Prevalence of pure versus mixed snow cover pixels across spatial resolutions in alpine environments: implications for binary and fractional remote sensing approaches
David J. Selkowitz, Richard Forster, Megan K. Caldwell
2014, Remote Sensing (6) 12478-12508
Remote sensing of snow-covered area (SCA) can be binary (indicating the presence/absence of snow cover at each pixel) or fractional (indicating the fraction of each pixel covered by snow). Fractional SCA mapping provides more information than binary SCA, but is more difficult to implement and may not be feasible with...
A reply to Jepsen, N., K. Aarestrup and S.J. Cooke. Tagging fish in the field: ethical and procedural considerations. A comment to the recent paper of D. Mulcahy; Legal, ethical and procedural bases for the use of aseptic techniques to implant electronic devices, ( Journal of Fish and Wildlife Management 4: 211–219)
Daniel M. Mulcahy
2014, Journal of Fish and Wildlife Management (5) 445-449
Effects of invasive European bird cherry (Prunus padus) on leaf litter processing by aquatic invertebrate shredder communities in urban Alaskan streams
David A. Roon, Mark S. Wipfli, Tricia L. Wurtz
2014, Hydrobiologia (736) 17-30
European bird cherry (Prunus padus) (EBC) is an invasive ornamental tree that is spreading rapidly in riparian forests of urban Alaska. To determine how the spread of EBC affects leaf litter processing by aquatic invertebrate shredders, we conducted complementary leaf pack experiments in two streams located in Anchorage, Alaska. The...
Wildlife health in a rapidly changing North: focus on avian disease
Caroline R. Van Hemert, John M. Pearce, Colleen M. Handel
2014, Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment (12) 548-556
Climate-related environmental changes have increasingly been linked to emerging infectious diseases in wildlife. The Arctic is facing a major ecological transition that is expected to substantially affect animal and human health. Changes in phenology or environmental conditions that result from climate warming may promote novel species assemblages as host and...
Satellite tracking of the migration of Whooper Swans Cygnus cygnus wintering in Japan
Tetsuo Shimada, Noriyuki M. Yamaguchi, N. Hijikata, Emiko N. Hiraoka, Jerry W. Hupp, Paul L. Flint, Ken-ichi Tokita, Go Fujita, Kiyoshi Uchida, F. Sato, Masayuki Kurechi, John M. Pearce, Andrew M. Ramey, Hiroyoshi Higuchi
2014, Ornithological Science (13) 67-75
We satellite-tracked Whooper Swans Cygnus cygnus wintering in northern Japan to document their migration routes and timing, and to identify breeding areas. From 47 swans that we marked at Lake Izunuma-Uchinuma, Miyagi Prefecture, northeast Honshu, and at Lake Kussharo, east Hokkaido, we observed 57 spring and 33 autumn migrations from...
Nitrogen cycling processes and microbial community composition in bed sediments in the Yukon River at Pilot Station
Deborah A. Repert, Jennifer C. Underwood, Richard L. Smith, Bongkeun Song
2014, Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences (119) 2328-2344
Information on the contribution of nitrogen (N)-cycling processes in bed sediments to river nutrient fluxes in large northern latitude river systems is limited. This study examined the relationship between N-cycling processes in bed sediments and N speciation and loading in the Yukon River near its mouth at the Bering Sea....
Sources and sinks of carbon in boreal ecosystems of interior Alaska: a review
Thomas A. Douglas, Miriam C. Jones, Christopher A. Hiemstra
2014, Elementa: Science of the Anthropocene (2)
Boreal regions store large quantities of carbon but are increasingly vulnerable to carbon loss due to disturbance and climate warming. The boreal region, underlain by discontinuous permafrost, presents a challenging landscape for itemizing current and potential carbon sources and sinks in the boreal soil and vegetation. The roles of fire,...
The 2010 slow slip event and secular motion at Kilauea, Hawai`i inferred from TerraSAR-X InSAR data
Jingyi Chen, Howard A. Zebker, Paul Segall, Asta Miklius
2014, Journal of Geophysical Research B: Solid Earth (119) 6667-6683
We present here an Small BAseline Subset (SBAS) algorithm to extract both transient and secular ground deformations on the order of millimeters in the presence of tropospheric noise on the order of centimeters, when the transient is of short duration and known time, and the background deformation is smooth in...
