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: 41763
Novel insights on aquatic mammal MHC evolution: Evidence from manatee DQB diversity
The low diversity in marine mammal major histocompatibility complex (MHC) appears to support the hypothesis of reduced pathogen selective pressure in aquatic systems compared to terrestrial environments. However, the lack of characterization of the aquatic and evolutionarily distant Sirenia precludes drawing more generalized conclusions. Therefore, we aimed to characterize the MHC DQB diversity of
Authors
André L.A. de Sá, Pamela K.B. Baker, Breanna Breaux, Jairo M. Oliveira, Alex G.C. de Macedo Klautau, Kristian Legatzki, Fábia de Oliveira Luna, Fernanda L.N. Attademo, Maggie Hunter, Michael F. Criscitiello, Maria P. Schneider, Leonardo Sena
Mechanisms of forest resilience
Ecosystems are dynamic systems with complex responses to environmental variation. In response to pervasive stressors of changing climate and disturbance regimes, many ecosystems are realigning rapidly across spatial scales, in many cases moving outside of their observed historical range of variation into alternative ecological states. In some cases, these new states are transitory and represent su
Authors
Donald A. Falk, Phillip J. van Mantgem, Jon Keeley, Rachel M Gregg, Christopher H. Guiterman, Alan J. Tepley, Derek J N Young, Laura A. E. Marshall
Bridging the gap between spatial modeling and management of invasive annual grasses in the imperiled sagebrush biome
Invasions of native plant communities by non-native species present major challenges for ecosystem management and conservation. Invasive annual grasses such as cheatgrass, medusahead, and ventenata are pervasive and continue to expand their distributions across imperiled sagebrush-steppe communities of the western United States. These invasive grasses alter native plant communities, ecosystem func
Authors
Bryan C. Tarbox, Nathan D. Van Schmidt, Jessica E. Shyvers, D. Joanne Saher, Julie A. Heinrichs, Cameron L. Aldridge
Positively selected genes in the hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus) lineage: Prominence of thymus expression, immune and metabolic function, and regions of ancient synteny
BackgroundBats of the genus Lasiurus occur throughout the Americas and have diversified into at least 20 species among three subgenera. The hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus) is highly migratory and ranges farther across North America than any other wild mammal. Despite the ecological importance of this species as a major insect predator, and the particular susceptibility of lasiurine bats to wind turb
Authors
Robert S. Cornman, Paul M. Cryan
A user guide to selecting invasive annual grass spatial products for the western United States
Invasive annual grasses (IAGs)—including Bromus tectorum (cheatgrass), Taeniatherum caput-medusae (medusahead), and Ventenata dubia (ventenata) species—present significant challenges for rangeland management by altering plant communities, impacting ecosystem function, reducing forage for wildlife and livestock, and increasing fire risk. Numerous spatial data products are used to map IAGs, and unde
Authors
Nathan D. Van Schmidt, Jessica E. Shyvers, D. Joanne Saher, Bryan C. Tarbox, Julie A. Heinrichs, Cameron L. Aldridge
Compendium to invasive annual grass spatial products for the western United States, January 2010-February 2021
Invasive annual grasses (IAGs) degrade native plant communities, alter fire cycles, impact ecosystem processes, and threaten the persistence of some species. Therefore, controlling the spread of IAGs has become a land management priority in the western United States. A wide array of geospatial data has been developed in the last decade to help land managers combat the invasion and expansion of non
Authors
D. Joanne Saher, Jessica E. Shyvers, Bryan C. Tarbox, Nathan D. Van Schmidt, Julie A. Heinrichs, Cameron L. Aldridge
FishStan: Hierarchical Bayesian models for fisheries
Fisheries managers and ecologists use statistical models to estimate population-level relations and demographic rates (e.g., length-maturity curves, growth curves, and mortality rates). These relations and rates provide insight into populations and inputs for other models. For example, growth curves may vary across lakes showing fish populations differ due to management actions or underlying envir
Authors
Richard A. Erickson, Daniel S. Stich, Jillian Lee Hebert
Greater sage-grouse respond positively to intensive post-fire restoration treatments
Habitat loss is the most prevalent threat to biodiversity in North America. One of the most threatened landscapes in the United States is the sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) ecosystem, much of which has been fragmented or converted to non-native grasslands via the cheatgrass-fire cycle. Like many sagebrush obligates, greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) depend upon sagebrush for food and cov
Authors
Sharon Poessel, David M Barnard, Cara Applestein, Matthew Germino, Ethan A. Ellsworth, Donald J. Major, Ann Moser, Todd E. Katzner
Bioaccumulation of perfluoroalkyl substances in a Lake Ontario food web
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a group of synthetic chemicals detected throughout the environment. To better understand the distribution of PFAS in an aquatic system (the Laurentian Great Lakes), stable isotope enrichment (δ13C and δ15N), fatty acid (FA) profiles, and PFAS were measured in various species from the Lake Ontario (LO) aquatic food web. Sampled organisms included top p
Authors
Junda Ren, Adam Point, Sadjad Fakouri Baygi, Sujan Fernando, Philip K. Hopke, Thomas M. Holsen, Brian F. Lantry, Brian C. Weidel, Bernard S. Crimmins
Microbial source tracking and evaluation of best management practices for restoring degraded beaches of Lake Michigan
Attempts to mitigate shoreline microbial contamination require a thorough understanding of pollutant sources, which often requires multiple years of data collection (e.g., point/nonpoint) and the interacting factors that influence water quality. Because restoration efforts can alter shoreline or beach morphology, revisiting source inputs is often necessary. Microbial source tracking (MST) using so
Authors
Meredith B. Nevers, Paul M. Buszka, Muruleedhara Byappanahalli, Travis Cole, Steven R. Corsi, P. Ryan Jackson, Julie L. Kinzelman, Cindy H Nakatsu, Mantha S. Phanikumar
Results of the collaborative Lake Ontario bloater restoration stocking and assessment, 2012–2020
Bloater, Coregonus hoyi, are deepwater planktivores native to the Laurentian Great Lakes and Lake Nipigon. Interpretations of commercial fishery time series suggest they were common in Lake Ontario through the early 1900s but by the 1950s were no longer captured by commercial fishers. Annual bottom trawl surveys that began in 1978 and sampled extensively across putative bloater habitat only yielde
Authors
Brian C. Weidel, Amanda Susanne Ackiss, Marc Chalupnicki, Michael Connerton, Steve Davis, John M. Dettmers, Timothy Drew, Aaron T. Fisk, Roger Gordon, S. Dale Hanson, Jeremy Holden, Mark E. Holey, James H. Johnson, Timothy B. Johnson, Colin Lake, Brian F. Lantry, Kevin K. Loftus, Gregg E. Mackey, James E. McKenna, Michael J. Millard, Scott P. Minihkeim, Brian O'Malley, Andrew C. Todd, Steven Lapan, Adam Rupnik