Ecological interfaces between land and flowing water: Themes and trends in riparian research and management
Stewart B. Rood, Michael L. Scott, Mark Dixon, Eduardo Gonzalez, Christian O Marks, Patrick B. Shafroth, Martin Volk
2020, Wetlands (40) 1801-1811
This paper provides an overview of past, present and future themes for research and management of riparian zones, often relating to papers within this Wetlands Special Feature. Riparian research expanded in the United States around 1980 with themes that recognized (1) damage from excessive livestock, or (2) damage...
Streamflow—Water year 2019
Xiaodong Jian, David M. Wolock, Harry F. Lins, Steven J. Brady
2020, Fact Sheet 2020-3057
The maps and graphs in this summary describe national streamflow conditions for water year 2019 (October 1, 2018, to September 30, 2019) in the context of streamflow ranks relative to the 90-year period of water years 1930–2019. Annual runoff in the Nation’s rivers and streams during water year 2019 (13.62...
Geomorphic survey of North Fork Eagle Creek, New Mexico, 2018
Alexander P. Graziano
2020, Open-File Report 2020-1121
About one-quarter of the water supply for the Village of Ruidoso, New Mexico, is from groundwater pumped from wells located along North Fork Eagle Creek in the National Forest System lands of the Lincoln National Forest near Alto, New Mexico. Because of concerns regarding the effects of groundwater pumping on...
Warmer temperatures interact with salinity to weaken physiological facilitation to stress in freshwater fishes
Richard H. Walker, Geoffrey D. Smith, Spencer B Hudson, Susannah S. Susannah S. French, Annika W. Walters
2020, Conservation Physiology (8)
Management of stressors requires an understanding of how multiple stressors interact, how different species respond to those interactions and the underlying mechanisms driving observed patterns in species' responses. Salinization and rising temperatures are two pertinent stressors predicted to intensify in freshwater ecosystems, posing concern for how susceptible organisms achieve and...
Density dependence and adult survival drive the dynamics in two high elevation amphibian populations
Amanda M. Kissel, Simone Tenan, Erin L. Muths
2020, Diversity (12)
Amphibian conservation has progressed from the identification of declines to mitigation, but efforts are hampered by the lack of nuanced information about the effects of environmental characteristics and stressors on mechanistic processes of population regulation. Challenges include a paucity of long-term data and scant information about the relative roles of...
Use of remote sensing tools to predict focal areas for sea turtle conservation in the Southwestern Atlantic
L. Prosdocimi, N. Teryda, G. Navarrow, Raymond Carthy
2020, Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems (31) 830-840
Fisheries bycatch of non-target species in the commercial fleet is a major source of anthropogenic injury and mortality for sea turtles and marine megafauna.The Río de la Plata maritime front (RLPMF) and its adjacent international waters – comprising part of the Argentine and Uruguayan exclusive economic zones, is a...
Wetland conservation in the United States: A swinging pendulum
David M. Mushet, Aram Calhoun
2020, Book chapter, Soil and water conservation: A celebration of 75 years
No abstract available....
Continuous stream discharge, salinity, and associated data collected in the lower St. Johns River and its tributaries, Florida, 2019
Patrick J. Ryan
2020, Open-File Report 2020-1140
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District, is deepening the St. Johns River channel in Jacksonville, Florida, from 40 to 47 feet along 13 miles of the river channel beginning at the mouth of the river at the Atlantic Ocean, in order to accommodate larger, fully loaded cargo vessels....
Assessing native fish restoration potential in Catoctin Mountain Park
Nathaniel P. Hitt, Karmann G. Kessler, Zachary A. Kelly, Karli M. Rogers, Hannah E. Macmillan, Heather L. Walsh
2020, Open-File Report 2020-1137
Biological conservation is a fundamental purpose of the National Park system, and Catoctin Mountain Park (CATO) supports high-quality habitat for native fishes in the headwaters of the Chesapeake Bay watershed in eastern North America. However, native Blue Ridge sculpin (Cottus caeruleomentum) have been extirpated in Big Hunting Creek above Cunningham...
Survival of Laysan Teal Anas laysanensis differs among island populations: Role of chronic avian botulism
Michelle H Reynolds, Jeffrey Hatfield, Karen Courtot, Cynthia Vanderlip
2020, Wildfowl (70) 192-210
Monitoring demographic response over time is valuable for understanding population dynamics of endangered species. We quantified the variation in survival patterns for three small isolated island populations of endangered waterfowl in the Hawaiian Archipelago. Laysan Teal Anas laysanensis were individually marked and the fate of 1,150 individuals were followed from different cohorts...
Investigating the effects of broad ion beam milling to sedimentary organic matter: Surface flattening or heat-induced aromatization and condensation?
