Global urban land area is growing faster than the urban population, raising concerns that sprawling, low-density development will reduce biodiversity and human wellbeing. The sparing-sharing framework, adapted from agroecology, provides one approach to assessing alternative urban growth patterns. It compares ecological outcomes in landscapes matched for total population and land area, but differing in configuration: land sparing (partitioned between densely urbanized and undeveloped areas) or land sharing (low-density development throughout). We reviewed the urban sparing-sharing literature since 2010 and recovered 15 studies conducted in 22 cities on four continents.
Collectively, studies assessed effects of alternative development patterns on 296 species, 21 community metrics (such as species richness), and 26 indicators of ecosystem services or processes (such as carbon sequestration). Sparing was the best option for 51% of individual species; 43% of community metrics; and 27% of ecosystem service indicators.
Existing ecological research does not clearly favor one pattern or the other, and new approaches are needed to facilitate decision making and ecological insight. Specifically, future work could (1) explicitly evaluate optimized urban development patterns across multiple competing priorities (such as providing housing, delivering ecosystem services, and protecting priority species), (2) tackle issues of spatial scale and connectivity that are often ambiguous in sparing-sharing research, and (3) improve geographical representation. These advances can be made while preserving the key insight of the framework–that choices between alternative landscape configurations are only meaningful when those landscapes are matched for total area and the level of human needs met.
","language":"English","publisher":"Springer","doi":"10.1007/s40823-022-00081-8","usgsCitation":"Youngsteadt, E., Terando, A., Costanza, J.K., and Vukomanovic, J., 2023, Compact or sprawling cities: Has the sparing-sharing framework yielded an ecological verdict?: Current Landscape Ecology Reports, v. 8, p. 11-22, https://doi.org/10.1007/s40823-022-00081-8.","productDescription":"12 p.","startPage":"11","endPage":"22","ipdsId":"IP-146620","costCenters":[{"id":40926,"text":"Southeast Climate Adaptation Science Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":418943,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/thumbnails/outside_thumb.jpg"}],"volume":"8","noUsgsAuthors":false,"publicationDate":"2023-02-13","publicationStatus":"PW","contributors":{"authors":[{"text":"Youngsteadt, Elsa","contributorId":205500,"corporation":false,"usgs":false,"family":"Youngsteadt","given":"Elsa","email":"","affiliations":[{"id":7091,"text":"North Carolina State University","active":true,"usgs":false}],"preferred":false,"id":877959,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":1},{"text":"Terando, Adam 0000-0002-9280-043X","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9280-043X","contributorId":205908,"corporation":false,"usgs":true,"family":"Terando","given":"Adam","affiliations":[{"id":565,"text":"Southeast Climate Science Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"preferred":true,"id":877960,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":2},{"text":"Costanza, Jennifer K.","contributorId":176907,"corporation":false,"usgs":false,"family":"Costanza","given":"Jennifer","email":"","middleInitial":"K.","affiliations":[],"preferred":false,"id":877961,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":3},{"text":"Vukomanovic, Jelena","contributorId":169906,"corporation":false,"usgs":false,"family":"Vukomanovic","given":"Jelena","email":"","affiliations":[{"id":25620,"text":"Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research, University of Colorado – Boulder","active":true,"usgs":false}],"preferred":false,"id":877962,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":4}]}} ,{"id":70241011,"text":"70241011 - 2023 - Elodea mediates juvenile salmon growth by altering physical structure in freshwater habitats","interactions":[],"lastModifiedDate":"2023-05-01T15:55:38.2878","indexId":"70241011","displayToPublicDate":"2023-02-13T06:37:33","publicationYear":"2023","noYear":false,"publicationType":{"id":2,"text":"Article"},"publicationSubtype":{"id":10,"text":"Journal Article"},"seriesTitle":{"id":1018,"text":"Biological Invasions","active":true,"publicationSubtype":{"id":10}},"displayTitle":"Elodea mediates juvenile salmon growth by altering physical structure in freshwater habitats","title":"Elodea mediates juvenile salmon growth by altering physical structure in freshwater habitats","docAbstract":"Invasive species introductions in high latitudes are accelerating and elevating the need to address questions of their effects on Subarctic and Arctic ecosystems. As a driver of ecosystem function, submerged aquatic vegetation is one of the most deleterious biological invasions to aquatic food webs. The aquatic plant Elodea spp. has potential to be a widespread invader to Arctic and Subarctic ecosystems and is already established in 19 waterbodies in Alaska, USA. Elodea spp. has been found to alter ecosystem processes through multiple pathways; yet little is known about the impact of Elodea spp. on fish life history. A primary concern is the effect of Elodea spp. on juvenile Pacific salmon (Oncorhynchus spp.), because this invading plant can form dense stands in littoral zones, potentially impacting important freshwater rearing habitats used by juvenile fish for foraging and refuge from predators. We used a field experiment to test the effect of Elodea spp. on juvenile coho salmon (O. kisutch) growth in an infested lake near Cordova, Alaska, USA. We found that Elodea spp. stands result in reduced growth and a lower trophic position for juvenile coho salmon over the summer compared to habitats dominated by a native assemblage of aquatic plants. While infested sites were not associated with significant changes in water condition or primary productivity compared to sites dominated by native vegetation, zooplankton densities were reduced, and Elodea spp. height and vegetation richness increased macroinvertebrate densities. Combined, these results indicate that Elodea spp. may alter the flow of energy to juvenile salmon by restructuring space and affecting prey resources for rearing fish. Furthermore, these results suggest that widespread establishment of Elodea spp. may alter the quality of habitat for juvenile salmon and, by affecting juvenile fish growth, could lead to population-level impacts on salmon returns.
We reviewed studies of piscivorous colonial waterbird predation on juvenile salmonids to synthesize current knowledge of factors affecting fish susceptibility to avian predators. Specifically, we examined peer-reviewed publications and reports from academic, governmental, and nongovernmental agencies to identify commonalities and differences in susceptibility of salmonids to avian predation, with a focus on mark–recovery studies in the Columbia River basin. Factors hypothesized to influence salmonid susceptibility to avian predation were grouped into four general categories: (1) salmonid species and populations, (2) environmental factors, (3) prey density, predator density, and migration timing, and (4) prey characteristics. Our review focused on predation by Caspian terns Hydroprogne caspia, double-crested cormorants Nannopterum auritum, and gull species Larus spp. as these are the most well-studied avian predators of salmonids. Results indicated that predator–prey interactions varied across salmonid species and populations and species of avian predator. Inferences across studies supported multiple hypotheses regarding predator–prey dynamics, including environmental factors that influence prey exposure to predators (e.g., river flows, turbidity, alternative prey), variation in predator and prey abundances, predator characteristics (e.g., foraging behavior, colony location), and prey characteristics (e.g., fish length, condition). Mark–recovery studies of avian predation on fish populations have greatly improved our understanding of the factors affecting fish susceptibility to avian predation, the relative contributions of abiotic and biotic factors to predation susceptibility, and the extent to which avian predation affects fish survival and the viability of prey populations. Future studies that jointly model predation and survival and the factors affecting those processes will further broaden our understanding of predator–prey dynamics and directly evaluate the effects of predation on prey population dynamics.
