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At least 235 records · Page 13Linked to original sources
USGS2009

A Review and Synthesis of the Scientific Information Related to the Biology and Management of Species of Special Concern at Cape Hatteras National Seashore, North Carolina

The U.S. Geological Survey's Patuxent Wildlife Research Center (PWRC) conducted a study for the National Park Service (NPS) Southeast Region, Atlanta, GA, and Cape Hatteras National Seashore (CAHA) in North Carolina to review, evaluate, and summarize the available scientific information for selected species of concern at CAHA (piping plovers, sea turtles, seabeach amaranth, American oystercatchers, and colonial waterbirds). This work consisted of reviewing the scientific literature and evaluating the results of studies that examined critical life history stages of each species, and focused on the scientific findings reported that are relevant to the management of these species and their habitats at CAHA. The chapters that follow provide the results of that review separately for each species and present scientifically based options for resource management at CAHA. Although no new original research or experimental work was conducted, this synthesis of the existing information was peer reviewed by over 15 experts with familiarity with these species. This report does not establish NPS management protocols but does highlight scientific information on the biology of these species to be considered by NPS managers who make resource management decisions at CAHA. To ensure that the best available information is considered when assessing each species of interest at CAHA, this review included published research as well as practical experience of scientists and wildlife managers who were consulted in 2005. PWRC scientists evaluated the literature, consulted wildlife managers, and produced an initial draft that was sent to experts for scientific review. Revisions based on those comments were incorporated into the document. The final draft of the document was reviewed by NPS personnel to ensure that the description of the recent status and management of these species at CAHA was accurately represented and that the report was consistent with our work agreement. The following section summarizes the biological information relevant to resource management for the species of concern at CAHA.

Open-File Report↗
USGS2014

2013 update on sea otter studies to assess recovery from the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill, Prince William Sound, Alaska

On March 24, 1989, the tanker vessel Exxon Valdez ran aground in Prince William Sound, Alaska, spilling an estimated 42 million liters of Prudhoe Bay crude oil. Oil spread in a southwesterly direction and was deposited on shores and waters in western Prince William Sound (WPWS). The sea otter (Enhydra lutris) was one of more than 20 nearshore species considered to have been injured by the spill. Since 1989, the U.S. Geological Survey has led a research program to evaluate effects of the spill on sea otters and assess progress toward recovery, as defined by demographic and biochemical indicators. Here, we provide an update on the status of sea otter populations in WPWS, presenting findings through 2013. To assess recovery based on demographic indicators, we used aerial surveys to estimate abundance and annual collections of sea otter carcasses to evaluate patterns in ages-at-death. To assess recovery based on biochemical indicators, we quantified transcription rates for a suite of genes selected as potential indicators of oil exposure in sea otters based on laboratory studies of a related species, the mink (Mustela vison). In our most recent assessment of sea otter recovery, which incorporated results from a subset of studies through 2009, we concluded that recovery of sea otters in WPWS was underway. This conclusion was based on increasing abundance throughout WPWS, including increasing numbers at northern Knight Island, an area that was heavily oiled in 1989 and where the local sea otter population had previously shown protracted injury and lack of recovery. However, we did not conclude that the WPWS sea otter population had fully recovered, due to indications of continuing reduced survival and exposure to lingering oil in sea otters at Knight Island, at least through 2009. Based on data available through 2013, we now conclude that the status of sea otters—at all spatial scales within WPWS—is consistent with the designation of recovery from the spill as defined by the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee Council. The support for this conclusion is based primarily on demographic data, including (1) a return to estimated pre-spill abundance of sea otters at northern Knight Island, and (2) a return to pre-spill mortality patterns. Gene transcription rates in 2012 were similar in sea otters from oiled, moderately oiled and unoiled areas, suggesting abatement of exposure effects in 2012. However, because 2012 gene transcription rates generally were low for sea otters from all areas relative to 2008, we cannot fully interpret these observations without data from a wider panel of genes. This slight uncertainty with respect to the data from the biochemical indicator is outweighed by the strength of the data for the demographic indicators. The return to pre-spill numbers and mortality patterns suggests a gradual dissipation of lingering oil over the past two decades, to the point where continuing exposure is no longer of biological significance to the WPWS sea otter population.

