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Research Interests: Zoology, Biology, Ecology, Reproductive Success, Juvenile, and 3 moreField Ornithology, Hatching, and Sterna
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... Pinkney, AE, McGowan, PC, Murphy, DR, Lowe, TP, Sparling, DW and Ferrington, LC (2000), Effects of the mosquito larvicides temephos and ... Two Hester-Dendy artificial substrates (HD Supply,Brandon, FL, USA) were assembled and placed... more
... Pinkney, AE, McGowan, PC, Murphy, DR, Lowe, TP, Sparling, DW and Ferrington, LC (2000), Effects of the mosquito larvicides temephos and ... Two Hester-Dendy artificial substrates (HD Supply,Brandon, FL, USA) were assembled and placed in each pond on May 19 and then ...
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Research Interests:
Research Interests: Environmental Science, Ecotoxicology, Environmental Chemistry, Hazardous Waste, Medicine, and 11 moreMultidisciplinary, DDT, Polychlorinated Biphenyls, Contamination, Polychlorinated Biphenyl, Environmental monitoring and assessment, Virginia, Fundulus, Cyprinus Carpio, Whole Body, and Channel catfish
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Research Interests:
Research Interests: Environmental Science, Reproduction, Productivity, Environmental Monitoring, Environmental Pollution, and 15 moreMedicine, Multidisciplinary, Environmental Sciences, Animals, Maryland, Chesapeake Bay, Time Factors, Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers, District of Columbia, Environmental Pollutants, Food Chain, Environmental Exposure, Bay, Bays, and ovum
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... Monitoring study, Eastern Neck Island National Wildlife Refuge," Technical Report ... protection in the study area consists of five stone break-waters (constructed of 1.5-to 3-ton2 stones) located a maximum of 122 m offshore in... more
... Monitoring study, Eastern Neck Island National Wildlife Refuge," Technical Report ... protection in the study area consists of five stone break-waters (constructed of 1.5-to 3-ton2 stones) located a maximum of 122 m offshore in depths of 0.76 m mean low water (mlw), and oriented ...
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Research Interests:
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Wild waterbirds, the natural reservoirs for avian influenza viruses, undergo migratory movements each year, connecting breeding and wintering grounds within broad corridors known as flyways. In a continental or global view, the study of... more
Wild waterbirds, the natural reservoirs for avian influenza viruses, undergo migratory movements each year, connecting breeding and wintering grounds within broad corridors known as flyways. In a continental or global view, the study of virus movements within and across flyways is important to understanding virus diversity, evolution, and movement. From 2015 to 2017, we sampled waterfowl from breeding (Maine) and wintering (Maryland) areas within the Atlantic Flyway (AF) along the east coast of North America to investigate the spatio-temporal trends in persistence and spread of influenza A viruses (IAV). We isolated 109 IAVs from 1,821 cloacal / oropharyngeal samples targeting mallards(Anas platyrhynchos)and American black ducks(Anas rubripes), two species having ecological and conservation importance in the flyway that are also host reservoirs of IAV. Isolates with >99% nucleotide similarity at all gene segments were found between eight pairs of birds in the northern site across...
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Research Interests:
The nontarget effects of temephos (as Abate 4E, 44.6% active ingredient) on fiddler crabs were examined on the salt marsh at Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge, near Dover, DE. Six 170 x 170-m plots were established; 3 were sprayed on 4... more
The nontarget effects of temephos (as Abate 4E, 44.6% active ingredient) on fiddler crabs were examined on the salt marsh at Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge, near Dover, DE. Six 170 x 170-m plots were established; 3 were sprayed on 4 occasions at a rate of 1.5 fl oz/acre (0.054 kg active ingredient/ha) and 3 were controls. On each plot, marsh fiddler crab (Uca pugnax) populations were monitored by repeatedly counting the number of burrow holes in 2 counting areas marked out along tidal guts. One half of each counting area was covered with bird netting to evaluate sublethal toxic effects, which, if present, could result in increased susceptibility to bird predation. A statistically significant linear association was established between the number of holes and the number of crabs. No significant differences were found in the numbers of holes (or crabs) in the sprayed vs. control plots and in the covered vs. uncovered sections. However, survival of juvenile crabs in in situ bioass...
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Research Interests:
... Pinkney, AE, McGowan, PC, Murphy, DR, Lowe, TP, Sparling, DW and Ferrington, LC (2000), Effects of the mosquito larvicides temephos and ... Two Hester-Dendy artificial substrates (HD Supply,Brandon, FL, USA) were assembled and placed... more
... Pinkney, AE, McGowan, PC, Murphy, DR, Lowe, TP, Sparling, DW and Ferrington, LC (2000), Effects of the mosquito larvicides temephos and ... Two Hester-Dendy artificial substrates (HD Supply,Brandon, FL, USA) were assembled and placed in each pond on May 19 and then ...
