USGS Biologist Caitlin Marsteller prepares to release a Black Oystercatcher after assisting with the collection of morphometric data and tagging. Data were collected from Black Oystercatchers as part of a new study to better understand migration strategies and movement ecology of the species.
Brian H Robinson (Former Employee)
Science and Products
Nearshore Marine Ecosystem Research
North Pacific Wintering Barrow's Goldeneye Body Mass, Morphology, and Prey Sizes 1996-2015
Juvenile Shorebird Morphological Data Collected in Alaska and Canada
Sea Otter Aerial Survey Data from Lower Cook Inlet, Alaska, 2017
Bioenergetics and Morphology of Mussels (Mytilus trossulus) in Kenai Fjords National Park
Sea Otter Aerial Survey Data from Western Prince William Sound, Alaska, 2017
Sea Otter Aerial Survey Data from the outer Kenai Peninsula, Alaska, 2019
Sea Otter Aerial Survey Data from Northern and Eastern Prince William Sound, Alaska, 2014
Black Oystercatcher Nest and Diet Data from Kachemak Bay, Katmai National Park and Preserve, Kenai Fjords National Park, and Prince William Sound
USGS Biologist Caitlin Marsteller prepares to release a Black Oystercatcher after assisting with the collection of morphometric data and tagging. Data were collected from Black Oystercatchers as part of a new study to better understand migration strategies and movement ecology of the species.
USGS Biologist Caitlin Marsteller releases a Black Oystercatcher after assisting with the collection of morphometric data and tagging. Data were collected from Black Oystercatchers as part of a new study to better understand migration strategies and movement ecology of the species.
USGS Biologist Caitlin Marsteller releases a Black Oystercatcher after assisting with the collection of morphometric data and tagging. Data were collected from Black Oystercatchers as part of a new study to better understand migration strategies and movement ecology of the species.
Lack of strong responses to the Pacific marine heatwave by benthivorous marine birds indicates importance of trophic drivers
Nearshore ecosystems in the Gulf of Alaska
Three-decades of Rocky Intertidal Photo Series Documenting interannual variability in western Prince William Sound
Evidence of increased mussel abundance related to the Pacific marine heatwave and sea star wasting
Abundance and distribution of sea otters (Enhydra lutris) in the southcentral Alaska stock, 2014, 2017, and 2019
Energy intake rate influences survival of Black Oystercatcher Haematopus bachmani broods
Are prey remains accurate indicators of chick diet? A comparison of diet quantification techniques for Black Oystercatchers
Science and Products
- Science
Nearshore Marine Ecosystem Research
Nearshore ecosystems include many resources that are of high ecological, recreational, subsistence, and economic value. They also are subject to influences from a wide variety of natural and human-caused perturbations, which can originate in terrestrial or oceanic environments. Our research is designed to evaluate sources of variation in the nearshore and how they influence resources of high... - Data
North Pacific Wintering Barrow's Goldeneye Body Mass, Morphology, and Prey Sizes 1996-2015
These data provide information in support of the creation of a bioenergetic model to estimate winter prey consumption by Barrow's Goldeneye (Bucephala islandica). One table consists of mass and morphological measurements of wintering Barrows Goldeneyes captured or collected in Alaska and British Columbia from 1996 to 2015. The second table consists of size classes of Pacific blue mussels (MytilusJuvenile Shorebird Morphological Data Collected in Alaska and Canada
This dataset consists of shorebird chick measurements (wing, primary feather 10, diagonal tarsus, and bill length) and body mass for various shorebird species captured in Alaska and Canada during 1978-2022. Researchers with the U.S. Geological Survey - Alaska Science Center, and collaborators from many government agencies and research institutions have studied shorebirds at numerous sites across NSea Otter Aerial Survey Data from Lower Cook Inlet, Alaska, 2017
