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Browse publications authored by our scientists.  Publications available are: USGS-authored journal articles, series reports, book chapters, other government publications, and more. **Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.

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Blooming wildflowers in Pinnacles National Park.

The circular highlights how our research efforts fulfill larger USGS strategic goals.

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Our History

Tricolored Heron at Ding Darling National Park

This book is dedicated to those who are or have been associated with the unit program. 

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Our Research

Yellow-billed Loon on a lake in the northern area of Alaska.

This report provides abstracts of most of the ongoing and recently completed research.

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Filter Total Items: 3984

Toward improved prediction of streamflow effects on freshwater fishes

Understanding the effects of hydrology on fish populations is essential to managing for native fish conservation. However, despite decades of research illustrating streamflow influences on fish habitat, reproduction and survival, biologists remain challenged when tasked with predicting how fish populations will respond to changes in flow regimes. This uncertainty stems from insufficient understand
Authors
Mary Freeman, Kevin R. Bestgen, Daren Carlisle, Emmanuel A. Frimpong, Nathan R. Franssen, Ketih B. Gido, Elise R. Irwin, Yoichiro Kanno, Charles H. Luce, S. Kyle McKay, Meryl C. Mims, Julian D. Olden, N. LeRoy Poff, David L. Propst, Laura Rack, Allison H. Roy, Edward S. Stowe, Annika W. Walters, Seth J. Wenger
By
Cooperative Research Units, Eastern Ecological Science Center

Bear diets and human-bear conflicts: Insights from isotopic ecology

Bears, Ursidae, are considered omnivores, except for giant pandas Ailuropoda melanoleuca and polar bears Ursus maritimus. However, omnivory includes a wide range of dietary variation and trophic positions, making bear dietary ecology unclear. We inferred bear trophic positions from δ15N (‰) values and examined their correlation with diets reported in the literature, including frequency of human–be
Authors
Nereyda Falconi, Tomas A. Carlo, Todd K. Fuller, Stephen DeStefano, John F. Organ
By
Cooperative Research Units

High densities of conspecifics buffer native fish from negative interactions with an ecologically similar invasive

Invasive species are a leading cause for native species declines, but it remains unclear whether maintenance of high native densities influence native persistence in freshwater systems. We designed complementary laboratory and field experiments to test whether high native cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii) densities affect competition with invasive brown trout (Salmo trutta). We manipulated d
Authors
Casey A. Pennock, W. Carl Saunders, Phaedra E. Budy
By
Cooperative Research Units

Bridled Quail-Dove (Geotrygon mystacea)

No abstract available.
Authors
Clint W. Boal, H. Madden
By
Cooperative Research Units

Age-specific survival rates, causes of death, and allowable take of golden eagles in the western United States

In the United States, the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act prohibits take of golden eagles (Aquila chrysaetos) unless authorized by permit, and stipulates that all permitted take must be sustainable. Golden eagles are unintentionally killed in conjunction with many lawful activities (e.g., electrocution on power poles, collision with wind turbines). Managers who issue permits for incidental ta
Authors
Brian Milsap, Guthrie S. Zimmerman, William L. Kendall, Joseph G. Barnes, Melissa A. Braham, Bryan E Bedrosian, Douglas A. Bell, Peter H. Bloom, Ross H. Crandall, Robert Domenech, Daniel Driscoll, Adam E. Duerr, Rick Gerhardt, Samantha E.J. Gibbs, Alan R. Harmata, Kenneth Jacobson, Todd E. Katzner, Robert N. Knight, J. Michael Lockhart, Carol McIntyre, Robert K. Murphy, Steven J. Slater, Brian W. Smith, Jeff P. Smith, Dale W. Stahlecker, James W. Watson
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Cooperative Research Units, Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center

Response of nutrient limitation to invasive fish suppression: How carcasses and analog pellets alter periphyton

The native Yellowstone Cutthroat Trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii bouvieri Jordan and Gilbert, 1883) population in Yellowstone Lake, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, USA, is in decline because of competition from the introduced, invasive Lake Trout (Salvelinus namaycush Walbaum in Artedi, 1792). Gillnetting is used to suppress adult Lake Trout; however, methods are being developed to suppress embryo
Authors
Dominique R. Lujan, Lusha M. Tronstad, Michelle A. Briggs, Lindsey K. Albertson, Hayley C. Glassic, Christopher S. Guy, Todd M . Koel
By
Cooperative Research Units

Golden eagle occupancy surveys and monitoring strategy in coastal southern California, United States

Golden eagles (Aquila chrysaetos) are of increasing conservation concern in western North America. Effective conservation measures for this wide-ranging, federally protected raptor species require monitoring frameworks that accommodate strong inference on the status of breeding populations across vast landscapes. We used a broad-scale sampling design to identify relationships between landscape con
Authors
David Wiens, Peter H. Bloom, Melanie C. Madden, Patrick Kolar, Jeff A. Tracey, Robert N. Fisher
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Cooperative Research Units, Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center, Western Ecological Research Center (WERC)

Estimating allowable take for an increasing bald eagle population in the United States

Effectively managing take of wildlife resulting from human activities poses a major challenge for applied conservation. Demographic data essential to decisions regarding take are often expensive to collect and are either not available or based on limited studies for many species. Therefore, modeling approaches that efficiently integrate available information are important to improving the scientif
Authors
Guthrie S. Zimmerman, Brian Millsap, Fitsum Abadi, Jay V. Gedir, William L. Kendall, John R. Sauer
By
Cooperative Research Units

Wildfire effects on mass and thermal tolerance of Hydropsyche oslari (Trichoptera) in southwestern USA montane grassland streams

Large-scale disturbances, such as wildfire, can markedly affect streams for years. As terrestrial areas within a watershed slowly recover, stream environments and biota can experience repeated and long-lasting challenges. In 2011, the Las Conchas wildfire burned 1/3 of the Valles Caldera National Preserve in northern New Mexico, USA. Seven y post-fire, streams located near the burn perimeter conti
Authors
Lauren Kremer, Colleen A. Caldwell
By
Cooperative Research Units

Spatial personalities: A meta-analysis of consistent individual differences in spatial behavior

Individual variation in behavior, particularly consistent among-individual differences (i.e., personality), has important ecological and evolutionary implications for population and community dynamics, trait divergence, and patterns of speciation. Nevertheless, individual variation in spatial behaviors, such as home range behavior, movement characteristics, or habitat use has yet to be incorporate
Authors
Erica Francis Stuber, Ben Carlson, Brett Jesmer
By
Cooperative Research Units

Economical defence of resources structures territorial space use in a cooperative carnivore

Ecologists have long sought to understand space use and mechanisms underlying patterns observed in nature. We developed an optimality landscape and mechanistic territory model to understand mechanisms driving space use and compared model predictions to empirical reality. We demonstrate our approach using grey wolves (Canis lupus). In the model, simulated animals selected territories to economicall
Authors
Sarah N. Sells, Michael S. Mitchell, David Edward Ausband, Angela D. Luis, Douglas J. Emlen, Kevin M. Podruzny, Justin A. Gude
By
Cooperative Research Units

Genetic diversity and mate selection in a reintroduced population of gray wolves

The genetic composition of an individual can markedly affect its survival, reproduction, and ultimately fitness. As some wildlife populations become smaller, conserving genetic diversity will be a conservation challenge. Many imperiled species are already supported through population augmentation efforts and we often do not know if or how genetic diversity is maintained in translocated species. As
Authors
David Edward Ausband
By
Cooperative Research Units