USGS Ecosystems

This is who you're asking to provide ecosystems services... On Endangered Species Day, we want to introduce you to a few of the endangered and threatened species USGS studies, and remind you of the quiet but critical work they do for the ecosystems we all depend on. 📷 1: Whooping cranes are an umbrella species, meaning that protecting their habitat shelters dozens of other wetland-dependent species at the same time. Their presence is a sign that a wetland ecosystem is functioning. The USGS monitors their migration corridors and population trends to support their long-road recovery. 📷 2: Desert tortoises dig burrows that dozens of other species rely on for shelter from the heat, making them engineers of the Mojave and Sonoran Desert ecosystems. Their slow movement across the landscape also spreads seeds and turns soil. The USGS monitors their populations and studies how land use and climate change are affecting their survival. 📷 3: Sea otters keep sea urchin populations in check, which prevents urchins from overgrazing the kelp forests that buffer coastlines from wave energy, support commercial fisheries, and absorb carbon. Without otters, those ecosystems unravel fast. The USGS studies sea otter population dynamics and health along the California coast. 📷 4: Known as c'waam to the Klamath Tribes, the Lost River sucker has been a cornerstone of this watershed's ecology and culture for thousands of years. Its decline tracks directly with water quality, water levels, and habitat conditions in Upper Klamath Lake — the same factors that affect agriculture, downstream communities, and the broader river system. USGS researchers have studied this species for decades to understand what is driving the collapse and what it will take to reverse it. 📷 5: Black-footed ferrets are tied directly to prairie dog colonies, and prairie dogs are tied to the health of grassland ecosystems that support hundreds of other species. USGS researchers developed a sylvatic plague vaccine to protect the prairie dog populations these ferrets depend on. (Credit: USGS) #EndangeredSpeciesDay #EcosystemServices #WildlifeResearch

Teamwork makes the drylands work! A 30-year partnership between the USGS and National Park Service shows how the drylands of Canyonlands National Park are responding to a hotter, drier future. Drylands are extremely sensitive to warming temperatures and drought. So twice a year for the last three decades, USGS and NPS scientists have collected data on plant cover and diversity, soils, and biological soil crusts – the thin layer of tiny organisms on the surface of desert soils – to see how this dryland ecosystem is responding to changes in climate and past grazing. This work is informing management efforts to reduce the effects of increased aridity and restore degraded drylands in Canyonlands National Park and throughout the Colorado Plateau. For example, current research is determining the best strategies for restoring native grasses in Canyonlands and Arches national parks. 📷1: USGS and NPS scientists celebrate successful collaborative data collection in Canyonlands National Park in April 2022 (Credit: Keven Griffen, USGS). 📷2: USGS and NPS scientists collect plant cover and diversity data in Canyonlands National Park in September 2019 (Credit: Mike Duniway, USGS). 📷3: View from the field team's campsite in Canyonlands National Park, September 2019 (Credit: Mike Duniway, USGS). @nationalparkservice

Don’t forget the flowers this Mother’s Day 💐 This American pika may look like it’s carrying a bouquet, but it’s actually gathering plants for its winter food stash in the mountains. Pikas spend the warmer months collecting grasses, wildflowers, and other vegetation to store for the colder season ahead. Like moms everywhere, always gathering, planning ahead, and making sure everyone has what they need. Happy Mother’s Day from the USGS! 📸: American pika eating plants. Credit: USGS

Sandy soils and longleaf pines might not sound like prime real estate, but for one of North America's rarest frogs, they are everything. The Dusky Gopher Frog spends most of its life underground in the sandy soils of longleaf pine savannas, tucked into burrows made by animals like the Gopher Tortoise. It starts life in temporary, open-canopy ponds, but once it transforms from tadpole to adult, it heads for higher, drier ground. This dependence on two very specific and increasingly rare habitat types has made survival a challenge for the species. Historically, naturally occurring summer fires kept these savannas and ponds healthy by holding back encroaching trees and shrubs. Decades of fire suppression, combined with habitat loss, have limited quality habitat for Dusky Gopher Frogs. By the early 1970s, a single population of roughly 100 adults in Mississippi's DeSoto National Forest was all that remained. Years of habitat restoration, captive breeding, and translocation work have helped the species gain a foothold in additional locations across Mississippi. Scientists are now setting their sights on Louisiana, where the species hasn't been seen since 1967. In late 2025, habitat restoration began at the Talisheek Pine Wetlands Preserve in Louisiana, just 15 miles from the last known state sighting. USGS scientists are working alongside the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Audubon Nature Institute, and The Nature Conservancy to monitor restored sites and confirm they are suitable for reintroduction. Over the next several years, thousands of captive-reared frogs will be released with the goal of establishing a self-sustaining Louisiana population, a significant step toward the broader recovery of the species and potential delisting from the Endangered Species Act. 📷 1: A juvenile Dusky Gopher Frog 📷 2: A young (metamorph) Dusky Gopher Frog released at a site in Mississippi Credit: USGS #AmphibianWeek #SandySaturday #HabitatRestoration

