Articles
Science Quality and Integrity
The USGS provides unbiased, objective, and impartial scientific information upon which our audiences, including resource managers, planners, and other entities, rely.
The USGS provides unbiased, objective, and impartial scientific information upon which our audiences, including resource managers, planners, and other entities, rely.
Browse more than 65,000 articles authored by our scientists over the past 100+ year history of the USGS and refine search by topic, location, year, and advanced search.
Filter Total Items: 77863
Expansive, positive changes to fish habitat diversity following the formation of a valley plug in a degraded desert river Expansive, positive changes to fish habitat diversity following the formation of a valley plug in a degraded desert river
Widespread hydrologic alterations have simplified in-stream habitats in rivers globally, driving population declines and extirpations of many native fishes. Here, we examine how rapid geomorphic change in a historically degraded desert river has influenced habitat diversification and ecosystem persistence. In 2010, a large reach of the degraded and simplified lower San Rafael River (SRR)...
Authors
Tansy T. Remiszewski, Phaedra E. Budy, William W. Macfarlane
Doing the same thing over and over again and getting the same result: Assessing variance in wetland invertebrate assemblages Doing the same thing over and over again and getting the same result: Assessing variance in wetland invertebrate assemblages
Past efforts to explain variation of invertebrate assemblages in freshwater wetlands have been less productive than anticipated. To explore why efforts are disappointing, we assembled large invertebrate data sets from North Dakota prairie potholes, California rock pools, and Georgia Carolina bay wetlands that addressed spatial (among wetlands) and temporal (among seasons and years)...
Authors
Sophie Reindl, Kyle McLean, Jamie M. Kneitel, Douglas A. Bell, Darold P. Batzer
The 50-year Landsat collection 2 archive The 50-year Landsat collection 2 archive
The Landsat global consolidated data archive now exceeds 50 years. In recognition of the need for consistently processed data across the Landsat satellite series, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) initiated collection-based processing of the entire archive that was processed as Collection 1 in 2016. In preparation for the data from the now successfully launched Landsat 9, the USGS...
Authors
Christopher J. Crawford, David P. Roy, Saeed Arab, Christopher Barnes, Eric Vermote, Glynn Hulley, Aaron Gerace, Michael J. Choate, Christopher Engebretson, Esad Micijevic, Gail L. Schmidt, Cody Anderson, Martha Anderson, Michelle Bouchard, Bruce D. Cook, Ray Dittmeier, Danny Howard, Calli Jenkerson, Minsu Kim, Tania Kleyians, Tom Maiersperger, Chase Mueller, Christopher Neigh, Linda Owen, Benjamin Page, Nima Pahelvan, Rajagopalan Rengarajan, Jean-Claude Roger, Kristi L. Sayler, Pat L Scaramuzza, Sergii Skakun, Lin Yan, Hankui K. Zhang, Zhe Zhu, Stephen G. Zahn
Population dynamics of the threatened Oregon spotted frog before and after drought mitigation Population dynamics of the threatened Oregon spotted frog before and after drought mitigation
Amphibians are among the most sensitive taxa to climate change, and species inhabiting arid and semiarid landscapes at the extremes of their range are especially vulnerable to drought. The Jack Creek, Oregon, USA, population of Oregon spotted frogs (Rana pretiosa) faces unique challenges because it occupies the highest elevation site in the species' extant range and one that has been...
Authors
Jennifer Rowe, Christopher Pearl, Adam Duarte, Brome McCreary, Michael J. Adams
Rates of osmoconformation in triploid eastern oysters, and comparison to their diploid half-siblings Rates of osmoconformation in triploid eastern oysters, and comparison to their diploid half-siblings
Triploid eastern oysters (Crassostrea virginica) suffer greater mortalities than diploids in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico estuaries when extreme low salinities ( 5) and elevated temperatures (≥ 28 °C) coincide. To investigate potential causes, changes in plasma osmolality, hemolymph pH, valve opening and mortality in diploid and triploid oyster half-siblings were compared during a step-down...
