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Palmyra Atoll Research ConsortiumThe Palmyra Atoll Research Consortium (PARC) is a collaboration among government, academic and priva ...more

Channel Islands Rare Plants SurveyThe least-visited National Park in the United States is also home to an astounding diversity of ende ...more

Modeling Sea-Level Rise in San Francisco Bay EstuaryWith climate change and sea level rise, how will the coastal habitats of the San Francisco Bay Estua ...more

Common Murre associations with the Columbia River Plume and adjacent watersThe murre (pronounced “mrr-rr-rrr,” in imitation of the bird’s vocalizations) is a football-sized se ...more

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A Field Guide to the Reptiles and Amphibians of Coastal Southern CaliforniaField Guide Developed By: Robert Fisher and Ted J. Case with photos by Chris Brown

A Test of Inventory and Monitoring Techniques for Terrestrial Amphibians, Reptiles, Small Mammals, and CarnivoresA wide variety of methods have been employed for the inventory and monitoring of terrestrial amphibi ...more

Aleutian Islands Contaminant Monitoring ProgramElevated PCB levels occur at Adak Island, Alaska. The source and chronology of these environmental c ...more

Amphibian Research Monitoring Inventory DatabaseAmphibian population declines have been observed in many areas around the world. Initially, th ...more

Annual movements of Pacific Flyway Lesser Sandhill Cranes summering near Homer, AlaskaThis project will document local movements of cranes during early and late summer periods, and docum ...more

Archiving California’s Breeding Duck DataThe U.S. Geological Survey, California Waterfowl Association, University of California-Davis, and Ca ...more

ARMI Population Status and MonitoringApproximately 230 species of frogs, toads, and salamanders make up the amphibian fauna of the contin ...more

Assessing Patterns of Pine Mortality, Recruitment, and Density in National Park Service Prescribed Burn Units Throughout the Western United StatesDue largely to an extended period of fire exclusion, forest structure, fuel characteristics (live an ...more

Assessing Population Structure and Genetic Diversity in the Western Shovel-nosed snake (Chionactis occipitalis) across Arizona, with special emphasis on the validity of the Tucson Shovel-nosed Snake (Chionactis occipitalis klauberi)Chionactis occipitalis (Western Shovel-nosed Snake) is a small colubrid snake inhabiting the arid re ...more

Avian Influenza transmission risk & the Migratory Ecology of African wild ducksVery little is known about the migration patterns of wild ducks in Africa or their possible involvem ...more

Avian Influenza transmission risk & wild birds in NigeriaHighly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) of the lethal subtype H5N1 was first detected in Nigeria in ...more

Bangladesh: A source of Highly Pathogenic H5N1 infection in wild birds?Bangladesh attracts huge numbers of wild birds that overwinter in wetland habitat offered by the Gan ...more

Bat Research in CaliforniaThe contact for the San Diego county area is Drew Stokes (DStokes@usgs.gov), the contact for the San ...more

Bear Creek Mercury Monitoring ProtocolThe Bureau of Land Management (BLM) must demonstrate that it manages public lands under its administ ...more

Bird Use of Restored Riparian HabitatRiparian habitat in the southwestern United States has undergone serious declines during the last se ...more

Breeding Waterbird Ecology and ManagementFor most avian taxa, the breeding season from spring nest initation to fall fledging is the most imp ...more

Brushfires in California: Ecology and Resource ManagementIn light of the recent southern California fires there have been requests for information relating t ...more

California Gull Population Growth and Predation on Breeding Waterbirds The California Gull population in San Francisco Bay has increased from <200 in 1982 to > ...more

California Sea Otter Stranding NetworkThe California Sea Otter Stranding Network is part of the USGS effort to monitor southern sea otters ...more

California Sea Otter Surveys and ResearchWERC scientists conduct annual population surveys of the southern sea otter -- a federally listed th ...more

Carbon budgets and geomorphic processesThe development of carbon markets as one tool to reduce greenhouse gases and their role in global cl ...more

Central Valley Waterfowl Changing agricultural practices and conservation programs such as the Central Valley Joint Venture ( ...more

Channel Islands Rare Plants SurveyThe least-visited National Park in the United States is also home to an astounding diversity of ende ...more

