Biology

Ancient fish, modern problem: How the pallid sturgeon could be a warning for the Missouri River

dchilds@usgs.gov — Fri, 22 Sep 2023 18:25:46 EDT

The Pallid Sturgeon is a U.S. Threatened species that primarily inhabits the Missouri River and lower Mississippi rivers. Ongoing work in the mainstems of large rivers has provided much critical information regarding the biology and ecology of the species.

SBSC hosts visiting scientist from México for international research collaboration

mhartwell@usgs.gov — Fri, 22 Sep 2023 08:00:00 EDT

The Southwest Biological Science Center is pleased to be hosting an expert on Méxican turtle ecology. Dr. Rodrigo Macip-Rios is a professor at the Escuela Nacional de Estudios Superiores Unidad Morelia (School for Higher Studies) and at the Universidad Nacional Atónoma de México (National Autonomous University of México).

USGS Scientists Explore Mesophotic and Deep Benthic Communities in the Gulf of Mexico

kkovacs@usgs.gov — Tue, 19 Sep 2023 14:00:00 EDT

A USGS-led expedition set sail into the northern Gulf of Mexico on September 8 to examine and characterize seafloor communities in areas impacted by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

Institutional Biosafety Committee Meeting - September 18, 2023

dabecker@usgs.gov — Fri, 15 Sep 2023 08:15:00 EDT

The Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBC) advises the Center on the handling of biohazardous materials, and reviews and approves research projects that involve biohazardous materials, including but not limited to recombinant or synthetic nucleic acid molecules.

A new management framework to balance competing species’ conservation needs

edietrich@usgs.gov — Thu, 14 Sep 2023 15:57:46 EDT

Conservation practitioners and restoration managers are often faced with the difficult decision of which species and ecosystems to prioritize during conservation. To aid managers in decision making, FORT researchers developed a novel framework that determines where restoration would be most effective in achieving multi-species benefits across ecosystems.

Collaborative Research Between FORT Scientist Jill Baron and the Rocky Mountain National Park Featured in the Continental Divide Research Learning Center's September Newsletter

edietrich@usgs.gov — Tue, 12 Sep 2023 13:01:34 EDT

The Rocky Mountain National Park Continental Divide Learning Center September newsletter has an article titled "Let Me Count the Ways: How Citizen Scientists Helped a Park Measure Visitor Impacts" that highlights a collaborative research effort between FORT researcher Jill Baron and RMNP to document the impacts of visitor use on park natural resources.

New interagency study in Colorado identifies science needs to manage federal public lands

aweill@usgs.gov — Tue, 12 Sep 2023 08:02:44 EDT

Terrestrial wildlife, protected birds and impacts of energy development were among the topics analyzed for land management decisions.

FORT Ecologist Adrian Monroe Coauthors Book Chapter on Sage-Grouse Ecology and Conservation Issues

edietrich@usgs.gov — Mon, 11 Sep 2023 17:44:37 EDT

FORT ecologist Adrian Monroe is a coauthor on a new book chapter summarizing the ecology and conservation issues affecting Greater (Centrocercus urophasianus) and Gunnison (C. minimus) sage-grouse in rangelands of the sagebrush biome.

Friday's Findings - September 15 2023

ssoileau@usgs.gov — Thu, 7 Sep 2023 18:09:54 EDT

Title: Diverse Portfolios: Investing in Tributaries for Restoration of Large River Fishes

Speaker: Kristen Bouska, Research Ecologist, USGS Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center

Date: September 15th at 2:00 pm Eastern

Pathology Case of the Month - Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake

award@contractor.usgs.gov — Fri, 1 Sep 2023 06:02:04 EDT

Case History: An adult female eastern massasauga rattlesnake (Sistrurus catenatus) was found acting lethargic during species surveys in Wisconsin, U.S.A. and died the same day. Snake fungal disease (SFD) had previously been confirmed at this site, and another eastern massasauga found during the surveys exhibited skin lesions suggestive of SFD.

USGS scientists with the Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative lead field tour to share science outcomes with partners and stakeholders.

edietrich@usgs.gov — Thu, 31 Aug 2023 10:40:45 EDT

The USGS WLCI science team lead, Patrick Anderson (USGS Fort Collins Science Center), organized a field tour on August 24 to share and discuss science outcomes with WLCI partners after five years of investigating aquatic processes and change on Muddy Creek and Littlefield Creek (Carbon County, Wyoming).

USGS researchers and collaborators successfully host the first Pacific Northwest Native American Workshop on Bats

edietrich@usgs.gov — Tue, 29 Aug 2023 13:20:52 EDT

Dr. Ernest Valdez of USGS-FORT, New Mexico Landscapes Field Station along with USGS-Northwest Pacific Islands Region, Native American Fish and Wildlife Society, Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation, Bureau of Indian Affairs, National Park Service, and Oregon State University were successful in co-organizing the first Pacific Northwest Native American Workshop on Bats.

New Map Demonstrates Hurricane Ian’s Potential Spread of Non-native Aquatic Species

kkovacs@usgs.gov — Tue, 29 Aug 2023 11:57:24 EDT

USGS has released the final Flood and Storm Tracker (FaST) map for Hurricane Ian.

Directors Message: Knowledge Transfer is Vital to the Success of New Ventures in Fish Passage and Reintroduction

dabecker@usgs.gov — Mon, 28 Aug 2023 13:32:02 EDT

There are many unique challenges posed in fish passage and reintroduction projects, and knowledge transfer is critical to their success.

SPCMSC scientists and National Park Service resource managers collaborate to save threatened corals during ocean-heat wave

bboynton@usgs.gov — Thu, 24 Aug 2023 14:47:52 EDT

A team from the St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center and the National Park Service conducted emergency fieldwork to protect corals during the ongoing Florida coral-bleaching event.

