Publications
USGS research activities relevant to Alaska have yielded more than 9400 historical publications. This page features some of the most recent newsworthy research findings.
Filter Total Items: 2891
Foraging ecology
Longitudinal foraging data collected from 60 sea otters implanted with VHF radio transmitters at two study sites in Central California over a three-year period demonstrated even greater individual dietary specialization than in previous studies, with only 54% dietary overlap between individuals and the population.Multivariate statistical analyses indicated that individual diets could be grouped in
Authors
M. Tim Tinker, James A. Estes, Michelle Staedler, James L. Bodkin
The conservation and population status of the world's waders at the turn of the millennium
Using information from many sources, but especially data collated for the third edition of Wetlands International’s Waterbird Population Estimates, we review the status of the world’s waders in the late 1990s. There are widespread declines in most regions and biotopes caused principally by loss and degradation of wetland (and other) habitats. On different flyways, between 33%and 68% of populations
Authors
David A. Stroud, Andy Baker, D.E. Blanco, Nick C. Davidson, B. Ganter, Robert E. Gill, P.M. Gonzalez, L. Haanstra, R. I. G. Morrison, Theunis Piersma, D. Scott, O. Thorup, R. West, J.L. Wilson, Christoph Zöckler
Far-field effects of early Tertiary ridge subduction in Alaska
No abstract available.
Authors
D. C. Bradley, R.M. Friedman, P.W. Layer, Peter J. Haeussler, A. B. Till, S. M. Roeske, Marti L. Miller
Arctic-Yukon-Kuskokwim Salmon Research and Restoration Plan
The Arctic-Yukon-Kuskokwim Sustainable Salmon Initiative (AYK SSI) is an innovative partnership between public and private institutions which provides a forum for non-governmental organizations and state and federal agencies to cooperatively identify and address salmon research and restoration needs. The affected region encompasses over 40% of the State of Alaska; the AYK region includes the water
Steelhead of the south-central/southern California coast: Population characterization for recovery planning
This report by the National Marine Fisheries Service applies a formal evaluation framework to the problem of delineating Oncorhynchus mykiss populations in the South-Central/Southern California Coast recovery domain, in support of recovery planning under the Endangered Species Act.
Authors
David A. Boughton, P.B. Adams, E. Anderson, Craig Fusaro, E. Keller, Elsie Kelley, Leo Lentsch, J. L. Nielsen, Katie Perry, Helen Regan, C. Swift, Fred Watson
Family Salmonidae Truchas; Trouts and salmons
No abstract available.
Authors
D.A. Hendrickson, J. L. Nielsen, Richard L. Mayden, S.M. Norris
Use of buccal swabs for sampling DNA from nestling and adult birds
We evaluated the feasibility and efficiency of using swabs to collect buccal epithelial cells fromsmall (2‐ to 13‐g) birds as a source of DNA for genetic studies. We used commercially available buccal swab kits to collect samples from 42 adult and 39 nestling (4‐ to 8‐day‐old) black‐capped chickadees (Poecile atricapillus) and from6 4‐day‐old nestling boreal chickadees (P. hudsonica). We compared
Authors
Colleen M. Handel, Lisa M. Pajot, Sandra L. Talbot, George K. Sage
Populations estimates of North American shorebirds, 2006
This paper provides updates on population estimates for 52 species of shorebirds, involving 75 taxa, occurring in North America. New information resulting in a changed estimate is available for 39 of the 75 taxa (52%), involving 24 increases and 15 decreases. The preponderance of increased estimates is likely the result of improved estimates rather than actual increases in numbers. Many shorebird
Authors
R.I. Guy Morrison, Brian J. McCaffery, Robert E. Gill, Susan K. Skagen, Stephanie L. Jones, Gary W. Page, Cheri L. Gratto-Trevor, Brad A. Andres
Population dynamics of Greater Scaup breeding on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, Alaska
Populations of greater scaup (Aythya marila) remained relatively stable during a period when populations of lesser scaup (A. affinis) have declined from historic levels. To assist in describing these differences in population trends, from 1991 through 2000, we studied the survival, nesting ecology, and productivity of greater scaup on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta (Y-K Delta), Alaska, to develop a mod
Authors
Paul L. Flint, J. Barry Grand, Thomas F. Fondell, Julie A. Morse
Future for polar bears in a declining sea ice environment: What do we know?
During an April 22, 2006, interview on the CBC radio program “The House,” Tim Flannery, author of the recent book “The Weathermakers,” stated, “Projections of the polar bear specialists are that by about 2030, around that date, the species will be extinct because of global warming induced changes in the Arctic sea ice.” That statement was followed on May 4th by quotations in the Toronto Globe and
Authors
Steven C. Amstrup
A model for autumn pelagic distribution of adult female polar bears in the Chukchi Seas, 1987-1994
We made predictions of polar bear (Ursus maritimus) autumn distribution in the Chukchi Sea with a Resource Selection Function (RSF) developed from 1198 satellite radio-collar locations on 124 adult female polar bears, 1987 – 1994. The RSF was created to assist in an aerial survey design for polar bears proposed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The RSF was based on bathymetry and daily sea ic
Authors
George M. Durner, David C. Douglas, R. M. Nielson, Steven C. Amstrup