A SM4 bat detector is deployed at Kwagunt Canyon in Grand Canyon. This weatherproof detector records ultrasonic bat calls. Photo by Anya Metcalfe, USGS, SBSC. This is part of an ongoing study during a study that is examining bat abundance and foraging in Grand Canyon along the Colorado River.
Anya Nova Metcalfe
Anya Metcalfe is a stream ecologist specializing in aquatic insect taxa of the Colorado River Basin. Her research investigates the role of insect life cycles and natural history in the structure of aquatic communities on landscape scales.
Professional Experience
2012 - present | Ecologist - US Geological Survey, Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center, Flagstaff, AZ
2011-2013 | Curatorial Assistant - Museum of Northern Arizona, Flagstaff, AZ
2011-2012 | Field Technician - Spring Stewardship Institute, Flagstaff, AZ
2010 | Respect the Rio interp ranger - Americorps/US Forest Service, Santa Fe National Forest, Jemez Springs, NM
Education and Certifications
2018 | M.S. Biology - Northern Arizona University
2012 | B.A. Environmental Science/Adventure Education - Prescott College
Science and Products
Bat foraging ecology along the Colorado River in Grand Canyon
Community Science in Grand Canyon
Bug Flows: Improving Food Web Health on the Colorado River
Bat activity and insect abundance data along the Colorado River in Grand Canyon, AZ
Invertebrate data (2012-2021) from the Colorado River in Grand Canyon and flow data (1921-2021) from the Lees Ferry gage (09380000) on the Colorado River near Page, AZ
Adult net-spinning caddisfly (Hydropsyche spp.) catch rates and morphology from large rivers of the southwestern United States, 2015-2016
Locality based caddisfly (Hydropsyche oslari) sampling data and CO1 sequences from the southwestern United States, 2013-2016
Insect catch rates and angler success data during Bug Flows at Glen Canyon Dam, 2012-2018
Angel Lichen Moth Abundance and Morphology Data, Grand Canyon, AZ, 2012
A SM4 bat detector is deployed at Kwagunt Canyon in Grand Canyon. This weatherproof detector records ultrasonic bat calls. Photo by Anya Metcalfe, USGS, SBSC. This is part of an ongoing study during a study that is examining bat abundance and foraging in Grand Canyon along the Colorado River.
A incognito SM4 bat detector that records ultrasonic bat calls is hidden in a mesquite tree in Grand Canyon near the Colorado River
linkAn incognito SM4 bat detector is placed in a hidden location in a mesquite tree in Grand Canyon near the Colorado River, below Emerald Rapid. This weatherproof detector records ultrasonic bat calls. This is part of an ongoing study during a study that is examining bat abundance and foraging in Grand Canyon.
A incognito SM4 bat detector that records ultrasonic bat calls is hidden in a mesquite tree in Grand Canyon near the Colorado River
linkAn incognito SM4 bat detector is placed in a hidden location in a mesquite tree in Grand Canyon near the Colorado River, below Emerald Rapid. This weatherproof detector records ultrasonic bat calls. This is part of an ongoing study during a study that is examining bat abundance and foraging in Grand Canyon.
A properly rigged cataraft on the banks of the Green River in the Uintah Basin
A properly rigged cataraft on the banks of the Green River in the Uintah Basin
Hydrologist Nick plays a river tune
Hydrologist Nick plays a river tune
Team D braces itself on a windy bluff to watch another beautiful sunset
Team D braces itself on a windy bluff to watch another beautiful sunset
Graham birds from a duckie. USGS isn't only geology and Graham isn't only a geologist!
Graham birds from a duckie. USGS isn't only geology and Graham isn't only a geologist!
Mitch and Graham collect sediment samples on a transect
Mitch and Graham collect sediment samples on a transect
Bill Burton with Paper Powell and (I think??) the first female geologist at USGS.
Bill Burton with Paper Powell and (I think??) the first female geologist at USGS.
Tom, Tildon Jones (USFWS), and Jim Prairie (BoR) present at the Green River Campground for an "evening program" at Dinosaur National Monument. Many campers were in attendance, as were several deer across the river.
Tom, Tildon Jones (USFWS), and Jim Prairie (BoR) present at the Green River Campground for an "evening program" at Dinosaur National Monument. Many campers were in attendance, as were several deer across the river.
A block print illustration of a Myotis bat species by Kate Aitchison, done through a RISD/USGS internship
linkA block print of a Myotis bat species by Kate Aitchison, done through a RISD/USGS internship with the Southwest Biological Science Center, 2015.
