A skeleton discovered in Grand Forks, North Dakota was purported to belong to Clelland "Clell" Miller, a James-Younger gang member, who was killed during the Northfield Bank robbery on September 7, 1876. A 3-D image from a computer tomography (CT) scan of the skull was obtained, and a craniofacial superimposition was conducted to determine if the skull could belong to Miller. The superimposition method used in this case was to overlay the CT image of the skull onto Miller's postmortem photograph. In addition to the craniofacial superimposition, the images were juxtaposed to compare similarities or differences in facial morphology between the skull and photograph. Superimposition methods can be used to exclude identifications; however, they should not be used as a conclusive method for identification. In this case, there were sufficient similarities between the skull and Miller's photograph; therefore, the skull could not be eliminated as possibly being that of Miller.

Duct tape is sometimes recovered as physical evidence in crimes. The purpose of this study was to determine the quality of latent prints on the adhesive and non-adhesive surfaces of duct tape samples that were separated using three methods. Three hundred donor fingerprint impressions were deposited on duct tape. Sections of duct tape were affixed to sections of cardboard and a fingerprint placed on the non-adhesive surface of the tape. A second layer of duct tape was prepared and a fingerprint placed on the adhesive side of the tape and then the tape was affixed to the piece of tape on the cardboard. After a 24-h period, the samples were separated using gradual force, liquid nitrogen applied with a cryogun and an adhesive neutralizer to separate the layers of tape. The recovered fingerprints were processed with a fingerprint powder suspension method. The recovered fingerprint images were evaluated and rated as +1, +2, or +3. The liquid nitrogen spray separation method yielded the highest number of +3 prints.

Saw marks on bone have been routinely reported in dismemberment cases. When saw blade teeth contact bone and the bone is not completely sawed into two parts, bone fragments are removed forming a channel or kerf. Therefore, kerf width can approximate the thickness of the saw blade. The purpose of this study is to evaluate 100 saw kerf widths in bone produced by ten saw types to determine if a saw can be eliminated based on the kerf width. Five measurements were taken from each of the 100 saw kerfs to establish an average thickness for each kerf mark. Ten cuts were made on 10 sections of bovine bone, five with human-powered saws and five with mechanical-powered saws. The cuts were examined with a stereoscopic microscope utilizing digital camera measuring software. Two statistical cumulative logistic regression models were used to analyze the saw kerf data collected. In order to estimate the prediction error, repeated stratified cross-validation was applied in analyzing the kerf mark data. Based on the two statistical models used, 70-90% of the saws could be eliminated based on kerf width.

Suspicious circumstances surrounding the death of wealthy socialite Mary Lily “Lil’” Kenan Flagler Bingham in 1917 prompted a secret autopsy conducted by renowned physicians at the request of her relatives. Mrs Bingham, who was formerly married to railroad magnate, Henry Flagler, was among America’s richest people at the time of her death. Mary Lil’s untimely death occurred approximately six months after her marriage to Judge Robert “Bob” Worth Bingham, a college boyfriend whom she married three years after Flagler’s death. In order to establish Mary Lil’s medical condition prior to her death, a book about Mary Lil’s life written by Pulitzer Prize author, David Chandler and articles from the New York Times; The Louisville Courier Journal, a Kentucky newspaper; and Mary Lil’s hometown newspaper, The Morning Star, in Wilmington, North Carolina were examined. Although a team of medical experts performed a secret autopsy following her death and released their findings to her family, the examination and tests results remain undisclosed to the public.

A classification system and identification key for .177 caliber air gun pellets was developed based on a five-class characteristic criterion. Sixty-eight pellet types from 15 companies were examined and compared. A classification system was developed based on the pellets' head shapes, skirt types, lengths, weights, and other markings or observations. In some cases, when a pellet is recovered from a crime scene, product brand identification may aid the investigation. Even though all product brands cannot be identified, various brands of pellets can be eliminated based on a pellet's class characteristics. The pellet producers in this study were located in the following countries: China, Czech Republic, England, Korea, Spain, and the United States. An identification key can be used for possible pellet identification or elimination.

In using infrared or infrared-enhanced photography to examine gunshot residue (GSR) on dark-colored clothing, the GSR particles are microscopically examined directly on the fabric followed by the modified Griess test (MGT) for nitrites. In conducting the MGT, the GSR is transferred to treated photographic paper for visualization. A positive reaction yields an orange color on specially treated photographic paper. The examiner also evaluates the size of the powder pattern based on the distribution of nitrite reaction sites or density. A false-positive reaction can occur using the MGT due to contaminants or dyes that produce an orange cloud reaction as well. A method for enhancing visualization of the pattern produced by burned and partially unburned powder is by treatment of the fabric with a solution of sodium hypochlorite. In order to evaluate the results of sodium hypochlorite treatment for GSR visualization, the MGT was used as a reference pattern. Enhancing GSR patterns on dark or multicolored clothing was performed by treating the fabric with an application of 5.25% solution of sodium hypochlorite. Bleaching the dyes in the fabric enhances visualization of the GSR pattern by eliminating the background color. Some dyes are not affected by sodium hypochlorite; therefore, bleaching may not enhance the GSR patterns in some fabrics. Sodium hypochlorite provides the investigator with a method for enhancing GSR patterns directly on the fabric. However, this study is not intended to act as a substitute for the MGT or Sodium Rhodizonate test.

