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Bird and Terrestrial Species Conservation

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Fish and Aquatic Species Conservation

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Pollinator Conservation

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Fish and Wildlife Disease Investigation and Surveillance

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Freshwater and Coastal Ecology

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Eastern Ecological Science Center

In 2020, the USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center and Leetown Science Center merged to create the Eastern Ecological Science Center (EESC). Our goals are to align our scientific capabilities with the most pressing conservation and management challenges; establish an engaged workforce that fosters high relationship trust with employees, partners and the public.

EESC Cooperative Science with the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission

Image: Eastern Shore of Maryland Coastal Wetland

From “blue water” rivers and streams to “green water” marine environments and brackish estuaries in between, EESC and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission are collaborating to bring together local, regional, and national expertise to provide the science that modern fisheries management demands.

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Disease Decision Analysis and Research

Image: Duck Examination

The Disease Decision Analysis and Research group is a multi-disciplinary team based out of the Eastern Ecological Science Center whose strengths are in ecology, decision sciences and quantitative modeling.

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EESC Quick Links

Enjoy these quick links to the most requested information about EESC!

News

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Chance Encounters of a Northern Saw-whet Owl

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Unintended consequences: New research shows all California condor flocks have been exposed to anticoagulant rodenticides

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One Health and Structured Decision Making

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Publications

Structured decision making to prioritize regional bird monitoring needs

Conservation planning for large ecosystems has multiple benefits but is often challenging to implement because of the multiple jurisdictions, species, and habitats involved. In addition, decision making at large spatial scales can be hampered because many approaches do not explicitly incorporate potentially competing values and concerns of stakeholders. After the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, estab
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Ecosystems, Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Eastern Ecological Science Center, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center

Drivers and facilitators of the illegal killing of elephants across 64 African sites

Ivory poaching continues to threaten African elephants. We (1) used criminology theory and literature evidence to generate hypotheses about factors that may drive, facilitate or motivate poaching, (2) identified datasets representing these factors, and (3) tested those factors with strong hypotheses and sufficient data quality for empirical associations with poaching. We advance on previous analys
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Ecosystems, Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Eastern Ecological Science Center

Environmental implications of Ptolemaic Period rodents and shrews from the Sacred Falcon Necropolis at Quesna, Egypt (Mammalia: Muridae and Soricidae)

BackgroundAssemblages of mummified and preserved animals in necropoleis of Ptolemaic Period Egypt (ca. 332–30 BC) document some aspects of the ceremonial and religious practices of the ancient Egyptians, but study of these animal remains can also provide insight into the local environments in which the animals and humans lived.ResultsExcavations of the Sacred Falcon Necropolis at Quesna in the Nil
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Ecosystems, Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Eastern Ecological Science Center
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Science

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Collecting water quality samples from the New River Gorge

A case study of temporal trends in risk factors associated with endocrine disruption in smallmouth bass

Issue The USGS has a long-term research effort that identified endocrine disruption in smallmouth bass (SMB) in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Endocrine disruption can cause many changes in fish, including intersex characteristics where fish develop characteristics of the other sex, such as immature eggs forming in males. An overview by USGS of endocrine disruption in fish found the condition...
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Environmental Health Program, Fish & Wildlife Disease, Chesapeake Bay Activities, Eastern Ecological Science Center
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A case study of temporal trends in risk factors associated with endocrine disruption in smallmouth bass

Issue The USGS has a long-term research effort that identified endocrine disruption in smallmouth bass (SMB) in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Endocrine disruption can cause many changes in fish, including intersex characteristics where fish develop characteristics of the other sex, such as immature eggs forming in males. An overview by USGS of endocrine disruption in fish found the condition...
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Chesapeake Bay Best Management Practices Conceptual Diagram

Agricultural best management practices can improve water quality and conditions for fisheries in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed

Issue Partners in the Chesapeake Bay Program (CBP) are implementing best management practices (BMPs) to prevent nutrient and sediment from entering waterways across the Chesapeake watershed and reduce loads to the Bay. In addition to reducing nutrients, CBP partners want to better understand how BMPs can provide additional benefits for addressing toxic contaminants, such as pesticides, hormones...
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Environmental Health Program, Fish & Wildlife Disease, Chesapeake Bay Activities, Eastern Ecological Science Center
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Agricultural best management practices can improve water quality and conditions for fisheries in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed

Issue Partners in the Chesapeake Bay Program (CBP) are implementing best management practices (BMPs) to prevent nutrient and sediment from entering waterways across the Chesapeake watershed and reduce loads to the Bay. In addition to reducing nutrients, CBP partners want to better understand how BMPs can provide additional benefits for addressing toxic contaminants, such as pesticides, hormones...
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Photo of sharp-tailed grouse

Wild Prairie Grouse Diet and Microbiomes Vary Between Cropland and Grassland Habitats

Wild prairie grouse residing in croplands had altered diets and gut microbiome imbalances characterized by a greater abundance of pathogenic bacteria and antibiotic-resistance genes in comparison to those residing in grasslands. Similar gut microbiome imbalances are rarely associated with lethal outcomes, but rather linked to sublethal health effects including growth, development, behavior, immune...
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Ecosystems, Environmental Health Program, Eastern Ecological Science Center
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Wild Prairie Grouse Diet and Microbiomes Vary Between Cropland and Grassland Habitats

Wild prairie grouse residing in croplands had altered diets and gut microbiome imbalances characterized by a greater abundance of pathogenic bacteria and antibiotic-resistance genes in comparison to those residing in grasslands. Similar gut microbiome imbalances are rarely associated with lethal outcomes, but rather linked to sublethal health effects including growth, development, behavior, immune...
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