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USGS researchers, in close coordination with natural resource managers, study Living Coastal and Marine Resources (LCMRs), which include threatened and endangered species listed under the Endangered Species Act; trust species that are protected by law; sensitive species that are declining, rare, or uncommon; and species of management concern that warrant management or conservation attention.  Many of these species are at-risk, have economic or intrinsic value, or are overly abundant and are subject to management intervention.

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North Breton Island monitoring

Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) Program-Louisiana Outer Coast Restoration: North Breton Island Component-Monitoring and Adaptive Management

In order to enhance habitat for nesting Brown Pelicans, terns, Black Skimmers, and gulls, the USFWS has contracted with USGS to conduct project monitoring on North Breton Island from FY23 to FY31. Monitoring conducted by USGS will facilitate evaluation of habitat characteristics and determine restoration success or need for adaptive management.
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St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center , Gulf of Mexico
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Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) Program-Louisiana Outer Coast Restoration: North Breton Island Component-Monitoring and Adaptive Management

In order to enhance habitat for nesting Brown Pelicans, terns, Black Skimmers, and gulls, the USFWS has contracted with USGS to conduct project monitoring on North Breton Island from FY23 to FY31. Monitoring conducted by USGS will facilitate evaluation of habitat characteristics and determine restoration success or need for adaptive management.
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Spartina patens-dominated high marsh

Mapping High Marsh along the Northern Gulf of Mexico Coast

USGS is collaborating with Mississippi State University to investigate the effects of fire on Gulf of Mexico marshes. The project will include mapping high marsh and monitoring black rail, yellow rail, and mottled duck responses to prescribed fire application.
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Land Management Research Program, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center , Gulf of Mexico
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Mapping High Marsh along the Northern Gulf of Mexico Coast

USGS is collaborating with Mississippi State University to investigate the effects of fire on Gulf of Mexico marshes. The project will include mapping high marsh and monitoring black rail, yellow rail, and mottled duck responses to prescribed fire application.
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Loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta)

Fine-Scale Dive Profiles and Activity Patterns of Sea Turtles in the Gulf of Mexico

Researchers are developing acceleration data logger pop-off packages that can be affixed to sea turtles to collect behavioral patterns of diving, surfacing, and general activity levels.
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Ecosystems Mission Area, Species Management Research Program, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center , Gulf of Mexico
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Fine-Scale Dive Profiles and Activity Patterns of Sea Turtles in the Gulf of Mexico

Researchers are developing acceleration data logger pop-off packages that can be affixed to sea turtles to collect behavioral patterns of diving, surfacing, and general activity levels.
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Mottled duck

Identification of Hydrologic Controls on Coastal Spartina patens Marshes and Optimal Hydrological Conditions for Sustainable Mottled Duck Habitat

Mottled ducks rely on the coastal marshes of the Texas Chenier Plain, which are considered among the most critically endangered habitats in the United States. USGS scientists are evaluating what might be contributing to the degradation of high-quality mottled duck habitat to better understand the causes of habitat loss and subsequently mitigate those losses.
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Ecosystems Mission Area, Species Management Research Program, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center , Gulf of Mexico
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Identification of Hydrologic Controls on Coastal Spartina patens Marshes and Optimal Hydrological Conditions for Sustainable Mottled Duck Habitat

Mottled ducks rely on the coastal marshes of the Texas Chenier Plain, which are considered among the most critically endangered habitats in the United States. USGS scientists are evaluating what might be contributing to the degradation of high-quality mottled duck habitat to better understand the causes of habitat loss and subsequently mitigate those losses.
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A nesting loggerhead carrying a satellite tag on the St. Joseph Peninsula, FL

Sea Turtle Movement and Habitat Use in the Northern Gulf of Mexico

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) uses trawling to capture and relocate live sea turtles away from dredging locations to minimize the risk of turtle entrainment. These incidental turtle captures provide a unique opportunity to fill critical data gaps for difficult to capture life-stages of marine turtles.
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Ecosystems Mission Area, Land Management Research Program, Species Management Research Program, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center , Gulf of Mexico
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Sea Turtle Movement and Habitat Use in the Northern Gulf of Mexico

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) uses trawling to capture and relocate live sea turtles away from dredging locations to minimize the risk of turtle entrainment. These incidental turtle captures provide a unique opportunity to fill critical data gaps for difficult to capture life-stages of marine turtles.
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Photo identification of manatees

Manatee Distribution and Habitat Use in the Northern Gulf of Mexico

USGS works with partners to assess manatee distribution and habitat use throughout the Northern Gulf of Mexico.
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Species Management Research Program, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center , Gulf of Mexico
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Manatee Distribution and Habitat Use in the Northern Gulf of Mexico

USGS works with partners to assess manatee distribution and habitat use throughout the Northern Gulf of Mexico.
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Millions of landbirds migrate through the Gulf of Mexico

Modeling Landscape-Scale Habitat Relations for Landbirds During Migration: Science Support for the Gulf Coast Joint Venture

USGS uses weather surveillance radar data and landscape-scale habitat metrics to model bird-habitat connections along the western coast of the Gulf of Mexico.
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Ecosystems Mission Area, Land Management Research Program, Species Management Research Program, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center , Gulf of Mexico
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Modeling Landscape-Scale Habitat Relations for Landbirds During Migration: Science Support for the Gulf Coast Joint Venture

USGS uses weather surveillance radar data and landscape-scale habitat metrics to model bird-habitat connections along the western coast of the Gulf of Mexico.
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piping plover

Monitoring Effects of Barrier Island Restoration on Piping Plovers in Louisiana

The federally threatened piping plover relies on sand-beach habitat year-round for nesting, foraging, and roosting, habitat that is particularly vulnerable to loss and degradation from coastal development, recreation activities, erosion, and sea-level rise.
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Ecosystems Mission Area, Land Management Research Program, Species Management Research Program, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center , Gulf of Mexico, Hurricanes
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Monitoring Effects of Barrier Island Restoration on Piping Plovers in Louisiana

The federally threatened piping plover relies on sand-beach habitat year-round for nesting, foraging, and roosting, habitat that is particularly vulnerable to loss and degradation from coastal development, recreation activities, erosion, and sea-level rise.
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