We studied foraging behavior, diet quality, and activity budgets of Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis canadensis) under different snow cover conditions on a Ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) -shrub-bunchgrass range in the montane zone of Colorado. Snow 2-12 cm deep persisted for less than a day to several weeks and caused bighorn to nose or paw to reach forage. Biting rates were reduced during periods of snow cover as were dry matter intake rates, despite an increase in bite size. Percentage of green material in the diet declined as snow depth increased, as did percent protein and dry matter digestibility of diets. During periods of snow cover, bighorn shifted from feeding in open sites where green-up was advanced to feeding in areas of shrub cover, which enhanced forage accessibility. Sheep partially compensated for declines in nutrient intake rates by increasing foraging time during the day. We concluded that even small amounts of snow had an important negative effect on foraging efficiency and diet quality of bighorn and caused major changes in their foraging tactics.

Kid production by marked females, age ratios from a 24-year study, and the literature are used to evaluate hypotheses that three intrinsic and three extrinsic factors affect reproduction by female Rocky Mountain goats (Oreamnos americanus). On Sheep Mountain – Gladstone Ridge, Colorado, mountain goat age ratios declined while the herd grew during 1966–1979, and continued to decline with population stability during 1980–1989, suggesting a continued increase in ecological density of goats 39 years after they were introduced in 1950. Among intrinsic factors, age and persisting individual characteristics have influenced reproductive success of females. Reproductive success in any year has not limited success in the following year, except in 4-year-olds. Among extrinsic factors, reproductive success of female mountain goats has been negatively influenced by density or ecological density and by snowpack during gestation. Reproductive success of females may have been positively influenced by snowpack that enhanced forage conditions prior to breeding. The relative importance of these six factors in determining reproductive success of females may vary among and (temporally) within herds. Most hypotheses regarding reproductive success in female mountain goats remain poorly tested. Short-term observational studies hold little promise for testing hypotheses, owing to large among-years variation in reproductive success. Long-term, intensive observational studies, or manipulative experiments, are suggested.

We studied seasonal (Jan-May) changes in foraging behavior and nutrient intake rates of Rocky Mountain bighorn ewes (Ovis canadensis canadensis) under snow-free conditions on 2 montane ranges in northcentral Colorado. During green-up (Mar and Apr) ewes sought short, new growth, reducing bite sizes and increasing bite rates to forage effectively. However, increases in bite rates only partially offset small bite sizes, and dry matter intake rates declined. Concentrations of protein and digestible dry matter in ewe diets increased from January-February to May. During green-up, declines in consumption rates tended to balance increases in diet quality resulting in stable intake rates of digestible dry matter and (less frequently) protein. Consequently, increases in nutrient intake rates often lagged 1 month behind peak increases in diet quality. Foraging time as a percentage of daylight declined from January to May; however, total daylight feeding time tended to peak during green-up and partially offset declines in dry matter intake rates. Protein concentrations in ewe diets generally met or exceeded estimated requirements; however, during 1985, energy intake was below requirements for maintenance and gestation of pregnant ewes during much (Fall River area) or all (Endovalley area) of the study period. Results supported the hypothesis that availability of green forage limited nutrition of bighorn sheep during snow-free periods in late winter and early spring.

During two winters we studied agonistic behavior of foraging mountain goats (Oreamnos americanus) in both natural and manipulated conditions. By maintaining food pellets at bait site we tested two hypotheses: (i) dominant goats will have primary access to the food, and (ii) kids of dominant nannies will have access to the food with their mothers. At the bait site, average group size was larger and goats in each sex–age class were more aggressive compared with those away from the site. The dominance order among sex–age classes at the bait was similar to that reported at mineral licks, except that 2-year-old males dominated adult females. When goats fed at the bait site, adult females with kids were very aggressive and nanny–kid distances decreased. At the bait, an orphan kid received much aggression, while kids with their mothers received few threats. At the bait site, dominant goats had primary, but not exclusive, access to the bait and kids fed with their mothers, which supported our hypotheses.

Relationships between group size, intragroup spacing, movement rates, foraging behavior, and frequency of agonistic behavior of mountain goats (Oreamnos americanus) using alpine tundra were examined during summer. Feeding time of goats increased with group size to about 12 goats because of a reduction in time devoted to alert behavior. Rates of movement by foraging goats increased with group size, whereas rates of agonistic behavior between goats declined with increased group size. Intragroup spacing declined as group size increased. Nannies and 2-year-old goats were more aggressive than were other sex- or age-classes. Two-year-old goats, yearlings, and billies received more threatening displays than did other classes. In Colorado, nannies with kids form large nursery bands on alpine tundra. This behavior can reduce the risk of predation to individuals while allowing nannies with kids to exploit forage away from precipitous terrain. Average group size may be a useful index to forage abundance and continuity on summer goat range.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This document,was prepared through the cooperative effort of the participants of the Lesser Prairie-chicken Interstate Working Group (LPCIWG). Members of the LPCIWG include: Ken Giesen, Colorado Division of Wildlife; Judy Sheppard, Colorado Division of Wildlife; Roger Applegate, Kansas Department of Wildlife & Parks; Jim Bailey, New Mexico Department of Game & Fish; Colin Berg, Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation; Russ Horton, Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation; John Hughes Texas Parks & Wildlife Department; Markus Peterson, Texas Parks & Wildlife Department; Kevin Mote, Texas Parks & Wildlife Department; Dan Svingen, U.S. Forest Service, Comanche National Grasslands; Dan Baggao, Bureau of Land Management; Rand French, Bureau of Land Management; Noreen Walsh, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Charles Scott, U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Terry Riley, Wildlife Management Institute, Len Carpenter, Wildlife Management Institute, and Wendell Gilgert,