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USGS2017

Novel, continuous monitoring of fine‐scale movement using fixed‐position radiotelemetry arrays and random forest location fingerprinting

Radio‐tag signals from fixed‐position antennas are most often used to indicate presence or absence of individuals, or to estimate individual activity levels from signal strength variation within an antenna's detection zone. The potential of such systems to provide more precise information on tag location and movement has not been explored in great detail in an ecological setting. By reversing the roles that transmitters and receivers play in localization methods common to the telecommunications industry, we present a new telemetric tool for accurately estimating the location of tagged individuals from received signal strength values. The methods used to characterize the study area in terms of received signal strength are described, as is the random forest model used for localization. The resulting method is then validated using test data before being applied to true data collected from tagged individuals in the study site. Application of the localization method to test data withheld from the learning dataset indicated a low average error over the entire study area (<1 m), whereas application of the localization method to real data produced highly probable results consistent with field observations. This telemetric approach provided detailed movement data for tagged fish along a single axis (a migratory path) and is particularly useful for monitoring passage along migratory routes. The new methods applied in this study can also be expanded to include multiple axes ( x , y , z ) and multiple environments (aquatic and terrestrial) for remotely monitoring wildlife movement.

New York↗

USGS2025

Using plant invasions to compare occurrence- and abundance-based calculations of biotic homogenisation: Are results complementary or contradictory?

Aim Beta diversity quantifies the similarity of ecological assemblages. Its increase, known as biotic homogenisation, can be a consequence of biological invasions. However, species occurrence (presence/absence) and abundance-based analyses can produce contradictory assessments of the magnitude and direction of changes in beta diversity. Previous work indicates these contradictions should be less frequent in nature than in theory, but a growing number of empirical studies report discrepancies between occurrence- and abundance-based approaches. Understanding if these discrepancies represent a few isolated cases or are systematic across a diversity of ecosystems would allow us to better understand the general patterns, mechanisms and impacts of biotic homogenisation. Location United States. Time Period 1963–2020. Major Taxa Studied Vascular plants. Methods We used a dataset of more than 70,000 vegetation survey plots to assess differences in biotic homogenisation with and without invasion using both occurrence- and abundance-based metrics of beta diversity. We estimated taxonomic biotic homogenisation by comparing beta diversity of invaded and uninvaded plots with both classes of metrics and investigated the characteristics of the non-native species pool that influenced the likelihood that these metrics disagree. Results In 78% of plot comparisons, occurrence- and abundance-based calculations agreed in direction, and the two metrics were generally well correlated. Our empirical results are consistent with previous theory. Discrepancies between the metrics were more likely when the same non-native species was at high cover at both plots compared for beta diversity, and when these plots were spatially distant. Main Conclusions In about 20% of cases, our calculations revealed differences in direction (homogenisation vs. differentiation) when comparing occurrence- and abundance-based metrics, indicating that the metrics are not interchangeable, especially when distances between plots are high and invader diversity is low. When data permit, combining the two approaches can offer insights into the role of invasions and extirpations in driving biotic homogenisation/differentiation.

Global Ecology and Biogeography↗

USGS2021

Modeling effects of disturbance across life history strategies of stream fishes

A central goal of population ecology is to establish linkages between life history strategy, disturbance, and population dynamics. Globally, disturbance events such as drought and invasive species have dramatically impacted stream fish populations and contributed to sharp declines in freshwater biodiversity. Here, we used RAMAS-Metapop to construct stage-based demographic metapopulation models for stream fishes with periodic, opportunistic, and equilibrium life history strategies and assessed their responses to disturbance scenarios that approximated the effects of invasion, drought, and the additive effects of both disturbances. Our models indicated that populations respond differentially to disturbance based on life history strategy. Equilibrium strategists were best able to deal with simulated invasion. Periodic strategists did well under lower levels of drought, whereas opportunistic strategists outperformed other life histories under extreme seasonal drought. When we modeled additive effects scenarios, these disturbances interacted synergistically, dramatically increasing terminal extinction risk for all three life history strategies. Modeling exercises that examine broad life history categories can help to answer fundamental ecological questions about the relationship between disturbance resilience and life history, as well as help managers to develop generalized conservation strategies when species-specific data are lacking. Our results indicate that life history strategy is a fundamental determinant of population trajectories, and that disturbances can interact synergistically to dramatically impact extinction outcomes.

