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1,662 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
USGS2024

Earthquake effects surveyed during the nineteenth century as ecological features of Chinookan tidelands

Lasting effects of a Cascadia earthquake in 1700 were documented during surveys of Chinookan tidelands near the mouth of the Columbia River between 1805 and 1868. The effects resemble estuarine consequences, near Anchorage, of the 1964 Alaska earthquake: fatal drowning of subsided meadows and forests by post-earthquake tides, rebirth of marshes and forests through post-earthquake sedimentation, and uplift. Chinookan remains of killed forests were recorded by James Graham Cooper, John J. Lowell, and Cleveland Rockwell. Cooper, attached to a railroad survey and the Smithsonian Institution, wrote of redcedar stumps and trunks standing dead in tidal marshes of Shoalwater (now Willapa) Bay. Two such snags served as bearing trees for Lowell as he platted a Shoalwater Bay township under contract with the General Land Office. Rockwell, of the US Coast Survey, flecked landward edges of tidal flats west of Astoria with symbols that evoke remains of a bygone spruce forest. The Lewis and Clark Expedition, while in that area in 1805–1806, mapped and puzzled over tideland vegetation that post-1700 succession helps explain.

Alaska, British Columbia, California, Oregon, Wash↗
USGS2025

Unlocking ecological insights from sub-seasonal visible-to-shortwave infrared imaging spectroscopy: The SHIFT campaign

We stand at the threshold of a transformative era in Earth observation, marked by space-borne visible-to-shortwave infrared (VSWIR) imaging spectrometers that promise consistent global observations of ecosystem function, phenology, and inter- and intra-annual change. However, the full value of repeat spectroscopy, the information embedded within different temporal scales, and the reliability of existing algorithms across diverse ecosystem types and vegetation phenophases have remained elusive due to the absence of suitable sub-seasonal spectroscopy data. In response, the Surface Biology and Geology (SBG) High-Frequency Time Series (SHIFT) campaign was initiated during late February 2022 in Santa Barbara County, California. SHIFT, designed to support NASA's SBG mission, addressed mission scoping, scientific advancement, applications development, and community building. This ambitious endeavor included weekly Airborne Visible InfraRed Imaging Spectrometer-Next Generation (AVIRIS-NG) imagery acquisitions for 13 weeks (spanning February 24 to May 29, 2022), accompanied by coordinated terrestrial vegetation and coastal aquatic data collection. We describe the rich datasets collected and illustrate how the complex sub-seasonal patterns of change can be linked to biological science and applications, surpassing insights from multispectral observations. Leveraging open-source processing methods and cloud-based analysis tools, the SHIFT campaign showcases the readiness of the scientific community to harness ecological insights from remotely sensed hyperspectral time series. We provide an overview of SHIFT's goals, data collections, preliminary results, and the collaborative efforts of early career scientists committed to unlocking the transformative potential of high-frequency time series data from space-borne VSWIR imaging spectrometers.

Ecosphere↗
USGS2024

Editorial: From cold seeps to hydrothermal vents: Geology, chemistry, microbiology, and ecology in marine and coastal environments

This Research Topic compiles contemporary studies on cold seeps, hydrothermal vents, mud volcanoes, and related seafloor features that are associated with focused fluid emissions and the transfer of carbon, other chemical species, and sometimes heat from the geosphere to the ocean. Because these features sometimes tap fluids and gas originating kilometers below the seafloor, they provide an important window into deep processes that are otherwise inaccessible to scientists. At the shallow portion of their journey, migrating fluids nearing the seafloor contribute to a range of unique biological, physical, and chemical processes within the sediments themselves and at the sediment-water interface. Seafloor fluid emissions play a critical role in global biogeochemical cycles, ocean chemistry, and possibly even climate change. Seafloor leakage points often emit hydrocarbon gases (especially methane and CO 2 ) and are sometimes the loci for deposition of seafloor minerals that have economic value. A burgeoning area of research focuses on natural products generated at these features, seeking compounds with potential pharmaceutical or other applications. Multidisciplinary studies have become routine for characterization of seafloor fluid emission sites, attesting to the inseparability of geologic, physical, chemical, and biological processes in these settings. It is increasingly common for researchers to combine in a single research cruise: subbottom imaging and seafloor mapping; porewater and water column geochemistry and gas sampling; sediment retrieval for lithologic, biostratigraphic, and solid phase analyses; and studies of benthic and subseafloor communities at the microbial to macrofaunal scales. This multidisciplinary approach has the advantage of ensuring the spatial and temporal coincidence of surveys and samples, an important factor at highly dynamic seafloor fluid emission sites. In addition, researchers often use remotely operated vehicles (ROVs), autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs), or human-occupied vehicles (HOVs) to record video of the seafloor, compile photomosaics, collect targeted samples, and survey with high-resolution geophysical near-seafloor systems, providing a degree of detail about seafloor fluid emission sites that is unprecedented compared to most areas of the deep ocean. While rarer, long-term cabled observatories or shorter-term deployments of portable observatories are also used at some loci for seafloor fluid flux and are particularly helpful for capturing temporal variations at these dynamic features. Here we summarize the Research Topic’s contribution to multidisciplinary seafloor emission studies in the categories of cold seeps, mud volcanoes, and hydrothermal vents. Figure 1 shows the geographic distribution of the studies in this Research Topic and key features referred to in this Introduction.

