WERC Highlights -- January 2005

USGS at AAAS: USGS scientist Jim Estes of the Western Ecological Research Center is an invited speaker on trophic cascades and interaction webs in marine ecosystems during the American Association for the Advancement of Science annual meeting on Feb. 17-21, 2005, in Washington D.C. Estes’ presentation is part of a symposium that will examine lessons for marine management that can be gained from examining more advanced terrestrial ecosystem-based approaches; a panel/audience interactive discussion follows the presentations. For more: http://www.aaas.org/meetings/Annual_Meeting/. (Jim Estes, Santa Cruz, CA, 831-459-2820, jim_estes@usgs.gov)

Aquatic Sciences Meeting: USGS scientist A. Keith Miles of the Western Ecological Research Center will present USGS research on the ecological structure of salt ponds in San Francisco Bay at the Aquatic Sciences meeting of the American Society of Limnology and Oceanography to be held in Salt Lake City, Utah, Feb. 20-25, 2005. USGS is helping to answer key questions for the complex wetland restoration of 16,500 acres of salt ponds in San Francisco Bay, which requires balancing tidal wetland restoration with existing beneficial habitat. At some salt ponds, USGS scientists have measured water quality parameters, nutrient concentrations, primary productivity, zooplankton, macroinvertebrates, fish, and birds across a range of salinities to describe trophic communities. The ASLO meeting is one of the largest annual international conferences. For more: http://www.aslo.org/meetings/slc2005/. (A. Keith Miles, Davis, CA, 530-752-5365, keith_miles@usgs.gov)

Fire Ecology Symposium: USGS scientist Gary Fellers of the Western Ecological Research Center will give an invited paper as part of a fire ecology symposium at the joint meeting of the Oregon chapter of The Wildlife Society and the Society for Northwestern Vertebrate Biology to be held in Corvallis, Feb. 22-25, 2005. In 1995, a 5,000-hectare fire burned on Point Reyes peninsula, California, revealing thousands of burrows of mountain beavers. Fellers will discuss the effects of this fire on a mountain beaver population at Point Reyes National Seashore, which has not yet recovered since the fire. Some of the results from this research were published in 2004 in the Journal of Wildlife Management. For more: http://fw.oregonstate.edu/tws/2005%20annual%20meeting.html. (Gary Fellers, Point Reyes, CA, 415-464-5185, gary_fellers@usgs.gov) Citation: Fellers, Gary M., David Pratt, and Jennifer L. Griffin. 2004. Fire Effects on the Point Reyes Mountain Beaver (Aplodontia rufa phaea) at Point Reyes National Seashore. Journal of Wildlife Management 68(3):503-508.

Invasive Species: On Jan. 26, USGS scientist Matt Brooks of the Western Ecological Research Center was interviewed for a story in the Las Vegas Sun about the threats and management of Sahara mustard in southern Nevada. Sahara mustard is a nonnative weed that has recently become a significant management concern on public lands in southwestern desert areas. Along with nonnative grass invaders this annual mustard can contribute to an increase in fire hazard and displace native plants that are important to wildlife, such as the threatened Mojave Population of the desert tortoise. (Matt Brooks, Henderson, NV, 702-564-4615, matt_brooks@usgs.gov)

Herpetologist: USGS scientist Kristin Berry of the Western Ecological Research Center was interviewed by the Los Angeles Times for an upcoming story about the eminent herpetologist Robert C. Stebbins, whom Berry has known since graduate school. Stebbins has authored and illustrated widely used books on reptiles and amphibians and has inspired numerous graduate students to follow careers in herpetology and conservation biology. (Kristin Berry, Moreno Valley, CA, 909-697-5361, kristin_berry@usgs.gov)

Fire and Grassland Evolution: USGS scientist Jon Keeley of the Western Ecological Research Center was interviewed for a Jan. 28 story by the journal Nature (http://www.nature.com/news/2005/050124/full/050124-16.html) and for an upcoming story in Science Magazine regarding a fellow researcher’s recent study in the journal New Phytologist, in which global modeling shows many of the world's great grasslands disappearing in the absence of fire. Keeley has been investigating a related topic, fire and the expansion of tropical and subtropical (e.g., southern Arizona) grasslands and how previous models of global CO2 changes do not seem to explain changes in grasslands documented for the Late Miocene. (Jon Keeley, Three Rivers, CA, 559-565-3170, jon_keeley@usgs.gov)

