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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: 42876

Research, monitoring, and evaluation of emerging issues and measures to recover the Snake River Fall Chinook Salmon ESU, 1/1/2016 - 12/31/2016 Research, monitoring, and evaluation of emerging issues and measures to recover the Snake River Fall Chinook Salmon ESU, 1/1/2016 - 12/31/2016

The portion of the Snake River fall Chinook Salmon Oncorhynchus tshawytscha ESU that spawns upstream of Lower Granite Dam transitioned from low to high abundance during 1992–2016 in association with U.S. Endangered Species Act recovery efforts and other federally mandated actions. This annual report focuses on (1) numeric and habitat use responses by natural- and hatchery-origin spawners...
Authors
William P. Connor, Frank L. Mullins, Kenneth F. Tiffan, John M. Plumb, Russell W. Perry, John M. Erhardt, Rulon J. Hemingway, Brad K. Bickford, Tobyn N. Rhodes

Reclamation after oil and gas development does not speed up succession or plant community recovery in big sagebrush ecosystems in Wyoming Reclamation after oil and gas development does not speed up succession or plant community recovery in big sagebrush ecosystems in Wyoming

Article for intended outlet: Restoration Ecology. Abstract: Reclamation is an application of treatment(s) following a disturbance to promote succession and accelerate the return of target conditions. Previous studies have framed reclamation in the context of succession by studying its effectiveness in re-establishing late-successional plant communities. Re-establishment of these plant...
Authors
Caitlin M. Rottler, Ingrid C. Burke, Kyle A. Palmquist, John B. Bradford, William K. Lauenroth

Snake River Fall Chinook Salmon life history investigations Snake River Fall Chinook Salmon life history investigations

Predation by nonnative fishes is one factor that has been implicated in the decline of juvenile salmonids in the Pacific Northwest. Impoundment of much of the Snake and Columbia rivers has altered food webs and created habitat favorable for species such as Smallmouth Bass Micropterus dolomieu. Smallmouth Bass are common throughout the Columbia River basin and have become the most...
Authors
John M. Erhardt, Brad K. Bickford, Rulon J. Hemingway, Tobyn N. Rhodes, Kenneth F. Tiffan

Infectious haematopoietic necrosis virus Infectious haematopoietic necrosis virus

Infectious haematopoietic necrosis virus (IHNV) is a Rhabdovirus that causes significant disease in Pacific salmon (Oncorhynchus spp.), Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar), and rainbow and steelhead trout (O. mykiss). IHNV causes necrosis of the haematopoietic tissues, and consequently it was named infectious haematopoietic necrosis. This virus is waterborne and may transmit horizontally and...
Authors
Jo-Ann Leong, Gael Kurath

Influence of temperature on the efficacy of homologous and heterologous DNA vaccines against viral hemorrhagic septicemia in Pacific Herring Influence of temperature on the efficacy of homologous and heterologous DNA vaccines against viral hemorrhagic septicemia in Pacific Herring

Homologous and heterologous (genogroup Ia) DNA vaccines against viral hemorrhagic septicemia virus (genogroup IVa) conferred partial protection in Pacific Herring Clupea pallasii. Early protection at 2 weeks postvaccination (PV) was low and occurred only at an elevated temperature (12.6°C, 189 degree days), where the relative percent survival following viral exposure was similar for the...
Authors
Lucas Hart, Niels Lorenzen, Katja Einer-Jensen, Maureen K. Purcell, Paul Hershberger

Assessment of PIT tag retention and post-tagging survival in metamorphosing juvenile Sea Lamprey Assessment of PIT tag retention and post-tagging survival in metamorphosing juvenile Sea Lamprey

Background: Passive integrated transponder (PIT) tags have been used to document and monitor the movement or behavior of numerous species of fishes. Data on short-term and long-term survival and tag retention are needed before initiating studies using PIT tags on a new species or life stage. We evaluated the survival and tag retention of 153 metamorphosing juvenile Sea Lamprey Petromyzon...
Authors
Lee G. Simard, V. Alex Sotola, J. Ellen Marsden, Scott M. Miehls

Maternal transfer of mercury to songbird eggs Maternal transfer of mercury to songbird eggs

We evaluated the maternal transfer of mercury to eggs in songbirds, determined whether this relationship differed between songbird species, and developed equations for predicting mercury concentrations in eggs from maternal blood. We sampled blood and feathers from 44 house wren (Troglodytes aedon) and 34 tree swallow (Tachycineta bicolor) mothers and collected their full clutches (n =...
Authors
Joshua T. Ackerman, C. Alex Hartman, Mark P. Herzog

Deepwater sculpin status and recovery in Lake Ontario Deepwater sculpin status and recovery in Lake Ontario

Deepwater sculpin are important in oligotrophic lakes as one of the few fishes that use deep profundal habitats and link invertebrates in those habitats to piscivores. In Lake Ontario the species was once abundant, however drastic declines in the mid-1900s led some to suggest the species had been extirpated and ultimately led Canadian and U.S. agencies to elevate the species'...
Authors
Brian Weidel, Maureen Walsh, Michael J. Connerton, Brian F. Lantry, Jana R. Lantry, Jeremy P. Holden, Michael J. Yuille, James A. Hoyle

Behavioral flexibility as a mechanism for coping with climate change Behavioral flexibility as a mechanism for coping with climate change

Of the primary responses to contemporary climate change – “move, adapt, acclimate, or die” – that are available to organisms, “acclimate” may be effectively achieved through behavioral modification. Behavioral flexibility allows animals to rapidly cope with changing environmental conditions, and behavior represents an important component of a species’ adaptive capacity in the face of...
Authors
Erik A. Beever, L. Embere Hall, Johanna Varner, Anne E. Loosen, Jason B. Dunham, Megan K. Gahl, Felisa A. Smith, Joshua J. Lawler

Dispersal hazards of Pseudogymnoascus destructans by bats and human activity at hibernacula in summer Dispersal hazards of Pseudogymnoascus destructans by bats and human activity at hibernacula in summer

Bats occupying hibernacula during summer are exposed to Pseudogymnoascus destructans (Pd), the causative agent of white-nose syndrome (WNS), and may contribute to its dispersal. Furthermore, equipment and clothing exposed to cave environments are a potential source for human-assisted spread of Pd. To explore dispersal hazards for Pd during the nonhibernal season, we tested samples that...
Authors
Anne Ballmann, Miranda R. Torkelson, Elizabeth A. Bohuski, Robin E. Russell, David S. Blehert
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