The Plain Chachalaca (Ortalis vetula mccalli) is the only member of the family Cracidae in the United States, where it is native to four counties in the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas. The species’ habitat of dense brushland and its shy, elusive nature make it difficult to observe in the wild. As a result, published information on the status of Texas chachalacas is meager. One report indicate...

This study quantified honey mesquite (Prosopis glandulosa) root growth and water use efficiency following chronic soil drought or wetness on a clay loam site in north Texas. Root systems of mature trees were containerized with barriers inserted into the soil. Soil moisture within containers was manipulated with irrigation (Irrigated) or rain sheltering (Rainout). Other treatments included conta...

In the mixed C3/C4 grassland of southern Great Plains, United States, invasive woody legume, honey mesquite (Prosopis glandulosa), affects grass production and composition differently beneath canopy (subcanopy) than in spaces between trees (intercanopy) due part to dominant presence C3 Texas wintergrass (Nassella leucotricha) soil enrichment from N-fixation by mesquite. This arrangement, unlike...

Proliferation of woody plants in grasslands and savannas since the 1800s has been widely documented. In the southwestern United States, increased abundance of honey mesquite (Prosopis glandulosa var. glandulosa) has been attributed to heavy grazing by livestock. Here, we test the hypothesis that P. glandulosa invasion of grasslands requires, first, reductions in herbaceous biomass and density s...

1. Neotropical migrant birds show a clear preference for stopover habitats with ample food supplies; yet, the proximate cues underlying these decisions remain unclear. 2. For insectivorous migrants, cues associated with vegetative phenology (e.g. flowering, leaf flush, and leaf loss) may reliably predict the availability of herbivorous arthropods. Here we examined whether migrants use the pheno...

The widespread encroachment of woody plants throughout the semi-arid grasslands in North America has largely resulted from overgrazing by domestic livestock, fire suppression, and loss of native large and small mammalian herbivores. Burrowing-herbivorous mammals, such as prairie dogs (Cynomys spp.), help control shrub encroachment through clipping of shrubs and consumption of their seedlings, b...