first time in birds from the Anseriformes and Gruiformes orders. Whereas E. intestinalis was disclosed for the first time in the domestic goose (Anser anser f. domestica), red ruffed lemur (Varecia variegata rubra) and the ring-tailed lemur (Lemur catta), while the black lemur (Eulemur macaco flavifrons), mongoose lemur (Eulemur mongoz) and the Visayan warty pig (Sus cebifrons negrinus) were first found to carry E. bieneusi. The mammal species that were found to carry E. bieneusi and E. intestinalis are included in The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. The results of the present study are significant from an epidemiological point of view. The wild, livestock and zoo animals that were found to carry microsporidia live in different conditions, and thus their role as animal reservoirs for these dangerous pathogens varies. Waterfowl birds may be the main source of contamination of surface waters with E. hellem spores and the protection of surface waters is virtually impossible. Moreover, isolates of E. hellem from mute swans have SSU rRNA sequences identical to E. hellem genotype reported 10 years ago in HIV-positive patient in USA (GenBank Accession no. L19070). This result indicate that E. hellem from mute swans can be a potential source of infection for humans. The contamination of the human environment with microsporidian spores infectious to humans is also facilitated by farm and synanthropic birds, because E. hellem and E. intestinalis were found in farms pigeons, domestic goose and the carrion crow. These birds can also be the source of infectious for breeders and ornithologists. The occurrence of microsporidiosis in animals kept in zoological gardens may constitute a deadly hazard not only for the animals themselves, but also for zoo personnel and visitors. The identification of animal reservoirs of E. hellem, E. intestinalis and E. bieneusi in Poland points to the possibility of infection of humans. The results of the present study have shown that the FISH technique, although time-consuming, is very sensitive, not overly costly and--what is of prime importance--it enables identification of microsporidian species, and therefore should be used for diagnosing microsporidiosis in humans and animals.

  6. A parasitism-mutualism-predation model consisting of crows, cuckoos and cats with stage-structure and maturation delays on crows and cuckoos

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Luo, Yantao; Zhang, Long; Teng, Zhidong; DeAngelis, Donald L.

    2018-01-01

    In this paper, a parasitism-mutualism-predation model is proposed to investigate the dynamics of multi-interactions among cuckoos, crows and cats with stage-structure and maturation time delays on cuckoos and crows. The crows permit the cuckoos to parasitize their nestlings (eggs) on the crow chicks (eggs). In return, the cuckoo nestlings produce a malodorous cloacal secretion to protect the crow chicks from predation by the cats, which is apparently beneficial to both the crow and cuckoo population. The multi-interactions, i.e., parasitism and mutualism between the cuckoos (nestlings) and crows (chicks), predation between the cats and crow chicks are modeled both by Holling-type II and Beddington-DeAngelis-type functional responses. The existence of positive equilibria of three subsystems of the model are discussed. The criteria for the global stability of the trivial equilibrium are established by the Krein-Rutman Theorem and other analysis methods. Moreover, the threshold dynamics for the coexistence and weak persistence of the model are obtained, and we show, both analytically and numerically, that the stabilities of the interior equilibria may change with the increasing maturation time delays. We find there exists an evident difference in the dynamical properties of the parasitism-mutualism-predation model based on whether or not we consider the effects of stage-structure and maturation time delays on cuckoos and crows. Inclusion of stage structure results in many varied dynamical complexities which are difficult to encompass without this inclusion.

  7. The highest-ranking rooster has priority to announce the break of dawn

    PubMed Central

    Shimmura, Tsuyoshi; Ohashi, Shosei; Yoshimura, Takashi

    2015-01-01

    The “cock-a-doodle-doo” crowing of roosters, which symbolizes the break of dawn in many cultures, is controlled by the circadian clock. When one rooster announces the break of dawn, others in the vicinity immediately follow. Chickens are highly social animals, and they develop a linear and fixed hierarchy in small groups. We found that when chickens were housed in small groups, the top-ranking rooster determined the timing of predawn crowing. Specifically, the top-ranking rooster always started to crow first, followed by its subordinates, in descending order of social rank. When the top-ranking rooster was physically removed from a group, the second-ranking rooster initiated crowing. The presence of a dominant rooster significantly reduced the number of predawn crows in subordinates. However, the number of crows induced by external stimuli was independent of social rank, confirming that subordinates have the ability to crow. Although the timing of subordinates’ predawn crowing was strongly dependent on that of the top-ranking rooster, free-running periods of body temperature rhythms differed among individuals, and crowing rhythm did not entrain to a crowing sound stimulus. These results indicate that in a group situation, the top-ranking rooster has priority to announce the break of dawn, and that subordinate roosters are patient enough to wait for the top-ranking rooster’s first crow every morning and thus compromise their circadian clock for social reasons. PMID:26203594

  8. Jim Crow and premature mortality among the US Black and White population, 1960-2009: an age-period-cohort analysis.

    PubMed

    Krieger, Nancy; Chen, Jarvis T; Coull, Brent A; Beckfield, Jason; Kiang, Mathew V; Waterman, Pamela D

    2014-07-01

    Scant research has analyzed the health impact of abolition of Jim Crow (ie, legal racial discrimination overturned by the US 1964 Civil Rights Act). We used hierarchical age-period-cohort models to analyze US national black and white premature mortality rates (death before 65 years of age) in 1960-2009. Within a context of declining US black and white premature mortality rates and a persistent 2-fold excess black risk of premature mortality in both the Jim Crow and non-Jim Crow states, analyses including random period, cohort, state, and county effects and fixed county income effects found that, within the black population, the largest Jim Crow-by-period interaction occurred in 1960-1964 (mortality rate ratio [MRR] = 1.15 [95% confidence interval = 1.09-1.22), yielding the largest overall period-specific Jim Crow effect MRR of 1.27, with no such interactions subsequently observed. Furthermore, the most elevated Jim Crow-by-cohort effects occurred for birth cohorts from 1901 through 1945 (MRR range = 1.05-1.11), translating to the largest overall cohort-specific Jim Crow effect MRRs for the 1921-1945 birth cohorts (MRR ~ 1.2), with no such interactions subsequently observed. No such interactions between Jim Crow and either period or cohort occurred among the white population. Together, the study results offer compelling evidence of the enduring impact of both Jim Crow and its abolition on premature mortality among the US black population, although insufficient to eliminate the persistent 2-fold black excess risk evident in both the Jim Crow and non-Jim Crow states from 1960 to 2009.

  9. Jim Crow and Premature Mortality Among the US Black and White Population, 1960–2009

    PubMed Central

    Krieger, Nancy; Chen, Jarvis T.; Coull, Brent A.; Beckfield, Jason; Kiang, Mathew V.; Waterman, Pamela D.

    2016-01-01

    Background Scant research has analyzed the health impact of abolition of Jim Crow (ie, legal racial discrimination overturned by the US 1964 Civil Rights Act). Methods We used hierarchical age–period–cohort models to analyze US national black and white premature mortality rates (death before 65 years of age) in 1960–2009. Results Within a context of declining US black and white premature mortality rates and a persistent 2-fold excess black risk of premature mortality in both the Jim Crow and non-Jim Crow states, analyses including random period, cohort, state, and county effects and fixed county income effects found that, within the black population, the largest Jim Crow-by-period interaction occurred in 1960–1964 (mortality rate ratio [MRR] = 1.15 [95% confidence interval = 1.09–1.22), yielding the largest overall period-specific Jim Crow effect MRR of 1.27, with no such interactions subsequently observed. Furthermore, the most elevated Jim Crow-by-cohort effects occurred for birth cohorts from 1901 through 1945 (MRR range = 1.05–1.11), translating to the largest overall cohort-specific Jim Crow effect MRRs for the 1921–1945 birth cohorts (MRR ~ 1.2), with no such interactions subsequently observed. No such interactions between Jim Crow and either period or cohort occurred among the white population. Conclusion Together, the study results offer compelling evidence of the enduring impact of both Jim Crow and its abolition on premature mortality among the US black population, although insufficient to eliminate the persistent 2-fold black excess risk evident in both the Jim Crow and non-Jim Crow states from 1960 to 2009. PMID:24825344

  10. High seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii and Neospora caninum in the Common raven (Corvus corax) in the Northeast of Spain

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    In recent years, multiple cases of aggressive behaviour of Common ravens (Corvus corax) have been reported by farmers in Catalonia (NE Spain), including attacking of newborn animals and consumption of dead foetuses. In the present study, seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii and Neospora caninum was d...

  11. Do New Caledonian crows solve physical problems through causal reasoning?

    PubMed Central

    Taylor, A.H.; Hunt, G.R.; Medina, F.S.; Gray, R.D.

    2008-01-01

    The extent to which animals other than humans can reason about physical problems is contentious. The benchmark test for this ability has been the trap-tube task. We presented New Caledonian crows with a series of two-trap versions of this problem. Three out of six crows solved the initial trap-tube. These crows continued to avoid the trap when the arbitrary features that had previously been associated with successful performances were removed. However, they did not avoid the trap when a hole and a functional trap were in the tube. In contrast to a recent primate study, the three crows then solved a causally equivalent but visually distinct problem—the trap-table task. The performance of the three crows across the four transfers made explanations based on chance, associative learning, visual and tactile generalization, and previous dispositions unlikely. Our findings suggest that New Caledonian crows can solve complex physical problems by reasoning both causally and analogically about causal relations. Causal and analogical reasoning may form the basis of the New Caledonian crow's exceptional tool skills. PMID:18796393

  12. Tight-binding calculation of radiation loss in photonic crystal CROW.

    PubMed

    Ma, Jing; Martínez, Luis Javier; Fan, Shanhui; Povinelli, Michelle L

    2013-01-28

    The tight binding approximation (TBA) is used to relate the intrinsic, radiation loss of a coupled resonator optical waveguide (CROW) to that of a single constituent resonator within a light cone picture. We verify the validity of the TBA via direct, full-field simulation of CROWs based on the L2 photonic crystal cavity. The TBA predicts that the quality factor of the CROW increases with that of the isolated cavity. Moreover, our results provide a method to design CROWs with low intrinsic loss across the entire waveguide band.

  13. Reavistamientos de Corvus corax en las tierras altas de Nicaragua

    Treesearch

    Francisco J. Muñoz; Wayne J. Arendt; Marvin A. Tórrez; Liliana Chavarría; Arlen Pinell.

    2009-01-01

    The common raven (Corvus corax) is one of the most widespread naturally occurring birds in the world. Thus, from a conservation and management perspective, it is of minimum concern. Yet, in Nicaragua, observations of this species are few and not well documented. After a lapse of almost 40 years since the last written report, we describe recent sightings from the...

  14. Short-term observational spatial memory in Jackdaws (Corvus monedula) and Ravens (Corvus corax).

    PubMed

    Scheid, Christelle; Bugnyar, Thomas

    2008-10-01

    Observational spatial memory (OSM) refers to the ability of remembering food caches made by other individuals, enabling observers to find and pilfer the others' caches. Within birds, OSM has only been demonstrated in corvids, with more social species such as Mexican jays (Aphelocoma ultramarine) showing a higher accuracy of finding conspecific' caches than less social species such as Clark's nutcrackers (Nucifraga columbiana). However, socially dynamic corvids such as ravens (Corvus corax) are capable of sophisticated pilfering manoeuvres based on OSM. We here compared the performance of ravens and jackdaws (Corvus monedula) in a short-term OSM task. In contrast to ravens, jackdaws are socially cohesive but hardly cache and compete over food caches. Birds had to recover food pieces after watching a human experimenter hiding them in 2, 4 or 6 out of 10 possible locations. Results showed that for tests with two, four and six caches, ravens performed more accurately than expected by chance whereas jackdaws did not. Moreover, ravens made fewer re-visits to already inspected cache sites than jackdaws. These findings suggest that the development of observational spatial memory skills is linked with the species' reliance on food caches rather than with a social life style per se.

  15. Comparative analysis of Campylobacter isolates from wild birds and chickens using MALDI-TOF MS, biochemical testing, and DNA sequencing.

    PubMed

    Lawton, Samantha J; Weis, Allison M; Byrne, Barbara A; Fritz, Heather; Taff, Conor C; Townsend, Andrea K; Weimer, Bart C; Mete, Aslı; Wheeler, Sarah; Boyce, Walter M

    2018-05-01

    Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) was compared to conventional biochemical testing methods and nucleic acid analyses (16S rDNA sequencing, hippurate hydrolysis gene testing, whole genome sequencing [WGS]) for species identification of Campylobacter isolates obtained from chickens ( Gallus gallus domesticus, n = 8), American crows ( Corvus brachyrhynchos, n = 17), a mallard duck ( Anas platyrhynchos, n = 1), and a western scrub-jay ( Aphelocoma californica, n = 1). The test results for all 27 isolates were in 100% agreement between MALDI-TOF MS, the combined results of 16S rDNA sequencing, and the hippurate hydrolysis gene PCR ( p = 0.0027, kappa = 1). Likewise, the identifications derived from WGS from a subset of 14 isolates were in 100% agreement with the MALDI-TOF MS identification. In contrast, biochemical testing misclassified 5 isolates of C. jejuni as C. coli, and 16S rDNA sequencing alone was not able to differentiate between C. coli and C. jejuni for 11 sequences ( p = 0.1573, kappa = 0.0857) when compared to MALDI-TOF MS and WGS. No agreement was observed between MALDI-TOF MS dendrograms and the phylogenetic relationships revealed by rDNA sequencing or WGS. Our results confirm that MALDI-TOF MS is a fast and reliable method for identifying Campylobacter isolates to the species level from wild birds and chickens, but not for elucidating phylogenetic relationships among Campylobacter isolates.

  16. The evolutionary origin of long-crowing chicken: its evolutionary relationship with fighting cocks disclosed by the mtDNA sequence analysis.

    PubMed

    Komiyama, Tomoyoshi; Ikeo, Kazuho; Gojobori, Takashi

    2004-05-26

    Chickens with exceptionally long crow are often favored all over the world, and connoisseur breeders have bred certain types of chicken exclusively for this trait. In Japan, three chicken varieties have been specifically bred to develop an exceptionally long crow of over 15 s. Although these three long-crowing chickens, Naganakidori, are honored as heritage varieties of Japan, the domestication process and genealogical origin of long-crowing chickens remain unclear. The purpose of this study is to clarify these issues using nucleotide sequences of the mitochondrial DNA D-loop region. Blood samples from a total of nine long-crowing chickens and 74 chickens from 11 Japanese native varieties were collected. DNA sequence data of two Junglefowl species were also collected from the International DNA database (DDBJ /EMBL/GenBank) for use as the outgroup. A phylogenetic tree was then constructed revealing that all three Naganakidori varieties were monophyletic and originated from a fighting cock, a Shamo, for cockfighting. These results suggest that these three long-crowing chickens share a common origin in spite of their conspicuously different characters, and that human cultures favoring long-crowing chickens might have been preceded by a tradition of cockfighting. Moreover, these long-crowing varieties first separated from the fighting cocks of Okinawa, which is geographically closer to Southern China and Indochina than Mainland Japan (Honshu/Kyushu). This implies that Japanese long-crowing chickens were first brought to Mainland Japan as fighting cocks from the surrounding regions of Southern China or Indochina and through Okinawa.

  17. Medaling in Education: Elder of the Year Teaches TCU Students to Walk on Both Sides

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Brien, Luella

    2010-01-01

    The heart of Little Big Horn College (LBHC) is wrapped in the passion of Joseph Medicine Crow. Medicine Crow, 96, a nationally renowned tribal elder and historian, has been influencing education on the Crow Reservation in Montana for decades. As one of the founding members of the Crow Education Commission, he helped start LBHC in 1980. Medicine…

  18. The dosimetric effects of tissue heterogeneities in intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) of the head and neck

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Al-Hallaq, H. A.; Reft, C. S.; Roeske, J. C.

    2006-03-01

    The dosimetric effects of bone and air heterogeneities in head and neck IMRT treatments were quantified. An anthropomorphic RANDO phantom was CT-scanned with 16 thermoluminescent dosimeter (TLD) chips placed in and around the target volume. A standard IMRT plan generated with CORVUS was used to irradiate the phantom five times. On average, measured dose was 5.1% higher than calculated dose. Measurements were higher by 7.1% near the heterogeneities and by 2.6% in tissue. The dose difference between measurement and calculation was outside the 95% measurement confidence interval for six TLDs. Using CORVUS' heterogeneity correction algorithm, the average difference between measured and calculated doses decreased by 1.8% near the heterogeneities and by 0.7% in tissue. Furthermore, dose differences lying outside the 95% confidence interval were eliminated for five of the six TLDs. TLD doses recalculated by Pinnacle3's convolution/superposition algorithm were consistently higher than CORVUS doses, a trend that matched our measured results. These results indicate that the dosimetric effects of air cavities are larger than those of bone heterogeneities, thereby leading to a higher delivered dose compared to CORVUS calculations. More sophisticated algorithms such as convolution/superposition or Monte Carlo should be used for accurate tailoring of IMRT dose in head and neck tumours.

  19. NPDES Permit for Crow Municipal Rural & Industrial Pilot Water Treatment Plant in Montana

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    Under NPDES permit MT-0031827, the Crow Indian Tribe is authorized to discharge from the Crow Municipal Rural & Industrial (MR&I) Pilot Water Treatment Plant in Bighorn County, Montana to the Bighorn River.

  20. Coupled resonator optical waveguides based on silicon-on-insulator photonic wires

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Xia, Fengnian; Sekaric, Lidija; O'Boyle, Martin; Vlasov, Yurii

    2006-07-01

    Coupled resonator optical waveguides (CROWs) comprised of up to 16 racetrack resonators based on silicon-on-insulator (SOI) photonic wires were fabricated and characterized. The optical properties of the CROWs were simulated using measured single resonator parameters based on a matrix approach. The group delay property of CROWs was also analyzed. The SOI based CROWs consisting of multiple resonators have extremely small footprints and can find applications in optical filtering, dispersion compensation, and optical buffering. Moreover, such CROW structure is a promising candidate for exploration of low light level nonlinear optics due to its resonant nature and compact mode size (˜0.1μm2) in photonic wire.

  1. Theory of coupled resonator optical waveguides exhibiting high-order exceptional points of degeneracy

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nada, Mohamed Y.; Othman, Mohamed A. K.; Capolino, Filippo

    2017-11-01

    We present an approach and a theoretical framework for generating high-order exceptional points of degeneracy (EPDs) in photonic structures based on periodic coupled resonator optical waveguides (CROWs). Such EPDs involve the coalescence of Floquet-Bloch eigenwaves in CROWs, without the presence of gain and loss, which contrasts with the parity-time symmetry required to develop exceptional points based on gain and loss balance. The EPDs arise here by introducing symmetry breaking in a conventional chain of coupled resonators through periodic coupling to an adjacent uniform optical waveguide, which leads to unique modal characteristics that cannot be realized in conventional CROWs. Such remarkable characteristics include high quality factors (Q factors) and strong field enhancement, even without any mirrors at the two ends of a cavity. We show for the first time the capability of CROWs to exhibit EPDs of various orders, including the degenerate band edge (DBE) and the stationary inflection point. The proposed CROW of finite length shows an enhanced quality factor when operating near the DBE, and the Q factor exhibits an unconventional scaling with the CROW's length. We develop the theory of EPDs in such unconventional CROW using coupled-wave equations, and we derive an analytical expression for the dispersion relation. The proposed unconventional CROW concepts have various potential applications including Q switching, nonlinear devices, lasers, and extremely sensitive sensors.

  2. James F. Crow and the art of teaching and mentoring.

    PubMed

    Hartl, Daniel L

    2011-12-01

    To honor James F. Crow on the occasion of his 95th birthday, GENETICS has commissioned a series of Perspectives and Reviews. For GENETICS to publish the honorifics is fitting, as from their birth Crow and GENETICS have been paired. Crow was scheduled to be born in January 1916, the same month that the first issue of GENETICS was scheduled to appear, and in the many years that Crow has made major contributions to the conceptual foundations of modern genetics, GENETICS has chronicled his and other major advances in the field. The commissioned Perspectives and Reviews summarize and celebrate Professor Crow's contributions as a research scientist, administrator, colleague, community supporter, international leader, teacher, and mentor. In science, Professor Crow was the international leader of his generation in the application of genetics to populations of organisms and in uncovering the role of genetics in health and disease. In education, he was a superb undergraduate teacher whose inspiration changed the career paths of many students. His teaching skills are legendary, his lectures urbane and witty, rigorous and clear. He was also an extraordinary mentor to numerous graduate students and postdoctoral fellows, many of whom went on to establish successful careers of their own. In public service, Professor Crow served in key administrative positions at the University of Wisconsin, participated as a member of numerous national and international committees, and served as president of both the Genetics Society of America and the American Society for Human Genetics. This Perspective examines Professor Crow as teacher and mentor through the eyes and experiences of one student who was enrolled in his genetics course as an undergraduate and who later studied with him as a graduate student.

  3. Pathogenicity of West Nile virus and response to vaccination in sandhill cranes (Grus canadensis) using a killed vaccine.

    PubMed

    Olsen, Glenn H; Miller, Kimberli J; Docherty, Douglas E; Bochsler, Valerie S; Sileo, Louis

    2009-06-01

    West Nile virus was introduced into the United States in the vicinity of New York, New York, USA in 1999. The virus has since killed large numbers of birds nationwide, especially, but not limited to, crows (Corvus brachyrhinchos). One sandhill crane (Grus canadensis) at the Bridgeport Zoo (Bridgeport, Connecticut, USA) reportedly died from West Nile virus, so sandhill cranes and endangered whooping cranes (Grus americana), both in the wild and in captive breeding colonies at United States Geological Service (USGS) Patuxent Wildlife Research Center (Laurel, Maryland, USA) were considered at risk. A killed vaccine in sandhill cranes was evaluated by vaccinating and then challenging these cranes with live West Nile virus. No sandhill cranes inoculated with the killed vaccine developed significant titers when compared with unvaccinated controls. No sandhill cranes inoculated with the vaccine and challenged with the virus died from West Nile virus infection. In addition, no unvaccinated challenged sandhill cranes died. However, 2 days postchallenge, vaccinated cranes had significantly less viremia (P < 0.05) than unvaccinated cranes. Seven days postchallenge vaccinated cranes had significantly less cloacal shedding of the virus (P < 0.05) than unvaccinated cranes and significantly less weight loss (P < 0.05) as compared with unvaccinated cranes. Vaccinated sandhill cranes developed significantly higher titers 14 days postchallenge and were viremic for shorter periods of time after challenge than unvaccinated individuals. Unvaccinated challenged cranes had glial cell aggregates in both the brain and brain stem areas, and this was not observed in vaccinated challenged cranes or in vaccinated unchallenged cranes.

  4. West Nile and St. Louis encephalitis viral genetic determinants of avian host competence

    PubMed Central

    Maharaj, Payal D.; Bosco-Lauth, Angela M.; Langevin, Stanley A.; Anishchenko, Michael; Bowen, Richard A.; Reisen, William K.

    2018-01-01

    West Nile virus (WNV) and St. Louis encephalitis (SLEV) virus are enzootically maintained in North America in cycles involving the same mosquito vectors and similar avian hosts. However, these viruses exhibit dissimilar viremia and virulence phenotypes in birds: WNV is associated with high magnitude viremias that can result in mortality in certain species such as American crows (AMCRs, Corvus brachyrhynchos) whereas SLEV infection yields lower viremias that have not been associated with avian mortality. Cross-neutralization of these viruses in avian sera has been proposed to explain the reduced circulation of SLEV since the introduction of WNV in North America; however, in 2015, both viruses were the etiologic agents of concurrent human encephalitis outbreaks in Arizona, indicating the need to re-evaluate host factors and cross-neutralization responses as factors potentially affecting viral co-circulation. Reciprocal chimeric WNV and SLEV viruses were constructed by interchanging the pre-membrane (prM)-envelope (E) genes, and viruses subsequently generated were utilized herein for the inoculation of three different avian species: house sparrows (HOSPs; Passer domesticus), house finches (Haemorhous mexicanus) and AMCRs. Cross-protective immunity between parental and chimeric viruses were also assessed in HOSPs. Results indicated that the prM-E genes did not modulate avian replication or virulence differences between WNV and SLEV in any of the three avian species. However, WNV-prME proteins did dictate cross-protective immunity between these antigenically heterologous viruses. Our data provides further evidence of the important role that the WNV / SLEV viral non-structural genetic elements play in viral replication, avian host competence and virulence. PMID:29447156

  5. Experimental susceptibility of wood ducks (Aix sponsa) for West Nile virus.

    PubMed

    Hofmeister, Erik; Porter, Robert E; Franson, J Christian

    2015-04-01

    Detection of West Nile virus (WNV) has been reported in a variety of wild ducks in the US, but little is known about the pathogenesis and outcome of exposure of the disease in these species. Previous experimental studies of WNV in ducks either have challenged a small number of ducks with WNV or have tested domesticated ducks. To determine susceptibility and immune response, we challenged 7-wk-old Wood Ducks (Aix sponsa) with a 1999 American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) isolate of WNV. Wood Ducks were susceptible to infection with the virus, and, although clinical signs or mortality were not observed, microscopic lesions were noted, particularly in the heart and brain. West Nile virus viremia peaked on day 2 postinfection (pi) at 10(4.54) plaque-forming units (PFU) of virus/mL serum and WNV was shed orally (between 10(2) and 10(2.9) PFU per swab) and cloacally. Specific anti-WNV antibody response was rapid, with anti-WNV IgM detected on day 3 pi followed on day 5 pi by anti-WNV IgG. Neutralizing antibodies were detected by plaque-reduction neutralization assay in one duck on day 4 pi, and in all sampled ducks on day 5. These results indicate that Wood Ducks are susceptible to WNV, but it is unlikely that significant WNV mortality events occur in Wood Ducks or that they play a significant role in transmission. However, WNV viremia was sufficient, in theory, to infect mosquitoes, and oral and cloacal shedding of the virus may increase the risk of infection to other waterbirds.

  6. Experimental susceptibility of Wood Ducks (Aix sponsa) for West Nile virus

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Hofmeister, Erik K.; Porter, Robert E.; Franson, J. Christian

    2015-01-01

    Detection of West Nile virus (WNV) has been reported in a variety of wild ducks in the US, but little is known about the pathogenesis and outcome of exposure of the disease in these species. Previous experimental studies of WNV in ducks either have challenged a small number of ducks with WNV or have tested domesticated ducks. To determine susceptibility and immune response, we challenged 7-wk-old Wood Ducks (Aix sponsa) with a 1999 American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) isolate of WNV. Wood Ducks were susceptible to infection with the virus, and, although clinical signs or mortality were not observed, microscopic lesions were noted, particularly in the heart and brain. West Nile virus viremia peaked on day 2 postinfection (pi) at 104.54 plaque-forming units (PFU) of virus/mL serum and WNV was shed orally (between 102and 102.9 PFU per swab) and cloacally. Specific anti-WNV antibody response was rapid, with anti-WNV IgM detected on day 3 pi followed on day 5 pi by anti-WNV IgG. Neutralizing antibodies were detected by plaque-reduction neutralization assay in one duck on day 4 pi, and in all sampled ducks on day 5. These results indicate that Wood Ducks are susceptible to WNV, but it is unlikely that significant WNV mortality events occur in Wood Ducks or that ducks play a significant role in transmission. However, WNV viremia was sufficient, in theory, to infect mosquitoes, and oral and cloacal shedding of the virus may increase the risk of infection to other waterbirds.

  7. Pathogenicity of West Nile virus and response to vaccination in sandhill cranes (Grus canadensis) using a killed vaccine

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Olsen, Glenn H.; Miller, Kimberli J.; Docherty, Douglas E.; Shearn-Bochsler, Valerie I.; Sileo, Louis

    2009-01-01

    West Nile virus was introduced into the United States in the vicinity of New York, New York, USA in 1999. The virus has since killed large numbers of birds nationwide, especially, but not limited to, crows (Corvus brachyrhinchos). One sandhill crane (Grus canadensis) at the Bridgeport Zoo (Bridgeport, Connecticut, USA) reportedly died from West Nile virus, so sandhill cranes and endangered whooping cranes (Grus americana), both in the wild and in captive breeding colonies at United States Geological Service (USGS) Patuxent Wildlife Research Center (Laurel, Maryland, USA) were considered at risk. A killed vaccine in sandhill cranes was evaluated by vaccinating and then challenging these cranes with live West Nile virus. No sandhill cranes inoculated with the killed vaccine developed significant titers when compared with unvaccinated controls. No sandhill cranes inoculated with the vaccine and challenged with the virus died from West Nile virus infection. In addition, no unvaccinated challenged sandhill cranes died. However, 2 days postchallenge, vaccinated cranes had significantly less viremia (P < 0.05) than unvaccinated cranes. Seven days postchallenge vaccinated cranes had significantly less cloacal shedding of the virus (P < 0.05) than unvaccinated cranes and significantly less weight loss (P < 0.05) as compared with unvaccinated cranes. Vaccinated sandhill cranes developed significantly higher titers 14 days postchallenge and were viremic for shorter periods of time after challenge than unvaccinated individuals. Unvaccinated challenged cranes had glial cell aggregates in both the brain and brain stem areas, and this was not observed in vaccinated challenged cranes or in vaccinated unchallenged cranes.

  8. Of Horses and Men: Superintendent Asbury's Deadly Assault on the Crow.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    McCleary, Carrie Moran

    2003-01-01

    Discusses Superintendent Calvin Asbury's campaign to convert members of the Crow Tribe to Christianity. Presents Joe Medicine Crow, who was a child during the campaign that began in 1919, as he describes the historical and continuing effects on the Tribe. Explains that federal policy included selling tribal lands to non-Indians, prohibiting…

  9. Performance in Object-Choice Aesop's Fable Tasks Are Influenced by Object Biases in New Caledonian Crows but not in Human Children.

    PubMed

    Miller, Rachael; Jelbert, Sarah A; Taylor, Alex H; Cheke, Lucy G; Gray, Russell D; Loissel, Elsa; Clayton, Nicola S

    2016-01-01

    The ability to reason about causality underlies key aspects of human cognition, but the extent to which non-humans understand causality is still largely unknown. The Aesop's Fable paradigm, where objects are inserted into water-filled tubes to obtain out-of-reach rewards, has been used to test casual reasoning in birds and children. However, success on these tasks may be influenced by other factors, specifically, object preferences present prior to testing or arising during pre-test stone-dropping training. Here, we assessed this 'object-bias' hypothesis by giving New Caledonian crows and 5-10 year old children two object-choice Aesop's Fable experiments: sinking vs. floating objects, and solid vs. hollow objects. Before each test, we assessed subjects' object preferences and/or trained them to prefer the alternative object. Both crows and children showed pre-test object preferences, suggesting that birds in previous Aesop's Fable studies may also have had initial preferences for objects that proved to be functional on test. After training to prefer the non-functional object, crows, but not children, performed more poorly on these two object-choice Aesop's Fable tasks than subjects in previous studies. Crows dropped the non-functional objects into the tube on their first trials, indicating that, unlike many children, they do not appear to have an a priori understanding of water displacement. Alternatively, issues with inhibition could explain their performance. The crows did, however, learn to solve the tasks over time. We tested crows further to determine whether their eventual success was based on learning about the functional properties of the objects, or associating dropping the functional object with reward. Crows inserted significantly more rewarded, non-functional objects than non-rewarded, functional objects. These findings suggest that the ability of New Caledonian crows to produce performances rivaling those of young children on object-choice Aesop's Fable tasks is partly due to pre-existing object preferences.

  10. Population Genetic Structure and Colonisation History of the Tool-Using New Caledonian Crow

    PubMed Central

    Abdelkrim, Jawad; Hunt, Gavin R.; Gray, Russell D.; Gemmell, Neil J.

    2012-01-01

    New Caledonian crows exhibit considerable variation in tool making between populations. Here, we present the first study of the species’ genetic structure over its geographical distribution. We collected feathers from crows on mainland Grande Terre, the inshore island of Toupéti, and the nearby island of Maré where it is believed birds were introduced after European colonisation. We used nine microsatellite markers to establish the genotypes of 136 crows from these islands and classical population genetic tools as well as Approximate Bayesian Computations to explore the distribution of genetic diversity. We found that New Caledonian crows most likely separate into three main distinct clusters: Grande Terre, Toupéti and Maré. Furthermore, Toupéti and Maré crows represent a subset of the genetic diversity observed on Grande Terre, confirming their mainland origin. The genetic data are compatible with a colonisation of Maré taking place after European colonisation around 1900. Importantly, we observed (1) moderate, but significant, genetic differentiation across Grande Terre, and (2) that the degree of differentiation between populations on the mainland increases with geographic distance. These data indicate that despite individual crows’ potential ability to disperse over large distances, most gene flow occurs over short distances. The temporal and spatial patterns described provide a basis for further hypothesis testing and investigation of the geographical variation observed in the tool skills of these crows. PMID:22590576

  11. PSE-3D Instability Analysis and Application to Flow Over an Elliptic Cone

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2015-04-01

    Since the seminal experiments conducted by Crow and Champagne [1971], it is generally accepted that turbulent flows are organized by orderly quasi...2007. C. Crow and F.H. Champagne . Orderly structure in jet turbulence. J. Fluid Mech., 48:547–591, 1971. S.C. Crow. Stability theory for a pair of

  12. James F. Crow and the Art of Teaching and Mentoring

    PubMed Central

    Hartl, Daniel L.

    2011-01-01

    To honor James F. Crow on the occasion of his 95th birthday, GENETICS has commissioned a series of Perspectives and Reviews. For GENETICS to publish the honorifics is fitting, as from their birth Crow and GENETICS have been paired. Crow was scheduled to be born in January 1916, the same month that the first issue of GENETICS was scheduled to appear, and in the many years that Crow has made major contributions to the conceptual foundations of modern genetics, GENETICS has chronicled his and other major advances in the field. The commissioned Perspectives and Reviews summarize and celebrate Professor Crow’s contributions as a research scientist, administrator, colleague, community supporter, international leader, teacher, and mentor. In science, Professor Crow was the international leader of his generation in the application of genetics to populations of organisms and in uncovering the role of genetics in health and disease. In education, he was a superb undergraduate teacher whose inspiration changed the career paths of many students. His teaching skills are legendary, his lectures urbane and witty, rigorous and clear. He was also an extraordinary mentor to numerous graduate students and postdoctoral fellows, many of whom went on to establish successful careers of their own. In public service, Professor Crow served in key administrative positions at the University of Wisconsin, participated as a member of numerous national and international committees, and served as president of both the Genetics Society of America and the American Society for Human Genetics. This Perspective examines Professor Crow as teacher and mentor through the eyes and experiences of one student who was enrolled in his genetics course as an undergraduate and who later studied with him as a graduate student. PMID:22174181

  13. They Call Me Agnes: A Crow Narrative Based on the Life of Agnes Yellowtail Deernose.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Voget, Fred W.; Mee, Mary K.

    This book is about life on the Crow Indian Reservation from around 1910 to the present and is based on the personal experiences of Donnie and Agnes Deernose. Following Donnie's death, Agnes became the principal narrator of the book. The Crow Indian Reservation is situated between Billings, Montana, and Sheridan, Wyoming. More so than any other…

  14. Cognitive Ability and Continuous Measures of Relative Hand Skill: A Note

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Denny, Kevin

    2008-01-01

    This note re-examines a finding by Crow et al. [Crow, T. J., Crow, L. R., Done, D. J., & Leask, S. (1998). Relative hand skill predicts academic ability: Global deficits at the point of hemispheric indecision. "Neuropsychologia", 36(12), 1275-1281] that equal skill of right and left hands is associated with deficits in cognitive ability. This is…

  15. 34. THE CROW'S NEST. IN THE EARLY YEARS OF THE ...

    Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

    34. THE CROW'S NEST. IN THE EARLY YEARS OF THE INN MUSICIANS SAT AND PLAYED FOR THE GUESTS IN THE LOBBY BELOW. THE EARTHQUAKE IN 1959 CAUSED SOME STRUCTURAL DAMAGE AND NOW THE CROW'S NEST IS NOT ACCESSIBLE TO THE PUBLIC. - Old Faithful Inn, 900' northeast of Snowlodge & 1050' west of Old Faithful Lodge, Lake, Teton County, WY

  16. James F. Crow: his life in public service.

    PubMed

    Abrahamson, Seymour

    2012-01-01

    The readers of this journal may well be aware of Professor Crow's scientific achievements and his role as the editor of Perspectives. In addition, for many thousands of students at the University of Wisconsin over many generations, James F. Crow was one of the most memorable teachers at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. What is less known is his major role in public service where he served as chair of many important committees for the National Academy of Sciences, the National Institutes of Health, the National Institutes of Justice as well as various international programs. In all of these efforts, Professor Crow has left a lasting impact.

  17. Multiple maternal origins of Indonesian crowing chickens revealed by mitochondrial DNA analysis.

    PubMed

    Ulfah, Maria; Perwitasari, Dyah; Jakaria, Jakaria; Muladno, Muhammad; Farajallah, Achmad

    2017-03-01

    The utilization of Indonesian crowing chickens is increasing; as such, assessing their genetic structures is important to support the conservation of their genetic resources. This study analyzes the matrilineal evolution of Indonesian crowing chickens based on the mtDNA displacement loop D-loop region to clarify their phylogenetic relationships, possible maternal origin, and possible routes of chicken dispersal. The neighbor-joining tree reveals that the majority of Indonesian crowing chickens belong to haplogroups B, D, and E, but haplogroup D harbored most of them. The Bayesian analysis also reveals that Indonesian crowing chickens derive from Bekisar chicken, a hybrid of the green junglefowl, suggesting the possible contribution of green junglefowl to chicken domestication. There appear at least three maternal lineages of Indonesian chicken origins indicated by the median network profile of mtDNA D-loop haplotypes, namely (1) Chinese; (2) Chinese, Indian, and other Southeast Asian chickens; and (3) Indian, Chinese, Southeast Asian, Japanese, and European chickens. Chicken domestication might be centered in China, India, Indonesia, and other Southeast Asian countries, supporting multiple maternal origins of Indonesian crowing chickens. A systematic breeding program of indigenous chickens will be very important to retain the genetic diversity for future use and conservation.

  18. Hook tool manufacture in New Caledonian crows: behavioural variation and the influence of raw materials.

    PubMed

    Klump, Barbara C; Sugasawa, Shoko; St Clair, James J H; Rutz, Christian

    2015-11-18

    New Caledonian crows use a range of foraging tools, and are the only non-human species known to craft hooks. Based on a small number of observations, their manufacture of hooked stick tools has previously been described as a complex, multi-stage process. Tool behaviour is shaped by genetic predispositions, individual and social learning, and/or ecological influences, but disentangling the relative contributions of these factors remains a major research challenge. The properties of raw materials are an obvious, but largely overlooked, source of variation in tool-manufacture behaviour. We conducted experiments with wild-caught New Caledonian crows, to assess variation in their hooked stick tool making, and to investigate how raw-material properties affect the manufacture process. In Experiment 1, we showed that New Caledonian crows' manufacture of hooked stick tools can be much more variable than previously thought (85 tools by 18 subjects), and can involve two newly-discovered behaviours: 'pulling' for detaching stems and bending of the tool shaft. Crows' tool manufactures varied significantly: in the number of different action types employed; in the time spent processing the hook and bending the tool shaft; and in the structure of processing sequences. In Experiment 2, we examined the interaction of crows with raw materials of different properties, using a novel paradigm that enabled us to determine subjects' rank-ordered preferences (42 tools by 7 subjects). Plant properties influenced: the order in which crows selected stems; whether a hooked tool was manufactured; the time required to release a basic tool; and, possibly, the release technique, the number of behavioural actions, and aspects of processing behaviour. Results from Experiment 2 suggested that at least part of the natural behavioural variation observed in Experiment 1 is due to the effect of raw-material properties. Our discovery of novel manufacture behaviours indicates a plausible scenario for the evolutionary origins, and gradual refinement, of New Caledonian crows' hooked stick tool making. Furthermore, our experimental demonstration of a link between raw-material properties and aspects of tool manufacture provides an alternative hypothesis for explaining regional differences in tool behaviours observed in New Caledonian crows, and some primate species.

  19. Performance in Object-Choice Aesop’s Fable Tasks Are Influenced by Object Biases in New Caledonian Crows but not in Human Children

    PubMed Central

    Taylor, Alex H.; Cheke, Lucy G.; Gray, Russell D.; Loissel, Elsa; Clayton, Nicola S.

