Publications

The genetic basis of susceptibility to chronic wasting disease (CWD) in free-ranging cervids is of great interest. Association studies of disease susceptibility in free-ranging populations, however, face considerable challenges including: the need for large sample sizes when disease is rare, animals of unknown pedigree create a risk of spurious results due to population admixture, and...

Assessing potential future changes in arctic and boreal plant species productivity, ecosystem composition, and canopy complexity is essential for understanding environmental responses under expected altered climate forcing. We examined potential changes in the dominant plant functional types (PFTs) of the sedge tundra, shrub tundra, and boreal forest ecosystems in ecotonal northern...

After the 2001 occurrence of West Nile virus (WNV) in Wisconsin (WI), we collected sera, during 2003–2006, from south-central WI mesopredators. We tested these sera to determine WNV antibody prevalence and geometric mean antibody titer (GMAT). Four-fold higher antibody prevalence and 2-fold higher GMAT in 2003–2004 indicated greater exposure of mesopredators to WNV during the apparent...

Telemetry has allowed researchers to document the upstream migrations of anadromous fish in freshwater. In many anadromous alosine telemetry studies, researchers use downstream movements (“fallback”) as a behavioral field bioassay for adverse tag effects. However, these downstream movements have not been uniformly reported or interpreted. We quantified movement trajectories of radio...

We examined King Eider (Somateria spectabilis) brood survival in the Kuparak oil field in northern Alaska in 2002 and 2003 by monitoring hens with broods using radiotelemetry. We observed complete brood loss in eight of 10 broods. Broods survived less than 2 weeks on average, and most mortality occurred within 10 days of hatch. Distance hens traveled overland did not affect brood...

Streams collect runoff, heat, and sediment from their watersheds, making them highly vulnerable to anthropogenic disturbances such as urbanization and climate change. Forecasting the effects of these disturbances using process-based models is critical to identifying the form and magnitude of likely impacts. Here, we integrate a new biotic model with four previously developed physical...

Abstract not available

The recent warming in the Arctic is affecting a broad spectrum of physical, ecological, and human/cultural systems that may be irreversible on century time scales and have the potential to cause rapid changes in the earth system. The response of the carbon cycle of the Arctic to changes in climate is a major issue of global concern, yet there has not been a comprehensive review of the...

No abstract available.

Projects of the scope of the restoration of the Florida Everglades require substantial information regarding ecological mechanisms, and these are often poorly understood. We provide critical base knowledge for Everglades restoration by characterizing the existing vegetation communities of an Everglades remnant, describing how present and historic hydrology affect wetland vegetation...

Streams and rivers are enormously important, with their ecological, and economic value, greatly outweighing their significance on the landscape. Lotic ecology began in Europe with a focus on the distribution, abundance, and taxonomic composition of aquatic organisms and in North American with a focus on fishery biology. Since 1980, stream/river research has been highly interdisciplinary...

Growing season CH4 fluxes were monitored over a two year period following the start of ecosystem-scale manipulations of water table position and surface soil temperatures in a moderate rich fen in interior Alaska. The largest CH4 fluxes occurred in plots that received both flooding (raised water table position) and soil warming, while the lowest fluxes occurred in unwarmed plots in the...