Sculpted by water, elevated by earthquakes—The coastal landscape of Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska
Robert C. Witter, Adam LeWinter, Adrian M. Bender, Craig Glennie, David C. Finnegan
2017, General Information Product 177
Within Glacier Bay National Park in southeastern Alaska, the Fairweather Fault represents the onshore boundary between two of Earth’s constantly moving tectonic plates: the North American Plate and the Yakutat microplate. Satellite measurements indicate that during the past few decades the Yakutat microplate has moved northwest at a rate of...
Host density increases parasite recruitment but decreases host risk in a snail-trematode system
Julia C Buck, R.F. Hechinger, A.C. Wood, T.E. Stewart, A.M. Kuris, Kevin D. Lafferty
2017, Ecology (98) 2029-2038
Most species aggregate in local patches. High host density in patches increases contact rate between hosts and parasites, increasing parasite transmission success. At the same time, for environmentally-transmitted parasites, high host density can decrease infection risk to individual hosts, because infective stages are divided among all hosts in a patch,...
Antifungal bacteria on woodland salamander skin exhibit high taxonomic diversity and geographic variability
Carly R. Muletz-Wolz, Graziella V. DiRenzo, Stephanie A. Yarwood, Evan H. Campbell Grant, Robert C. Fleischer, Karen R. Lips
2017, Applied and Environmental Microbiology (83)
Diverse bacteria inhabit amphibian skin; some of those bacteria inhibit growth of the fungal pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis. Yet there has been no systematic survey of anti-B. dendrobatidis bacteria across localities, species, and elevations. This is important given geographic and taxonomic variations in amphibian susceptibility...
The role of density-dependent and –independent processes in spawning habitat selection by salmon in an Arctic riverscape
Brock M. Huntsman, Jeffrey A. Falke, James W. Savereide, Katrina E. Bennett
2017, PLoS ONE (12) 1-21
Density-dependent (DD) and density-independent (DI) habitat selection is strongly linked to a species’ evolutionary history. Determining the relative importance of each is necessary because declining populations are not always the result of altered DI mechanisms but can often be the result of DD via a reduced carrying capacity. We developed...
Editorial
Abigail Lynch, R. G. Asch, William W. L. Cheung, Craig P. Paukert, Ryan R. Rykaczewski, Warwick H. H. Sauer
2017, Reviews in Fish Biology and Fisheries (27) 293-296
No abstract available....
Exploring the use of environmental DNA to determine the species of salmon redds
Burke Strobel, Matthew Laramie, David S. Pilliod
2017, North American Journal of Fisheries Management (37) 943-950
Annual redd counts are used to monitor the status and trends of salmonid populations, but methods to easily and reliably determine which of sympatric species made specific redds are lacking. We explored whether environmental DNA (eDNA) analysis might prove useful for determining the species of salmon redds. We collected eDNA...
U.S. Department of the Interior Climate Science Centers and U.S. Geological Survey National Climate Change and Wildlife Science Center—Annual report for 2016
Sarah R. Weiskopf, Elda Varela Minder, Holly A. Padgett
2017, Open-File Report 2017-1033
Introduction2016 was an exciting year for the Department of the Interior (DOI) Climate Science Centers (CSCs) and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Climate Change and Wildlife Science Center (NCCWSC). In recognition of our ongoing efforts to raise awareness and provide the scientific data and tools needed to address the...
Between hot rocks and dry places: The status of the Dixie Valley toad
Matthew J. Forrest, Josefin Stiller, Tim L. King, Greg Rouse
2017, Western North American Naturalist (77) 162-175
In Dixie Valley, Nevada, an isolated population of toads has been the subject of proactive conservation measures by the Nevada Department of Wildlife and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service since 2008 due to concerns about potential habitat degradation resulting from exploitation of nearby geothermal energy resources. These toads appear...
Community for Data Integration 2016 annual report
Madison L. Langseth, Leslie Hsu, Jon Amberg, Norman Bliss, Andrew R. Bock, Rachel T. Bolus, R. Sky Bristol, Katherine J. Chase, Theresa M. Crimmins, Paul S. Earle, Richard Erickson, A. Lance Everette, Jeff T. Falgout, John Faundeen, Michael N. Fienen, Rusty Griffin, Michelle R. Guy, Kevin D. Henry, Nancy J. Hoebelheinrich, Randall J. Hunt, Vivian B. Hutchison, Drew A. Ignizio, Dana M. Infante, Catherine Jarnevich, Jeanne M. Jones, Tim Kern, Scott Leibowitz, Francis L. Lightsom, R. Lee Marsh, S. Grace McCalla, Marcia McNiff, Jeffrey T. Morisette, John C. Nelson, Tamar Norkin, Todd M. Preston, Alyssa Rosemartin, Roy Sando, Jason T. Sherba, Richard P. Signell, Benjamin M. Sleeter, Eric T. Sundquist, Colin B. Talbert, Roland J. Viger, Jake F. Weltzin, Sharon Waltman, Marc Weber, Daniel J. Wieferich, Brad Williams, Lisamarie Windham-Myers
2017, Open-File Report 2017-1053
The Community for Data Integration (CDI) represents a dynamic community of practice focused on advancing science data and information management and integration capabilities across the U.S. Geological Survey and the CDI community. This annual report describes the various presentations, activities, and outcomes of the CDI monthly forums, working groups, virtual...