","language":"English","publisher":"American Fisheries Society","doi":"10.1002/nafm.10862","usgsCitation":"Hostetter, N.J., Evans, A.F., Payton, Q., Roby, D., Lyons, D., and Collis, K., 2023, A review of factors affecting the susceptibility of juvenile salmonids to avian predation, v. 43, no. 1, p. 244-256, https://doi.org/10.1002/nafm.10862.","productDescription":"13 p.","startPage":"244","endPage":"256","ipdsId":"IP-145263","costCenters":[{"id":198,"text":"Coop Res Unit Atlanta","active":true,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":444493,"rank":0,"type":{"id":40,"text":"Open Access Publisher Index Page"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.1002/nafm.10862","text":"Publisher Index Page"},{"id":433156,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/thumbnails/outside_thumb.jpg"}],"volume":"43","issue":"1","noUsgsAuthors":false,"publicationDate":"2023-02-12","publicationStatus":"PW","contributors":{"authors":[{"text":"Hostetter, Nathan J. 0000-0001-6075-2157 nhostetter@usgs.gov","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6075-2157","contributorId":198843,"corporation":false,"usgs":true,"family":"Hostetter","given":"Nathan","email":"nhostetter@usgs.gov","middleInitial":"J.","affiliations":[],"preferred":true,"id":908260,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":1},{"text":"Evans, Allen F.","contributorId":171691,"corporation":false,"usgs":false,"family":"Evans","given":"Allen","email":"","middleInitial":"F.","affiliations":[],"preferred":false,"id":908261,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":2},{"text":"Payton, Quinn","contributorId":149990,"corporation":false,"usgs":false,"family":"Payton","given":"Quinn","email":"","affiliations":[{"id":17879,"text":"Real Time Research, Inc., 231 SW Scalehouse Loop, Suite 101, Bend, OR 97702","active":true,"usgs":false}],"preferred":false,"id":908262,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":3},{"text":"Roby, Daniel D. 0000-0001-9844-0992","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9844-0992","contributorId":272249,"corporation":false,"usgs":true,"family":"Roby","given":"Daniel D.","affiliations":[{"id":200,"text":"Coop Res Unit Seattle","active":true,"usgs":true}],"preferred":true,"id":908263,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":4},{"text":"Lyons, Donald E.","contributorId":20119,"corporation":false,"usgs":true,"family":"Lyons","given":"Donald E.","affiliations":[],"preferred":false,"id":908264,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":5},{"text":"Collis, Ken","contributorId":149991,"corporation":false,"usgs":false,"family":"Collis","given":"Ken","email":"","affiliations":[{"id":17879,"text":"Real Time Research, Inc., 231 SW Scalehouse Loop, Suite 101, Bend, OR 97702","active":true,"usgs":false}],"preferred":false,"id":908265,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":6}]}} ,{"id":70241138,"text":"70241138 - 2023 - Mapping vegetation index-derived actual evapotranspiration across croplands using the Google Earth Engine platform","interactions":[],"lastModifiedDate":"2023-03-13T11:54:13.751883","indexId":"70241138","displayToPublicDate":"2023-02-12T06:51:49","publicationYear":"2023","noYear":false,"publicationType":{"id":2,"text":"Article"},"publicationSubtype":{"id":10,"text":"Journal Article"},"seriesTitle":{"id":3250,"text":"Remote Sensing","active":true,"publicationSubtype":{"id":10}},"title":"Mapping vegetation index-derived actual evapotranspiration across croplands using the Google Earth Engine platform","docAbstract":"Much remains unknown about variation in pathogen transmission across the geographic range of a free-ranging fish or animal species and about the influence of movement (associated with husbandry practices or animal behavior) on pathogen transmission. Salmonid hatcheries are an ideal system in which to study these processes. Salmonid hatcheries are managed for endangered species recovery, supplementation of threatened or at-risk fish stocks, support of fisheries, and ecosystem stability. Infectious hematopoietic necrosis virus (IHNV) is a rhabdovirus of significant concern to salmon aquaculture. Landscape IHNV transmission dynamics previously had been estimated only for salmonid hatcheries in the Lower Columbia River Basin (LCRB). The objectives of this study were to estimate IHNV transmission dynamics in a unique geographic region, the Snake River Basin (SRB), and to quantitatively estimate the effect of model coproduction on inference because previous assessments of coproduction have been qualitative. In contrast to the LCRB, the SRB has hatchery complexes consisting of a main hatchery and ≥1 satellite facility. Knowledge about hatchery complexes was held by a subset of project researchers but would not have been available to project modelers without coproduction. Project modelers generated and tested multiple versions of Bayesian susceptible-exposedinfected models to realistically represent the SRB and estimate the effect of coproduction. Models estimated the frequency of transmission routes, route-specific infection probabilities, and infection probabilities for combinations of salmonid hosts and IHNV lineages. Model results indicated that in the SRB, avoiding exposure to IHNV-positive adult salmonids is the most important action to prevent juvenile infections. Migrating adult salmonids exposed juvenile cohort-sites most frequently, and the infection probability was greatest following exposure to migrating adults. Without coproduction, the frequency of exposure by migrating adults would have been overestimated by 70 cohort-sites, and the infection probability following exposure to migrating adults would have been underestimated by∼0.09. The coproduced model had less uncertainty in the infection probability if no transmission route could be identified (Bayesian credible interval (BCI) width = 0.12) compared to the model without coproduction (BCI width = 0.34). Evidence for virus lineage MD specialization on steelhead and rainbow trout (both Oncorhynchus mykiss) was apparent without model coproduction. In the SRB, we found a greater probability of virus lineage UC infection in Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) compared to in O. mykiss, whereas in the LCRB, UC more clearly exhibited a generalist approach. Coproduction influenced estimates that depended on transmission routes, which operated differently at main hatcheries and satellite sites within hatchery complexes. Hatchery complexes are found outside of the SRB and are not specific to salmonid hatcheries alone. There is great potential for coproduction and modeling spatial contact networks to advance understanding about infectious disease transmission in complex production systems and surrounding free-ranging animal populations.
","language":"English","publisher":"Elsevier","doi":"10.1016/j.jenvman.2023.117415","usgsCitation":"Mattheiss, J.P., Breyta, R., Kurath, G., LaDeau, S.L., Paez, D.J., and Ferguson, P.F., 2023, Coproduction and modeling spatial contact networks prevent bias about infectious hematopoietic necrosis virus transmission for Snake River Basin salmonids: Journal of Environmental Management, v. 334, 117415, 15 p., https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2023.117415.","productDescription":"117415, 15 p.","ipdsId":"IP-141347","costCenters":[{"id":654,"text":"Western Fisheries Research Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":419245,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/thumbnails/outside_thumb.jpg"}],"country":"United States","state":"Idaho, Oregon, Washington","otherGeospatial":"Snake River Basin","geographicExtents":"{\n \"type\": \"FeatureCollection\",\n \"features\": [\n {\n \"type\": \"Feature\",\n \"properties\": {},\n \"geometry\": {\n \"coordinates\": [\n [\n [\n -119.65408985827867,\n 46.96204590471055\n ],\n [\n -119.40893704245391,\n 42.213418016305525\n ],\n [\n -112.05454040913827,\n 42.2038651769914\n ],\n [\n -112.2736150561004,\n 47.00960829169131\n ],\n [\n -119.65408985827867,\n 46.96204590471055\n ]\n ]\n ],\n \"type\": \"Polygon\"\n }\n }\n ]\n}","volume":"334","noUsgsAuthors":false,"publicationStatus":"PW","contributors":{"authors":[{"text":"Mattheiss, Jeffrey P.","contributorId":317260,"corporation":false,"usgs":false,"family":"Mattheiss","given":"Jeffrey","email":"","middleInitial":"P.","affiliations":[{"id":36722,"text":"Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alabama, Box 870344, Tuscaloosa, AL 35487","active":true,"usgs":false}],"preferred":false,"id":878857,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":1},{"text":"Breyta, Rachel","contributorId":150355,"corporation":false,"usgs":false,"family":"Breyta","given":"Rachel","affiliations":[],"preferred":false,"id":878858,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":2},{"text":"Kurath, Gael 0000-0003-3294-560X","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3294-560X","contributorId":220175,"corporation":false,"usgs":true,"family":"Kurath","given":"Gael","affiliations":[{"id":654,"text":"Western Fisheries Research Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"preferred":true,"id":878859,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":3},{"text":"LaDeau, Shannon L.","contributorId":172640,"corporation":false,"usgs":false,"family":"LaDeau","given":"Shannon","email":"","middleInitial":"L.","affiliations":[],"preferred":false,"id":878860,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":4},{"text":"Páez, David James 0000-0001-9035-394X","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9035-394X","contributorId":296751,"corporation":false,"usgs":true,"family":"Páez","given":"David","middleInitial":"James","affiliations":[{"id":654,"text":"Western Fisheries Research Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"preferred":true,"id":878861,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":5},{"text":"Ferguson, Paige F. B.","contributorId":317261,"corporation":false,"usgs":false,"family":"Ferguson","given":"Paige","email":"","middleInitial":"F. B.","affiliations":[{"id":36722,"text":"Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alabama, Box 870344, Tuscaloosa, AL 35487","active":true,"usgs":false}],"preferred":false,"id":878862,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":6}]}} ,{"id":70243039,"text":"70243039 - 2023 - Framework for facilitating mangrove recovery after hurricanes on Caribbean islands","interactions":[],"lastModifiedDate":"2023-09-06T16:08:19.597675","indexId":"70243039","displayToPublicDate":"2023-02-11T07:24:38","publicationYear":"2023","noYear":false,"publicationType":{"id":2,"text":"Article"},"publicationSubtype":{"id":10,"text":"Journal Article"},"seriesTitle":{"id":3271,"text":"Restoration Ecology","active":true,"publicationSubtype":{"id":10}},"title":"Framework for facilitating mangrove recovery after hurricanes on Caribbean islands","docAbstract":"Mangrove ecosystems in the Caribbean are frequently exposed to hurricanes, leading to structural and regenerative change that elicit calls for recovery action. For those mangroves unaffected by human modifications, recovery can occur naturally. Indeed, observable natural recovery after hurricanes is the genesis of the “disturbance adaptation” classification for mangroves; while structural legacies exist, unaltered stands often regenerate and persist. However, among the >7,000 islands, islets, and cays that make up the Caribbean archipelago, coastal alterations to support development affect mechanisms for regeneration, sediment distribution, tidal water conveyance, and intertidal mangrove transgression, imposing sometimes insurmountable barriers to natural post-hurricane recovery. We use a case study approach to suggest that actions to facilitate recovery of mangroves on Caribbean islands (and similar settings globally) may be more effective when focusing on ameliorating pre-existing anthropogenic stressors. Actions to clean debris, collect mangrove propagules, and plant seedlings are noble endeavors, but can be costly and fall short of achieving recovery goals in isolation without careful consideration of pre-hurricane stress. We update a procedural framework that considers six steps to implementing “Ecological Mangrove Restoration” (EMR), and we apply them specifically to hurricane recovery. If followed, EMR may expedite actions by suggesting immediate damage assessment focused on hydrogeomorphic mangrove type, hydrology, and previous anthropogenic (or natural) influence. Application of EMR may help to improve mangrove recovery success following catastrophic storms, and reduce guesswork, delays, and monetary inefficiencies.
