Treesearch

The following critiques express the opinions of the individual evaluators regarding the strengths, weaknesses, and value of the books they review. As such, the appraisals are subjective assessments and do not necessarily refl ect the opinions of the editors or any offi cial policy of the American Ornithologists’ Union.

RECENT HURRICANES have raised concerns regarding the fate of many Caribbean birds, especially for rare, single island endemic species. Although Caribbean birds and their habitats have evolved in an area with a high hurricane frequency and are assumed to be relatively resilient to storm effects, habitat loss and degradation and various other human impacts may place certain species at risk to hurricanes. This symposium was designed to review knowledge regarding hurricane effects on birds and their habitats; dispel myths; identify information needs; review pre- and post- hurricane monitoring...

Los artículos en este número especial documentan un cambio en el enfoque de aprovechamiento maderero, de la explotación minera al manejo sostenible por parte de las comunidades rurales que ahora cuentan con más información y conocimiento de sus derechos.

The present treatment constitutes an updated revision for the monocotyledon and gymnosperm flora (excluding Orchidaceae and Poaceae) for the biogeographical region of Puerto Rico (including all islets and islands) and the Virgin Islands. With this contribution, we fill the last major gap in the flora of this region, since the dicotyledons have been previously revised. This volume recognizes 33 families, 118 genera, and 349 species of Monocots (excluding the Orchidaceae and Poaceae) and three families, three genera, and six species of gymnosperms. The Poaceae with an estimated 89 genera and...

I calculated various shell properties, water vapor loss, and hatching success of eggs of the Pearly-eyed Thrasher (Margarops fuscatus) using measurements obtained during a long-term study in the Luquillo Mountains, Puerto Rico. Empirical results were comparable to standard reference formulae, demonstrating that published formulae can be used with confidence by field biologists studying this and other passerine birds laying prolate spheroid shaped eggs. Shell mass averaged 0.66 g and shell thickness averaged 0.12 mm. Egg surface area averaged 19.31 cm2 (range =18.4-20.34 cm2) as derived...

Avian parents influence the onset of development, hatching synchrony, and likelihood of brood reduction through the onset of incubation. Studies testing adaptive functions of brood reduction assume that eggs are protected by their shells and waiting for parents to initiate incubation in a manner that creates optimal hatching patterns, but the viability of early laid eggs may diminish over time due to putative effects of ambient temperature. We tested effects of exposure to ambient temperature on the viability of unincubated bird eggs using an altitudinal climate gradient in Puerto Rico:...

Massive upstream migrations of neritid snails (Neritidae: Gastropoda) occur in tropical and subtropical streams worldwide, but their seasonality and proximate causes are unknown. We monitored massive upstream migrations of Neritina virginea for 99 weeks, and conducted a detailed study of snail density, size, and hydraulic descriptors in lower Río Mameyes, northeastern Puerto Rico. The study assessed the 1) timing and seasonality of upstream migration, 2) size composition of migratory aggregations, 3) patterns of habitat use, and 4) role of floods on upstream migration. Massive upstream...

Total aboveground live tree biomass in Puerto Rican lower montane wet, subtropical wet, subtropical moist and subtropical dry forests was estimated using data from two forest inventories and published regression equations. Multiple potentially-applicable published biomass models existed for some forested life zones, and their estimates tended to diverge with increasing tree diameter at breast height. Inventoried forests showed structural characteristics typical of secondary tropical forests and stand successional trends of increasing stem density from initial reversion to young closed...