Publications
Listed here are publications, reports and articles by the Land Change Science Program in the USGS Ecosystems Mission Area.
Filter Total Items: 1136
Assessing giant sequoia mortality and regeneration following high-severity wildfire
Fire is a critical driver of giant sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum [Lindl.] Buchholz) regeneration. However, fire suppression combined with the effects of increased temperature and severe drought has resulted in fires of an intensity and size outside of the historical norm. As a result, recent mega-fires have killed a significant portion of the world's sequoia population (13%–19%), and...
Authors
David Nicolas Bertil Soderberg, Adrian Das, Nathan L. Stephenson, Marc D. Meyer, Christy A. Brigham, Joshua A. Flickinger
Changes in landscape and climate in Mexico and Texas reveal small effects on migratory habitat of monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus)
The decline of the iconic monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) in North America has motivated research on the impacts of land use and land cover (LULC) change and climate variability on monarch habitat and population dynamics. We investigated spring and fall trends in LULC, milkweed and nectar resources over a 20-year period, and ~ 30 years of climate variables in Mexico and Texas, U.S...
Authors
James Diffendorfer, Francisco Botello, Mark A. Drummond, Zachary H. Ancona, Lucila Marie Corro, Wayne E. Thogmartin, Peter Christian Ibsen, Rafael Moreno-Sanchez, Laura Lukens, Victor Sanchez-Cordero
All tidal wetlands are blue carbon ecosystems
Managing coastal wetlands is one of the most promising activities to reduce atmospheric greenhouse gases, and it also contributes to meeting the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. One of the options is through blue carbon projects, in which mangroves, saltmarshes, and seagrass are managed to increase carbon sequestration and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. However, other...
Authors
Maria Fernanda Adame, Jeffrey Kelleway, Ken W. Krauss, Catherine E. Lovelock, Janine B. Adams, Stacey M. Trevathan-Tackett, Gregory Noe, Luke Jeffrey, Mike Ronan, Maria Zann, Paul E. Carnell, Naima Iram, Damien T. Maher, Daniel Murdiyarso, Sigit D. Sasmito, Da B. Tran, Paul Dargusch, J. Boone Kauffman, Laura S. Brophy
Climatic variability as a principal driver of primary production in the southernmost subalpine Rocky Mountain lake
Mountain lakes are sensitive indicators of anthropogenically driven global change, with lake sediment records documenting increased primary production during the twentieth century. Atmospheric nutrient deposition and warming have been attributed to changes in other Western mountain lakes, however, the intensity of these drivers varies. We analyzed a sediment core representing a 270-year...
Authors
Anna Shampain, Jill Baron, Peter R. Leavitt, Sarah A. Spaulding
What the cliffs near America’s earliest settlements tell us about climate change
Climate change is a big problem for natural habitats, people, and the systems that support society, including roads, water supply, electrical grids, and phone and internet connections. It’s an important theme in politics, economics, and culture. Scientists make computer models to show what the climate might be like in the future, and it looks very different from what we are used to...
Authors
Harry J. Dowsett, Marci M. Robinson
Characterizing vegetation and return periods in avalanche paths using lidar and aerial imagery
Snow avalanches are a hazard and ecological disturbance across mountain landscapes worldwide. Understanding how avalanche frequency affects forests and vegetation improves infrastructure planning, risk management, and avalanche forecasting. We implemented a novel approach using lidar, aerial imagery, and a random forest model to classify imagery-observed vegetation within avalanche paths...
Authors
Erich Peitzsch, Chelsea Mikle, Jordy Hendrikx, Karl W. Birkeland, Daniel B. Fagre
Brief communication: Recent estimates of glacier mass loss for western North America from laser altimetry
Glaciers in western North American outside of Alaska are often overlooked in global studies because their potential to contribute to changes in sea level is small. Nonetheless, these glaciers represent important sources of freshwater, especially during times of drought. Differencing recent ICESat-2 data from a digital elevation model derived from a combination of synthetic aperture radar...
