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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: 43015

Improving ecological restoration to curb biotic invasion - A practical guide Improving ecological restoration to curb biotic invasion - A practical guide

Common practices for invasive species control and management include physical, chemical, and biological approaches. The first two approaches have clear limitations and may lead to unintended (negative) consequences, unless carefully planned and implemented. For example, physical removal rarely completely eradicates the targeted invasive species and can cause disturbances that facilitate...
Authors
Qinfeng Guo, Dale G. Brockway, Diane L. Larson, Deli Wang, Hai Ren

Environmental and ecological conditions at Arctic breeding sites have limited effects on true survival rates of adult shorebirds Environmental and ecological conditions at Arctic breeding sites have limited effects on true survival rates of adult shorebirds

Many Arctic shorebird populations are declining, and quantifying adult survival and the effects of anthropogenic factors is a crucial step toward a better understanding of population dynamics. We used a recently developed, spatially explicit Cormack–Jolly–Seber model in a Bayesian framework to obtain broad-scale estimates of true annual survival rates for 6 species of shorebirds at 9...
Authors
Emily L. Weiser, Richard B. Lanctot, Stephen C. Brown, H. River Gates, Rebecca L. Bentzen, Joel Bety, Megan L. Boldenow, Willow B. English, Samantha E. Franks, Laura Koloski, Eunbi Kwon, Jean-François Lamarre, David B. Lank, Joseph R. Liebezeit, Laura McKinnon, Erica Nol, Jennie Rausch, Sarah T. Saalfeld, Nathan R. Senner, David H. Ward, Paul F. Wood, Brett K. Sandercock

Batrachochytrium salamandriovrans (Bsal) in Appalachia—Using scenario building to proactively prepare for a wildlife disease outbreak caused by an invasive amphibian chytrid fungus Batrachochytrium salamandriovrans (Bsal) in Appalachia—Using scenario building to proactively prepare for a wildlife disease outbreak caused by an invasive amphibian chytrid fungus

Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans (Bsal), a pathogenic chytrid fungus, is nonnative to the United States and poses a disease threat to vulnerable amphibian hosts. The Bsal fungus may lead to increases in threatened, endangered, and sensitive status listings at State, Tribal, and Federal levels, resulting in financial costs associated with implementing the Endangered Species Act of 1973...
Authors
M. Camille Hopkins, M. J. Adams, P.E. Super, D.H. Olson, C.R. Hickman, P. English, L. Sprague, I.B. Maska, A.B. Pennaz, K. A. Ludwig

Elk research efforts Elk research efforts

Presented the history of the NC elk herd and summarized early research to determine the population dispersal and mortality rates, assess habitat use, and evaluate elk’s impact on the national park to estimate the probability of success in establishing a permanent elk population in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GSMNP). Gave an overview of a fiveyear elk population study...
Authors
Joseph D. Clark

Holy flux: Spatial and temporal variation in massive pulses of emerging insect biomass from western U.S. rivers Holy flux: Spatial and temporal variation in massive pulses of emerging insect biomass from western U.S. rivers

The river stonefly, Pteronarcys californica (aka salmonfly), is an iconic insect in rivers of western North America due to its large size and its support of economically important species like wild trout (Nehring et al. 2011). Their emergence generates a large economic subsidy to local communities, as anglers from around the world travel to western rivers to fish the salmonfly “hatch” (e...
Authors
David Walters, Jeff S. Wesner, Robert E. Zuellig, Dan A. Kowalski, Matt C. Kondratieff

Quantifying postfire aeolian sediment transport using rare earth element tracers Quantifying postfire aeolian sediment transport using rare earth element tracers

Grasslands, which provide fundamental ecosystem services in many arid and semiarid regions of the world, are undergoing rapid increases in fire activity and are highly susceptible to postfire-accelerated soil erosion by wind. A quantitative assessment of physical processes that integrates fire-wind erosion feedbacks is therefore needed relative to vegetation change, soil biogeochemical...
Authors
David Dukes, Howell B. Gonzales, Sujith Ravi, David E. Grandstaff, R. Scott Van Pelt, Junran Li, Guan Wang, Joel B. Sankey

Rapid colonization of a Hawaiian restoration forest by a diverse avian community Rapid colonization of a Hawaiian restoration forest by a diverse avian community

Deforestation of tropical forests has led to widespread loss and extirpation of forest bird species around the world, including the Hawaiian Islands which have experienced a dramatic loss of forests over the last 200–800 years. Given the important role birds play in forest ecosystem functions via seed dispersal and pollination, a bird community's response to forest restoration is an...
Authors
Eben H. Paxton, Stephanie G. Yelenik, Tracy E. Borneman, Eli Rose, Richard J. Camp, Steve J. Kendall

Bioenergetic evaluation of diel vertical migration by bull trout (Salvelinus confluentus) in a thermally stratified reservoir Bioenergetic evaluation of diel vertical migration by bull trout (Salvelinus confluentus) in a thermally stratified reservoir

Many species living in deeper lentic ecosystems exhibit daily movements that cycle through the water column, generally referred to as diel vertical migration (DVM). In this study, we applied bioenergetics modelling to evaluate growth as a hypothesis to explain DVM by bull trout (Salvelinus confluentus) in a thermally stratified reservoir (Ross Lake, WA, USA) during the peak of thermal
Authors
Madeleine Eckmann, Jason B. Dunham, Edward J. Connor, Carmen A. Welch

Agriculture Agriculture

Agricultural production is a fundamental activity conducted on 45% of the U.S. land area, 55% of Mexico’s land area, and 7% of Canada’s land area (World Bank 2016). Because of this vast spatial extent and the strong role that land management plays in how agricultural ecosystems function, agricultural lands and activities represent a large portion of the North American carbon budget...
Authors
Alexander N. Hristov, Jane M. F. Johnson, Charles W. Rice, Molly E. Brown, Richard T. Conant, Stephen J. Del Grosso, Noel P. Gurwick, C. Alan Rotz, Upendra M. Sainju, R. Howard Skinner, Tristram O. West, Benjamin R. K. Runkle, Henry Janzen, Sasha C. Reed, Nancy Cavallaro, Gyami Shrestha

Lake trout spawning and habitat assessment at Stony Island Reef Lake trout spawning and habitat assessment at Stony Island Reef

Lake trout stocking began in the 1970s as part of a binational effort to restore a self-sustaining population of lake trout in Lake Ontario. Despite 48 years of restoration stocking, lake trout in Lake Ontario have not reestablished a self-sustaining population. Spawning surveys done at Stony Island Reef (SIR) in eastern Lake Ontario in 1987 and 1989 documented lake trout egg deposition...
Authors
Stacy Furgal, Brian F. Lantry, Brian Weidel, John M. Farrell, Dimitry Gorsky, Zy Biesinger

The Southern Appalachian Brook Trout management conundrum: What should restoration look like in the 21st Century? The Southern Appalachian Brook Trout management conundrum: What should restoration look like in the 21st Century?

Brook Trout Salvelinus fontinalis in the southern Appalachian portion of their range have been isolated in remote headwater systems for millennia. Recent genetic investigations indicate extremely low allelic diversity, heterozygosity and effective population sizes in many streams. In populations restored using multiple source stocks, limited introgression has been observed despite source...
Authors
Matt A. Kulp, Shawna Mitchell, David C. Kazyak, Bernard R. Kuhajda, Jason Henegar, T. Casey Weathers, Anna George, Joshua R. Ennen, Tim King
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