Prevalence of skeletal and eye malformations in frogs from north-central United States: estimations based on collections from randomly selected sites
P.K. Schoff, C.M. Johnson, A.M. Schotthoefer, J.E. Murphy, C. Lieske, Rebecca A. Cole, L.B. Johnson, V.R. Beasley
2003, Journal of Wildlife Diseases (39) 510-521
Skeletal malformation rates for several frog species were determined in a set of randomly selected wetlands in the north-central USA over three consecutive years. In 1998, 62 sites yielded 389 metamorphic frogs, nine (2.3%) of which had skeletal or eye malformations. A subset of the original sites was surveyed in...
High latitude marine reserve research in Glacier Bay National Park
S. James Taggart, Jennifer Mondragon, A.G. Andrews, J.K. Nielsen
2003, Alaska Park Science (2) 27-31
Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve is dominated by the marine waters that make up nearly one-fifth of the park’s area. Since the late 1800s, the nutrient rich waters of Glacier Bay have supported highly productive commercial fisheries. Congress closed fishing in parts of Glacier Bay National Park in 1999,...
Formation and evolution of valley-bottom and channel features, Lower Deschutes River, Oregon
Janet H. Curran, Jim E. O’Conner
Jim E. O’Conner, Gordon E. Grant, editor(s)
2003, AGU Water Science and Application Series 7-5
Primary geologic and geomorphic processes that formed valley-bottom and channel features downstream from the Pelton-Round Butte dam complex are inferred from a canyon-long analysis of feature morphology, composition, location, and spatial distribution. Major controls on valley-bottom morphology are regional tectonics, large landslides, and outsized floods (floods with return periods greater...
Western crevice and cavity-roosting bats
Michael A. Bogan, Paul M. Cryan, Ernest W. Valdez, Laura E. Ellison, Thomas J. O’Shea
2003, Report, Monitoring trends in bat populations of the United States and territories: Problems and prospects (Information and Technology Report 2003-0003)
Among the 45 species of bats that occur in the United States (U.S.), 34 species regularly occur in western regions of the country. Many of these “western” species choose roost sites in crevices or cavities. Herein we provide an introduction to the biology of bats that roost in cavities and...
Immune function and hematology of male cotton rats (Sigmodon hispidus) in response to food supplementation and methionine
R.E. Webb, David M. Leslie Jr., R.L. Lochmiller, R.E. Masters
2003, Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology, Part A: Molecular & Integrative Physiology (136) 577-589
We examined effects of supplementation of food quantity and quality (=enhanced methionine) on hematologic and immunologic parameters of wild, but enclosed, adult male cotton rats (Sigmodon hispidus) in north-central Oklahoma. Sheet metal enclosures were stocked with a high density of wild-caught cotton rats (160 animals/ha) and randomly assigned a treatment...
Isotopic study of sulfate sources and residence times in a subalpine watershed
C.L. Kester, Jill Baron, J.T. Turk
2003, Environmental Geology (43) 606-613
Stable sulfur and oxygen isotope ratios and naturally occurring 35SSO4 activities were used to examine sulfate sources, address the role of sulfur dynamics, and estimate residence times of atmospherically derived sulfate in Loch Vale Watershed, Colorado. In 1996, surface water samples from small streams flowing through talus, forest, and wetland...
Relating geomorphic change and grazing to avian communities in riparian forests
M. L. Scott, S. K. Skagen, M.F. Merligliano
2003, Conservation Biology (17) 284-296
Avian conservation in riparian or bottomland forests requires an understanding of the physical and biotic factors that sustain the structural complexity of riparian vegetation. Riparian forests of western North America are dependent upon flow-related geomorphic processes necessary for establishment of new cottonwood and willow patches. In June 1995, we examined...
Fluorescence excitation-emission matrix regional integration to quantify spectra for dissolved organic matter
W. Chen, P. Westerhoff, J.A. Leenheer, K. Booksh
2003, Environmental Science & Technology (37) 5701-5710
Excitation−emission matrix (EEM) fluorescence spectroscopy has been widely used to characterize dissolved organic matter (DOM) in water and soil. However, interpreting the >10,000 wavelength-dependent fluorescence intensity data points represented in EEMs has posed a significant challenge. Fluorescence regional integration, a quantitative...