Alaska↗
USGS2016

Report of the River Master of the Delaware River for the period December 1, 2008–November 30, 2009

A Decree of the Supreme Court of the United States, entered June 7, 1954, established the position of Delaware River Master within the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). In addition, the Decree authorizes diversions of water from the Delaware River Basin and requires compensating releases from certain reservoirs, owned by New York City, to be made under the supervision and direction of the River Master. The Decree stipulates that the River Master will furnish reports to the Court, not less frequently than annually. This report is the 56th Annual Report of the River Master of the Delaware River. It covers the 2009 River Master report year, the period from December 1, 2008, to November 30, 2009. During the report year, precipitation in the upper Delaware River Basin was 50.89 inches (in.) or 116 percent of the long-term average. Combined storage in Pepacton, Cannonsville, and Neversink Reservoirs remained high throughout the year and did not decline below 80 percent of combined capacity at any time. Delaware River operations during the year were conducted as stipulated by the Decree and the Flexible Flow Management Program (FFMP). Diversions from the Delaware River Basin by New York City and New Jersey were in full compliance with the Decree. Reservoir releases were made as directed by the River Master at rates designed to meet the flow objective for the Delaware River at Montague, New Jersey, on 25 days during the report year. Releases were made at conservation rates—rates designed to relieve thermal stress and protect the fishery and aquatic habitat in the tailwaters of the reservoirs—on all other days. During the report year, New York City and New Jersey complied fully with the terms of the Decree, and directives and requests of the River Master. As part of a long-term program, the quality of water in the Delaware Estuary between Trenton, New Jersey, and Reedy Island Jetty, Delaware, was monitored at various locations. Data on water temperature, specific conductance, dissolved oxygen, and pH were collected continuously by electronic instruments at four sites. In addition, selected water-quality data were collected at 22 sites on a monthly basis. The Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) collects monthly samples from March through October at 22 sites between Biles Channel and South Brown Shoal. Samples were collected and analyzed by the State of Delaware for the DRBC. At each site, water samples were collected at a single point near the center of the channel near the surface and analyzed for selected physical properties, and chemical and biological constituents including routine chemical substances, nutrients and bacteria. These consist of analyses of field measurements and laboratory determinations.