Conservation planning and decision-making can be enhanced by ecological models that reliably transfer to times and places beyond those where models were developed. Transferrable models can be especially helpful for species of conservation concern, such as grizzly bears (Ursus arctos). Currently, only four grizzly bear populations remain in the contiguous United States. We evaluated transferability of previously derived individual-based, integrated step selection functions (iSSFs) developed from GPS-collared grizzly bears in the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem by applying them within the nearby Selkirk (SE), Cabinet-Yaak (CYE), and Greater Yellowstone Ecosystems (GYE). We simulated 100 replicates of 5000 steps for each iSSF in each ecosystem, summarized relative use into 10 equal-area classes for each sex, and overlaid GPS locations from bears in the SE, CYE, and GYE on resulting maps. Spearman rank correlations between numbers of locations and class rank were ≥ 0.96 within each study area, indicating models were highly predictive of grizzly bear space use in these nearby populations. Assessment of models using smaller subsets of data in space and time demonstrated generally high predictive accuracy for females. Although generally high across space and time, predictive accuracy for males was low within some watersheds and in summer within the SE and CYE, potentially due to seasonal effects, vegetation, and food assemblage differences. Altogether, these results demonstrated high transferability of our models to landscapes in the Northern Rocky Mountains, suggesting they may be used to evaluate habitat suitability and connectivity throughout the region to benefit conservation planning.
This report includes an updated geologic map and cross sections of the upper Santa Cruz River basin, southern Arizona. The map and cross sections describe the geometry, thickness, and structure of the Miocene to Holocene units which form the main aquifers in the basin. The report also includes results of new hydrogeologic studies including (1) mapping and defining depth to bedrock based on geophysical data in the map area to better define the geometry and structure of the basin aquifers, (2) describing newly recognized hydrologically significant faults in the Peck Canyon and Sopori Wash areas, and (3) evaluating groundwater sources and hydrogeology of the Potrero Creek wetlands.
","language":"English","publisher":"U.S. Geological Survey","publisherLocation":"Reston, VA","doi":"10.3133/sim3490","programNote":"National Cooperative Geologic Mapping Program","usgsCitation":"Page, W.R., Bultman, M.W., Berry, M.E., Turner, K.J., Menges, C.M., Gray, F., Paces, J.B., VanSistine, D.P., Morgan, L.E., and Havens, J.C., 2023, Geologic map and hydrogeologic investigations of the upper Santa Cruz River basin, southern Arizona: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Map 3490, 2 sheets, scale 1:50,000, 73-p. pamphlet, https://doi.org/10.3133/sim3490.","productDescription":"Report: ix, 73 p.; 4 Data Releases; 3 Sheets: 40.89 × 35.83 inches or smaller","onlineOnly":"Y","ipdsId":"IP-123665","costCenters":[{"id":312,"text":"Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center","active":true,"usgs":true},{"id":318,"text":"Geosciences and Environmental Change Science Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":412895,"rank":10,"type":{"id":30,"text":"Data Release"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.5066/P9PGUZV0","text":"USGS data release","linkHelpText":"Database for the geologic map of the upper Santa Cruz River basin, southern Arizona"},{"id":412893,"rank":8,"type":{"id":30,"text":"Data Release"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.5066/P94NR0D9","text":"USGS data release","linkHelpText":"Argon data for Santa Cruz Basin, Arizona (ver. 1.1, November 2022)"},{"id":412892,"rank":7,"type":{"id":30,"text":"Data Release"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.5066/P9MBNX4O","text":"USGS data release","linkHelpText":"Sopori Wash sub-basin gravity data, Pima and Santa Cruz Counties, Arizona"},{"id":412891,"rank":6,"type":{"id":26,"text":"Sheet"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3490/sim3490_sheet2.pdf","text":"Cross Sections","size":"292 kB","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"SIM 3490 cross sections"},{"id":412890,"rank":5,"type":{"id":26,"text":"Sheet"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3490/sim3490_sheet1_georeferenced.pdf","text":"Georeferenced Geologic Map","size":"106 MB","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"SIM 3490 Georeferenced Geologic Map"},{"id":412889,"rank":4,"type":{"id":26,"text":"Sheet"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3490/sim3490_sheet1.pdf","text":"Geologic Map","size":"27.6 MB","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"SIM 3490 Geologic Map"},{"id":412888,"rank":3,"type":{"id":20,"text":"Read Me"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3490/ReadMe.txt","text":"Read Me","size":"12.0 kB","linkFileType":{"id":2,"text":"txt"},"description":"SIM 3490 Read Me file"},{"id":500197,"rank":11,"type":{"id":36,"text":"NGMDB Index Page"},"url":"https://ngmdb.usgs.gov/Prodesc/proddesc_114341.htm","linkFileType":{"id":5,"text":"html"}},{"id":412894,"rank":9,"type":{"id":30,"text":"Data Release"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.5066/P9XXW25T","text":"USGS data release","linkHelpText":"Sr-, U-, H- and O-isotope data used to evaluate water sources in the Potrero Creek wetlands, upper Santa Cruz basin, southern Arizona, USA"},{"id":412886,"rank":1,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3490/coverthb_pamphlet.jpg"},{"id":412887,"rank":2,"type":{"id":11,"text":"Document"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3490/sim3490_pamphlet.pdf","text":"Report","size":"11.2 MB","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"SIM 3490 pamphlet"}],"country":"United States","state":"Arizona","geographicExtents":"{\n \"type\": \"FeatureCollection\",\n \"features\": [\n {\n \"type\": \"Feature\",\n \"properties\": {},\n \"geometry\": {\n \"coordinates\": [\n [\n [\n -111.37611177853266,\n 31.882514371272933\n ],\n [\n -111.37611177853266,\n 31.300216933285228\n ],\n [\n -110.49757862424259,\n 31.300216933285228\n ],\n [\n -110.49757862424259,\n 31.882514371272933\n ],\n [\n -111.37611177853266,\n 31.882514371272933\n ]\n ]\n ],\n \"type\": \"Polygon\"\n }\n }\n ]\n}","contact":"Director, Geosciences and Environmental Change Science Center
U.S. Geological Survey
Box 25046, MS-980
Denver, CO 80225-0046
The grass carp, Ctenopharyngodon idella, is an invasive species in North America that has been recorded in 45 states with breeding populations in several major river basins. Established populations of grass carp have had cascading, negative effects on aquatic ecosystem structure and function. Oral piscicide baits have been examined as a potential method to manage invasive grass carp. Our goal was to examine the oral toxicity of the dimethyl-dithiocarbamate fungicide, Ziram, to grass carp. Three toxicity experiments used different carriers to deliver single Ziram doses ranging from 0.25 to 250 mg/kg by gavage. No acute mortality was observed when grass carp were gavaged with Ziram at the highest concentrations dissolved in ethanol at 40 mg/kg, suspended in dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) at 250 mg/kg, or suspended in polyethylene glycol (PEG) at 150 mg/kg. Ziram exposure through intraperitoneal injection resulted in acute mortality at 150 mg/kg potentially due to increased residence time in the peritoneal cavity and thereby greater opportunity for absorption. These results indicate that Ziram is acutely toxic to grass carp, however, additional research is required to formulate a successful novel grass carp toxicant that can be used to target the invasive species while minimizing effects on non-target fish species.
