This is a nation-wide collaborative program, supported by the USGS Ecosystems Mission Area, through which USGS and Bureau of Ocean Energy Management staff address priority research needs identified by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. On this page, we highlight research taking place in Alaska as part of this program.
Return to Ecosystems >> Collaborative Science for Priority Information Needs
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management priorities change annually through this program and results of past studies can be found under Data and Tools and Publications on this page.
For 2020-2023, the USGS Alaska Science Center is focusing on the following science needs identified by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management Alaska and Pacific Regions:
- Impact of marine fish communities on red-throated loon population trend on the North Slope of Alaska
- Monitoring recovery of seabirds and forage fish to the Pacific Marine Heatwave in Lower Cook Inlet, Alaska
- GPS tagging of seabirds to obtain areas of foraging aggregations and forage fish schools in Lower Cook Inlet, Alaska
Below are other science projects associated with this project.
Nearshore Fish Surveys in the Beaufort Sea
Below are data or web applications associated with this project.
Nearshore Fish Isotope Values, Beaufort Sea, Alaska, 2017-2019
Assessing the Status and Trends of Seabirds and Forage Fish in Lower Cook Inlet, Alaska
Walrus used and available resource units for northeast Chukchi Sea, 2008-2012
Below are publications associated with this project.
Borealization of nearshore fishes on an interior Arctic shelf over multiple decades
Barrier islands influence the assimilation of terrestrial energy in nearshore fishes
First juvenile Chum Salmon confirms successful reproduction for Pacific salmon in the North American Arctic
Monitoring the recovery of seabirds and forage fish following a major ecosystem disruption in Lower Cook Inlet
Red-throated loon (Gavia stellata) use of nearshore marine habitats—Results from a 2019 pilot study in northern Alaska
Space use of a dominant Arctic vertebrate: Effects of prey, sea ice, and land on Pacific walrus resource selection
Below are news stories associated with this project.
- Overview
This is a nation-wide collaborative program, supported by the USGS Ecosystems Mission Area, through which USGS and Bureau of Ocean Energy Management staff address priority research needs identified by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. On this page, we highlight research taking place in Alaska as part of this program.
Return to Ecosystems >> Collaborative Science for Priority Information Needs
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management priorities change annually through this program and results of past studies can be found under Data and Tools and Publications on this page.
For 2020-2023, the USGS Alaska Science Center is focusing on the following science needs identified by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management Alaska and Pacific Regions:
- Impact of marine fish communities on red-throated loon population trend on the North Slope of Alaska
- Monitoring recovery of seabirds and forage fish to the Pacific Marine Heatwave in Lower Cook Inlet, Alaska
- GPS tagging of seabirds to obtain areas of foraging aggregations and forage fish schools in Lower Cook Inlet, Alaska
- Science
Below are other science projects associated with this project.
Nearshore Fish Surveys in the Beaufort Sea
Nearshore systems provide habitat to a unique community of marine and diadromous (lives in both fresh and saltwater) fish and support high fish abundance. - Data
Below are data or web applications associated with this project.
Nearshore Fish Isotope Values, Beaufort Sea, Alaska, 2017-2019
This dataset contains isotope values of muscle tissue from fish collected in the nearshore Beaufort Sea, Alaska in summers 2017-2019.Assessing the Status and Trends of Seabirds and Forage Fish in Lower Cook Inlet, Alaska
This data release is composed of six datasets regarding colonial seabirds and forage fish at two seabird nesting colonies on Gull and Chisik Islands in lower Cook Inlet, Alaska. These data were collected to detect changes in the breeding population of Black-legged Kittiwakes and Common Murres on two nesting colonies in lower Cook Inlet and to compare those counts to baseline counts from 1995-1999.Walrus used and available resource units for northeast Chukchi Sea, 2008-2012
Sea ice loss represents a stressor to the Pacific walrus, which feeds on benthic macroinvertebrates in the Bering and Chukchi seas. However, no studies have examined the effects of sea ice on foraging walrus space use patterns. Thus, we examined walrus foraging resource selection as a function of proximity to resting substrates and prey biomass with a matched use-availability design. We quantif - Multimedia
- Publications
Below are publications associated with this project.
