Publications

Wildlife species confront threats from climate and land use change, exacerbating the influence of extreme climatic events on populations and biodiversity. Migratory waterbirds are especially vulnerable to hydrological drought via reduced availability of surface water habitats. We assessed how whooping cranes (Grus americana) modified habitat use and migration strategies during drought to evaluate

Bighead carp (Hypophthalmichthys nobilis), silver carp (H. molitrix), black carp (Mylopharyngodon piceus), and grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella), are invasive species in North America. However, they hold significant economic importance as food sources in China. The drifting stage of carp eggs has received great attention because egg survival rate is strongly affected by river hydrodynamics. In

Carotenoid-dependent ornaments can reflect animals’ diet and foraging behaviors. However, this association should be spatially flexible and variable among populations to account for geographic variation in optimal foraging behaviors. We tested this hypothesis using populations of a marine predator (the brown booby, Sula leucogaster) that forage across a gradient in ocean depth in and near the Gulf

Eggshell thickness can be an indicator of environmental pollution in wild birds and shell quality in wild and domestic birds, but it is difficult to measure calcite eggshell thickness due to the presence of the adherent outer eggshell membrane. Eggshells of 13 waterbird species were divided in half longitudinally and the outer membrane was removed from one of the halves. Subsequently, we measured

Habitat restoration and creation within human-altered landscapes can buffer the impacts of climate change on wildlife. The Forestry Reclamation Approach (FRA) is a coal surface mine reclamation practice that enhances reforestation through soil decompaction and the planting of native trees. Recently, wetland creation has been coupled with FRA to increase habitat available for wildlife, including am

Based on past and expanded DNA sampling, the orthopteran families Stenopelmatidae and Anostostomatidae, as currently structured, are shown to be non-monophyletic. The splay-footed cricket genus Comicus is confirmed to be genetically distinct from all Stenopelmatidae. We add two specimens to our previously published phylogenetic tree for New World Stenopelmatus Jerusalem cricket species and report

Infectious hematopoietic necrosis virus (IHNV) and viral hemorrhagic septicemia virus (VHSV) are rhabdoviruses in two different species belonging to the Novirhabdovirus genus. IHNV has a narrow host range restricted to trout and salmon species, and viruses in the M genogroup of IHNV have high virulence in rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss). In contrast, the VHSV genotype IVb that invaded the Grea

Grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella) are non-indigenous to North America having been translocated to the United States in the 1960s as a potential non-chemical solution for nuisance aquatic vegetation. Reproductively viable grass carp now exist in many watersheds in the United States. In the Great Lakes basin, grass carp were first discovered in the 1980s with direct confirmation of successful rep

Diagnostic laboratories receive carcasses and samples for diagnostic evaluation and pathogen/toxin detection. Case definitions bring clarity and consistency to the evaluation process. Their use within and between organizations allows more uniform reporting of diseases and etiologic agents. The intent of a case definition is to provide scientifically based criteria for determining (a) if an individ

No abstract available.

Longitudinal dispersal of migratory fish species can be interrupted by factors that fragment rivers, such as dams and reservoirs with incompatible habitats, and indirect alterations to variables, such as water temperature or turbidity. The endangered pallid sturgeon (Scaphirhynchus albus) population in the Upper Missouri River Basin in North Dakota and Montana is an example of such fragmentation a

We conceptualize and test a non-intrusive barrier, comprised of an oblique bubble screen (OBS) oriented at an angle to the mean flow, to prevent the downstream dispersal of invasive carp egg surrogates. Three surrogates of different densities and diameters were tested. Secondary flows created by the OBS were tuned to redirect surrogate eggs to facilitate their capture. Surface particle image veloc