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Invasions of the Brown Tree Snake (Boiga irregularis)

This chapter is a part of a larger volume report called Our Living Resources: A report to the nation on the distribution, abundance, and health of U.S. plants, animals, and ecosystems. This chapter deals with non-native species - more specifically, the brown tree snake (Boiga irregularis), as an invasive species and its effects on native birds More...

  • brown treesnake (Boiga irregularis)

Modeling Habitat of the Desert Tortoise (Gopherus agassizii) in the Mojave and Parts of the Sonoran Deserts of California, Nevada, Utah, and Arizona

A new tool provides land managers with a predictive model for mapping the potential distribution of desert tortoise habitat and to evaluate different land-use issues the tortoises face at a landscape scale. The model incorporates an extensive amount of field data for desert tortoises, as well as environmental data related to landscape attributes, More...

  • Mojave Desert Tortoise found in Piute Valley in Clark County, Nevada, in 2005 Location: NV, USA

Sea Turtles in the Dry Tortugas: Tracking Movements of Endangered Species in Florida's Coral-Reef Habitats

Kristen Hart and Keith Ludwig of the USGS Florida Integrated Science Center (FISC) participated in two research cruises in 2008 to study patterns of habitat use by endangered sea turtles in and around the National Park. Hart's research effort focuses on quantifying patterns of sea turtle habitat use, employing capture-recapture and satellite- and More...

  • One of the smallest juvenile green turtles (Chelonia agassizii) captured thus far, August 2008, Dry

Protocols for Drawing Blood from the Brachial Plexus of Desert Tortoises

Instructions for ordering equipment and culture media; summary of how to draw blood and conduct nasal lavages; and information on how to contract for laboratory analysis and ship laboratory samples.

  • Desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii)

Diamondback Terrapin in the Chesapeake Bay

Summary of Patuxent Wildlife Research Center's progress to assess the status of Northern diamondback terrapins in the Chesapeake Bay. PWRC's objectives included providing "information on current habitat type and activities of the diamondback terrapin," and evaluating "the genetic relatedness, levels of gene flow and degree of isolation of More...

  • Diamondback terrapin

Salvaging Injured, Recently Dead, Ill, and Dying Wild, Free-Roaming Desert Tortoises (Gopherus Agassizii)

Salvage of injured, recently dead, ill, and dying desert tortoises is a very important part of recovery programs for these reptiles. Salvaged desert tortoises can provide a wealth of information about such subjects as health, disease, presence of heavy metals and other toxicants, and causes of mortality in populations. When tortoises are salvaged More...

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Anthropogenic Degradation of the Southern California Desert Ecosystem and Prospects for Natural Recovery and Restoration

This project started to conduct an extensive review of the literature pertaining to restoring degraded desert tortoise habitat, with emphasis on the Mojave Desert. Recovery to pre-disturbance plant cover and biomass may take from 50-300 years while complete ecosystem recovery may require over 3,000 years. Restoration can be used to enhance the More...

  • Scarred hillside near Palm Springs, California

Spatial pattern of risk of common raven predation on desert tortoises

One cause for declines in desert tortoise populations is predation on juveniles by common ravens (Corvus corax), a predatory bird species native to the Mojave Desert. The Recovery Plan for the Desert Tortoise recommended that research be conducted on sources of mortality (including natural predation). This study was implemented to investigate the More...

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Geographic Variation and Environmental Determinants of Reproductive Output in the Desert Tortoise

The desert tortoise is listed as a threatened species under federal and California versions of the Endangered Species Act. The recovery plan for the desert tortoise recommended that additional data be collected on the reproductive ecology of the species throughout the range. Annual meetings between USGS, Biological Resources Division researchers More...

  • image of an adult male tortoise

Synopsis of Conservation Information on the Desert Tortoise

An overview of the desert tortoise's conservation status in North America: distribution, population declines, current threats, and their protection and recovery.

  • Hatchling tortoises are equipped with small radio transmitters to monitor their movements.

Kemp's Ridley Sea Turtles....An Imperiled Species

Following the Kemp's Ridley on their perilous trek from Padre Island National Seashore, TX, where they are establishing a secondary nesting colony, to the Gulf of Mexico, is tricky business. Satellite transmitters are attached to a select number of females returning to the sea after laying eggs, their movements tracked by receivers picking up the More...

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Conservation Genetics: Amphibians and Reptiles

This web page presents samples of genetics and genomics research from the USGS Biological Resources Discipline about the conservation genetics of amphibians and reptiles.

  • Male Spotted salamander (Ambystoma maculatum). Photo taken March 2003 in a small forested wetland in