","language":"English","publisher":"REABIC","doi":"10.3391/mbi.2023.14.3.07","usgsCitation":"Kemble, N.E., Grabner, K., Whites, D.W., Walters, D., Hooper, M.J., and Steevens, J.A., 2023, Evaluation of Ziram as an oral toxic bait chemical for control of grass carp Ctenopharyngodon idella: Management of Biological Invasions, v. 14, no. 3, p. 477-491, https://doi.org/10.3391/mbi.2023.14.3.07.","productDescription":"15 p.","startPage":"477","endPage":"491","ipdsId":"IP-126806","costCenters":[{"id":192,"text":"Columbia Environmental Research Center","active":true,"usgs":true},{"id":291,"text":"Fort Collins Science Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":444502,"rank":3,"type":{"id":40,"text":"Open Access Publisher Index Page"},"url":"http://doi.org/10.3391/mbi.2023.14.3.07","text":"Publisher Index Page"},{"id":435459,"rank":2,"type":{"id":30,"text":"Data Release"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.5066/P9KA7G04","text":"USGS data release","linkHelpText":"Toxicity data for the evaluation of Ziram to Grass Carp Ctenopharyngodon idella in a laboratory setting"},{"id":419543,"rank":1,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/thumbnails/outside_thumb.jpg"}],"volume":"14","issue":"3","noUsgsAuthors":false,"publicationStatus":"PW","contributors":{"authors":[{"text":"Kemble, Nile E. 0000-0002-3608-0538 nkemble@usgs.gov","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3608-0538","contributorId":2626,"corporation":false,"usgs":true,"family":"Kemble","given":"Nile","email":"nkemble@usgs.gov","middleInitial":"E.","affiliations":[{"id":192,"text":"Columbia Environmental Research Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"preferred":true,"id":879536,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":1},{"text":"Grabner, Keith 0000-0003-0788-7751 kgrabner@usgs.gov","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0788-7751","contributorId":217705,"corporation":false,"usgs":true,"family":"Grabner","given":"Keith","email":"kgrabner@usgs.gov","affiliations":[{"id":192,"text":"Columbia Environmental Research Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"preferred":true,"id":879537,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":2},{"text":"Whites, David W. 0000-0003-3490-7906","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3490-7906","contributorId":310509,"corporation":false,"usgs":true,"family":"Whites","given":"David","email":"","middleInitial":"W.","affiliations":[{"id":192,"text":"Columbia Environmental Research Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"preferred":true,"id":879538,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":3},{"text":"Walters, David 0000-0002-4237-2158","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4237-2158","contributorId":205921,"corporation":false,"usgs":true,"family":"Walters","given":"David","affiliations":[{"id":192,"text":"Columbia Environmental Research Center","active":true,"usgs":true},{"id":291,"text":"Fort Collins Science Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"preferred":true,"id":879539,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":4},{"text":"Hooper, Michael J. 0000-0002-4161-8961 mhooper@usgs.gov","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4161-8961","contributorId":3251,"corporation":false,"usgs":true,"family":"Hooper","given":"Michael","email":"mhooper@usgs.gov","middleInitial":"J.","affiliations":[{"id":192,"text":"Columbia Environmental Research Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"preferred":true,"id":879540,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":5},{"text":"Steevens, Jeffery A. 0000-0003-3946-1229","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3946-1229","contributorId":207511,"corporation":false,"usgs":true,"family":"Steevens","given":"Jeffery","middleInitial":"A.","affiliations":[{"id":192,"text":"Columbia Environmental Research Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"preferred":true,"id":879541,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":6}]}} ,{"id":70240747,"text":"70240747 - 2023 - Mangrove reforestation provides greater blue carbon benefit than afforestation for mitigating global climate change","interactions":[],"lastModifiedDate":"2023-02-17T13:10:30.90916","indexId":"70240747","displayToPublicDate":"2023-02-10T07:08:21","publicationYear":"2023","noYear":false,"publicationType":{"id":2,"text":"Article"},"publicationSubtype":{"id":10,"text":"Journal Article"},"seriesTitle":{"id":2842,"text":"Nature Communications","active":true,"publicationSubtype":{"id":10}},"title":"Mangrove reforestation provides greater blue carbon benefit than afforestation for mitigating global climate change","docAbstract":"Significant efforts have been invested to restore mangrove forests worldwide through reforestation and afforestation. However, blue carbon benefit has not been compared between these two silvicultural pathways at the global scale. Here, we integrated results from direct field measurements of over 370 restoration sites around the world to show that mangrove reforestation (reestablishing mangroves where they previously colonized) had a greater carbon storage potential per hectare than afforestation (establishing mangroves where not previously mangrove). Greater carbon accumulation was mainly attributed to favorable intertidal positioning, higher nitrogen availability, and lower salinity at most reforestation sites. Reforestation of all physically feasible areas in the deforested mangrove regions of the world could promote the uptake of 671.5–688.8 Tg CO2-eq globally over a 40-year period, 60% more than afforesting the same global area on tidal flats (more marginal sites). Along with avoiding conflicts of habitat conversion, mangrove reforestation should be given priority when designing nature-based solutions for mitigating global climate change.
To assess infection with or exposure to endo- and ectoparasites in Alaska brown bears (Ursus arctos), blood and fecal samples were collected during 2013–17 from five locations: Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve; Katmai National Park; Lake Clark National Park and Preserve; Yakutat Forelands; and Kodiak Island. Standard fecal centrifugal flotation was used to screen for gastrointestinal parasites, molecular techniques were used to test blood for the presence of Bartonella and Babesia spp., and an ELISA was used to detect antibodies to Sarcoptes scabiei, a species of mite recently associated with mange in American black bears (Ursus americanus). From fecal flotations (n=160), we identified the following helminth eggs: Uncinaria sp. (n=16, 10.0%), Baylisascaris sp. (n=5, 3.1%), Dibothriocephalus sp. (n=2, 1.2%), and taeniid-type eggs (n=1, 0.6%). Molecular screening for intraerythrocytic parasites (Babesia spp.) and intracellular bacteria (Bartonella spp.) was negative for all bears tested. We detected antibodies to S. scabiei in six of 59 (10.2%) individuals. The relatively low level of parasite detection in this study meets expectations for brown bear populations living in large, relatively undisturbed habitats near the northern edge of the range. These results provide a contemporary understanding of parasites in Alaska brown bears and establish baseline levels of parasite presence to monitor for changes over time and relative to ecologic alterations.
Anadromous fishes, such as Pacific salmon, spend portions of their life cycle in freshwater and marine systems, thus rendering them susceptible to a variety of natural and anthropogenic stressors. These stressors operate at different spatiotemporal scales, whereby freshwater conditions are more likely to impact single populations or subpopulations, while marine conditions are more likely to act on entire evolutionarily significant units (ESUs). Coherence in population parameters like survival and productivity can therefore serve as an indicator of relative influence. The goal of this study was to elucidate scale-dependent shifts in Oregon Coast coho salmon productivity. We used a multivariate state-space approach to analyze almost 60 years of stock-recruitment data for the Oregon Coast ESU. Analyses were conducted separately for time periods prior to and after 1990 to account for improvements in abundance estimation methods and significant changes in conservation and management strategies. Prior to 1990, productivity declined for most Oregon Coast populations, especially through the 1980s. From 1990–onward, coherence increased, and trends tracked closely with the North Pacific Gyre Oscillation (NPGO). The latter period is associated with reductions in harvest rates and hatchery production such that the relative influence of the marine environment may have grown more apparent following the removal of these stressors. Furthermore, the link between productivity and NPGO is consistent with trends observed for several other Pacific salmon ESUs. If Oregon Coast coho salmon populations become more synchronous, managers can expect to face new challenges driven by reductions in the population portfolio effect and increasingly variable marine conditions due to climate change.
Wildfires and housing development have increased since the 1990s, presenting unique challenges for wildfire management. However, it is unclear how the relative influences of housing growth and changing wildfire occurrence have altered risk to homes, or the potential for wildfire to threaten homes. We used a random forests model to predict burn probability in relation to weather variables at 1-km resolution and monthly intervals from 1990 through 2019 in the Southern Rocky Mountains ecoregion. We quantified risk by combining the predicted burn probabilities with decadal housing density. We then compared the predicted burn probabilities and risk across the study area with observed values and quantified trends. Finally, we evaluated how housing growth and changes in burn probability influenced risk individually and combined. Fires burned 9055 km2 and exposed more than 8500 homes from 1990 to 2019. Observed burned area increased 632% from the 1990s to the 2000s, which combined with housing growth, resulted in a 1342% increase in homes exposed. Increases continued in the 2010s but at lower rates; burned area by 65% and exposure by 32%. The random forests model had excellent fit and high correlation with observations (AUC = 0.88 and r = 0.9). Observed values were within the 95% uncertainty interval for all years except 2016 (burned area) and 2000 (exposure). However, our model overpredicted in years with low observed burned area and underpredicted in years with high observed burned area. Overpredictions in risk resulted in lower rates of change in predicted risk compared with change in observed exposure. Increases in risk between the 1990s and 2000s were primarily due to warmer and drier weather conditions and secondarily because of housing growth. However, increases between the 2000s and 2010s were primarily due to housing growth. Our modeling approach identifies spatial and temporal patterns of wildfire potential and risk, which is critical information to guide decision-making. Because the drivers behind risk shift over time, strategies to mitigate risk may need to account for multiple drivers simultaneously.