Delaware River↗
USGS2004

Abundance estimation and conservation biology

Abundance is the state variable of interest in most population–level ecological research and in most programs involving management and conservation of animal populations. Abundance is the single parameter of interest in capture–recapture models for closed populations (e.g., Darroch, 1958; Otis et al., 1978; Chao, 2001). The initial capture–recapture models developed for partially (Darroch, 1959) and completely (Jolly, 1965; Seber, 1965) open populations represented efforts to relax the restrictive assumption of population closure for the purpose of estimating abundance. Subsequent emphases in capture–recapture work were on survival rate estimation in the 1970’s and 1980’s (e.g., Burnham et al., 1987; Lebreton et al.,1992), and on movement estimation in the 1990’s (Brownie et al., 1993; Schwarz et al., 1993). However, from the mid–1990’s until the present time, capture–recapture investigators have expressed a renewed interest in abundance and related parameters (Pradel, 1996; Schwarz & Arnason, 1996; Schwarz, 2001). The focus of this session was abundance, and presentations covered topics ranging from estimation of abundance and rate of change in abundance, to inferences about the demographic processes underlying changes in abundance, to occupancy as a surrogate of abundance. The plenary paper by Link & Barker (2004) is provocative and very interesting, and it contains a number of important messages and suggestions. Link & Barker (2004) emphasize that the increasing complexity of capture–recapture models has resulted in large numbers of parameters and that a challenge to ecologists is to extract ecological signals from this complexity. They offer hierarchical models as a natural approach to inference in which traditional parameters are viewed as realizations of stochastic processes. These processes are governed by hyperparameters, and the inferential approach focuses on these hyperparameters. Link & Barker (2004) also suggest that our attention should be focused on relationships between demographic processes such as survival and recruitment, the two quantities responsible for changes in abundance, rather than simply on the magnitudes of these quantities. They describe a type of Jolly–Seber capture–recapture model that permits inference about the underlying relationship between per capita recruitment rates and survival rates (Link & Barker, this volume). Implementation used Bayesian Markov Chain Monte Carlo methods and appeared to work well, yielding inferences about the relationship between recruitment and survival that were robust to selection of prior distribution. We believe that readers will find their arguments compelling, and we expect to see increased use of hierarchical modeling approaches in capture–recapture and related fields. Otto (presentation without paper) also recommended use of hierarchical models in analysis of multiple data sources dealing with population dynamics of North American mallards. He integrated survival inferences from ringing data, abundance information from aerial survey data, and recruitment information based on age ratios from a harvest survey. He used a Leslie matrix population projection model as an integrating framework and obtained estimates of breeding population size using all data.Otto’s approach also permitted inference about biases in estimated quantities. As with the work of Link & Barker (2004), we find Otto’s recommendation to use hierarchical models to integrate data from multiple sources to be very compelling. Alisauskas et al. (2004) report results of an analysis of capture–recapture data for a askatchewan population of white–winged scoters. They used the approach of Pradel (1996) to estimate population growth rate (See the PDF) directly. Estimates for 1975–1985 were quite low, but estimates for the recent period, 2000–2003,increased to values > 1. Parameter estimates for seniority, survival and per capita recruitment (Pradel, 1996) led to the inference that increased recruitment was largely responsible for the improvements in population status and growth. However, various data sources also indicated that this increase in recruitment was likely a result of increased immigration rather than improved reproduction on the area. This latter inference is important from a conservation perspective in indicating the importance of birds in other locations to growth and health of the study population. Lukacs and Burnham presented material to be published elsewhere that dealt with the use of genetic markers in capture–recapture studies. The data sources for such studies are samples of hair or feces, which are then analyzed using molecular genetic techniques in order to determine individual genotypes with respect to a usually small number of loci. Two types of classification error can arise in such analyses. First, if only a small number of loci is examined, then there may be nonnegligible probabilities that multiple individual animals will have the same genotypes. The second type of error arises during the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) process and can result from failure of alleles to amplify (allelic dropout) or from PCR inhibitors in hair and feces that produce the appearance of false alleles or misprinting (Creel et al., 2003). Lukacs and Burnham developed models that formally incorporate possible misclassification of samples resulting from these errors. These models permit estimation of parameters such as abundance and survival in a manner that properly incorporates this uncertainty of individual identity. We anticipate that noninvasive sampling based on molecular genetic analyses of hair or feces will become extremely important for some species, and that the models of Lukacs and Burnham will become very popular for such analyses. MacKenzie & Nichols (2004) discuss the use of occupancy (proportion of patches or habitat area that is occupied) as a surrogate for abundance. In cases of territorial species and where birds occur at low densities, the number of occupied patches may provide a reasonable estimate of abundance. In other cases, occupancy can be viewed as providing information about one tail of the abundance distribution, P (N = 0). The motivation for considering occupancy as a surrogate for abundance is that occupancy is based on so–called presence–absence surveys that are frequently less expensive of time and effort than methods that estimate abundance directly. We describe one set of models that can be used to estimate occupancy for a single season and another that can be used to estimate parameters such as local probabilities of extinction and colonization that are associated with occupancy dynamics. We outline a possible hybrid approach that combines occupancy data with data on marked individuals in order to betterexplore the mechanisms underlying occupancy dynamics. These five presentations made for an interesting session containing useful information and recommendations for future work. A number of themes connecting these presentations could be emphasized. For example, two of the presentations considered alternatives to standard capture–recapture sampling that can be used to draw inferences about abundance, or a portion of the abundance distribution, with field methods that should be less expensive than usual capture–recapture approaches of handling animals. We believe that the most important theme of the session was the emphasis on the processes responsible for changes in abundance. In particular, we are excited by the potential for using hierarchical models as a means of investigating relationships among vital rates and as a means of combining multiple sources of data relevant to system dynamics. Indeed, we expect the importance of this session theme to be reflected in the content and presentations of the next EURING meeting.

Animal Biodiversity and Conservation↗
USGS2014

Spatial variation and low diversity in the major histocompatibility complex in walrus ( Odobenus rosmarus )

Increased global temperature and associated changes to Arctic habitats will likely result in the northward advance of species, including an influx of pathogens novel to the Arctic. How species respond to these immunological challenges will depend in part on the adaptive potential of their immune response system. We compared levels of genetic diversity at a gene associated with adaptive immune response [Class II major histocompatibility complex (MHC), DQB exon 2] between populations of walrus ( Odobenus rosmarus ), a sea ice-dependent Arctic species. Walrus was represented by only five MHC DQB alleles, with frequency differences observed between Pacific and Atlantic populations. MHC DQB alleles appear to be under balancing selection, and most (80 %; n = 4/5) of the alleles were observed in walruses from both oceans, suggesting broad scale differences in the frequency of exposure and diversity of pathogens may be influencing levels of heterozygosity at DQB in walruses. Limited genetic diversity at MHC, however, suggests that walrus may have a reduced capacity to respond to novel immunological challenges associated with shifts in ecological communities and environmental stressors predicted for changing climates. This is particularly pertinent for walrus, since reductions in summer sea ice may facilitate both northward expansion of marine species and associated pathogens from more temperate regions, and exchange of marine mammals and associated pathogens through the recently opened Northwest Passage between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans in the Canadian high Arctic.