New Directions in Mark-Recapture Models: Putting Models in the Hands of Managers

dabecker@usgs.gov — Mon, 21 Aug 2023 19:03:09 EDT

Scientists from WFRC are creating new tools and techniques to help natural resource managers explore data and ecosystem scenarios, making it easier to use complex modeling and data for water and fish management decisions.

SPCMSC Scientists Participate in Research Cruise to Collect Gulf of Mexico Deep Sea Corals for Microbiology Research

bboynton@usgs.gov — Fri, 18 Aug 2023 16:28:56 EDT

Research Microbiologist Christina Kellogg and Research Marine Biologist James Evans took part in a research cruise in the Gulf of Mexico, collecting mesophotic and deep-sea coral specimens for microbiology research.

Purdue University to host new multi-agency research partnership to benefit Indiana’s wildlife and wild places

mcollier@usgs.gov — Thu, 17 Aug 2023 12:00:00 EDT

The partnership is Indiana’s first U.S. Geological Survey Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit

News- Our Scientist Quoted in Seattle Times Article on Trap-and-Haul Methods for Moving Endangered Fish Around High Head Dams

dabecker@usgs.gov — Wed, 16 Aug 2023 15:55:44 EDT

WFRC’s Research Fish Biologist Toby Kock was recently quoted in a news article on the potential implementation of a trap-and-haul program to move endangered fish around dams on the Skagit River in northern Washington.

If You Build It, They Will Swim—New Swim Flume Gives Insight into Fish Disease, Swimming Performance, and Fitness

dabecker@usgs.gov — Wed, 16 Aug 2023 12:59:15 EDT

Scientists at the Western Fisheries Research Center, Marrowstone Marine Field Station have designed a fish swim flume to investigate the effects of fish disease on swim performance and survival. This new capacity can be used for a wide variety of applications.

Friday's Findings - August 25, 2023

shouse@usgs.gov — Wed, 16 Aug 2023 12:47:04 EDT

Title: Seeing the Bigger Picture: Using Aerial Photos to Assess Tufted Puffin Habitat in Oregon

Speaker: Carina Kusaka, Master's Student, Oregon State University

Date: August 25, 2023 at 2:00pm ET / 11:00am PT

Photo Contest Winner! By Air and by Sea, Pacific Herring Research is Underway in Alaska

dabecker@usgs.gov — Wed, 16 Aug 2023 10:33:05 EDT

Our photo contest winner is Ashley MacKenzie, for bringing multiple images to us from research in Alaska.

First Examination of Functional Capacity of Deep-sea Coral Microbiomes Reveals Details of Carbon and Nitrogen Cycling Plus Tropical Similarities

memory@usgs.gov — Mon, 14 Aug 2023 10:33:14 EDT

In this newly published "deep dive" into coral microbiomes, Dr. Christina Kellogg and partners reveal very similar microbial gene functions in deep-water coral microbiomes compared to those in shallow, tropical environments. They also uncover results such as varying nutritional strategies, antibiotic gene resistance, and differences between stony and soft coral microbiomes.

Bats, Bugs, and Boaters: Bat activity along the Colorado River in Grand Canyon is determined by the availability of aquatic flies

mhartwell@usgs.gov — Thu, 10 Aug 2023 06:00:00 EDT

In a study published by Journal of Wildlife Management, the USGS, US National Park Service, and US Forest Service collaborated with commercial and recreational river rafters to learn about riparian bat foraging along the Colorado River in Grand Canyon, Arizona.

FORT Scientists Discuss Research at the 2023 Ecological Society of America Meeting

edietrich@usgs.gov — Fri, 4 Aug 2023 05:44:19 EDT

FORT researchers will be presenting at the 2023 Ecological Society of America (ESA) Conference in Portland, OR from August 6-11. The theme of this year's meeting is "ESA for All Ecologists" in which ESA aims to promote collaboration between academic ecologists and private- or public-sector ecologists.

Friday's Findings - August 11 2023

shouse@usgs.gov — Wed, 2 Aug 2023 13:30:41 EDT

Title: INHABIT: What, Where, and Why of Invasive Plant Species

Speaker: Catherine Jarnevich, Research Ecologist, Fort Collins Science Center

Date: August 11, 2023 at 2:00pm ET / 11:00am PT

Pathology Case of the Month - Boulder Brain Coral Colony

award@contractor.usgs.gov — Tue, 1 Aug 2023 06:06:57 EDT

Case History: A 20cm diameter colony of boulder brain coral (Colpophyllia natans) offshore of Miami Beach, FL, US began losing tissue in September of 2021 after a long period of stable tissue coverage and was not responding to local treatment with amoxicillin paste.

USGS Researchers are Organizing the first Pacific Northwest Native American Workshop on Bats in Toppenish, WA, August 8-9, 2023.

edietrich@usgs.gov — Mon, 31 Jul 2023 13:51:20 EDT

Dr. Ernest Valdez of FORT, New Mexico Landscapes Field Station along with researchers from the USGS-Northwest-Pacific Islands Region, Native American Fish and Wildlife Society, Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation, Bureau of Indian Affairs, National Park Service, and Oregon State University are co-organizing and co-hosting the first Pacific Northwest Native American Workshop on Bats.

The Lake Trophic State - US Dataset

mlangseth@usgs.gov — Thu, 27 Jul 2023 17:27:25 EDT

Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable (FAIR) data and code, along with a collaborative team focused on equity make this project a great example of open science.

Biofuel crop expansion contributes to loss of grassland birds in North Dakota, study finds

aweill@usgs.gov — Wed, 26 Jul 2023 03:22:07 EDT

Recent shifts from small grain agriculture to biofuel feedstocks affected grassland birds more negatively than did oil and gas development