Climate Change
Climate Change
Filter Total Items: 103
Drivers of Drought in the Upper Colorado River Basin
The purpose of this project is to investigate Colorado River basin droughts, and the role of temperature in influencing runoff efficiency. The project uses paleoclimatic data to extend instrumental climate and flow records, along with projected warming to assess the range of possible conditions that may be expected to occur and to determine how warming temperatures may influence river flow and...
Extinction dynamics and microrefugia of the American pika as climate changes.
Accurate projections of climate change and associated impacts on wildlife are now essential to conservation planning, but predictive models of range shifts for many species are often coarse, ignore extinction dynamics, and overestimate suitable habitat. Recent studies suggest the American pika (Ochotona princeps) is vulnerable to increasing heat stress in the Great Basin yet appears more resilient...
Grizzly Bear Dispersal
This work has two components. First, we developed a method to use our family tree data to examine dispersal. Next, we would like to apply this method to our updated and more complete family tree to improve our understanding of how grizzly bears disperse.
Predicting changes in Bear Foods
Huckleberries are central to the diets of bears, grouse, and other animals, as well as being a cultural and food resource for humans. Approximately 15% of the diet of bears in the Whitefish range and Glacier National Park is huckleberries, and huckleberries help bears gain weight for hibernation. Changes in climate lead to changes in vegetation phenology, productivity, and quality that may...
Greg Pederson's Past Projects
This work is interdisciplinary and would not be possible without the collaboration of colleagues and their respective institutions. Research funding over the years has been provided by 1) the U.S. Geological Survey's National Research Program (NRP), the Climate and Land Use Program (CLU), the Southwestern and Alaska Climate Science Center, the Western Mountain Initiative (WMI), and the Northern...
Developing stream temperature networks for the Greater Yellowstone to aid in managing aquatic resources under a changing climate
The topographic diversity and extensive area of protected public land within the Greater Yellowstone demonstrate the importance of this region as a natural resource reserve. Understanding the effects of anticipated changes in climate on aquatic resources and means for managing these resources will ultimately require accurate linkages between empirical data and regional climatic patterns. This...
Evaluating the linkages between regional climate patterns, local climate data, and native Yellowstone cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii bouvieri) and non-native brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) growth, survival, and life-history expressions.
Beyond large-scale climate models, it is becoming increasingly important to quantify how regional climate patterns link with in situ stream temperatures and hydrologic regimes and concomitantly, fish behavior, growth, and survival. Here, we are using comprehensive mark-recapture techniques to evaluate how changing climatic conditions are likely to influence native westslope cutthroat trout and non...
Forecasting the effects of climate change on the interactions of native and non-native salmonids
Changes in temperature and precipitation patterns under global climate change are expected to expand the range of suitable habitat for non-natives within stream networks, resulting in significant increases in the distribution and abundance of non-natives. However, our understanding of how landscape attributes can affect local thermal and hydrologic patterns suggests that changes in global climate...
Design, Analysis, Monitoring, and Conservation of Ecological Dynamics at Broad Scales
There is increasing recognition that the spatial context in which any ecological process or phenomenon occurs has great bearing on the outcome of that process. Since 1994, we have been working on numerous field investigations and conceptual developments to inform how ecological resources can be managed and conserved across jurisdictional boundaries and broad spatial extents. Because such spatially...
Vegetation - Sperry Glacier
This view of the northeast portion of Sperry Glacier shows evidence of the glacier's recession as well as the advancement of conifer species and other vegetation on the glacial moraines.
Vegetation - Piegan Glacier
These photographs document another aspect of Glacier Park’s dynamic environment, vegetation change. Although Piegan Glacier has not melted noticeably, years of fire suppression and changing climate may have allowed the invasion of conifers in what was an open meadow in the foreground of the 1930 photo. Also, the demise of the ecologically important whitebark pine (Pinus albicaulis ) is visually...
Vegetation - Hidden Lake (b)
Alpine regions along the shores of Hidden Lake (1943 m) show tremendous expansion of vegetation in this photo comparison, especially at the base of Bearhat Mountain.