The fitting of general force-of-infection models to wildlife disease prevalence data
D.M. Heisey, D.O. Joly, F. Messier
2006, Ecology (87) 2356-2365
Researchers and wildlife managers increasingly find themselves in situations where they must deal with infectious wildlife diseases such as chronic wasting disease, brucellosis, tuberculosis, and West Nile virus. Managers are often charged with designing and implementing control strategies, and researchers often seek to determine factors that influence and control the...
A tamarisk habitat suitability map for the continental US
J.T. Morisette, C. S. Jarnevich, A. Ullah, W. Cai, J.A. Pedelty, J.E. Gentle, T.J. Stohlgren, J.L. Schnase
2006, Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment (4) 11-17
This paper presents a national-scale map of habitat suitability for tamarisk (Tamarix spp, salt cedar), a high-priority invasive species. We successfully integrate satellite data and tens of thousands of field sampling points through logistic regression modeling to create a habitat suitability map that is 90% accurate. This interagency effort...
Landscape context mediates influence of local food abundance on wetland use by wintering shorebirds in an agricultural valley
Oriane W. Taft, Susan M. Haig
2006, Biological Conservation (128) 298-307
While it is widely understood that local abundance of benthic invertebrates can greatly influence the distribution and abundance of wetland birds, no studies have examined if wetland landscape context can mediate this relationship. We studied the influence of wetland food abundance and landscape context on use of agricultural wetlands by...
Comparison of trace element concentrations in livers of diseased, emaciated and non-diseased southern sea otters from the California coast
K. Kannan, T. Agusa, E. Perrotta, N. J. Thomas, S. Tanabe
2006, Chemosphere (65) 2160-2167
Infectious diseases have been implicated as a cause of high rates of adult mortality in southern sea otters. Exposure to environmental contaminants can compromise the immuno-competence of animals, predisposing them to infectious diseases. In addition to organic pollutants, certain trace elements can modulate the immune system in marine mammals. Nevertheless,...
Evaluating plant invasions from both habitat and species perspectives
G.W. Chong, Yuka Otsuki, T.J. Stohlgren, D. Guenther, P. Evangelista, C. Villa, M.A. Waters
2006, Western North American Naturalist (66) 92-105
We present an approach to quantitatively assess nonnative plant invasions at landscape scales from both habitat and species perspectives. Our case study included 34 nonnative species found in 142 plots (0.1 ha) in 14 vegetation types within the Grand Staircase–Escalante National Monument, Utah. A plot invasion index, based on nonnative...
Species richness and patterns of invasion in plants, birds, and fishes in the United States
Thomas J. Stohlgren, David Barnett, Curtis Flather, Pamela L. Fuller, Bruce G. Peterjohn, John Kartesz, Lawrence L. Master
2006, Biological Invasions (8) 427-447
We quantified broad-scale patterns of species richness and species density (mean # species/km2) for native and non-indigenous plants, birds, and fishes in the continental USA and Hawaii. We hypothesized that the species density of native and non-indigenous taxa would generally decrease in northern latitudes and higher elevations following declines in...
Keystone predators (eastern newts, Notophthalmus viridescens) reduce the impacts of an aquatic invasive species
Kevin G. Smith
2006, Oecologia (148) 342-349
Predation, competition, and their interaction are known to be important factors that influence the structure of ecological communities. In particular, in those cases where a competitive hierarchy exists among prey species, the presence of certain keystone predators can result in enhanced diversity in the prey community. However, little is known...
The influence of disturbance events on survival and dispersal rates of Florida box turtles
C.K. Dodd Jr., A. Ozgul, M.K. Oli
2006, Ecological Applications (16) 1936-1944
Disturbances have the potential to cause long-term effects to ecosystem structure and function, and they may affect individual species in different ways. Long-lived vertebrates such as turtles may be at risk from such events, inasmuch as their life histories preclude rapid recovery should extensive mortality occur. We applied capture–mark–recapture models...
Assessment of reproductive effects in largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) exposed to bleached/unbleached kraft mill effluents
M. S. Sepulveda, D. S. Ruessler, N. D. Denslow, S. E. Holm, T. R. Schoeb, T. S. Gross
2006, Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology (41) 475-482
This study evaluated the potential effects of different concentrations of bleached/unbleached kraft mill effluent (B/UKME) on several reproductive endpoints in adult largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides). The kraft mill studied produces a 50/50 mix of bleached/unbleached market pulp with an estimated release of 36 million gal of effluent/day. Bleaching sequences were...