Oecologia↗

USGS2023

A genetic warning system for a hierarchically structured wildlife monitoring framework

Genetic variation is a well-known indicator of population fitness yet is not typically included in monitoring programs for sensitive species. Additionally, most programs monitor populations at one scale, which can lead to potential mismatches with ecological processes critical to species' conservation. Recently developed methods generating hierarchically nested population units (i.e., clusters of varying scales) for greater sage-grouse ( Centrocercus urophasianus ) have identified population trend declines across spatiotemporal scales to help managers target areas for conservation. The same clusters used as a proxy for spatial scale can alert managers to local units (i.e., neighborhood-scale) with low genetic diversity, further facilitating identification of management targets. We developed a genetic warning system utilizing previously developed hierarchical population units to identify management-relevant areas with low genetic diversity within the greater sage-grouse range. Within this warning system we characterized conservation concern thresholds based on values of genetic diversity and developed a statistical model for microsatellite data to robustly estimate these values for hierarchically nested populations. We found that 41 of 224 neighborhood-scale clusters had low genetic diversity, 23 of which were coupled with documented local population trend decline. We also found evidence of cross-scale low genetic diversity in the small and isolated Washington population, unlikely to be reversed through typical local management actions alone. The combination of low genetic diversity and a declining population suggests relatively high conservation concern. Our findings could further facilitate conservation action prioritization in combination with population trend assessments and (or) local information, and act as a base-line of genetic diversity for future comparison. Importantly, the approach we used is broadly applicable across taxa.

Ecological Applications↗

USGS2017

Chronic toxicity of azoxystrobin to freshwater amphipods, midges, cladocerans, and mussels in water-only exposures

Understanding the effects of fungicides on nontarget organisms at realistic concentrations and exposure durations is vital for determining potential impacts on aquatic ecosystems. Environmental concentrations of the fungicide azoxystrobin have been reported up to 4.6 μg/L in the United States and 30 μg/L in Europe. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the chronic toxicity of azoxystrobin in water-only exposures with an amphipod ( Hyalella azteca ; 42-d exposure), a midge ( Chironomus dilutus ; 50-d exposure), a cladoceran ( Ceriodaphnia dubia ; 7-d exposure), and a unionid mussel ( Lampsilis siliquoidea ; 28-d exposure) at environmentally relevant concentrations. The potential photo-enhanced toxicity of azoxystrobin accumulated by C. dubia and L. siliquoidea following chronic exposures to azoxystrobin was also evaluated. The 20% effect concentrations (EC20s) based on the most sensitive endpoint were 4.2 μg/L for H. azteca reproduction, 12 μg/L for C. dubia reproduction and C. dilutus emergence, and >28 μg/L for L. siliquoidea . Hyalella azteca was more sensitive to azoxystrobin compared with the other 3 species in the chronic exposures. No photo-enhanced toxicity was observed for either C. dubia or L. siliquoidea exposed to ultraviolet light in control water following azoxystrobin tests. The results of the present study indicate chronic effects of azoxystrobin on 3 of 4 invertebrates tested at environmentally relevant concentrations. The changes noted in biomass and reproduction have the potential to alter the rate of ecological processes driven by aquatic invertebrates. Environ Toxicol Chem 2017;9999:1–8. Published 2017 Wiley Periodicals Inc. on behalf of SETAC. This article is a US government work and, as such, is in the public domain in the United States of America.

Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry↗

USGS2006

Changes in organic matter biodegradatility influencing sulfate reduction in an aquifer contaminated by landfill leachate

In situ experiments were conducted to measure sulfate reduction rates and identify rate-limiting factors in a shallow, alluvial aquifer contaminated with municipal landfill leachate. Single-well, push–pull tests conducted in a well adjacent to the landfill with >8 mM dissolved organic carbon (DOC) exhibited a sulfate reduction rate of 3.2 μmol SO 4 −2 (L sediment) −1 day −1 , a value in close agreement with laboratory-derived estimates. Identical tests conducted in wells located 90 m downgradient where DOC levels remained high (>3 mM) showed no detectable sulfate consumption, and laboratory assays confirmed this observation. However, the rates of sulfate reduction in sediment samples obtained from this site were three times larger when they were amended with filter-sterilized groundwater from the upgradient location. The effect of various amendments on sulfate reduction rates was further examined in laboratory incubations using sediment collected from the downgradient site amended with 35 S sulfate. Unamended sediments showed only weak conversion of the tracer to 35 S sulfide (5 to 7 cpm/cm 2 ), whereas the addition of Desulfovibrio cells increased 35 S sulfide production to 44 cpm/cm 2 . However, the application of heat-killed Desulfovibrio had a similar stimulatory effect, as did a lactate amendment. Collectively, these findings indicate that the lack of measurable sulfate reduction at the downgradient site was not due to the absence of the necessary metabolic potential, the presence of lower sulfate concentration, or the quantity of electron donor, but by its biodegradability. The findings also indicate that field bioaugmentation attempts should be interpreted with caution.

