Using natural range of variation to set decision thresholds: a case study for great plains grasslands
Amy J. Symstad, Jayne L. Jonas
Glenn R. Guntenspergen, editor(s)
2014, Book chapter, Application of threshold concepts in natural resource decision making
Natural range of variation (NRV) may be used to establish decision thresholds or action assessment points when ecological thresholds are either unknown or do not exist for attributes of interest in a managed ecosystem. The process for estimating NRV involves identifying spatial and temporal scales that adequately capture the heterogeneity...
Distribution and transmission of the highly pathogenic parasite Ichthyophonus in marine fishes of Alaska
Jacob L. Gregg, Courtney A. Grady, Rachel L. Thompson, Maureen K. Purcell, Carolyn S. Friedman, Paul K. Hershberger
2014, Report
A combination of field surveys, molecular typing, and laboratory experiments were used to improve our understanding of the distribution and transmission mechanisms of fish parasites in the genus Ichthyophonus. Ichthyophonus spp. infections were detected from the Bering Sea to the coast of Oregon in 10 of 13 host species surveyed....
Plants in alpine environments
Matthew J. Germino
2014, Book chapter, Ecology and the environment
Alpine and subalpine plant species are of special interest in ecology and ecophysiology because they represent life at the climate limit and changes in their relative abundances can be a bellwether for climate-change impacts. Perennial life forms dominate alpine plant communities, and their form and function reflect various avoidance, tolerance, or...
A Bayesian network approach to predicting nest presence of thefederally-threatened piping plover (Charadrius melodus) using barrier island features
Katherina D. Gieder, Sarah M. Karpanty, James D. Fraser, Daniel H. Catlin, Benjamin T. Gutierrez, Nathaniel G. Plant, Aaron M. Turecek, E. Robert Thieler
2014, Ecological Modelling (276) 38-50
Sea-level rise and human development pose significant threats to shorebirds, particularly for species that utilize barrier island habitat. The piping plover (Charadrius melodus) is a federally-listed shorebird that nests on barrier islands and rapidly responds to changes in its physical environment, making it an excellent species with which to...
Influence of landscape characteristics on retention of expandable radiocollars on young ungulates
Troy W. Grovenburg, Robert W. Klaver, Christopher N. Jacques, Todd J. Brinkman, Christopher C. Swanson, Christopher S. DePerno, Kevin L. Monteith, Jaret D. Sievers, Vernon C. Bleich, John G. Kie, Jonathan A. Jenks
2014, Wildlife Society Bulletin (38) 89-95
One tool used for wildlife management is the deployment of radiocollars to gain knowledge of animal populations. Understanding the influence of individual factors (e.g., species, collar characteristics) and landscape characteristics (e.g., forested cover, shrubs, and fencing) on retention of expandable radiocollars for ungulates is important for obtaining empirical data on...
Survival and metamorphosis of low-density populations of larval sea lampreys (Petromyzon marinus) in streams following lampricide treatment
Nicholas S. Johnson, William D. Swink, Travis O. Brenden, Jeffrey W. Slade, Todd B. Steeves, Michael F. Fodale, Michael L. Jones
2014, Journal of Great Lakes Research (40) 155-163
Sea lamprey Petromyzon marinus control in the Great Lakes primarily involves application of lampricides to streams where larval production occurs to kill larvae prior to their metamorphosing and entering the lakes as parasites (juveniles). Because lampricides are not 100% effective, larvae that survive treatment maymetamorphose before streams are again treated....
Geochemical fingerprinting of Wilson Creek formation tephra layers (Mono Basin, California) using titanomagnetite compositions
Mae Marcaida, Margaret T. Mangan, Jorge A. Vazquez, Marcus Bursik, Marsha I. Lidzbarski
2014, Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research (273) 1-14
Nineteen tephra layers within the Wilson Creek formation near Mono Lake provide a record of late Pleistocene to early Holocene volcanic activity from the nearby Mono Craters and are important chronostratigraphic markers for paleomagnetic, paleoclimatic, and paleoecologic studies. These stratigraphically important tephra deposits can be geochemically identified using compositions of...
A conceptual framework for clutch size evolution in songbirds
Thomas E. Martin
2014, American Naturalist (183) 313-324
Causes of evolved differences in clutch size among songbird species remain debated. I propose a new conceptual framework that integrates aspects of traditional life history theory, while including novel elements, to explain evolution of clutch size among songbirds. I review evidence that selection by nest predation on length of time...