Paul C. Hackley, Aaron M. Jubb, Brett J. Valentine, Javin J. Hatcherian, Jing-Jiang Yu, William K. Podrazky
2020, Fuel (282)
Previous work has proposed transfer of kinetic heat energy from low-energy broad ion beam (BIB) milling causes thermal alteration of sedimentary organic matter, resulting in increases of organic matter reflectance. Whereas, other studies have suggested the organic matter reflectance increase from...
The roles of flood magnitude and duration in controlling channel width and complexity on the Green River in Canyonlands, Utah, USA
Paul E. Grams, David J. Dean, Alexander E. Walker, Alan Kasprak, John C. Schmidt
2020, Geomorphology (371)
Predictions of river channel adjustment to changes in streamflow regime based on relations between mean channel characteristics and mean flood magnitude can be useful to evaluate average channel response. However, because these relations assume equilibrium sediment transport, their applicability to cases...
The 150th anniversary of the 1869 Powell expedition—USGS participation in the Sesquicentennial Colorado River Exploring Expedition and reflections from the ~1,000-mile journey down the Green and Colorado Rivers
Annie Scott, Eleanour Snow
2020, Circular 1475
In 1869, John Wesley Powell completed the first well-recorded scientific river journey to explore an extensive region of the Colorado River Basin. Powell later helped to establish the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and served as its second director (1881–94), cementing his position in the folklore of the Survey. In 2019,...
External quality assurance project report for the National Atmospheric Deposition Program’s National Trends Network and Mercury Deposition Network, 2017–18
Gregory A. Wetherbee, RoseAnn Martin
2020, Scientific Investigations Report 2020-5084
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Precipitation Chemistry Quality Assurance project (PCQA) operated five distinct programs to provide external quality-assurance monitoring for the National Atmospheric Deposition Program’s (NADP) National Trends Network and Mercury Deposition Network during 2017–18. The National Trends Network programs included (1) a field audit program to evaluate sample...
2017 Volcanic activity in Alaska—Summary of events and response of the Alaska Volcano Observatory
James P. Dixon, Cheryl E. Cameron, Alexandra M. Iezzi, John A. Power, Kristi L. Wallace, Christopher F. Waythomas
2020, Scientific Investigations Report 2020-5102
The Alaska Volcano Observatory responded to eruptions, significant and minor volcanic unrest, and seismic events at 16 volcanic centers in Alaska during 2017. The most notable volcanic activity consisted of a major eruption at Bogoslof Island, continuing intermittent dome growth and ash eruptions from Mount Cleveland, the end of the...
2016 Volcanic activity in Alaska—Summary of events and response of the Alaska Volcano Observatory
Cheryl E. Cameron, James P. Dixon, Christopher F. Waythomas, Alexandra M. Iezzi, Kristi L. Wallace, Robert G. McGimsey, Katharine F. Bull
2020, Scientific Investigations Report 2020-5125
The Alaska Volcano Observatory responded to eruptions, volcanic unrest or suspected unrest, and seismic events at 15 volcanic centers in Alaska during 2016. The most notable volcanic activity consisted of eruptions at Pavlof and Bogoslof volcanoes. Both eruptions produced significant ash clouds that affected regional air travel. Mount Cleveland continued...
Incorporating established conservation networks into freshwater conservation planning results in more workable prioritizations
Nicholas Sievert, Craig P. Paukert, J. B. Whittier
2020, Frontiers in Environmental Science (8)
Resources for addressing stream fish conservation issues are often limited and the stressors impacting fish continue to increase, so decision makers often rely on tools to prioritize locations for conservation actions. Because conservation networks already exist in many areas, incorporating these into the planning process can increase the ability of...
Forest management and bats
Daniel A. R. Taylor, Roger W. Perry, Darren A. Miller, W. Mark Ford
2020, Report
Because more than half of the forest land in the United States is privately owned, forest landowners play an important role in the stewardship of our wildlife resources. This publication will introduce you to a group of wildlife that is particularly important to forest ecosystems, but also one of the...
The ghosts of propagation past: Haplotype information clarifies the relative influence of stocking history and phylogeographic processes on contemporary population structure of walleye (Sander vitreus)
Matthew L. Bootsma, Loren Miller, Greg G. Sass, Peter T. Euclide, Wesley Larson
2020, Evolutionary Applications (14) 1124-1144
Stocking of fish is an important tool for maintaining fisheries but can also significantly alter population genetic structure and erode the portfolio of within-species diversity that is important for promoting resilience and adaptability. Walleye (Sander vitreus) are a highly valued sportfish in the midwestern United States, a region characterized by...
Research priorities for migratory birds under climate change—A qualitative value of information assessment
Madeleine A. Rubenstein, Clark S. Rushing, James E. Lyons, Michael C. Runge
2020, Circular 1472
The mission of the U.S. Geological Survey National Climate Adaptation Science Center is to provide actionable, management-relevant research on climate change effects on ecosystems and wildlife to U.S. Department of the Interior bureaus. Providing this kind of useful scientific information requires understanding how natural-resource managers make decisions and identifying research...