Microbial Ecology↗

USGS2013

Candidate soil indicators for monitoring the progress of constructed wetlands toward a natural state: a statistical approach

A persistent question among ecologists and environmental managers is whether constructed wetlands are structurally or functionally equivalent to naturally occurring wetlands. We examined 19 variables collected from 10 constructed and nine natural emergent wetlands in Ohio, USA. Our primary objective was to identify candidate indicators of wetland class (natural or constructed), based on measurements of soil properties and an index of vegetation integrity, that can be used to track the progress of constructed wetlands toward a natural state. The method of nearest shrunken centroids was used to find a subset of variables that would serve as the best classifiers of wetland class, and error rate was calculated using a five-fold cross-validation procedure. The shrunken differences of percent total organic carbon (% TOC) and percent dry weight of the soil exhibited the greatest distances from the overall centroid. Classification based on these two variables yielded a misclassification rate of 11% based on cross-validation. Our results indicate that % TOC and percent dry weight can be used as candidate indicators of the status of emergent, constructed wetlands in Ohio and for assessing the performance of mitigation. The method of nearest shrunken centroids has excellent potential for further applications in ecology.

Ohio↗

USGS2026

Putting weight to work: A review and examples of weight-based indicators in freshwater fish stock assessment

Despite being a direct measure of biomass and central to fisheries management, weight-based metrics remain underutilized in freshwater fish stock assessment. Here, we present a concise review of the application of weight in evaluating freshwater fish populations. We examine the historical use of weighing, assess how weight is applied across subdisciplines of freshwater fish science, contrast weight- and length-based approaches, and identify biases in their application. We then synthesize weight-based metrics, indices, and models within four broad categories—population and community weight structure; condition, growth, and efficiency; reproductive potential and production; and yield and exploitation dynamics—highlighting approaches that inform fish ecology, population and community dynamics, and vital rates. We conclude by identifying key opportunities and methodological innovations needed to expand the effective use of weight-based metrics in freshwater fish conservation and management.

North American Journal of Fisheries Management↗

USGS2012

Breeding season survival and breeding incidence of female Mottled Ducks on the upper Texas gulf coast

Previous Mottled Duck ( Anas fulvigula ) studies suggested that high female breeding season survival may be caused by low nesting effort, but few breeding season estimates of survival associated with nesting effort exist on the western Gulf Coast. Here, breeding season survival (N = 40) and breeding incidence (N = 39) were estimated for female Mottled Ducks on the upper Texas coast, 2006–2008. Females were fitted with backpack radio transmitters and visually relocated every 3–4 days. Weekly survival was estimated using the Known Fate procedure of program MARK with breeding incidence estimated as the annual proportion of females observed nesting or with broods. The top-ranked survival model included a body mass covariate and held weekly female survival constant across weeks and years (S W = 0.986, SE = 0.006). When compared to survival across the entire year estimated from previous band recovery and age ratio analysis, survival rate during the breeding season did not differ. Breeding incidence was well below 100% in all years and highly variable among years (15%–63%). Breeding season survival and breeding incidence were similar to estimates obtained with implant transmitters from the mid-coast of Texas. The greatest breeding incidence for both studies occurred when drought indices indicated average environmental moisture during the breeding season. The observed combination of low breeding incidence and high breeding season survival support the hypothesis of a trade-off between the ecological cost of nesting effort and survival for Mottled Duck females. Habitat cues that trigger nesting are unknown and should be investigated.

