We present chemical data for ash beds interbedded within mid-Miocene lacustrine sediment in the vicinity of Clarkia, north Idaho. The Clarkia lake beds are well known for their exceptional preservation of leaf and other fossils. The ash beds have a range of chemical compositions, indicating eruption from diverse sources located within different tectonic environments in western North America: the Yellowstone hotspot province, the Cascades volcanic arc, and potentially the Southwest Nevada Volcanic Field. A few ash beds can be correlated with tephra deposits of known age. These correlations indicate that the age of the Miocene Lake Clarkia deposits lies between 15.4 and 16.0 Ma. The lake formed when the ancestral St. Maries River was dammed by a flow of the Priest Rapids Member of the Wanapum Basalt (Columbia River Basalt Group), previously assigned an age of ∼ 15 Ma.

Roads may contribute to the spread of plant invasions by acting as corridors for seed movement, as well as habitat for nonnative plant species, but seed dispersal and seedling establishment are largely unexplored along large, paved roads. We collected one season of seed rain and quantified co-occurring vegetation at multiple distances from the road along an interstate highway. Nonnative seed species richness decreased with distance from the road. Distance did not significantly affect native species seed measures. Furthermore, 33% of nonnative species found in the seed rain were not present in the vegetation. These results suggest that the Interstate aids dispersal of nonnative seeds. Seeds of 58% of the native and nonnative species found in the seed rain were not present in the vegetation, indicating that at least some of these species are unable to establish along the road. Independent of distance from the road, more nonnative and less native vegetation was found in areas of higher soil pH, suggesting that pH may limit the establishment of native species in the road verge. The role of soil variables, including pH, in seedling establishment along roads warrants further investigation.

The influences of wood and other habitat variables on juvenile coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) summer distribution and relative abundance, which has rarely been studied in relatively large river channels (> 15 m wide), were assessed in a relatively large river channel in Washington State (summer wetted width 15–30 m). The influence of wood and habitat variables including water depth, velocity, and substrate on juvenile coho salmon summer relative abundance was assessed by snorkelling areas with introduced (generally 2–3 evergreen trees from the riparian zone), natural, and no wood. Juvenile coho salmon relative densities were compared at stations with introduced, natural, and no wood and their distribution (presence) assessed at natural wood stations using logistic regression. Relative densities of coho salmon were greatest at stations with introduced wood and were greater at introduced and natural wood stations than stations lacking wood, where juvenile coho salmon were generally absent. Wood cover complexity influenced juvenile coho salmon presence at natural wood stations, while wood type, wood surface area, and substrate influenced presence during one of two years. The results suggest that wood and aspects of wood cover (i.e., complexity and size) are important components of juvenile coho salmon summer rearing habitat in larger river channels, and managers should attempt to maintain and/or restore complex wood cover in relatively large river channels to provide summer habitat for juvenile coho salmon.

Predicting species occurrence is central to ecology and numerous modeling approaches have been applied, including deductive and inductive. We conducted two modeling projects, one in Northwest U.S. and the other in Alaska, to evaluate the potential of improving species distribution models by combining deductive and inductive modeling approaches for over 1,000 taxa. Our objectives were to map each species' range, produce an inductive distribution model based on species occurrence records using Maxent and a deductive distribution model using expert knowledge of species-habitat associations, combine their output, and compare their relative strengths and limitations. While the two projects were independent, but related, in general, our methods included compiling species occurrence records, environmental variables, habitat associations, and assessing model accuracy. We had 342 deductive and 213 combined models in Northwest U.S. and 222 deductive, 74 inductive, and 37 combined models in Alaska selected as final models. Despite extensive efforts to filter occurrence data for our inductive models, our deductive models were often selected as the final models and were comparable to combined models. How well a deductive, inductive, or combined model represented a species distribution depended on the quality and quantity of input data. We found that collecting high-quality occurrence data, assembling accurate environmental data, obtaining rigorous expert input, and addressing sampling bias were vital. Our modeling efforts have improved the existing data, modeling, and understanding of many taxa. All species ranges and distribution models are available online.

Developing efficient methods to noninvasively monitor urban mesocarnivores is important to better understand how these ecologically significant species use the urban landscape. In particular, relatively little research has evaluated bait and scent lure attractants for carnivores. To compare different attractants, we deployed 32 track plate stations in six natural areas in Seattle for three-week trapping sessions in summer 2013. At each station, we used either chicken or canned tuna bait and either catnip oil or fish oil as a scent lure. We also compared track plates to camera traps at 18 of these stations. We captured five species of wild and domestic carnivores (including a carnivorous marsupial) as well as three rodent taxa at one or both devices. Bait type and lure type were not strong predictors of the total number of mammals detected at a device. Camera traps detected 1.58 (95% CI: 0.70–2.46) more species than track plates at each bait station. Among the three most common mesocarnivores: raccoons (Procyon lotor) had a lower latency to first detection at stations baited with chicken, while Virginia opossums (Didelphis virginiana) had a slightly higher probability of detection at stations using chicken and catnip oil. Domestic cat (Felis catus) detection did not appear to be affected by bait or lure selection. Although low sample sizes and replication prevent us from making strong inferences, we observed that chicken and catnip oil were easier to use and performed slightly better in some metrics for monitoring urban mesocarnivores.

