Publications

Insufficient water sample volumes can be a limiting factor for detecting species with environmental DNA (eDNA) from aquatic habitats. We compared detections of freshwater mussel (Unionidae) communities using large water sample volumes and dead-end hollow fiber ultrafiltration (D-HFUF or DEUF) with traditional eDNA filtration methods that use relatively small water sample volumes. Unionid...

The dynamics of wintering waterfowl populations at the landscape scale are the result of complex interactions of environmental, behavioral and energetic drivers. Agent-based models provide a method to directly link these factors in a spatially explicit framework and allow the emergence of patterns from the aggregation of individual agent actions. We adapted the Spatially-explicit...

Agricultural headwater streams and ditches commonly host dense stands of aquatic vegetation that grow and decay over seasons and exert physical and biological controls on the transport of nutrients from cropland to larger rivers. This study examined changes in the transport of phosphorus (P) in an agricultural drainage ditch in the Maumee River Basin (Ohio, USA) by conducting constant...

Biologists monitoring freshwater mussel (order Unionida) populations rely on behavioral, often subjective, signs to identify moribund (“sick”) or stressed mussels, such as gaping valves and slow response to probing, and they lack clinical indicators to support a diagnosis. As part of a multi-year study to investigate causes of reoccurring mortality of pheasantshell (Ortmanniana pectorosa...

The explosion of the Deepwater Horizon mobile drilling platform on April 20, 2010, caused a massive oil spill and injury to natural resources in the Gulf of Mexico. Gavia immer (common loon) were negatively affected from the spill. The Open Ocean Trustee Implementation Group funded the project “Restoration of Common Loons in Minnesota” to restore common loons lost to the spill. Here, we...

The migration of species, often across continents, makes it difficult to quantify the cumulative effects of local- and regional-scale conservation actions. Further, variation in stakeholder interests, differing jurisdictional governance processes, priorities, and monitoring abilities across the migratory range shapes place-specific differences in management actions. These differences may...

Assessing the ecological risk of contaminants in the field typically involves consideration of a complex mixture of compounds which may or may not be detected via instrumental analyses. Further, there are insufficient data to predict the potential biological effects of many detected compounds, leading to their being characterized as contaminants of emerging concern (CECs). Over the past...

The potential recirculation of Klamath Strait Drain (hereafter called by its local name, “Klamath Straits Drain”) water into Ady Canal to reduce the drain discharge of high nutrient loads into the Klamath River was assessed by the U.S. Geological Survey for the Bureau of Reclamation. To study the feasibility of recirculation, this investigation evaluated three recirculation scenarios...

An online climate vulnerability assessment dashboard was developed in 2021 through collaboration between U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) to support regional climate adaptation efforts. The dashboard included 15 climate change impact metrics (five each from three categories: hydrology, precipitation, and temperature) and five metrics representing...

Natural resource managers use tools to control invasive species. In theory, stocking YY males or ZZ females would allow managers to skew sex ratios until populations collapse. In combination with other suppression methods, such as removal, this approach could be incorporated into Integrated Pest Management plans. For example, fishery managers have stocked YY males to control isolated non...

Invasive carp (Hypophthalmichthys nobilis [Richardson, 1845; Bighead Carp], H. molitrix [Valenciennes in Cuvier and Valenciennes, 1844; Silver Carp], Ctenopharyngodon idella [Valenciennes in Cuvier and Valenciennes, 1844; Grass Carp], and Mylopharyngodon piceus [Richardson, 1846; Black Carp]) expansion threatens the Laurentian Great Lakes and other major waterways. Numerous tools and...

Invasive carp (Hypophthalmichthys nobilis [Bighead Carp], Mylopharyngodon piceus [Black Carp], Ctenopharyngodon idella [Grass Carp], and H. molitrix [Silver Carp]) continue to spread in the United States and deterrents at river navigation locks are one emerging control strategy for slowing the spread. High-head navigation dams on large rivers serve as impediments to the upstream spread...