Final report for sea-level rise response modeling for San Francisco Bay estuary tidal marshes
John Y. Takekawa, Karen M. Thorne, Kevin J. Buffington, Kyle A. Spragens, Kathleen M. Swanson, Judith Z. Drexler, David H. Schoellhamer, Cory T. Overton, Michael L. Casazza
2013, Open-File Report 2013-1081
The International Panel on Climate Change has identified coastal ecosystems as areas that will be disproportionally affected by climate change. Current sea-level rise projections range widely with 0.57 to 1.9 meters increase in mea sea level by 2100. The expected accelerated rate of sea-level rise through the 21st century will...
Alaska Geochemical Database, Version 2.0 (AGDB2)–Including “best value” data compilations for rock, sediment, soil, mineral, and concentrate sample mediaI
Matthew Granitto, Jeanine M. Schmidt, Nora B. Shew, Bruce M. Gamble, Keith A. Labay
2013, Data Series 759
The Alaska Geochemical Database Version 2.0 (AGDB2) contains new geochemical data compilations in which each geologic material sample has one “best value” determination for each analyzed species, greatly improving speed and efficiency of use. Like the Alaska Geochemical Database (AGDB, http://pubs.usgs.gov/ds/637/) before it, the AGDB2 was created and designed to...
Solid-phase data from cores at the proposed Dewey Burdock uranium in-situ recovery mine, near Edgemont, South Dakota
Raymond H. Johnson, Sharon F. Diehl, William Benzel
2013, Open-File Report 2013-1093
This report releases solid-phase data from cores at the proposed Dewey Burdock uranium in-situ recovery site near Edgemont, South Dakota. These cores were collected by Powertech Uranium Corporation, and material not used for their analyses were given to the U.S. Geological Survey for additional sampling and analyses. These additional analyses...
Evidence for extensive methane venting on the southeastern U.S. Atlantic margin
L.L. Brothers, C.L. Van Dover, C.R. German, C.L. Kaiser, D.R. Yoerger, C.D. Ruppel, E. Lobecker, A.D. Skarke, J.K.S. Wagner
2013, Geology (41) 807-810
We present the first evidence for widespread seabed methane venting along the southeastern United States Atlantic margin beyond the well-known Blake Ridge diapir seep. Recent ship- and autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV)–collected data resolve multiple water-column anomalies (>1000 m height) and extensive new chemosynthetic seep communities at the Blake Ridge and...
Frequent cross-species transmission of parvoviruses among diverse carnivore hosts
Andrew B. Allison, Dennis J. Kohler, Karen A. Fox, Justin D. Brown, Richard W. Gerhold, Valerie I. Shearn-Bochsler, Edward J. Dubovi, Colin R. Parrish, Edward C. Holmes
2013, Journal of Virology (87) 2342-2347
Although parvoviruses are commonly described in domestic carnivores, little is known about their biodiversity in nondomestic species. A phylogenetic analysis of VP2 gene sequences from puma, coyote, gray wolf, bobcat, raccoon, and striped skunk revealed two major groups related to either feline panleukopenia virus (“FPV-like”) or canine parvovirus (“CPV-like”). Cross-species...
Tracking animals in freshwater with electronic tags: past, present and future
Steven J. Cooke, Jonathan D. Midwood, Jason D. Thiem, Peter Klimley, Martyn C. Lucas, Eva B. Thorstad, John Eiler, Chris Holbrook, Brendan C. Ebner
2013, Animal Biotelemetry (1)
Considerable technical developments over the past half century have enabled widespread application of electronic tags to the study of animals in the wild, including in freshwater environments. We review the constraints associated with freshwater telemetry and biologging and the technical developments relevant to their use. Technical constraints for tracking animals...
Regional bankfull-channel dimensions of non-urban wadeable streams in Indiana
Bret A. Robinson
2013, Scientific Investigations Report 2013-5078
During floods, damage to properties and community infrastructure may result from inundation and the processes of erosion. The damages imparted by erosion are collectively termed the fluvial erosion hazard (FEH), and the Indiana Silver Jackets Multi-agency Hazard Mitigation Taskforce is supporting a program to build tools that will assist Indiana...
Implications of flume slope on discharge estimates from 0.762-meter H flumes used in edge-of-field monitoring
Matthew J. Komiskey, Todd D. Stuntebeck, Amanda L. Cox, Dennis R. Frame
2013, Open-File Report 2013-1082
The effects of longitudinal slope on the estimation of discharge in a 0.762-meter (m) (depth at flume entrance) H flume were tested under controlled conditions with slopes from −8 to +8 percent and discharges from 1.2 to 323 liters per second. Compared to the stage-discharge rating for a longitudinal flume...