    2016-01-01

    The ability to reason about causality underlies key aspects of human cognition, but the extent to which non-humans understand causality is still largely unknown. The Aesop’s Fable paradigm, where objects are inserted into water-filled tubes to obtain out-of-reach rewards, has been used to test casual reasoning in birds and children. However, success on these tasks may be influenced by other factors, specifically, object preferences present prior to testing or arising during pre-test stone-dropping training. Here, we assessed this ‘object-bias’ hypothesis by giving New Caledonian crows and 5–10 year old children two object-choice Aesop’s Fable experiments: sinking vs. floating objects, and solid vs. hollow objects. Before each test, we assessed subjects’ object preferences and/or trained them to prefer the alternative object. Both crows and children showed pre-test object preferences, suggesting that birds in previous Aesop’s Fable studies may also have had initial preferences for objects that proved to be functional on test. After training to prefer the non-functional object, crows, but not children, performed more poorly on these two object-choice Aesop’s Fable tasks than subjects in previous studies. Crows dropped the non-functional objects into the tube on their first trials, indicating that, unlike many children, they do not appear to have an a priori understanding of water displacement. Alternatively, issues with inhibition could explain their performance. The crows did, however, learn to solve the tasks over time. We tested crows further to determine whether their eventual success was based on learning about the functional properties of the objects, or associating dropping the functional object with reward. Crows inserted significantly more rewarded, non-functional objects than non-rewarded, functional objects. These findings suggest that the ability of New Caledonian crows to produce performances rivaling those of young children on object-choice Aesop’s Fable tasks is partly due to pre-existing object preferences. PMID:27936242

  20. Reconciling traditional knowledge, food security, and climate change: experience from Old Crow, YT, Canada.

    PubMed

    Douglas, Vasiliki; Chan, Hing Man; Wesche, Sonia; Dickson, Cindy; Kassi, Norma; Netro, Lorraine; Williams, Megan

    2014-01-01

    Because of a lack of transportation infrastructure, Old Crow has the highest food costs and greatest reliance on traditional food species for sustenance of any community in Canada's Yukon Territory. Environmental, cultural, and economic change are driving increased perception of food insecurity in Old Crow. To address community concerns regarding food security and supply in Old Crow and develop adaptation strategies to ameliorate their impact on the community. A community adaptation workshop was held on October 13, 2009, in which representatives of different stakeholders in the community discussed a variety of food security issues facing Old Crow and how they could be dealt with. Workshop data were analyzed using keyword, subject, and narrative analysis techniques to determine community priorities in food security and adaptation. Community concern is high and favored adaptation options include agriculture, improved food storage, and conservation through increased traditional education. These results were presented to the community for review and revision, after which the Vuntut Gwitchin Government will integrate them into its ongoing adaptation planning measures.

  1. The Unique Impact of Abolition of Jim Crow Laws on Reducing Inequities in Infant Death Rates and Implications for Choice of Comparison Groups in Analyzing Societal Determinants of Health

    PubMed Central

    Chen, Jarvis T.; Coull, Brent; Waterman, Pamela D.; Beckfield, Jason

    2013-01-01

    Objectives. We explored associations between the abolition of Jim Crow laws (i.e., state laws legalizing racial discrimination overturned by the 1964 US Civil Rights Act) and birth cohort trends in infant death rates. Methods. We analyzed 1959 to 2006 US Black and White infant death rates within and across sets of states (polities) with and without Jim Crow laws. Results. Between 1965 and 1969, a unique convergence of Black infant death rates occurred across polities; in 1960 to 1964, the Black infant death rate was 1.19 times higher (95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.18, 1.20) in the Jim Crow polity than in the non–Jim Crow polity, whereas in 1970 to 1974 the rate ratio shrank to and remained at approximately 1 (with the 95% CI including 1) until 2000, when it rose to 1.10 (95% CI = 1.08, 1.12). No such convergence occurred for Black–White differences in infant death rates or for White infants. Conclusions. Our results suggest that abolition of Jim Crow laws affected US Black infant death rates and that valid analysis of societal determinants of health requires appropriate comparison groups. PMID:24134378

  2. An Investigation into the Cognition Behind Spontaneous String Pulling in New Caledonian Crows

    PubMed Central

    Taylor, Alex H.; Medina, Felipe S.; Holzhaider, Jennifer C.; Hearne, Lindsay J.; Hunt, Gavin R.; Gray, Russell D.

    2010-01-01

    The ability of some bird species to pull up meat hung on a string is a famous example of spontaneous animal problem solving. The “insight” hypothesis claims that this complex behaviour is based on cognitive abilities such as mental scenario building and imagination. An operant conditioning account, in contrast, would claim that this spontaneity is due to each action in string pulling being reinforced by the meat moving closer and remaining closer to the bird on the perch. We presented experienced and naïve New Caledonian crows with a novel, visually restricted string-pulling problem that reduced the quality of visual feedback during string pulling. Experienced crows solved this problem with reduced efficiency and increased errors compared to their performance in standard string pulling. Naïve crows either failed or solved the problem by trial and error learning. However, when visual feedback was available via a mirror mounted next to the apparatus, two naïve crows were able to perform at the same level as the experienced group. Our results raise the possibility that spontaneous string pulling in New Caledonian crows may not be based on insight but on operant conditioning mediated by a perceptual-motor feedback cycle. PMID:20179759

  3. A late-Middle Pleistocene (Marine Isotope Stage 6) vegetated surface buried by Old Crow tephra at the Palisades, interior Alaska

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Reyes, A.V.; Jensen, B.J.L.; Zazula, G.D.; Ager, T.A.; Kuzmina, S.; La, Farge C.; Froese, D.G.

    2010-01-01

    A 40??cm thick primary bed of Old Crow tephra (131??????11??ka), an important stratigraphic marker in eastern Beringia, directly overlies a vegetated surface at Palisades West, on the Yukon River in central Alaska. Analyses of insect, bryophyte, and vascular plant macrofossils from the buried surface and underlying organic-rich silt suggest the local presence of an aquatic environment and mesic shrub-tundra at the time of tephra deposition. Autochthonous plant and insect macrofossils from peat directly overlying Old Crow tephra suggest similar aquatic habitats and hydric to mesic tundra environments, though pollen counts indicate a substantial herbaceous component to the regional tundra vegetation. Trace amounts of arboreal pollen in sediments associated with the tephra probably reflect reworking from older deposits, rather than the local presence of trees. The revised glass fission-track age for Old Crow tephra places its deposition closer to the time of the last interglaciation than earlier age determinations, but stratigraphy and paleoecology of sites with Old Crow tephra indicate a late Marine Isotope Stage 6 age. Regional permafrost degradation and associated thaw slumping are responsible for the close stratigraphic and paleoecological relations between Old Crow tephra and last interglacial deposits at some sites in eastern Beringia. ?? 2009 Elsevier Ltd.

  4. The unique impact of abolition of Jim Crow laws on reducing inequities in infant death rates and implications for choice of comparison groups in analyzing societal determinants of health.

    PubMed

    Krieger, Nancy; Chen, Jarvis T; Coull, Brent; Waterman, Pamela D; Beckfield, Jason

    2013-12-01

    We explored associations between the abolition of Jim Crow laws (i.e., state laws legalizing racial discrimination overturned by the 1964 US Civil Rights Act) and birth cohort trends in infant death rates. We analyzed 1959 to 2006 US Black and White infant death rates within and across sets of states (polities) with and without Jim Crow laws. Between 1965 and 1969, a unique convergence of Black infant death rates occurred across polities; in 1960 to 1964, the Black infant death rate was 1.19 times higher (95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.18, 1.20) in the Jim Crow polity than in the non-Jim Crow polity, whereas in 1970 to 1974 the rate ratio shrank to and remained at approximately 1 (with the 95% CI including 1) until 2000, when it rose to 1.10 (95% CI = 1.08, 1.12). No such convergence occurred for Black-White differences in infant death rates or for White infants. Our results suggest that abolition of Jim Crow laws affected US Black infant death rates and that valid analysis of societal determinants of health requires appropriate comparison groups.

  5. Semantic web data warehousing for caGrid.

    PubMed

    McCusker, James P; Phillips, Joshua A; González Beltrán, Alejandra; Finkelstein, Anthony; Krauthammer, Michael

    2009-10-01

    The National Cancer Institute (NCI) is developing caGrid as a means for sharing cancer-related data and services. As more data sets become available on caGrid, we need effective ways of accessing and integrating this information. Although the data models exposed on caGrid are semantically well annotated, it is currently up to the caGrid client to infer relationships between the different models and their classes. In this paper, we present a Semantic Web-based data warehouse (Corvus) for creating relationships among caGrid models. This is accomplished through the transformation of semantically-annotated caBIG Unified Modeling Language (UML) information models into Web Ontology Language (OWL) ontologies that preserve those semantics. We demonstrate the validity of the approach by Semantic Extraction, Transformation and Loading (SETL) of data from two caGrid data sources, caTissue and caArray, as well as alignment and query of those sources in Corvus. We argue that semantic integration is necessary for integration of data from distributed web services and that Corvus is a useful way of accomplishing this. Our approach is generalizable and of broad utility to researchers facing similar integration challenges.

  6. Are Poultry or Wild Birds the Main Reservoirs for Avian Influenza in Bangladesh?

    PubMed

    Hassan, Mohammad Mahmudul; Hoque, Md Ahasanul; Debnath, Nitish Chandra; Yamage, Mat; Klaassen, Marcel

    2017-09-01

    Avian influenza viruses (AIV) are of great socioeconomic and health concern, notably in Southeast Asia where highly pathogenic strains, such as highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 and other H5 and H7 AIVs, continue to occur. Wild bird migrants are often implicated in the maintenance and spread of AIV. However, little systematic surveillance of wild birds has been conducted in Southeast Asia to evaluate whether the prevalence of AIV in wild birds is higher than in other parts of the world where HPAI outbreaks occur less frequently. Across Bangladesh, we randomly sampled a total of 3585 wild and domestic birds to assess the prevalence of AIV and antibodies against AIV and compared these with prevalence levels found in other endemic and non-endemic countries. Our study showed that both resident and migratory wild birds in Bangladesh do not have a particularly elevated AIV prevalence and AIV sero-prevalence compared to wild birds from regions in the world where H5N1 is not endemic and fewer AIV outbreaks in poultry occur. Like elsewhere, notably wild birds of the orders Anseriformes were identified as the main wild bird reservoir, although we found exceptionally high sero-prevalence in one representative of the order Passeriformes, the house crow (Corvus splendens), importantly living on offal from live bird markets. This finding, together with high sero- and viral prevalence levels of AIV in domestic birds, suggests that wild birds are not at the base of the perpetuation of AIV problems in the local poultry sector, but may easily become victim to AIV spill back from poultry into some species of wild birds, potentially assisting in further spread of the virus.

  7. Nest fate and productivity of American Oystercatchers, Cumberland Island National Seashore, Georgia

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Sabine, J.B.; Schweitzer, Sara H.; Meyers, J.M.

    2006-01-01

    The American Oystercatcher (Haematopus palliatus) is listed as a species of high priority by the U.S. Shorebird Conservation Plan and is state-listed as rare in Georgia; however, biologists have not focused on identifying the causes of egg and hatchling losses. In 2003 and 2004, continuous video monitoring was used to document reproductive success of American Oystercatchers and identify causes of nest failure at Cumberland Island National Seashore, Georgia. The modified Mayfield method and program CONTRAST were used to determine and compare survival of eggs and nestlings. Eleven pairs made 32 nest attempts during two seasons. Nine attempts were successful, fledging 15 chicks. Daily survival of clutches was 0.973 (95% CI = 0.960-0.987) for 2003, 0.985 (95% CI = 0.974-0.995) for 2004, and 0.979 (95% CI = 0.970-0.987) for combined years. Daily survival was greater on the North End, than on the South End of the island (X21 = 7.211, P = 0.007). Eighteen of 20 nest failures during the egg stage and one of eight chick losses were documented. Egg predators included raccoon (Procyon lotor, N = 9), bobcat (Lynx rufus, N = 3), and American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos, N = 1). A ghost crab (Ocypode quadata) preyed on one chick. Other causes of nest failure were tidal overwash (N = 1), horse trampling (N = 1), abandonment (N = 2), and human destruction (N = 1). The North End of the island has one of the highest reproductive rates reported along the Atlantic coast. Predator control may be an effective means of increasing reproductive success on the South End of the island.

  8. Field-based estimates of avian mortality from West Nile virus infection.

    PubMed

    Ward, Michael P; Beveroth, Tara A; Lampman, Richard; Raim, Arlo; Enstrom, David; Novak, Robert

    2010-11-01

    One of the unique characteristics of West Nile virus (WNV) in North America is the large number of bird species for which the virus can be fatal. WNV mortality has been documented through experimental infections of captive birds and necropsies of free-ranging birds. Investigations of WNV-related mortality in wild birds often focus on species with dramatic population declines (e.g., American Crow, Corvus brachyrhynchos); however, few studies have addressed WNV-related mortality in species not exhibiting marked population declines since the arrival of WNV. We conducted a mark-recapture study of 204 Northern Cardinals (Cardinalis cardinalis) in an area with endemic WNV activity to estimate WNV-related mortality. Previous research has shown that once a bird is infected and recovers from WNV it develops antibodies making it resistant to future infection. Assuming that mortality risks from non-WNV causes were the same for individuals with (had been exposed to WNV) and without antibodies (had not been exposed to WNV), we compared the survival rates of birds with and without WNV antibodies to estimate the impact of WNV on wild birds. An information theoretic approach was used, and the apparent survival was found to be 34.6% lower for individuals without antibodies during the period when WNV was most active (July-September). However, the apparent survival rate was 9.0% higher for individuals without antibodies over the rest of the year. These differences in apparent survival suggest that WNV increases mortality during the WNV season and that chronic effects of WNV infection may also be contributing to mortality. Although WNV appears to have increased mortality rates within the population, population trend data do not indicate declines, suggesting that some cardinal populations can compensate for WNV-related mortality.

  9. Deer carcass decomposition and potential scavenger exposure to chronic wasting disease

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Jennelle, C.S.; Samuel, M.D.; Nolden, C.A.; Berkley, E.A.

    2009-01-01

    Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy afflicting the Cervidae family in North America, causing neurodegeneration and ultimately death. Although there are no reports of natural cross-species transmission of CWD to noncervids, infected deer carcasses pose a potential risk of CWD exposure for other animals. We placed 40 disease-free white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) carcasses and 10 gut piles in the CWD-affected area of Wisconsin (USA) from September to April in 2003 through 2005. We used photos from remotely operated cameras to characterize scavenger visitation and relative activity. To evaluate factors driving the rate of carcass removal (decomposition), we used KaplanMeier survival analysis and a generalized linear mixed model. We recorded 14 species of scavenging mammals (6 visiting species) and 14 species of scavenging birds (8 visiting species). Prominent scavengers included American crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos), raccoons (Procyon lotor), and Virginia opossums (Didelphis virginiana). We found no evidence that deer consumed conspecific remains, although they visited gut piles more often than carcasses relative to temporal availability in the environment. Domestic dogs, cats, and cows either scavenged or visited carcass sites, which could lead to human exposure to CWD. Deer carcasses persisted for 18 days to 101 days depending on the season and year, whereas gut piles lasted for 3 days. Habitat did not influence carcass decomposition, but mammalian and avian scavenger activity and higher temperatures were positively associated with faster removal. Infected deer carcasses or gut piles can serve as potential sources of CWD prions to a variety of scavengers. In areas where surveillance for CWD exposure is practical, management agencies should consider strategies for testing primary scavengers of deer carcass material.

  10. Bioaccumulation of organochlorines in crows from an indian open waste dumping site: evidence for direct transfer of dioxin-like congeners from the contaminated soil.

    PubMed

    Watanabe, Michio X; Iwata, Hisato; Watanabe, Mafumi; Tanabe, Shinsuke; Subramanian, Annamalai; Yoneda, Kumiko; Hashimoto, Takuma

    2005-06-15

    To assess the significance of waste dumping sites as a source of chemical contamination to ecosystems, we analyzed the residue levels of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs), polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and other organochlorines in the breast muscle of crows from a dumping site in the south of Chennai city, South India. Crows from the dumping site contained significantly higher total TEQs (60 +/- 27 pg/g lipid wt) than those from the reference sites (26 +/- 18 pg/g lipid wt). Especially, certain dioxin-like coplanar PCB congeners (Co-PCBs), such as CB-77 and CB-105, whose source is commercial PCBs,were significantly higher in crows from the dumping site than those from the reference sites. Profiles of PCDDs/DFs and Co-PCBs in crows from the dumping site were similar to those of soil at the same site, which was confirmed by principal component analysis. Furthermore, significant positive correlations were obtained between the congener-specific bioconcentration factors (BCFs) of PCDDs/DFs estimated from concentrations in crows and soil from the dumping site and the theoretical BCFs calculated from water-particle and lipid-water partitioning coefficients. On the other hand, the estimated BCFs had significant negative correlations with the molecular weight of PCDDs/DFs, indicating that molecular size limits their bioaccumulation. These results suggest that dioxin-like congeners in the soil of the dumping site were transferred directly to the crows through the ingestion of on-site garbage contaminated with soil, rather than through trophic transfer in the ecosystem. The present study provides insight into the ecological impacts of dumping sites.

  11. High Temperature Supersonic Jet Noise - Fundamental Studies and Control using Advanced Actuation Methods

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2016-08-24

    the manifestations of the initial shear layer instabilities that originate at the nozzle exit. Crow and Champagne 1 and Moore 2 were among the first...structures ( or instability waves/wave packets) , first clearly observed by Crow and Champagne 1 and Moore 2 in axisymmetric jets, are generally...grant, is continuing under an NSF grant. Bibliography 1. Crow, S. and Champagne , F. H., “Orderly structure in jet turbulence,” Journal of Fluid

  12. Total hip arthroplasty for Crowe IV hip without subtrochanteric shortening osteotomy -a long term follow up study.

    PubMed

    Kawai, Toshiyuki; Tanaka, Chiaki; Kanoe, Hiroshi

    2014-03-10

    Several authors reported encouraging results of total hip arthroplasty (THA) for Crowe IV hips performed using shortening osteotomy. However, few papers have documanted the results of THA for Crowe IV hips without shortening osteotomy. The aim of the present study was to assess the long term-results of cemented THAs for Crowe group IV hips performed without subtrochanteric shortening osteotomy. We have assessed the long term results of 27 cemented total hip arthroplasty (THA) performed without subtrochanteric osteotomy for Crowe group IV hip. All THAs were performed via transtrochanteric approach. After a mean follow-up of 10.6 (6 to 17.9) years, 25 hips (92.6%) had survived without revision surgery and survivorship analysis gave a survival rate of 96.3% at 10 years with any revision surgery as the end point. Although mean limb lengthening was 3.2 (1.0 to 5.1) cm, no hips developed nerve palsy. Complications occurred in four hips, necessitating revision surgery in two. Among the four complications, three involved the greater trochanter, two of which occurred in cases where braided cables had been used to reattach the greater trochanter. Although we encountered four complications, including three trochanteric problems, our findings suggest that THA without subtrochanteric shortening osteotomy can provide satisfactory long-term results in patients with Crowe IV hip.

  13. Semantic web data warehousing for caGrid

    PubMed Central

    McCusker, James P; Phillips, Joshua A; Beltrán, Alejandra González; Finkelstein, Anthony; Krauthammer, Michael

    2009-01-01

    The National Cancer Institute (NCI) is developing caGrid as a means for sharing cancer-related data and services. As more data sets become available on caGrid, we need effective ways of accessing and integrating this information. Although the data models exposed on caGrid are semantically well annotated, it is currently up to the caGrid client to infer relationships between the different models and their classes. In this paper, we present a Semantic Web-based data warehouse (Corvus) for creating relationships among caGrid models. This is accomplished through the transformation of semantically-annotated caBIG® Unified Modeling Language (UML) information models into Web Ontology Language (OWL) ontologies that preserve those semantics. We demonstrate the validity of the approach by Semantic Extraction, Transformation and Loading (SETL) of data from two caGrid data sources, caTissue and caArray, as well as alignment and query of those sources in Corvus. We argue that semantic integration is necessary for integration of data from distributed web services and that Corvus is a useful way of accomplishing this. Our approach is generalizable and of broad utility to researchers facing similar integration challenges. PMID:19796399

  14. 50 CFR 20.133 - Hunting regulations for crows.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ..., the bag and possession limits, the dates and duration of the hunting season, and such other regulations as may be deemed appropriate, subject to the following limitations for each State: (1) Crows shall...

  15. ARC-1969-AC76-1400-15

    NASA Image and Video Library

    1976-09-21

    Crows Landing Naval Auxiliary Landing Field and flight research facility, Crows Landing, CA Note: Used in publication in Flight Research at Ames; 57 Years of Development and Validation of Aeronautical Technology NASA SP-1998-3300 fig. 109

  16. PubMed

    2009-03-10

    Warming up: recovery sister and Territorial Army (TA) nurse Zayne Crow is undertaking a 151-mile race this month across part of the Sahara Desert. Ms Crow, who works at the King Edward VII's Hospital, London, and is an emergency nurse at the TA's City of London Field Hospital, is competing in the formidable Marathon des Sables, in Morocco. This is described as the world's toughest foot race, in which competitors run the equivalent of five and a half marathons in six days while carrying all of their kit, in temperatures of up to 50°C. Ms Crow said: 'The extreme temperatures and the weight I will be carrying will make it an immense challenge but, in terms of physical and mental fitness, I am in peak condition.' Ms Crow is raising funds for the wounded service personnel charity, Help for Heroes. ►For more information, go to www.justgiving.com/zaynecrow.

  17. Coupled resonator optical waveguide sensors: sensitivity and the role of slow light

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Terrel, Matthew A.; Digonnet, Michel J. F.; Fan, Shanhui

    2009-05-01

    We compare the sensitivity of two configurations of coupled resonator optical waveguide (CROW) gyroscopes proposed by others to conventional optical gyroscopes. In both cases, we demonstrate that for equal device footprint and loss, neither of these CROW gyroscopes configurations is more sensitive than its conventional counterpart. In all cases, loss ultimately limits the maximum rotation sensitivity. The fact that light travels more slowly (i.e., with a greater group delay) in a CROW than in a fiber therefore has no effect on sensitivity. The only benefit slow light does have is that it reduces the device length requirement, or equivalently it increases the sensitivity per unit length. However, we show that this improvement is quantitatively the same as in an RFOG. These conclusions are not limited to these two CROW configurations or to rotation sensing, but applicable to any measurand that modifies the phase of the signal(s) traveling in the resonators.

  18. How New Caledonian crows solve novel foraging problems and what it means for cumulative culture.

    PubMed

    Logan, Corina J; Breen, Alexis J; Taylor, Alex H; Gray, Russell D; Hoppitt, William J E

    2016-03-01

    New Caledonian crows make and use tools, and tool types vary over geographic landscapes. Social learning may explain the variation in tool design, but it is unknown to what degree social learning accounts for the maintenance of these designs. Indeed, little is known about the mechanisms these crows use to obtain information from others, despite the question's importance in understanding whether tool behavior is transmitted via social, genetic, or environmental means. For social transmission to account for tool-type variation, copying must utilize a mechanism that is action specific (e.g., pushing left vs. right) as well as context specific (e.g., pushing a particular object vs. any object). To determine whether crows can copy a demonstrator's actions as well as the contexts in which they occur, we conducted a diffusion experiment using a novel foraging task. We used a nontool task to eliminate any confounds introduced by individual differences in their prior tool experience. Two groups had demonstrators (trained in isolation on different options of a four-option task, including a two-action option) and one group did not. We found that crows socially learn about context: After observers see a demonstrator interact with the task, they are more likely to interact with the same parts of the task. In contrast, observers did not copy the demonstrator's specific actions. Our results suggest it is unlikely that observing tool-making behavior transmits tool types. We suggest it is possible that tool types are transmitted when crows copy the physical form of the tools they encounter.

  19. 75 FR 13576 - Labor Surplus Area Classification Under Executive Orders 12073 and 10582

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-03-22

    .... Crawford County, MI Crawford County, MI. Delta County, MI Delta County, MI. Detroit city, MI Wayne County..., MN Chisago County, MN. Clearwater County, MN Clearwater County, MN. Crow Wing County, MN Crow Wing...

  20. Hanging out at the airport: Unusual upside-down perching behavior by Eurasian Jackdaws (Corvus monedula) in a human-dominated environment

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Katzner, Todd E.

    2016-01-01

    Animals occupying human-dominated environments show the capacity for behavioral flexibility. Corvids are among the most intelligent synanthropic bird species. During a layover at Schipol Airport in Amsterdam, Netherlands, I photographically documented Eurasian Jackdaws (Corvus monedula) perching upside down from a building cornice. In contrast to other reports of hanging birds, these jackdaws did not forage or play while upside down and appeared to use the perching spot to observe their surroundings. Although Corvids and Psittacines are known to hang upside down, especially in captive situations, such behaviors are rarely documented in the wild, and never before in association with human-built structures.

  1. NPDES Permit for Crow Nation Water Treatment Plants in Montana

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    Under NPDES permit MT-0030538, the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs is authorized to discharge from the Crow Agency water treatment plants via the wastewater treatment facility located in Bighorn County, Montana to the Little Bighorn River.

  2. Hydraulic modeling of stream channels and structures in Harbor and Crow Hollow Brooks, Meriden, Connecticut

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Weiss, Lawrence A.; Sears, Michael P.; Cervione, Michael A.

    1994-01-01

    Effects of urbanization have increased the frequency and size of floods along certain reaches of Harbor Brook and Crow Hollow Brook in Meriden, Conn. A floodprofile-modeling study was conducted to model the effects of selected channel and structural modifications on flood elevations and inundated areas. The study covered the reach of Harbor Brook downstream from Interstate 691 and the reach of Crow Hollow Brook downstream from Johnson Avenue. Proposed modifications, which include changes to bank heights, channel geometry, structural geometry, and streambed armoring on Harbor Brook and changes to bank heights on Crow Hollow Brook, significantly lower flood elevations. Results of the modeling indicate a significant reduction of flood elevations for the 10-year, 25-year, 35-year, 50-year, and 100-year flood frequencies using proposed modifications to (1 ) bank heights between Harbor Brook Towers and Interstate 691 on Harbor Brook, and between Centennial Avenue and Johnson Avenue on Crow Hollow Brook; (2) channel geometry between Coe Avenue and Interstate 69 1 on Harbor Brook; (3) bridge and culvert opening geometry between Harbor Brook Towers and Interstate 691 on Harbor Brook; and (4) channel streambed armoring between Harbor Brook Towers and Interstate 691 on Harbor Brook. The proposed modifications were developed without consideration of cost-benefit ratios.

  3. 18. CROWS NEST ATOP SUPERSTRUCTURE. Looking up from northeast corner ...

    Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

    18. CROWS NEST ATOP SUPERSTRUCTURE. Looking up from northeast corner of run line deck. - Edwards Air Force Base, Air Force Rocket Propulsion Laboratory, Test Stand 1-A, Test Area 1-120, north end of Jupiter Boulevard, Boron, Kern County, CA

  4. SU-E-T-608: Performance Comparison of Four Commercial Treatment Planning Systems Applied to Intensity-Modulated Radiotherapy

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Cao, Y; Li, R; Chi, Z

    Purpose: To compare the performances of four commercial treatment planning systems (TPS) used for the intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT). Methods: Ten patients of nasopharyngeal (4 cases), esophageal (3 cases) and cervical (3 cases) cancer were randomly selected from a 3-month IMRT plan pool at one radiotherapy center. For each patient, four IMRT plans were newly generated by using four commercial TPS (Corvus, Monaco, Pinnacle and Xio), and then verified with Matrixx (two-dimensional array/IBA Company) on Varian23EX accelerator. A pass rate (PR) calculated from the Gamma index by OminiPro IMRT 1.5 software was evaluated at four plan verification standards (1%/1mm, 2%/2mm, 3%/3mm,more » 4%/4mm and 5%/5mm) for each treatment plan. Overall and multiple pairwise comparisons of PRs were statistically conducted by analysis of covariance (ANOVA) F and LSD tests among four TPSs. Results: Overall significant (p>0.05) differences of PRs were found among four TPSs with F test values of 3.8 (p=0.02), 21.1(>0.01), 14.0 (>0.01), 8.3(>0.01) at standards of 1%/1mm to 4%/4mm respectively, except at 5%/5mm standard with 2.6 (p=0.06). All means (standard deviation) of PRs at 3%/3mm of 94.3 ± 3.3 (Corvus), 98.8 ± 0.8 (Monaco), 97.5± 1.7 (Pinnacle), 98.4 ± 1.0 (Xio) were above 90% and met clinical requirement. Multiple pairwise comparisons had not demonstrated a consistent low or high pattern on either TPS. Conclusion: Matrixx dose verification results show that the validation pass rates of Monaco and Xio plans are relatively higher than those of the other two; Pinnacle plan shows slight higher pass rate than Corvus plan; lowest pass rate was achieved by the Corvus plan among these four kinds of TPS.« less

  5. SU-E-T-580: Comparison of Cervical Carcinoma IMRT Plans From Four Commercial Treatment Planning Systems (TPS)

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Cao, Y; Li, R; Chi, Z

    2014-06-01

    Purpose: Different treatment planning systems (TPS) use different treatment optimization and leaf sequencing algorithms. This work compares cervical carcinoma IMRT plans optimized with four commercial TPSs to investigate the plan quality in terms of target conformity and delivery efficiency. Methods: Five cervical carcinoma cases were planned with the Corvus, Monaco, Pinnacle and Xio TPSs by experienced planners using appropriate optimization parameters and dose constraints to meet the clinical acceptance criteria. Plans were normalized for at least 95% of PTV to receive the prescription dose (Dp). Dose-volume histograms and isodose distributions were compared. Other quantities such as Dmin(the minimum dose receivedmore » by 99% of GTV/PTV), Dmax(the maximum dose received by 1% of GTV/PTV), D100, D95, D90, V110%, V105%, V100% (the volume of GTV/PTV receiving 110%, 105%, 100% of Dp), conformity index(CI), homogeneity index (HI), the volume of receiving 40Gy and 50 Gy to rectum (V40,V50) ; the volume of receiving 30Gy and 50 Gy to bladder (V30,V50) were evaluated. Total segments and MUs were also compared. Results: While all plans meet target dose specifications and normal tissue constraints, the maximum GTVCI of Pinnacle plans was up to 0.74 and the minimum of Corvus plans was only 0.21, these four TPSs PTVCI had significant difference. The GTVHI and PTVHI of Pinnacle plans are all very low and show a very good dose distribution. Corvus plans received the higer dose of normal tissue. The Monaco plans require significantly less segments and MUs to deliver than the other plans. Conclusion: To deliver on a Varian linear-accelerator, the Pinnacle plans show a very good dose distribution. Corvus plans received the higer dose of normal tissue. The Monaco plans have faster beam delivery.« less

  6. Predicting fractional bed load transport rates: Application of the Wilcock‐Crowe equations to a regulated gravel bed river

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Gaeuman, David; Andrews, E.D.; Krause, Andreas; Smith, Wes

    2009-01-01

    Bed load samples from four locations in the Trinity River of northern California are analyzed to evaluate the performance of the Wilcock‐Crowe bed load transport equations for predicting fractional bed load transport rates. Bed surface particles become smaller and the fraction of sand on the bed increases with distance downstream from Lewiston Dam. The dimensionless reference shear stress for the mean bed particle size (τ*rm) is largest near the dam, but varies relatively little between the more downstream locations. The relation between τ*rm and the reference shear stresses for other size fractions is constant across all locations. Total bed load transport rates predicted with the Wilcock‐Crowe equations are within a factor of 2 of sampled transport rates for 68% of all samples. The Wilcock‐Crowe equations nonetheless consistently under‐predict the transport of particles larger than 128 mm, frequently by more than an order of magnitude. Accurate prediction of the transport rates of the largest particles is important for models in which the evolution of the surface grain size distribution determines subsequent bed load transport rates. Values of τ*rm estimated from bed load samples are up to 50% larger than those predicted with the Wilcock‐Crowe equations, and sampled bed load transport approximates equal mobility across a wider range of grain sizes than is implied by the equations. Modifications to the Wilcock‐Crowe equation for determining τ*rm and the hiding function used to scale τ*rm to other grain size fractions are proposed to achieve the best fit to observed bed load transport in the Trinity River.

  7. Rotation sensitivity analysis of a two-dimensional array of coupled resonators

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zamani Aghaie, Kiarash; Vigneron, Pierre-Baptiste; Digonnet, Michel J. F.

    2015-03-01

    In this paper, we study the rotation sensitivity of a gyroscope made of a two-dimensional array of coupled resonators consisting of N columns of one-dimensional coupled resonant optical waveguides (CROWs) connected by two bus waveguides, each CROW consisting of M identical ring resonators. We show that the maximum rotation sensitivity of this structure is a strong function of the parity of the number of rows M. For an odd number of rows, and when the number of columns is small, the maximum sensitivity is high, and it is slightly lower than the maximum sensitivity of a single-ring resonator with two input/output waveguides (the case M = N = 1), which is a resonant waveguide optical gyroscope (RWOG). For an even M and small N, the maximum sensitivity is much lower than that of the RWOG. Increasing the number columns N increases the sensitivity of an even-row 2D CROW sublinearly, as N0.39, up to 30 columns. In comparison, the maximum sensitivity of an RWOG of equal area increases faster, as √N. The sensitivity of the 2D CROW therefore always lags behind that of the RWOG. For a 2×2 CROW, if the spacing between the columns L is increased sufficiently the maximum sensitivity increases linearly with L due to the presence of a composite Mach- Zehnder interferometer in the structure. However, for equal footprints this sensitivity is also not larger than that of a single-ring resonator. Regardless of the number of rows and columns and the spacing, for the same footprint and propagation loss, a 2D CROW gyroscope is not more sensitive than an RWOG.

  8. James F. Crow: His Life in Public Service

    PubMed Central

    Abrahamson, Seymour

    2012-01-01

    The readers of this journal may well be aware of Professor Crow’s scientific achievements and his role as the editor of Perspectives. In addition, for many thousands of students at the University of Wisconsin over many generations, James F. Crow was one of the most memorable teachers at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. What is less known is his major role in public service where he served as chair of many important committees for the National Academy of Sciences, the National Institutes of Health, the National Institutes of Justice as well as various international programs. In all of these efforts, Professor Crow has left a lasting impact. PMID:22219505

  9. WESTERN RESEARCH INSTITUTE CONTAINED RECOVERY OF OILY WASTES (CROW) PROCESS - ITER

    EPA Science Inventory

    This report summarizes the findings of an evaluation of the Contained Recovery of Oily Wastes (CROW) technology developed by the Western Research Institute. The process involves the injection of heated water into the subsurface to mobilize oily wastes, which are removed from the ...

  10. [New classification of Crowe type IV developmental dysplasia of the hip].

    PubMed

    Ma, Hai-yang; Zhou, Yong-gang; Zheng, Chong; Cao, Wen-zhe; Wang Sen; Wu, Wen-ming; Piao, Shang; Du, Yin-qiao

    2016-02-01

    To compare differences between Crowe IV developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH) with secondary acetabulum and Crowe IV DDH without secondary acetabulum,and determine whether it is necessary to divide Crowe IV DDH into two subtypes. From June 2007 to May 2015,145 hips of 112 Crowe N patients who underwent total hip arthroplasty (THA) using S-ROM stem were divided into two groups: secondary acetabulum formaton group (group A) and no secondary acetabulum formaton group (group B). In group A,there were 12 females, 96 males,with an average age of (39.38 ± 11.19) years old. In group B, there were 2 females, 35 males, with an average age of (38.19 ± 10.92) years old. All the patients were evaluated by using Harris Hip Score. Radiographic evaluations were made preoperatively and during follow up. The differences between two groups were compared on dislocation height, canal flare index (CFI), subtrochanteric shortening osteotomy (SSTO) usage, pre- and post-operation Harris scores, complications. The dislocation height for group A was (4.74 ± 1.57) cm, while the dislocation height for group B was (3.12 ± 1.15) cm. Significantly difference was detected between two groups. The CFI for group A was 2.69 ± 0.68, while the CFI for group B was 3.42 ± 0.79, and the significantly difference was detected between two groups. Harris scores were totally improved from 58.18 ± 15.67 preoperatively to 91.20 ± 3.79 post-operatively and the difference was significant. Pre-operative Harris scores was 58.1 ± 15.3 in group A, 58.3 ± 16.9 in group B. Post-operative Harris scores was 91.0 ± 4.1 in group A, 91.0 ± 5.1 in group B. No significant difference was found on Harris scores between A and B preoperatively and post-operatively. Complications of 4 cases peri-prosthesis fracture, 4 cases dislocation and 4 cases nerve injury occur in group A; While only one case dislocation and one case nerve injury occur in group B. No statistical significance was detected. Crowe IV DDH with secondary acetabulum is significantly different from Crowe IV DDH without secondary acetabulum on dislocation height and femoral morphology, which causes the different selections of surgical techniques (SSTO usage or not). These important differences in fundamental parameters indicate the necessity to further divide Crowe IV DDH into IVA and IVB two subtypes.

  11. 78 FR 39309 - Proposed Information Collection; Depredation Order for Blackbirds, Grackles, Cowbirds, Magpies...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-07-01

    ...--FXMB12320900000] Proposed Information Collection; Depredation Order for Blackbirds, Grackles, Cowbirds, Magpies... (CFR), 50 CFR 21.43 is a depredation order for blackbirds, cowbirds, grackles, crows, and magpies that...-0146. Title: Depredation Order for Blackbirds, Grackles, Cowbirds, Magpies, and Crows, 50 CFR 21.43...

  12. 25 CFR 153.1 - Purpose of regulations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 25 Indians 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Purpose of regulations. 153.1 Section 153.1 Indians BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR LAND AND WATER DETERMINATION OF COMPETENCY: CROW... the competency of Crow Indians under Public Law 303, 81st Congress, approved September 8, 1949. ...

  13. 76 FR 34982 - Proposed Consent Decree, Clean Air Act Citizen Suit

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-06-15

    ... of a proposed consent decree to address a lawsuit filed by WildEarth Guardians and Elizabeth Crowe in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California: WildEarth Guardians and...Earth Guardians and Elizabeth Crowe, and Respondent, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA...

  14. Presentation from 2016 STAR Tribal Research Meeting: Water, Our Voice to the Future: Climate Change Adaptation and Waterborne Disease Prevention on the Crow Reservation

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    This presentation, Water, Our Voice to the Future: Climate Change Adaptation and Waterborne Disease Prevention on the Crow Reservation, was given at the 2016 STAR Tribal Research Meeting held on Sept. 20-21, 2016.

  15. Placing Ourselves on a Digital Earth: Sense of Place Geoscience Education in Crow Country

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cohn, Teresa Cavazos; Swanson, Elisabeth; Him, Gail Whiteman Runs; Hugs, Dora; Stevens, Lisa; Flamm, Devon

    2014-01-01

    Solutions to many environmental challenges now require geoscience expertise, knowledge of global interconnectedness, and an understanding of local cultural nuances, a combination for which geoscientists and our students may not be prepared. The Crow Indian Reservation and its borderlands are a microcosm of these challenges, where geoscience…

  16. Equity in Music Education: Exclusionary Practices in Music Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kelly-McHale, Jacqueline

    2018-01-01

    In this column, the author unpacks the history of the song "Jump Jim Crow/Joe" with particular attention paid to the exclusionary practices often found within the categorization of an American folk-music canon. "Jump Jim Crow" is an example of appropriation that makes people invisible. Yet, appropriation can also create bias…

  17. Segregation as Splitting, Segregation as Joining: Schools, Housing, and the Many Modes of Jim Crow

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Highsmith, Andrew R.; Erickson, Ansley T.

    2015-01-01

    Popular understandings of segregation often emphasize the Jim Crow South before the 1954 "Brown" decision and, in many instances, explain continued segregation in schooling as the result of segregated housing patterns. The case of Flint, Michigan, complicates these views, at once illustrating the depth of governmental commitment to…

  18. 50 CFR 21.43 - Depredation order for blackbirds, cowbirds, grackles, crows and magpies.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ..., EXPORTATION, AND IMPORTATION OF WILDLIFE AND PLANTS (CONTINUED) MIGRATORY BIRD PERMITS Control of Depredating and Otherwise Injurious Birds § 21.43 Depredation order for blackbirds, cowbirds, grackles, crows and... the birds killed pursuant to this section, nor their plumage, shall be sold or offered for sale, but...

  19. 50 CFR 21.43 - Depredation order for blackbirds, cowbirds, grackles, crows, and magpies.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ..., EXPORTATION, AND IMPORTATION OF WILDLIFE AND PLANTS (CONTINUED) MIGRATORY BIRD PERMITS Control of Depredating and Otherwise Injurious Birds § 21.43 Depredation order for blackbirds, cowbirds, grackles, crows, and... migratory birds under the provisions of this section, you must use nontoxic shot or nontoxic bullets to do...

  20. Managing IT from the Top Down

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chronicle of Higher Education, 2007

    2007-01-01

    This article presents an interview with Michael M. Crow, president of Arizona State University; Nathan O. Hatch, president of Wake Forest University; Philip E. Long, CIO at Yale University; and Bonnie Neas, deputy CIO and executive director of ConnectND. They share their views on issues and practices in information technology. Crow worries the…

  1. Dead Crow Reports and Location of Human West Nile Virus Cases, Chicago, 2002

    PubMed Central

    Jones, Roderick C.; Gibbs, Kevin; Paul, William

    2004-01-01

    During the summer and fall of 2002, an epidemic (223 cases) and epizootic of West Nile virus infections occurred in Chicago. Retrospective spatial analysis demonstrated that age-adjusted human case rates were three times higher inside geographic areas with high early-season crow deaths than outside these areas. PMID:15200837

  2. 77 FR 5842 - Notice of Inventory Completion: Minnesota Indian Affairs Council, Bemidji, MN

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-02-06

    ..., Crow Wing, and Kanabec. This notice is published as part of the National Park Service's administrative... the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe, Minnesota; Minnesota Chippewa Tribe, Minnesota; Red Cliff Band of Lake... University (Acc. 103). The mound may have been located in either Crow Wing County, MN or Morrison County, MN...

