All Publications

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Biodiversity is structured on the landscape through a combination of spatial, environmental, and stochastic factors. In freshwater river networks, the interaction of the linear river network and the three-dimensional terrestrial landscape creates multiple pathways for ecological connectivity that affect aquatic community structure through habitat filtering and dispersal dynamics. Here...

Recent reports of decadal-scale structural changes in the lowermost mantle and transport of strong heterogeneity in the outer core may offer important insights into core-mantle structure and dynamics. These reports are derived from waveform comparisons of earthquake pairs or repeating earthquakes, particularly using differential travel-time measurements made with cross-correlation...

Ornithodoros ticks, a genus of soft ticks in the family Argasidae, occur worldwide including throughout deserts in the Southwestern United States. In the Mojave Desert, Ornithodoros parkeri and O. turicata are common ectoparasites of Mojave desert tortoises (Gopherus agassizii). These two tick species are vectors of Borrelia spp. that cause tick-borne relapsing fever (TBRF) in people...

Landscapes in humid climates often experience rapid chemical and mechanical weathering that can change groundwater fluxes, drainage pathways, and frictional strength via alterations in subsurface mineral composition and matrix porosity. These changes to hillslope critical zone structure and strength should control landslide susceptibility, size, and failure style. Here we test the impact...

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a class of over 15,000 xenobiotic compounds that have permeated across the globe and are largely resistant to natural forms of degradation, resulting in their long-term environmental persistence. These compounds can bioaccumulate and cause toxicological effects in organisms living within PFAS contaminated ecosystems. Grasses and feedstocks...

The effects of winter environmental conditions on lake ecology can be highly variable. Ice and overlying snow isolate the water below, impeding exchange of materials among water, atmosphere, and the watershed. Even with these limitations, biological communities under the ice can persist, where cold tolerant taxa can be especially abundant. Because many under-ice taxa tend to have a suite...

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) science supports the Chesapeake Bay watershed economy by linking natural resources to key economic sectors. The roles of USGS monitoring, data, and analysis inform land-use and resource-management decisions for Department of Interior leadership and other stakeholders.

Conflict between humans and American black bears (Ursus americanus) is a growing concern in North America, especially in wildland–urban interfaces. Beyond ecological drivers, conflict reduction relies on changing human behavior. Neighbor-to-neighbor conversations, also known as relational organizing, may drive social diffusion of coexistence actions. However, little research has explored...

Mobile species often travel long distances between the sites they use for different behaviors, such as central-place foragers that make daily commutes between a central roost and foraging sites. For migratory shorebird species that use coastal habitats, the limited availability of suitable nocturnal roost sites can lead individuals to commute long distances to their foraging territories...

In the aftermath of a large earthquake, several practical constraints affect the systematic collection of data for assessing building damage. The available data are therefore typically incomplete, frequently missing key information such as the type of construction, age and geographic location. Moreover, the observations often favour certain locations and damage grades. In the absence of...

Temperature is a master variable in aquatic ecosystems. Despite its importance for ecosystem function, our capacity to measure temperature is often limited to focal systems with intensive in situ measurements or larger systems with readily accessible data from disparate data streams. These limitations are consequential for holistically understanding aquatic ecosystem status and change...