Skip to main content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Publications

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.

Filter Total Items: 4776

Genetic analysis of harvest samples reveals population structure in a highly mobile generalist carnivore

Delineating wildlife population boundaries is important for effective population monitoring and management. The bobcat (Lynx rufus) is a highly mobile generalist carnivore that is ecologically and economically important. We sampled 1225 bobcats harvested in South Dakota, USA (2014–2019), of which 878 were retained to assess genetic diversity and infer population genetic structure using...
Authors
Stuart C. Fetherston, Robert Charles Lonsinger, Lora B. Perkins, Chadwick P. Lehman, Jennifer R. Adams, Lisette P. Waits

Evaluating the effectiveness of joint species distribution modeling for fresh water fish communities within large watersheds

Accurately predicting species’ distributions is critical for the management and conservation of fish and wildlife populations. Joint Species Distribution Models (JSDMs) account for dependencies between species often ignored by traditional species distribution models. We evaluated how a JSDM approach could improve predictive strength for stream fish communities within large watersheds...
Authors
Paul McLaughlin, Kevin Krause, Kelly O. Maloney, Taylor E Woods, Tyler Wagner

Development and validation of a GT-seq panel for genetic monitoring in a threatened species using minimally invasive sampling

Minimally invasive samples are often the best option for collecting genetic material from species of conservation concern, but they perform poorly in many genomic sequencing methods due to their tendency to yield low DNA quality and quantity. Genotyping-in-thousands by sequencing (GT-seq) is a powerful amplicon sequencing method that can genotype large numbers of variable-quality samples...
Authors
Molly J. Garrett, Stacey A. Nerkowski, Shannon Kieran, Nathan R. Campbell, Soraia Barbosa, Courtney J. Conway, Paul A. Hohenlohe, Lisette P. Waits

Large-scale assessment of genetic structure to assess risk of populations of a large herbivore to disease

Chronic wasting disease (CWD) can spread among cervids by direct and indirect transmission, the former being more likely in emerging areas. Identifying subpopulations allows the delineation of focal areas to target for intervention. We aimed to assess the population structure of white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) in the northeastern United States at a regional scale to inform...
Authors
W. David Walter, Alberto Fameli, Kelly Russo-Petrick, Jessie E. Edson, Christopher S. Rosenberry, Krysten L. Schuler, Michael J. Tonkovich

Evaluation of DNA yield from various tissue and sampling sources for use in single nucleotide polymorphism panels

Genetics studies are used by wildlife managers and researchers to gain inference into a population of a species of interest. To gain these insights, microsatellites have been the primary method; however, there currently is a shift from microsatellites to single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). With the different DNA requirements between microsatellites and SNPs, an investigation into...
Authors
David L. Pearce, Jessie E. Edson, Chris S. Jennelle, W. David Walter

An experimental study of benthic habitat selection in yellow-phase American eels (Anguilla rostrata)

In a laboratory experiment, we quantified microhabitat use of small yellow-phase American eels (Anguilla rostrata, n = 130, 224–338 mm TL) conditional on five benthic substrate types common to rivers within their geographic range. During nine, 4-day trials replicated with three aquaria, American eels were given a choice to burrow into five equally available benthic substrates: cobble (90...
Authors
Melissa Braham, S.A. Welsh, Dustin M. Smith

Unexpected effect of geographic origin on post-translocation survival in a long-lived reptile, the gopher tortoise

Mitigation translocations move wildlife from specific areas due to conflict with humans over land use at the site. A critical decision when carrying out mitigation translocation is the acceptable distance across which animals can be moved. This decision trades off logistical expediency of unrestricted translocation with the risk of reducing translocation success due to environmental...
Authors
Kevin J. Loope, Rebecca A. Cozad, Derek. B. Breakfield, Matthew J. Aresco, Elizabeth Ann Hunter

Vulnerability assessment of groundwater influenced ecosystems in the Northeastern United States

Groundwater-influenced ecosystems (GIEs) are increasingly vulnerable due to groundwater extraction, land-use practices, and climate change. These ecosystems receive groundwater inflow as a portion of their baseflow or water budget, which can maintain water levels, water temperature, and chemistry necessary to sustain the biodiversity that they support. In some systems (e.g., springs...
Authors
Shawn D. Snyder, Cyndy Loftin, Andrew S. Reeve

Prototyping structured decision making for water resource management in the San Francisco Bay-Delta

A structured decision making (SDM) approach can help evaluate tradeoffs between conservation and human-benefit objectives by fostering communication and knowledge transfer among stakeholders, decision makers, and the public. However, the process is iterative and completing the full process may take years. It can be difficult to initiate an SDM effort when problems seem insurmountable...
Authors
James Peterson, Erin McCreless, Adam Duarte, Patti Wohner, Scott Hamilton, Josue Medellín-Azuara, Alvar Escriva-Boue

A video monitoring and computational system for estimating migratory juvenile fish abundance in river systems

Diadromous fishes migrate between marine and fresh waters for reproduction. For anadromous species, which spawn in freshwater, improved access to freshwater spawning and nursery habitats and ability of juveniles to emigrate to the ocean may support population recovery. Despite the potentially enormous influence of early life stage survival on adult population size, managers and...
Authors
Meghna N. Marjadi, Sidney Batchelder, Ryan Govostes, Allison H. Roy, John J. Sheppard, Meghan-Grace Slocombe, Joel K. Llopiz

Effects of insecticide spray drift on arthropod prey resources of birds in grasslands in Minnesota

Soybean aphid (Aphis glycines) insecticides are used throughout the Upper Midwest and Great Plains regions of North America, including the farmland region of Minnesota, USA, to combat insect pests. These broad-spectrum, foliar spray insecticides have the potential to drift beyond target fields into nearby grassland cover where birds and other insectivores forage. Arthropods serve...
Authors
Katelin M. Goebel, David Andersen, Pamela J. Rice, Nicole M. Davros

Evaluating effectiveness of restoration to address current stressors to riverine fish

River restoration programmes with the goal of conserving and rehabilitating inland fishes have a multi-decadal history, but evaluation and synthesis of past restoration actions have been limited by a lack of monitoring and reporting. Given that calls for both monitoring and systematic reviews of restoration have increased, we were interested in the influence that restoration has had on...
Authors
Jane Rogosch, Hadley I. A. Boehm, Ralph W. Tingley, Kiah D. Wright, Elisabeth B. Webb, Craig P. Paukert
Was this page helpful?