Frontiers in Earth Science↗
USGS2026

King Rails in southeastern Arkansas are majority resident

King Rails ( Rallus elegans ), a declining species of secretive marsh bird, have a mixed migratory strategy, with some individuals migrating and some being year-round residents. Determining the distribution of migratory versus resident King Rails is critical to guiding habitat management and assessing risks to populations. We examined the migratory status of adult King Rails at the Choctaw West Wildlife Management Area in southeastern Arkansas, the only known site in Arkansas with multiple breeding pairs. Of the 23 adult King Rails we tagged in 2022 and 2023, two birds migrated away from the local area, one in each year. One migrated 145 km, and the other 450 km. Our findings suggest that the line between the migratory and resident range of Arkansas King Rails could be north of our site.

Arkansas↗
USGS2026

Estimation of parental abundance using hierarchical Bayesian modeling with data augmentation

Pedigree-based estimation methods leverage the fact that each offspring in a cohort is genotypically “marked” by its parents and represent a recent and promising toolset for estimating population dynamics. This includes pedigree accumulation estimators that model the “accumulation” of inferred unique parents within a given cohort to estimate parental abundance. Unlike close-kin mark-recapture approaches, which rely on intercohort comparisons, pedigree accumulation modeling can be completed solely using intracohort samples. This is particularly advantageous for semelparous species, where intercohort pairs are impossible and adult life stages can be difficult to sample without affecting their likelihood of successfully reproducing. Previous work has evaluated a range of estimators for such datasets, concluding that the non-parametric Chao estimator provides the most accurate and precise estimates for feasible levels of sampling effort. We used simulated data to evaluate an alternative estimator based on hierarchical modeling and data augmentation in a Bayesian framework. Results indicate that estimates from the hierarchical Bayesian estimator had comparable accuracy and better precision than both the previously tested Chao1 estimator and the improved iChao formulation across a range of sample sizes and sex ratios. Furthermore, the Bayesian estimator was far more robust to simulated errors in pedigree reconstruction, especially the presence of false negatives. Hierarchical Bayesian pedigree accumulation models can also provide additional insight into underlying reproductive ecology through their use of an explicit observation process, allowing for the incorporation or estimation of species- and population-specific reproductive dynamics. More broadly, the parametric nature of these models offers opportunities to efficiently pool information among datasets as well as to propagate uncertainty within more complex models.

Ecology and Evolution↗
USGS2026

Family life is critical for migration and survival in a long-lived social bird

Extended parental care is common among birds and particularly well known among long-lived migratory species. Yet, factors influencing the duration of parental care are poorly understood, and empirical evidence for the functional importance of family life for offspring development is scarce. Using unique tracking and genetic data of 55 adult and juvenile migratory Bewick’s swans, among which 18 parent-offspring pairs and 13 sibling pairs, we quantify variation in family bond duration and identify the cause and consequences of their dissolution. Families generally broke up during the second half of the first northward migration of the offspring, when offspring were nearly one year old. Earlier separation occurred on the wintering grounds in response to disturbance ( n = 10 juveniles) and led to delayed migration and, critically, lower survival (40 vs. 86%). Our results provide rare empirical evidence that family bonds, as a pathway for social learning, are not just important, but vital to the migration and survival of young family-living birds.

Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology↗
USGS2026

The effect of temperature, flow, density and disease on smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) early life growth rate

Individual growth rates of fish are influenced by gradually changing environmental conditions and rapid-onset events. However, there is a paucity of information on drivers of spatiotemporal variability in growth rates of fishes across large spatial extents. Using a 36-year dataset of smallmouth bass ( Micropterus dolomieu ) length-at-age data across 10 river reaches in Pennsylvania, USA ( n = 54,068 individuals), we estimated annual early life growth rates (mm year −1 ) and assessed the effects of relative abundance, summer temperature, summer streamflow rate and a disease outbreak on growth rate. We found that temperature had a positive effect on growth rate, varied spatially, and had a stronger effect in diseased reaches. There was also evidence for an impact of disease on early life growth through density-dependent mechanisms, with growth rates increasing from ∼85 to 101 mm·year −1 following disease-related decreases in abundance. This study adds to our understanding of the factors that shape early life growth, including rapid-onset events like disease which can have immediate and lasting effects on growth rate trajectory.

Pennsylvania↗
USGS2026

Satellite time series analysis to quantify changing climax ciénegas using a state and transition model approach

Ciénegas are rare wetlands in arid landscapes of the North American Southwest, historically providing critical ecological and hydrological functions but increasingly threatened by changing climate and land use pressures. This study quantifies changes in ciénega condition and floodplain dynamics using a state-and-transition model (STM) informed by expert knowledge and remote sensing. Key factors include woody plant encroachment, water availability, and soil aggradation. We mapped 31 ciénegas with high-resolution imagery and analyzed Landsat data (1985–2023) to assess vegetation health and moisture using the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and Normalized Difference Infrared Index (NDII). Results show substantial interannual variability in phenology, water stress, and soil moisture, with regional drying and elevation strongly influencing ciénega resilience. We classified ciénegas into three functional states—healthy, desiccated, and dormant—and mapped their 2023 condition. Trend analyses indicate most ciénegas exhibit greening despite drought, though localized variability underscores the need for site-specific management. None are in a stable climax (reference) state; rather, they transition among states in response to external drivers. Increasing woody plant cover and surface drying, likely linked to declining regional water tables, favor deep-rooted species over wetland grasses—a pattern mirrored in adjacent control plots. Spatially explicit analysis revealed intra-ciénega variability often masked by aggregated data, highlighting the importance of high-resolution monitoring. Seasonal and long-term trends provide context for understanding ciénega dynamics, including degradation and restoration pathways. This study emphasizes the importance of groundwater conservation and demonstrates how remote sensing supports long-term monitoring. The STM framework offers a practical tool for adaptive management to sustain freshwater resources in arid environments.

Arizona, New Mexico↗
USGS2026

Riverscape heterogeneity shapes population diversity for a migratory fish

Habitat patch dynamics can scale up to influence population demography and diversity with implications for resilience to environmental stochasticity. But how the spatial arrangement and size of habitat patches interact with other components of habitat heterogeneity to shape population diversity at larger spatial scales is not well understood. For riverine fishes, there is increasing evidence that tributary streams provide critical demographic support to main stem rivers. However, the extent to which main stem rivers rely on demographic contributions from tributaries, and the factors underlying this dependence, have not been assessed. Here, we used genetic stock identification to evaluate the effect of tributaries on population diversity of Yellowstone cutthroat trout ( Oncorhynchus virginalis bouvieri ) occupying the main stem Snake River, Wyoming, USA. We found that the main stem relied almost entirely on tributaries for demographic support, but main stem composition varied spatially among river sections. Distance between habitat patches, catchment area, and groundwater availability acted in concert to determine the contribution of specific tributaries to the main stem, but contributions were ultimately modulated by habitat connectivity. We also found evidence for multi-scale spatial structure in tributary contributions, providing insight into untested drivers of main stem river population diversity. Our results demonstrate how spatially discrete and distributed riverscape attributes influence population diversity at broader spatial scales, illustrating how ecosystem resilience emerges from the dynamic, two-way exchange of individuals and energy across habitat networks. Management plans for large rivers that address the ecological contributions of tributaries may be needed to achieve optimal outcomes. Similarly, conservation strategies that exclusively focus on headwater streams may fail to capture the broader habitat requirements necessary to maintain robust cold-water fish populations and associated recreational fisheries, particularly under global environmental change.