Isolation and characterization of microsatellite loci in Greater Sage-Grouse (Centlocerus urophasianus)
S.E. Taylor, S.J. Oyler-McCance, T.W. Quinn
2003, Molecular Ecology Notes (3) 262-264
Primers for five polymorphic microsatellite loci were developed for Greater Sage-Grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) using an enrichment/detection protocol. The high level of polymorphism (nine to 33 alleles) suggests that these loci will be applicable for investigating mating systems and paternity analysis as well as population genetics. Cross-species amplification was successful for...
Isotope variations in white-tailed kites from various habitats in California: Possible limitations in assessing prey utilization and population dynamics
W.M. Iko, C.L. Kester, C.R. Bern, Rey C. Stendell, R. O. Rye
2003, Isotopes in Environmental and Health Studies (39) 159-167
White-tailed kite (Elanus leucurus) populations in the 1930s were close to extirpation in the United States. But by the 1940s, an upward trend towards recovery was apparent and continued to their current stable population levels. These dramatic fluctuations in kite numbers may have been related to changes in rodent prey...
Modeling tritium transport through a deep unsaturated zone, Amargosa Desert Research Site, Nye County, Nevada
C.J. Mayers
2003, Thesis
No abstract available....
Biology, ecology and management of Elaeagnus angustifolia L. (Russian olive) in western North America
G.L. Katz, P.B. Shafroth
2003, Wetlands (23) 763-777
Elaeagnus angustifolia (Russian olive) is an alien tree that is increasingly common in riparian habitats of western North America. This paper reviews the pertinent scientific literature in order to determine the status of E. angustifolia as a riparian invader and to suggest ecological reasons for its success. Elaeagnus angustifolia meets...
Do ungulates accelerate or decelerate nitrogen cycling?
F. J. Singer, K.A. Schoenecker
2003, Forest Ecology and Management (181) 189-204
Nitrogen (N) is an essential nutrient for plants and animals, and N may be limiting in many western US grassland and shrubland ungulate winter ranges. Ungulates may influence N pools and they may alter N inputs and outputs (losses) to the ecosystem in a number of ways. In this paper...
Helping to combat chronic wasting disease
Water Resources Division, U.S. Geological Survey
2003, Fact Sheet 2005-3076
Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a disease of the nervous system that results in distinctive brain lesions. CWD affects elk, white-tailed deer, and mule deer, but has not been documented in livestock or humans. The origins of the disease, as well as the modes of transmission, remain unknown. Infected deer...
The rich get richer: Patterns of plant invasions in the United States
T.J. Stohlgren, D.T. Barnett, J.T. Kartesz
2003, Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment (1) 11-14
Observations from islands, small-scale experiments, and mathematical models have generally supported the paradigm that habitats of low plant diversity are more vulnerable to plant invasions than areas of high plant diversity. We summarize two independent data sets to show exactly the opposite pattern at multiple spatial scales. More significant, and...
Monitoring the shorebirds of North America: Towards a unified approach
S. K. Skagen, J. Bart, B. Andres, S. Brown, G. Donaldson, B. Harrington, V. Johnston, S.L. Jones, R. I. G. Morrison
2003, Wader Study Group Bulletin (100) 102-104
The Program for Regional and International Shorebird Monitoring (PRISM) has recently developed a single blueprint for monitoring shorebirds in Canada and the United States in response to needs identified by recent shorebird conservation plans. The goals of PRISM are to: (1) estimate the size of breeding populations of 74 shorebird...
