Identifying species conservation strategies to reduce disease-associated declines
Brian D. Gerber, Sarah J. Converse, Erin L. Muths, Harry J. Crockett, Brittany A. Mosher, Larissa L. Bailey
2018, Conservation Letters (11) 1-10
Emerging infectious diseases (EIDs) are a salient threat to many animal taxa, causing local and global extinctions, altering communities and ecosystem function. The EID chytridiomycosis is a prominent driver of amphibian declines, which is caused by the fungal pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd). To guide conservation policy, we developed a predictive decision-analytic model...
Tagging effects of passive integrated transponder and visual implant elastomer on the small-bodied white sands pupfish (Cyprinodon tularosa)
Damon Peterson, Randi B. Trantham, Tulley G. Trantham, Colleen A. Caldwell
2018, Fisheries Research (198) 203-208
One of the greatest limiting factors of studies designed to obtain growth, movement, and survival in small-bodied fishes is the selection of a viable tag. The tag must be relatively small with respect to body size as to impart minimal sub-lethal effects on growth and mobility, as well as be...
The effects of snow and salt on ice table stability in University Valley, Antarctica
Kaj E. Williams, Jennifer L. Heldmann, Christopher P. McKay, Michael T. Mellon
2018, Antarctic Science (30) 67-78
The Antarctic Dry Valleys represent a unique environment where it is possible to study dry permafrost overlaying an ice-rich permafrost. In this paper, two opposing mechanisms for ice table stability in University Valley are addressed: i) diffusive recharge via thin seasonal snow deposits and ii) desiccation via salt deposits in...
Meteorological and environmental variables affect flight behaviour and decision-making of an obligate soaring bird, the California Condor Gymnogyps californianus
Sharon A. Poessel, Joseph Brandt, Tricia A. Miller, Todd E. Katzner
2018, Ibis (160) 36-53
The movements of animals are limited by evolutionary constraints and ecological processes and are strongly influenced by the medium through which they travel. For flying animals, variation in atmospheric conditions is critically influential in movement. Obligate soaring birds depend on external sources of updraft more than do other flying species,...
A sequential selective dissolution method to quantify storage and stability of organic carbon associated with Al and Fe hydroxide phases
Katherine Heckman, Corey R. Lawrence, Jennifer W. Harden
2018, Geoderma (312) 24-35
Stabilization of SOM (soil organic matter) is regulated in part by sorption and desorption reactions happening at mineral surfaces, as well as precipitation and dissolution of organo-metal complexes. Fe and Al hydroxides play a particularly significant role in SOM stabilization in soils due to their ubiquitous distribution and their highly reactive surface...
Variation in fish mercury concentrations in streams of the Adirondack region, New York: A simplified screening approach using chemical metrics
Douglas A. Burns, Karen Riva-Murray
2018, Ecological Indicators (84) 648-661
Simple screening approaches for the neurotoxicant methylmercury (MeHg) in aquatic ecosystems may be helpful in risk assessments of natural resources. We explored the development of such an approach in the Adirondack Mountains of New York, USA, a region with high levels of MeHg bioaccumulation. Thirty-six perennial streams broadly representative of...
Estimating carbon and showing impacts of drought using satellite data in regression-tree models
Stephen P. Boyte, Bruce K. Wylie, Danny Howard, Devendra Dahal, Tagir G. Gilmanov
2018, International Journal of Remote Sensing (39) 374-398
Integrating spatially explicit biogeophysical and remotely sensed data into regression-tree models enables the spatial extrapolation of training data over large geographic spaces, allowing a better understanding of broad-scale ecosystem processes. The current study presents annual gross primary production (GPP) and annual ecosystem respiration (RE) for 2000–2013 in several short-statured vegetation...
International Limnogeology Congress (ILIC6), Reno USA, special issue on new limnogeological research focused on pre-Holocene lake systems
Michael R. Rosen, Scott W. Starratt
2018, Journal of Paleolimnology (59) 1-4
No abstract available....
Conversion of wet glass to melt at lower seismogenic zone conditions: Implications for pseudotachylyte creep
Brooks P. Proctor, David A. Lockner, Jacob B. Lowenstern, Nicholas M. Beeler
2018, Geophysical Research Letters (44) 10248-10255
Coseismic frictional melting and the production of quenched glass called pseudotachylyte is a recurring process during earthquakes. To investigate how glassy materials affect the postseismic strength and stability of faults, obsidian gouges were sheared under dry and wet conditions from 200°C to 300°C at ~150 MPa effective normal stress. Dry glass...