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In August 2012, during routine surveys of Poplar Island, MD, shorebirds and ducks were found in varying stages of paralysis. Some birds were ‘wing walking,’ others could barely hold up their heads, some had lost function of the nictitans,... more
In August 2012, during routine surveys of Poplar Island, MD, shorebirds and ducks were found in varying stages of paralysis. Some birds were ‘wing walking,’ others could barely hold up their heads, some had lost function of the nictitans, and many more were dead. These clinical signs, combined with the location, climate, and water conditions, were highly suggestive of avian botulism. As biologists from the US Fish & Wildlife Service teamed with the MD state wildlife veterinarian, Maryland Environmental Service, and staff and volunteers from Tri–State Bird Rescue & Research to capture and care for the affected birds, laboratory tests suggested something besides botulism might be present. This presentation describes the combined efforts of these groups and six separate laboratories to unravel the mystery of this epornitic and to provide treatment to those birds rescued live.
... grass prairie has been lost, especially to agricultural pro-duction, since European settlement in North America (Samson and Knopf 1996). ... estimates. Journal of Range Management 26:302–303. Samson, BF and FL Knopf. 1996. ...
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: Eastern Neck Island National Wildlife Refuge was selected as a demonstration site for the construction of a wetland creation and erosion control project incorporating 1tbeneficial use of dredged material. Fine-grained, sandy dredged... more
: Eastern Neck Island National Wildlife Refuge was selected as a demonstration site for the construction of a wetland creation and erosion control project incorporating 1tbeneficial use of dredged material. Fine-grained, sandy dredged material was used to construct 2.02 hectares of estuarine, emergent wetland. Project objectives were to (a) provide an environmentally preferable alternative to unconfined, overboard dredged material disposal; (b) stop or minimize erosional losses of ecologically valuable habitats; and (c) create wetland habitat. This monitoring study covering two growing seasons was undertaken to determine if project objectives bad been met and the potential for expanded application of beneficial uses of dredged material in Chesapeake Bay. Modifications to the erosion control design used at Eastern Neck could improve dredged material stability. Changes in plant materials and planting methods could improve the rate of wetland habitat development. Fish and wildlife util...
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Research Interests:
Population monitoring of nesting waterbirds often involves frequent entries into the colony, but alternate methods such as local remotely-sensed thermal imaging may help reduce disturbance while providing a cost-effective way to survey... more
Population monitoring of nesting waterbirds often involves frequent entries into the colony, but alternate methods such as local remotely-sensed thermal imaging may help reduce disturbance while providing a cost-effective way to survey breeding populations. Such an approach can have high initial costs, however, which may have reduced the number of studies investigating functionality of paired thermal infrared camera and small unmanned aerial systems. Here, we take the first step of exploring the ability of two thermal infrared cameras to detect an avian chick under varying vegetative cover and distances, preceding field-mounting applications on a small unmanned aerial system. Seven "bio-boxes" were created to simulate a range of natural vegetation types and densities for a globally important colonial ground-nesting waterbird species, the common tern Sterna hirundo. A juvenile chicken Gallus gallus (surrogate for the locally-endangered common tern) was placed in each box, a...
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Research Interests: Zoology and Waterbirds
Many waterbird populations have faced declines over the last century, including the common tern (Sterna hirundo), a waterbird species with a widespread breeding distribution, that has been recently listed as endangered in some habitats of... more
Many waterbird populations have faced declines over the last century, including the common tern (Sterna hirundo), a waterbird species with a widespread breeding distribution, that has been recently listed as endangered in some habitats of its range. Waterbird monitoring programs exist to track populations through time; however, some of the more intensive approaches require entering colonies and can be disruptive to nesting populations. This paper describes a protocol that utilizes a minimally invasive surveillance system to continuously monitor common tern nesting behavior in typical ground-nesting colonies. The video monitoring system utilizes wireless cameras focused on individual nests as well as over the colony as a whole, and allows for observation without entering the colony. The video system is powered with several 12 V car batteries that are continuously recharged using solar panels. Footage is recorded using a digital video recorder (DVR) connected to a hard drive, which ca...
A study of ospreys (Pandion haliaetus) nesting in the coastal Inland Bays of Delaware, and the Delaware Bay and Delaware River in 2015 examined spatial and temporal trends in contaminant exposure, food web transfer and reproduction.... more
A study of ospreys (Pandion haliaetus) nesting in the coastal Inland Bays of Delaware, and the Delaware Bay and Delaware River in 2015 examined spatial and temporal trends in contaminant exposure, food web transfer and reproduction. Concentrations of organochlorine pesticides and metabolites, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), coplanar PCB toxic equivalents, polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and other flame retardants in sample eggs were generally greatest in the Delaware River. Concentrations of legacy contaminants in 2015 Delaware Bay eggs were lower than values observed in the 1970s through early 2000s. Several alternative brominated flame retardants were rarely detected, with only TBPH [bis(2-ethylhexyl)-tetrabromophthalate)] present in 5 of 27 samples at <5 ng/g wet weight. No relation was found between p,p'-DDE, total PCBs or total PBDEs in eggs with egg hatching, eggs lost from nests, nestling loss, fledging and nest success. Osprey eggshell thickness recovered to ...
