Methods for rapid quality assessment for national-scale land surface change monitoring
Qiang Zhou, Christopher Barber, George Z. Xian
2020, Remote Sensing (12)
Providing rapid access to land surface change data and information is a goal of the U.S. Geological Survey. Through the Land Change Monitoring, Assessment, and Projection (LCMAP) initiative, we have initiated a monitoring capability that involves generating a suite of ten annual land cover and land surface change datasets...
Generalized models to estimate carbon and nitrogen stocks of organic soil horizons in Interior Alaska
Kristen L. Manies, Mark Waldrop, Jennifer W. Harden
2020, Earth System Science Data (ESSD) (12) 1745-1757
Boreal ecosystems comprise one tenth of the world’s land surface and contain over 20 % of the global soil carbon (C) stocks. Boreal soils are unique in that its mineral soil is covered by what can be quite thick layers of organic soil. These organic soil layers, or horizons, can...
Steps taken for calculating estimated ultimate recoveries of wells in the Eagle Ford Group and associated Cenomanian–Turonian strata, U.S. Gulf Coast, Texas, 2018
Heidi M. Leathers-Miller
2020, Scientific Investigations Report 2020-5077
In 2018, the U.S. Geological Survey published an assessment of technically recoverable continuous oil and gas resources of the Eagle Ford Group and associated Cenomanian–Turonian strata in the U.S. Gulf Coast of Texas. Estimated ultimate recoveries (EURs) were calculated with production data from IHS MarkitTM using DeclinePlus software in the...
Winter versus summer habitat selection in a threatened ground squirrel
Amanda R. Goldberg, Courtney J. Conway, Diane Evans Mack, Greg S. Burak
2020, The Wildlife Professional (84) 1548-1559
Hibernation is a strategy many species employ to survive periods of thermal stress or resource shortage (e.g., harsh thermal conditions, food limitations) and habitat requirements of hibernating species may differ between summer (the active season) and winter (during hibernation). Accounting for seasonal differences in habitat affinities will...
Detection of SARS-CoV-2 by RNAscope® in situ hybridization and immunohistochemistry techniques
Mariano Carossino, Hon S. Ip, Jurgen a. Richt, Kendra Schultz, Kimberly Harper, Alan T. Loynachan, Fabio Del Piero, Udeni B.R. Balasuriya
2020, Archives of Virology (165) 2373-2377
In situ hybridization (ISH) and immunohistochemistry (IHC) are essential tools to characterize SARS-CoV-2 infection and tropism in naturally and experimentally infected animals and also for diagnostic purposes. Here, we describe three RNAscope®-based ISH assays targeting...
Understanding the uncertainty in global forest carbon turnover
Thomas A. M. Pugh, Tim Tito Rademacher, Sarah Shafer, Jorg Steinkamp, Jonathan Barichivich, Brian Beckage, Vanessa Haverd, Anna Harper, Jens Heinke, Kazuya Nishina, Anja Rammig, Hisashi Sato, Almut Arneth, Stijn Hantson, Thomas Hickler, Markus Kautz, Benjamin Quesada, Benjamin Smith, Kirsten Thonicke
2020, Biogeosciences (17) 3961-3989
The length of time that carbon remains in forest biomass is one of the largest uncertainties in the global carbon cycle, with both recent historical baselines and future responses to environmental change poorly constrained by available observations. In the absence of large-scale observations, models used for global assessments tend to...
The catastrophic decline of tortoises at a fenced natural area
Kristin H. Berry, Julie L. Yee, Timothy A. Shields, Laura Stockton
2020, Wildlife Monographs (205) 1-53
Agassiz’s desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii), a threatened species of the southwestern United States, has severely declined to the point where 76% of populations in critical habitat (Tortoise Conservation Areas) are below viability. The potential for rapid recovery of wild populations is low because females require 12–20 years to reach reproductive...
Channel cross-section analysis for automated stream head identification
Ethan J. Shavers, Larry Stanislawski
2020, Environmental Modelling & Software (132)
Headwater streams account for more than half of the streams in the United States by length. The substantial occurrence and susceptibility to change of headwater streams makes regular updating of related maps vital to the accuracy of associated analysis and display....
