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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: 42874

“Naturalness” in designated Wilderness: Long-term changes in non-native plant dynamics on campsites, Boundary Waters, Minnesota “Naturalness” in designated Wilderness: Long-term changes in non-native plant dynamics on campsites, Boundary Waters, Minnesota

Wilderness areas in the United States are preserved for their untrammeled naturalness and opportunities for unconfined recreation. The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness has these qualities, but long-term recreation visitation pressures on campsites can cause significant ecological changes. This article explores changes on campsites, specifically examining non-native plant ecology...
Authors
Holly Eagleston, Jeffrey L. Marion

Spatial patterns in occupancy and reproduction of Golden Eagles during drought: Prospects for conservation in changing environments Spatial patterns in occupancy and reproduction of Golden Eagles during drought: Prospects for conservation in changing environments

We used a broad-scale sampling design to investigate spatial patterns in occupancy and breeding success of territorial pairs of Golden Eagles (Aquila chrysaetos) in the Diablo Range, California, USA, during a period of exceptional drought (2014–2016). We surveyed 138 randomly selected sample sites over 4 occasions each year and identified 199 pairs of eagles, 100 of which were detected...
Authors
David Wiens, Patrick Kolar, W. Grainger Hunt, Teresa Hunt, Mark R. Fuller, Douglas A. Bell

Modulators of mercury risk to wildlife and humans in the context of rapid global change Modulators of mercury risk to wildlife and humans in the context of rapid global change

Environmental mercury (Hg) contamination is an urgent global health threat. The complexity of Hg in the environment can hinder accurate determination of ecological and human health risks, particularly within the context of the rapid global changes that are altering many ecological processes, socioeconomic patterns, and other factors like infectious disease incidence, which can affect Hg...
Authors
Collin A. Eagles-Smith, Ellen K. Silbergeld, Niladri Basu, Paco Bustamante, Fernando Diaz-Barriga, William A. Hopkins, Karen A. Kidd, Jennifer F. Nyland

Effects of environmental variables on invasive amphibian activity: Using model selection on quantiles for counts Effects of environmental variables on invasive amphibian activity: Using model selection on quantiles for counts

Many different factors influence animal activity. Often, the value of an environmental variable may influence significantly the upper or lower tails of the activity distribution. For describing relationships with heterogeneous boundaries, quantile regressions predict a quantile of the conditional distribution of the dependent variable. A quantile count model extends linear quantile...
Authors
Benjamin J. Muller, Brian S. Cade, Lin Schwarzkoph

Deciphering the link between doubly uniparental inheritance of mtDNA and sex determination in bivalves: Clues from comparative transcriptomics Deciphering the link between doubly uniparental inheritance of mtDNA and sex determination in bivalves: Clues from comparative transcriptomics

Bivalves exhibit an astonishing diversity of sexual systems and sex-determining mechanisms. They can be gonochoric, hermaphroditic or androgenetic, with both genetic and environmental factors known to determine or influence sex. One unique sex-determining system involving the mitochondrial genome has also been hypothesized to exist in bivalves with doubly uniparental inheritance (DUI) of...
Authors
Charlotte Capt, Sébastien Renaut, Fabrizio Ghiselli, Liliana Milani, Nathan A. Johnson, Bernard E. Sietman, Donald Stewart, Sophie Breton

Perissodactyla diet Perissodactyla diet

Perissodactyla (Schoch 1989) includes tapirs, rhinoceros, wild asses, horses, and zebras. It is the order of hoofed mammals referred to as “odd-toed ungulates” because its members have one to three weight-bearing toes and walk on hoofs or “ungules.” They are herbivores that are specialized to exploit grasslands and brushy habitat (rhinos, horses, asses, zebras) or dense tropical forests...
Authors
Kathryn A. Schoenecker

Contaminant-associated health effects in fishes from the Ottawa and Ashtabula Rivers, Ohio Contaminant-associated health effects in fishes from the Ottawa and Ashtabula Rivers, Ohio

The health of resident fishes serves as a biologically relevant barometer of aquatic ecosystem integrity. Here, the health of the Ottawa River and Ashtabula River (both within the Lake Erie Basin) were assessed using morphological and immunological biomarkers in brown bullheads (Ameiurus nebulosus) and largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides). Biomarker metrics were compared to fish...
Authors
Luke R. Iwanowicz, Vicki S. Blazer, Heather L. Walsh, Cassidy H. Shaw, David S. DeVault, Jo A. Banda

Use of remote sensing to detect and predict aquatic nuisance vegetation growth in coastal Louisiana: Summary of findings Use of remote sensing to detect and predict aquatic nuisance vegetation growth in coastal Louisiana: Summary of findings

On an annual basis, federal and state agencies are responsible for mapping and removing large expanses of aquatic nuisance vegetation from navigable waterways. This study set out to achieve four primary objectives: (1) utilize recent advancements in remote sensing techniques to classify the extent and distribution of aquatic vegetation in coastal ecosystems using satellite imagery, (2)...
Authors
Glenn M. Suir, Kevin J. Suir, Sijan Sapkota

Estimating wetland connectivity to streams in the Prairie Pothole Region: An isotopic and remote sensing approach Estimating wetland connectivity to streams in the Prairie Pothole Region: An isotopic and remote sensing approach

Understanding hydrologic connectivity between wetlands and perennial streams is critical to understanding the reliance of stream flow on inputs from wetlands. We used the isotopic evaporation signal in water and remote sensing to examine wetland‐stream hydrologic connectivity within the Pipestem Creek watershed, North Dakota, a watershed dominated by prairie‐pothole wetlands. Pipestem...
Authors
J. R. Brooks, David M. Mushet, Melanie K. Vanderhoof, Scott G. Leibowitz, J. R. Christensen, Brian Neff, Donald O. Rosenberry, W. D. Rugh, L.C. Alexander

Sirenian life history Sirenian life history

Sirenians, including the manatees and dugongs, are large herbivorous mammals that have evolved to an aquatic form since the Eocene epoch. Sirenians have unique adaptations, including dense bone for ballast and a longitudinal hemidiaphragm separating paired lungs (which aid in maintaining a horizontal posture in the water column), species-specific rostral deflection, and unique dentition...
Authors
Robert K. Bonde

The effect of isolation, fragmentation, and population bottlenecks on song structure of a Hawaiian honeycreeper The effect of isolation, fragmentation, and population bottlenecks on song structure of a Hawaiian honeycreeper

Little is known about how important social behaviors such as song vary within and among populations for any of the endemic Hawaiian honeycreepers. Habitat loss and non‐native diseases (e.g., avian malaria) have resulted in isolation and fragmentation of Hawaiian honeycreepers within primarily high elevation forests. In this study, we examined how isolation of Hawai'i ‘amakihi...
Authors
Joshua M. Pang-Ching, Kristina L. Paxton, Eben H. Paxton, Adam A. Pack, Patrick J. Hart
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