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At least 1,639 records · Page 91Linked to original sources
USGS2018

Landscape connectivity for bobcat (Lynx rufus) and lynx (Lynx canadensis) in the Northeastern United States

Landscape connectivity is integral to the persistence of metapopulations of wide ranging carnivores and other terrestrial species. The objectives of this research were to investigate the landscape characteristics essential to use of areas by lynx and bobcats in northern New England, map a habitat availability model for each species, and explore connectivity across areas of the region likely to experience future development pressure. A Mahalanobis distance analysis was conducted on location data collected between 2005 and 2010 from 16 bobcats in western Vermont and 31 lynx in northern Maine to determine which variables were most consistent across all locations for each species using three scales based on average 1) local (15 minute) movement, 2) linear distance between daily locations, and 3) female home range size. The bobcat model providing the widest separation between used locations and random study area locations suggests that they cue into landscape features such as edge, availability of cover, and development density at different scales. The lynx model with the widest separation between random and used locations contained five variables including natural habitat, cover, and elevation—all at different scales. Shrub scrub habitat—where lynx’s preferred prey is most abundant—was represented at the daily distance moved scale. Cross validation indicated that outliers had little effect on models for either species. A habitat suitability value was calculated for each 30 m 2 pixel across Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine for each species and used to map connectivity between conserved lands within selected areas across the region. Projections of future landscape change illustrated potential impacts of anthropogenic development on areas lynx and bobcat may use, and indicated where connectivity for bobcats and lynx may be lost. These projections provided a guide for conservation of landscape permeability for lynx, bobcat, and species relying on similar habitats in the region.

PLoS ONE↗
USGS2023

Northwest Forest Plan — The first 25 years (1994–2018): Watershed condition status and trends

This report describes status and trends in watershed condition across the Northwest Forest Plan (NWFP) area over the first 25 years since its inception in 1994. The program charged with this task is the Aquatic and Riparian Effectiveness Monitoring Program (AREMP), which has assembled information from field data collection, spatial datasets, and a host of landscape models to evaluate the status and trends in aquatic resources in streams and watersheds. Field data included hydrologic measurements (stream wetted widths and temperatures), geomorphic responses (instream wood and sediment), and biological responses (macroinvertebrates and aquatic organism passage). Novel statistical models were used to estimate trends in these measured responses. A suite of complementary modeled results was also employed to describe hydrometeorological drivers (e.g., drought indices and stream discharge), forest cover (upslope and riparian vegetation), and geomorphic conditions (e.g., road-related estimates of chronic and shallow landslide sediment delivery risk). Collectively, information on these responses allowed us to rigorously evaluate instream responses and hypothesize watershed drivers of those responses across the NWFP area and over time. The majority of responses we observed indicated widespread and incremental improvements from active management of forests, forest roads, and road-stream crossings as envisioned by the aquatic conservation strategy of the NWFP. Additionally, many of the responses we observed were consistent with those expected under the influences of changing climates in the Pacific Northwest. Ultimately, the long-term, broad-scale information provided by AREMP is a critical foundation for evaluating the effectiveness of federal land management and the effects of changing climates on water resources that sustain the Pacific Northwest’s human and natural landscapes.

California, Oregon, Washington↗
USGS2003

Effects of best-management practices in the Black Earth Creek Priority Watershed, Wisconsin, 1984-98

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and the U.S. Geological Survey began a comprehensive, multidisciplinary evaluation-monitoring program in 1989 to assess the effectiveness of the Wisconsin Nonpoint Source Program. Hydrologic and water-quality data were collected at Brewery and Garfoot Creeks in 1984 and 1985 (pre-best-management practices (BMPs) period) and 1997 and 1998 (post-BMP period). In rural areas, best-management practices may include conservation tillage, contour strip-cropping, streambank protection, and various barnyard-runoff controls. Water-quality samples were collected during base flow and storms. At Brewery Creek, no statistically significant differences in the median base flow water-quality concentrations between the pre- and post-BMP periods. At Garfoot Creek, the median suspended-sediment concentration at base flow decreased by 41 percent between the pre- and post-BMP periods and the median ammonia nitrogen concentration decreased by 67 percent. Both of these differences were statistically significant at the 0.05 (probability) level. For both Brewery and Garfoot Creeks, the median storm loads for suspended sediment, total phosphorus, and ammonia nitrogen were compared statistically by means of the Wilcoxon rank-sum test. This test also was applied to regression residuals for differences between the pre- and post-BMP periods. For Garfoot Creek, only the median load for ammonia nitrogen shows a statistically significant difference between the pre-and post-BMP periods. None of the median storm loads for Brewery Creek were statistically significant at the 0.05 level. The decrease of the regression residuals between the pre- and post-BMP periods for ammonia nitrogen at Brewery Creek and for total phosphorus and ammonia nitrogen at Garfoot Creek all were statistically significant at the 0.05 level. These reductions between the pre- and post-BMP periods likely are results of the installed BMPs. The effectiveness of the BMPs on water quality are watershed specific. The effectiveness of the practice will depend on the type, number, and location of the BMPs implemented.

