Protocols

Field identification of lichen species using chemical spot tests with potassium hydroxide, morphological examination with hand lens, and comparison to field guide keys.

Magnesium hydroxide co-precipitation method using Sargasso Sea water to concentrate low-level soluble reactive phosphorus samples 70-fold prior to colorimetric analysis.

Manual identification and curation of large genome fragments using GC content, coverage patterns, and taxonomic profiles to assemble complete extrachromosomal genomes.

Blood collection from trapped wild marmots via femoral vein puncture during routine handling for long-term population studies. Sera separated and frozen for later laboratory analysis.

Simultaneous measurement of oxygen consumption, body temperature, and conductance in marmots entering torpor to determine mechanisms of metabolic depression. Q10 analysis used to distinguish active me...

Comprehensive Hidden Markov Model analysis of metagenomic sequences to identify and quantify metabolic functions across biogeochemical pathways. Uses both standardized TIGR-FAM and custom HMM database...

Standardized protocol to transfer dust from plant surfaces to microscope slides and count particles in defined areas under magnification. Used to calibrate experimental dust treatments against natural...

Calculation of individual animal home ranges using 95% minimum convex polygons from location data, with specific criteria for minimum observation requirements.

Systematic comparison of modeled precipitation against station observations and multiple gridded datasets using percent error calculations and spatial pattern analysis. Includes seasonal decomposition...

Machine learning approach for snow cover mapping using PlanetScope imagery with multiple model configurations incorporating spectral, topographic, and vegetation variables. Performance evaluation acro...

Weekly monitoring of flax rust disease prevalence across multiple wild flax populations to track epidemic progression and relate it to local environmental conditions over multiple growing seasons.

Exhaustive visual surveys of arthropod abundance on randomly selected male and female plants conducted across multiple years to quantify sex-biased community structure.

Longitudinal grab sampling along Coal Creek mainstem during three critical hydrograph stages (peak flow, falling limb, low flow) across multiple years to characterize spatial and temporal variability ...

Applies multiple clustering algorithms (K-means, hierarchical clustering, Gaussian mixture models) to hillslope feature vectors to identify watershed zones with similar characteristics. Uses model sel...

Airborne hyperspectral imaging (380-2500 nm) and LiDAR data collection at 1 m resolution, followed by machine learning algorithms to produce aspen cover and cytotype distribution maps.

Plant species composition within 15cm of Castilleja individuals is compared to random background vegetation to statistically identify overrepresented taxa as potential hosts. This provides an indirect...

Oxford Nanopore long-read sequencing followed by assembly using both FLYE and NECAT assemblers, with iterative polishing using Racon and Medaka, then merging assemblies using Quickmerge and HaploMerge...

Weekly assessment of fungal rust infection using a 6-class ordinal scale from absent (0) to 75-100% infected (5), with infection location recorded.

Post-pollination measurement of ovary size changes as a proxy for detecting fertilization events and ovule development. Uses standardized photography and image analysis to quantify ovary dimensions.

A microarray-based approach to profile DNA methylation at conserved CpG sites across diverse mammalian species without requiring species-specific reference genomes. Enables direct comparison of methyl...

Controlled application of synthetic pinene enantiomers via cotton-filled microcentrifuge tube emitters to test effects of specific volatile compounds on insect oviposition behavior. Treatments applied...

Calculation and statistical analysis of plant biomass allocation between vegetative and reproductive tissues using arcsin transformations and three-way ANOVA.

Repeated measurements of plant morphological traits (tillers, leaves, height) and survival tracking to assess fitness responses to experimental treatments.

Pressing and identification of plant voucher specimens using standard botanical keys and herbarium references.

Standardized protocol for observing and scoring trap behavior of Zonotrichia leucophrys oriantha using Potter traps with systematic behavioral categorization and activity indexing. Birds observed for ...

Statistical analysis of stream chemistry data transformed to compositional units using PCA to evaluate spatial and temporal trends while removing effects of dilution.

Multi-environment QTL analysis using recombinant inbred lines tested across vernalization, photoperiod and temperature treatments to identify genomic regions controlling flowering time. Combines contr...

Common garden experiments using recombinant inbred lines to partition genetic and environmental contributions to phenotypic variation. RILs are planted in controlled environments to estimate heritabil...

Systematic sampling of soil fungal communities across vegetation disturbance gradients in subalpine meadows using replicated plot design with grid-based soil core collection.

RNA extraction from blood samples, library preparation, and high-throughput sequencing on Illumina platforms followed by read mapping and differential gene expression analysis using mixed models.

Illumina GAIIx RNA sequencing of larval samples from different plant treatments followed by differential expression analysis to identify genes responsive to plant chemical defenses.

Monte Carlo simulation comparing observed reproductive pair relatedness to expected relatedness under random mating to test for inbreeding avoidance.

Measurement of oxygen consumption rates in pore water samples using resazurin as an indicator dye. Samples preserved at 4°C for 24 hours before spectrofluorometric analysis to determine aerobic respir...

Combined vertical (Robel pole) and horizontal (line intercept) measurements to quantify willow habitat structural complexity including height diversity, average height, patchiness, frequency and cover...

Use of oat seedling growth parameters including root weight fraction to assess soil nutrient availability and quality following various treatments.

Visual counting method for arthropods on sagebrush plants involving systematic counting of mobile species first (to avoid double-counting) followed by sedentary species. Targets mutualistic and non-mu...

Sequential chemical extractions using water, sodium pyrophosphate, HCl, and sodium dithionite to selectively dissolve mineral phases of varying crystallinity and their associated organic carbon.

Calculation of Shannon diversity index (ln type) and Simpson dominance index (1-D) from species count data using online biodiversity calculator. Standard ecological diversity metrics for comparing com...

Detailed measurement and quantification of sedimentary structure types and their relative abundances in stratigraphic sections, including calculation of stratification ratios.

Tracer Additions for Spiraling Curve Characterization method involving simultaneous injection of water tracer and nutrients with downstream breakthrough curve monitoring to quantify reach-scale nutrie...

Experimental manipulation of beetle stridulation ability by surgically removing the plectrum through V-shaped cuts to the elytra, with controls receiving non-functional cuts.

Path analysis using structural equation modeling to test competing hypotheses about causal relationships between nectar traits, robbing, pollination, and fitness.

Systematic sampling of soil from different plant successional stages within a landslide area to compare soil properties across a chronosequence. Uses stratified random sampling within defined communit...

Spatially distributed sampling campaign conducted during peak hydrologic conditions to identify locations of enhanced dissolved organic carbon export across a watershed transect.

Complete census of sagebrush individuals within systematic 16m × 16m grids divided into 1m² cells, with measurement of plant dimensions for size estimation.

Systematic search and evaluation of published literature examining relationships between phenological shifts and demographic consequences using specific search criteria in Web of Science.

A comprehensive systematic review using database searches, citation network expansion, and vote counting to assess evidence for macroecological rules in microorganisms across multiple taxonomic groups...

Systematic compilation and cleaning of plant trait records from multiple databases to create a comprehensive tundra plant trait dataset. Combined TRY database records with Tundra Trait Team contributi...

Deployment of temperature loggers at multiple depths in aquatic habitats with half-hourly recordings over multi-week periods. Includes post-processing gap-filling using reference gauge data.

Tethered balloon system flights carrying aerosol instruments vertically through the atmospheric column to generate profiles of particle concentrations with altitude. Pseudo vertical columns are constr...