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: 42999
Using multiple data types and integrated population models to improve our knowledge of apex predator population dynamics Using multiple data types and integrated population models to improve our knowledge of apex predator population dynamics
Current management of large carnivores is informed using a variety of parameters, methods, and metrics; however, these data are typically considered independently. Sharing information among data types based on the underlying ecological, and recognizing observation biases, can improve estimation of individual and global parameters. We present a general integrated population model (IPM)
Authors
Florent Bled, Jerrold L. Belant, Lawrence J. Van Daele, Nathan Svoboda, David D. Gustine, Grant V. Hilderbrand, Victor G. Barnes
Summer and winter space use and home range characteristics of Golden Eagles (Aquila chrysaetos) in eastern North America Summer and winter space use and home range characteristics of Golden Eagles (Aquila chrysaetos) in eastern North America
Movement behavior and its relationship to habitat provide critical information toward understanding the effects of changing environments on birds. The eastern North American population of Golden Eagles (Aquila chrysaetos) is a genetically distinct and small population of conservation concern. To evaluate the potential responses of this population to changing landscapes, we calculated the...
Authors
Tricia A. Miller, Robert P. Brooks, Michael J. Lanzone, Jeff Cooper, Kieran O’Malley, David Brandes, Adam E. Duerr, Todd E. Katzner
Biocrust ecology: Unifying micro- and macro-scales to confront global change Biocrust ecology: Unifying micro- and macro-scales to confront global change
Biological soil crusts (biocrusts) are communities of microbes, lichens and bryophytes living at the soil surface in drylands (Fig. 1; Belnap et al., 2016). Biocrusts occur on all continents and can comprise a majority of cover in some systems (Belnap et al., 2016). While species diversity and distributions have long been a research focus, interest in controls on community composition...
Authors
Scott Ferrenberg, Sasha C. Reed
Oiling accelerates loss of salt marshes, southeastern Louisiana Oiling accelerates loss of salt marshes, southeastern Louisiana
The 2010 BP Deepwater Horizon (DWH) oil spill damaged thousands of km2 of intertidal marsh along shorelines that had been experiencing elevated rates of erosion for decades. Yet, the contribution of marsh oiling to landscape-scale degradation and subsequent land loss has been difficult to quantify. Here, we applied advanced remote sensing techniques to map changes in marsh land cover and...
Authors
Michael Beland, Trent W. Biggs, Dar A. Roberts, Seth H. Peterson, Raymond F. Kokaly, Sarai Piazza
Reply to ‘Marsh vulnerability to sea-level rise’ Reply to ‘Marsh vulnerability to sea-level rise’
Response to Parkinson et al. Rebuttal of Kirwan, M. L., Temmerman, S., Skeehan, E. E., Guntenspergen, G. R.,& Fagherazzi, S. (2016). Overestimation of marsh vulnerability to sea level rise. Nature Climate Change, 6(3):253-2601.
Authors
Matthew L. Kirwan, Stijn Temmerman, Glenn R. Guntenspergen, Sergio Fagherazzi
Patterns of spatial distribution of golden eagles across North America: How do they fit into existing landscape-scale mapping systems? Patterns of spatial distribution of golden eagles across North America: How do they fit into existing landscape-scale mapping systems?
Conserving wide-ranging animals requires knowledge about their year-round movements and resource use. Golden Eagles (Aquila chrysaetos) exhibit a wide range of movement patterns across North America. We combined tracking data from 571 Golden Eagles from multiple independent satellite-telemetry projects from North America to provide a comprehensive look at the magnitude and extent of...
