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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: 3984

Effect of environmental factors on the movement of Rainbow Trout in the Deerfield Reservoir System

Spawning movements and the factors affecting those movements are often of interest to fisheries managers and biologists. The objective of this study was to examine the influence of environmental factors on the movements of an adfluvial Rainbow Trout Oncorhynchus mykiss population in the Black Hills, South Dakota. Three unique strains of hatchery-reared Rainbow Trout and resident Rainbow Trout were
Authors
Jeremy Kientz, Jacob L. Davis, Steven R. Chipps, Gregory Simpson

Understanding effects of small dams on benthic metabolism and primary production in temperate forested streams

Dams can alter the chemical and physical conditions of downstream environments by increasing stream temperatures, altering nutrient limitation, reducing flow variability, and reducing fine sediment deposition. However, little is known about how fundamental stream ecosystem processes like productivity and respiration respond to dams. Nutrient diffusing substrates were installed in three dam streams
Authors
John P. Ludlam, Allison H. Roy

Use of underwater videography to quantify conditions utilized by endangered Moapa Dace While spawning

Advances in underwater camera technology provide an affordable means to quantify the environmental conditions under which fish spawn. This information is important for investigating spawning ecology, managing habitat, or providing information for captive breeding programs. We deployed 12 modified security cameras underwater to identify environmental conditions related to the spawning behavior of t
Authors
Jack E. Ruggirello, Scott A. Bonar, Olin G. Feuerbacher, Lee H. Simons

A flexible survey design for monitoring spatiotemporal fish richness in nonwadeable rivers: optimizing efficiency by integrating gears

We designed a flexible protocol for monitoring fish species richness in nonwadeable rivers. Nine sites were sampled seasonally with six gears in two physiographic regions in Missouri (USA). Using resampling procedures and mixed-effects modeling, we quantified richness and compositional overlap among gears, identified efficient gear combinations, and evaluated protocol performance across regions an
Authors
Corey G. Dunn, Craig Paukert

Walleye growth declines following zebra mussel and Bythotrephes invasion

Invasive species represent a threat to aquatic ecosystems globally; however, impacts can be heterogenous across systems. Documented impacts of invasive zebra mussels (Dreissena polymorpha) and spiny water fleas (Bythotrephes cederströmii; hereafter Bythotrephes) on native fishes are variable and context dependent across locations and time periods. Here, we use a hierarchical Bayesian analysis of a
Authors
Tyler D. Ahrenstorff, Gretchen J. A. Hansen, Bethany J. Bethke, Josh Dumke, Jodie Hirsch, Katya E. Kovalenko, Jaime F. LeDuc, Ryan P . Maki, Heidi Rantala, Tyler Wagner

Longitudinal distribution of uncommon fishes in a species-rich basin

The spatial organization of fishes in a river system was investigated to evaluate the longitudinal distribution of uncommon species. It was anticipated that overall richness of the fish community would increase in a downstream direction together with habitat extent, but that more uncommon species would occur upstream owing to greater heterogeneity among sites.Fish were collected between 1995 and 2
Authors
Leandro E. Miranda, K.J. Killgore

Resilience management for conservation of inland recreational fisheries

Resilience thinking has generated much interest among scientific communities, yet most resilience concepts have not materialized into management applications. We believe that using resilience concepts to characterize systems and the social and ecological processes affecting them is a way to integrate resilience into better management decisions. This situation is exemplified by inland recreational
Authors
E. V. Camp, M. A. Kaemingk, R. N. M. Ahrens, W. M. Potts, W. E. Pine, O. L. F Weyl, Kevin L. Pope

Combined influence of intrinsic and environmental factors in shaping productivity in a small pelagic gull, the black-legged kittiwake Rissa tridactyla

While we have a good understanding in many systems of the effects of single variable changes on organisms, we understand far less about how variables act in concert to affect living systems, where interactions among variables can lead to unanticipated results. We used mixed-effect models to evaluate the effects of multiple variables that we expected to play a role in the early reproductive stages
Authors
Aly McKnight, David B. Irons, Cyndy Loftin, Shawn T. McKinney, Brian J. Olsen

Biotic interactions help explain variation in elevational range limits of birds among Bornean mountains

AimPhysiological tolerances and biotic interactions along habitat gradients are thought to influence species occurrence. Distributional differences caused by such forces are particularly noticeable on tropical mountains, where high species turnover along elevational gradients occurs over relatively short distances and elevational distributions of particular species can shift among mountains. Such
Authors
Ryan C. Burner, Andy J. Boyce, David Bernasconi, Alison R. Styring, Subir B. Shakya, Chandradewana Boer, Mustafa Abdul Rahman, Thomas E. Martin, Frederick H. Sheldon

Nest site selection influences cinnamon teal nest survival in Colorado

Nest survival of ducks is partially a function of the spatiotemporal characteristics of the site at which a bird chooses to nest. Nest survival is also a fundamental component of population growth in waterfowl but is relatively unstudied for cinnamon teal (Spatula cyanoptera). We investigated cinnamon teal nest survival in a managed wetland complex in southern Colorado, USA, and assessed nest site
Authors
William L. Kendall, Casey M. Setash, David Olson

A comparison of Grass Carp population characteristics upstream and downstream of Lock and Dam 19 of the Upper Mississippi River

Grass Carp Ctenopharyngodon idella have been intentionally stocked for aquatic vegetation control across the Midwestern United States for several decades. During the 1970s, escapement of Grass Carp into the Missouri River facilitated their naturalization into much of the Mississippi River basin, including the Upper Mississippi River. Lock and Dam 19 (LD19) in Keokuk, Iowa, is a high-head dam that
Authors
Christopher J. Sullivan, Michael J. Weber, Clay Pierce, Carlos A. Camacho

Avian community responses to management of vegetation and water levels in restored wetlands at the Humacao Nature Reserve, Puerto Rico

Coastal wetlands of the Caribbean have been greatly reduced in area and quality, and information on wildlife responses to management is lacking. We applied wetland management practices (disking, control of water levels) in a site historically disturbed by Saccharum spp. (sugarcane) cultivation at the Humacao Nature Reserve, southeastern Puerto Rico, and evaluated avian community response. We condu
Authors
Francisco Vilella, José A. Cruz-Burgos, Richard M. Kaminski, Henry R. Murkin, J. Brian Davis, Spencer L. Weitzel, Fernando Vizcarra