Climate Change Impacts on Alpine Meadow MammalsWe are proposing to model: (1) range shifts for five alpine mammal species and, (2) the degree to wh ...more

Climate change impacts on ecology and habitats of Central Valley waterfowl and other waterbirds This project evaluates projected impacts of climate, urbanization, and water management scenarios ...more

Coastal Ecosystem Response to Climate ChangeCoastal salt marshes and estuaries are projected to be disproportionately impacted by climate change ...more

Common Murre associations with the Columbia River Plume and adjacent watersThe murre (pronounced “mrr-rr-rrr,” in imitation of the bird’s vocalizations) is a football-sized se ...more

Conservation genetics of the endangered Alameda whipsnakeThe Alameda whipsnake (Masticophis lateralis euryxanthus) is both a federally and state listed endan ...more

Contaminant Immune FunctionsThere are multiple facets to Contaminant Immune Function studies at the WERC Davis Field Station, tw ...more

Contaminant Studies on Mercury and SeleniumStudies supported by this task include investigation of mercury in sediments and biota at the San Fr ...more

Contaminants in Waterbirds and Effects on Avian ReproductionCalifornia’s Central Valley and San Francisco Bay Estuary have a long history of mercury contaminati ...more

Contaminants in Waterbirds Breeding in the Great BasinThe Great Salt Lake ecosystem, located in northern Utah within the Great Basin, has been designated ...more

Desert Tortoise Hibernation: Temperatures, Timing, and EnvironmentThe federally listed Mojave population of the desert tortoise receives much attention from scientist ...more

Desert tortoise research and monitoring on Federal and State lands in CaliforniaThe desert tortoise, Gopherus agassizii, was listed by the state and federal governments as a threat ...more

Designing a Tricolored Blackbird SurveyTri-colored blackbirds are nearly endemic to California, and this species is listed on the U.S. Fish ...more

Discovery For Recovery: An International Pintail Recovery InitiativeA team of waterfowl biologists with the U.S. Geological Survey's Western Ecological Research Center, ...more

Ecology and Conservation of Wild Birds in the Poyang Lake Region: a Satellite Telemetry Pilot ProjectAn international team from U. S. Geological Survey (Western Ecological Research Center, Patuxent Wil ...more

Ecology of California Clapper Rails in the San Francisco Bay/Delta RegionThe California Clapper Rail (Rallus longirostris obsoletus) is a federal and state listed endangered ...more

Ecology of northern pintails and other waterfowl during spring in Southern Oregon - Northeastern California (SONEC).Southern Oregon-Northeastern California (SONEC) provides critical spring staging habitat for norther ...more

Effects of Pack Stock Grazing on Mountain Meadow EcosystemsUSGS Scientist Matt Brooks is developing an annotated review of the literature pertaining to i ...more

Evaluating Postfire Seeding Treatments Designed to Suppress Cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) in a Ponderosa Pine Forest on the Colorado PlateauThe restoration of historical fuel conditions and fire regimes is one of the primary land management ...more

Evaluating the Effects of Pinyon Thinning Treatments at a Wildland Urban InterfaceThis study evaluated the short-term effects of thinning methods for pinyon pine woodlands at two sit ...more

Evaluation of Satellite Telemetry Techniques for Migration and Distribution of Band-Tailed PigeonsThe Pacific Coast band-tailed pigeon (Patagioenas fasciata monilis) winters mainly in southern Calif ...more

Experimental Treatments to Eradicate or Control Buffelgrass at Saguaro National ParkA number of invasive perennial and annual exotic grasses are identified as serious threats to native ...more

Finding Evolutionary Hotspots in Southern California for Conservation PlanningThe mission of the California State Park system is "to provide for the health, inspiration and ...more

Fire Effects on Seedbanks and Vegetation in the Eastern Mojave Desert: Implications for Postfire ManagementLimited information is currently available on the short-term effects of fire on the soil seedbanks a ...more

Fire Science in the Sierra NevadaFire is both a critical natural ecosystem process, and at times a hazard to human life, infrastructu ...more

Fire Severity TrendsWe are testing the idea that climate may affect forest fire severity independent of fire intensity. ...more

Flightless and Post-molt Survival and Movements of Female Mallards Molting in Klamath Basin Flightless and post-molt survival and movements were studied during August–May, 2001–2002, 2002–2003 ...more