Waterbirds↗

USGS2019

Improving population estimates of threatened spectacled eiders: Correcting aerial counts for visibility bias

Listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act in 1993, the Spectacled Eider (Somateria fischeri) population in western Alaska has since rebounded, prompting an assessment of their suitability for delisting. This assessment, however, is limited by aerial-based population estimates that are incompletely corrected for unobserved eiders. Notably, aerial counts of eiders are corrected with a visibility correction factor (VCF), calculated as the ratio of ground-based nest counts to aerial pair counts, which disregards spatial variation in eider density. Accordingly, we (1) stratified our study area into zones of low, medium, and high eider density, (2) developed density-adjusted VCFs for each stratum, (3) evaluated the influence of several ecological factors on VCFs, and (4) estimated eider population size using our density-adjusted VCFs. For the low-density stratum, we estimated a VCF (± SE) of 1.35 ± 0.15, indicating that aerial counts of eider pairs closely matched ground counts of nests. In medium and high-density strata, VCFs increased to 2.46 ± 0.17 and 3.09 ± 0.19, respectively, suggesting that aerial detection decreased as eider densities increased. VCFs also increased for surveys that occurred late relative to nest initiation. Population estimates produced with our density-adjusted VCFs were 42% (5580 eiders) lower, on average, than those produced with the traditional VCF, which is currently used. Such large differences underscore the importance of accounting for density when correcting counts for incomplete detection, and, for threatened species such as Spectacled Eiders, may determine whether populations retain protected status.

Endangered Species Research↗

USGS2026

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances and pesticides in black bears (Ursus americanus) and grizzly bears (Ursus arctos horribilis) from Montana's Cabinet-Yaak ecosystem: A baseline assessment of emerging and legacy contaminants

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and pesticides are globally distributed contaminants that persist in terrestrial food webs, yet baseline data for large omnivores in the continental U.S. remain limited. This study quantified PFAS and pesticides in whole blood from free-ranging black bears ( Ursus americanus , n = 15) and grizzly bears ( Ursus arctos horribilis , n = 9) in the Cabinet-Yaak Ecosystem of northwestern Montana. Using high-resolution mass spectrometry-based methods (GC-MS/MS and LC-MS/MS), 52 PFAS and 186 pesticides were analyzed. PFAS were detected in all bears, with total PFAS concentrations ranging from 79.5 to 317 pg/mL. PFAS profiles were dominated by long-chain perfluoroalkyl carboxylic acids, particularly PFOA, PFDA, and PFUnDA, with minimal contribution from short-chain compounds. Species was the strongest ecological predictor of PFAS concentrations, although variability across age, sex, and capture location were observed. Only two pesticides, piperonyl butoxide and permethrin, were detected at quantifiable concentrations (2070–12,600 pg/mL), and no correlations were observed between pesticide and PFAS concentrations, indicating independent exposure pathways. The predominance of long-chain PFAS suggests diffuse environmental sources and bioaccumulation within terrestrial food webs. Although measured concentrations were generally low relative to other wildlife toxicological studies, the persistence and protein-binding properties of long-chain PFAS warrant continued monitoring, particularly for long-lived omnivores. These results establish baseline contaminant concentrations for two apex omnivores in a remote ecosystem and highlight the utility of large mammals as integrative sentinels of environmental contaminant exposure for regional monitoring and wildlife conservation. Continued monitoring in the Cabinet-Yaak and across western North America will be critical for assessing temporal trends, identifying new contaminant sources, and evaluating ecological health in bear populations.

Montana↗

USGS2023

Why hibernate? Tests of four hypotheses to explain intraspecific variation in hibernation phenology

Hibernation is a remarkable behaviour deployed by a diverse array of endotherms within many clades that greatly reduces metabolic need, but also has somatic costs. Hibernation in modern endotherms is often assumed to be an adaptation allowing animals to avoid extreme thermal conditions or food shortages in seasonal environments. However, many animals hibernate when foraging conditions are energetically profitable, suggesting other causal factors influence hibernation behaviour. Understanding the selection pressures responsible for intraspecific variation in the timing and duration of hibernation can help elucidate the relative evolutionary influences of the ultimate ecological causes of hibernation. We tested four previously proposed mechanistic hypotheses to explain intraspecific variation in hibernation phenology in the federally threatened northern Idaho ground squirrel ( Urocitellus brunneus ): (1) thermal tolerance, (2) food limitation, (3) predation avoidance and (4) sexual selection. The predation avoidance and sexual selection hypotheses received the most support, although we also found some support for the thermal tolerance and food limitation hypotheses. Heavy squirrels increased hibernation duration regardless of environmental conditions, as predicted solely by the predation avoidance hypothesis. Reproductive males emerged from hibernation earlier in spring than other sex–age classes, a pattern predicted by the sexual selection hypothesis. Temperature and food availability explained a much smaller amount of the variation in hibernation behaviour, only partially supporting predictions of the thermal tolerance and food limitation hypotheses. Our results indicate that animals navigate life-history trade-offs between energetic allocation to survival and reproduction via state-dependent optimization of hibernation phenology. Consequently, any future environmental changes that influence body condition will have implications for population ecology and life-history evolution of hibernating animals due to stark differences in daily survival probability between hibernation and the active season.

