See below and the "Publications" tab for USGS publications and products associated with radar research.
Scientific Journal Publications
- Bonter, D.N., S.A. Gauthreaux, Jr., and T.M. Donovan. 2009. Characteristics of important stopover locations for migrating birds: remote sensing with radar in the Great Lakes Basin. Conservation Biology 23: 440-448.
- Buler, J.J. and D.K. Dawson. 2014. Radar analysis of fall bird migration stopover sites in the northeastern U.S. Condor 116:357-370.
- Buler, J.J., L.A. Randall, J.P. Fleskes, W.C. Barrow, Jr., T. Bogart, and D. Kluver. 2012. Mapping wintering waterfowl distributions using weather surveillance radar. PLoS ONE 7(7):e41571. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0041571.
- Chilson, P.B., W.F. Frick, J.F. Kelly, K.W. Howard, R.P. Larkin, R.H. Diehl, J.K. Westbrook, T. Adam Kelly, and T.H. Kunz. 2012. Partly cloudy with a chance of migration – weather, radars, and aeroecology. Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society 93:669-686
- Cryan, P.M., P.M. Gorrensen, C.D. Hein, M.R. Schirmacher, R.H. Diehl, M.M. Huso, D.T.S. Hayman, P.D. Fricker, F.J. Bonaccorso, D.H. Johnson, K. Heist, and D.C. Dalton. 2014. Behavior of bats at wind turbines. PNAS 111:15126-15131.
- Diehl, R.H. 2013. The airspace is habitat. Trends in Ecology & Evolution 28:377-379.
- Diehl, R.H., J.M. Bates, D.E. Willard, and T.P. Gnoske. 2014. Bird mortality during nocturnal migration over Lake Michigan: a case study. Wilson Journal of Ornithology 126:19-29.
- Felix, Jr., R.K., R.H. Diehl, and J.M. Ruth. 2008. Seasonal passerine migratory movements over the arid Southwest. Studies in Avian Biology No. 37: 126-137.
- Kirsch, E.M., M.J. Wellik, M. Suarez, R.H. Diehl, J. Lutes, W. Woyczik, J. Krapfl, and R. Sojda. 2015. Observation of Sandhill Cranes' (Grus canadensis) flight behavior in heavy fog. Wilson Journal of Ornithology 127:281-288.
- Larkin, R.P. and R.H. Diehl. 2012. Radar techniques for wildlife research. Pages 319-335 in N. Silvy, editor. Techniques for Wildlife Investigations and Management. Wildlife Society, Bethesda, Maryland.
- Randall, L.A., R.H. Diehl, B.C. Wilson, W.C. Barrow, Jr., and C.W. Jeske. 2011. Potential use of weather radar to study movements of wintering waterfowl. The Journal of Wildlife Management 75(6):1324-1329.
- Robinson, W.D.B., M., I.A. Bisson, J. Shamoun-Baranes, K. Thorup, R.H. Diehl, T.H. Kunz, S.E. Mabey, and D.W. Winkler. 2009. Integrating concepts and technologies at the frontiers of bird migration. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 8:354-361.
- Ruth, J.M., R.H. Diehl, and R.K. Felix, Jr. 2012. Migrating birds’ use of stopover habitat in the southwestern United States. The Condor 114(4): 698-710.
- Sieges, M. L., J. A. Smolinsky, M. J. Baldwin, W. C. Barrow, Jr., L. A. Randall, and J. J. Buler. 2014. Assessment of bird response to the Migratory Bird Habitat Initiative using weather surveillance radar. Southeastern Naturalist 1391):G36-G65.
Fact Sheets
- Management and research applications of long-range surveillance radar data for birds, bats, and flying insects
- Using radar to advance migratory bird management: an interagency collaboration
- Using radar to understand migratory birds and their habitats: critical needs for the Gulf of Mexico
- Migratory bird pathways and the Gulf of Mexico
Open-file Reports
- Advancing migratory bird conservation and management by using radar: an interagency collaboration
- Applying radar technology to migratory bird conservation and management: strengthening and expanding a collaborative
- Use of NEXRAD to study shorebird migration in the Prairie Pothole Region: a feasibility study
Podcasts
Circulars & Posters
- Broad-scale response of landbird migration to the immediate effects of Hurricane Katrina
- Assessing patterns of nocturnal bird migration through the Appalachian Region
Back to Radar Technology - A Tool for Understanding Migratory “Aerofauna”
Back to NOROCK Home
Below are publications associated with this project.
