Duration of fuels reduction following prescribed fire in coniferous forests of U.S. national parks in California and the Colorado Plateau
Phillip J. van Mantgem, Laura Lalemand, MaryBeth Keifer, Jeffrey M. Kane
2016, Forest Ecology and Management (379) 265-272
Prescribed fire is a widely used forest management tool, yet the long-term effectiveness of prescribed fire in reducing fuels and fire hazards in many vegetation types is not well documented. We assessed the magnitude and duration of reductions in surface fuels and modeled fire hazards in coniferous forests across nine...
Highly conductive horizons in the Mesoproterozoic Belt-Purcell Basin: Sulfidic early basin strata as key markers of Cordilleran shortening and Eocene extension
Paul A. Bedrosian, Stephen E. Box
2016, Book chapter, Belt basin: Window to Mesoproterozoic Earth
We investigated the crustal structure of the central Mesoproterozoic Belt Basin in northwestern Montana and northern Idaho using a crustal resistivity section derived from a transect of new short- and long-period magnetotelluric (MT) stations. Two- and three-dimensional resistivity models were generated from these data in combination with data collected previously...
Estimating microcystin levels at recreational sites in western Lake Erie and Ohio
Donna S. Francy, Amie M.G. Brady, Christopher D. Ecker, Jennifer L. Graham, Erin A. Stelzer, Pamela Struffolino, Keith A. Loftin
2016, Harmful Algae (58) 23-34
Cyanobacterial harmful algal blooms (cyanoHABs) and associated toxins, such as microcystin, are a major global water-quality issue. Water-resource managers need tools to quickly predict when and where toxin-producing cyanoHABs will occur. This could be done by using site-specific models that estimate the potential for elevated toxin concentrations that cause public...
Groundwater-quality data in the Monterey–Salinas shallow aquifer study unit, 2013: Results from the California GAMA Program
Dara A. Goldrath, Justin T. Kulongoski, Tracy A. Davis
2016, Data Series 987
Groundwater quality in the 3,016-square-mile Monterey–Salinas Shallow Aquifer study unit was investigated by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) from October 2012 to May 2013 as part of the California State Water Resources Control Board Groundwater Ambient Monitoring and Assessment (GAMA) Program’s Priority Basin Project. The GAMA Monterey–Salinas Shallow Aquifer...
Migratory routes and at-sea threats to Pink-footed Shearwaters
Josh Adams, Jonathan J. Felis, Peter Hodum, Valentina Colodro, Ryan Carle, Verónica López
2016, Conference Paper, Seventh Meeting of the Seabird Bycatch Working Group
The Pink-footed Shearwater (Ardenna creatopus) is a seabird with a breeding range restricted to three islands in Chile and an estimated world population of approximately 56,000 breeding individuals (Muñoz 2011, Oikonos unpublished data). Due to multiple threats on breeding colonies and at-sea, Pink-footed Shearwaters are listed as Endangered by the...
First steps for mitigating bycatch of Pink-footed Shearwaters Ardenna creatopus: Identifying overlap of foraging areas and fisheries in Chile
Ryan Carle, Jonathan J. Felis, Verónica López, Josh Adams, Peter Hodum, Jessie Beck, Valentina Colodro, Rodrigo Vega, Andres Gonzalez
2016, Conference Paper, Seventh Meeting of the Seabird Bycatch Working Group
The Pink-footed Shearwater, Ardenna creatopus, is listed as in danger of extinction by Chile and under Annex 1 of ACAP, with an estimated global population of approximately 56,000 individuals. Incidental bycatch of this species in fisheries is thought to be an important cause in population decline (i.e. annual estimated mortality...
Arctic sea ice a major determinant in Mandt's black guillemot movement and distribution during non-breeding season
G.J. Divoky, David C. Douglas, I. J. Stenhouse
2016, Biology Letters (12)
Mandt's black guillemot (Cepphus grylle mandtii) is one of the few seabirds associated in all seasons with Arctic sea ice, a habitat that is changing rapidly. Recent decreases in summer ice have reduced breeding success and colony size of this species in Arctic Alaska. Little is known about the species'...
Synthesis and revision of the lithostratigraphic groups and formations in the Upper Permian?–Lower Jurassic Newark Supergroup of eastern North America
Robert E. Weems, Lawrence H. Tanner, Spencer G. Lucas
2016, Stratigraphy (13) 111-153
The Upper Permian? - Lower Jurassic Newark Supergroup of eastern North America has a strikingly uniform succession of lithologic units. This uniformity is seen regardless of whether these units are characterized on the basis of their lithostratigraphy, allostratigraphy, biostratigraphy, or chemostratigraphy. After deposition, these units were broken up tectonically and...
