Thermokarst amplifies fluvial inorganic carbon cycling and export across watershed scales on the Peel Plateau, Canada
Scott Zolkos, Suzanne E. Tank, Robert G. Striegl, Steven V. Kokelj, Justin Kokszka, Cristian Estop-Aragones, David Olefeldt
2020, Biogeosciences (17) 5163-5182
As climate warming and precipitation increase at high latitudes, permafrost terrains across the circumpolar north are poised for intensified geomorphic activity and sediment mobilization that are expected to persist for millennia. In previously glaciated permafrost terrain, ice-rich deposits are associated with large stores of reactive mineral substrate. Over geological timescales,...
Distribution of aseismic deformation along the central San Andreas and Calaveras Faults from differencing repeat airborne lidar
Chelsea P Scott, Stephen B. DeLong, J Ramon Arrosmith
2020, Geophysical Research Letters (47)
Fault creep reduces seismic hazard and serves as a window into plate boundary processes; however, creep rates are typically constrained with sparse measurements. We use differential lidar topography (11–13 year time span) to measure a spatially dense surface deformation field along a 150 km section of the Central San Andreas and Calaveras...
Isolation and characterization of microsatellite loci in merlins (Falco columbarius) and cross-species amplification in gyrfalcons (F. rusticolus) and peregrine falcons (F. peregrinus)
Joshua M. Hull, George K. Sage, Sarah A. Sonsthagen, Megan C. Gravley, Breanna L. Martinico, Travis L. Booms, Ted Swem, Sandra L. Talbot
2020, Molecular Biology Reports (47) 8377-8383
I. Background: Merlins, Falco columbarius, breed throughout temperate and high latitude habitats in Asia, Europe, and North America. Like peregrine falcons, F. peregrinus, merlins underwent population declines during the mid-to-late 20th century, due to organochlorine-based contamination, and have subsequently recovered, at least in North American populations. II....
Characterization of acoustic detection efficiency using a gliding robotic fish as a mobile receiver platform
Osama Ennasr, Christopher Holbrook, Darryl W. Hondorp, Charles C. Krueger, Demetris Coleman, Pratap Solanki, John Thon, Xiaobo Tan
2020, Animal Biotelemetry (8)
BackgroundAutonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) and animal telemetry have become important tools for understanding the relationships between aquatic organisms and their environment, but more information is needed to guide the development and use of AUVs as effective animal tracking platforms. A forward-facing acoustic telemetry receiver (VR2Tx 69 kHz; VEMCO, Bedford,...
Evaluation of the U.S. Geological Survey streamgage network in South Carolina, 2017
Toby D. Feaster, Katharine Kolb
2020, Open-File Report 2020-1104
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has been monitoring streamflow in South Carolina since the late 1800s. From the beginning, the USGS streamgage network in South Carolina has been dynamic, with streamgages being added or removed depending on their purpose and the availability of funding from Federal, State, and local partners....
Chapter A6.2. Dissolved oxygen
U.S. Geological Survey
2020, Techniques and Methods 9-A6.2
The “National Field Manual for the Collection of Water-Quality Data” (NFM) provides guidelines and procedures for U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) personnel who collect data used to assess the quality of the Nation’s surface water and groundwater resources. This chapter, NFM A6.2, provides guidance and protocols for the measurement of dissolved...
Common insecticide disrupts aquatic communities: A mesocosm-to-field ecological risk assessment of fipronil and its degradates in U.S. streams
Janet L. Miller, Travis S. Schmidt, Peter C. Van Metre, Barbara Mahler, Mark W. Sandstrom, Lisa H. Nowell, Daren Carlisle, Patrick W. Moran
2020, Science Advances (6) eabc1299
Insecticides in streams are increasingly a global concern, yet information on safe concentrations for aquatic ecosystems is sparse. In a 30-day mesocosm experiment exposing native benthic aquatic invertebrates to the common insecticide fipronil and four degradates, fipronil compounds caused altered emergence and trophic cascades. Effect concentrations eliciting a 50% response...
A large database supports the use of simple models of post-fire tree mortality for thick-barked conifers, with less support for other species
C. Alina Cansler, Sharon M. Hood, Phillip J. van Mantgem, J. Morgan Varner
2020, Fire Ecology (16)
BackgroundPredictive models of post-fire tree and stem mortality are vital for management planning and understanding fire effects. Post-fire tree and stem mortality have been traditionally modeled as a simple empirical function of tree defenses (e.g., bark thickness) and fire injury (e.g., crown scorch). We used the Fire and Tree Mortality...