Wisconsin↗
USGS2008

Characteristics of mangrove swamps managed for mosquito control in eastern Florida, USA

Manipulations of the vegetation and hydrology of wetlands for mosquito control are common worldwide, but these modifications may affect vital ecosystem processes. To control mosquitoes in mangrove swamps in eastern Florida, managers have used rotational impoundment management (RIM) as an alternative to the worldwide practice of mosquito ditching. Levees surround RIM swamps, and water is pumped into the impoundment during the summer, a season when natural swamps have low water levels. In the New World, these mosquito-managed swamps resemble the mixed basin type of mangrove swamp (based on PCA analysis). An assessment was made of RIM, natural (control), and breached-RIM (restored) swamps in eastern Florida to compare their structural complexities, soil development, and resistance to invasion. Regarding structural complexity, dominant species composition differed between these swamps; the red mangrove Rhizophora mangle occurred at a higher relative density in RIM and breached-RIM swamps, and the black mangrove Avicennia germinans had a higher relative density in natural swamps. Tree density and canopy cover were higher and tree height lower in RIM swamps than in natural and breached-RIM swamps. Soil organic matter in RIM swamps was twice that in natural or breached-RIM swamps. RIM swamps had a lower resistance to invasion by the Brazilian pepper tree Schinus terebinthifolius , which is likely attributable to the lower porewater salinity in RIM swamps. These characteristics may reflect differences in important ecosystem processes (primary production, trophic structure, nutrient cycling, decomposition). Comparative assessments of managed wetlands are vital for land managers, so that they can make informed decisions compatible with conservation objectives.

Florida↗
USGS2013

Impacts of land-use change to ecosystem services

Increasing human populations on the landscape and globe coincide with increasing demands for food, energy, and other natural resources, with generally negative impacts to wildlife habitat, air and water quality, and natural scenery. Here we define and describe the impacts of land-use change on ecosystem services – the services that ecosystems provide humans such as filtering air and water, providing food, resources, recreation, and esthetics. We show how the human footprint is rapidly expanding due to population growth, demand for resources, and globalization. Increased trade and transportation has brought all the continents back together, creating new challenges for conserving native species and ecosystems.

Book chapter↗
USGS2014

Development of ten microsatellite loci in the invasive giant African land snail, Achatina (=Lissachatina) fulica Bowdich, 1822

A suite of tetra-nucleotide microsatellite loci were developed for the invasive giant African land snail, Achatina (=Lissachatina) fulica Bowdich, 1822, from Ion Torrent next-generation sequencing data. Ten of the 96 primer sets tested amplified consistently in 30 snails from Miami, Florida, plus 12 individuals representative of their native East Africa, Indian and Pacific Ocean regions. The loci displayed moderate levels of allelic diversity (average 5.6 alleles/locus) and heterozygosity (average 42 %). Levels of genetic diversity were sufficient to produce unique multi-locus genotypes and detect phylogeographic structuring among regional samples. The invasive A. fulica can cause extensive damage to important food crops and natural resources, including native flora and fauna. The loci characterized here will be useful for determining the origins and tracking the spread of invasions, detecting fine-scale spatial structuring and estimating demographic parameters.