Land use effects on pesticides in sediments of prairie pothole wetlands in North and South Dakota
Scott T. McMurry, Jason B. Belden, Loren M. Smith, Shane A. Morrison, Dale W. Daniel, Betty R. Euliss, Ned H. Jr. Euliss, Bart J. Kensinger, Brian Tangen
2016, Science of the Total Environment (565) 682-689
Prairie potholes are the dominant wetland type in the intensively cultivated northern Great Plains of North America, and thus have the potential to receive pesticide runoff and drift. We examined the presence of pesticides in sediments of 151 wetlands split among the three dominant land use types, Conservation Reserve Program...
Holocene climate changes in eastern Beringia (NW North America) – A systematic review of multi-proxy evidence
Darrell S. Kaufman, Yarrow L. Axford, Andrew C.G. Henderson, Nicolas P. McKay, W. Wyatt Oswald, Casey Saenger, R. Scott Anderson, Hannah L. Bailey, Benjamin Clegg, Konrad Gajewski, Feng Sheng Hu, Miriam C. Jones, Charly Massa, Cody C. Routson, Al Werner, Matthew J. Wooller, Zicheng Yu
2016, Quaternary Science Reviews (147) 312-339
Reconstructing climates of the past relies on a variety of evidence from a large number of sites to capture the varied features of climate and the spatial heterogeneity of climate change. This review summarizes available information from diverse Holocene paleoenvironmental records across eastern Beringia (Alaska, westernmost Canada and adjacent seas),...
The effects of anthropogenic land cover change on pollen-vegetation relationships in the American Midwest
Ellen Ruth Kujawa, Simon Goring, Andria Dawson, Randy Calcote, Eric Grimm, Sara C. Hotchkiss, Stephen T. Jackson, Elizabeth A. Lynch, Jason S. McLachlan, Jeannine-Marie St-Jacques, Charles Umbanhowar Jr., John W. Williams
2016, Anthropocene (15) 60-71
Fossil pollen assemblages provide information about vegetation dynamics at time scales ranging from centuries to millennia. Pollen-vegetation models and process-based models of dispersal typically assume stable relationships between source vegetation and corresponding pollen in surface sediments, as well as stable parameterizations of dispersal and productivity. These assumptions, however, are...
Restoring sand shinnery oak prairies with herbicide and grazing in New Mexico
Jennifer C. Zavaleta, David A. Haukos, Blake A. Grisham, Clint W. Boal, Charles Dixon
2016, Southwestern Naturalist (61) 225-232
Sand shinnery oak (Quercus havardii) prairies are increasingly disappearing and increasingly degraded in the Southern High Plains of Texas and New Mexico. Restoring and managing sand shinnery oak prairie can support biodiversity, specific species of conservation concern, and livestock production. We measured vegetation response to four treatment combinations of herbicide...
Radiometric calibration updates to the Landsat collection
Esad Micijevic, Obaidul Haque, Nischal Mishra
2016, Conference Paper, Proceedings Volume 9972, Earth Observing Systems XXI
The Landsat Project is planning to implement a new collection management strategy for Landsat products generated at the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center. The goal of the initiative is to identify a collection of consistently geolocated and radiometrically calibrated images across the entire Landsat...
Landsat-7 ETM+ radiometric calibration status
Julia A. Barsi, Brian L. Markham, J. S. Czapla-Myers, Dennis L. Helder, Simon Hook, John R. Schott, Obaidul Haque
2016, Conference Paper, Proceedings Volume 9972, Earth Observing Systems XXI
Now in its 17th year of operation, the Enhanced Thematic Mapper + (ETM+), on board the Landsat-7 satellite, continues to systematically acquire imagery of the Earth to add to the 40+ year archive of Landsat data. Characterization of the ETM+ on-orbit radiometric performance has been on-going since its launch in...
Toxicity of potassium chloride to veliger and byssal stage dreissenid mussels related to water quality
Christine M. Moffitt, Kelly A. Stockton-Fiti, Renata Claudi
2016, Management of Biological Invasions (7) 257-268
Natural resource managers are seeking appropriate chemical eradication and control protocols for infestations of zebra mussels, Dreissena polymorpha (Pallas, 1769), and quagga mussels. D. rostiformis bugensis (Andrusov, 1897) that have limited effect on non-target species. Applications of low concentrations of potassium salt (as potash) have shown promise for use where...
A global review of freshwater crayfish temperature tolerance, preference, and optimal growth
Jacob T. Westhoff, Amanda E. Rosenberger
2016, Reviews in Fish Biology and Fisheries (26) 329-349
Conservation efforts, environmental planning, and management must account for ongoing ecosystem alteration due to a changing climate, introduced species, and shifting land use. This type of management can be facilitated by an understanding of the thermal ecology of aquatic organisms. However, information on thermal ecology for entire taxonomic groups is...
Panarchy use in environmental science for risk and resilience planning
David G. Angeler, Craig R. Allen, Ahjond S. Garmestani, Lance H. Gunderson, Igor Linkov
2016, Environment Systems and Decisions (36) 225-228
Environmental sciences have an important role in informing sustainable management of built environments by providing insights about the drivers and potentially negative impacts of global environmental change. Here, we discuss panarchy theory, a multi-scale hierarchical concept that accounts for the dynamism of complex socio-ecological systems, especially for those systems with...
