Publications
Below is a list of WERC's peer-reviewed publications. If you are searching for a specific publication and cannot find it in this list, please contact werc_web@usgs.gov
Filter Total Items: 3710
Framework for assessing and mitigating the impacts of offshore wind energy development on marine birds Framework for assessing and mitigating the impacts of offshore wind energy development on marine birds
Offshore wind energy development (OWED) is rapidly expanding globally and has the potential to contribute significantly to renewable energy portfolios. However, development of infrastructure in the marine environment presents risks to wildlife. Marine birds in particular have life history traits that amplify population impacts from displacement and collision with offshore wind...
Authors
Donald A Croll, Aspen A Ellis, Josh Adams, Aonghais S. C. P. Cook, Stefan Garthe, Morgan Wing Goodale, C. Scott Hall, Elliott L. Hazen, Bradford S. Keitt, Emily C. Kelsey, Jeffery B Leirness, Don E Lyons, Matthew W. McKown, Astrid Potiek, Kate R Searle, Floor H. Soudjin, R. Cotton Rockwood, Bernie R. Tershy, Martin Tinker, Eric A. Vanderwerf, Kathryn A Williams, Lindsay C. Young, Kelly Zilliacus
Ecological and socioeconomic factors associated with the human burden of environmentally mediated pathogens: A global analysis Ecological and socioeconomic factors associated with the human burden of environmentally mediated pathogens: A global analysis
Background Billions of people living in poverty are at risk of environmentally mediated infectious diseases—that is, pathogens with environmental reservoirs that affect disease persistence and control and where environmental control of pathogens can reduce human risk. The complex ecology of these diseases creates a global health problem not easily solved with medical treatment alone...
Authors
Susanne H. Sokolow, Nicole Nova, Isabel J. Jones, Chelsea L. Wood, Kevin D. Lafferty, Andres Garchitorena, Skylar R. Hopkins, Andrea J Lund, Andrew J MacDonald, Christopher LeBoa, Alison J. Peel, Erin A. Mordecai, Meghan E Howard, Julia C Buck, David Lopez-Carr, Michele Barry, Matthew H Bonds, Giulio A. De Leo
Dispersal limitations increase vulnerability under climate change for reptiles and amphibians in the southwestern United States Dispersal limitations increase vulnerability under climate change for reptiles and amphibians in the southwestern United States
Species conservation plans frequently rely on information that spans political and administrative boundaries, especially when predictions are needed of future habitat under climate change; however, most species conservation plans and their requisite predictions of future habitat are often limited in geographical scope. Moreover, dispersal constraints for species of concern are not often
Authors
Richard D. Inman, Todd Esque, Kenneth E. Nussear
Longman's Beaked Whale (Indopacetus pacificus) in Fiji Longman's Beaked Whale (Indopacetus pacificus) in Fiji
Beaked whales (Ziphidae) are the second largest family of cetaceans with 23 currently recognized species, and the Longman's beaked whale (Indopacetus pacificus) is one of the least known globally (Reeves et al., 2003; Yamada et al., 2019). Longman's beaked whales occur in tropical waters from the western Indian Ocean to the eastern Pacific (Jefferson et al., 2015), with strandings in the...
Authors
Sam R Fisher, Steve Anstey, Isikeli Nasaunivalu, Robert N. Fisher
Are canned sardines or dry cat food more effective as bait for capturing Northwestern Pond Turtles (Actinemys marmorata) and Red-eared Sliders (Trachemys scripta elegans)? Are canned sardines or dry cat food more effective as bait for capturing Northwestern Pond Turtles (Actinemys marmorata) and Red-eared Sliders (Trachemys scripta elegans)?
During an occupancy study of Northwestern Pond Turtles (Actinemys marmorata) and Red-eared Sliders (Trachemys scripta elegans) in California’s Sacramento Valley in 2018, we tested the relative effectiveness of 2 bait types: sardines packed in soybean oil and Meow Mix® Original Choice dry cat food. We sampled 116 sites with 2 traps each: one baited with sardines and one baited with dry...
Authors
Alexandria M Fulton, Jonathan P. Rose, Brian J. Halstead
Evolutionary ecology of fire Evolutionary ecology of fire
Fire has been an ecosystem process since plants colonized land over 400 million years ago. Many diverse traits provide a fitness benefit following fires, and these adaptive traits vary with the fire regime. Some of these traits enhance fire survival, while others promote recruitment in the postfire environment. Demonstrating that these traits are fire adaptations is challenging, since...
