Ecosystems
Publications
Photoperiodic regulation of pituitary thyroid-stimulating hormone and brain deiodinase in Atlantic salmon
Seasonal timing is important for many critical life history events of vertebrates, and photoperiod is often used as a reliable seasonal cue. In mammals and birds, it has been established that a photoperiod-driven seasonal clock resides in the brain and pituitary, and is driven by increased levels of pituitary thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) and...
Irachi, Shotaro; Hall, Daniel J.; Fleming, Mitchell S; Maugers, Gersende; Bjornsson, Bjorn; Dufour, Sylvie; Uchida, Katsuhisa; McCormick, Stephen D. Free-roaming horses disrupt greater sage-grouse lekking activity in the Great Basin
Greater Sage-Grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus; hereafter, sage-grouse) and free-roaming horses (Equus caballus) co-occur within large portions of sagebrush ecosystems within the Great Basin of western North America. In recent decades, sage-grouse populations have declined substantially while concomitant free-roaming horse populations have...
Munoz, Diana A.; Coates, Peter S.; Ricca, Mark A. Elucidating controls on cyanobacteria bloom timing and intensity via Bayesian mechanistic modeling
The adverse impacts of harmful algal blooms (HABs) are increasing worldwide. Lake Erie is a North American Great Lake highly affected by cultural eutrophication and summer cyanobacterial HABs. While phosphorus loading is a known driver of bloom size, more nuanced yet crucial questions remain. For example, it is unclear what mechanisms are...
Del Giudice, Dario; Fang, Shiqi; Scavia, Donald; Davis, Timothy W.; Evans, Mary Anne; Obenour, Daniel R Seasonality of acarological risk of exposure to Borrelia miyamotoi from questing life stages of Ixodes scapularis collected from Wisconsin and Massachusetts, USA
Measures of acarological risk of exposure to Ixodes scapularis-borne disease agents typically focus on nymphs; however, the relapsing fever group spirochete, Borrelia miyamotoi can be transmitted transovarially, and I. scapularis larvae are capable of transmitting B. miyamotoi to their hosts. To quantify the...
Han, Seungeun; Hickling, Graham J.; Ogden, Nicholas H.; Ginsberg, Howard S.; Kobbekaduwa, Vishvapali; Rulison, Eric L.; Beati, Lorenza; Tsao, Jean I. Weed-suppressive bacteria effects differ in culture compared to in soils and with or without microbial competition and separation of active ingredient
Weed-suppressive bacteria (WSB), specifically the D7 and ACK55 strains of Pseudomonas fluorescens, were previously reported to selectively inhibit growth of invasive annual grasses (IAGs) that have caused severe ecosystem degradation across much of the western US. However, recent studies show highly mixed evidence for WSB effectiveness in...
Lazarus, Brynne E.; Feris, Kevin; Germino, Matthew Movement of synthetic organic compounds in the food web after the introduction of invasive quagga mussels (Dreissena bugensis) in Lake Mead, Nevada and Arizona, USA
Introductions of dreissenid mussels in North America have been a significant concern over the last few decades. This study assessed the distribution of synthetic organic compounds (SOCs) in the food web of Lake Mead, Nevada/Arizona, USA and how this distribution was influenced by the introduction of invasive quagga mussels. A clear spatial...
Goodbred, Steven L.; Rosen, Michael R.; Patino, Reynaldo; Alvarez, David; Echols, Kathy R.; King, Kerensa; Umek, John
Research priorities for migratory birds under climate change—A qualitative value of information assessment
The mission of the U.S. Geological Survey National Climate Adaptation Science Center is to provide actionable, management-relevant research on climate change effects on ecosystems and wildlife to U.S. Department of the Interior bureaus. Providing this kind of useful scientific information requires understanding how natural-resource managers make...
Rubenstein, Madeleine A.; Rushing, Clark S.; Lyons, James E.; Runge, Michael C.
Population estimates for selected breeding seabirds at Kīlauea Point National Wildlife Refuge, Kauaʻi, in 2019
Kīlauea Point National Wildlife Refuge (KPNWR) is an important seabird breeding site located at the northeastern tip of Kauaʻi in the main Hawaiian Islands. Despite the regional significance of KPNWR as one of the most important breeding sites for red-tailed tropicbirds (Phaethon rubricauda), red-footed boobies (Sula sula), and wedge-tailed...
Felis, Jonathan J.; Kelsey, Emily C.; Adams, Josh; Stenske, Jennilyn G.; White, Laney M. Evidence of an extreme weather‐induced phenological mismatch and a local extirpation of the endangered Karner blue butterfly
In 2011, an experiment was undertaken to examine spring synchrony between the endangered Karner blue butterfly (Lycaeides melissa samuelis) (Kbb) and its obligate host plant, wild blue lupine (Lupinus perennis) at Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore (INDU), where the southernmost population of Kbb occurred at the time of this study. From 2012 to 2014...
Patterson, Tamatha; Grundel, Ralph; Dzurisin, Jason D. K.; Knutson, Randy L.; Hellmann, Jessica
Western purple martin (Progne subis arboricola) occurrence on the Siuslaw National Forest, Summer 2019
The western subspecies of the purple martin (Progne subis arboricola) is currently listed as a “critically” sensitive species in four ecoregions of western Oregon: Coast Range, Klamath Mountains, West Cascades, and Willamette Valley (Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, 2019). Importantly distinct from the abundant and widespread eastern...
Hagar, Joan; Branch, Eric An evaluation of noninvasive sampling techniques for Malayan sun bears
Traditional mark–recapture studies to estimate abundance and trends of Malayan sun bear (Helarctos malayanus) populations are impeded by logistics of live-trapping wild individuals. The development of noninvasive sampling techniques for monitoring sun bear populations is therefore crucial for targeted conservation action. Sun bears have short fur...
Tee, Thye Lim; Lai, Wai Ling; Ju Wei, Terence Kok; Shern, Ooi Zhuan; van Manen, Frank T.; Sharp, Stuart P.; Wong, Siew Te; Chew, Jactty; Ratnayeke, Shyamala Comparing methods to estimate the proportion of turbine-induced bird and bat mortality in the search area under a road and pad search protocol
Estimating bird and bat mortality at wind facilities typically involves searching for carcasses on the ground near turbines. Some fraction of carcasses inevitably lie outside the search plots, and accurate mortality estimation requires accounting for those carcasses using models to extrapolate from searched to unsearched areas. Such models should...
Maurer, Joseph; Huso, Manuela; Dalthorp, Daniel; Madsen, Lisa; Fuentes, Claudio