Publications
This list of publications includes peer-review journal articles, official USGS publications series, reports and more authored by scientists in the Ecosystems Mission Area. A database of all USGS publications, with advanced search features, can be accessed at the USGS Publications Warehouse.
Filter Total Items: 42768
A decision-support framework for dam removal planning and its application in northern California A decision-support framework for dam removal planning and its application in northern California
Dam removals are occurring more frequently with the rising cost of maintaining aging infrastructure, public safety concerns, and growing interest in river restoration. So far, most dam-removals have been unsystematic in their approach. Given the several thousand dam removals expected over the coming decades, a systematic approach to plan future dam removals holds potential for aligning...
Authors
Suman Jumani, Lucy Andrews, Theodore E. Grantham, S. Kyle McKay, Jeffrey J. Duda, Jeanette K. Howard
Living with wildfire in Emigration Canyon, Utah: 2022 data report Living with wildfire in Emigration Canyon, Utah: 2022 data report
Located in North Central Utah, Emigration Canyon is a prominent and historic canyon that runs northeast from Salt Lake City into the higher elevations of the Wasatch Mountains. The Wasatch Range is characterized by steep, rocky slopes and 26-44 millimeters of annual rainfall, both of which contribute to a high threat of wildfire. The area’s landscape is diverse with oak woodland at the...
Authors
Julia Goolsby, Hannah Brenkert-Smith, Dax Reid, James Meldrum, Patricia A. Champ, Christopher M. Barth, Colleen Donovan, Carolyn Wagner
Synergistic soil, land use, and climate influences on wind erosion on the Colorado Plateau: Implications for management Synergistic soil, land use, and climate influences on wind erosion on the Colorado Plateau: Implications for management
Two decades of drought in the southwestern USA are spurring concerns about increases in wind erosion, dust emissions, and associated impacts on ecosystems, agriculture, human health, and water supply. Different avenues of investigation into primary drivers of wind erosion and dust have yielded mixed results depending on the spatial and temporal sensitivity of the evidence. We monitored...
Authors
Travis W. Nauman, Seth M. Munson, Saroj Dhital, Nicholas P. Webb, Michael C. Duniway
Quality of thermal refuges influences use by the cold-intolerant Florida manatee Quality of thermal refuges influences use by the cold-intolerant Florida manatee
ABSTRACT: Thermal refuges are habitats used by species for behavioral thermoregulation. These habitats can be highly dynamic and are often influenced by fluctuations in local climate. When protected species require thermal refuges, it is necessary to identify stable and high-quality areas by evaluating species use in response to variation in thermal refuge quality. Here, we assessed...
Authors
Catherine G. Haase, Robert J. Fletcher, Daniel Slone, James P. Reid, Susan M. Butler
Evidence for density-dependent effects on body composition of a large omnivore in a changing Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem Evidence for density-dependent effects on body composition of a large omnivore in a changing Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem
Understanding the density-dependent processes that drive population demography in a changing world is critical in ecology, yet measuring performance–density relationships in long-lived mammalian species demands long-term data, limiting scientists' ability to observe such mechanisms. We tested performance–density relationships for an opportunistic omnivore, grizzly bears (Ursus arctos...
Authors
Andrea Corradini, Mark A. Haroldson, Francesca Cagnacci, Cecily M. Costello, Daniel D. Bjornlie, Daniel Thompson, Jeremy M. Nicholson, Kerry A. Gunther, Katharine R. Wilmot, Frank T. van Manen
Southwestern Willow Flycatcher (Empidonax traillii extimus) surveys at the city of Carlsbad Preserve, San Diego County, California—2022 data summary Southwestern Willow Flycatcher (Empidonax traillii extimus) surveys at the city of Carlsbad Preserve, San Diego County, California—2022 data summary
Executive Summary We surveyed for Southwestern Willow Flycatchers (Empidonax traillii extimus; flycatcher) at five survey areas within the City of Carlsbad Preserve, Carlsbad, California, in 2022. Three flycatcher surveys were completed between May 18 and June 29, 2022. Territorial or transient flycatchers were not observed at the City of Carlsbad Preserve in 2022.
Authors
Lisa D. Allen, Barbara E. Kus
Wildlife health surveillance: Gaps, needs and opportunities Wildlife health surveillance: Gaps, needs and opportunities
Disease emergence represent a global threat for public health, economy, and biological conservation and most of the emerging diseases have zoonotic origin from wildlife. To prevent their spread and to support the implementation of control measures, disease surveillance and reporting systems are needed, and due to globalisation, these activities should be carried at world level. To define...
