USGS provides fisheries research information to restore and enhance fish habitat and understand fish diseases. Endangered species and those that are imperiled receive special research interest. Aquatic Invasive Species research is aiding in early detection and control measures, as well as understanding impacts these invaders have on aquatic environments.
USGS studies related to invasive species and disease and the Fisheries Program are listed below.
Disease and Environmental Stress
Disease may be caused by infectious agents, nutritional imbalances, physiological or genetically-based abnormalities, and suboptimal environmental conditions, acting either alone or in combination with other factors. In many instances, environmental stressors may merge forces with an infectious agent or some other non-infectious factor to produce or exacerbate a state of disease. By studying...
Experimental suppression of invasive lake trout: Implications for conservation of imperiled bull trout in Glacier National Park
After 14,000 years of dominance, Glacier National Park’s (GNP) greatest native aquatic predator is at high risk of extirpation (local extinction) in several lakes on the western slopes of the Continental Divide. The decline of threatened bull trout in GNP is directly attributed to the invasion and establishment of nonnative lake trout, which consistently displace bull trout in systems where lake...
Transformation methods for the glochidia of the spectaclecase mussel Cumberlandia monodonta
The spectaclecase mussel, Cumberlandia monodonta, was effectively listed as federally endangered in April 2012 (https://federalregister.gov/a/2012-5603). It is endemic to the Mississippi, Ohio and Missouri River basins and historically inhabited 44 streams in these basins (USFWS 2014). Currently, the species is known to inhabit 20 of the historical streams, five of which are represented by one or...
Western Waters Invasive Species and Disease Research Program
Researchers at the Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center's Western Waters Invasive Species and Disease Research Program work extensively with federal, state, tribal, regional, and local partners to deliver science to improve early detection and prevention of invasive species and disease; understand complex interactions that promote invasive species and disease, and their impacts (and associated...
Statistical Models for the Design and Analysis of Environmental DNA (eDNA) Surveys of Invasive and Imperiled Species
Detecting invasive species at low densities or prior to population establishment is critical for successful control and eradication. For example, Burmese pythons occupy thousands of square kilometers of mostly inaccessible habitats.
An investigation of aquatic invasive species in pristine sites in the Greater Yellowstone Area
Aquatic invasive species (AIS) are aquatic organisms that move into ecosystems beyond their natural, historic range and cause severe and irreversible damage to the habitats they invade. Most AIS arrive as a direct result of human activity, such as boating and angling. The threat of AIS introduction is especially high in the Greater Yellowstone Area, as humans from all over the world come to see...
- Overview
USGS provides fisheries research information to restore and enhance fish habitat and understand fish diseases. Endangered species and those that are imperiled receive special research interest. Aquatic Invasive Species research is aiding in early detection and control measures, as well as understanding impacts these invaders have on aquatic environments.
- Science
USGS studies related to invasive species and disease and the Fisheries Program are listed below.
Disease and Environmental Stress
Disease may be caused by infectious agents, nutritional imbalances, physiological or genetically-based abnormalities, and suboptimal environmental conditions, acting either alone or in combination with other factors. In many instances, environmental stressors may merge forces with an infectious agent or some other non-infectious factor to produce or exacerbate a state of disease. By studying...Experimental suppression of invasive lake trout: Implications for conservation of imperiled bull trout in Glacier National Park
After 14,000 years of dominance, Glacier National Park’s (GNP) greatest native aquatic predator is at high risk of extirpation (local extinction) in several lakes on the western slopes of the Continental Divide. The decline of threatened bull trout in GNP is directly attributed to the invasion and establishment of nonnative lake trout, which consistently displace bull trout in systems where lake...Transformation methods for the glochidia of the spectaclecase mussel Cumberlandia monodonta
The spectaclecase mussel, Cumberlandia monodonta, was effectively listed as federally endangered in April 2012 (https://federalregister.gov/a/2012-5603). It is endemic to the Mississippi, Ohio and Missouri River basins and historically inhabited 44 streams in these basins (USFWS 2014). Currently, the species is known to inhabit 20 of the historical streams, five of which are represented by one or...Western Waters Invasive Species and Disease Research Program
Researchers at the Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center's Western Waters Invasive Species and Disease Research Program work extensively with federal, state, tribal, regional, and local partners to deliver science to improve early detection and prevention of invasive species and disease; understand complex interactions that promote invasive species and disease, and their impacts (and associated...Statistical Models for the Design and Analysis of Environmental DNA (eDNA) Surveys of Invasive and Imperiled Species
Detecting invasive species at low densities or prior to population establishment is critical for successful control and eradication. For example, Burmese pythons occupy thousands of square kilometers of mostly inaccessible habitats.An investigation of aquatic invasive species in pristine sites in the Greater Yellowstone Area
Aquatic invasive species (AIS) are aquatic organisms that move into ecosystems beyond their natural, historic range and cause severe and irreversible damage to the habitats they invade. Most AIS arrive as a direct result of human activity, such as boating and angling. The threat of AIS introduction is especially high in the Greater Yellowstone Area, as humans from all over the world come to see...