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Publications

This list of publications includes peer-review journal articles, official USGS publications series, reports and more authored by scientists in the Ecosystems Mission Area. A database of all USGS publications, with advanced search features, can be accessed at the USGS Publications Warehouse.  

Filter Total Items: 41773

Effects of noise from oil and gas development on raptors and songbirds—A science synthesis to inform National Environmental Policy Act analyses

The U.S. Geological Survey is working with Federal land management agencies to develop a series of science syntheses to support environmental effects analyses that agencies conduct to comply with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). This report synthesizes science information about the potential effects of noise from oil and gas development on North American raptors, songbirds, and other
Authors
Logan M. Maxwell, Tait K. Rutherford, Nathan J. Kleist, Elisabeth C. Teige, Richard J. Lehrter, Megan A. Gilbert, David J.A. Wood, Aaron N. Johnston, John C. Tull, Travis S. Haby, Sarah K. Carter

Assessment of the sensitivity of Percina caprodes (logperch) to the pesticide 4-nitro-3-(trifluoromethyl)phenol

A continuous-flow streamside toxicity test was completed to evaluate the risk posed by the use of 4-nitro-3-(trifluoromethyl)phenol (TFM), used to control Petromyzon marinus (sea lamprey), to Percina caprodes (logperch). Logperch are a host fish to the parasitic glochidia life stage of the federally endangered Epioblasma triquetra (snuffbox mussel). Streams with an extant population of snuffbox mu
Authors
Courtney A Kirkeeng, James A. Luoma, Nicholas Schloesser, Justin Schueller, Cheryl Kaye

Lidar estimation of storage capacity for managed water resources used by Desert Bighorn Sheep (Ovis canadensis mexicana) at Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge, Arizona

In cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Geological Survey Southwest Biological Science Center employed ground-based light detection and ranging (lidar) during February 2022 to help meet two resource management objectives at the Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge (CPNWR), Arizona. The two objectives are (1) characterize the water storage capacity for one developed and t
Authors
Joel B. Sankey, Joshua Caster, Nathaniel Bransky, Stephanie Fuest, Steven Sesnie, Ashton Bedford

Amphibian monitoring in hardwood forests: Optimizing methods for contaminant‐based compensatory restorations

Amphibians such as frogs, toads, and salamanders provide important services in aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems and have been proposed as useful indicators of progress and success for ecological restoration projects. Limited guidance is available, however, on the costs and benefits of different amphibian monitoring techniques that might be applied to sites restored in compensation for contaminan
Authors
Bethany K. Kunz, Hardin Waddle, Nicholas S. Green

From causes of conflict to solutions: Shifting the lens on human–carnivore coexistence research

Human-carnivore conflicts pose significant challenges in the management and conservation of carnivores across the globe. Abundant research has led to generalizable insights into the causes of such conflicts. For example, conflicts predictably occur when carnivores have access to human food resources, particularly when their natural foods are scarce. However, similar insights into the effectiveness
Authors
Kyle Artelle, Heather E. Johnson, Rebecca McCaffery, Christopher Schell, Tyus Williams, Seth Wilson

Leveraging extensive soil, vegetation, fire, and land treatment data to inform restoration across the sagebrush biome

ContextWidespread ecological degradation has prompted calls for massive global investments in ecological restoration, yet limited resources necessitate efficient application of restoration efforts. In western North America, altered fire regimes are increasing the scale of restoration needed to preserve the sagebrush (Artemisia species) biome but prioritizing and implementing effective restoration
Authors
Bryan C. Tarbox, Adrian P. Monroe, Michelle Jeffries, Justin L. Welty, Michael S. O'Donnell, Robert Arkle, David Pilliod, Peter S. Coates, Julie A. Heinrichs, Daniel Manier, Cameron L. Aldridge

Glucocorticoid and glycemic responses to immune challenge in a viviparous snake afflicted with an emerging mycosis

Disease may be both a cause and consequence of stress, and physiological responses to infectious disease may involve stress coping mechanisms that have important fitness consequences. For example, glucocorticoid and glycemic responses may affect host fitness by altering resource allocation and use in hosts, and these responses may be affected by competing stressors. To better understand the factor
Authors
Craig M. Lind, Joseph Agugliaro, Jason Ortega, Jenna N. Palmisano, Jeffrey M. Lorch, Tran Truong, Terence M. Farrell

The Interagency Coordinating Committee on the validation of alternative methods (ICCVAM)

Many ICCVAM member agencies are developing new technologies and resources to replace the use of animals for chemical safety testing. These include new platforms such as microphysiological systems (MPS), data resources to support the development of predictive models and quantitative structure–activity relationships (QSARs), and web tools to facilitate data access and visualization.
Authors
Barnett A. Rattner, Timothy Bargar, Paula F. P. Henry

Direct measurements of firn-density evolution from 2016 to 2022 at Wolverine Glacier, Alaska

Knowledge of snow and firn-density change is needed to use elevation-change measurements to estimate glacier mass change. Additionally, firn-density evolution on glaciers is closely connected to meltwater percolation, refreezing and runoff, which are key processes for glacier mass balance and hydrology. Since 2016, the U.S. Geological Survey Benchmark Glacier Project has recovered firn cores from
Authors
Max Stevens, Louis C. Sass, Caitlyn Florentine, Christopher J. McNeil, Emily Baker, Katherine Eleanore Bollen

Most pinyon-juniper woodland species distributions are projected to shrink rather than shift under climate change

Pinyon–juniper (PJ) woodlands are among the most widespread ecosystems in rangelands of western North America, supporting diverse wildlife habitat, recreation, grazing, and cultural/spiritual enrichment. Anticipating future distribution shifts under changing climate will be critical to climate adaptation and conservation efforts in these ecosystems. Here, we evaluate drivers of PJ tree species’ di
Authors
Adam Roy Noel, Daniel Rodolphe Schlaepfer, Bradley J. Butterfield, M.C. Swan, J. Michael Norris, K. Hartwig, Michael C. Duniway, John B. Bradford

Demographic risk factors vary in the invasion front of chronic wasting disease in West Virginia, USA

After detecting chronic wasting disease (CWD) in white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) in Hampshire County, West Virginia, USA, in 2005, we investigated the change of CWD apparent prevalence and potential factors influencing infection risk during the invasion front. Over eight sampling years (2006–2012 and 2017) during a 12-yr period within a 101-km2-area monitoring zone, we sampled and teste
Authors
Brian Scott Dugovich, Ethan P. Barton, James M. Crum, M. Kevin Keel, David E. Stallknecht, Mark G. Ruder

U.S. Geological Survey Tunison Laboratory of Aquatic Science research to rehabilitate native prey fish of the Lake Ontario fish community—Coregonine fishes

Restoration of native coregonines to Lake Ontario of the Laurentian Great Lakes will improve the diversity of forage for salmonid predators and ecological function in the lake, but efficacy of experimental releases for native species restoration must be evaluated. The Coregonine Research Program at the U.S. Geological Survey Tunison Laboratory of Aquatic Science encompasses a diverse array of rese
Authors
James E. McKenna, James H. Johnson, Steven Lapan, Marc Chalupnicki, Gregg Mackey, Mike Millard, Kevin Loftus, Michael Connerton, Christopher Legard, Brian Weidel, Dimitry Gorsky
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