Authors
M. Delgado, N. Ferrari, A. Fanelli, S. Muset, L. Thompson, Jonathan M. Sleeman, C. LeAnn White, Daniel P. Walsh, C. Wannous, P. Tizzani
A science and management partnership to restore coregonine diversity to the Laurentian Great Lakes A science and management partnership to restore coregonine diversity to the Laurentian Great Lakes
Similar to many freshwater ecosystems, the Laurentian Great Lakes of North America have undergone numerous anthropogenic stressors resulting in considerable loss of biodiversity and habitat. Among Great Lakes fishes, the coregonine sub-family has endured the most extensive declines, including extinction of several species (Coregonus johannae, C. alpenae, and C. kiyi orientalis) and at...
Authors
David B. Bunnell, Amanda Susanne Ackiss, Karen M Alofs, Cory Brant, Charles R. Bronte, Randall M. Claramunt, John M. Dettmers, Andrew Edgar Honsey, Nicholas E. Mandrak, Andrew M. Muir, Victor Santucci, David R. Smith, Russell M. Strach, John A. Sweka, Brian Weidel, William Mattes, Kurt R. Newman
Invasion-mediated mutualism disruption is evident across heterogeneous environmental conditions and varying invasion intensities Invasion-mediated mutualism disruption is evident across heterogeneous environmental conditions and varying invasion intensities
The impact of a biological invasion on native communities is expected to be uneven across invaded landscapes due to differences in local abiotic conditions, invader abundance, and traits and composition of the native community. One way to improve predictive ability about the impact of an invasive species given variable conditions is to exploit known mechanisms driving invasive species'...
Authors
Morgan Roche, Ian Pearse, Helen Sofaer, Stephanie N Kivlin, Greg Spyreas, David N. Zaya, Susan Kalisz
Global responses to the COVID-19 pandemic by recreational anglers: Considerations for developing more resilient and sustainable fisheries Global responses to the COVID-19 pandemic by recreational anglers: Considerations for developing more resilient and sustainable fisheries
The global COVID-19 pandemic resulted in many jurisdictions implementing orders restricting the movements of people to inhibit virus transmission, with recreational angling often either not permitted or access to fisheries and/or related infrastructure being prevented. Following the lifting of restrictions, initial angler surveys and licence sales suggested increased participation and...
Authors
J. Robert Britton, Adrian C. Pinder, Josep Alos, Robert Arlinghaus, Andy J. Danylchuk, Wendy Edwards, Katia M. F. Freire, Casper Gundelund, Kieran Hyder, Ivan Jaric, Robert J. Lennox, Wolf-Christian Lewin, Abigail J. Lynch, Stephen R. Midway, Warren M. Potts, Karina L. Ryan, Christian Skov, Harry V. Strehlow, Sean R. Tracey, Jun-ichi Tsuboi, Paul A. Venturelli, Jessica L. Weir, Marc Simon Weltersbach, Steven J. Cooke
Reconstructing missing data by comparing interpolation techniques: Applications for long-term water quality data Reconstructing missing data by comparing interpolation techniques: Applications for long-term water quality data
Missing data are typical yet must be addressed for proper inferences or expanding datasets to guide our limnological understanding and management of aquatic systems. Interpolation methods (i.e., estimating missing values using known values within the dataset) can alleviate data gaps and common problems. We compared seven popular interpolation methods for predicting substantial...
Authors
Danelle M. Larson, Wako Bungula, Amber Lee, Alaina Stockdill, Casey McKean, Frederick Miller, Killian Davis, Richard A. Erickson, Enrika Hlavacek
Where can managers effectively resist climate-driven ecological transformation in pinyon-juniper woodlands of the US Southwest? Where can managers effectively resist climate-driven ecological transformation in pinyon-juniper woodlands of the US Southwest?
Pinyon–juniper (PJ) woodlands are an important component of dryland ecosystems across the US West and are potentially susceptible to ecological transformation. However, predicting woodland futures is complicated by species-specific strategies for persisting and reproducing under drought conditions, uncertainty in future climate, and limitations to inferring demographic rates from forest...
Authors
Adam Roy Noel, Robert K. Shriver, Shelley D. Crausbay, John B. Bradford