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A lone dead tree on a hillside overlooking a valley with farmland
Snag remaining after timber harvest
Snag remaining after timber harvest
Snag remaining after timber harvest

A snag - or dead tree- remaining after timber harvest on BLM land in Eugene, OR. The western purple martin, a declining songbird species, depends on snags for nesting.

A snag - or dead tree- remaining after timber harvest on BLM land in Eugene, OR. The western purple martin, a declining songbird species, depends on snags for nesting.

NPS/USGS remote den camera. Fisher family denning in a mountain beaver burrow.
Fisher family denning in a mountain beaver burrow
Fisher family denning in a mountain beaver burrow
Fisher family denning in a mountain beaver burrow

NPS/USGS remote den camera. Fisher family denning in a mountain beaver burrow. Look carefully! Two fisher kits in front of their den site in a mountain beaver burrow (foreground) with mom (background left) watching on. The kits are about 4-5 months old.

NPS/USGS remote den camera. Fisher family denning in a mountain beaver burrow. Look carefully! Two fisher kits in front of their den site in a mountain beaver burrow (foreground) with mom (background left) watching on. The kits are about 4-5 months old.

selfie of USGS scientists
FRESC 2016 SageSTEP field crew selfie
FRESC 2016 SageSTEP field crew selfie
FRESC 2016 SageSTEP field crew selfie

The 2016 SageSTEP field crew.  They are collecting vegetation monitoring data at SageSTEP's (Sagebrush Steppe Treatment Evaluation Project) Moses Coulee site.  SageSTEP is a regional experiment evaluating methods of sagebrush steppe restoration in the Great Basin.

The 2016 SageSTEP field crew.  They are collecting vegetation monitoring data at SageSTEP's (Sagebrush Steppe Treatment Evaluation Project) Moses Coulee site.  SageSTEP is a regional experiment evaluating methods of sagebrush steppe restoration in the Great Basin.

pen tip next to lichen
Close-up of biocrust - lichen
Close-up of biocrust - lichen
Close-up of biocrust - lichen

Biological soil crusts, or biocrusts, are lichens, mosses, and cyanobacteria that grow on the soil surface and are common in the spaces between native plants in arid and semi-arid systems. Biocrusts reduce soil erosion, contribute to nutrient and water cycling, and reduce evaporation and invasion by exotic plants.

Biological soil crusts, or biocrusts, are lichens, mosses, and cyanobacteria that grow on the soil surface and are common in the spaces between native plants in arid and semi-arid systems. Biocrusts reduce soil erosion, contribute to nutrient and water cycling, and reduce evaporation and invasion by exotic plants.

Image: Measuring a Frog in the Cascades
Measuring a Frog in the Cascades
Measuring a Frog in the Cascades
Measuring a Frog in the Cascades

USGS researchers Brome McCreary (orange vest) and Chris Pearl take measurements on Cascades frog at a mountain lake in Oregon.

USGS researchers Brome McCreary (orange vest) and Chris Pearl take measurements on Cascades frog at a mountain lake in Oregon.

two ARMI field tech display discarded mylar balloons
Discarded mylar balloons on display
Discarded mylar balloons on display
Discarded mylar balloons on display

Anna Ormiston and Jesi Hessong, student contractors with the USGS Amphibian Research and Monitoring Initiative, or ARMI, display several discarded mylar balloon collected by field teams working in and around the Capital Region National Parks in the summer of 2015. They collected a total of 71 balloons.

Anna Ormiston and Jesi Hessong, student contractors with the USGS Amphibian Research and Monitoring Initiative, or ARMI, display several discarded mylar balloon collected by field teams working in and around the Capital Region National Parks in the summer of 2015. They collected a total of 71 balloons.

Sagebrush, grasses, and forbs in a shrub-steppe ecosystem
Sagebrush, grasses, and forbs in a shrub-steppe ecosystem
Sagebrush, grasses, and forbs in a shrub-steppe ecosystem
Sagebrush, grasses, and forbs in a shrub-steppe ecosystem

Determining aboveground biomass of sagebrush, grasses, and forbs is important for estimating fuel loads, measuring carbon storage, and assessing habitat quality in shrublands. Remote sensing may offer a more efficient alternative to common, labor intensive methods of measuring aboveground biomass that are difficult to apply across large areas.

Determining aboveground biomass of sagebrush, grasses, and forbs is important for estimating fuel loads, measuring carbon storage, and assessing habitat quality in shrublands. Remote sensing may offer a more efficient alternative to common, labor intensive methods of measuring aboveground biomass that are difficult to apply across large areas.

Vegetation monitoring in the area burned by the Soda Fire, 2015
Vegetation monitoring in the area burned by the Soda Fire, 2015
Vegetation monitoring in the area burned by the Soda Fire, 2015
Vegetation monitoring in the area burned by the Soda Fire, 2015

USGS scientists monitor BLM efforts to restore vegetation in the area burned byt he 2015 Soda Fire in southwest Idaho and southeast Oregon sagebrush-steppe.

USGS scientists monitor BLM efforts to restore vegetation in the area burned byt he 2015 Soda Fire in southwest Idaho and southeast Oregon sagebrush-steppe.

Image: Environmental DNA Samples
Environmental DNA Samples
Environmental DNA Samples
Environmental DNA Samples

Samples from various aquatic species and other material necessary to create environemntal DNA (eDNA) assays are stored at the Snake River Field Station in Boise. Water samples from aquatic ecosystems are compared against the assays to identify the presence and location of species in those ecosystems.

Samples from various aquatic species and other material necessary to create environemntal DNA (eDNA) assays are stored at the Snake River Field Station in Boise. Water samples from aquatic ecosystems are compared against the assays to identify the presence and location of species in those ecosystems.