Geophysical interpretation of U, Th, and rare earth element mineralization of the Bokan Mountain peralkaline granite complex, Prince of Wales Island, southeast Alaska
Anne E. McCafferty, Douglas B. Stoeser, Bradley S. Van Gosen
2014, Interpretation (2) SJ47-SJ63
A prospectivity map for rare earth element (REE) mineralization at the Bokan Mountain peralkaline granite complex, Prince of Wales Island, southeastern Alaska, was calculated from high-resolution airborne gamma-ray data. The map displays areas with similar radioelement concentrations as those over the Dotson REE-vein-dike system, which is characterized by moderately high...
Free-living waterfowl and shorebirds
Daniel M. Mulcahy
Gary West, Darryl Heard, Nigel Caulkett, editor(s)
2014, Book chapter, Zoo animal and wildlife immobilization and anesthesia
No abstract available....
Northwest
Philip W. Mote, Amy K. Snover, Susan M. Capalbo, Sanford D. Eigenbrode, Patricia Glick, Jeremy S. Littell, Richard Raymondi, Spencer Reeder
2014, Book chapter, National Climate Assessment
Key Messages 1. Changes in the timing of streamflow related to changing snowmelt are already observed and will continue, reducing the supply of water for many competing demands and causing far-reaching ecological and socioeconomic consequences. 2. In the coastal zone, the effects of sea level rise, erosion, inundation, threats to...
Using dissolved organic matter age and composition to detect permafrost thaw in boreal watersheds of interior Alaska
Jonathan A. O’Donnell, George R. Aiken, Michelle Ann Walvoord, Peter A. Raymond, Kenna D. Butler, Mark M. Dornblaser, Katherine Heckman
2014, Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences (119) 2155-2170
Recent warming at high latitudes has accelerated permafrost thaw, which can modify soil carbon dynamics and watershed hydrology. The flux and composition of dissolved organic matter (DOM) from soils to rivers are sensitive to permafrost configuration and its impact on subsurface hydrology and groundwater discharge. Here, we evaluate the utility...
Reanalysis of historical U.S. Geological Survey sediment samples for geochemical data from the western part of the Wrangellia terrane, Anchorage, Gulkana, Healy, Mt. Hayes, Nabesna, and Talkeetna Mountains quadrangles, Alaska
Melanie B. Werdon, Jaime S. Azain, Matthew Granitto
2014, Report
The State of Alaska’s Strategic and Critical Minerals (SCM) Assessment project, a State-funded Capital Improvement Project (CIP), is designed to evaluate Alaska’s statewide potential for SCM resources. The SCM Assessment is being implemented by the Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys (DGGS), and involves obtaining new airborne-geophysical, geological, and...
Lesser Yellowlegs (Tringa flavipes)
T. Lee Tibbitts, William Moskoff
2014, The Birds of North America
No abstract available...
Postglacial eruptive history, geochemistry, and recent seismicity of Aniakchak volcano, Alaska Peninsula
Charles R. Bacon, Christina A. Neal, Thomas P. Miller, Robert G. McGimsey, Christopher J. Nye
2014, Professional Paper 1810
Aniakchak is a Pleistocene to Holocene composite volcano of the Alaska–Aleutian arc that suffered at least one caldera-forming eruption in postglacial time and last erupted in 1931. The oldest recognized postglacial eruption, Aniakchak I, produced andesite ignimbrite ca. 9,500–7,500 14C yr B.P. Subsequently, a vent northeast of the summit issued dacite–rhyodacite magma...
The National Climate Change and Wildlife Science Center annual report for 2013
Elda Varela-Acevedo
2014, Circular 1402
In 2008, Congress created the National Climate Change and Wildlife Science Center (NCCWSC) within the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). The center was formed to respond to the demands of natural resource managers for rigorous scientific information and effective tools for assessing and responding to climate change. Located at the USGS...