Some animal species are responding to climate change by altering the timing of events like mating and migration. Such behavioral plasticity can be adaptive, but it is not always. Polar bears (Ursus maritimus) from the southern Beaufort Sea subpopulation have mostly remained on ice year-round, but as the climate warms and summer sea ice declines, a growing proportion of the subpopulation is summering ashore. The triggers of this novel behavior are not well understood. Our study uses a parametric time-to-event model to test whether biological and/or time-varying environmental variables thought to influence polar bear movement and habitat selection also drive decisions to swim ashore. We quantified the time polar bears spent occupying offshore sea ice of varying ice concentrations. We evaluated variations in the ordinal date bears moved to land with respect to local environmental conditions such as sea ice concentration and wind across 10 years (2005–2015). Results from our study suggest that storm events (i.e., sustained high wind speeds) may force polar bears from severely degraded ice habitat and catalyze seasonal movements to land. Unlike polar bears long adapted to complete summer ice melt, southern Beaufort Sea bears that summer ashore appear more tolerant of poor-quality sea ice habitat and are less willing to abandon it. Our findings provide a window into emergent, climatically mediated behavior in an Arctic marine mammal vulnerable to rapid habitat decline.
Groundwater quality in the north Sacramento Valley (NSV) was studied in the Redding–Red Bluff shallow aquifer study unit (referred to as the NSV shallow aquifer or NSV-SA) as part of the Priority Basin Project (PBP) of the California Groundwater Ambient Monitoring and Assessment (GAMA) Program. The study unit is in Shasta and Tehama Counties and included two physiographic study areas: (1) the Redding area to the north and (2) the Red Bluff area to the south. The study was focused on groundwater resources used for domestic drinking-water supply, which are mostly drawn from shallower parts of aquifer systems than those of groundwater resources used for public drinking-water supply in the same area. This assessment characterized the quality of ambient groundwater in the aquifer before filtration or treatment, rather than the quality of drinking water delivered to the tap.
The water-quality evaluation in this study has three components: (1) a status assessment, which characterized the quality of the groundwater resources used for domestic supply for 2018–19, in reference to state and national benchmarks; (2) an understanding assessment, which evaluated the natural and human factors potentially affecting water quality in those resources; and (3) a comparison between the groundwater resources used for domestic supply and those used for public supply in the region.
The status assessment was based on data collected from 50 sites sampled by the U.S. Geological Survey for the GAMA-PBP in 2018–19. To provide context for the measured concentrations of groundwater constituents compared to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and California State Water Resources Control Board Division of Drinking Water regulatory and non-regulatory benchmarks for drinking-water quality, relative concentrations (RCs) of groundwater constituents were calculated as the concentration in a sample divided by the respective benchmark. Health-based benchmarks include regulatory and non-regulatory human-health benchmarks such as a maximum contaminant level, notification level, or health-based screening level. Aesthetic-based benchmarks are regulatory or non-regulatory non-health-based benchmarks that can affect the color or taste of water. A grid-based method was used to estimate the proportions of the groundwater resources used for domestic drinking wells that have water-quality constituents below (low), approaching (moderate, greater than half the benchmark), or above (high) benchmark concentrations. This method provides statistically unbiased results at the study-area scale and permits comparisons to other GAMA-PBP study areas.
NAWQA Science Team
U.S. Geological Survey
12201 Sunrise Valley Drive, MS 413
Reston, VA 20192–0002
Passive sampler devices were deployed in six northern California streams five times between November 2018 and December 2019 to measure the presence or absence of current-use pesticides in surface water. In the targeted areas, there are reported pesticide uses for agriculture, commercial forestry, and rights of way maintenance along with unreported pesticide use at private residences and cannabis grow sites. The sites sampled in this study were not previously monitored for current-use pesticides. Streams in the Sierra Nevada foothills of northern California are important habitats for many sensitive species including salmonids, but the logistics of sampling these areas can be difficult using traditional water-quality sampling techniques, especially when sampling watersheds where contaminant transport is episodic. Chemcatcher passive sampling devices and silicone bands were deployed in these areas to concentrate pesticides for days to weeks at a time. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board, was responsible for developing passive sampler field deployment and laboratory analytical methods for current-use pesticides, providing pesticide measurements from streams in the study region, and determining how well passive samplers detect pesticides in these environments. Six sites were monitored during the study, and passive sampler extracts were analyzed for a total 155 current-use pesticides in this study. A total of 19 out of the 155 pesticides including 9 insecticides, 5 fungicides, and 5 herbicides were detected in extracts from passive samplers. The most frequently detected pesticides were the herbicides hexazinone and dithiopyr, the insecticides bifenthrin and methoxyfenozide, and the fungicide azoxystrobin.
","language":"English","publisher":"U.S. Geological Survey","publisherLocation":"Reston, VA","doi":"10.3133/sir20225129","collaboration":"Prepared in cooperation with Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board","usgsCitation":"De Parsia, M.D., Orlando, J.L., and Hladik, M.L., 2023, Assessing the presence of current-use pesticides in mid-elevation Sierra Nevada streams using passive samplers, California, 2018–19: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2022–5129, 31 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/sir20225129.","productDescription":"Report: vi, 31 p.; Data Release","onlineOnly":"Y","ipdsId":"IP-126203","costCenters":[{"id":154,"text":"California Water Science Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":412877,"rank":4,"type":{"id":30,"text":"Data Release"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.5066/P9T0CSCT","text":"USGS data release","description":"USGS data release","linkHelpText":"Pesticide detections in streams throughout the foothills of the Sierra Nevada range using passive samplers from 2017 to 2019"},{"id":412879,"rank":6,"type":{"id":31,"text":"Publication XML"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2022/5129/sir20225129.XML"},{"id":412878,"rank":5,"type":{"id":34,"text":"Image Folder"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2022/5129/Images"},{"id":412876,"rank":3,"type":{"id":39,"text":"HTML Document"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/publication/sir20225129/full","text":"Report","linkFileType":{"id":5,"text":"html"},"description":"SIR 2022-5129"},{"id":412875,"rank":2,"type":{"id":11,"text":"Document"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2022/5129/sir20225129.pdf","text":"Report","size":"4.4 MB","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"SIR 2022-5129"},{"id":412874,"rank":1,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2022/5129/coverthb.jpg"},{"id":500483,"rank":7,"type":{"id":36,"text":"NGMDB Index Page"},"url":"https://ngmdb.usgs.gov/Prodesc/proddesc_114338.htm","linkFileType":{"id":5,"text":"html"}}],"country":"United States","state":"California","geographicExtents":"{\n \"type\": \"FeatureCollection\",\n \"features\": [\n {\n \"type\": \"Feature\",\n \"properties\": {},\n \"geometry\": {\n \"coordinates\": [\n [\n [\n -122.30362079688356,\n 40.16751419593339\n ],\n [\n -122.30362079688356,\n 37.95075778589002\n ],\n [\n -118.92126815286719,\n 37.95075778589002\n ],\n [\n -118.92126815286719,\n 40.16751419593339\n ],\n [\n -122.30362079688356,\n 40.16751419593339\n ]\n ]\n ],\n \"type\": \"Polygon\"\n }\n }\n ]\n}","contact":"Director, California Water Science Center
U.S. Geological Survey
6000 J Street, Placer Hall
Sacramento, California 95819
Since Lost River suckers (Deltistes luxatus) and shortnose suckers (Chasmistes brevirostris) hatched in the early 1990s, almost none of the fish have survived to adulthood. When full grown, Lost River suckers are the largest of the Klamath suckers, averaging about two and a half feet long, whereas shortnose suckers are at around twenty-one inches. Rather than an inability to spawn, these species are limited by very high mortality within the first year or two of life. There are many hypothesized causes of high juvenile sucker mortality, including poor water quality, diseases aggravated by warming water temperatures, and the reduction in wetland habitat that provides food and cover.
The number of adult endangered Lost River and shortnose suckers in Upper Klamath Lake, the primary remaining habitat for these species, declined by 65 to 85 percent between 2001 and 2020. Extinction is increasingly likely for these species unless their population trajectories can be changed. The Klamath Tribes, the U.S. government, the State of Oregon, and several nonprofits are working together to prevent sucker extinction in the Klamath Basin.