Conservation Genetics Resources↗
USGS2018

Predicting spatial factors associated with cattle depredations by the Mexican wolf (Canis lupus baileyi) with recommendations for depredation risk modeling

Aim Predation on livestock is one of the primary concerns for Mexican wolf ( Canis lupus baileyi ) recovery because it causes economic losses and negative attitudes toward wolves. Our objectives were to develop a spatial risk model of cattle depredation by Mexican wolves in the USA portion of their recovery area to help reduce the potential for future depredations. Location Arizona and New Mexico, USA. Methods We used a presence-only maximum entropy modeling approach (Maxent) to develop a risk model based on confirmed depredation incidents on public lands . In addition to landscape and human variables, we developed a model for annual livestock density using linear regression analysis of Animal Unit Month (AUM), and models for abundance of elk ( Cervus canadensis ), mule deer ( Odocoileus hemionus ) and white-tailed deer ( Odocoileus virginiana ) using Maxent, to include them as biotic variables in the risk model. We followed current recommendations for controlling model complexity and other sources of bias. Results The primary factors associated with increased risk of depredation by Mexican wolf were higher canopy cover variation and higher relative abundance of elk. Additional factors with increased risk but smaller effect were gentle and open terrain, and greater distances from roads and developed areas. Main conclusions The risk map revealed areas with relatively high potential for cattle depredations that can inform future expansion of Mexican wolf distribution (e.g., by avoiding hotspots) and prioritize areas for depredation risk mitigation including the implementation of active non-lethal methods in depredation hotspots. We suggest that livestock be better protected in or moved from potential hotspots, especially during periods when they are vulnerable to depredation (e.g. calving season). Our approach to create natural prey and livestock abundance variables can facilitate the process of spatial risk modeling when limitations in availability of abundance data are a challenge, especially in large-scale studies.

Arizona, New Mexico↗
USGS2017

Is “morphodynamic equilibrium” an oxymoron?

Morphodynamic equilibrium is a widely adopted yet elusive concept in the field of geomorphology of coasts, rivers and estuaries. Based on the Exner equation, an expression of mass conservation of sediment, we distinguish three types of equilibrium defined as static and dynamic, of which two different types exist. Other expressions such as statistical and quasi-equilibrium which do not strictly satisfy the Exner conditions are also acknowledged for their practical use. The choice of a temporal scale is imperative to analyse the type of equilibrium. We discuss the difference between morphodynamic equilibrium in the “real world” (nature) and the “virtual world” (model). Modelling studies rely on simplifications of the real world and lead to understanding of process interactions. A variety of factors affect the use of virtual-world predictions in the real world (e.g., variability in environmental drivers and variability in the setting) so that the concept of morphodynamic equilibrium should be mathematically unequivocal in the virtual world and interpreted over the appropriate spatial and temporal scale in the real world. We draw examples from estuarine settings which are subject to various governing factors which broadly include hydrodynamics, sedimentology and landscape setting. Following the traditional “tide-wave-river” ternary diagram, we summarize studies to date that explore the “virtual world”, discuss the type of equilibrium reached and how it relates to the real world.

Earth-Science Reviews↗
USGS2024

A strategic and science-based framework for management of invasive annual grasses in the sagebrush biome

In the last 20 years, the North American sagebrush biome has lost over 500,000 ha of intact and largely intact sagebrush plant communities on an annual basis. Much of this loss has been associated with expansion and infilling of invasive annual grasses (IAGs). These species are highly competitive against native perennial grasses in disturbed environments, and create fuel conditions that increase both the likelihood of fire ignition and the ease of wildfire spread across large landscapes. Given the current rate of IAG expansion in both burned and unburned rangelands, ameliorating the IAG threat will involve a range-wide paradigm shift from opportunistic and reactive management, to a framework that spatially prioritizes maintenance of largely intact, uninvaded areas and improvement of invaded habitats in strategic locations. We created a framework accompanied by biome-wide priority maps using geospatial overlays that target areas to MAINTAIN large, uninvaded areas as natural resource anchors through activities to prevent IAGs and IMPROVE areas to reduce invasions with the highest potential for management efforts to succeed in restoring large, intact landscapes. We then offer three case studies to illustrate the use of these concepts and map products at multiple scales. Our map products operate at the biome scale using regional data sources but additional data sources may be needed to inform local conservation planning. However, the basic strategic management principles of a) maintaining the intact and uninvaded areas that we can least afford to lose to IAGs and b) improving areas where we have a higher likelihood of restoration success, is timely, relevant, and scalable from the biome to local levels.

