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The USGS provides unbiased, objective, and impartial scientific information upon which our audiences, including resource managers, planners, and other entities, rely.
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Low genetic differentiation across restored and natural populations shortly after a large-scale, post-fire seeding in the Great Basin Low genetic differentiation across restored and natural populations shortly after a large-scale, post-fire seeding in the Great Basin
Genetic diversity is essential for species to adapt to environmental changes. In restoration efforts, such as those after large wildfires in the sagebrush steppe of the Great Basin, commercially produced native seeds are used to revegetate the burned areas. While native seed certification and procurement protocols assure that genetically appropriate seeds are used for restoration, how...
Authors
Lina Aoyama, Matthew Germino, Lauren M. Hallett, Matthew A. Streisfeld
Spatiotemporal patterns in urban nutrient and suspended sediment loads and stream response to watershed management implementation Spatiotemporal patterns in urban nutrient and suspended sediment loads and stream response to watershed management implementation
In recent years, local governments have invested heavily in management practices to reduce nutrient and sediment loads. These practices provide localities with nutrient and sediment regulatory reduction credits; however, their effects on water quality are poorly understood at the watershed scale. Long-term watershed-scale monitoring is essential for assessing progress toward water...
Authors
Aaron J. Porter
Management strategy evaluation to assess trade-offs associated with invasive Blue Catfish fisheries and predation impacts Management strategy evaluation to assess trade-offs associated with invasive Blue Catfish fisheries and predation impacts
Objective Many species are intentionally introduced beyond their native range to provide benefits to humans (e.g., food, recreation, or biocontrol). However, introduced species can become invasive and can harm native species, prompting resource managers to explore options to simultaneously conserve native biota and enhance fishing opportunities. Management of Chesapeake Bay Blue Catfish...
Authors
Corbin David Hilling, Yan Jiao, Joseph Schmitt, Mary C. Fabrizio, Paul L. Angermeier, Donald J. Orth
Identifying strategies to manage boreal forests: Simulating moose and timber management scenarios at a landscape scale in the face of changing environmental conditions Identifying strategies to manage boreal forests: Simulating moose and timber management scenarios at a landscape scale in the face of changing environmental conditions
There are ongoing debates among different stakeholders about which forest and ungulate management strategies will sustain high levels of timber and animal harvest and maintain important ecosystem functions under climate change. Ungulate-forest interactions are complex, including periods where forest regeneration is sensitive to browsing pressure, making it difficult to predict the...
Authors
Nathan R. De Jager, Wiebke Neumann, Miguel M. Girona, Joakim Hjältén, Anouschka R. Hof
Behavioral plasticity in detection height of an invasive, arboreal snake based on size, condition, and prey Behavioral plasticity in detection height of an invasive, arboreal snake based on size, condition, and prey
Context Animals may adjust their behavior in predictable ways to balance tradeoffs between resource acquisition and survival or fecundity. Microhabitat selection based on individual traits or environmental conditions is one measure of risk–reward tradeoffs by individuals. Aims We used data from observational and manipulative studies to investigate whether an arboreal snake (brown...
Authors
Melia G. Nafus, Levi Gray, Page E. Klug, Gordon H. Rodda, Scott Michael Goetz
Innovative microphone transmitter reveals differences in acoustic structure between broadcast and whisper songs of Myadestes obscurus (ʻŌmaʻo) Innovative microphone transmitter reveals differences in acoustic structure between broadcast and whisper songs of Myadestes obscurus (ʻŌmaʻo)
Low-amplitude “whisper songs” are a taxonomically broad phenomenon in birds that could play an important role in the suite of behaviors birds use to communicate. Due to its cryptic nature, there are inherent difficulties in capturing high-quality whisper song recordings without interrupting natural behaviors. Thus, the whisper song acoustic structure is poorly understood and its...
Authors
Amanda K Navine, Kristina L. Paxton, Erin C. Netoskie, Eirlys Tysall, Eben H. Paxton, Patrick J. Hart
Self‐sustaining populations are a conservation vision, not an operational objective Self‐sustaining populations are a conservation vision, not an operational objective
It is common for species conservation plans to identify the establishment or maintenance of a “self-sustaining population” as an objective. However, this statement vaguely conflates different formulations and interpretations of population viability, management costs, and cultural preferences for non-invasive population management. Hidden value judgments and assumptions about these...
Authors
Stefano Canessa, Axel Moehrenschlager, John G. Ewen, Sarah J. Converse
Balancing monitoring and management in the adaptive management of an invasive species Balancing monitoring and management in the adaptive management of an invasive species
Efficient allocation of managers' limited resources is necessary to effectively control invasive species, but determining how to allocate effort between monitoring and management over space and time remains a challenge. In an adaptive management context, monitoring data are key for gaining knowledge and iteratively improving management, but monitoring costs money. Community science or...
Authors
Brielle K. Thompson, Julien Olden, Sarah J. Converse
Uncertainty reduction for subaerial landslide-tsunami hazards Uncertainty reduction for subaerial landslide-tsunami hazards
Subaerial rock slopes may generate a tsunami by rapidly moving into the water. Large uncertainty in landslide characteristics propagates into large uncertainty in tsunami hazard, making hazard assessment more difficult for land and emergency managers. Once a potentially tsunamigenic landslide is identified, it may not be clear which landslide characteristics contribute most significantly...
Authors
Katherine R. Barnhart, David L. George, Andrew L. Collins, Lauren N. Schaefer, Dennis M. Staley
Evaluating the applicability of the generalized power-law rating curve model: With applications to paired discharge-stage data from Iceland, Sweden, and the United States Evaluating the applicability of the generalized power-law rating curve model: With applications to paired discharge-stage data from Iceland, Sweden, and the United States
Hydrologic research and operations make extensive use of streamflow time series. In most applications, these time series are estimated from rating curves, which relate flow to some easy-to-measure surrogate, typically stage. The conventional stage-discharge rating takes the form of a segmented power law, with one segment for each hydrologic control at the stream gauge. However, these...
Authors
Rafael Daniel Vias, Birgir Hrafnkelsson, Timothy O. Hodson, Sölvi Rögnvaldsson, Axel Örn Jansson, Sigurdur M. Gardarsson
Climate and connectivity mediate overwintering habitat suitability for centrarchids in a large floodplain river network Climate and connectivity mediate overwintering habitat suitability for centrarchids in a large floodplain river network
Availability of suitable overwintering habitat is crucial for the survival of centrarchids in large floodplain rivers. However, there remains uncertainty in the spatiotemporal drivers of suitable conditions. We paired hydrogeomorphic characteristics with environmental data from 1994 to 2018 in individual lentic areas to (1) assess overwintering habitat availability throughout the Upper...
Authors
Robert J. Mooney, Kathi Jo Jankowski, Jeffrey N. Houser, Madeline R. Magee, Hilary A. Dugan
Points of consensus on catch-and-release: Considerations for science, ethics, and fisheries management Points of consensus on catch-and-release: Considerations for science, ethics, and fisheries management
Catch-and-release (C&R), whether via regulations or voluntary actions, is typically employed with the intent of reducing fishing mortality while maintaining recreational angling opportunities (Isermann & Paukert, 2010), but there has been significant discourse about the relative importance of individual-level (see Cooke et al., 2025) vs. population-level (see Corsi et al., 2025) effects...
Authors
Matthew P. Corsi, Steven J. Cooke, Andy J. Danylchuk, Meaghan Guckian, Joseph Kozfkay, Michael C. Quist