Small mammals serve many ecological roles and contribute to wildlife diversity in wetlands. We investigated a small-mammal community on a southeastern Arkansas wetland-restoration site by trapping monthly from February through October 2007. During 8675 trap nights, 886 captures of six species and 615 individuals were recorded. The numbers and proportions of individuals captured varied monthly by species. Documentation of monthly fluctuations in the composition and numbers of this small-mammal community provides a basis by which to evaluate future restoration activities.

We compared prebaiting versus non-prebaiting of small mammal live traps during autumn (i.e., when food resources were abundant) and during spring (i.e., when food resources were scarce). Trapping was conducted within 10 experimental grids (0.21-ha each) located in upland and bottomland (5 each) habitats. Four species of small mammals were captured 10 or more times during this study: Peromyscus leucopus (White-footed Mouse; 543 captures), Glaucomys volans (Southern Flying Squirrel; 94 captures), Tamias striatus (Eastern Chipmunk; 53 captures), and Ochrotomys nuttalli (Golden Mouse; 12 captures). The White-footed Mouse, because of its abundance during both seasons, was the primary species of analysis. White-footed Mice had a significantly higher probability of capture (1.29 times [or 29 percent]) in the prebaiting treatment than in the non-prebaited treatment. Prebaiting did not have a significantly different effect on males compared to females or on juveniles versus adult White-footed Mice. The practice of prebaiting, or luring small mammals, is discussed across levels of organization.

Sixteen Myocastor coypus (Nutria) were implanted with radiotransmitters and monitored on a freshwater floating marsh. Mortality and/or transmitter failure was high, with 5 transmitters failing or being destroyed through predation within 3 days of release. Predation mortality was common, with an additional 5 transmitters recovered from carcasses within 35 days of implantation. The remaining 6 animals survived for a mean of 182 days. After removing first movement distances from the analyses, the mean distance traveled between locations for surviving animals was 77.4 m. Distances varied significantly between seasons, but not between the sexes. The average minimum convex polygon (MCP) for individuals with sufficient data was 28.8 ha and the 95% fixed kernel (FK) estimates averaged 32.7 ha. There was no significant difference between home-range estimates overall or between the sexes.

Sus scrofa (Feral Hog) can cause extensive damage to agricultural crops and native vegetation, is a potential disease vector, and competes with other wildlife for food resources. Without site-specific information about survival and habitat use, habitat management and control efforts may not be effective. We examined home-range size, habitat use, and survival of 29 Feral Hogs in central Mississippi using radio telemetry. Dry-and wet-season survival rates were 80.8% and 41.4%, respectively. Hunting (primarily during the wet season) was the major cause of mortality. Dry-season home ranges were larger (6.4 km²) than wet-season home ranges (3.0 km²). During the dry-season, Feral Hog home ranges (2^nd-order selection) were associated with dense vegetation types (seasonally flooded old fields, old fields, and managed openings). During the wet season, old fields and agricultural fields were selected, but seasonally flooded old fields and managed openings were not. Within home ranges (3^rd-order selection), hogs selected old fields and managed openings during the dry season. All habitats were used randomly within home ranges during the wet season. Flooding of preferred habitats, changes in food availability, and hunting pressure likely caused these changes in habitat use and home-range placement.

Free-ranging Felis catus (Domestic Cat) and Canis familiaris (Domestic Dog) can greatly impact native prey populations, but little is known about their occurrence in urban forest fragments. In this study, we used camera traps to photograph (capture) cats, dogs, and native wildlife in a 409-ha urban forest in Birmingham, AL from Jan–Apr 2007. Habitat treatments included forest interior and forest edges by industrial lands, neighborhoods with higher house values, and neighborhoods with lower house values. We employed both conservative (n = 31) and liberal (n = 64) methods of tallying the number of individual dogs, cats, and native mammals captured. Dogs and cats combined comprised 19% (conservative) and 26% (liberal) of all photographic captures. Procyon lotor (Raccoon) were the most abundant of the 7 native species at 32% (conservative) and 53% (liberal) of all captures. Dogs were more abundant in neighborhood edges, and cats were more abundant in the forest interior. Cats and dogs combined were 75% (conservative) and 86% (liberal) of captures from the forest interior. Captures of native species were far more frequent in neighborhood edges (conservative = 86.9%, and liberal = 92.3%) than in other treatments. These findings demonstrate that exotic predators can be an important ecological presence in certain portions of urban forest fragments, and more extensive studies of their impact are needed.

The active component (e.g., bait or scent lures) common to mammal survey techniques can bias detectability (e.g., aversion or attraction) and reduce their efficacy for spatially explicit, habitat-use research. We overcame this obstacle with 1-m² mud track plots, which use natural ground substrates to sample mammalian species' occupancy with minimal bias of natural movements. Performance of this method was based on criteria that included implementation effort, cost, species detection, proportion of plots to capture tracks, and species identification by track capture. Mud track plots were quickly established, maintained, and monitored with minimal effort and cost. We recorded tracks in 85% of plots over 8 nights, documented all visually confirmed medium and large-sized mammals (>800 g), and captured identifiable (>98%) tracks on a row-crop farm in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley. Drawbacks included limited application for small mammals, potential ambiguity of using track imprints for species identification, and weather-dependent, spatio-temporal restrictions. Mud track plots are an inexpensive, simple approach to noninvasive mammal detection.

