Nuclear and mitochondrial DNA analyses of golden eagles (Aquila chrysaetos canadensis) from three areas in western North America; initial results and conservation implications
Erica H. Craig, Jennifer R. Adams, Lisette P. Waits, Mark R. Fuller, Diana M. Whittington
2016, PLoS ONE (11)
Understanding the genetics of a population is a critical component of developing conservation strategies. We used archived tissue samples from golden eagles (Aquila chrysaetos canadensis) in three geographic regions of western North America to conduct a preliminary study of the genetics of the North American subspecies, and to provide data...
Large along-strike variations in the onset of Subandean exhumation: Implications for Central Andean orogenic growth
Richard O. Lease, T.A. Ehlers, E. Enkelmann
2016, Earth and Planetary Science Letters (451) 62-76
Plate tectonics drives mountain building in general, but the space-time pattern and style of deformation is influenced by how climate, geodynamics, and basement structure modify the orogenic wedge. Growth of the Subandean thrust belt, which lies at the boundary between the arid, high-elevation Central Andean Plateau and its humid, low-elevation...
Recurrent hybridization and recent origin obscure phylogenetic relationships within the ‘white-headed’ gull (Larus sp.) complex
Sarah A. Sonsthagen, Robert E. Wilson, Terry Chesser, Jean-Marc Pons, Pierre-Andre Crochet, Amy Driscoll, Carla Dove
2016, Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution (103) 41-54
Species complexes that have undergone recent radiations are often characterized by extensive allele sharing due to recent ancestry and (or) introgressive hybridization. This can result in discordant evolutionary histories of genes and heterogeneous genomes, making delineating species limits difficult. Here we examine the phylogenetic relationships among a complex group of...
Weak support for disappearance and restricted emergence/persistence of highly pathogenic influenza A in North American waterfowl
Andrew M. Ramey, Erica Spackman, Mia Kim Torchetti, Thomas J. DeLiberto
2016, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (113) E6551-E6552
Krauss et al. (1) use lack of detection of highly pathogenic (HP) H5 clade 2.3.4.4 (henceforth "H5") influenza A viruses (IAVs) from >22,000 wild bird samples collected in North America in 2014–2015 to argue that HP H5 IAVs disappeared from waterfowl and that unresolved mechanisms restrict emergence and perpetuation of...
Estimating denning date of wolves with daily movement and GPS location fix failure
Patrick B. Walsh, Suresh Sethi, Bryce C. Lake, Buck A. Mangipane, Ryan Nielson, Stacey Lowe
2016, Wildlife Society Bulletin (40) 663-668
We used Global Positioning System (GPS) radiotelemetry data from 7 breeding female wolves (Canis lupus; n = 14 dennings) in 3 regions across Alaska, USA, during 2008–2011 to develop and compare methods for estimating the onset of denning, and thus infer timing of parturition. We developed and tested 2 estimators based on a...
Recovery of sockeye salmon in the Elwha River, Washington, after dam removal: Dependence of smolt production on the resumption of anadromy by landlocked kokanee
Adam G. Hansen, Jennifer R. Gardner, David A. Beauchamp, Rebecca Paradis, Thomas P. Quinn
2016, Transactions of the American Fisheries Society (145) 1303-1317
Pacific salmon Oncorhynchus spp. are adept at colonizing habitat that has been reopened to anadromous passage. Sockeye Salmon O. nerka are unique in that most populations require lakes to fulfill their life history. Thus, for Sockeye Salmon to colonize a system, projects like dam removals must provide access to lakes....
Daniel Goodman’s empirical approach to Bayesian statistics
Tim Gerrodette, Eric Ward, Rebecca L. Taylor, Lisa K. Schwarz, Tomoharu Eguchi, Paul Wade, Gina Himes Boor
2016, PeerJ
Bayesian statistics, in contrast to classical statistics, uses probability to represent uncertainty about the state of knowledge. Bayesian statistics has often been associated with the idea that knowledge is subjective and that a probability distribution represents a personal degree of belief. Dr. Daniel Goodman considered this viewpoint problematic for issues...
Comparison of mercury mass loading in streams to atmospheric deposition in watersheds of Western North America: Evidence for non-atmospheric mercury sources
Joseph L. Domagalski, Michael S. Majewski, Charles N. Alpers, Chris S. Eckley, Collin A. Eagles-Smith, Liam N. Schenk, Susan Wherry
2016, Science of the Total Environment (568) 638-650
Annual stream loads of mercury (Hg) and inputs of wet and dry atmospheric Hg deposition to the landscape were investigated in watersheds of the Western United States and the Canadian-Alaskan Arctic. Mercury concentration and discharge data from flow gauging stations were used to compute annual mass loads with regression models....