The effect of multiple stressors on salt marsh end-of-season biomass
J.M. Visser, C.E. Sasser, B.S. Cade
2006, Estuaries and Coasts (29) 331-342
It is becoming more apparent that commonly used statistical methods (e.g. analysis of variance and regression) are not the best methods for estimating limiting relationships or stressor effects. A major challenge of estimating the effects associated with a measured subset of limiting factors is to account for the effects of...
Application of random effects to the study of resource selection by animals
C.S. Gillies, M. Hebblewhite, S.E. Nielsen, M.A. Krawchuk, Cameron L. Aldridge, J.L. Frair, D.J. Saher, C.E. Stevens, C.L. Jerde
2006, Journal of Animal Ecology (75) 887-898
1. Resource selection estimated by logistic regression is used increasingly in studies to identify critical resources for animal populations and to predict species occurrence.2. Most frequently, individual animals are monitored and pooled to estimate population-level effects without regard to group or individual-level variation. Pooling assumes that both observations...
Modeling post-fledging survival of lark buntings in response to ecological and biological factors
A. A. Yackel Adams, S. K. Skagen, J. A. Savidge
2006, Ecology (87) 178-188
We evaluated the influences of several ecological, biological, and methodological factors on post-fledging survival of a shortgrass prairie bird, the Lark Bunting (Calamospiza melanocorys). We estimated daily post-fledging survival (n = 206, 82 broods) using radiotelemetry and color bands to track fledglings. Daily survival probabilities were best explained by...
Rank score and permutation testing alternatives for regression quantile estimates
B.S. Cade, J.D. Richards, P.W. Mielke Jr.
2006, Journal of Statistical Computation and Simulation (76) 331-355
Performance of quantile rank score tests used for hypothesis testing and constructing confidence intervals for linear quantile regression estimates (0 ≤ τ ≤ 1) were evaluated by simulation for models with p = 2 and 6 predictors, moderate collinearity among predictors, homogeneous and hetero-geneous errors, small to moderate samples (n = 20–300), and central to upper quantiles (0.50–0.99)....
A permutation test for quantile regression
Brian S. Cade, Jon D. Richards
2006, Journal of Agricultural, Biological, and Environmental Statistics (11) 106-126
A drop in dispersion, F-ratio like, permutation test (D) for linear quantile regression estimates (0≤τ≤1) had relative power ≥1 compared to quantile rank score tests (T) for hypotheses on parameters other than the intercept. Power was compared for combinations of sample sizes (<i class="EmphasisTypeItalic...
Hindcasting nitrogen deposition to determine an ecological critical load
Jill Baron
2006, Ecological Applications (16) 433-439
Using an estimated background nitrogen (N) deposition value of 0.5 kg N·ha−1·yr−1 in 1900, and a 19-year record of measured values from Loch Vale (Colorado, USA; NADP site CO98), I reconstructed an N-deposition history using exponential equations that correlated well with EPA-reported NOx emissions from Colorado and from the sum...
A structural equation model analysis of postfire plant diversity in California shrublands
J.B. Grace, Jon E. Keeley
2006, Ecological Applications (16) 503-514
This study investigates patterns of plant diversity following wildfires in fire‐prone shrublands of California, seeks to understand those patterns in terms of both local and landscape factors, and considers the implications for fire management. Ninety study sites were established following extensive wildfires in 1993, and 1000‐m2 plots were used to sample...
Evaluating redband trout habitat in sagebrush desert basins in southwestern Idaho
B.W. Zoellick, B.S. Cade
2006, North American Journal of Fisheries Management (26) 268-281
We estimated abundance quantiles of redband trout Oncorhynchus mykiss gairdneri relative to five site-specific habitat variables (stream shading, bank cover, bank stability, fine sediment in the stream substrate, and cover for adults) and one landscape variable (distance from stream headwaters) on 30 streams in southwestern Idaho during 1993–1998. In addition,...