Traceable Radiometry Underpinning Terrestrial - and Helio- Studies (TRUTHS)
N. Fox, J. Aiken, J.J. Barnett, X. Briottet, R. Carvell, C. Frohlich, S.B. Groom, O. Hagolle, J.D. Haigh, H. H. Kieffer, J. Lean, D.B. Pollock, T. Quinn, M.C.W. Sandford, M. Schaepman, K.P. Shine, W.K. Schmutz, P.M. Teillet, K. J. Thome, M.M. Verstraete, E. Zalewski
2003, Advances in Space Research (32) 2253-2261
The Traceable Radiometry Underpinning Terrestrial- and Helio- Studies (TRUTHS) mission offers a novel approach to the provision of key scientific data with unprecedented radiometric accuracy for Earth Observation (EO) and solar studies, which will also establish well-calibrated reference targets/standards to support other EO missions. This paper presents the TRUTHS mission...
Conclusion
L. David Mech, Luigi Boitani
L. David Mech, Luigi Boitani, editor(s)
2003, Book chapter, Wolves: Behavior, Ecology and Conservation
Wolves can live almost anywhere in the Northern Hemisphere, and almost everywhere they do, they are an issue. In the vast emptiness of the northern tundra or the Arabian desert, on the outskirts of a European town or in the safety of an American national park, in meager agricultural lands...
Effects of spatial and temporal variability of turbidity on phytoplankton blooms
Christine L. May, Jeffrey R. Koseff, Lisa Lucas, James E. Cloern, David H. Schoellhamer
2003, Marine Ecology Progress Series (254) 111-128
A central challenge of coastal ecology is sorting out the interacting spatial and temporal components of environmental variability that combine to drive changes in phytoplankton biomass. For 2 decades, we have combined sustained observation and experimentation in South San Francisco Bay (SSFB) with numerical modeling analyses to search for general...
Specific-conductance, water-temperature, and water-level data, San Francisco Bay, California, for water years 2001-2002
P.A. Buchanan
2003, Interagency Ecological Program Newsletter (16) 25-30
This article presents time-series plots of specific-conductance, water-temperature, and water-level data collected in San Francisco Bay during water years 2001 and 2002 (October 1, 2000, through September 30, 2002). Specific-conductance and water-temperature data were recorded at 15-minute intervals at the following US Geological Survey (USGS) locations (Figure 1): • Suisun...
Trends in the sediment yield of the Sacramento River, 1957-2001
S.A. Wright, D. H. Schoellhamer
2003, Conference Paper, Proceedings of the 2003 CALFED Science Conference
No abstract available....
Amphibian conservation genetics
C.M. Bridges, C. L. Rowe, W. A. Hopkins
2003, Book chapter, Amphibian decline: An integrated analysis of multiple stressor effects
No abstract available....
Desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii) survival at two eastern Mojave Desert sites: Death by short-term drought?
Kathleen M. Longshore, Jef R. Jaeger, J. Mark Sappington
2003, Journal of Herpetology (37) 169-177
Survival of adult Desert Tortoises (Gopherus agassizii) appears related to site-specific variation in precipitation and productivity of annual plants. We studied adult tortoise survival rates at two closely situated, but physiographically different, sites in the eastern Mojave Desert over a nine-year period (spring 1992 to spring 2001). Survival rates were...
Sea otter population declines in the Aleutian Archipelago
Angela M. Doroff, James A. Estes, M. Tim Tinker, Douglas M. Burn, Thomas J. Evans
2003, Journal of Mammalogy (84) 55-64
Sea otter (Enhydra lutris) populations were exploited to near extinction and began to recover after the cessation of commercial hunting in 1911. Remnant colonies of sea otters in the Aleutian archipelago were among the first to recover; they continued to increase through the 1980s but declined abruptly during the 1990s....
High-resolution climatic evolution of coastal northern California during the past 16,000 years
J.A. Barron, L. Heusser, T. Herbert, M. Lyle
2003, Paleoceanography (18) 20-1-20-19
Holocene and latest Pleistocene oceanographic conditions and the coastal climate of northern California have varied greatly, based upon high-resolution studies (ca. every 100 years) of diatoms, alkenones, pollen, CaCO3%, and total organic carbon at Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) Site 1019 (41.682°N, 124.930°W, 980 m water depth). Marine climate proxies (alkenone...