Functional Ecology↗

USGS2012

Insight on invasions and resilience derived from spatiotemporal discontinuities of biomass at local and regional scales

Understanding the social and ecological consequences of species invasions is complicated by nonlinearities in processes, and differences in process and structure as scale is changed. Here we use discontinuity analyses to investigate nonlinear patterns in the distribution of biomass of an invasive nuisance species that could indicate scale-specific organization. We analyze biomass patterns in the flagellate Gonyostomum semen (Raphidophyta) in 75 boreal lakes during an 11-year period (1997-2007). With simulations using a unimodal null model and cluster analysis, we identified regional groupings of lakes based on their biomass patterns. We evaluated the variability of membership of individual lakes in regional biomass groups. Temporal trends in local and regional discontinuity patterns were analyzed using regressions and correlations with environmental variables that characterize nutrient conditions, acidity status, temperature variability, and water clarity. Regionally, there was a significant increase in the number of biomass groups over time, indicative of an increased number of scales at which algal biomass organizes across lakes. This increased complexity correlated with the invasion history of G. semen and broad-scale environmental change (recovery from acidification). Locally, no consistent patterns of lake membership to regional biomass groups were observed, and correlations with environmental variables were lake specific. The increased complexity of regional biomass patterns suggests that processes that act within or between scales reinforce the presence of G. semen and its potential to develop high-biomass blooms in boreal lakes. Emergent regional patterns combined with locally stochastic dynamics suggest a bleak future for managing G. semen, and more generally why invasive species can be ecologically successful.

Ecology and Society↗

USGS2021

Increasing hydroperiod in a karst-depression wetland based on 165 years of simulated daily water levels

The hydrology of seasonally inundated depression wetlands can be highly sensitive to climatic fluctuations. Hydroperiod—the number of days per year that a wetland is inundated—is often of primary ecological importance in these systems and can vary interannually depending on climate conditions. In this study we re-examined an existing hydrologic model to simulate daily water levels in Sinking Pond, a 35-hectare seasonally inundated karst-depression wetland in Tennessee, USA. We recalibrated the model using 22 years of climate and water-level observations and used the recalibrated model to reconstruct (hindcast) daily water levels over a 165-year period from 1855 to 2019. A trend analysis of the climatic data and reconstructed water levels over the hindcasting period indicated substantial increases in pond hydroperiod over time, apparently related to increasing regional precipitation. Wetland hydroperiod increased on average by 5.9 days per decade between 1920 and 2019, with a breakpoint around the year 1970. Hydroperiod changes of this magnitude may have profound consequences for wetland ecology, such as a transition from a forested wetland to a mostly open-water pond at the Sinking Pond site. More broadly, this study illustrates the needs for robust hydrologic models of depression wetlands and for consideration of model transferability in time (i.e., hindcasting and forecasting) under non-stationary hydroclimatic conditions. As climate change is expected to influence water cycles, hydrologic processes, and wetland ecohydrology in the coming decades, hydrologic model projections may become increasingly important to detect, anticipate, and potentially mitigate ecological impacts in depression wetland ecosystems.

Tennessee↗

USGS2016

Ecology and conservation of Lesser Prairie-Chickens

Lesser Prairie-Chickens have experienced substantial declines in terms of population and the extent of area that they occupy. While they are an elusive species, making it difficult at times to monitor them, current evidence indicates that they have been persistently decreasing in number since the Dust Bowl of the 1930s dramatically affected their core range. In May of 2014, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service listed Lesser Prairie-Chickens as a threatened species, granting them federal protection under the Endangered Species Act, which included a special rule recognizing significant conservation planning efforts made by state and federal wildlife agencies within the geographical range of the species. Although the listing was vacated by judicial ruling in September 2015, concern for persistence of the species persists. These actions illustrate the uncertain legal status and future conservation challenges for Lesser Prairie-Chickens.