Filter Total Items: 19
Observation of sandhill cranes' (Grus canadensis) flight behavior in heavy fog Observation of sandhill cranes' (Grus canadensis) flight behavior in heavy fog
The behaviors of birds flying in low visibility conditions remain poorly understood. We had the opportunity to monitor Sandhill Cranes (Grus canadensis) flying in heavy fog with very low visibility during a comprehensive landscape use study of refuging cranes in the Horicon Marsh in southeastern Wisconsin. As part of the study, we recorded flight patterns of cranes with a portable marine...
Authors
Eileen Kirsch, Mike Wellik, Manuel Suarez, Robert H. Diehl, Jim Lutes, Wendy Woyczik, Jon Krapfl, Richard Sojda
Behavior of bats at wind turbines Behavior of bats at wind turbines
Wind turbines are causing unprecedented numbers of bat fatalities. Many fatalities involve tree-roosting bats, but reasons for this higher susceptibility remain unknown. To better understand behaviors associated with risk, we monitored bats at three experimentally manipulated wind turbines in Indiana, United States, from July 29 to October 1, 2012, using thermal cameras and other methods...
Authors
Paul Cryan, P. Gorresen, Cris Hine, Michael Schirmacher, Robert Diehl, Manuela Huso, David Hayman, Paul D. Fricker, Frank J. Bonaccorso, Douglas Johnson, Kevin Heist, David Dalton
Bird mortality during nocturnal migration over Lake Michigan: A case study Bird mortality during nocturnal migration over Lake Michigan: A case study
Millions of birds die each year during migration. Most of this mortality goes unobserved and conditions surrounding the actual events are often not thoroughly documented. We present a case study of substantial migrant casualties along the shores of southwestern Lake Michigan during May 1996 when we found 2,981 dead birds of 114 species, mostly migrant passerines. An unusual sequence of...
Authors
Robert Diehl, John Bates, David Willard, Thomas Gnoske
Radar analysis of fall bird migration stopover sites in the northeastern U.S. Radar analysis of fall bird migration stopover sites in the northeastern U.S.
The national network of weather surveillance radars (WSR-88D) detects flying birds and is a useful remote-sensing tool for ornithological study. We used data collected during fall 2008 and 2009 by 16 WSR-88D radars in the northeastern U.S. to quantify the spatial distribution of landbirds during migratory stopover. We geo-referenced estimates based on radar reflectivity, of the density...
Authors
Jeffrey J. Buler, Deanna Dawson
Assessment of bird response to the Migratory Bird Habitat Initiative using weather-surveillance radar Assessment of bird response to the Migratory Bird Habitat Initiative using weather-surveillance radar
In response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in spring 2010, the Natural Resources Conservation Service implemented the Migratory Bird Habitat Initiative (MBHI) to provide temporary wetland habitat for migrating and wintering waterfowl, shorebirds, and other birds along the northern Gulf of Mexico via managed flooding of agricultural lands. We used weather-surveillance radar to conduct...
Authors
Mason Sieges, Jaclyn A. Smolinsky, Michael J. Baldwin, Wylie C. Barrow, Lori Randall, Jeffrey J. Buler
The airspace is habitat The airspace is habitat
A preconception concerning habitat persists and has gone unrecognized since use of the term first entered the lexicon of ecological and evolutionary biology many decades ago. Specifically, land and water are considered habitats, while the airspace is not. This might at first seem a reasonable, if unintended, demarcation, since years of education and personal experience as well as limits...
Authors
Robert Diehl
Mapping wintering waterfowl distributions using weather surveillance radar Mapping wintering waterfowl distributions using weather surveillance radar
The current network of weather surveillance radars within the United States readily detects flying birds and has proven to be a useful remote-sensing tool for ornithological study. Radar reflectivity measures serve as an index to bird density and have been used to quantitatively map landbird distributions during migratory stopover by sampling birds aloft at the onset of nocturnal...
Authors
Jeffrey J. Buler, Lori Randall, Joseph Fleskes, Wylie C. Barrow, Tianna Bogart, Daria Kluver
Migrating birds’ use of stopover habitat in the southwestern United States Migrating birds’ use of stopover habitat in the southwestern United States
In the arid Southwest, migratory birds are known to use riparian stopover habitats; we know less about how migrants use other habitat types during migratory stopover. Using radar data and satellite land-cover data, we determined the habitats with which birds are associated during migration stopover. Bird densities differed significantly by habitat type at all sites in at least one season...