Interaction between climate, volcanism, and isostatic rebound in Southeast Alaska during the last deglaciation
Summer Praetorius, Alan Mix, Britta Jensen, Duane Froese, Glenn A. Milne, Matthew Wolhowe, Jason A. Addison, Fred Prahl
2016, Earth and Planetary Science Letters (452) 79-89
Observations of enhanced volcanic frequency during the last deglaciation have led to the hypothesis that ice unloading in glaciated volcanic terrains can promote volcanism through decompression melting in the shallow mantle or a reduction in crustal magma storage time. However, a direct link between regional climate change, isostatic adjustment, and...
Detecting and inferring cause of change in an Alaska nearshore marine ecosystem
H. A. Coletti, James L. Bodkin, Daniel Monson, Brenda E. Ballachey, T. A. Dean
2016, Ecosphere (7)
Community composition, species abundance, and species distribution are expected to change while monitoring ecosystems over time, and effective management of natural resources requires understanding mechanisms contributing to change. Marine ecosystems in particular can be difficult to monitor, in part due to large, multidimensional spatial scales and complex...
Evaluating models of population process in a threatened population of Steller’s eiders: A retrospective approach
Kylee Dunham, J. Barry Grand
2016, Open-File Report 2016-1062
The Alaskan breeding population of Steller’s eiders (Polysticta stelleri) was listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act in 1997 in response to perceived declines in abundance throughout their breeding and nesting range. Aerial surveys suggest the breeding population is small and highly variable in number, with zero birds counted...
Viability of the Alaskan breeding population of Steller’s eiders
Kylee Dunham, J. Barry Grand
2016, Open-File Report 2016-1084
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is tasked with setting objective and measurable criteria for delisting species or populations listed under the Endangered Species Act. Determining the acceptable threshold for extinction risk for any species or population is a challenging task, particularly when facing marked uncertainty. The Alaskan breeding population...
Helminth community structure in two species of arctic-breeding waterfowl
Courtney L. Amundson, N.J. Traub, A.J. Smith-Herron, Paul L. Flint
2016, International Journal for Parasitology: Parasites and Wildlife (5) 263-272
Climate change is occurring rapidly at high latitudes, and subsequent changes in parasite communities may have implications for hosts including wildlife and humans. Waterfowl, in particular, harbor numerous parasites and may facilitate parasite movement across broad geographic areas due to migratory movements. However, little is known about helminth community structure...
Lateral and subsurface flows impact arctic coastal plain lake water budgets
Joshua C. Koch
2016, Hydrological Processes (30) 3918-3931
Arctic thaw lakes are an important source of water for aquatic ecosystems, wildlife, and humans. Many recent studies have observed changes in Arctic surface waters related to climate warming and permafrost thaw; however, explaining the trends and predicting future responses to warming is difficult without a stronger fundamental understanding of...
Consequences of changes in vegetation and snow cover for climate feedbacks in Alaska and northwest Canada
Eugénie S. Euskirchen, A. P. Bennett, Amy L. Breen, Helene Genet, Michael A. Lindgren, Tom Kurkowski, A. David McGuire, T. Scott Rupp
2016, Environmental Research Letters (11) 1-19
Changes in vegetation and snow cover may lead to feedbacks to climate through changes in surface albedo and energy fluxes between the land and atmosphere. In addition to these biogeophysical feedbacks, biogeochemical feedbacks associated with changes in carbon (C) storage in the vegetation and soils may also influence climate. Here,...
Influence of glacier runoff on ecosystem structure in Gulf of Alaska fjords
Mayumi L. Arimitsu, John F. Piatt, Franz J. Mueter
2016, Marine Ecology Progress Series (560) 19-40
To better understand the influence of glacier runoff on fjord ecosystems, we sampled oceanographic conditions, nutrients, zooplankton, forage fish and seabirds within 4 fjords in coastal areas of the Gulf Alaska. We used generalized additive models and geostatistics to identify the range of glacier runoff influence into coastal waters within...
Climate change and indigenous peoples: A synthesis of current impacts and experiences
Kathryn Norton-Smith, Kathy Lynn, Karletta Chief, Karen Cozetto, Jamie Donatuto, Margaret Hiza, Linda Kruger, Julie Maldonado, Carson Viles, Kyle P. Whyte
2016, General Technical Report PNW-GTR-944
A growing body of literature examines the vulnerability, risk, resilience, and adaptation of indigenous peoples to climate change. This synthesis of literature brings together research pertaining to the impacts of climate change on sovereignty, culture, health, and economies that are currently being experienced by Alaska Native and American Indian tribes...
