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Wetland and Aquatic Research Center

WARC conducts relevant and objective research, develops new approaches and technologies, and disseminates scientific information needed to understand, manage, conserve, and restore wetlands and other aquatic and coastal ecosystems and their associated plant and animal communities throughout the nation and the world. 

News

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USGS will present on ocean, coasts, and climate at the Department of the Interior (DOI) Office of Policy Analysis Seminar

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USGS will sponsor, attend, and present at the 2023 Coastal Sediments conference in New Orleans

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Sea level rise could significantly impact an endangered sparrow in Florida 

Publications

Toward a national eDNA strategy for the United States

Environmental DNA (eDNA) data make it possible to measure and monitor biodiversity at unprecedented resolution and scale. As use-cases multiply and scientific consensus grows regarding the value of eDNA analysis, public agencies have an opportunity to decide how and where eDNA data fit into their mandates. Within the United States, many federal and state agencies are individually using eDNA data i
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Ryan Kelly, David M. Lodge, Kai Lee, Susanna Theroux, Adam J. Sepulveda, Chris Scholin, Joseph M. Craine, Elizabeth Allan, Krista M. Nichols, Kim M. Parsons, Kelly D Goodwin, Zachary Gold, Francisco P. Chavez, Rachel T. Noble, Cathryn Abbott, Melinda R. Baerwald, Amanda Naaum, Peter Thielen, Ariel Simons, Christopher L. Jerde, Jeffrey J. Duda, Margaret Hunter, John Hagan, Rachel Meyer, Joshua Steele, Mark Stoeckle, Holly Bik, Christopher Meyer, Eric D. Stein, Karen James, Austen Thomas, Elif Demir-Hilton, Molly Timmers, John Griffith, Michael J Weise, Steve Weisberg

Rapidly changing range limits in a warming world: Critical data limitations and knowledge gaps for advancing understanding of mangrove range dynamics in the southeastern USA

Climate change is altering species’ range limits and transforming ecosystems. For example, warming temperatures are leading to the range expansion of tropical, cold-sensitive species at the expense of their cold-tolerant counterparts. In some temperate and subtropical coastal wetlands, warming winters are enabling mangrove forest encroachment into salt marsh, which is a major regime shift that has
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Rémi Bardou, Michael Osland, Steven B. Scyphers, Christine C. Shepard, Karen E. Aerni, Jahson B. Alemu, Robert Crimian, Richard Day, Nicholas Enwright, Laura Feher, Sarah L. Gibbs, Kiera O'Donnell, Savannah H. Swinea, Kalaina Thorne, Sarit Truskey, Anna R. Armitage, Ronald J. Baker, Joshua L. Breithaupt, Kyle C. Cavanaugh, Just Cebrian, Karen Cummins, Donna J. Devlin, Jacob Doty, William L. Ellis, Ilka C. Feller, Christopher A. Gabler, Yiyang Kang, David A. Kaplan, John Paul Kennedy, Ken Krauss, Margaret Lamont, Kam-biu Liu, Melinda Martinez, Ashley M. Matheny, Giovanna M. McClenachan, Karen L. McKee, Irving A. Mendelssohn, Thomas C. Michot, Christopher J. Miller, Jena A. Moon, Ryan P. Moyer, James A. Nelson, Richard O'Connor, James W. Pahl, Jonathan L. Pitchford, C. Edward Proffitt, Tracy Quirk, Kara R. Radabaugh, Whitney A. Scheffel, Delbert L. Smee, Caitlin M. Snyder, Eric Sparks, Kathleen M. Swanson, William C. Vervaeke, Carolyn A. Weaver, Jonathan A Willis, Erik S. Yando, Qiang Yao, A. Randall Hughes

Monitoring status and trends in genetic diversity for the Convention on Biological Diversity: An ongoing assessment of genetic indicators in nine countries

Recent scientific evidence shows that genetic diversity must be maintained, managed, and monitored to protect biodiversity and nature's contributions to people. Three genetic diversity indicators, two of which do not require DNA-based assessment, have been proposed for reporting to the Convention on Biological Diversity and other conservation and policy initiatives. These indicators allow an appro
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Sean M. Hoban, Jessica M. da Silva, Alicia Mastretta-Yanes, Catherine E. Grueber, Myriam Heuertz, Margaret Hunter, Joachim Mergeay, Ivan Paz-Vinas, Keiichi Fukaya, Fumiko Ishihama, Rebecca Jordan, Viktoria Köppä, María Camila Latorre-Cárdenas, Anna J. MacDonald, Victor Rincon-Parra, Per Sjögren-Gulve, Naoki Tani, Henrik Thurfjell, Linda Laikre

Science

Sturgeon Occurrence and Behavior in the Outer Continental Shelf

A new study aims to collect information on sturgeon temporal and spatial distribution to inform offshore wind energy and sand leasing operations.
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Sturgeon Occurrence and Behavior in the Outer Continental Shelf

A new study aims to collect information on sturgeon temporal and spatial distribution to inform offshore wind energy and sand leasing operations.
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Developing General Coastal Vegetation Maps for Coastal Morphodynamic Models

The USGS is collaborating with researchers from other agencies, academia, and industry to predict coastal impacts from hurricanes. The results from this study will better inform coastal morphological change models, which will lead to improved hurricane impact projections.
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Developing General Coastal Vegetation Maps for Coastal Morphodynamic Models

The USGS is collaborating with researchers from other agencies, academia, and industry to predict coastal impacts from hurricanes. The results from this study will better inform coastal morphological change models, which will lead to improved hurricane impact projections.
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Puget Sound Marine Benthic Index and Graphical Causal Model

USGS scientists are working with partners at the Puget Sound Partnership and the State of Washington’s Department of Ecology to develop two new tools to help us understand how human disturbance affects life at the top of Puget Sound: a Marine Benthic Index and a graphical causal model.
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Puget Sound Marine Benthic Index and Graphical Causal Model

USGS scientists are working with partners at the Puget Sound Partnership and the State of Washington’s Department of Ecology to develop two new tools to help us understand how human disturbance affects life at the top of Puget Sound: a Marine Benthic Index and a graphical causal model.
Learn More