White Pine Blister Rust: USGS scientist Phil van Mantgem of the Western Ecological Research Center was interviewed about infections of white pine blister rust in sugar pines in the Sierra Nevada for a Jan. 20 story in the Sonora Union Democrat: http://www.uniondemocrat.com/news/story.cfm?story_no=16328. A USGS and NPS study published in Ecological Applications examined a unique long-term data set that documents 2,168 sugar pines over 15 years at several sites in the Sierra Nevada. All populations had high frequencies of infections that were often associated with tree death, although crowding was a frequent cause of death as well. (Phil van Mantgem, Three Rivers, CA, 559-565-3179, pvanmantgem@usgs.gov)

Pintail Migration: USGS scientist Michael R. Miller of the Western Ecological Research Center was interviewed for the Jan. 15 broadcast of the KFBK Outdoors Show (1530 AM radio, Sacramento, Calif.) regarding research that is providing information for the recovery of northern pintails. A team of biologists, led by USGS, has used satellite tracking to identify migration pathways and habitats used along the way, and to link known wintering areas with specific nesting regions. A Jan. 11 story in the San Francisco Chronicle reported on some findings of this recently completed study: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2005/01/11/SPG59AO6I81.DTL.. (Michael R. Miller, Dixon, CA, 707-678-0682 x618, Michael_r_miller@usgs.gov)

USGS Video to be Screened at Festival: “Precipice of Survival: The Southern Sea Otter” is among the films to be screened during the 2nd annual San Francisco Ocean Festival, Jan. 28-30. The festival brings together documentaries and narrative works by filmmakers from around the world. The sea otter story will be screened at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 29 during the free Children’s Festival, aboard the historic ferry Eureka at Hyde Street Pier in the San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park, adjacent to the Fisherman's Wharf District. For more: http://oceanfilmfest.org/children.html. (Stephen Wessells, Henderson, NV, 702-564-4626, smwess@usgs.gov)

Desert Tortoise Social Behavior: USGS scientist Kristin Berry of the Western Ecological Research Center will give the Banquet Address for the 30th Annual Meeting of the Desert Tortoise Preserve Committee, Inc., on desert tortoise social behavior. The meeting will be held on January 22 at the Ramada Inn in Palmdale, California. The illustrated presentation with movie clips is based on research conducted on an undisturbed population of wild tortoises in the central Mojave Desert. Topics include male dominance and territories, aggression, mating systems, and the implications for management and recovery of declining populations of desert tortoises. For more: http://www.tortoise-tracks.org/. (Kristin Berry, Moreno Valley, CA, 909-697-5361, kristin_berry@usgs.gov)

Desert Tortoise Social Behavior: USGS scientist Kristin Berry of the Western Ecological Research Center will discuss the social behavior of a healthy, undisturbed population of desert tortoise that occurs at the National Training Center, Fort Irwin, California, during the 2005 annual conference of the Western Section of The Wildlife Society to be held Jan. 19-21 in Sacramento. Knowledge of its social behavior and mating system will aid in recovery efforts for the threatened Mojave desert tortoise, such as in the design of translocation projects and management of infectious diseases. The frequent and complex social interactions between tortoises shed light on how infectious diseases can be rapidly transmitted from individuals to populations on a local and regional basis. For more: http://www.tws-west.org/. (Kristin Berry, Moreno Valley, CA, 909-697-5361, kristin_berry@usgs.gov)

California Central Valley Waterfowl Habitat: On January 13, USGS volunteer Richard Moss presented preliminary results of research on "Secondary production and biomass of aquatic invertebrates in post-harvest flooded fields in the Tulare Basin" at the Tulare Lake Basin Working Group meeting in Alpaugh, California. Some Tulare Basin agricultural fields that are flooded after harvest have been shown to provide important habitat during fall for northern pintails and other waterbirds in the Central Valley. The goal of this work is to provide information for managers to enhance wildlife benefits of these habitats. The research is part of a cooperative project by USGS and California State University-Fresno, with additional support from the Central Valley Joint Venture-USFWS and California Department of Fish and Game. (Joe Fleskes, Dixon, CA, 707-678-0682 ext 628, joe_fleskes@usgs.gov)