  3. Using the Aesop's fable paradigm to investigate causal understanding of water displacement by New Caledonian crows.

    PubMed

    Jelbert, Sarah A; Taylor, Alex H; Cheke, Lucy G; Clayton, Nicola S; Gray, Russell D

    2014-01-01

    Understanding causal regularities in the world is a key feature of human cognition. However, the extent to which non-human animals are capable of causal understanding is not well understood. Here, we used the Aesop's fable paradigm--in which subjects drop stones into water to raise the water level and obtain an out of reach reward--to assess New Caledonian crows' causal understanding of water displacement. We found that crows preferentially dropped stones into a water-filled tube instead of a sand-filled tube; they dropped sinking objects rather than floating objects; solid objects rather than hollow objects, and they dropped objects into a tube with a high water level rather than a low one. However, they failed two more challenging tasks which required them to attend to the width of the tube, and to counter-intuitive causal cues in a U-shaped apparatus. Our results indicate that New Caledonian crows possess a sophisticated, but incomplete, understanding of the causal properties of displacement, rivalling that of 5-7 year old children.

  4. Using the Aesop's Fable Paradigm to Investigate Causal Understanding of Water Displacement by New Caledonian Crows

    PubMed Central

    Jelbert, Sarah A.; Taylor, Alex H.; Cheke, Lucy G.; Clayton, Nicola S.; Gray, Russell D.

    2014-01-01

    Understanding causal regularities in the world is a key feature of human cognition. However, the extent to which non-human animals are capable of causal understanding is not well understood. Here, we used the Aesop's fable paradigm – in which subjects drop stones into water to raise the water level and obtain an out of reach reward – to assess New Caledonian crows' causal understanding of water displacement. We found that crows preferentially dropped stones into a water-filled tube instead of a sand-filled tube; they dropped sinking objects rather than floating objects; solid objects rather than hollow objects, and they dropped objects into a tube with a high water level rather than a low one. However, they failed two more challenging tasks which required them to attend to the width of the tube, and to counter-intuitive causal cues in a U-shaped apparatus. Our results indicate that New Caledonian crows possess a sophisticated, but incomplete, understanding of the causal properties of displacement, rivalling that of 5–7 year old children. PMID:24671252

  5. Old Crow tephra: A new late Pleistocene stratigraphic marker across north-central Alaska and western Yukon Territory

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Westgate, J.A.; Hamilton, T.D.; Gorton, M.P.

    1983-01-01

    Old Crow tephra is the first extensive Pleistocene tephra unit to be documented in the northwestern part of North America. It has a calc-alkaline dacitic composition with abundant pyroxene, plagioclase, and FeTi oxides, and minor hornblende, biotite, apatite, and zircon. Thin, clear, bubble-wall fragments are the dominant type of glass shard. This tephra can be recognized by its glass and phenocryst compositions, as determined by X-ray fluorescence, microprobe, and instrumental neutron activation techniques. It has an age between the limits of 60,000 and 120,000 yr, set by 14C and fission-track measurements, respectively. Old Crow tephra has been recognized in the Koyukuk Basin and Fairbanks region of Alaska, and in the Old Crow Lowlands of the northern Yukon Territory, some 600 km to the east-northeast. The source vent is unknown, but these occurrences, considered in relation to the distant locations of potential Quaternary volcanic sources, demonstrate the widespread distribution of this tephra and underscore its importance as a regional stratigraphic marker. ?? 1983.

  6. Common Raven (Corvus corax) kleptoparasitism at a Golden Eagle (Aquila chyrsaetos) nest in southern Nevada

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Simes, Matthew; Johnson, Diego R.; Streit, Justin; Longshore, Kathleen M.; Nussear, Kenneth E.; Esque, Todd C.

    2017-01-01

    The Common Raven (Corvus corax) is a ubiquitous species in the Mojave Desert of southern Nevada and California. From 5 to 24 May 2014, using remote trail cameras, we observed ravens repeatedly kleptoparasitizing food resources from the nest of a pair of Golden Eagles (Aquila chyrsaetos) in the Spring Mountains of southern Nevada. The ravens fed on nine (30%) of the 30 prey items delivered to the nest during the chick rearing period. Kleptoparasitic behavior by the ravens decreased as the eagle nestling matured to seven weeks of age, suggesting a narrow temporal window in which ravens can successfully engage in kleptoparasitic behavior at eagle nests. The observation of kleptoparasitism by Common Ravens at the nest suggests potential risks to young Golden Eagles from Common Ravens.

  7. Monitoring West Nile virus (WNV) infection in wild birds in Serbia during 2012: first isolation and characterisation of WNV strains from Serbia.

    PubMed

    Petrović, T; Blazquez, A B; Lupulović, D; Lazić, G; Escribano-Romero, E; Fabijan, D; Kapetanov, M; Lazić, S; Saiz, Jc

    2013-10-31

    West Nile virus (WNV), a neurovirulent mosquito-transmissible zoonotic virus, has caused recent outbreaks in Europe, including Serbia from August until October 2012. Although humans can be infected, birds are the main natural WNV reservoir. To assess WNV circulation in northern Serbia, 133 wild birds were investigated. These comprised resident and migratory birds, collected between January and September 2012 in the Vojvodina province. The birds belonged to 45 species within 27 families. Blood sera (n=92) and pooled tissues from respective birds (n=81) were tested by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), plaque reduction neutralisation test (PRNT) and real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR). WNV antibodies were detected in seven (8%) sera: four from Mute Swans (Cygnus olor), two from White-tailed Eagles (Haliaeetus albicillas), and one from a Common Pheasant (Phasianus colchicus). Five sera neutralised WNV but not Usutu virus. For the first time in Serbia, WNV RNA was detected by RT-qPCR in pooled tissue samples of eight respective birds. WNV RNA was also derived from an additional bird, after a serum sample resulted infective in cell culture. The total nine WNV RNA positive birds included three Northern Goshawks (Accipiter gentilis), two White-tailed Eagles, one Legged Gull (Larus michahelis), one Hooded Crow (Corvus cornix), one Bearded Parrot-bill (Panarus biramicus), and one Common Pheasant. Phylogenetic analysis of partial E region sequences showed the presence of, at least, two lineage 2 Serbian clusters closely related to those responsible for recent human and animal outbreaks in Greece, Hungary and Italy. Full genomic sequence from a goshawk isolate corroborated this data. These results confirm WNV circulation in Serbia and highlight the risk of infection for humans and horses, pointing to the need for implementing WNV surveillance programmes.

  8. Novel Picornavirus Associated with Avian Keratin Disorder in Alaskan Birds.

    PubMed

    Zylberberg, Maxine; Van Hemert, Caroline; Dumbacher, John P; Handel, Colleen M; Tihan, Tarik; DeRisi, Joseph L

    2016-07-26

    Avian keratin disorder (AKD), characterized by debilitating overgrowth of the avian beak, was first documented in black-capped chickadees (Poecile atricapillus) in Alaska. Subsequently, similar deformities have appeared in numerous species across continents. Despite the widespread distribution of this emerging pathology, the cause of AKD remains elusive. As a result, it is unknown whether suspected cases of AKD in the afflicted species are causally linked, and the impacts of this pathology at the population and community levels are difficult to evaluate. We applied unbiased, metagenomic next-generation sequencing to search for candidate pathogens in birds affected with AKD. We identified and sequenced the complete coding region of a novel picornavirus, which we are calling poecivirus. Subsequent screening of 19 AKD-affected black-capped chickadees and 9 control individuals for the presence of poecivirus revealed that 19/19 (100%) AKD-affected individuals were positive, while only 2/9 (22%) control individuals were infected with poecivirus. Two northwestern crows (Corvus caurinus) and two red-breasted nuthatches (Sitta canadensis) with AKD-consistent pathology also tested positive for poecivirus. We suggest that poecivirus is a candidate etiological agent of AKD. Avian keratin disorder (AKD) is an increasingly common disease of wild birds. This disease, characterized by beak overgrowth, was first described in the late 1990s and has been spreading rapidly both geographically and in terms of host species affected. AKD decreases host fitness and can be fatal. However, the cause of the disease has remained elusive, and its impact on host populations is poorly understood. We found a novel and divergent picornavirus in 19/19 AKD-affected black-capped chickadees that we examined but in only 2/9 control cases. We also found this virus in 4 individuals of 2 other passerine species that exhibited symptoms consistent with AKD. Our data suggest that this novel picornavirus warrants further investigation as the causative agent of AKD. Copyright © 2016 Zylberberg et al.

  9. Selenium in the Blackfoot, Salt, and Bear River Watersheds

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Hamilton, S.J.; Buhl, K.J.

    2005-01-01

    Nine stream sites in the Blackfoot River, Salt River, and Bear River watersheds in southeast Idaho, USA were sampled in May 2001 for water, surficial sediment, aquatic plants, aquatic invertebrates, and fish. Selenium was measured in these aquatic ecosystem components, and a hazard assessment was performed on the data. Water quality characteristics such as pH, hardness, and specific conductance were relatively uniform among the nine sites. Of the aquatic components assessed, water was the least contaminated with selenium because measured concentrations were below the national water quality criterion of 5 μ g/L at eight of the nine sites. In contrast, selenium was elevated in sediment, aquatic plants, aquatic invertebrates, and fish from several sites, suggesting deposition in sediments and food web cycling through plants and invertebrates. Selenium was elevated to concentrations of concern in fish at eight sites (> 4 μ g/g in whole body). A hazard assessment of selenium in the aquatic environment suggested a moderate hazard at upper Angus Creek (UAC) and Smoky Creek (SC), and high hazard at Little Blackfoot River (LiB), Blackfoot River gaging station (BGS), State Land Creek (SLC), upper (UGC) and lower Georgetown Creek (LGC), Deer Creek (DC), and Crow Creek (CC). The results of this study indicate that selenium concentrations from the phosphate mining area of southeast Idaho were sufficiently elevated in several ecosystem components to cause adverse effects to aquatic resources in southeastern Idaho.

  10. A Bus Ride across the Mason-Dixon Line during Jim Crow

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Stokes, John A.

    2010-01-01

    In this classroom simulation, students travel back in time to 1945, when racism was institutionalized in many states through segregation. Though students cannot literally travel back to the Jim Crow era, teachers can create a situation that brings home the point of injustice and the choices individuals are faced with in such situations. Suddenly,…

  11. What Jim Crow's Teachers Could Do: Educational Capital and Teachers' Work in Under-Resourced Schools

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kelly, Hilton

    2010-01-01

    This article explains how Jim Crow's teachers--former teachers of legally segregated schools for blacks--prepared and motivated disadvantaged students in spite of funding and resource deprivation. According to the author, black teachers fashioned situated pedagogies for the acquisition of educational capital that could be used in exchange for…

  12. Investigating potential wet bias in the Purple Crow Lidar water vapor measurements

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    VanKerkhove, Jeffrey; Sica, R. J.; Wing, R.; Argall, P. S.

    2018-04-01

    The Purple Crow Lidar is a large aperture lidar, capable of retrieving water vapor into the strato-sphere. A comparison with the ALVICE lidar in 2012 showed water vapor measurements were consistently larger than those of ALVICE in the lower stratosphere, prompting an investigation of the system. Processing approaches and additional instrumental corrections are considered.

  13. What Preservice Teachers Can Learn from One Jim Crow Community Engagement Program

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Garry, Vanessa

    2017-01-01

    The discriminatory practices against African Americans during the Jim Crow era in St. Louis, Missouri did not deter Dr. Ruth Harris, the first African American female president of Stowe Teachers College (STC) in St. Louis, from accepting the challenge of leading the African American teachers' college from 1940 to 1954. Her appointment to President…

  14. "Crows on the Wire": Intermediality in Applied Drama and Conflict Transformation--"Humanising" the Police in Northern Ireland

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jennings, Matt

    2016-01-01

    "Crows on the Wire" (COTW) is an intermedial project deploying applied theatre, educational drama and digital performance [Dixon, S. (2007). "Digital Performance: A History of New Media in Theatre, Dance, Performance Art and Installation." Cambridge, MA: MIT Press] to explore the recent history of the peace process in Northern…

  15. "A Happiness that Sleeps with Sadness." An Examination of "White Scabs" in Fools Crow

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Vernon, Irene S.

    2005-01-01

    A prolific and popular writer, James Welch has captured the attention of both Native and non-Native readers since his first publication of poems, "Riding the Earthboy," in 1971. One of Welch's stories, "Fools Crow," was of particular interest to this author as an academic researching Native Americans and health. "Fools…

  16. Transitive Responding in Hooded Crows Requires Linearly Ordered Stimuli

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lazareva, Olga F.; Smirnova, Anna A.; Bagozkaja, Maria S.; Zorina, Zoya A.; Rayevsky, Vladimir V.; Wasserman, Edward A.

    2004-01-01

    Eight crows were taught to discriminate overlapping pairs of visual stimuli (A+ B-, B+ C-, C+ D-, and D+ E-). For 4 birds, the stimuli were colored cards with a circle of the same color on the reverse side whose diameter decreased from A to E (ordered feedback group). These circles were made available for comparison to potentially help the crows…

  17. Optoelectric Technology Roadmap: Conclusions and Recommendations

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1994-05-01

    Haitz Hughes Adrian Popa Robert Buckley IBM Maurizio Arienzo John Crow NYNEX Robert Lawrence Motorola Ron Nelson 3M Charles T. Walker OPTOELECTRONIC...Bellcore (1) Industrial Mark Chandler, Hewlett-Packard Military/Aerospace Richard Lind, Hughes Luis Figueroa , Boeing Computer John Crow, IBM...Bellcore William Womack AT&T Matt Goodman Bellcore Dwight Duston BMDO Paul Shumate Bellcore Luis Figueroa Boeing Richard Jones Broadband Technologies

  18. Preserving Old Ways the Modern Way: Red Crow Uses GIS, GPS to Document Traditional Knowledge

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Fat, Mary Weasel

    2004-01-01

    The article report that Red Crow Community College has created a unique, one-year certificate program that will train students to compile and document Kainai traditional knowledge. The program called the First Nations' Land Use Certificate Program accepted its first 16 students in January 2004 at the college, which is located on the Blood Reserve…

  19. Slow light effect with high group index and wideband by saddle-like mode in PC-CROW

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wan, Yong; Jiang, Li-Jun; Xu, Sheng; Li, Meng-Xue; Liu, Meng-Nan; Jiang, Cheng-Yi; Yuan, Feng

    2018-04-01

    Slow light with high group index and wideband is achieved in photonic crystal coupled-resonator optical waveguides (PC-CROWs). According to the eye-shaped scatterers and various microcavities, saddle-like curves between the normalized frequency f and wave number k can be obtained by adjusting the parameters of the scatterers, parameters of the coupling microcavities, and positions of the scatterers. Slow light with decent flat band and group index can then be achieved by optimizing the parameters. Simulations prove that the maximal value of the group index is > 104, and the normalized delay bandwidth product within a new varying range of n g > 102 or n g > 103 can be a new and effective criterion of evaluation for the slow light in PC-CROWs.

  20. Geochemistry and shock petrography of the Crow Creek Member, South Dakota, USA: Ejecta from the 74-Ma Manson impact structure

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Katongo, C.; Koeberl, C.; Witzke, B.J.; Hammond, R.H.; Anderson, R.R.

    2004-01-01

    The Crow Creek Member is one of several marl units recognized within the Upper Cretaceous Pierre Shale Formation of eastern South Dakota and northeastern Nebraska, but it is the only unit that contains shock-metamorphosed minerals. The shocked minerals represent impact ejecta from the 74-Ma Manson impact structure (MIS). This study was aimed at determining the bulk chemical compositions and analysis of planar deformation features (PDFs) of shocked quartz; for the basal and marly units of the Crow Creek Member. We studied samples from the Gregory 84-21 core, Iroquois core and Wakonda lime quarry. Contents of siderophile elements are generally high, but due to uncertainties in the determination of Ir and uncertainties in compositional sources for Cr, Co, and Ni, we could not confirm an extraterrestrial component in the Crow Creek Member. We recovered several shocked quartz grains from basal-unit samples, mainly from the Gregory 84-21 core, and results of PDF measurements indicate shock pressures of at least 15 GPa. All the samples are composed chiefly of SiO2, (29-58 wt%), Al2O3 (6-14 wt%), and CaO (7-30 wt%). When compared to the composition of North American Shale Composite, the samples are significantly enriched in CaO, P2O5, Mn, Sr, Y, U, Cr, and Ni. The contents of rare earth elements (REE), high field strength elements (HFSE), Cr, Co, Sc, and their ratios and chemical weathering trends, reflect both felsic and basic sources for the Crow Creek Member, an inference, which is consistent with the lithological compositions in the environs of the MIS. The high chemical indices of alteration and weathering (CIA' and CIW': 75-99), coupled with the Al2O3-(CaO*,+Na2O -K2O (A-CN'-K) ratios, indicate that the Crow Creek Member and source rocks had undergone high degrees of chemical weathering. The expected ejecta thicknesses at the sampled locations (409 to 219 km from Manson) were calculated to range from about 1.9 to 12.2 cm (for the present-day crater radius of Manson), or 0.4 to 2.4 cm (for the estimated transient cavity radius). The trend agrees with the observed thicknesses of the basal unit of the Crow Creek Member, but the actually observed thicknesses are larger than the calculated ones, indicating that not all of the basal unit comprises impact ejecta. ?? Meteoritical Society, 2004.

  1. Estimated and measured traveltime for the Crow River watershed, Minnesota

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Arntson, Allan D.

    2007-01-01

    A time-of-travel study involving a luminescent dye was done on the Crow River in Minnesota from Rockford to the confluence with the Mississippi River at Dayton on July 11, 2006, at a streamflow of 293 cubic feet per second at Rockford. Dye was injected in the Crow River at Rockford, and traveltime and concentrations were measured at three sampling locations downstream: at the Hanover historic bridge in Hanover, at County Road 116 near St. Michael, and at County Road 12 in Dayton. The results of the measured traveltimes were compared to estimated traveltimes from a previous study of the Crow River and six other rivers in the Upper Mississippi River basin in 2003. Regression equations based on watershed characteristics of drainage area, river slope, mean-annual streamflow, and instantaneous streamflow at the time of measurement from more than 900 stream segments across the Nation were used to estimate traveltimes. Traveltimes were estimated and measured for the leading edge, peak concentration, and trailing edge of tracer-response curves. Estimated traveltimes for the leading edge, peak concentration, and trailing edge at Dayton were 25.3, 28.4, and 35.6 hours, respectively. Measured traveltimes for the leading edge, peak concentration, and trailing edge at Dayton were 33.2, 38.2, and 49.2 hours, respectively, for the 22.4-mile reach. Although traveltimes for the Crow and the Sauk Rivers were underestimated by use of the regression equations, the regression estimates were close enough to measured values to be considered satisfactory; hence, this estimating technique should be applicable in other source-water planning efforts in and near the study area.

  2. A Network Primer: Full-Fledged Educational Networks.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lehrer, Ariella

    1988-01-01

    Discusses some of the factors included in choosing appropriate computer networks for the classroom. Describes such networks as those produced by Apple Computer, Corvus Systems, Velan, Berkeley Softworks, Tandy, LAN-TECH, Unisys, and International Business Machines (IBM). (TW)

  3. Origins of the ancient constellations: I. The Mesopotamian traditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Rogers, J. H.

    1998-02-01

    In the sky-map of ancient Babylon, constellations had two different roles, and thus developed into two overlapping traditions. One set of constellations represented the gods and their symbols; the other set represented rustic activities and provided a farming calendar. Many constellations were shared by the two traditions, but in some regions of sky there were alternative divine and rustic figures. These figures developed in stages from ~3200 BC to ~500 BC. Of the divine set, the most important (although the last to be finalised) were the twelve zodiacal signs, plus several associated animals (the serpent, crow, eagle, and fish), which were all transmitted to the classical Greek sky-map that we still use today. Conversely, the rustic constellations of workers and tools and animals were not transmitted to the West. However, a few of them may have survived in Bedouin Arab sky-maps of the first millennium AD.

  4. Dissolved pesticide concentrations detected in storm-water runoff at selected sites in the San Joaquin River basin, California, 2000-2001

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Orlando, James L.; Kuivila, Kathryn; Whitehead, Andrew

    2003-01-01

    As part of a collaborative study involving the United States Geological Survey Toxics Substances Hydrology Project (Toxics Project) and the University of California, Davis, Bodega Marine Laboratory (BML), water samples were collected at three sites within the San Joaquin River Basin of California and analyzed for dissolved pesticides. Samples were collected during, and immediately after, the first significant rainfall (greater than 0.5 inch per day) following the local application of dormant spray, organophosphate insecticides during the winters of 2000 and 2001. All samples were collected in conjunction with fish-caging experiments conducted by BML researchers. Sites included two locations potentially affected by runoff of agricultural chemicals (San Joaquin River near Vernalis, California, and Orestimba Creek at River Road near Crows Landing, California, and one control site located upstream of pesticide input (Orestimba Creek at Orestimba Creek Road near Newman, California). During these experiments, fish were placed in cages and exposed to storm runoff for up to ten days. Following exposure, the fish were examined for acetylcholinesterase concentrations and overall genetic damage. Water samples were collected throughout the rising limb of the stream hydrograph at each site for later pesticide analysis. Concentrations of selected pesticides were measured in filtered water samples using solid-phase extraction (SPE) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS) at the U.S. Geological Survey organic chemistry laboratory in Sacramento, California. Results of these analyses are presented.

  5. Tool bending in New Caledonian crows.

    PubMed

    Rutz, Christian; Sugasawa, Shoko; van der Wal, Jessica E M; Klump, Barbara C; St Clair, James J H

    2016-08-01

    'Betty' the New Caledonian crow astonished the world when she 'spontaneously' bent straight pieces of garden wire into hooked foraging tools. Recent field experiments have revealed that tool bending is part of the species' natural behavioural repertoire, providing important context for interpreting Betty's iconic wire-bending feat. More generally, this discovery provides a compelling illustration of how natural history observations can inform laboratory-based research into the cognitive capacities of non-human animals.

  6. Clustered, rectangular lakes of the Canadian Old Crow Basin

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Allenby, Richard J.

    1989-12-01

    This paper investigates the origin and development of the tightly clustered lakes within the Old Crow and Bluefish basins utilizing Landsat imagery, SEASAT Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), and the available scientific literature. The Old Crow Basin and the smaller, neighboring, Bluefish Basin are located in the northwest Yukon Territory of Canada, 150 km south of the Beaufort Sea and just east of the Canadian-Alaskan border. Both basins, situated in Pleistocene lake deposits of sand, gravel, silt, and peat, are characterized by numerous, densely clustered, rectangular or arrowhead-shaped, shallow lakes with linear shore lines. The straight edges of these lakes exhibit strong, nearly orthogonal, preferred alignments directed northwest and northeast. These lakes evidently originated as relatively small thaw or thermokarst lakes that subsequently coalesced into larger lakes with edges and orientations controlled by a fracture pattern in the consolidated, underlying rocks-possibly the Old Crow Granite. The fracture pattern may be the result of horizontal tertiary or later compressional forces along the Kaltag/Porcupine Fault or it may have originated in the relatively undeformed, consolidated, basinal sediments as a result of downwarping and subsequent uplifting. The lake forming process is ongoing with new lakes being formed to replace older lakes in all stages of being obliterated.

  7. Experimental infection of highly and low pathogenic avian influenza viruses to chickens, ducks, tree sparrows, jungle crows, and black rats for the evaluation of their roles in virus transmission.

    PubMed

    Hiono, Takahiro; Okamatsu, Masatoshi; Yamamoto, Naoki; Ogasawara, Kohei; Endo, Mayumi; Kuribayashi, Saya; Shichinohe, Shintaro; Motohashi, Yurie; Chu, Duc-Huy; Suzuki, Mizuho; Ichikawa, Takaya; Nishi, Tatsuya; Abe, Yuri; Matsuno, Keita; Tanaka, Kazuyuki; Tanigawa, Tsutomu; Kida, Hiroshi; Sakoda, Yoshihiro

    2016-01-01

    Highly pathogenic avian influenza viruses (HPAIVs) have spread in both poultry and wild birds. Determining transmission routes of these viruses during an outbreak is essential for the control of avian influenza. It has been widely postulated that migratory ducks play crucial roles in the widespread dissemination of HPAIVs in poultry by carrying viruses along with their migrations; however close contacts between wild migratory ducks and poultry are less likely in modern industrial poultry farming settings. Therefore, we conducted experimental infections of HPAIVs and low pathogenic avian influenza viruses (LPAIVs) to chickens, domestic ducks, tree sparrows, jungle crows, and black rats to evaluate their roles in virus transmission. The results showed that chickens, ducks, sparrows, and crows were highly susceptible to HPAIV infection. Significant titers of virus were recovered from the sparrows and crows infected with HPAIVs, which suggests that they potentially play roles of transmission of HPAIVs to poultry. In contrast, the growth of LPAIVs was limited in each of the animals tested compared with that of HPAIVs. The present results indicate that these common synanthropes play some roles in influenza virus transmission from wild birds to poultry. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  8. Fish and fire: Post-wildfire sediment dynamics and implications for the viability of trout populations

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Murphy, B. P.; Czuba, J. A.; Belmont, P.; Budy, P.; Finch, C.

    2017-12-01

    Episodic events in steep landscapes, such as wildfire and mass wasting, contribute large pulses of sediment to rivers and can significantly alter the quality and connectivity of fish habitat. Understanding where these sediment inputs occur, how they are transported and processed through the watershed, and their geomorphic effect on the river network is critical to predicting the impact on ecological aquatic communities. The Tushar Mountains of southern Utah experienced a severe wildfire in 2010, resulting in numerous debris flows and the extirpation of trout populations. Following many years of habitat and ecological monitoring in the field, we have developed a modeling framework that links post-wildfire debris flows, fluvial sediment routing, and population ecology in order to evaluate the impact and response of trout to wildfire. First, using the Tushar topographic and wildfire parameters, as well as stochastic precipitation generation, we predict the post-wildfire debris flow probabilities and volumes of mainstem tributaries using the Cannon et al. [2010] model. This produces episodic hillslope sediment inputs, which are delivered to a fluvial sediment, river-network routing model (modified from Czuba et al. [2017]). In this updated model, sediment transport dynamics are driven by time-varying discharge associated with the stochastic precipitation generation, include multiple grain sizes (including gravel), use mixed-size transport equations (Wilcock & Crowe [2003]), and incorporate channel slope adjustments with aggradation and degradation. Finally, with the spatially explicit adjustments in channel bed elevation and grain size, we utilize a new population viability analysis (PVA) model to predict the impact and recovery of fish populations in response to these changes in habitat. Our model provides a generalizable framework for linking physical and ecological models and for evaluating the extirpation risk of isolated fish populations throughout the Intermountain West to the increasing threat of wildfire.

  9. Tool bending in New Caledonian crows

    PubMed Central

    Sugasawa, Shoko; van der Wal, Jessica E. M.; Klump, Barbara C.; St Clair, James J. H.

    2016-01-01

    ‘Betty’ the New Caledonian crow astonished the world when she ‘spontaneously’ bent straight pieces of garden wire into hooked foraging tools. Recent field experiments have revealed that tool bending is part of the species' natural behavioural repertoire, providing important context for interpreting Betty's iconic wire-bending feat. More generally, this discovery provides a compelling illustration of how natural history observations can inform laboratory-based research into the cognitive capacities of non-human animals. PMID:27853622

  10. Slow light enhanced optical nonlinearity in a silicon photonic crystal coupled-resonator optical waveguide.

    PubMed

    Matsuda, Nobuyuki; Kato, Takumi; Harada, Ken-Ichi; Takesue, Hiroki; Kuramochi, Eiichi; Taniyama, Hideaki; Notomi, Masaya

    2011-10-10

    We demonstrate highly enhanced optical nonlinearity in a coupled-resonator optical waveguide (CROW) in a four-wave mixing experiment. Using a CROW consisting of 200 coupled resonators based on width-modulated photonic crystal nanocavities in a line defect, we obtained an effective nonlinear constant exceeding 10,000 /W/m, thanks to slow light propagation combined with a strong spatial confinement of light achieved by the wavelength-sized cavities.

  11. A Description of the "Crow's Foot" Tunnel Concept

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Parrish, Russell V.; Williams, Steven P.; Arthur, Jarvis J., III; Kramer, Lynda J.; Bailey, Randall E.; Prinzel, Lawrence J., III; Norman, R. Michael

    2006-01-01

    NASA Langley Research Center has actively pursued the development and the use of pictorial or three-dimensional perspective displays of tunnel-, pathway- or highway-in-the-sky concepts for presenting flight path information to pilots in all aircraft categories (e.g., transports, General Aviation, rotorcraft) since the late 1970s. Prominent among these efforts has been the development of the crow s foot tunnel concept. The crow's foot tunnel concept emerged as the consensus pathway concept from a series of interactive workshops that brought together government and industry display designers, test pilots, and airline pilots to iteratively design, debate, and fly various pathway concepts. Over years of use in many simulation and flight test activities at NASA and elsewhere, modifications have refined and adapted the tunnel concept for different applications and aircraft categories (i.e., conventional transports, High Speed Civil Transport, General Aviation). A description of those refinements follows the definition of the original tunnel concept.

  12. 40Ar/39Ar age of the Manson impact structure, Iowa, and correlative impact ejecta in the Crow Creek member of the Pierre Shale (Upper Cretaceous), South Dakota and Nebraska

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Izett, G.A.; Cobban, W.A.; Dalrymple, G.B.; Obradovich, J.D.

    1998-01-01

    A set of 34 laser total-fusion 40Ar/39Ar analyses of sanidine from a melt layer in crater-fill deposits of the Manson impact structure in Iowa has a weighted-mean age of 74.1 ?? 0.1 Ma. This age is about 9.0 m.y. older than 40Ar/39Ar ages of shocked microcline from the Manson impact structure reported previously by others. The 74.1 Ma age of the sanidine, which is a melt product of Precambrian microcline clasts, indicates that the Manson impact structure played no part in the Cretaceous-Tertiary (K-T) mass extinction at 64.5 Ma. Moreover, incremental-heating 40Ar/39Ar ages of the sanidine show that it is essentially free of excess 40Ar and has not been influenced by postcrystallization heating or alteration. An age spectrum of the matrix of the melt layer shows effects of 39Ar recoil, including older ages in the low-temperature increments and younger ages in the high-temperature increments. At 17 places in eastern South Dakota and Nebraska, shocked quartz and feldspar grains are concentrated in the lower part of the Crow Creek Member of the Pierre Shale (Upper Cretaceous). The grains are largest (3.2 mm) in southeastern South Dakota and decrease in size (0.45 mm) to the northwest, consistent with the idea that the Manson impact structure was their source. The ubiquitous presence of shocked grains concentrated in a thin calcarenite at the base of the Crow Creek Member suggests it is an event bed recording an instant of geologic time. Ammonites below and above the Crow Creek Member limit its age to the zone of Didymoceras nebrascense of earliest late Campanian age. Plagioclase from a bentonite bed in this zone in Colorado has a 40Ar/39Ar age of 74.1 ?? 0.1 Ma commensurate with our sanidine age of 74.1 Ma for the Manson impact structure. 40Ar/39Ar ages of bentonite beds below and above the Crow Creek are consistent with our 74.1 ?? 0.1 Ma age for the Manson impact structure and limit its age to the interval ?? 74.5 0.1 to 73.8 ?? 0.1 Ma. Recently, two origins for the Crow Creek have been proposed - eastward transgression of the Late Cretaceous sea and a Manson impact-triggered tsunami. We conclude that most data are in accord with an impact origin for the Crow Creek Member and are at odds with the marine transgression hypothesis.

  13. The Use of Neuropeptide Y as a Measurement of the Effectiveness of Stress Inoculation

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2011-04-01

    Allen, Adrian , Allen, Tatemoto, Crow, Bloom , & Polak, 1983). One of the roles of NPY is related to eating behavior. Clark, Kalra, Crowley, & Kalra (1984...ultimately contribute to a more effective fighting force. 16 Annotated References Allen, Y.S., Adrian , T.E., Allen, J.M., Tatemoto, K...Crow, T.J., Bloom , S.R., & Polak, J.M. (1983). Neuropeptide Y distribution in the rat brain. Science, 221(4613), 877-879. This experiment determined

  14. Sensitivity analysis of linear CROW gyroscopes and comparison to a single-resonator gyroscope

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zamani-Aghaie, Kiarash; Digonnet, Michel J. F.

    2013-03-01

    This study presents numerical simulations of the maximum sensitivity to absolute rotation of a number of coupled resonator optical waveguide (CROW) gyroscopes consisting of a linear array of coupled ring resonators. It examines in particular the impact on the maximum sensitivity of the number of rings, of the relative spatial orientation of the rings (folded and unfolded), of various sequences of coupling ratios between the rings and various sequences of ring dimensions, and of the number of input/output waveguides (one or two) used to inject and collect the light. In all configurations the sensitivity is maximized by proper selection of the coupling ratio(s) and phase bias, and compared to the maximum sensitivity of a resonant waveguide optical gyroscope (RWOG) utilizing a single ring-resonator waveguide with the same radius and loss as each ring in the CROW. Simulations show that although some configurations are more sensitive than others, in spite of numerous claims to the contrary made in the literature, in all configurations the maximum sensitivity is independent of the number of rings, and does not exceed the maximum sensitivity of an RWOG. There are no sensitivity benefits to utilizing any of these linear CROWs for absolute rotation sensing. For equal total footprint, an RWOG is √N times more sensitive, and it is easier to fabricate and stabilize.

  15. Sensory and Working Memory Representations of Small and Large Numerosities in the Crow Endbrain.

    PubMed

    Ditz, Helen M; Nieder, Andreas

    2016-11-23

    Neurons in the avian nidopallium caudolaterale (NCL), an endbrain structure that originated independently from the mammalian neocortex, process visual numerosities. To clarify the code for number in this anatomically distinct endbrain area in birds, neuronal responses to a broad range of numerosities were analyzed. We recorded single-neuron activity from the NCL of crows performing a delayed match-to-sample task with visual numerosities as discriminanda. The responses of >20% of randomly selected neurons were modulated significantly by numerosities ranging from one to 30 items. Numerosity-selective neurons showed bell-shaped tuning curves with one of the presented numerosities as preferred numerosity regardless of the physical appearance of the items. The resulting labeled-line code exhibited logarithmic compression obeying the Weber-Fechner law for magnitudes. Comparable proportions of selective neurons were found, not only during stimulus presentation, but also in the delay phase, indicating a dominant role of the NCL in numerical working memory. Both during sensory encoding and memorization of numerosities in working memory, NCL activity predicted the crows' number discrimination performance. These neuronal data reveal striking similarities across vertebrate taxa in their code for number despite convergently evolved and anatomically distinct endbrain structures. Birds are known for their capabilities to process numerical quantity. However, birds lack a six-layered neocortex that enables primates with numerical competence. We aimed to decipher the neuronal code for numerical quantity in the independently and distinctly evolved endbrain of birds. We recorded the activity of neurons in an endbrain association area termed nidopallium caudolaterale (NCL) from crows that assessed and briefly memorized numerosities from one to 30 dots. We report a neuronal code for sensory representation and working memory of numerosities in the crow NCL exhibiting several characteristics that are surprisingly similar to the ones found in primates. Our data suggest a common code for number in two different vertebrate taxa that has evolved based on convergent evolution. Copyright © 2016 the authors 0270-6474/16/3612044-09$15.00/0.

  16. Extended-spectrum β-lactamase producing Escherichia coli isolated from wild birds in Saskatoon, Canada.

    PubMed

    Parker, D; Sniatynski, M K; Mandrusiak, D; Rubin, J E

    2016-07-01

    The epidemiology of antimicrobial resistance is extremely complex and involves humans, domestic animals (companion and agricultural) and wildlife. In North America there have been very few investigations targeting antimicrobial-resistant organisms in wildlife. In this study, we characterized the susceptibility of Escherichia coli isolated from 75 birds including great horned owls, crows and American robins from the region of Saskatoon, Canada. The recovery rate of E. coli varied significantly between species from 44·8% of robins to 92% of crows. The majority (88·2%) of colonized birds carried only pan-susceptible organisms. Among isolates resistant to at least one antimicrobial, ampicillin resistance was most commonly identified. Three birds carried multidrug-resistant isolates (resistant to ≥3 drug classes), and extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)-producing organisms (CTX-M-15 and SHV2a) were grown from two. We identified a significant relationship between the presence of drug-resistant E. coli and an urban (vs rural) origin of the bird. Our findings suggest that crows, due to their ubiquity and high rate of colonization with E. coli, may be efficient targets for future resistance surveillance studies targeting urban wildlife. Antimicrobial resistance is a global problem affecting people and animals. Few investigations describing the presence drug-resistant organisms in wildlife in North America have been published. In this study, resistant Escherichia coli, including extended-spectrum β-lactamase-producing strains, were isolated from wild birds in the Saskatoon region of Canada. We found that the recovery rate of E. coli varied significantly by species and was highest among crows. There was also a significant association between drug resistance and urban vs rural birds. Our results suggest that crows may be a good target for future studies investigating antimicrobial resistance in urban wildlife. © 2016 The Society for Applied Microbiology.

  17. Dosimetric verification of IMRT treatment planning using Monte Carlo simulations for prostate cancer

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yang, J.; Li, J.; Chen, L.; Price, R.; McNeeley, S.; Qin, L.; Wang, L.; Xiong, W.; Ma, C.-M.

    2005-03-01

    The purpose of this work is to investigate the accuracy of dose calculation of a commercial treatment planning system (Corvus, Normos Corp., Sewickley, PA). In this study, 30 prostate intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) treatment plans from the commercial treatment planning system were recalculated using the Monte Carlo method. Dose-volume histograms and isodose distributions were compared. Other quantities such as minimum dose to the target (Dmin), the dose received by 98% of the target volume (D98), dose at the isocentre (Diso), mean target dose (Dmean) and the maximum critical structure dose (Dmax) were also evaluated based on our clinical criteria. For coplanar plans, the dose differences between Monte Carlo and the commercial treatment planning system with and without heterogeneity correction were not significant. The differences in the isocentre dose between the commercial treatment planning system and Monte Carlo simulations were less than 3% for all coplanar cases. The differences on D98 were less than 2% on average. The differences in the mean dose to the target between the commercial system and Monte Carlo results were within 3%. The differences in the maximum bladder dose were within 3% for most cases. The maximum dose differences for the rectum were less than 4% for all the cases. For non-coplanar plans, the difference in the minimum target dose between the treatment planning system and Monte Carlo calculations was up to 9% if the heterogeneity correction was not applied in Corvus. This was caused by the excessive attenuation of the non-coplanar beams by the femurs. When the heterogeneity correction was applied in Corvus, the differences were reduced significantly. These results suggest that heterogeneity correction should be used in dose calculation for prostate cancer with non-coplanar beam arrangements.

