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At least 1,801 records · Page 100Linked to original sources
USGS2014

Accounting for tagging-to-harvest mortality in a Brownie tag-recovery model by incorporating radio-telemetry data

The Brownie tag-recovery model is useful for estimating harvest rates but assumes all tagged individuals survive to the first hunting season; otherwise, mortality between time of tagging and the hunting season will cause the Brownie estimator to be negatively biased. Alternatively, fitting animals with radio transmitters can be used to accurately estimate harvest rate but may be more costly. We developed a joint model to estimate harvest and annual survival rates that combines known-fate data from animals fitted with transmitters to estimate the probability of surviving the period from capture to the first hunting season, and data from reward-tagged animals in a Brownie tag-recovery model. We evaluated bias and precision of the joint estimator, and how to optimally allocate effort between animals fitted with radio transmitters and inexpensive ear tags or leg bands. Tagging-to-harvest survival rates from >20 individuals with radio transmitters combined with 50–100 reward tags resulted in an unbiased and precise estimator of harvest rates. In addition, the joint model can test whether transmitters affect an individual's probability of being harvested. We illustrate application of the model using data from wild turkey, Meleagris gallapavo, to estimate harvest rates, and data from white-tailed deer, Odocoileus virginianus, to evaluate whether the presence of a visible radio transmitter is related to the probability of a deer being harvested. The joint known-fate tag-recovery model eliminates the requirement to capture and mark animals immediately prior to the hunting season to obtain accurate and precise estimates of harvest rate. In addition, the joint model can assess whether marking animals with radio transmitters affects the individual's probability of being harvested, caused by hunter selectivity or changes in a marked animal's behavior.

Ecology and Evolution↗
USGS2013

Estimating transmission of avian influenza in wild birds from incomplete epizootic data: implications for surveillance and disease spreac

Estimating disease transmission in wildlife populations is critical to understand host–pathogen dynamics, predict disease risks and prioritize surveillance activities. However, obtaining reliable estimates for free-ranging populations is extremely challenging. In particular, disease surveillance programs may routinely miss the onset or end of epizootics and peak prevalence, limiting the ability to evaluate infectious processes. We used profile likelihood to estimate the force of infection (FOI) in a low pathogenic avian influenza virus (LPAIv) epizootic model from censored time series of LPAIv prevalence in hatch-year waterfowl (order Anseriformes) at postbreeding and migration sites in North America. We found a mean LPAIv FOI of 0·12 day −1 [95% CI, 0·00–0·39], corresponding to an incidence rate of 0·11 day −1 , with geographic heterogeneity (min–max: 0·02–0·23 day −1 ) among study sites. These high infection rates indicate that most hatch-year waterfowl are likely infected with LPAIv early in the fall migration. Comparison of model-predicted and observed immunity confirmed our assumption of naïve hatch-year waterfowl and suggested long-term immunity (>6 months) for adults. Using the mean LPAIv incidence rate, we predict a shorter and lower epizootic curve for highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAIv; 5 weeks with peak prevalence of 28% and 30% mortality) than LPAIv (8 weeks with peak prevalence of 50%). These findings indicate it is harder to detect HPAIv than LPAIv with swabs from live birds, which are commonly used during disease surveillance. Synthesis and applications . Our study highlights the potential of integrating incomplete surveillance data with epizootic models to quantify disease transmission and immunity. This modelling approach provides an important tool to understand spatial and temporal epizootic dynamics and inform disease surveillance. Our findings suggest focusing highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAIv) surveillance on postbreeding areas where mortality of immunologically naïve hatch-year birds is most likely to occur, and collecting serology to enhance HPAIv detection. Our modelling approach can integrate various types of disease data facilitating its use with data from other surveillance programs (as illustrated by the estimation of infection rate during an HPAIv outbreak in mute swans Cygnus olor in Europe).

