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: 2892
In my experience: Mitochondrial DNA in wildlife taxonomy and conservation biology: Cautionary notes
Several recently published papers discussed the importance of systematics (the study of evolutionary and genetic relationships among organisms) and taxonomy (the naming and classification of organisms) for managing wildlife (Ryder 1986, Avise 1989, Amato 1991, O'Brien and Mayr 1991, Dowling et al. 1992), Often, classification below the species level is needed; for example, the Endangered Species A
Authors
Matthew A. Cronin
Mitochondrial DNA variation in chinook salmon and chum salmon detected by restriction enzyme analysis of polymerase chain reaction products
We analyze intraspecific mitochondrial DNA variation in chinook salmon from drainages in the Yukon River, the Kenai River, and Oregon and California rivers; and chum salmon from the Yukon River and vancouver Island, and Washington rivers. For each species, three different portions of the mtDNA molecule were amplified seperately using the polymerase chain reaction and then digested with at least 19
Authors
M. Cronin, R. Spearman, R. Wilmot, J. Patton, J. Bickman
Human disturbances of denning polar bears in Alaska
Polar bears (Ursus maritimus) give birth in dens of snow and ice. The altricial neonates cannot leave the den for >2 months post-partum and are potentially vulnerable to disturbances near dens. The coastal plain (1002) area of Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) lies in a region of known polar bear denning and also may contain >9 billion barrels of recoverable oil. Polar bears in dens
Authors
Steven C. Amstrup
Age-specific reproduction in female sea otters (Enhydra lutris) from south-central Alaska: Analysis of reproductive tracts
We estimated age at sexual maturity and age-specific reproductive rates by examining carcasses and reproductive tracts from 177 female sea otters (Enhydra lutris). Carcasses were recovered from south-central Alaska, Primarily from western Prince William Sound, as a result of the T/V Exxon Valdez oil spill in 1989. We found 65% of our sample to be sexually mature. Sexual maturity was first attained
Authors
James L. Bodkin, Daniel M. Mulcahy, Calvin J. Lensink
Cub adoption by brown bears (Ursus arctos middendorffi) on Kodiak Island, Alaska
We report three cases where female Brown Bears (Ursus arctos middendorffi) with new (1 winter season. The adoptions occurred in a sampling of 104 litters produced by 89 different females on Kodiak Island, Alaska during 1982-1990. A maximum of six cubs were reared from litters that probably would have produced 3-4 subadults if the adoptions had not taken place.
Authors
V. Barnes, R. Smith
Autumn diet of lesser snow geese staging in northeastern Alaska
The coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) is used by lesser snow geese (Chen caerulescens caerulescens) in autumn for premigratory staging. To better understand the potential impacts of human disturbance on snow geese, we investigated species composition of, and temporal and age-related variation in, their diet during staging. Depending on age and time of collection, between
Authors
Alan W. Brackney, Jerry W. Hupp
Structural evolution of the Chugach-Prince William terrane at the hinge of the orocline in Prince William Sound, and implications for ore deposits
The Chugach-Prince William terrane is a Mesozoic through Tertiary accretionary complex that lies along coastal southern and southeastern Alaska. In Prince William Sound, the regional structural fabric bends about 90°, forming an orocline. Rocks at the hinge of the orocline consist of turbidites, conglomerate, and minor volcanic rocks and limestone. The structural geology in the hinge region define
Authors
Peter J. Haeussler, Steven W. Nelson
Deep-water lithofacies and conodont faunas of the Lisburne Group, west-central Brooks Range, Alaska
Deep-water lithofacies of the Lisburne Group occur in thrust sheets in the western part of the foreland fold and thrust belt of the Brooks Range and represent at least three discrete units. The Kuna Formation (Brooks Range allochthon) consists mostly of spiculitic mudstone and lesser shale; subordinate carbonate layers are chiefly diagenetic dolomite. Predominantly shale sections of the Kuna that
Authors
Julie A. Dumoulin, Anita G. Harris, Jeanine M. Schmidt
Lithofacies and conodonts of Carboniferous strata in the Ivotuk Hills, western Brooks Range, Alaska: A section in Geologic studies in Alaska by the U.S. Geological Survey, 1992
Carboniferous strata in the Ivotuk Hills, in the western Brooks Range fold and thrust belt, consist of about 45 m of dark-gray shale, mudstone, dolostone, and spiculitic chert (upper part of the Kayak Shale, Endicott Group) and at least 225 m of light- to dark-gray dolostone, chert, and minor shale (Lisburne Group). The Kayak Shale was deposited chiefly below wave base; subordinate beds of dolomit
Authors
Julie A. Dumoulin, Anita G. Harris
Timing of early Tertiary ridge subduction in southern Alaska: A section in Geologic studies in Alaska by the U.S. Geological Survey, 1992
We present a new compilation of 158 isotopic ages from Tertiary plutons that intrude the accretionary prism (Chugach-Prince William composite terrane) of southern Alaska. Two broad plutonic age groups are present: Paleocene to Eocene (the Sanak-Baranof plutonic belt), and Oligocene to Miocene. Plutons of the Sanak-Baranof belt are broadly coeval with magmatism along the axis of an Andean-type arc
Authors
Dwight Bradley, Peter J. Haeussler, Timothy M. Kusky
Chiricahua Peak quadrangle, Cochise County, Arizona: Analytic data and geologic sample catalog
No abstract available.
Authors
Edward A. du Bray, Douglas B. Yager, John S. Pallister
Geologic studies in Alaska by the U.S. Geological Survey, 1992
This collection of 19 papers continues the annual series of U.S. Geological Survey reports on the geology of Alaska. The contributions, which include full-length Articles and shorter Geologic Notes, cover a broad range of topics including dune formation, stratigraphy, paleontology, isotopic dating, mineral resources, and tectonics. Articles, grouped under four regional headings, span nearly the en