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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: 42768

Tell me a story! A plea for more compelling conference presentations Tell me a story! A plea for more compelling conference presentations

Effective communication with other scientists is an essential component of the scientific process, underlying success in publishing papers, building collaborations, securing grants and jobs, and stimulating further research. Oral presentations at professional meetings provide an opportunity to share research findings with a relatively broad scientific audience. However, many scientists...
Authors
Kathryn Langin

Historical biogeography sets the foundation for contemporary conservation of martens (genus Martes) in northwestern North America Historical biogeography sets the foundation for contemporary conservation of martens (genus Martes) in northwestern North America

Effective conservation of insular populations requires careful consideration of biogeography, including colonization histories and patterns of endemism. Across the Pacific Northwest of North America, Pacific martens (Martes caurina) and American pine martens (Martes americana) are parapatric sister species with distinctive postglacial histories. Using mitochondrial DNA and 12 nuclear
Authors
Natalie G. Dawson, Jocelyn P. Colella, Maurine P. Small, Karen D. Stone, Sandra L. Talbot, Joseph A. Cook

Divergence and gene flow in the globally distributed blue-winged ducks Divergence and gene flow in the globally distributed blue-winged ducks

The ability to disperse over long distances can result in a high propensity for colonizing new geographic regions, including uninhabited continents, and lead to lineage diversification via allopatric speciation. However, high vagility can also result in gene flow between otherwise allopatric populations, and in some cases, parapatric or divergence-with-gene-flow models might be more...
Authors
Joel Nelson, Robert E. Wilson, Kevin G. McCracken, Graeme Cumming, Leo Joseph, Patrick-Jean Guay, Jeffrey Peters

A dynamic spatio-temporal model for spatial data A dynamic spatio-temporal model for spatial data

Analyzing spatial data often requires modeling dependencies created by a dynamic spatio-temporal data generating process. In many applications, a generalized linear mixed model (GLMM) is used with a random effect to account for spatial dependence and to provide optimal spatial predictions. Location-specific covariates are often included as fixed effects in a GLMM and may be collinear...
Authors
Trevor J. Hefley, Mevin Hooten, Ephraim M. Hanks, Robin Russell, Daniel P. Walsh

Temporal variability of foliar nutrients: responses to nitrogen deposition and prescribed fire in a temperate steppe Temporal variability of foliar nutrients: responses to nitrogen deposition and prescribed fire in a temperate steppe

Plant nutrient concentrations and stoichiometry drive fundamental ecosystem processes, with important implications for primary production, diversity, and ecosystem sustainability. While a range of evidence exists regarding how plant nutrients vary across spatial scales, our understanding of their temporal variation remains less well understood. Nevertheless, we know nutrients regulate...
Authors
Xiao-Tao Lu, Sasha C. Reed, Shuang-Li Hou, Yan-Yu Hu, Hai-Wei Wei, Fu-Mei Lu, Qiang Cui, Xing Guo Han

Climate legacy and lag effects on dryland plant communities in the southwestern U.S. Climate legacy and lag effects on dryland plant communities in the southwestern U.S.

Climate change effects on vegetation will likely be strong in the southwestern U.S., which is projected to experience large increases in temperature and changes in precipitation. Plant communities in the southwestern U.S. may be particularly vulnerable to climate change as the productivity of many plant species is strongly water-limited. This study examines the relationship between...
Authors
Erin Bunting, Seth M. Munson, Miguel L. Villarreal

Spatial variation in polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon exposure in Barrow's goldeneye (Bucephala islandica) in coastal British Columbia Spatial variation in polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon exposure in Barrow's goldeneye (Bucephala islandica) in coastal British Columbia

Barrow's goldeneyes are sea ducks that winter throughout coastal British Columbia (BC). Their diet consists primarily of intertidal blue mussels, which can accumulate PAHs; accordingly, goldeneyes may be susceptible to exposure through contaminated prey. In 2014/15, we examined total PAH concentrations in mussels from undeveloped and developed coastal areas of BC. At those same sites, we...
Authors
Megan Willie, Daniel Esler, W. Sean Boyd, Philip Molloy, Ronald C. Ydenberg

Migratory behavior of adult sea lamprey and cumulative passage performance through four fishways Migratory behavior of adult sea lamprey and cumulative passage performance through four fishways

This article describes a study of PIT-tagged sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) ascending four fishways comprising three designs at two dams on the Connecticut River, USA. Migration between dams was rapid (median migration rate = 23 km·day−1). Movement through the fishways was much slower, however (median = 0.02–0.33 km·day−1). Overall delay at dams was substantial (median = 13.6–14.6 days...
Authors
Theodore R. Castro-Santos, Xiaotao Shi, Alexander Haro

The Partners in Flight handbook on species assessment Version 2017 The Partners in Flight handbook on species assessment Version 2017

Partners in Flight (PIF) is a cooperative venture of federal, state, provincial, and territorial agencies, industry, non-governmental organizations, researchers, and many others whose common goal is the conservation of North American birds (www.partnersinflight.org). While PIF has focused primarily on landbirds, it works in conjunction with other bird partners to promote coordinated...
Authors
Arvind O. Panjabi, Peter J. Blancher, Wendy E. Easton, Jessica C. Stanton, Dean W. Demarest, Randy Dettmers, Kenneth V. Rosenberg

Long-term forest productivity Long-term forest productivity

No abstract available.
Authors
Bernard T. Bormann, Steven S. Perakis, Robyn Darbyshire, Jeff Hatten

Population trends and distribution of Common Murre Uria aalge colonies in Washington, 1996-2015 Population trends and distribution of Common Murre Uria aalge colonies in Washington, 1996-2015

Periodic assessments of population trends and changes in spatial distribution are valuable for managing marine birds and their breeding habitats, particularly when evaluating long-term response to threats such as oil spills, predation pressure, and changing ocean conditions. We evaluated recent trends in abundance and distribution of the Common Murre Uria aalge within Copalis, Quillayute...
Authors
Susan M Thomas, James E. Lyons

Identification of two novel reassortant avian influenza a (H5N6) viruses in whooper swans in Korea, 2016 Identification of two novel reassortant avian influenza a (H5N6) viruses in whooper swans in Korea, 2016

Background On November 20, 2016 two novel strains of H5N6 highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAIVs) were isolated from three whooper swans (Cygnus cygnus) at Gangjin Bay in South Jeolla province, South Korea. Identification of HPAIVs in wild birds is significant as there is a potential risk of transmission of these viruses to poultry and humans.Results Phylogenetic analysis...
Authors
Jipseol Jeong, Chanjin Woo, S. Ip, Injung An, Youngsik Kim, Kwanghee Lee, Seong-Deok Jo, Kidong Son, Saemi Lee, Jae-Ku Oem, Seung-Jun Wang, Yongkwan Kim, Jeonghwa Shin, Jonathan M. Sleeman, Weonhwa Jheong
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