Foraging Ecology and Environmental Contaminants in Migratory Birds in the San Francisco Bay Ecosystem San Francisco Bay is one of the most important wintering and stopover sites for migratory birds on t ...more

Genetic Determination of source populations of the California red-legged frog for reestablishment efforts in southern California The once common California red-legged frog (Rana draytoni) previously described as a subspecies, R ...more

Giant Gartersnake StudiesGiant Gartersnakes (Thamnophis gigas) were once found in wetlands throughout the Central Valley from ...more

Greater Sage-Grouse ResearchThe Greater Sage-Grouse has been listed as a Candidate Species for consideration by the En ...more

Historical record of Mercury in San Francisco Bay Tidal MarshesThe mercury content of SF Bay bottom sediments has been previously shown to be enriched 7 fold from ...more

Impacts of Human Activity and Development on Behavior, Genetics, Disease and Mortality on Bobcats and other CarnivoresHabitat fragmentation is one of the principle threats to biodiversity, and in developing landscapes, ...more

Impacts of Pre-Fire Fuel Manipulation on Fire Behavior in Southern CaliforniaFire hazards are unlike other hazards such as earthquakes because there is the potential for managem ...more

Intraspecific Phylogeography of the Rosy Boa (Charina trivirgata): Implications for Phylogeography, Taxonomy, and ConservationThe Rosy boa (Lichanura trivirgata) is found throughout the semi-arid and arid regions of southweste ...more

Invasive weed removal and habitat restoration: Sahara mustard Sahara mustard (Brassica tournefortii) is one of the top non-native invasive plants of concern for l ...more

Investigating the role of swans and geese from Eastern Mongolia in the potential spread of avian influenza virus.Evaluating the potential involvement of wild birds in the spread of highly pathogenic avian influenz ...more

Island Night Lizard Population Ecology on the Channel Islands The island night lizard (Xantusia riversiana) is a medium-sized lizard (adul ...more

Landscape Conservation CooperativesThe Landscape Conservation Cooperatives (LCC) form a network of public-private partnerships providin ...more

Long Term Monitoring and Management of the Endangered Arroyo Toad (Anaxyrus californicus) It is important that monitoring programs for endangered species provide valid scientific informati ...more

Long Term Monitoring and Management of the Stephens' kangaroo rat (Dipodomys stephensi) It is important that monitoring programs for endangered species provide valid scientific informati ...more

Long-term monitoring program guidance and data analysis for Channel Islands National ParkRarely do agencies have the opportunity to research ecosystem change in undisturbed landscapes manag ...more

Mapping habitat and genetic diversity in the desert southwestMultiple utility-scale solar, wind and geothermal energy development projects are currently underway ...more

Measuring Genetic Connectivity among Coastal Cactus Wren Populations in Southern California The coastal cactus wren is a fragmentation-sensitive resident passerine in southern California req ...more

Mercury Accumulation at the San Luis National Wildlife RefugeUnder the Clean Water Act, the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board (CVRWQCB) has or ...more

Mercury Bioaccumulation in Wetlands Wetlands provide numerous ecosystem services, but also can be sources of methylmercury production ...more

Mercury Contamination and The South Bay Salt Pond Restoration ProjectThe San Francisco Bay Estuary has a long history of mercury contamination from past mercury and gold ...more

Mercury Contamination from Mining SourcesHistorical gold and mercury mining are major sources of mercury contamination in northern California ...more

Migration of Lesser Scaup Breeding in Montana:Routes and DestinationsThe continental population of scaup (Aythya affinis and A. marila) reached an all time low in 2006, ...more

Migration of Surf Scoters Along the Pacific Coast - Spring Migration 2006 A large proportion of diving ducks in the Pacific Flyway are found in the San Francisco Bay estuary ...more

Migratory birds and transmission of Highly Pathogenic H5N1 in TurkeyIn Turkey, highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) virus of the H5N1 subtype first emerged during 2 ...more

Migratory Linkages between Wintering and Breeding WaterfowlCalifornia hunters annually harvest more than 300,000 mallards, the third most among states in the U ...more

Modeling Sea-Level Rise in San Francisco Bay EstuaryWith climate change and sea level rise, how will the coastal habitats of the San Francisco Bay Estua ...more