Latest Pleistocene to present geology of Mount Baker Volcano, northern Cascade Range, Washington
Kevin M. Scott, David S. Tucker, Jon L. Riedel, Cynthia A. Gardner, John P. McGeehin
2020, Professional Paper 1865
Mount Baker is the prominent andesitic stratocone that forms the youngest volcanic center in the Mount Baker volcanic field. Its heavily glaciated cone, rising to 3,286 meters, is an international landmark, dominating the skyline of Vancouver, British Columbia, even though the volcano is located 25 kilometers south of the international...
Water-level data for the Albuquerque Basin and adjacent areas, central New Mexico, period of record through September 30, 2019
Joseph E. Beman
2020, Data Series 1129
The Albuquerque Basin, located in central New Mexico, is about 100 miles long and 25–40 miles wide. The basin is hydrologically defined as the extent of consolidated and unconsolidated deposits of Tertiary and Quaternary age that encompasses the structural Rio Grande Rift between San Acacia to the south and Cochiti...
Applications of deep convolutional neural networks to predict length, circumference, and weight from mostly dewatered images of fish
Nicholas Bravata, Dylan Kelly, Jesse Eickholt, Janine Bryan, Scott M. Miehls, Daniel Zielinski
2020, Ecology and Evolution (10) 9313-9325
Simple biometric data of fish aid fishery management tasks such as monitoring the structure of fish populations and regulating recreational harvest. While these data are foundational to fishery research and management, the collection of length and weight data through physical handling of the fish is challenging as it is time...
Adjusted geomagnetic data—Theoretical basis and validation
E. Joshua Rigler, Abram E. Claycomb
2020, Open-File Report 2020-1053
Adjusted geomagnetic data are magnetometer measurements with provisional correction factors applied such that vector quantities are oriented in a local Cartesian frame in which the X axis points north, the Y axis points east, and the Z axis points down. These correction factors are determined from so-called absolute measurements, which...
Laboratory electrical conductivity of marine gas hydrate
Steven Constable, Ryan Lu, Laura A. Stern, Wyatt L. Du Frane, Jeffery J. Roberts
2020, Geophysical Research Letters (47)
Methane hydrate was synthesized from pure water ice and flash frozen seawater, with varying amounts of sand or silt added. Electrical conductivity was determined by impedance spectroscopy, using equivalent circuit modeling to separate the effects of electrodes and to gain insight into conduction mechanisms. Silt and sand...
Fate and behavior tools related to inland spill response—Workshop on the U.S. Geological Survey’s role in Federal science support
Daniel J. Sullivan, Faith A. Fitzpatrick
2020, Open-File Report 2020-1063
Executive SummaryThere is a growing body of tools available for science support for determining the fate and behavior of industrial and agricultural chemicals that are rapidly injected (“spilled”) into aquatic environments. A 2-day roundtable-style workshop was held by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in Middleton, Wisconsin, in December 2017 to...
Macroinvertebrate oviposition habitat selectivity and egg-mass desiccation tolerances: Implications for population dynamics in large regulated rivers
Scott W. Miller, Matt Schroer, Jesse R. Fleri, Theodore A. Kennedy
2020, Freshwater Science (39) 584-599
Aquatic insects exhibit complex life cycles that include egg, larval, adult, and, in some instances, pupal stages. Disturbances at any of these life stages can affect overall population dynamics. Yet, efforts to understand the effects of disturbances, such as hydrologic alterations, overwhelmingly focus on the larval life stage of aquatic...
Water resources of Evangeline Parish, Louisiana
Chid J. Murphy, Vincent E. White
2020, Fact Sheet 2020-3020
Information concerning the availability, use, and quality of water in Evangeline Parish, Louisiana, is critical for proper water-supply management. The purpose of this fact sheet is to present information that can be used by water managers, parish residents, and others for stewardship of this vital resource. In 2014, about 282.66...
Water resources of Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana
Vincent E. White
2020, Fact Sheet 2020-3011
Information concerning the availability, use, and quality of water in Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana, is critical for proper water-supply management. The purpose of this fact sheet is to present information that can be used by water managers, parish residents, and others for stewardship of this vital resource. In 2014, about 70...
Passive acoustic monitoring effectively detects Northern Spotted Owls and Barred Owls over a range of forest conditions
Leila S. Duchac, Damon B. Lesmeister, Katie M. Dugger, Zachary J. Ruff, Raymond J. Davis
2020, Condor (122)
Passive acoustic monitoring using autonomous recording units (ARUs) is a fast-growing area of wildlife research especially for rare, cryptic species that vocalize. Northern Spotted Owl (Strix occidentalis caurina) populations have been monitored since the mid-1980s using mark–recapture methods. To evaluate an alternative survey method, we used ARUs to detect calls...