Response of fishes to floodplain connectivity during and following a 500-year flood event in the unimpounded upper Mississippi River
V.A. Barko, D.P. Herzog, M. T. O’Connell
2006, Wetlands (26) 244-257
We examined data collected on fish assemblage structure among three differing floodplain types (broad, moderate, and narrow) during the 1993 flood in the unimpounded reach of the upper Mississippi River. This 500 year flood event provided a unique opportunity to investigate fish-floodplain function because the main river channel is otherwise...
Long-term trends of bloater (Coregonus hoyi) recruitment in Lake Michigan: evidence for the effect of sex ratio
David B. Bunnell, Charles P. Madenjian, Thomas E. Croley II
2006, Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences (63) 832-844
Long-term population trends are generally explained by factors extrinsic (e.g., climate, predation) rather than intrinsic (e.g., genetics, maternal effects) to the population. We sought to understand the long-term population dynamics of an important native Lake Michigan prey fish, the bloaterCoregonus hoyi. Over a 38-year time series, three 10- to 15-year...
Changes in seasonal energy dynamics of alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus) in Lake Michigan after invasion of dreissenid mussels
Charles P. Madenjian, Steven A. Pothoven, John M. Dettmers, Jeffrey D. Holuszko
2006, Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences (63) 891-902
The dreissenid mussel invasion of Lake Michigan during the 1990s has been linked to a concomitant decrease in the abundance of the amphipod Diporeia. We tracked the seasonal energy dynamics of alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus) in Lake Michigan during 2002–2004 and compared our findings with previously published results for years 1979–1981. Adult...
Recruitment of Hexagenia mayfly nymphs in western Lake Erie linked to environmental variability
Thomas B. Bridgeman, Don W. Schloesser, Ann E. Krause
2006, Ecological Applications (16) 601-611
After a 40-year absence caused by pollution and eutrophication, burrowing mayflies (Hexagenia spp.) recolonized western Lake Erie in the mid 1990s as water quality improved. Mayflies are an important food resource for the economically valuable yellow perch fishery and are considered to be major indicator species of the ecological condition...
Remotely sensed data available from the US Geological Survey EROS Data Center
John L. Dwyer
J.J. Qu, W. Gao, M. Kafatos, R.E. Murphy, V.V. Salomonson, editor(s)
2006, Book chapter, Earth science satellite remote sensing— Data, computational processing, and tools
The Center for Earth Resources Observation Systems (EROS) is a field center of the geography discipline within the US geological survey (USGS) of the Department of the Interior. The EROS Data Center (EDC) was established in the early 1970s as the nation’s principal archive of remotely sensed data. Initially the...
Estimating the size of fish consumed by double-crested cormorants: Considerations for better understanding cormorant-fish interactions
James H. Johnson, Robert M. Ross, James E. McKenna, Graham E. Lewis
2006, Journal of Great Lakes Research (32) 91-101
We measured 926 smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu), 6,935 yellow perch (Perca flavescens), 6,416 rock bass (Ambloplites rupestris), and 4,852 pumpkinseed (Lepomis gibbosus) otoliths recovered from double-crested cormorant (Phalacrocorax auritus) pellets to determine the sizes (total lengths) of these fish consumed by cormorants. Otoliths were recovered from cormorant pellets collected from...
An assessment of bird habitat quality using population growth rates
M. G. Knutson, L.A. Powell, R. K. Hines, M. A. Friberg, G.J. Niemi
2006, Condor (108) 301-314
Survival and reproduction directly affect population growth rate (lambda) making lambda a fundamental parameter for assessing habitat quality. We used field data, literature review, and a computer simulation to predict annual productivity and lambda for several species of landbirds breeding in floodplain and upland forests in the Midwestern United States....
Predicting crappie recruitment in Ohio reservoirs with spawning stock size, larval density, and chlorophyll concentrations
David B. Bunnell, R. Scott Hale, Michael J. Vanni, Roy A. Stein
2006, North American Journal of Fisheries Management (26) 1-12
Stock-recruit models typically use only spawning stock size as a predictor of recruitment to a fishery. In this paper, however, we used spawning stock size as well as larval density and key environmental variables to predict recruitment of white crappies Pomoxis annularis and black crappies P. nigromaculatus, a genus notorious...