Polar Biology↗
USGS2016

Walter Rowe Courtenay, Jr. (1933–2014)

WALTER R. COURTENAY, JR., ichthyologist and retired professor, Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, Florida, died in Gainesville, Florida, on 30 January 2014 at age 80. Walt was born in Neenah, Wisconsin, on 6 November 1933, son of Walter and Emily Courtenay. Walt's interest in fish began at a young age as evidenced by a childhood diary in which at 13 years of age he wrote about his first catch—a two-and-a-half pound “pike” from Lake Winnebago. When Walt turned ten, the family moved from Wisconsin to Nashville, Tennessee, the move precipitated by his father accepting a position as pastor of the First Presbyterian Church. During those early days in Nashville, Walt's father would take summers off and travel to Michigan to teach at Camp Miniwanca along the shore of Lake Michigan where father and son honed their angling skills. It was also at that time Walt's father had definite views on what his son should be doing in adult life—in Walt's case it was to become a medical doctor. However, his Woods Hole internship in marine biology and oceanography toward the end of his undergraduate years was a transformative experience for him so much so that he abandoned all ideas of becoming a medical doctor and instead specialized in ichthyology and oceanography. Apart from the inherent interest and opportunities Woods Hole opened to him, being back at the shore of a large body of water, in this case the Atlantic Ocean, was far more interesting than sitting in lectures on organic chemistry. With that, Walt completed his B.A. degree at Vanderbilt University in 1956. In 1960 while in graduate school in Miami, Walt met and married Francine Saporito, and over the next several years had two children, Walter III and Catherine. He went on to receive his M.S. in 1961 from The Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science at the University of Miami on the systematics of the genus Haemulon (grunts) and his Ph.D. degree in 1965 working under his advisor C. Richard “Dick” Robins, also at Miami, with his dissertation entitled “Atlantic Fishes of the Genus Rypticus (Grammistidae): Systematics and Osteology.” Dick and wife Catherine Robins, also a fellow biologist, thought of him as a great friend to have. They fondly recalled that those of us who knew Walt in his early grad student days valued his sense of humor and unmistakable laugh, much of which was directed at bureaucratic foolishness and pomposity. However, he also had a very serious side when it came to justice and responsibility.

Copeia↗
USGS1974

Lakes of Oregon, Volume 2: Benton, Lincoln, and Polk Counties

An inventory of lakes and reservoirs of Oregon is essential for a complete evaluation of the total surface-water supply of the State and to provide a basis for answering questions about Oregon's lakes. Much of the information on lakes and reservoirs previously collected by Federal and State agencies has never been published. These data were compiled and used as a basis for collecting additional information. This report provides information for use by city, county, and State planning groups as well as for sportsmen, tourists, and others interested in preserving the recreational value of Oregon's lakes. Because of the large number of lakes and reservoirs in Oregon, a single report covering the State would be bulky. Therefore, the lake information is being published in several volumes on a county or multicounty basis. Volume .1, published in 1973, covered Clatsop, Columbia, and Tillamook Counties. Benton, Lincoln, and Polk Counties were selected for this report. (See fig. 1.) In addition to office compilation of existing data, most lakes were also visited. Visits were made in late summer or early fall when lakes were most accessible and when water temperature and biological activity are at a maximum. Some lakes previously studied by other Federal or State agencies and included in this report were not visited during the study.