Geomorphic process fingerprints in submarine canyons
Daniel S. Brothers, Uri S. ten Brink, Brian D. Andrews, Jason D. Chaytor, David C. Twichell
2013, Marine Geology (337) 53-66
Submarine canyons are common features of continental margins worldwide. They are conduits that funnel vast quantities of sediment from the continents to the deep sea. Though it is known that submarine canyons form primarily from erosion induced by submarine sediment flows, we currently lack quantitative, empirically based expressions that describe...
Postwildfire debris-flow hazard assessment of the area burned by the 2012 Little Bear Fire, south-central New Mexico
Anne C. Tillery, Anne Marie Matherne
2013, Open-File Report 2013-1108
A preliminary hazard assessment was developed of the debris-flow potential from 56 drainage basins burned by the Little Bear Fire in south-central New Mexico in June 2012. The Little Bear Fire burned approximately 179 square kilometers (km2) (44,330 acres), including about 143 km2 (35,300 acres) of National Forest System lands...
Survey of bats on Columbia National Wildlife Refuge, Washington, December 2011-April 2012
Joan C. Hagar, Tom Manning, Jenny Barnett
2013, Open-File Report 2013-1120
Bats are diverse and abundant in many ecosystems worldwide. They perform important ecosystem functions, particularly by consuming large quantities of insects (Cleveland and others, 2006; Jones and others, 2009; Kuhn and others, 2011). The importance of bats to biodiversity and to ecosystem integrity has been overlooked in many regions, largely...
Geomorphic characterization of the U.S. Atlantic continental margin
Daniel S. Brothers, Uri S. ten Brink, Brian D. Andrews, Jason D. Chaytor
2013, Marine Geology (338) 46-63
The increasing volume of multibeam bathymetry data collected along continental margins is providing new opportunities to study the feedbacks between sedimentary and oceanographic processes and seafloor morphology. Attempts to develop simple guidelines that describe the relationships between form and process often overlook the importance of inherited physiography in slope depositional...
Holocene faulting in the Bellingham forearc basin: Upper-plate deformation at the northern end of the Cascadia subduction zone
Harvey M. Kelsey, Brian L. Sherrod, Richard J. Blakely, Ralph A. Haugerud
2013, Journal of Geophysical Research B: Solid Earth (117)
The northern Cascadia forearc takes up most of the strain transmitted northward via the Oregon Coast block from the northward-migrating Sierra Nevada block. The north-south contractional strain in the forearc manifests in upper-plate faults active during the Holocene, the northern-most components of which are faults within the Bellingham Basin. The...
A USANS/SANS study of the accessibility of pores in the Barnett Shale to methane and water
Leslie F. Ruppert, Richard Sakurovs, Tomasz P. Blach, Lilin He, Yuri B. Melnichenko, David F. Mildner, Leo Alcantar-Lopez
2013, Energy & Fuels (27) 772-779
Shale is an increasingly important source of natural gas in the United States. The gas is held in fine pores that need to be accessed by horizontal drilling and hydrofracturing techniques. Understanding the nature of the pores may provide clues to making gas extraction more efficient. We have investigated two...
Bison grazing ecology at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge, Colorado
Steve Germaine, Linda Zeigenfuss, Kathryn A. Schoenecker
2013, Open-File Report 2013-1112
The Rocky Mountain Arsenal (RMA) National Wildlife Refuge reintroduced bison to a small pasture in 2007. Refuge managers needed information on the effects of bison grazing on vegetation communities in the bison pasture as well as information on how bison might affect other management priorities at RMA. In particular, RMA...
Use of Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) habitat models to predict breeding birds on the San Pedro River, Arizona
Tiffany Marie McFarland, Charles van Riper III
2013, Open-File Report 2013-1100
Successful management practices of avian populations depend on understanding relationships between birds and their habitat, especially in rare habitats, such as riparian areas of the desert Southwest. Remote-sensing technology has become popular in habitat modeling, but most of these models focus on single species, leaving their applicability to understanding broader...
