Images

Sagebrush landscapes are prone to fire, which can increase the invasion of exotic annual grasses. Photo by Janey Prevéy (USGS)

Landscape view of encroaching invasive annual grasses. Photo by Janet Prevéy (USGS).

Process map of the application of the Prioritizing Restoration of Sagebrush Ecosystems Tool (PReSET) within the Wyoming Landscape Conservation Area.

We are deploying timelapse cameras across elevational and latitudinal gradients to capture variation in cheatgrass phenology.

Field of invasive annual grasses. Photo by Janet Prevéy (USGS - Fort Collins Science Center).

Measuring annual grass abundance in a burned sagebrush plot. Photo by Janet Prevéy.

Average abundance values within neighborhood clusters across the sage-grouse range over six low points.

Burros of the Lake Pleasant Herd Management Area, Arizona. Photo by K. Whyle (USGS).

Tricolored Bat hanging upside down in a cave. Photo by Andrea Schuhmann (USGS).

USGS scientist Nick Esser using radio telemetry to track northwestern pond turtles at Fall Creek Reservoir in Oregon. USGS researchers partner with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to study movement of turtles in response to fluctuating water levels.

11 individuals collaborating on potential science needs in preparation for drafting the Agua Fria National Monument Science Plan. This kickoff meeting occurred at the BLM field office on June 30, 2023.

Bats roosting in a bat box during NABat Fieldwork in 2023. 

Photo Credit: Frankie Tousley

Photographed (from left to right): Rachel Shively, Joe Chabarek, and Andrea Schuhmann

Rachel, Joe, and Andrea set up an acoustic detector for a stationary point survey.

Wildlife Acoustic SM4BAT detectors used by the NABat team. Photo Credit: Frankie Tousley
 

Ben Lohre and Andrea Schuhmann test acoustic microphones prior to bat surveys, as part of the 2023 NABat field season.

Lake Abert, Oregon is one of the 20 terminal lakes identified by USGS partners as priority ecosystems for study by the Saline Lakes Ecosystems IWAA.

The Saline Lake Ecosystems IWAA Waterbird Movement Project began tagging American Avocets in March 2023 to track their movements across the landscape. Tracking data from these birds will help scientists better understand why these birds choose to use the terminal lake and wetland habitats they do in the Great Basin.

American Avocet are a bird that relies heavily on the Saline Lakes ecosystem during their spring migration periods. Over 50% of these birds exist here. Part of their use includes using the terminal lakes there to breed. 

Eared grebes in a courtship behavior in the Great Salt Lake. They are one of many migratory birds in the Great Basin that rely on terminal lakes and wetlands in the area to stop rest and feed. 

A visual guide to rapid wildfire risk assessment from the Wildfire Research Team (WiRē).

Sagebrush ecosystems with (top) and without (bottom) invasive annual grasses near Billings, MT (Photos: David Wood, USGS).