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
Rodenticide incidents of exposure and adverse effects on non-raptor birds Rodenticide incidents of exposure and adverse effects on non-raptor birds
Interest in the adverse effects of rodenticides on birds has focused primarily on raptors. However, non-raptor birds are also poisoned (rodenticide exposure resulting in adverse effects including mortality) by rodenticides through consumption of the rodenticide bait and contaminated prey. A literature search for rodenticide incidents (evidence of exposure to a rodenticide, adverse...
Authors
Nimish B. Vyas
Spatial variation in edaphic characteristics is a stronger control than nitrogen inputs in regulating soil microbial effects on a desert grass Spatial variation in edaphic characteristics is a stronger control than nitrogen inputs in regulating soil microbial effects on a desert grass
Increased atmospheric nitrogen (N) deposition can have wide-ranging effects on plant community structure and ecosystem function, some of which may be indirectly mediated by soil microbial responses to an altered biogeochemical environment. In this study, soils from a field N fertilization experiment that spanned a soil texture gradient were used as inocula in the greenhouse to assess the...
Authors
Y. Anny Chung, Robert L Sinsabaugh, Cheryl R. Kuske, Sasha C. Reed, Jennifer A. Rudgers
It takes more than water: Restoring the Colorado River Delta It takes more than water: Restoring the Colorado River Delta
Environmental flows have become important tools for restoring rivers and associated riparian ecosystems (Arthington, 2012; Glenn et al., 2017). In March 2014, the United States and Mexico initiated a bold effort in restoration, delivering from Morelos Dam a “pulse flow” of water into the Colorado River in its delta for the purpose of learning about its environmental effects (Flessa et al...
Authors
Jennifer Pitt, Eloise Kendy, Karen Schlatter, Osvel Hinojosa-Huerta, Karl W. Flessa, Patrick B. Shafroth, Jorge Ramirez-Hernandez, Pamela L. Nagler, Edward P. Glenn
Competition amplifies drought stress in forests across broad climatic and compositional gradients Competition amplifies drought stress in forests across broad climatic and compositional gradients
Forests around the world are experiencing increasingly severe droughts and elevated competitive intensity due to increased tree density. However, the influence of interactions between drought and competition on forest growth remains poorly understood. Using a unique dataset of stand-scale dendrochronology sampled from 6405 trees, we quantified how annual growth of entire tree populations...
Authors
Kelly Gleason, John B. Bradford, Alessandra Bottero, Tony D’Amato, Shawn Fraver, Brian J. Palik, Michael Battaglia, Louis R. Iverson, Laura Kenefic, Christel C. Kern
Topographic, edaphic, and vegetative controls on plant-available water Topographic, edaphic, and vegetative controls on plant-available water
Soil moisture varies within landscapes in response to vegetative, physiographic, and climatic drivers, which makes quantifying soil moisture over time and space difficult. Nevertheless, understanding soil moisture dynamics for different ecosystems is critical, as the amount of water in a soil determines a myriad ecosystem services and processes such as net primary productivity, runoff...
Authors
Salli F. Dymond, John B. Bradford, Paul V. Bolstad, Randall K. Kolka, Stephen D. Sebestyen, Thomas S. DeSutter
Climate and soil texture influence patterns of forb species richness and composition in big sagebrush plant communities across their spatial extent in the western US Climate and soil texture influence patterns of forb species richness and composition in big sagebrush plant communities across their spatial extent in the western US
Article for outlet: Plant Ecology. Abstract: Big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata Nutt.) plant communities are widespread non-forested drylands in western North American and similar to all shrub steppe ecosystems world-wide are composed of a shrub overstory layer and a forb and graminoid understory layer. Forbs account for the majority of plant species diversity in big sagebrush plant...
Authors
Victoria E. Pennington, Kyle A. Palmquist, John B. Bradford, William K. Lauenroth
A synthesis of thresholds for focal species along the U.S. Atlantic and Gulf Coasts: A review of research and applications A synthesis of thresholds for focal species along the U.S. Atlantic and Gulf Coasts: A review of research and applications
The impacts from climate change are increasing the possibility of vulnerable coastal species and habitats crossing critical thresholds that could spur rapid and possibly irreversible changes. For species of high conservation concern, improved knowledge of quantitative thresholds could greatly improve management. To meet this need, we synthesized information pertaining to biological...
Authors
Emily J. Powell, Megan C. Tyrrell, Andrew Milliken, John M. Tirpak, Michelle D. Staudinger
Enhanced precipitation promotes decomposition and soil C stabilization in semiarid ecosystems, but seasonal timing of wetting matters Enhanced precipitation promotes decomposition and soil C stabilization in semiarid ecosystems, but seasonal timing of wetting matters
Aims Changing precipitation regimes in semiarid ecosystems will affect the balance of soil carbon (C) input and release, but the net effect on soil C storage is unclear. We asked how changes in the amount and timing of precipitation affect litter decomposition, and soil C stabilization in semiarid ecosystems. Methods The study took place at a long-term (18 years) ecohydrology experiment...