Nahcolite and halite deposition through time during the saline mineral phase of Eocene Lake Uinta, Piceance Basin, western Colorado
Ronald C. Johnson, Michael E. Brownfield
2013, Open-File Report 2013-1114
Halite and the sodium bicarbonate mineral nahcolite were deposited during the saline phase of Eocene Lake Uinta in the Piceance Basin, western Colorado. Variations in the area of saline mineral deposition through time were interpreted from studies of core and outcrop. Saline minerals were extensively leached by groundwater, so the...
Relation of watershed setting and stream nutrient yields at selected sites in central and eastern North Carolina, 1997-2008
Stephen L. Harden, Thomas F. Cuffney, Silvia Terziotti, Katharine R. Kolb
2013, Scientific Investigations Report 2013-5007
Data collected between 1997 and 2008 at 48 stream sites were used to characterize relations between watershed settings and stream nutrient yields throughout central and eastern North Carolina. The focus of the investigation was to identify environmental variables in watersheds that influence nutrient export for supporting the development and prioritization...
Seawater circulation in sediments driven by interactions between seabed topography and fluid density
Leonard F. Konikow, M. Akhavan, C.D. Langevin, H.A. Michael, A.H. Sawyer
2013, Water Resources Research (49) 1386-1399
Measurements of submarine groundwater discharge (SGD) in coastal areas often show that the saltwater discharge component is substantially greater than the freshwater discharge. Several mechanisms have been proposed to explain these high saltwater discharge values, including saltwater circulation driven by wave and tidal pumping, wave and tidal setup in intertidal...
Improved estimates of filtered total mercury loadings and total mercury concentrations of solids from potential sources to Sinclair Inlet, Kitsap County, Washington
Anthony J. Paulson, Kathleen E. Conn, John F. DeWild
2013, Scientific Investigations Report 2013-5081
Previous investigations examined sources and sinks of mercury to Sinclair Inlet based on historic and new data. This included an evaluation of mercury concentrations from various sources and mercury loadings from industrial discharges and groundwater flowing from the Bremerton naval complex to Sinclair Inlet. This report provides new data from...
Coal resources, reserves and peak coal production in the United States
Robert C. Milici, Romeo M. Flores, Gary D. Stricker
2013, International Journal of Coal Geology (113) 109-115
In spite of its large endowment of coal resources, recent studies have indicated that United States coal production is destined to reach a maximum and begin an irreversible decline sometime during the middle of the current century. However, studies and assessments illustrating coal reserve data essential for making accurate forecasts...
Climate warming shifts carbon allocation from stemwood to roots in calcium-depleted spruce forests
Andrei Gennady Lapenis, Gregory B. Lawrence, Alexander Heim, Chengyang Zheng, Walter Shortle
2013, Global Biogeochemical Cycles (27) 101-107
Increased greening of northern forests, measured by the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), has been presented as evidence that a warmer climate has increased both net primary productivity (NPP) and the carbon sink in boreal forests. However, higher production and greener canopies may accompany changes in carbon allocation that favor...
Procedure for calculating estimated ultimate recoveries of Bakken and Three Forks Formations horizontal wells in the Williston Basin
Troy A. Cook
2013, Open-File Report 2013-1109
Estimated ultimate recoveries (EURs) are a key component in determining productivity of wells in continuous-type oil and gas reservoirs. EURs form the foundation of a well-performance-based assessment methodology initially developed by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS; Schmoker, 1999). This methodology was formally reviewed by the American Association of Petroleum Geologists...
Arsenic and mercury in the soils of an industrial city in the Donets Basin, Ukraine
Kathryn M. Conko, Edward R. Landa, Allan Kolker, Kostiantyn Kozlov, Herman J. Gibb, Jose Centeno, Boris S. Panov, Yuri B. Panov
2013, Soil and Sediment Contamination: An International Journal (22) 574-593
Soil and house dust collected in and around Hg mines and a processing facility in Horlivka, a mid-sized city in the Donets Basin of southeastern Ukraine, have elevated As and Hg levels. Surface soils collected at a former Hg-processing facility had up to 1300 mg kg−1 As and 8800 mg...
The effect of increasing salinity and forest mortality on soil nitrogen and phosphorus mineralization in tidal freshwater forested wetlands
Gregory B. Noe, Ken W. Krauss, B. Graeme Lockaby, William H. Conner, Cliff R. Hupp
2013, Biogeochemistry (114) 225-244
Tidal freshwater wetlands are sensitive to sea level rise and increased salinity, although little information is known about the impact of salinification on nutrient biogeochemistry in tidal freshwater forested wetlands. We quantified soil nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) mineralization using seasonal in situ incubations of modified resin cores along spatial...
