Douglas Johnson
Douglas Johnson is a Research Statistician (Emeritus) for the USGS Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center in Jamestown, North Dakota.
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 310
Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center—Celebrating 50 years of science
The Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center (NPWRC) celebrated its 50-year anniversary in 2015. This report is written in support of that observance. We document why and how the NPWRC came to be and describe some of its many accomplishments and the influence the Center’s research program has had on natural resource management. The history is organized by major research themes, proceeds somewhat
Authors
Jane E. Austin, Terry L. Shaffer, Lawrence D. Igl, Douglas H. Johnson, Gary L. Krapu, Diane L. Larson, L. David Mech, David M. Mushet, Marsha A. Sovada
The influence of local- and landscape-level factors on wetland breeding birds in the Prairie Pothole Region of North and South Dakota
We examined the relationship between local- (wetland) and landscape-level factors and breeding bird abundances on 1,190 depressional wetlands in the Prairie Pothole Region of North and South Dakota during the breeding seasons in 1995–97. The surveyed wetlands were selected from five wetland classes (alkali, permanent, semipermanent, seasonal, or temporary), two wetland types (natural or restored),
Authors
Lawrence D. Igl, Jill A. Shaffer, Douglas H. Johnson, Deborah A. Buhl
Used-habitat calibration plots: A new procedure for validating species distribution, resource selection, and step-selection models
“Species distribution modeling” was recently ranked as one of the top five “research fronts” in ecology and the environmental sciences by ISI's Essential Science Indicators (Renner and Warton 2013), reflecting the importance of predicting how species distributions will respond to anthropogenic change. Unfortunately, species distribution models (SDMs) often perform poorly when applied to novel envi
Authors
John R. Fieberg, James D. Forester, Garrett M. Street, Douglas H. Johnson, Althea A. ArchMiller, Jason Matthiopoulos
A method to assess the population-level consequences of wind energy facilities on bird and bat species
For this study, a methodology was developed for assessing impacts of wind energy generation on populations of birds and bats at regional to national scales. The approach combines existing methods in applied ecology for prioritizing species in terms of their potential risk from wind energy facilities and estimating impacts of fatalities on population status and trend caused by collisions with wind
Authors
James E. Diffendorfer, Julie A. Beston, Matthew D. Merrill, Jessica C. Stanton, M.D. Corum, Scott R. Loss, Wayne E. Thogmartin, Douglas H. Johnson, Richard A. Erickson, Kevin W. Heist
Extending the habitat concept to the airspace
Habitat is one of the most familiar and fundamental concepts in the fields of ecology, animal behavior, and wildlife conservation and management. Humans interact with habitats through their senses and experiences and education to such a degree that their perceptions of habitat have become second nature. For this reason, it may be difficult at first to accept the airspace as habitat, an area that i
Authors
Robert H. Diehl, Anna C. Peterson, Rachel T. Bolus, Douglas H. Johnson
Predictors of current and longer-term patterns of abundance of American pikas (Ochotona princeps) across a leading-edge protected area
American pikas (Ochotona princeps) have been heralded as indicators of montane-mammal response to contemporary climate change. Pikas no longer occupy the driest and lowest-elevation sites in numerous parts of their geographic range. Conversely, pikas have exhibited higher rates of occupancy and persistence in Rocky Mountain and Sierra Nevada montane ‘mainlands’. Research and monitoring efforts on
Authors
Lucas Moyer-Horner, Erik A. Beever, Douglas H. Johnson, Mark Beil, Jami Belt
Comment on "No evidence of displacement due to wind turbines in breeding grassland songbirds"
A recent article published in The Condor: Ornithological Applications by Hale et al. (2014) is entitled, “No evidence of displacement due to wind turbines in breeding grassland songbirds.” The conclusion stated in that title, unfortunately, is based on inappropriate statistical analysis of data collected by the authors. In fact, their data provide evidence of potential displacement by wind turbine
Authors
Douglas H. Johnson
Effects of haying on breeding birds in CRP grasslands
The Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) is a voluntary program that is available to agricultural producers to help protect environmentally sensitive or highly erodible land. Management disturbances of CRP grasslands generally are not allowed unless authorized to provide relief to livestock producers during severe drought or a similar natural disaster (i.e., emergency haying and grazing) or to impro
Authors
Lawrence D. Igl, Douglas H. Johnson
Avian fatalities at wind energy facilities in North America: A comparison of recent approaches
Three recent publications have estimated the number of birds killed each year by wind energy facilities at 2012 build-out levels in the United States. The 3 publications differ in scope, methodology, and resulting estimates. We compare and contrast characteristics of the approaches used in the publications. In addition, we describe decisions made in obtaining the estimates that were produced. Desp
Authors
Douglas H. Johnson, Scott R. Loss, K. Shawn Smallwood, Wallace P. Erickson
Prioritizing avian species for their risk of population-level consequences from wind energy development
Recent growth in the wind energy industry has increased concerns about its impacts on wildlife populations. Direct impacts of wind energy include bird and bat collisions with turbines whereas indirect impacts include changes in wildlife habitat and behavior. Although many species may withstand these effects, species that are long-lived with low rates of reproduction, have specialized habitat prefe
Authors
Julie A. Beston, James E. Diffendorfer, Scott Loss, Douglas H. Johnson
Environmental variability and population dynamics: Do European and North American ducks play by the same rules?