Authors
Janet Ruth, R.H. Diehl, R.K. Felix
Partly cloudy with a chance of migration: Weather, radars, and aeroecology Partly cloudy with a chance of migration: Weather, radars, and aeroecology
Aeroecology is an emerging scientific discipline that integrates atmospheric science, Earth science, geography, ecology, computer science, computational biology, and engineering to further the understanding of biological patterns and processes. The unifying concept underlying this new transdisciplinary field of study is a focus on the planetary boundary layer and lower free atmosphere (i...
Authors
Phillip Chilson, Winifred Frick, Jeffrey Kelly, Kenneth Howard, Ronald Larkin, Robert Diehl, John Westbrook, T. Kelly, Thomas Kunz
Potential use of weather radar to study movements of wintering waterfowl Potential use of weather radar to study movements of wintering waterfowl
To protect and restore wintering waterfowl habitat, managers require knowledge of routine wintering waterfowl movements and habitat use. During preliminary screening of Doppler weather radar data we observed biological movements consistent with routine foraging flights of wintering waterfowl known to occur near Lacassine National Wildlife Refuge (NWR), Louisiana. During the winters of...
Authors
Lori Randall, Robert Diehl, Barry Wilson, Wylie C. Barrow, Clinton Jeske
Management and research applications of long-range surveillance radar data for birds, bats, and flying insects Management and research applications of long-range surveillance radar data for birds, bats, and flying insects
There is renewed interest in using long-range surveillance radar as a biological research tool due to substantial improvements in the network of radars within the United States. Technical improvements, the digital nature of the radar data, and the availability of computing power and geographic information systems, enable a broad range of biological applications. This publication provides...
Authors
Janet Ruth, Jeffrey J. Buler, Robert Diehl, Richard Sojda
Seasonal passerine migratory movements over the arid Southwest Seasonal passerine migratory movements over the arid Southwest
Biannually, millions of Neotropical and Nearctic migratory birds traverse the arid southwestern US-Mexico borderlands, yet our knowledge of avian migration patterns and behaviors in this region is extremely limited. To describe the spatial and temporal patterns of migration, we examined echoes from weather surveillance radar sites across the American Southwest from southern Texas to...
Authors
Rodney Felix, Robert Diehl, Janet Ruth
See below and the "Publications" tab for USGS publications and products associated with radar research.
Scientific Journal Publications
- Bonter, D.N., S.A. Gauthreaux, Jr., and T.M. Donovan. 2009. Characteristics of important stopover locations for migrating birds: remote sensing with radar in the Great Lakes Basin. Conservation Biology 23: 440-448.
- Buler, J.J. and D.K. Dawson. 2014. Radar analysis of fall bird migration stopover sites in the northeastern U.S. Condor 116:357-370.
- Buler, J.J., L.A. Randall, J.P. Fleskes, W.C. Barrow, Jr., T. Bogart, and D. Kluver. 2012. Mapping wintering waterfowl distributions using weather surveillance radar. PLoS ONE 7(7):e41571. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0041571.
- Chilson, P.B., W.F. Frick, J.F. Kelly, K.W. Howard, R.P. Larkin, R.H. Diehl, J.K. Westbrook, T. Adam Kelly, and T.H. Kunz. 2012. Partly cloudy with a chance of migration – weather, radars, and aeroecology. Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society 93:669-686
- Cryan, P.M., P.M. Gorrensen, C.D. Hein, M.R. Schirmacher, R.H. Diehl, M.M. Huso, D.T.S. Hayman, P.D. Fricker, F.J. Bonaccorso, D.H. Johnson, K. Heist, and D.C. Dalton. 2014. Behavior of bats at wind turbines. PNAS 111:15126-15131.
- Diehl, R.H. 2013. The airspace is habitat. Trends in Ecology & Evolution 28:377-379.
- Diehl, R.H., J.M. Bates, D.E. Willard, and T.P. Gnoske. 2014. Bird mortality during nocturnal migration over Lake Michigan: a case study. Wilson Journal of Ornithology 126:19-29.
- Felix, Jr., R.K., R.H. Diehl, and J.M. Ruth. 2008. Seasonal passerine migratory movements over the arid Southwest. Studies in Avian Biology No. 37: 126-137.
- Kirsch, E.M., M.J. Wellik, M. Suarez, R.H. Diehl, J. Lutes, W. Woyczik, J. Krapfl, and R. Sojda. 2015. Observation of Sandhill Cranes' (Grus canadensis) flight behavior in heavy fog. Wilson Journal of Ornithology 127:281-288.