Sensitivity of lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens) early life stages to 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-P-dioxin and 3,3′,4,4′,5-pentachlorobiphenyl
Donald E. Tillitt, Justin A. Buckler, Diane Nicks, James Candrl, Rachel Claunch, Robert W. Gale, Holly J. Puglis, Edward E. Little, Tiffany L. Linbo, Mary Baker
2017, Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (36) 988-998
The aquatic food web of the Great Lakes has been contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) since the mid-20th century. Threats of PCB exposures to long-lived species of fish, such as lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens), have been uncertain because of a lack of information on the relative sensitivity of the species....
Persistence of historical population structure in an endangered species despite near-complete biome conversion in California's San Joaquin Desert
Jonathan Q. Richmond, Dustin A. Wood, Michael F. Westphal, Amy G. Vandergast, Adam D. Leache, Lawrence Saslaw, H. Scott Butterfield, Robert N. Fisher
2017, Molecular Ecology (26) 3618-3635
Genomic responses to habitat conversion can be rapid, providing wildlife managers with time-limited opportunities to enact recovery efforts that use population connectivity information that reflects predisturbance landscapes. Despite near-complete biome conversion, such opportunities may still exist for the endemic fauna and flora of California's San Joaquin Desert, but comprehensive genetic...
Estimated seepage rates from selected ditches, ponds, and lakes at the Camas National Wildlife Refuge, eastern Idaho
Gordon W. Rattray
2017, Journal of Environmental Management (203) 578-591
The Camas National Wildlife Refuge (Refuge) in eastern Idaho, established in 1937, contains wetlands, ponds, and wet meadows that are essential resting and feeding habitat for migratory birds and nesting habitat for waterfowl. Initially, natural sources of water supported these habitats. However, during the past few decades, changes in...
Evaluating the impact of irrigation on surface water – groundwater interaction and stream temperature in an agricultural watershed
Hedeff I. Essaid, Rodney R. Caldwell
2017, Science of the Total Environment (599-600) 581-596
Changes in groundwater discharge to streams caused by irrigation practices can influence stream temperature. Observations along two currently flood-irrigated reaches in the 640-square-kilometer upper Smith River watershed, an important agricultural and recreational fishing area in west-central Montana, showed a downstream temperature decrease resulting from groundwater discharge to the stream. A...
Thermal effect of climate change on groundwater-fed ecosystems
Erick R. Burns, Yonghui Zhu, Hongbin Zhan, Michael Manga, Colin F. Williams, Steven E. Ingebritsen, Jason B. Dunham
2017, Water Resources Research (53) 3341-3351
Groundwater temperature changes will lag surface temperature changes from a changing climate. Steady state solutions of the heat-transport equations are used to identify key processes that control the long-term thermal response of springs and other groundwater discharge to climate change, in particular changes in (1) groundwater recharge rate and temperature...
Unraveling the disease consequences and mechanisms of modular structure in animal social networks
Pratha Sah, Stephan T. Leu, Paul C. Cross, Peter J. Hudson, Shweta Bansal
2017, PNAS (16) 4165-4170
Disease risk is a potential cost of group living. Although modular organization is thought to reduce this cost in animal societies, empirical evidence toward this hypothesis has been conflicting. We analyzed empirical social networks from 43 animal species to motivate our study of the epidemiological consequences of modular structure in...
Map projections and the Internet
Fritz Kessler, Sarah E. Battersby, Michael P. Finn, Keith Clarke
2017, Book chapter, Choosing a map projection
The field of map projections can be described as mathematical, static, and challenging. However, this description is evolving in concert with the development of the Internet. The Internet has enabled new outlets for software applications, learning, and interaction with and about map projections . This chapter examines specific ways in...
