FRESC Snake River Field Station
FRESC Cascadia Field Station
FRESC Olympic Field Station
Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center
Scientists from the Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center capitalize on their diverse expertise to answer scientific questions shaped by the environments of the western United States. We collaborate with each other and with partners to provide rigorous, objective, and timely information and guidance to support management, conservation, and restoration of the Nation's natural resources.
FRESC Research Teams
FRESC Research Teams
FRESC scientists, individually or collaboratively with partners, investigate high-priority questions about biological systems.
News
Saline Lake Ecosystems IWAA February 2025 Seminar
Saline Lake Ecosystems IWAA February 2025 Seminar
New USGS model uses dragonflies to estimate freshwater mercury risk on U.S. protected lands
New USGS model uses dragonflies to estimate freshwater mercury risk on U.S. protected lands
Ecological benefits and risks of fuel breaks vary across the sagebrush biome
Ecological benefits and risks of fuel breaks vary across the sagebrush biome
Publications
Ecosystem drivers of freshwater mercury bioaccumulation are context-dependent: Insights from continental-scale modeling
Significant variation in mercury (Hg) bioaccumulation is observed across the diversity of freshwater ecosystems in North America. While there is support for the major drivers of Hg bioaccumulation, the relative influence of different external factors can vary widely among waterbodies, which makes predicting Hg risk across large spatial scales particularly challenging. We modeled Hg...
Exposure, sensitivity, or adaptive capacity? Reviewing assessments that use only two of three elements of climate change vulnerability
As climate change accelerates, understanding which species are most vulnerable and why they are vulnerable will be vital to inform conservation action. Climate change vulnerability assessments (CCVAs) are tools to assess species' responses to climate change, detect drivers of vulnerability, and inform conservation planning. CCVAs are commonly composed of three elements: exposure...
Linking fire, food webs, and fish in stream ecosystems
As wildfire regimes shift, resource managers are concerned about potential threats to aquatic ecosystems and the species they support, especially fishes. However, predicting fish responses can be challenging because wildfires affect aquatic ecosystems via multiple pathways. Application of whole-ecosystem approaches, such as food web modeling, can act as heuristic tools that offer...
Science
Predicting Burn Risk to Land Management Investments
Land management treatments in sagebrush steppe are an important opportunity to break the annual-grass fire cycle, provided they offer long-lasting resistance to annual-grass invasion and do not burn. However, for areas seeded as part of the Emergency Stabilization and Rehabilitation (ESR) program-- one of the largest programs for land management treatments-- about 1/4 have at least partially...
Conservation Efforts Database
The Conservation Efforts Database (CED) is a secure online data repository that collects, stores, and retrieves spatially explicit, spatially obscure, and non-spatial information on species and habitat conservation and management actions. The CED is designed to allow data collection from all interested partners including federal, state, local, non-government organizations, universities, private...
National Fuels Treatment and Post-fire Treatment Effectiveness Assessment Strategies
Managing wildland fuels and post-fire environments are key strategies to reduce the risk and negative impacts of wildfire, and can even promote beneficial effects of wildfire. Researchers from the U.S. Geological Survey are reviewing, summarizing, and analyzing what is currently known about fuel treatment and post-fire treatment effectiveness in the United States. Monitoring and evaluating the...