Multimedia Gallery

Adult, immature, and nymph stage box elder bugs gather on the leaves of a hosta plant growing at the base of a silver maple tree. Adults have fully formed, mainly black wings.

Adult and nymph stage box elder bugs gather on the leaves of a hosta plant growing at the base of a silver maple tree. Adults have fully formed, mainly black wings.

Nymph stage box elder bugs gather on the leaves of a hosta plant.

When the river stops flowing the channel becomes brushy because of the moisture in the river bottom. The location is 17º59'15"N, 66º17'40" and the elevation is 10 m. All photographs are at the same location.

A stand of Saguaro cacti in the dry mountains surrounding Tucson, Arizona.

The Williamson’s sapsucker inhabits open coniferous and mixed coniferous-deciduous forests of western North America, and has been considered a sensitive indicator species because of its specific habitat requirements. Like other sapsuckers, it drills conspicuous rings of holes ("sap wells") into tree trunks, specializing on eating coniferous sap and phloem. Breeders switch

The Virginia’s warbler has a relatively restricted breeding range, inhabiting scrubby habitats below the pine belt in northern part of its range, and scrubby habitats within surrounding conifers in southern part of its range. For breeding habitat, it shows a strong association for steep draws, drainages, or slopes with oak or other shrubby vegetation.

The sage thrasher is considered a sage obligate, and is generally dependent on large patches and expanses of sagebrush steppe for successful breeding. It primarily inhabits areas dominated by big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentate), but has been noted in black greasewood (Sarcobatus vermiculatus) habitat in areas in Utah and Nevada, and bitterbrush (Pursia tridentate) habitat

The pygmy nuthatch has a strong and almost exclusive preference for long- needled pines including ponderosa, Jeffrey, and similar species. It depends on cavities for nesting and roosting and has clear seasonal cavity preferences, related to thermal insulation and ventilation. Seventy percent of nest cavity openings face southward, others face south and east, away from

The plateau striped whiptail lizard species complex inhabits a variety of grassland and scrub and shrub habitats on the Colorado Plateau and in central New Mexico, at elevations ranging from 1,400 to 2,440 m. This is a medium-sized (70–90 mm) all-female species. Unisexual whiptails reproduce by parthenogenesis, in which unfertilized eggs hatch into clones of the mother.

Pinyon jays coevolved as non-migratory mutualists with pinyon pines. Jays disperse the large wingless seed of pinyon pines over long distances, which can result in relatively rapid colonization. At the same time, the jays obtain energy and nutrients from the seeds. Although closely associated with pinyon pines in most areas, in parts of its range pinyon jays inhabit

The lesser earless species complex is found across short-grass prairie and open habitats of the southern Colorado Plateau, New Mexico, Texas, northern Mexico, and on the western edge of the Great Plains, at elevations ranging from 500 to 2,200 m. The taxonomy of this wide-ranging species has been debated; in our modeling, we did not include museum records in the current

The Common Chuckwalla is primarily found across the Mojave and Sonoran deserts of the United States and Mexico, at elevations ranging from sea level to 1,370 m. This large (125–180 mm) lizard is dorsoventrally flattened and has wrinkles on its belly and neck. Chuckwallas are strongly associated with rock outcrops, lava flows, and boulder piles, and are well-known for their

The black-throated sparrow inhabits arid upland habitats of the southwestern United States and Mexico, and breeds as far north as Washington.

The Arizona black rattlesnake is a high-elevation medium-sized (<1,000 mm) rattlesnake found primarily in Arizona and extreme western New Mexico. Adults are dark brown or black in background color, with white- or yellow-edged barker hexagonal blotches. Juveniles are born with a grey background and dark blotches. Arizona black rattlesnakes are typically found in pine-oak

The gray vireo inhabits some of the hottest, most arid regions of the southwestern United States. It is a short-distance migrant and withdraws completely from most of its breeding range in winter. It prefers mixed juniper, pinyon, and oak scrub associations, chaparral in hot, arid mountains, and high plains scrubland. It eats a variety of arthropods, including large

National Wetlands Research Center workers set bench marks to study marsh subsidence.

Base camp, Sitkinak Island.

A tidal marsh bank exposed during low tide on Sitkinak Island, Alaska. The bank reveals ledges of alternating peat and silt. Abrupt uplift and subsidence during large megathrust earthquakes is interpreted to be the cause of the alternating layers.

Geologists driving a core into marsh sediment to document interbedded peat and silt that records sudden vertical land movements associated with megathrust fault slip during large earthquakes.

Geologists extract a hand-driven core from 2-3 m depth on Sitkinak Island, Alaska. The cores contain peat with interbedded sand layers that record inundation of the coast by prehistoric tsunamis. (l-r: Peter Haeussler, USGS; Andrew Kemp, Tufts University; Alan Nelson, USGS)

Geologists examine an exposure of a tidal marsh bank on Sitkinak Island, Alaska. The bank exposes interbedded peat and silt that records sudden vertical land movements associated with megathrust fault slip during large earthquakes.

Geologists examine cores on Sitkinak Island, Alaska.

A male perched on a pitcher

Gastrocopta pentodon shell viewed with a scanning electron microscope with a zoom-in of the aperture.

Chanomphalus pilsbryi shell viewed with a scanning electron microscope.

Bottom view of Chanomphalus pilsbryi shell  viewed with a scanning electron microscope.

Bivalve mollusk with a highly-ornamented shell. (Scanned From Negative)

Striatura meridionalis shell viewed with a scanning electron microscope.

Spiraxis sp. shell viewed with a scanning electron microscope with aperture facing up.

Spiraxis sp. shell viewed with a scanning electron microscope with aperture facing up.

Radiodiscus millecostatus shell viewed with a scanning electron microscope.

Radiodiscus millecostatus shell viewed with a scanning electron microscope with aperture facing up.

Radiodiscus millecostatus shell viewed with a scanning electron microscope.

Pupisoma dioscoricola shell viewed with a scanning electron microscope.

Pupisoma dioscoricola shell viewed with a scanning electron microscope.

Miradiscops opal shell viewed with a scanning electron microscope with aperture facing up.

Lucidella lirata shell viewed with a scanning electron microscope.

Miradiscops panamensis shell viewed with a scanning electron microscope with aperture facing up.

Miradiscops opal shell viewed with a scanning electron microscope.

Close-up view of Thysanophora crinita shell viewed with a scanning electron microscope.

Thysanophora caecoides shell viewed with a scanning electron microscope.

Strobilops sp. shell viewed with a scanning electron microscope with aperture facing up.

Strobilops sp. shell viewed with a scanning electron microscope.

Thysanophora caecoides shell viewed with a scanning electron microscope.

Striatura meridionalis shell viewed with a scanning electron microscope with aperture facing up.

Hawaiia minuscula shell viewed with a scanning electron microscope with aperture facing up.