Authors
Jessi L. Brown, Bryan Bedrosian, Douglas A. Bell, Melissa A. Braham, Jeff Cooper, Ross H. Crandall, Joe DiDonato, Robert Domenech, Adam E. Duerr, Todd E. Katzner, Michael J. Lanzone, David W. LaPlante, Carol L. McIntyre, Tricia A. Miller, Robert K. Murphy, Adam Shreading, Steven J. Slater, Jeff P. Smith, Brian W. Smith, James W. Watson, Brian Woodbridge
Synopsis of the Fourth International Percid Fishes Symposia Synopsis of the Fourth International Percid Fishes Symposia
Percids play an integral role in food webs and freshwater fisheries of the world. Anthropogenic stressors such as pollution, overfishing, invasive species, and climate change threaten percid diversity and the sustainability of economically important fisher-ies. The International Percid Fish Symposium is the only scien-tific conference dedicated to this family of fishes, offering unique
Authors
Brian Schmidt, Dana Castle, Edward F. Roseman, Toomas Saat, Hannu Lehtonen
Observationally constrained surface mass balance of Larsen C ice shelf, Antarctica Observationally constrained surface mass balance of Larsen C ice shelf, Antarctica
The surface mass balance (SMB) of the Larsen C ice shelf (LCIS), Antarctica, is poorly constrained due to a dearth of in situ observations. Combining several geophysical techniques, we reconstruct spatial and temporal patterns of SMB over the LCIS. Continuous time series of snow height (2.5–6 years) at five locations allow for multi-year estimates of seasonal and annual SMB over the LCIS...
Authors
Peter Kuipers Munneke, Daniel Mcgrath, Brooke Medley, Adrian Luckman, Suzanne Bevan, Bernd Kulessa, Daniela Jansen, Adam Booth, Paul Smeets, B. Hubbard, David Ashmore, Michiel Van den Broeke, Heidi Sevestre, K. Steffen, Andrew Shepard, Noel Gourmelen
Assessing the risk of non-native marine species in the Bering Sea Assessing the risk of non-native marine species in the Bering Sea
Invasive species are one of the leading global conservation concerns, which can have strong, negative impacts on ecosystems, vulnerable species, and valuable natural resources. Arctic regions have experienced a relatively low number of biological introductions to date. Their geographical remoteness, cold waters, and presence of sea ice present challenging conditions for both non-native...
Authors
Jesika Reimer, Amanda Droghini, Anthony S. Fischbach, Jordan Watson, Bonnie Bernard, Aaron Poe
Longitudinal thermal heterogeneity in rivers and refugia for coldwater species: Effects of scale and climate change Longitudinal thermal heterogeneity in rivers and refugia for coldwater species: Effects of scale and climate change
Climate-change driven increases in water temperature pose challenges for aquatic organisms. Predictions of impacts typically do not account for fine-grained spatiotemporal thermal patterns in rivers. Patches of cooler water could serve as refuges for anadromous species like salmon that migrate during summer. We used high-resolution remotely sensed water temperature data to characterize...
Authors
A.H. Fullerton, Christian E. Torgersen, J.J. Lawer, E. A. Steel, J. L. Ebersole, S.Y. Lee
Small-scale genetic structure in an endangered wetland specialist: possible effects of landscape change and population recovery Small-scale genetic structure in an endangered wetland specialist: possible effects of landscape change and population recovery
The effects of anthropogenic landscape change on genetic population structure are well studied, but the temporal and spatial scales at which genetic structure can develop, especially in taxa with high dispersal capabilities like birds, are less well understood. We investigated population structure in the Hawaiian gallinule (Gallinula galeata sandvicensis), an endangered wetland...
Authors
Charles B. van Rees, J. Michael Reed, Robert E. Wilson, Jared G. Underwood, Sarah A. Sonsthagen
Tracing biogeochemical subsidies from glacier runoff into Alaska's coastal marine food webs Tracing biogeochemical subsidies from glacier runoff into Alaska's coastal marine food webs
Nearly half of the freshwater discharge into the Gulf of Alaska originates from landscapes draining glacier runoff, but the influence of the influx of riverine organic matter on the trophodynamics of coastal marine food webs is not well understood. We quantified the ecological impact of riverine organic matter subsidies to glacier-marine habitats by developing a multi-trophic level...
Authors
Mayumi L. Arimitsu, Keith A. Hobson, D’Arcy N. Webber, John F. Piatt, Eran W. Hood, Jason B. Fellman