Authors
Sandra M. Casas, Devin Comba, Megan K. La Peyre, Scott Rikard, Jerome F. La Peyre
Models for linking hunter retention and recruitment to regulations and game populations Models for linking hunter retention and recruitment to regulations and game populations
Introduction: Declining hunter populations across North America present wildlife management agencies with the prospect of declining revenues for wildlife conservation and management and the need for new tools to evaluate management strategies and predict future status of game species and hunters. Methods: Here we present a modeling framework and potential decision support tool for...
Authors
Conor P. McGowan, Jennifer L. Price Tack, Amy Silvano, J. Barry Grand
Salinity trends in a groundwater system supplemented by 50 years of imported Colorado River water Salinity trends in a groundwater system supplemented by 50 years of imported Colorado River water
The Indio subbasin of the Coachella Valley is a desert area of southern California where a growing population depends primarily on groundwater for drinking and agricultural uses. The aquifer system has been supplemented with Colorado River water through managed recharge and widespread irrigation since the mid-20th century. We use a combination of geochemical modeling and trend analysis...
Authors
Jennifer S. Harkness, Patrick Michael McCarthy, Bryant C. Jurgens, Zeno F. Levy
Relating absolute abundance of an estuarine fish to habitat area in an urbanizing environment Relating absolute abundance of an estuarine fish to habitat area in an urbanizing environment
Organisms that rely on salt marsh habitat are an important trophic link, helping to maintain estuarine ecosystem productivity. We used GIS to quantify intertidal (assumed salt marsh) area from aerial photographs taken in 1939 and from software-supplied satellite imagery taken in 2021 for tidal creeks in North Carolina (USA) that have experienced minor (60%) losses of intertidal habitat...
Authors
Paul J. Rudershausen, Steven M. Lombardo, George R. Stilson, Matthew J. O'Donnell
Fecal metabarcoding of the endangered Pacific pocket mouse (Perognathus longimembris pacificus) reveals a diverse and forb rich diet that reflects local habitat availability Fecal metabarcoding of the endangered Pacific pocket mouse (Perognathus longimembris pacificus) reveals a diverse and forb rich diet that reflects local habitat availability
Information on diet breadth and preference can assist in understanding links between food resources and population growth and inform habitat restoration for rare herbivores. We assessed the diet of the endangered Pacific pocket mouse using metabarcoding of fecal samples and compared it to plant community composition in long-term study plots in two populations on Marine Corps Base Camp...
Authors
Amy G. Vandergast, Cheryl S. Brehme, Deborah D. Iwanowicz, Robert S. Cornman, Devin T. Adsit-Morris, Robert N. Fisher
A memoir very much worth the read: Reviewing: My Life in Fish: One Scientist’s Journey, by Gary D. Grossman (illustrated by Ryan Tavarez), published by Today’s Ecological Solutions (2022) A memoir very much worth the read: Reviewing: My Life in Fish: One Scientist’s Journey, by Gary D. Grossman (illustrated by Ryan Tavarez), published by Today’s Ecological Solutions (2022)
No abstract available.
Authors
Cory Brant
Future marsh evolution due to tidal changes induced by human adaptation to sea level rise Future marsh evolution due to tidal changes induced by human adaptation to sea level rise
With sea level rise threatening coastal development, decision-makers are beginning to act by modifying shorelines. Previous research has shown that hardening or softening shorelines may change the tidal range under future sea level rise. Tidal range can also be changed by natural factors. Coastal marshes, which humans increasingly depend on for shoreline protection, are ecologically...
Authors
Celina Balderas-Guzman, Kevin J. Buffington, Karen M. Thorne, Glenn R. Guntenspergen, Michelle A. Hummel, Mark T. Stacey
Critical stakeholder engagement: The road to actionable science Is paved with scientists’ good intentions Critical stakeholder engagement: The road to actionable science Is paved with scientists’ good intentions
To help stakeholders such as planners, resource managers, policymakers, and decision makers address environmental challenges in the Anthropocene, scientists are increasingly creating actionable science—science that is useful, usable, and used. Critical physical geography encourages the engagement of stakeholders in the creation of scientific knowledge to conduct actionable science and...
Authors
Aparna Bamzai-Dodson, Amanda E. Cravens, Renee A. McPherson