Publications
Below is a list of available NOROCK peer reviewed and published science. If you are in search of a specific publication and cannot find it below or through a search, please contact twojtowicz@usgs.gov.
Filter Total Items: 1223
U.S. Geological Survey Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center science highlights for fiscal year 2023
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center is based in Bozeman, Montana, and has field offices in Glacier National Park, Mont.; Missoula, Mont.; and Knoxville, Tennessee. Our scientists respond to the natural resource management needs of Federal, Tribal, and State partners—directly engaging in the coproduction and application of integrated, interdisciplinary science—a
Authors
Todd Wojtowicz
Chronic wasting disease alters the movement behavior and habitat use of mule deer during clinical stages of infection
Integrating host movement and pathogen data is a central issue in wildlife disease ecology that will allow for a better understanding of disease transmission. We examined how adult female mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) responded behaviorally to infection with chronic wasting disease (CWD). We compared movement and habitat use of CWD-infected deer (n = 18) to those that succumbed to starvation (an
Authors
Gabriel M. Barrile, Paul Cross, Cheynne Stewart, Jennifer L. Malmberg, Rhiannon P. Jakopak, Justin Binfet, Kevin Montieth, Brandon Werner, Jessica Jennings-Gaines, JA Merkle
Assessing wild turkey productivity before and after a 14-day delay in the start date of the spring hunting season in Tennessee
Ten state wildlife management agencies in the United States, including six within the Southeast, have delayed their spring wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) hunting seasons since 2017 by five or more days to address concerns related to the potential effects of hunting on wild turkey seasonal productivity. One hypothesis posits that if the spring hunting season is too early, there may be insufficie
Authors
Joseph O. Quehl, Lindsey M. Phillips, Vincent M. Johnson, Craig A. Harper, Joseph D. Clark, Roger D. Shields, David A. Buehler
Zebra and Quagga mussels in the United States—Dreissenid mussel research by the U.S. Geological Survey
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) delivers high-quality data, technologies, and decision-support tools to help managers both reduce existing populations and control the spread of dreissenid mussels. The USGS researches ecology, biology, risk assessment, and early detection and rapid response methods; provides decision support; and develops and tests control measures.
Authors
Cayla R. Morningstar, Patrick M. Kočovský, Michael E. Colvin, Timothy D. Counihan, Wesley M. Daniel, Peter C. Esselman, Cathy A. Richter, Adam Sepulveda, Diane L. Waller
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Biological Threats and Invasive Species Research Program, Columbia Environmental Research Center, Great Lakes Science Center, Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center, Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center, Western Fisheries Research Center, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center
Patterns of bull trout Salvelinus confluentus demography, life history, abundance, and trends in the North Fork Lewis River— 2023 Annual report
No abstract available.
Authors
Robert Al-Chokhachy, Jeremiah Doyle, Jason Shappart, Brice Adams
Snow avalanches are a primary climate-linked driver of mountain ungulate populations
Snow is a major, climate-sensitive feature of the Earth’s surface and catalyst of fundamentally important ecosystem processes. Understanding how snow influences sentinel species in rapidly changing mountain ecosystems is particularly critical. Whereas effects of snow on food availability, energy expenditure, and predation are well documented, we report how avalanches exert major impacts on an ecol
Authors
Kevin White, Eran Hood, Gabriel Wolken, Erich Peitzsch, Yves Bühler, Katreen Wikstrom Jones, Chris Darimont
Albinism in American Bullfrog, Lithobates catesbeianus Shaw, 1802 tadpoles from the Gila River, New Mexico, USA
No abstract available.