Authors
Jon Keeley, Juli G. Pausas
Demographic and environmental correlates of home ranges and long-distance movements of Mohave ground squirrels Demographic and environmental correlates of home ranges and long-distance movements of Mohave ground squirrels
Space use by mammals can differ among age-classes, sexes, or seasons, and these processes are recognized as adaptive behavioral strategies. Semi-fossorial ground squirrels, in particular, have shown age- and sex-specific patterns in their aboveground movement behaviors. We studied space use of Mohave ground squirrels (Xerospermophilus mohavensis) at the Freeman Gulch study site in the...
Authors
Sharon A. Poessel, Philip Leitner, Richard D. Inman, Todd Esque, Todd E. Katzner
Autumn precipitation: The competition with Santa Ana winds in determining fire outcomes in southern California Autumn precipitation: The competition with Santa Ana winds in determining fire outcomes in southern California
Background: California’s South Coast has experienced peak burned area in autumn. Following typically dry, warm summers, precipitation events and Santa Ana winds (SAWs) each occur with increasing frequency from autumn to winter and may affect fire outcomes. Aims: We investigate historical records to understand how these counteracting influences have affected fires. Methods: We defined...
Authors
Daniel R. Cayan, Laurel DeHaan, Alexander Gershunov, Janin Guzman-Morales, Jon Keeley, Joshua Mumford, Alexandra D. Syphard
The mysterious case of the missing razor clams The mysterious case of the missing razor clams
Oceans are changing and these changes are affecting animals that live there. Animals respond differently to changes in water temperature, food availability, or contaminants. Those responses can be seen in their genes. Gene transcription is a tool that allows scientists to see the response of an animal’s genes to its environment. We used gene transcription to compare two populations of...
Authors
Heather Coletti, Lizabeth Bowen, Brenda Ballachey, Tammy L. Wilson, Shannon C. Waters-Dynes, Michael Booz, Katrina Counihan, Tuula E. Hollmen, Benjamin Pister
Predictive accuracy of post-fire conifer death declines over time in models based on crown and bole injury Predictive accuracy of post-fire conifer death declines over time in models based on crown and bole injury
A key uncertainty of empirical models of post-fire tree mortality is understanding the drivers of elevated post-fire mortality several years following fire, known as delayed mortality. Delayed mortality can represent a substantial fraction of mortality, particularly for large trees that are a conservation focus in western US coniferous forests. Current post-fire tree mortality models...
Authors
Timothy M. Shearman, J. Morgan Varner, Sharon M. Hood, Phillip J. van Mantgem, C. Alina Cansler, Micah Wright
Pleistocene–Holocene vicariance, not Anthropocene landscape change, explains the genetic structure of American black bear (Ursus americanus) populations in the American Southwest and northern Mexico Pleistocene–Holocene vicariance, not Anthropocene landscape change, explains the genetic structure of American black bear (Ursus americanus) populations in the American Southwest and northern Mexico
The phylogeography of the American black bear (Ursus americanus) is characterized by isolation into glacial refugia, followed by population expansion and genetic admixture. Anthropogenic activities, including overharvest, habitat loss, and transportation infrastructure, have also influenced their landscape genetic structure. We describe the genetic structure of the American black bear in...
Authors
Matthew J. Gould, James W. Cain, Todd C. Atwood, Larisa E. Harding, Heather E. Johnson, Dave P. Onorato, Frederic S. Winslow, Gary W. Roemer
Genetic structure and historic demography of endangered unarmoured threespine stickleback at southern latitudes signals a potential new management approach Genetic structure and historic demography of endangered unarmoured threespine stickleback at southern latitudes signals a potential new management approach
Habitat loss, flood control infrastructure, and drought have left most of southern California and northern Baja California's native freshwater fish near extinction, including the endangered unarmoured threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus williamsoni). This subspecies, an unusual morph lacking the typical lateral bony plates of the G. aculeatus complex, occurs at arid southern...
Authors
Rachel Turba, Jonathan Q. Richmond, Sorel Fitz-Gibbon, Marco Morselli, Robert N. Fisher, Camm C. Swift, Gorgonio Ruiz-Campos, Adam R. Backlin, Chris Dellith, David K. Jacobs