A block print illustration of a Myotis bat species by Kate Aitchison, done through a RISD/USGS internship
linkA block print of a Myotis bat species by Kate Aitchison, done through a RISD/USGS internship with the Southwest Biological Science Center, 2015.
U.S. Geological Survey Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center: Proceedings of the fiscal year 2023 annual reporting meeting to the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program
Colorado River Basin
Insectivorous bat foraging tracks the availability of aquatic flies (Diptera)
Proceedings of the Fiscal Year 2022 Annual Reporting Meeting to the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program
Taxonomic identity, biodiversity, and antecedent disturbances shape the dimensional stability of stream invertebrates
The Grand Caddis hatch of JASM 2022: Trichoptera natural history observations at the Joint Aquatic Sciences Meeting in Grand Rapids, Michigan (USA)
Little bugs, big data, and Colorado River adaptive management: Preliminary findings from the ongoing bug flow experiment at Glen Canyon Dam
Applied citizen science in freshwater research
The application of metacommunity theory to the management of riverine ecosystems
Net-spinning caddisfly distribution in large regulated rivers
Spatial population structure of a widespread aquatic insect in the Colorado River Basin: Evidence for a Hydropsyche oslari species complex
Bug flows: Don’t count your midges until they hatch
Non-USGS Publications**
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
Science and Products
- Science
Bat foraging ecology along the Colorado River in Grand Canyon
Grand Canyon National Park is a hotspot for bat diversity. Twenty-two bat species have been documented in the Park, more than any other national park unit.Community Science in Grand Canyon
Aquatic insects are important components of riverine foodwebs as they are prey for fish, birds, bats, lizards, and spiders. The closure of Glen Canyon Dam in 1963 fundamentally altered the hydrology, water temperature, and turbidity of the Colorado River through Grand Canyon. These changes, along with competition with invasive species and limited food availability have led to the decline and...Bug Flows: Improving Food Web Health on the Colorado River
Native and desired nonnative fish downstream of Glen Canyon Dam are food limited—meaning that if more or larger invertebrate food items were available, there would be more and larger fish. Aquatic insects have complex life cycles that include egg, larvae, and pupal stages that are aquatic while adults have wings and are typically terrestrial. Aquatic insects are a fundamental component of river... - Data
Bat activity and insect abundance data along the Colorado River in Grand Canyon, AZ
These data were compiled to improve our understanding of bat foraging along the Colorado River in Grand Canyon. Objectives of our study were to determine whether bat activity was influenced primarily by variation in prey availability relative to other environmental or geomorphic factors. These data represent 1,428 paired samples of bat activity and insect abundance calculated as catch rates collecInvertebrate data (2012-2021) from the Colorado River in Grand Canyon and flow data (1921-2021) from the Lees Ferry gage (09380000) on the Colorado River near Page, AZ
These data were compiled for an outreach article published in the Boatman's Quarterly Review, which is a magazine published by Grand Canyon River Guides Association. The objectives of our study was to describe the outcomes of the 2018-2020 Bug Flows experiment to a general audience. These data represent 10 years (2012-2021) of invertebrate data and 100 years (1921-2021) of flow data. These data weAdult net-spinning caddisfly (Hydropsyche spp.) catch rates and morphology from large rivers of the southwestern United States, 2015-2016
These data describe the distribution and abundance of Hydropsyche, a widespread and diverse genus of net-spinning caddisflies, in the Colorado River Basin. Abundance data, measured as catch rates, were collected by citizen scientists using light traps. We subsampled Hydropsyche spp. from light trap samples collected throughout the Colorado River Basin and measured the lengths and widths of mesothoLocality based caddisfly (Hydropsyche oslari) sampling data and CO1 sequences from the southwestern United States, 2013-2016
These data were compiled for a mtDNA (CO1 gene) analysis of net-spinning caddisflies (Hydropsyche oslari) in the Colorado River Basin of the western United States. They were incorporated in a study that investigated the genetic diversity and population structure of H. oslari relative to the river network structure in the Upper and Lower Colorado River Basins. The data were collected from 2015 to 2Insect catch rates and angler success data during Bug Flows at Glen Canyon Dam, 2012-2018
These data were compiled to evaluate the effects of low steady weekend flows on emergent aquatic insects during the first year of experimental Bug Flows below Glen Canyon Dam (2018) and recreation in Glen Canyon in the second year of Bug Flows (2019). Bug Flows are experimental flows that were released from Glen Canyon Dam in 2018 and 2019. The flows consist of low steady flows on weekends and havAngel Lichen Moth Abundance and Morphology Data, Grand Canyon, AZ, 2012
Two unique datasets on the abundance and morphology of the angel lichen moth (Cisthene angelus) in Grand Canyon, Arizona, USA were compiled to describe the phenology and life history of this common, but poorly known, species. The abundance data were collected from 2012 to 2013 through a collaboration with river runners in Grand Canyon National Park. These citizen scientists deployed light traps fr - Multimedia
A SM4 bat detector is deployed in Grand Canyon to record ultrasonic bat callsA SM4 bat detector is deployed in Grand Canyon to record ultrasonic bat calls
A SM4 bat detector is deployed at Kwagunt Canyon in Grand Canyon. This weatherproof detector records ultrasonic bat calls. Photo by Anya Metcalfe, USGS, SBSC. This is part of an ongoing study during a study that is examining bat abundance and foraging in Grand Canyon along the Colorado River.