Image: Environmental DNA Samples
Environmental DNA Samples
Environmental DNA Samples
Environmental DNA Samples

Samples collected form coho salmon that will be used to develop environmental DNA (eDNA) assays for the species. Water samples from aquatic ecosystems are compared against the assays to identify the presence and location of species in those ecosystems.

Samples collected form coho salmon that will be used to develop environmental DNA (eDNA) assays for the species. Water samples from aquatic ecosystems are compared against the assays to identify the presence and location of species in those ecosystems.

6 white wind turbines on a forested hill, rolling hills in the background obscured by fog or clouds
Wind Farm in Maine
Wind Farm in Maine
Wind Farm in Maine

A wind farm on Kibby Mountain in western Maine. Researchers at the Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center are collecting remains from birds and bats found dead at renewable energy facilities across the country. 

A wind farm on Kibby Mountain in western Maine. Researchers at the Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center are collecting remains from birds and bats found dead at renewable energy facilities across the country. 

Sagebrush seedlings
Sagebrush seedlings in Birds of Prey National Conservation Area
Sagebrush seedlings in Birds of Prey National Conservation Area
Sagebrush seedlings in Birds of Prey National Conservation Area

Sagebrush seedlings grown at Birds of Prey National Conservation Area before outplanting to sites at BOP NCA in Nov 2012 in sites previously burned in wildfire summer 2012

Sagebrush seedlings grown at Birds of Prey National Conservation Area before outplanting to sites at BOP NCA in Nov 2012 in sites previously burned in wildfire summer 2012

Views from Siuslaw National Forest
Views from Siuslaw National Forest, OR
Views from Siuslaw National Forest, OR
Sagebrush seedlings
Sagebrush seedlings in Birds of Prey National Conservation Area
Sagebrush seedlings in Birds of Prey National Conservation Area
Sagebrush seedlings in Birds of Prey National Conservation Area

Sagebrush seedlings grown at Birds of Prey National Conservation Area before outplanting to sites at BOP NCA in Nov 2012 in sites previously burned in wildfire summer 2012

Sagebrush seedlings grown at Birds of Prey National Conservation Area before outplanting to sites at BOP NCA in Nov 2012 in sites previously burned in wildfire summer 2012

Douglas-fir trees topped to create snags for wildlife
Douglas-fir trees topped to create snags for wildlife habitat
Douglas-fir trees topped to create snags for wildlife habitat
Douglas-fir trees topped to create snags for wildlife habitat

Snags provide habitat for a wide range of organisms from cavity-nesting birds to insects, and are critical for maintaining forest biodiversity. Resource managers can create snags by topping trees to mitigate loss of snags to timber harvest, but information regarding changes in habitat for snag-dependent wildlife over time as created snags decay is lacking.

Snags provide habitat for a wide range of organisms from cavity-nesting birds to insects, and are critical for maintaining forest biodiversity. Resource managers can create snags by topping trees to mitigate loss of snags to timber harvest, but information regarding changes in habitat for snag-dependent wildlife over time as created snags decay is lacking.

Songbird surveys in the Oregon Coast Range
Songbird surveys in McDonald Dunn forest
Songbird surveys in McDonald Dunn forest
Songbird surveys in McDonald Dunn forest

Joan Hagar and Amy Comstock assess the long-term ecological value and characteristics of snags created for wildlife

Tree in McDonald Dunn Forest
Tree in McDonald Dunn Forest
Tree in McDonald Dunn Forest
Tree in McDonald Dunn Forest

Joan Hagar and Amy Comstock assess the long-term ecological value and characteristics of snags created for wildlife

Joan Hagar and Amy Comstock assess the long-term ecological value and characteristics of snags created for wildlife

Northern spotted owl perched on a tree branch
Spotted owl (Strix occidentalis)
Spotted owl (Strix occidentalis)
Spotted owl (Strix occidentalis)

Northern spotted owls (Strix occidentalis caurina) are mostly non-migratory, long-lived birds whose populations have declined in mature forests of western North America.

Northern spotted owls (Strix occidentalis caurina) are mostly non-migratory, long-lived birds whose populations have declined in mature forests of western North America.

pair of American Avocets
pair of American Avocets
pair of American Avocets
pair of American Avocets

A pair of American avocets wading in a saline lake in the Great Basin. Many bird species rely on food resources found in saline lakes, such as brine shrimp and brine flies.

A pair of American avocets wading in a saline lake in the Great Basin. Many bird species rely on food resources found in saline lakes, such as brine shrimp and brine flies.

Pend Oreille River in winter
Pend Oreille River in winter
Pend Oreille River in winter
Pend Oreille River in winter

The Kalispel Tribe in northeastern Washington is located along the Pend Oreille River, home to culturally important, cold-water fish, such as bull trout and cutthroat trout.

The Kalispel Tribe in northeastern Washington is located along the Pend Oreille River, home to culturally important, cold-water fish, such as bull trout and cutthroat trout.

Upshot of Douglas fir forest on the west side of the Cascade Mountains, Oregon
Upshot of Douglas fir forest McKenzie Pass, Willamette National Forest
Upshot of Douglas fir forest McKenzie Pass, Willamette National Forest
Upshot of Douglas fir forest McKenzie Pass, Willamette National Forest

The glorious Douglas fir forest on the west side of the Cascade Mountains, McKenzie Pass, Willamette National Forest. The Douglas fir is the Oregon state tree.

The glorious Douglas fir forest on the west side of the Cascade Mountains, McKenzie Pass, Willamette National Forest. The Douglas fir is the Oregon state tree.