Survival and behaviour of juvenile unionid mussels exposed to thermal stress and dewatering in the presence of a sediment temperature gradient
L. Archambault, W. Gregory Cope, Thomas J. Kwak
2014, Freshwater Biology (59) 601-613
Freshwater mussels (Unionidae) are a highly imperilled faunal group. One critical threat is thermal sensitivity, because global climate change and other anthropogenic activities contribute to increasing stream temperature and altered hydrologic flow that may be detrimental to freshwater mussels. We incorporated four benthic environmental components - temperature, sediment, water...
Temperate and boreal forest mega-fires: characteristics and challenges
Scott L. Stephens, Neil Burrows, Alexander Buyantuyev, Robert W. Gray, Robert E. Keane, Rick Kubian, Shirong Liu, Francisco Seijo, Lifu Shu, Kevin G. Tolhurst, Jan W. Van Wagtendonk
2014, Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment (12) 115-122
Mega-fires are often defined according to their size and intensity but are more accurately described by their socioeconomic impacts. Three factors – climate change, fire exclusion, and antecedent disturbance, collectively referred to as the “mega-fire triangle” – likely contribute to today's mega-fires. Some characteristics of mega-fires may emulate historical fire...
InSAR imaging of Aleutian volcanoes: Monitoring a volcanic arc from space
Zhong Lu, Daniel Dzurisin
2014, Book
No abstract available....
How much land is needed for feral pig hunting in Hawai'i?
Steven C. Hess, James D. Jacobi
2014, Pacific Conservation Biology (30) 54-56
Hunting is often considered to be incompatible with conservation of native biota and watershed functions in Hawai'i. Management actions for conservation generally exclude large non-native mammals from natural areas, thereby reducing the amount of land area available for hunting activities and the maintenance of sustainable game populations. An approach which...
Wetland Accretion Rate Model of Ecosystem Resilience (WARMER) and its application to habitat sustainability for endangered species in the San Francisco Estuary
Kathleen M. Swanson, Judith Z. Drexler, David H. Schoellhamer, Karen M. Thorne, Michael L. Casazza, Cory T. Overton, John C. Callaway, John Y. Takekawa
2014, Estuaries and Coasts (37) 476-492
Salt marsh faunas are constrained by specific habitat requirements for marsh elevation relative to sea level and tidal range. As sea level rises, changes in relative elevation of the marsh plain will have differing impacts on the availability of habitat for marsh obligate species. The Wetland Accretion Rate Model for...
The key role of dry days in changing regional climate and precipitation regimes
Suraj Polade, David W. Pierce, Daniel R. Cayan, Alexander Gershunov, Michael D. Dettinger
2014, Scientific Reports (4)
Future changes in the number of dry days per year can either reinforce or counteract projected increases in daily precipitation intensity as the climate warms. We analyze climate model projected changes in the number of dry days using 28 coupled global climate models from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project, version...
Aspidoscelis deppii (black-bellied racerunner). Predation by turkey vulture.
Robert P. Reynolds, Christina A. Gebhard
2014, Herpetological Review (45) 124-124
Aspidoscelis deppii is widely distributed from Veracruz and Michoacan, Mexico, to Costa Rica (Köhler et al. 2006. The Amphibians and Reptiles of El Salvador, Krieger Publishing Company, Malabar, Florida. 238 pp.). Neotropical lizards are abundant and common prey to all classes of terrestrial vertebrates, and bird predation of lizards is...
Toxicity and accumulation of silver nanoparticles during development of the marine polychaete Platynereis dumerilii
Javier Garcia-Alonso, Neus Rodriguez-Sanchez, Superb K. Misra, Eugenia Valsami-Jones, Marie-Noële Croteau, Samuel N. Luoma, Philip S. Rainbow
2014, Science of the Total Environment (476-477) 688-695
Pollutants affecting species at the population level generate ecological instability in natural systems. The success of early life stages, such as those of aquatic invertebrates, is highly affected by adverse environmental conditions. Silver released into the environment from emerging nanotechnology represents such a threat. Sediments are sinks for numerous pollutants,...
Water resources management in the Ganges Basin: a comparison of three strategies for conjunctive use of groundwater and surface water
Mahfuzur R. Khan, Clifford I. Voss, Winston Yu, Holly A. Michael
2014, Water Resources Management (28) 1235-1250
The most difficult water resources management challenge in the Ganges Basin is the imbalance between water demand and seasonal availability. More than 80 % of the annual flow in the Ganges River occurs during the 4-month monsoon, resulting in widespread flooding. During the rest of the year, irrigation, navigation, and...