Oregon↗
USGS2002

Hydrologic, sediment, and biological data associated with irrigation drainage in the middle Green River basin, Utah and Colorado, water years 1991-2000

Hydrologic, sediment, and biological data were collected in the middle Green River basin in eastern Utah from 1991 to 2000 in an effort to monitor the effects of irrigation drainage on wetland areas and streams, aid in the development of remediation plans, and evaluate the effectiveness of selenium remediation efforts at Stewart Lake Waterfowl Management Area (WMA). Data consist primarily of selenium concentrations in surface water, ground water, bottom sediment, and biological samples. Supporting hydrologic data include field measurements of temperature, pH, specific conductance, water levels in wells, and discharge at surface-water sites. Selected water samples also were analyzed for major ions, trace elements, nutrients, and gross alpha and beta radiation. The concentration of selected selenium species is reported for several bottom-sediment samples from Stewart Lake WMA and the concentration of total selenium in suspended-sediment samples from the area are included. Well logs for six wells installed at Stewart Lake WMA are presented along with trace-element data for several biological samples collected at selected sites throughout the middle Green River basin.

Colorado, Utah, Wyoming↗
USGS2008

Wildfire effects on water temperature and selection of breeding sites by the Boreal Toad (Bufo boreas) in seasonal wetlands

Disturbances can significantly affect the thermal regime and community structure of wetlands. We investigated the effect of a wildfire on water temperature of seasonal, montane wetlands after documenting the colonization of recently burned wetlands by the Boreal Toad (Bufo boreas boreas). We compared the daily mean temperature, daily maximum temperature, and accumulated growing degree days measured on the north shore of three classes of wetlands: unburned wetlands, burned wetlands that were colonized by breeding toads, and burned wetlands that were not colonized. We hypothesized that toads colonized burned wetlands because they were warmer than unburned wetlands and selected specific burned wetlands because they were warmer than neighboring burned sites. There was weak evidence that toads selected burned wetlands with higher temperature maxima; however, the differences were small (???1??C) and were not supported when accounting for geography and wetland features. We also found no evidence that burning the forest around wetlands increased water temperatures two and three years after the fire. Unburned wetlands had higher daily mean and maximum temperatures and accrued more growing degree days than either class of burned wetlands. Temperature differences among groups of wetlands seemed to be driven by subtle differences in geography. We suspect we did not find warmer temperatures in burned wetlands because all of the wetlands we monitored already had open canopies and the fire likely resulted in only small increases in incident radiation. Copyright ?? 2008. Blake R. Hossack. All rights reserved.

Herpetological Conservation and Biology↗
USGS1986

Effects of vegetation manipulation on breeding waterfowl in prairie wetlands--a literature review

Literature on the effects of fire and grazing on the wetlands used by breeding prairie waterfowl is reviewed. Both dabbling and diving ducks and their broods prefer wetlands with openings in the marsh canopy. Decreased use is commonly associated with decreased habitat heterogeneity caused by tall, robust hydrophytes such as Typha spp. and other species adapted to form monotypes in the absence of disturbance. Nearly all previous studies indicate that reductions in height and density of tall, emergent hydrophytes by fire and grazing (unless very intensive) generally benefit breeding waterfowl. Such benefits are an increase in pair density, probably related to increased interspersion of cover and open water which decreases visibility among conspecific pairs, and improvements in their invertebrate food resources that result from increased habitat heterogeneity. Research needs are great because of the drastic changes that have accrued to prairie wetlands through fire suppression, cultivation, and other factors. The physical and biological environments preferred by species of breeding waterfowl during their seasonal and daily activities should be ascertained from future studies in wetland complexes that exist in the highest state of natural preservation. Long-term burning and grazing experiments should follow on specific vegetatively-degraded wetlands judged to be potentially important breeding areas. Seasonality, frequency, and intensity of treatments should be varied and combined and, in addition to measuring the response of the biotic community, the changes in the physical and chemical environment of the wetlands should be monitored to increase our knowledge of causative factors and possible predictive values.

Fish and Wildlife Technical Report↗
USGS2005

Analyzing stakeholder preferences for managing elk and bison at the National Elk Refuge and Grand Teton National Park: An example of the disparate stakeholder management approach

