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At least 685 records · Page 38Linked to original sources

USGS2018

Optimization of salt marsh management at the Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge, Delaware, through use of structured decision making

Structured decision making is a systematic, transparent process for improving the quality of complex decisions by identifying measurable management objectives and feasible management actions; predicting the potential consequences of management actions relative to the stated objectives; and selecting a course of action that maximizes the total benefit achieved and balances tradeoffs among objectives. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, applied an existing, regional framework for structured decision making to develop a prototype tool for optimizing salt marsh management decisions at the Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge in Delaware. Refuge biologists, refuge managers, and research scientists identified multiple potential management actions to improve the ecological integrity of eight salt marsh management units within the refuge and estimated the outcomes of each action in terms of performance metrics associated with each management objective. Value functions previously developed at the regional level were used to transform metric scores to a common utility scale, and utilities were summed to produce a single score representing the total management benefit that would be accrued from each potential management action. Constrained optimization was used to identify the set of management actions, one per salt marsh management unit, that would maximize total management benefits at different cost constraints at the refuge scale. Results indicated that for the objectives and actions considered here, total management benefits would increase consistently up to approximately \$300,000, but that further expenditures would yield diminishing return on investment. Management actions selected within optimal portfolios at total costs less than \$300,000 included hydrologic restoration, recontouring adjacent uplands to facilitate marsh migration, and burning the marsh. The prototype presented here provides a framework for decision making at the Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge that can be updated as new data and information become available. Insights from this process may also be useful to inform future habitat management planning at the refuge.

Delaware↗

USGS2024

Annual grass invasions and wildfire deplete ecosystem carbon storage by >50% to resistant base levels

Ecological disturbance can affect carbon storage and stability and is a key consideration for managing lands to preserve or increase ecosystem carbon to ameliorate the global greenhouse gas problem. Dryland soils are massive carbon reservoirs that are increasingly impacted by species invasions and altered fire regimes, including the exotic-grass-fire cycle in the extensive sagebrush steppe of North America. Direct measurement of total carbon in 1174 samples from landscapes of this region that differed in invasion and wildfire history revealed that their impacts depleted soil carbon by 42–49%, primarily in deep horizons, which could amount to 17.1–20.0 Tg carbon lost across the ~400,000 ha affected annually. Disturbance effects on soil carbon stocks were not synergistic, suggesting that soil carbon was lowered to a floor—i.e. a resistant base-level—beneath which further loss was unlikely. Restoration and maintenance of resilient dryland shrublands/rangelands could stabilize soil carbon at magnitudes relevant to the global carbon cycle.

Nature Communications, Earth & Environment↗

USGS1999

Freshwater discharge to Florida Bay

The South Florida Ecosystem Program is a collaborative effort by Federal agencies, working with State and local agencies, to help resolve land-use demands and water-supply issues in south Florida. The role of the U.S. Geological Survey in the program is to provide scientific insight into south Florida's hydrology and geology, which are an integral part of the fragile ecosystems of the Everglades, Florida Bay, and the Florida Keys. Historical changes in water-management practices to accommodate a large and rapidly growing urban population along the Atlantic coast, as well as intensive agricultural activities, have resulted in a highly managed hydrologic system with canals, levees, and pumping stations. These structures have altered the hydrology of the Everglades ecosystem, including Florida Bay. Currently, there are plans to change the quantity of water delivered to Everglades National Park and Florida Bay to restore the natural flow of the system. Florida Bay, home to several endangered species, is a valuable breeding ground for marine life and an important recreational and sport fishing area. Florida Bay encompasses about 850 square miles in total area with an average depth of less than 3.5 feet. It is bordered by the mainland portion of Everglades National Park to the north, the Florida Keys to the east and south, and is open to the Gulf of Mexico to the west. During the last decade, Florida Bay has experienced algal blooms and seagrass die-offs which are signals of ecological deterioration that has been attributed to an increase in salinity and nutrient content of bay waters. Salinity and nutrient content are directly related to the amount and quality of freshwater that enters the bay and to flow patterns within the bay. Restoration of the Florida Bay ecosystem requires a better understanding of the linkage between the amount of water and nutrients flowing into the bay and the salinity and quality of the bay environment.

