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.
Mission Area Publications
Mission Area Publications
We are focused on some of the most significant issues society faces, and our science is making a substantial contribution to the well-being of the Nation and the world. Learn more about the major topics our research covers and the programs focused on those topics.
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Saproxylic beetles' morphological traits and higher trophic guilds indicate boreal forest naturalness Saproxylic beetles' morphological traits and higher trophic guilds indicate boreal forest naturalness
Forests contribute to numerous ecosystem functions and services and contain a large proportion of terrestrial biodiversity, but they are being negatively impaced by anthropogenic activities. Forests that have never been clear-cut and have old growth characteristics, termed “near-natural,” often harbor different and richer species assemblages than managed forests. Alternative management...
Authors
Ross Wetherbee, Tone Birkemoe, Ryan C. Burner, Anne Sverdrup-Thygeson
Assessing the use of long-term lek survey data to evaluate the effect of landscape characteristics and wind facilities on sharp-tailed grouse lek dynamics in North Dakota and South Dakota Assessing the use of long-term lek survey data to evaluate the effect of landscape characteristics and wind facilities on sharp-tailed grouse lek dynamics in North Dakota and South Dakota
The contribution of renewable energy to meet worldwide demand continues to grow. In the United States, wind energy is one of the fastest growing renewable energy sectors. Throughout the Great Plains of the United States, wind facilities often are placed in open landscapes of high-elevation grasslands, and those same habitats support sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus), a...
Authors
Jill A. Shaffer, Deborah A. Buhl, Wesley E. Newton
Delineating spatial units for coregonine conservation, restoration, and stewardship Delineating spatial units for coregonine conservation, restoration, and stewardship
No abstract available.
Authors
Amanda Susanne Ackiss, Ralph Grundel, Jory L. Jonas, Naomi Jones, Trevor J. Krabbenhoft, Ryan Lauzon, Nicholas E. Mandrak, Brian O’Malley, Devon Pearse, Thomas C. Pratt, Breanna Redford, Mark Ridgway, Jason Smith, Andrew M. Muir
Decision analysis to advance environmental sustainability Decision analysis to advance environmental sustainability
Decision analysis provides a robust framework for complex decisions related to environmental sustainability and conservation, including for energy and water, fisheries and wildlife management, agriculture, and climate change response. The complexities of these problems stem from their large scope and scale, which leads to multiple decision makers, stakeholders, rightsholders, and other...
Authors
Kelly Filer Robinson, Erin Baker, Elizabeth Ewing, Victoria Hemming, Melissa A. Kenney, Michael C. Runge
Effects of hunting on mating, relatedness, and genetic diversity in a puma population Effects of hunting on mating, relatedness, and genetic diversity in a puma population
Hunting mortality can affect population abundance, demography, patterns of dispersal and philopatry, breeding, and genetic diversity. We investigated the effects of hunting on the reproduction and genetic diversity in a puma population in western Colorado, USA. We genotyped over 11,000 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), using double-digest, restriction site-associated DNA sequencing...
Authors
John A. Erwin, Kenneth A. Logan, Daryl R. Trumbo, W. Chris Funk, Melanie Culver
Artisanal mining river dredge detection using SAR: A method comparison Artisanal mining river dredge detection using SAR: A method comparison
Challenges exist in monitoring artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) activities, given their dynamic and often informal nature. ASM takes form through various techniques and scales, including riverine dredging, which often targets the abundant alluvial gold deposits in South America. Remote sensing offers a solution to improve data collection, regulation, and monitoring of the more...
Authors
Marissa Ann Alessi, Peter G. Chirico, Marco Millones
Feasibility of implementing a long-term plan to monitor the Arctic Basin polar bear subpopulation Feasibility of implementing a long-term plan to monitor the Arctic Basin polar bear subpopulation
The Arctic Basin (AB) polar bear subpopulation is the least studied of the 19 global polar bear subpopulations. The Polar Bear Specialist Group (PBSG) recognizes the AB subpopulation as a regional grouping intended to include bears that do not belong to any of the remaining subpopulations that have data to support boundary delineations. Very little is currently known about the AB...
Authors
Ryan H. Wilson, Jon Aars, Todd C. Atwood, Evan Richardson
Relative effectiveness of a radionuclide (210Pb), surface elevation table (SET), and LiDAR at monitoring mangrove forest surface elevation change Relative effectiveness of a radionuclide (210Pb), surface elevation table (SET), and LiDAR at monitoring mangrove forest surface elevation change
Sea-level rise (SLR) is one of the greatest future threats to mangrove forests. Mangroves have kept up with or paced past SLR by maintaining their forest floor elevation relative to sea level through root growth, sedimentation, and peat development. Monitoring surface elevation change (SEC) or accretion rates allows us to understand mangrove response to SLR and prioritizes resilient...
Authors
Richard A. MacKenzie, Ken Krauss, Nicole Cormier, Eugene Eperiam, Jan van Aardt, Ali Rouzbeh Kargar, Jessica Grow, J. Val Klump
Limited role of absolute humidity in intraurban heat variability Limited role of absolute humidity in intraurban heat variability
Monitoring and understanding the variability of heat within cities is important for urban planning and public health, and the number of studies measuring intraurban temperature variability is growing. Recognizing that the physiological effects of heat depend on humidity as well as temperature, measurement campaigns have included measurements of relative humidity alongside temperature...
Authors
Darryn W. Waugh, Benjamin Zaitchik, Anna A. Scott, Peter Christian Ibsen, G. Darrel Jenerette, Jason Schartz, Christopher J. Kucharik
Ecological benefits of integrative weed management of Melaleuca quinquenervia in Big Cypress National Preserve Ecological benefits of integrative weed management of Melaleuca quinquenervia in Big Cypress National Preserve
The southern tip of North America coalesces into one of the world’s largest freshwater wetlands, the Everglades, Florida, USA. Though this region is much like an island, home to high biodiversity and endemism, it is also the site of a century of development and associated landscape-scale species invasions. Melaleuca quinquenervia (hereafter melaleuca), a tree native to tropical Australia...
Authors
Melissa C. Smith, Paul Julien, Don DeAngelis, Bo Zhang
Pliocene Model Intercomparison Project Phase 3 (PlioMIP3) – Science plan and experimental design Pliocene Model Intercomparison Project Phase 3 (PlioMIP3) – Science plan and experimental design
The Pliocene Model Intercomparison Project (PlioMIP) was initiated in 2008. Over two phases PlioMIP has helped co-ordinate the experimental design and publication strategy of the community, which has included an increasing number of climate models and modelling groups from around the world. It has engaged with palaeoenvironmental scientists to foster new data synthesis supporting the...
Authors
Alan M Haywood, Julia C. Tindall, Lauren Burton, M.A. Chandler, Aisling M Dolan, Harry J. Dowsett, R. Feng, Tamara Fletcher, Kevin M. Foley, Daniel Hill, Stephen Hunter, B. Otto-Bliesner, D.J. Lunt, Marci M. Robinson, U. Salzmann
Co-production of models to evaluate conservation alternatives for a threatened fish in a rapidly changing landscape Co-production of models to evaluate conservation alternatives for a threatened fish in a rapidly changing landscape
Reintroductions are one means of managing species distributions, but the feasibility of such efforts is uncertain. Here we consider reintroduction for threatened bull trout (Salvelinus confluentus) that currently occupy a small fraction of historically occupied habitats in the upper Klamath River basin owing to climate warming and human modifications of ecosystems. We engaged...
Authors
Joseph R. Benjamin, Jason B. Dunham, Nolan P. Banish, David K Hering, Zachary Tiemann