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: 42884
Density-driven free-convection model for isotopically fractionated geogenic nitrate in sabkha brine Density-driven free-convection model for isotopically fractionated geogenic nitrate in sabkha brine
Subsurface brines with high nitrate (NO3−) concentration are common in desert environments as atmospheric nitrogen is concentrated by the evaporation of precipitation and little nitrogen uptake. However, in addition to having an elevated mean concentration of ∼525 mg/L (as N), NO3− in the coastal sabkhas of Abu Dhabi is enriched in 15N (mean δ15N ∼17‰), which is an enigma. A NO3− solute...
Authors
Warren W. Wood, J.K. Bohlke
Reassessment of the Upper Fremont Glacier ice-core chronologies by synchronizing of ice-core-water isotopes to a nearby tree-ring chronology Reassessment of the Upper Fremont Glacier ice-core chronologies by synchronizing of ice-core-water isotopes to a nearby tree-ring chronology
The Upper Fremont Glacier (UFG), Wyoming, is one of the few continental glaciers in the contiguous United States known to preserve environmental and climate records spanning recent centuries. A pair of ice cores taken from UFG have been studied extensively to document changes in climate and industrial pollution (most notably, mid-19th century increases in mercury pollution). Fundamental...
Authors
Nathan J. Chellman, Joseph R. McConnell, Monica Arienzo, Gregory T. Pederson, Sarah Aarons, Adam Csank
Variable effects of climate on forest growth in relation to climate extremes, disturbance, and forest dynamics Variable effects of climate on forest growth in relation to climate extremes, disturbance, and forest dynamics
Changes in the frequency, duration, and severity of climate extremes are forecast to occur under global climate change. The impacts of climate extremes on forest productivity and health remain difficult to predict due to potential interactions with disturbance events and forest dynamics—changes in forest stand composition, density, size and age structure over time. Such interactions may...
Authors
Malcolm S. Itter, Andrew O. Finley, Anthony W. D’Amato, Jane R. Foster, John B. Bradford
Amphibian conservation: clarifications to comments from Andreone Amphibian conservation: clarifications to comments from Andreone
We appreciate the comments from Andreone (2016) regarding our proposed alternative strategy for addressing the amphibian crisis. Andreone recognizes the utility of an Incident Command System approach but doubts the feasibility of implementation at an international level. We stated in our original article, however, that ‘the feasibility of our suggestion is debatable, but our point is...
Authors
Erin L. Muths, Robert N. Fisher
Science framework for conservation and restoration of the sagebrush biome: Linking the Department of the Interior’s Integrated Rangeland Fire Management Strategy to long-term strategic conservation actions, Part 1. Science basis and applications Science framework for conservation and restoration of the sagebrush biome: Linking the Department of the Interior’s Integrated Rangeland Fire Management Strategy to long-term strategic conservation actions, Part 1. Science basis and applications
The Science Framework is intended to link the Department of the Interior’s Integrated Rangeland Fire Management Strategy with long-term strategic conservation actions in the sagebrush biome. The Science Framework provides a multiscale approach for prioritizing areas for management and determining effective management strategies within the sagebrush biome. The emphasis is on sagebrush...
Authors
Jeanne C. Chambers, Jeffrey L. Beck, John B. Bradford, Jared Bybee, Steve Campbell, John Carlson, Thomas J Christiansen, Karen J. Clause, Gail Collins, Michele R. Crist, Jonathan B. Dinkins, Kevin Doherty, Fred Edwards, Shawn Espinosa, Kathleen A. Griffin, Paul Griffin, Jessica R. Haas, Steve E. Hanser, Douglas W. Havlina, Kenneth F. Henke, Jacob D. Hennig, Linda A Joyce, Francis F. Kilkenny, Sarah M Kulpa, Laurie L Kurth, Jeremy D Maestas, Mary E. Manning, Kenneth E. Mayer, Brian A. Mealor, Clinton McCarthy, Mike Pellant, Marco A. Perea, Karen L. Prentice, David A. Pyke, Lief A. Wiechman, Amarina Wuenschel
Rapid evolution meets invasive species control: The potential for pesticide resistance in sea lamprey Rapid evolution meets invasive species control: The potential for pesticide resistance in sea lamprey
Rapid evolution of pest, pathogen and wildlife populations can have undesirable effects; for example, when insects evolve resistance to pesticides or fishes evolve smaller body size in response to harvest. A destructive invasive species in the Laurentian Great Lakes, the sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) has been controlled with the pesticide 3-trifluoromethyl-4-nitrophenol (TFM) since...