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the National Park Service (NPS) are preparing a management plan for bison and elk inhabiting the National Elk Refuge (NER) and Grand Teton National Park (GTNP) near Jackson Hole, Wyoming. A management plan is needed to evaluate current and possible changes to habitat management, disease management, winter feeding and hunting programs related to the NER and GTNP. In order to make good decisions, managers need to incorporate the opinions and values of the involved stakeholders as well as understand the complex institutional constraints and opportunities that influence the decision making process. Federal, state, local, private and public stakeholders have diverse values and preferences about how to use and manage resources, and underlying institutional factors give certain stakeholders more influence over the outcome. How stakeholders use their influence can greatly affect the time, effort and costs of the decision making process. The overall result will depend both on the stakeholder’s relative power and level of conviction for their preferences. Many programs and tools have been developed by different disciplines to facilitate group negotiation and decision making. Three examples are relevant here. First, decision analysis models such as the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) are commonly used to prioritize the goals and objectives of stakeholders’ preferences for resource planning by formally structuring conflicts and assisting decision makers in developing a compromised solution (Forman, 1998). Second, institutional models such as the Legal Institutional Analysis Model (LIAM) have been used to describe the organizational rules of behavior and the institutional boundaries constraining management decisions (Lamb and others, 1998). Finally, public choice models have been used to predict the potential success of rent-seeking activity (spending additional time and money to exert political pressure) to change the political rules (Becker, 1983). While these tools have been successful at addressing various pieces of the natural resource decision making process, their use in isolation is not enough to fully depict the complexities of the physical and biological systems with the rules and constraints of the underlying economic and political systems. An approach is needed that combines natural sciences, economics, and politics.

Wyoming↗
USGS2021

Sediment mobility and river corridor assessment for a 140-kilometer segment of the main-stem Klamath River below Iron Gate Dam, California

This river corridor assessment documents sediment mobility and river response to flood disturbance along a 140-kilometer segment of the main-stem Klamath River below Iron Gate Dam, California. Field and remote sensing methods were used to assess fundamental indicators of active sediment transport and river response to a combination of natural runoff events and reservoir releases during the study period from 2005 to 2019. Discharge measurements at two gaged sites and bed-material samples at two ungaged sites provided direct and indirect evidence of mobile bed conditions, scour and fill, and surface flushing of fine sediment. Available remote-sensing datasets collected in 2005, 2009, 2010, and 2016 were used to determine sediment storage, flood inundation boundaries, and provide indirect evidence of flood-induced scour. These datasets validate channel-maintenance flows defined by Shea and others (2016). During the study period, flows greater than or equal to 6,030 cubic feet per second mobilized the substrate, caused localized scour, and flushed fine sediment from bar surfaces. Flows greater than or equal to 10,400 cubic feet per second stripped vegetation from bars and floodplains and produced deeper scour. Flood disturbance within the study reach is produced by the combined effect of natural flows and reservoir releases, which resulted in mobile bed conditions during the study period. Periodic scour and substrate disturbance are considered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to be integral for managing disease-induced mortality of juvenile and adult salmonids. Substrate conditions conducive to parasites that host infectious diseases, particularly Ceratonova shasta, occur periodically. Additional studies are required to determine whether disease prevalence can be mitigated by well-timed reservoir releases. Study results are useful for interpreting linkages among physical and biological processes and for evaluating the effectiveness of flow management targeted to improve river bed conditions for endangered salmonid populations.

California↗
USGS1999

Long-term experimental manipulation of winter snow regime and summer temperature in arctic and alpine tundra

Three 60 m long, 2·8 m high snowfences have been erected to study long-term effects of changing winter snow conditions on arctic and alpine tundra. This paper describes the experimental design and short-term effects. Open-top fiberglass warming chambers are placed along the experimental snow gradients and in controls areas outside the fences; each warming plot is paired with an unwarmed plot. The purpose of the experiment is to examine short- and long-term changes to the integrated physical-biological systems under simultaneous changes of winter snow regime and summer temperature, as part of the Long-Term Ecological Research network and the International Tundra Experiment. The sites were at Niwot Ridge, Colorado, a temperate high altitude site in the Colorado Rockies, and Toolik Lake, Alaska, a high-latitude site. Initial results indicate that although experimental designs are essentially identical at the arctic and alpine sites, experimental effects are different. The drift at Niwot Ridge lasts much longer than do the Toolik Lake drifts, so that the Niwot Ridge fence affects both summer and winter conditions, whereas the Toolik Lake fence affects primarily winter conditions. The temperature experiment also differs in effect between the sites. Although the average temperature increase at the two sites is similar (daily increase 1·5 °C at Toolik and 1·9 °C at Niwot Ridge), at Toolik Lake there is only minor diurnal variation, whereas at Niwot Ridge the daytime increases are extreme on sunny days (as much as 7–10 °C), and minimum nighttime temperatures in the chambers are often slightly cooler than ambient (by about 1 °C). The experimental drifts resulted in wintertime increases in temperature and CO 2 flux. Temperatures under the deep drifts were much more consistent and warmer than in control areas, and at Niwot Ridge remained very close to 0 °C all winter. These increased temperatures were likely responsible for observed increases in system carbon loss. Initial changes to the aboveground biotic system included an increase in growth in response to both snow and warming, despite a reduced growing season. This is expected to be a transient response that will eventually be replaced by reduced growth. At least one species, Kobresia myosuroides , had almost completely died at Niwot Ridge three years after fence construction, whereas other species were increasing. We expect in both the short- and long-term to see the strongest effects of snow at the Niwot Ridge site, and stronger effects of temperature at Toolik Lake.

