Images

Tufted Puffin, the species most affected by a recent seabird die-off in the Pribilof Islands, AK. Near Dutch Harbor in the Aleutian Islands, Alaska

Three of the nine wild sea otter populations in the U.S. are federally listed as threatened. In California, USGS biologists have lead an annual population census to assess the local populations' recovery, working closely with state agencies and the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

USGS scientist Jayne Belnap examines instrumentation to measure photosynthetic rates of biocrusts.

Don Ashton uses radio telemetry to track a federally threatened Oregon spotted frog (Rana pretiosa). Data provide information on resource use, movement patterns, and overwintering

USGS scientists created outdoor testing plots where large squares of biocrusts were exposed to different warming and precipitation factors over time.

USGS scientists created outdoor testing plots where large squares of biocrusts were exposed to different warming and precipitation factors over time.

USGS scientist Sasha Reed studies sites where different climate conditions are being mimicked to determine effect on biocrusts.

USGS scientists created outdoor testing plots where large squares of biocrusts were exposed to different warming and precipitation factors over time.

Scientists are studying several weed suppressive bacteria to see if they can be used as a biological control on invasive exotic grasses, such as cheatgrass.

USGS personnel maintaining weather station on Sperry Glacier in Glacier National Park

The Altamont Pass Wind Far is located in northern California.

Boat owners sought protection for their vessels in sheltered Hurricane Hole, but Hurricane Irma sunk and beached many boats, likely damaging corals. Photo: Caroline Rogers, USGS, 2017

Fog along the Yukon River showing a Black Spruce dominated forest in the foreground, which is prone to wildfire.  Photo by Bruce Wylie, USGS

Horned Puffin, one of the species affected by a recent seabird die-off in the Pribilof Islands, AK. Near Chisik Island in Lower Cook Inlet, Alaska

Fort Collins Science Center

English Sole - Scuba divers from the U.S. Geological Survey’s Western Fisheries Research Center, Washington Sea Grant, EPA and the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe collected data and images from a long-term study of the Elwha River dam removals and the resulting effects on the nearshore ecosystem.

Prairie coneflower, Blanket flower, and Phacelia bloom in an established Pollinator Plot at Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, Jamestown, North Dakota. 

USGS Biologist prepares to artificially spawn a female lake sturgeon in the laboratory at the Columbia Environmental Research Center.

USGS Biologist Sabrina Davenport prepares to release a reproductive female pallid sturgeon.

The information collected by advanced technologies, like this uncrewed underwater vehicle, can be used by managers to sustain and support the Great Lakes’ valuable natural resources.