Journal of Applied Ecology↗
USGS2013

An objective and parsimonious approach for classifying natural flow regimes at a continental scale

Hydro-ecological stream classification-the process of grouping streams by similar hydrologic responses and, by extension, similar aquatic habitat-has been widely accepted and is considered by some to be one of the first steps towards developing ecological flow targets. A new classification of 1543 streamgauges in the contiguous USA is presented by use of a novel and parsimonious approach to understand similarity in ecological streamflow response. This novel classification approach uses seven fundamental daily streamflow statistics (FDSS) rather than winnowing down an uncorrelated subset from 200 or more ecologically relevant streamflow statistics (ERSS) commonly used in hydro-ecological classification studies. The results of this investigation demonstrate that the distributions of 33 tested ERSS are consistently different among the classification groups derived from the seven FDSS. It is further shown that classification based solely on the 33 ERSS generally does a poorer job in grouping similar streamgauges than the classification based on the seven FDSS. This new classification approach has the additional advantages of overcoming some of the subjectivity associated with the selection of the classification variables and provides a set of robust continental-scale classes of US streamgauges. Published 2013. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.

River Research and Applications↗
USGS2021

Improving Landsat predictions of rangeland fractional cover with multitask learning and uncertainty

Operational satellite remote sensing products are transforming rangeland management and science. Advancements in computation, data storage and processing have removed barriers that previously blocked or hindered the development and use of remote sensing products. When combined with local data and knowledge, remote sensing products can inform decision‐making at multiple scales. We used temporal convolutional networks to produce a fractional cover product that spans western United States rangelands. We trained the model with 52,012 on‐the‐ground vegetation plots to simultaneously predict fractional cover for annual forbs and grasses, perennial forbs and grasses, shrubs, trees, litter and bare ground. To assist interpretation and to provide a measure of prediction confidence, we also produced spatiotemporal‐explicit, pixel‐level estimates of uncertainty. We evaluated the model with 5,780 on‐the‐ground vegetation plots removed from the training data. Model evaluation averaged 6.3% mean absolute error and 9.6% root mean squared error. Evaluation with additional datasets that were not part of the training dataset, and that varied in geographic range, method of collection, scope and size, revealed similar metrics. Model performance increased across all functional groups compared to the previously produced fractional product. The advancements achieved with the new rangeland fractional cover product expand the management toolbox with improved predictions of fractional cover and pixel‐level uncertainty. The new product is available on the Rangeland Analysis Platform (https://rangelands.app/), an interactive web application that tracks rangeland vegetation through time. This product is intended to be used alongside local on‐the‐ground data, expert knowledge, land use history, scientific literature and other sources of information when making interpretations. When being used to inform decision‐making, remotely sensed products should be evaluated and utilized according to the context of the decision and not be used in isolation.

Methods in Ecology and Evolution↗
USGS2017

Habitat suitability models for groundfish in the Gulf of Alaska

Identifying and quantifying the major ecosystem processes that regulate recruitment strength of commercially and ecologically important fish species is a central goal of fisheries management research. In the Gulf of Alaska (GOA) five groundfish species are of particular interest: sablefish ( Anoplopoma fimbria ), Pacific cod ( Gadus macrocephalus ), walleye pollock ( Gadus chalcogrammus ), arrowtooth flounder ( Atheresthes stomias ), and Pacific ocean perch ( Sebastes alutus ). Habitat suitability models (HSM) were developed for the demersal early juvenile stage to inform survival to recruitment for these species, using catch data and seafloor habitat metrics with presence-only models. Regional-scale maps were produced that predict the probability of suitable habitat available in the GOA from settlement through residency in nursery areas. For example, the HSM for sablefish (150–399 mm) described suitable habitat as bathymetrically low-lying areas with low rocky structure within 25–300 m depth. In contrast, the HSM for Pacific ocean perch (50–200 mm) described suitable habitat as bathymetry rises with rocky structure present on north-south facing slopes within 85–270 m depth. These habitat covariates are useful to refine population estimates for North Pacific groundfish species and to inform life stage-specific definitions of Essential Fish Habitat. This application of MaxEnt models should be applicable for species with low occurrence of spatial data in other marine ecosystems globally.

