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
Changes in behavior are unable to disrupt a trophic cascade involving a specialist herbivore and its food plant
Changes in ecological conditions can induce changes in behavior and demography of wild organisms, which in turn may influence population dynamics. Pacific black brant (Branta bernicla nigricans) nesting in colonies on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta (YKD) in western Alaska have declined substantially (~50%) since the turn of the century. Pacific black brant are herbivores that rely heavily on Carex subs
Authors
Madeleine G Lohman, Thomas V. Riecke, Cheyenne R Acevedo, Brian T. Person, Joel A. Schmutz, Brian D. Uher-Koch, James S. Sedinger
Energetic costs of aquatic locomotion in a subadult polar bear
Most marine mammals rely on swimming as their primary form of locomotion. These animals have evolved specialized morphologies, physiologies, and behaviors that have enabled them to efficiently move through an aquatic environment (Williams 1999). Such adaptations include body streamlining, modified plantar surfaces for propulsion, and abilities to remain submerged for extended durations (Williams 1
Authors
Anthony M. Pagano, Amy Cutting, Nicole Nicassio-Hiskey, Amy Hash, Terrie M. Williams
Serologic evidence for influenza A virus exposure in three loon species (Gavia spp.) breeding in Alaska
Limited information exists about exposure to influenza A viruses (IAVs) in many wild waterbird species, including loons. We analyzed serum samples from breeding adult Pacific (Gavia pacifica), Red-throated (Gavia stellata), and Yellow-billed (Gavia adamsii) loons sampled at three locations along the coast of Alaska, US from 2008 to 2017 to gain a better understanding of the potential role loons pl
Authors
Brian D. Uher-Koch, Timothy J. Spivey, Caroline R. Van Hemert, Joel A. Schmutz, Kaijun Jiang, Xiu-Feng Wan, Andrew M. Ramey
Energy allocation and feeding ecology of juvenile chum salmon (Oncorhynchus keta) during transition from freshwater to saltwater
Pacific salmon (Oncorhynchus spp.) populations near their northern range extent in the Arctic-Yukon-Kuskokwim region of Alaska have undergone major changes in population trajectory and illuminated the lack of basic information on juvenile ecology. This study fills information gaps on the early life history of chum salmon at northern latitudes. Energy allocation was examined in the context of distr
Authors
Sean E. Burril, Vanessa R. von Biela, Nicola Hillbruber, Christian E. Zimmerman
Measurement of long-term channel change through repeated cross-section surveys at bridge crossings in Alaska
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has been working with Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities (ADOT&PF) since 1993 to provide hydraulic assessments of scour for bridges throughout Alaska. The purpose of the program is to evaluate, monitor, and study streambed scour at bridges in Alaska; this includes surveying streambed elevations at regular intervals and monitoring real-time b
Authors
Karenth L. Dworsky, Jeffrey S. Conaway
Plasticity in elk migration timing is a response to changing environmental conditions
Migration is an effective behavioral strategy for prolonging access to seasonal resources and may be a resilient strategy for ungulates experiencing changing climatic conditions. In the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE), elk are the primary ungulate, with approximately 20,000 individuals migrating to exploit seasonal gradients in forage while also avoiding energetically costly snow conditions. H
Authors
Gregory J.M. Rickbeil, Jerod A. Merkle, Greg Anderson, M. Paul Atwood, Jon P. Beckmann, Eric K Cole, Alyson B. Courtemanch, Sarah Dewey, David D. Gustine, Matthew Kauffman, Douglas E. McWhirter, Tony W. Mong, Kelly Proffitt, Patrick J. White, Arthur D. Middleton
Tsunamigenic splay faults imply a long-term asperity in southern Prince William Sound, Alaska
Coseismic slip partitioning and uplift over multiple earthquake cycles is critical to understanding upper‐plate fault development. Bathymetric and seismic reflection data from the 1964 Mw9.2 Great Alaska earthquake rupture area reveal sea floor scarps along the tsunamigenic Patton Bay/Cape Cleare/Middleton Island fault system. The faults splay from a megathrust where duplexing and underplating pro
Authors
Lee Liberty, Daniel S. Brothers, Peter J. Haeussler
Extreme reduction in nutritional value of a key forage fish during the Pacific marine heatwave of 2014–2016
Pacific sand lance Ammodytes personatus are a key forage fish in the North Pacific for many species of salmon, groundfish, seabirds, and marine mammals and have historically been important to predators in relatively warm years. However, extreme declines in the nutritional value of sand lance in Prince William Sound, Alaska, USA, during 2012-2016 indicate that energy transfer from lower trophic lev
Authors
Vanessa R. von Biela, Mayumi L. Arimitsu, John F. Piatt, Brielle Heflin, Sarah K. Schoen, Jannelle Trowbridge, Chelsea Clawson
Estimating the energy expenditure of free‐ranging polar bears using tri‐axial accelerometers: A validation with doubly labeled water
Measures of energy expenditure can be used to inform animal conservation and management, but methods for measuring the energy expenditure of free‐ranging animals have a variety of limitations. Advancements in biologging technologies have enabled the use of dynamic body acceleration derived from accelerometers as a proxy for energy expenditure. Although dynamic body acceleration has been shown to s
Authors
Anthony M. Pagano, Terrie M. Williams
Migratory goose arrival time plays a larger role in influencing forage quality than advancing springs in an Arctic coastal wetland
With warmer springs, herbivores migrating to Arctic breeding grounds may experience phenological mismatches between their energy demands and the availability of high quality forage. However, the timing of high quality forage relative to the timing of grazing is often unknown. In coastal western Alaska, approximately one million migratory geese arrive each spring to breed where foliar %N and C:N ra
Authors
Karen H. Beard, Ryan T. Choi, A. Joshua Leffer, Lindsay Carlson, Katharine C. Kelsey, Joel A. Schmutz, Jeffrey Welker
Current trends and future directions in swan research: Insights from the 6th International Swan Symposium
Given their popularity with researchers and public alike, together with their welldocumented importance in aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, fundamental and applied research on swans continues to develop in the 21st century. The 6th International Swan Symposium (6th ISS), was held at the Estonian University of Life Sciences in Tartu, Estonia, in October 2018. The symposium brought together 101 d
Authors
Kevin Wood, Lei Cao, P. Clausen, Craig R. Ely, L. Luigujoe, Eileen Rees, Jeffrey Snyder, D. Solovyeva, R. Wlodarczyk
Influenza A prevalence and subtype diversity in migrating teal sampled along the United States Gulf Coast
Wild birds in the order Anseriformes are important reservoirs for influenza A viruses (IAV); however, IAV prevalence and subtype diversity may vary by season, even at the same location. To better understand the ecology of IAV during waterfowl migration through the Gulf Coast of the United States (Louisiana and Texas), surveillance of blue-winged (Spatula discors) and American green-winged (Anas ca
Authors
Deborah Carter, Paul T. Link, Patrick Walther, Andrew M. Ramey, David E. Stallknecht, Rebecca L. Poulson