Florida↗

USGS2007

River and riparian restoration in the southwest: Results of the National River Restoration Science Synthesis project

Restoration activity has exponentially increased across the Southwest since 1990. Over 37,000 records were compiled into the National River Restoration Science Synthesis (NRRSS) database to summarize restoration trends and assess project effectiveness. We analyzed data from 576 restoration projects in the Southwest (NRRSS-SW). More than 50% of projects were less than or equal to 3 km in length. The most common restoration project intent categories were riparian management, water quality management, in-stream habitat improvement, and flow modification. Common project activities were well matched to goals. Conservative estimates of total restoration costs exceeded $500 million. Most restoration dollars have been allocated to flow modification and water quality management. Monitoring was linked to 28% of projects across the Southwest, as opposed to just 10% nationwide. Mean costs were statistically similar whether or not projects were monitored. Results from 48 telephone interviews provided validation of NRRSS-SW database analyses but showed that project costs are often underreported within existing datasets. The majority of interviewees considered their projects to be successful, most often based upon observed improvements to biota or positive public reaction rather than evaluation of field data. The efficacy of restoration is difficult to ascertain given the dearth of information contained within most datasets. There is a great need for regional entities that not only track information on project implementation but also maintain and analyze monitoring data associated with restoration. Agencies that fund or regulate restoration should reward projects that emphasize monitoring and evaluation as much as project implementation. ?? 2007 Society for Ecological Restoration International.

Restoration Ecology↗

USGS2026

Whitefishes—Coregonus spp.

Coregonines represent a diverse group of fishes of the Salmonidae subfamily Coregoninae that have ecological, cultural, and economical importance throughout their range. They are prey for other commercially and recreationally important predatory fish and are harvested for human consumption (Cleland 1982). Coregonines are generally cool- and coldwater species distributed across the northern hemisphere. The Laurentian Great Lakes of North America experienced considerable loss of coregonine biodiversity due to overfishing, the effects of nonnative species, and habitat loss (Bunnell et al. 2023). This resulted in the extinction of several species (Deepwater Cisco, Longjaw Cisco, and Kiyi) and local extirpations of other species (Blackfin Cisco, Shortnose Cisco, Shortjaw Cisco, Bloater, and Cisco) across all lakes (Bunnell et al. 2023). Renewed interest in restoring coregonines as the native prey base in the Laurentian Great Lakes prompted the development of a multi-agency restoration framework (Bunnell et al. 2023, 2024), and stocking of hatchery-produced coregonines is one of the management tools being used in this large restoration effort. This chapter focuses on culture methods for Lake Whitefish, Cisco, and Bloater currently being propagated for restoration and reintroduction in the Great Lakes (Bunnell et al. 2023). The techniques used for these species can serve as a starting point for the culture of other cisco species, such as Kiyi, which fisheries managers may consider for restoration stocking. Lake Whitefish, Cisco, and Bloater (Figure 1) are similar in appearance but have distinctively different life histories. They are silvery-white-colored fish and possess an adipose fin. Lake Whitefish are distinguished from Cisco and Bloater by a snout that overhangs the lower jaw (subterminal), whereas Cisco and Bloater have a lower jaw that extends beyond the snout (terminal). Lake Whitefish can reach lengths up to 79 cm (Phillips et al. 1982). Cisco and Bloater are smaller, reaching lengths of 34 and 30 cm, respectively (Eshenroder et al. 2016; Bunnell et al. 2023). Cisco and Bloater are similar in appearance but can be differentiated by head profiles, number of gill rakers (47 for Cisco and 42 for Bloater; Bunnell et al. 2023), and body morphometry. Lake Whitefish spawn from September through January in water depths of 2–4 m (Phillips et al. 1982). Cisco spawn from November through December in water depths of 1–47 m (Paufve et al. 2022), whereas Bloater spawn later in winter (February through May) at depths of 37–92 m (Koelz 1929; Becker 1983; Eshenroder et al. 2016). After eggs of all three species hatch in the spring, larvae feed on zooplankton and then switch to larger invertebrate prey as they grow; some will begin to feed on other fish species as they reach maturity (Warren and Lehman 1988; Brown and Taylor 1992; Breaker et al. 2020; Gatch et al. 2021). All three species typically mature at ages 4–5, with some maturing beginning at age 2 (Beauchamp 2002; Gorman 2012; DeCosta 2016).