Double exposure and dynamic vulnerability: Assessing economic well-being, ecological change and the development of the oil and gas industry in coastal Louisiana
Scott Hemmerling, Tim J. B. Carruthers, Ann Hijuelos, Harris C. Bienn
2020, Shore & Beach (88) 72-82
The oil and gas industry has been a powerful driver of economic change in coastal Louisiana for the latter half of the 20th century and into the 21st. Yet, the overall impact of the industry on the economic well-being of host communities is varied, both spatially and temporally. While the...
Deglaciation of the Puget Lowland, Washington
Ralph A. Haugerud
2020, GSA Special Paper 548
Recently obtained radiocarbon ages from the southern Puget Lowland and reevaluation of limiting ages from the Olympic Peninsula in the light of new light detection and ranging (LiDAR) data suggest that the...
Larval diet of the rare caddisfly Glyphopsyche missouri (Trichoptera: Limnephilidae) in Missouri, USA
Russell G. Rhodes, Barry C. Poulton, William R. Mabee, David E. Bowles
2020, Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington (122) 1026-1030
No abstract available....
Diverse cataclysmic floods from Pleistocene glacial Lake Missoula
Roger P. Denlinger, David L. George, Charles M. Cannon, Jim E. O'Connor, Richard B. Waitt
2020, GSA Special Volume on Pleistocene megafloods (548)
In late Wisconsin time, the Purcell Trench lobe of the Cordilleran ice sheet dammed the Clark Fork of the Columbia River in western Montana, creating glacial Lake Missoula. During part of this epoch, the Okanogan lobe also dammed the Columbia River downstream, creating glacial Lake Columbia in northeast Washington. Repeated...
Geomorphic and sedimentary effects of modern climate change: Current and anticipated future conditions in the western United States
Amy E. East, Joel B. Sankey
2020, Reviews of Geophysics (58)
Hydroclimatic changes associated with global warming over the past 50 years have been documented widely, but physical landscape responses are poorly understood thus far. Detecting sedimentary and geomorphic signals of modern climate change presents challenges owing to short record lengths, difficulty resolving signals in stochastic natural systems, influences of land...
The nature and composition of the J-M Reef, Stillwater Complex, Montana, USA
Michael Jenkins, James E. Mungall, Michael L. Zientek, Paul Holick, Kevin Butak
2020, Economic Geology (115) 1799-1826
In this contribution, we analyze 30 years of mine development data and quantitatively identify the processes that control the grade and tenor of the mineralized rock. An assay database of more than 60,000 samples was used to examine variations in ore grade and tenor of...
Estimating flood magnitude and frequency on gaged and ungaged streams in Maine
Pamela J. Lombard, Glenn A. Hodgkins
2020, Scientific Investigations Report 2020-5092
Accurate estimates of flood frequency and magnitude on rivers and streams in Maine are a key component of effective flood risk management, flood mitigation, and flood recovery programs for the State. Flood-frequency estimates are published here for 148 streamgages in and adjacent to Maine. Equations are provided for users to...
Physical and chemical stressors on algal, invertebrate, and fish communities in 14 Milwaukee area streams, 2004–2013
Barbara C. Scudder Eikenberry, Michelle A. Nott, Jana S. Stewart, Daniel J. Sullivan, David A. Alvarez, Amanda H. Bell, Faith A. Fitzpatrick
2020, Fact Sheet 2020-3051
In 2004, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) began sampling 14 wadable streams in urban or urbanizing watersheds near Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The overall goal of the study is to assess the health of the aquatic communities in the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District planning area to inform current and future watershed management....
River network and reach‐scale controls on habitat for lamprey larvae in the Umpqua River Basin, Oregon
Krista Jones, Jason B. Dunham, Jim E. O'Connor, Mackenzie K. Keith, Joseph F. Mangano, Kelly Coates, Travis Mackie
2020, North American Journal of Fisheries Management (40) 1400-1416
This study developed a spatially explicit framework to support the conservation of Western Brook Lamprey Lampetra richardsoni and Pacific Lamprey Entosphenus tridentatus in the Umpqua River basin, Oregon. This framework identified locations within the river network likely to support “potential burrowing habitat” for lamprey larvae based on geomorphic conditions and evaluated the overlap of...
