Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center
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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 for the management and conservation of biological systems in the West and worldwide.
FRESC Research Teams
FRESC scientists, individually or collaboratively with partners, investigate high-priority questions about biological systems.
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News
Assessing Cold-Water Refuges for Salmon and Steelhead in the Columbia River
Interactions among river conditions that influence fish migration success make it challenging to assess management options.
From Forests to Fish: Mercury in Mountain Lake Food Webs Influenced by Factors at Multiple Scales
Mercury bioaccumulation in mountain lakes varies widely due to strong environmental gradients, and there are complex, hierarchical factors that affect mercury transport and loading, methylmercury production, and food web biomagnification.
Shared Functional Traits Explain Synchronous Long-Term Trends in Counts of Migratory Raptors
Assessing long-term trends in counts of species is important to understand the consequences of ongoing global environmental change. One approach to study drivers of species assemblage changes is to identify the traits, such as body mass or migratory behavior, associated with count trends among species.
Publications
Monitoring wetland water quality related to livestock grazing in amphibian habitats
Land use alteration such as livestock grazing can affect water quality in habitats of at-risk wildlife species. Data from managed wetlands are needed to understand levels of exposure for aquatic life stages and monitor grazing-related changes afield. We quantified spatial and temporal variation in water quality in wetlands occupied by threatened...
Smalling, Kelly; Rowe, Jennifer; Pearl, Christopher; Iwanowiczl, Luke R.; Givens, Carrie E.; Anderson, Chauncey W.; Mccreary, Brome; Adams, Michael J. From satellites to frogs: Quantifying ecohydrological change, drought mitigation, and population demography in desert meadows
Increasing frequency and severity of droughts have motivated natural resource managers to mitigate harmful ecological and hydrological effects of drought, but drought mitigation is an emerging science and evaluating its effectiveness is difficult. We examined ecohydrological responses of drought mitigation actions aimed at conserving populations...
Pilliod, David; Hausner, Mark B.; Scherer, Rick D. The snag’s the limit: Habitat selection modeling for the western purple martin in a managed forest landscape
The western purple martin (Progne subis arboricola), an avian insectivore, is a species of conservation concern throughout the Pacific Northwest. Compared to the well-studied eastern subspecies (Progne subis subis), little is known of the life history and biology of the western subspecies. Availability of breeding habitat is believed to be a major...
Sherman, Lorelle M.; Hagar, Joan