Wyoming↗
USGS2012

Development of vegetation based soil quality indices for mineralized terrane in arid and semi-arid regions

Soil quality indices (SQIs) are often management driven and attempt to describe key relationships between above- and below-ground parameters. In terrestrial systems, indices that were initially developed and modified for agroecosystems have been applied to non-agricultural systems in increasing number. We develop an SQI in arid and semi-arid ecosystems of the Western US impacted by different types of geologic mineralization using the relationship between vegetation community parameters and soil abiotic and biotic properties. We analyze these relations in soils associated with three different mineralization types: podiform chromite, Cu/Mo porphyry, and acid-sulfate gold vein systems at four different sites in California and Nevada. Soil samples were collected from undisturbed soils in both mineralized and nearby unmineralized substrates as well as from waste rock and tailings. Aboveground net primary productivity (ANPP), canopy cover and shrub density were measured for the vegetative communities. Minimum data sets were developed based on correlations between the soil and vegetation parameters, refined using principal components analysis, scored using non-linear functions, and combined into an overall SQI. The indices are comprised of one or two microbial parameters and three to six abiotic parameters, the latter consisting of nutrients and metals. Given the preliminary development of this approach, the parameters and combinations to arrive at an SQI for a given site cannot at this time be correlated or compared with that of another site. This SQI approach provides a means of quantifying disturbed ecosystem recovery resulting from mining, and could be applied to other disturbances in a way that readily distills the information for potential use by land managers. However, severely disturbed areas with little to no aboveground biomass, such as unreclaimed tailings, have likely crossed an ecological threshold that precludes the use of this type of monitoring tool.

California↗
USGS2025

Status of water-quality conditions in the United States, 2010–20

Degradation of water quality can make water harmful or unusable for humans and ecosystems. Although many studies have assessed the effect of individual constituents or narrow suites of constituents on freshwater systems, no consistent, comprehensive assessment exists over the wide range of water-quality effects on water availability. Using published studies, data, and models completed at regional or national scales in the United States during 2010–20, this chapter moves towards a comprehensive assessment by summarizing how selected anthropogenic and geogenic water-quality constituents affect national-scale water availability for human and ecosystem needs. Several types of human health, agricultural, ecological, and beneficial-use standards or thresholds were used to provide context for categorizing surface-water and groundwater quality. Water availability for human and ecological use is limited by elevated concentrations of geogenic and anthropogenic constituents in surface and groundwater. Elevated concentrations of five geogenic constituents (arsenic, manganese, strontium, radium, and adjusted gross alpha) are common in groundwater and collectively affect the drinking water supply to over 30 million people. Surface water sourced drinking water supplies are impaired in about a third of assessed stream miles, most commonly because of non-mercury metals and salinity. Health-based violations at community water systems may disproportionately affect socially vulnerable communities. Ecological water uses are predominantly limited by nutrients, sediment, temperature, pathogens, salinity, and pesticides. Water availability for human and ecological use is adversely affected by human activities including human contaminant sources (for example, wastewater, agriculture), processes (for example, dredging, groundwater pumping), or permanent landscape modifications (for example, dams, urbanization). Primary contaminant sources vary spatially and include fertilizer and manure, atmospheric deposition, wastewater treatment plants, urban land, and a range of natural sources. Contaminants of emerging concern, contaminants without regulatory thresholds, and mixtures of geogenic and anthropogenic water contaminants also contribute to ecological degradation and human exposure.

conterminous United States↗
USGS2025

Towards mobile wind measurements using joust configured ultrasonic anemometer for applications in gas flux quantification

Small uncrewed aerial systems (sUASs) can be used to quantify emissions of greenhouse and other gases, providing flexibility in quantifying these emissions from a multitude of sources, including oil and gas infrastructure, volcano plumes, wildfire emissions, and natural sources. However, sUAS-based emission estimates are sensitive to the accuracy of wind speed and direction measurements. In this study, we examined how filtering and correcting sUAS-based wind measurements affects data accuracy by comparing data from a miniature ultrasonic anemometer mounted on a sUAS in a joust configuration to highly accurate wind data taken from a nearby eddy covariance flux tower (aka the Tower). These corrections had a small effect on wind speed error, but reduced wind direction errors from 50° to >120° to 20–30°. A concurrent experiment examining the amount of error due to the sUAS and the Tower not being co-located showed that the impact of this separation was 0.16–0.21 ms − 1 "> ms − 1 , a small influence on wind speed errors. Lower wind speed errors were correlated with lower turbulence intensity and higher relative wind speeds. There were also some loose trends in diminished wind direction errors at higher relative wind speeds. Therefore, to improve the quality of sUAS-based wind measurements, our study suggested that flight planning consider optimizing conditions that can lower turbulence intensity and maximize relative wind speeds as well as include post-flight corrections.