Authors
Brian Menounos, Alex Gardner, Caitlyn Florentine, Andrew G. Fountain
Urbanization and water management control stream water quality along a mountain to plains transition
Urbanization can have substantial effects on water quality due to altered hydrology and introduction of constituents to water bodies. In arid and semi-arid environments, streams are further stressed by dewatering as a result of diversions. We conducted a high-resolution synoptic survey of two streams in Colorado, USA that transition abruptly from granitic/metamorphic forested mountains...
Authors
Sheila F. Murphy, Robert L. Runkel, Edward G. Stets, Alex J Nolan, Deborah A. Repert
Revisiting the physical processes controlling the tropical atmospheric circulation changes during the Mid-Piacenzian Warm Period
The Mid-Piacenzian Warm Period (MPWP; 3.0–3.3 Ma), a warm geological period about three million years ago, has been deemed as a good past analog for understanding the current and future climate change. Based on 12 climate model outputs from Pliocene Model Intercomparison Project Phase 2 (PlioMIP2), we investigate tropical atmospheric circulation (TAC) changes under the warm MPWP and...
Authors
Ke Zhang, Yong Sun, Xuan Zhang, Christian Stepanek, Ran Feng, Daniel J. Hill, Gerrit Lohmann, Aisling M. Dolan, Alan M. Haywood, Ayako Abe-Ouchi, Bette L. Otto-Bliesner, Camille Contoux, Deepak Chandan, Gilles Ramstein, Harry J. Dowsett, Julia C. Tindall, Michiel Baatsen, Ning Tan, William Richard Peltier, Qiang Liu, Wing-Le Chan, Xin Wang, Xu Zhang
Approaches for using CMIP projections in climate model ensembles to address the ‘hot model’ problem
Several recent generation global-climate models were found to have anomalously high climate sensitivities and may not be useful for certain applications. Four approaches for developing ensembles of climate projections for applications that address this issue are:Using an “all models” approach;Screening using equilibrium climate sensitivity and (or) transient climate response;Bayesian...
Authors
Ryan P. Boyles, Catherine A. Nikiel, Brian W. Miller, Jeremy S. Littell, Adam Terando, Imtiaz Rangwala, Jay R. Alder, Derek H. Rosendahl, Adrienne M. Wootten
A global assessment of environmental and climate influences on wetland macroinvertebrate community structure and function
Estimating organisms' responses to environmental variables and taxon associations across broad spatial scales is vital for predicting their responses to climate change. Macroinvertebrates play a major role in wetland processes, but studies simultaneously exploring both community structure and community trait responses to environmental gradients are still lacking. We compiled a global...
Authors
Luis B. Epele, Emilio A. Williams-Subiza, Matthew S. Bird, Aurelie Boissezon, Dani Boix, Elaine Demierre, Conor Fair, Patricia A. Garcia, Stephanie Gascon, Marta G. Grech, Hamish S. Greig, Michael Jeffries, Jamie M. Kneitel, Olga Loskutova, Leonardo Maltchik, Luz M. Manzo, Gabriela Mataloni, Kyle McLean, Musa C. Mlambo, Beat Oertli, Mateus M. Pires, Jordi Sala, Erica E. Scheibler, Cristina Stenert, Haitao Wu, Scott A. Wissinger, Darold P. Batzer
Establishing quantitative benchmarks for soil erosion and ecological monitoring, assessment, and management
Soil erosion can have a multitude of negative impacts on agroecosystems and society and there remains an urgent need for tools to support its management. Quantitative benchmarks based on holistic understanding of erosion processes, ecosystem function, and land use objectives can be used with monitoring data and models to inform assessments and make objective and actionable decisions...
Authors
Nicholas P. Webb, Brandon L. Edwards, Alexandra Heller, Sarah E. McCord, Jeremy W. Schallner, Ronald S. Treminio, Brandi E. Wheeler, Nelson G. Stauffer, Sheri A. Spiegal, Michael Duniway, Alexander C.E. Traynor, Emily J. Kachergis, Carrie-Ann Houdeshell