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The USGS Ecosystems Mission Area

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Ecosystems Science at USGS

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USGS Landscape Science Strategy

Science informing decision making on public lands and across all of our Nation’s landscapes.

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USGS Wildland Fire Science

USGS science helps understand the causes, consequences, and benefits of wildfire and helps prevent and manage larger, catastrophic events.

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DISCOVRE

Diversity, Systematics and Connectivity of Vulnerable Reef Ecosystems

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Ecosystems

The USGS Ecosystems Mission Area provides science to help America achieve sustainable management and conservation of biological resources in wild and urban spaces, and places in between.

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Newsletter - EcoNews

Native westslope cutthroat trout swim in the north fork of the Flathead River in northwestern Montana.

This quarterly newsletter highlights ecosystems science and activities coming out of our Science Centers and Cooperative Research Units across the Nation. 

EcoNews Issues

Webinar - Friday's Findings

Colorado Aspen with mountains in the background

A public webinar series meant to offer our audience an opportunity to discover the Ecosystems science capacity within the USGS.

Upcoming Webinars

Where's our Science?

Ecosystems Mission Area Locations

Find out where Ecosystems Science Centers, Field Stations, Climate Adaptation Science Centers, and Cooperative Research Units are located.

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News

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Population declines in Alaska beluga whale population may be linked to low birth and survival rates

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10 Ways Infrastructure Investments are Helping the USGS Build Resilient Ecosystems

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USGS Scientists are Authors on New Framework for Seabirds and Offshore Wind Energy

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Publications

The influence of drying on the aeolian transport of river-sourced sand

Transgression and regression of water levels (stages) have impacted the evolution of aeolian landforms and sedimentary deposits throughout geologic history. We studied this phenomenon over a five-day period of reduced flow on the Colorado River in Grand Canyon National Park, AZ, USA, in March 2021. These transient low flows exposed river-channel sand deposits to the air, causing progressive desicc
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Ecosystems, Southwest Biological Science Center

Defining biologically relevant and hierarchically nested population units to inform wildlife management

Wildlife populations are increasingly affected by natural and anthropogenic changes that negatively alter biotic and abiotic processes at multiple spatiotemporal scales and therefore require increased wildlife management and conservation efforts. However, wildlife management boundaries frequently lack biological context and mechanisms to assess demographic data across the multiple spatiotemporal s
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Ecosystems, Fort Collins Science Center, Western Ecological Research Center (WERC)

U.S. Geological Survey Colorado River Basin Actionable and Strategic Integrated Science and Technology (ASIST)—Information Management Technology Plan

IntroductionMore than 840 publications, 575 data releases, and 330 project web pages from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) pertain to the Colorado River Basin. Limited interconnections between Colorado River Basin publications, data, and web pages restrict the ability to synthesize and interpret scientific resources. Currently, these pieces are spread across multiple isolated locations, internal
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Ecosystems, Water Resources, Oregon Water Science Center, Fort Collins Science Center
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Science

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Hunting and Fishing

This page is a work in progress and showcases hunting and fishing as a way of life. The management of fish and wildlife populations for the benefit of current and future generations of all Americans is the foundation of this Nation’s conservation heritage. We help to inform decisions through a variety of actions, from the development and implementation of basic monitoring protocols to complex...
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Ecosystems, Cooperative Research Units
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Hunting and Fishing

This page is a work in progress and showcases hunting and fishing as a way of life. The management of fish and wildlife populations for the benefit of current and future generations of all Americans is the foundation of this Nation’s conservation heritage. We help to inform decisions through a variety of actions, from the development and implementation of basic monitoring protocols to complex...
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Image Collage of Landsat, pollinator, and volcanologist

Stories from the Field

We appreciate hearing from Members of State fish and wildlife agencies, universities, and friends. If you wish to share a story, let us know. Please enjoy our success stories.
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Ecosystems, Cooperative Research Units
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Stories from the Field

We appreciate hearing from Members of State fish and wildlife agencies, universities, and friends. If you wish to share a story, let us know. Please enjoy our success stories.
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water glass filling in kitchen sink

Coproduced Science Linking Environmental and Public-Health Data to Evaluate Drinking Water Arsenic Exposure on Birth Outcomes

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists teamed up with public-health epidemiologists to probe for associations between arsenic in drinking water and human-birth outcomes. They reported a modest inverse relation between birth weight and arsenic exposure. Findings indicate that future research efforts using individual-level exposure data such as measured arsenic concentrations in tap water could...
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Ecosystems, Environmental Health Program
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Coproduced Science Linking Environmental and Public-Health Data to Evaluate Drinking Water Arsenic Exposure on Birth Outcomes

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists teamed up with public-health epidemiologists to probe for associations between arsenic in drinking water and human-birth outcomes. They reported a modest inverse relation between birth weight and arsenic exposure. Findings indicate that future research efforts using individual-level exposure data such as measured arsenic concentrations in tap water could...
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