Hybridization of an invasive shrub affects tolerance and resistance to defoliation by a biological control agent
Wyatt I. Williams, Jonathan M. Friedman, John F. Gaskin, Andrew P. Norton
2014, Evolutionary Applications (7) 381-393
Evolution has contributed to the successful invasion of exotic plant species in their introduced ranges, but how evolution affects particular control strategies is still under evaluation. For instance, classical biological control, a common strategy involving the utilization of highly specific natural enemies to control exotic pests, may be negatively affected...
Suppressing bullfrog larvae with carbon dioxide
Mark Abbey-Lambert, Andrew Ray, Megan J. Layhee, Christine L. Densmore, Adam Sepulveda, Jackson A. Gross, Barnaby J. Watten
2014, Journal of Herpetology (48) 59-66
Current management strategies for the control and suppression of the American Bullfrog (Lithobates catesbeianus = Rana catesbeiana Shaw) and other invasive amphibians have had minimal effect on their abundance and distribution. This study evaluates the effects of carbon dioxide (CO2) on pre- and prometamorphic Bullfrog larvae. Bullfrogs are a model organism...
Watershed-scale modeling of streamflow change in incised montane meadows
Hedeff I. Essaid, Barry R. Hill
2014, Water Resources Research (50) 2657-2678
Land use practices have caused stream channel incision and water table decline in many montane meadows of the Western United States. Incision changes the magnitude and timing of streamflow in water supply source watersheds, a concern to resource managers and downstream water users. The hydrology of montane meadows under natural...
Statistical evaluation of variables affecting occurrence of hydrocarbons in aquifers used for public supply, California
Matthew K. Landon, Carmen A. Burton, Tracy A. Davis, Kenneth Belitz, Tyler D. Johnson
2014, Journal of the American Water Resources Association (50) 179-195
The variables affecting the occurrence of hydrocarbons in aquifers used for public supply in California were assessed based on statistical evaluation of three large statewide datasets; gasoline oxygenates also were analyzed for comparison with hydrocarbons. Benzene is the most frequently detected (1.7%) compound among 17 hydrocarbons analyzed at generally low...
Predictions of barrier island berm evolution in a time-varying storm climatology
Nathaniel G. Plant, James Flocks, Hilary F. Stockdon, Joseph W. Long, Kristy K. Guy, David M. Thompson, Jamie M. Cormier, Christopher G. Smith, Jennifer L. Miselis, P. Soupy Dalyander
2014, Journal of Geophysical Research F: Earth Surface (119) 300-316
Low-lying barrier islands are ubiquitous features of the world's coastlines, and the processes responsible for their formation, maintenance, and destruction are related to the evolution of smaller, superimposed features including sand dunes, beach berms, and sandbars. The barrier island and its superimposed features interact with oceanographic forces (e.g., overwash) and...
Methods to estimate distribution and range extent of grizzly bears in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem
Mark A. Haroldson, Charles C. Schwartz, Daniel J. Thompson, Daniel D. Bjornlie, Kerry A. Gunther, Steven L. Cain, Daniel B. Tyers, Kevin L. Frey, Bryan C. Aber
2014, Wildlife Society Bulletin (38) 182-187
The distribution of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem grizzly bear (Ursus arctos) population has expanded into areas unoccupied since the early 20th century. Up-to-date information on the area and extent of this distribution is crucial for federal, state, and tribal wildlife and land managers to make informed decisions regarding grizzly bear...
Rapid earthquake characterization using MEMS accelerometers and volunteer hosts following the M 7.2 Darfield, New Zealand, Earthquake
J. F. Lawrence, E.S. Cochran, A. Chung, A. Kaiser, C. M. Christensen, R. Allen, J.W. Baker, B. Fry, T. Heaton, Debi Kilb, M.D. Kohler, M. Taufer
2014, Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America (104) 184-192
We test the feasibility of rapidly detecting and characterizing earthquakes with the Quake‐Catcher Network (QCN) that connects low‐cost microelectromechanical systems accelerometers to a network of volunteer‐owned, Internet‐connected computers. Following the 3 September 2010 M 7.2 Darfield, New Zealand, earthquake we installed over 180 QCN sensors in the Christchurch region to...
Seismological analyses of the 2010 March 11, Pichilemu, Chile Mw 7.0 and Mw 6.9 coastal intraplate earthquakes
Javier A. Ruiz, Gavin P. Hayes, Daniel Carrizo, Hiroo Kanamori, Anne Socquet, Diana Comte
2014, Geophysical Journal International (196)
On 2010 March 11, a sequence of large, shallow continental crust earthquakes shook central Chile. Two normal faulting events with magnitudes around Mw 7.0 and Mw 6.9 occurred just 15 min apart, located near the town of Pichilemu. These kinds of large intraplate, inland crustal earthquakes are rare above the...