Rangeland Ecology & Management↗
USGS2016

U.S. Geological Survey—Energy and Wildlife Research Annual Report for 2016

Recent growth and development of renewable energy and unconventional oil and gas extraction are rapidly diversifying the energy supply of the United States. Yet, as our Nation works to advance energy security and conserve wildlife, some conflicts have surfaced. To address these challenges, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is conducting innovative research and developing workable solutions to reduce the impacts of energy production on wildlife. USGS scientists collaborate on many studies with scientists from other Federal, State, and local government agencies; Tribal nations; academic research institutions; and nongovernmental and private organizations. The mix of fuels used for electricity generation is evolving. Solar, natural gas, and wind energy made up most electricity generation additions in 2015 and 2016. The United States now leads the world in natural gas production, with new record highs for each year from 2011 through 2015. More than 48,000 wind turbines now contribute to power grids in most States, providing about 5 percent of U.S. end-use electricity demand in an average year. The number of utility-scale solar-energy projects is growing rapidly with solar energy projected to contribute to the largest electricity generation addition in 2016. A substantial number of large energy projects have been constructed on undeveloped public lands, and more are anticipated at an increasing rate, creating new stress to wildlife. Direct impacts include collisions with wind turbines and structures at solar facilities and loss of habitat which may negatively affect sensitive species. Recent estimates suggest 250,000 to 500,000 birds die each year at wind turbine facilities. Bat fatality rates at wind turbine facilities are less certain, but may average several hundred thousand per year throughout North America. Because new projects may be located in or near sensitive wildlife habitats, ecological science plays a key role in helping to guide project siting and operational decisions.

Open-File Report↗
USGS2016

The Outer Banks of North Carolina

The Outer Banks of North Carolina are excellent examples of the nearly 300 barrier islands rimming the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of the United States. These low, sandy islands are among the most dynamic natural landscapes occupied by man. Beach sands move offshore, onshore, and along the shore in the direction of the prevailing longshore currents. In this way, sandy coasts continuously adjust to different tide, wave, and current conditions and to rising sea level that causes the islands to migrate landward. Despite such changes, barrier islands are of considerable environmental importance. The Outer Banks are home to diverse natural ecosystems that are adapted to the harsh coastal environment. Native species tend to be robust and many are specifically adapted to withstand salt spray, periodic saltwater flooding, and the islands’ well-drained sandy soil. The Outer Banks provide an important stopover for birds on the Atlantic flyway, and many species inhabit the islands year round. In addition, Outer Banks beaches provide an important nesting habitat for five endangered or threatened sea turtle species. European explorers discovered North Carolina’s barrier islands in the 16th century, although the islands were not permanently settled until the middle 17th century. By the early 19th century, shipbuilding and lumber industries were among the most successful, until forest resources were depleted. Commercial fishing eventually followed, and it expanded considerably after the Civil War. By the Great Depression, however, little industry existed on the Outer Banks. In response to the effects of a severe hurricane in 1933, the National Park Service and the Civilian Conservation Corps proposed a massive sand-fixation program to stabilize the moving sand and prevent storm waves from sweeping across the entire width of some sections of the islands. Between 1933 and 1940, this program constructed sand fencing on 185 kilometers (115 miles) of beach and planted grass seedlings, trees, and shrubs. In 1937, Congress authorized the Cape Hatteras National Seashore, which was established in 1953. The national seashore preserved one of the world’s best examples of a barrier island environment, and minimized the effect of erosion that was becoming a serious problem. In 1966, Congress authorized the Cape Lookout National Seashore to ensure that Core and Shackleford Banks would not undergo major development and could be preserved in their natural state. The rate of population growth along the Outer Banks in recent decades has been among the highest in North Carolina. More important, however, has been the growth in vacationers—in 2008, more than a quarter of a million visitors during a typical week. Municipalities now need to provide services to a transient population as much as six times as large as their permanent resident population. Although human activities have dominated the landscape changes observed on the Outer Banks for the past century or two, these changes must be understood in the context of the prevailing atmospheric, oceanic, and geologic processes that have governed the form and function of these islands for thousands of years. It is these natural processes that imbue the Outer Banks with their unique and dichotomous qualities of tranquility and tumult. In the presence of human occupation, it is these same processes that make the islands one of the highest natural-hazard risk zones along the Eastern Seaboard of the United States.

