Wetland Ecology

WARC will assess Cape Sable seaside sparrow population response and viability under different management and habitat change scenarios. The USGS EverSparrow model will be run on future scenarios, and differences in the predicted probability of presence and the efficacy of varying conservation strategies will be evaluated.

USGS scientists have developed and optimized python-specific eDNA markers to detect Burmese pythons from water samples taken from the Florida Everglades. This development may aid in the identification of possible waterways used as corridors for northward expansion of this invasive species.

USGS researchers will define the range of elevation targets supporting optimal plant performance and oil strength by identifying the lower and upper thresholds of marsh conversion, and characterize ecosystem development of restored marshes over time to identify the lifetime and sustainability of restored marsh during sea-level rise. This work addresses priority science needs to improve restoration...

USGS researchers are collecting information about lower trophic levels in Barataria Estuary to develop a long-term monitoring plan.

The USGS Joint Ecosystem Modeling team will use Bayesian networks to build a spatially explicit Everglades Vulnerability Analysis module based on current knowledge and existing data on fish density and biomass trends on the landscape.

USGS researchers will quantify wetland change and wetland vegetation community type change through the analyses of aerial vegetation survey data and investigate potential relationships between Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and marsh elevation change.

Researchers at WARC will use data and models to produce probabilistic maps of current and future wetland inundation, coastal wetland extent, and coastal and wetland trangression.

USGS researchers will examine how hydrology and landscape vegetation changes impact Cape Sable Seaside Sparrow survival and population growth.

USGS will collaborate with the Miccosukee and Seminole Tribes to co-design a dashboard mock-up for a real-time web application that monitors tree island health in the Everglades.

USGS will compare the EverForecast hydrologic forecast, the South Florida Water Management District's Position Analysis, and observed water level recordings from gages located across the Everglades landscape to examine which forecast performs better during the wet and dry seasons; wet, dry, or average years; or in different areas of the Everglades.

In the summer of 2021, instrumented platforms were deployed at Seven Mile Island Living Laboratory, New Jersey to conduct time series measurements of tidal velocity, turbidity, surface elevation, sediment concentration, and suspended sediment characteristics. The collected data will be used to provide decision support to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as they plan dredging activities in the Gulf...

Wetland and Aquatic Research Center and Fort Collins Science Center are coordinating a long-term, landscape-scale Burmese python research strategy for South Florida.