Skip to main content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Publications

USGS Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center staff publish results of their research in USGS series reports and in peer-reviewed journals. Publication links are below.  Information on all USGS publications can be found at the USGS Publications Warehouse.

Filter Total Items: 1907

Using prairie restoration to curtail invasion of Canada thistle: the importance of limiting similarity and seed mix richness

Theory has predicted, and many experimental studies have confirmed, that resident plant species richness is inversely related to invisibility. Likewise, potential invaders that are functionally similar to resident plant species are less likely to invade than are those from different functional groups. Neither of these ideas has been tested in the context of an operational prairie restoration. Here
Authors
Diane L. Larson, J.B. Bright, Pauline Drobney, Jennifer L. Larson, Nicholas Palaia, Paul A. Rabie, Sara Vacek, Douglas Wells

Migration and habitat preferences of Swainson's Hawks at an autumn stopover site in northwestern Texas

Unlike most raptors, the Swainson's Hawk (Buteo swainsoni) migrates long distances between breeding and wintering ranges, which elevates the importance of stopover sites for foraging. We conducted three years of fall surveys in the Southern High Plains of Texas. Migrant Swainson's Hawks moved through the area mostly between July and mid-October, peaking in September. Subadults tended to migrate ea
Authors
Carroll D. Littlefield, Douglas H. Johnson

Malberg Mystery

No abstract available.
Authors
Shannon Barber-Meyer

Wetland dynamics influence mid-continent duck recruitment

Recruitment is a key factor influencing duck population dynamics. Understanding what regulates recruitment of ducks is a prerequisite to informed habitat and harvest management. Quantity of May ponds (MP) has been linked to recruitment and population size (Kaminski and Gluesing 1987, Raveling and Heitmeyer 1989). However, wetland productivity (quality) is driven by inter-annual hydrological fluctu
Authors
Michael J. Anteau, Aaron T. Pearse, Michael L. Szymankski

To the editor: Reply confuses newsprint with media

“Is Science in Danger of Sanctifying the Wolf” (Mech, 2012), contends that some scientists have claimed that wolf (Canis lupus) restoration has led to many ecological benefits lower in the food chain but that other scientists have questioned the evidence for those claims. Furthermore, my article claims that “the media become complicit [in promoting positive studies about wolves] by immediately pub
Authors
L. David Mech

Vegetation projections for Wind Cave National Park with three future climate scenarios: Final report in completion of Task Agreement J8W07100052

Introduction The effects of climate change on the natural resources protected by Parks will likely be substantial, but geographically variable, due to local variation in climate trajectories and differences among ecosystems in their vulnerability to climate change. The projections of general circulation models (GCMs) indicate the possible magnitude and direction of future climate change for a regi
Authors
David A. King, Dominique M. Bachelet, Amy J. Symstad

How not to find a wolf den

A five-day odyssey, spanning 58 hours without decent sleep or meals, taught these researchers one thing-how not to find a wolf den.
Authors
L. David Mech

Invasive species management restores a plant-pollinator mutualism in Hawaii

1.The management and removal of invasive species may give rise to unanticipated changes in plant–pollinator mutualisms because they can alter the composition and functioning of plant–pollinator interactions in a variety of ways. To utilize a functional approach for invasive species management, we examined the restoration of plant–pollinator mutualisms following the large-scale removal of an invasi
Authors
Cause Hanna, David Foote, Claire Kremen

Native Prairie Adaptive Management: a multi region adaptive approach to invasive plant management on Fish and Wildlife Service owned native prairies

Much of the native prairie managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) in the Prairie Pothole Region (PPR) of the northern Great Plains is extensively invaded by the introduced cool-season grasses, smooth brome (Bromus inermis) and Kentucky bluegrass (Poa pratensis). Management to suppress these invasive plants has had poor to inconsistent success. The central challenge to managers is sele
Authors
Jill J. Gannon, Terry L. Shaffer, Clinton T. Moore

Brutus

No abstract available.
Authors
L. David Mech

Minnesota wolf 2407: a research pioneer

The International Wolf Center has assembled in this book stories from over 30 wolf biologists from throughout North America and Europe. These tales provide a glimpse into the amazing lives of individual wolves, revealing their unique personalities, highlighting their struggles and triumphs, and illustrating the unique influence the individual can have on the survival of its pack and the population
Authors
L. David Mech

Distribution of burrowing owls in east-central South Dakota

Western burrowing owl (Athene cunicularia hypugaea) populations have declined across much of western North America, particularly at the northern and eastern edges of the species’ breeding range (Martell et al. 2001, Murphy et al. 2001, Shyry et al. 2001, Skeel et al. 2001, Klute et al. 2003). In South Dakota, the burrowing owl is a summer resident that historically was relatively common throughout
Authors
Jill A. Shaffer, Jason P. Thiele