Toads are far out! Amphibians have a lot of cool traits. Some can create their own cocoon, some have “horns”, and some feed their young on their skin and secrete “milk”. Although these characteristics may seem far-out to us, most play a role in amphibians’ ability to survive and thrive in their diverse habitats. Toads are no exception. USGS ARMI (Amphibian Research and Monitoring Initiative) scientists study a number of toad species that are especially good at persisting in challenging habitats and employ some pretty far-out techniques to do this: The arroyo toad can be mistaken for cicadas by the untrained ear as their mating call is so loud and rhythmic that it sounds like a cicada’s song. Because the arroyo toad inhabits highly populated and urbanized coastal regions (California and Baja California, Mexico), the species faces a variety of threats to its survival, reproduction and persistence. These threats include non-native predators and plants, disease, water withdrawals, agricultural and urban development, pollution, and changing environmental conditions. Measuring only an inch long, the Eastern narrow-mouthed toad relies on mucous skin secretions to protect it when feeding on ants, and from potential predators. The secretions produce a violent burning sensation to one's eyes, irritate membranes in the mouth and throat, and may be toxic to other amphibians. American Toads have glands that secrete a poisonous milky substance when threatened by predators, but they will not give you warts! American Toads are common in many habitats and like most toads, their dry, warty skin offers protection from drying. Groovy! 📷 1: Arroyo toad in Southern California 📷 2: Eastern narrow-mouthed toad in Kisatchie National Forest, Louisiana 📷 3: American toad in Pocahontas County, Iowa Credit: USGS #AmphibianWeek #FarOutFriday #toads

Terrestrial Thursday takes us under the forest floor with a species that depends on both land and water, just not at the same time. Each fall, on a rainy night, a marbled salamander emerges from its underground burrow and heads toward a shallow forest depression that will later fill to become a temporary pond. She likely began life here as an aquatic larva before moving onto land, and now returns to breed, often to the same area and even the same log. After mating, the female searches for a precise nesting spot under a log in the pond basin. It has to be in just the right place. Too high, and the rains will not reach the eggs. Too low, and the nest could flood too soon. She lays her eggs on dry ground and stays with them, curled around the clutch to keep them moist until winter rains arrive and trigger hatching. Marbled salamanders are found across much of the eastern U.S., but at the southern edge of their range, including parts of Florida, they are becoming less common. Warmer, drier winters and shifting rainfall patterns can prevent seasonal ponds from filling, reducing breeding success. Amphibians, such as marbled salamanders, play an important role in forest ecosystems. They help control insect populations and serve as both predators and prey in food webs. Because their life cycles depend on both terrestrial and aquatic habitats, they are also sensitive indicators of environmental change. USGS Amphibian Research and Monitoring Initiative (ARMI) scientists in the Southeast are studying how marbled salamanders respond to increasingly frequent drought and shifting seasonal patterns. This work helps researchers understand whether populations can persist at the edges of their range and what changing conditions may mean for amphibians more broadly. 📷 1: Marbled salamander metamorph 📷 2: Female marbled salamander with her clutch of developing embryos Credit: USGS #AmphibianWeek #TerrestrialThursday #

