Individual specialization in the foraging habits of female bottlenose dolphins living in a trophically diverse and habitat rich estuary
Sam Rossman, Peggy H. Ostrom, Megan Stolen, Nélio B. Barros, Hasand Gandhi, Craig A. Stricker, Randall S. Wells
2015, Oecologia (178) 415-425
We examine individual specialization in foraging habits (foraging habitat and trophic level) of female bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) resident in Sarasota Bay, Florida, USA, by analyzing time series of stable isotope (δ15N and δ13C) values in sequential growth layer groups within teeth. The isotope data provide a chronology of...
Natural trophic variability in a large, oligotrophic, near-pristine lake
Talia Young, Olaf P. Jensen, Brian Weidel, Sudeep Chandra
2015, Journal of Great Lakes Research (41) 463-472
Conclusions drawn from stable isotope data can be limited by an incomplete understanding of natural isotopic variability over time and space. We quantified spatial and temporal variability in fish carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes in Lake Hövsgöl, Mongolia, a large, remote, oligotrophic lake with an unusually species-poor fish community. The...
Evaluating unsupervised methods to size and classify suspended particles using digital in-line holography
Emlyn J. Davies, Daniel D. Buscombe, George W. Graham, W. Alex M. Nimmo-Smith
2015, Journal of Atmospheric and Oceanic Technology (32) 1241-1256
Substantial information can be gained from digital in-line holography of marine particles, eliminating depth-of-field and focusing errors associated with standard lens-based imaging methods. However, for the technique to reach its full potential in oceanographic research, fully unsupervised (automated) methods are required for focusing, segmentation, sizing and classification of particles. These...
Unintended consequences of management actions in salt pond restoration: cascading effects in trophic interactions
John Y. Takekawa, Joshua T. Ackerman, Arriana Brand, Tanya R. Graham, Collin A. Eagles-Smith, Mark P. Herzog, Brent R. Topping, Gregory Shellenbarger, James S. Kuwabara, Eric Mruz, Sara L. Piotter, Nicole D. Athearn
2015, PLoS ONE (10) 1-15
Salt evaporation ponds have played an important role as habitat for migratory waterbirds across the world, however, efforts to restore and manage these habitats to maximize their conservation value has proven to be challenging. For example, salinity reduction has been a goal for restoring and managing former salt evaporation ponds...
Computational fluid dynamics-habitat suitability index (CFD-HSI) modelling as an exploratory tool for assessing passability of riverine migratory challenge zones for fish
Alexander J. Haro, Michael Chelminski, Robert W. Dudley
2015, River Research and Applications (31) 526-537
We developed two-dimensional computational fluid hydraulics-habitat suitability index (CFD-HSI) models to identify and qualitatively assess potential zones of shallow water depth and high water velocity that may present passage challenges for five major anadromous fish species in a 2.63-km reach of the main stem Penobscot River, Maine, as a result...
Stable isotopes suggest low site fidelity in Bar-Headed Geese (Anser indicus) in Mongolia: Implications for disease transmission
Eli S. Bridge, Jeffrey F. Kelly, Xiangming Xiao, Nyambayar Batbayar, Tseveenmyadag Natsagdorj, Nichola J. Hill, John Y. Takekawa, Lucy A. Hawkes, Charles M. Bishop, Patrick J. Butler, Scott H. Newman
2015, Waterbirds (38) 123-132
Population connectivity is an important consideration in studies of disease transmission and biological conservation, especially with regard to migratory species. Determining how and when different subpopulations intermingle during different phases of the annual cycle can help identify important geographical regions or features as targets for conservation efforts and can help...
Exploration review
David R. Wilburn, Karyn A. Stanley, Nick A Karl
2015, Mining Engineering 16-38
This summary of international mineral exploration activities for the year 2014 draws upon information from industry sources, published literature, and specialists in the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Minerals Information Center. The summary provides data on exploration budgets by region and mineral commodity, identifies significant mineral discoveries and areas of...
Stress- and structure-controlled anisotropy in a region of complex faulting—Yuha Desert, California
Elizabeth S. Cochran, Kayla A. Kroll
2015, Geophysical Journal International (202) 1109-1121
We examine shear velocity anisotropy in the Yuha Desert, California using aftershocks of the 2010 M7.2 El Mayor-Cucapah earthquake. The Yuha Desert is underlain by a complex network of right- and left-lateral conjugate faults, some of which experienced triggered slip during the El Mayor-Cucapah earthquake. An automated method that implements...