Estimating the effects of 17α-ethinylestradiol on stochastic population growth rate of fathead minnows: a population synthesis of empirically derived vital rates
Adam R. Schwindt, Dana L. Winkelman
2016, Ecotoxicology (25) 1364-1375
Urban freshwater streams in arid climates are wastewater effluent dominated ecosystems particularly impacted by bioactive chemicals including steroid estrogens that disrupt vertebrate reproduction. However, more understanding of the population and ecological consequences of exposure to wastewater effluent is needed. We used empirically derived vital rate estimates from a mesocosm study...
Nesting ecology of Whimbrels in boreal Alaska
Christopher M. Harwood, Robert E. Gill Jr., Abby Powell
2016, Wader Study (123) 99-113
Breeding ecology studies of boreal waders have been relatively scarce in North America. This paucity is due in part to boreal habitats being difficult to access, and boreal waders being widely dispersed and thus difficult to monitor. Between 2008 and 2014 we studied the nesting ecology of Whimbrels Numenius phaeopus hudsonicus in...
Life history characteristics and vital rates of Yellowstone Cutthroat Trout in two headwater basins
Patrick Uthe, Robert K. Al-Chokhachy, Alexander V. Zale, Bradley B. Shepard, Thomas E. McMahon, Tracy Stephens
2016, North American Journal of Fisheries Management (36) 1240-1253
The Yellowstone Cutthroat Trout Oncorhynchus clarkii bouvieri is native to the Rocky Mountains and has declined in abundance and distribution as a result of habitat degradation and introduced salmonid species. Many of its remaining strongholds are in headwater basins with minimal human disturbances. Understanding the life histories, vital rates, and...
SNP discovery in candidate adaptive genes using exon capture in a free-ranging alpine ungulate
Gretchen H. Roffler, Stephen J. Amish, Seth Smith, Ted F. Cosart, Marty Kardos, Michael K. Schwartz, Gordon Luikart
2016, Molecular Ecology Resources (16) 1147-1164
Identification of genes underlying genomic signatures of natural selection is key to understanding adaptation to local conditions. We used targeted resequencing to identify SNP markers in 5321 candidate adaptive genes associated with known immunological, metabolic and growth functions in ovids and other ungulates. We selectively targeted 8161 exons in protein-coding...
Evidence for wild waterfowl origin of H7N3 influenza A virus detected in captive-reared New Jersey pheasants
Andrew M. Ramey, Mia Kim Torchetti, Rebecca L. Poulson, Deborah L. Carter, Andrew B. Reeves, Paul Link, Patrick Walther, Camille Lebarbenchon, David E. Stallknecht
2016, Archives of Virology (161) 2519-2526
In August 2014, a low-pathogenic H7N3 influenza A virus was isolated from pheasants at a New Jersey gamebird farm and hunting preserve. In this study, we use phylogenetic analyses and calculations of genetic similarity to gain inference into the genetic ancestry of this virus and to identify potential routes of...
A strategy for recovering continuous behavioral telemetry data from Pacific walruses
Anthony S. Fischbach, Chadwick V. Jay
2016, Wildlife Society Bulletin (40) 599-604
Tracking animal behavior and movement with telemetry sensors can offer substantial insights required for conservation. Yet, the value of data collected by animal-borne telemetry systems is limited by bandwidth constraints. To understand the response of Pacific walruses (Odobenus rosmarus divergens) to rapid changes in sea ice availability, we required continuous...
Iron oxide minerals in dust-source sediments from the Bodélé Depression, Chad: Implications for radiative properties and Fe bioavailability of dust plumes from the Sahara
Bruce M. Moskowitz, Richard L. Reynolds, Harland L. Goldstein, Thelma Beroquo, Raymond F. Kokaly, Charlie S Bristow
2016, Aeolian Research (22) 93-106
Atmospheric mineral dust can influence climate and biogeochemical cycles. An important component of mineral dust is ferric oxide minerals (hematite and goethite) which have been shown to influence strongly the optical properties of dust plumes and thus affect the radiative forcing of global dust. Here we report on the iron...
Mapping changing distributions of dominant species in oil-contaminated salt marshes of Louisiana using imaging spectroscopy
Michael Beland, Dar A. Roberts, Seth H. Peterson, Trent W. Biggs, Raymond F. Kokaly, Sarai Piazza, Keely L. Roth, Shruti Khanna, Susan L. Ustin
2016, Remote Sensing of Environment (182) 192-207
The April 2010 Deepwater Horizon (DWH) oil spill was the largest coastal spill in U.S. history. Monitoring subsequent change in marsh plant community distributions is critical to assess ecosystem impacts and to establish future coastal management priorities. Strategically deployed airborne imaging spectrometers, like the Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS),...
