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Publications

USGS research activities relevant to Alaska have yielded more than 9400 historical publications. This page features some of the most recent newsworthy research findings.

Filter Total Items: 3107

Remote identification of polar bear maternal den habitat in northern Alaska Remote identification of polar bear maternal den habitat in northern Alaska

Polar bears (Ursus maritimus) give birth in dens of ice and snow to protect their altricial young. During the snow-free season, we visited 25 den sites located previously by radiotelemetry and characterized the den site physiognomy. Seven dens occurred in habitats with minimal relief. Eighteen dens (72%) were in coastal and river banks. These "banks" were identifiable on aerial...
Authors
George M. Durner, Steven C. Amstrup, Ken J. Ambrosius

Recommended features of protocols for long-term ecological monitoring Recommended features of protocols for long-term ecological monitoring

In 1991, the National Park Service (NPS) selected seven parks to serve as prototypes for development of a long-term ecological monitoring program. Denali National Park and Preserve was one of the prototype parks selected. The principal focus of this national program was to detect and document resource changes and to understand the forces driving those changes. One of the major tasks of...
Authors
Karen L. Oakley, Susan L. Boudreau, Sioux-Z Humphrey

Estimating repeatability of egg size Estimating repeatability of egg size

Measures of repeatability have long been used to assess patterns of variation in egg size within and among females. We compared different analytical approaches for estimating repeatability of egg size of Black Brant. Separate estimates of repeatability for eggs of each clutch size and laying sequence number varied from 0.49 to 0.64. We suggest that using the averaging egg size within...
Authors
Paul L. Flint, R.F. Rockwell, J.S. Sedinger

Using GIS to analyze animal movements in the marine environment Using GIS to analyze animal movements in the marine environment

Advanced methods for analyzing animal movements have been little used in the aquatic research environment compared to the terrestrial. In addition, despite obvious advantages of integrating geographic information systems (GIS) with spatial studies of animal movement behavior, movement analysis tools have not been integrated into GIS for either aquatic or terrestrial environments. We...
Authors
Philip N. Hooge, William M. Eichenlaub, Elizabeth K. Solomon

Use of Landsat MSS and TM imagery to improve reconnaissance geologic mapping in the Ruby quadrangle, west-central Alaska: A section in Geological studies in Alaska by the U.S. Geological Survey, 1999 Use of Landsat MSS and TM imagery to improve reconnaissance geologic mapping in the Ruby quadrangle, west-central Alaska: A section in Geological studies in Alaska by the U.S. Geological Survey, 1999

By using Multispectral Scanner (MSS) and Thematic Mapper (TM) satellite images, the spatial relation of units JMtu (mafic, ultramafic, and sedimentary rocks, undivided) and PzZrqs (pelitic and quartzitic schist) of Wilson and others (1998) from the northeastern portion of the Ruby 1:250,000-scale quadrangle geologic map was further defined. The MSS image was first analyzed using spectral
Authors
Keith A. Labay, Frederic H. Wilson, Kuuipo A. Burleigh

Patterns of mammalian species richness and habitat associations in Pennsylvania Patterns of mammalian species richness and habitat associations in Pennsylvania

Landscape variables were employed as indices of habitat heterogeneity, fragmentation, and human influence on the environment to characterize constituent units of a 635 km2 grid covering the state of Pennsylvania. Species richness was determined by overlaying the distributions of all 60 terrestrial mammalian species found within the state. All landscape variables investigated were...
Authors
Kyle Joly, W.L. Myers

Sea otter studies in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve: Aerial surveys, foraging observations, and intertidal clam sampling Sea otter studies in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve: Aerial surveys, foraging observations, and intertidal clam sampling

Following translocations to the outer coast of Southeast Alaska in 1965, sea otters have been expanding their range and increasing in abundance. We began conducting surveys for sea otters in Cross Sound, Icy Strait and Glacier Bay, Alaska in 1994, following initial reports of their presence in Glacier Bay in 1993. Since 1995, the number of sea otters in Glacier Bay proper has increased...
Authors
James L. Bodkin, Kimberly A. Kloecker, George G. Esslinger, Daniel H. Monson, J.D. DeGroot

Stratigraphy and lithofacies of Lisburne Group carbonate rocks (Carboniferous - Permian) in the National Petroleum Reserve - Alaska Stratigraphy and lithofacies of Lisburne Group carbonate rocks (Carboniferous - Permian) in the National Petroleum Reserve - Alaska

Carbonate rocks of the Lisburne Group (Carboniferous-Permian) occur widely throughout northern Alaska. In the NPRA, seismic mapping and well penetrations show that the Lisburne occurs throughout the subsurface except in northernmost NPRA where it is missing by depositional onlap. Lisburne strata encountered in 11 exploratory wells in the northern part of the NPRA are essentially...
Authors
Julie A. Dumoulin, Kenneth J. Bird

Outcrop structural data from parts of the Petersburg and Sumdum 1:250,000-scale quadrangles, southeastern Alaska Outcrop structural data from parts of the Petersburg and Sumdum 1:250,000-scale quadrangles, southeastern Alaska

This report presents a compilation of 4203 measurements of outcrop structures from part of the Petersburg 1:250,000-scale quadrangle in southeastern Alaska. We collected 1966 measurements, and an additional 2237 unpublished measurements were compiled from field notebooks a from a field mapping effort in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s. These data are listed in spreadsheet and derivative...
Authors
Peter J. Haeussler, Susan M. Karl

Reconnaissance geology north of the Hoholitna River, Taylor Mountains D-1 1:63,360-scale quadrangle, southwestern Alaska: A section in Geological studies in Alaska by the U.S. Geological Survey, 1999 Reconnaissance geology north of the Hoholitna River, Taylor Mountains D-1 1:63,360-scale quadrangle, southwestern Alaska: A section in Geological studies in Alaska by the U.S. Geological Survey, 1999

The lower Paleozoic (Silurian and Ordovician) carbonate stratal succession is divided into six unnamed stratigraphic units in the northern part of the Taylor Mountains D-1 1:63,360-scale quadrangle of southwestern Alaska. Several of these units have previously been recognized in the McGrath and Medfra quadrangles to the northeast in strata of the Nixon Fork subterrane of the Farewell...
Authors
Robert B. Blodgett, Frederic H. Wilson
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