Publications
This is a list of publications written by Patuxent employees since Patuxent opened in 1939. To search for Patuxent's publications by author or title, please click below to go to the USGS Publication Warehouse.
Filter Total Items: 8128
Extinction rate estimates for plant populations in revisitation studies: Importance of detectability Extinction rate estimates for plant populations in revisitation studies: Importance of detectability
Many researchers have obtained extinction-rate estimates for plant populations by comparing historical and current records of occurrence. A population that is no longer found is assumed to have gone extinct. Extinction can then be related to characteristics of these populations, such as habitat type, size, or species, to test ideas about what factors may affect extinction. Such studies...
Authors
M. Kery
Tigers and their prey: Predicting carnivore densities from prey abundance Tigers and their prey: Predicting carnivore densities from prey abundance
The goal of ecology is to understand interactions that determine the distribution and abundance of organisms. In principle, ecologists should be able to identify a small number of limiting resources for a species of interest, estimate densities of these resources at different locations across the landscape, and then use these estimates to predict the density of the focal species at these...
Authors
K. U. Karanth, J.D. Nichols, S. Kumar, W.A. Link, J.E. Hines
Gold concentrations in abiotic materials, plants, and animals: A synoptic review Gold concentrations in abiotic materials, plants, and animals: A synoptic review
Gold (Au) is ubiquitous in the environment and mined commercially at numerous locations worldwide. It is also an allergen that induces dermatitis in sensitive individuals. Gold concentrations were comparatively elevated in samples collected near gold mining and processing facilities, although no data were found for birds and non-human mammals. Maximum gold concentrations reported in...
Authors
R. Eisler
Effectiveness of a confinement strategy for reducing campsite impacts in Shenandoah National Park Effectiveness of a confinement strategy for reducing campsite impacts in Shenandoah National Park
The expansion and proliferation of backcountry campsites is a persistent problem in many parks and protected areas. Shenandoah National Park (SNP) has one of the highest backcountry overnight use densities in the USA national parks system. SNP managers implemented a multi-option backcountry camping policy in 2000 that included camping containment with established campsites. These actions...
Authors
S. E. Reid, J. L. Marion
Costs of detection bias in index-based population monitoring Costs of detection bias in index-based population monitoring
Managers of wildlife populations commonly rely on indirect, count-based measures of the population in making decisions regarding conservation, harvest, or control. The main appeal in the use of such counts is their low material expense compared to methods that directly measure the population. However, their correct use rests on the rarely-tested but often-assumed premise that they...
Authors
C. T. Moore, W. L. Kendall
Mute swans and their Chesapeake Bay habitats: proceedings of a symposium Mute swans and their Chesapeake Bay habitats: proceedings of a symposium
The symposium 'Mute Swans and their Chesapeake Bay Habitats,' held on June 7, 2001, provided a forum for biologists and managers to share research findings and management ideas concerning the exotic and invasive mute swan (Cygnus olar). This species has been increasing in population size and is considered by many to be a problem in regard to natural food resources in the Bay that are...
On the relationships of 'Marmosa' formosa Shamel, 1930 (Marsupialia: Didelphidae), a phylogenetic puzzle from the Chaco of northern Argentina On the relationships of 'Marmosa' formosa Shamel, 1930 (Marsupialia: Didelphidae), a phylogenetic puzzle from the Chaco of northern Argentina
The holotype and only known specimen of Marmosa formosa Shamel, a nominal species currently synonymized with Gracilinanus agilis Burmeister, is strikingly unlike any other known didelphid marsupial. Phylogenetic analyses based on nonmolecular characters and IRBP sequences suggest that formosa is either the sister-taxon of Thylamys (including Lestodelphys) or Monodelphis. Because neither
Authors
Robert S. Voss, Afred L. Gardner, Sharon A. Jansa
VEMAP Phase 2 bioclimatic database. I. Gridded historical (20th century) climate for modeling ecosystem dynamics across the conterminous USA VEMAP Phase 2 bioclimatic database. I. Gridded historical (20th century) climate for modeling ecosystem dynamics across the conterminous USA
Analysis and simulation of biospheric responses to historical forcing require surface climate data that capture those aspects of climate that control ecological processes, including key spatial gradients and modes of temporal variability. We developed a multivariate, gridded historical climate dataset for the conterminous USA as a common input database for the Vegetation/Ecosystem...
Authors
T.G.F. Kittel, N.A. Rosenbloom, J. Andrew Royle, Christopher Daly, W.P. Gibson, H.H. Fisher, P. Thornton, D.N. Yates, S. Aulenbach, C. Kaufman, R. McKeown, D. Bachelet, D. S. Schimel, R. Neilson, J. Lenihan, R. Drapek, D.S. Ojima, W.J. Parton, J. M. Melillo, D. W. Kicklighter, H. Tian, A. D. McGuire, M.T. Sykes, B. Smith, S. Cowling, T. Hickler, I. C. Prentice, S. Running, K.A. Hibbard, W.M. Post, A.W. King, T. Smith, B. Rizzo, F.I. Woodward
Modeling interpopulation dispersal by banner-tailed kangaroo rats Modeling interpopulation dispersal by banner-tailed kangaroo rats
Many metapopulation models assume rules of population connectivity that are implicitly based on what we know about within-population dispersal, but especially for vertebrates, few data exist to assess whether interpopulation dispersal is just within-population dispersal "scaled up." We extended existing multi-stratum mark-release-recapture models to incorporate the robust design...
Authors
J.L. Skvarla, J.D. Nichols, J.E. Hines, P.M. Waser
A hierarchical spatial model of avian abundance with application to Cerulean Warblers A hierarchical spatial model of avian abundance with application to Cerulean Warblers
Surveys collecting count data are the primary means by which abundance is indexed for birds. These counts are confounded, however, by nuisance effects including observer effects and spatial correlation between counts. Current methods poorly accommodate both observer and spatial effects because modeling these spatially autocorrelated counts within a hierarchical framework is not practical...
Authors
Wayne E. Thogmartin, John R. Sauer, Melinda G. Knutson
Demographic estimation methods for plants with dormancy Demographic estimation methods for plants with dormancy
Demographic studies in plants appear simple because unlike animals, plants do not run away. Plant individuals can be marked with, e.g., plastic tags, but often the coordinates of an individual may be sufficient to identify it. Vascular plants in temperate latitudes have a pronounced seasonal life–cycle, so most plant demographers survey their study plots once a year often during or...
Authors
M. Kery, K.B. Gregg
Atlantic Flyway review: Region IV - Fall 2003 Atlantic Flyway review: Region IV - Fall 2003
We welcome the Eden Mill station in northeastern Maryland to Region IV this year. With three stations reporting their worst year ever, we really need to be refreshed. After a cool and wet July, August was hot and wet in the east. Temperatures in September remained close to normal, but thanks to tropical storms Henri (6-8 Sep) and Isabel (18 Sep), rainfall was excessive in the Chesapeake...
Authors
Chandler S. Robbins