Book chapter↗

USGS2025

Re-oligotrophy in the Upper Mississippi River, USA, occurred in just a few years

Ecological systems can undergo large changes and regime shifts that are either catastrophic, neutral, or desirable. Rivers worldwide have recently undergone desirable regime shifts related to re-oligotrophy, which is a notable and ongoing reduction in concentrations of total suspended solids (TSS), total N, total P, or phytoplankton. For example, the Upper Mississippi River, USA, has experienced major water-quality changes in multiple river reaches in recent decades. In this study, we sought to understand the timing and magnitude of re-oligotrophy in the Mississippi River over a 20-y period. We used 2 topological data analysis algorithms to address hypotheses related to the following questions: What were the order and timing of water-quality changes? What was the time period over which the major changes occurred? What was the magnitude of water-quality change before and after change points (i.e., specific years when water-quality conditions transitioned abruptly to new states)? We examined 6 water-quality state variables that defined the ecological regime for the Upper Mississippi River. In one river reach, we found that strong reductions in phytoplankton/chlorophyll a had occurred first (2008), followed by total P (2013), and last in TSS (2014). In a downriver reach, we found notable reductions for chlorophyll a (2007) but substantial increases in TSS (2013). In both reaches, the water-quality changes trended over ≥15 y, but the largest changes and a likely regime shift occurred in just 6 y. The timing (2007–2014) and range (~6 y) of water-quality changes were similar between the 2 river reaches, but the directionality of the regime shift indicated re-oligotrophy for the upstream reach and water-quality degradation for the downstream reach. Topological methods applied to long-term datasets can aid our understanding of re-oligotrophication and degradation processes and may help resource managers restore desirable regimes.

Freshwater Science↗

USGS2023

Assessing contaminants of emerging concern in the Great Lakes Ecosystem: A decade of method development and practical application

Assessing the ecological risk of contaminants in the field typically involves consideration of a complex mixture of compounds which may or may not be detected via instrumental analyses. Further, there are insufficient data to predict the potential biological effects of many detected compounds, leading to their being characterized as contaminants of emerging concern (CECs). Over the past several years, advances in chemistry, toxicology, and bioinformatics have resulted in a variety of concepts and tools that can enhance the pragmatic assessment of the ecological risk of CECs. The present Focus article describes a 10+- year multiagency effort supported through the U.S. Great Lakes Restoration Initiative to assess the occurrence and implications of CECs in the North American Great Lakes. State-of-the-science methods and models were used to evaluate more than 700 sites in about approximately 200 tributaries across lakes Ontario, Erie, Huron, Michigan, and Superior, sometimes on multiple occasions. Studies featured measurement of up to 500 different target analytes in different environmental matrices, coupled with evaluation of biological effects in resident species, animals from in situ and laboratory exposures, and in vitro systems. Experimental taxa included birds, fish, and a variety of invertebrates, and measured endpoints ranged from molecular to apical responses. Data were integrated and evaluated using a diversity of curated knowledgebases and models with the goal of producing actionable insights for risk assessors and managers charged with evaluating and mitigating the effects of CECs in the Great Lakes. This overview is based on research and data captured in approximately about 90 peer-reviewed journal articles and reports, including approximately about 30 appearing in a virtual issue comprised of highlighted papers published in Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry or Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management . Environ Toxicol Chem 2023;42:2506–2518. © 2023 SETAC. This article has been contributed to by U.S. Government employees and their work is in the public domain in the USA.

Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry↗

USGS2026

Seasonal migrations and other movements

In the past 25 years new information has been obtained on the migrations and movements of mountain sheep (bighorn [Ovis canadensis], thinhorn [Ovis dalli]). This chapter provides a comprehensive overview of mountain sheep migration and other movements across their broad distribution in western North America. Across the range of mountain sheep, migrations and other seasonal movements define a complex movement portfolio that relates to and supports all aspects of mountain sheep ecology. Bighorn and thinhorn species have examples of migratory behaviors that span the continuum between annual residents and long-distance migrants. Migratory behaviors can be characterized as low- or high-elevation residents; elevational migrations and other variants; and geographic migrants. Native populations that have been extant on the landscape without notable human intervention have greater migratory propensity and more diverse migratory portfolios due to the maintenance of migration through cultural learning and social transmission. Restored and augmented populations, where the population-level knowledge of migration has been lost or greatly reduced, are largely nonmigratory, although translocations show some ability to restore short-distance elevational migrations. Seasonal spring and fall migrations are less common in desert bighorn sheep (O. canadensis spp.) or bighorn sheep living in canyon or prairie breaks landscapes. Mineral lick visitation is important and common across the range of mountain sheep. Managing for migratory diversity can help to sustain migratory behavior in the face of climate change and other anthropogenic pressures, which can limit landscape connectivity between seasonal ranges or alter the spatiotemporal dynamics of regional phenology with cascading effects to other biotic and abiotic interactions such as the need to balance forage and predation risk or the spatial refugia with increased temperatures.

