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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

Landscape change and its effects on the wintering range of a lesser snow goose Chen caerulescens caerulescens population: A review

The Texas coast has experienced considerable urban, industrial, and agricultural growth during the 20th Century. The region provides important wintering habitat to many avian species, including lesser snow geese Chen caerulescens caerulescens. This paper draws the biological and ecological fields into an historical perspective by examining available literature on the development of the upper Texas
Authors
Donna G. Robertson, R. Douglas Slack

Using effort information with change-in-ratio data for population estimation

Most change-in-ratio (CIR) methods for estimating fish and wildlife population sizes have been based only on assumptions about how encounter probabilities vary among population subclasses. When information on sampling effort is available, it is also possible to derive CIR estimators based on assumptions about how encounter probabilities vary over time. This paper presents a generalization of previ
Authors
Mark S. Udevitz, Kenneth H. Pollock

Movements of a polar bear from northern Alaska to northern Greenland

Using satellite telemetry, we monitored the movements of an adult female polar bear (Ursus maritimus) as she traveled from the Alaskan Beaufort Sea coast to northern Greenland. She is the first polar bear known to depart the Beaufort Sea region for an extended period, and the first polar bear known to move between Alaska and Greenland. This bear traveled for four months across the polar basin and
Authors
George M. Durner, Steven C. Amstrup

Water over the bridge

The March-April issue of American Scientist contains a commentary by Julia K. Parrish and P. Dee Boersma (Macroscope, "Muddy Waters") that purports to "assess the validity of the claims made concerning seabird mortality as a result of the [Exxon Valdez oil] spill." Parrish and Boersma would have us believe that estimates of seabird mortality made in 1990 by myself and colleagues were exaggerated a
Authors
John F. Piatt

Lead poisoning of spectacled eiders (Somateria fischeri) and of a common eider (Somateria mollissima) in Alaska

Lead poisoning was diagnosed in four spectacled eiders (Somateria fischeri) and one common eider (Somateria mollissima) found dead or moribund at the Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska (USA) in 1992, 1993, and 1994. Ingested lead shot was found in the lower esophagus of one spectacled eider and in the gizzard of the common eider. Lead concentrations in the livers of the spectacled eiders
Authors
J. Christian Franson, Margaret R. Petersen, Carol U. Meteyer, Milton R. Smith

Kodiak brown bears

Brown bears (Ursus arctos middendorffi) on the Kodiak Archipelago are famous for their large size and seasonal concentrations at salmon streams. Sport hunting of Kodiak bears has been popular since World War II. Their value as captivating subjects to observe or photograph is a more recent development that is increasing rapidly; visitors from around the world come to experience brown bears on Kodia
Authors
Victor G. Barnes, Roger B. Smith, Mark S. Udevitz, J.R. Bellinger

Automated counting of waterfowl with image processing

No abstract available.
Authors
D.J. Cunningham, W.H. Anderson, R.M. Anthony

Locating waterfowl observations on aerial surveys

We modified standard aerial survey data collection to obtain the geographic location for each waterfowl observation on surveys in Alaska during 1987-1993. Using transect navigation with CPS (global positioning system), data recording on continuously running tapes, and a computer data input program, we located observations with an average deviation along transects of 214 m. The method provided flex
Authors
W.I. Butler, J.I. Hodges, R.A. Stehn

GIS for mapping waterfowl density and distribution from aerial surveys

We modified standard aerial survey data collection to obtain the geographic location for each waterfowl observation on surveys in Alaska during 1987-1993. Using transect navigation with CPS (global positioning system), data recording on continuously running tapes, and a computer data input program, we located observations with an average deviation along transects of 214 m. The method provided flex
Authors
W.I. Butler, R.A. Stehn, G.R. Balogh

Population differentiation in Pacific salmon: local adaptation, genetic drift, or the environment?

Morphological, behavioral, and life-history differences between Pacific salmon (Oncorhynchus spp.) populations are commonly thought to reflect local adaptation, and it is likewise common to assume that salmon populations separated by small distances are locally adapted. Two alternatives to local adaptation exist: random genetic differentiation owing to genetic drift and founder events, a
Authors
Milo D. Adkison

Black bear damage to lodgepole pine in central Oregon

Black bear damage to 108 lodgepole pine trees was found in mixed conifer habitat in central Oregon. No trees of three other conifer species were injured. Eighty-nine percent of the damage occurred in the same year. Nearly 20% of the freshly damaged trees had bark removed from more than 75% of the circumference and, judging from the fate of trees damaged in prior years, pro
Authors
V.G. Barnes, R.M. Engeman