Alaska↗
USGS2017

U.S. Geological Survey shrub/grass products provide new approach to shrubland monitoring

In the Western United States, shrubland ecosystems provide vital ecological, hydrological, biological, agricultural, and recreational services. However, disturbances such as livestock grazing, exotic species invasion, conversion to agriculture, climate change, urban expansion, and energy development are altering these ecosystems. Improving our understanding of how shrublands are distributed, where they are changing, the extent of the historical change, and likely future change directions is critical for successful management of these ecosystems. Remote-sensing technologies provide the most likely data source for large-area monitoring of ecosystem disturbance—both near-real time and historically. A monitoring framework supported by remote-sensing data can offer efficient and accurate analysis of change across a range of spatial and temporal scales. The U.S. Geological Survey has been working to develop new remote-sensing data, tools, and products to characterize and monitor these changing shrubland landscapes. Nine individual map products (components) have been developed that quantify the percent of shrub, sagebrush, big sagebrush, herbaceous, annual herbaceous, litter, bare ground, shrub height, and sagebrush height at 1-percent intervals in each 30-meter grid cell. These component products are designed to be combined and customized to widely support different applications in rangeland monitoring, analysis of wildlife habitat, resource inventory, adaptive management, and environmental review.

Fact Sheet↗
USGS2018

Integrating adaptive management and ecosystem services concepts to improve natural resource management: Challenges and opportunities

Executive Summary—Overview Natural resource managers must make decisions that affect broad-scale ecosystem processes involving large spatial areas, complex biophysical interactions, numerous competing stakeholder interests, and highly uncertain outcomes. Natural and social science information and analyses are widely recognized as important for informing effective management. Chief among the systematic approaches for improving the integration of science into natural resource management are two emergent science concepts, adaptive management and ecosystem services. Adaptive management (also referred to as “adaptive decision making”) is a deliberate process of learning by doing that focuses on reducing uncertainties about management outcomes and system responses to improve management over time. Ecosystem services is a conceptual framework that refers to the attributes and outputs of ecosystems (and their components and functions) that have value for humans. This report explores how ecosystem services can be moved from concept into practice through connection to a decision framework—adaptive management—that accounts for inherent uncertainties. Simultaneously, the report examines the value of incorporating ecosystem services framing and concepts into adaptive management efforts. Adaptive management and ecosystem services analyses have not typically been used jointly in decision making. However, as frameworks, they have a natural—but to date underexplored—affinity. Both are policy and decision oriented in that they attempt to represent the consequences of resource management choices on outcomes of interest to stakeholders. Both adaptive management and ecosystem services analysis take an empirical approach to the analysis of ecological systems. This systems orientation is a byproduct of the fact that natural resource actions affect ecosystems—and corresponding societal outcomes—often across large geographic scales. Moreover, because both frameworks focus on resource systems, both must confront the analytical challenges of systems modeling—in terms of complexity, dynamics, and uncertainty. Given this affinity, the integration of ecosystem services analysis and adaptive management poses few conceptual hurdles. In this report, we synthesize discussions from two workshops that considered ways in which adaptive management approaches and ecosystem service concepts may be complementary, such that integrating them into a common framework may lead to improved natural resource management outcomes. Although the literature on adaptive management and ecosystem services is vast and growing, the report focuses specifically on the integration of these two concepts rather than aiming to provide new definitions or an indepth review or primer of the concepts individually. Key issues considered include the bidirectional links between adaptive decision making and ecosystem services, as well as the potential benefits and inevitable challenges arising in the development and use of an integrated framework. Specifically, the workshops addressed the following questions: How can application of ecosystem service analysis within an adaptive decision process improve the outcomes of management and advance understanding of ecosystem service identification, production, and valuation? How can these concepts be integrated in concept and practice? What are the constraints and challenges to integrating adaptive management and ecosystem services? And, should the integration of these concepts be moved forward to wider application—and if so, how?

Circular↗
USGS2022

Evaluating the use of video cameras to estimate bridge scour potential at four bridges in southwestern Montana

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Montana Department of Transportation, installed cameras and large-scale particle image velocimetry (LSPIV) recording equipment at four sites where the U.S. Geological Survey and Montana Department of Transportation are monitoring bridge scour using other methods. Determination of stream velocities is an important component of hydraulic engineering, river ecology, and fluvial geomorphology. LSPIV is an emerging technique that can be used to estimate stream surface velocities and streamflow using video cameras. Video from the camera is referenced to known locations on streambanks, and postprocessed using computer software that calculates water surface velocity and flow direction between video frames. The goal of the study was to determine if LSPIV can increase the accuracy of current bridge scour prediction methods using video recordings from 2019 to 2021. Scour around piers is one of the primary failure mechanisms for bridges and poses threats to public safety and interstate commerce. LSPIV installations can capture the flow velocities and directions near bridge piers where other measurement methods might fail or be too dangerous. Additional benefits to the LSPIV technique were continuous data collection throughout the hydrologic cycle and enhanced safety of the methods for estimating velocity magnitude and direction during flood events. Limitations of the LSPIV technique included the angle of the camera to incoming flow; video recordings that were not usable because of ice cover, night, or high winds; and vegetation along the streambank that interfered with water flow analysis. Future applications of the LSPIV technique may continue to improve the processing of the video and reduce limitations for this process.