Structure contour and isopach maps of the Wolfcamp shale and Bone Spring Formation of the Delaware Basin, Permian Basin Province, New Mexico and Texas
Stephanie B. Gaswirth
2020, Open-File Report 2020-1126
A series of structure contour and isopach maps for the Wolfcamp shale and the Bone Spring Formation of the Delaware Basin, Permian Basin Province, were generated in support of the U.S. Geological Survey 2018 assessment of undiscovered continuous oil and gas resources. The interpreted formation tops used to generate the...
Depositional sequence stratigraphy of Turonian to Santonian sediments, Cape Fear arch, North Carolina Coastal Plain, USA
Wilma Aleman Gonzalez, Jean Self-Trail, W. Burleigh Harris, Jessica P. Moore, Kathleen Farrell
2020, Stratigraphy (17) 293-314
A new sequence stratigraphic framework for Turonian to Santonian (94-84 Ma) sediments is established using data from the USGS Kure Beach and Elizabethtown cores collected from the Atlantic Coastal Plain of North Carolina (NC). These sediments represent some of the oldest marine units deposited on the southeastern Atlantic Coastal Plain...
Assessment of undiscovered oil and gas resources in the Upper Cretaceous Austin Chalk and Tokio and Eutaw Formations, U.S. Gulf Coast, 2019
Janet K. Pitman, Stanley T. Paxton, Scott A. Kinney, Katherine J. Whidden, Seth S. Haines, Brian A. Varela, Tracey J. Mercier, Cheryl A. Woodall, Christopher J. Schenk, Heidi M. Leathers-Miller, Ofori N. Pearson, Lauri A. Burke, Phuong A. Le, Justin E. Birdwell, Nicholas J. Gianoutsos, Katherine L. French, Ronald M. Drake II, Thomas M. Finn, Geoffrey S. Ellis, Stephanie B. Gaswirth, Kristen R. Marra, Marilyn E. Tennyson, Chilisa M. Shorten
2020, Fact Sheet 2020-3045
Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated undiscovered, technically recoverable mean resources of 6.9 billion barrels of oil and 41.5 trillion cubic feet of natural gas in conventional and continuous accumulations in the Upper Cretaceous Austin Chalk and Tokio and Eutaw Formations onshore and in State waters...
Genetically-informed seed transfer zones for Cleome lutea and Machaeranthera canescens across the Colorado Plateau and adjacent regions
Robert Massatti
2020, Report
Genetically-based seed transfer zones are described herein for two priority restoration species on and adjacent to the Colorado Plateau (Massatti 2020). Species include Cleome lutea Hook. (Capparaceae; commonly called yellow spiderflower or yellow beeplant; synonym Peritoma lutea (Hook.) Raf.) and Machaeranthera canescens (Pursh) A. Gray (Asteraceae; commonly called hoary tansyaster;...
Quantifying and addressing the prevalence and bias of study designs in the environmental and social sciences
Alec P. Christie, David Abecasis, Mehdi Adjeroud, Juan C. Alonso, Tatsuya Amano, Alvaro Anton, Barry P. Baldigo, Rafael Barrientos, Jake E. Bicknell, Deborah A. Buhl, Just Cebrian, Ricardo S. Ceia, Luciana Cibils-Martina, Sarah Clarke, Joachim Claudet, Michael D. Craig, Dominique Davoult, Annelies De Backer, Mary K. Donovan, Tyler D. Eddy, Filipe M. Franca, Jonathan P.A. Gardner, Bradley P. Harris, Ari Huusko, Ian L. Jones, Brendan P. Kelaher, Janne S. Kotiaho, Adrià López-Baucells, Heather L. Major, Aki Maki-Petays, Beatriz Martinez-Lopez, Carlos A. Martin, Philip A. Martin, Daniel Mateos-Molina, Robert A. McConnaughey, Michele Meroni, Christoph F. J. Meyer, Kade Mills, Monica Montefalcone, Norbertas Noreika, Carlos Palacin, Anjali Pande, C. Roland Pitcher, Carlos Ponce, Matthew J. Rinella, Ricardo Rocha, Maria C. Ruiz-Delgado, Juan J. Schmitter-Soto, Jill A. Shaffer, Shailesh Sharma, Anna A. Sher, Doriane Stagnol, Thomas Stanley, Kevin D.E. Stokesbury, Aurora Torres, Oliver Tully, Teppo Vehanen, Corinne Watts, Qingyuan Zhao, William J. Sutherland
2020, Nature Communications (11)
Building trust in science and evidence-based decision-making depends heavily on the credibility of studies and their findings. Researchers employ many different study designs that vary in their risk of bias to evaluate the true effect of interventions or impacts. Here, we empirically quantify, on a large...