North Carolina↗
USGS2009

Erosional consequence of saltcedar control

Removal of nonnative riparian trees is accelerating to conserve water and improve habitat for native species. Widespread control of dominant species, however, can lead to unintended erosion. Helicopter herbicide application in 2003 along a 12-km reach of the Rio Puerco, New Mexico, eliminated the target invasive species saltcedar (Tamarix spp.), which dominated the floodplain, as well as the native species sandbar willow (Salix exigua Nuttall), which occurred as a fringe along the channel. Herbicide application initiated a natural experiment testing the importance of riparian vegetation for bank stability along this data-rich river. A flood three years later eroded about 680,000 m 3 of sediment, increasing mean channel width of the sprayed reach by 84%. Erosion upstream and downstream from the sprayed reach during this flood was inconsequential. Sand eroded from channel banks was transported an average of 5 km downstream and deposited on the floodplain and channel bed. Although vegetation was killed across the floodplain in the sprayed reach, erosion was almost entirely confined to the channel banks. The absence of dense, flexible woody stems on the banks reduced drag on the flow, leading to high shear stress at the toe of the banks, fluvial erosion, bank undercutting, and mass failure. The potential for increased erosion must be included in consideration of phreatophyte control projects. ?? 2009 U.S. Government.

Environmental Management↗
USGS2019

Global patterns of tree stem growth and stand aboveground wood production in mangrove forests

Mangrove forests provide important ecological and economic services including carbon sequestration and storage. The conservation and restoration of mangroves are expected to play an important role in mitigating climate change, and understanding the factors influencing mangrove stem growth and wood production are important in predicting and improving mangrove carbon sequestration and responses to environmental change. In this study, we collected data of individual diameter at breast height (DBH) growth rate and stand level aboveground wood production in both non-plantation (commonly termed as natural) mangroves and mangrove plantations across the world. Climatic factors, proxies of edaphic factors, as well as biological factors (e.g. mangrove species) were included as explanatory variables in the analyses to determine factors influencing the global patterns of tree growth rate and stand wood production of mangroves. Using hierarchical Classification and Regression Tree (CART) analysis we found interactions among environmental and biological factors in controlling mangrove tree growth rate and stand wood production. We also found different global patterns of tree growth rate and stand wood production between non-plantation mangroves and plantations. Climatic conditions (precipitation of driest season, precipitation seasonality) were the most important factors influencing the global pattern of tree DBH growth rate in non-plantation mangroves, with edaphic and biological characteristics also playing a role under specific climatic conditions. The global pattern of stand wood production in non-plantation mangroves was primarily determined by stand mean DBH growth rate of individual trees. However, in mangrove plantations management measures, specifically species selection and planting density, were the most important factors influencing the global patterns of tree growth rate and stand wood production. Our study provides parameters for a global estimation of long-term carbon sequestration in both non-plantation mangroves and mangrove plantations. In addition, our results help us better predict the dynamics of tree growth and carbon sequestration of non-plantation mangroves under changing climate.

Forest Ecology and Management↗
USGS2024

Can the planetary health concept save freshwater biodiversity and ecosystems?

People clearly need and benefit from healthy freshwater ecosystems; Given the precarious state of these important systems and services, current efforts to address the freshwater biodiversity crisis remain insufficient. Planetary health is an emerging framework that aims to secure the state of natural systems within environmental limits that ensure humanity can flourish. The planetary health concept is tied to the planetary boundaries framework in which various ecological thresholds are identified with the goal of constraining human activity to within those boundaries (so-called safe operating spaces). Freshwater systems are influenced by some planetary-scale processes like the climate systems and phosphorus and nitrogen cycles. Nonetheless, safe boundaries to guide the conservation and management of freshwater ecosystems need to consider their uneven distribution around the globe, and their ecological and hydrologic limits, which are often site and context dependent. Efforts to down-scale planetary boundaries concepts to the management of freshwater recreational fisheries at the lake scale, suggest that there are opportunities for rethinking planetary health as a nested cross-scale approach from the planet to the watershed.