  18. Fuel Chemistry and Combustion Distribution Effects on Rocket Engine Combustion Stability

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2012-01-25

    by Crowe et al. (1963). The small solid rocket motors are fired into the collection tank with the nozzle [Crowe et al. (1963)] and without nozzle...explosions at the end of the droplet lifetime. Upon ignition , a neat droplet of JP-8 will burn orange, and the droplet will regress until all of the...pixel location were estimated by applying a time shift and amplitude scaling factor to the pressure measurements made at the aft end of chamber

  19. New Political-Military Realities in East Asia: An Assessment of U.S. Interests, Threats and Commitments

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1990-06-25

    in recent years the Soviets have been scaling back on their naval operations. Admiral William J. Crowe, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff...133-146. Chira , Susan. "Japan Ready to Share Burden, But Also the Power, With U.S." The New York Times, March 7, 1989, pp. A-I and A- 12. Cimbala...Washington: USGPO, 1988. Congressional Quarterly. Powers of Congress. Washington: Congressional Quarterly, 1976. 24 Crowe, William J., Jr., Admiral, "U.S

  20. Integrated Reflection Seismic Monitoring and Reservoir Modeling for Geologic CO2 Sequestration

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    John Rogers

    The US DOE/NETL CCS MVA program funded a project with Fusion Petroleum Technologies Inc. (now SIGMA) to model the proof of concept of using sparse seismic data in the monitoring of CO{sub 2} injected into saline aquifers. The goal of the project was to develop and demonstrate an active source reflection seismic imaging strategy based on deployment of spatially sparse surface seismic arrays. The primary objective was to test the feasibility of sparse seismic array systems to monitor the CO{sub 2} plume migration injected into deep saline aquifers. The USDOE/RMOTC Teapot Dome (Wyoming) 3D seismic and reservoir data targeting themore » Crow Mountain formation was used as a realistic proxy to evaluate the feasibility of the proposed methodology. Though the RMOTC field has been well studied, the Crow Mountain as a saline aquifer has not been studied previously as a CO{sub 2} sequestration (storage) candidate reservoir. A full reprocessing of the seismic data from field tapes that included prestack time migration (PSTM) followed by prestack depth migration (PSDM) was performed. A baseline reservoir model was generated from the new imaging results that characterized the faults and horizon surfaces of the Crow Mountain reservoir. The 3D interpretation was integrated with the petrophysical data from available wells and incorporated into a geocellular model. The reservoir structure used in the geocellular model was developed using advanced inversion technologies including Fusion's ThinMAN{trademark} broadband spectral inversion. Seal failure risk was assessed using Fusion's proprietary GEOPRESS{trademark} pore pressure and fracture pressure prediction technology. CO{sub 2} injection was simulated into the Crow Mountain with a commercial reservoir simulator. Approximately 1.2MM tons of CO{sub 2} was simulated to be injected into the Crow Mountain reservoir over 30 years and subsequently let 'soak' in the reservoir for 970 years. The relatively small plume developed from this injection was observed migrating due to gravity to the apexes of the double anticline in the Crow Mountain reservoir of the Teapot dome. Four models were generated from the reservoir simulation task of the project which included three saturation models representing snapshots at different times during and after simulated CO{sub 2} injection and a fully saturated CO{sub 2} fluid substitution model. The saturation models were used along with a Gassmann fluid substitution model for CO{sub 2} to perform fluid volumetric substitution in the Crow Mountain formation. The fluid substitution resulted in a velocity and density model for the 3D volume at each saturation condition that was used to generate a synthetic seismic survey. FPTI's (Fusion Petroleum Technologies Inc.) proprietary SeisModelPRO{trademark} full acoustic wave equation software was used to simulate acquisition of a 3D seismic survey on the four models over a subset of the field area. The simulated acquisition area included the injection wells and the majority of the simulated plume area.« less

  1. Experimental resource pulses influence social-network dynamics and the potential for information flow in tool-using crows

    PubMed Central

    St Clair, James J. H.; Burns, Zackory T.; Bettaney, Elaine M.; Morrissey, Michael B.; Otis, Brian; Ryder, Thomas B.; Fleischer, Robert C.; James, Richard; Rutz, Christian

    2015-01-01

    Social-network dynamics have profound consequences for biological processes such as information flow, but are notoriously difficult to measure in the wild. We used novel transceiver technology to chart association patterns across 19 days in a wild population of the New Caledonian crow—a tool-using species that may socially learn, and culturally accumulate, tool-related information. To examine the causes and consequences of changing network topology, we manipulated the environmental availability of the crows' preferred tool-extracted prey, and simulated, in silico, the diffusion of information across field-recorded time-ordered networks. Here we show that network structure responds quickly to environmental change and that novel information can potentially spread rapidly within multi-family communities, especially when tool-use opportunities are plentiful. At the same time, we report surprisingly limited social contact between neighbouring crow communities. Such scale dependence in information-flow dynamics is likely to influence the evolution and maintenance of material cultures. PMID:26529116

  2. The Use of Crow-AMSAA Plots to Assess Mishap Trends

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Dawson, Jeffrey W.

    2011-01-01

    Crow-AMSAA (CA) plots are used to model reliability growth. Use of CA plots has expanded into other areas, such as tracking events of interest to management, maintenance problems, and safety mishaps. Safety mishaps can often be successfully modeled using a Poisson probability distribution. CA plots show a Poisson process in log-log space. If the safety mishaps are a stable homogenous Poisson process, a linear fit to the points in a CA plot will have a slope of one. Slopes of greater than one indicate a nonhomogenous Poisson process, with increasing occurrence. Slopes of less than one indicate a nonhomogenous Poisson process, with decreasing occurrence. Changes in slope, known as "cusps," indicate a change in process, which could be an improvement or a degradation. After presenting the CA conceptual framework, examples are given of trending slips, trips and falls, and ergonomic incidents at NASA (from Agency-level data). Crow-AMSAA plotting is a robust tool for trending safety mishaps that can provide insight into safety performance over time.

  3. Shadow analysis via the C+K Visioline: A technical note.

    PubMed

    Houser, T; Zerweck, C; Grove, G; Wickett, R

    2017-11-01

    This research investigated the ability of shadow analysis (via the Courage + Khazaka Visioline and Image Pro Premiere 9.0 software) to accurately assess the differences in skin topography associated with photo aging. Analyses were performed on impressions collected from a microfinish comparator scale (GAR Electroforming) as well a series of impressions collected from the crow's feet region of 9 women who represent each point on the Zerweck Crow's Feet classification scale. Analyses were performed using a Courage + Khazaka Visioline VL 650 as well as Image Pro Premiere 9.0 software. Shadow analysis showed an ability to accurately measure the groove depth when measuring impressions collected from grooves of known depth. Several shadow analysis parameters showed a correlation with the expert grader ratings of crow's feet when averaging measurements taken from the North and South directions. The Max Depth parameter in particular showed a strong correlation with the expert grader's ratings which improved when a more sophisticated analysis was performed using Image Pro Premiere. When used properly, shadow analysis is effective at accurately measuring skin surface impressions for differences in skin topography. Shadow analysis is shown to accurately assess the differences across a range of crow's feet severity correlating to a 0-8 grader scale. The Visioline VL 650 is a good tool for this measurement, with room for improvement in analysis which can be achieved through third party image analysis software. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  4. Breast Cancer Estrogen Receptor Status According to Biological Generation: US Black and White Women Born 1915-1979.

    PubMed

    Krieger, Nancy; Jahn, Jaquelyn L; Waterman, Pamela D; Chen, Jarvis T

    2018-05-01

    Evidence suggests that contemporary population distributions of estrogen-receptor (ER) status among breast cancer patients may be shaped by earlier major societal events, such as the 1965 abolition of legal racial discrimination in the United States (state and local "Jim Crow" laws) and the Great Famine in China (1959-1961). We analyzed changes in ER status in relation to Jim Crow birthplace among the 46,417 black and 339,830 white US-born, non-Hispanic women in the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) 13 Registry Group who were born between 1915 and 1979 and diagnosed (ages 25-84 years, inclusive) during 1992-2012. We grouped the cases according to birth cohort and quantified the rate of change using the haldane (which scales change in relation to biological generation). The percentage of ER-positive cases rose according to birth cohort (1915-1919 to 1975-1979) only among women diagnosed before age 55. Changes according to biological generation were greater among black women than among white women, and among black women, they were greatest among those born in Jim Crow (versus non-Jim Crow) states, with this group being the only group to exhibit high haldane values (>|0.3|, indicating high rate of change). Our study's analytical approach and findings underscore the need to consider history and societal context when analyzing ER status among breast cancer patients and racial/ethnic inequities in its distribution.

  5. Do high sound pressure levels of crowing in roosters necessitate passive mechanisms for protection against self-vocalization?

    PubMed

    Claes, Raf; Muyshondt, Pieter G G; Dirckx, Joris J J; Aerts, Peter

    2018-02-01

    High sound pressure levels (>120dB) cause damage or death of the hair cells of the inner ear, hence causing hearing loss. Vocalization differences are present between hens and roosters. Crowing in roosters is reported to produce sound pressure levels of 100dB measured at a distance of 1m. In this study we measured the sound pressure levels that exist at the entrance of the outer ear canal. We hypothesize that roosters may benefit from a passive protective mechanism while hens do not require such a mechanism. Audio recordings at the level of the entrance of the outer ear canal of crowing roosters, made in this study, indeed show that a protective mechanism is needed as sound pressure levels can reach amplitudes of 142.3dB. Audio recordings made at varying distances from the crowing rooster show that at a distance of 0.5m sound pressure levels already drop to 102dB. Micro-CT scans of a rooster and chicken head show that in roosters the auditory canal closes when the beak is opened. In hens the diameter of the auditory canal only narrows but does not close completely. A morphological difference between the sexes in shape of a bursa-like slit which occurs in the outer ear canal causes the outer ear canal to close in roosters but not in hens. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

  6. Development of the CROW{trademark} process

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Johnson, L.A. Jr.

    1994-05-01

    The Contained Recovery of Oily Waste (CROW{trademark}) technology has been successfully tested in the laboratory and presently is being implemented at field sites contaminated with wood treating wastes and byproducts of town gas production. These field demonstrations will utilize only hot-water displacement without any chemical additives because the use of chemicals to enhance the hot-water flushing process has only been tested on a preliminary basis. Preliminary testing has shown that low concentrations of chemicals could reduce the contaminant content by an additional 10 to 20 wt %. Western Research Institute (WRI) research, plus research at Carnegie Mellon University, on surfactantmore » enhancement of solubility of polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons in water and water-soil systems indicate the potential of chemical enhancement of the CROW process. Chemicals that have been tested and that were used in these tests are totally biodegradable. The objective of this task was to obtain sufficient baseline data to show the effectiveness and environmentally safe use of chemicals, primarily surfactants, to enhance the CROW process. To meet this objective, 14 one-dimensional displacement tests were conducted. Eleven tests were conducted on a material from a former manufactured gas plant (MGP) site and four tests were conducted with a contaminated soil from a former wood treatment facility. The tests investigated the effect of three chemical concentrations (0, 0.5, and 1.0 vol %) at three temperatures (ambient, the projected optimum temperature, and one 40{degree}F [22{degree}C] below the optimum temperature).« less

  7. Crater Constellation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Murdin, P.

    2000-11-01

    (the Cup; abbrev. Crt, gen. Crateris; area 282 sq. deg.) A southern constellation which lies to the south-west of Virgo, and culminates at midnight in mid-March. It represents the cup of the god Apollo in Greek mythology (see Corvus). Its brightest stars were cataloged by Ptolemy (c. AD 100-175) in the Almagest....

  8. [Comparison of Chuvashs with Maris and Russians by vital statistics and the Crow index].

    PubMed

    El'chinova, G I; Zinchenko, R A; Zinchenko, S P; Ginter, E K

    2002-01-01

    Genetic demographic characteristics were calculated for Chuvash and Russian inhabitants of the Republic of Chuvashia. The generation lengths were 27.09 and 26.4 years and the sibship sizes were 2.54 and 1.82 for Chuvashes and Russians, respectively. Crow's indices and their components were as follows: Im = 0.05, If = 0.31, and Itot = 0.37 for Chuvashes and Im = 0.03, If = 0.43, and Itot = 0.46 for Russians. The genetic demographic characteristics obtained were compared with those for Highland and Meadow Maris.

  9. AGARD Flight Test Techniques Series. Volume 17. Electronic Warfare Test and Evaluation. (Les Essais et l’Evaluation du Materiel de Guerre Electronique)

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2000-03-01

    FRIENDLY DR ENEMY PLOY OFOR DEGSRADING, ENEUTALY IG DEGRA E,’ EUTRALIE, OR DESTR Y concepts, procedures, and techniques that apply generically to CMA...Association of Old Crows, September 1984 Price, Alfred, "The History of Electronic Warfare," Volume 2, Association of Old Crows, October 1989 Claxton, John...Canada Les demandes de documents RTO ou AGARD doivent comporter la denomination "RTO" ou "AGARD" selon le cas, suivie du numdro de s~rie (par exemple

  10. How much related to skin wrinkles between facial and body site? Age-related changes in skin wrinkle on the knee assessed by skin bioengineering techniques.

    PubMed

    Yoo, M A; Seo, Y K; Shin, M K; Koh, J S

    2016-02-01

    Skin aging has been focused the wrinkle on the face than on the body, so most studies have been studied the change in Crow's feet for ages. Only little is known about the age-dependent changes of wrinkles on body sites. The aim of this study was to establish new grading criteria for severity of wrinkles on knees and to investigate the relationship of wrinkle severity with age- and site-dependent. The skin on the knee of 38 healthy Korean female volunteers, divided into two groups young and old, were photographed. Standard photograph for body wrinkle was established (grade 0~7), and then visual assessment, skin wrinkle, and skin elasticity were evaluated on Crow's feet and the knee. We examined for any significant differences and the correlation of skin aging parameters with age and two different sites. Skin wrinkle severity with standard photograph and wrinkle parameters (Ra, Rmax, Rz, and Rv) had a significantly positive correlation with age-dependent on the knee (P < 0.001). Also, skin elastic parameters (R2, R5, R6, R7, and Q1) showed a significant negative correlation with age on the knee (P < 0.001). Skin wrinkle severity with standard photograph was highly correlated with all skin wrinkle parameters and skin elastic parameters (R2, R5, R7, and Q1) on the knee (P < 0.001). In addition, all the skin aging parameters on the knee were significantly correlated with Crow's feet (P < 0.01). Skin aging on the knee had the same tendency as the Crow's feet. This study has shown the new grading criteria of wrinkles on the knee. Skin wrinkle and elasticity on the knee are age-dependent related and aging on the knee is highly related to Crow's feet. Those parameters are using a quantitative method to evaluate body aging. Also, the knee is considered that it could be a suitable site to evaluate body aging. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  11. Treatment of Crowe Type-IV Hip Dysplasia Using Cementless Total Hip Arthroplasty and Double Chevron Subtrochanteric Shortening Osteotomy: A 5- to 10-Year Follow-Up Study.

    PubMed

    Li, Xigong; Lu, Yang; Sun, Junying; Lin, Xiangjin; Tang, Tiansi

    2017-02-01

    The purpose of this study was to evaluate the functional and radiographic results of patients with Crowe type-IV hip dysplasia treated by cementless total hip arthroplasty and double chevron subtrochanteric osteotomy. From January 2000 to February 2006, cementless total hip arthroplasty with a double chevron subtrochanteric shortening osteotomy was performed on 18 patients (22 hips) with Crowe type-IV dysplasia. The acetabular cup was placed in the position of the anatomic hip center, and subtrochanteric femoral shortening osteotomy was performed with the use of a double chevron design. The clinical and radiographic outcomes were reviewed with a mean follow-up of 6.5 years (5-10 years). The mean amount of femoral subtrochanteric shortening was 38 mm (25-60 mm). All osteotomy sites were healed by 3-6 months without complications. The mean Harris Hip Score improved significantly from 47 points (35-65 points) preoperatively to 88 points (75-97 points) at the final follow-up. The Trendelenburg sign was corrected from a positive preoperative status to a negative postoperative status in 12 of 22 hips. No acetabular and femoral components have loosened or required revision during the period of follow-up. Cementless total hip arthroplasty using double chevron subtrochanteric osteotomy allowed for restoration of anatomic hip center with safely functional limb lengthening, achieved correction of preoperative limp, and good functional and radiographic outcomes for 22 Crowe type-IV dislocation hips at the time of the 5- to 10-year follow-up. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  12. [A case of Crow-Fukase syndrome with respiratory failure due to bilateral diaphragmatic paralysis].

    PubMed

    Namekawa, Michito; Muramatsu, Shin-ichi; Hashimoto, Ritsuo; Kawakami, Tadataka; Fujimoto, Ken-ichi; Nakano, Imaharu

    2002-07-01

    A 62-year-old man with well-controlled diabetes mellitus developed numbness of the bilateral feet and hands, followed by subacutely progressive weakness and amyotrophy of extremities. He became bed-ridden state, and dyspnea also appeared, so he was referred to our hospital. Physical examination revealed a lean man, with dark-reddish skin pigmentation, crabbed fingers, bilateral pretibial pitting edema, and bristles in extremities. Thoracoabdominal paradoxical respiration was observed and pulmonary vesicular sounds was decreased markedly in the both lungs. Laboratory data revealed hypoproteinemia, abnormalities of endocrine system, but M-protein was not detected. Serum vascular endothelial growth factor level was quite high. Chest radiography revealed elevation of the bilateral diaphragm, the % vital capacity (%VC) was 24%, and arterial blood gas analysis showed marked hypoxia with hypercapnia. These findings suggested that his respiratory failure was induced by bilateral diaphragmatic paralysis caused by bilateral phrenic nerve palsy due to Crow-Fukase syndrome. He became somnolent because of hypercapnic narcosis, so non-invasive positive pressure ventilation (NIPPV) was started. We treated him with intravenous immunoglobulin and oral corticosteroids therapies, and after these therapies, his symptoms were remarkably recovered and NIPPV became unnecessary soon. The most frequent causes of respiratory failure in Crow-Fukase syndrome are pleural effusion and pulmonary hypertension, and only two cases of this syndrome with respiratory failure caused by bilateral diaphragmatic paralysis were reported until now. When the patients with Crow-Fukase syndrome complain of dyspnea, we should take the diaphragmatic paralysis into consideration, which may be improved by appropriate therapies.

  13. The radiological research for pelvis asymmetry of unilateral developmental dysplasia of the hip in adult

    PubMed Central

    Li, Ya-Min; Li, Jue-Hong; Li, Bin; Wang, Jia-Xing; Chen, Yun-Su

    2016-01-01

    Objectives To investigate whether adult patients with unilateral developmental dysplasia of the hip (UDDH) have pelvic asymmetry and what correlation existing between them. Methods A total of 100 adult patients with UDDH were enrolled in the retrospective observational study in Shanghai Jiaotong University Affiliated Sixth People’s Hospital, Shanghai, China, between January 2012 and February 2014. The anteroposterior pelvic radiographs were reviewed and the pelvic heights and ischium heights were measured and compared between the affected and non-affected sides to find out the relationship between the pelvic morphology and hip dysplasia. Results The pelvic heights demonstrated significant differences between the non-affected side and the affected side in patients with Crowe type II-IV UDDH (p<0.05), but not in patients with Crowe type I UDDH (p=0.09). There were significant differences in the bilateral ischium heights in patients with Crowe type III and IV UDDH (p<0.05), but not in patients with Crowe type I and II UDDH (p=0.78, p=0.055). In addition, the degree of hip dysplasia was positively associated with the degrees of asymmetry of pelvis (r=0.78, p<0.001) and ischium (r=0.72, p<0.001) in UDDH patients. Conclusion The pelvic asymmetry exists in adult patients with UDDH. In addition, the degree of asymmetry has correlation with the degree of hip dysplasia. We recommend that it should be taken more cautions to use teardrops and ischial tuberosity as anatomy landmarks to balance leg-length discrepancy for unilateral DDH patients in preoperative planning and total hip arthroplasty. PMID:27874150

  14. Final integrated trip report: site visits to Area 50, Andersen Air Force Base, Guam National Wildlife Refuge, War in the Pacific National Historical Park, Guam, Rota and Saipan, CNMI, 2004-2005

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Hess, Steven C.; Pratt, Linda W.

    2006-01-01

    Limestone forests are the most diverse natural plant communities of Guam. Like other natural vegetation types, these forests have a long history of anthropogenic disturbances, being altered and shaped by humans for more than 4,000 years. Although this occupation represents a relatively long human influence in comparison to other Pacific islands, animals associated with humans, such as commensal rodents, arrived in these islands beginning only 1,000 years ago, and larger mammals, such as pigs (Sus scrofa), may not have arrived until European contact. Limestone forests, which also occur on several other Mariana Islands, developed in the presence of frequent tropical storms and are therefore well adapted to this type of natural disturbance regime. However, recent human activities including large scale clearing and conversion combined with the presence of high levels of alien herbivores and seed predators, and the loss of ecological services provided by the former native avifauna may be causing the decline of Guam's forests. Limestone forests on northern Guam, much like those of other Mariana Islands, were heavily cleared for the construction of military installations during World War II. The accidental introduction of the Brown Tree Snake (Boiga irregularis; BTS) around this same period subsequently accelerated the disappearance of Guam's native avifauna and other endemic terrestrial vertebrates, and with them, seed dispersal, pollination, and the predatory regulation of herbivorous insects. Guam and the Mariana Islands contained a high proportion (32 pecent) of endemic bird species, with 4 forms endemic to Guam alone: the now extinct Guam Flycatcher (Myiagra freycineti), and Guam Bridled White-eye (Zosterops conspicillatpicillata), one of three island endemic subspecies from the Marianas; Guam rail (Rallus owstonii); and Guam Kingfisher (Todiramphus cinnamominus cinnamominus), an island endemic subspecies of the regionally endemic Micronesian Kingfisher. Guam once supported the Mariana Gallinule (Gallinula chloropus guami), the Mariana Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos oustaleti), Mariana Fruit-Dove (Ptilinopus roseicapilla), White-throated Ground Dove (Gallicolumba xanthonura xanthonura), Mariana Crow (Corvus kubaryi), and the Nightingale Reed-warbler (Acrocephalus luscinia), all endemic to the Mariana Islands. Other regionally endemic endangered species include the Micronesian Megapode (Megapodius laperouse), and the Mariana Swiftlet (Aerodramus bartschi), now reduced to a small population on Guam. Likewise, the flora of Guam is unique, with 21percent of its native vascular plants endemic to the Mariana Islands. In limestone forests of Northern Guam, a number of tall forest tree species such as joga, Elaeocarpus joga (Elaeocarpaceae); pengua or Macaranga thompsonii (Euphorbiaceae); ifit or Intsia bijuga (Fabaceae); seeded breadfruit or Artocarpus marianensis (Moraceae); and umumu or Pisonia grandis (Nyctaginaceae) may be in decline as a result of herbivory by mammals. All show reduced regeneration and age distributions highly skewed towards older individuals. These species provided important habitat for some of Guam's endangered forest birds that remain in captivity such as the Mariana Crow, Guam Kingfisher, and Guam Rail. The recent high frequency of intense tropical storms and herbivory caused by large populations of feral pigs and Philippine sambar deer (Cervus mariannus), as well as invasive alien vines that may suppress tree regeneration, could be permanently altering the structure of regenerating forests and composition of important canopy species on secondary limestone substrates that were cleared and compacted during airfield construction from 1944 through the 1970s. Guam National Wildlife Refuge (GNWR) was established at Ritidian Point, after it was determined to be excess property by the U.S. Navy. Most of the refuge, about 9,087 hectares, is an 'overlay refuge' on lands administered by the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy. Although the military mission comes first on these lands, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service assists in protecting native species and habitats. The recovery of limestone forest on Guam for forest bird habitat may require intensive management, including reduction of feral herbivores, propagation, out-planting, weed control, and periodic suppression of herbivorous insects. Research to support these techniques may be best accomplished in small areas where potential limiting factors can easily be experimentally manipulated. Area 50, a 24 ha enclosure, contains a relictual patch of relatively undisturbed limestone forest surrounded by tarmac allowing easy access and management opportunities to control alien mammals and snakes. These species have been periodically managed in the past, but recent typhoons have damaged snake-proofing on the enclosure fence. A new concrete barrier is planned to provide more permanent control opportunities within this enclosed area or another similar area, thereby allowing experimental research for various management regimes. Eradication and control of alien vertebrate and plant pests will provide habitat where native communities can be restored in a small, intensively managed area. The stated aim of this project is to "affect ecosystem restoration through the removal and exclusion of introduced species and the reestablishment and propagation of native species, with focus on the reintroduction of native forest bird species." This will be achieved by constructing a multispecies barrier surrounding the area, coordinated eradication of selected alien species within the area, and possible reintroduction of Mariana Crow, Guam Kingfisher, and Guam Rail. This barrier also allows experimental research questions to be addressed within the small enclosure around Area 50 that may be applied to manage and restore the larger areas of limestone forest on northern Guam and also similar forests on other islands of the Marianas.

  15. [The occurrence of campylobacter fetus subsp. jejuni and Salmonella bacteria in some wild birds (author's transl)].

    PubMed

    Rosef, O

    1981-12-01

    An investigation was carried out into the occurrence of Campylobacter fetus subsp. jejuni and Salmonella species in some wild birds. A total of 129 birds was examined, consisting of 71 pigeons, 54 seagulls, three crows and one raven. Campylobacter bacteria were isolated from 32 birds (24.8%), of which three were pigeons, 27 seagulls and two were crows. Of the 27 Campylobacter strains isolated from seagulls, four had the biochemical characteristics of the NARTC biotype described by Skirrow and Benjamin, seven were grouped as Campylobacter coli biotype and 16 as the biotype of Campylobacter jejuni. All the strains isolated from crows and pigeons had the biochemical characteristics of Campylobacter jejuni biotypes. Salmonella bacteria were isolated from the intestinal contents of two of the 54 seagulls (3.7%), and were identified serologically as Salmonella indiana and Salmonella typhimurium. One seagull was found to be a carrier of both Campylobacter fetus subsp. jejuni and Salmonella typhimurium. A correlation could not be demonstrated between the occurrence of Salmonella bacteria and Campylobacter fetus subsp. jejuni.

  16. Displacement of the hip center of rotation after arthroplasty of Crowe III and IV dysplasia: a radiological and biomechanical study.

    PubMed

    Abolghasemian, Mansour; Samiezadeh, Saeid; Jafari, Davood; Bougherara, Habiba; Gross, Allan E; Ghazavi, Mohammad T

    2013-06-01

    To study the direction and biomechanical consequences of hip center of rotation (HCOR) migration in Crowe type III and VI hips after total hip arthroplasty, post-operative radiographs and CT scans of several unilaterally affected hips were evaluated. Using a three-dimensional model of the human hip, the HCOR was moved in all directions, and joint reaction force (JRF) and abductor muscle force (AMF) were calculated for single-leg stance configuration. Comparing to the normal side, HCOR had displaced medially and inferiorly by an average of 23.4% and 20.8%, respectively, of the normal femoral head diameter. Significant decreases in JRF (13%) and AMF (46.13%) were observed in a presumptive case with that amount of displacement. Isolated inferior displacement had a small, increasing effect on these forces. In Crowe type III and IV hips, the HCOR migrates inferiorly and medially after THA, resulting in a decrease in JRF, AMF, and abductor muscle contraction force. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  17. Salient eyes deter conspecific nest intruders in wild jackdaws (Corvus monedula).

    PubMed

    Davidson, Gabrielle L; Clayton, Nicola S; Thornton, Alex

    2014-02-01

    Animals often respond fearfully when encountering eyes or eye-like shapes. Although gaze aversion has been documented in mammals when avoiding group-member conflict, the importance of eye coloration during interactions between conspecifics has yet to be examined in non-primate species. Jackdaws (Corvus monedula) have near-white irides, which are conspicuous against their dark feathers and visible when seen from outside the cavities where they nest. Because jackdaws compete for nest sites, their conspicuous eyes may act as a warning signal to indicate that a nest is occupied and deter intrusions by conspecifics. We tested whether jackdaws' pale irides serve as a deterrent to prospecting conspecifics by comparing prospectors' behaviour towards nest-boxes displaying images with bright eyes (BEs) only, a jackdaw face with natural BEs, or a jackdaw face with dark eyes. The jackdaw face with BEs was most effective in deterring birds from making contact with nest-boxes, whereas both BE conditions reduced the amount of time jackdaws spent in proximity to the image. We suggest BEs in jackdaws may function to prevent conspecific competitors from approaching occupied nest sites.

  18. Ontogeny of object permanence in a non-storing corvid species, the jackdaw (Corvus monedula)

    PubMed Central

    Ujfalussy, Dorottya Júlia; Miklósi, Ádám; Bugnyar, Thomas

    2015-01-01

    The aim of the present study was to investigate the ontogeny of object permanence in a non-caching corvid species, the jackdaw (Corvus monedula). Jackdaws are often presented as typical examples of non-storing corvids, as they cache either very little or not at all. We used Uzgiris and Hunt’s Scale 1 tasks to determine the age at which the certain stages set in and the final stage of this capacity that is reached. Our results show that the lack of food-storing behaviour is not associated with inferior object permanence abilities in the jackdaw, as our subjects (N = 19) have reached stage 5 competence (to follow successive visible displacements) at the average age of 61 days post-hatch and showed some evidence of stage 6 competence (to follow advanced invisible displacements) at 81 days post-hatch and thereafter. As we appreciate that object permanence abilities have a very wide ecological significance, our positive results are probably the consequence of other, more fundamental ecological pressures, such as nest-hole reproduction or prey–predator interactions. PMID:23161215

  19. Ontogeny of object permanence in a non-storing corvid species, the jackdaw (Corvus monedula).

    PubMed

    Ujfalussy, Dorottya Júlia; Miklósi, Ádám; Bugnyar, Thomas

    2013-05-01

    The aim of the present study was to investigate the ontogeny of object permanence in a non-caching corvid species, the jackdaw (Corvus monedula). Jackdaws are often presented as typical examples of non-storing corvids, as they cache either very little or not at all. We used Uzgiris and Hunt's Scale 1 tasks to determine the age at which the certain stages set in and the final stage of this capacity that is reached. Our results show that the lack of food-storing behaviour is not associated with inferior object permanence abilities in the jackdaw, as our subjects (N = 19) have reached stage 5 competence (to follow successive visible displacements) at the average age of 61 days post-hatch and showed some evidence of stage 6 competence (to follow advanced invisible displacements) at 81 days post-hatch and thereafter. As we appreciate that object permanence abilities have a very wide ecological significance, our positive results are probably the consequence of other, more fundamental ecological pressures, such as nest-hole reproduction or prey-predator interactions.

  20. Multiple-Purpose Project: Platte River Basin, Little Platte River, Missouri, Smithville Lake; Operation and Maintenance Manual. Appendix 5. Embankment Criteria and Performance Report. Supplement 1.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1987-03-01

    etctagrsa seta forth inor AR1 3515 n udr h ft. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ I& AmTUACYIC" 0~~a - -( id n.ee IejDIbNboc mbr he pur os DS RB TO ST T N(of this Re’i p...along Crows Creek was submerged , permitting saturation of the basal layer and subjecting the confined aquifer system to a hydrostatic pressure head...along the banks of Crows Creek became submerged . The discharge area became the recharge area initially, completing saturation of the aquifer and then

  1. Flexibility in problem solving and tool use of kea and New Caledonian crows in a multi access box paradigm.

    PubMed

    Auersperg, Alice M I; von Bayern, Auguste M P; Gajdon, Gyula K; Huber, Ludwig; Kacelnik, Alex

    2011-01-01

    Parrots and corvids show outstanding innovative and flexible behaviour. In particular, kea and New Caledonian crows are often singled out as being exceptionally sophisticated in physical cognition, so that comparing them in this respect is particularly interesting. However, comparing cognitive mechanisms among species requires consideration of non-cognitive behavioural propensities and morphological characteristics evolved from different ancestry and adapted to fit different ecological niches. We used a novel experimental approach based on a Multi-Access-Box (MAB). Food could be extracted by four different techniques, two of them involving tools. Initially all four options were available to the subjects. Once they reached criterion for mastering one option, this task was blocked, until the subjects became proficient in another solution. The exploratory behaviour differed considerably. Only one (of six) kea and one (of five) NCC mastered all four options, including a first report of innovative stick tool use in kea. The crows were more efficient in using the stick tool, the kea the ball tool. The kea were haptically more explorative than the NCC, discovered two or three solutions within the first ten trials (against a mean of 0.75 discoveries by the crows) and switched more quickly to new solutions when the previous one was blocked. Differences in exploration technique, neophobia and object manipulation are likely to explain differential performance across the set of tasks. Our study further underlines the need to use a diversity of tasks when comparing cognitive traits between members of different species. Extension of a similar method to other taxa could help developing a comparative cognition research program.

  2. Flexibility in Problem Solving and Tool Use of Kea and New Caledonian Crows in a Multi Access Box Paradigm

    PubMed Central

    Auersperg, Alice M. I.; von Bayern, Auguste M. P.; Gajdon, Gyula K.

    2011-01-01

    Parrots and corvids show outstanding innovative and flexible behaviour. In particular, kea and New Caledonian crows are often singled out as being exceptionally sophisticated in physical cognition, so that comparing them in this respect is particularly interesting. However, comparing cognitive mechanisms among species requires consideration of non-cognitive behavioural propensities and morphological characteristics evolved from different ancestry and adapted to fit different ecological niches. We used a novel experimental approach based on a Multi-Access-Box (MAB). Food could be extracted by four different techniques, two of them involving tools. Initially all four options were available to the subjects. Once they reached criterion for mastering one option, this task was blocked, until the subjects became proficient in another solution. The exploratory behaviour differed considerably. Only one (of six) kea and one (of five) NCC mastered all four options, including a first report of innovative stick tool use in kea. The crows were more efficient in using the stick tool, the kea the ball tool. The kea were haptically more explorative than the NCC, discovered two or three solutions within the first ten trials (against a mean of 0.75 discoveries by the crows) and switched more quickly to new solutions when the previous one was blocked. Differences in exploration technique, neophobia and object manipulation are likely to explain differential performance across the set of tasks. Our study further underlines the need to use a diversity of tasks when comparing cognitive traits between members of different species. Extension of a similar method to other taxa could help developing a comparative cognition research program. PMID:21687666

  3. Infectivity and transmissibility of H9N2 avian influenza virus in chickens and wild terrestrial birds.

    PubMed

    Iqbal, Munir; Yaqub, Tahir; Mukhtar, Nadia; Shabbir, Muhammad Z; McCauley, John W

    2013-10-17

    Genetic changes in avian influenza viruses influence their infectivity, virulence and transmission. Recently we identified a novel genotype of H9N2 viruses in widespread circulation in poultry in Pakistan that contained polymerases (PB2, PB1 and PA) and non-structural (NS) gene segments identical to highly pathogenic H7N3 viruses. Here, we investigated the potential of these viruses to cause disease and assessed the transmission capability of the virus within and between poultry and wild terrestrial avian species. Groups of broilers, layers, jungle fowl, quail, sparrows or crows were infected with a representative strain (A/chicken/UDL-01/08) of this H9N2 virus and then mixed with naïve birds of the same breed or species, or different species to examine transmission. With the exception of crows, all directly inoculated and contact birds showed clinical signs, varying in severity with quail showing the most pronounced clinical signs. Virus shedding was detected in all infected birds, with quail showing the greatest levels of virus secretion, but only very low levels of virus were found in directly infected crow samples. Efficient virus intra-species transmission was observed within each group with the exception of crows in which no evidence of transmission was seen. Interspecies transmission was examined between chickens and sparrows and vice versa and efficient transmission was seen in either direction. These results highlight the ease of spread of this group of H9N2 viruses between domesticated poultry and sparrows and show that sparrows need to be considered as a high risk species for transmitting H9N2 viruses between premises.

  4. The radiological research for pelvis asymmetry of unilateral developmental dysplasia of the hip in adult.

    PubMed

    Li, Ya-Min; Li, Jue-Hong; Li, Bin; Wang, Jia-Xing; Chen, Yun-Su

    2016-12-01

    To investigate whether adult patients with unilateral developmental dysplasia of the hip (UDDH) have pelvic asymmetry and what correlation existing between them. Methods: A total of 100 adult patients with UDDH were enrolled in the retrospective observational study in Shanghai Jiaotong University Affiliated Sixth People's Hospital, Shanghai, China, between January 2012 and February 2014. The anteroposterior pelvic radiographs were reviewed and the pelvic heights and ischium heights were measured and compared between the affected and non-affected sides to find out the relationship between the pelvic morphology and hip dysplasia. Results: The pelvic heights demonstrated significant differences between the non-affected side and the affected side in patients with Crowe type II-IV UDDH (p less than 0.05), but not in patients with Crowe type I UDDH (p=0.09). There were significant differences in the bilateral ischium heights in patients with Crowe type III and IV UDDH (p less than 0.05), but not in patients with Crowe type I and II UDDH (p=0.78, p=0.055). In addition, the degree of hip dysplasia was positively associated with the degrees of asymmetry of pelvis (r=0.78, p less than 0.001) and ischium (r=0.72, p less than 0.001) in UDDH patients. Conclusion: The pelvic asymmetry exists in adult patients with UDDH. In addition, the degree of asymmetry has correlation with the degree of hip dysplasia. We recommend that it should be taken more cautions to use teardrops and ischial tuberosity as anatomy landmarks to balance leg-length discrepancy for unilateral DDH patients in preoperative planning and total hip arthroplasty.

  5. Infectivity and transmissibility of H9N2 avian influenza virus in chickens and wild terrestrial birds

    PubMed Central

    2013-01-01

    Genetic changes in avian influenza viruses influence their infectivity, virulence and transmission. Recently we identified a novel genotype of H9N2 viruses in widespread circulation in poultry in Pakistan that contained polymerases (PB2, PB1 and PA) and non-structural (NS) gene segments identical to highly pathogenic H7N3 viruses. Here, we investigated the potential of these viruses to cause disease and assessed the transmission capability of the virus within and between poultry and wild terrestrial avian species. Groups of broilers, layers, jungle fowl, quail, sparrows or crows were infected with a representative strain (A/chicken/UDL-01/08) of this H9N2 virus and then mixed with naïve birds of the same breed or species, or different species to examine transmission. With the exception of crows, all directly inoculated and contact birds showed clinical signs, varying in severity with quail showing the most pronounced clinical signs. Virus shedding was detected in all infected birds, with quail showing the greatest levels of virus secretion, but only very low levels of virus were found in directly infected crow samples. Efficient virus intra-species transmission was observed within each group with the exception of crows in which no evidence of transmission was seen. Interspecies transmission was examined between chickens and sparrows and vice versa and efficient transmission was seen in either direction. These results highlight the ease of spread of this group of H9N2 viruses between domesticated poultry and sparrows and show that sparrows need to be considered as a high risk species for transmitting H9N2 viruses between premises. PMID:24134616

  6. Alkylphenols, Other Endocrine-Active Chemicals, and Fish Responses in Three Streams in Minnesota - Study Design and Data, February-September 2007

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Lee, Kathy E.; Schoenfuss, Heiko L.; Jahns, Nathan D.; Brown, Greg K.; Barber, Larry B.

    2008-01-01

    This report presents the study design and environmental data for an integrated chemical and biological study of three streams (South Fork Crow River, Redwood River, and Grindstone River) that receive wastewater in Minnesota. The objective of the study was to identify distribution patterns of endocrine-active chemicals and other organic chemicals indicative of wastewater, and to identify fish responses in the same streams. Endocrine-active chemicals are a class of chemicals that interfere with the natural regulation of endocrine systems, and an understanding of their distribution in aquatic systems is important so that aquatic organism exposure can be evaluated. This study was a cooperative effort of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, and St. Cloud State University (St. Cloud, Minn.). The USGS collected and analyzed water and quality-assurance samples and measured streamflow during six sampling events in each of three streams. Water samples were collected upstream from and at two successive points downstream from wastewater-treatment plant (WWTP) effluent discharge and from treated effluent from February through September 2007. Bed-sediment samples were collected during one sampling period at each of the stream locations. Water and bed-sediment samples were analyzed for endocrine-active chemicals including alkylphenols, alkylphenol polyethoxylates, and nonylphenol ethoxycarboxlylates (NPECs). Water samples also were analyzed for major ions, nutrients, and organic carbon. In addition, as part of an intensive time-series investigation, the USGS staff collected daily water samples for 8 weeks from the Redwood River near Marshall, Minn., for analyses of total alkylphenols and atrazine. St. Cloud State University staff collected and analyzed fish to determine male fish responses at all water sampling sites and at an additional site near the discharge of wastewater-treatment plant effluent to these streams. Male fish responses included the presence and concentration of vitellogenin in plasma, gonadosomatic indices, and histological characterizations of liver and testes tissue. Hydrologic, chemical and biological characteristics were different among sites. The percentage of streamflow contributed by WWTP effluent (ranging from less than 1 to 79 percent) was greatest at the South Fork Crow River and least at the Grindstone River. WWTP effluent generally contributed the greatest percentage of streamflow during winter and late summer when streamflows were low. A wide variety of chemicals were detected. More chemicals were detected in WWTP effluent samples than in stream samples during most time periods. The most commonly detected chemicals in samples collected monthly and analyzed at the USGS National Research Program Laboratory were 2,6-di-tert-butyl-1,4-benzoquinone, 2,6-di-tert-butyl-4-methylphenol, 3-beta-coprostanol, 4-methylphenol, 4-nonylphenol (NP), 4-tert-octylphenol, bisphenol A, cholesterol, ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid, and triclosan. The chemicals 4-nonylphenolmonoethoxycarboxylate (NP1EC), 4-nonylphenoldiethoxycarboxylate (NP2EC), and 4-nonylphenoltriethoxycarboxylate (NP3EC) also were detected. Excluding nondetections, the sum of NP1EC through NP3EC concentrations ranged from 5.1 to 260 ug/L among all samples. NP was detected in upstream, effluent, and downstream samples in each stream during at least one time period. NP was detected in 49 percent of environmental samples. Excluding nondetections, concentrations of NP ranged from 100 to 880 nanograms per liter among all samples. NP was also detected in more than one-half of the bed-sediment samples. The most commonly detected wastewater indicator chemicals in samples analyzed by schedule 4433 at the USGS National Water Quality Laboratory were 3,4-dichlorophenyl isocyanate, acetyl-hexamethyl-tetrahydronaphthalene, benzophenone, cholesterol, hexahydrohexamethyl-cyclopenta-benzopyran, N,N-diethyl-meta-toluamide, and

  7. Design complexity and strength of laterality are correlated in New Caledonian crows' pandanus tool manufacture

    PubMed Central

    Hunt, Gavin R; Corballis, Michael C; Gray, Russell D

    2006-01-01

    Population-level laterality is generally considered to reflect functional brain specialization. Consequently, the strength of population-level laterality in manipulatory tasks is predicted to positively correlate with task complexity. This relationship has not been investigated in tool manufacture. Here, we report the correlation between strength of laterality and design complexity in the manufacture of New Caledonian crows' three pandanus tool designs: wide, narrow and stepped designs. We documented indirect evidence of over 5800 tool manufactures on 1232 pandanus trees at 23 sites. We found that the strength of laterality in tool manufacture was correlated with design complexity in three ways: (i) the strongest effect size among the population-level edge biases for each design was for the more complex, stepped design, (ii) the strength of laterality at individual sites was on average greater for the stepped design than it was for the simpler wide and narrow, non-stepped designs, and (iii) there was a positive, but non-significant, trend for a correlation between the strength of laterality and the number of steps on a stepped tool. These three aspects together indicate that greater design complexity generally elicits stronger lateralization of crows' pandanus tool manufacture. PMID:16600891

  8. Cementless total hip arthroplasty with a double chevron subtrochanteric shortening osteotomy in patients with Crowe type-IV hip dysplasia.

