Amy Benson
Biography
EDUCATION
B.S., The Pennsylvania State University
M.S., The Pennsylvania State University
BACKGROUND
Amy Benson began her career in Pennsylvania with the U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. In 1991, she transferred to a U.S. Geological Survey laboratory in Florida to help develop a geographic information system on invasive aquatic species.
Science and Products
Nonindigenous Aquatic Species (NAS) Program
Welcome to the Nonindigenous Aquatic Species (NAS) information resource for the United States Geological Survey. Located at Gainesville, Florida, this site has been established as a central repository for spatially referenced biogeographic accounts of introduced aquatic species. The program provides scientific reports, online/realtime queries, spatial data sets, distribution maps, and general...
Mechanisms of Aquatic Species Invasions across the South Atlantic Landscape Conservation Cooperative (SALCC)
USGS scientists study the mechanisms of aquatic species invasions across the South Atlantic Landscape Conservation Cooperative (SALCC) with the help of the Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database (NAS).
Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Program Database Queries
Welcome to the Nonindigenous Aquatic Species (NAS) information resource for the United States Geological Survey. Located at Gainesville, Florida, this site has been established as a central repository for spatially referenced biogeographic accounts of introduced aquatic species.
Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database (NAS)
The NAS provides spatially referenced biogeographic accounts of aquatic species introduced into the United States. The NAS allows for real-time queries, has regional contact information, species accounts and general information. Sign up for species-specific email alerts. Special maps available for zebra and quagga mussels, Asian carp and lionfish.
Status of the major aquaculture carps of China in the Laurentian Great Lakes Basin
There is concern of economic and environmental damage occuring if any of the four major aquacultured carp species of China, black carp Mylopharyngodon piceus, bighead carp Hypophthalmichthys nobilis, silver carp H. molitrix, or grass carp Ctenopharyngodon idella, were to establish in the Laurentian Great Lakes. All four are...
Chapman, Duane C.; Benscoter, Allison; Embke, Holly S.; King, Nicole R.; Kocovsky, Patrick; Lewis, Teresa D.; Mandrak, Nicholas E.Fire disturbance influences endangered Cape Sable Seaside Sparrow (Ammopiza maritima mirabilis) relative bird count
Periodicity of fire disturbance is a known driver of ecosystem function and is reported as important in both promoting and maintaining viable breeding habitat for the endangered Cape Sable Seaside Sparrow (Ammospiza maritima mirabilis; CSSS). In south Florida, the CSSS serves as a fine‐scale indicator of the marl and mixed‐marl prairie communities...
Benscoter, Allison; Beerens, James (Contractor); Pearlstine, Leonard G.; Romanach, StephanieSnakehead fishes (Channa spp.) in the USA
The introduction of snakeheads from their origins in Asia is relatively recent to the conterminous United States with the first of many collections beginning in the late 1990s. For decades they have been commercially fished and aquacultured around the world for human food and, to a lesser degree, for the aquarium trade. Over a dozen snakehead...
Benson, AmyIntroduction and dispersal of non-native bullseye snakehead Channa marulius (Hamilton, 1822) in the canal system of southeastern Florida, USA
An established population of bullseye snakehead (Channa marulius), a large predatory fish from southeastern Asia, was identified for the first time in North America from waters in southeastern Florida, USA, in the year 2000. Since then, it has dispersed throughout the extensive canal system in the area from West Palm Beach south to Miramar....
Benson, Amy J.; Schofield, Pamela J.; Gestring, Kelly B.Book review: Biology and management of invasive quagga and zebra mussels in the western United States
Water is a precious and limited commodity in the western United States and its conveyance is extremely important. Therefore, it is critical to do as much as possible to prevent the spread of two species of dreissenid mussels, both non-native and highly invasive aquatic species already well-established in the eastern half of the United States. This...
Benson, Amy J.Mechanisms of aquatic species invasions across the South Atlantic Landscape Conservation Cooperative region
Invasive species are a global issue, and the southeastern United States is not immune to the problems they present. Therefore, various analyses using modeling and exploratory statistics were performed on the U.S. Geological Survey Nonindigenous Aquatic Species (NAS) Database with the primary objective of determining the most appropriate use of...
Benson, Amy J.; Stith, Bradley M.; Engel, Victor C.Mechanisms of aquatic species invasions across the South Atlantic Landscape Conservation Cooperative region
The Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database (NAS) information resource is an established central repository for spatially referenced biogeographic accounts of introduced aquatic species. The NAS website provides scientific reports, online/real-time queries, spatial data sets, distribution maps, fact sheets, and general information.
Benson, Amy J.Walter Rowe Courtenay, Jr. (1933–2014)
WALTER R. COURTENAY, JR., ichthyologist and retired professor, Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, Florida, died in Gainesville, Florida, on 30 January 2014 at age 80. Walt was born in Neenah, Wisconsin, on 6 November 1933, son of Walter and Emily Courtenay. Walt's interest in fish began at a young age as evidenced by a childhood diary in...
Benson, Amy J.Tracking an unprecedented invasion
No abstract available.
Benson, Amy J.Mechanisms of aquatic species invasions across the SALCC - an update
The USGS Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database (NAS; nas.er.usgs.gov) is a comprehensive tool for demonstrating where and when nonindigenous species have been sighted across the U.S. Information in the database is used for state-level invasive species management plans, to focus monitoring efforts, for public education, predictive modeling, and...
Benson, Amy J.Climate controls the distribution of a widespread invasive species: Implications for future range expansion
1. Two dominant drivers of species distributions are climate and habitat, both of which are changing rapidly. Understanding the relative importance of variables that can control distributions is critical, especially for invasive species that may spread rapidly and have strong effects on ecosystems. 2. Here, we examine the relative importance of...
McDowell, W.G.; Benson, A.J.; Byers, J.E.Asian carp distribution in North America
No abstract available.
Baerwaldt, K.; Benson, Amy; Irons, K.