Wildlife and environmental pollution
Barnett A. Rattner
2018, Book chapter, Animals and human society
No abstract available....
2.3. Global-scale atmospheric dispersion of microorganisms
Dale W. Griffin, Cristina Gonzalez-Martin, C. Hoose, D.J. Smith
Anne-Marie Delort, Pierre Amato, editor(s)
2018, Book chapter, Microbiology of aerosols
This chapter addresses long-range dispersion and the survival of microorganisms across a wide range of altitudes in Earth's atmosphere. Topics include mechanisms of dispersion, survivability of microorganisms known to be associated with long-range transport, natural and artificial sources of bioaerosols, residence time estimation through the use of proxy aerosols, transport...
States and rates: Complementary approaches to developing flow‐ecology relationships
Kit Wheeler, Seth J. Wenger, Mary Freeman
2018, Freshwater Biology (63) 906-916
In recognition of the influence of flow on riverine habitats and organisms, stream ecologists have devoted considerable effort to the development of quantitative predictive relationships describing ecological responses to flow variability, i.e. flow‐ecology relationships.Methods used to generate flow‐ecology relationships can be thought of as a continuum bookended by pure...
Evaluation of bias associated with capture maps derived from nonlinear groundwater flow models
Cara A. Nadler, Kip K. Allander, Greg Pohll, Eric D. Morway, Ramon C. Naranjo, Justin Huntington
2018, Groundwater (56) 458-469
The impact of groundwater withdrawal on surface water is a concern of water users and water managers, particularly in the arid western United States. Capture maps are useful tools to spatially assess the impact of groundwater pumping on water sources (e.g., streamflow depletion) and are being used more frequently for...
Semi-quantitative assessment of disease risks at the human, livestock, wildlife interface for the Republic of Korea using a nationwide survey of experts: A model for other countries
Jusun Hwang, Kyunglee Lee, Daniel P. Walsh, SangWha Kim, Jonathan M. Sleeman, Hang Lee
2018, Transboundary and Emerging Diseases (65) e155-e164
Wildlife-associated diseases and pathogens have increased in importance; however, management of a large number of diseases and diversity of hosts is prohibitively expensive. Thus, the determination of priority wildlife pathogens and risk factors for disease emergence is warranted. We used an online questionnaire survey to assess release and exposure risks,...
Soil base saturation combines with Beech Bark Disease to influence composition and structure of Sugar Maple-Beech forests in an acid rain-impacted region
Gregory B. Lawrence, Todd C. McDonnell, Timothy J. Sullivan, Martin Dovciak, Scott W. Bailey, Michael R. Antidormi, Michael R. Zarfos
2018, Ecosystems (21) 795-810
Sugar maple, an abundant and highly valued tree species in eastern North America, has experienced decline from soil calcium (Ca) depletion by acidic deposition, while beech, which often coexists with sugar maple, has been afflicted with beech bark disease (BBD) over the same period. To investigate how variations in soil...
Extensive shared polymorphism at non-MHC immune genes in recently diverged North American prairie grouse
Piotr Minias, Zachary W. Bateson, Linda A. Whittingham, Jeff A. Johnson, Sara J. Oyler-McCance, Peter O. Dunn
2018, Immunogenetics (70) 195-204
Gene polymorphisms shared between recently diverged species are thought to be widespread and most commonly reflect introgression from hybridization or retention of ancestral polymorphism through incomplete lineage sorting. Shared genetic diversity resulting from incomplete lineage sorting is usually maintained for a relatively short period of time, but under strong balancing...
Comparison of four modeling tools for the prediction of potential distribution for non-indigenous weeds in the United States
Roger Magarey, Leslie Newton, Seung C. Hong, Yu Takeuchi, Dave Christie, Catherine S. Jarnevich, Lisa Kohl, Martin Damus, Steven I. Higgins, Leah Miller, Karen Castro, Amanda M. West, John Hastings, Gericke Cook, John Kartesz, Anthony Koop
2018, Biological Invasions (20) 679-694
This study compares four models for predicting the potential distribution of non-indigenous weed species in the conterminous U.S. The comparison focused on evaluating modeling tools and protocols as currently used for weed risk assessment or for predicting the potential distribution of invasive weeds. We used six weed species (three highly...