    PubMed

    Li, Xigong; Sun, Junying; Lin, Xiangjin; Xu, Sanzhong; Tang, Tiansi

    2013-06-01

    The authors describe a modified double chevron subtrochanteric shortening osteotomy combined with cementless total hip arthroplasty for Crowe type-IV hip dysplasia. Shortening the femur allows to relax the shortened musculature. This operation was performed in 18 patients (22 hips) between January 2000 and February 2006. The mean follow-up period was 5.6 years (range: 3 to 8 years). The mean amount of femoral subtrochanteric shortening was 38 mm (range: 25 to 60 mm). The mean Harris hip score improved from 47 (range: 35 to 65) preoperatively to 88 points (range: 75 to 97) at final follow-up. The Trendelenburg sign was corrected from positive to negative in 12 of 22 hips. No acetabular or femoral components loosened or required revision during the follow-up period. All osteotomy sites healed in 3 to 6 months without complications. Cementless total hip arthroplasty using the modified double chevron subtrochanteric osteotomy provided good short- to midterm results in all 22 Crowe type-IV hip dislocations. Moreover, it restored the anatomic hip center and the limb length, which contributed to correction of the preoperative limp.

  9. Measured Effects of Turbulence on the Loudness and Waveforms of Conventional and Shaped Minimized Sonic Booms

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Plotkin, Kenneth J.; Maglieri, Domenic J.; Sullivan, Brenda M.

    2005-01-01

    Turbulence has two distinctive effects on sonic booms: there is distortion in the form of random perturbations that appear behind the shock waves, and shock rise times are increased randomly. A first scattering theory by S.C. Crow in the late 1960s quantified the random distortions, and Crow's theory was shown to agree with available flight test data. A variety of theories for the shock thickness have been presented, all supporting the role of turbulence in increasing rise time above that of a basic molecular-relaxation structure. The net effect of these phenomena on the loudness of shaped minimized booms is of significant interest. Initial analysis suggests that there would be no change to average loudness, but this had not been experimentally investigated. The January 2004 flight test of the Shaped Sonic Boom Demonstrator (SSBD), together with a reference unmodified F-5E, included a 12500- foot linear ground sensor array with 28 digitally recorded sensor sites. This data set provides an opportunity to re-test Crow's theory for the post-shock perturbations, and to examine the net effect of turbulence on the loudness of shaped sonic booms.

  10. Design complexity and strength of laterality are correlated in New Caledonian crows' pandanus tool manufacture.

    PubMed

    Hunt, Gavin R; Corballis, Michael C; Gray, Russell D

    2006-05-07

    Population-level laterality is generally considered to reflect functional brain specialization. Consequently, the strength of population-level laterality in manipulatory tasks is predicted to positively correlate with task complexity. This relationship has not been investigated in tool manufacture. Here, we report the correlation between strength of laterality and design complexity in the manufacture of New Caledonian crows' three pandanus tool designs: wide, narrow and stepped designs. We documented indirect evidence of over 5,800 tool manufactures on 1,232 pandanus trees at 23 sites. We found that the strength of laterality in tool manufacture was correlated with design complexity in three ways: (i) the strongest effect size among the population-level edge biases for each design was for the more complex, stepped design, (ii) the strength of laterality at individual sites was on average greater for the stepped design than it was for the simpler wide and narrow, non-stepped designs, and (iii) there was a positive, but non-significant, trend for a correlation between the strength of laterality and the number of steps on a stepped tool. These three aspects together indicate that greater design complexity generally elicits stronger lateralization of crows' pandanus tool manufacture.

  11. A meta-heuristic method for solving scheduling problem: crow search algorithm

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Adhi, Antono; Santosa, Budi; Siswanto, Nurhadi

    2018-04-01

    Scheduling is one of the most important processes in an industry both in manufacturingand services. The scheduling process is the process of selecting resources to perform an operation on tasks. Resources can be machines, peoples, tasks, jobs or operations.. The selection of optimum sequence of jobs from a permutation is an essential issue in every research in scheduling problem. Optimum sequence becomes optimum solution to resolve scheduling problem. Scheduling problem becomes NP-hard problem since the number of job in the sequence is more than normal number can be processed by exact algorithm. In order to obtain optimum results, it needs a method with capability to solve complex scheduling problems in an acceptable time. Meta-heuristic is a method usually used to solve scheduling problem. The recently published method called Crow Search Algorithm (CSA) is adopted in this research to solve scheduling problem. CSA is an evolutionary meta-heuristic method which is based on the behavior in flocks of crow. The calculation result of CSA for solving scheduling problem is compared with other algorithms. From the comparison, it is found that CSA has better performance in term of optimum solution and time calculation than other algorithms.

  12. [IMAGING ANALYSIS OF ACETABULAR CUP POSITIONS IN TOTAL HIP ARTHROPLASTY FOR ADULTS WITH ACETABULAR DYSPLASIA].

    PubMed

    Sun, Hong; Fang, Shuying; Yang, Zibo; Zhang, Zhiqi; Kang, Yan; Zhang, Ziji; Liao, Weiming; Fu, Ming; Wu, Peihui

    2016-11-08

    To investigate the influence of the degree of acetabular deformity and the learning-curve on the acetabular cup positions in total hip arthroplasty (THA) for adults with developmental dysplasia of hip (DDH). Between January 2008 and December 2015, 130 patients (144 hips) with DDH underwent primary THA, and the clinical data were analyzed retrospectively. Fifty-three patients (59 hips) were admitted before 2012, and 77 patients (85 hips) were treated after 2012. There were 32 males and 98 females, aged from 31 to 83 years (mean, 61). Unilateral replacement was performed in 116 cases and bilateral replacement in 14 cases. Of 144 hips, 48 hips were rated as Crowe type I, 57 hips as type II, and 39 hips as type of III/IV. The standard pelvic radiograph was taken within 1 week after operation. The mediCAD software was adopted to measure the angle of anteversion and abduction, bony coverage, and the distance between true rotating center and optimal rotating center to the connection of teardrops and the horizontal distance between two centers to evaluate the qualified rate of acetabular cup positions. Compared with the patients with the same type in 2013-2015 group, the anteversion angle and qualified rate of acetabular cup position significantly decreased in patients with Crowe I ( P <0.05); the horizontal distance significantly increased and qualified rate of acetabular cup position significantly decreased in patients with Crowe II ( P <0.05); and the anteversion angle significantly decreased and the horizontal distance significantly increased in patients with Crowe III/IV ( P <0.05) in 2008-2012 group. But no significant difference was shown in the other indexes ( P >0.05). In all Crowe types, the vertical distance between the true rotating center and the optimal rotating center increased with the degree of acetabular deformity in both 2008-2012 group and 2013-2015 group, showing significant difference ( P <0.05), but no significant difference was found in the other indexes ( P >0.05). For adults with acetabular dysplasia, there are high potential risks for unsatisfactory acetabular cup positions during primary THA. So it is necessary to evaluate acetabular deformities and to sum up operative experience so as to improve the accuracy of cups installation.

  13. Wake analysis of aerodynamic components for the glide envelope of a jackdaw (Corvus monedula).

    PubMed

    KleinHeerenbrink, Marco; Warfvinge, Kajsa; Hedenström, Anders

    2016-05-15

    Gliding flight is a relatively inexpensive mode of flight used by many larger bird species, where potential energy is used to cover the cost of aerodynamic drag. Birds have great flexibility in their flight configuration, allowing them to control their flight speed and glide angle. However, relatively little is known about how this flexibility affects aerodynamic drag. We measured the wake of a jackdaw (Corvus monedula) gliding in a wind tunnel, and computed the components of aerodynamic drag from the wake. We found that induced drag was mainly affected by wingspan, but also that the use of the tail has a negative influence on span efficiency. Contrary to previous work, we found no support for the separated primaries being used in controlling the induced drag. Profile drag was of similar magnitude to that reported in other studies, and our results suggest that profile drag is affected by variation in wing shape. For a folded tail, the body drag coefficient had a value of 0.2, rising to above 0.4 with the tail fully spread, which we conclude is due to tail profile drag. © 2016. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

  14. Enhancement of Optical Nonlinearities in Composite Media and Structures via Local Fields and Electromagnetic Coupling Effects

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Smith, David D.

    2002-01-01

    This talk will review the linear and nonlinear optical properties of metal nanoparticles and dielectric microparticles, with an emphasis on local field effects, and whispering gallery modes (WGMs), as well as the conjunction of these two effects for enhanced Raman. In particular, enhanced optical properties that result from electromagnetic coupling effects will be discussed in the context of Mie scattering from concentric spheres and bispheres. Predictions of mode splitting and photonic bandgaps in micro-spheres will be presented and will be shown to be analogous to effects that occur in coupled resonator optical waveguides (CROW). Slow and fast light in SCISSOR / CROW configurations will also be discussed.

  15. Reporting on the Holocaust: the view from Jim Crow Alabama.

    PubMed

    Puckett, Dan J

    2011-01-01

    The press in Alabama covered major events taking place in Germany from the rise of Adolf Hitler and the Nazis in 1933 through the Nuremberg Trials in 1946. Journalists in the state provided extensive coverage, and editors did not hesitate to opine on the persecution of the Jews in Europe. Yet, Alabama’s white-run press failed in the end to explain the events as a singularly Jewish tragedy. The state’s black-run press, for its part, used the news of the mass killings of the Jews to warn against the dangers of conceptions of racial superiority—a primary concern for black southerners living in the Jim Crow South.

  16. Geohydrology of Crow Creek and Lower Brule Indian Reservations, South Dakota

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Howells, Lewis W.

    1974-01-01

    Effective improvement of economic and social conditions of Indians living on Crow Creek and Lower Brule Reservations has been hampered by lack of adequate and reliable information about the quantity and quality of water supplies available for development.  Compounding the problem, and making especially pressing the need for discovery and development of new water supplies, is the recent filling of Fort Randall and Big Bend Reservoirs on the Missouri River, and the consequent relocation of may residents.  Much of the best land and known water supplies are inundated beneath the reservoirs.  This report summarized the results of a water-resources study made at the request of the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs.

  17. Tracking reliability for space cabin-borne equipment in development by Crow model.

    PubMed

    Chen, J D; Jiao, S J; Sun, H L

    2001-12-01

    Objective. To study and track the reliability growth of manned spaceflight cabin-borne equipment in the course of its development. Method. A new technique of reliability growth estimation and prediction, which is composed of the Crow model and test data conversion (TDC) method was used. Result. The estimation and prediction value of the reliability growth conformed to its expectations. Conclusion. The method could dynamically estimate and predict the reliability of the equipment by making full use of various test information in the course of its development. It offered not only a possibility of tracking the equipment reliability growth, but also the reference for quality control in manned spaceflight cabin-borne equipment design and development process.

  18. Community Engaged Cumulative Risk Assessment of Exposure to Inorganic Well Water Contaminants, Crow Reservation, Montana

    PubMed Central

    Doyle, John T.; Lefthand, Myra J.; Young, Sara L.; Kindness, Larry; Other Medicine, Roberta; Ford, Timothy E.; Dietrich, Eric; Parker, Albert E.; Hoover, Joseph H.; Camper, Anne K.

    2018-01-01

    An estimated 11 million people in the US have home wells with unsafe levels of hazardous metals and nitrate. The national scope of the health risk from consuming this water has not been assessed as home wells are largely unregulated and data on well water treatment and consumption are lacking. Here, we assessed health risks from consumption of contaminated well water on the Crow Reservation by conducting a community-engaged, cumulative risk assessment. Well water testing, surveys and interviews were used to collect data on contaminant concentrations, water treatment methods, well water consumption, and well and septic system protection and maintenance practices. Additive Hazard Index calculations show that the water in more than 39% of wells is unsafe due to uranium, manganese, nitrate, zinc and/or arsenic. Most families’ financial resources are limited, and 95% of participants do not employ water treatment technologies. Despite widespread high total dissolved solids, poor taste and odor, 80% of families consume their well water. Lack of environmental health literacy about well water safety, pre-existing health conditions and limited environmental enforcement also contribute to vulnerability. Ensuring access to safe drinking water and providing accompanying education are urgent public health priorities for Crow and other rural US families with low environmental health literacy and limited financial resources. PMID:29304032

  19. Blockage of upper airway

    MedlinePlus

    ... or fidgeting Bluish color to the skin ( cyanosis ) Changes in consciousness Choking Confusion Difficulty breathing , gasping for air, leading to panic Unconsciousness Wheezing , crowing, whistling, or other ...

  20. Pathway concepts experiment for head-down synthetic vision displays

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Prinzel, Lawrence J., III; Arthur, Jarvis J., III; Kramer, Lynda J.; Bailey, Randall E.

    2004-08-01

    Eight 757 commercial airline captains flew 22 approaches using the Reno Sparks 16R Visual Arrival under simulated Category I conditions. Approaches were flown using a head-down synthetic vision display to evaluate four tunnel ("minimal", "box", "dynamic pathway", "dynamic crow's feet") and three guidance ("ball", "tadpole", "follow-me aircraft") concepts and compare their efficacy to a baseline condition (i.e., no tunnel, ball guidance). The results showed that the tunnel concepts significantly improved pilot performance and situation awareness and lowered workload compared to the baseline condition. The dynamic crow's feet tunnel and follow-me aircraft guidance concepts were found to be the best candidates for future synthetic vision head-down displays. These results are discussed with implications for synthetic vision display design and future research.

  1. Ambidexterity and magical ideation.

    PubMed

    Barnett, Kylie J; Corballis, Michael C

    2002-01-01

    In a sample of 250 healthy undergraduate students, scores on a scale of magical ideation rose to a peak at the point of ambilaterality on a scale of hand preference, and fell away with increasing right- or left-handedness. This effect mirrors that reported by Crow, Crow, Done, and Leask (1998) who found a dip in academic abilities at the point of ambilaterality, or what they call ''the point of hemispheric indecision''. We relate these findings to genetic theories of laterality in which one allele (RS+) codes for left-cerebral dominance while the other (RS-) leaves laterality to chance. RS-- homozygotes may be susceptible to a lack of dominance, resulting in a disposition to magical ideation and an increased risk of schizophrenia, but also enhanced creativity and lateral thinking.

  2. Renewal of the Nellis Air Force Range Land Withdrawal Legislative Environmental Impact Statement. Volume 2: Comments, Responses, and Appendices

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1999-03-01

    Dendrolca nlgreSC8ns) BTS - Black - throated Sparrow (Amphlsplza billneata) C - Coyote (Canus latrans) CH - Chukar (Aiectoris chukar) CM - California...elgn: (WS): AB - American Badger (Taxldea taxus) Habitat Quality Value AR - American Robin (Turdus migrator/us) BG - Black - throated Gray Warbler...Myotis Bat (Myotis californlcus) CO - Mountain Cottontail (Sylvilagus nuttalll) CR - Common Raven (Corvus corax) CS - Chipping Sparrow ( Spizella

  3. Challenges and Opportunities for Tribal Waters: Addressing Disparities in Safe Public Drinking Water on the Crow Reservation in Montana, USA.

    PubMed

    Doyle, John T; Kindness, Larry; Realbird, James; Eggers, Margaret J; Camper, Anne K

    2018-03-21

    Disparities in access to safe public drinking water are increasingly being recognized as contributing to health disparities and environmental injustice for vulnerable communities in the United States. As the Co-Directors of the Apsaálooke Water and Wastewater Authority (AWWWA) for the Crow Tribe, with our academic partners, we present here the multiple and complex challenges we have addressed in improving and maintaining tribal water and wastewater infrastructure, including the identification of diverse funding sources for infrastructure construction, the need for many kinds of specialized expertise and long-term stability of project personnel, ratepayer difficulty in paying for services, an ongoing legacy of inadequate infrastructure planning, and lack of water quality research capacity. As a tribal entity, the AWWWA faces additional challenges, including the complex jurisdictional issues affecting all phases of our work, lack of authority to create water districts, and additional legal and regulatory gaps-especially with regards to environmental protection. Despite these obstacles, the AWWWA and Crow Tribe have successfully upgraded much of the local water and wastewater infrastructure. We find that ensuring safe public drinking water for tribal and other disadvantaged U.S. communities will require comprehensive, community-engaged approaches across a broad range of stakeholders to successfully address these complex legal, regulatory, policy, community capacity, and financial challenges.

  4. Challenges and Opportunities for Tribal Waters: Addressing Disparities in Safe Public Drinking Water on the Crow Reservation in Montana, USA

    PubMed Central

    Doyle, John T.; Kindness, Larry; Realbird, James; Camper, Anne K.

    2018-01-01

    Disparities in access to safe public drinking water are increasingly being recognized as contributing to health disparities and environmental injustice for vulnerable communities in the United States. As the Co-Directors of the Apsaálooke Water and Wastewater Authority (AWWWA) for the Crow Tribe, with our academic partners, we present here the multiple and complex challenges we have addressed in improving and maintaining tribal water and wastewater infrastructure, including the identification of diverse funding sources for infrastructure construction, the need for many kinds of specialized expertise and long-term stability of project personnel, ratepayer difficulty in paying for services, an ongoing legacy of inadequate infrastructure planning, and lack of water quality research capacity. As a tribal entity, the AWWWA faces additional challenges, including the complex jurisdictional issues affecting all phases of our work, lack of authority to create water districts, and additional legal and regulatory gaps—especially with regards to environmental protection. Despite these obstacles, the AWWWA and Crow Tribe have successfully upgraded much of the local water and wastewater infrastructure. We find that ensuring safe public drinking water for tribal and other disadvantaged U.S. communities will require comprehensive, community-engaged approaches across a broad range of stakeholders to successfully address these complex legal, regulatory, policy, community capacity, and financial challenges. PMID:29561815

  5. Identification of last interglacial deposits in eastern Beringia: a cautionary note from the Palisades, interior Alaska

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Reyes, Alberto V.; Zazula, Grant D.; Kuzmina, Svetlana; Ager, Thomas A.; Froese, Duane G.

    2011-01-01

    Last interglacial sediments in unglaciated Alaska and Yukon (eastern Beringia) are commonly identified by palaeoecological indicators and stratigraphic position ~2-5m above the regionally prominent Old Crow tephra (124 + or - 10ka). We demonstrate that this approach can yield erroneous age assignments using data from a new exposure at the Palisades, a site in interior Alaska with numerous exposures of last interglacial sediments. Tephrochronology, stratigraphy, plant macrofossils, pollen and fossil insects from a prominent wood-rich organic silt unit are all consistent with a last interglacial age assignment. However, six 14C dates on plant and insect macrofossils from the organic silt range from non-finite to 4.0 14C ka BP, indicating that the organic silt instead represents a Holocene deposit with a mixed-age assemblage of organic material. In contrast, wood samples from presumed last interglacial organic-rich sediments elsewhere at the Palisades, in a similar stratigraphic position with respect to Old Crow tephra, yield non-finite 14C ages. Given that local permafrost thaw since the last interglaciation may facilitate reworking of older sediments into new stratigraphic positions, minimum constraining ages based on 14C dating or other methods should supplement age assignments for last interglacial sediments in eastern Beringia that are based on palaeoecology and stratigraphic association with Old Crow tephra.

  6. Investigation of avian influenza infection in wild birds in Ismailia and Damietta cities, Egypt

    PubMed Central

    Fadel, Hanaa Mohamed; Afifi, Rabab

    2017-01-01

    Aim: This study was carried out to monitor avian influenza (AI) infection in wild birds in Egypt. Materials and Methods: A total of 135 wild birds were examined for the presence of H5, H7, and H9 hemagglutination inhibition antibodies. Organs and swab samples of 75 birds were screened by multiplex real-time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RRT-PCR) to detect AI subtypes H5, H7, and H9 matrix genes. Results: The highest seropositive result was recorded in cattle egrets (90.9%) followed by crows (88.6%), semi-captive pigeons (44.8%), and moorhens (39.1%). In cattle egrets, semi-captive pigeons and moorhens, H5 antibodies predominated. In crows, H9 antibodies predominated. Multiple infections with two or three virus subtypes were highest in crows (6/39, 15.4%) followed by cattle egrets (3/30, 10%) and moorhens’ (1/9, 11.1%) positive samples. Multiplex RRT-PCR results revealed two positive samples in cattle egrets and moorhens. Conclusion: The results indicated high seropositive rates against AI virus subtypes H5 and H9 in the examined wild birds. Multiple infections with more than one AI virus (AIV) subtypes were detected in some birds. This requires a collaboration of efforts to monitor AIV infection in wild birds and implement suitable early intervention measures. PMID:28717324

  7. Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)

    MedlinePlus

    RSV; Palivizumab; Respiratory syncytial virus immune globulin; Bronchiolitis - RSV ... Crowe JE. Respiratory syncytial virus. In: Kliegman RM, Stanton BF, St. Geme JW, Schor NF, eds. Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics . 20th ...

  8. RSV antibody test

    MedlinePlus

    Respiratory syncytial virus antibody test; RSV serology; Bronchiolitis - RSV test ... Crowe JE. Respiratory syncytial virus. In: Kliegman RM, Stanton BF, St. Geme JW, Schor NF, eds. Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics . 20th ...

  9. "There Were Rapes!": Sexual Assaults of African American Women and Children in Jim Crow.

    PubMed

    Thompson-Miller, Ruth; Picca, Leslie H

    2016-07-03

    Using data from 92 interviews, this article examines the narratives of African Americans' experiences as children and young adults during Jim Crow in the Southeast and Southwest. It gives voice to the realities of sexual assaults committed by ordinary White men who systematically terrorized African American families with impunity after the post-Reconstruction south until the 1960s. The interviewees discuss the short- and long-term impact of physical, mental, emotional, and sexual assaults in their communities. We discuss the top four prevalent themes that emerged related to sexual assault, specifically (a) the normalization of sexual assaults, (b) protective measures to avoid White violence, (c) the morality of African American women, and (d) the long-term consequences of assaults on children. © The Author(s) 2016.

  10. Pathway Concepts Experiment for Head-Down Synthetic Vision Displays

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Prinzel, Lawrence J., III; Arthur, Jarvis J., III; Kramer, Lynda J.; Bailey, Randall E.

    2004-01-01

    Eight 757 commercial airline captains flew 22 approaches using the Reno Sparks 16R Visual Arrival under simulated Category I conditions. Approaches were flown using a head-down synthetic vision display to evaluate four tunnel ("minimal", "box", "dynamic pathway", "dynamic crow s feet") and three guidance ("ball", "tadpole", "follow-me aircraft") concepts and compare their efficacy to a baseline condition (i.e., no tunnel, ball guidance). The results showed that the tunnel concepts significantly improved pilot performance and situation awareness and lowered workload compared to the baseline condition. The dynamic crow s feet tunnel and follow-me aircraft guidance concepts were found to be the best candidates for future synthetic vision head-down displays. These results are discussed with implications for synthetic vision display design and future research.

  11. 50 CFR 20.1 - Scope of regulations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... regulations contained in this part relate only to the hunting of migratory game birds, and crows. (b) Procedural and substantive requirements. Migratory game birds may be taken, possessed, transported, shipped...

  12. 50 CFR 20.1 - Scope of regulations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... regulations contained in this part relate only to the hunting of migratory game birds, and crows. (b) Procedural and substantive requirements. Migratory game birds may be taken, possessed, transported, shipped...

  13. 50 CFR 20.1 - Scope of regulations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... regulations contained in this part relate only to the hunting of migratory game birds, and crows. (b) Procedural and substantive requirements. Migratory game birds may be taken, possessed, transported, shipped...

  14. 50 CFR 20.1 - Scope of regulations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... regulations contained in this part relate only to the hunting of migratory game birds, and crows. (b) Procedural and substantive requirements. Migratory game birds may be taken, possessed, transported, shipped...

  15. 50 CFR 20.1 - Scope of regulations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ... regulations contained in this part relate only to the hunting of migratory game birds, and crows. (b) Procedural and substantive requirements. Migratory game birds may be taken, possessed, transported, shipped...

  16. 24 CFR 3280.305 - Structural design requirements.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... Kandiyohi Carver Blue Earth Cass Meeker Dakota Martin Crow Wing Wright Goodhue Watonwan Aitkin Lac qui Parle... Charlevoix Benzie Marquette Menominee Montmorency Grand Traverse Alger Delta Alpena Kalkaska Luce Schoolcraft...

  17. 24 CFR 3280.305 - Structural design requirements.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... Kandiyohi Carver Blue Earth Cass Meeker Dakota Martin Crow Wing Wright Goodhue Watonwan Aitkin Lac qui Parle... Charlevoix Benzie Marquette Menominee Montmorency Grand Traverse Alger Delta Alpena Kalkaska Luce Schoolcraft...

  18. Aurora Astralis taken by the Expedition Seven crew

    NASA Image and Video Library

    2003-06-03

    ISS007-E-06077 (3 June 2003) --- This view featuring the Aurora Australis or “southern lights” was photographed by astronaut Edward T. Lu, Expedition 7 NASA ISS science officer and flight engineer aboard the International Space Station (ISS). When this was taken, the Station was in a position over the Indian Ocean, southwest of Australia. The four stars hanging above Earth’s limb are the brightest stars of the southern constellation Corvus.

  19. A single-center, pilot study evaluating a novel TriHex peptide- and botanical-containing eye treatment compared to baseline.

    PubMed

    Reivitis, Alex; Karimi, Kian; Griffiths, Chester; Banayan, Ashley

    2018-04-16

    Topical treatments containing tripeptide and hexapeptide (TriHex technology) have been proven to contribute to youthful skin by clearing the extracellular matrix and stimulating collagen and elastin production. Evaluate the efficacy of a novel eye treatment containing TriHex peptides and other synergistic ingredients for the daily treatment of fine lines/crow's feet around the eyes, under eye hollowing, under eye bags, and dark circles. In this study, 10 subjects (9 female and 1 male) aged 30-60 of Fitzpatrick skin type I, II, or III were selected to use an eye treatment containing TriHex peptides and active botanicals (Alastin Restorative Eye Treatment with TriHex Technology™, ALASTIN Skincare, Inc., Carlsbad, CA) twice daily for 12 weeks. Subjects were photographed and evaluated at baseline, week 4, week 8, and week 12 by a board-certified facial plastic surgeon. Using an adjusted Griffiths scale (0 = none, best possible condition and 9 = severe, worst possible condition), subjects were evaluated on severity of fine lines/crow's feet, under eye hollowing, under eye bags, and dark circles at each visit. Subjects completed a "Subject Questionnaire" at week 4, week 8, and week 12 pertaining to the subject's observations and perceived improvement of these measures. Based on the investigator's assessments, overall improvement in periocular skin was noted for all 10 subjects. Over the course of 12 weeks, raw scores significantly decreased indicating reduction of lines/crow's feet (41% improvement), under eye hollowing (29% improvement), under eye bags (48% improvement), and dark circles (39% improvement). Based on the "Subject Questionnaire," all subjects noted overall improvement of the appearance of skin around the eyes. Based on the findings of this study, this eye treatment containing TriHex peptides and active botanicals is an effective stand-alone treatment for the rejuvenation of periocular skin. When used twice daily, this product can reduce the appearance of lines/crow's feet, under eye hollowing, under eye bags, and dark circles. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  20. 40 CFR 81.244 - Northwest Minnesota Intrastate Air Quality Control Region.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ..., Beltrami County, Cass County, Clearwater County, Crow Wing County, Douglas County, Grant County, Hubbard..., Norman County, Otter Tail County, Pennington County, Polk County, Pope County, Red Lake County, Roseau...

  1. 75 FR 38517 - Environmental Impact Statements; Notice of Availability

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-07-02

    ..., FERC, CA, Kilarc-Cow Creek Hydroelectric Project (FERC Project No. 606) Proposes to Surrender the License for Operation Project, Old Crow Creek and South Cow Creek, Shasta County, CA, Comment Period Ends...

  2. Map showing recent (1997-98 El Nino) and historical landslides, Crow Creek and vicinity, Alameda and Contra Costa Counties, California

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Coe, Jeffrey A.; Godt, Jonathan; Tachker, Pierre

    2004-01-01

    This report documents the spatial distribution of 3,800 landslides caused by 1997-98 El Ni?o winter rainfall in the vicinity of Crow Creek in Alameda and Contra Costa Counties, California. The report also documents 558 historical (pre-1997-98) landslides. Landslides were mapped from 1:12,000-scale aerial photographs and classified as either debris flows or slides. Slides include rotational and translational slides, earth flows, and complex slope movements. Debris flows and slides from the 1997-98 winter modified 1 percent of the surface of the 148.6 km2 study area. Debris flows were scattered throughout the area, regardless of the type of underlying bedrock geology. Slides, however, were concentrated in a soft sandstone, conglomerate, and clayey group of rock units. Digital map files accompany the report.

  3. Effect of acetabular reinforcement ring with hook for acetabular dysplasia clarified by three-dimensional finite element analysis.

    PubMed

    Zhao, Xin; Chosa, Etsuo; Yamako, Go; Watanabe, Shinji; Deng, Gang; Totoribe, Koji

    2013-12-01

    The objective of this study was to biomechanically determine the effect of the severity of acetabular dysplasia, number and positions of screws and type of bone graft material used on the initial fixation strength of the acetabular reinforcement ring with hook (Ganz ring) using the finite element method. Relative micromotion increased as the severity of acetabular dysplasia increased and tended to decrease as the number of screws increased, but varied according to screw placement position. Increased strength of the bone graft material led to decreased relative micromotion. Biomechanically, the Ganz ring can be placed securely using 3 screws in patients with Crowe 1 dysplasia. However, in patients with Crowe 2 or higher dysplasia, it is necessary to spread at least 4 screws across an area of good host bone. © 2013.

  4. Neurons selective to the number of visual items in the corvid songbird endbrain

    PubMed Central

    Ditz, Helen M.; Nieder, Andreas

    2015-01-01

    It is unknown whether anatomical specializations in the endbrains of different vertebrates determine the neuronal code to represent numerical quantity. Therefore, we recorded single-neuron activity from the endbrain of crows trained to judge the number of items in displays. Many neurons were tuned for numerosities irrespective of the physical appearance of the items, and their activity correlated with performance outcome. Comparison of both behavioral and neuronal representations of numerosity revealed that the data are best described by a logarithmically compressed scaling of numerical information, as postulated by the Weber–Fechner law. The behavioral and neuronal numerosity representations in the crow reflect surprisingly well those found in the primate association cortex. This finding suggests that distantly related vertebrates with independently developed endbrains adopted similar neuronal solutions to process quantity. PMID:26056278

  5. Tourism and the Hispanicization of race in Jim Crow Miami, 1945-1965.

    PubMed

    Rose, Chanelle N

    2012-01-01

    This article examines how Miami's significant presence of Anglo Caribbean blacks and Spanish-speaking tourists critically influenced the evolution of race relations before and after the watershed 1959 Cuban Revolution. The convergence of people from the American South and North, the Caribbean, and Latin America created a border culture in a city where the influx of Bahamian blacks and Spanish-speakers, especially tourists, had begun to alter the racial landscape. To be sure, Miami had many parallels with other parts of the South in regard to how blackness was understood and enforced by whites during the first half of the twentieth century. However, I argue that the city's post-WWII meteoric tourist growth, along with its emergence as a burgeoning Pan-American metropolis, complicated the traditional southern black-white dichotomy. The purchasing power of Spanish-speaking visitors during the postwar era transformed a tourist economy that had traditionally catered to primarily wealthy white transplanted Northerners. This significant change to the city's tourist industry significantly influenced white civic leaders' decision to occasionally modify Jim Crow practices for Latin American vacationers. In effect, Miami's early Latinization had a profound impact on the established racial order as speaking Spanish became a form of currency that benefited Spanish-speaking tourists—even those of African descent. Paradoxically, this ostensibly peculiar racial climate aided the local struggle by highlighting the idiosyncrasies of Jim Crow while perpetuating the second-class status of native-born blacks.

  6. Crows spontaneously exhibit analogical reasoning.

    PubMed

    Smirnova, Anna; Zorina, Zoya; Obozova, Tanya; Wasserman, Edward

    2015-01-19

    Analogical reasoning is vital to advanced cognition and behavioral adaptation. Many theorists deem analogical thinking to be uniquely human and to be foundational to categorization, creative problem solving, and scientific discovery. Comparative psychologists have long been interested in the species generality of analogical reasoning, but they initially found it difficult to obtain empirical support for such thinking in nonhuman animals (for pioneering efforts, see [2, 3]). Researchers have since mustered considerable evidence and argument that relational matching-to-sample (RMTS) effectively captures the essence of analogy, in which the relevant logical arguments are presented visually. In RMTS, choice of test pair BB would be correct if the sample pair were AA, whereas choice of test pair EF would be correct if the sample pair were CD. Critically, no items in the correct test pair physically match items in the sample pair, thus demanding that only relational sameness or differentness is available to support accurate choice responding. Initial evidence suggested that only humans and apes can successfully learn RMTS with pairs of sample and test items; however, monkeys have subsequently done so. Here, we report that crows too exhibit relational matching behavior. Even more importantly, crows spontaneously display relational responding without ever having been trained on RMTS; they had only been trained on identity matching-to-sample (IMTS). Such robust and uninstructed relational matching behavior represents the most convincing evidence yet of analogical reasoning in a nonprimate species, as apes alone have spontaneously exhibited RMTS behavior after only IMTS training. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. Microcosm to Cosmos: The Growth of a Divisional Computer Network

    PubMed Central

    Johannes, R.S.; Kahane, Stephen N.

    1987-01-01

    In 1982, we reported the deployment of a network of microcomputers in the Division of Gastroenterology[1]. This network was based upon Corvus Systems Omninet®. Corvus was one of the very first firms to offer networking products for PC's. This PC development occurred coincident with the planning phase of the Johns Hopkins Hospital's multisegment ethernet project. A rich communications infra-structure is now in place at the Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions[2,3]. Shortly after the hospital development under the direction of the Operational and Clinical Systems Division (OCS) development began, the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine began an Integrated Academic Information Management Systems (IAIMS) planning effort. We now present a model that uses aspects of all three planning efforts (PC networks, Hospital Information Systems & IAIMS) to build a divisional computing facility. This facility is viewed as a terminal leaf on then institutional network diagram. Nevertheless, it is noteworthy that this leaf, the divisional resource in the Division of Gastroenterology (GASNET), has a rich substructure and functionality of its own, perhaps revealing the recursive nature of network architecture. The current status, design and function of the GASNET computational facility is discussed. Among the major positive aspects of this design are the sharing and centralization of MS-DOS software, the high-speed DOS/Unix link that makes available most of the our institution's computing resources.

  8. Aircraft wake vortex transport model

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    1974-03-31

    A wake vortex transport model has been developed which includes the effects of wind and wind : shear, buoyancy, mutual and self-induction, ground plane interaction, viscous decay, finite core : and Crow instability effects. Photographic and ground-wi...

  9. Isotopic Responses to Processes Related to Oxygen Cycling During Diel Studies in the San Joaquin River, California

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Silva, S. R.; Young, M. B.; Kendall, C.; Dahlgren, R. A.; Stringfellow, W. T.

    2008-12-01

    Episodic conditions of low dissolved oxygen (DO) occurring in the San Joaquin River deep water shipping channel (DWSC) at Stockton, California inhibit salmon migration during late summer and early fall. As part of a CALFED study to determine the sources of organic matter and nutrients related to the low DO problem, four diel studies were undertaken: two at the DWSC in 2006 and 2007 and two about 40 miles upstream at Crows Landing in 2005 and 2007. The purpose of the diel studies was to gain a better understanding of the transient processes controlling oxygen concentrations and to compare the range of diel variations of various isotopic measurements with those collected on a less frequent basis. The DWSC is dredged to about 40 feet deep and is tidally influenced. The river at Crows Landing is about 5 feet deep and well above tidal influence. Crows Landing was therefore used for comparison with the DWSC as a hydrologically less complicated portion of the river that has not been dredged. Samples were collected at two hour intervals from a one meter depth at Crows Landing. Values of d18O-DO, DO concentrations and pH showed a strong diel response linked to photosynthesis and the effects of bacterial respiration. The d13C of POM (composed mostly of algae) increased at night as expected while the C:N ratio of POM unexpectedly decreases, possibly due to an increased presence of zooplankton at night. Opposing trends of d15N and d18O of nitrate unrelated to a diurnal cycle suggest that source mixing was largely responsible for nitrate composition and concentration through much of the study. Samples were collected at two hour intervals from 1, 5, and 8 meter depths at Rough and Ready Island in the DWSC. Isotope and concentration data showed a distinct diurnal photosynthetic response at the 1 meter depth only. The 2007 DIC and POM isotopic data suggested that nitrification was significantly responsible for oxygen consumption through the duration of the study. The particularly low flow conditions in 2007 increased residence time and allowed water temperatures to rise accentuating the conditions for low DO concentrations. Compared to Crows Landing, where DO concentrations were near and above air saturation, DO concentrations at the DWSC were almost all below saturation reflecting the greater role of respiration and nitrification in the deeper, slower moving water where photosynthesis is restricted by light penetration and organic debris can accumulate. The diel studies illustrate that isotopes of DO, DIC, nitrate and POM provide unique information about the complex behavior of the DWSC. Furthermore, these data illustrate that sampling at a single depth or at a single time of day may not capture an accurate picture of conditions related to oxygen cycling.

  10. A review of predation as a limiting factor for bird populations in mesopredator-rich landscapes: a case study of the UK.

    PubMed

    Roos, Staffan; Smart, Jennifer; Gibbons, David W; Wilson, Jeremy D

    2018-05-22

    The impact of increasing vertebrate predator numbers on bird populations is widely debated among the general public, game managers and conservationists across Europe. However, there are few systematic reviews of whether predation limits the population sizes of European bird species. Views on the impacts of predation are particularly polarised in the UK, probably because the UK has a globally exceptional culture of intensive, high-yield gamebird management where predator removal is the norm. In addition, most apex predators have been exterminated or much depleted in numbers, contributing to a widely held perception that the UK has high numbers of mesopredators. This has resulted in many high-quality studies of mesopredator impacts over several decades. Here we present results from a systematic review of predator trends and abundance, and assess whether predation limits the population sizes of 90 bird species in the UK. Our results confirm that the generalist predators Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes) and Crows (Corvus corone and C. cornix) occur at high densities in the UK compared with other European countries. In addition, some avian and mammalian predators have increased numerically in the UK during recent decades. Despite these high and increasing densities of predators, we found little evidence that predation limits populations of pigeons, woodpeckers and passerines, whereas evidence suggests that ground-nesting seabirds, waders and gamebirds can be limited by predation. Using life-history characteristics of prey species, we found that mainly long-lived species with high adult survival and late onset of breeding were limited by predation. Single-brooded species were also more likely to be limited by predation than multi-brooded species. Predators that depredate prey species during all life stages (i.e. from nest to adult stages) limited prey numbers more than predators that depredated only specific life stages (e.g. solely during the nest phase). The Red Fox and non-native mammals (e.g. the American Mink Neovison vison) were frequently identified as numerically limiting their prey species. Our review has identified predator-prey interactions that are particularly likely to result in population declines of prey species. In the short term, traditional predator-management techniques (e.g. lethal control or fencing to reduce predation by a small number of predator species) could be used to protect these vulnerable species. However, as these techniques are costly and time-consuming, we advocate that future research should identify land-use practices and landscape configurations that would reduce predator numbers and predation rates. © 2018 Cambridge Philosophical Society.

