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: 42994
Reliability of external characteristics to age Barrow’s goldeneye Reliability of external characteristics to age Barrow’s goldeneye
Accurate assignment of age class is critical for understanding most demographic processes. For waterfowl, most techniques for determining age class require birds in hand, reducing utility for quickly and efficiently sampling a large portion of the population. As an alternative, we sought to establish an observation‐based methodology, achievable in the field with standard optics, for...
Authors
Tyler L. Lewis, Daniel Esler, Danica H. Hogan, W. Sean Boyd, Timothy D. Bowman, Jonathan Thompson
Endocrine and physiological responses of hatchling American kestrels (Falco sparverius) following embryonic exposure to technical short-chain chlorinated paraffins (C10-13) Endocrine and physiological responses of hatchling American kestrels (Falco sparverius) following embryonic exposure to technical short-chain chlorinated paraffins (C10-13)
Short chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCPs) are complex mixtures of polychlorinated n-alkanes, shown to bioaccumulate but with unknown effects in wild birds. The present study examined development-related effects of SCCPs on captive American kestrels (Falco sparverius) treated in ovo on embryonic day (ED) 5 by injection with technical Chloroparaffin® (C10-13, 55.5% Cl) at environmentally...
Authors
Kim J. Fernie, Natalie Karouna-Renier, R. J. Letcher, Sandra L. Schultz, L. E. Peters, V. Palace, Paula F. P. Henry
Unfamiliar territory: Emerging themes for ecological drought research and management Unfamiliar territory: Emerging themes for ecological drought research and management
Novel forms of drought are emerging globally, due to climate change, shifting teleconnection patterns, expanding human water use, and a history of human influence on the environment that increases the probability of transformational ecological impacts. These costly ecological impacts cascade to human communities, and understanding this changing drought landscape is one of today’s grand...
Authors
Shelley D. Crausbay, Julio L. Betancourt, John B. Bradford, Jennifer M. Cartwright, William C. Dennison, Jason B. Dunham, Carolyn Armstrong Enquist, Abby G. Frazier, Kimberly R. Hall, Jeremy S. Littell, Charlie H. Luce, Richard Palmer, Aaron R. Ramirez, Imtiaz Rangwala, Laura Thompson, Brianne M. Walsh, Shawn Carter
The influence of soil age on ecosystem structure and function across biomes The influence of soil age on ecosystem structure and function across biomes
The importance of soil age as an ecosystem driver across biomes remains largely unresolved. By combining a cross-biome global field survey, including data for 32 soil, plant, and microbial properties in 16 soil chronosequences, with a global meta-analysis, we show that soil age is a significant ecosystem driver, but only accounts for a relatively small proportion of the cross-biome...
Authors
Manuel Delgado-Baquerizo, Peter B. Reich, Richard D. Bardgett, David J. Eldridge, Hans Lambers, David A. Wardle, Sasha C. Reed, Cesar Plaza, Guochen K. Png, Sigrid Neuhauser, Asmeret A. Berhe, Stephen C. Hart, Hang-Wei Hu, Ji-Zheng He, Felipe Bastida, Sebastian R. Abades, Fernando D. Alfaro, Nick A. Cutler, Antonio Gallardo, Laura García-Velázquez, Patrick E. Hayes, Zeng-Yei Hseu, Cecilia A. Perez, Fernanda Santos, Christina Siebe, Pankaj Trivedi, Benjamin W. Sullivan, Luis Weber-Grullon, Mark Williams, Noah Fierer
A new decision support tool for collaborative adaptive vegetation management in northern Great Plains national parks A new decision support tool for collaborative adaptive vegetation management in northern Great Plains national parks
National Park Service (NPS) units in the northern Great Plains (NGP) were established to preserve and interpret the history of America, protect and showcase unusual geology and paleontology, and provide a home for vanishing large wildlife. A unifying feature among these national parks, monuments, and historic sites is mixed-grass prairie, which not only provides background scenery but is...
Authors
Isabel W. Ashton, Amy Symstad, Heather Baldwin, Max Post van der Burg, Steven Bekedam, Erin Borgman, Milton Haar, Terri Hogan, Stephanie Rockwood, Daniel J Swanson, Carmen Thomson, Cody Wienk
U.S. Geological Survey sagebrush ecosystem research annual report for 2020 U.S. Geological Survey sagebrush ecosystem research annual report for 2020
The sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) ecosystem extends across 251,473 square miles over portions of 13 western States. Affected by multiple stressors, including interactions among fire, invasive plants, and human land uses, this ecosystem has experienced significant loss, fragmentation, and degradation of landscapes once dominated by sagebrush. In turn, wildlife populations have declined...