Alaska↗
USGS2026

Alternative approaches to dryland reclamation enhance vegetation cover and soil stability at a former uranium mine

Introduction Conventional reclamation methods to recover dryland ecosystems after mineral extraction often have low success. Alternative reclamation techniques may help overcome the many challenges to establishing persistent native vegetation and stable soils. Objectives Compare conventional reclamation approaches that focus primarily on soil stabilization to alternative approaches that may improve native ecosystem restoration at the Kanab North Mine in northern Arizona. Methods In a fully crossed experiment, conventional seed mix (native and non-native species) and seeding methods (drill-seeding) were compared to alternative practices, including a native-only seed mix, connectivity modifiers (ConMods) with hand seeding, and a biocrust inoculation. Restoration metrics like plant establishment, species composition, soil surface cover and stability, biocrust establishment, and near-surface wind-driven sediment were monitored over the first 5 years post-reclamation. Results While all restoration metrics improved with time, compared to traditional methods, ConMods increased total, graminoid, and native plant species cover, and the native-only seed mix increased woody, native, and perennial species cover. Biocrust inoculation increased late-successional biocrust development, but biocrusts only persisted over 5 years in combination with ConMods. Soil stability increased in all treatments, but both ConMods and biocrust inoculation increased stability compared to traditional practices. Conclusion Overall, alternative approaches to reclamation tested here (ConMods, native seed, and biocrust inoculation) were more effective than traditional practices at increasing total plant cover, facilitating biocrust establishment, and promoting soil stability after uranium mine reclamation.

Arizona↗
USGS2026

Spatial variation in effectiveness and costs of sagebrush restoration treatments across the western United States

Natural resource managers strive to improve restoration efficiency across the vast network of public lands of the United States, seeking the best return on investment through innovation, geographic prioritization, and adaptive management. This challenge is exemplified by ecosystems dominated by sagebrush ( Artemisia spp.), which occur across the western United States and have been degraded by increasing wildfire frequency driven by invasive plant spread, among other factors. However, both costs and effectiveness of sagebrush restoration can vary spatially due to management practices in addition to biotic and abiotic factors, and characterizing this variation could inform broad-scale planning. We leveraged published models of sagebrush recovery and treatment costs to predict and evaluate cost-effectiveness of aerial and drill seeding Artemisia spp. across 429 718 km 2 that overlapped 12 US states. Compared to natural recovery, effectiveness for both methods was generally low, yet effectiveness was often greater, and costs were always greater, for drill than aerial seeding, resulting in slightly higher cost-effectiveness on average for drill seeding. Cost-effectiveness for both treatments increased near major roads and in areas with more repeated burns. Cost-effectiveness also increased with predisturbance cover of sagebrush but decreased with herbaceous cover. However, we also identified areas where aerial seeding was more cost-effective than drill seeding, particularly with greater slope. Our results provide spatially explicit estimates and potential mechanisms of cost-effectiveness for two common seeding methods for sagebrush, which can help prioritize limited resources, guide land use, and improve restoration efficiency and effectiveness across public rangelands of the western United States.

western United States↗
USGS2026

Estimating habitat availability for Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) and steelhead (O. mykiss) to inform reintroduction planning in the middle Snake River basin, USA