Authors
Xochi Campos, Matthew J. Germino, Marie-Anne de Graaff
A global multiproxy database for temperature reconstructions of the Common Era A global multiproxy database for temperature reconstructions of the Common Era
Reproducible climate reconstructions of the Common Era (1 CE to present) are key to placing industrial-era warming into the context of natural climatic variability. Here we present a community-sourced database of temperature-sensitive proxy records from the PAGES2k initiative. The database gathers 692 records from 648 locations, including all continental regions and major ocean basins...
Authors
Julian Emile-Geay, Nicholas P. McKay, Darrell S. Kaufman, Lucien von Gunten, Jianghao Wang, Kevin J. Anchukaitis, Nerilie J. Abram, Jason A. Addison, Mark A.J. Curran, Michael N. Evans, Benjamin J. Henley, Zhixin Hao, Belen Martrat, Helen V. McGregor, Raphael Neukom, Gregory T. Pederson, Barbara Stenni, Kaustubh Thirumalai, Johannes P. Werner, Chenxi Xu, Dmitry V. Divine, Bronwyn C. Dixon, Joelle Gergis, Ignacio A. Mundo, T. Nakatsuka, Steven J. Phipps, Cody C. Routson, Eric J. Steig, Jessica E. Tierney, Jonathan J. Tyler, Kathryn J. Allen, Nancy A. N. Bertler, Jesper Bjorklund, Brian M. Chase, Min-Te Chen, Ed Cook, Rixt de Jong, Kristine L. DeLong, Daniel A. Dixon, Alexey A. Ekaykin, Vasile Ersek, Helena L. Filipsson, Pierre Francus, Mandy B. Freund, M. Frezzotti, Narayan P. Gaire, Konrad Gajewski, Quansheng Ge, Hugues Goosse, Anastasia Gornostaeva, Martin Grosjean, Kazuho Horiuchi, Anne Hormes, Katrine Husum, Elisabeth Isaksson, Selvaraj Kandasamy, Kenji Kawamura, Nalan Koc, Guillaume Leduc, Hans W. Linderholm, Andrew M. Lorrey, Vladimir Mikhalenko, P. Graham Mortyn, Hideaki Motoyama, Andrew D. Moy, Robert Mulvaney, Philipp M. Munz, David J. Nash, Hans Oerter, Thomas Opel, Anais J. Orsi, Dmitriy V. Ovchinnikov, Trevor J. Porter, Heidi Roop, Casey Saenger, Masaki Sano, David Sauchyn, K.M. Saunders, Marit-Solveig Seidenkrantz, Mirko Severi, X. Shao, Marie-Alexandrine Sicre, Michael Sigl, Kate Sinclair, Scott St. George, Jeannine-Marie St. Jacques, Meloth Thamban, Udya Kuwar Thapa, E. Thomas, Chris Turney, Ryu Uemura, A.E. Viau, Diana O. Vladimirova, Eugene Wahl, James W. C. White, Z. Yu, Jens Zinke
Assessing multi-tissue lead burdens in free-flying obligate scavengers in eastern North America Assessing multi-tissue lead burdens in free-flying obligate scavengers in eastern North America
Avian scavengers are regularly exposed to anthropogenic lead. Although many studies evaluate lead concentrations of either blood or tissues of lead-poisoned birds, there is comparatively less research on lead burdens of free-flying, apparently healthy individuals and populations. Here, we address this lack of information by assessing lead levels of multiple tissues (femur, liver, kidney...
Authors
Shannon Behmke, Patricia Mazik, Todd E. Katzner
Growth strategies and threshold responses to water deficit modulate effects of warming on tree seedlings from forest to alpine Growth strategies and threshold responses to water deficit modulate effects of warming on tree seedlings from forest to alpine
1.Predictions of upslope range shifts for tree species with warming are based on assumptions of moisture stress at lower elevation limits and low temperature stress at high elevation limits. However, recent studies have shown that warming can reduce tree seedling establishment across the entire gradient from subalpine forest to alpine via moisture limitation. Warming effects also vary...
Authors
Brynne E. Lazarus, Cristina Castanha, Matthew J. Germino, Lara M. Kueppers, Andrew B. Moyes
Status and trends of adult Lost River (Deltistes luxatus) and shortnose (Chasmistes brevirostris) sucker populations in Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon, 2015 Status and trends of adult Lost River (Deltistes luxatus) and shortnose (Chasmistes brevirostris) sucker populations in Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon, 2015
Executive Summary Data from a long-term capture-recapture program were used to assess the status and dynamics of populations of two long-lived, federally endangered catostomids in Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon. Lost River suckers (LRS; Deltistes luxatus) and shortnose suckers (SNS; Chasmistes brevirostris) have been captured and tagged with passive integrated transponder (PIT) tags during...
Authors
David A. Hewitt, Eric C. Janney, Brian S. Hayes, Alta C. Harris