","largerWorkType":{"id":4,"text":"Book"},"largerWorkTitle":"Oregon Encyclopedia","largerWorkSubtype":{"id":15,"text":"Monograph"},"language":"English","publisher":"Oregon Historical Society","usgsCitation":"Burdick, S.M., 2023, Endangered Klamath suckers, chap. of Oregon Encyclopedia, HTML Document.","productDescription":"HTML Document","ipdsId":"IP-139525","costCenters":[{"id":654,"text":"Western Fisheries Research Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":413132,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/thumbnails/outside_thumb.jpg"},{"id":413123,"rank":1,"type":{"id":15,"text":"Index Page"},"url":"https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/klamath-sucker/#.Y-1o3S_MK71"}],"country":"United States","state":"Oregon","otherGeospatial":"Upper Klamath Lake","geographicExtents":"{\n \"type\": \"FeatureCollection\",\n \"features\": [\n {\n \"type\": \"Feature\",\n \"properties\": {},\n \"geometry\": {\n \"coordinates\": [\n [\n [\n -122.0607867403346,\n 42.48583055292471\n ],\n [\n -122.0607867403346,\n 42.2894405748352\n ],\n [\n -121.7919858325015,\n 42.2894405748352\n ],\n [\n -121.7919858325015,\n 42.48583055292471\n ],\n [\n -122.0607867403346,\n 42.48583055292471\n ]\n ]\n ],\n \"type\": \"Polygon\"\n }\n }\n ]\n}","noUsgsAuthors":false,"publicationStatus":"PW","contributors":{"authors":[{"text":"Burdick, Summer M. 0000-0002-3480-5793 sburdick@usgs.gov","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3480-5793","contributorId":3448,"corporation":false,"usgs":true,"family":"Burdick","given":"Summer","email":"sburdick@usgs.gov","middleInitial":"M.","affiliations":[{"id":654,"text":"Western Fisheries Research Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"preferred":true,"id":864440,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":1}]}} ,{"id":70240976,"text":"70240976 - 2023 - Using mercury stable isotope fractionation to identify the contribution of historical mercury mining sources present in downstream water, sediment and fish","interactions":[],"lastModifiedDate":"2023-03-03T16:09:08.618256","indexId":"70240976","displayToPublicDate":"2023-02-09T10:05:18","publicationYear":"2023","noYear":false,"publicationType":{"id":2,"text":"Article"},"publicationSubtype":{"id":10,"text":"Journal Article"},"seriesTitle":{"id":13442,"text":"Frontiers in Environmental Chemistry","active":true,"publicationSubtype":{"id":10}},"title":"Using mercury stable isotope fractionation to identify the contribution of historical mercury mining sources present in downstream water, sediment and fish","docAbstract":"Ecosystems downstream of mercury (Hg) contaminated sites can be impacted by both localized releases as well as Hg deposited to the watershed from atmospheric transport. Identifying the source of Hg in water, sediment, and fish downstream of contaminated sites is important for determining the effectiveness of source-control remediation actions. This study uses measurements of Hg stable isotopes in soil, sediment, water, and fish to differentiate between Hg from an abandoned Hg mine from non-mine-related sources. The study site is located within the Willamette River watershed (Oregon, United States), which includes free-flowing river segments and a reservoir downstream of the mine. The concentrations of total-Hg (THg) in the reservoir fish were 4-fold higher than those further downstream (>90 km) from the mine site in free-flowing sections of the river. Mercury stable isotope fractionation analysis showed that the mine tailings (δ202Hg: −0.36‰ ± 0.03‰) had a distinctive isotopic composition compared to background soils (δ202Hg: −2.30‰ ± 0.25‰). Similar differences in isotopic composition were observed between stream water that flowed through the tailings (particulate bound δ202Hg: −0.58‰; dissolved: −0.91‰) versus a background stream (particle-bound δ202Hg: −2.36‰; dissolved: −2.09‰). Within the reservoir sediment, the Hg isotopic composition indicated that the proportion of the Hg related to mine-release increased with THg concentrations. However, in the fish samples the opposite trend was observed—the degree of mine-related Hg was lower in fish with the higher THg concentrations. While sediment concentrations clearly show the influence of the mine, the relationship in fish is more complicated due to differences in methylmercury (MeHg) formation and the foraging behavior of different fish species. The fish tissue δ13C and Δ199Hg values indicate that there is a higher influence of mine-sourced Hg in fish feeding in a more sediment-based food web and less so in planktonic and littoral-based food webs. Identifying the relative proportion of Hg from local contaminated site can help inform remediation decisions, especially when the relationship between total Hg concentrations and sources do not show similar covariation between abiotic and biotic media.
","language":"English","publisher":"Frontiers Media","doi":"10.3389/fenvc.2023.1096199","usgsCitation":"Eckley, C.S., Eagles-Smith, C., Luxton, T., Hoffman, J.C., and Janssen, S., 2023, Using mercury stable isotope fractionation to identify the contribution of historical mercury mining sources present in downstream water, sediment and fish: Frontiers in Environmental Chemistry, v. 4, 1096199, 11 p., https://doi.org/10.3389/fenvc.2023.1096199.","productDescription":"1096199, 11 p.","ipdsId":"IP-146689","costCenters":[{"id":290,"text":"Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center","active":false,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":444517,"rank":0,"type":{"id":40,"text":"Open Access Publisher Index Page"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.3389/fenvc.2023.1096199","text":"Publisher Index Page"},{"id":413666,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/thumbnails/outside_thumb.jpg"}],"country":"United States","state":"Oregon","otherGeospatial":"Willamette River watershed","geographicExtents":"{\n \"type\": \"FeatureCollection\",\n \"features\": [\n {\n \"type\": \"Feature\",\n \"properties\": {},\n \"geometry\": {\n \"coordinates\": [\n [\n [\n -122.37949100050008,\n 45.453180681982445\n ],\n [\n -123.61622713639957,\n 45.453180681982445\n ],\n [\n -123.61622713639957,\n 43.717858367382746\n ],\n [\n -122.37949100050008,\n 43.717858367382746\n ],\n [\n -122.37949100050008,\n 45.453180681982445\n ]\n ]\n ],\n \"type\": \"Polygon\"\n }\n }\n ]\n}","volume":"4","noUsgsAuthors":false,"publicationDate":"2023-02-09","publicationStatus":"PW","contributors":{"authors":[{"text":"Eckley, Chris S. 0000-0002-6986-4451","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6986-4451","contributorId":246031,"corporation":false,"usgs":false,"family":"Eckley","given":"Chris","email":"","middleInitial":"S.","affiliations":[{"id":39312,"text":"U.S. EPA","active":true,"usgs":false}],"preferred":false,"id":865585,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":1},{"text":"Eagles-Smith, Collin A. 0000-0003-1329-5285","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1329-5285","contributorId":221745,"corporation":false,"usgs":true,"family":"Eagles-Smith","given":"Collin A.","affiliations":[{"id":290,"text":"Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center","active":false,"usgs":true}],"preferred":true,"id":865586,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":2},{"text":"Luxton, Todd P","contributorId":221509,"corporation":false,"usgs":false,"family":"Luxton","given":"Todd P","affiliations":[{"id":40396,"text":"US Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development","active":true,"usgs":false}],"preferred":false,"id":865587,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":3},{"text":"Hoffman, Joel C.","contributorId":84244,"corporation":false,"usgs":false,"family":"Hoffman","given":"Joel","email":"","middleInitial":"C.","affiliations":[{"id":6914,"text":"U.S. Environmental Protection Agency","active":true,"usgs":false}],"preferred":false,"id":865588,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":4},{"text":"Janssen, Sarah E. 0000-0003-4432-3154","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4432-3154","contributorId":210991,"corporation":false,"usgs":true,"family":"Janssen","given":"Sarah E.","affiliations":[{"id":37947,"text":"Upper Midwest Water Science Center","active":true,"usgs":true},{"id":677,"text":"Wisconsin Water Science Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"preferred":true,"id":865589,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":5}]}} ,{"id":70258158,"text":"70258158 - 2023 - Integration of distributed streamflow measurement metadata for improved water resource decision-making","interactions":[],"lastModifiedDate":"2024-09-05T14:38:03.477734","indexId":"70258158","displayToPublicDate":"2023-02-09T09:35:35","publicationYear":"2023","noYear":false,"publicationType":{"id":2,"text":"Article"},"publicationSubtype":{"id":10,"text":"Journal Article"},"seriesTitle":{"id":3709,"text":"Water","active":true,"publicationSubtype":{"id":10}},"title":"Integration of distributed streamflow measurement metadata for improved water resource decision-making","docAbstract":"Streamflow data are critical for monitoring and managing water resources, yet there are significant spatial gaps in our federal monitoring networks with biases toward large perennial rivers. In some cases, streamflow monitoring exists in these spatial gaps, but information about these monitoring locations is challenging to obtain. Here, we present a streamflow catalog for the United States Pacific Northwest that includes current and historical streamflow monitoring location information obtained from 32 organizations (other than the U.S. Geological Survey), which includes 2661 continuous streamflow gaging locations (22% are currently active) and 30,557 discrete streamflow measurements. A stakeholder advisory board with representatives from organizations that operate streamflow monitoring networks identified metadata requirements and provided feedback on the Streamflow Data Catalog user interface. Engagement with the water resources community through this effort highlighted challenges that water professionals face in collecting and managing streamflow data so that data are findable, accessible, interoperable, and reusable (FAIR). Over 60% of the streamflow monitoring locations in the Streamflow Data Catalog are not available online and are thus not findable through web search engines. Providing organizations technical assistance with standard measurement procedures, metadata collection, and web accessibility could substantially increase the availability and utility of streamflow information to water resources communities.
