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Below are images associated with SBSC's science and staff. Images appear according to the year they were taken. To search, type a keyword or select a year from the dropdown menu. Or, click through the pages using the arrows at the bottom of the page.
Grand Canyon Youth/Partners in Science trip participants cool down under a small waterfall on a hot day
Grand Canyon Youth/Partners in Science trip participants cool down under a small waterfall on a hot day
A female cactus ferruginous pygmy-owl (Glaucidium brasilianum cactorum) in N. Sonora, Mexico, June 2022. Photo by Aaron Flesch, University of Arizona, Tucson, used with permission by USGS.
A female cactus ferruginous pygmy-owl (Glaucidium brasilianum cactorum) in N. Sonora, Mexico, June 2022. Photo by Aaron Flesch, University of Arizona, Tucson, used with permission by USGS.
A conceptual diagram showing how load following flows reduces light availability to the benthos, thus reducing gross primary production.
A conceptual diagram showing how load following flows reduces light availability to the benthos, thus reducing gross primary production.
A radioed male tortoise in the Santa Rosa Mountains, CA eating a beavertail prickly pear cactus. During the extreme drought conditions we are experiencing, that is the only food available for them with any moisture. They have to cope with all the little spiny gloccids (hair-like spines) that cover the pads of the cactus. Video provided by Dr.
A radioed male tortoise in the Santa Rosa Mountains, CA eating a beavertail prickly pear cactus. During the extreme drought conditions we are experiencing, that is the only food available for them with any moisture. They have to cope with all the little spiny gloccids (hair-like spines) that cover the pads of the cactus. Video provided by Dr.
An example of successful perennial grass establishment on a reclaimed oil and gas well pad site in the Book Cliffs, Utah. Photo by Mike Duniway, SBSC, USGS.
An example of successful perennial grass establishment on a reclaimed oil and gas well pad site in the Book Cliffs, Utah. Photo by Mike Duniway, SBSC, USGS.
Partners in Science trip participants deploy a light trap to sample aquatic insects along the Colorado River in Grand Canyon.
Partners in Science trip participants deploy a light trap to sample aquatic insects along the Colorado River in Grand Canyon.
Oenothera pallida, or pale evening primrose, in Grand Canyon. Photo by Emily Palmquist, USGS Southwest Biological Science Center.
Oenothera pallida, or pale evening primrose, in Grand Canyon. Photo by Emily Palmquist, USGS Southwest Biological Science Center.
USGS conducts vegetation and soil drought and climatic research at long-term study sites in Canyonlands National Park, Utah in partnership with the National Park Service. This photo shows a site tour of a protected grassland that has been monitored by the USGS since 1996, with 2025 marking the 30th year of continuous data collection.
USGS conducts vegetation and soil drought and climatic research at long-term study sites in Canyonlands National Park, Utah in partnership with the National Park Service. This photo shows a site tour of a protected grassland that has been monitored by the USGS since 1996, with 2025 marking the 30th year of continuous data collection.
A bee visits a saguaro flower near Tucson in Saguaro National Park, southern Arizona. Photo courtesy of Daniel Winkler, USGS SBSC.
A bee visits a saguaro flower near Tucson in Saguaro National Park, southern Arizona. Photo courtesy of Daniel Winkler, USGS SBSC.
California bearpoppy (Arctomecon californica) in gypsum-based soil. The declining abundance of this species is being actively tracked in multiple states. Photo by Morgan Andrews, SBSC, USGS.
California bearpoppy (Arctomecon californica) in gypsum-based soil. The declining abundance of this species is being actively tracked in multiple states. Photo by Morgan Andrews, SBSC, USGS.
Bathtub rings on a rock face in Lake Powell where the water has dropped and left mineral deposits behind. Photo by SBSC.
Bathtub rings on a rock face in Lake Powell where the water has dropped and left mineral deposits behind. Photo by SBSC.
Lake Powell panorama taken from the water, with rocks rising from the water surface in the distance. Photo taken by SBSC.
