Publications

President Biden has been clear that the ocean is central to life on Earth. As he has proclaimed, “the ocean powers millions of jobs; feeds and sustains us; and is a rejuvenating source of inspiration, exploration, and recreation.” The Biden-Harris Administration has worked hard to fulfill the President’s goal to protect and conserve at least 30% of U.S. waters by 2030. The ocean faces...

Developing conservation strategies for highly migratory marine species relies on understanding their spatial distributions. Nesting populations of female loggerhead (Caretta caretta) turtles typically travel from widely dispersed foraging areas and make use of common internesting areas between nesting events. Protection of these areas is essential to the conservation of this species. In...

Purpose Cover crops and reduced tillage are two key climate smart agricultural practices that can provide agroecosystem services including improved soil health, increased soil carbon sequestration, and reduced fertilizer needs. Crop residue carbon traits (i.e., lignin, holocellulose, non-structural carbohydrates) and nitrogen concentrations largely mediate decomposition rates and amount...

Background Enhancing detection of cryptic snakes is critical for the development of conservation and management strategies; yet, finding methods that provide adequate detection remains challenging. Issues with detecting snakes can be particularly problematic for some species, like the invasive Burmese python (Python bivittatus) in the Florida Everglades.Methods Using multiple survey...

The vertical accuracy of elevation data in coastal environments is critical because small variations in elevation can affect an area’s exposure to waves, tides, and storm-related flooding. Elevation data contractors typically quantify the vertical accuracy of lidar-derived digital elevation models (DEMs) on a per-project basis to gauge whether the datasets meet quality and accuracy...

Introduction National parks and preserves in the South Atlantic-Gulf Region contain valuable coastal habitats such as tidal wetlands and mangrove forests, as well as irreplaceable historic buildings and archeological sites located in low-lying areas. These natural and cultural resources are vulnerable to accelerated sea-level rise and escalating high tide flooding events. Through a...

Coastal habitats are some of the most imperiled due to climate change and anthropogenic activities. As such, it is important to understand population dynamics of the species that may play a role in regulating coastal systems. Diamondback terrapins in Northwest Florida have been understudied, which has resulted in a gap in our knowledge for this region. To help fill this gap, we conducted...

A cellular automata model was developed and parameterized to test the effectiveness of application of biological control insects to water hyacinth (Pontederia crassipes), which is an invasive floating plant species in many parts of the world and outcompetes many submersed native aquatic species in southern Florida. In the model, P. crassipes was allowed to compete with Nuttall’s...

Understanding temporal trends in low streamflows is important for water management and ecosystems. This work focuses on trends in the occurrence rate of extreme low-flow events (5- to 100-year return periods) for pooled groups of stations. We use data from 1,184 minimally altered catchments in Europe, North and South America, and Australia to discern historical climate-driven trends in...

Foragers on patchy landscapes must efficiently balance time between searching for and consuming resources to meet their daily energetic requirements. Spatial aggregation foraging behaviors may improve foraging efficiency by sharing information on locations of resource hotspots. Wading birds are an example of patch foragers that form colonial aggregations during the breeding season to...

Effect concentrations of ammonia, nickel, sodium chloride, and potassium chloride from short-term 7-day tests were compared to those from standard chronic 28-day toxicity tests with juvenile mussels (fatmucket, Lampsilis siliquoidea) to evaluate the sensitivities of the 7-day tests. The effect concentrations for nickel (59 µg Ni/L), chloride (316–519 mg Cl/L, a range from multiple tests)...

Preventing the spread of aquatic invasive species is an important management action. Identifying the characteristics of lakes that are susceptible to invasion creates an opportunity for management groups to prioritize limited resources for high-risk areas. In this study, we leveraged big data from a popular fishing app and other publicly available sources of environmental and human-use...