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: 41764
Demethylation of methylmercury in bird, fish, and earthworm
Toxicity of methylmercury (MeHg) to wildlife and humans results from its binding to cysteine residues of proteins, forming MeHg-cysteinate (MeHgCys) complexes that hinder biological functions. MeHgCys complexes can be detoxified in vivo, yet how this occurs is unknown. We report that MeHgCys complexes are transformed into selenocysteinate (Hg(Sec)4) complexes in multiple animals from two phyla (a
Authors
Alain Manceau, Jean-Paul Bourdineaud, Ricardo B. Oliveira, Sandra LF Sarrazin, David P. Krabbenhoft, Collin Eagles-Smith, Josh T. Ackerman, Robin Stewart, Christian Ward-Deitrich, M Estela del Castillo Busto, Heidi Goenaga-Infante, Aude Wack, Marius Retegan, Blanka Detlefs, Pieter Glatzel, Paco Bustamante, Kathryn L. Nagy, Brett Poulin
A morphodynamic model to evaluate long-term sandbar rebuilding using controlled floods in the Grand Canyon
Controlled floods released from dams have become a common restoration strategy in river systems worldwide. Here we present a morphodynamic model of sandbar volume change for a subset of sandbars of the Colorado River in Grand Canyon National Park, where controlled floods are part of a management strategy focused on sandbar maintenance. We simulate sandbars as a triangular wedge, where deposition a
Authors
Erich R. Mueller, Paul Grams
Assessment of wave attenuation, current patterns, and sediment deposition and erosion during winter storms by living shoreline structures in Gandys Beach, New Jersey
This study was conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey and Northeastern University in cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and The Nature Conservancy. This report summarizes field investigation and analysis of waves, current patterns, and sediment deposition and erosion along the Gandys Beach, New Jersey, salt marsh vegetated shoreline and mudflat, where living shoreline structures
Authors
H. Wang, William D. Capurso, Q. Chen, Ling Zhu, L.M. Niemoczynski, Gregg Snedden
Estimates of food consumption rates for invasive Blue Catfish
As a prolific invasive species, Blue Catfish Ictalurus furcatus threaten native organisms in numerous estuarine and tidal freshwaters along the Atlantic coast of the United States. However, no published estimates of consumption rates are available for Blue Catfish in the scientific literature. This information is critical for development of bioenergetics models or estimation of population‐level im
Authors
Joseph Schmitt, Corbin D. Hilling, Donald J. Orth
A framework for allocating conservation resources among multiple threats and actions
Land managers decide how to allocate resources among multiple threats that can be addressed through multiple possible actions. Additionally, these actions vary in feasibility, effectiveness, and cost. We sought to provide a way to optimize resource allocation to address multiple threats when multiple management options are available, including mutually exclusive options. Formulating the decision a
Authors
Joslin L. Moore, Abbey E Camaclang, Alana L. Moore, Cindy E Hauser, Michael C. Runge, Victor Picheny, Libby Rumpff
Cold tolerance of mountain stoneflies (Plecoptera: Nemouridae) from the high Rocky Mountains
How aquatic insects cope with cold temperatures is poorly understood. This is particularly true for high-elevation species, which often experience a seasonal risk of freezing. In the Rocky Mountains, nemourid stoneflies (Plecoptera: Nemouridae) are a major component of mountain stream biodiversity and are typically found in streams fed by glaciers and snowfields, which are rapidly receding due to
Authors
Scott Hotaling, Alisha A. Shah, Michael E. Dillon, J. Joseph Giersch, Lusha M. Tronstad, Debra S. Finn, H. Arthur Woods, Joanna L. Kelley
U.S. Geological Survey wildland fire science strategic plan, 2021–26
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Wildland Fire Science Strategic Plan defines critical, core fire science capabilities for understanding fire-related and fire-responsive earth system processes and patterns, and informing management decision making. Developed by USGS fire scientists and executive leadership, and informed by conversations with external stakeholders, the Strategic Plan is aligned wi
Authors
Paul F. Steblein, Rachel A. Loehman, Mark P. Miller, Joseph R. Holomuzki, Suzanna C. Soileau, Matthew L. Brooks, Mia Drane-Maury, Hannah M. Hamilton, Jason W. Kean, Jon E. Keeley, Robert R. Mason,, Alexa McKerrow, James Meldrum, Edmund B. Molder, Sheila F. Murphy, Birgit Peterson, Geoffrey S. Plumlee, Douglas J. Shinneman, Phillip J. van Mantgem, Alison York
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Natural Hazards Mission Area, Science Synthesis, Analysis and Research Program, Science Analytics and Synthesis (SAS) Program, Alaska Science Center, Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center , Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center, Fort Collins Science Center, Geologic Hazards Science Center, Geology, Geophysics, and Geochemistry Science Center, Western Ecological Research Center (WERC), Wildland Fire Science
Measurement of suction pressure dynamics of sea lampreys, Petromyzon marinus
Species-specific monitoring activities represent fundamental tools for natural resource management and conservation but require techniques that target species-specific traits or markers. Sea lamprey, a destructive invasive species in the Laurentian Great Lakes and conservation target in North America and Europe, is among very few fishes that possess and use oral suction, yet suction has not been e
Authors
Hongyang Shi, Christopher Holbrook, Yunqi Cao, Nelson Sepúlveda, Xiaobo Tan
Spatial and temporal distributions of Dreissena spp. veligers in Lake Huron: Does calcium limit settling success?
The larval stage of invasive Dreissena spp. mussels (i.e., veligers) are understudied despite their seasonal numerical dominance among plankton. We report the spring and summer veliger densities and size structure across the main basin, North Channel, and Georgian Bay of Lake Huron, and seek to explain spatiotemporal variation. Monthly sampling was conducted at 9 transects and up to 3 sites per tr
Authors
Darren S. Kirkendall, David Bunnell, Patricia Dieter, Lauren A. Eaton, Anett S Trebitz, Nicole M Watson
What can commercial fishery data in the Great Lakes reveal about juvenile sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) ecology and management?
The Laurentian Great Lakes of North America support a large and profitable freshwater fishery, but one continuously beset by parasitism from the invasive sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus). Despite being the life stage that inflicts damage to the fishery, therefore necessitating a bi-national control program, our knowledge of juvenile sea lamprey ecology is poor and their response to control efforts
Authors
John B. Hume, Gale A Bravener, Shane Flinn, Nicholas S. Johnson
Trade-offs between suppression and eradication of sea lampreys from the Great Lake
Ecosystem managers confronted with newly invasive species may respond with a program of suppression or eradication. Suppression of an invasive species refers to management of a species such that its effect on other biota in the local ecosystem is acceptable. Eradication is the removal of all individuals of a species from a defined region. We examine the cost and benefit trade-offs between suppress
Authors
Jean V. Adams, Oana Birceanu, W. Lindsay Chadderton, Michael L. Jones, Jesse M. Lepak, Titus S Selheimer, Todd B. Steeves, W. Paul Sullivan, Jill Wingfield
Predicted climate-induced reductions in scavenging in eastern North America
Scavenging is an important function within ecosystems where scavengers remove organic matter, reduce disease, stabilize food webs, and generally make ecosystems more resilient to environmental changes. Global change (i.e., changing climate and increasing human impact) is currently influencing scavenger communities. Thus, understanding what promotes species richness in scavenger communities can hel
Authors
Courtney J. Marneweck, Todd E. Katzner, David S. Jachowski