This study describes the composition and structure of a mature, second-growth Pinus taeda (Loblolly Pine) and Pinus echinata (Shortleaf Pine)-dominated old-field stand. Now owned by the University of Arkansas, this 22.5-ha parcel just outside of the city of Monticello, AR, has been protected as a de facto natural area since the 1950s. Many of the overstory pines exceeded 75 cm in diameter at breast height (DBH) and some have reached 100 cm. Increment cores indicated that most of the pine overstory originated between 80 and 100 years ago, probably following agricultural abandonment. Pine recruitment occurred somewhat gradually until the canopy closed, after which tree species establishment became dominated by hardwoods. Of the nearly 6000 tree seedlings/saplings per hectare in the interior of this stand, just under 4% were pine—the under- and midstory were dominated by shade-tolerant hardwoods. No obvious evidence of past land-management practices remained, save the rare old stump or formerly open-grown pine or oak. Coarse woody debris is beginning to accumulate in some portions of the stand, primarily from the senescence of short-lived hardwoods. Comparisons with other tracts in southern Arkansas suggest that this stand differs from other contemporary examples of mature pine-dominated timber, with a richness in composition and structure not apparent in managed stands of natural or planted origin.

During 1996–1998 and 2002–2003, field surveys were conducted within the Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge, located on the Atlantic coast of South Carolina, to determine if refuge vegetation exhibited foliar symptoms (stipple) induced by ambient ozone. Foliar stipple was observed on Rhus copallina (Winged Sumac), Sapium sebiferum (Chinese Tallowtree), and Vitis sp. (wild grape). Grape had the greatest frequency of stippled plants, followed by Winged Sumac and Chinese Tallowtree. Chinese Tallowtree produced the most classic ozone-induced stipple, and may have the most potential as a useful ozone-sensitive bioindicator. Percentage of plants with ozone-induced symptoms varied among species and years. The threshold value of CUM60 ambient ozone needed to induce symptoms on ozone-sensitive plants in the refuge was estimated to be approximately 9000 ppb-hrs.

The life history of Cambarus halli, a crayfish endemic to the Tallapoosa River Basin, GA, was studied at four sites within the Tallapoosa River. Two sites had allopatric populations of C. halli, and two sites had populations of C. halli sympatric with C. englishi. Three age classes existed across sites. For Cambarus halli, total number of pleopodal eggs was positively related to carapace length, but egg size was only weakly positively related to carapace length. Cambarus halli were smaller across age classes at sympatric sites, but had greater growth rates than at allopatric sites. Cambarus halli density estimates were lower at sympatric sites, while proportions of reproductively active age-1 and age-2 individuals were higher at allopatric sites (63% vs. 33%).

Larvae and juveniles of Fundulus heteroclitus (Mummichog), commonly occur in small, water-filled depressions on the intertidal marsh surface during low tide. Previous work has shown that larger juveniles are typically found at lower elevations on the marsh surface, while small larvae are more abundant in the high marsh. The present study compared the abundance and size distributions of larval and juvenile Mummichog between relatively low- and high-elevation sites on the marsh surface at three locations in Northeastern Florida. Fundulus heteroclitus were both more abundant and larger in size at low-elevation sites than at high-elevation sites following the size-selective marsh-use pattern shown in other locations.

We compared the density and biomass of resident fish in vegetated and unvegetated flooded habitats of impounded salt marshes in the northern Indian River Lagoon (IRL) Estuary of east-central Florida. A 1^-m2 throw trap was used to sample fish in randomly located, paired sample plots (n = 198 pairs) over 5 seasons in 7 impoundments. We collected a total of 15 fish taxa, and 88% of the fishes we identified from the samples belonged to three species: Cyprinodon variegatus (Sheepshead Minnow), Gambusia holbrooki (Eastern Mosquitofish), and Poecilia latipinna (Sailfin Molly). Vegetated habitat usually had higher density and biomass of fish. Mean fish density (and 95% confidence interval) for vegetated and unvegetated sites were 8.2 (6.7–9.9) and 2.0 (1.6–2.4) individuals m^-2, respectively; mean biomass (and 95%) confidence interval) for vegetated and unvegetated sites were 3.0 (2.5–3.7) and 1.1 (0.9–1.4) g m^-2, respectively. We confirmed previous findings that impounded salt marshes of the northern IRL Estuary produce a high standing stock of resident fishes. Seasonal patterns of abundance were consistent with fish moving between vegetated and unvegetated habitat as water levels changed in the estuary. Differences in density, mean size, and species composition of resident fishes between vegetated and unvegetated habitats have important implications for movement of biomass and nutrients out of salt marsh by piscivores (e.g., wading birds and fishes) via a trophic relay.

