Publications

We conducted a health survey of amphibians in and adjacent to Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP) to document current disease presence inside RMNP and identify disease outside RMNP with the potential to spread to the Park's amphibians. Amphibians from five sites within RMNP and seven sites within 60 km of Park boundaries were collected and examined. Necropsies (n - 238), virus isolation...

We studied chick survival of the Mountain Plover (Charadrius montanus) in Montana and found that chicks tended by females had higher survival rates than chicks tended by males, and that chick survival generally increased during the nesting season. Differences in chick survival were most pronounced early in the nesting season, and may be related to a larger sample of nests during this...

Since Ott's seminal book on environmental indices (1978), the use of indices has expanded into several natural resource disciplines, including ecological studies, environmental policymaking, and agricultural economics. However, despite their increasing use in natural resource disciplines, researchers and public decision makers continue to express concern about validity of these...

Information about avian responses to fire in the U.S. Rocky Mountains is based solely on studies of crown fires. However, fire management in this region is based primarily on studies of low-elevation ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) forests maintained largely by frequent understory fires. In contrast to both of these trends, most Rocky Mountain forests are subject to mixed severity fire...

We report movements and home-range sizes of adult Mountain Plovers (Charadrius montanus) with broods on rangeland, agricultural fields, and prairie dog habitats in eastern Colorado. Estimates of home range size (95% fixed kernel) were similar across the three habitats: rangeland (146.1 ha ± 101.5), agricultural fields (131.6 ha ± 74.4), and prairie dog towns (243.3 ha ± 366.3). Our...

The use of molecular genetic tools has become increasingly important in addressing conservation issues pertaining to plants and animals. Genetic information can be used to augment studies of population dynamics and population viability, investigate systematic, refine taxonomic definitions, investigate population structure and gene flow, and document genetic diversity in a variety of...

Introduction Wolves of Grand Teton National Park and the Greater Yellowstone Area Gray wolves (Canis lupus) appeared in Grand Teton National Park (GRTE) in October of 1998, two years after being reintroduced to Yellowstone National Park (YNP). Since that time, five packs have been within the GRTE borders - Gros Ventre Pack, Nez Perce Pack, Yellowstone Delta Pack, Teton Pack, and Green...

No abstract available.

An inter-agency research team studied communications during the small Bridge Fire in southern California, as well the before-, during-, and post-fire communications of an extreme fire event (Old and Grand Prix Fires) in the same area in the fall of 2003. This “quick-response” research showed that pre-fire communication planning was particularly effective for small fire events, and parts...

The effectiveness of methyl bromide as a fumigant for brown treesnake (Boiga irregularis) management was evaluated on Guam. Eighteen snakes in secured cloth bags were randomly positioned in a 47.7-m3 tarpaulin-covered cargo container for each fumigation treatment. Methyl bromide treatments tested were: 24 g m−3 and and 12 g m−3, both for 2-h and 1-h exposures. All treatments, except for...

We studied seven hydropower license consultations to examine the role of a sense of urgency to reach agreement. Hydropower licensing consultations were studied because the statutory requirement for consultation encourages negotiation, all such consultations are similar, and a negotiated settlement is not a foregone result. Cases selected for analysis met screening criteria. Structured...

Most research to assess amphibian declines has focused on local-scale projects on one or a few species. The Amphibian Research and Monitoring Initiative (ARMI) is a national program in the United States mandated by congressional directive and implemented by the U.S. Department of the Interior (specifically the U.S. Geological Survey, USGS). Program goals are to monitor changes in...