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: 42704
Climate legacy and lag effects on dryland plant communities in the southwestern U.S. Climate legacy and lag effects on dryland plant communities in the southwestern U.S.
Climate change effects on vegetation will likely be strong in the southwestern U.S., which is projected to experience large increases in temperature and changes in precipitation. Plant communities in the southwestern U.S. may be particularly vulnerable to climate change as the productivity of many plant species is strongly water-limited. This study examines the relationship between...
Authors
Erin Bunting, Seth M. Munson, Miguel L. Villarreal
Temporal variability of foliar nutrients: responses to nitrogen deposition and prescribed fire in a temperate steppe Temporal variability of foliar nutrients: responses to nitrogen deposition and prescribed fire in a temperate steppe
Plant nutrient concentrations and stoichiometry drive fundamental ecosystem processes, with important implications for primary production, diversity, and ecosystem sustainability. While a range of evidence exists regarding how plant nutrients vary across spatial scales, our understanding of their temporal variation remains less well understood. Nevertheless, we know nutrients regulate...
Authors
Xiao-Tao Lu, Sasha C. Reed, Shuang-Li Hou, Yan-Yu Hu, Hai-Wei Wei, Fu-Mei Lu, Qiang Cui, Xing Guo Han
The Partners in Flight handbook on species assessment Version 2017 The Partners in Flight handbook on species assessment Version 2017
Partners in Flight (PIF) is a cooperative venture of federal, state, provincial, and territorial agencies, industry, non-governmental organizations, researchers, and many others whose common goal is the conservation of North American birds (www.partnersinflight.org). While PIF has focused primarily on landbirds, it works in conjunction with other bird partners to promote coordinated...
Authors
Arvind O. Panjabi, Peter J. Blancher, Wendy E. Easton, Jessica C. Stanton, Dean W. Demarest, Randy Dettmers, Kenneth V. Rosenberg
Spatial variation in polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon exposure in Barrow's goldeneye (Bucephala islandica) in coastal British Columbia Spatial variation in polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon exposure in Barrow's goldeneye (Bucephala islandica) in coastal British Columbia
Barrow's goldeneyes are sea ducks that winter throughout coastal British Columbia (BC). Their diet consists primarily of intertidal blue mussels, which can accumulate PAHs; accordingly, goldeneyes may be susceptible to exposure through contaminated prey. In 2014/15, we examined total PAH concentrations in mussels from undeveloped and developed coastal areas of BC. At those same sites, we...
Authors
Megan Willie, Daniel Esler, W. Sean Boyd, Philip Molloy, Ronald C. Ydenberg
Population trends and distribution of Common Murre Uria aalge colonies in Washington, 1996-2015 Population trends and distribution of Common Murre Uria aalge colonies in Washington, 1996-2015
Periodic assessments of population trends and changes in spatial distribution are valuable for managing marine birds and their breeding habitats, particularly when evaluating long-term response to threats such as oil spills, predation pressure, and changing ocean conditions. We evaluated recent trends in abundance and distribution of the Common Murre Uria aalge within Copalis, Quillayute...
Authors
Susan M Thomas, James E. Lyons
Migratory behavior of adult sea lamprey and cumulative passage performance through four fishways Migratory behavior of adult sea lamprey and cumulative passage performance through four fishways
This article describes a study of PIT-tagged sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) ascending four fishways comprising three designs at two dams on the Connecticut River, USA. Migration between dams was rapid (median migration rate = 23 km·day−1). Movement through the fishways was much slower, however (median = 0.02–0.33 km·day−1). Overall delay at dams was substantial (median = 13.6–14.6 days...
Authors
Theodore R. Castro-Santos, Xiaotao Shi, Alexander Haro
Long-term forest productivity Long-term forest productivity
No abstract available.
Authors
Bernard T. Bormann, Steven S. Perakis, Robyn Darbyshire, Jeff Hatten
Aquatic-riparian systems Aquatic-riparian systems
No abstract available.
Authors
Deanna H. Olson, Sherri L. Johnson, Paul D. Anderson, Brooke E. Penaluna, Jason B. Dunham
Continued feeding on Diporeia by deepwater sculpin in Lake Huron Continued feeding on Diporeia by deepwater sculpin in Lake Huron
Monitoring changes in diets of fish is essential to understanding how food web dynamics respond to changes in native prey abundances. In the Great Lakes, Diporeia, a benthic macroinvertebrate and primary food of native benthivores, declined following the introduction of invasive Dreissena mussels and these changes were reflected in fish diets. We examined the diets of deepwater sculpin
Authors
Patricia A. Thompson, Edward F. Roseman, Kevin M. Keeler, Timothy P. O’Brien, Dustin Bowser
Identification of two novel reassortant avian influenza a (H5N6) viruses in whooper swans in Korea, 2016 Identification of two novel reassortant avian influenza a (H5N6) viruses in whooper swans in Korea, 2016
Background On November 20, 2016 two novel strains of H5N6 highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAIVs) were isolated from three whooper swans (Cygnus cygnus) at Gangjin Bay in South Jeolla province, South Korea. Identification of HPAIVs in wild birds is significant as there is a potential risk of transmission of these viruses to poultry and humans.Results Phylogenetic analysis...
Authors
Jipseol Jeong, Chanjin Woo, S. Ip, Injung An, Youngsik Kim, Kwanghee Lee, Seong-Deok Jo, Kidong Son, Saemi Lee, Jae-Ku Oem, Seung-Jun Wang, Yongkwan Kim, Jeonghwa Shin, Jonathan M. Sleeman, Weonhwa Jheong
Managing the livestock– Wildlife interface on rangelands Managing the livestock– Wildlife interface on rangelands
On rangelands the livestock–wildlife interface is mostly characterized by management actions aimed at controlling problems associated with competition, disease, and depredation. Wildlife communities (especially the large vertebrate species) are typically incompatible with agricultural development because the opportunity costs of wildlife conservation are unaffordable except in arid and...
Authors
Johan T. du Toit, Paul C. Cross, Marion Valeix
Cessation of oil exposure in harlequin ducks after the Exxon Valdez oil spill: Cytochrome P4501A biomarker evidence Cessation of oil exposure in harlequin ducks after the Exxon Valdez oil spill: Cytochrome P4501A biomarker evidence
The authors quantified hepatic hydrocarbon-inducible cytochrome P4501A (CYP1A) expression, as ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase (EROD) activity, in wintering harlequin ducks (Histrionicus histrionicus) captured in Prince William Sound, Alaska (USA), during 2011, 2013, and 2014 (22–25 yr following the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill). Average EROD activity was compared between birds from areas...
Authors
Daniel Esler, Brenda E. Ballachey, Lizabeth Bowen, A. Keith Miles, Rian D. Dickson, John D. Henderson