Microstegium vimineum (Japanese Stiltgrass) is an exotic, annual grass that has invaded hardwood forests throughout the Southeastern United States. Four forests, in four Tennessee counties, were selected, and insects and plant communities were sampled along transects with and without M. vimineum. Insects were sampled using a terrestrial vacuum sampler. Percent plant cover was measured using a point-intercept technique, and plant species richness and diversity were calculated. Of the 60 families collected, significantly more individuals in the families Acrididae, Cicadellidae, and Gryllidae, were collected in areas with M. vimineum, whereas areas without M. vimineum resulted in significantly more individuals in the families Blattellidae and Chrysomelidae. Herbaceous plant richness and diversity did not significantly differ between areas with and without M. vimineum. Areas without M. vimineum had significantly lower percent vegetation cover (30.41%) than areas with M. vimineum (91.48%). The overall herbaceous plant community diversity and structure may be more influential factors in the abundances of insect families in central hardwood forests than the invasion of M. vimineum.

Fishes were sampled from Gillam Park Wetland, a small cypress swamp located within the city limits of Little Rock, AR during Fall 2005. The objectives of this research were to contribute to our knowledge of understudied wetland habitats in Arkansas, determine the status of the fish community in an urban wetland, and provide baseline data for future monitoring of this unique site. We collected 20 total species from three wetland sections (lower, middle, upper). Although fish community composition varied among the sections, species richness was similar across wetland sections. Fyke nets were more effective at capturing fish along the heavily vegetated and structured shorelines than either seines or funnel traps. The fish community residing in Gillam Park Wetland indicates that this “urban wetland” is functioning and seemingly healthy despite its proximity to anthropogenic impacts. Furthermore, Gillam Park Wetland is located along a major physiogeographic boundary that may play an important role in the distribution and conservation of several swamp specialist species in Arkansas.

We documented one Seiurus noveboracensis (Northern Waterthrush) exhibiting stopover-site fidelity by returning to a near-coastal stopover site at the Butler Island Auxiliary Station (BIAS) on the Altamaha Waterfowl Management Area in southeast Georgia during banding operations from 1995–2000. The Northern Waterthrush was recaptured in fall 2000 after being banded at BIAS in fall 1997. Although few individual passerine migrants have exhibited stopover-site fidelity, the majority were recaptured at banding stations nearer (<500 km) breeding populations of the respective species. Stopover-site fidelity is rarely documented in the southeast, as migration banding stations are generally located at coastal migrant traps, which primarily capture hatching-year birds that likely migrate to inland locations in subsequent fall migrations and do not return to coastal migrant traps. High percentages of hatching-year migrants at our near-coastal site suggest that this area is used by migrants in a similar fashion to coastal sites; however, we found possible benefits received by young birds returning to this site in subsequent years. Although rarely documented, passerine migrants may encounter some of the same benefits that wading birds, waterfowl, and shorebirds encounter in using the same stopover locations annually.

Breeding records of Accipiter striatus (Sharp-shinned Hawks) in the southeastern US are scattered and isolated. We documented a Sharp-shinned Hawk and Accipiter cooperii (Cooper's Hawk) nest while conducting a telemetry study on Melanerpes erythrocephalus (Red-headed Woodpeckers) in Barnwell County, SC in 2006 and 2007. We report the first known nest of a Sharp-shinned Hawk in Barnwell County, SC and the first report of Sharp-shinned Hawks preying upon Red-headed Woodpeckers. Thirteen of 93 (13.9 %) woodpeckers were killed by accipiters in the summers of 2006 and 2007. Large, contiguous forests managed for Picoides borealis (Red-cockaded Woodpeckers) may be used by breeding Sharp-shinned Hawks. The bright plumage, loud calls, and behavior of Red-headed Woodpeckers, particularly during the nestling stage, may make them conspicuous prey for accipiters.

In the course of conducting a radio-telemetry study of Lampropeltis getula getula (Eastern Kingsnake) within a ca. 3000-ha area in southwestern Georgia, we observed that adjacent home ranges of individuals infrequently overlapped. To quantify this overlap, ten interactions were compared; male/female overlap averaged 25%, while male/male overlap averaged 13%. Although we lack corroborative data, the limited overlap we observed is consistent with what would be expected from a territorial animal.

We report range extension in North America by a nonindigenous midge, Polypedilum nubifer (Skuse), based on larval specimens collected during September 2007 from reaches of two streams in the Southeastern Lowlands physiographic region of Missouri. Endemic midge composition and water quality characteristics from the reaches are also presented. Polypedilum nubifer could become a rice crop pest and human nuisance across the Coastal Plains Ecoregion if it is able to persist in this ecoregion.

Surface nesting is common among tropical turtles, but is an uncommon and poorly documented event in temperate species. Here we report two separate instances of surface nesting in Kinosternon subrubrum (Eastern Mud Turtle), in a Louisiana swamp in November, 2001 and March, 2002. The clutches, each consisting of a single egg, were found on man-made earthen structures within a Dwarf Palmetto-hardwood floodplain. The adaptive significance of ovipositing eggs on the surface of compact clay soils is possibly related to the need for oxygen exchange between the eggshell and embryonic membranes as well as avoidance of high water-table conditions. The two nests were laid in winter months, unlike the typical May or June nesting of northern females.