Skip to main content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

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: 42702

Genetic sequencing of Attwater's prairie chicken avian poxvirus and evaluation of its potential role in reticuloendotheliosis virus outbreaks Genetic sequencing of Attwater's prairie chicken avian poxvirus and evaluation of its potential role in reticuloendotheliosis virus outbreaks

Efforts to breed Attwater's prairie chickens (APC; Tympanuchus cupido attwateri) in captivity to supplement wild populations of this endangered bird have been negatively affected by infections with Avipoxvirus and reticuloendotheliosis virus (REV). Because REV can be integrated into the genome of fowlpox virus (FPV) and may be transmitted in that manner, identifying the source of avipox...
Authors
Erik K. Hofmeister, Fiona Antigoni Georgousi, Melissa Lund, Pam Ferro, Joe Flanagan, Holly Haefele, Mike Morrow

Annual recurrences of viral hemorrhagic septicemia epizootics in age 0 Pacific herring Clupea pallasii Valenciennes, 1847 Annual recurrences of viral hemorrhagic septicemia epizootics in age 0 Pacific herring Clupea pallasii Valenciennes, 1847

Throughout a 20 year biosurveillance period, viral hemorrhagic septicemia virus was isolated in low titers from only 6/7355 opportunistically sampled adult Pacific herring, reflecting the typical endemic phase of the disease when the virus persists covertly. However, more focused surveillance efforts identified the presence of disease hot spots occurring among juvenile life history...
Authors
Paul Hershberger, Theodore R. Meyers, Jacob L. Gregg, Maya Groner, Sophie Amanda Hall, Hiruni T. Jayasekera, Ashley MacKenzie, Abigail S. Neat, Ella N. Piatt, Kyle A. Garver

Strandlines from large floods on the Colorado River in Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona Strandlines from large floods on the Colorado River in Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona

Strandlines of peak-stage indicators (such as driftwood logs, woody debris, and trash) provide valuable data for understanding the maximum stage and extent of inundation during floods. A series of seven strandlines have been preserved along the Colorado River in Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, USA. A survey and analysis of these strandlines was completed from the Colorado River at...
Authors
Thomas A. Sabol, Ronald E. Griffiths, David J. Topping, Erich R. Mueller, Robert B. Tusso, Joseph E. Hazel

Replacement of the typical artedi form of Coregonus artedi in Lake Huron by endemic shallow-water Ciscoes, including putative hybrids Replacement of the typical artedi form of Coregonus artedi in Lake Huron by endemic shallow-water Ciscoes, including putative hybrids

Various ecomorphs of shallow-water Cisco Coregonus artedi were the dominant fish planktivores in each of the Great Lakes until invasive species and over fishing resulted in extirpations and extinctions. In this paper we describe the present morphological diversity and distribution of shallow-water Ciscoes in each of Lake Huron’s three basins: the main basin, Georgian Bay, and North...
Authors
Randy L. Eshenroder, Yu-Chun Kao, Timothy P. O’Brien, Chris M. Olds, Chris L. Davis, Alexander T. Duncan

Adaptive two-stage inverse sampling design to estimate density, abundance, and occupancy of rare and clustered populations Adaptive two-stage inverse sampling design to estimate density, abundance, and occupancy of rare and clustered populations

Sampling rare and clustered populations is challenging because of the effort required to find rare units. Heuristically, a practitioner would prefer to discontinue sampling in areas where rare units of interest are apparently extremely sparse or absent. We take advantage of the characteristics of inverse sampling to adaptively inform practitioners when it is efficient to move on to...
Authors
Mohammad Salehi, David R. Smith

Opportunities and challenges of macrogenetic studies Opportunities and challenges of macrogenetic studies

The rapidly emerging field of macrogenetics focuses on analysing publicly accessible genetic datasets from thousands of species to explore large-scale patterns and predictors of intraspecific genetic variation. Facilitated by advances in evolutionary biology, technology, data infrastructure, statistics and open science, macrogenetics addresses core evolutionary hypotheses (such as...
Authors
Deborah M. Leigh, Charles B. van Rees, Katie L Millette, Martin F Breed, Chloé Schmidt, Laura D. Bertola, Brian K. Hand, Margaret Hunter, Evelyn L. Jensen, Francine Kershaw, Libby Liggins, Gordon Luikart, Stephanie Manel, Joachim Mergeay, Joshua M. Miller, Gernot Segelbacher, Sean M. Hoban, Ivan Paz-Vinas