Ecological forecasting—21st century science for 21st century management
John B. Bradford, Jake Weltzin, Molly L. McCormick, Jill Baron, Zack Bowen, Sky Bristol, Daren Carlisle, Theresa Crimmins, Paul C. Cross, Joe DeVivo, Mike Dietze, Mary Freeman, Jason Goldberg, Mevin Hooten, Leslie Hsu, Karen Jenni, Jennifer L. Keisman, Jonathan G. Kennen, Kathy Lee, David P. Lesmes, Keith A. Loftin, Brian W. Miller, Peter S. Murdoch, Jana Newman, Karen L. Prentice, Imtiaz Rangwala, Jordan Read, Jennifer Sieracki, Helen Sofaer, Steve Thur, Gordon Toevs, Francisco Werner, C. LeAnn White, Timothy White, Mark T. Wiltermuth
2020, Open-File Report 2020-1073
Natural resource managers are coping with rapid changes in both environmental conditions and ecosystems. Enabled by recent advances in data collection and assimilation, short-term ecological forecasting may be a powerful tool to help resource managers anticipate impending near-term changes in ecosystem conditions or dynamics. Managers may use the information in...
A global shape model for Saturn's moon Enceladus from a dense photogrammetric control network
Michael T. Bland, Lynn A. Weller, David Mayer, Brent A. Archinal
2020, Conference Paper, ISPRS Annals of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences
A planetary bodys global shape provides both insight into its geologic evolution, and a key element of any Planetary Spatial Data Infrastructure (PSDI). NASAs Cassini mission to Saturn acquired more than 600 moderate- to high-resolution images (< 500 m/pixel) of the small, geologically active moon Enceladus. The moons internal global...
FLOwPER user guide—For collection of FLOw PERmanence field observations
Kristin L. Jaeger, Jonathan Burnett, Emily D. Heaston, Steve M. Wondzell, Nathan Chelgren, Jason B. Dunham, Sherri Johnson, Mike Brown
2020, Open-File Report 2020-1075
The accurate mapping of streams and their streamflow conditions in terms of presence or absence of surface water is important to both understanding physical, chemical, and biological processes in streams and to managing land, water, and ecological resources. This document describes a field form, FLOwPER (FLOw PERmanence), available within a...
Citizen scientists record novel leaf phenology of invasive shrubs in eastern U.S. forests
Erynn E. Maynard-Bean, Margot Kaye, Tyler Wagner, Eric P. Burkhart
2020, Biological Invasions (22) 3325-3337
Invasive shrubs are an emergent concern in deciduous forests of eastern North America. Their extended leaf phenology (ELP) – earlier leaf emergence and later leaf off compared to native shrubs and the overstory canopy – can simultaneously provide photosynthetic benefits to invasive shrubs while negatively affecting native flora and fauna...
Mineral resource database for deposits related to the Mesoproterozoic Midcontinent Rift System, United States and Canada
Laurel G. Woodruff, Klaus J. Schulz, Connie L. Dicken, Suzanne W. Nicholson
2020, Open-File Report 2020-1069
The Midcontinent Rift System (MRS) of North America is one of the world’s largest continental rifts and has an age of 1.1 Ga (giga-annum). The MRS hosts a diverse suite of magmatic and hydrothermal mineral deposits in the Lake Superior region where rift rocks are exposed at or near the...
Soil organic carbon stocks and sequestration rates of inland, freshwater wetlands: Sources of variability and uncertainty
Brian Tangen, Sheel Bansal
2020, Science of the Total Environment (749)
Impacts of land use, specifically soil disturbance, are linked to reductions of soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks. Correspondingly, ecosystem restoration is promoted to sequester SOC to mitigate anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions, which are exacerbating global climate change. Restored wetlands have relatively high potential to...
Wildfire and the ecological niche: Diminishing habitat suitability for an indicator species within semi‐arid ecosystems
Shawn T. O’Neil, Peter S. Coates, Brianne E. Brussee, Mark A. Ricca, Shawn P. Espinosa, Scott C. Gardner, David J Delahanty
2020, Global Change Biology (26) 6296-6312
Globally accelerating frequency and extent of wildfire threatens the persistence of specialist wildlife species through direct loss of habitat and indirect facilitation of exotic invasive species. Habitat specialists may be especially prone to rapidly changing environmental conditions because their ability to adapt lags behind the rate...
