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: 3104
Implementation of biomarker-based studies Implementation of biomarker-based studies
Biomarkers may be used to determine chemical exposure and effects in several important ways. These include (1) evaluation of new agricultural or industrial chemicals for effects, (2) screening of municipal or industrial effluents, (3) determining the geographic distribution of chemical effects in the environment and their changes over time, (4) determining the identity and source of...
Authors
John J. Stegeman, Brenda E. Ballachey, J. Bickham, B. Hocker, S. Kennedy, H. Thompson, A.D. Vethaak
Annual and Spatial Variation of the Kelp Forest Fish Assemblage at San Nicolas Island, California Annual and Spatial Variation of the Kelp Forest Fish Assemblage at San Nicolas Island, California
The kelp forest fishes of San Nicolas Island, California were studied from 1981-1986 to examine the causes of among-site and among-year variation in the fish assemblages. Fish counts and seven physical and biological variables were recorded at six sites around the island every spring and fall. Over the study period, a total of 45 fish species from 18 families were recorded, though...
Authors
R.J. Cowen, James L. Bodkin
Kappa-casein polymorphisms among cattle breeds and bison herds Kappa-casein polymorphisms among cattle breeds and bison herds
We identified the HindIII restriction site polymorphism of K-casein in cattle reported by Pinder et al. (Animal Genetics 22, 11, 1991) and found an additonal polymorphism (RsaI) in cattle and bison. The HindIII and RsaI restriction sites were mapped and three haplotypes (alleles) were identified. Preliminary screening of 39 cattle and 71 bison revealed one allele restricted to cattle...
Authors
M. A. Cronin, N. Cockett
Survival and pre-fledging body mass in juvenile emperor geese Survival and pre-fledging body mass in juvenile emperor geese
A positive relationship exists between fledgling body mass and juvenile survival for some altricial (Krementz et al. 1989, Magrath 1991, Linden et al. 1992) and precocial (Owen and Black 1989, Longcore et al. 1991, Francis et al. 1992) species. Because the energetic demands of migration are high, physiologic condition may be a proximate determinate of juvenile survival in geese. Owen and...
Authors
Joel A. Schmutz
Behavioral ecology of black-legged kittiwakes during chick rearing in a failing colony Behavioral ecology of black-legged kittiwakes during chick rearing in a failing colony
Compared with their Atlantic counterparts, Black-legged Kittiwakes (Rissa tridactyla) in North Pacific colonies are notably unproductive. A large colony on Middleton Island, Alaska, has in most years since 1981 seen complete breeding failure and the population has declined by half. We compared parent-offspring behaviors in this colony during two years that differed in overall breeding...
Authors
Bay D. Roberts, Scott A. Hatch
Tilting, burial, and uplift of the Guadalupe Igneous Complex, Sierra Nevada, California Tilting, burial, and uplift of the Guadalupe Igneous Complex, Sierra Nevada, California
It is often incorrectly assumed that plutons have a relatively uneventful structural history after emplacement. The 151 Ma Guadalupe Igneous Complex (GIC) in the Foothills Terrane, California, was involved in three post-emplacement events: (1) ∼30° of southwestside-up tilting during ductile regional faulting and contraction, (2) burial of the pluton from ∼4 to 12 km during crustal...
Authors
Peter J. Haeussler, Scott R. Paterson
Adult survival of Black-legged Kittiwakes Rissa tridactyla in a Pacific colony Adult survival of Black-legged Kittiwakes Rissa tridactyla in a Pacific colony
Breeding Black-legged Kittiwakes Rissa tridactyla survived at a mean annual rate of 0.926 in four years at a colony in Alaska. Survival rates observed in sexed males (0.930) and females (0.937) did not differ significantly. The rate of return among nonbreeding Kittiwakes (0.839) was lower than that of known breeders, presumably because more nonbreeders moved away from the study plots...
Authors
Scott A. Hatch, Bay D. Roberts, Brian S. Fadely
Are Bald Eagles important predators of Emperor Geese? Are Bald Eagles important predators of Emperor Geese?
Bald Eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) and geese often occur together, especially at sites used by geese for migrational staging and wintering. Although numerous studies have been directed at these taxa, there are only anecdotal accounts (Parris et al. 1980, Bennett and Klaas 1986, Bartley 1988) of Bald Eagles killing healthy geese at any time of the year (but see Raveling and Zezulak...
Authors
Robert E. Gill, Karen L. Kincheloe
Chiricahua Peak quadrangle, Cochise County, Arizona: Analytic data and geologic sample catalog Chiricahua Peak quadrangle, Cochise County, Arizona: Analytic data and geologic sample catalog
No abstract available.
Authors
Edward A. du Bray, Douglas B. Yager, John S. Pallister
Sex identification of polar bears from blood and tissue samples Sex identification of polar bears from blood and tissue samples
Polar bears (Ursus maritimus) can be adversely affected by hunting and other human perturbations because of low population densities and low reproduction rates. The sustainable take of adult females may be as low as 1.5% of the population. Females and accompanying young are most vulnerable to hunting, and hunters have not consistently reported the sex composition of the harvest...
Authors
Steven C. Amstrup, G.W. Garner, M. A. Cronin, J.C. Patton
Autumn diet of lesser snow geese staging in northeastern Alaska Autumn diet of lesser snow geese staging in northeastern Alaska
The coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) is used by lesser snow geese (Chen caerulescens caerulescens) in autumn for premigratory staging. To better understand the potential impacts of human disturbance on snow geese, we investigated species composition of, and temporal and age-related variation in, their diet during staging. Depending on age and time of collection...
Authors
Alan W. Brackney, Jerry W. Hupp
Ecology and population status of Northern Fulmars (Fulmarus glacialis) of the North Pacific Ecology and population status of Northern Fulmars (Fulmarus glacialis) of the North Pacific
In the North Pacific, the breeding distribution of Northern Fulmars (Fulmarus glacialis) includes about equal numbers of very large colonies (50,000-500,000 individuals) and relatively small ones (5-5,000 individuals). The almost complete segregation of light and dark colour phases between adjacent colonies in the Bering Sea and Sea of Okhotsk suggests there is little gene flow among the...
Authors
Scott A. Hatch