High-rate injection is associated with the increase in U.S. mid-continent seismicity
Matthew Weingarten, Shemin Ge, Jonathan W. Godt, Barbara A. Bekins, Justin L. Rubinstein
2015, Science (348) 1336-340
An unprecedented increase in earthquakes in the U.S. mid-continent began in 2009. Many of these earthquakes have been documented as induced by wastewater injection. We examine the relationship between wastewater injection and U.S. mid-continent seismicity using a newly assembled injection well database for the central and eastern United States. We...
A formalized approach to making effective natural resource management decisions for Alaska National Parks
Margaret C. MacCluskie, Angela Romito, James T. Peterson, James P. Lawler
2015, Alaska Park Science (14) 9-13
A fundamental goal of the National Park Service (NPS) is the long-term protection and management of resources in the National Park System. Reaching this goal requires multiple approaches, including the conservation of essential habitats and the identification and elimination of potential threats to biota and habitats. To accomplish these goals,...
Spatial and temporal use of a prairie dog colony by coyotes and rabbits: Potential indirect effects on endangered black-footed ferrets
David A. Eads, Dean E. Biggins, Travis M. Livieri
2015, Journal of Zoology (296) 146-152
In western North America, endangered black-footed ferrets Mustela nigripes are conserved via reintroduction to colonies of prairie dogs Cynomys spp., their primary prey. Predation is an important source of mortality; coyotes Canis latrans appear to be the most problematic predator, accounting for 67% of known predation events on radio-tagged ferrets. Little is known about what factors...
Preserving geomorphic data records of flood disturbances
John A. Moody, Deborah A. Martin, Robert H. Meade
2015, GeoResJ (6) 164-174
No central database or repository is currently available in the USA to preserve long-term, spatially extensive records of fluvial geomorphic data or to provide future accessibility. Yet, because of their length and continuity these data are valuable for future research. Therefore, we built a public accessible website to preserve...
Testing hypotheses on distribution shifts and changes in phenology of imperfectly detectable species
Thierry A. Chambert, William L. Kendall, James E. Hines, James D. Nichols, Paolo Pedrini, J. Hardin Waddle, Giacomo Tavecchia, Susan C. Walls, Simone Tenan
2015, Methods in Ecology and Evolution (6) 638-647
With ongoing climate change, many species are expected to shift their spatial and temporal distributions. To document changes in species distribution and phenology, detection/non-detection data have proven very useful. Occupancy models provide a robust way to analyse such data, but inference is usually focused on species spatial...
The changing strength and nature of fire-climate relationships in the northern Rocky Mountains, U.S.A., 1902-2008
Jeremy S. Littell
2015, PLoS ONE (10)
Time-varying fire-climate relationships may represent an important component of fire-regime variability, relevant for understanding the controls of fire and projecting fire activity under global-change scenarios. We used time-varying statistical models to evaluate if and how fire-climate relationships varied from 1902-2008, in one of the most flammable forested regions of the...
Recent changes in annual area burned in interior Alaska: The impact of fire management
M.P. Calef, Anna Varvak, A. David McGuire, F. S. Chapin III, K. B. Reinhold
2015, Earth Interactions (19) 1-17
The Alaskan boreal forest is characterized by frequent extensive wildfires whose spatial extent has been mapped for the past 70 years. Simple predictions based on this record indicate that area burned will increase as a response to climate warming in Alaska. However, two additional factors have affected the area burned...
Hydrology: The interdisciplinary science of water
Richard M. Vogel, Upmanu Lall, Ximing Cai, Balaji Rajagopalan, Peter K. Weiskel, Richard P. Hooper, Nicholas C. Matalas
2015, Water Resources Research (51) 4409-4430
We live in a world where biophysical and social processes are tightly coupled. Hydrologic systems change in response to a variety of natural and human forces such as climate variability and change, water use and water infrastructure, and land cover change. In turn, changes in hydrologic systems impact socioeconomic, ecological,...
Biogeochemical aspects of uranium mineralization, mining, milling, and remediation
Kate M. Campbell, Tanya J. Gallegos, Edward R. Landa
2015, Applied Geochemistry (57) 206-235
Natural uranium (U) occurs as a mixture of three radioactive isotopes: 238U, 235U, and 234U. Only 235U is fissionable and makes up about 0.7% of natural U, while 238U is overwhelmingly the most abundant at greater than 99% of the total mass of U. Prior to the 1940s, U...
