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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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Passive acoustic monitoring and convolutional neural networks facilitate high-resolution and broadscale monitoring of a threatened species Passive acoustic monitoring and convolutional neural networks facilitate high-resolution and broadscale monitoring of a threatened species
Population monitoring is an essential component of biodiversity conservation and management, but low detection probabilities for rare and/or cryptic species makes estimating abundance and occupancy challenging. Passive acoustic monitoring combined with machine learning algorithms represents a potential path forward to effectively and efficiently monitor the occurrence of rare vocalizing...
Authors
Adam Duarte, Matthew J. Weldy, Damon B. Lesmeister, Zachary J. Ruff, Julianna Jenkins, Jonathon Joseph Valente, Matthew G. Betts
The evolution of a young ocean within Mimas The evolution of a young ocean within Mimas
The fractured, young surfaces on confirmed ocean worlds such as Europa and Enceladus suggest that ocean-bearing moons with relatively thin overlying ice shells should be easy to identify. Hence, the discovery that Mimas’ rotation state is best explained by an internal ocean seems challenging to reconcile with its heavily cratered surface. Previous studies have shown that an internal...
Authors
A. R. Rhoden, M. E. Walker, M. L. Rudolph, Michael T. Bland, Michael Manga
Bringing traits back in the equation: A roadmap to understand species redistribution Bringing traits back in the equation: A roadmap to understand species redistribution
Ecological and evolutionary theories have proposed that species traits should be important in mediating species responses to contemporary climate change; yet, empirical evidence has so far provided mixed evidence for the role of behavioral, life history, or ecological characteristics in facilitating or hindering species range shifts. As such, the utility of trait-based approaches to...
Authors
Lise Comte, Romain Bertrand, Sarah E. Diamond, Lesley T. Lancaster, Malin Pinsky, Brett R. Scheffers, J. Alex Baecher, R.M.W.J. Bandara, I-Ching Chen, Jake A. Lawlor, Nikki Moore, Brunno F. Oliveira, Jerome Murienne, Jonathan Rolland, Madeleine A. Rubenstein, Jennifer Sunday, Laura Thompson, Fabricio Villalobos, Sarah R. Weiskopf, Jonathan Lenoir
Seasonal and species-level water-use strategies and groundwater dependence in dryland riparian woodlands during extreme drought Seasonal and species-level water-use strategies and groundwater dependence in dryland riparian woodlands during extreme drought
Drought-induced groundwater decline and warming associated with climate change are primary threats to dryland riparian woodlands. We used the extreme 2012–2019 drought in southern California as a natural experiment to assess how differences in water-use strategies and groundwater dependence may influence the drought susceptibility of dryland riparian tree species with overlapping...
Authors
Jared Williams, John C. Stella, Michael Bliss Singer, Adam M. Lambert, Steven L. Voelker, John E. Drake, Jonathan M. Friedman, Lissa Pelletier, Li Kui, Dar A. Roberts
Management implications of habitat selection by whooping cranes (Grus americana) on the Texas coast Management implications of habitat selection by whooping cranes (Grus americana) on the Texas coast
Effective habitat management for rare and endangered species requires a thorough understanding of their specific habitat requirements. Although machine learning models have been increasingly used in the analyses of habitat use by wildlife, the primary focus of these models has been on generating spatial predictions. In this study, we used machine learning models in combination with...
Authors
Sarah E. Lehnen, Steven E. Sesnie, Matthew J. Butler, Aaron T. Pearse, Kristine L. Metzger
Paranannizziopsis spp. Infection in Wild Vipers, Europe Paranannizziopsis spp. Infection in Wild Vipers, Europe
We describe the first detection of Paranannizziopsis sp. in a wild population of vipers in Europe. Fungal infections were severe and one individual likely died from infection. Surveillance efforts are needed to better understand the threat of this pathogen to snake conservation.
Authors
Gaelle Blanvillain, Fernando Martínez-Freiría, Joseph R. Hoyt, Jeffrey M. Lorch, Albert Martinez Silvestre
Forecasting the long-term spatial distribution of earthquakes for the 2023 US National Seismic Hazard Model using gridded seismicity Forecasting the long-term spatial distribution of earthquakes for the 2023 US National Seismic Hazard Model using gridded seismicity
Probabilistic seismic hazard analyses such as the U.S. National Seismic Hazard Model (NSHM) typically rely on declustering and spatially smoothing an earthquake catalog to estimate a long‐term time‐independent (background) seismicity rate to forecast future seismicity. In support of the U.S. Geological Survey’s (USGS) 2023 update to the NSHM, we update the methods used to develop this...
Authors
Andrea L. Llenos, Andrew J. Michael, Allison Shumway, Justin Rubinstein, Kirstie Lafon Haynie, Morgan P. Moschetti, Jason M. Altekruse, Kevin R. Milner
Hotspots of biogeochemical activity linked to aridity and plant traits across global drylands Hotspots of biogeochemical activity linked to aridity and plant traits across global drylands
Perennial plants create productive and biodiverse hotspots, known as fertile islands, beneath their canopies. These hotspots largely determine the structure and functioning of drylands worldwide. Despite their ubiquity, the factors controlling fertile islands under conditions of contrasting grazing by livestock, the most prevalent land use in drylands, remain virtually unknown. Here we...