Mojave Desert Science Symposium 1999Welcome to the home page for the Mojave Desert Science Symposium. This historic forum brought togeth ...more

Mojave Invasive Plants Introduced annual grasses have become widespread throughout arid regions of western North America ov ...more

Monitoring Avian Productivity and Survival at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, CaliforniaBackground and Justification: Protection and management of endangered birds is a primary focus of re ...more

Monitoring the Effectiveness of Seeding Burned Critical Habitat for the Desert TortoiseOn June 22, 2005, multiple lightning strikes ignited a group of wildfires known as the Southern Neva ...more

Monitoring the Status of Declining Amphibians in California and Arizona: Compelling evidence from many areas around the world indicate that amphibians are declining on a glo ...more

Movements of migratory waterfowl in the Middle East: Identifying at-risk areas for spread of avian influenza into EgyptEgypt is located at the intersection of the Black Sea-Mediterranean Flyway and the East Africa-West ...more

Movements of Wild Birds and Emerging Disease Risk from Hong KongThe identification of breeding ranges of various waterfowl species congregating on wintering grounds ...more

Movements of Wild Birds and Emerging Disease Risk from IndiaThe study of the wintering (non-breeding) grounds for waterfowl allows identification of areas where ...more

Nonnative Grass Invasions and Fire in the Mojave Desert Fires in the Mojave Desert appear to have been infrequent historically. When fires did occur, gaps o ...more

NRPP: How Climate Change Affects Island Hydrologic and Plant ResourcesThe California Channel Islands support an incredible diversity of endemic plant and animal species. ...more

Pacific Coast Fisheries GIS Resource DatabasePacific Coast fisheries information is currently available only from wildlife agencies in disparate ...more

Pacific Continental Shelf Environmental Assessment (PaCSEA)The Pacific Continental Shelf Environmental Assessment (PaCSEA) is an aerial survey project of seabi ...more

Pacific Nearshore ProjectSea otters are crucial indicators of the health of our nearshore waters and coastal resources, from ...more

Pacific Pocket Mouse Monitoring Plan for MCB Camp Pendleton: Short Term Studies and Long Term GoalsPrepared by C.S. Brehme and R.N. Fisher, U.S. Geological Survey, Western Ecological Research Center ...more

Palmyra Atoll Research ConsortiumThe Palmyra Atoll Research Consortium (PARC) is a collaboration among government, academic and priva ...more

Persistence of sediment problems in salmon-bearing riversMany rivers in the United States have been disturbed by increases in sediment loads from activities ...more

Pesticide Impacts on Sierran Amphibians Insecticides from the Central Valley of California are drifting into montane regi ...more

Phylogenetics of the Mahogany Jerusalem Cricket in Southern CaliforniaHabitat loss and fragmentation due to urbanization are the most pervasive threats to biodiversity in ...more

Phylogeography of the Coachwhip snake (Masticophis flagellum)The complex geological history of California has played a major role in shaping the evolutionary his ...more

Pintail habitat use and abundance during spring migration in the Klamath Basin and other Southern Oregon-northeastern California locations.Satellite tracking of pintails and surveys have identified the SONEC region as especially important ...more

Population Ecology of Sagegrouse in Sagebrush EcosystemsGrouse populations have declined dramatically in the West. There are currently 6 sage grouse p ...more

Population Status and Conservation of the Rosy Boa (Lichanura trivirgata) The recent "explosive growth" of the international pet trade, with the United States in ...more

Population Structure and Demography of the Least Bell's Vireo and Southwestern Willow FlycatcherThe least Bells vireo (Vireo bellii extimus) and southwestern willow flycatcher (Empidonax traillii ...more

Post-fire Monitoring of Small Animal and Vegetation Communities in San Diego County In 2003 and 2007, large wildfires burned much of San Diego County, including hundreds of thousands ...more

Post-Fire Treatment Impacts on Fine Fuels in Westside Sierra Nevada ForestsTemporary link to old web site This study, funded by the Joint Fire Science Program, invest ...more

Pre-Fire fuel manipulation impacts on alien plant invasion of wildlands This project investigates the role of pre-fire fuel reduction manipulation projects in the i ...more