Density dependence, population regulation, and variability in population size are fundamental population processes, the manifestation and interrelationships of which are affected by environmental variability. However, there are surprisingly few empirical studies that distinguish the effect of environmental variability from the effects of population processes. We took advantage of a unique system,
Authors
Hannu Pöysä, Jukka Rintala, Douglas H. Johnson, Jukka Kauppinen, Esa Lammi, Thomas D. Nudds, Veli-Matti Väänänen
Avoidance of unconventional oil wells and roads exacerbates habitat loss for grassland birds in the North American great plains
Oil development in the Bakken shale region has increased rapidly as a result of new technologies and strong demand for fossil fuel. This region also supports a particularly high density and diversity of grassland bird species, which are declining across North America. We examined grassland bird response to unconventional oil extraction sites (i.e. developed with hydraulic fracturing and horizontal
Authors
Sarah J. Thompson, Douglas H. Johnson, Neal Nieumuth, Christine Ribic
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 310
Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center—Celebrating 50 years of science
The Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center (NPWRC) celebrated its 50-year anniversary in 2015. This report is written in support of that observance. We document why and how the NPWRC came to be and describe some of its many accomplishments and the influence the Center’s research program has had on natural resource management. The history is organized by major research themes, proceeds somewhat
Authors
Jane E. Austin, Terry L. Shaffer, Lawrence D. Igl, Douglas H. Johnson, Gary L. Krapu, Diane L. Larson, L. David Mech, David M. Mushet, Marsha A. Sovada
The influence of local- and landscape-level factors on wetland breeding birds in the Prairie Pothole Region of North and South Dakota
We examined the relationship between local- (wetland) and landscape-level factors and breeding bird abundances on 1,190 depressional wetlands in the Prairie Pothole Region of North and South Dakota during the breeding seasons in 1995–97. The surveyed wetlands were selected from five wetland classes (alkali, permanent, semipermanent, seasonal, or temporary), two wetland types (natural or restored),
Authors
Lawrence D. Igl, Jill A. Shaffer, Douglas H. Johnson, Deborah A. Buhl
Used-habitat calibration plots: A new procedure for validating species distribution, resource selection, and step-selection models
“Species distribution modeling” was recently ranked as one of the top five “research fronts” in ecology and the environmental sciences by ISI's Essential Science Indicators (Renner and Warton 2013), reflecting the importance of predicting how species distributions will respond to anthropogenic change. Unfortunately, species distribution models (SDMs) often perform poorly when applied to novel envi
Authors
John R. Fieberg, James D. Forester, Garrett M. Street, Douglas H. Johnson, Althea A. ArchMiller, Jason Matthiopoulos
A method to assess the population-level consequences of wind energy facilities on bird and bat species
For this study, a methodology was developed for assessing impacts of wind energy generation on populations of birds and bats at regional to national scales. The approach combines existing methods in applied ecology for prioritizing species in terms of their potential risk from wind energy facilities and estimating impacts of fatalities on population status and trend caused by collisions with wind
Authors
James E. Diffendorfer, Julie A. Beston, Matthew D. Merrill, Jessica C. Stanton, M.D. Corum, Scott R. Loss, Wayne E. Thogmartin, Douglas H. Johnson, Richard A. Erickson, Kevin W. Heist
Extending the habitat concept to the airspace
Habitat is one of the most familiar and fundamental concepts in the fields of ecology, animal behavior, and wildlife conservation and management. Humans interact with habitats through their senses and experiences and education to such a degree that their perceptions of habitat have become second nature. For this reason, it may be difficult at first to accept the airspace as habitat, an area that i
