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Southwest Biological Science Center

SBSC conducts research in drylands to deliver information that aids land and wildlife management to promote healthy ecosystems. Our work provides tools that are used to mitigate the impacts of drought, wildfire, and invasive species, as well as science that supports Department of the Interior economic and cultural activities including recreation and ranching.

News

Putting Fish on Ice: Designer Flows to Stop an Invasion in Grand Canyon

Putting Fish on Ice: Designer Flows to Stop an Invasion in Grand Canyon

Securing the Nation’s Need for Native Seed

Securing the Nation’s Need for Native Seed

Water is life: USGS remote sensing helps USFWS manage a precious resource

Water is life: USGS remote sensing helps USFWS manage a precious resource

Publications

Short-term ecological effects of solar energy development depend on plant community, soil type, and disturbance intensity

Solar energy is rapidly growing to decarbonize the electrical grid. Maintaining ecosystem function with solar energy generation can be promoted through construction methods that minimize negative impacts on soils and vegetation. However, the disturbance created by less-impactful construction methods at utility-scale solar energy (USSE) facilities and the ecosystem responses remain...
Authors
Claire C Karban, Seth M. Munson, Lara A. Kobelt, Jeffrey E. Lovich

Assessing risk for enhanced cyanobacteria, phytoplankton, and pathogens with changes in water level regime with potential application to Lake Powell and Lake Mead: A mixed methods literature review

Water levels in freshwater reservoirs worldwide are changing due to altered climate, management practices, and increasing human demand for water. In the desert southwestern USA, managers are considering significant changes to reservoir operation strategies and water management in response to consumptive use and ongoing drought. To inform reservoir management decision-making, we reviewed...
Authors
Kathryn K. Hoffman, Bridget Deemer, Mary E. Lofton, Nicole D. Gibney, Cayelan C. Carey

National seed strategy for rehabilitation and restoration progress report 2022 & 2023: Handout

Restoring healthy, resilient, biodiverse ecosystems is crucial for our Nation’s future. Native plant communities provide essential environmental benefits, such as buffering against extreme weather, improving air, soil, and water quality, and habitat for wildlife. However, the limited availability of locally adapted native plants hampers effective ecological restoration. To address this...
Authors
Laura Cecilia Shriver, Claudia Mengelt

Science

USGS Science Supports Management of Invasive Species

Invasive species can harm ecosystems, increase wildfires, damage forests, and outcompete native species. The US Geological Survey's Southwest Biological Science Center conducts research that provides our federal and state partners, cooperators and land managers with the tools, data and strategies to enhance biosecurity management. Scroll down through the information below to read about different...
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USGS Science Supports Management of Invasive Species

Invasive species can harm ecosystems, increase wildfires, damage forests, and outcompete native species. The US Geological Survey's Southwest Biological Science Center conducts research that provides our federal and state partners, cooperators and land managers with the tools, data and strategies to enhance biosecurity management. Scroll down through the information below to read about different...
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The Gemini Solar Project

The United States is developing renewable energy resources, especially solar, at a rapid rate. Although renewable energy development is widely perceived by the public as “green technology,” construction, operation, maintenance, and eventual decommissioning of facilities all have known and potential negative impacts to natural resources, including plant communities and wildlife. This is especially...
link

The Gemini Solar Project

The United States is developing renewable energy resources, especially solar, at a rapid rate. Although renewable energy development is widely perceived by the public as “green technology,” construction, operation, maintenance, and eventual decommissioning of facilities all have known and potential negative impacts to natural resources, including plant communities and wildlife. This is especially...
Learn More

Study Uncovers Migration Patterns of Native Fish in the Colorado River

A study conducted by the USGS provides new insights into the migration patterns of three native fish species in the Colorado River: humpback chub, flannelmouth sucker, and bluehead sucker. This research highlights the importance of understanding native fish population dynamics within the Colorado River ecosystem in Grand Canyon, AZ.
link

Study Uncovers Migration Patterns of Native Fish in the Colorado River

A study conducted by the USGS provides new insights into the migration patterns of three native fish species in the Colorado River: humpback chub, flannelmouth sucker, and bluehead sucker. This research highlights the importance of understanding native fish population dynamics within the Colorado River ecosystem in Grand Canyon, AZ.
Learn More

Multimedia

Wild turkeys run along a path in an eastern US forest
Wild turkeys run along a path in an eastern US forest
Wild turkeys run along a path in an eastern US forest
Map of the Southwest showing level 3 ecoregions and black dots representing the locations of 23 RestoreNet sites in California, Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, and Colorado
RestoreNet Map
RestoreNet Map
An illustration of 3 native fish in the Colorado River: humpback chub, flannelmouth sucker and bluehead sucker
Illustration of 3 native fish in the Colorado River, Grand Canyon: humpback chub, flannelmouth sucker and bluehead sucker
Illustration of 3 native fish in the Colorado River, Grand Canyon: humpback chub, flannelmouth sucker and bluehead sucker
Little Colorado River and Colorado River, near the Little Colorado River confluence
The Little Colorado River (left) and Colorado River (right), near the Little Colorado River confluence
The Little Colorado River (left) and Colorado River (right), near the Little Colorado River confluence
Scenic view of red rock mesas surrounding Canyonlands Research Center in Southern Utah
Canyonlands Research Center
Canyonlands Research Center
Five cattle graze on experimental RestoreNet plots in a southern Utah landscape
RestoreNet livestock treatments
RestoreNet livestock treatments
SBSC research garden hoop houses, with sunflowers in a field in the foreground
Southwest Biological Science Center (SBSC) research garden
Southwest Biological Science Center (SBSC) research garden
A man with curly hair stands in a laboratory filled with large fish tanks and holds a jar with two small fish swimming Dropping the Bass: Stopping the spread of smallmouth bass in Grand Canyon
Dropping the Bass: Stopping the spread of smallmouth bass in Grand Canyon
Desert marigold (Baileya multiradiata) blooming in a monitoring quadrat at a RestoreNet site
Desert marigold (Baileya multiradiata) blooming in a monitoring quadrat at a RestoreNet site
Desert marigold (Baileya multiradiata) blooming in a monitoring quadrat at a RestoreNet site
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