Benjamin Robb, M.Sc. (Former Employee)
Science and Products
Estimating road age and traffic volume for disturbance assessments in Wyoming
In 2021, the Fort Collins Science Center initiated a research effort to estimate road age and annual traffic volumes across the majority of roads in Wyoming for assessing impacts to wildlife. Data on roads often focus on the ‘where’ (for example, spatial features) but neglect the ‘when’ (for example, road age) or ‘how much’ (for example, traffic volume). Knowing these characteristics is critical...
Understanding How Vehicular Traffic Impacts Sage-Grouse Populations In Wyoming
In 2021, the Fort Collins Science Center initiated a research effort to 1) assess how traffic in Wyoming has impacted sage-grouse population growth rates, 2) identify the spatial scales at which these effects are most evident, and 3) identify what levels of traffic result in sage-grouse population declines.
Road Ecology
Roads and their associated infrastructure can cause substantial and pervasive effects on adjacent ecosystems but are necessary for the movement and redistribution of goods, people, wealth, and natural resources in modern societies. The Fort Collins Science Center has initiated research looking at how roads and traffic may be impacting sagebrush ecosystems and the wildlife inhabiting them. This...
Wyoming road age and traffic volume estimated with machine learning and graph theory
We provide a roads dataset that includes the spatial location of roads, the estimated age of each road, and the predicted traffic volume of each road between 1986 and 2020 in Wyoming, USA. Our annual estimates of traffic volume are available for each road and include estimates for all vehicles and truck only traffic. Moreover, we provide the estimated age of each road, where a minimum value of 198
Bibliography of hydrological and ecological research in the Great Basin terminal lakes, USA
This database contains literature citations and associated abstracts pertaining to the ecology and hydrology of terminal lakes in the Great Basin region of the western United States. This is not meant to be an exhaustive list, nor did we perform a systematic meta-analysis; rather, literature records were included based on topical relevance.
Wyoming Roads (Updated to 2015 Aerial Photography)
A dataset comprised of road centerlines in Wyoming, USA, digitized to 2015 aerial photography from the National Agriculture Imagery Program. This dataset is an update to a former U.S. Geological Survey Data Series (“Large scale Wyoming transportation data: a resource planning tool”: O'Donnell and others, 2014) digitized to 2009 aerial photography. The U.S. Geological Survey Fort Collins Science Ce
Ungulate Migrations of the Western United States, Volume 2
This is the data archive for the publication Ungulate Migrations of the Western United States, Volume 2 (Kauffman et al. 2022) and includes the collection of GIS map files that are mapped and described in the report. These map files are meant to provide a common spatial representation of the mapped migrations. This data release provides the means for ungulate migrations to be mapped and planned fo
Remote sensing for monitoring mine lands and recovery efforts
Under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Ecosystem Restoration Program, the U.S. Department of the Interior has invested in assessing and recovering degraded ecosystems to promote healthy human communities and wildlife habitats. One priority established by the program is the need to address degraded ecosystems associated with mine lands, including active, inactive, and abandoned mines. Mine lands o
Authors
Michael S. O'Donnell, Ashley L. Whipple, Richard D. Inman, Bryan C. Tarbox, Adrian P. Monroe, Benjamin S. Robb, Cameron L. Aldridge
Estimating traffic volume and road age in Wyoming to inform resource management planning: An application with wildlife-vehicle collisions
Road networks and their associated vehicular traffic disturb many terrestrial systems, but inventories of roads used to assess these effects often focus on the ‘where’ (e.g., local road type and density) and neglect the ‘when’ (e.g., temporal disturbance) or ‘how much’ (e.g., traffic volume disturbance). We developed annual estimates of the ‘when’ (road age) and ‘how much’ (vehicular traffic volum
Authors
Richard D. Inman, Benjamin Seward Robb, Michael S. O'Donnell, David R. Edmunds, Matthew J Holloran, Cameron L. Aldridge
Trade-offs between utility-scale solar development and ungulates on western rangelands
Utility-scale solar energy (USSE) has become an efficient and cost-effective form of renewable energy, with an expanding footprint into rangelands that provide important habitat for many wild ungulate populations. Using global positioning system data collected before and after construction, we documented the potential impacts of USSE on pronghorn (Antilocapra americana), including direct habitat l
Authors
Hall Sawyer, Nicole M. Korfanta, Matthew Kauffman, Benjamin Seward Robb, Andrew C. Telander, Todd Mattson
Ungulate migrations of the western United States, volume 2
Migration is widespread across taxonomic groups and increasingly recognized as fundamental to maintaining abundant wildlife populations and communities. Many ungulate herds migrate across the western United States to access food and avoid harsh environmental conditions. With the advent of global positioning system (GPS) collars, researchers can describe and map the year-round movements of ungulate
Authors
Matthew Kauffman, Blake Lowrey, Jeffrey Beck, Jodi Berg, Scott Bergen, Joel Berger, James W. Cain, Sarah Dewey, Jennifer Diamond, Orrin Duvuvuei, Fattebert, Jeff Gagnon, Julia Garcia, Evan Greenspan, Embere Hall, Glenn Harper, Stan Harter, Kent Hersey, Pat Hnilicka, Mark Hurley, Lee Knox, Art Lawson, Eric Maichak, James Meacham, Jerod Merkle, Arthur Middleton, Daniel Olson, Lucas Olson, Craig Reddell, Benjamin Robb, Gabe Rozman, Hall Sawyer, Cody Schroeder, Brandon Scurlock, Jeff Short, Scott Sprague, Alethea Steingisser, Nicole Tatman
Science and Products
Estimating road age and traffic volume for disturbance assessments in Wyoming
In 2021, the Fort Collins Science Center initiated a research effort to estimate road age and annual traffic volumes across the majority of roads in Wyoming for assessing impacts to wildlife. Data on roads often focus on the ‘where’ (for example, spatial features) but neglect the ‘when’ (for example, road age) or ‘how much’ (for example, traffic volume). Knowing these characteristics is critical...