- Larkin, R.P. and R.H. Diehl. 2012. Radar techniques for wildlife research. Pages 319-335 in N. Silvy, editor. Techniques for Wildlife Investigations and Management. Wildlife Society, Bethesda, Maryland.
- Randall, L.A., R.H. Diehl, B.C. Wilson, W.C. Barrow, Jr., and C.W. Jeske. 2011. Potential use of weather radar to study movements of wintering waterfowl. The Journal of Wildlife Management 75(6):1324-1329.
- Robinson, W.D.B., M., I.A. Bisson, J. Shamoun-Baranes, K. Thorup, R.H. Diehl, T.H. Kunz, S.E. Mabey, and D.W. Winkler. 2009. Integrating concepts and technologies at the frontiers of bird migration. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 8:354-361.
- Ruth, J.M., R.H. Diehl, and R.K. Felix, Jr. 2012. Migrating birds’ use of stopover habitat in the southwestern United States. The Condor 114(4): 698-710.
- Sieges, M. L., J. A. Smolinsky, M. J. Baldwin, W. C. Barrow, Jr., L. A. Randall, and J. J. Buler. 2014. Assessment of bird response to the Migratory Bird Habitat Initiative using weather surveillance radar. Southeastern Naturalist 1391):G36-G65.
Fact Sheets
- Management and research applications of long-range surveillance radar data for birds, bats, and flying insects
- Using radar to advance migratory bird management: an interagency collaboration
- Using radar to understand migratory birds and their habitats: critical needs for the Gulf of Mexico
- Migratory bird pathways and the Gulf of Mexico
Open-file Reports
- Advancing migratory bird conservation and management by using radar: an interagency collaboration
- Applying radar technology to migratory bird conservation and management: strengthening and expanding a collaborative
- Use of NEXRAD to study shorebird migration in the Prairie Pothole Region: a feasibility study
Podcasts
Circulars & Posters
- Broad-scale response of landbird migration to the immediate effects of Hurricane Katrina
- Assessing patterns of nocturnal bird migration through the Appalachian Region
Back to Radar Technology - A Tool for Understanding Migratory “Aerofauna”
Back to NOROCK Home
Below are publications associated with this project.
Filter Total Items: 19
Observation of sandhill cranes' (Grus canadensis) flight behavior in heavy fog Observation of sandhill cranes' (Grus canadensis) flight behavior in heavy fog
The behaviors of birds flying in low visibility conditions remain poorly understood. We had the opportunity to monitor Sandhill Cranes (Grus canadensis) flying in heavy fog with very low visibility during a comprehensive landscape use study of refuging cranes in the Horicon Marsh in southeastern Wisconsin. As part of the study, we recorded flight patterns of cranes with a portable marine...
Authors
Eileen Kirsch, Mike Wellik, Manuel Suarez, Robert H. Diehl, Jim Lutes, Wendy Woyczik, Jon Krapfl, Richard Sojda
Behavior of bats at wind turbines Behavior of bats at wind turbines
Wind turbines are causing unprecedented numbers of bat fatalities. Many fatalities involve tree-roosting bats, but reasons for this higher susceptibility remain unknown. To better understand behaviors associated with risk, we monitored bats at three experimentally manipulated wind turbines in Indiana, United States, from July 29 to October 1, 2012, using thermal cameras and other methods...
Authors
Paul Cryan, P. Gorresen, Cris Hine, Michael Schirmacher, Robert Diehl, Manuela Huso, David Hayman, Paul D. Fricker, Frank J. Bonaccorso, Douglas Johnson, Kevin Heist, David Dalton
Bird mortality during nocturnal migration over Lake Michigan: A case study Bird mortality during nocturnal migration over Lake Michigan: A case study
Millions of birds die each year during migration. Most of this mortality goes unobserved and conditions surrounding the actual events are often not thoroughly documented. We present a case study of substantial migrant casualties along the shores of southwestern Lake Michigan during May 1996 when we found 2,981 dead birds of 114 species, mostly migrant passerines. An unusual sequence of...
Authors
Robert Diehl, John Bates, David Willard, Thomas Gnoske
Radar analysis of fall bird migration stopover sites in the northeastern U.S. Radar analysis of fall bird migration stopover sites in the northeastern U.S.
The national network of weather surveillance radars (WSR-88D) detects flying birds and is a useful remote-sensing tool for ornithological study. We used data collected during fall 2008 and 2009 by 16 WSR-88D radars in the northeastern U.S. to quantify the spatial distribution of landbirds during migratory stopover. We geo-referenced estimates based on radar reflectivity, of the density...