Book↗

USGS2018

Quantifying ecosystem service flows at multiple scales across the range of a long-distance migratory species

Migratory species provide ecosystem goods and services throughout their annual cycles, often over long distances. Designing effective conservation solutions for migratory species requires knowledge of both species ecology and the socioeconomic context of their migrations. We present a framework built around the concept that migratory species act as carriers, delivering benefit flows to people throughout their annual cycle that are supported by the network of ecosystems upon which the species depend. We apply this framework to the monarch butterfly ( Danaus plexippus ) migration of eastern North America by calculating their spatial subsidies. Spatial subsidies are the net ecosystem service flows throughout a species’ range and a quantitative measure of the spatial mismatch between the locations where people receive most benefits and the locations of habitats that most support the species. Results indicate cultural benefits provided by monarchs in the U.S. and Canada are subsidized by migration and overwintering habitat in Mexico. At a finer scale, throughout the monarch range, habitat in rural landscapes subsidizes urban residents. Understanding the spatial distribution of benefits derived from and ecological support provided to monarchs and other migratory species offers a promising means of understanding the costs and benefits associated with conservation across jurisdictional borders.

Ecosystem Services↗

USGS2016

Habitat and fish assemblage associations and current status of northern leatherside chub Lepidomeda copei in western Wyoming

Human activities have extensively altered native fish assemblages and their habitats in the western United States. Conservation and restoration for long-term persistence of these fishes requires knowledge of their distributional patterns and life history requirements. Northern leatherside chub Lepidomeda copei (hereafter northern leatherside) is a cyprinid native to the Snake and Bear River Basins of Wyoming, Idaho, Nevada, and Utah, and it is believed to have declined in distribution relative to historical records. To address information gaps in the species' ecology and assess its status in the state, the objectives of this study were first to document the distribution (2010–2011) of northern leatherside in Wyoming and then to examine habitat factors related to the entire fish assemblage and to evaluate specific habitat associations of northern leatherside in the Bear River Basin, Wyoming. In the Bear River and Upper Snake River Basins, we documented the distribution of northern leatherside and compared it to the previously known distribution. Across the Bear River Basin, we used habitat measurements to assess abiotic features related to the distribution and abundance of northern leatherside. Northern leatherside was found across the Bear River Basin and was present in 2 streams each in the Upper Snake River and Green River Basins in Wyoming. Populations in Wyoming appear to represent the core of northern leatherside range, and our work provided a finer-scale delineation of the species' occurrence. Northern leatherside was collected from a variety of habitats, but multivariate analyses and occurrence modeling indicated it was associated with increased channel depth and depth variability, and positively associated with other native fishes (including mountain sucker Catostomus platyrhynchus, redside shiner Richardsonius balteatus, and speckled dace Rhinichthys osculus). These findings on the distribution and ecology of northern leatherside provide important new information to assist successful management and conservation efforts within Wyoming and across the species' range.

Wyoming↗

USGS2023

A community convention for ecological forecasting: Output files and metadata version 1.0

This paper summarizes the open community conventions developed by the Ecological Forecasting Initiative (EFI) for the common formatting and archiving of ecological forecasts and the metadata associated with these forecasts. Such open standards are intended to promote interoperability and facilitate forecast communication, distribution, validation, and synthesis. For output files, we first describe the convention conceptually in terms of global attributes, forecast dimensions, forecasted variables, and ancillary indicator variables. We then illustrate the application of this convention to the two file formats that are currently preferred by the EFI, netCDF (network common data form), and comma-separated values (CSV), but note that the convention is extensible to future formats. For metadata, EFI's convention identifies a subset of conventional metadata variables that are required (e.g., temporal resolution and output variables) but focuses on developing a framework for storing information about forecast uncertainty propagation, data assimilation, and model complexity, which aims to facilitate cross-forecast synthesis. The initial application of this convention expands upon the Ecological Metadata Language (EML), a commonly used metadata standard in ecology. To facilitate community adoption, we also provide a Github repository containing a metadata validator tool and several vignettes in R and Python on how to both write and read in the EFI standard. Lastly, we provide guidance on forecast archiving, making an important distinction between short-term dissemination and long-term forecast archiving, while also touching on the archiving of code and workflows. Overall, the EFI convention is a living document that can continue to evolve over time through an open community process.

Ecosphere↗