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: 42712
Economic impacts of Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative Conservation projects in Wyoming Economic impacts of Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative Conservation projects in Wyoming
Executive Summary This report estimates the economic impacts on the Wyoming economy from investments made by the Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative (WLCI) on conservation and restoration projects. The WLCI has been working in southwestern Wyoming since 2007 to coordinate science and management decisions among government and private entities that invest in conservation projects...
Authors
Christopher Huber, Matthew Flyr, Catherine Cullinane Thomas
Sustaining Environmental Capital Initiative summary report Sustaining Environmental Capital Initiative summary report
Federal agencies need credible scientific information to determine the production and value of ecosystem services in an efficient and timely manner. The U.S. Geological Survey addresses this scientific information need through the Sustaining Environmental Capital Initiative project. The project has relied on U.S. Geological Survey expertise related to water, fisheries, advanced modeling...
Authors
Christopher Huber, James Meldrum, Rudy Schuster, Zachary H. Ancona, Kenneth J. Bagstad, Scott M. Beck, Daren M. Carlisle, Peter R. Claggett, Fabiano Franco, Heather S. Galbraith, Michelle Haefele, Kristin R Hoelting, Dianna M. Hogan, Kristina G. Hopkins, Tim Kern, Collin B. Lawrence, Stacy Lischka, John B. Loomis, Julie M. Mueller, Gregory E. Noe, Emily Pindilli, Brian Quay, Darius J. Semmens, Wilson Sinclair, Daniel E. Spooner, Brian Voigt, Barabara St. John White
Integrating side-scan sonar and acoustic telemetry to estimate the annual spawning run size of Atlantic sturgeon in the Hudson River Integrating side-scan sonar and acoustic telemetry to estimate the annual spawning run size of Atlantic sturgeon in the Hudson River
There is considerable interest in evaluating the status and trends of sturgeon populations, yet many traditional approaches to estimating the abundance of fishes are intractable due to their biology and rarity. Side-scan sonar has recently emerged as an effective tool for censusing sturgeon in rivers, yet challenges remain for censusing open populations that may visit specific habitats...
Authors
David C. Kazyak, Amy M Flowers, Nathan J. Hostetter, John A Madsen, Matthew W. Breece, Amanda Higgs, Lori M. Brown, Andy Royle, Dewayne A. Fox
Dermal denticle assemblages in coral reef sediments correlate with conventional shark surveys Dermal denticle assemblages in coral reef sediments correlate with conventional shark surveys
1. It is challenging to assess long-term trends in mobile, long-lived, and relatively rare species such as sharks. Despite ongoing declines in many coastal shark populations, conventional surveys might be too fleeting and too recent to describe population trends over decades to millennia. Placing recent shark declines into historical context should improve management efforts as well as...
Authors
Erin M. Dillon, Kevin D. Lafferty, Douglas J. McCauley, Darcy Bradley, Richard D. Norris, Jennifer E. Caselle, Graziella V. DiRenzo, Jonathan P.A. Gardner, Aaron O’Dea
Wetland water-management may influence mercury bioaccumulation in songbirds and ducks at a mercury hotspot Wetland water-management may influence mercury bioaccumulation in songbirds and ducks at a mercury hotspot
Mercury is a persistent, biomagnifying contaminant that can cause negative behavioral, immunological, and reproductive effects in wildlife and human populations. We examined the role of wetland water-management on mercury bioaccumulation in songbirds and ducks at Kellys Slough National Wildlife Refuge Complex, near Grand Forks, North Dakota USA. We assessed mercury concentrations in...
Authors
Virginia L. Winder, Michael J. Anteau, Mark R Fisher, Mary Kate Wilcox, Lawrence Igl, Josh T. Ackerman
Trends of litter decomposition and soil organic matter stocks across forested swamp environments of the southeastern US Trends of litter decomposition and soil organic matter stocks across forested swamp environments of the southeastern US
A common idea in the discussion of soil carbon processes is that litter decomposition rates and soil carbon stocks are inversely related. To test this overall hypothesis, simultaneous studies were conducted of the relationship of environmental gradients to leaf and wood decomposition, buried cloth decomposition and percent soil organic matter in Taxodium distichum swamps across the...
Authors
Beth A. Middleton
Estimating bedload from suspended load and water discharge in sand bed rivers Estimating bedload from suspended load and water discharge in sand bed rivers
Estimates of fluvial sediment discharge from in situ instruments are an important component of large‐scale sediment budgets that track long‐term geomorphic change. Suspended sediment load can be reliably estimated using acoustic or physical sampling techniques; however, bedload is difficult to measure directly and can consequently be one of the largest sources of uncertainty in estimates...
Authors
T.C. Ashley, B. McElroy, D. Buscombe, Paul E. Grams, M. Kaplinski
Early goose arrival increases soil nitrogen availability more than an advancing spring in coastal western Alaska Early goose arrival increases soil nitrogen availability more than an advancing spring in coastal western Alaska
An understudied aspect of climate change-induced phenological mismatch is its effect on ecosystem functioning, such as nitrogen (N) cycling. Migratory herbivore arrival time may alter N inputs and plant–herbivore feedbacks, whereas earlier springs are predicted to increase N cycling rates through warmer temperatures. However, the relative importance of these shifts in timing and how they...
Authors
Ryan T. Choi, Karen H. Beard, Katherine Kelsey, Joshua Leffler, Joel A. Schmutz, Jeffrey Welker
Carrying capacity of a population diffusing in a heterogeneous environment Carrying capacity of a population diffusing in a heterogeneous environment
The carrying capacity of the environment for a population is one of the key concepts in ecology and it is incorporated in the growth term of reaction-diffusion equations describing populations in space. Analysis of reaction-diffusion models of populations in heterogeneous space have shown that, when the maximum growth rate and carrying capacity in a logistic growth function vary in space
Authors
Don DeAngelis, Bo Zhang, Wei-Ming Ni, Yuanshi Wang
Spatial and temporal dynamics of Pacific capelin Mallotus catervarius in the Gulf of Alaska: Implications for ecosystem-based fisheries management Spatial and temporal dynamics of Pacific capelin Mallotus catervarius in the Gulf of Alaska: Implications for ecosystem-based fisheries management
Pacific capelin Mallotus catervarius are planktivorous, small pelagic fish that serve an intermediate trophic role in marine food webs. Due to the lack of a directed fishery or monitoring of capelin in the Northeast Pacific, there is limited information on their distribution and abundance, and how spatio-temporal fluctuations in capelin density affects their availability as prey. To...
Authors
David W. McGowan, Esther Goldstein, Mayumi L. Arimitsu, Alison Dreary, Olav Ormseth, Alex DeRobertis, John Horne, Lauren Rogers, Matt Wilson, Kenneth Coyle, Kris Holderied, John F. Piatt, W.T. Stockhausen, Stephani Zador
Estimating abundance from capture-recapture data Estimating abundance from capture-recapture data
No abstract available.
Authors
Sarah J. Converse, J. Andrew Royle
Nuisance Neonatives Guidelines for Assessing Range-Shifting Species Nuisance Neonatives Guidelines for Assessing Range-Shifting Species
Native species will need to shift their ranges northward and upslope to keep pace with climate change in the Northeast U.S. However, this may cause some range-shifting species to have undesirable consequences in their expanded range. We provide a framework to identify the likelihood that a range-shifting species will become problematic and offer suggestions to minimize impacts from these...
Authors
Brittany B. Laginhas, Toni Lyn Morelli, Audrey Barker-Plotkin, Evelyn M. Beaury, Elsa Cousins, Sydni Joubran, Michael Nelson, Sam Talbot, Bethany A. Bradley