This dataset consists of three tables related to abundance and distribution of northern sea otters (Enhydra lutris kenyoni) in lower Cook Inlet, Alaska, based on data collected during a series of population-wide aerial surveys in May 2017. The dataset consists of: (1) sea otter counts along strip transects, (2) sea otter counts in Intensive Search Unit (ISU) within the transects, and (3) TransectBioenergetics and Morphology of Mussels (Mytilus trossulus) in Kenai Fjords National Park
This dataset provides one table of bioenergetic and morphological measurements of Pacific blue mussels (Mytilus trossulus; N = 444) collected at three intertidal sites in Kenai Fjords National Park, Alaska. Mussels were collected at the same tidal height across all three sites on a nearly monthly basis from 2014-2015.Sea Otter Aerial Survey Data from Western Prince William Sound, Alaska, 2017
This dataset consists of three tables related to abundance and distribution of northern sea otters (Enhydra lutris kenyoni) in western Prince William Sound, Alaska, based on data collected during a series of population-wide aerial surveys in June 2017. The dataset consists of: (1) sea otter counts along strip transects, (2) sea otter counts in Intensive Search Unit (ISU) within the transects, andSea Otter Aerial Survey Data from the outer Kenai Peninsula, Alaska, 2019
This dataset consists of three tables related to abundance and distribution of northern sea otters (Enhydra lutris kenyoni) near the outer Kenai Peninsula, Alaska, based on data collected during a series of population-wide aerial surveys in June 2019. The dataset consists of: (1) sea otter counts along strip transects, (2) sea otter counts in Intensive Search Unit (ISU) within the transects, and (Sea Otter Aerial Survey Data from Northern and Eastern Prince William Sound, Alaska, 2014
This dataset consists of three tables related to abundance and distribution of northern sea otters (Enhydra lutris kenyoni) in northern and eastern Prince William Sound, Alaska, based on data collected during a series of population-wide aerial surveys in June 2014. The dataset consists of: (1) sea otter counts along strip transects, (2) sea otter counts in Intensive Search Unit (ISU) within the trBlack Oystercatcher Nest and Diet Data from Kachemak Bay, Katmai National Park and Preserve, Kenai Fjords National Park, and Prince William Sound
These data are part of the Gulf Watch Alaska (GWA) long-term monitoring program, nearshore monitoring component. The dataset is comprised of six comma separated values (.csv) file exported from a relational database. The data consist of: 1) transect summary, 2) nest details, 3) egg float and stage data, 4) chicks diets, 5) chick diet taxonomy, and 6) Gulf Watch Alaska contributors. - Multimedia
Caitlin Marsteller prepares to release a Black Oystercatcher, AlaskaCaitlin Marsteller prepares to release a Black Oystercatcher, Alaska
USGS Biologist Caitlin Marsteller prepares to release a Black Oystercatcher after assisting with the collection of morphometric data and tagging. Data were collected from Black Oystercatchers as part of a new study to better understand migration strategies and movement ecology of the species.
USGS Biologist Caitlin Marsteller prepares to release a Black Oystercatcher after assisting with the collection of morphometric data and tagging. Data were collected from Black Oystercatchers as part of a new study to better understand migration strategies and movement ecology of the species.
Caitlin Marsteller releases a Black Oystercatcher on beach in AlaskaCaitlin Marsteller releases a Black Oystercatcher on beach in AlaskaUSGS Biologist Caitlin Marsteller releases a Black Oystercatcher after assisting with the collection of morphometric data and tagging. Data were collected from Black Oystercatchers as part of a new study to better understand migration strategies and movement ecology of the species.
USGS Biologist Caitlin Marsteller releases a Black Oystercatcher after assisting with the collection of morphometric data and tagging. Data were collected from Black Oystercatchers as part of a new study to better understand migration strategies and movement ecology of the species.