A multi-proxy record of hydroclimate, vegetation, fire, and post-settlement impacts for a subalpine plateau, Central Rocky Mountains U.S.A
Lesleigh Anderson, Andrea Brunelle, Robert S. Thompson
2015, The Holocene (25) 932-943
Apparent changes in vegetation distribution, fire, and other disturbance regimes throughout western North America have prompted investigations of the relative importance of human activities and climate change as potential causal mechanisms. Assessing the effects of Euro-American settlement is difficult because climate changes occur on multi-decadal to centennial time scales and...
A new species of Cryptotis (Mammalia, Eulipotyphla, Soricidae) from the Sierra de Perijá, Venezuelan-Colombian Andes
Marcial Quiroga-Carmona, Neal Woodman
2015, Journal of Mammalogy (96) 800-809
The Sierra de Perijá is the northern extension of the Cordillera Oriental of the Andes and includes part of the border between Colombia and Venezuela. The population of small-eared shrews (Mammalia, Eulipotyphla, Soricidae, Cryptotis) inhabiting the Sierra de Perijá previously was known from only a single skull from an individual...
Variability and trends in global drought
Gregory J. McCabe, David M. Wolock
2015, Earth and Space Science (2) 223-228
Monthly precipitation (P) and potential evapotranspiration (PET) from the CRUTS3.1 data set are used to compute monthly P minus PET (PMPE) for the land areas of the globe. The percent of the global land area with annual sums of PMPE less than zero are used as an index of global drought (%drought)...
Dynamic hypoxic zones in Lake Erie compress fish habitat, altering vulnerability to fishing gears
Richard T. Kraus, Carey T. Knight, Troy M. Farmer, Ann Marie Gorman, Paris D. Collingsworth, Glenn J. Warren, Patrick M. Kocovsky, Joseph D. Conroy
2015, Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences (72) 797-806
Seasonal degradation of aquatic habitats from hypoxia occurs in numerous freshwater and coastal marine systems and can result in direct mortality or displacement of fish. Yet, fishery landings from these systems are frequently unresponsive to changes in the severity and extent of hypoxia, and population-scale effects have been difficult to...
Group composition effects on aggressive interpack interactions of gray wolves in Yellowstone National Park
Kira A. Cassidy, Daniel R. MacNulty, Daniel R. Stahler, Douglas W. Smith, L. David Mech
2015, Behavioral Ecology (26) 1352-1360
Knowledge of characteristics that promote group success during intraspecific encounters is key to understanding the adaptive advantages of sociality for many group-living species. In addition, some individuals in a group may be more likely than others to influence intergroup conflicts, a relatively neglected idea in research on social animals. Here...
Observation of sandhill cranes' (Grus canadensis) flight behavior in heavy fog
Eileen M. Kirsch, Mike J. Wellik, Manuel J. Suarez, Robert H. Diehl, Jim Lutes, Wendy Woyczik, Jon Krapfl, Richard S. Sojda
2015, Wilson Journal of Ornithology (127) 281-288
The behaviors of birds flying in low visibility conditions remain poorly understood. We had the opportunity to monitor Sandhill Cranes (Grus canadensis) flying in heavy fog with very low visibility during a comprehensive landscape use study of refuging cranes in the Horicon Marsh in southeastern Wisconsin. As part of the...
Interpreting fluid pressure anomalies in shallow intraplate argillaceous formations
Christopher E. Neuzil
2015, Geophysical Research Letters (42) 4801-4808
Investigations have revealed several instances of apparently isolated highs or lows in pore fluid potential in shallow (< ~ 1 km depth) argillaceous formations in intraplate settings. Formations with the pressure anomalies are distinguished by (1) smaller ratios of hydraulic conductivity to formation thickness and (2) smaller hydraulic (or pressure) diffusivities...
Effects of the light goose conservation order on non-target waterfowl distribution during spring migration
Andrew J. Dinges, Elisabeth B. Webb, Mark P. Vrtiska
2015, Wildlife Biology (21) 88-97
The Light Goose Conservation Order (LGCO) was initiated in 1999 to reduce mid-continent populations of light geese (lesser snow geese Chen caerulescens and Ross's geese C. rossi). However, concern about potential for LGCO activities (i.e. hunting activities) to negatively impact non-target waterfowl species during spring migration in the Rainwater Basin (RWB) of Nebraska...