","language":"English","publisher":"MDPI","doi":"10.3390/w15040679","usgsCitation":"Kaiser, K.E., Blasch, K.W., and Schmitz, S., 2023, Integration of distributed streamflow measurement metadata for improved water resource decision-making: Water, v. 15, no. 4, 679, 11 p., https://doi.org/10.3390/w15040679.","productDescription":"679, 11 p.","ipdsId":"IP-148240","costCenters":[{"id":65563,"text":"Northwest Pacific Islands Regional Director's Office","active":true,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":444520,"rank":0,"type":{"id":40,"text":"Open Access Publisher Index Page"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.3390/w15040679","text":"Publisher Index Page"},{"id":433499,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/thumbnails/outside_thumb.jpg"}],"volume":"15","issue":"4","noUsgsAuthors":false,"publicationDate":"2023-02-09","publicationStatus":"PW","contributors":{"authors":[{"text":"Kaiser, Kendra E. 0000-0003-1773-6236","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1773-6236","contributorId":211475,"corporation":false,"usgs":false,"family":"Kaiser","given":"Kendra","email":"","middleInitial":"E.","affiliations":[{"id":38255,"text":"Boise State Unviersity","active":true,"usgs":false}],"preferred":false,"id":912398,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":1},{"text":"Blasch, Kyle W. 0000-0002-0590-0724","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0590-0724","contributorId":203415,"corporation":false,"usgs":true,"family":"Blasch","given":"Kyle","email":"","middleInitial":"W.","affiliations":[{"id":343,"text":"Idaho Water Science Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"preferred":true,"id":912399,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":2},{"text":"Schmitz, Steven","contributorId":343922,"corporation":false,"usgs":false,"family":"Schmitz","given":"Steven","email":"","affiliations":[{"id":16201,"text":"Boise State University","active":true,"usgs":false}],"preferred":false,"id":912400,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":3}]}} ,{"id":70241863,"text":"70241863 - 2023 - Pressurized upflow reactor system for the bioconversion of coal to methane: Investigation of the coal/sand interface effect","interactions":[],"lastModifiedDate":"2023-03-29T11:49:22.107524","indexId":"70241863","displayToPublicDate":"2023-02-09T06:47:20","publicationYear":"2023","noYear":false,"publicationType":{"id":2,"text":"Article"},"publicationSubtype":{"id":10,"text":"Journal Article"},"seriesTitle":{"id":13781,"text":"Cleaner Chemical Engineering","active":true,"publicationSubtype":{"id":10}},"title":"Pressurized upflow reactor system for the bioconversion of coal to methane: Investigation of the coal/sand interface effect","docAbstract":"Microbial generation of coal bed methane (CBM) represents a significant source of natural gas on Earth. While biostimulation has been demonstrated in batch cultures, environmental parameters such as overburden pressure and formation water flow need to be tested at the laboratory scale to understand in situ potential. We designed and constructed a high-pressure (HP) flow-through reactor system that simulates in situ conditions of underground coal seams. Two stainless-steel columns contained coal from the Powder River Basin (PRB), USA, or a coal/sand mixture to represent the interface of coal seams with sandstone layers, which are hypothesized to exhibit higher methanogenesis rates in situ. The system was filled with CBM formation water, inoculated with a methanogenic enrichment from PRB coal beds, and stimulated with algal biomass as a nutrient. The reactors were incubated under pressure (5.4 atm) and flow of CBM water (0.01 mL/min), and control batch cultures were incubated at ambient pressure and without flow (± amendment). Dissolved and headspace methane concentrations were analyzed over time by gas chromatography for 75 days. The pressurized reactors exhibited longer latency periods than ambient pressure controls, but methane production did not reach a plateau phase, which might reflect the impact of scale on the inoculum. The coal/sand reactor exhibited higher methane production than the coal-only reactor, a pattern also observed in the corresponding controls, suggesting an interface effect on methanogenesis. This study indicates that the HP flow test system we designed is well suited for the study of methanogenesis and provides a successful demonstration of CBM generation from the PRB in field-relevant laboratory conditions as a precursor to meso‑scale demonstrations.
Remotely sensed surface temperature (ST) has been widely used to monitor and assess landscape thermal conditions, hydrologic modeling, and surface energy balance. Landsat thermal sensors have continuously measured the Earth surface thermal radiance since August 1982. The thermal radiance measurements are atmospherically compensated and converted to Landsat STs and delivered as part of the U.S. Geological Survey Landsat Collection 1 U.S. Analysis Ready Data; however, the low satellite revisit cycles combined with the presence of clouds and cloud shadows reduce the number of valid retrievals. This reduction can limit the ability to monitor annual or seasonal variations in the surface thermal budget. These factors reduce the ability to use the temperature data to fit time series for historical trend analysis to match background climate variations. In this study, we implemented an approach that uses linear harmonic least absolute shrinkage and selection operator regression models to fill gaps because of clouds, shadows, and coarse temporal resolution. The gap-filled data provide increased temporal density of Landsat ST records. The gap-filled Landsat ST, therefore, can allow for an improved monitoring of annual, seasonal, or even monthly landscape thermal conditions.
","language":"English","publisher":"U.S. Geological Survey","publisherLocation":"Reston, VA","doi":"10.3133/ofr20231006","usgsCitation":"Xian, G., Shi, H., Arab, S., Mueller, C., Hussain, R., Sayler, K., and Howard, D., 2023, Improving temporal frequency of Landsat surface temperature products using the gap-filling algorithm: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2023–1006, 15 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20231006.","productDescription":"vi, 15 p.","numberOfPages":"26","onlineOnly":"Y","ipdsId":"IP-144337","costCenters":[{"id":222,"text":"Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":412873,"rank":4,"type":{"id":34,"text":"Image Folder"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2023/1006/images"},{"id":412872,"rank":3,"type":{"id":31,"text":"Publication XML"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2023/1006/ofr20231006.XML","text":"Report","linkFileType":{"id":8,"text":"xml"}},{"id":412871,"rank":2,"type":{"id":11,"text":"Document"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2023/1006/ofr20231006.pdf","text":"Report","size":"41.2 MB","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"OFR 2023–1006"},{"id":412880,"rank":5,"type":{"id":39,"text":"HTML Document"},"url":"https://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/ofr20231006/full","text":"Report","linkFileType":{"id":5,"text":"html"}},{"id":412870,"rank":1,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2023/1006/coverthb.jpg"},{"id":499732,"rank":6,"type":{"id":36,"text":"NGMDB Index Page"},"url":"https://ngmdb.usgs.gov/Prodesc/proddesc_114340.htm","linkFileType":{"id":5,"text":"html"}}],"country":"United States","state":"Georgia","city":"Atlanta","geographicExtents":"{\n \"type\": \"FeatureCollection\",\n \"features\": [\n {\n \"type\": \"Feature\",\n \"properties\": {},\n \"geometry\": {\n \"coordinates\": [\n [\n [\n -84.9318883744094,\n 34.338976979151155\n ],\n [\n -84.9318883744094,\n 33.376859208686255\n ],\n [\n -83.70224614831253,\n 33.376859208686255\n ],\n [\n -83.70224614831253,\n 34.338976979151155\n ],\n [\n -84.9318883744094,\n 34.338976979151155\n ]\n ]\n ],\n \"type\": \"Polygon\"\n }\n }\n ]\n}","contact":"Director, Earth Resources Observation and Science Center
U.S. Geological Survey
47914 252nd Street
Sioux Falls, SD 57198
Introduction: To sustain black bear (Ursus americanus) populations, wildlife managers should understand the coupled socio-ecological systems that influence acceptance capacity for bears.
Method: In a study area encompassing a portion of New York State, we spatially matched datasets from three sources: human-bear conflict reports between 2006 and 2018, estimates of local bear density in 2017–2018, and responses to a 2018 property owner survey (n=1,772). We used structural equation modeling to test hypothesized relationships between local human-bear conflict, local bear density, and psychological variables.
Results: The final model explained 57% of the variance in acceptance. The effect of bear population density on acceptance capacity for bears was relatively small and was mediated by a third variable: perception of proximity to the effects of human-bear interactions. The variables that exerted a direct effect on acceptance were perception of bear-related benefits, perception of bear-related risks, perceived proximity to effects of human-bear interactions, and being a hunter. Perception of bear-related benefits had a greater effect on acceptance than perception of bear-related risks. Perceived proximity to effects of human-bear interactions was affected by local bear density, but also was affected by social trust. Increased social trust had nearly the same effect on perceived proximity as decreased bear density. Social trust had the greatest indirect effect on acceptance of any variable in the model.
Discussion: Findings suggest wildlife agencies could maintain public acceptance for bears through an integrated approach that combines actions to address bear-related perceptions and social trust along with active management of bear populations.