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Research Interests:
... Monitoring study, Eastern Neck Island National Wildlife Refuge," Technical Report ... protection in the study area consists of five stone break-waters (constructed of 1.5-to 3-ton2 stones) located a maximum of 122 m offshore in... more
... Monitoring study, Eastern Neck Island National Wildlife Refuge," Technical Report ... protection in the study area consists of five stone break-waters (constructed of 1.5-to 3-ton2 stones) located a maximum of 122 m offshore in depths of 0.76 m mean low water (mlw), and oriented ...
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From 2011-2013, a large-scale ecotoxicological study was conducted in several Chesapeake Bay tributaries (Susquehanna River and flats, the Back, Baltimore Harbor/Patapsco River, Anacostia/ middle Potomac, Elizabeth and James Rivers), and... more
From 2011-2013, a large-scale ecotoxicological study was conducted in several Chesapeake Bay tributaries (Susquehanna River and flats, the Back, Baltimore Harbor/Patapsco River, Anacostia/ middle Potomac, Elizabeth and James Rivers), and Poplar Island as a mid-Bay reference site. Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) diet and the transfer of contaminants from fish to osprey eggs were evaluated. The most bioaccumulative compounds (biomagnification factor >5) included p,p'-DDE, total PCBs, total PBDEs, and BDE congeners 47, 99, 100 and 154. This analysis suggested that alternative-brominated flame-retardants and other compounds (methoxytriclosan) are not appreciably biomagnifying. A multivariate analysis of similarity indicated major differences in patterns among study sites were driven by PCB congeners 105, 128, 156, 170/190 and 189, and PBDE congeners 99 and 209. An integrative redundancy analysis showed that osprey eggs from Baltimore Harbor/Patapsco River and the Elizabeth Rivers had ...
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In 1999, the Chesapeake Bay Program Toxics Subcommittee characterized the tidal tributaries of the Chesapeake Bay for their potential for adverse effects due to chemical contamination. One finding was that, due to a paucity of data, many... more
In 1999, the Chesapeake Bay Program Toxics Subcommittee characterized the tidal tributaries of the Chesapeake Bay for their potential for adverse effects due to chemical contamination. One finding was that, due to a paucity of data, many segments were characterized as Areas with Insufficient or Inconclusive Data. The purpose of the current study was to help fill these data gaps. The study, a collaborative effort between the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Chesapeake
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In 1999, the Chesapeake Bay Program Toxics Subcommittee characterized the tidal tributaries of the Chesapeake Bay for their potential for adverse effects due to chemical contamination. One finding was that, due to a paucity of data, many... more
In 1999, the Chesapeake Bay Program Toxics Subcommittee characterized the tidal tributaries of the Chesapeake Bay for their potential for adverse effects due to chemical contamination. One finding was that, due to a paucity of data, many segments were characterized as Areas with Insufficient or Inconclusive Data. The purpose of the current study was to help fill these data gaps. The study, a collaborative effort between the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Chesapeake
This report was prepared for the Natural Resource Trustee Council responsible for assessing injuries to natural resources and restoring losses resulting from the April 7, 2000 oil spill at Chalk Point, Maryland. It presents an estimate of... more
This report was prepared for the Natural Resource Trustee Council responsible for assessing injuries to natural resources and restoring losses resulting from the April 7, 2000 oil spill at Chalk Point, Maryland. It presents an estimate of the number of diamondback terrapins (Malaclemys terrapin) killed directly by the oil in the weeks immediately following the spill. This injury is described as direct or "acute, " in contrast to, for example, the intergenerational loss of terrapins as estimated in Hinkeldey, et al. (2000). A subgroup of the Wildlife Injury Workgroup, established by the Natural Resource Trustee Council, developed the estimates and prepared this report. EXISTING INFORMATION Site-specific Information Site-specific information available on terrapins includes observations reported as part of the oil spill, i.e. extent of shoreline oiling, reported mortality, and rehabilitation of live terrapins. In addition, terrapin population estimates for the late 1980s for ...
The last large-scale ecotoxicological study of ospreys (Pandion haliaetus) in Chesapeake Bay was conducted in 2000-2001 and focused on U.S. EPA-designated Regions of Concern (ROCs; Baltimore Harbor/Patapsco, Anacostia/middle Potomac, and... more
The last large-scale ecotoxicological study of ospreys (Pandion haliaetus) in Chesapeake Bay was conducted in 2000-2001 and focused on U.S. EPA-designated Regions of Concern (ROCs; Baltimore Harbor/Patapsco, Anacostia/middle Potomac, and Elizabeth Rivers). In 2011-2012, ROCs were re-evaluated to determine spatial and temporal trends in productivity and contaminants. Concentrations of p,p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;#39;-DDE were low in eggs and below the threshold associated with eggshell thinning. Eggs from the Anacostia/middle Potomac Rivers had lower total PCB concentrations in 2011 than in 2000; however, concentrations remained unchanged in Baltimore Harbor. Polybrominated diphenyl ether flame retardants declined by 40%, and five alternative brominated flame retardants were detected at low levels. Osprey productivity was adequate to sustain local populations, and there was no relation between productivity and halogenated contaminants. Our findings document continued recovery of the osprey population, declining levels of many persistent halogenated compounds, and modest evidence of genetic damage in nestlings from industrialized regions.