Research
Technical Assistance
Graduate education
Cooperative Research Units
Established in 1935 at Iowa State University, our mission is our hallmark: to work with University students to develop the conservation workforce, help decision-makers make complex conservation decisions, and provide technical assistance between natural resource agencies and universities. We support 43 units located in 41 States, at 44 host universities. Our Program Office is in Reston, Virginia.
Our website is currently undergoing a major update. Be sure to visit regularly for the latest enhancements.
10-year Overview
10-year Overview
Supporting Fish and Wildlife agency partners for natural resource management since 1935.
2024 Program Facts
2024 Program Facts
We have more than 700 research projects under way and generate 400-500 scientific publications annually.
Where's our Science?
Where's our Science?
We support 43 units in 41 states, at 44 host universities, with a Program office at USGS National Center.
News
Tight Lines: Evaluating Rainbow Trout Fishing in Oklahoma
Tight Lines: Evaluating Rainbow Trout Fishing in Oklahoma
Trees Act Their Size, Not Their Age
Trees Act Their Size, Not Their Age
Fishing in Nervous Waters: Using Science to Address Uncertainty in Steelhead Fisheries
Fishing in Nervous Waters: Using Science to Address Uncertainty in Steelhead Fisheries
Publications
Potential interactions between birds and floating photovoltaic solar energy: Spatially informed species vulnerabilities, techno-ecological risks, and sustainability trade-offs Potential interactions between birds and floating photovoltaic solar energy: Spatially informed species vulnerabilities, techno-ecological risks, and sustainability trade-offs
Floating photovoltaics (floating solar panels; FPV) can reduce the negative impacts of solar energy development in terrestrial environments, but their effects on freshwater ecosystems remain poorly understood. We examined potential FPV interactions with avian biodiversity, using previously modeled technical potential of FPV in the northeastern United States. We developed a vulnerability...
Complexity and integration of recreational fisheries Complexity and integration of recreational fisheries
Recreational fisheries are interconnected, complex, adaptive systems characterized by multiple direct and indirect interactions among ecological and human subsystems. This is important for many reasons, including that feedbacks between the social and ecological dimensions lead to difficult-to-predict, often entirely unexpected, outcomes and because many management and governance systems...
Similar population dynamics before and after a chytridiomycosis outbreak in a tropical riparian amphibian species Similar population dynamics before and after a chytridiomycosis outbreak in a tropical riparian amphibian species
Emerging infectious diseases can cause rapid, widespread host mortality, and the lack of demographic data before and after pathogen emergence complicates understanding mechanisms of host persistence. This challenge is further compounded by environmental conditions that influence host behavior, while driving pathogen growth and virulence. These interactions create complex disease outcomes...
Science
Where land meets sea: USGS science for resilient coastal habitats
USGS coastal science plays a critical role in supporting the effective, science-based management of coastal ecosystems, where the biodiversity of land and sea meet. It provides managers with the information they need to make sound decisions. Through cutting-edge research, predictive modeling, and decision-support tools, USGS empowers resource managers to make informed, science-based choices. From...
By
Core Science Systems Mission Area, Ecosystems Mission Area, Water Resources Mission Area, Cooperative Research Units, Ecosystems Land Change Science Program, Land Management Research Program, Science and Decisions Center, Species Management Research Program, California Water Science Center, Eastern Ecological Science Center, Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center, Lower Mississippi-Gulf Water Science Center, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, Western Ecological Research Center (WERC), Western Fisheries Research Center, Western Geographic Science Center, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center
Invasive flathead catfish now top predators in Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania
New study suggests that smallmouth bass and channel catfish are changing what they eat to avoid having to compete with or being eaten by the invader
Population ecology of the invasive American Bullfrog (Rana catesbeiana) in Southeastern Arizona
Native to eastern North America, the American bullfrog (Rana catesbeiana) was introduced to Arizona for sport hunting in the early 1900s and has since come to dominate many aquatic systems and threaten native amphibians through four primary mechanisms.