Lancet Planetary Health↗
USGS2006

A review of the population estimation approach of the North American landbird conservation plan

As part of their development of a continental plan for monitoring landbirds (Rich et al. 2004), Partners in Flight (PIF) applied a new method to make preliminary estimates of population size for all 448 species of landbirds present in the continental United States and Canada (Table 1). Estimation of the global population size of North American landbirds was intended to (1) identify the degree of vulnerability of each species, (2) provide estimates of the current population size for each species, and (3) provide a starting point for estimating population sizes in states, provinces, territories, and Bird Conservation Regions (Rich et al. 2004). A method proposed by Rosenberg and Blancher (2005) was used to derive population estimates from available survey data. To enhance the credibility of these estimates, PIF organized a review of the methodology used to estimate North American landbird population sizes. A planning committee selected members from the ornithological and biometrical communities (hereafter “the panel”), with the aim of selecting individuals from academia, state natural-resource agencies, and the U.S. and Canadian federal governments, including the Canadian Wildlife Service, the U.S. Geological Survey, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service. The panel addressed three questions: (1) Were the methods of population estimation proposed by PIF reasonable? (2) What actions could be taken to improve the data or analyses on which the PIF population estimates were based? and (3) How should the PIF population estimates be interpreted?

The Auk↗
USGS2010

Effects of low-impact-development (LID) practices on streamflow, runoff quantity, and runoff quality in the Ipswich River Basin, Massachusetts: A summary of field and modeling studies

Low-impact-development (LID) approaches are intended to create, retain, or restore natural hydrologic and water-quality conditions that may be affected by human alterations. Wide-scale implementation of LID techniques may offer the possibility of improving conditions in river basins, such as the Ipswich River Basin in Massachusetts, that have run dry during the summer because of groundwater withdrawals and drought. From 2005 to 2008, the U.S. Geological Survey, in a cooperative funding agreement with the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation, monitored small-scale installations of LID enhancements designed to diminish the effects of storm runoff on the quantity and quality of surface water and groundwater. Funding for the studies also was contributed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Targeted Watersheds Grant Program through a financial assistance agreement with Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation. The monitoring studies examined the effects of replacing an impervious parking-lot surface with a porous surface on groundwater quality, installing rain gardens and porous pavement in a neighborhood of 3 acres on the quantity and quality of stormwater runoff, and installing a 3,000-ft2 (square-foot) green roof on the quantity and quality of rainfall-generated roof runoff. In addition to these small-scale installations, the U.S. Geological Survey’s Ipswich River Basin model was used to simulate the basin-wide effects on streamflow of several changes: broad-scale implementation of LID techniques, reduced water-supply withdrawals, and water-conservation measures. Water-supply and conservation scenarios for application in model simulations were developed with the assistance of two technical advisory committees that included representatives of State agencies responsible for water resources, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Geological Survey, water suppliers, and non-governmental organizations. From June 2005 to June 2007, groundwater quality was monitored at the Silver Lake town beach parking lot in Wilmington, Massachusetts, prior to and following the replacement of the conventional, impervious-asphalt surface with a porous surface consisting primarily of porous asphalt and porous pavers designed to enhance rainfall infiltration into the groundwater and to minimize runoff to Silver Lake. Concentrations of phosphorus, nitrogen, cadmium, chromium, copper, lead, nickel, zinc, and total petroleum hydrocarbons in groundwater were monitored. Enhancing infiltration of precipitation did not result in discernible increases in concentrations of these potential groundwater contaminants. Concentrations of dissolved oxygen increased slightly in groundwater profiles following the removal of the impervious asphalt parking-lot surface. In Wilmington, Massachusetts, in a 3-acre neighborhood, stormwater runoff volume and quality were monitored to determine the ability of selected LID enhancements (rain gardens and porous paving stones) to reduce flows and loads of the selected constituents to Silver Lake. Water-quality samples were analyzed for nutrients, metals, total petroleum hydrocarbons, and total-coliform and E. coli bacteria. A decrease in runoff quantity was observed for storms of 0.25 inch or less of precipitation. Water-quality-monitoring results were inconclusive; there were no statistically significant differences in concentrations or loads when the pre- and post-installation-period samples were compared. In a third field study, the characteristics of runoff from a vegetated "green" roof and a conventional, rubber-membrane roof were compared. The two primary factors affecting the green roof’s water-storage capacity were the amount of precipitation and antecedent dry period. Although concentrations of many of the chemicals in roof runoff were higher from the green roof than from the conventional roof, the ability of the green roof to retain water generally resulted in decreased differences between the total amounts (loads) of the chemicals that ran off the roofs. Land-use and water-management changes associated with LID implementation were investigated at multiple spatial scales, using the U.S. Geological Survey’s Ipswich River Basin model, to evaluate the effects of updated water-supply withdrawals for the towns of Reading and Wilmington (representing new baseline conditions for all simulations), potential land-use changes at buildout (potential future development), widespread implementation of retrofitting LID techniques, basin-scale water withdrawal reductions based on water-conservation pilot programs conducted by the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation, and land-use change and LID applications at a local scale. The new baseline simulation indicated that reduced water-supply withdrawals for the towns of Reading and Wilmington led to substantially higher medium and low flows in most of the reaches upstream from the South Middleton streamgage in the upper Ipswich River basin. Overall, simulations pointed to the importance of spatial scale in determining the effects of land-use change and LID practices on streamflow. Potential land-use changes at buildout had modest effects on streamflow in most subbasins (percent differences of less than 20 percent) because relatively little land in the basin was available for development. Results of the simulations conducted to evaluate widespread effective-impervious-area reductions upstream from the South Middleton streamgage indicated that the percentages of urban land use and associated effective impervious area were too small for even a 50-percent reduction of effective impervious area to appreciably affect streamflow in most subbasins. In contrast, the results of the hypothetical local-scale simulations indicated that for smaller streams, with high percentages of urban land use and associated effective impervious area, land-use change, development patterns, and LID practices may have substantial effects on streamflow. Modeling studies concurred with the results of fieldwork in the assessment that LID enhancements would likely have the greatest effect on decreasing stormwater runoff when broadly applied to highly impervious urban areas.

