FWS Submissions

U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service

Assessment of Upper Mississippi National Fish and Wildlife Refuge Migratory Waterbird Ground Surveys Using Aerial Photography and Remote Sensing Techniques

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on

To monitor waterbird use and abundance, ground surveys of migrating waterbirds are conducted in the spring and fall on the Upper Mississippi River and Trempealeau National Fish and Wildlife Refuges (NWR). In an effort to assure complete and accurate surveys, aerial photography was acquired to supplement the ground-based surveys.  During the fall 2011, spring 2012 and fall 2012 surveys, four waterbird survey areas were photographed with an Applanix 439 medium format digital aerial camera on five separate waterbird monitoring dates.

Atlantic and Great Lakes Sea Duck Migration Study

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on

To address important information gaps about sea ducks, particularly in the face of increasing demands for hunting and increased interest in offshore energy development, the Sea Duck Joint Venture partnership launched an ambitious, large-scale study of sea ducks in the Atlantic Flyway using satellite telemetry.  From 2009 to 2013, more than 200 sea ducks along the Atlantic coast and in Lake Ontario were fitted with satellite transmitters, which were surgically implanted, to provide location data every few days for up to 2 years.  This ongoing study is generating a wealth of detaile

Develop Habitat/Land Cover Datasets and Maps to Support Predictive Modeling and Landscape Change Analysis

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on

Conservation planners associated with the Gulf Coastal Plains and Ozarks (GCPO) and Gulf Coast Prairie (GCP) Landscape Conservation Cooperatives (LCCs) require contemporary data on the distribution and extent of coastal vegetation classes to model habitat availability for priority species. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Wetlands Research Center provides assistance with updating land cover habitat maps in Texas and Oklahoma and standardizing the vegetation classification across areas of similar vegetation.

Effects of Climate Change on Waterfowl Harvest Management

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on

The Migratory Bird Program within USFWS is currently undertaking multiple research projects to evaluate the effects of climate change on migratory bird populations in North America.  The goal is to adapt monitoring programs and population models that inform harvest management of waterfowl species in the face of climate change.  National Environmental Prediction Center North American Regional Reanalysis (NCEP/NARR) climate data and percent surface water products derived from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) (Yellowstone Ecological Research Center COASTERdat

Endangered Songbird Habitat Characterization Using Lidar and NAIP-CIR imagery

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on

The golden-cheeked warbler and black-capped vireo were listed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFS) as endangered in 1990 and 1987, respectively. In 1992 the 10,000 hectare Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge (BCNWR) was established in the State of Texas to protect habitat for these two species. The warbler occupies later successional stages of oak and Ashe juniper woodland habitat during the breeding season while the vireo prefers early successional shrublands.

Lidar Data for Rose Atoll National Wildlife Refuge

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on

As part of a soils survey for the Rose Atoll, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service worked with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and Photo Science to collect lidar data for Rose Atoll National Wildlife Refuge. The lidar data will be used in models to see how sea-level rise may affect the islands in the refuge.

Rainwater Basin Complex Spring and Summer Aerial Imagery

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on

The 3.4 million acres of the Rainwater Basin wetland complex in south-central Nebraska serves as critical stopover habitat for migratory birds in the central flyway.  The Rainwater Basin Joint Venture contracted with a private company to acquire color-infrared aerial imagery of the Rainwater Basin wetland complex.  Imagery acquisition occurred in March and again in August 2012. The March flights were part of a project, started in  2004, to inventory the amount of ponding that occurs in Rainwater Basin wetlands during spring migration.

St. Matthew and Hall Islands

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on

St. Matthew and Hall Islands are located within the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge. The Refuge led a research cruise to these islands for the first time in over 5 years. While there, biologists conducted a Rapid Ecological Assessment across multiple taxa including vascular and non-vascular plants, invertebrates, fish, mammals, and birds. A collection of satellite imagery is being used to assess coastal erosion and land cover types on these islands.

Statewide Lidar Forest Structure Analysis

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on

In an attempt to assess the viability of using legacy lidar data of varying collection density to characterize avian nesting habitat by species at a landscape scale, the existing lidar data from the North Carolina Floodplain Mapping Program were analyzed.  For several structural metrics, the results of the analysis were related to known nesting locations of bird species of interest to the U.S.