Anadromous fishes have been blocked from the middle Snake River basin since the construction of flood control, irrigation, and hydroelectric projects during the 19 th and 20 th centuries, culminating with the construction of Hells Canyon Dam (river kilometer [rkm] 398) in 1967. Seven large watersheds in the blocked area of the basin are under consideration for Pacific salmon reintroduction. The primary objective of this study was to identify and characterize potential reintroduction sites with high-quality rearing and spawning habitat for Chinook salmon ( Oncorhynchus tshawytscha ) and steelhead ( O. mykiss ) upstream of the Hells Canyon Complex in Idaho, Oregon, and Nevada, USA. We created and tested habitat models to predict rearing presence/absence, rearing abundance, and spawning presence/absence using channel morphology, hydrology, and stream temperature variables obtained from regional peer-reviewed datasets. Habitat models were trained with salmonid presence and abundance records collected in the lower Snake River basin (downstream of Hells Canyon Dam), where anadromous fish can currently access, from 1993 to 2011. Model performance was tested with set-aside data comprised of randomly selected reaches and independent environmental DNA data. An index model was created in the middle Snake River basin for each species by combining results from the habitat models. Modeling covariates differed by species and life stage and included different combinations of August stream temperature, summer flow, channel slope, and quadratic terms for temperature and slope. The habitat models predicted high versus low Chinook salmon and steelhead probability and abundance with 66% to 85% accuracy depending on species and life stage. The index models predicted a total of 2,887 km of Chinook salmon habitat and 2,434 km of steelhead habitat in the blocked area. The three basins in the blocked area with the greatest amount of predicted habitat were the Powder River, South Fork Payette River, and North Fork Payette River for Chinook salmon, and the Powder River, South Fork Boise River, and South Fork Payette River for steelhead. The modeling approach presented here is complementary to other planning efforts for Chinook salmon and steelhead reintroduction in the blocked area of the Snake River basin, and similar approaches may be useful for reintroduction planning in other systems.

Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, Wyoming↗
USGS2026

Age and colony variation in Adélie penguin metapopulation vital rates: Insights from a 25-year mark–recapture study

Understanding how vital rates vary with age, life-history stage, and among populations is fundamental for predicting the demographic consequences of environmental change, especially in longer-lived species with complex life histories. These species often exhibit delayed maturity and iteroparity, making nuanced demographic insights critical for assessing their long-term viability. This study investigated age- and colony-related variation in Adélie penguin vital rates including survival, recruitment, and breeding propensity. We used mark–recapture data collected over 25 years (1996–2020) from three Adélie penguin breeding colonies that differed in population sizes and trends but comprised a metapopulation located at capes Royds, Bird, and Crozier on Ross Island, Antarctica. We used multi-state models to estimate survival and detection rates relative to reproductive state and breeding colony and estimated transition probabilities reflecting movements between reproductive states and colonies. Apparent survival varied by reproductive state, colony, and age and averaged 0.80 (SD = 0.02) at Bird, and 0.72 (SD = 0.03) and 0.73 (SD = 0.03) at Crozier and Royds, respectively, for pre-breeders age 2–7 years with strong declines in pre-breeder survival after age 8. We observed less age-related variation in survival of breeders and non-breeders, but we observed differences between colonies with lower survival for breeders (0.72 to 0.80) compared to non-breeders (0.75 to 0.82). The average probability of surviving the first 2 years after fledging ranged from 0.43 (SD = 0.14) at Royds and Crozier (0.43, SD = 0.10) to 0.55 (SD = 0.15) at Bird. Movement between colonies was highest for pre-breeders (0.00%–12.00% depending on age and colony) and lowest for breeders (<0.20%). We observed the lowest age-related recruitment rates at Royds, with recruitment at Crozier almost twice as high, and intermediate at Bird. Breeding propensity was highest at Crozier and lowest at Bird. Colony-specific variation in vital rates likely contributed differently to population trajectories, suggesting that care must be taken to extrapolate vital rate estimates across colonies even within a metapopulation. These findings also highlight the importance of considering age, life-history stage, and geographic variation when assessing population vital rates in species with complex life histories.

Frontiers in Ecology and Environment↗
USGS2025

Fossil diatoms in Arctic marine surface sediments

Diatoms are one of the main constituents of marine phytoplankton in the Arctic, and thanks to their siliceous skeletons, diatom fossils are relatively well preserved in sediments. Due to their species-specific sensitivity to different ocean conditions, their abundance and assemblages in sediments are routinely used by paleoceanographers to reconstruct the state of the surface ocean in the past (Koç 2007). By using statistical methods, we can obtain valuable knowledge about their ecological preferences (Oksman et al. 2019) and generate quantitative reconstructions of various parameters, such as sea-surface temperature and sea-ice concentration through time (Krawczyk et al. 2021; Sha et al. 2014). The Marine Arctic Diatoms (MARDI) working group (WG) ( pastglobalchanges.org/mardi ) aims to advance knowledge on marine-diatom ecology and diatom-based reconstructions by compiling and harmonizing data from surface-sediment samples across the Arctic.

Pages Magazine↗