Skip to main content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Land Management Research Program

Our research focus is on ecosystems, the biological communities of interacting organisms and their physical environment. Much of our research is about how to restore and manage ecosystems while maximizing their ability to support biodiversity and services (e. g. coastal protection, water availability, pollination, food, erosion control etc.) and preparing for anticipated climate change impacts.

Read the Landscape Science Strategy

Ecosystem Research

Looking towards mountain peaks from shore of Knox Lake

The Nation’s ecosystems are complex, dynamic, and exposed to a rapidly changing climate among other threats.  USGS scientists study how ecosystems function, the impacts of stressors, and make predictions about their future to improve restoration and management outcomes.

Explore Ecosystem Research

Firelight

Wildfire in Mason Valley, Nevada

Firelight provides updates on the latest USGS fire science for a changing world. Each issue features a variety of our wildland fire science, providing information, data and tools for use by managers before, during, and after fires.

Browse the Issues

Publications

Forecasting natural regeneration of sagebrush after wildfires using population models and spatial matching

ContextAddressing ecosystem degradation in the Anthropocene will require ecological restoration across large spatial extents. Identifying areas where natural regeneration will occur without direct resource investment will improve scalability of restoration actions.ObjectivesAn ecoregion in need of large scale restoration is the Great Basin of the Western US, where increasingly large and frequent w
Authors
Andrii Zaiats, Megan E Cattau, David Pilliod, Liu Rongsong, Juan M. Requena-Mullor, Trevor Caughlin
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Land Management Research Program, Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center

Symbiotic nitrogen fixation does not stimulate soil phosphatase activity under temperate and tropical trees

Symbiotic nitrogen (N)-fixing plants can enrich ecosystems with N, which can alter the cycling and demand for other nutrients. Researchers have hypothesized that fixed N could be used by plants and soil microbes to produce extracellular phosphatase enzymes, which release P from organic matter. Consistent with this speculation, the presence of N-fixing plants is often associated with high phosphata
Authors
Emily Jager, Andrew Quebbeman, Amelia A. Wolf, Steven Perakis, Jennifer L. Funk, Duncan N.L. Menge
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Land Management Research Program, Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center

Experimental manipulation of soil-surface albedo alters phenology and growth of Bromus tectorum (cheatgrass)

PurposeThe sensitivity of wildland plants to temperature can be directly measured using experimental manipulations of temperature in situ. We show that soil surface temperature and plant density (per square meter) have a significant impact on the germination, growth, and phenology of Bromus tectorum L., cheatgrass, a short-statured invasive winter-annual grass, and assess a new experimental temper
Authors
Toby M. Maxwell, Matthew Germino, Seth Romero, Lauren M. Porensky, Dana M. Blumenthal, Cynthia S. Brown, Peter B. Adler
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Land Management Research Program, Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center
View All

Science

link
Gulf Sturgeon

Sturgeon Occurrence and Behavior in the Outer Continental Shelf

A new study aims to collect information on sturgeon temporal and spatial distribution to inform offshore wind energy and sand leasing operations.
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Land Management Research Program, Species Management Research Program, Eastern Ecological Science Center, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center
link

Sturgeon Occurrence and Behavior in the Outer Continental Shelf

A new study aims to collect information on sturgeon temporal and spatial distribution to inform offshore wind energy and sand leasing operations.
Learn More
link
A Tufted Puffin swimming in the sea in Lower Cook Inlet, Alaska

Seabirds and Forage Fish Ecology

Alaska's coastal and offshore waters provide foraging habitat for an estimated 100 million birds comprising more than 90 different species; from loons and seaducks that nest inland, to petrels and puffins that breed on islands off shore. All these birds depend on the sea to provide a wide variety of food types— from clams, crabs and urchins nearshore— to krill, forage fish, and squid offshore. The...
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Land Management Research Program, Species Management Research Program, Alaska Science Center
link

Seabirds and Forage Fish Ecology

Alaska's coastal and offshore waters provide foraging habitat for an estimated 100 million birds comprising more than 90 different species; from loons and seaducks that nest inland, to petrels and puffins that breed on islands off shore. All these birds depend on the sea to provide a wide variety of food types— from clams, crabs and urchins nearshore— to krill, forage fish, and squid offshore. The...
Learn More
link
Walruses resting on an ice floe

Walrus Research

The USGS Alaska Science Center conducts long-term research on the Pacific walrus to provide scientific information to Department of Interior management agencies and Alaska Native co-management partners. In addition, the USGS Pacific walrus research program collaborates with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and the State of Alaska’s Department of Fish and Game and Alaska Native co...
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Land Management Research Program, Species Management Research Program, Alaska Science Center
link

Walrus Research

The USGS Alaska Science Center conducts long-term research on the Pacific walrus to provide scientific information to Department of Interior management agencies and Alaska Native co-management partners. In addition, the USGS Pacific walrus research program collaborates with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and the State of Alaska’s Department of Fish and Game and Alaska Native co...
Learn More
View All