Poolside is my best side! 💧🦎 Wetlands are true amphibian hotspots. Across the Northeast, USGS scientists study how things like water temperature, hydroperiod, and contaminants influence amphibian survival. By tracking breeding ponds and monitoring larval development, scientists gain a better understanding of how the health of these wetlands directly shapes amphibian populations. Since 2004, the USGS Northeast Amphibian Research Monitoring Initiative (NEARMI), together with the National Park Service and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, has been conducting a regionwide study of vernal pools and the amphibians that depend on them, especially wood frogs and spotted salamanders. These temporary spring pools are essential nurseries, giving eggs and young amphibians a safe place to develop. Current monitoring efforts focus on understanding the health and survival of these species by analyzing breeding timing, environmental conditions, and threats, such as habitat loss, poor water quality, and pollution. In places where the distribution of vernal pools is known, a random selection of ponds is surveyed each spring. Where the distribution of vernal pools is unknown, scientists use adaptive cluster sampling to systematically search parks and refuges. Dedicated partners walk the edges of these pools each year to count egg masses and later return to check on juvenile survival. This long-running project provides parks and refuges with the information they need to protect wetlands and support healthy amphibian populations across the Northeast. 📷 1: One of the first amphibians to emerge and breed in the early spring, this spotted salamander was found under a large cover object at the edge of a vernal pool. 📷 2: Wood frogs lay their eggs in large clusters in the early spring. They prefer to lay their eggs in vernal pools, which hold water for only part of the year. 📷 3: Adult wood frogs. Wood frogs are most commonly found in the early spring, when they gather in vernal pools to breed and lay eggs. This species can be easily identified by the dark 'mask' markings behind the eye. Credit: USGS #AmphibianWeek #WetlandWednesday #salamander

"Watch where you're driving, bub!" Urban environments present unique challenges for wildlife. Threats, such as pollution, habitat fragmentation, and vehicle traffic, continue to put pressure on their populations. Some species are prepared for the challenge, and others need a bit of a helping hand. Spadefoot toads, known for the spade-like projection on their hind feet, make use of temporary pools that form after heavy rains in places like parks, roadside ditches, and vacant lots. Their ability to grow and develop quickly allows them to take advantage of these short-lived habitats. For species like the California tiger salamander, roads can be a major barrier between seasonal habitats. Many amphibians must cross roads to breed or forage, and their small size and slow movement put them at risk of vehicle collisions. Tools like under-road tunnels and barrier fencing are designed to help guide them safely across, but how well these systems work depends on thoughtful design. Recent research shows that salamanders are more likely to find safe passage when crossings are placed close together, ideally within about 12.5 meters. Solid fencing or fencing with a visual barrier can also help guide them more effectively than mesh alone. 📷 1: A Yosemite toad looks through mesh fencing alongside a road used to mitigate negative road impacts and guide amphibians towards safe passages. 🎥 2: A California tiger salamander moves through a tunnel over a camera trigger threshold. 📷 3: Close-up of a spade on an Eastern Spadefoot in the Florida Panhandle. 📷 4: Eastern Spadefoot in the Florida Panhandle. Credit: USGS #AmphibianWeek #AroundTownTuesday #UrbanEcology

Muck, Mystery, and the Comeback of a Tiny Frog This Mucky Monday, we're celebrating mud’s ecological role! That nutrient-rich, insulating layer beneath our feet is part of the critical infrastructure that shelters tiny frogs through savage winters. Blanchard’s cricket frogs, one of the Midwest’s smallest and least freeze-tolerant amphibians, don’t submerge in ponds like their larger relatives. Instead, they crawl into moisture-rich microhabitats like cracks in slumping stream banks, root tangles, and seepage zones parallel to shallow water. In these muddy shelters, temperatures remain just above freezing. These mucky substrates aren’t just hiding spots; they also buffer against harsh winter air and maintain stable moisture and temperature conditions essential for survival. Once common across the upper Midwest (Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan), these frogs declined steeply by the late 1900s. Habitat conversion, climatic shifts, pollutants, and disease were all suspected, but no single cause was clearly responsible. To understand current distributional patterns, biologists have been leading nighttime call surveys along backroads. Scientists begin at dusk, drive quietly, and listen to detect the frogs' metallic trills. Automated recorders have now extended monitoring into early spring, capturing those first choruses when the ice begins to thaw. This concerted effort paid off: in 2024, USGS scientists revisited hundreds of historical sites across Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, and Illinois. These resurveys found more occupied sites than surveys from the mid-2000s and even detected signs of northward expansion along the upper Mississippi River corridor. While not all former strongholds are repopulated, the increase in detections indicates a real, if partial, rebound. 📷: Blanchard’s cricket frog (Acris blanchardi). Credit: USGS. #AmphibianWeek #MuckyMonday #amphibians