Authors
Erin S. Dunlop, Robert L. McLaughlin, Jean V. Adams, Michael L. Jones, Oana Birceanu, Mark R. Christie, Lori A. Criger, Julia Hinderer, Robert M. Hollingworth, Nicholas S. Johnson, Stephen R. Lantz, Weiming Li, James R. Miller, Bruce J. Morrison, David Mota-Sanchez, Andrew M. Muir, Maria S. Sepulveda, Todd B. Steeves, Lisa Walter, Erin Westman, Isaac Wirgin, Michael P. Wilkie
Management of plains cottonwood at Theodore Roosevelt National Park, North Dakota Management of plains cottonwood at Theodore Roosevelt National Park, North Dakota
Establishment of cottonwood trees is driven by flood-induced channel migration, which provides the new surfaces necessary for successful germination and survival. Along the Little Missouri River the largest floods typically result from snowmelt in March or April. Seed release occurs in early summer, and seedlings usually germinate in moist, open locations on point bars at relatively low...
Authors
Jonathan M. Friedman, Eleanor R. Griffin
Evaluation of harvest and information needs for North American sea ducks Evaluation of harvest and information needs for North American sea ducks
Wildlife managers routinely seek to establish sustainable limits of sport harvest or other regulated forms of take while confronted with considerable uncertainty. A growing body of ecological research focuses on methods to describe and account for uncertainty in management decision-making and to prioritize research and monitoring investments to reduce the most influential uncertainties...
Authors
Mark D. Koneff, Guthrie S. Zimmerman, Chris P. Dwyer, Kathleen K. Fleming, Paul I. Padding, Patrick K. Devers, Fred A. Johnson, Michael C. Runge, Anthony J. Roberts
Fracture propagation and stability of ice shelves governed by ice shelf heterogeneity Fracture propagation and stability of ice shelves governed by ice shelf heterogeneity
Tabular iceberg calving and ice shelf retreat occurs after full‐thickness fractures, known as rifts, propagate across an ice shelf. A quickly evolving rift signals a threat to the stability of Larsen C, the Antarctic Peninsula's largest ice shelf. Here we reveal the influence of ice shelf heterogeneity on the growth of this rift, with implications that challenge existing notions of ice...
Authors
Chris Borstad, Daniel Mcgrath, Allen Pope
Octocoral diseases in a changing ocean Octocoral diseases in a changing ocean
Octocorals (Cnidaria, Octocorallia) constitute a geographically widely distributed and common group of marine invertebrates commonly referred to as “soft-corals,” “sea fans,” “horny corals,” “sea feathers,” and “sea plumes.” They are found from shallow coastal habitats to mesophotic and abyssal depths. Octocorals are important members of most Atlantic-Caribbean, Indo-Pacific, and...
Authors
Ernesto Weil, Caroline S. Rogers, Aldo Croquer
A window of opportunity for climate-change adaptation: Easing tree mortality by reducing forest basal area A window of opportunity for climate-change adaptation: Easing tree mortality by reducing forest basal area
Increasing aridity as a result of climate change is expected to exacerbate tree mortality. Reducing forest basal area – the cross-sectional area of tree stems within a given ground area – can decrease tree competition, which may reduce drought-induced tree mortality. However, neither the magnitude of expected mortality increases, nor the potential effectiveness of basal area reduction...
Authors
John B. Bradford, David M. Bell
Disturbance automated reference toolset (DART): Assessing patterns in ecological recovery from energy development on the Colorado Plateau Disturbance automated reference toolset (DART): Assessing patterns in ecological recovery from energy development on the Colorado Plateau
A new disturbance automated reference toolset (DART) was developed to monitor human land surface impacts using soil-type and ecological context. DART identifies reference areas with similar soils, topography, and geology; and compares the disturbance condition to the reference area condition using a quantile-based approach based on a satellite vegetation index. DART was able to represent...
Authors
Travis W. Nauman, Michael C. Duniway, Miguel L. Villarreal, Travis B. Poitras