Montana↗
USGS2011

Conservation and management of crayfishes: Lessons from Pennsylvania

North America's crayfish fauna is diverse, ecologically important, and highly threatened. Unfortunately, up‐to‐date information is scarce, hindering conservation and management efforts. In Pennsylvania and nearby states, recent efforts allowed us to determine the conservation status of several native crayfishes and develop management strategies for those species. Due to rarity and proximity to urban centers and introduced (exotic) crayfishes, Cambarus (Puncticambarus) sp., an undescribed member of the Cambarus acuminatus complex, is critically imperiled in Pennsylvania and possibly range‐wide. Orconectes limosus is more widespread; however, recent population losses have been substantial, especially in Pennsylvania, and northern Maryland, where its range has declined (retreated eastward) by greater than 200 km. Introduced congeners likely played a major role in those losses. Although extirpated from some areas, Cambarus bartonii bartonii remains widespread and is not an immediate conservation concern. In light of these findings, the role of barriers (e.g., dams), environmental protection, educational programs, and regulations in preventing crayfish invasions and conserving native crayfishes is discussed, and management initiatives centered on those factors are presented. The need for methods to eliminate exotics and monitor natives is highlighted. Although tailored to a specific regional fauna, these ideas have broad applicability and would benefit many North American crayfishes.

Pennsylvania↗
USGS2010

A river system to watch: documenting the effects of saltcedar ( Tamarix spp.) biocontrol in the Virgin River valley

Throughout riparian areas of the southwestern United States, non-native saltcedar (also known as tamarisk; Tamarix spp.) can form dense, monotypic stands and is often reported to have detrimental effects on native plants and habitat quality (Everitt 1980; Shafroth et al. 2005). Natural resource managers of these riparian areas spend considerable time and resources controlling saltcedar using a variety of techniques, including chemical (Duncan and McDaniel 1998), mechanical, and burning methods (Shafroth et al. 2005). Approximately one billion dollars are spent each year on river restoration projects nationally (Bernhardt et al. 2005), and a majority of these projects focus on invasive species control in the Southwest (Follstad Shah et al. 2007). A technique that has drawn much attention is the use of the saltcedar leaf beetle ( Diorhabda spp.), a specialist herbivore, as biological control of saltcedar (Lewis et al. 2003). Research testing was conducted with beetles housed in secure enclosures in six states in 1998 and 1999 (Dudley et al. 2001), followed by open release at some of those sites starting in 2001 (DeLoach et al. 2004). By 2005, full-scale saltcedar biocontrol was implemented in 13 states, led by the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), the agency that oversees biological control programs, and with the participation and support of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). Despite the widespread application of Diorhabda , however, only limited research has quantified the consequences (benefits and costs) on biotic communities and ecosystem services. Alterations to riparian areas caused by various non-native species control activities have the potential to affect a variety of habitat types used by wildlife (Bateman et al. 2008a); processes like water availability, fluvial deposition, and erosion; and the establishment of other non-native species (Carruthers and D'Antonio 2005, Shafroth et al. 2005, DeLoach et al. 2006). Similarly, biocontrol is expected to modify riparian ecosystems, and it is imperative to document and evaluate both the environmental benefits and the potential costs of this tamarisk management method.