Amphibian Week is here, and we're kicking it off with Streamy Sunday! Did you know that frogs are not limited to pond waters? One great example of an amphibian that is especially adapted to streams is the Tailed Frog. Is that really a tail, though? Not really. The male Tailed Frog has a fleshy extension of the cloaca. This structure is used for internal fertilization. Internal fertilization is unusual in frogs! In most frogs, females lay eggs in the water and males release sperm onto the eggs. There are two species of Tailed Frog: 🐸 Coastal Tailed Frog (Ascaphus truei), which lives in the Pacific Northwest 🐸 Rocky Mountain Tailed Frog (Ascaphus montanus), which lives in the northern Rocky Mountains These frogs are some of the most mysterious denizens of the streams and forests where they occur and it is unusual to actually see one of them in the wild. Adult frogs are small (<60 mm) and colored to blend in with their surrounding habitat. When adults venture out of the stream, it is usually at night. Tailed Frog tadpoles are specifically adapted to live and feed in fast flowing streams. Tadpoles hide among the cobbles (rocks) lining the bottom of their home streams. Instead of mouths on the front of their head, their mouths are on the bottom of their head, and their bodies are somewhat flattened. Tadpoles typically feed on algae from cobble in the stream using their scraping teeth. The USGS Amphibian Research and Monitoring Initiative (ARMI) and colleagues have studied Tailed Frogs since the early 2000s. Research has included demography, the effects of wildfire on the species, how forest harvest effects headwater stream amphibian (e.g., Tailed Frogs) abundance, and how climate variability affects Tailed Frog physiology. 📷 1: A male Coastal Tailed Frog 📷 2: A Coastal Tailed Frog sitting next to a stream. 📷 3: The underside of a Coastal Tailed Frog tadpole showing its mouth. Credit: USGS #AmphibianWeek #StreamySunday #frogs

Sound on - this one's a banger! 🎶🎤 For over 40 years, scientists with the USGS Amphibian Research and Monitoring Initiative (ARMI) have studied boreal chorus frogs in the Rocky Mountains to understand how these tiny but vocal amphibians survive in such a challenging landscape. Every spring, researchers and frogs return to the same ponds, where calling frogs attract mates… and alert scientists as to where they are located. The researchers collect data on key aspects of the chorus frogs’ life history, including presence of disease, estimates of population size, and reproductive status, before releasing frogs back into their ponds to continue their seasonal ritual. This long-term monitoring helps scientists and natural resource managers understand how frog populations change over time, what drives amphibian declines, and how to support conservation across protected landscapes. Happy Save the Frogs Day! 🐸 🎥 1: Male chorus frogs sing throughout the night. These calls also help researchers locate frogs, making it easier to collect data on chorus frogs after dark than during the day. 📷 2: A researcher swabs a boreal chorus frog to test for the presence of chytrid fungus, a potentially deadly disease that is infecting amphibians worldwide. 📷 3: A boreal chorus frog singing. Their vocal sacs inflate to help amplify their calls. Credit: USGS #SaveTheFrogs #ribbit #amphibians

Oh, squirrels just wanna have fun🎵 But it depends on the weather! Wildlife population booms, like the sudden increase in eastern gray squirrels in the late 1960s, can reveal deeper issues in forest health that stem from changes in weather. USGS researchers studied acorn production in North Carolina in the years leading up to and following a 1968 boom in gray squirrel populations. They found that changes in temperature and rainfall affected how many acorns were produced each year. Hotter summers often led to fewer acorns, while milder springs and summers that had higher rainfall favored acorn production in some oak species. However, back-to-back years of high acorn crops could drain the trees' resources, causing a sharp drop in the next year's yield. These swings in acorn supply helped spark rapid growth in squirrel numbers from Georgia to Vermont, followed by unusual patterns of dispersal when acorn crops collapsed and squirrels were left with little food. These findings demonstrate how more variable weather conditions can trigger big changes in wildlife populations. 📷1: Eastern gray squirrel (Credit: N. Lewis, NPS) 📷2: Acorn stash (Credit: Katy Cain, NPS) 📷3: Newspaper coverage documenting the 1968 gray squirrel population boom across the eastern U.S. (Credit: USGS)