Authors
Jeffrey J. Buler, Deanna Dawson
Assessment of bird response to the Migratory Bird Habitat Initiative using weather-surveillance radar Assessment of bird response to the Migratory Bird Habitat Initiative using weather-surveillance radar
In response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in spring 2010, the Natural Resources Conservation Service implemented the Migratory Bird Habitat Initiative (MBHI) to provide temporary wetland habitat for migrating and wintering waterfowl, shorebirds, and other birds along the northern Gulf of Mexico via managed flooding of agricultural lands. We used weather-surveillance radar to conduct...
Authors
Mason Sieges, Jaclyn A. Smolinsky, Michael J. Baldwin, Wylie C. Barrow, Lori Randall, Jeffrey J. Buler
The airspace is habitat The airspace is habitat
A preconception concerning habitat persists and has gone unrecognized since use of the term first entered the lexicon of ecological and evolutionary biology many decades ago. Specifically, land and water are considered habitats, while the airspace is not. This might at first seem a reasonable, if unintended, demarcation, since years of education and personal experience as well as limits...
Authors
Robert Diehl
Mapping wintering waterfowl distributions using weather surveillance radar Mapping wintering waterfowl distributions using weather surveillance radar
The current network of weather surveillance radars within the United States readily detects flying birds and has proven to be a useful remote-sensing tool for ornithological study. Radar reflectivity measures serve as an index to bird density and have been used to quantitatively map landbird distributions during migratory stopover by sampling birds aloft at the onset of nocturnal...
Authors
Jeffrey J. Buler, Lori Randall, Joseph Fleskes, Wylie C. Barrow, Tianna Bogart, Daria Kluver
Migrating birds’ use of stopover habitat in the southwestern United States Migrating birds’ use of stopover habitat in the southwestern United States
In the arid Southwest, migratory birds are known to use riparian stopover habitats; we know less about how migrants use other habitat types during migratory stopover. Using radar data and satellite land-cover data, we determined the habitats with which birds are associated during migration stopover. Bird densities differed significantly by habitat type at all sites in at least one season...
Authors
Janet Ruth, R.H. Diehl, R.K. Felix
Partly cloudy with a chance of migration: Weather, radars, and aeroecology Partly cloudy with a chance of migration: Weather, radars, and aeroecology
Aeroecology is an emerging scientific discipline that integrates atmospheric science, Earth science, geography, ecology, computer science, computational biology, and engineering to further the understanding of biological patterns and processes. The unifying concept underlying this new transdisciplinary field of study is a focus on the planetary boundary layer and lower free atmosphere (i...
Authors
Phillip Chilson, Winifred Frick, Jeffrey Kelly, Kenneth Howard, Ronald Larkin, Robert Diehl, John Westbrook, T. Kelly, Thomas Kunz
Potential use of weather radar to study movements of wintering waterfowl Potential use of weather radar to study movements of wintering waterfowl
To protect and restore wintering waterfowl habitat, managers require knowledge of routine wintering waterfowl movements and habitat use. During preliminary screening of Doppler weather radar data we observed biological movements consistent with routine foraging flights of wintering waterfowl known to occur near Lacassine National Wildlife Refuge (NWR), Louisiana. During the winters of...
Authors
Lori Randall, Robert Diehl, Barry Wilson, Wylie C. Barrow, Clinton Jeske
Management and research applications of long-range surveillance radar data for birds, bats, and flying insects Management and research applications of long-range surveillance radar data for birds, bats, and flying insects
There is renewed interest in using long-range surveillance radar as a biological research tool due to substantial improvements in the network of radars within the United States. Technical improvements, the digital nature of the radar data, and the availability of computing power and geographic information systems, enable a broad range of biological applications. This publication provides...
Authors
Janet Ruth, Jeffrey J. Buler, Robert Diehl, Richard Sojda
Seasonal passerine migratory movements over the arid Southwest Seasonal passerine migratory movements over the arid Southwest
Biannually, millions of Neotropical and Nearctic migratory birds traverse the arid southwestern US-Mexico borderlands, yet our knowledge of avian migration patterns and behaviors in this region is extremely limited. To describe the spatial and temporal patterns of migration, we examined echoes from weather surveillance radar sites across the American Southwest from southern Texas to...
Authors
Rodney Felix, Robert Diehl, Janet Ruth