Lake Powell panorama taken from the water, with rocks rising from the water surface in the distance. Photo taken by SBSC.
An eastern Joshua tree (Yucca jaegeriana) inflorescence (flowers) with a Yucca moth (Tegeticula antithetica) trap. SBSC is studying the ecology of the eastern Yucca moth, which is the obligate pollinator of eastern Joshua trees, to determine how climate change affects the emergence of blossoms and eastern Yucca moth visitation.
An eastern Joshua tree (Yucca jaegeriana) inflorescence (flowers) with a Yucca moth (Tegeticula antithetica) trap. SBSC is studying the ecology of the eastern Yucca moth, which is the obligate pollinator of eastern Joshua trees, to determine how climate change affects the emergence of blossoms and eastern Yucca moth visitation.
A saguaro flowering in the desert near Tucson, AZ. Photo courtesy of Daniel Winkler, USGS, SBSC. Taken in spring, 2022.
A saguaro flowering in the desert near Tucson, AZ. Photo courtesy of Daniel Winkler, USGS, SBSC. Taken in spring, 2022.
Panorama photo of Lake Powell taken from the water, with rocks in the distance. Some of the "bathtub ring" is visible on the rocks from mineral deposits left when the water level dropped.
Panorama photo of Lake Powell taken from the water, with rocks in the distance. Some of the "bathtub ring" is visible on the rocks from mineral deposits left when the water level dropped.
SBSC researcher Mary Kathryn Busby sets traps on a Joshua tree in NW Arizona, April 2022. SBSC is studying the ecology of the Yucca moth (Tegeticula antithetica), which is the obligate pollinator of eastern Joshua trees (Yucca jaegeriana) to determine how climate change affects the emergence of blossoms and eastern Yucca moth visitation.
SBSC researcher Mary Kathryn Busby sets traps on a Joshua tree in NW Arizona, April 2022. SBSC is studying the ecology of the Yucca moth (Tegeticula antithetica), which is the obligate pollinator of eastern Joshua trees (Yucca jaegeriana) to determine how climate change affects the emergence of blossoms and eastern Yucca moth visitation.
A roadrunner runs through a riparian area in the lower Colorado River delta. The area was restored with water from Minute 323 flows, a US/Mexico binational agreement water treaty. Photo courtesy of Neda Abbasi, University of Arizona.
A roadrunner runs through a riparian area in the lower Colorado River delta. The area was restored with water from Minute 323 flows, a US/Mexico binational agreement water treaty. Photo courtesy of Neda Abbasi, University of Arizona.
California drylands, looking south toward Mt San Jacinto during spring desert tortoise surveys near Palm Springs in March, 2022. Photo by SBSC.
California drylands, looking south toward Mt San Jacinto during spring desert tortoise surveys near Palm Springs in March, 2022. Photo by SBSC.
Photo of Lake Powell from a research boat, showing bathtub rings from minerals deposited on rock walls as the water level has dropped. Photo by SBSC, 2022.
Photo of Lake Powell from a research boat, showing bathtub rings from minerals deposited on rock walls as the water level has dropped. Photo by SBSC, 2022.
Screenshot from a video interview on The Nature Conservancy's Nature Connects program with Dr. Sasha Reed about biocrusts. Summary: "In this Nature Connects webinar, we hear from Dr. Sasha Reed, U.S. Geological Survey biogeochemist.
Screenshot from a video interview on The Nature Conservancy's Nature Connects program with Dr. Sasha Reed about biocrusts. Summary: "In this Nature Connects webinar, we hear from Dr. Sasha Reed, U.S. Geological Survey biogeochemist.
A desert tortoise eating at a study site on a wind farm near Palm Springs, CA. The video was taken in March 2022 by Jeff Lovich, SBSC who has been studying a marked population of tortoises there since about 1994.
A desert tortoise eating at a study site on a wind farm near Palm Springs, CA. The video was taken in March 2022 by Jeff Lovich, SBSC who has been studying a marked population of tortoises there since about 1994.