Publications
This list of publications includes peer-review journal articles, official USGS publications series, reports and more authored by scientists in the Ecosystems Mission Area. A database of all USGS publications, with advanced search features, can be accessed at the USGS Publications Warehouse.
Filter Total Items: 41778
Open removal models with temporary emigration and population dynamics to inform invasive animal management
Removal sampling data are the primary source of monitoring information for many populations (e.g., invasive species, fisheries). Population dynamics, temporary emigration, and imperfect detection are common sources of variation in monitoring data and are key parameters for informing management. We developed two open robust-design removal models for simultaneously modeling population dynamics, temp
Authors
Bradley Udell, Julien Martin, Christina Romagosa, J. Hardin Waddle, Fred Johnson, Bryan Falk, Amy A. Yackel Adams, Sarah Funck, Jennifer Ketterlin Eckles, Eric Suarez, Frank Mazzotti
Genomics-informed delineation of conservation units in a desert amphibian
Delineating conservation units (CUs, e.g., evolutionarily significant units, ESUs, and management units, MUs) is critical to the recovery of declining species because CUs inform both listing status and management actions. Genomic data have strengths and limitations in informing CU delineation and related management questions in natural systems. We illustrate the value of using genomic data in comb
Authors
Brenna R. Forester, Melanie Murphy, Chad Mellison, Jeffrey Petersen, David Pilliod, Rachel Van Horne, Jim Harvey, W. Chris Funk
Bet-hedging and best-bet strategies shape seed dormancy
Seed dormancy (i.e. delayed germination even when conditions are favourable) is a key plant characteristic that occurs among many species worldwide. But, what selective pressures led to seed dormancy? A recent study provides a major analysis of the factors driving this trait at the global scale (Zhang et al., 2022). Using c. 12 000 species and 10 million records across the globe, they conclude tha
Authors
Juli G. Pausas, Byron B Lamont, Jon Keeley, William J. Bond
Temporal coherence patterns of prairie pothole wetlands indicate the importance of landscape linkages and wetland heterogeneity in maintaining biodiversity
Wetland ecosystems are diverse, productive habitats that are essential reservoirs of biodiversity. Not only are they home to numerous wetland-specialist species, but they also provide food, water, and shelter that support terrestrial wildlife populations. However, like observed patterns of biodiversity loss, wetland habitats have experienced widespread loss and degradation. In order to conserve an
Authors
Kyle McLean, David M. Mushet, Jon N. Sweetman
FY22 Technical Report: Evaluation of fish passage for assessment of invasive carp deterrents at locks in the upper Mississippi River
FY22 Technical Report for the project, "Evaluation of fish passage for assessment of invasive carp deterrents at locks in the Upper Mississippi River." This document describes specific methods, highlights, and results that show how progress towards meeting objectives in a timely manner.
Authors
Andrea K. Fritts, Joshua Abner, Mark W. Fritts, James T. Lamer, Mark Cornish
Can non-invasive methods replace radiocollar-based winter counts in a 50-year wolf study? Lessons learned from a three-winter trial
Context: Monitoring low-density, elusive predators such as grey wolves (Canis lupus) has often been undertaken via live-capture and radio-collaring. Recent advances in non-invasive methods suggest live-captures may not be necessary for adequate monitoring. Further, non-invasive methods are considered best practice when possible.Aims: I evaluated whether a suite of non-invasive methods could replac
Authors
Shannon Barber-Meyer
Expression plasticity regulates intraspecific variation in the acclimatization potential of a reef-building coral
Phenotypic plasticity is an important ecological and evolutionary response for organisms experiencing environmental change, but the ubiquity of this capacity within coral species and across symbiont communities is unknown. We exposed ten genotypes of the reef-building coral Montipora capitata with divergent symbiont communities to four thermal pre-exposure profiles and quantified gene expression b
Authors
Crawford Drury, Jenna Dilworth, Eva Majerová, Carlo Caruso, Justin Blaine Greer
Genetics reveal long-distance virus transmission links in Pacific salmon
In the coastal region of Washington State, a major pathogen emergence event occurred between 2007 and 2011 in which steelhead trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) experienced a high incidence of infection and disease outbreaks due to the rhabdovirus infectious hematopoietic necrosis virus (IHNV). Genetic typing showed that the introduced viruses were in the steelhead-specific MD subgroup of IHNV and indica
Authors
Rachel Breyta, William N. Batts, Gael Kurath
Vote-processing rules for combining control recommendations from multiple models
Mathematical modelling is used during disease outbreaks to compare control interventions. Using multiple models, the best method to combine model recommendations is unclear. Existing methods weight model projections, then rank control interventions using the combined projections, presuming model outputs are directly comparable. However, the way each model represents the epidemiological system will
Authors
William JM Probert, Sam Nicol, Matthew J. Ferrari, Shou-Li Li, Katriona Shea, Michael J. Tildesley, Michael C. Runge
Natural and anthropogenic landscape factors shape functional connectivity of an ecological specialist in urban Southern California
Identifying how natural (i.e., unaltered by human activity) and anthropogenic landscape variables influence contemporary functional connectivity in terrestrial organisms can elucidate the genetic consequences of environmental change. We examine population genetic structure and functional connectivity among populations of a declining species, the Blainville's horned lizard (Phrynosoma blainvillii),
Authors
Sarah M Wenner, Melanie A. Murphy, Kathleen Semple Delaney, Gregory B. Pauly, Jonathan Q. Richmond, Robert N. Fisher, Jeanne M. Robertson
Plague and trace metals in natural systems
All pathogenic organisms are exposed to abiotic influences such as the microclimates and chemical constituents of their environments. Even those pathogens that exist primarily within their hosts or vectors can be influenced directly or indirectly. Yersinia pestis, the flea-borne bacterium causing plague, is influenced by climate and its survival in soil suggests a potentially strong influence of s
Authors
Michael Kosoy, Dean E. Biggins
In hot water? Patterns of macroinvertebrate abundance in Arctic thaw ponds and relationships with environmental variables
Ongoing environmental change across the Arctic is affecting many freshwater ecosystems, including small thaw ponds that support macroinvertebrates, thus potentially affecting important forage for fish and bird species. To accurately predict how fish and wildlife that depend on these macroinvertebrates will be affected by ecosystem change at high latitudes, understanding proximate factors that infl
Authors
Kirsty E. B. Gurney, Joshua C. Koch, Joel A. Schmutz, J. H. Schmidt, Mark S. Wipfli