Hydrological Processes↗
USGS2019

Adaptive management assists reintroduction as higher tides threaten an endangered salt marsh plant

In theory, extirpated plant species can be reintroduced and managed to restore sustainable populations. However, few reintroduced plants are known to persist for more than a few years. Our adaptive‐management case study illustrates how we restored the endangered hemiparasitic annual plant, Chloropyron maritimum subsp. maritimum (salt marsh bird's beak), to Sweetwater Marsh, San Diego Bay National Wildlife Refuge, California, United States, and used monitoring and experimentation to identify the factors limiting the reintroduced population. After extirpation in 1988, reintroduction starting that year led to a resilient, genetically diverse population in 2016 (a “boom” of approximately 14,000) that rebounded from a “bust” (62 in 2014). Multiple regressions attributed 82% of the variation in population counts to tidal amplitude, rainfall, and temperature. Populations of salt marsh bird's beak crashed when the diurnal tide range peaked during the 18.6‐year lunar nodal cycle (a rarely considered factor that periodically added approximately 12 cm to tidal ranges). We explain booms as follows: During smaller tidal amplitudes , above‐average rainfall could desalinize upper intertidal soils and stimulate salt marsh bird's beak germination. Then, moderate temperature in May favors growth to reproduction in June. In addition, salt marsh bird's beak needs a short and open canopy of native perennial plants, with roots to parasitize (not non‐native annual grass pseudohosts) and nearby upland soil for a preferred pollinator, ground‐burrowing bees. Although our reintroduced salt marsh bird's beak population is an exceptional case of persistence, this rare species‐specific environmental and biological requirement makes it vulnerable to rising sea levels and global warming.

California↗
USGS2004

Water quality and quantity of selected springs and seeps along the Colorado River corridor, Utah and Arizona: Arches National Park, Canyonlands National Park, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, and Grand Canyon National Park, 1997-98

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the National Park Service conducted an intensive assessment of selected springs along the Colorado River Corridor in Arches National Park, Canyonlands National Park, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, and Grand Canyon National Park in 1997 and 1998, for the purpose of measuring and evaluating the water quality and quantity of the resource. This study was conducted to establish baseline data for the future evaluation of possible effects from recreational use and climate change. Selected springs and seeps were visited over a study period from 1997 to 1998, during which, discharge and on-site chemical measurements were made at selected springs and seeps, and samples were collected for subsequent chemical laboratory analysis. This interdisciplinary study also includes simultaneous studies of flora and fauna, measured and sampled coincidently at the same sites. Samples collected during this study were transported to U.S. Geological Survey laboratories in Boulder, Colorado, where analyses were performed using state-of-the-art laboratory technology. The location of the selected springs and seeps, elevation, geology, aspect, and onsite measurements including temperature, discharge, dissolved oxygen, pH, and specific conductance, were recorded. Laboratory analyses include determinations for alkalinity, aluminum, ammonium (nitrogen), antimony, arsenic, barium, beryllium, bismuth, boron, bromide, cadmium, calcium, cerium, cesium, chloride, chromium, cobalt, copper, dissolved inorganic carbon, dissolved organic carbon, dysprosium, erbium, europium, fluoride, gadolinium, holmium, iodine, iron, lanthanum, lead, lithium, lutetium, magnesium, manganese, mercury, molybdenum, neodymium, nickel, nitrate (nitrogen), nitrite (nitrogen), phosphate, phosphorus, potassium, praseodymium, rhenium, rubidium, samarium, selenium, silica, silver, sodium, strontium, sulfate, tellurium, terbium, thallium, thorium, thulium, tin, titanium, tungsten, uranium, vanadium, yttrium, ytterbium, zinc, and zirconium in these springs and seeps. Biological observations include physical setting, vegetation, invertebrate habitats, and invertebrate microhabitats.

Arizona, Utah↗