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: 42905
Genetically-informed seed transfer zones for Pleuraphis jamesii, Sphaeralcea parvifolia, and Sporobolus cryptandrus across the Colorado Plateau and adjacent regions Genetically-informed seed transfer zones for Pleuraphis jamesii, Sphaeralcea parvifolia, and Sporobolus cryptandrus across the Colorado Plateau and adjacent regions
(Massatti) Introduction: The majority of native plant materials (NPMs) utilized for restoration purposes are developed for widely distributed species that provide a variety of ecosystem services (Wood et al. 2015; Butterfield et al. 2017). Disturbed ecosystems benefit from the use of appropriate NPMs, which are those that display ecological fitness at the restoration site, are compatible...
Authors
Robert Massatti
Quantifying changes to infaunal communities associated with several deep-sea coral habitats in the Gulf of Mexico and their potential recovery from the DWH oil spill Quantifying changes to infaunal communities associated with several deep-sea coral habitats in the Gulf of Mexico and their potential recovery from the DWH oil spill
Extensive information is available about infaunal soft-sediment communities in the Gulf of Mexico (Gulf) (Pequegnat et al. 1990, Rowe and Kennicutt II 2009, Wei et al. 2010), particularly from the large-scale sampling effort of the Deep Gulf of Mexico Benthos (DGOMB) project in the early 2000s (Rowe and Kennicutt II 2009). Infaunal soft-sediment communities in the northern Gulf differ by
Authors
Jill R. Bourque, Amanda W.J. Demopoulos
Integrating multiple data sources and multi-scale land-cover data to model the distribution of a declining amphibian Integrating multiple data sources and multi-scale land-cover data to model the distribution of a declining amphibian
Determining the spatial scale at which landscape features influence population persistence is an important task for conservation planning. One challenge is that sampling biases confound factors that influence species occurrence and survey effort. Recent developments in Point Process Models (PPMs) enable researchers to disentangle the sampling process from ecological drivers of species'
Authors
Jonathan P. Rose, Brian J. Halstead, Robert N. Fisher
DNA fingerprinting of Southern Mule Deer (Odocoileus hemionus fuliginatus) in North San Diego County, California (2018-19) DNA fingerprinting of Southern Mule Deer (Odocoileus hemionus fuliginatus) in North San Diego County, California (2018-19)
Throughout the western United States, efforts are underway to better understand and preserve migration and movement corridors for mule deer and other big game and to minimize the impacts of development and other land-use change on populations. San Diego County is home to a unique non-migratory subspecies of mule deer, the Southern mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus fuliginatus; herein...
Authors
Anna Mitelberg, Julia G. Smith, Amy G. Vandergast
Economic effects of wildfire risk reduction and source water protection projects in the Rio Grande River Basin in northern New Mexico and southern Colorado Economic effects of wildfire risk reduction and source water protection projects in the Rio Grande River Basin in northern New Mexico and southern Colorado
Investments in landscape-scale restoration and fuels management projects can protect publicly managed trusts, enhance public health and safety, and help to preserve the many environmental goods and services enjoyed by the public. These investments can also support jobs and generate business sales activities within nearby local economies. This report investigates how investments made by...
Authors
Christopher Huber, Catherine Cullinane Thomas, James R. Meldrum, Rachel Meier, Steven Bassett
Effect of growth rate on transcriptomic responses to immune stimulation in wild-type, domesticated, and GH-transgenic coho salmon Effect of growth rate on transcriptomic responses to immune stimulation in wild-type, domesticated, and GH-transgenic coho salmon
Background Transcriptomic responses to immune stimulation were investigated in coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) with distinct growth phenotypes. Wild-type fish were contrasted to strains with accelerated growth arising either from selective breeding (i.e. domestication) or genetic modification. Such distinct routes to accelerated growth may have unique implications for relationships...
