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  • Environmental DNA (eDNA) Assays for the Detection of Ridgway’s Rail (Rallus obsoletus) in the United States

    Abstract: We designed two novel environmental DNA (eDNA) assays for the detection of Ridgway’s Rail (Rallus obsoletus), and successfully validated each assay using eDNA samples collected from the species’ known distribution within the United States. These assays add to the suite of tools available for the monitoring of this rare and secretive marsh bird, and may help to further elucidate its movement patterns as well as identify important migration corridors. Observed sensitivity of the assays indicates exceptional performance, with limits of detection at ≤ 8 copies of the target eDNA fragment per reaction. Our publication adds to the growing body of literature supporting eDNA surveys as viable tools for bird monitoring endeavors.

  • Army engineers partner for 25 years with federal biologists to study duck nesting ecology in Alaska

    The whistling sound of beating wings moves through the forest as a common goldeneye duck lands in a nest box mounted to the side of a tree near the Moose Creek Dam in North Pole, Alaska. Focused on laying its eggs within the cozy confines of this manmade wooden structure, the bird is unaware of its vital role in a unique scientific study.

  • Using sunshine, plastic, and pollination to help the environment

    Can plastic help birds, bees, butterflies, and bass? It can, if the plastic is part of a process called solarization, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ staff at Mosquito Creek Lake are using it to improve the entire regional watershed.

  • PUBLICATION NOTICE: A Proposed Ecosystem Services Analysis Framework for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

    Abstract: Ecosystem goods and services (EGS) have been promoted as a way to effectively examine tradeoffs and improve communication of project-related environmental outcomes in terms of human well-being. This document proposes a framework to inform the development of any future guidance to U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) District planners for projecting changes in EGS from proposed civil works activities. The framework offers an analytical and communications approach for incorporating EGS in USACE decision-support processes. The core of the framework is a conceptual model that establishes a series of causal relationships that link management actions to EGS benefits/damages, applying economic concepts in both monetary and non-monetary benefit relevant indicators. The six-step planning process is used to demonstrate how the EGS framework might be integrated into existing analytic approaches and modified to fit different levels of resource availability and decision contexts. A hypothetical case study is used to demonstrate analytic techniques. The framework is compatible with goals to create a single decision-support document covering National Environmental Policy Act requirements and planning objectives when comparing project alternatives. The example is intended to generally illustrate the use of EGS in any type of program planning or project evaluation.

  • Corps offers series of webinars on Lake O water management

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District will offer a series of lunchtime webinars to provide background information on water management in south Florida as it pertains to Lake Okeechobee and the region. Jacksonville District staff will conduct six webinars, the first beginning at noon, May 20. The intent is to provide information to the public on the Central & Southern Florida Project water management system as work continues on the new Lake Okeechobee System Operating Manual (LOSOM).

  • Hyperspectral/light detection and ranging mission and field campaign

    ATLANTIC COAST, Va.—Researchers with ERDC’s Topographic Engineering Center (TEC) and Environmental

  • EL fish ecologists facilitate sturgeon swim study

    COHUTTA, Ga.--ERDC Environmental Laboratory’s (EL) Fish Ecology Team provided its mobile swim tunnel to the University of Georgia’s (UGA) Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources for a study of white sturgeon.