  11. Co2 Laser Resurfacing for Facial Rhytides

    PubMed Central

    Jain, Vinod K; Ghiya, B C; Gupta, Dhruv; Singhi, Mahendra K

    2008-01-01

    Resurfacing of facial rhytides (periorbital crow-feet wrinkles) was performed in three cases by carbon dioxide laser (Sharplan® 1030 machine). Good to excellent results were observed. However, erythema and postinflammatory pigmentation were important side effects. PMID:20300334

  12. An on-chip coupled resonator optical waveguide single-photon buffer

    PubMed Central

    Takesue, Hiroki; Matsuda, Nobuyuki; Kuramochi, Eiichi; Munro, William J.; Notomi, Masaya

    2013-01-01

    Integrated quantum optical circuits are now seen as one of the most promising approaches with which to realize single-photon quantum information processing. Many of the core elements for such circuits have been realized, including sources, gates and detectors. However, a significant missing function necessary for photonic quantum information processing on-chip is a buffer, where single photons are stored for a short period of time to facilitate circuit synchronization. Here we report an on-chip single-photon buffer based on coupled resonator optical waveguides (CROW) consisting of 400 high-Q photonic crystal line-defect nanocavities. By using the CROW, a pulsed single photon is successfully buffered for 150 ps with 50-ps tunability while maintaining its non-classical properties. Furthermore, we show that our buffer preserves entanglement by storing and retrieving one photon from a time-bin entangled state. This is a significant step towards an all-optical integrated quantum information processor. PMID:24217422

  13. Existence and the dynamical behaviors of the positive solutions for a ratio-dependent predator-prey system with the crowing term and the weak growth

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zeng, Xianzhong; Gu, Yonggeng

    2018-03-01

    This paper deals with a ratio-dependent predator-prey system with the crowing term and the weak growth in the prey equation. Under the condition that the coefficient λ is less than a critical value λ1D (Ω0), we obtain existence of multiple positive steady state solutions of the predator-prey system and the dynamical behaviors of its positive solutions. Our results show that the predator and the prey possess not only the common coexistence, but also the very weak coexistence which both of the predator and the prey are very low. Meantime, the persistence of the positive solutions for the corresponding parabolic type system sometime depends strictly on the ratio of its initial data. Therefore, our results may be used to explain some special phenomena which under some bad environment, the predator and the prey may still coexist.

  14. Weaving a Tapestry from Threads Spun by Geneticists: The Series Perspectives on Genetics, 1987–2008

    PubMed Central

    Dove, William F.

    2016-01-01

    The Perspectives column was initiated in 1987 when Jan Drake, Editor-in-Chief of GENETICS, invited Jim Crow and William Dove to serve as coeditors of “Anecdotal, Historical, and Critical Commentaries.” As the series evolved over 21 years, under the guidance of Crow and Dove, the input of stories told by geneticists from many countries created a panorama of 20th-century genetics. Three recurrent themes are visible: how geneticists have created the science (as solitary investigators, in pairs, or in cooperative groups); how geneticists work hard, but find ways to have fun; and how public and private institutions have sustained the science of genetics, particularly in the United States. This article ends by considering how the Perspectives series and other communication formats can carry forward the core science of genetics from the 20th into the 21st century. PMID:27384024

  15. Weaving a Tapestry from Threads Spun by Geneticists: The Series Perspectives on Genetics, 1987-2008.

    PubMed

    Dove, William F

    2016-07-01

    The Perspectives column was initiated in 1987 when Jan Drake, Editor-in-Chief of GENETICS, invited Jim Crow and William Dove to serve as coeditors of "Anecdotal, Historical, and Critical Commentaries." As the series evolved over 21 years, under the guidance of Crow and Dove, the input of stories told by geneticists from many countries created a panorama of 20th-century genetics. Three recurrent themes are visible: how geneticists have created the science (as solitary investigators, in pairs, or in cooperative groups); how geneticists work hard, but find ways to have fun; and how public and private institutions have sustained the science of genetics, particularly in the United States. This article ends by considering how the Perspectives series and other communication formats can carry forward the core science of genetics from the 20th into the 21st century. Copyright © 2016 by the Genetics Society of America.

  16. Hydrologic response of the Crow Wing Watershed, Minnesota, to mid-Holocene climate change

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Person, M.; Roy, P.; Wright, H.; Gutowski, W.; Ito, E.; Winter, T.; Rosenberry, D.; Cohen, D.

    2007-01-01

    In this study, we have integrated a suite of Holocene paleoclimatic proxies with mathematical modeling in an attempt to obtain a comprehensive picture of how watersheds respond to past climate change. A three-dimensional surface-water-groundwater model was developed to assess the effects of mid-Holocene climate change on water resources within the Crow Wing Watershed, Upper Mississippi Basin in north central Minnesota. The model was first calibrated to a 50 yr historical record of average annual surface-water discharge, monthly groundwater levels, and lake-level fluctuations. The model was able to reproduce reasonably well long-term historical records (1949-1999) of water-table and lake-level fluctuations across the watershed as well as stream discharge near the watershed outlet. The calibrated model was then used to reproduce paleogroundwater and lake levels using climate reconstructions based on pollen-transfer functions from Williams Lake just outside the watershed. Computed declines in mid-Holocene lake levels for two lakes at opposite ends of the watershed were between 6 and 18 m. Simulated streamflow near the outlet of the watershed decreased to 70% of modern average annual discharge after ???200 yr. The area covered by wetlands for the entire watershed was reduced by ???16%. The mid-Holocene hydrologic changes indicated by these model results and corroborated by several lake-core records across the Crow Wing Watershed may serve as a useful proxy of the hydrologic response to future warm, dry climatic forecasts (ca. 2050) made by some atmospheric general-circulation models for the glaciated Midwestern United States. ?? 2007 Geological Society of America.

  17. Late Pleistocene environments of the western Noatak basin, northwestern Alaska

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Elias, S.A.; Hamilton, T.D.; Edwards, M.E.; Beget, J.E.; Krumhardt, A.P.; Lavoie, C.

    1999-01-01

    Glacial Lake Noatak formed repeatedly during middle and late Pleistocene time as expanding glaciers from the DeLong Mountains blocked the Noatak River valley. Downcutting by the Noatak River has exposed thick sediment successions in bluffs up to 86 m high. Two river bluffs, Nk-26 and Nk-29A, contain correlative organic-rich flood-plain deposits that were formed during and after deposition of the Old Crow tephra at about the transition between oxygen isotope stage 6 and oxygen isotope stage 5, at the beginning of the last interglaciation. Both bluffs also contain older interglacial or interstadial flood-plain deposits of uncertain age. Pollen and beetle remains were recovered from the older and younger flood-plain deposits at each bluff. Pollen from the younger flood-plain deposits suggests tundra vegetation with local dominance of sedge. Juniperus abundances were locally high, especially around the time of Old Crow tephra deposition. Mutual climatic range (MCR) estimates from the insect fossil assemblages suggest that mean summer temperatures (Tmax) near the time of Old Crow tephra deposition were about 2 ??C colder than modern; mean winter temperatures were very similar to those of today. A younger sample from the same interglacial deposit yielded a Tmax estimate of 2 ??C warmer than modern, signaling interglacial warming. Pollen from the older interglacial deposit at Nk-29A suggests mesic tundra, with boreal forest more distant than it is today. MCR analysis of a possibly correlative older interglacial deposit at Nk-26 suggests a Tmax about 2 ??C below present.

  18. Posterosuperior Placement of a Standard-Sized Cup at the True Acetabulum in Acetabular Reconstruction of Developmental Dysplasia of the Hip With High Dislocation.

    PubMed

    Xu, Jiawei; Xu, Chen; Mao, Yuanqing; Zhang, Jincheng; Li, Huiwu; Zhu, Zhenan

    2016-06-01

    We sought to evaluate posterosuperior placement of the acetabular component at the true acetabulum during acetabular reconstruction in patients with Crowe type-IV developmental dysplasia of the hip. Using pelvic computed tomography and image processing, we developed a two-dimensional mapping technique to demonstrate the distribution of preoperative three-dimensional cup coverage at the true acetabulum, determined the postoperative location of the acetabular cup, and calculated postoperative three-dimensional coverage for 16 Crowe type-IV dysplastic hips in 14 patients with a mean age of 52 years (33-78 years) who underwent total hip arthroplasty. Mean follow-up was 6.3 years (5.5-7.3 years). On preoperative mapping, the maximum three-dimensional coverage using a 44-mm cup was 87.31% (77.36%-98.14%). Mapping enabled the successful replacement of 16 hips using a mean cup size of 44.13 mm (42-46 mm) with posterosuperior placement of the cup. Early weight-bearing and no prosthesis revision or loosening during follow-up were achieved in all patients. The postoperative two-dimensional coverage on anteroposterior radiographs and three-dimensional coverage were 96.15% (89.49%-100%) and 83.42% (71.81%-98.50%), respectively. This technique may improve long-term implant survival in patients with Crowe-IV developmental dysplasia of the hip undergoing total hip arthroplasty by allowing the use of durable bearings, increasing host bone coverage, ensuring initial stability, and restoring the normal hip center. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  19. NPDES Permit for Woodcock Home Addition Wastewater Treatment Facility in Montana

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    Under NPDES permit MT-0030554, the Salish and Kootenai Housing Authority is authorized to discharge from its Woodcock Home Addition Wastewater Treatment Facility in Lake County, Montana, to a swale draining to Middle Crow Creek.

  20. CRO Crowing About Their Growth.

    PubMed

    Carroll, John

    2005-12-01

    Contract research organizations have quietly and quickly become a force in drug development and clinical trial recruitment. In supplanting academia as the primary route to market, they have the kind of business plan and agility that only a biotech could love.

  1. [APPLICATION AND EFFECTIVENESS OF BIOLOGICAL TYPE ACETABULAR CUP IN ADULT Crowe TYPE IV DEVELOPMENTAL DYSPLASIA OF THE HIP].

    PubMed

    Xu, Ning; Sun, Junying; Zhao, Xijiang; Wang, Tao

    2016-01-01

    To investigate the application and effectiveness of the biological type acetabular cup(diameter < 44 mm) in adult Crowe type IV developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH). Between April 2001 andAugust 2013, biological type acetabular cup was used in total hip arthroplasty for the treatment of Crowe type IV DDH in16 cases (20 hips). There were 3 males and 13 females, aged 31-69 years (mean, 49 years). Unilateral hip was involved in 12cases, and bilateral hips in 4 cases. The patients showed pain of the hip joint and inequality of lower limb (shortening ofaffected limb 1.8-6.0 cm in length, 3.5 cm on average). Acetabular deformity, the relationship and the severity of femoralhead dislocation were comfirmed on the X-ray films. The preoperative Harris score was 34.0 ± 6.9. All patientsachieved healing of incision by first intention, with no complication of infection or neurovascular injury. Sixteen caseswere followed up 4-12 years (mean, 7.5 years). At 2 weeks after operation, dislocation occurred in 2 cases, and were fixedwith plaster for 3 weeks after reduction of the hip. Postoperative X-ray films showed complete reduction of femoral head;the average acetabular coverage of the cup of the weight-bearing area was 98.5% (range, 98.2%-99.1%). The cup from theRanawat triangle was 4.6-7.0 mm (mean, 5.8 mm) in medial shifting, and was 4.5-7.9 mm (mean, 6.2 mm) in elevation,it located at cup lateral surface area inside the iliopectineal line and the Kohler line (< 40%); the cup abduction angle was(45 ± 5)degrees, and the anteversion angle was (10 ± 5)degrees. The other patients had no prosthesis loosening except 1 patient havingextensive acetabular prosthesis loosening because of acetabular osteolysis at 12 years after operation. The hip Harris scorewas significantly improved to 85.0 ± 7.5 at 1 year after operation (t = 14.34, P = 0.01). The acetabular grindingprocess to retain enough bone combined with a small cup of-biological prosthesis treating adult Crowe type IV DDH has theadvantages of satisfactory coverage and initial acetabular fixation, so good early and mid-term effectiveness can be obtained.

  2. Residues of chromium, nickel, cadmium and lead in Rook Corvus frugilegus eggshells from urban and rural areas of Poland.

    PubMed

    Orłowski, Grzegorz; Kasprzykowski, Zbigniew; Dobicki, Wojciech; Pokorny, Przemysław; Wuczyński, Andrzej; Polechoński, Ryszard; Mazgajski, Tomasz D

    2014-08-15

    We examined the concentrations of chromium (Cr), nickel (Ni), cadmium (Cd) and lead (Pb) in Rook Corvus frugilegus eggshells from 43 rookeries situated in rural and urban areas of western (=intensive agriculture) and eastern (=extensive agriculture) Poland. We found small ranges in the overall level of Cr (the difference between the extreme values was 1.8-fold; range of concentrations=5.21-9.40 Cr ppm), Ni (3.5-fold; 1.15-4.07 Ni ppm), and Cd (2.6-fold; 0.34-0.91 Cd ppm), whereas concentrations of Pb varied markedly, i.e. 6.7-fold between extreme values (1.71-11.53 Pb ppm). Eggshell levels of these four elements did not differ between rural rookeries from western and eastern Poland, but eggshells from rookeries in large/industrial cities had significantly higher concentrations of Cr, Ni and Pb than those from small towns and villages. Our study suggests that female Rooks exhibited an apparent variation in the intensity of trace metal bioaccumulation in their eggshells, that rapid site-dependent bioaccumulation of Cu, Cr, Ni and Pb occurs as a result of the pollution gradient (rural

  3. Trace-element interactions in Rook Corvus frugilegus eggshells along an urbanisation gradient.

    PubMed

    Orłowski, Grzegorz; Kasprzykowski, Zbigniew; Dobicki, Wojciech; Pokorny, Przemysław; Wuczyński, Andrzej; Polechoński, Ryszard; Mazgajski, Tomasz D

    2014-11-01

    Concentrations of seven trace elements [arsenic (As), chromium (Cr), nickel (Ni), lead (Pb), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), and cadmium (Cd)] in the eggshells of Rooks Corvus frugilegus, a focal bird species of Eurasian agricultural environments, are increased above background levels and exceed levels of toxicological concern. The concentrations of Cr, Ni, Pb, Cu, and Zn are greater in eggshells from urban rookeries (large cities) compared with rural areas (small towns and villages) suggesting an urbanisation gradient effect among eggs laid by females. In the present study, the investigators assessed whether the pattern of relationships among the seven trace elements in eggshells change along an urbanisation/pollution gradient. Surprisingly, we found that eggshells with the greatest contaminant burden, i.e., from urban rookeries, showed far fewer significant relationships (n = 4) than eggshells from villages (n = 10), small towns (n = 6), or rural areas (n = 8). In most cases, the relationships were positive. As was an exception: Its concentration was negatively correlated with Ni and Cd levels in eggshells from small town rookeries (where As levels were the highest), whereas eggshells from villages (with a lower As level) showed positive relationships between As and Cd. Our findings suggest that at low to intermediate levels, interactions between the trace elements in Rook eggshells are of a synergistic character and appear to operate as parallel coaccumulation. A habitat-specific excess of some elements (primarily Cr, Ni, Cu, As) suggests their more competitively selective sequestration.

  4. 77 FR 71454 - Crow Butte Resources, Inc. License SUA-1534, License Amendment To Construct and Operate Marsland...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-11-30

    ..., Washington, DC 20555-0001. Telephone: 301-415-6563; fax number: 301- 415-5369; email: Thomas[email protected] Regulatory Commission. Annette L. Vietti-Cook, Secretary of the Commission. Attachment 1--General Target...

  5. Donor-Control of Scavenging Food Webs at the Land-Ocean Interface.

    PubMed

    Schlacher, Thomas A; Strydom, Simone; Connolly, Rod M; Schoeman, David

    2013-01-01

    Food webs near the interface of adjacent ecosystems are potentially subsidised by the flux of organic matter across system boundaries. Such subsidies, including carrion of marine provenance, are predicted to be instrumental on open-coast sandy shores where in situ productivity is low and boundaries are long and highly permeable to imports from the sea. We tested the effect of carrion supply on the structure of consumer dynamics in a beach-dune system using broad-scale, repeated additions of carcasses at the strandline of an exposed beach in eastern Australia. Carrion inputs increased the abundance of large invertebrate scavengers (ghost crabs, Ocypode spp.), a numerical response most strongly expressed by the largest size-class in the population, and likely due to aggregative behaviour in the short term. Consumption of carrion at the beach-dune interface was rapid and efficient, driven overwhelmingly by facultative avian scavengers. This guild of vertebrate scavengers comprises several species of birds of prey (sea eagles, kites), crows and gulls, which reacted strongly to concentrations of fish carrion, creating hotspots of intense scavenging activity along the shoreline. Detection of carrion effects at several trophic levels suggests that feeding links arising from carcasses shape the architecture and dynamics of food webs at the land-ocean interface.

  6. Donor-Control of Scavenging Food Webs at the Land-Ocean Interface

    PubMed Central

    Schlacher, Thomas A.; Strydom, Simone; Connolly, Rod M.; Schoeman, David

    2013-01-01

    Food webs near the interface of adjacent ecosystems are potentially subsidised by the flux of organic matter across system boundaries. Such subsidies, including carrion of marine provenance, are predicted to be instrumental on open-coast sandy shores where in situ productivity is low and boundaries are long and highly permeable to imports from the sea. We tested the effect of carrion supply on the structure of consumer dynamics in a beach-dune system using broad-scale, repeated additions of carcasses at the strandline of an exposed beach in eastern Australia. Carrion inputs increased the abundance of large invertebrate scavengers (ghost crabs, Ocypode spp.), a numerical response most strongly expressed by the largest size-class in the population, and likely due to aggregative behaviour in the short term. Consumption of carrion at the beach-dune interface was rapid and efficient, driven overwhelmingly by facultative avian scavengers. This guild of vertebrate scavengers comprises several species of birds of prey (sea eagles, kites), crows and gulls, which reacted strongly to concentrations of fish carrion, creating hotspots of intense scavenging activity along the shoreline. Detection of carrion effects at several trophic levels suggests that feeding links arising from carcasses shape the architecture and dynamics of food webs at the land-ocean interface. PMID:23826379

  7. Crow Tribe Water Rights Settlement Act of 2009

    THOMAS, 111th Congress

    Rep. Rehberg, Denny [R-MT-At Large

    2009-09-15

    House - 09/22/2009 Subcommittee Hearings Held. (All Actions) Notes: For further action, see H.R.4783, which became Public Law 111-291 on 12/8/2010. Tracker: This bill has the status IntroducedHere are the steps for Status of Legislation:

  8. NPDES Permit for Westmoreland Resources, Inc.'s Absaloka Mine South Extension in Montana

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    Under NPDES permit MT-0030783, Westmoreland Resources, Inc. is authorized to discharge mine drainage from outfalls associated with the Absaloka Mine South Extension on the Crow Indian reservation near Hardin, Montana to Middle Fork of Sarpy Creek.

  9. From Sheryl Crow to Homer Simpson: Literature and Composition through Pop Culture

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Evans, Jerome

    2004-01-01

    Students use analyzing themes in song lyrics, rhetorical devices in essays and advertisements, and psychology in contemporary film, to improve their skills in critical thinking and writing. Popular culture is deduced to have an important place in English curricula.

  10. 50 CFR 21.43 - Depredation order for blackbirds, cowbirds, grackles, crows, and magpies.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ...-lethal methods before you may use lethal control. (b) In most cases, if you use a firearm to kill... about your control operations. (d) You may kill birds under this order only in a way that complies with...

  11. 50 CFR 21.43 - Depredation order for blackbirds, cowbirds, grackles, crows, and magpies.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ...-lethal methods before you may use lethal control. (b) In most cases, if you use a firearm to kill... about your control operations. (d) You may kill birds under this order only in a way that complies with...

  12. 50 CFR 21.43 - Depredation order for blackbirds, cowbirds, grackles, crows, and magpies.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ...-lethal methods before you may use lethal control. (b) In most cases, if you use a firearm to kill... about your control operations. (d) You may kill birds under this order only in a way that complies with...

  13. NPDES Permit for Sunlight Ranch Company, Little Horn Unit in Montana

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    Draft permit and statement of basis MT0029424 for a beef cattle feedlot located on the Crow Reservation at the SW ¼ of Section 3, NW 1/4 of Section 10, Township 9 South Range 34 East, Montana Principal Meridian.

  14. Hand preference for writing and associations with selected demographic and behavioral variables in 255,100 subjects: the BBC internet study.

    PubMed

    Peters, Michael; Reimers, Stian; Manning, John T

    2006-11-01

    In an Internet study unrelated to handedness, 134,317 female and 120,783 male participants answered a graded question as to which hand they preferred for writing. This allowed determination of hand preference patterns across 7 ethnic groups. Sex differences in left-handedness were found in 4 ethnic groups, favoring males, while no significant sex differences were found in three of the groups. Prevalence of left-handedness in the largest of the ethnic groups (self-labelled as "White") was comparable to contemporary hand preference data for this group [Gilbert, A. N., & Wysocki, C. J. (1992). Hand preference and age in the United states. Neuropsychologia, 30, 601-608] but the prevalence of left-handedness in individuals >70 years of age was considerably higher in the present study. Individuals who indicated "either" hand for writing preference had significantly lower spatial performance (mental rotation task) and significantly higher prevalence of hyperactivity, dyslexia, asthma than individuals who had clear left or right hand preferences, in support of Crow et al. [Crow, T., Crow, L., Done, D., & Leask, S. (1998). Relative hand skill predicts academic ability: global deficits at the point of hemispheric indecision. Neuropsychologia, 36, 1275-1282]. Similarly, an association of writing hand preference and non-heterosexual orientation was clearest for individuals with "either" writing hand responses. We conclude that contradictions in the literature as to whether or not these variables are linked to handedness stem largely from different definitions of hand preference. Due to a lack of statistical power in most studies in the literature, the "either" hand writing preference group that yielded the most salient results in this study is not normally available for analysis.

  15. Valley-Fill Sandstones in the Kootenai Formation on the Crow Indian Reservation, South-Central Montana

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Lopez, David A

    Subsurface data continues to be collected, organized, and a digital database is being prepared for the project. An ACCESS database and PC-Arcview is being used to manage and interpret the data. Well data and base map data have been successfully imported into Arcview and customized to meet the needs of this project. Log tops and other data from about ¾ of the exploration wells in the area have been incorporated into the data base. All of the four 30" X 60" geologic quadrangles have been scanned to produce a digital surface geologic data base for the Crow Reservation and allmore » are nearing completion. Formal technical review prior to publication has been completed for all the quadrangles; Billings, Bridger; Hardin, and Lodge Grass. Final GIS edits are being made before being forwarded to the Bureau's Publications Department. Field investigations were completed during the third quarter, 1997. With the help of a student field assistant from the Crow Tribe, the entire project area was inventoried for the presence of valley-fill deposits in the Kootenai Formation. Field inventory has resulted in the identification of nine exposures of thick valley-fill deposits. These appear to represent at least four major westward-trending valley systems. All the channel localities have been measured and described in detail and paleocurrent data has been collected from all but one locality. In addition, two stratigraphic sections were measured in areas where channels are absent. One channel has bee traced over a distance of about 60 miles and exhibits definite paleostructural control. An abstract describing this channel has been submitted and accepted for presentation at the Williston Basin Symposium in October, 1998.« less

  16. Valey-Fill Sandstones in the Kootenai Formation on the Crow Indian Reservation, South-Central Montana

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Lopez, David A

    Subsurface data is being collected, organized, and a digital database is being prepared for the project. An ACCESS database and PC-Arcview is being used to manage and interpret the data. Well data and base map data have been successfully imported into Arcview and customized to meet the needs of this project. Log tops and other data from about ½ of the exploration wells in the area have been incorporated into the data base. All of the four 30" X 60" geologic quadrangles have been scanned to produce a digital surface geologic data base for the Crow Reservation and all aremore » nearing completion. Formal technical review prior to publication has been completed for the Billings and Bridger Quadrangles; and are underway for the Hardin and Lodge Grass Quadrangles. Field investigations were completed during the last quarter. With the help of a student field assistant from the Crow Tribe, the entire project area was inventoried for the presence of valley-fill deposits in the Kootenai Formation. Field inventory has resulted in the identification of nine exposures of thick valley-fill deposits. These appear to represent at least four major westward-trending valley systems. All the channel localities have been measured and described in detail and paleocurrent data has been collected from all but one locality. In addition, two stratigraphic sections were measured in areas where channels are absent. One channel has bee traced over a distance of about 60 miles and exhibits definite paleostructural control. An abstract describing this channel has been submitted and accepted for presentation at the Williston Basin Symposium in October, 1998.« less

  17. A novel, volumizing cosmetic formulation significantly improves the appearance of target Glabellar lines, nasolabial folds, and crow's feet in a double-blind, vehicle-controlled clinical trial.

    PubMed

    Farris, Patricia K; Edison, Brenda L; Weinkauf, Ronni L; Green, Barbara A

    2014-01-01

    Facial lines and wrinkles are caused by many factors including constant exposure to external elements, such as UV rays, as well as the dynamic nature of facial expression. Many cosmetic products and procedures provide global improvement to aging skin, whereas injectable therapies are frequently utilized to diminish specific, target wrinkles. Despite their broad availability, some patients are unwilling to undergo injectables and would benefit from an effective topical option. A noninvasive option to volumize target wrinkle areas could also extend benefits of commonly used cosmetic anti-aging products. To this end, a two-step formulation containing the novel, cosmetic anti-aging ingredient, N-acetyl tyrosinamide, was developed for use on targeted wrinkle areas. The tolerability and efficacy of the serum plus cream were tested for 16 weeks in women with moderate facial photodamage on predetermined wrinkle areas (glabellar lines, nasolabial folds, under eye lines, and lateral canthal (crow's feet) wrinkles) in a single-center, randomized, double-blind, vehicle-controlled, clinical trial. Seventy women (47 Active group, 23 Vehicle group) completed the study. Digital photography, clinical grading, ultrasound and self-assessment scores confirmed improvement to wrinkle areas. The topical cosmetic formulation was statistically superior (P<0.05) to its vehicle in visually improving nasolabial folds, glabellar lines, crow's feet, and under eye wrinkles and in reducing pinch recoil time. Both the test formulation and its vehicle were tolerated well. The novel, two-step cosmetic formulation reduced the appearance of wrinkles and increased skin elasticity thus providing an effective anti-aging option for target wrinkle areas. This study suggests that in addition to its use as monotherapy for reducing targeted lines and wrinkles this cosmetic formulation may be also serve as an adjuvant to injectable therapies.

  18. A phase III, randomized, double-blind, matched-pairs, active-controlled clinical trial and preclinical animal study to compare the durability, efficacy and safety between polynucleotide filler and hyaluronic acid filler in the correction of crow's feet: a new concept of regenerative filler.

    PubMed

    Pak, Chang Sik; Lee, Jongho; Lee, Hobin; Jeong, Jaehoon; Kim, Eun-Hee; Jeong, Jinwook; Choi, Hyeyeon; Kim, Byunghwi; Oh, Sujin; Kim, Iksoo; Heo, Chan Yeong

    2014-11-01

    The Rejuran® is a new filler product made from purified polynucleotides. Here we present data from an animal study and a clinical trial to examine the durability, efficacy and safety of the Rejuran® on crow's feet. For the animal study, 25 mice were divided into three groups: Group 1 received phosphate buffered saline (PBS); Group 2 were treated with Yvoire®; and Group 3 were treated with Rejuran®. The durability and efficacy of each treatment were assessed by microscopy and staining. In the clinical trial, 72 patients were randomized to receive Rejuran® treatment for crow's feet on one side and Yvoire-Hydro® on the contralateral side, at a ratio of 1:1. Repeated treatments were performed every two weeks for a total of three times, over a total of 12 weeks' observation. All injections and observations of efficacy and safety were performed by the same two investigators. In the animal study, the Rejuran® group showed similar durability and inflammatory response to the Yvoire® group. Upon efficacy assessment, the Rejuran® group showed the greatest elasticity and collagen composition, and a significant difference in skin surface roughness and wrinkle depth. In the clinical trial, the primary and secondary objective efficacy outcome measure showed no statistical significance between the two groups, and in safety outcomes there were no unexpected adverse effects. Our data suggest that the Rejuran®, as a new regenerative filler, can be useful to reduce wrinkles, by showing evidence for its efficacy and safety.

  19. Sex-reversed correlation between stress levels and dominance rank in a captive non-breeder flock of crows.

    PubMed

    Ode, Minami; Asaba, Akari; Miyazawa, Eri; Mogi, Kazutaka; Kikusui, Takefumi; Izawa, Ei-Ichi

    2015-07-01

    Group living has both benefits and costs to individuals; benefits include efficient acquisition of resources, and costs include stress from social conflicts among group members. Such social challenges result in hierarchical dominance ranking among group members as a solution to avoid escalating conflict that causes different levels of basal stress between individuals at different ranks. Stress-associated glucocorticoid (corticosterone in rodents and birds; CORT) levels are known to correlate with dominance rank in diverse taxa and to covary with various social factors, such as sex and dominance maintenance styles. Although there is much evidence for sex differences in the basal levels of CORT in various species, the correlation of sex differences in basal CORT with dominance rank is poorly understood. We investigated the correlation between CORT metabolites (CM) in the droppings and social factors, including rank and sex, in a captive non-breeder group of crows. In this group, all the single males dominated all the single females, and dominance ranks were stable among single males but relatively unstable among single females. CM levels and rank were significantly correlated in a sex-reversed fashion: males at higher rank (i.e., more dominant) had higher CM, whereas females at higher rank exhibited lower CM. This is the first evidence of sex-reversed patterns of CM-rank correlation in birds. The results suggest that different mechanisms of stress-dominance relationships operate on the sexes in non-breeder crow aggregations; in males, stress is associated with the cost of aggressive displays, whereas females experience subordination stress due to males' overt aggression. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  20. Black Greek-Lettered Organizations and Civic Responsibility

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Evans, Stephanie Y.

    2004-01-01

    This article discuss the potential impact of Black Greek-Lettered Organizations (BGLOs) in advancing African American civil and political rights. During the antebellum years and Jim Crow era, barriers to Black voting included enslavement, anti-literacy laws, violence and intimidation, grandfather clauses, gerrymandering, literacy requirements,…

  1. Introducing National Center for Genome Resources (NCGR) Informatics (Seventh Annual Sequencing, Finishing, Analysis in the Future (SFAF) Meeting 2012)

    ScienceCinema

    Crow, John

    2018-01-22

    John Crow from the National Center for Genome Resources discusses his organization's informatics at the 7th Annual Sequencing, Finishing, Analysis in the Future (SFAF) Meeting held in June, 2012 in Santa Fe, NM.

  2. From the Rainbow Crow To Polar Bears: Introducing Science Concepts through Children's Literature.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Burns, John Eric

    1997-01-01

    Describes an activity that integrates chemistry, physics, and a Native American legend to help students imitate the thought processes of scientists who have observed chemical decomposition and the refraction of light. Includes a laboratory experiment for sugar decomposition. (DKM)

  3. Campus Visits

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lustig, Susan

    2009-01-01

    In this annual Architectural Portfolio issue, the author presents the main winners that impressed the jury as facilities that will excite and challenge students in dramatic ways. The Children's School, Stamford, Connecticut, the Caudill winner, is "reminiscent of the Crow Island School," according to this year's jury. The Kahn winner,…

  4. Crows Landing noise measurement study : summary of measurements, data and analysis for the MD600N helicopter

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2004-05-31

    The U.S. Department of Transportation, John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center (Volpe Center), Environmental Measurement and Modeling Division, provided technical support to the Federal Aviation Administration, as a part of a National Ro...

  5. Introducing National Center for Genome Resources (NCGR) Informatics (Seventh Annual Sequencing, Finishing, Analysis in the Future (SFAF) Meeting 2012)

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Crow, John

    2012-06-01

    John Crow from the National Center for Genome Resources discusses his organization's informatics at the 7th Annual Sequencing, Finishing, Analysis in the Future (SFAF) Meeting held in June, 2012 in Santa Fe, NM.

  6. Gentrifying Water and Selling Jim Crow.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Williams, Brett

    2002-01-01

    Explores the gentrification of Washington, D.C.'s Anacostia watershed, tracing the projects of federal and local government to devitalize and demolish living black relationships and institutions while reifying lost, invented, or imagined communities. Explores connections among capital, community, culture, and state power. Examines problems in the…

  7. The longitudinal offset technique for apodization of coupled resonator optical waveguide devices: concept and fabrication tolerance analysis.

    PubMed

    Doménech, José David; Muñoz, Pascual; Capmany, José

    2009-11-09

    In this paper, a novel technique to set the coupling constant between cells of a coupled resonator optical waveguide (CROW) device, in order to tailor the filter response, is presented. The technique is demonstrated by simulation assuming a racetrack ring resonator geometry. It consists on changing the effective length of the coupling section by applying a longitudinal offset between the resonators. On the contrary, the conventional techniques are based in the transversal change of the distance between the ring resonators, in steps that are commonly below the current fabrication resolution step (nm scale), leading to strong restrictions in the designs. The proposed longitudinal offset technique allows a more precise control of the coupling and presents an increased robustness against the fabrication limitations, since the needed resolution step is two orders of magnitude higher. Both techniques are compared in terms of the transmission esponse of CROW devices, under finite fabrication resolution steps.

  8. Vehicle routing problem with time windows using natural inspired algorithms

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pratiwi, A. B.; Pratama, A.; Sa’diyah, I.; Suprajitno, H.

    2018-03-01

    Process of distribution of goods needs a strategy to make the total cost spent for operational activities minimized. But there are several constrains have to be satisfied which are the capacity of the vehicles and the service time of the customers. This Vehicle Routing Problem with Time Windows (VRPTW) gives complex constrains problem. This paper proposes natural inspired algorithms for dealing with constrains of VRPTW which involves Bat Algorithm and Cat Swarm Optimization. Bat Algorithm is being hybrid with Simulated Annealing, the worst solution of Bat Algorithm is replaced by the solution from Simulated Annealing. Algorithm which is based on behavior of cats, Cat Swarm Optimization, is improved using Crow Search Algorithm to make simplier and faster convergence. From the computational result, these algorithms give good performances in finding the minimized total distance. Higher number of population causes better computational performance. The improved Cat Swarm Optimization with Crow Search gives better performance than the hybridization of Bat Algorithm and Simulated Annealing in dealing with big data.

  9. Redesigning Racial Caste in America via Mass Incarceration.

    PubMed

    Graff, Gilda

    2015-01-01

    This article argues that the era of mass incarceration can be understood as a new tactic in the history of American racism. Slavery was ended by the Civil War, but after Reconstruction, the gains of the former slaves were eroded by Jim Crow (a rigid pattern of racial segregation), lynching, disenfranchisement, sharecropping, tenantry, unequal educational resources, terrorism, and convict leasing. The Civil Rights Movement struck down legal barriers, but we have chosen to deal with the problems of poverty and race not so differently than we have in the past. The modern version of convict leasing, is mass incarceration. This article documents the dramatic change in American drug policy beginning with Reagan's October, 1982 announcement of the War on Drugs, the subsequent 274 percent growth in the prison and jail populations, and the devastating and disproportionate effect on inner city African Americans. Just as the Jim Crow laws were a reaction to the freeing of the slaves after the Civil War, mass incarceration can be understood as a reaction to the Civil Rights Movement.

  10. Privatizing Pennsylvania, and Then Un-Privatizing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wohl, Jerel

    2007-01-01

    Nearly ten years ago, the University of Pennsylvania announced that it would outsource its facilities and real-estate operations to Trammell Crow Higher Education Services, Inc. The agreement included management of school facilities--155 buildings over 269 acres on the West Philadelphia campus. It also included construction management and…

  11. Crow Tribe Water Rights Settlement Act of 2009

    THOMAS, 111th Congress

    Rep. Rehberg, Denny [R-MT-At Large

    2009-02-04

    House - 02/09/2009 Referred to the Subcommittee on Water and Power. (All Actions) Notes: For further action, see H.R.4783, which became Public Law 111-291 on 12/8/2010. Tracker: This bill has the status IntroducedHere are the steps for Status of Legislation:

  12. Control of Vertebrate Pests of Agricultural Crops.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wingard, Robert G.; Studholme, Clinton R.

    This agriculture extension service publication of Pennsylvania State University discusses the damage from and control of vertebrate pests. Specific discussions describe the habits, habitat, and various control measures for blackbirds and crows, deer, meadow and pine mice, European starlings, and woodchucks. Where confusion with non-harmful species…

  13. 5 CFR Appendix C to Subpart B of... - Appropriated Fund Wage and Survey Areas

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... Delta Dolores Fremont Gunnison Hinsdale Huerfano Kiowa Kit Carson Las Animas Lincoln Mineral Montrose...: Lucas Wood Northwestern Michigan Survey Area Michigan: Delta Dickinson Marquette Area of Application... Earth Indian Reservation portion only) Beltrami Cass Clearwater Cook Crow Wing Hubbard Itasca...

  14. 5 CFR Appendix C to Subpart B of... - Appropriated Fund Wage and Survey Areas

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... Delta Dolores Fremont Gunnison Hinsdale Huerfano Kiowa Kit Carson Las Animas Lincoln Mineral Montrose...: Lucas Wood Northwestern Michigan Survey Area Michigan: Delta Dickinson Marquette Area of Application... Earth Indian Reservation portion only) Beltrami Cass Clearwater Cook Crow Wing Hubbard Itasca...

  15. 50 CFR 92.3 - Applicability and scope.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ...) MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS MIGRATORY BIRD SUBSISTENCE HARVEST IN ALASKA General Provisions § 92.3 Applicability... migratory birds and their eggs for subsistence purposes in Alaska between the dates of March 10 and... this chapter, which relate to the hunting of migratory game birds and crows during the regular open...

  16. 50 CFR 92.3 - Applicability and scope.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ...) MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS MIGRATORY BIRD SUBSISTENCE HARVEST IN ALASKA General Provisions § 92.3 Applicability... migratory birds and their eggs for subsistence purposes in Alaska between the dates of March 10 and... this chapter, which relate to the hunting of migratory game birds and crows during the regular open...

  17. 77 FR 10003 - Sunshine Act Meeting

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-02-21

    ..., 2011) (Tentative). b. Crow Butte Resources, Inc. (License Renewal for the In Situ Leach Facility... appropriate. If you need a reasonable accommodation to participate in these public meetings, or need this meeting notice or the transcript or other information from the public meetings in another format (e.g...

  18. 77 FR 10575 - Sunshine Act Meetings

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-02-22

    ...) (Tentative) b. Crow Butte Resources, Inc. (License Renewal for the In Situ Leach Facility, Crawford, Nebraska... participate in these public meetings, or need this meeting notice or the transcript or other information from the public meetings in another format (e.g. braille, large print), please notify Bill Dosch, Chief...

  19. SU-F-T-527: A Novel Dynamic Multileaf Collimator Leaf-Sequencing Algorithm in Radiation Therapy

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Jing, J; Lin, H; Chow, J

    Purpose: A novel leaf-sequencing algorithm is developed for generating arbitrary beam intensity profiles in discrete levels using dynamic multileaf collimator (MLC). The efficiency of this dynamic MLC leaf-sequencing method was evaluated using external beam treatment plans delivered by intensity modulated radiation therapy technique. Methods: To qualify and validate this algorithm, integral test for the beam segment of MLC generated by the CORVUS treatment planning system was performed with clinical intensity map experiments. The treatment plans were optimized and the fluence maps for all photon beams were determined. This algorithm started with the algebraic expression for the area under the beammore » profile. The coefficients in the expression can be transformed into the specifications for the leaf-setting sequence. The leaf optimization procedure was then applied and analyzed for clinical relevant intensity profiles in cancer treatment. Results: The macrophysical effect of this method can be described by volumetric plan evaluation tools such as dose-volume histograms (DVHs). The DVH results are in good agreement compared to those from the CORVUS treatment planning system. Conclusion: We developed a dynamic MLC method to examine the stability of leaf speed including effects of acceleration and deceleration of leaf motion in order to make sure the stability of leaf speed did not affect the intensity profile generated. It was found that the mechanical requirements were better satisfied using this method. The Project is sponsored by the Scientific Research Foundation for the Returned Overseas Chinese Scholars, State Education Ministry.« less

  20. IMRT head and neck treatment planning with a commercially available Monte Carlo based planning system

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Boudreau, C.; Heath, E.; Seuntjens, J.; Ballivy, O.; Parker, W.

    2005-03-01

    The PEREGRINE Monte Carlo dose-calculation system (North American Scientific, Cranberry Township, PA) is the first commercially available Monte Carlo dose-calculation code intended specifically for intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) treatment planning and quality assurance. In order to assess the impact of Monte Carlo based dose calculations for IMRT clinical cases, dose distributions for 11 head and neck patients were evaluated using both PEREGRINE and the CORVUS (North American Scientific, Cranberry Township, PA) finite size pencil beam (FSPB) algorithm with equivalent path-length (EPL) inhomogeneity correction. For the target volumes, PEREGRINE calculations predict, on average, a less than 2% difference in the calculated mean and maximum doses to the gross tumour volume (GTV) and clinical target volume (CTV). An average 16% ± 4% and 12% ± 2% reduction in the volume covered by the prescription isodose line was observed for the GTV and CTV, respectively. Overall, no significant differences were noted in the doses to the mandible and spinal cord. For the parotid glands, PEREGRINE predicted a 6% ± 1% increase in the volume of tissue receiving a dose greater than 25 Gy and an increase of 4% ± 1% in the mean dose. Similar results were noted for the brainstem where PEREGRINE predicted a 6% ± 2% increase in the mean dose. The observed differences between the PEREGRINE and CORVUS calculated dose distributions are attributed to secondary electron fluence perturbations, which are not modelled by the EPL correction, issues of organ outlining, particularly in the vicinity of air cavities, and differences in dose reporting (dose to water versus dose to tissue type).