Bisphenol A and 17α-ethinylestradiol-induced transgenerational gene expression differences in the brain–pituitary–testis axis of medaka, Oryzias latipes Bisphenol A and 17α-ethinylestradiol-induced transgenerational gene expression differences in the brain–pituitary–testis axis of medaka, Oryzias latipes
Endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs), such as bisphenol A (BPA) and 17α-ethinylestradiol (EE2), can have far reaching health effects, including transgenerational abnormalities in offspring that never directly contacted either chemical. We previously reported reduced fertilization rates and embryo survival at F2 and F3 generations caused by 7-day embryonic exposure (F0) to 100 μg/L BPA...
Authors
Albert J. Thayil, Xuegeng Wang, Pooja Bhandari, Frederick S. vom Saal, Donald E. Tillitt, Ramji K. Bhandari
How and why is the timing and occurrence of seasonal migrants in the Gulf of Maine changing due to climate? How and why is the timing and occurrence of seasonal migrants in the Gulf of Maine changing due to climate?
Plants and animals undergo certain recurring life-cycle events, such as migrations between summer and winter habitats or the annual blooming of plants. Known as phenology, the timing of these events is very sensitive to changes in climate (and changes in one species’ phenology can impact entire food webs and ecosystems). Shifts in phenology have been described as a “fingerprint” of the...
Authors
Adrian Jordaan, Daniel Pendleton, Chris Sutherland, Michelle Staudinger
Forest bird trends within Haleakala National Park Forest bird trends within Haleakala National Park
In 2017, the comprehensive east Maui bird surveys allowed for an update in status and evaluation of trends in bird populations within Haleakalā National Park. This report describes a finer-scale analysis of the park lands, distinguishing between the upper Kīpahulu Valley plus adjacent high-elevation areas compared to the rest of the park. I report abundance estimates and assess trends...
Authors
Kevin W. Brinck
Wildfire risk and hazardous fuel reduction treatments along the US-Mexico border: A review of the science (1985-2019) Wildfire risk and hazardous fuel reduction treatments along the US-Mexico border: A review of the science (1985-2019)
The ecosystems along the border between the United States and Mexico are at increasing risk to wildfire due to interactions among climate, land-use, and fuel loads. A wide range of fuel treatments have been implemented to mitigate wildfire and its threats to valued resources, yet we have little information about treatment effectiveness. To fill critical knowledge gaps, we reviewed...
Authors
Katherine M. Laushman, Seth M. Munson, Timothy N. Titus
Genetic diversity, population structure, and historical demography of a highly vagile and human‐impacted seabird in the Pacific Ocean: The red‐tailed tropicbird, Phaethon rubricauda Genetic diversity, population structure, and historical demography of a highly vagile and human‐impacted seabird in the Pacific Ocean: The red‐tailed tropicbird, Phaethon rubricauda
Many seabird breeding colonies have recovered from heavy anthropogenic disturbance after conservation actions. The widely distributed red‐tailed tropicbird, Phaethon rubricauda, was used as a model species to assess potential anthropogenic impacts on the genetic diversity of breeding colonies in the Pacific Ocean.Cytochrome c oxidase subunit I and control region sequences analyses were...
Authors
Andrea I Varela, Katherina Brokordt, Stefanie M.H. Ismar‐Rebitz, Chris P Gaskin, Nicholas Carlile, Terence O’Dwyer, Josh Adams, Eric A. Vanderwerf, Guillermo Luna‐Jorquera
Improving the accessibility and transferability of machine learning algorithms for identification of animals in camera trap images: MLWIC2 Improving the accessibility and transferability of machine learning algorithms for identification of animals in camera trap images: MLWIC2
Motion‐activated wildlife cameras (or “camera traps”) are frequently used to remotely and noninvasively observe animals. The vast number of images collected from camera trap projects has prompted some biologists to employ machine learning algorithms to automatically recognize species in these images, or at least filter‐out images that do not contain animals. These approaches are often...
Authors
Michael A. Tabak, Mohammad S. Norouzzadeh, David W. Wolfson, Erica J. Newton, Raoul K. Boughton, Jacob S. Ivan, Eric Odell, Eric S. Newkirk, Reesa Y. Conrey, Jennifer L. Stenglein, Fabiola Iannarilli, John Erb, Ryan K. Brook, Amy J. Davis, Jesse S. Lewis, Daniel P. Walsh, James C Beasley, Kurt C. Vercauteren, Jeff Clune, Ryan S. Miller