Understanding How Vehicular Traffic Impacts Sage-Grouse Populations In Wyoming
In 2021, the Fort Collins Science Center initiated a research effort to 1) assess how traffic in Wyoming has impacted sage-grouse population growth rates, 2) identify the spatial scales at which these effects are most evident, and 3) identify what levels of traffic result in sage-grouse population declines.
Road Ecology
Roads and their associated infrastructure can cause substantial and pervasive effects on adjacent ecosystems but are necessary for the movement and redistribution of goods, people, wealth, and natural resources in modern societies. The Fort Collins Science Center has initiated research looking at how roads and traffic may be impacting sagebrush ecosystems and the wildlife inhabiting them. This...
Wyoming road age and traffic volume estimated with machine learning and graph theory
We provide a roads dataset that includes the spatial location of roads, the estimated age of each road, and the predicted traffic volume of each road between 1986 and 2020 in Wyoming, USA. Our annual estimates of traffic volume are available for each road and include estimates for all vehicles and truck only traffic. Moreover, we provide the estimated age of each road, where a minimum value of 198
Bibliography of hydrological and ecological research in the Great Basin terminal lakes, USA
This database contains literature citations and associated abstracts pertaining to the ecology and hydrology of terminal lakes in the Great Basin region of the western United States. This is not meant to be an exhaustive list, nor did we perform a systematic meta-analysis; rather, literature records were included based on topical relevance.
Wyoming Roads (Updated to 2015 Aerial Photography)
A dataset comprised of road centerlines in Wyoming, USA, digitized to 2015 aerial photography from the National Agriculture Imagery Program. This dataset is an update to a former U.S. Geological Survey Data Series (“Large scale Wyoming transportation data: a resource planning tool”: O'Donnell and others, 2014) digitized to 2009 aerial photography. The U.S. Geological Survey Fort Collins Science Ce
Ungulate Migrations of the Western United States, Volume 2
This is the data archive for the publication Ungulate Migrations of the Western United States, Volume 2 (Kauffman et al. 2022) and includes the collection of GIS map files that are mapped and described in the report. These map files are meant to provide a common spatial representation of the mapped migrations. This data release provides the means for ungulate migrations to be mapped and planned fo
Remote sensing for monitoring mine lands and recovery efforts
Under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Ecosystem Restoration Program, the U.S. Department of the Interior has invested in assessing and recovering degraded ecosystems to promote healthy human communities and wildlife habitats. One priority established by the program is the need to address degraded ecosystems associated with mine lands, including active, inactive, and abandoned mines. Mine lands o
Authors
Michael S. O'Donnell, Ashley L. Whipple, Richard D. Inman, Bryan C. Tarbox, Adrian P. Monroe, Benjamin S. Robb, Cameron L. Aldridge
Estimating traffic volume and road age in Wyoming to inform resource management planning: An application with wildlife-vehicle collisions
Road networks and their associated vehicular traffic disturb many terrestrial systems, but inventories of roads used to assess these effects often focus on the ‘where’ (e.g., local road type and density) and neglect the ‘when’ (e.g., temporal disturbance) or ‘how much’ (e.g., traffic volume disturbance). We developed annual estimates of the ‘when’ (road age) and ‘how much’ (vehicular traffic volum
Authors
Richard D. Inman, Benjamin Seward Robb, Michael S. O'Donnell, David R. Edmunds, Matthew J Holloran, Cameron L. Aldridge
Trade-offs between utility-scale solar development and ungulates on western rangelands
Utility-scale solar energy (USSE) has become an efficient and cost-effective form of renewable energy, with an expanding footprint into rangelands that provide important habitat for many wild ungulate populations. Using global positioning system data collected before and after construction, we documented the potential impacts of USSE on pronghorn (Antilocapra americana), including direct habitat l
Authors
Hall Sawyer, Nicole M. Korfanta, Matthew Kauffman, Benjamin Seward Robb, Andrew C. Telander, Todd Mattson
Ungulate migrations of the western United States, volume 2
Migration is widespread across taxonomic groups and increasingly recognized as fundamental to maintaining abundant wildlife populations and communities. Many ungulate herds migrate across the western United States to access food and avoid harsh environmental conditions. With the advent of global positioning system (GPS) collars, researchers can describe and map the year-round movements of ungulate
Authors
Matthew Kauffman, Blake Lowrey, Jeffrey Beck, Jodi Berg, Scott Bergen, Joel Berger, James W. Cain, Sarah Dewey, Jennifer Diamond, Orrin Duvuvuei, Fattebert, Jeff Gagnon, Julia Garcia, Evan Greenspan, Embere Hall, Glenn Harper, Stan Harter, Kent Hersey, Pat Hnilicka, Mark Hurley, Lee Knox, Art Lawson, Eric Maichak, James Meacham, Jerod Merkle, Arthur Middleton, Daniel Olson, Lucas Olson, Craig Reddell, Benjamin Robb, Gabe Rozman, Hall Sawyer, Cody Schroeder, Brandon Scurlock, Jeff Short, Scott Sprague, Alethea Steingisser, Nicole Tatman