Incorporating antenna detections into abundance estimates of fish Incorporating antenna detections into abundance estimates of fish

Autonomous passive integrated transponder (PIT) tag antennas are commonly used to detect fish marked with PIT tags but cannot detect unmarked fish, creating challenges for abundance estimation. Here we describe an approach to estimate abundance from paired physical capture and antenna detection data in closed and open mark-recapture models. Additionally, for open models, we develop an...
Authors
Maria C. Dzul, Charles Yackulic, William L. Kendall, Dana L. Winkelman, Mary M Conner, Michael D. Yard

Response to “Connectivity and pore accessibility in models of soil carbon cycling” Response to “Connectivity and pore accessibility in models of soil carbon cycling”

Here we respond to Baveye and colleagues' recent critique of our PROMISE model, describing how this new framework significantly advances our understanding of soil spatial heterogeneity and its influence on organic matter transformations.
Authors
Bonnie G. Waring, Benjamin N. Sulman, Sasha C. Reed, A. Peyton Smith, Colin Averill, Courtney Ann Creamer, Daniela F. Cusack, Steven J. Hall, Julie D. Jastrow, Andrea Jilling, Kenneth M. Kemner, Markus Kleber, Xiao-Jun Allen Liu, Jennifer Pett-Ridge, Marjorie S. Schulz

The ecology of river ice The ecology of river ice

Many of the world's rivers are ice-covered during winter months but increasing evidence indicates that the extent of river ice will shift substantially as winters warm. However, our knowledge of rivers during winter lags far behind that of the growing season, limiting our understanding of how ice loss will affect rivers. Physical, chemical, and biological processes change from headwaters...
Authors
Audrey Thellman, Kathi Jo Jankowski, Brian Hayden, Xiao Yang, Wayana Dolan, Adrianne P Smits, Antoin M O’Sullivan

Warmer winters increase the biomass of phytoplankton in a large floodplain river Warmer winters increase the biomass of phytoplankton in a large floodplain river

Winters are changing rapidly across the globe but the implications for aquatic productivity and food webs are not well understood. In addition, the degree to which winter dynamics in aquatic systems respond to large-scale climate versus ecosystem-level factors is unclear but important for understanding and managing potential changes. We used a unique winter data set from the Upper...
Authors
Kathi Jo Jankowski, Jeffrey N. Houser, Mark D. Schuerell, Adrianne P Smits

An integrated population model for southern sea otters An integrated population model for southern sea otters

Southern sea otters (Enhydra lutris nereis) have recovered slowly from their near extinction a century ago, and their continued recovery has been challenged by multiple natural and anthropogenic factors. Development of an integrated population model (IPM) for southern sea otters has been identified as a management priority, to help in evaluating the relative impacts of known threats and...
Authors
M. Tim Tinker, Lilian P. Carswell, Joseph A. Tomoleoni, Brian B. Hatfield, Michael D. Harris, Melissa A. Miller, Megan E. Moriarty, Christine K. Johnson, Colleen Young, Laird A. Henkel, Michelle M. Staedler, A. Keith Miles, Julie L. Yee

Biotic and abiotic treatments as a bet-hedging approach to restoring plant communities and soil functions Biotic and abiotic treatments as a bet-hedging approach to restoring plant communities and soil functions

Two related concepts in restoration ecology include the relative interchangeability of biotic and abiotic restoration treatments for initiating recovery and bet hedging using multiple restoration approaches to increase the likelihood of favorable restoration outcomes. We used these concepts as a framework to implement a factorial experiment including biotic (outplanting greenhouse-grown
Authors
Audrey J Rader, Lindsay P. Chiquoine, James F. Weigand, Judy L. Perkins, Seth M. Munson, Scott R Abella
Was this page helpful?