Book chapter↗

USGS2017

The fishery resources of the Mississippi River: A model for conservation and management

The Mississippi River is a multijurisdictional and multiuse resource that has been variously altered and is foremost managed for navigation and flood control throughout much of its 3,734‐km passage from its origin at Lake Itasca, Minnesota, to its outlet at the Gulf of Mexico. Despite alterations summarized herein, the native fish fauna remains largely intact and only five nonnative species have colonized segments of the river. Diverse habitats still remain, but loss of habitat, declining habitat suitability, and reduced floodplain functionality warrant concern. Fisheries monitoring and assessment, ecological research, and habitat rehabilitation vary from adequate in the upper reaches of the river to minimal in the lower reaches of the river, and these efforts parallel the recreational use, local values, and visibility of the river. A conceptual model is proposed to depict the value of the social, economic, and many ecosystem services the Mississippi River ecosystem offers that can be used to achieve the social and economic support needed to conserve and restore this valuable fishery resource.

Mississippi River↗

USGS2020

Forest restoration and fuels reduction: Convergent or divergent?

For over 20 years, forest fuel reduction has been the dominant management action in western US forests. These same actions have also been associated with the restoration of highly altered frequent-fire forests. Perhaps the vital element in the compatibility of these treatments is that both need to incorporate the salient characteristics that frequent fire produced—variability in vegetation structure and composition across landscapes and the inability to support large patches of high-severity fire. These characteristics can be achieved with both fire and mechanical treatments. The possible key to convergence of fuel reduction and forest restoration strategies is integrated planning that permits treatment design flexibility and a longer-term focus on fire reintroduction for maintenance. With changing climate conditions, long-term forest conservation will probably need to be focused on keeping tree density low enough (i.e., in the lower range of historic variation) for forest conditions to adapt to emerging disturbance patterns and novel ecological processes.

Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, New↗

USGS2020

Resource allocation for coastal wetland management: Confronting uncertainty about sea level rise

Coastal wetlands are rich and diverse ecosystems with a wide variety of birdlife and other natural resources. Decision making for coastal wetland management is difficult given the complex nature of these ecological systems and the frequent need to meet multiple objectives for varied resources. Management challenges in the coastal zone are exacerbated by uncertainty about sea level rise and impacts on infrastructure, particularly the levees and structures which provide managers the ability to manipulate water levels in managed wetlands and create high quality habitat for birds and other wildlife. The most challenging decisions in coastal wetland management involve resource allocation for habitat manipulations and longer-term investments to maintain management control in wetlands that are increasingly compromised by sea level rise and increasing storm frequency and intensity associated with a changing climate. We used multi-criteria decision analysis to create a resource allocation framework for managed wetlands that identifies the most effective and efficient management strategies that are robust to uncertainty about sea level rise. The prototype framework includes a small number of managed wetlands, for which subject matter experts articulated potential management and restoration actions. The consequences of these actions were predicted using expert elicitation with the subject matter experts; furthermore, expert judgment was used to articulate expected outcomes with two hypotheses about the rate of sea level rise. We used a constrained optimization (integer linear programming) to find optimal resource allocation strategies given a range of budget constraints; we also used a Pareto efficiency analysis for a graphical solution to the problem if the exact budget constraint is not known. Finally, given the importance of preference weights in a multi-criteria decision analysis, we also evaluated sensitivity to objective weights. With this resource allocation framework, we showed how to identify optimal combinations of management and restoration actions to maximize benefits in terms of stated objectives. We show how multiple working hypotheses about sea level rise can be incorporated into decisions for coastal wetland management. Our resource allocation approach can be modified for a wide variety of natural resource management settings.

Book chapter↗

USGS2017

Integrating active restoration with environmental flows to improve native riparian tree establishment in the Colorado River Delta