Fire Effects on Saguaros: Wildfires were historically rare in the Arizona Upland subdivision of the Sonoran Desert. Now fires are expected after single or successive winters of above-average precipitation, which can lead to prolific growth of red brome, an alien annual grass that has been the cause of many serious fires in the northern Sonoran Desert. In a recent study published in Desert Plants, USGS scientists examined the effects of a moderate-intensity fire on saguaros following the 1994 Mother’s Day Fire in Saguaro National Park near Tucson, Arizona. They collected and analyzed data on percent scorching, saguaro height, and mortality of saguaros in burned and unburned areas. The greatest losses were recorded within a year of the fire, and saguaros less than 1 m tall were the most sensitive of three size classes to the moderate-intensity fire. The cumulative mortality of burned saguaros within 6 years was 24.8 %, 108 out of 436 saguaros. Annual saguaro mortality in the burned area gradually dropped until it matched that of the unburned area. A parallel increase in mortality in burned and unburned saguaros occurred during 2 years that coincided with a regional drought. For more: http://www.werc.usgs.gov/pubbriefs/esquepbjan2005.html. (Todd Esque, Henderson, NV, 702-564-4506, todd_esque@usgs.gov) Citation: Esque, T. C., C. R. Schwalbe, D. F. Haines, and W. L. Halvorson. 2004. Saguaros under siege: invasive species and fire. Desert Plants 20(1):49-55.

Smoke and Germination: USGS scientist Jon Keeley of the Western Ecological Research Center was interviewed on Jan. 10 regarding research on smoke and germination for a feature story in the journal BioScience on recent findings in fire ecology. Keeley’s research has shown that many species in California chaparral ecosystems are highly dependent on recurrent fire because their seeds require smoke to induce germination. (Jon Keeley, Three Rivers, CA, 559-565-3170, jon_keeley@usgs.gov)

Nitrogen Pollution: USGS scientist Matt Brooks of the Western Ecological Research Center is an invited speaker at the “Symposium on Nitrogen Eutrophication in Xeric Wildland and Agricultural Systems,” to be held at the University of California, Riverside, on Jan. 19-21, 2005. This symposium will address the nitrogen problems unique to xeric ecosystems ranging from desert to seasonally dry coniferous forest. Brooks will discuss “Invasive species and the fire cycle under nitrogen deposition.” Brooks’ research results indicate that in desert regions increased levels of soil nitrogen from atmospheric nitrogen deposition, or from other sources, could increase the dominance of alien annual plants, possibly promote the invasion of new species, and may increase the frequency and size of wildland fires through increased fuel loads from alien annual grasses. The symposium will bring together regulators, land managers, environmental economists, and researchers from the western U.S. to discuss the issues, to identify topics on nitrogen pollution that require further investigation, and to promote improved regulations and management based on the latest scientific findings. (Matt Brooks, Henderson, NV, 702-564-4615, matt_brooks@usgs.gov)

Tracking Seabirds: USGS scientist Josh Adams of the Western Ecological Research Center will give oral and poster presentations on seabird research at the Thirty-Second Annual Meeting of the Pacific Seabird Group, to be held jointly with the Waterbird Society, on Jan. 19-23, 2005, in Portland, Oregon. Adams and his collaborators will discuss the first post-breeding satellite-telemetry study in the northeast Pacific Ocean off central California to investigate the movements, habitat associations, and trans-Pacific migration of sooty shearwaters; the status, ecology, and aerial tracking surveys of ashy storm-petrels captured in Channel Islands National Park, a non-migratory storm-petrel that resides year round within the California Current System; and satellite-telemetry of black-footed albatrosses captured at-sea in Cordell Bank National Marine Sanctuary, off central California, to better understand their post-breeding dispersal, distribution, habitat-use. For more: http://www.pacificseabirdgroup.org/mtg.html. (Josh Adams, Moss Landing, CA, 831-633-7259, josh_adams@usgs.gov)

Wildlife Research Conference: USGS scientists from the Western Ecological Research Center will participate in the 2005 annual conference of the Western Section of The Wildlife Society to be held Jan. 19-21 in Sacramento, Calif. Gary Fellers will give a presentation on research on impacts of commonly used pesticides on amphibian populations in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, discussing results of field studies and laboratory experiments. Doug Chamblin will discuss habitat use and roost attendance by common ravens that occur at the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center (Twentynine Palms, Calif.), including daily and seasonal periods of greatest roost activities. For more: http://www.tws-west.org/. (Gloria Maender, Tucson, AZ, 520-670-5596, gloria_maender@usgs.gov)

Fire Workshop: USGS scientist Jon Keeley of the Western Ecological Research Center was invited to join other experts in a workshop discussing climate change and fire risk in California to be held by the Union of Concerned Scientists on Jan. 14, 2005, in Berkeley, Calif. (Jon Keeley, Three Rivers, CA, 559-565-3170, jon_keeley@usgs.gov)