Effects of capturing and collaring on polar bears: findings from long-term research on the southern Beaufort Sea population
Karyn D. Rode, Anthony M. Pagano, Jeffrey F. Bromaghin, Todd C. Atwood, George M. Durner, Kristin S. Simac, Steven C. Amstrup
2014, Wildlife Research (41) 311-322
Context: The potential for research methods to affect wildlife is an increasing concern among both scientists and the public. This topic has a particular urgency for polar bears because additional research is needed to monitor and understand population responses to rapid loss of sea ice habitat.Aims: This study used data collected from...
Identifying polar bear resource selection patterns to inform offshore development in a dynamic and changing Arctic
Ryan H. Wilson, Jon S. Horne, Karyn D. Rode, Eric V. Regehr, George M. Durner
2014, Ecosphere (5)
Although sea ice loss is the primary threat to polar bears (Ursus maritimus), little can be done to mitigate its effects without global efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Other factors, however, could exacerbate the impacts of sea ice loss on polar bears, such as exposure to increased industrial activity....
DOI/GTN-P climate and active-layer data acquired in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge
Frank E. Urban, Gary D. Clow
2014, Data Series 892
This report provides data collected by the climate monitoring array of the U.S. Department of the Interior on Federal lands in Arctic Alaska over the period August 1998 to July 2013; this array is part of the Global Terrestrial Network for Permafrost, (DOI/GTN-P). In addition to presenting data, this report...
Significance of a near-source tephra-stratigraphic sequence to the eruptive history of Hayes Volcano, south-central Alaska
Kristi L. Wallace, Michelle L. Coombs, Leslie A. Hayden, Christopher F. Waythomas
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5133
Bluffs along the Hayes River valley, 31 km northeast and 40 km downstream from Hayes Volcano, reveal volcanic deposits that shed new light on its eruptive history. Three thick (>10 cm) and five thin (<10 cm) tephra-fall deposits are dacitic in whole rock composition and contain high proportions of amphibole...
The 3D Elevation Program: summary for Michigan
William J. Carswell Jr.
2014, Fact Sheet 2014-3107
Elevation data are essential to a broad range of applications, including forest resources management, wildlife and habitat management, national security, recreation, and many others. For the State of Michigan, elevation data are critical for agriculture and precision farming, natural resources conservation, flood risk management, water supply and quality, infrastructure and...
Establishing a baseline for regional scale monitoring of eelgrass (Zostera marina) habitat on the lower Alaska Peninsula
Kyle R. Hogrefe, David H. Ward, Tyrone F. Donnelly, Niels Dau
2014, Remote Sensing (6) 12447-12477
Seagrass meadows, one of the world’s most widespread and productive ecosystems, provide a wide range of services with real economic value. Worldwide declines in the distribution and abundance of seagrasses and increased threats to coastal ecosystems from climate change have prompted a need to acquire baseline data for monitoring and...
Morphology-dependent water budgets and nutrient fluxes in arctic thaw ponds
Joshua C. Koch, Kirsty Gurney, Mark S. Wipfli
2014, Permafrost and Periglacial Processes (25) 79-93
Thaw ponds on the Arctic Coastal Plain of Alaska are productive ecosystems, providing habitat and food resources for many fish and bird species. Permafrost in this region creates unique pond morphologies: deep troughs, shallow low-centred polygons (LCPs) and larger coalescent ponds. By monitoring seasonal trends in pond volume and chemistry,...
Storm-surge flooding on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, Alaska
John Terenzi, Craig R. Ely, M. Torre Jorgenson
2014, Arctic (67) 360-374
Coastal regions of Alaska are regularly affected by intense storms of ocean origin, the frequency and intensity of which are expected to increase as a result of global climate change. The Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta (YKD), situated in western Alaska on the eastern edge of the Bering Sea, is one of the...
Occupancy of yellow-billed and Pacific loons: evidence for interspecific competition and habitat mediated co-occurrence
Trevor B. Haynes, Joel A. Schmutz, Mark S. Lindberg, Kenneth G. Wright, Brian D. Uher-Koch, Amanda E. Rosenberger
2014, Journal of Avian Biology (45) 296-304
Interspecific competition is an important process structuring ecological communities, however, it is difficult to observe in nature. We used an occupancy modelling approach to evaluate evidence of competition between yellow-billed (Gavia adamsii) and Pacific (G. pacifica) loons for nesting lakes on the Arctic Coastal Plain of Alaska. With multiple years...