Authors
David J. Eldridge, Jingyi Ding, Josh Dorrough, Manuel Delgado-Baquerizo, Osvaldo E. Sala, Nicolas Gross, Yoann Le Bagousse-Pinguet, Max Mallen-Cooper, Hugo Saiz, Sergio Asensio, Victoria Ochoa, Beatriz Gozalo, Emilio Guirado, Miguel García-Gómez, Enrique Valencia, Jaime Martinez-Valderrama, Cesar Plaza, Mehdi Abedi, Negar Ahmadian, Rodrigo J. Ahumada, Julio M. Alcantara, Fateh Amghar, Luisa Azevedo, Farah Ben Salem, Miguel Berdugo, Niels Blaum, Bazartseren Boldgiv, Matthew A. Bowker, Donaldo Bran, Chongfeng Bu, Rafaella Canessa, Andrea P. Castillo-Monroy, Ignacio Castro, Patricio Castro-Quezada, Simone Cesarz, Roukaya Chibani, Abel Augusto Conceicao, Anthony Darrouzet-Nardi, Yvonne C. Davila, Balazs Deak, Paloma Diaz-Martinez, David A. Donoso, Andrew David Dougill, Jorge Duran, Nico Eisenhauer, Hamid Ejtehadi, Carlos Ivan Espinosa, Alex Fajardo, Mohammad Farzam, Ana Foronda, Jorgelina Franzese, Lauchlan H. Fraser, Juan J. Gaitan, Katja Geissler, Sofia Laura Gonzalez, Elizabeth Gusman-Montalvan, Rosa Mary Hernandez, Norbert Holzel, Frederic Mendes Hughes, Oswaldo Jadan, Anke Jentsch, Mengchen Ju, Kudzai F. Kaseke, Melanie Kobel, Anika Lehmann, Pierre Liancourt, Anja Linstadter, Michelle A. Louw, Quanhui Ma, Mancha Mabaso, Gillian Maggs-Kolling, Thulani P. Makhalanyane, Oumarou Malam Issa, Eugene Marais, Mitchel P McClaran, Betty J. Mendoza, Vincent Mokoka, Juan P. Mora, Gerardo Moreno, Seth M. Munson, Alice Nunes, Gabriel Oliva, Gastón R. Oñatibia, Brooke B. Osborne, Guadalupe Peter, Margerie Pierre, Yolanda Pueyo, R. Emiliano Quiroga, Sasha C. Reed, Ana Rey, Pedro J. Rey, Victor Manuel Reyes Gomez, Víctor Rolo, Matthias C. Rillig, Peter C. le Roux, Jan Christian Ruppert, Ayman Salah, Phokgedi Julius Sebei, Anarmaa Sharkhuu, Ilan Stavi, Colton R. A. Stephens, Alberto L. Teixido, Andrew David Thomas, Katja Tielborger, Silvia Torres Robles, Samantha K. Travers, Orsolya Valko, Liesbeth van den Brink, Frederike Velbert, Andreas von Hessberg, Wanyoike Wamiti, Deli Wang, Lixin Wang, Glenda M. Wardle, Laura Yahdjian, Eli Zaady, Yuanming Zhang, Xiaobing Zhou, Fernando T. Maestre
Seasonal mortality of Wild Atlantic Menhaden (Brevoortia tyrannus) is caused by a virulent clone of Vibrio (Listonella) anguillarum; Implications for biosecurity along the Atlantic Coastal United States Seasonal mortality of Wild Atlantic Menhaden (Brevoortia tyrannus) is caused by a virulent clone of Vibrio (Listonella) anguillarum; Implications for biosecurity along the Atlantic Coastal United States
Atlantic menhaden are a highly migratory marine species in the Eastern United States that suffer from seasonal chronic mortality. Affected fish show neurologic signs referred to as spinning disease, including circling at the surface and erratic corkscrew swimming before death. We investigated three similar menhaden mortality events consistent with spinning disease in coastal New Jersey...
Authors
Jan Lovy, Luke R. Iwanowicz, Timothy J. Welch, Bassem Allem, Rodman G. Getchell, Sabrina Geraci-Yee, Christine L Goodale, Jeremy Snyder, Clayton D. Raines, Nilanjana Das
Methane seeps on the U.S. Atlantic margin: An updated inventory and interpretative framework Methane seeps on the U.S. Atlantic margin: An updated inventory and interpretative framework
Since the discovery of >570 methane flares on the northern U.S. Atlantic margin between Cape Hatteras and Georges Bank in the last decade, the acquisition of thousands of kilometers of additional water column imaging data has provided greater coverage at water depths between the outer continental shelf and the lower continental slope. The additional high-resolution data reveal >1400 gas...
Authors
Carolyn D. Ruppel, Adam Skarke, Nathaniel C. Miller, Maleen Kidiwela, Jared W. Kluesner, Wayne E. Baldwin
Estimating age and growth of Largemouth Bass in southwestern reservoirs using otoliths and scales Estimating age and growth of Largemouth Bass in southwestern reservoirs using otoliths and scales
Age and growth data are frequently used to monitor and manage important North American sport fishes such as Largemouth Bass Micropterus salmoides. Continental and regional growth standards have been developed for this species to assess fish growth over time and across space. However, Largemouth Bass age and growth data are infrequently collected in Arizona and the reliability of age...
Authors
Steven J. Ingram, Joshua D. Grant, Zachary S. Beard, Nathan Berg, Anna M. Ringelman, Scott A. Bonar
Evaluating streamflow and temperature effects on Bull Trout migration and survival with linear spatial capture-recapture models Evaluating streamflow and temperature effects on Bull Trout migration and survival with linear spatial capture-recapture models
Objective In the U.S. Pacific Northwest, climate change is increasing air temperatures, decreasing warm season (April–September) streamflow, and increasing cool season (October–March) streamflow. Warmer water temperatures may alter conditions for migratory coldwater fishes like the Bull Trout Salvelinus confluentus. Consequently, an understanding of Bull Trout migration and survival is...
Authors
Patti Wohner, Russell F. Thurow, James T. Peterson