Publications
FORT scientists have produced more than 2000 peer reviewed publications that are registered in the USGS Publications Warehouse, along with many others prior to their work at the USGS or in conjunction with other government agencies.
Filter Total Items: 2397
Do observer fatigue and taxon-bias compromise visual encounter surveys for small vertebrates? Do observer fatigue and taxon-bias compromise visual encounter surveys for small vertebrates?
Context. Visual encounter surveying is a standard animal inventory method, modifications of which (e.g. distance sampling and repeated count surveys) are used for modelling population density. However, a variety of factors may bias visual survey counts. Aims. The aim of the present study was to evaluate three observer-related biases: (1) whether fatigue compromises detection rate as a...
Authors
Bjorn Lardner, Amy A. Yackel Adams, Adam J Knox, Julie A. Savidge, Robert Reed
Surface fire to Crown Fire: Fire history in the Taos Valley watersheds, New Mexico, USA Surface fire to Crown Fire: Fire history in the Taos Valley watersheds, New Mexico, USA
Tree-ring fire scars, tree ages, historical photographs, and historical surveys indicate that, for centuries, fire played different ecological roles across gradients of elevation, forest, and fire regimes in the Taos Valley Watersheds. Historical fire regimes collapsed across the three watersheds by 1899, leaving all sites without fire for at least 119 years. Historical photographs and...
Authors
Lane B Johnson, Ellis Q. Margolis
Diversity and abundance of wild bees in an agriculturally dominated landscape of eastern Colorado Diversity and abundance of wild bees in an agriculturally dominated landscape of eastern Colorado
Agricultural intensification has resulted in loss of natural and semi-natural habitats impacting several important ecosystem services. One group of organisms that has suffered greatly are the bees and hence pollination, the supporting ecosystem service they complete. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) has implemented conservation...
Authors
H. S. Arathi, Mark W. Vandever, Brian S. Cade
Not so normal normals: Species distribution model results are sensitive to choice of climate normals and model type Not so normal normals: Species distribution model results are sensitive to choice of climate normals and model type
Species distribution models have many applications in conservation and ecology, and climate data are frequently a key driver of these models. Often, correlative modeling approaches are developed with readily available climate data; however, the impacts of the choice of climate normals is rarely considered. Here, we produced species distribution models for five disparate species using...
Authors
Catherine S. Jarnevich, Nicholas E. Young
The area under the precision‐recall curve as a performance metric for rare binary events The area under the precision‐recall curve as a performance metric for rare binary events
Species distribution models are used to study biogeographic patterns and guide decision‐making. The variable quality of these models makes it critical to assess whether a model's outputs are suitable for the intended use, but commonly used evaluation approaches are inappropriate for many ecological contexts. In particular, unrealistically high performance assessments have been associated...
Authors
Helen Sofaer, Jennifer A. Hoeting, Catherine S. Jarnevich
A hierarchical Bayesian approach for handling missing classification data A hierarchical Bayesian approach for handling missing classification data
Ecologists use classifications of individuals in categories to understand composition of populations and communities. These categories might be defined by demographics, functional traits, or species. Assignment of categories is often imperfect, but frequently treated as observations without error. When individuals are observed but not classified, these “partial” observations must be...
Authors
Alison C. Ketz, Therese L. Johnson, Mevin Hooten, N. Thompson Hobbs
Factors influencing anuran wetland occupancy in an agricultural landscape Factors influencing anuran wetland occupancy in an agricultural landscape
Habitat disturbance is an important cause of global amphibian declines, with especially strong effects in areas of high agricultural use. Determining the influence of site characteristics on amphibian presence and success is vital to developing effective conservation strategies. We used occupancy analysis to estimate presence of four anuran species at wetlands in northern Iowa as a...
Authors
Jennifer E. Swanson, Clay Pierce, Stephen J. Dinsmore, Kelly L. Smalling, Mark W. Vandever, Timothy W. Stewart, Erin L. Muths
Long-term nitrogen addition shifts the soil nematode community to bacterivore-dominated and reduces its ecological maturity in a subalpine forest Long-term nitrogen addition shifts the soil nematode community to bacterivore-dominated and reduces its ecological maturity in a subalpine forest
Nitrogen deposition from anthropogenic sources is a global problem that reaches even the most remote ecosystems. Responses belowground vary by ecosystem, and have feedbacks to geochemical processes, including carbon storage. A long-term nitrogen addition study in a subalpine forest has shown carbon loss over time, atypical for a forest ecosystem. Loss of microbial biomass is likely...
Authors
E. Ashley Shaw, Claudia M. Boot, John C. Moore, Diana H. Wall, Jill Baron
Assessing vulnerability and threat from housing development to Conservation Opportunity Areas in State Wildlife Action Plans across the United States Assessing vulnerability and threat from housing development to Conservation Opportunity Areas in State Wildlife Action Plans across the United States
Targeting conservation actions efficiently requires information on vulnerability of and threats to conservation targets, but such information is rarely included in conservation plans. In the U.S., recently updated State Wildlife Action Plans identify Conservation Opportunity Areas (COAs) selected by each state as priority areas for future action to conserve wildlife and habitats. The...
Authors
Sarah K. Carter, Shelley S. Maxted, Tara L. E. Bergeson, David P. Helmers, Lori Scott, Volker C. Radeloff
Evaluation of genetic change from translocation among Gunnison Sage-Grouse (Centrocercus minimus) populations Evaluation of genetic change from translocation among Gunnison Sage-Grouse (Centrocercus minimus) populations
Maintenance of genetic diversity is important for conserving species, especially those with fragmented habitats or ranges. In the absence of natural dispersal, translocation can be used to achieve this goal, although the success of translocation can be difficult to measure. Here we evaluate genetic change following translocation in Gunnison Sage-Grouse (Centrocercus minimus), a species...
Authors
Shawna J Zimmerman, Cameron L. Aldridge, Anthony D. Apa, Sara J. Oyler-McCance
Burmese Python (Python bivittatus) Burmese Python (Python bivittatus)
No abstract available.
Authors
Kenneth L. Krysko, Robert Reed, Michael R. Rochford, Leroy P. Nunez, Kevin M. Enge
U.S. Geological Survey science for the Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative—2017 annual report U.S. Geological Survey science for the Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative—2017 annual report
The Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative (WLCI) was established in 2008 to address the scientific and conservation questions associated with land use changes because of energy development and other factors in southwest Wyoming. Over the past decade, partners from U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), State and Federal land management agencies, universities, and the public have collaborated...
Authors
Linda Zeigenfuss, Ellen Aikens, Cameron L. Aldridge, Patrick J. Anderson, Timothy J. Assal, Zachary H. Bowen, Anna D. Chalfoun, Geneva W. Chong, Cheryl A. Eddy-Miller, Stephen S. Germaine, Tabitha A. Graves, Collin G. Homer, Christopher Huber, Aaron N. Johnston, Matthew J. Kauffman, Daniel J. Manier, Ryan R. McShane, Kirk A. Miller, Adrian P. Monroe, Anna Ortega, Annika W. Walters, Teal B. Wyckoff