Drastic alterations to river hydrology, land use change, and the spread of the nonnative shrub, tamarisk (Tamarix spp.), have led to the degradation of riparian habitat in the Colorado River Delta in Mexico. Delivery of environmental flows to promote native cottonwood (Populus spp.) and willow (Salix spp.) recruitment in human-impacted riparian systems can be unsuccessful due to flow-magnitude constraints and altered abiotic–biotic feedbacks. In 2014, an experimental pulse flow of water was delivered to the Colorado River in Mexico as part of the U.S.-Mexico binational agreement, Minute 319. We conducted a field experiment to assess the effects of vegetation removal, seed augmentation, and environmental flows, separately and in combination, on germination and first-year seedling establishment of cottonwood, willow, and tamarisk at five replicate sites along 5 river km. The relatively low-magnitude flow deliveries did not substantively restore natural fluvial processes of erosion, sediment deposition, and vegetation scour, but did provide wetted surface soils, shallow groundwater, and low soil salinity. Cottonwood and willow only established in wetted, cleared treatments, and establishment was variable in these treatments due to variable site conditions and inundation duration and timing. Wetted soils, bare surface availability, soil salinity, and seed availability were significant factors contributing to successful cottonwood and willow germination, while soil salinity and texture affected seedling persistence over the growing season. Tamarisk germinated and persisted in a wider range of environmental conditions than cottonwood and willow, including in un-cleared treatment areas. Our results suggest that site management can increase cottonwood and willow recruitment success from low-magnitude environmental flow events, an approach that can be applied in other portions of the Delta and to other human-impacted riparian systems across the world with similar ecological limitations.

Colorado River↗

USGS2022

Optimization of salt marsh management at the Petit Manan National Wildlife Refuge of the Maine Coastal Islands National Wildlife Refuge Complex, Maine, through use of structured decision making

Structured decision making is a systematic, transparent process for improving the quality of complex decisions by identifying measurable management objectives and feasible management actions; predicting the potential consequences of management actions relative to the stated objectives; and selecting a course of action that maximizes the total benefit achieved and balances tradeoffs among objectives. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, applied an existing, regional framework for structured decision making to develop a prototype tool for optimizing tidal marsh management decisions at the Petit Manan National Wildlife Refuge of the Maine Coastal Islands National Wildlife Refuge Complex in Maine. Refuge biologists, refuge managers, and research scientists identified multiple potential management actions to improve the ecological integrity of two marsh management units within the refuge complex, totaling about 47 hectares, and estimated the outcomes of each action in terms of performance metrics associated with each management objective. Value functions previously developed at the regional level were used to transform metric scores to a common utility scale, and utilities were summed to produce a single score representing the total management benefit that could be accrued from each potential management action. Constrained optimization was used to identify the set of management actions, one per marsh management unit, that could maximize total management benefits at different cost constraints at the refuge scale. Results indicated that, for the objectives and actions considered here, total management benefits may increase consistently up to $ 9,545, and may continue to increase at a lower rate with further expenditures. Potential management actions in optimal portfolios at total costs less than or equal to $ 9,545 included removing dikes to restore tidal flow in the Gouldsboro Bay management unit and installing runnels to improve surface-water drainage in the Sawyers Marsh management unit. The potential management benefits were derived from expected increases in the numbers of tidal marsh obligate breeding birds and density of spiders (as an indicator of trophic health), reduced duration of flooding, and increased capacity of marsh elevation to keep pace with sea-level rise. The prototype presented here does not resolve management decisions; rather, it provides a framework for decision making at the Maine Coastal Islands National Wildlife Refuge Complex that can be updated for implementation as new data and information become available. Insights from this process may also be useful to inform future habitat management planning at the refuge complex.

Maine↗

USGS2019

Floodplains provide important amphibian habitat despite multiple ecological threats

Floodplain ponds and wetlands are productive and biodiverse ecosystems, yet they face multiple threats including altered hydrology, land use change, and non‐native species. Protecting and restoring important floodplain ecosystems requires understanding how organisms use these habitats and respond to altered environmental conditions. We developed Bayesian models to evaluate occupancy of six amphibian species across 103 off‐channel aquatic habitats in the Chehalis River floodplain, Washington State, USA. The basin has been altered by changes in land use, reduced river–wetland connections, and the establishment of non‐native American bullfrogs ( Rana catesbeiana = Lithobates catesbeianus ) and centrarchid fishes, all of which we hypothesized could influence native amphibian occupancy. Despite potential threats, the floodplain habitats had relatively high rates of native amphibian occupancy, particularly when compared to studies from non‐floodplain habitats within the species’ native ranges. The biggest challenge for native amphibians appears to be non‐native centrarchid fishes, which strongly reduced occupancy of two native amphibians: the northern red‐legged frog ( Rana aurora ) and the northwestern salamander ( Ambystoma gracile ). Emergent vegetative cover increased occupancy probability for all five native amphibian species, indicating that plant management may offer a strategy to counter the negative effect of centrarchids by providing refuge from predation. We found that temporary and permanent hydroperiod sites supported different species; hence, both should be conserved on the landscape. Lastly, human‐created and natural ponds had similar amphibian occupancy patterns, suggesting that pond construction offers a viable strategy for adding habitats to the floodplain landscape. Overall, floodplain ponds and wetlands provide important amphibian habitat, and we offer management strategies that will bolster amphibian occupancy in an altered floodplain landscape.