Virgin River↗
USGS2018

Long-term spotlight surveys of American alligators in Mississippi, USA

Accurate population estimates and assessments of trajectory are an essential part of harvest management for game species and conservation action plans for protected species. Long-term monitoring can lead to ecological understanding by identifying biotic and abiotic drivers of population dynamics. Spotlight surveys are a widely used method to monitor abundance and size-class structure of crocodilian populations. The American Alligator (Alligator mississippiensis) has recovered from significant population reductions in the southeastern United States. The Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks (MDWFP) has conducted alligator spotlight surveys since 1971 to monitor populations. We analyzed this long-term alligator survey dataset to assess possible trends in counts as a proxy for potential population changes. We tested for a positive trend in count data over 46 y and evaluated covariates that could influence counts to assist future survey protocols. Alligator counts during 1971– 2016 increased across survey routes in Mississippi. This observed positive response may represent an increase of the alligator population in Mississippi as a result of conservation benefits accrued from improved wetland conditions and species-specific management policies. Evaluation of survey covariates indicated recent rainfall and increasing wind velocity had negative effects on alligator counts while increasing water temperature had a positive effect. Implementing robust survey techniques will improve the reliability of alligator monitoring data and their application to the management of alligator populations. Further, these improved approaches may be useful to other conservation and management agencies as well as for other crocodilian species.

Mississippi↗
USGS2017

Simulating ungulate herbivory across forest landscapes: A browsing extension for LANDIS-II

Browsing ungulates alter forest productivity and vegetation succession through selective foraging on species that often dominate early succession. However, the long-term and large-scale effects of browsing on forest succession are not possible to project without the use of simulation models. To explore the effects of ungulates on succession in a spatially explicit manner, we developed a Browse Extension that simulates the effects of browsing ungulates on the growth and survival of plant species cohorts within the LANDIS-II spatially dynamic forest landscape simulation model framework. We demonstrate the capabilities of the new extension and explore the spatial effects of ungulates on forest composition and dynamics using two case studies. The first case study examined the long-term effects of persistently high white-tailed deer browsing rates in the northern hardwood forests of the Allegheny National Forest, USA. In the second case study, we incorporated a dynamic ungulate population model to simulate interactions between the moose population and boreal forest landscape of Isle Royale National Park, USA. In both model applications, browsing reduced total aboveground live biomass and caused shifts in forest composition. Simulations that included effects of browsing resulted in successional patterns that were more similar to those observed in the study regions compared to simulations that did not incorporate browsing effects. Further, model estimates of moose population density and available forage biomass were similar to previously published field estimates at Isle Royale and in other moose-boreal forest systems. Our simulations suggest that neglecting effects of browsing when modeling forest succession in ecosystems known to be influenced by ungulates may result in flawed predictions of aboveground biomass and tree species composition.

Ecological Modelling↗
USGS2014

High-speed limnology: Using advanced sensors to investigate spatial variability in biogeochemistry and hydrology

Advanced sensor technology is widely used in aquatic monitoring and research. Most applications focus on temporal variability, whereas spatial variability has been challenging to document. We assess the capability of water chemistry sensors embedded in a high-speed water intake system to document spatial variability. This new sensor platform continuously samples surface water at a range of speeds (0 to >45 km h –1 ) resulting in high-density, mesoscale spatial data. These novel observations reveal previously unknown variability in physical, chemical, and biological factors in streams, rivers, and lakes. By combining multiple sensors into one platform, we were able to detect terrestrial–aquatic hydrologic connections in a small dystrophic lake, to infer the role of main-channel vs backwater nutrient processing in a large river and to detect sharp chemical changes across aquatic ecosystem boundaries in a stream/lake complex. Spatial sensor data were verified in our examples by comparing with standard lab-based measurements of selected variables. Spatial fDOM data showed strong correlation with wet chemistry measurements of DOC, and optical NO 3 concentrations were highly correlated with lab-based measurements. High-frequency spatial data similar to our examples could be used to further understand aquatic biogeochemical fluxes, ecological patterns, and ecosystem processes, and will both inform and benefit from fixed-site data.

Wisconsin↗
USGS2022

Perceptions of conservation introduction to inform decision support among U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service employees