Authors
Jin-Hyoung Kim, Daniel J Macqueen, James Winton, John D. Hansen, Hyun Park, Robert H Devlin
Local climate determines vulnerability to camouflage mismatch in snowshoe hares Local climate determines vulnerability to camouflage mismatch in snowshoe hares
Aim Phenological mismatches, when life‐events become mistimed with optimal environmental conditions, have become increasingly common under climate change. Population‐level susceptibility to mismatches depends on how phenology and phenotypic plasticity vary across a species’ distributional range. Here, we quantify the environmental drivers of colour moult phenology, phenotypic plasticity...
Authors
Marketa Zimova, Alexej P. K. Siren, Joshua J. Nowak, Alexander Bryan, Jacob S. Ivan, Toni Lyn Morelli, Skyler L. Suhrer, Jesse Whittington, L. Scott Mills
Facilitated adaptation for conservation – Can gene editing save Hawaii's endangered birds from climate driven avian malaria? Facilitated adaptation for conservation – Can gene editing save Hawaii's endangered birds from climate driven avian malaria?
Avian malaria has played a significant role in causing extinctions, population declines, and limiting the elevational distribution of Hawaiian honeycreepers. Most threatened and endangered honeycreepers only exist in high-elevation forests where the risk of malaria infection is limited. Because Culex mosquito vectors and avian malaria dynamics are strongly influenced by temperature and...
Authors
Michael D. Samuel, Wei Liao, Carter T. Atkinson, Dennis A. LaPointe
Effect of an environmental flow on vegetation growth and health using ground and remote sensing metrics Effect of an environmental flow on vegetation growth and health using ground and remote sensing metrics
Understanding the effectiveness of environmental flow deliveries along rivers requires monitoring vegetation. Monitoring data are often collected at multiple spatial scales. For riparian vegetation, optical remote sensing methods can estimate growth responses at the riparian corridor scale, and field‐based measures can quantify species composition; however, the extent to which these...
Authors
Martha M. Gomez-Sapiens, Christopher Jarchow, Karl W. Flessa, Patrick B. Shafroth, Edward P. Glenn, Pamela L. Nagler
Primarily resident grizzly bears respond to late-season elk harvest Primarily resident grizzly bears respond to late-season elk harvest
Autumn ungulate hunting in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem carries the risk of hunter–grizzly bear (Ursus arctos) conflict and creates a substantial challenge for managers. For Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming, USA, a key information need is whether increased availability of elk (Cervus canadensis) carcasses during a late autumn (Nov–Dec) harvest within the national park attracts...
Authors
Frank T. van Manen, Michael R. Ebinger, David D. Gustine, Mark A. Haroldson, Katharine R. Wilmot, Craig Whitman
The effect of sediment cover and female characteristics on the hatching success of walleye The effect of sediment cover and female characteristics on the hatching success of walleye
Natural and anthropogenic sources of sedimentation have the potential to degrade spawning habitat and negatively affect incubating fish embryos. Walleye Sander vitreus are lithophilic broadcast spawners that use specific spawning habitats that are vulnerable to degradation caused by deposition of suspended sediments. We measured the effect of different types of sediment cover on hatching...
Authors
Alex Gatch, S.K. Koenigbauer, Edward F. Roseman, T. Hook
The fate of Madagascar's rainforest habitat The fate of Madagascar's rainforest habitat
Madagascar has experienced extensive deforestation and overharvesting, and anthropogenic climate change will compound these pressures. Anticipating these threats to endangered species and their ecosystems requires considering both climate change and habitat loss effects. The genus Varecia (ruffed lemurs), which is composed of two Critically Endangered forest-obligate species, can serve...
Authors
Toni Lyn Morelli, Adam B. Smith, Amanda N. Mancini, Elizabeth A. Balko, Cortni Borgerson, Rainer Dolch, Zachary Farris, Sarah Federman, Christopher Golden, Sheila Holmes, Mitchell Irwin, Rachel Jacobs, Steig Johnson, Tony King, Shawn Lehman, Edward E. Louis, Asia Murphy, Hery N. T. Randriahaingo, H. L. Lucien Randrianarimanana, Jonah Ratsimbazafy, Onja H. Razafindratsima, Andrea Baden