A SM4 bat detector is deployed at Kwagunt Canyon in Grand Canyon. This weatherproof detector records ultrasonic bat calls. Photo by Anya Metcalfe, USGS, SBSC. This is part of an ongoing study during a study that is examining bat abundance and foraging in Grand Canyon along the Colorado River.
A incognito SM4 bat detector that records ultrasonic bat calls is hidden in a mesquite tree in Grand Canyon near the Colorado RiverA incognito SM4 bat detector that records ultrasonic bat calls is hidden in a mesquite tree in Grand Canyon near the Colorado RiverA incognito SM4 bat detector that records ultrasonic bat calls is hidden in a mesquite tree in Grand Canyon near the Colorado River
linkAn incognito SM4 bat detector is placed in a hidden location in a mesquite tree in Grand Canyon near the Colorado River, below Emerald Rapid. This weatherproof detector records ultrasonic bat calls. This is part of an ongoing study during a study that is examining bat abundance and foraging in Grand Canyon.
A incognito SM4 bat detector that records ultrasonic bat calls is hidden in a mesquite tree in Grand Canyon near the Colorado River
linkAn incognito SM4 bat detector is placed in a hidden location in a mesquite tree in Grand Canyon near the Colorado River, below Emerald Rapid. This weatherproof detector records ultrasonic bat calls. This is part of an ongoing study during a study that is examining bat abundance and foraging in Grand Canyon.
A properly rigged cataraft on the banks of the Green RiverA properly rigged cataraft on the banks of the Green RiverA properly rigged cataraft on the banks of the Green River in the Uintah Basin
A properly rigged cataraft on the banks of the Green River in the Uintah Basin
Hydrologist Nick plays a river tuneHydrologist Nick plays a river tune
Hydrologist Nick plays a river tune
Team D braces itself on a bluff to watch another beautiful sunsetTeam D braces itself on a bluff to watch another beautiful sunsetTeam D braces itself on a windy bluff to watch another beautiful sunset
Team D braces itself on a windy bluff to watch another beautiful sunset
Graham birds from a duckie.Graham birds from a duckie. USGS isn't only geology and Graham isn't only a geologist!
Graham birds from a duckie. USGS isn't only geology and Graham isn't only a geologist!
Mitch and Graham collect sediment samples on a transectMitch and Graham collect sediment samples on a transectMitch and Graham collect sediment samples on a transect
Mitch and Graham collect sediment samples on a transect
Bill Burton with Paper Powell and the first female geologistBill Burton with Paper Powell and the first female geologistBill Burton with Paper Powell and (I think??) the first female geologist at USGS.
Bill Burton with Paper Powell and (I think??) the first female geologist at USGS.
Tom, Tildon Jones (USFWS), and Jim Prairie (BoR)Tom, Tildon Jones (USFWS), and Jim Prairie (BoR) present at the Green River Campground for an "evening program" at Dinosaur National Monument. Many campers were in attendance, as were several deer across the river.
Tom, Tildon Jones (USFWS), and Jim Prairie (BoR) present at the Green River Campground for an "evening program" at Dinosaur National Monument. Many campers were in attendance, as were several deer across the river.
A block print illustration of a Myotis bat species by Kate Aitchison, done through a RISD/USGS internshipA block print illustration of a Myotis bat species by Kate Aitchison, done through a RISD/USGS internshipA block print illustration of a Myotis bat species by Kate Aitchison, done through a RISD/USGS internship
linkA block print of a Myotis bat species by Kate Aitchison, done through a RISD/USGS internship with the Southwest Biological Science Center, 2015.
A block print illustration of a Myotis bat species by Kate Aitchison, done through a RISD/USGS internship
linkA block print of a Myotis bat species by Kate Aitchison, done through a RISD/USGS internship with the Southwest Biological Science Center, 2015.