Executive Summary Around the globe, fish and wildlife managers are facing increasingly complex management issues because of multiscale ecological effects like climate change, species invasion, and land-use change. Managers seeking to prevent extinctions or preserve ecosystems are increasingly considering more interventionist techniques to overcome the resulting changes. Among those techniques, translocation methods that intentionally move species into new, less impacted habitats are being considered. These types of translocations are known by a range of terms, including “managed relocation” and “assisted migration,” but the International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s Species Survival Commission (IUCN SSC, 2013) has proposed “conservation introduction” (CI) as a standard term. As defined by the IUCN SSC, CI is the intentional movement of a species or population outside its indigenous range for conservation purposes. CI can be divided into two forms: assisted colonization and ecological replacement. Assisted colonization is moving species outside its indigenous range to prevent extinction or extirpation of a population. Ecological replacement is moving species to fulfill an important niche that is necessary within an ecosystem. Proponents suggest these methods are necessary to address the ecological challenges managers are trying to overcome. Opponents point out the potential for species to become invasive, introduce disease or parasites, and cause other cascading impacts throughout the ecosystem. The result is controversy and disagreement. As such, it will be imperative to develop clear guidelines and best practices to be followed within wildlife management agencies to prevent potential To this end, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) partnered with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to develop the current project. The intent was to describe the perceptions of USFWS personnel across many aspects of CI so that the USFWS could use this information in the planning and development of their own internal decision-support framework for CI. This report is presented in five sections. Section 1 introduces the project and provides an in-depth overview of background literature related to CI. Section 2 describes the study design, methods, and study participant characteristics. Section 3 describes key results and recommendations related to the development of a USFWS decision framework. Section 4 investigates a range of perceptions held by participants and establishes baseline information for how USFWS personnel may view CI and its application. Types of viewpoints surveyed include preferred terms and definitions, perceived barriers, perceived risks and tradeoffs, and aspects of success. Perceived barriers refers to factors that may prevent successful implementation of CI and perceived risks refers to potential negative outcomes that may occur as a result of implementing CI. Section 5 provides an overview of our conclusions for this project. Overall, we found that CI is likely to be viewed positively within the USFWS, but employees offered cautions and caveats. Most participants we interviewed feel that it is a necessary tool that will be indispensable in certain situations but also feel that there is more risk associated than with more traditional methods. For this reason, many participants are concerned about the assessment and planning that should be conducted prior to any CI effort. Our results indicate that many USFWS personnel will be open to CI being adopted more regularly but will be looking for clear guidance on how it should be implemented.

Scientific Investigations Report↗
USGS2012

Modelling effects of chemical exposure on birds wintering in agricultural landscapes: The western burrowing owl ( Athene cunicularia hypugaea ) as a case study

We describe an ecotoxicological model that simulates the sublethal and lethal effects of chronic, low-level, chemical exposure on birds wintering in agricultural landscapes. Previous models estimating the impact on wildlife of chemicals used in agro-ecosystems typically have not included the variety of pathways, including both dermal and oral, by which individuals are exposed. The present model contains four submodels simulating (1) foraging behavior of individual birds, (2) chemical applications to crops, (3) transfers of chemicals among soil, insects, and small mammals, and (4) transfers of chemicals to birds via ingestion and dermal exposure. We demonstrate use of the model by simulating the impacts of a variety of commonly used herbicides, insecticides, growth regulators, and defoliants on western burrowing owls ( Athene cunicularia hypugaea ) that winter in agricultural landscapes in southern Texas, United States. The model generated reasonable movement patterns for each chemical through soil, water, insects, and rodents, as well as into the owl via consumption and dermal absorption. Sensitivity analysis suggested model predictions were sensitive to uncertainty associated with estimates of chemical half-lives in birds, soil, and prey, sensitive to parameters associated with estimating dermal exposure, and relatively insensitive to uncertainty associated with details of chemical application procedures (timing of application, amount of drift). Nonetheless, the general trends in chemical accumulations and the relative impacts of the various chemicals were robust to these parameter changes. Simulation results suggested that insecticides posed a greater potential risk to owls of both sublethal and lethal effects than do herbicides, defoliants, and growth regulators under crop scenarios typical of southern Texas, and that use of multiple indicators, or endpoints provided a more accurate assessment of risk due to agricultural chemical exposure. The model should prove useful in helping prioritize the chemicals and transfer pathways targeted in future studies and also, as these new data become available, in assessing the relative danger to other birds of exposure to different types of agricultural chemicals.