Spectral wave-driven bedload transport across a coral reef flat/lagoon complex
Kurt J. Rosenberger, Curt D. Storlazzi, Olivia M. Cheriton, Andrew Pomeroy, Jeff E. Hansen, Ryan Lowe, Mark Buckley
2020, Frontiers in Marine Science (7)
Coral reefs are an important source of sediment for reef-lined coasts by helping to maintain beaches while also providing protection in the form of wave energy dissipation. Understanding the mechanisms by which sediment is delivered to the coast as well as better constraining the total volumes generated are critical...
Predicting multi-species foraging hotspots for marine turtles in the Gulf of Mexico
Ikuko Fujisaki, Kristen Hart, David N. Bucklin, Autumn R. Iverson, Cynthia Rubio, Margaret M. Lamont, Raul de Jesus G.D. Miron, Patrick M. Burchfield, Jaime Pena, Donna J. Shaver
2020, Endangered Species Research (43) 253-266
Quantifying the distribution of animals and identifying underlying characteristics that define suitable habitat are essential for effective conservation of free-ranging species. Prioritizing areas for conservation is important in managing a geographic extent that has a high level of disturbance and limited conservation resources. We examined the potential use of...
U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Water-Use Data and Research (WUDR) program overview and status as of October 22, 2020
Kimberly Shaffer
2020, Newsletter
The USGS Water-Use Data and Research Program (WUDR) is an appropriated program that began in Federal fiscal year 2015 and is authorized under the SECURE Water Act (Sec. 9508 (c)). WUDR provides financial assistance through cooperative agreements to State water resource agencies. The WUDR Program has two main goals: To improve...
Spatial fingerprint of younger dryas cooling and warming in eastern North America
David Fastovich, James M. Russell, Stephen T. Jackson, Teresa R. Krause, Shaun A. Marcott, John W. Williams
2020, Geophysical Research Letters (47)
The Younger Dryas (YD, 12.9–11.7 ka) is the most recent, near-global interval of abrupt climate change with rates similar to modern global warming. Understanding the causes and biodiversity effects of YD climate changes requires determining the spatial fingerprints of past temperature changes. Here we build pollen-based and branched...
Using a large-n seismic array to explore the robustness of spectral estimations
Kilian B. Kemna, A.F. Pena Castro, Rebecca M. Harrington, Elizabeth S. Cochran
2020, Geophysical Research Letters (47)
Spectral analysis is widely used to estimate and refine earthquake source parameters such as source radius, seismic moment, and stress drop. This study aims to quantify the precision of the single spectra and empirical Green's function spectral ratio approach using the Large‐n Seismic Survey in Oklahoma (LASSO) array....
Variable-density groundwater flow and contaminant transport, Operable Unit 1, Naval Base Kitsap, Keyport, Washington
Richard M. Yager, Wendy B. Welch, Alex O. Headman, Richard S. Dinicola
2020, Scientific Investigations Report 2020-5066
Chlorinated volatile organic compounds (CVOCs) have migrated to groundwater beneath a former 9-acre landfill at Operable Unit 1 (OU-1) on Naval Base Kitsap, which was active from the 1930s through 1973 on the Keyport Peninsula, in Kitsap County, Washington. Biodegradation of CVOCs at OU-1 limits the mass of dissolved-phase CVOCs...
Simulated effects of pumping in the Death Valley Regional Groundwater Flow System, Nevada and California—Selected management scenarios projected to 2120
Nora C. Nelson, Tracie R. Jackson
2020, Scientific Investigations Report 2020-5103
Declining water levels and reduced natural discharge at springs, seeps, and phreatophyte areas primarily are the result of decades of groundwater development in the Death Valley regional flow system, in Nevada and California. A calibrated groundwater-flow model was used to simulate potential future effects of groundwater pumping on water levels...
Mitogenome of northern long-eared bat
S. J. Gaughan, Kevin L. Pope, J. A. White, C. A. Lemen, P. W. Freeman
2020, Mitochondrial DNA Part B (5) 3592-3593
The complete mitogenome of the northern long-eared bat (Myotis septentrionalis) was determined to be 17,362 bp and contained 22 tRNA genes, 2 rRNA genes and one control region. The whole genome base composition was 33.8% GC. Phylogenetic analysis suggests that M. septentrionalis be positioned next to M. auriculus in the Nearctic subclade of the Myotis genus. This complete...
