Publications
Browse more than 160,000 publications authored by our scientists over the past 100+ year history of the USGS. Publications available are: USGS-authored journal articles, series reports, book chapters, other government publications, and more.
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Predicting niche spaces of expanding Evening Bat (Nycticeius humeralis) populations following white-nose syndrome establishment Predicting niche spaces of expanding Evening Bat (Nycticeius humeralis) populations following white-nose syndrome establishment
Observations of the Evening Bat (Nycticeius humeralis), a species historically distributed abundantly throughout the southeastern United States, are speculated to have increased in the Midwest. One hypothesis for this expansion in geographic distribution is that local extirpations of other bat species resulted in the expanded realized niche spaces for evening bats. In Indiana, such niche...
Authors
Sally B. Martinez, Laura D’Acunto, Bradford J. Westrich, Scott M. Bergeson, Patrick A. Zollner
Geochemistry and Soils of the Big Smoky Valley Fens, Nevada Geochemistry and Soils of the Big Smoky Valley Fens, Nevada
Fens are groundwater-fed wetlands that can provide habitat for plants and animals. Due to anthropogenic activities and climate change, many fens around the world are at risk. This paper presents the results of a study of the hydrology and geochemistry of fens in Big Smoky Valley, central Nevada to support the Bureau of Land Management’s activities in the area. A water sample from the...
Authors
Sade K. Cromratie Clemons, Geoffrey John Moret, Katherine J. Earp
Leveraging an observed-data likelihood improves the use of machine learning labels in a Bayesian hierarchical model for bioacoustic data Leveraging an observed-data likelihood improves the use of machine learning labels in a Bayesian hierarchical model for bioacoustic data
Classification of massive datasets by machine learning (ML) algorithms is promising for many scientific domains, especially wildlife monitoring programs that rely on passive acoustic surveys for detecting species. However, treating ML-predicted class labels (e.g., species identity) as truth biases inferences of focal parameters within common modeling frameworks. One solution is to model...
Authors
Jacob Oram, Katharine M. Banner, Christian Stratton, Andrew Hoegh, Kathryn Irvine
Range-wide population trend analysis for greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus)—Updated 1960–2024 Range-wide population trend analysis for greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus)—Updated 1960–2024
Greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus; hereafter sage-grouse) are at the center of State and national land-use policies largely because of their unique life-history traits as an ecological indicator for the health of sagebrush ecosystems. This updated population trend analysis provides State and Federal land and wildlife managers with the best available science to help guide...
Authors
Brian G. Prochazka, Peter S. Coates, Cameron L. Aldridge, Michael S. O’Donnell, David R. Edmunds, Adrian P. Monroe, Steve E. Hanser, Lief A. Wiechman, Michael P. Chenaille
A framework for analyzing wild turkey summer sighting data. A framework for analyzing wild turkey summer sighting data.
Wildlife agencies collect data on productivity (e.g., proportion of hens with poults and number of poults per hen) of wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) to monitor population status and trends. However, sampling protocols to collect productivity data rely on opportunistic observations reported by wildlife agency personnel and the public and have changed over time and differed among...
Authors
Duane R. Diefenbach, Frances E. Buderman, Mary Jo Casalena, Michael Dye, Robert Gates, Laura Christine Gigliotti, C. Robert Long, Katherine Martin, Michael Muthersbaugh, Michael L. Peters, James Sloan, Joshua Stiller, Mark Wiley
The Hawaiian Volcanoes Supersite: Open data for the benefit of science and society The Hawaiian Volcanoes Supersite: Open data for the benefit of science and society
The Hawaiian Volcanoes Supersite was established in 2008 with the goal of making large amounts of volcano monitoring data, especially satellite measurements, freely available at a site of international interest, scientific importance, and impactful natural hazards. The location was chosen because of the long history of volcanological research and innovation on the Island of Hawaiʻi, as...
Authors
Michael Poland, Stefano Salvi, Falk Amelung, Marco Bagnardi, Tyler Grant Paladino, Ingrid A. Johanson, Megan McLay
Sentinel-2 based estimates of rangeland fractional cover and canopy gap class for the western United States Sentinel-2 based estimates of rangeland fractional cover and canopy gap class for the western United States
Rangelands are extensive ecosystems, providing important ecosystem services while undergoing continuous change. As a result, improved monitoring technologies can help better characterize vegetation change. Satellite remote sensing has proven effective in this regard, tracking vegetation dynamics at broad and fine scales. We leveraged the spatial, spectral, and temporal resolution of...