Authors
Andrew M. Ray, J Andy Hubbard, Owen T Brown, Elizabeth R Schnaubelt, J. Tomasz Giermakowski, Erin R Zylstra, Blake R. Hossack
Ungulate migrations of the Western United States, volume 4
Broadly distributed across the Western United States, ungulates (hooved mammals) play an important role in ecosystem function by affecting vegetation communities and forming the prey base for large carnivores. Additionally, ungulates provide economic benefits to regional communities through tourism and hunting and hold cultural significance for many Tribal communities. Many ungulates migrate seaso
Authors
Matthew Kauffman, Blake Lowrey, Chloe Beaupre, Scott Bergen, Stefanie Bergh, Kevin Blecha, Samantha Bundick, Hunter Burkett, James W. Cain, Peyton Carl, David Casady, Corey Class, Alyson Courtemanch, Michelle Cowardin, Jennifer Diamond, Katie Dugger, Orrin Duvuvuei, Joanna R. Ennis, Michelle Flenner, Jessica Fort, Gary Fralick, Ian Freeman, Jeff Gagnon, David Garcelon, Kyle Garrison, Emily Gelzer, Evan Greenspan, Valerie Hinojoza-Rood, Pat Hnilicka, Andy Holland, Brian Hudgens, Bart Kroger, Art Lawson, Cody McKee, Jennifer L. McKee, Jerod Merkle, Tony W. Mong, Haley Nelson, Brendan Oates, Marie-Pier Poulin, Craig Reddell, Robert Ritson, Hall Sawyer, Cody Schroeder, Jessie Shapiro, Scott Sprague, Erik Steiner, Alethea Steingisser, Sam Stephens, Blair Stringham, Patrick Ryan Swazo-Hinds, Nicole Tatman, Cody F. Wallace, Don Whittaker, Benjamin Wise, Heiko U. Wittmer, Erin Wood
Genetic Connectivity in the Arizona toad (Anaxyrus microscaphus): implications for conservation of a stream dwelling amphibian in the arid Southwestern U.S.
The Arizona Toad (Anaxyrus microscaphus) is restricted to riverine corridors and adjacent uplands in the arid southwestern United States. As with numerous amphibians worldwide, populations are declining and face various known or suspected threats, from disease to habitat modification resulting from climate change. The Arizona Toad has been petitioned to be listed under the U.S. Endangered Species
Authors
Sara J. Oyler-McCance, Mason J. Ryan, Brian K. Sullivan, Jennifer A. Fike, Robert S. Cornman, J. T. Giermakowski, Shawna J Zimmerman, R. L. Harrow, S.J. Hedwell, Blake R. Hossack, I. M. Latella, R. E. Lovish, S. Siefken, Brent H. Sigafus, Erin L. Muths
Warm places, warm years, and warm seasons increase parasitizing of moose by winter ticks
Observed links between parasites, such as ticks, and climate change have aroused concern for human health, wildlife population dynamics, and broader ecosystem effects. The one-host life history of the winter tick (Dermacentor albipictus) links each annual cohort to environmental conditions during three specific time periods when they are predictably vulnerable: spring detachment from hosts, summer
Authors
Nicholas J. DeCesare, Richard B. Harris, M. P. Atwood, Eric A. Bergman, AB Courtemanch, Paul Cross, Gary Fralick, Kent Hersey, Mark A. Hurley, T Koser, Rebecca L. Levine, Kevin Monteith, Jesse Newby, Collin Peterson, Sarah M. Robertson, Benjamin Wise
Characterizing vegetation and return periods in avalanche paths using lidar and aerial imagery
Snow avalanches are a hazard and ecological disturbance across mountain landscapes worldwide. Understanding how avalanche frequency affects forests and vegetation improves infrastructure planning, risk management, and avalanche forecasting. We implemented a novel approach using lidar, aerial imagery, and a random forest model to classify imagery-observed vegetation within avalanche paths in southe
Authors
Erich Peitzsch, Chelsea Martin-Mikle, Jordy Hendrikx, Karl W. Birkeland, Daniel B. Fagre
Brief communication: Recent estimates of glacier mass loss for western North America from laser altimetry
Glaciers in western North American outside of Alaska are often overlooked in global studies because their potential to contribute to changes in sea level is small. Nonetheless, these glaciers represent important sources of freshwater, especially during times of drought. Differencing recent ICESat-2 data from a digital elevation model derived from a combination of synthetic aperture radar data (Ter
Authors
Brian Menounos, Alex Gardner, Caitlyn Florentine, Andrew Fountain