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Publications

Below are publications associated with the Southwest Biological Science Center's research.

If you are unable to access or download a product after you've clicked through the links below, email mhartwell@usgs.gov with your request. Please include the citation in your email and/or a link to the product. Note that each product has several link options once you click on the title.

Filter Total Items: 1328

Population reproductive structure of Rainbow Trout determined by histology and advancing methods to assign sex and assess spawning capability

Rainbow Trout Oncorhynchus mykiss have been intensively studied and gametogenesis has been described, but the use of reproductive indices in field studies has not been widely applied when assessing variability in growth or recruitment dynamics. We integrated descriptions for gametogenesis within the framework of standardized terminology for reproductive development in teleosts to develop sex-speci
Authors
James A. Crossman, Molly A. H. Webb, Josh Korman, Michael D. Yard

RestoreNet: Collaboration to improve success of seed-based restoration on the Colorado Plateau

Dryland restoration faces challenges from heat, drought, and unpredictable rainfall, that are increasingly common and severe due to climate change. Land managers need information about successful seed-based restoration techniques and seed mixes that are not widely available to increase restoration success. Researchers from the US Geological Survey (USGS) and partner universities are working with l
Authors
Seth M. Munson, Molly L. McCormick, M. Scott, Ariel Leger

Landscape-scale forest restoration decreases vulnerability to drought mortality under climate change in southwest USA ponderosa forest

Drought-induced tree mortality is predicted to increase in dry forests across the western USA as future projections show hotter, drier climates potentially resulting in large-scale tree die-offs, changes in species composition, and loss of forest ecosystem services, including carbon storage. While some studies have found that forest stands with greater basal areas (BA) have higher drought mortalit
Authors
Lisa A McCauley, John B. Bradford, Marcos D. Robles, Robert K Shriver, Travis J. Woolley, Caitlin M. Andrews

Winter 2021 edition

No abstract available.
Authors
Molly L. McCormick, Seth M. Munson

The use of continuous sediment-transport measurements to improve sand-load estimates in a large sand-bedded river: The Lower Chippewa River, WI

Accurately determining sediment loads is necessary for managing river environments but is difficult because multiple processes can lead to large discharge-independent changes in sediment transport. Thus, estimations of sediment load using discharge–sediment rating curves fit to sparse or historical sediment-transport measurements can be inaccurate, necessitating alternative approaches to reduce un
Authors
David Dean, David Topping, D. D. Buscombe, Joel T. Groten, Jeffrey R. Ziegeweid, Faith A. Fitzpatrick, John (William) Lund, Erin Nicole Coenen

Winter 2020-2021 edition

In this edition: 2021 year in review, native seed development process, RestoreNet protocol published and lots of associated research, a handful of climate change science, and more.
Authors
Molly L. McCormick, Seth M. Munson, John B. Bradford

The effects of requested flows for native fish on sediment dynamics, geomorphology, and riparian vegetation for the Green River in Canyonlands National Park, Utah

Releases of water from Flaming Gorge Dam together with climate-related variations in runoff determine the streamflow regime of the Green River, which affects the physical characteristics of the channel and riparian ecosystem of the Green River corridor in Canyonlands National Park. The dam has decreased peak streamflows and raised base streamflows, resulting in vegetation encroachment and channel
Authors
Paul E. Grams, Jonathan M. Friedman, David Dean, David J. Topping

Woody plant encroachment of grassland and the reversibility of shrub dominance: Erosion, fire, and feedback processes

Many grass-dominated ecosystems in dryland regions have experienced increasing woody plant density and abundance during the past century. In many cases, this process has led to land degradation and declines in ecosystem functions. An example is the Chihuahuan Desert in the southwestern United States, which experienced different stages of shrub encroachment in the past 150 years. Among a wide varie
Authors
Junran Li, Sujith Ravi, Guan Wang, R. Scott Van Pelt, Thomas E. Gill, Joel B. Sankey

Comparison of electrofishing and PIT antennas for detection of hatchery-reared Roundtail Chub (Gila robusta) stocked into a desert stream

Stocking of rare native fishes for conservation purposes is a common practice in the southwestern United States. Monitoring typically occurs after hatchery-reared fish are released to assess post-stocking movement and survival. We conducted a two-year study, in which tow-barge electrofishing and portable, flat-bed passive integrated transponder (PIT) antennas were used to monitor PIT-tagged, hatch
Authors
Laura A. Tennant, David Ward, Alice C. Gibb

Identifying factors linked with persistence of reintroduced populations: Lessons learned from 25 years of amphibian translocations

Conservation translocations are increasingly used to help recover imperiled species. However, success of establishing populations remains low, especially for amphibians. Identifying factors associated with translocation success can help increase efficiency and efficacy of recovery efforts. Since the 1990s, several captive and semi-captive facilities have produced Chiricahua Leopard Frogs (Rana chi
Authors
Blake R. Hossack, Paige E. Howell, Audrey K Owens, C Cobos, Caren S. Goldberg, David L. Hall, Shaula Hedwall, Susi MacVean, Magnus McCaffery, A. Hunter McCall, C Mosley, Emily Bea Oja, James C. Rorabaugh, Brent H. Sigafus, Michael J Sredl

Calibration of an evapotranspiration algorithm in a semiarid sagebrush steppe using a 3-ha lysimeter and Landsat normalized difference vegetation index data

In arid and semiarid environments, evapotranspiration (ET) is the primary discharge component in the water balance, with potential ET exceeding precipitation. For this reason, reliable estimates of ET are needed to construct accurate water budgets in these environments. Remote sensing affords the ability to provide fast, accurate, field-scale ET estimates, but these methods have largely been restr
Authors
Christopher J. Jarchow, William J. Waugh, Pamela L. Nagler

Multiple resource limitation of dryland soil microbial carbon cycling on the Colorado Plateau

Understanding interactions among biogeochemical cycles is increasingly important as anthropogenic alterations of global climate and of carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P) cycles interactively affect the Earth system. Ecosystem processes in the dryland biome, which makes up over 40% of Earth's terrestrial surface, are often distinctively sensitive to small changes in resource availability,
Authors
Ryan T. Choi, Sasha C. Reed, Colin Tucker