Authors
Brady W. Allred, Sarah E. McCord, Timothy J. Assal, Brandon T. Bestelmeyer, Chad S. Boyd, Alexander C. Brooks, Samantha M. Cady, Michael C. Duniway, Samuel D. Fuhlendorf, Shane A. Green, Georgia R. Harrison, Eric R. Jensen, Emily J. Kachergis, Anna C. Knight, Chloe M. Mattilio, Brian A. Mealor, David E. Naugle, Dylan O’Leary, Peter J. Olsoy, Erika S. Peirce, Jason R. Reinhardt, Robert K. Shriver, Joseph T. Smith, Jason D. Tack, Ashley M. Tanner, Evan P. Tanner, Dirac Twidwell, Nicholas P. Webb, Scott L. Morford
Disentangling geomorphic equifinality in sediment and hydrologic connectivity through the analyses of landscape drivers of hysteresis Disentangling geomorphic equifinality in sediment and hydrologic connectivity through the analyses of landscape drivers of hysteresis
Sources, transport mechanisms and pathways of fine sediment in river systems are dependent on a multitude of climatic, geomorphic and anthropogenic factors, resulting in geomorphic equifinality, in which it is difficult to parse how different landscape processes affect sediment transport across different spatiotemporal scales. The objectives of this study are to 1) provide a conceptual...
Authors
Jong Cho, J. William Lund, Grady Ball, Jeb E. Brown, Allen C. Gellis, Laura N. Gurley, Scott Douglas Hamshaw, Jeffrey Stephen Kwang, Andrew Roy Laws, Gregory E. Noe, Gretchen P. Oelsner, Francis Parchaso, Cara L. Peterman-Phipps, Katherine Skalak, Nicholas Alan Sutfin
Interspecific interactions moderate direct effects of vegetation change resulting from prescribed fires Interspecific interactions moderate direct effects of vegetation change resulting from prescribed fires
Savannas depend on frequent, low-intensity fires that shape animal and plant communities. These fires alter animal populations, movement, and habitat use. Here, we report on how fires in a longleaf pine (Pinus palustris) savanna affected small mammal microhabitat use via changes in competition and predation. We monitored small mammal populations and vegetation subjected to biennial...
Authors
Varsha Shastry, L. Mike Conner, Gail Morris, Andy Royle, Lora Smith, Dana Morin
Rare milkvetch (Astragalus) persistence at a utility-scale solar energy facility in the Mojave Desert Rare milkvetch (Astragalus) persistence at a utility-scale solar energy facility in the Mojave Desert
Utility-scale solar energy (USSE) development is driving the projected growth in global renewable energy capacity but comes with environmental tradeoffs. New, alternative construction methods are promoted to minimize impacts to soils, vegetation, and hydrology; however, the disturbance created by these methods requires further investigation. We evaluated the population of a rare annual...
Authors
Tiffany J. Pereira, Claire C Karban, Lara A. Kobelt, Seth Munson
The effects of carnivory and herbivory on the energy balance of Arctic grizzly bears The effects of carnivory and herbivory on the energy balance of Arctic grizzly bears
Omnivores often face tradeoffs between selecting for spatially dispersed energy-dense vertebrate prey versus densely distributed herbivorous resources that have limited energetic value per unit intake. Arctic grizzly bears (Ursus arctos) are large omnivores within a resource-limited ecosystem that are known to exhibit smaller body masses and occur at lower densities than grizzly bears in...
Authors
Anthony M. Pagano, Karyn D. Rode, Kerry L. Nicholson, William B. Leacock, Craig A. Stricker, Charles T. Robbins
Summer snow determines the depth to ice-cemented ground under dry permafrost in Antarctica Summer snow determines the depth to ice-cemented ground under dry permafrost in Antarctica
Dry permafrost underlain by ice-cemented permafrost has been reported in several locations in Antarctica. Initially thought to be relic ice, it is now understood that this subsurface ice is in equilibrium with the surface conditions, although it is not in equilibrium with the atmosphere. We use year-round data from University Valley in the Dry Valleys and Elephant Head in the Ellsworth...
Authors
C. P. McKay, M. Marinova, Kaj E. Williams, M. Mellon