- Publications
Filter Total Items: 14
U.S. Geological Survey Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center: Proceedings of the fiscal year 2023 annual reporting meeting to the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program
This proceedings is prepared for the USBR and Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program (GCDAMP) to account for work conducted and products delivered in FY 2023 by SBSC's Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center (GCMRC) and to inform the Technical Work Group of science conducted by GCMRC and its cooperators in support of the GCDAMP. It includes a summary of accomplishments, modifications to wAuthorsAndrew Alan Schultz, Gregory Mark Anderson, David Topping, Ronald E. Griffiths, David Dean, Paul Grams, Keith Kohl, Gerard Lewis Salter, Matthew A. Kaplinski, Katherine Chapman, Erich R. Mueller, Emily C. Palmquist, Bradley J. Butterfield, Joel B. Sankey, Bridget Deemer, Charles Yackulic, Lindsay Erika Hansen, Drew Elliot Eppehimer, Theodore Kennedy, Anya Metcalfe, Jeffrey Muehlbauer, Morgan Ford, Michael Dodrill, Maria C. Dzul, Pilar Rinker, Michael J. Pillow, David Ward, Josh Korman, Molly A.H. Webb, James A. Crossman, Eric J Frye, David L. Rogowski, Kimberley Dibble, Lucas Bair, Joshua Abbott, Thomas Gushue, Erica Paige Byerley, Joseph E Thomas, Thomas A. Sabol, Bryce Anthony MihalevichColorado River Basin
The Colorado River is often referred to as “the lifeblood of the west.” The basin supplies municipal water to nearly 40 million people and irrigates approximately 22,000 km2 of agricultural lands. Twenty-two major rivers converge with the Colorado after it begins its descent from the Rocky Mountains and winds through the plateaus of Colorado, Utah, and Arizona, onto the deserts of southwestern AriAuthorsAnya Metcalfe, Jeffrey Muehlbauer, Morgan Ford, Theodore KennedyInsectivorous bat foraging tracks the availability of aquatic flies (Diptera)
Rivers and their adjacent riparian zones are model ecosystems for observing cross-ecosystem energy transfers. Aquatic insects emerging from streams, for example, are resource subsidies that support riparian consumers such as birds, spiders, lizards, and bats. We collaborated with recreational river runners in Grand Canyon, Arizona, USA, to record acoustic bat activity and sample riparian insects uAuthorsAnya Metcalfe, Carol Fritzinger, Theodore J. Weller, Michael Dodrill, Jeffrey Muehlbauer, Charles Yackulic, Brandon P. Holton, Cheyenne Maxime Szydlo, Laura E. Durning, Joel B. Sankey, Theodore KennedyProceedings of the Fiscal Year 2022 Annual Reporting Meeting to the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program
(Hartwell) This report is prepared primarily to account for work conducted and products delivered in FY 2022 by GCMRC and to inform the Technical Work Group of science conducted by GCMRC and its cooperators in support of the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program (GCDAMP). It includes a summary of accomplishments, modifications to work plans, results, and recommendations related to projects iAuthorsDavid Topping, Paul Grams, Emily C. Palmquist, Joel B. Sankey, Helen C. Fairley, Bridget Deemer, Charles Yackulic, Theodore Kennedy, Anya Metcalfe, Maria C. Dzul, David Ward, Mariah Aurelia Giardina, Lucas Bair, Thomas Gushue, Caitlin M. Andrews, Ronald E. Griffiths, David Dean, Keith Kohl, Michael J Moran, Nicholas Voichick, Thomas A. Sabol, Laura A. Tennant, Kimberly Dibble, Michael C. RungeTaxonomic identity, biodiversity, and antecedent disturbances shape the dimensional stability of stream invertebrates
The “dimensional stability” approach measures different components of ecological stability to investigate how they are related. Yet, most empirical work has used small-scale and short-term experimental manipulations. Here, we apply this framework to a long-term observational dataset of stream macroinvertebrates sampled between the winter flooding and summer monsoon seasons. We test hypotheses thatAuthorsDaniel C Allen, Brian A Gill, Anya Metcalfe, Sophia M Bonjour, Scott Starr, Junna Wang, Diana Valentin, Nancy B. GrimmThe Grand Caddis hatch of JASM 2022: Trichoptera natural history observations at the Joint Aquatic Sciences Meeting in Grand Rapids, Michigan (USA)