Range-wide genetic assessment of the federally endangered Riverside fairy shrimp, Streptocephalus woottoniThe Riverside fairy shrimp Streptocephalus woottoni is a federally endangered freshwater crustacean ...more

Rapid Genetic Identification of Southern California Fairy Shrimp Species from CystsIn southern California, the endangered San Diego fairy shrimp (Branchinecta sandiegonensis) and the ...more

Rapid Rice Availability Assessment MethodRice seeds obtained from harvested fields in the Sacramento Valley of California, and other rice gro ...more

Reproductive Success of Black-crowned Night-Herons and Snowy Egrets at Alcatraz Island, San Francisco Bay, CaliforniaStudies conducted in the early 1980s suggested that environmental contaminants adversely affected re ...more

San Francisco Bay Benthic Macroinvertebrate Atlas Information on benthic macroinvertebrate population ...more

Seabird Studies at WERCSeabird research by scientists at the San Francisco Bay Estuary Field Station of the USGS ...more

Sierra Nevada Forest Dynamics: Pattern, Pace, and Mechanisms of Global ChangeForests provide humans with economically important and often irreplaceable ecosystem products and se ...more

Sierra Nevada Global Change Research ProgramMountain ecosystems, with their geographic compression of climatic gradients and biological communit ...more

South Bay Salt Pond Restoration ProjectThe largest tidal wetland restoration project on the West Coast is unfolding at the edge of Silicon ...more

Southern California Wildfire Risk Scenario ProjectEvery year, wildfires devastate the landscapes of Southern California from Los Angeles to San Diego. ...more

Spatial Database for the At-Sea Distribution and Abundance of Seabirds and Marine Mammals off Southern California: 1999-2002From 1999-2002, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and Humboldt State University (HSU) worked with th ...more

Spring Migration of Eurasian Wigeon from Northeastern California: Routes and DestinationsThe Eurasian Wigeon (Anas penelope) is a frequent winter visitor to the west coast of North America, ...more

The Revegetation of Disturbed Areas Associated with Roads at Lake Mead National Recreation Area, NevadaDisturbance of soils and vegetation communities can have enduring impacts on a landscape, especially ...more

The Role of Pesticides in Amphibian DeclinesCompelling evidence from many areas around the world indicate that amphibians are declining on a glo ...more

Tidewater Goby Monitoring Program at Camp PendletonTidewater gobies are an endangered species that inhabits coastal lagoons. Several populations ...more

Translocation of Desert Tortoises in Fort IrwinThe National Training Center (NTC) at Fort Irwin, California, provides the Army with essential train ...more

Use of Genetic Techniques to Evaluate the Impacts of Urbanization and Fragmentation on Wildlife, from Wide-ranging to Sedentary SpeciesUrbanization and fragmentation can have significant negative effects on wildlife communities includi ...more

Using Parasites to Monitor Ecosystem Health Although we tend to concentrate on the problems posed by infectious disease, parasites can play a po ...more

Vital Signs of Salmon Streams: North Coastal California National Park UnitsInvestigating the effects of abiotic drivers on aquatic habitats and salmon species. Part of the Nat ...more

Waterbird Nesting Ecology in San Francisco BayThe San Francisco Bay is designated as a site of hemispheric importance to shorebirds and annually s ...more

Waterfowl Breeding EcologyPredators are the primary cause of duck nest failure and can significantly limit recruitment, potent ...more

Waterfowl Ecology and Population Dynamics We are investigating several aspects of waterfowl ecology, population trends, and population dyn ...more

Western Pond Turtle population genetic structure and diversity in southern CaliforniaThe western pond turtle (Emys marmorata (syn. Actinemys marmorata) is the only freshwater turt ...more

Wild Bird Migratory Ecology, Emerging Disease Risk and Physiology in Western MongoliaTerkhiin Tsagaan Lake in west-central Mongolia is an important breeding and molting areas for Bar-he ...more

Wild Birds and Emerging Diseases: Avian Influenza Transmission Risk and Movements of Wild Birds from KazakhstanThe United States Geological Survey (USGS) has been working in partnership with the United Nations F ...more

Wild Birds and Emerging Diseases: Modeling Avian Influenza Transmission Risk Between Domestic and Wild Birds in ChinaQinghai Lake National Nature Reserve is the largest saline lake in northwest China, and the site of ...more

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