","language":"English","publisher":"Frontiers Media","doi":"10.3389/fcosc.2023.1041393","usgsCitation":"Siemer, W., Lauber, T., Stedman, R., Hurst, J., Sun, C., Fuller, A.K., Hollingshead, N., Belant, J., and Kellner, K., 2023, Perception and trust influence acceptance for black bears more than bear density or conflicts: Frontiers in Conservation Science, v. 4, 1041393, 13 p., https://doi.org/10.3389/fcosc.2023.1041393.","productDescription":"1041393, 13 p.","ipdsId":"IP-147449","costCenters":[{"id":199,"text":"Coop Res Unit Leetown","active":true,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":467120,"rank":0,"type":{"id":40,"text":"Open Access Publisher Index Page"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.3389/fcosc.2023.1041393","text":"Publisher Index Page"},{"id":466002,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/thumbnails/outside_thumb.jpg"}],"country":"United States","state":"New York","geographicExtents":"{\n \"type\": \"FeatureCollection\",\n \"features\": [\n {\n \"type\": \"Feature\",\n \"properties\": {},\n \"geometry\": {\n \"coordinates\": [\n [\n [\n -73.92499168267652,\n 40.760363749644455\n ],\n [\n -73.65063699090229,\n 40.98264101294393\n ],\n [\n -73.6996393039949,\n 41.10089280193728\n ],\n [\n -73.49391688239375,\n 41.2484207881225\n ],\n [\n -73.56250536378525,\n 41.3073292248944\n ],\n [\n -73.48423008439727,\n 42.05372989136586\n ],\n [\n -73.5233960109858,\n 42.126434934459525\n ],\n [\n -73.41562767810787,\n 42.34405165012723\n ],\n [\n -73.83681626701608,\n 42.54652252735795\n ],\n [\n -74.44841929328119,\n 42.6495653802757\n ],\n [\n -75.7909273246029,\n 43.03044245093176\n ],\n [\n -76.43773682001827,\n 43.50144007856014\n ],\n [\n -77.04532365530125,\n 43.25213523900416\n ],\n [\n -78.07429641881241,\n 43.3804649394846\n ],\n [\n -79.06407311309604,\n 43.2521232638133\n ],\n [\n -79.02485730522619,\n 42.98027715144707\n ],\n [\n -78.90726018672747,\n 42.90136300879922\n ],\n [\n -79.08365221595503,\n 42.69283803617958\n ],\n [\n -79.75001378472541,\n 42.331662242956355\n ],\n [\n -79.76953018691533,\n 42.01940417603805\n ],\n [\n -75.3404244202763,\n 41.98299557666223\n ],\n [\n -75.07586228888928,\n 41.75679559693819\n ],\n [\n -75.0464736918644,\n 41.515116258185316\n ],\n [\n -74.78190029599845,\n 41.44169802010788\n ],\n [\n -74.66431063355593,\n 41.3681952398467\n ],\n [\n -73.93913471760371,\n 41.02160483993919\n ],\n [\n -73.92499168267652,\n 40.760363749644455\n ]\n ]\n ],\n \"type\": \"Polygon\"\n }\n }\n ]\n}","volume":"4","noUsgsAuthors":false,"publicationDate":"2023-02-09","publicationStatus":"PW","contributors":{"authors":[{"text":"Siemer, William F.","contributorId":348063,"corporation":false,"usgs":false,"family":"Siemer","given":"William F.","affiliations":[{"id":12722,"text":"Cornell University","active":true,"usgs":false}],"preferred":false,"id":922913,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":1},{"text":"Lauber, T. Bruce","contributorId":348064,"corporation":false,"usgs":false,"family":"Lauber","given":"T. Bruce","affiliations":[{"id":12722,"text":"Cornell University","active":true,"usgs":false}],"preferred":false,"id":922914,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":2},{"text":"Stedman, Richard C.","contributorId":348065,"corporation":false,"usgs":false,"family":"Stedman","given":"Richard C.","affiliations":[{"id":12722,"text":"Cornell University","active":true,"usgs":false}],"preferred":false,"id":922915,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":3},{"text":"Hurst, Jeremy E.","contributorId":348066,"corporation":false,"usgs":false,"family":"Hurst","given":"Jeremy E.","affiliations":[{"id":13678,"text":"New York State Department of Environmental Conservation","active":true,"usgs":false}],"preferred":false,"id":922916,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":4},{"text":"Sun, Catherine C.","contributorId":348067,"corporation":false,"usgs":false,"family":"Sun","given":"Catherine C.","affiliations":[{"id":36972,"text":"University of British Columbia","active":true,"usgs":false}],"preferred":false,"id":922917,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":5},{"text":"Fuller, Angela K. 0000-0002-9247-7468 afuller@usgs.gov","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9247-7468","contributorId":3984,"corporation":false,"usgs":true,"family":"Fuller","given":"Angela","email":"afuller@usgs.gov","middleInitial":"K.","affiliations":[{"id":199,"text":"Coop Res Unit Leetown","active":true,"usgs":true}],"preferred":true,"id":922918,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":6},{"text":"Hollingshead, Nicholas A.","contributorId":348068,"corporation":false,"usgs":false,"family":"Hollingshead","given":"Nicholas A.","affiliations":[{"id":12722,"text":"Cornell University","active":true,"usgs":false}],"preferred":false,"id":922919,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":7},{"text":"Belant, Jerrold L.","contributorId":348069,"corporation":false,"usgs":false,"family":"Belant","given":"Jerrold L.","affiliations":[{"id":6601,"text":"Michigan State University","active":true,"usgs":false}],"preferred":false,"id":922920,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":8},{"text":"Kellner, Kenneth III","contributorId":348070,"corporation":false,"usgs":false,"family":"Kellner","given":"Kenneth","suffix":"III","affiliations":[{"id":6601,"text":"Michigan State University","active":true,"usgs":false}],"preferred":false,"id":922921,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":9}]}} ,{"id":70241144,"text":"70241144 - 2023 - Decoupling of species and plant communities of the U.S. Southwest: A CCSM4 climate scenario example","interactions":[],"lastModifiedDate":"2023-03-13T12:14:35.489863","indexId":"70241144","displayToPublicDate":"2023-02-08T07:10:15","publicationYear":"2023","noYear":false,"publicationType":{"id":2,"text":"Article"},"publicationSubtype":{"id":10,"text":"Journal Article"},"seriesTitle":{"id":1475,"text":"Ecosphere","active":true,"publicationSubtype":{"id":10}},"title":"Decoupling of species and plant communities of the U.S. Southwest: A CCSM4 climate scenario example","docAbstract":"Climate change is predicted to alter the current climate suitability under which plant species and communities occur. Predictions of change have focused on individual species or entire communities, but theory indicates plants will not respond uniformly to climate change within or between communities. We developed models of the current climate suitability (the baseline) of 66 plant species characteristic of 29 plant communities of the arid Southwest, made predictions of climate suitability for the species under two climate change scenarios for the years 2041–2060 (Community Climate System Model version 1.4 [CCSM4] global climate model [GCM], Representative Concentration Pathway [RCP] 4.5 and 8.5 scenarios), and calculated changes in suitability between the future scenarios and baseline for each species. Climate change exposure for the entire community was then evaluated as the composite change of the predicted future climate suitability of the communities' characteristic species. Loss of 25% or more of favorable climate suitability was predicted for 39 (RCP4.5) and 51 (RCP8.5) species within their communities. The proportion of the study area with all species in a community having unfavorable suitability was 17.9% (RCP4.5) and 21.3% (RCP8.5) compared to 6.2% for baseline. We show that suitable climates for species within a plant community are not expected to be a single community-wide trajectory, but rather changes in climate suitability will be unique to the species and not experienced uniformly across the extant communities. This decoupling of plant species within their traditional plant communities may lead to a cascade of unanticipated ecological responses and unprecedented challenges to resource management. Our study results can inform hypotheses of the future successional track of plant communities, characteristic species, and the decisions resource managers must make for management.
Population estimates derived from monitoring efforts can be sensitive to the survey method selected, potentially leading to biased estimates and low precision relative to true population size. While small unmanned aerial systems (UAS) present a unique opportunity to survey avian populations while limiting disturbance, relatively little is known about how this method compares with more traditional approaches. In this study we compared population estimates of Snowy (Egretta thula) and Cattle Egrets (Bubulcus ibis) in a mixed-species colony in the Chesapeake Bay (Maryland, USA) derived from UAS photo counts, flush counts, flight-line surveys, and in-colony nest counts along with the time required to derive an estimate via each approach. We found that UAS counts and flush counts produced lower pair estimates than nest counts and flight-line surveys (P < 0.05), and required dramatically less time (x̄ = 6, 8, 84 and 90 min, respectively). These results suggest that while UAS have the potential to collect valuable survey data from breeding colonies that are hard to reach or are especially sensitive to the disturbance inherent in other methods, inherent biases should be considered and caution should be used when comparing results between survey types.