  1. A semantic web framework to integrate cancer omics data with biological knowledge.

    PubMed

    Holford, Matthew E; McCusker, James P; Cheung, Kei-Hoi; Krauthammer, Michael

    2012-01-25

    The RDF triple provides a simple linguistic means of describing limitless types of information. Triples can be flexibly combined into a unified data source we call a semantic model. Semantic models open new possibilities for the integration of variegated biological data. We use Semantic Web technology to explicate high throughput clinical data in the context of fundamental biological knowledge. We have extended Corvus, a data warehouse which provides a uniform interface to various forms of Omics data, by providing a SPARQL endpoint. With the querying and reasoning tools made possible by the Semantic Web, we were able to explore quantitative semantic models retrieved from Corvus in the light of systematic biological knowledge. For this paper, we merged semantic models containing genomic, transcriptomic and epigenomic data from melanoma samples with two semantic models of functional data - one containing Gene Ontology (GO) data, the other, regulatory networks constructed from transcription factor binding information. These two semantic models were created in an ad hoc manner but support a common interface for integration with the quantitative semantic models. Such combined semantic models allow us to pose significant translational medicine questions. Here, we study the interplay between a cell's molecular state and its response to anti-cancer therapy by exploring the resistance of cancer cells to Decitabine, a demethylating agent. We were able to generate a testable hypothesis to explain how Decitabine fights cancer - namely, that it targets apoptosis-related gene promoters predominantly in Decitabine-sensitive cell lines, thus conveying its cytotoxic effect by activating the apoptosis pathway. Our research provides a framework whereby similar hypotheses can be developed easily.

  2. Race, Remembering, and Jim Crow's Teachers. Studies in African American History and Culture

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kelly, Hilton

    2012-01-01

    This book explores a profoundly negative narrative about legally segregated schools in the United States being "inherently inferior" compared to their white counterparts. However, there are overwhelmingly positive counter-memories of these schools as "good and valued" among former students, teachers, and community members.…

  3. Change Takes Root in the Desert

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Blumenstyk, Goldie

    2012-01-01

    The author reports on how Arizona State University (ASU) pursues transformation on a grand scale while embracing inclusiveness. Michael Crow, Arizona State University's president and idea man, is pushing the institution to innovate and still fulfill its mission to be inclusive. By itself, Arizona State University's transformation over the past…

  4. Measuring Change in Leadership Identity and Problem Framing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Young, Michelle D.; O'Doherty, Ann; Gooden, Mark A.; Goodnow, Elisabeth

    2011-01-01

    In recent years, significant attention has been directed to the need for more and better-prepared educational leaders (Young, Crow, Murphy & Ogawa, 2009). While many organizations prepare school principals, evidence of program impact is sparse (Orr & Pounder, 2008; Southern Regional Education Board, 2008). The study described in this…

  5. Recent Technology Developments for the Kinetic Kill Vehicle Hardware-In-The-Loop Simulator (KHILS),

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1998-01-01

    Eric Hardware-in-the-Loop Testing III, Proceedings Hedlund, and Chet DeCesaris whose sponsorship SPIE 3368, (1998). through the SDIO/BMDO over the last...Jones, Coker, Garbo, Olson, Murrer, Bergin, Goldsmith, Crow, Guertin, Daugherty, Marler , 6. Trolier, Hall, Tincher, Leone, "Aerothermal Timms

  6. Design Matters: How School Environment Affects Children.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hebert, Elizabeth A.

    1998-01-01

    The organization of space profoundly affects learning. Students feel better connected to a building that anticipates their needs and respects them as individuals. Built in 1971, Crow Island School, in Winnetka, Illinois, is a prize-winning facility that has provided generations of children with windowed classrooms, skylights, adjacent workrooms,…

  7. Crow Tribe Water Rights Settlement Act of 2009

    THOMAS, 111th Congress

    Sen. Tester, Jon [D-MT

    2009-02-04

    Senate - 01/21/2010 Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 259. (All Actions) Notes: For further action, see H.R.4783, which became Public Law 111-291 on 12/8/2010. Tracker: This bill has the status IntroducedHere are the steps for Status of Legislation:

  8. Tying It All Together

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hirsh, Stephanie; Crow, Tracy

    2017-01-01

    The learning team cycle as described in "Becoming a Learning Team: A Guide to a Teacher-Led Cycle of Continuous Improvement" by Stephanie Hirsh and Tracy Crow was created to support teams of teachers working on particular lessons and instructional challenges within classrooms. Even as the day-to-day work of classroom teaching continues,…

  9. 40 CFR 63.11646 - What are my compliance requirements?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... with Method 29 must collect a minimum sample volume of 0.85 dry standard cubic meters (30 dry standard... weight measurement device, mass flow meter, or densitometer and volumetric flow meter to measure ore...) Measure the weight of concentrate (produced by electrowinning, Merrill Crowe process, gravity feed, or...

  10. 40 CFR 63.11646 - What are my compliance requirements?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... with Method 29 must collect a minimum sample volume of 0.85 dry standard cubic meters (30 dry standard... weight measurement device, mass flow meter, or densitometer and volumetric flow meter to measure ore...) Measure the weight of concentrate (produced by electrowinning, Merrill Crowe process, gravity feed, or...

  11. 40 CFR 63.11646 - What are my compliance requirements?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... with Method 29 must collect a minimum sample volume of 0.85 dry standard cubic meters (30 dry standard... weight measurement device, mass flow meter, or densitometer and volumetric flow meter to measure ore...) Measure the weight of concentrate (produced by electrowinning, Merrill Crowe process, gravity feed, or...

  12. 40 CFR 63.11646 - What are my compliance requirements?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... with Method 29 must collect a minimum sample volume of 0.85 dry standard cubic meters (30 dry standard... weight measurement device, mass flow meter, or densitometer and volumetric flow meter to measure ore...) Measure the weight of concentrate (produced by electrowinning, Merrill Crowe process, gravity feed, or...

  13. 22. VAL, VIEW OF PROJECTILE LOADING DECK LOOKING NORTHEAST TOWARD ...

    Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

    22. VAL, VIEW OF PROJECTILE LOADING DECK LOOKING NORTHEAST TOWARD TOP OF CONCRETE 'A' FRAME STRUCTURE SHOWING DRIVE CABLES, DRIVE GEAR, BOTTOM OF CAMERA TOWER AND 'CROWS NEST' CONTROL ROOM. - Variable Angle Launcher Complex, Variable Angle Launcher, CA State Highway 39 at Morris Reservior, Azusa, Los Angeles County, CA

  14. 25 CFR 153.4 - Factors determining competency.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 25 Indians 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Factors determining competency. 153.4 Section 153.4 Indians BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR LAND AND WATER DETERMINATION OF COMPETENCY: CROW INDIANS § 153.4 Factors determining competency. Among the matters to be considered by the...

  15. 25 CFR 153.2 - Application and examination.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 25 Indians 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Application and examination. 153.2 Section 153.2 Indians BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR LAND AND WATER DETERMINATION OF COMPETENCY: CROW INDIANS § 153.2 Application and examination. The Commissioner of Indian Affairs or his duly authorized...

  16. 25 CFR 153.3 - Application form.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 25 Indians 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Application form. 153.3 Section 153.3 Indians BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR LAND AND WATER DETERMINATION OF COMPETENCY: CROW INDIANS § 153.3 Application form. The application form shall include, among other things: (a) The name of the...

  17. American Indian Telecommunications Satellite Demonstration Project. Summary Report.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX.

    The technical feasibility of voice and television communication within and between tribes, between tribes and federal agencies, and between educational institutions and tribes was demonstrated by broadcasts which took place April 10, 12, and 14, 1978, with equipment located at four sites: Crow Agency, Montana; All- Indian Culture Center, New…

  18. A School Leader's Bookshelf.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jones, Rebecca

    2003-01-01

    Brief reviews of six notable education books selected by the editors of "American School Board Journal." Includes books such as Rachel Simmons's "Odd Girl Out: The Hidden Culture of Aggression in Girls," Jonathan Schorr's "Hard Lessons: The Promise of an Inner City Charter School," Peter Irons's "Jim Crow's Children: The Broken Promise of the…

  19. As the Crow Flies. A Social Studies/Newspaper Guide. A Newspaper in Education Service.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Richardson, Lynn J.

    Appropriate for intermediate grades through high school, this social studies newspaper guide suggests learning activities using newspapers. The areas covered are history, geography, current events, the working class, sociology, the political scene, cultures, government, and travel. Suggested assignments include writing a feature or news interview…

  20. Richard Wright's Successful Failure: A New Look at "Uncle Tom's Children"

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Giles, James R.

    1973-01-01

    A reevaluation of novelist Richard Wright's first book, which is a collection of five short stories-- Big Boy Leaves Home,'' Down by the Riverside,'' Long Black Song,'' Fire and Cloud,'' and Bright and Morning Star''--and an introductory essay, The Ethics of Living Jim Crow.'' (JM)

  1. 25 CFR 153.5 - Children of competent Indians.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... 25 Indians 1 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Children of competent Indians. 153.5 Section 153.5 Indians BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR LAND AND WATER DETERMINATION OF COMPETENCY: CROW INDIANS § 153.5 Children of competent Indians. Children of competent Indians who have attained or...

  2. 25 CFR 153.5 - Children of competent Indians.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... 25 Indians 1 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Children of competent Indians. 153.5 Section 153.5 Indians BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR LAND AND WATER DETERMINATION OF COMPETENCY: CROW INDIANS § 153.5 Children of competent Indians. Children of competent Indians who have attained or...

  3. 25 CFR 153.5 - Children of competent Indians.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 25 Indians 1 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Children of competent Indians. 153.5 Section 153.5 Indians BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR LAND AND WATER DETERMINATION OF COMPETENCY: CROW INDIANS § 153.5 Children of competent Indians. Children of competent Indians who have attained or...

  4. 25 CFR 153.5 - Children of competent Indians.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 25 Indians 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Children of competent Indians. 153.5 Section 153.5 Indians BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR LAND AND WATER DETERMINATION OF COMPETENCY: CROW INDIANS § 153.5 Children of competent Indians. Children of competent Indians who have attained or...

  5. Mission Executor for an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1991-09-01

    which must control and intepret sensory output for navigation and reconition of various obstructions and provide adaptability strategies for local...envemmjnm -, cLdvhelama 0"in idmLMLISw (.?OFchdmjmiheu 1)))) CroW4%cdmdahuwm 7b~.mWl) Film 6-1L OvatE Mission Asumma Ride complications, just that the

  6. Preliminary guidelines for prescribed burning under standing timber in western larch/douglas-fir forests

    Treesearch

    Rodney A. Norum

    1977-01-01

    Guidelines are offered for safe, effective fire treatments in western larch/Douglas-fir forests. Describes procedures for estimating and limiting the scorching of tree crows. Provides a method for predicting percentage of the forest floor that will be burned down to mineral soil.

  7. Spatially Explicit West Nile Virus Risk Modeling in Santa Clara County, CA

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    A geographic information systems model designed to identify regions of West Nile virus (WNV) transmission risk was tested and calibrated with data collected in Santa Clara County, California. American Crows that died from WNV infection in 2005, provided spatial and temporal ground truth. When the mo...

  8. Spatially explicit West Nile virus risk modeling in Santa Clara County, California

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    A previously created Geographic Information Systems model designed to identify regions of West Nile virus (WNV) transmission risk is tested and calibrated in Santa Clara County, California. American Crows that died from WNV infection in 2005 provide the spatial and temporal ground truth. Model param...

  9. Chicken Art

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bickett, Marianne

    2009-01-01

    In this article, the author describes how a visit from a flock of chickens provided inspiration for the children's chicken art. The gentle clucking of the hens, the rooster crowing, and the softness of the feathers all provided rich aural, tactile, visual, and emotional experiences. The experience affirms the importance and value of direct…

  10. Application of the Auto-Tuned Land Assimilation System (ATLAS) to ASCAT and SMOS soil moisture retrieval products

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Land data assimilations are typically based on highly uncertain assumptions regarding the statistical structure of observation and modeling errors. Left uncorrected, poor assumptions can degrade the quality of analysis products generated by land data assimilation systems. Recently, Crow and van de...

  11. Carter G. Woodson Book Awards.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Social Education, 1999

    1999-01-01

    Presents the recipients of the 1999 Carter G. Woodson book awards that honor books focusing on ethnic minorities and race relations in a manner appropriate for young readers; the books cover topics that include the lives of Langston Hughes, Rosa Parks, and Ida B. Wells and the history of the Crow people. (CMK)

  12. Choosing and using a lawyer. What every medical practice administrator needs to know.

    PubMed

    Crow, N R

    1994-01-01

    Attorney Nancy Crow, J.D., L.L.M., writes about some of the legal issues encountered by medical groups, such as business law, real estate and land use, taxes and employee benefits, among many others, and what types of attorneys are more appropriate for particular concerns.

  13. Pleistocene vertebrates of the Yukon Territory

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Harington, C. R.

    2011-08-01

    Unglaciated parts of the Yukon constitute one of the most important areas in North America for yielding Pleistocene vertebrate fossils. Nearly 30 vertebrate faunal localities are reviewed spanning a period of about 1.6 Ma (million years ago) to the close of the Pleistocene some 10 000 BP (radiocarbon years before present, taken as 1950). The vertebrate fossils represent at least 8 species of fishes, 1 amphibian, 41 species of birds and 83 species of mammals. Dominant among the large mammals are: steppe bison ( Bison priscus), horse ( Equus sp.), woolly mammoth ( Mammuthus primigenius), and caribou ( Rangifer tarandus) - signature species of the Mammoth Steppe fauna ( Fig. 1), which was widespread from the British Isles, through northern Europe, and Siberia to Alaska, Yukon and adjacent Northwest Territories. The Yukon faunas extend from Herschel Island in the north to Revenue Creek in the south and from the Alaskan border in the west to Ketza River in the east. The Yukon holds evidence of the earliest-known people in North America. Artifacts made from bison, mammoth and caribou bones from Bluefish Caves, Old Crow Basin and Dawson City areas show that people had a substantial knowledge of making and using bone tools at least by 25 000 BP, and possibly as early as 40 000 BP. A suggested chronological sequence of Yukon Pleistocene vertebrates ( Table 1) facilitates comparison of selected faunas and indicates the known duration of various taxa.

  14. Conservation status and recovery strategies for endemic Hawaiian birds

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Banko, Paul C.; David, Reginald E.; Jacobi, James D.; Banko, Winston E.

    2001-01-01

    Populations of endemic Hawaiian birds declined catastrophically following the colonization of the islands by Polynesians and later cultures. Extinction is still occurring, and recovery programs are urgently needed to prevent the disappearance of many other species. Programs to recover the endemic avifauna incorporate a variety of conceptual and practical approaches that are constrained by biological, financial, social, and legal factors. Avian recovery is difficult to implement in Hawai‘i because a variety of challenging biological factors limit bird populations. Hawaiian birds are threatened by alien predatory mammals, introduced mosquitoes that transmit diseases, alien invertebrate parasites and predators that reduce invertebrate food resources, and alien animals and plants that destroy and alter habitats. Life in the remote Hawaiian Archipelago has imposed other biological constraints to avian recovery, including limited geographical distributions and small population sizes. Recovery of the endemic avifauna is also challenging because resources are insufficient to mitigate the many complex, interacting factors that limit populations. Decisions must be made for allocating limited resources to species teetering on the brink of extinction and those in decline. If funds are spent primarily on saving the rarest species, more abundant species will decline and become more difficult to recover. However, critically rare species will disappear if efforts are directed mainly towards restoring species that are declining but not in immediate danger of becoming extinct. Determining priorities is difficult also because management is needed both to supplement bird populations and to restore habitats of many species. Rare species cannot respond quickly to management efforts intended only to improve habitat and reduce limiting factors. Recovery is slow, if it occurs at all, because years or decades are generally required for habitat rehabilitation and because small populations of birds initially increase slowly even when habitat conditions are favorable. Consequently, even as habitat conditions begin to improve, small populations may disappear unless they are supplemented directly. Hawaiian bird conservation is also affected by social and legal factors, including hunting alien game species, commercial land use practices, and lawsuits and policies concerning endangered species and critical habitat. Influenced by this mixture of conflicting and competing issues, Hawaiian bird recovery programs range from management of single species and some components of their habitats to limited forms of community or ecosystem management. Although the effectiveness of most programs is difficult to evaluate because of monitoring limitations, several programs exemplify species and community management. Programs primarily intended to recover single species include Hawaiian Goose or Nene (Branta sandvicensis), Hawaiian Crow or ‘Alala (Corvus hawaiiensis), and Palila (Loxioides bailleui). Programs attempting to manage entire communities of forest birds include Hakalau Forest National Wildlife Refuge and Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park on Hawai‘i, and Waikamoi Preserve, Hanawi Natural Area Reserve, and Haleakala National Park on Maui.

  15. Separate Is Inherently Unequal: Rethinking Commonly Held Wisdom

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lightfoot, Jonathan D.

    2006-01-01

    Modern educational reform owes much to the legal team and educational leaders who fought to make equal educational opportunity a reality for Black students in the United States of America. Their efforts helped to dismantle American apartheid; a.k.a. Jim Crow, a system of allocating human and civil rights according to assigned or assumed…

  16. One is too many.

    PubMed

    Sibbald, B J

    1996-10-01

    Two Toronto street nurses have turned into political activists in their struggle to stop the homeless from dying in the streets. Alicia Odette and Cathy Crowe helped initiate and publicize the June 24 to July 30 coroner's inquest into the freezing death of three homeless men last winter. Now they are busy ensuring the inquest's recommendations are implemented.

  17. Still No 40 Acres, Still No Mule

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Keels, Crystal L.

    2005-01-01

    The simple mention of reparations for African-Americans in the United States can be counted on to generate a firestorm. When it comes to the issue of recompense for injustices Black Americans have suffered throughout U.S. history--slavery, Jim Crow segregation, and other political and social mechanisms designed to maintain racial inequality--the…

  18. 25 CFR 162.600 - Crow Reservation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ...), as amended, may lease their trust lands and the trust lands of their minor children for farming or... interests of lessees and to the adjustment of any damages to such interests. In the event of a dispute as to the amount of such damage, the matter will be referred to the Secretary whose determination will be...

  19. 25 CFR 162.500 - Crow Reservation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ...), as amended, may lease their trust lands and the trust lands of their minor children for farming or... interests of lessees and to the adjustment of any damages to such interests. In the event of a dispute as to the amount of such damage, the matter will be referred to the Secretary whose determination will be...

  20. 25 CFR 162.500 - Crow Reservation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ...), as amended, may lease their trust lands and the trust lands of their minor children for farming or... interests of lessees and to the adjustment of any damages to such interests. In the event of a dispute as to the amount of such damage, the matter will be referred to the Secretary whose determination will be...

  1. 25 CFR 162.500 - Crow Reservation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ...), as amended, may lease their trust lands and the trust lands of their minor children for farming or... interests of lessees and to the adjustment of any damages to such interests. In the event of a dispute as to the amount of such damage, the matter will be referred to the Secretary whose determination will be...

  2. 25 CFR 162.500 - Crow Reservation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ...), as amended, may lease their trust lands and the trust lands of their minor children for farming or... interests of lessees and to the adjustment of any damages to such interests. In the event of a dispute as to the amount of such damage, the matter will be referred to the Secretary whose determination will be...

  3. Why Do Cocks Crow? Children's Concepts about Birds

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Prokop, Pavol; Kubiatko, Milan; Fancovicova

    2007-01-01

    Research into children's ideas showed that children's interpretations of natural phenomena often differ from those of scientists. The aim of our study was to identify children's ideas of various age classes (7/8-14/15) about birds. A questionnaire with 31 multiple choice and open ended questions and eight photographs were administered to 495…

  4. 25 CFR 153.6 - Appeals.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 25 Indians 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Appeals. 153.6 Section 153.6 Indians BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR LAND AND WATER DETERMINATION OF COMPETENCY: CROW INDIANS § 153.6 Appeals. An appeal to the Secretary of the Interior may be made within 30 days from the date of notice to...

  5. Educational Leaders and Migrant Populations: Policies and Issues in the State of Florida

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Geiger, Carrie Teston

    2009-01-01

    To be effective instructional leaders, school administrators need an understanding of the specific educational and social issues of their students (Matthews & Crow, 2003). Migrant students are no exception. Without an understanding of migrant students and their unique needs, they may overlook critical accommodations or necessary practices that…

  6. Decoding Mixed Signals: Survival in the Demise of Affirmative Action.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Neff, Heather

    Among personal memories for one minority instructor in literature is witnessing the civil rights movement, that defining period in which people of African descent broke out of the chrysalis of "Jim Crow" and transformed themselves from "colored" to "Black." In 1995, 1,000,000 Black men once again converged on the…

  7. By Your Own Design: A Teacher's Professional Learning Guide.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Thorson, Annette, Ed.

    2002-01-01

    This magazine is published for classroom innovators. The content of this issue includes: (1) "Who's the Learner in Learner-Centered?" (Gay Gordon); (2) "The Product of a Perfect Partnership" (Tracy Crow); (3) "E-Learning Potential" (Joan Richardson); (4) "A Review of 'Evaluating Professional Development'" (Gay Gordon); (5) "Dreaming All That We…

  8. 25 CFR 153.5 - Children of competent Indians.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... 25 Indians 1 2012-04-01 2011-04-01 true Children of competent Indians. 153.5 Section 153.5 Indians BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR LAND AND WATER DETERMINATION OF COMPETENCY: CROW INDIANS § 153.5 Children of competent Indians. Children of competent Indians who have attained or upon...

  9. 25 CFR 135.23 - Refusal of water delivery.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... 25 Indians 1 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Refusal of water delivery. 135.23 Section 135.23 Indians BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES CONSTRUCTION ASSESSMENTS, CROW... District § 135.23 Refusal of water delivery. The right is reserved to refuse the delivery of water to any...

  10. An Exploration of Self-Efficacy in a Teacher-Educator's Practice

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tobery-Nystrom, Jamelyn C.

    2011-01-01

    Designed in response to an expressed need for assessment measures of teacher preparation programs, this exploratory study presents one method to assess and improve teacher-educator practices (Crowe, 2010; Gardiner, 2007). Teacher-educators have discovered that conducting a personal assessment or a self-study of one's practice is a way to improve…

  11. APOLLO 16 TECHNICIAN ATTACHES PLAQUE TO LUNAR MODULE'S DESCENT STAGE

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    1972-01-01

    Working inside the Apollo 16 Saturn V space vehicle at the launch pad, technician Ken Crow attaches a stainless steel plaque bearing the names of Apollo 16 astronauts John W. Young, Thomas K. Mattingly II and Charles M. Duke, Jr., to the Lunar Module's descent stage, which will remain on the Moon's surface.

  12. Semiotics of Power and Dictatorship in Ngugi Wa Thiong'o's Later Novels

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Amoussou, Yemalo C.

    2016-01-01

    This paper explores the different uses of symbols to express power and interpersonal relationship in Ngugi's bulkiest novel "Wizard of the Crow" (2006), with a few illustrations from "Matigari" (1987). It draws on the semiotic approach and identifies about a hundred discourse strings in which signs are used to express tenor…

  13. 25 CFR 135.23 - Refusal of water delivery.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 25 Indians 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Refusal of water delivery. 135.23 Section 135.23 Indians BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES CONSTRUCTION ASSESSMENTS, CROW... District § 135.23 Refusal of water delivery. The right is reserved to refuse the delivery of water to any...

  14. 25 CFR 135.23 - Refusal of water delivery.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 25 Indians 1 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Refusal of water delivery. 135.23 Section 135.23 Indians BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES CONSTRUCTION ASSESSMENTS, CROW... District § 135.23 Refusal of water delivery. The right is reserved to refuse the delivery of water to any...

  15. 25 CFR 135.23 - Refusal of water delivery.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... 25 Indians 1 2012-04-01 2011-04-01 true Refusal of water delivery. 135.23 Section 135.23 Indians BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES CONSTRUCTION ASSESSMENTS, CROW... District § 135.23 Refusal of water delivery. The right is reserved to refuse the delivery of water to any...

  16. Legacy System Improvements for the Objective Force

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2001-08-14

    Less Than 11 lbs • M249 Short Barrel/ Buttstock •Reduced size/length • Com Remotely Op Wpn Sys •Fire Under Armor w/o Turret • IAV Program Spt •Primary...concepts being evaluated Common Remotely Operated Weapons Station(CROWS) Benefits: • Permits under armor operation of crew served weapons for suppression of

  17. Guide to New Resources

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    He, Ming Fang; Sapp, Jeff; Botelho, Maria Jose; Nunez, Isabel; Scott-Simmons, Wynnetta; Johnson, Lincoln

    2013-01-01

    The theme of this column is African American Women's Memories of Racial Oppression and Segregation in the U.S. South and Its Relevance to Multicultural Education. The focus of the review is on Anne Valk and Leslie Brown's "Living with Jim Crow: African American Women and Memories of the Segregated South" (2010). In "Living with Jim…

  18. Vocabulary at the Center

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Benjamin, Amy; Crow, John T.

    2009-01-01

    In "Vocabulary at the Center," Amy Benjamin and John T. Crow identify the most effective methods for extending the use of new words--in every grade level and across all subjects. This book shows teachers how to use context-driven exercises to incorporate new words into other areas of study. This book contains information about the authors, an…

  19. Brown at 50: Keeping Promises

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wu, Frank H.

    2004-01-01

    The story of Brown is compelling. Blacks and Whites alike understood that the Jim Crow system of "separate but equal" was a convenient fiction. There was no actual effort to ensure that Whites and Blacks were provided the same services. Invariably, the White schools had higher funding, better buildings, newer supplies and so on. Indeed,…

  20. The Pterodactyl and the Crow

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Watkins, Richard

    2005-01-01

    In this article, the author focuses on developing scientific reasoning in year 6 children. Having embarked on a series of lessons in which the author hoped to uncover children's ideas about how and why they reason in a particular way, the results were to prove instrumental in developing not only his teaching of scientific enquiry, but also the…

  1. Jim Crow, Uncle Sam, and the Formation of the Tuskegee Flying Units.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Percy, William

    1999-01-01

    Delivers background information on the political origins and confrontations surrounding the "Tuskegee Experiment." States that the success of the Tuskegee pilots, in their role as strategic escort for the Fifteenth Air Force, paved the way for the overall desegregation of U.S. armed forces. Provides teaching ideas along with two…

  2. A Trickster Tale about Integrating Indigenous Knowledge in University-Based Programs

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Moore, Sylvia

    2012-01-01

    Written as a trickster tale and co-narrated by the researcher and a trickster figure (Crow), this writing considers the challenges of bringing traditional ecological knowledge to environmental studies and science programs. The researcher describes a project to raise and release salmon, which was collaboratively developed and carried out by members…

  3. Changing Our Minds/Changing the World: The Power of a Question

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Laman, Tasha Tropp

    2006-01-01

    This article examines the curricular possibilities within critical inquiry-based primary classrooms. The children in this first through third grade multi-age, multi-lingual classroom participated in a two-year critical and collaborative inquiry around issues of segregation and the Jim Crow laws. A touchstone text, Freedom Summer (Wiles, 2001) and…

  4. Diversification and cumulative evolution in New Caledonian crow tool manufacture.

    PubMed Central

    Hunt, Gavin R; Gray, Russell D

    2003-01-01

    Many animals use tools but only humans are generally considered to have the cognitive sophistication required for cumulative technological evolution. Three important characteristics of cumulative technological evolution are: (i) the diversification of tool design; (ii) cumulative change; and (iii) high-fidelity social transmission. We present evidence that crows have diversified and cumulatively changed the design of their pandanus tools. In 2000 we carried out an intensive survey in New Caledonia to establish the geographical variation in the manufacture of these tools. We documented the shapes of 5550 tools from 21 sites throughout the range of pandanus tool manufacture. We found three distinct pandanus tool designs: wide tools, narrow tools and stepped tools. The lack of ecological correlates of the three tool designs and their different, continuous and overlapping geographical distributions make it unlikely that they evolved independently. The similarities in the manufacture method of each design further suggest that pandanus tools have gone through a process of cumulative change from a common historical origin. We propose a plausible scenario for this rudimentary cumulative evolution. PMID:12737666

  5. The Corvids Literature Database--500 years of ornithological research from a crow's perspective.

    PubMed

    Droege, Gabriele; Töpfer, Till

    2016-01-01

    Corvids (Corvidae) play a major role in ornithological research. Because of their worldwide distribution, diversity and adaptiveness, they have been studied extensively. The aim of the Corvids Literature Database (CLD, http://www.corvids.de/cld) is to record all publications (citation format) on all extant and extinct Crows, Ravens, Jays and Magpies worldwide and tag them with specific keywords making them available for researchers worldwide. The self-maintained project started in 2006 and today comprises 8000 articles, spanning almost 500 years. The CLD covers publications from 164 countries, written in 36 languages and published by 8026 authors in 1503 journals (plus books, theses and other publications). Forty-nine percent of all records are available online as full-text documents or deposited in the physical CLD archive. The CLD contains 442 original corvid descriptions. Here, we present a metadata assessment of articles recorded in the CLD including a gap analysis and prospects for future research. Database URL: http://www.corvids.de/cld. © The Author(s) 2016. Published by Oxford University Press.

  6. Unconditionally stable finite-difference time-domain methods for modeling the Sagnac effect

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Novitski, Roman; Scheuer, Jacob; Steinberg, Ben Z.

    2013-02-01

    We present two unconditionally stable finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) methods for modeling the Sagnac effect in rotating optical microsensors. The methods are based on the implicit Crank-Nicolson scheme, adapted to hold in the rotating system reference frame—the rotating Crank-Nicolson (RCN) methods. The first method (RCN-2) is second order accurate in space whereas the second method (RCN-4) is fourth order accurate. Both methods are second order accurate in time. We show that the RCN-4 scheme is more accurate and has better dispersion isotropy. The numerical results show good correspondence with the expression for the classical Sagnac resonant frequency splitting when using group refractive indices of the resonant modes of a microresonator. Also we show that the numerical results are consistent with the perturbation theory for the rotating degenerate microcavities. We apply our method to simulate the effect of rotation on an entire Coupled Resonator Optical Waveguide (CROW) consisting of a set of coupled microresonators. Preliminary results validate the formation of a rotation-induced gap at the center of a transfer function of a CROW.

  7. West Nile Virus: A Threat to North American Avian Species

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    McLean, R.G.

    2002-01-01

    The introduction and extensive expansion of WNV in the US in the last three years is having a dramatic impact on native wildlife. The disease continues to cause significant mortality in a variety of bird species throughout the eastern US, particularly in American crow and blue jay populations. As the virus expands to new habitats in the southern, midwestern and western states, new bird species will be at risk and different patterns of transmission will develop. In the western states, many additional species of Corvidae (crows, jays, ravens, magpies and nutcrackers) may be affected. Once it becomes well established in states with warm climates, like Florida where mosquitoes are active year round to sustain almost continuous transmission; these states could serve as annual sources of WNV for migratory birds to re-introduce the virus to northern states in the spring. The rapid increase in geographical distribution of WNV activity that has occurred throughout the eastern US and the rapid increase in the infection and mortality rates in birds during the last three years indicate the emergence of an epizootic disease of major importance to North American birds.

  8. INTERDISCIPLINARY PHYSICS AND RELATED AREAS OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Relaxation Property and Stability Analysis of the Quasispecies Models

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Feng, Xiao-Li; Li, Yu-Xiao; Gu, Jian-Zhong; Zhuo, Yi-Zhong

    2009-10-01

    The relaxation property of both Eigen model and Crow-Kimura model with a single peak fitness landscape is studied from phase transition point of view. We first analyze the eigenvalue spectra of the replication mutation matrices. For sufficiently long sequences, the almost crossing point between the largest and second-largest eigenvalues locates the error threshold at which critical slowing down behavior appears. We calculate the critical exponent in the limit of infinite sequence lengths and compare it with the result from numerical curve fittings at sufficiently long sequences. We find that for both models the relaxation time diverges with exponent 1 at the error (mutation) threshold point. Results obtained from both methods agree quite well. From the unlimited correlation length feature, the first order phase transition is further confirmed. Finally with linear stability theory, we show that the two model systems are stable for all ranges of mutation rate. The Eigen model is asymptotically stable in terms of mutant classes, and the Crow-Kimura model is completely stable.

  9. Tiltrotor Acoustic Flight Test: Terminal Area Operations

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    SantaMaria, O. L.; Wellman, J. B.; Conner, D. A.; Rutledge, C. K.

    1991-01-01

    This paper provides a comprehensive description of an acoustic flight test of the XV- 15 Tiltrotor Aircraft with Advanced Technology Blades (ATB) conducted in August and September 1991 at Crows Landing, California. The purpose of this cooperative research effort of the NASA Langley and Ames Research Centers was to obtain a preliminary, high quality database of far-field acoustics for terminal area operations of the XV-15 at a takeoff gross weight of approximately 14,000 lbs for various glide slopes, airspeeds, rotor tip speeds, and nacelle tilt angles. The test also was used to assess the suitability of the Crows Landing complex for full scale far-field acoustic testing. This was the first acoustic flight test of the XV-15 aircraft equipped with ATB involving approach and level flyover operations. The test involved coordination of numerous personnel, facilities and equipment. Considerable effort was made to minimize potential extraneous noise sources unique to the region during the test. Acoustic data from the level flyovers were analyzed, then compared with data from a previous test of the XV-15 equipped with Standard Metal Blades

  10. Eurasian jays do not copy the choices of conspecifics, but they do show evidence of stimulus enhancement

    PubMed Central

    Miller, Rachael; Lister, Katherine; Clayton, Nicola S.

    2016-01-01

    Corvids (birds in the crow family) are hypothesised to have a general cognitive tool-kit because they show a wide range of transferrable skills across social, physical and temporal tasks, despite differences in socioecology. However, it is unknown whether relatively asocial corvids differ from social corvids in their use of social information in the context of copying the choices of others, because only one such test has been conducted in a relatively asocial corvid. We investigated whether relatively asocial Eurasian jays (Garrulus glandarius) use social information (i.e., information made available by others). Previous studies have indicated that jays attend to social context in their caching and mate provisioning behaviour; however, it is unknown whether jays copy the choices of others. We tested the jays in two different tasks varying in difficulty, where social corvid species have demonstrated social information use in both tasks. Firstly, an object-dropping task was conducted requiring objects to be dropped down a tube to release a food reward from a collapsible platform, which corvids can learn through explicit training. Only one rook and one New Caledonian crow have learned the task using social information from a demonstrator. Secondly, we tested the birds on a simple colour discrimination task, which should be easy to solve, because it has been shown that corvids can make colour discriminations. Using the same colour discrimination task in a previous study, all common ravens and carrion crows copied the demonstrator. After observing a conspecific demonstrator, none of the jays solved the object-dropping task, though all jays were subsequently able to learn to solve the task in a non-social situation through explicit training, and jays chose the demonstrated colour at chance levels. Our results suggest that social and relatively asocial corvids differ in social information use, indicating that relatively asocial species may have secondarily lost this ability due to lack of selection pressure from an asocial environment. PMID:27920957

  11. Assessment of bedload equations using data obtained with tracers in two coarse-bed mountain streams (Narcea River basin, NW Spain)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Vázquez-Tarrío, Daniel; Menéndez-Duarte, Rosana

    2015-06-01

    This paper evaluates the predictive power of nine bedload equations, comparing the results provided by the equations with the bedload rates obtained in a previous field-based tracer experiment accomplished in River Pigüeña and River Coto, two coarse bed streams from NW Spain. Rivers from NW Spain draining the northern watershed of the Cantabrian Mountain range flow into the Bay of Biscay in a short path (50-60 km). In this region, they are developed forested catchments featured by fluvial networks with relatively steep slopes, single-thread sinuous channels, and where bed sediment is typically coarse (cobble and gravel). Tagged stones were used to trace bed sediment movement during flood events in River Pigüeña and River Coto, the two main tributaries of the Narcea River basin. With the tracer results, bedload transport rates between 0.2 and 4.0 kg/s were estimated for six flood episodes. The tracer-based bedload discharges were compared with the bedload rates estimated with the bedload formulae (DuBoys-Straub, Schoklitsch, Meyer Peter-Müller, Bagbold, Einstein, Parker-Klingeman-McLean, Parker-Klingeman, Parker and Wilcock-Crowe). Our assessment shows that all of the bedload equations tend to overestimate when compared with the tracer-based results, with the Wilcock and Crowe (2003) equation the only exception in River Pigüeña. We linked these results to the particular geomorphology of coarse-bed rivers in humid and forested mountain environments. Within these rivers, armored textures and structural arrangements in the bed are ubiquitous; these features, together with a low sediment supply coming from upstream forested reaches, define a supply-limited condition for these channels limiting the potential use of bedload equations. The Wilcock and Crowe (2003) equation introduces complex corrections into the 'hiding function', and this could explain why it performs better.

  12. A semantic web framework to integrate cancer omics data with biological knowledge

    PubMed Central

    2012-01-01

    Background The RDF triple provides a simple linguistic means of describing limitless types of information. Triples can be flexibly combined into a unified data source we call a semantic model. Semantic models open new possibilities for the integration of variegated biological data. We use Semantic Web technology to explicate high throughput clinical data in the context of fundamental biological knowledge. We have extended Corvus, a data warehouse which provides a uniform interface to various forms of Omics data, by providing a SPARQL endpoint. With the querying and reasoning tools made possible by the Semantic Web, we were able to explore quantitative semantic models retrieved from Corvus in the light of systematic biological knowledge. Results For this paper, we merged semantic models containing genomic, transcriptomic and epigenomic data from melanoma samples with two semantic models of functional data - one containing Gene Ontology (GO) data, the other, regulatory networks constructed from transcription factor binding information. These two semantic models were created in an ad hoc manner but support a common interface for integration with the quantitative semantic models. Such combined semantic models allow us to pose significant translational medicine questions. Here, we study the interplay between a cell's molecular state and its response to anti-cancer therapy by exploring the resistance of cancer cells to Decitabine, a demethylating agent. Conclusions We were able to generate a testable hypothesis to explain how Decitabine fights cancer - namely, that it targets apoptosis-related gene promoters predominantly in Decitabine-sensitive cell lines, thus conveying its cytotoxic effect by activating the apoptosis pathway. Our research provides a framework whereby similar hypotheses can be developed easily. PMID:22373303

  13. [A case of anaphylactoid shock occurring immediately after the initiation of second intravenous administration of high-dose immunoglobulin (IVIg) in a patient with Crow-Fukase syndrome].

    PubMed

    Takahashi, Teruyuki; Ono, Shin-ichi; Ogawa, Katuhiko; Tamura, Masato; Mizutani, Tomohiko

    2003-06-01

    We report a case of anaphylactoid shock occurring immediately after the initiation of second intravenous administration of high-dose immunoglobulin (IVIg) in a patient with Crow-Fukase syndrome. The patient was a 57-year-old woman, who was admitted to our hospital because of numbness and muscle weakness in the four extremities, difficulty in walking, and foot edema. On admission, her skin was dry and rough, and also showing scattered pigmentation, small hemangiomas, and hypertrichosis in both legs. She had distal dominant muscle weakness, more prominent in her legs, and was not able to walk. Deep tendon reflexes in her four extremities were markedly diminished or absent. She had a glove and stocking type of paresthesia, severe impairment of vibration, and absence of joint position sensation in her four extremities. On laboratory data, serum vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) was markedly elevated to 5,184 pg/ml (normal: below 220 pg/ml). Cerebrospinal fluid examination revealed cell counts of 2/microliter and protein level of 114 mg/dl. Abdominal echo showed marked hepatosplenomegaly. On peripheral nerve conduction study, both motor and sensory conduction velocity were undetectable in her legs. We diagnosed her condition as Crow-Fukase syndrome, and started IVIg of polyethyleneglycol-treated gamma-globulin (PEG-glob) at 400 mg/kg/day for 5 consecutive days for polyneuropathy. Since the first IVIg mildly improved muscle weakness, we tried the second IVIg of PEG-glob. However, immediately after the initiation of second IVIg of PEG-glob, she developed hypotention, dyspnea, cold sweating, cyanosis, and became lethargic. We immediately stopped IVIg and started first-aid treatment with epinephrine and corticosteroid for these symptoms. This treatment was successful and the patient fully recovered without any sequelae. Since serum IgE level remained unchanged and lymphocyte stimulation test (LST) was positive against the same rot number of PEG-glob, we diagnosed these symptoms as anaphylactoid shock. Based on the results of LST, we speculated that PEG-glob was the causative agent of anaphylactoid reaction. Anaphylactic or anaphylactoid reaction as adverse effects of IVIg is very rare, and to our knowledge, there are only 4 previous reports of anaphylactic or anaphylactoid reaction caused by IVIg. Therefore, we speculated that the prominent high level of serum VEGF in the present patient might play a significant contributory role in the development of anaphylactoid shock, since the vascular permeability of VEGF is 50,000 times stronger than that of histamine. We consider that it is necessary to carefully monitor IVIg of PEG-glob administration for polyneuropathy in patients with high level of serum VEGF, like Crow-Fukase syndrome.

