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Results for “Annual Review of Environment and Resources”

Search indexed USGS publications on groundwater, aquifers, geologic maps, mineral resources and earthquakes. Explore source records by subject and place.

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USGS2026

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

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

Arizona↗
USGS2025

Multi-scale predictors of Northern Long-eared Bat (Myotis septentrionalis) occupancy in the United States

Historically, Myotis septentrionalis (Northern Long eared Bat) was among the most common forest-interior species in North America. Largely due to high mortality from white-nose syndrome, this species has experienced severe population declines across its range. To create an updated species distribution map representing summer occupancy probabilities from 2017 to 2022, we integrated stationary acoustic data with live-capture data from the database of the North American Bat Monitoring Program into a multi-scale, multi-method occupancy modeling framework. Our results provide data-driven predictions with quantified uncertainty for summer occupancy probabilities for Northern Long-eared Bats at 2 spatial scales across the range of the species, while also accounting for inherent observation biases (e.g., imperfect detection).

Journal of North American Bat Research↗