Texas↗
USGS2026

A novel method for quantifying streambed penetrability to inform benthic habitat assessment

Objective Penetrability of streambed sediments is important for the ecological functioning of many benthic organisms, yet there is ambiguity in terminology associated with this concept and there is no standardized method of penetrability measurement available to scientists and resource managers. The goal of our study was to better define the terms of compaction and penetrability as they relate to streambed substrate and to advance the measurement techniques for assessing penetrability of bed sediments in gravel-bed streams. Methods We tested the performance of a modified penetrometer method in 12 different substrate configurations in the laboratory and used the data to determine the relationship between penetration depth and substrate characteristics. We then simulated additional sampling effort and used bootstrapping methods to provide guidance on the number of samples required to achieve consistent results. Finally, we tested the device in a field setting to validate our laboratory and simulation results. Results Depth of penetration was negatively related to increasing substrate particle diameter and number of particle size-classes in both laboratory and field tests. Mean depth of penetration and CV stabilized after five samples, but variation remained high in scenarios containing large-grained particles. Conclusions Our results show that the device has application in gravel-bed streams but may require high amounts of sampling effort to capture variation in streams dominated by large substrate. We discuss the uses and limitations of this method for estimating substrate penetrability and provide guidance on interpretation of the estimates that it produces.

Transaction of the American Fisheries Society↗
USGS2022

The global environmental agenda urgently needs a semantic web of knowledge

Progress in key social-ecological challenges of the global environmental agenda (e.g., climate change, biodiversity conservation, Sustainable Development Goals) is hampered by a lack of integration and synthesis of existing scientific evidence. Facing a fast-increasing volume of data, information remains compartmentalized to pre-defined scales and fields, rarely building its way up to collective knowledge. Today's distributed corpus of human intelligence, including the scientific publication system, cannot be exploited with the efficiency needed to meet current evidence synthesis challenges; computer-based intelligence could assist this task. Artificial Intelligence (AI)-based approaches underlain by semantics and machine reasoning offer a constructive way forward, but depend on greater understanding of these technologies by the science and policy communities and coordination of their use. By labelling web-based scientific information to become readable by both humans and computers, machines can search, organize, reuse, combine and synthesize information quickly and in novel ways. Modern open science infrastructure—i.e., public data and model repositories—is a useful starting point, but without shared semantics and common standards for machine actionable data and models, our collective ability to build, grow, and share a collective knowledge base will remain limited. The application of semantic and machine reasoning technologies by a broad community of scientists and decision makers will favour open synthesis to contribute and reuse knowledge and apply it toward decision making.

Environmental Evidence↗
USGS2019

Regional protocol framework for the inventory and monitoring of breeding Atlantic Coast Piping Plovers

This regional protocol provides a framework for quantifying the number of breeding pairs and productivity of Atlantic Coast piping plover (Charadrius melodus) populations during the breeding season. A primary purpose of this protocol is to standardize piping plover monitoring during the breeding season. The survey techniques described herein involve repeated visual counts of adults, nests, eggs, and chicks within a defined survey site (i.e., beach) as well as visual identification of potential threats to survival and productivity. Resulting data can be compiled and analyzed across multiple geographic units (i.e., sites, states, and recovery units) to assess progress toward recovery goals, inform local management decisions, assess management effectiveness, and improve monitoring efforts. This protocol framework was developed as part of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) National Wildlife Refuge System (NWRS) Inventory and Monitoring (I&M) Initiative in coordination with Ecological Services (ES) and state coordinators within the Southeast and Northeast Regions (4 and 5, respectively). Although this protocol framework is to be used primarily by NWRS to inform recovery goals, assist with local management decision-making, and meet State reporting requirements, the approach strives to assist monitoring efforts of nonNWRS partners, such as other federal agencies (e.g. National Park Service), State wildlife agencies, non-governmental organizations, and private landowners. This protocol framework and associated data management system (PIPLweb) aims to interface with existing data management and analysis tools (i.e., PIPLODES, NestStory, and PiperEx) to ensure that data collection is efficient and comparable across scales, and supports management decisions across partners. The content and structure of the protocol framework follows standards set forth in the USFWS’s How to Develop Survey Protocols: A Handbook (Version 1.0; 2013). The eight elements addressed include: introduction, sampling design, field methods, data management and analysis, reporting, personnel requirements and training, operational requirements, and references. A series of standard operating procedures (SOPs) provides greater detail on recommended methods and technical aspects of this protocol. Data entry, archival, and multi-scale analysis are handled through a secure web application (Plover Inventory and Productivity Library; PIPLweb) developed by the United States Geological Survey (USGS). When management activities and survey objectives are similar across management units, partners (Refuges, other federal agencies, State, NGOs, private) are encouraged to use this protocol framework to develop stepped-down site-specific survey protocols that include guidance for conducting on-the-ground monitoring and management plans.

Regional Protocol Framework↗

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