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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

Population-level plasticity in foraging behavior of western gulls (Larus occidentalis) Population-level plasticity in foraging behavior of western gulls (Larus occidentalis)

Background Plasticity in foraging behavior among individuals, or across populations may reduce competition. As a generalist carnivore, western gulls (Larus occidentalis) consume a wide range of marine and terrestrial foods. However, the foraging patterns and habitat selection (ocean or land) of western gulls is not well understood, despite their ubiquity in coastal California. Here, we...
Authors
Scott A. Shaffer, Sue Cockerham, Peter Warzybok, Russell W. Bradley, Jaime Jahncke, Corey A. Clatterbuck, Magali Lucia, Jennifer A. Jelincic, Anne L. Cassell, Emily Kelsey, Josh Adams

Early-career experts essential for planetary sustainability Early-career experts essential for planetary sustainability

Early-career experts can play a fundamental role in achieving planetary sustainability by bridging generational divides and developing novel solutions to complex problems. We argue that intergenerational partnerships and interdisciplinary collaboration among early-career experts will enable emerging sustainability leaders to contribute fully to a sustainable future. We review 16...
Authors
Michelle Lim, Abigail J. Lynch, Alvaro Fernandez-Llamazares, Lenke Balint, Zeenatul Basher, Ivis Chan, Pedro Jaureguiberry, A.A.A. Mohamed, Tuyeni H. Mwampamba, Ignacio Palomo, Patricio Pliscoff, R.A. Salimov, Aibek Samakov, Odirilwe Selomane, Uttam B. Shrestha, Anna A. Sidorovich

A mass balance approach to investigate arsenic cycling in a petroleum plume A mass balance approach to investigate arsenic cycling in a petroleum plume

Natural attenuation of organic contaminants in groundwater can give rise to a series of complex biogeochemical reactions that release secondary contaminants to groundwater. In a crude oil contaminated aquifer, biodegradation of petroleum hydrocarbons is coupled with the reduction of ferric iron (Fe(III)) hydroxides in aquifer sediments. As a result, naturally occurring arsenic (As)...
Authors
Brady A. Ziegler, Madeline E. Schreiber, Isabelle M. Cozzarelli, Ng. G.-H. Crystal

Using carbon dioxide in fisheries and aquatic invasive species management Using carbon dioxide in fisheries and aquatic invasive species management

To restore native fish populations, fisheries programs often depend on active removal of aquatic invasive species. Chemical removal can be an effective method of eliminating aquatic invasive species, but chemicals can induce mortality in nontarget organisms and persist in the environment. Carbon dioxide (CO2) is an emerging alternative to traditional chemical control agents because it...
Authors
Hilary B. Treanor, Andrew M. Ray, Megan J. Layhee, Barnaby J. Watten, Jason A. Gross, Robert E. Gresswell, Molly A. H. Webb

Quantifying animal movement for caching foragers: the path identification index (PII) and cougars, Puma concolor Quantifying animal movement for caching foragers: the path identification index (PII) and cougars, Puma concolor

Relocation studies of animal movement have focused on directed versus area restricted movement, which rely on correlations between step-length and turn angles, along with a degree of stationarity through time to define behavioral states. Although these approaches may work well for grazing foraging strategies in a patchy landscape, species that do not spend a significant amount of time...
Authors
Kirsten E. Ironside, David J. Mattson, Tad Theimer, Brian Jansen, Brandon Holton, Terence R. Arundel, Michael Peters, Joseph O. Sexton, Thomas C. Edwards

Comment on linking the sex difference in PCB concentrations of fish to release of eggs at spawning: Time to jettison the dogma Comment on linking the sex difference in PCB concentrations of fish to release of eggs at spawning: Time to jettison the dogma

For the past 20 years or so, a commonly used explanation in the scientific literature for higher polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) concentrations in male fish than in female fish has been that females lose a high proportion of their PCB body burden by releasing eggs at spawning time, and therefore the females undergo a substantial decrease in their PCB concentration immediately after...
Authors
Charles P. Madenjian

Rapid 3-week transition from migration to incubation in a female Roseate Tern (Sterna dougallii) Rapid 3-week transition from migration to incubation in a female Roseate Tern (Sterna dougallii)

A female Roseate Tern that staged in Puerto Rico on 10 May 2008 on its migration north was first observed in the nesting area at Bird Island, Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts on 21 May. It was incubating a complete clutch of two eggs by 1 June and likely had initiated laying within 20 days of having been in Puerto Rico.
Authors
Jeffrey A. Spendelow

Status and conservation of Yellowstone cutthroat trout in the Greater Yellowstone Area Status and conservation of Yellowstone cutthroat trout in the Greater Yellowstone Area

No abstract available.
Authors
Robert K. Al-Chokhachy, Bradley Shepard, Jason Burckhardt, Scott Opitz, Dan Garren, Todd M. Koel, Lee M. Nelson

Sea turtles, light pollution, and citizen science: A preliminary report Sea turtles, light pollution, and citizen science: A preliminary report

Sea turtles are an important ecological resource for Gulf Islands National Seashore’s (Gulf Islands) waters and shorelines. Regionally, sea turtles face anthropogenic threats from situations such as entanglement in fishing gear and ingestion of marine debris, as well as possible changes in sex ratios due to increasing temperatures related to human-induced global warming. Locally, light...
Authors
Heather Afford, Susan Teel, Mark Nicholas, Thomas R. Stanley, Jeremy White

Possible behavioural, energetic and demographic effects of displacement of red-throated divers Possible behavioural, energetic and demographic effects of displacement of red-throated divers

This report comprises the main points of discussion and agreement during a workshop, held in Edinburgh in May 2017, to discuss how displacement might affect individuals and the Red-throated diver population; with additional information added by the scientists following the workshop.
Authors
Volker Dierschke, Robert W. Furness, Carrie E. Gray, Ib Krag Petersen, Joel A. Schmutz, Ramunas Zydelis, Francis Daunt

Developing a translational ecology workforce Developing a translational ecology workforce

We define a translational ecologist as a professional ecologist with diverse disciplinary expertise and skill sets, as well as a suitable personal disposition, who engages across social, professional, and disciplinary boundaries to partner with decision makers to achieve practical environmental solutions. Becoming a translational ecologist requires specific attention to obtaining...
Authors
Mark W. Schwartz, J. Kevin Hiers, Frank W. Davis, Gregg Garfin, Stephen T. Jackson, Adam J. Terando, Connie A. Woodhouse, Toni Lyn Morelli, Matthew A. Williamson, Mark W. Brunson
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