Estimates of immediate effects on world markets of a hypothetical disruption to Russia’s supply of six mineral commodities
Elena Safirova, James J. Barry, Sinan Hastorun, Grecia R. Matos, Alberto Alexander Perez, George M. Bedinger, E. Lee Bray, Stephen M. Jasinski, Peter H. Kuck, Patricia J. Loferski
2017, Open-File Report 2017-1023
The potential immediate effects of a hypothetical shock to Russia’s supply of selected mineral commodities on the world market and on individual countries were determined and monetized (in 2014 U.S. dollars). The mineral commodities considered were aluminum (refined primary), nickel (refined primary), palladium (refined) and platinum (refined), potash, and titanium...
Satellite-based water use dynamics using historical Landsat data (1984–2014) in the southwestern United States
Gabriel B. Senay, Matthew Schauer, MacKenzie Friedrichs, Naga Manohar Velpuri, Ramesh Singh
2017, Remote Sensing of Environment (202) 98-112
Remote sensing-based field-scale evapotranspiration (ET) maps are useful for characterizing water use patterns and assessing crop performance. The relative impact of climate variability and water management decisions are better studied and quantified using historical data that are derived using a set of consistent datasets and methodology. Historical (1984–2014) Landsat-based ET maps were generated for...
Effect of salinity on mercury methylating benthic microbes and their activities in Great Salt Lake, Utah
Eric S. Boyd, Ri-Qing Yu, Tamar Barkay, Trinity L. Hamilton, Bonnie K. Baxter, David L. Naftz, Mark Marvin-DiPasquale
2017, Science of the Total Environment (581-582) 495-506
Surface water and biota from Great Salt Lake (GSL) contain some of the highest documented concentrations of total mercury (THg) and methylmercury (MeHg) in the United States. In order to identify potential biological sources of MeHg and controls on its production in this ecosystem, THg and MeHg concentrations, rates of...
Estimating evaporative fraction from readily obtainable variables in mangrove forests of the Everglades, U.S.A.
Ali Levent Yagci, Joseph A. Santanello, John W. Jones, Jordan G. Barr
2017, International Journal of Remote Sensing (38) 3981-4007
A remote-sensing-based model to estimate evaporative fraction (EF) – the ratio of latent heat (LE; energy equivalent of evapotranspiration –ET–) to total available energy – from easily obtainable remotely-sensed and meteorological parameters is presented. This research specifically addresses the shortcomings of existing ET retrieval methods such as calibration requirements of...
Occupancy and abundance of Eleutherodactylus frogs in coffee plantations in Puerto Rico
Kelen D. Monroe, Jaime A. Collazo, Krishna Pacifici, Brian J. Reich, Alberto R. Puente-Rolon, Adam J. Terando
2017, Herpetologica (73) 297-306
Shaded coffee plantations are of conservation value for many taxa, particularly for resident avifauna in the face of extensive landscape changes. Yet, little is known about the value of coffee plantations for amphibians because there are scant demographic data to index their value among species with different habitat preferences. We...
A hierarchical model for estimating the spatial distribution and abundance of animals detected by continuous-time recorders
Robert Dorazio, K. Ullas Karanth
2017, PLoS ONE (12) 1-18
MotivationSeveral spatial capture-recapture (SCR) models have been developed to estimate animal abundance by analyzing the detections of individuals in a spatial array of traps. Most of these models do not use the actual dates and times of detection, even though this information is readily available when using...
Is GPS telemetry location error screening beneficial?
Kirsten E. Ironside, David J. Mattson, Terence R. Arundel, Jered R. Hansen
2017, Wildlife Biology
The accuracy of global positioning system (GPS) locations obtained from study animals tagged with GPS monitoring devices has been a concern as to the degree it influences assessments of movement patterns, space use, and resource selection estimates. Many methods have been proposed for screening data to retain the most accurate...
Predicting wading bird and aquatic faunal responses to ecosystem restoration scenarios
James M. Beerens, Joel C. Trexler, Christopher P. Catano
2017, Restoration Ecology (25) S86-S98
In large-scale conservation decisions, scenario planning identifies key uncertainties of ecosystem function linked to ecological drivers affected by management, incorporates ecological feedbacks, and scales up to answer questions robust to alternative futures. Wetland restoration planning requires an understanding of how proposed changes in surface hydrology, water storage, and landscape connectivity...
Local and cross-seasonal associations of climate and land use with abundance of monarch butterflies Danaus plexippus
Sarah P. Saunders, Leslie Ries, Karen S. Oberhasuer, Wayne E. Thogmartin, Elise F. Zipkin
2017, Ecography (40) 001-012
Quantifying how climate and land use factors drive population dynamics at regional scales is complex because it depends on the extent of spatial and temporal synchrony among local populations, and the integration of population processes throughout a species’ annual cycle. We modeled weekly, site-specific summer abundance (1994–2013) of monarch butterflies...