Washington↗

USGS2026

A tool to monitor hydrologic conditions on tree islands in the Everglades

Tree islands are patchy upland forested habitats in Florida's Everglades that face degradation and disappearance due to altered hydrologic patterns. The U.S. Geological Survey coordinated with the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida and the Seminole Tribe of Florida to co-develop a decision-support tool based on tree-island hydrologic conditions. Everglades managers can use this tool to help with restoration planning and water operations decisions that affect tree-island conditions. After a series of organized workshops and meetings, a list of hydrologic metrics was selected as indicators of tree-island health, including hydroperiod, number of days since last dry, and maximum water depth at the head of the island. As a result, a web application tool, called ETree, has been developed and is publicly available online. This web application provides data on daily metrics for the current Everglades water year and annual summaries for past years, beginning in 2000.

Florida↗

USGS2012

Selecting sagebrush seed sources for restoration in a variable climate: ecophysiological variation among genotypes

Big sagebrush ( Artemisia tridentata ) communities dominate a large fraction of the United States and provide critical habitat for a number of wildlife species of concern. Loss of big sagebrush due to fire followed by poor restoration success continues to reduce ecological potential of this ecosystem type, particularly in the Great Basin. Choice of appropriate seed sources for restoration efforts is currently unguided due to knowledge gaps on genetic variation and local adaptation as they relate to a changing landscape. We are assessing ecophysiological responses of big sagebrush to climate variation, comparing plants that germinated from ~20 geographically distinct populations of each of the three subspecies of big sagebrush. Seedlings were previously planted into common gardens by US Forest Service collaborators Drs. B. Richardson and N. Shaw, (USFS Rocky Mountain Research Station, Provo, Utah and Boise, Idaho) as part of the Great Basin Native Plant Selection and Increase Project. Seed sources spanned all states in the conterminous Western United States. Germination, establishment, growth and ecophysiological responses are being linked to genomics and foliar palatability. New information is being produced to aid choice of appropriate seed sources by Bureau of Land Management and USFS field offices when they are planning seed acquisitions for emergency post-fire rehabilitation projects while considering climate variability and wildlife needs.

Report↗

USGS2006

Development of allometric relations for three mangrove species in South Florida for use in the Greater Everglades Ecosystem restoration

Mathematical relations that use easily measured variables to predict difficult-to-measure variables are important to resource managers. In this paper we develop allometric relations to predict total aboveground biomass and individual components of biomass (e.g., leaves, stems, branches) for three species of mangroves for Everglades National Park, Florida, USA. The Greater Everglades Ecosystem is currently the subject of a 7.8-billion-dollar restoration program sponsored by federal, state, and local agencies. Biomass and production of mangroves are being used as a measure of restoration success. A technique for rapid determination of biomass over large areas is required. We felled 32 mangrove trees and separated each plant into leaves, stems, branches, and for Rhizophora mangle L., prop roots. Wet weights were measured in the field and subsamples returned to the laboratory for determination of wet-to-dry weight conversion factors. The diameter at breast height (DBH) and stem height were also measured. Allometric equations were developed for each species for total biomass and components of biomass. We compared our equations with those from the same, or similar, species from elsewhere in the world. Our equations explained ???93% of the variance in total dry weight using DBH. DBH is a better predictor of dry weight than is stem height and DBH is much easier to measure. Furthermore, our results indicate that there are biogeographic differences in allometric relations between regions. For a given DBH, stems of all three species have less mass in Florida than stems from elsewhere in the world. ?? Springer 2006.

Wetlands Ecology and Management↗

USGS2014

Managing the whole landscape: Historical, hybrid, and novel ecosystems

The reality confronting ecosystem managers today is one of heterogeneous, rapidly transforming landscapes, particularly in the areas more affected by urban and agricultural development. A landscape management framework that incorporates all systems, across the spectrum of degrees of alteration, provides a fuller set of options for how and when to intervene, uses limited resources more effectively, and increases the chances of achieving management goals. That many ecosystems have departed so substantially from their historical trajectory that they defy conventional restoration is not in dispute. Acknowledging novel ecosystems need not constitute a threat to existing policy and management approaches. Rather, the development of an integrated approach to management interventions can provide options that are in tune with the current reality of rapid ecosystem change.

Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment↗