Massachusetts↗
USGS2015

Golden Eagle predation of an adult turkey vulture

The Golden Eagle (Aquila chrysaetos) is a large, apex predator that occurs at low densities, has a long life span, experiences delayed maturity, has low reproductive rates, and has no natural predators (Watson 1997, Kochert et al. 2002). Golden Eagles are sensitive to anthropogenic driven landscape changes in land cover and land use (Hunt 2002, Kochert and Steenhof 2002). Landscape level alterations, such as encroachment of woody vegetation in eagle foraging areas, may result in decreased abundance of suitable prey or interfere with the eagle’s ability to see or capture prey. Currently, there is substantial concern for Golden Eagle conservation due to widespread anthropogenic changes to landscapes across much of the species distribution (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 2013). In particular, the rapid expansion of wind energy development has led to heightened concerns for Golden Eagle conservation, as the species is susceptible to mortality through collision with turbines (Hunt 2002, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 2013). This has resulted in a recent increase in research to develop a better understanding of the species’ ecology.

Bulletin of the Texas Ornithological Society↗
USGS2021

Freezing temperatures restrict woody plant recruitment and restoration efforts in abandoned montane pastures

Tropical montane forests are being lost at an alarming rate but harbor some of the globe’s most unique biodiversity. The Hawaiian archipelago is a prime example of the importance of high elevation forests to species conservation and persistence as they serve as the last refugia for Hawaiian birds. Yet these forests have been converted to invasive dominated pastures, and efforts to restore them have been met with limited success. Unsuccessful forest restoration may be due to freezing temperatures acting as a demographic bottleneck by killing seedlings recruiting into pastures. We determined freezing tolerances of eight common native woody plants at a high-elevation forest on Hawaiʻi Island and compared these freezing tolerances to two years of site-specific winter temperatures and 17 years of regional temperature records. Low temperature extremes were more severe and common in pastures than under nearby 30-year-old canopy trees. Freezing temperatures over two years were severe enough to damage leaf tissues of six of eight species tested. Those species that displayed the greatest freezing tolerance were also those found naturally recruiting into open pastures. Temperature trends over the past 17 years show monthly minimum temperatures are not increasing as predicted by climate change. Persistent severe freezing events may limit seedling recruitment in the pasture, slowing native woody plant expansion into these abandoned pastures. The species-level differences in freezing tolerance show that current management actions are using species that are at high risk to freezing damage outside of the forest canopy and that alternative species may warrant consideration.

Global Ecology and Conservation↗