Late Oligocene to present contractional structure in and around the Susitna basin, Alaska—Geophysical evidence and geological implications
Richard W. Saltus, Richard G. Stanley, Peter J. Haeussler, James V. Jones III, Christopher J. Potter, Kristen A. Lewis
2016, Geosphere (12) 1378-1390
The Cenozoic Susitna basin lies within an enigmatic lowland surrounded by the Central Alaska Range, Western Alaska Range (including the Tordrillo Mountains), and Talkeetna Mountains in south-central Alaska. Some previous interpretations show normal faults as the defining structures of the basin (e.g., Kirschner, 1994). However, analysis of new and existing...
The timing of compositionally-zoned magma reservoirs and mafic 'priming' weeks before the 1912 Novarupta-Katmai rhyolite eruption
Brad S. Singer, Fidel Costa, Jason S. Herrin, Wes Hildreth, Judith Fierstein
2016, Earth and Planetary Science Letters (451) 125-137
The June 6, 1912 eruption of more than 13 km3 of dense rock equivalent (DRE) magma at Novarupta vent, Alaska was the largest of the 20th century. It ejected >7 km3 of rhyolite, ~1.3 km3 of andesite and ~4.6 km3 of dacite. Early ideas about the origin of pyroclastic flows...
DOM composition and transformation in boreal forest soils: The effects of temperature and organic-horizon decomposition state
Jonathan A. O’Donnell, George R. Aiken, Kenna D. Butler, Francois Guillemette, David C. Podgorski, Robert G. M. Spencer
2016, Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences (121) 2727-2744
The boreal region stores large amounts of organic carbon (C) in organic-soil horizons, which are vulnerable to destabilization via warming and disturbance. Decomposition of soil organic matter (SOM) contributes to the production and turnover of dissolved organic matter (DOM). While temperature is a primary control on rates of SOM and...
Using smooth sheets to describe groundfish habitat in Alaskan waters, with specific application to two flatfishes
Mark Zimmermann, Jane A. Reid, Nadine E. Golden
2016, Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography (132) 210-226
In this analysis we demonstrate how preferred fish habitat can be predicted and mapped for juveniles of two Alaskan groundfish species – Pacific halibut (Hippoglossus stenolepis) and flathead sole (Hippoglossoides elassodon) – at five sites (Kiliuda Bay, Izhut Bay, Port Dick, Aialik Bay, and the Barren Islands) in the central...
Blood serum chemistry of wild Alaskan Black-capped Chickadees (Poecile atricapillus) with avian keratin disorder
Caroline R. Van Hemert, Colleen M. Handel
2016, Journal of Wildlife Diseases (52) 927-930
We measured serum chemistries in wild Black-capped Chickadees (Poecile atricapillus) from Alaska to test for potential differences associated with beak deformities characteristic of avian keratin disorder. Lower uric acid in affected birds was the only difference detected between groups, although sample sizes were small. This difference could be associated with...
Evidence for shallow megathrust slip across the Unalaska seismic gap during the great 1957 Andreanof Islands earthquake, eastern Aleutian Islands, Alaska
D. J. Nicolsky, J.T. Freymueller, Robert C. Witter, E. N. Suleimani, R.D. Koehler
2016, Geophysical Research Letters (43) 10328-10337
We reassess the slip distribution of the 1957 Andreanof Islands earthquake in the eastern part of the aftershock zone where published slip models infer little or no slip. Eyewitness reports, tide gauge data, and geological evidence for 9–23 m tsunami runups imply seafloor deformation offshore Unalaska Island in 1957, in contrast...
Development of ion-exchange collectors for monitoring atmospheric deposition of inorganic pollutants in Alaska parklands
William G. Brumbaugh, Jesse W. Arms, Greg L. Linder, Vanessa D. Melton
2016, Scientific Investigations Report 2016-5096
Between 2010 and 2014, the U.S. Geological Survey completed a series of laboratory and field experiments designed to develop methodology to support the National Park Service’s long-term atmospheric pollutant monitoring efforts in parklands of Arctic Alaska. The goals of this research were to develop passive sampling methods that could be...
Potential of environmental DNA to evaluate Northern pike (Esox lucius) eradication efforts: An experimental test and case study
Kristine J. Dunker, Adam J. Sepulveda, Robert L. Massengill, Jeffrey B. Olsen, Ora L. Russ, John K. Wenburg, Anton Antonovich
2016, PLoS ONE (11)
Determining the success of invasive species eradication efforts is challenging because populations at very low abundance are difficult to detect. Environmental DNA (eDNA) sampling has recently emerged as a powerful tool for detecting rare aquatic animals; however, detectable fragments of DNA can persist over time despite absence of the targeted...