Maximizing establishment and survivorship of field-collected and greenhouse-cultivated biocrusts in a semi-cold desert
Anita Antoninka, Matthew A. Bowker, Peter Chuckran, Nicole N. Barger, Sasha C. Reed, Jayne Belnap
2018, Plant and Soil (429) 213-225
AimsBiological soil crusts (biocrusts) are soil-surface communities in drylands, dominated by cyanobacteria, mosses, and lichens. They provide key ecosystem functions by increasing soil stability and influencing soil hydrologic, nutrient, and carbon cycles. Because of this, methods to reestablish biocrusts in damaged drylands are needed. Here...
Improving predictions of tropical forest response to climate change through integration of field studies and ecosystem modeling
Xiaohui Feng, Maria Uriarte, Grizelle Gonzalez, Sasha C. Reed, Jill Thompson, Jess K. Zimmerman, Lora Murphy
2018, Global Change Biology (24) e213-e232
Tropical forests play a critical role in carbon and water cycles at a global scale. Rapid climate change is anticipated in tropical regions over the coming decades and, under a warmer and drier climate, tropical forests are likely to be net sources of carbon rather than sinks. However, our understanding...
Green tree frog (Hyla cinerea) and ground squirrel (Xerospermophilus spilosoma) mortality attributed to inland brevetoxin transportation at Padre Island National Seashore, Texas, 2015
Danielle E. Buttke, Alicia Walker, I-Shuo Huang, Leanne Flewelling, Julia S. Lankton, Anne E. Ballmann, Travis Clapp, James Lindsay, Paul V. Zimba
2018, Journal of Wildlife Diseases (51) 142-146
On 16 September 2015, a red tide (Karenia brevis) bloom impacted coastal areas of Padre Island National Seashore Park. Two days later and about 0.9 km inland, 30–40 adult green tree frogs (Hyla cinerea) were found dead after displaying tremors, weakness, labored breathing, and other signs of neurologic impairment. A...
Fine-scale habitat preference of green sturgeon (Acipenser medirostris) within three spawning locations in the Sacramento River, California
Megan T. Wyman, Michael J. Thomas, Richard R. McDonald, Alexander R. Hearn, Ryan D. Batt, Eric D. Chapman, Paul J. Kinzel, J. Tobey Minear, Ethan A. Mora, Jonathan M. Nelson, Matthew D. Pagel, A. Peter Klimley
2018, Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences (75) 779-791
Vast sections of the Sacramento River have been listed as critical habitat by the National Marine Fisheries Service for green sturgeon spawning (Acipenser medirostris), yet spawning is known to occur at only a few specific locations. This study reveals the range of physical habitat variables selected by adult green sturgeon...
Long-term trends in restoration and associated land treatments in the southwestern United States
Stella M. Copeland, Seth M. Munson, David S. Pilliod, Justin L. Welty, John B. Bradford, Bradley J. Butterfield
2018, Restoration Ecology (26) 311-322
Restoration treatments, such as revegetation with seeding or invasive species removal, have been applied on U.S. public lands for decades. Temporal trends in these management actions have not been extensively summarized previously, particularly in the southwestern United States where invasive plant species, drought, and fire have altered dryland ecosystems. We...
Climate variability and vadose zone controls on damping of transient recharge
Claudia R. Corona, Jason J. Gurdak, Jesse E. Dickinson, T.P.A. Ferre, Edwin P. Maurer
2018, Journal of Hydrology (561) 1094-1104
Increasing demand on groundwater resources motivates understanding of the controls on recharge dynamics so model predictions under current and future climate may improve. Here we address questions about the nonlinear behavior of flux variability in the vadose zone that may explain previously reported teleconnections between global-scale climate variability and fluctuations...
A detailed risk assessment of shale gas development on headwater streams in the Pennsylvania portion of the Upper Susquehanna River Basin, U.S.A.
Kelly O. Maloney, John A. Young, Stephen Faulkner, Atesmachew Hailegiorgis, E. Terrence Slonecker, Lesley Milheim
2018, Science of the Total Environment (610-611) 154-166
The development of unconventional oil and gas (UOG) involves infrastructure development (well pads, roads and pipelines), well drilling and stimulation (hydraulic fracturing), and production; all of which have the potential to affect stream ecosystems. Here, we developed a fine-scaled (1:24,000) catchment-level disturbance intensity index (DII) that included 17 measures of...
Increasing rock-avalanche size and mobility in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, Alaska detected from 1984 to 2016 Landsat imagery
Jeffrey A. Coe, Erin Bessette-Kirton, Marten Geertsema
2018, Landslides (15) 393-407
In the USA, climate change is expected to have an adverse impact on slope stability in Alaska. However, to date, there has been limited work done in Alaska to assess if changes in slope stability are occurring. To address this issue, we used 30-m Landsat imagery acquired from 1984 to...