Authors
Robert H. Diehl, Anna C. Peterson, Rachel T. Bolus, Douglas H. Johnson
Predictors of current and longer-term patterns of abundance of American pikas (Ochotona princeps) across a leading-edge protected area
American pikas (Ochotona princeps) have been heralded as indicators of montane-mammal response to contemporary climate change. Pikas no longer occupy the driest and lowest-elevation sites in numerous parts of their geographic range. Conversely, pikas have exhibited higher rates of occupancy and persistence in Rocky Mountain and Sierra Nevada montane ‘mainlands’. Research and monitoring efforts on
Authors
Lucas Moyer-Horner, Erik A. Beever, Douglas H. Johnson, Mark Beil, Jami Belt
Comment on "No evidence of displacement due to wind turbines in breeding grassland songbirds"
A recent article published in The Condor: Ornithological Applications by Hale et al. (2014) is entitled, “No evidence of displacement due to wind turbines in breeding grassland songbirds.” The conclusion stated in that title, unfortunately, is based on inappropriate statistical analysis of data collected by the authors. In fact, their data provide evidence of potential displacement by wind turbine
Authors
Douglas H. Johnson
Effects of haying on breeding birds in CRP grasslands
The Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) is a voluntary program that is available to agricultural producers to help protect environmentally sensitive or highly erodible land. Management disturbances of CRP grasslands generally are not allowed unless authorized to provide relief to livestock producers during severe drought or a similar natural disaster (i.e., emergency haying and grazing) or to impro
Authors
Lawrence D. Igl, Douglas H. Johnson
Avian fatalities at wind energy facilities in North America: A comparison of recent approaches
Three recent publications have estimated the number of birds killed each year by wind energy facilities at 2012 build-out levels in the United States. The 3 publications differ in scope, methodology, and resulting estimates. We compare and contrast characteristics of the approaches used in the publications. In addition, we describe decisions made in obtaining the estimates that were produced. Desp
Authors
Douglas H. Johnson, Scott R. Loss, K. Shawn Smallwood, Wallace P. Erickson
Prioritizing avian species for their risk of population-level consequences from wind energy development
Recent growth in the wind energy industry has increased concerns about its impacts on wildlife populations. Direct impacts of wind energy include bird and bat collisions with turbines whereas indirect impacts include changes in wildlife habitat and behavior. Although many species may withstand these effects, species that are long-lived with low rates of reproduction, have specialized habitat prefe
Authors
Julie A. Beston, James E. Diffendorfer, Scott Loss, Douglas H. Johnson
Environmental variability and population dynamics: Do European and North American ducks play by the same rules?
Density dependence, population regulation, and variability in population size are fundamental population processes, the manifestation and interrelationships of which are affected by environmental variability. However, there are surprisingly few empirical studies that distinguish the effect of environmental variability from the effects of population processes. We took advantage of a unique system,
Authors
Hannu Pöysä, Jukka Rintala, Douglas H. Johnson, Jukka Kauppinen, Esa Lammi, Thomas D. Nudds, Veli-Matti Väänänen
Avoidance of unconventional oil wells and roads exacerbates habitat loss for grassland birds in the North American great plains
Oil development in the Bakken shale region has increased rapidly as a result of new technologies and strong demand for fossil fuel. This region also supports a particularly high density and diversity of grassland bird species, which are declining across North America. We examined grassland bird response to unconventional oil extraction sites (i.e. developed with hydraulic fracturing and horizontal
Authors
Sarah J. Thompson, Douglas H. Johnson, Neal Nieumuth, Christine Ribic