  14. Boyd Report1

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Crow, A J

    2009-07-07

    Andrew Crow arrived at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory with the intention of continuing work on the Complex Particle Kinetic (CPK) method developed D. Larson and D. Hewett. Andrew Crow had previously worked on duplicating the results of D. Hewett in his previous work. Since arrival, A. Crow has been working with D. Larson on a slightly different project. The current method, still under development, is a Particle in Cell (PIC) code with the following features: (1) all particles begin each timestep at a gridpoint; (2) particles are then advanced in time using a standard special advancement method. The exact methodmore » has not been decided upon, but there are many reliable methods from which to choose. (3) All particles within each cell undergo a simultaneous implicit collision step. This is the current area of focus. Currently, A. Crow is not aware of any method of performing implicit collisions over a large number of charged particles. Implicit methods for charged particle movement and electron-electron collisions, have been developed. The work of L. pareschi and G. Russo on the Time Relaxed Direct Simulation Monte Carlo method, also appears to be a good basis for implicit particle collisions. (4) Each individual particle will be divided into a set of particles with a Gaussian velocity distribution. This will collect some of the thermal effects created by the collisions. This algorithm has not been created. (5) Particles will be projected on to the grid points. Currently, a linear weighting technique is intended to be used, but has not settled upon. (6) Once on the gridpoints the particle number will be reduced using a set of quadrature points based on the third order velocity moments of the particles. The method proposed by R. Fox has been programmed and shown to conserve energy, momentum and mass to machine precision. In addition to reducing the number of particles this method will work to quiet the simulation it will behave as a higher order version of the Quiet DSMC method proposed by B. Albright et al. (7) These quadrature points then become the new particles for the next timestep. the advantage of this method can be many: The self force on ions can be easily removed since all particles begin on grid points. The size of the timesteps should not be limited by collision rate, and should only be impacted by particle travel time through the cell. The particle reduction technique should keep many of the higher order features of the particle distribution while reducing the number of particles in the system. It should also quite the variance in the system. The two largest unknowns, at this time are, how large a part numerical diffusion will play in the scheme and how computationally expensive each timestep will be.« less

  15. Foul Lines: Teaching Race in Jim Crow America through Baseball History

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Laliberte, David J.

    2013-01-01

    Far more than just recreation, baseball offers social, cultural, and political insights into history. For teachers, the goals of this article are threefold. First, this narrative is designed to provide the introductory content knowledge needed to develop a colorful lecture, structure a spirited discussion, or create a student project on the topic.…

  16. Image of Women in Advertisements: A Preliminary Study of Avenues for Change.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Butler-Paisley, Matilda, Ed.; And Others

    The Center for Research on Women (CROW) at Stanford University along with the Communication Department, the Psychology Department, and the School of Education conducted a study on the image of women in advertising and suggested ways to improve women's image in the advertising media. With the objective of sponsoring some alternatives to expedite…

  17. Seafloor Geosciences Division: Missions, Technical Specialties, Accomplishments, and Activities, Calendar Year 1983.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1984-07-01

    Sawyer, John C. Crowe and Ronald L. Phair, University of Texas Institute of GeTi7-ics, Austin, TX, AAPG Annual Convention, 1983. Poster Session...Tertiary Samples dredged from Florida Escarpment, eastern Gulf of Mexico: AAPG Bull., v. 67, No. 9, p. 1464. Freeman-Lynde, R.P., 1983. Erosion of Bahama and

  18. Literary Lectures Presented at the Library of Congress.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Library of Congress, Washington, DC.

    This book contains 37 out-of-print lectures on American, English, and world literature that have been presented at the Library of Congress over the past 30 years. Lectures by Thomas Mann, T. S. Eliot, R. P. Blackmur, Archibald Henderson, Irving Stone, John O'Hara, MacKinlay Kantor, John Crowe Ransom, Delmore Schwartz, John Hall Wheelock, Robert…

  19. Fulfilling the Promise: African American Educators Teach for Democracy in Jim Crow's South

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Preston-Grimes, Patrice

    2010-01-01

    America's civic community from the end of the Great Depression through the post World War II years was hardly rational or racially neutral in its uneven and unequal treatment of African Americans and other underrepresented groups. Conventional civic scholarship of the era has ignored the complexities of a racially segregated society that in theory…

  20. Celebrating the Life and Legacy of Rosa Parks

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Stewart, Loraine

    2006-01-01

    In this article, the author presents the life and legacy of Rosa Parks. The author highlights four children's books that accurately portray Parks as an activist and acknowledge the broader context of her life's story--and the years of struggle of the black community against Jim Crow laws. The four children's books share Rosa Park's story in ways…

  1. Lakota Woman: Authentic Culture on Film or Exploitation?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Merritt, Judy

    1994-01-01

    Reviews the movie "Lakota Woman," the story of Mary Crow Dog, a young woman who gave birth to her first child during the American Indian Movement's occupation of Wounded Knee, South Dakota, in 1973. Although the majority of the crew and cast were Native Americans, many subtleties and nuances of American Indian culture were overlooked.…

  2. The Danger of a Single Story: Writing Essays about Our Lives

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Christensen, Linda

    2012-01-01

    Black male students "are" endangered. As a high school language arts teacher who has taught in a predominantly African American school, the author has witnessed the suspensions, expulsions, and overrepresentation of black males in special education classes for more than 30 years. In "The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of…

  3. Mother Earth's Children's Charter School in Canada: Imagining a New Story of School

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pearce, Marni; Crowe, Charlene; Letendre, Martha; Letendre, Charlie; Baydala, Lola

    2005-01-01

    Throughout her 10-year teaching career, Charlene Crowe was concerned that the minds, spirits, and physical needs of indigenous children were not being addressed, let alone embraced, through the public school system in Canada. In the fall of 1996, Charlene shared her vision for a better educational approach with two aboriginal Elders. Her vision…

  4. The Year of the Family. Presentations at Children's Rights Council National Conference (8th, Bethesda, Maryland, April 13-17, 1994).

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    National Council for Children's Rights, Washington, DC.

    Dealing predominantly with issues related to divorce and custody, this conference proceedings contains 20 papers or summaries; they are: (1) "Choices, Challenges, Changes" (Constance Ahrons); (2) "The History of the Joint Custody Movement" (Karen DeCrow); (3) "Children Held Hostage: Dealing with Programmed and Brainwashed…

  5. 18 CFR Appendix A to Part 11 - Fee Schedule for FY 2009

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... Delta $46.21 Colorado Denver * $23.10 Colorado Dolores $23.10 Colorado Douglas $69.31 Colorado Eagle $34... $46.21 Michigan Crawford $69.31 Michigan Delta $34.66 Michigan Dickinson $34.66 Michigan Eaton $69.31....10 Minnesota Cook $34.66 Minnesota Cottonwood $34.66 Minnesota Crow Wing $23.10 Minnesota Dakota $69...

  6. 18 CFR Appendix A to Part 11 - Fee Schedule for FY 2010

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... Custer 47.08 Colorado Delta 62.78 Colorado Denver * 31.39 Colorado Dolores 31.39 Colorado Douglas 94.17... Michigan Delta 47.08 Michigan Dickinson 47.08 Michigan Eaton 94.17 Michigan Emmet 94.17 Michigan Genesee... Minnesota Cook 47.08 Minnesota Cottonwood 47.08 Minnesota Crow Wing 31.39 Minnesota Dakota 94.17 Minnesota...

  7. The Indian Reading Series: Stories and Legends of the Northwest. Level I. Books 1-20.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Northwest Regional Educational Lab., Portland, OR.

    Designed as supplementary reading materials appropriate for Indian and non-Indian children in the primary grades, this series of 20 booklets presents legends and stories of Northwest tribes. Stories in this first level of a six-level series were developed by the Blackfeet, Northern Cheyenne, Skokomish, Shoshone-Bannock, Crow, and Muckleshoot…

  8. The Road from Paraprofessional to Certified Teacher: A State, School District, and University Partnership

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Winstead, Robert A.

    2013-01-01

    Over the past few decades thousands of special education teachers have been teaching students with disabilities on emergency or temporary certificates (Barnes, Crow, & Schaefer, 2007). The majority of these teachers entered the field of education with little to no preparation. Most of these under qualified teachers were hired in rural areas.…

  9. Jim Crow Campus: Higher Education and the Struggle for a New Southern Social Order

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Williamson-Lott, Joy Ann

    2018-01-01

    This well-researched volume explores how the Black freedom struggle and the anti-Vietnam War movement dovetailed with faculty and student activism in the South to undermine the traditional role of higher education and bring about social change. It uses the battles between students, faculty, presidents, trustees, elected officials, and funding…

  10. Fire, ice, and metabolism

    Treesearch

    Kevin T. Smith

    2015-01-01

    Evaluation of tree injury often begins with a loss assessment. For winter storm injury, percent crow loss or branch breakage is often estimated. For injury from fire or some mechanical source to the lower trunk, the height and width of the killed vascular cambium and resulting scar are often measured. Both crown breakage and stem wounds provide the opportunity for...

  11. How the U. of Pennsylvania Learned that Outsourcing Is No Panacea.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Van Der Werf, Martin

    2000-01-01

    Reports on the experience of the University of Pennsylvania in outsourcing the operation and maintenance of its campus buildings. Finds differing opinions on why the contract with Trammell Crow Company has not been successful, such as the extreme state of disrepair of many of the buildings. Also notes the experiences of institutions in this…

  12. Justice Served: True Tales of Injustice Will Provoke and Inspire Young Readers

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Baxter, Kathleen

    2004-01-01

    Stories about people treated unfairly stir something deep in the psyche. This article briefly discusses three stories that involve people being treated unfairly: (1) Chris Crowe's Getting Away with Murder: The Tree Story' of the Emmett Till Case; (2) Michael Cooper's Remembering Manzanar: Life in a Japanese Relocation Camp; and (3) Deborah…

  13. Lewis's Woodpecker: Melanerpes lewis

    Treesearch

    Bret W. Tobalske; Kerri T. Vierling; Victoria A. Saab

    2013-01-01

    During the historic Lewis and Clark expedition, Meriwether Lewis wrote on 20 July 1805, "I saw a black woodpecker (or crow) today it is a distinct species of woodpecker; it has a long tail and flys a good deal like the jay bird" (sic, Thwaites 1905). Subsequent observations of flight and vocalization reminded him of the Red-headed Woodpecker (Melanerpes...

  14. Fair and Tender Ladies versus Jim Crow: The Politics of Co-Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Riley, Karen L.

    2010-01-01

    In the current vernacular, co-education means the education of the sexes together within an institutional setting. Once a phenomenon, today, women enjoy nearly equal status on campuses that were at one time bastions of "maleness." Moreover, the counter-culture revolution of the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s, ushered in a new…

  15. Revisiting James Crow: A Re-Look at Separate but Equal.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Banks, Ivan W.

    Numerous scholars, historians, and social scientists believe that the most significant decision made by the United States Supreme Court was handed down in the case of "Brown v. the Topeka Kansas Board of Education" (1954). In this case the court declared the legal principle of separate but equal as unconstitutional in public education. This paper…

  16. Knowledge Is "a Form of Venture Capital" for a Top Columbia Administrator.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Blumenstyk, Goldie

    2001-01-01

    Explains how for Michael M. Crow, executive vice provost at Columbia University, knowledge is a form of venture capital. This means pushing Columbia beyond the usual role of creating knowledge and disseminating it in traditional manners, and instead taking the knowledge, incubating it, and projecting it using tools like the Internet. (SM)

  17. Education and Marginality: Race and Gender in Higher Education, 1940-1955

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Crocco, Margaret Smith; Waite, Cally L.

    2007-01-01

    Recent historiography has documented the singular contributions made by women to racial uplift and progress during the Jim Crow era. In these endeavors, women's contributions were greatly shaped by race, gender, and class. Given the feminization of education in the United States during this time, it is not surprising that their "race work" was for…

  18. Ebooks and the Retailization of Research: Peer to Peer Review

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Fister, Barbara

    2010-01-01

    Most recently, Amazon crowed that it is selling more ebooks than hardcovers. Interestingly, the most recent figures from the Association of American Publishers indicate that new adult hardcover sales in both April and May rose by more than 40 percent over the same months last year, a rebound from last year's shopping paralysis brought on by the…

  19. 78 FR 9945 - Crow Butte Resources, Inc.; Establishment of Atomic Safety and Licensing Board

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-02-12

    ... Material License, SUA-1534, to obtain authority to construct and operate an in situ uranium recovery satellite facility at its Marsland site in Dawes County, Nebraska. In response to a ``Notice of Opportunity for a Hearing'' published in the Federal Register, see 77 Fed. Reg. 71,454 (Nov. 30, 2012), hearing...

  20. When a Story Must Be Told

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lesesne, Teri; Crowe, Chris

    2006-01-01

    Chris Crowe, a university professor and author of young adult novels, sits with Lesesne to discuss his writing of both Mississippi Trial, 1955 (fiction) and Getting Away with Murder: The True Story of the Emmett Till Murder Case (nonfiction), related books that tell the story of a murder case that speaks to us from a half-century ago. Detailing…

  1. Emily Dickinson: A Collection of Critical Essays. Twentieth Century Views Series.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sewall, Richard B., Ed.

    One of a series of works aimed at presenting contemporary critical opinion on major authors, this collection includes essays by Richard B. Sewall, Conrad Aiken, Allen Tate, Yvor Winters, George F. Whicher, Henry W. Wells, Donald E. Thackrey, Thomas H. Johnson, R. P. Blackmur, John Crowe Ransom, Austin Warren, James Reeves, Richard Wilbur, Louise…

  2. The New Juan Crow in Education: Revealing Panoptic Measures and Inequitable Resources That Hinder Latina/o Postsecondary Pathways

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Madrigal-Garcia, Yanira I.; Acevedo-Gil, Nancy

    2016-01-01

    This qualitative study examined the distribution of inequitable resources, a culture of control, and implications for postsecondary pathways for Latinas/os in five California high schools. This study integrated critical race theory in education, school culture, and the concept of "panopticon" to examine school structures, climate, and…

  3. Kiwis in the Collection: The New Zealand Presence in the Published Record

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lavoie, Brian

    2014-01-01

    Despite its small size and relatively brief national history, New Zealand boasts a distinguished presence in the published record. Authors such as Margaret Mahy and Katherine Mansfield; the renowned soprano Kiri Te Kanawa; and contemporary film icons such as the actor Russell Crowe and producer Peter Jackson are just a few of the well-known names…

  4. Annual Report of Indian Education in Montana. Johnson-O'Malley Activities, Fiscal Year 1978.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Montana State Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, Helena.

    During fiscal year 1978, the Montana Office of Public Instruction administered Johnson-O'Malley (JOM) Act funds totaling $684,200 for projects affecting 4,501 eligible students on the Crow, Fort Peck, Fort Belknap, and Rocky Boy's Indian Reservations. Funds were awarded on a per capita basis to provide supplemental educational programs for Indian…

  5. "The Way We Found Them to Be": Remembering E. Franklin Frazier and the Politics of Respectable Black Teachers

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kelly, Hilton

    2010-01-01

    Given the fiftieth anniversary of the publication of E. Franklin Frazier's award-winning "Black Bourgeoisie", this article reconsiders the political nature of a respectability discourse among black teachers in the Jim Crow South. Writing against Frazier's image of a materialistic and status-addicted black middle class, I argue that the…

  6. Speech, Sign, or Multilingualism for Children with Hearing Loss: Quantitative Insights into Caregivers' Decision Making

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Crowe, Kathryn; McLeod, Sharynne; McKinnon, David H.; Ching, Teresa Y. C.

    2014-01-01

    Purpose: The authors sought to investigate the influence of a comprehensive range of factors on the decision making of caregivers of children with hearing loss regarding the use of speech, the use of sign, spoken language multilingualism, and spoken language choice. This is a companion article to the qualitative investigation described in Crowe,…

  7. Mechanism(s) of Electricity Production by Shewanella and other Microbes: Understanding and Optimization

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2013-08-23

    oxidation of propionate in a microbial fuel cell. Biotechnol. Lett. 32:79-85 32. Kan, J. B. Flood, J.P. McCrow, J.S. Kim, L. Tan , and K.H. Nealson. 2011...Y., A. Obraztsova, G. Rosen, J. Leather , K.G. Scheckel, K.H. Nealson, and Y.M. Arias-Thode. 2011. Marine microbial community response to inorganic

  8. Mechanism(s) of Electricity Production by Shewanella and Other Microbes: Understanding and Optimization

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2012-01-01

    Kan, J. B. Flood, J.P. McCrow, J.S. Kim, L. Tan , and K.H. Nealson. 2011. A rapid fingerprinting approach to distinguish between closely related...strains of Shewanella. J. Microbiol. Methods. 86: 62-68. 33. Kan, J. Wang, Y., A. Obraztsova, G. Rosen, J. Leather , K.G. Scheckel, K.H. Nealson, and Y.M

  9. Evaluating a Practice-Oriented Service Model to Increase the Use of Respite Services among Minorities and Rural Caregivers

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Montoro-Rodriguez, Julian; Kosloski, Karl; Montgomery, Rhonda J. V.

    2003-01-01

    Purpose: The goal of this study was to evaluate the practice-oriented model of service use (Yeatts, Crow, & Folts, 1992) relative to the more widely used behavioral model (Andersen, 1968) in its ability to explain the use of respite services by caregivers of Alzheimer's patients. Unlike the behavioral model, which focuses primarily on…

  10. What's in Small Talk? Revolutionary Communication in Black Children's Games.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Barnes, Alene; Asante, Molefi

    A number of the historical and contemporary games of black children reflect an attitude of resistance and assertion on the part of the players. Older game songs, dating from the days of slavery, express a recreative anger against slave masters or a contempt for the theater image of the jolly plantation slave, Jim Crow. Post-Civil War songs and…

  11. 76 FR 2948 - Notice of Final Federal Agency Actions on Proposed Highway in Minnesota

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-01-18

    ... the meaning of 23 U.S.C. 139(l)(1). The actions relate to a proposed highway project on TH 371 from... agency actions by issuing approvals for the following highway project in Minnesota: TH 371 from the... Crow Wing and Cass Counties. A Record of Decision (ROD) for the TH 371 corridor from Nisswa to Pine...

  12. A new fauna from the Colorado group of southern Montana

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Reeside, John B.

    1925-01-01

    This paper describes a small but interesting fauna collected in 1921 by W. T. Thorn, Jr., Gail F. Moulton, T. W. Stanton, and K. C. Heald in the Crow Indian Reservation in southern Montana. The locality is in sec. 36, T. 6 S., R. 32 E., Big Horn County, and is 2 miles east of the Soap Creek oil field.

  13. Nearly 50 Years Post-Jim Crow: Persisting and Expansive School Segregation for African American, Latina/o, and ELL Students in Texas

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Vasquez Heilig, Julian; Holme, Jennifer Jellison

    2013-01-01

    This study addresses the segregation of English language learner (ELL) students in schools across Texas. We descriptively analyze levels of racial, economic, and linguistic isolation experienced by ELL students across the state of Texas. We also examine the association between segregation by race/ethnicity, economic disadvantage, and language…

  14. The Longitudinal Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) Attributes and Demographics Study (LEADS): The First 10 Years and a Look at Public Perception of Emergency Medical Services (EMS).

    PubMed

    Crowe, Remle P; Bentley, Melissa A; Levine, Roger

    2016-12-01

    Crowe RP , Bentley MA , Levine R . The Longitudinal Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) Attributes and Demographics Study (LEADS): the first 10 years and a look at public perception of Emergency Medical Services (EMS). Prehosp Disaster Med. 2016;31(Suppl. 1):s1-s6.

  15. Embryonic genetic load in coastal Douglas-fir, Pseudotsuga menziesii var. menziesii.

    Treesearch

    Frank C. Sorensen

    1969-01-01

    Genetic load has been estimated for a number of outcrossing organisms, for example, Drosophila (Malogolowkin-Cohen et al. 1964), Tribolium (Levene et al. 1965), and man (Morton, Crow, and Muller 1956). However, little informaiton about load of deleterious genes in higher plants has been published. The purpose of this article is to provide some data on plants by...

  16. From Radical Reconstruction to Jim Crow: Education, Nation-Building, and the Making of a New Racial Order

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Smith, Christi Michelle

    2012-01-01

    Drawing on recent theories of boundary processes, status and ethnicity, I investigate processes of group-making in the post-Civil War era (1865-1905) when Americans were faced with two daunting political projects: rebuilding the nation, and creating a new racial order to replace the abolished system of bond slavery. Although scholars have…

  17. Respect for Life: Report of a Conference at Harper's Ferry, West Virginia on The Traditional Upbringing of American Indian Children.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Morey, Sylvester M., Ed.; Gilliam, Olivia L., Ed.

    In recognition of the past and potential contributions of American Indian philosophy, this book presents discussions which came out of a week long conference at Harper's Ferry, West Virginia. Conference participants included Native American elders (representatives from the Navajo, Mohawk, Crow, Kiowa, Pueblo, and Arapaho tribes) and officials of…

  18. Photoaging versus intrinsic aging: a morphologic assessment of facial skin.

    PubMed

    Bhawan, J; Andersen, W; Lee, J; Labadie, R; Solares, G

    1995-04-01

    Histologic studies have become increasingly important in recognizing morphologic differences in photoaged versus intrinsically aged skin. Earlier histologic studies have attempted to evaluate these changes by examining anatomical sites which are not comparable, such as face and buttocks. As part of a multicenter study, we have quantitatively examined a panel of 16 histologic features in baseline facial skin biopsies from 158 women with moderate to severe photodamage. When compared to the postauricular area (photo protected), biopsies of the crow's feet area (photo exposed) had a twofold increase in melanocytes and a statistically significant increase in melanocytic atypia (p < .0001) and epidermal melanin (p < .0001). Other epidermal changes included reduced epidermal thickness (p < .01), more compact stratum corneum (p < .0001) and increased granular layer thickness (p < .0001) in the crow's feet skin. There was increased solar elastosis (p < .0001), dermal elastic tissue (p < .0001), melanophages (p < .0001), perivascular inflammation (p < .05) and perifollicular fibrosis (p < .01) but no change in the number of mast cells or dermal mucin in the photo exposed skin. Our data document quantitative differences in photoaged versus intrinsically aged facial skin and provides the groundwork for future studies to evaluate the efficacy of new treatments for photoaged skin.

  19. The underlying structure of skin wrinkles: a hyperspectral approach to crows feet

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Puccetti, G.

    2017-02-01

    Skin wrinkles are visually perceived by consumers but they are also known to possess an underlying structure not apparent at the surface of the skin. This underlying structure can be brought out by polarized hyperspectral imaging. Wrinkle patterns of eye crow's feet are used as example to show a deeper existing pattern and their characterization versus age on a group of volunteers. The skin inhomogeneity changes within each layer of the skin and can be observed in the shorter wavelength region of the spectrum, about 450nm to 500nm which are well suited to image skin surface inhomogeneities within the central and deep epidermis. Imaging in the 550nm range can serve as a larger scale topology reference because of its deeper penetration into the upper dermis. This serves to bring out the underlying wrinkle pattern as imprinted by collagen anisotropies around deep folds but unapparent to the eye yet. The approach has potential applications in evaluating the internal skin patterns non visible to the eye by mapping their spectral dispersion. This method has thus potentials to evaluate the extent of subsurface structures such as acne and other scars and thereby the efficacy of treatments.

  20. Use of observed wild bird activity on poultry farms and a literature review to target species as high priority for avian influenza testing in 2 regions of Canada

    PubMed Central

    Burns, Theresa E.; Ribble, Carl; Stephen, Craig; Kelton, David; Toews, Lorraine; Osterhold, Jason; Wheeler, Hazel

    2012-01-01

    The risk of avian influenza outbreaks in poultry is partially dependent on the probability of contact between domestic poultry and wild birds shedding avian influenza (AI) virus. The major objective of this study was to document wild bird activity on poultry farms to determine which wild bird species should be targeted for AI surveillance in Canada. We collected data in 2 major poultry producing regions of Canada, southwestern Ontario and the Fraser Valley of British Columbia, on the relative abundance of various wild bird species found on poultry farms and on how these species utilized habitat around poultry farms. We reviewed the published literature to determine what was known about AI pathobiology in the species we observed. From these results we created a list of 10 wild bird species that are a priority for further study. These species are the European starling, barn swallow, rock dove, American crow, northwestern crow, American robin, dark-eyed junco, song sparrow, horned lark, and common grackle. Abundance of these and other species varied between provinces and seasons. PMID:22851777

  1. Application of a degree-day model of West Nile virus transmission risk to the East Coast of the United States of America.

    PubMed

    Konrad, Sarah K; Miller, Scott N

    2012-11-01

    A geographical information systems model that identifies regions of the United States of America (USA) susceptible to West Nile virus (WNV) transmission risk is presented. This system has previously been calibrated and tested in the western USA; in this paper we use datasets of WNV-killed birds from South Carolina and Connecticut to test the model in the eastern USA. Because their response to WNV infection is highly predictable, American crows were chosen as the primary source for model calibration and testing. Where crow data are absent, other birds are shown to be an effective substitute. Model results show that the same calibrated model demonstrated to work in the western USA has the same predictive ability in the eastern USA, allowing for a continental-scale evaluation of the transmission risk of WNV at a daily time step. The calibrated model is independent of mosquito species and requires inputs of only local maximum and minimum temperatures. Of benefit to the general public and vector control districts, the model predicts the onset of seasonal transmission risk, although it is less effective at identifying the end of the transmission risk season.

  2. Exploratory drilling in the Prairie du Chien group of the Wisconsin zinc-lead districts by the U.S. Geological Survey in 1949-1950

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Heyl, Allen Van; Lyons, Erwin J.; Agnew, Allen F.

    1951-01-01

    The U. S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the Wisconsin Geological and Natural History Survey explored the Prairie du Chien group in the main productive area of the Wisconsin zinc-lead district during 1949-50. Eight properties--Crow Branch diggings, Leix, Harris, Spitzbarth, Kennedy, James, Raisbeck and Vinegar Hill Roaster--were explored using both diamond and churn drills. Twenty holes were drilled that totaled 8,582 feet in depth. The objectives of the exploration were to determine if the Prairie du Chien and other formations below the principal ore-bearing strata (Galena, Decorah, and Platteville formations) of the district are favorable for ore deposits, and to determine the type of ore deposits, if present. Lean deposits of sphalerite, marcasite, and pyrite were found in the Prairie du Chien on five properties--Crow Branch, Leix, Harris, Spitzbarth, and Vinegar Hill 1%ouster-and also in the Franconia sandstone on the Leix property. In the drilled area the sulfides in the Prairie du Chien group occur in certain more brittle or soluble dolomite beds that contain cavities formed by brecciation or solution.

  3. Schizophrenia and the androgen receptor gene: Report of a sibship showing co-segregation with Reifenstein Syndrome but no evidence for linkage in 23 multiply affected families

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Arranz, M.; Sharma, T.; Sham, P.

    Crow et al. have reported excess sharing of alleles by male sibling pairs with schizophrenia, at a triplet repeat marker within the androgen receptor gene, indicating that mutations at or near this gene may be a risk factor for males. In this report, we describe a pair of male siblings concordant for both schizophrenia and Reifenstein syndrome, which is caused by a mutation in this gene. This provides support for the hypothesis that the androgen receptor may contribute to liability to develop schizophrenia. Because of this, we have examined a collection of 23 pedigrees multiply affected by schizophrenia for linkagemore » to the androgen receptor. We have found no evidence for linkage by both the LOD score and affected sibling-pair methods, under a range of genetic models with a broad and narrow definition of phenotype, and when families with male-to-male transmission are excluded. However, because of the small number of informative male-male pairs in our sample, we cannot confirm or refute the excess allele sharing for males reported by Crow. 35 refs., 1 fig., 2 tabs.« less

  4. A skincare containing retinol adenosine and hyaluronic acid optimises the benefits from a type A botulinum toxin injection.

    PubMed

    Ascher, Benjamin; Fanchon, Chantal; Kanoun-Copy, Leila; Bouloc, Anne; Benech, Florence

    2012-10-01

    A monocentre double-blind two parallel group clinical study was conducted to assess whether a new skincare regimen containing retinol, adenosine and hyaluronic acid, applied after the injection of botulinum toxin A to the glabellar area, provided a beneficial effect. Standardised photographs acquired using LifeViz cameras and zoomed pictures of the glabella and of the crow's feet areas were analysed with automatic well-defined procedures. Perceived efficacy and tolerance were also analysed by comparison between the two groups. A beneficial effect versus placebo-treated group was proven in the group having topically applied the new skincare regimen for 2 months following botulinum toxin A injection with no touch up after 1 month. 3D image analysis showed more rapid results on D10 and enhanced efficacy on M2. Moreover, a beneficial effect independent of injection was measured in the crow's feet area, and analysis of the self-evaluation questionnaire showed enhanced efficacy perceived by the volunteers. A specially developed skincare regimen applied immediately after botulinum toxin A injection completes the beneficial effect of the injection on the glabellar area and offers clinical benefits in fine lines, wrinkles and smoothness on the whole face.

  5. Simulation of effects of ground-water development on water-levels in glacial-drift aquifers in the Brooten-Belgrade area, west-central Minnesota

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Delin, G.N.

    1991-01-01

    The model was used to simulate the steady-state effects of below-normal precipitation (drought) and hypothetical increases in ground-water development. Model results indicate that reduced recharge and increased pumping during a hypothetical 3-year extended drought would lower regional water levels from 2 to 5 feet in each aquifer and as much as 20 feet in the lowermost aquifer zone; ground-water discharge to the East Branch Chippewa and North Fork Crow Rivers would be reduced by 38 percent. The addition of 10 to 20 hypothetical wells in confined aquifers, pumping 123 to 246 million gallons per year, would result in regional water-level declines of 0.1 to 0.5 feet. Simulated water-level declines in wells completed in the lower part of the system would be as much as 5.0 feet as a result of pumping 246 million gallons per year from 20 hypothetical wells. Water-level declines in overlying and underlying aquifers would range from 0.4 to 2.8 feet. Ground-water discharge to the East Branch Chippewa and North Fork Crow Rivers would be unaffected by the pumpage.

  6. “Exploring Effects of Climate Change on Northern Plains American Indian Health”

    PubMed Central

    Redsteer, Margaret Hiza; Eggers, Margaret J.

    2013-01-01

    American Indians have unique vulnerabilities to the impacts of climate change because of the links among ecosystems, cultural practices, and public health, but also as a result of limited resources available to address infrastructure needs. On the Crow Reservation in south-central Montana, a Northern Plains American Indian Reservation, there are community concerns about the consequences of climate change impacts for community health and local ecosystems. Observations made by Tribal Elders about decreasing annual snowfall and milder winter temperatures over the 20th century initiated an investigation of local climate and hydrologic data by the Tribal College. The resulting analysis of meteorological data confirmed the decline in annual snowfall and an increase in frost free days. In addition, the data show a shift in precipitation from winter to early spring and a significant increase in days exceeding 90° F (32° C). Streamflow data show a long-term trend of declining discharge. Elders noted that the changes are affecting fish distribution within local streams and plant species which provide subsistence foods. Concerns about warmer summer temperatures also include heat exposure during outdoor ceremonies that involve days of fasting without food or water. Additional community concerns about the effects of climate change include increasing flood frequency and fire severity, as well as declining water quality. The authors call for local research to understand and document current effects and project future impacts as a basis for planning adaptive strategies. PMID:24265512

  7. KSC-05pd2449

    NASA Image and Video Library

    2005-11-07

    KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - A Long-Eared Owl is spotted on Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. This one holds a typical stance for protecting its young. These owls range from Alaska and Canada to the Gulf states and Mexico, as far east as Central Florida. Their habitat is deciduous and evergreen forests. They nest in deserted nests of crows, hawks or squirrels.

  8. KSC-05pd2448

    NASA Image and Video Library

    2005-11-07

    KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - A Long-Eared Owl is spotted on Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. This one holds a typical stance for protecting its young. These owls range from Alaska and Canada to the Gulf states and Mexico, as far east as Central Florida. Their habitat is deciduous and evergreen forests. They nest in deserted nests of crows, hawks or squirrels.

  9. Crumbling Diversity: Comparison of Historical Archived and Contemporary Natural Populations Indicate Reduced Genetic Diversity and Increasing Genetic Differentiation in the Golden-Cheeked Warbler

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2011-06-01

    clavata. Heredity 101:120–126 Crow JF, Denniston C (1988) Inbreeding and variance effective population numbers. Evolution 42:482–495 Dixo M, Metzger JP...University Press, Cambridge, pp 361–366 Young A, Boyle T, Brown T (1996) The population genetic consequences of habitat fragmentation for plants . Trends

  10. Native American Affairs and the Department of Defense.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1996-01-01

    Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Indians of Oregon Coyote Valley Band of Porno Indians of California Creek Nation of Oklahoma Crow Tribe of Montana...Reservation, North Dakota Dry Creek Rancheria of Porno Indians of California Duckwater Shoshone Tribe of the Duckwater Reservation, Nevada...Band of Porno Indians of the Hopland Rancheria, California Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians of Maine Hualapai Tribe of the Hualapai Indian

  11. Crow Ressurection: The Future of Airborne Electronic Attack

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2013-06-01

    strike assets by attempting to gain and maintain control of the electromagnetic spectrum. 15. SUBJECT TERMS 16. SECURITY CLASSIFICATION OF: 17...receiving his commission through Officer Training School in 2000, Major Howard served as an RC-135V/W RIVET JOINT EWO at Offutt AFB, Nebraska...significant Airborne Electronic Attack challenges in protecting strike assets by attempting to gain and maintain control of the electromagnetic spectrum

  12. Natosi: Strong Medicine. Indian Culture Series: Stories of the Blackfeet.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Roop, Peter

    Part of a series of stories about the Blackfeet Indians, the illustrated story details the capture of the first horses by the Blackfeet. In the story, young Running Crane is allowed to join a party of warriors who raid a Crow camp for horses. Running Crane uses gentleness to capture a black horse but is separated from the raiding party and must…

  13. The Land Is Our Mother. A Summary, Statewide Indian Land Use and Policy Meeting (Crow Agency, Montana, November 14-15, 1974).

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Montana State Univ., Bozeman. Cooperative Extension Service.

    Summarized in this brief report are proceedings of the Statewide Indian Land Use Policy Meeting, a meeting planned by American Indians in response to their perceptions of constraints on effective management of Indian lands and one which drew 135 people, including representatives from every reservation in Montana and Wyoming. This booklet outlines:…

  14. 75 FR 44094 - Update of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's Fees Schedule for Annual Charges for the Use...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-07-28

    ... 15.69 Colorado Crowley 7.85 Colorado Custer 47.08 Colorado Delta 62.78 Colorado Denver 31.39 Colorado... Michigan Delta 47.08 Michigan Dickinson 47.08 Michigan Eaton 94.17 Michigan Emmet 94.17 Michigan Genesee... Cottonwood......... 47.08 Minnesota Crow Wing 31.39 Minnesota Dakota 94.17 Minnesota Dodge 62.78 Minnesota...

  15. Military Family Coping Project - Phase 2

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2014-09-01

    ORGANIZATION: Baylor University, Waco , TX 76798 REPORT DATE: September 2014 TYPE OF REPORT: Annual PREPARED FOR: U.S. Army Medical Research and...February 28). Baylor, Waco VA hospital studying veterans’ family stress. Waco , TX: Tribune Herald. Slayden, Stacey (Reporter). (2012, February 28...VA Hospital and Baylor University team up to study effects of deployment. Waco , TX: Fox 44 news. Ellor, J. W., Crow, J, Myers, D., Morissette, S

  16. Sik-ki-mi. Indian Culture Series: Stories of the Blackfeet.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Roop, Peter

    The children's story is one of a series about the Blackfeet Tribe at the height of its power in Southern Alberta and North Central Montana. In the story, Eagle Head, a Blackfeet boy, proves his bravery as he faces the first steamboat on the Yellowstone River and recaptures his chief's favorite buffalo horse, Sik-ki-mi, in a raid on a Crow camp.…

  17. Programmatic Environmental Assessment, Francis E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyoming

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2005-12-17

    disturbance negatively affected wetlands along these drainages: old refuse dumps were established and remain along portions of Crow Creek, and growth of...avense), common hound’s tongue (Cynoglossum officinale ), field Programmatic Environmental Assessment F. E. Warren AFB 68 bindweed (Convolvulus...finding its way into the sewer through inflow and infiltration. In terms of total flow capacity, the sanitary sewer system can support moderate growth

  18. No Turning Back: A Case Study Analysis of Leadership Practices of Organizational Turnaround at A North Carolina Historically Black High School

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chavis, William M.

    2016-01-01

    Despite the seeming progressiveness in moving from "Plessy v. Ferguson" to "Brown v. Board of Education," and from the Jim Crow era to the Civil Rights Movement, schools continue to exist that are racially homogenous and segregated at the core. Many of these schools were created in times of harsh legislation that mandated a…

  19. Soot and palynologic analysis of Manson impact-related strata (Upper Cretaceous) of Iowa and South Dakota, USA

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Varricchio, D.J.; Raven, R.F.; Wolbach, W.S.; Elsik, W.C.; Witzke, B.J.

    2009-01-01

    The Campanian Manson impact structure of Iowa represents the best-preserved, large-diameter complex crater within the continental U.S. To assess the timing and potential mode of crater infilling and the possible presence of an impact event horizon, we analyzed samples from both within and distal to the impact structure for their elemental carbon, soot and palynomorphs. Within the impact structure, identifiable soot occurred in fragmented impact breccia and suevite but not in lower impact-melt breccia. Although most of this soot likely represents reworking of material from older Cretaceous marine shales, one high soot concentration occurs with melt material in a Keweenawan Shale-Phanerozoic clast breccia mix. This represents the first association of soot and impact-generated materials within an impact structure and the best sample candidate for Manson impact-generated soot. No palynomorphs occurred in the impact melt breccia. Overlying suevite (Keweenawan Shale clast breccia) of the central peak yielded sparse and thermally altered palynomorphs, indicating deposition prior to full cooling of the crater debris. Presence of easily degraded soot also argues for rapid backfilling of the crater. Distal samples from South Dakota represent the Sharon Springs and Crow Creek members of the Pierre Shale 230 km northwest of the Manson impact structure. Although containing shocked grains, the Crow Creek preserves no soot. In contrast, the Sharon Springs, generally considered as predating the Manson impact, has significant soot quantities. Palynomorphs differ markedly across the unconformity separating the two members with the Crow Creek containing more terrestrial forms, normapolles, and older reworked palynomorphs, consistent with a terrestrial impact to the east. Origin of the Sharon Springs soot remains unclear. Given soot occurrence within four of the five Cretaceous marine units sampled, the relatively shallow, anoxic bottom conditions of the Western Interior Cretaceous Seaway may have simply favored soot preservation. Until a better understanding of the broader occurrence and preservation of soot is achieved, some soot-impact associations will remain ambiguous. ?? 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  20. Adenosine-loaded dissolving microneedle patches to improve skin wrinkles, dermal density, elasticity and hydration.

    PubMed

    Kang, G; Tu, T N T; Kim, S; Yang, H; Jang, M; Jo, D; Ryu, J; Baek, J; Jung, H

    2018-04-01

    Although dissolving microneedle patches have been widely studied in the cosmetics field, no comparisons have been drawn with the topical applications available for routine use. In this study, two wrinkle-improving products, adenosine-loaded dissolving microneedle patches and an adenosine cream, were evaluated for efficacy, with respect to skin wrinkling, dermal density, elasticity, and hydration, and safety in a clinical test on the crow's feet area. Clinical efficacy and safety tests were performed for 10 weeks on 22 female subjects with wrinkles around their eyes. The adenosine-loaded dissolving microneedle patch was applied once every 3 days, in the evening, for 8 weeks to the designated crow's feet area. The adenosine cream was applied two times per day, in the morning and evening, for 8 weeks to the other crow's feet area. Skin wrinkling, dermal density, elasticity, and hydration were measured by using PRIMOS ® premium, Dermascan ® C, Cutometer ® MPA580, and Corneometer ® CM 825, respectively. In addition, subjective skin irritation was evaluated by self-observation, and objective skin irritation was assessed through expert interviews. The adenosine-loaded dissolving microneedle patches had a similar or better efficacy than the adenosine cream. Both groups showed statistically significant efficacy for almost all parameters (P < 0.05). The dissolving microneedle patches had a long-lasting effect on the average wrinkle depth (P < 0.05), only showed efficacy in dermal density (P < 0.05), had an early improving effect on elasticity (P < 0.05), and demonstrated better hydration efficacy (P < 0.001). No adverse effects were observed in either group during the test period. In the clinical efficacy test of four skin-improvement parameters, adenosine-loaded dissolving microneedle patches showed the same or better effect than the adenosine cream, although the weekly adenosine dose was 140 times lower. The dissolving microneedle patches caused no adverse reactions. These adenosine-loaded dissolving microneedle patches are expected to be safe, effective, and novel cosmetics for skin improvement. © 2018 Society of Cosmetic Scientists and the Société Française de Cosmétologie.

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