In a stroke of good luck for aquatic scientists and insect enthusiasts, the May 2022 Joint Aquatic Sciences Meeting (JASM) in Grand Rapids, Michigan coincided with a spectacular hatch of hydropsychid caddisflies. To estimate density, we enumerated caddisflies on 12 polarized window panels on the western face of the DeVos Place, which faced the Grand River. We found an average of 57.8 caddisflies pAuthorsAnya Metcalfe, Angelika L. Kurthen, Jared Freedman, Alexander B. OrfingerLittle bugs, big data, and Colorado River adaptive management: Preliminary findings from the ongoing bug flow experiment at Glen Canyon Dam
The undammed Colorado River in Grand Canyon was characterized by spring snow-melt floods that sometimes exceeded 100,000 cubic feet per second (cfs). These were followed by occasional flash floods during summer monsoons, then by low flows from fall through early spring (Figure 1; Topping and others, 2003). This seasonally variable flow regime carried huge loads of sediment and was an important driAuthorsTheodore Kennedy, Anya Metcalfe, Bridget Deemer, Morgan Ford, Cheyenne Maxime Szydlo, Charles Yackulic, Jeffrey MuehlbauerApplied citizen science in freshwater research
Worldwide, scientists are increasingly collaborating with the general public. Citizen science methods are readily applicable to freshwater research, monitoring, and education. In addition to providing cost-effective data on spatial and temporal scales that are otherwise unattainable, citizen science provides unique opportunities for engagement with local communities and stakeholders in resource maAuthorsAnya N. Metcalfe, Theodore A. Kennedy, Gabriella A. Mendez, Jeffrey D. MuehlbauerThe application of metacommunity theory to the management of riverine ecosystems
River managers strive to use the best available science to sustain biodiversity and ecosystem function. To achieve this goal requires consideration of processes at different scales. Metacommunity theory describes how multiple species from different communities potentially interact with local-scale environmental drivers to influence population dynamics and community structure. However, this body ofAuthorsChristopher J. Patrick, Kurt E. Anderson, Brown L. Brown, Charles P. Hawkins, Anya N. Metcalfe, Parsa Saffarinia, Tadeu Siqueira, Christopher M. Swan, Jonathan D. Tonkin, Lester L. YuanNet-spinning caddisfly distribution in large regulated rivers
Most of the world's large rivers are dammed for the purposes of water storage, flood control, and power production. Damming rivers fundamentally alters water temperature and flows in tailwater ecosystems, which in turn affects the presence and abundance of downstream biota.We collaborated with more than 200 citizen scientists to collect 2,194 light trap samples across 2 years and more than 2,000 rAuthorsAnya Metcalfe, Jeffrey Muehlbauer, Theodore Kennedy, Charles Yackulic, Kimberly L. Dibble, Jane C. MarksSpatial population structure of a widespread aquatic insect in the Colorado River Basin: Evidence for a Hydropsyche oslari species complex
Structural connectivity and dispersal ability are important constraints on functional connectivity among populations. For aquatic organisms that disperse among stream corridors, the regional structure of a river network can, thus, define the boundaries of gene flow. In this study, we used mitochondrial DNA (mtCO1 barcoding gene) to examine the genetic diversity and population structure of a caddisAuthorsAnya N. Metcalfe, Theodore A. Kennedy, Jane C. Marks, Aaron D. Smith, Jeffrey D. MuehlbauerBug flows: Don’t count your midges until they hatch
Usually when people hear about a “bug problem” it’s due to an undesirable overabundance of insects (think plague of locusts). In the Colorado River in Grand Canyon, however, we are faced with the opposite predicament: the river is essentially devoid of bugs. Aquatic insects are a fundamental component of a healthy river ecosystem. Most aquatic insects spend their juvenile life stages (egg, larva,AuthorsAnya Metcalfe, Jeffrey Muehlbauer, Morgan Ford, Theodore KennedyNon-USGS Publications**
Nathan, L., Mamoozadeh, N., Tumas, H., Gunselman, S., Klass, K., Metcalfe, A., Edge, C., Waits, L., Spruell, P., Lowery, E. & Connor, E. 2019. A spatially-explicit, individual-based demogenetic simulation framework for evaluating hybridization dynamics. Ecological Modelling 401: 40-51.Eitzel, M., Cappadonna, J., Santos-Lang, C., Duerr, R., West, S., Virapongse, A., Kyba, C., Bowser, A., Cooper, C., Sforzi, A., Metcalfe, A., Harris, E., Thiel, M., Haklay, M., Ponciano, L., Roche, J., Ceccaroni, L., Shilling, F., Dörler, D., Heigl, F., Kiessling, T., Davis, B., & Jiang, Q. 2017. Citizen science terminology matters: Exploring key terms. Citizen Science: Theory and Practice 2: 1-20. DOI: 10.5334/cstp.96.**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
- News