Borealization of nearshore fishes on an interior Arctic shelf over multiple decades
Borealization is a type of community reorganization where Arctic specialists are replaced by species with more boreal distributions in response to climatic warming. The process of borealization is often exemplified by the northward range expansions and subsequent proliferation of boreal species on the Pacific and Atlantic inflow Arctic shelves (i.e., Bering/Chukchi and Barents seas, respectively).AuthorsVanessa R. von Biela, Sarah M. Laske, Ashley E. Stanek, Randy J Brown, Kenneth H. DuntonBarrier islands influence the assimilation of terrestrial energy in nearshore fishes
We examined the relative importance of landscape features on estuarine fish trophic structure and dependence on terrestrial organic matter (OMterr) in four barrier island lagoon systems along the Alaskan Beaufort Sea coast. Our study compared two relatively large lagoon systems characterized by high river discharge and relatively free ocean water exchanges (central region near Prudhoe Bay, Alaska)AuthorsAshley E. Stanek, Vanessa R. von Biela, Sarah M. Laske, Rebecca L. Taylor, Kenneth H. DuntonFirst juvenile Chum Salmon confirms successful reproduction for Pacific salmon in the North American Arctic
The distributional extent of Pacific salmon Oncorhynchus spp. in the North American Arctic is unresolved. While adult Pacific salmon have a recurring presence across the Alaskan North Slope and into the Canadian Arctic, it is uncertain if these fish are part of established Arctic populations, vagrants from outside sources reproducing unsuccessfully, or both. Here we present the first confirmed recAuthorsKaren M. Dunmall, Darcy G. McNicholl, Christian E. Zimmerman, Sara E. Gilk-Baumer, Sean E. Burril, Vanessa R. von BielaMonitoring the recovery of seabirds and forage fish following a major ecosystem disruption in Lower Cook Inlet
Following the North Pacific marine heatwave of 2014-2016 and associated extreme die-off of seabirds in the winter of 2015-2016, we repeated historical marine bird and forage fish surveys around two seabird colonies (Gull Island, Chisik Island) in lower Cook Inlet during 2016-2019 in order to document immediate and lingering impacts of the heatwave on resident fish and seabird populations. At sea,AuthorsMayumi L. Arimitsu, Sarah K. Schoen, John F. Piatt, Caitlin Elizabeth Marsteller, Gary S. DrewRed-throated loon (Gavia stellata) use of nearshore marine habitats—Results from a 2019 pilot study in northern Alaska
Red-throated loons (Gavia stellata) are a species of conservation concern in Alaska due to recent evidence of a population decline on the Arctic Coastal Plain (ACP) in northern Alaska. In 2019, the U.S. Geological Survey and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service conducted a pilot study to evaluate diet and use of nearshore foraging areas as possible drivers of the population decline. We collected fatAuthorsBrian D. Uher-Koch, Christopher J. Latty, Joel A. SchmutzSpace use of a dominant Arctic vertebrate: Effects of prey, sea ice, and land on Pacific walrus resource selection
Sea ice dominates marine ecosystems in the Arctic, and recent reductions in sea ice may alter food webs throughout the region. Sea ice loss may also stress Pacific walruses (Odobenus rosmarus divergens), which feed on benthic macroinvertebrates in the Bering and Chukchi seas. However, no studies have examined the effects of sea ice on foraging Pacific walrus space use patterns. We tested a seriesAuthorsWilliam S. Beatty, Chadwick V. Jay, Anthony S. Fischbach, Jacqueline M. Grebmeier, Rebecca L. Taylor, Arny L. Blanchard, Stephen C. Jewett - News
Below are news stories associated with this project.