Cougar (Puma concolor) kittens are a substantial proportion of resident cougar populations and their survival has important implications for population dynamics of the species. To better understand effects of age and sex on cougar kitten survival, we estimated age specific (mo.) survival rates of cougar kittens (n = 72) radiocollared during three studies conducted in Oregon from 1989–2011. Cougar kittens were entered into the dataset based on age (mo.) at capture and fates were determined at monthly intervals. We analyzed survival in Program MARK using known-fate models of radiocollared individuals. We tested for effects of sex and linear, log-linear, and quadratic effects of age. Our best model indicated survival rates of cougar kittens were similar between sexes and increased in a linear manner with age. Annual survival estimates of cougar kittens were 0.66 (95% CI = 0.42–0.84). Our second ranked model was the null model, that indicated constant survival over time and between sexes with an annual survival rate of 0.78 (95% CI = 0.62–0.88). All other models in our candidate model set were not considered further because they ranked below the null model and contained non-informative parameters where the estimated effect broadly overlapped zero. Fates of littermates were dependent due to high levels of mortality at nursery sites which likely reduced the potential importance of sex on survival rates. We expect patterns of increased kitten survival with age and lack of differences between sexes to be consistent across the geographic range of cougars.

Past studies have documented differences in epicuticular wax among several tree species but little attention has been paid to changes in accumulation of foliar wax that can occur during the year. We sampled current-year needles from the terminal shoots of Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii var. menziesii) in late June/early July, late August and early November. Needles were sampled from two sites that differed in their climate and shoot phenology. Adaxial (upper), abaxial (lower) and cross-sectional surfaces were examined on scanning electron micrographs. Wax thickness increased significantly (P < 0.01) during the year (from 2.9 ± 0.26 µm in late June/early July to 4.4 ±0.13 µm in early November). Mean wax thickness was slightly thicker on adaxial (4.0 ± 0.16 µm) than on abaxial (3.5 ± 0.22 µm) surfaces (P = 0.03). There were no significant differences in wax thickness between needles sampled at the base of the terminal shoot or near the tip of the shoot. Tubular or rod-shaped epicuticular wax crystals were sparsely developed on adaxial surfaces, completely covered abaxial surfaces (including filling all stomatal cavities), and had the same general structure and appearance across sites and sampling dates. Some erosion of epicuticular wax crystals on adaxial surfaces and presence of amorphous wax on abaxial surfaces was observed late in the year when epicuticular wax thickness was the thickest. Fungal hyphae were observed on top of epicuticular wax crystals and emerging from stomatal pores.

The red fox (Vulpes vulpes) exhibits a high degree of ecological plasticity, but the indigenous Sierra Nevada red fox (SNRF; V. v. necator) belongs to an evolutionarily divergent complex of montane red foxes, apparently specialized to subalpine habitats. Mountain red foxes historically occurred among isolated sky islands of the major mountain ranges of the western U.S., with the SNRF occurring along the Pacific Crest of Oregon and California. Little is known about the current distribution and status of SNRF in Oregon, which complicates regulatory decisions and impedes conservation of the subspecies. We conducted a survey in the northern Oregon Cascade Range during 2012–2014 using baited ground-level camera stations and noninvasive genetic sampling. Our objectives were to document red fox occurrences in our study area and investigate their genetic affinities using mitochondrial DNA sequences to indicate maternal haplotype. We detected red foxes at 11 of 41 camera stations and collected DNA from 18 of 24 hair and scat samples. Twelve of the DNA samples were from red foxes, and all were mitochondrial haplotype A-19 (the most widespread of the indigenous SNRF haplotypes), consistent with native ancestry. Additional research will be needed to assess the nuclear genetic integrity of these putative SNRF, their genetic effective population sizes, and their genetic distinctiveness with respect to the California SNRF and the Rocky Mountain red fox, and to describe patterns of connectivity among these potentially isolated populations.

Trapping during summer months can expose small mammals to high temperatures inside traps. We measured trap temperatures under different ambient conditions and levels of sun exposure. Internal temperatures of Sherman traps exposed to full sun were 14% higher than those exposed to full sun and fitted with a corrugated cardboard cover and tent. Traps with the surrounding cardboard cover and tent experienced up to a 7.6 °C reduction in internal temperature and could be left out one to two hours longer on average than traps exposed to full sun before internal trap temperatures rose into the minimum lethal range for most small mammal species.