- Publications
Lack of strong responses to the Pacific marine heatwave by benthivorous marine birds indicates importance of trophic drivers
The Pacific marine heatwave (PMH) of 2014-2016 was an intense, long-lasting environmental disturbance expressed throughout the north Pacific. While dramatic consequences of the PMH on pelagic food webs have been well documented, effects on nearshore food webs, i.e., those based on macroalgae primary productivity, benthic invertebrate intermediate consumers, and specialized benthivorous top predatoAuthorsBrian H. Robinson, Heather A. Coletti, Brenda Ballachey, James L. Bodkin, Kimberly A. Kloecker, Sarah Beth Traiger, Daniel EslerNearshore ecosystems in the Gulf of Alaska
Nearshore ecosystem monitoring in western Prince William Sound, Kenai Fjords National Park, Kachemak Bay, and Katmai National Park and Preserve has been conducted as a single Nearshore Component of the Gulf Watch Alaska program over the past five years (2017-2021). This program builds on the previous five years and continues, in many cases, decades of preceding research and monitoring. During theAuthorsHeather A. Coletti, Daniel Esler, Brenda Ballachey, Jim Bodkin, George G. Esslinger, Kimberly A. Kloecker, Daniel Monson, Brian H. Robinson, Sarah Beth Traiger, Katrin Iken, Brenda Konar, Tom Dean, Mandy Lindeberg, Ben WeitzmanThree-decades of Rocky Intertidal Photo Series Documenting interannual variability in western Prince William Sound
During summer 2021 we re-visited and re-photographed intertidal community scenes at seven rocky intertidal sites in Western Prince William Sound, adding another year of photos to a 32-year monitoring effort. The sites include both previously-oiled and un-oiled locations that were the subject of repeated annual photos beginning in 1990, one year after the March 24, 1989 Exxon Valdez Oil Spill. PhotAuthorsAlan Mearns, Dave Janka, Scott Pegau, Robert Campbell, Brian H. RobinsonEvidence of increased mussel abundance related to the Pacific marine heatwave and sea star wasting
Mussels occupy a key middle trophic position in nearshore food webs linking primary producers to predators. Climate-related environmental changes may synergistically combine with changes in predator abundance to affect intertidal ecosystems. We examined the influence of two major events on mussel (Mytilus trossulus) abundance in the northern Gulf of Alaska: the recent Pacific marine heatwave (PMH,AuthorsSarah Beth Traiger, James L. Bodkin, Heather Coletti, Brenda Ballachey, Dean Thomas, Daniel Esler, Katrin Iken, Brenda Konar, Mandy Lindeberg, Daniel Monson, Brian H. Robinson, Robert M. Suryan, Ben WeitzmanAbundance and distribution of sea otters (Enhydra lutris) in the southcentral Alaska stock, 2014, 2017, and 2019
The Southcentral Alaska (SCAK) sea otter (Enhydra lutris) stock is the northernmost stock of sea otters, a keystone predator known for structuring nearshore marine ecosystems. We conducted aerial surveys within the range of the SCAK sea otter stock to provide recent estimates of sea otter abundance and distribution. We defined three survey regions: (1) Eastern Cook Inlet (2017), (2) Outer Kenai PeAuthorsGeorge G. Esslinger, Brian H. Robinson, Daniel H. Monson, Rebecca L. Taylor, Daniel Esler, Ben P. Weitzman, Joel Garlich-MillerEnergy intake rate influences survival of Black Oystercatcher Haematopus bachmani broods
Black Oystercatchers Haematopus bachmani, a species of conservation concern, depend on marine intertidal prey resources. We examined diet, feeding rates, growth, and survival of Black Oystercatcher broods in southcentral Alaska, 2013-2014. To determine the importance of diet on brood survival, we modeled daily survival rates of broods as a function of energy intake rate and other ecological factorAuthorsB.H. Robinson, L.M. Phillips, Abby PowellAre prey remains accurate indicators of chick diet? A comparison of diet quantification techniques for Black Oystercatchers
The quantification of prey remains is a common method for estimating the diet of a variety of birds. However, these estimates may be subject to biases based on prey body type, nesting habitat, and collection date. To better understand biases and limitations associated with this method, we compared it with two others commonly used to characterize diet: direct observation of parents feeding young anAuthorsB.H. Robinson, H.A. Coletti, L.M. Phillips, Abby Powell