Rapid response for invasive waterweeds at the arctic invasion front: Assessment of collateral impacts from herbicide treatments
Suresh Sethi, Michael P. Carey, John M. Morton, Edgar Guerron-Orejuela, Robert Decino, Mark Willette, James Boersma, Jillian Jablonski, Cheryl Anderson
2017, Biological Conservation (212) 300-309
The remoteness of subarctic and arctic ecosystems no longer protects against invasive species introductions. Rather, the mix of urban hubs surrounded by undeveloped expanses creates a ratchet process whereby anthropogenic activity is sufficient to introduce and spread invaders, but for which the costs of monitoring and managing remote ecosystems is...
Potential impacts of sea level rise on native plant communities and associated cultural sites in coastal areas of the main Hawaiian Islands
James D. Jacobi, Frederick R. Warshauer
2017, Report
Hawaiian coastal vegetation is comprised of plant species that are adapted to growing in extremely harsh conditions (salt spray, wave wash, wind, and substrates with limited nutrients) found in this habitat zone. Prior to human colonization of Hawai‘i coastal vegetation extended as a continuous ring around each of the islands,...
Paltry past-precipitation: Predisposing prairie dogs to plague?
David Eads, Dean E. Biggins
2017, Journal of Wildlife Management (81) 990-998
The plague bacterium Yersinia pestis was introduced to California in 1900 and spread rapidly as a sylvatic disease of mammalian hosts and flea vectors, invading the Great Plains in the United States by the 1930s to 1940s. In grassland ecosystems, plague causes periodic, devastating epizootics in colonies of black-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys...
Intra‐annual variability of Silver Carp populations in the Des Moines River, USA
Christopher J. Sullivan, Carlos A. Camacho, Michael J. Weber, Clay Pierce
2017, North American Journal of Fisheries Management (37) 836-849
Since their introduction in the 1970s, Silver Carp Hypophthalmichthys molitrix have spread throughout the Mississippi River basin. Management of any species relies on an accurate understanding of population characteristics and dynamics. However, Silver Carp seasonal sampling variation is unknown. Sampling during periods of peak catch rates would facilitate Silver Carp assessment and...
Balancing lake ecological condition and agriculture irrigation needs in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley
Leandro E. Miranda, A.R. Omer, K.J. Killgore
2017, Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment (246) 354-360
The Mississippi Alluvial Valley includes hundreds of floodplain lakes that support unique fish assemblages and high biodiversity. Irrigation practices in the valley have lowered the water table, increasing the cost of pumping water, and necessitating the use of floodplain lakes as a source of...
Integrating geographically isolated wetlands into land management decisions
Heather E. Golden, Irena F. Creed, Genevieve Ali, Nandita Basu, Brian Neff, Mark C. Rains, Daniel L. McLaughlin, Laurie C. Alexander, Ali A. Ameli, Jay R. Christensen, Grey R. Evenson, Charles N. Jones, Charles R. Lane, Megan Lang
2017, Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment (15) 319-327
Wetlands across the globe provide extensive ecosystem services. However, many wetlands – especially those surrounded by uplands, often referred to as geographically isolated wetlands (GIWs) – remain poorly protected. Protection and restoration of wetlands frequently requires information on their hydrologic connectivity to other surface waters, and their cumulative watershed‐scale effects....
Suitability of oyster restoration sites along the Louisiana coast: Examining site and stock × site interaction
Lindsay Schwarting Miller, Jerome F. La Peyre, Megan K. LaPeyre
2017, Journal of Shellfish Research (36) 341-351
Recognition of the global loss of subtidal oyster reefs has led to a rise in reef restoration efforts, including in the Gulf of Mexico. Created reef success depends entirely on selecting a location that supports long-term oyster growth and survival, including the recruitment and survival of on-reef oysters. Significant changes...
Effects of deep basins on structural collapse during large subduction earthquakes
Nasser A. Marafi, Marc O. Eberhard, Jeffrey W. Berman, Erin A. Wirth, Arthur D. Frankel
2017, Earthquake Spectra (33) 963-997
Deep sedimentary basins are known to increase the intensity of ground motions, but this effect is implicitly considered in seismic hazard maps used in U.S. building codes. The basin amplification of ground motions from subduction earthquakes is particularly important in the Pacific Northwest, where the hazard at long periods is...
Distribution and migration chronology of Eastern population sandhill cranes
David L. Fronczak, David E. Andersen, Everett E. Hanna, Thomas R. Cooper
2017, Journal of Wildlife Management (81) 1021-1032
The Eastern Population (EP) of greater sandhill cranes (Antigone canadensis tabida; cranes) is expanding in size and geographic range. Little information exists regarding the geographic extent of breeding, migration, and wintering ranges, migration chronology, or use of staging areas for cranes in the EP. To obtain these data, we attached...
Compilation of geospatial data for the mineral industries and related infrastructure of Latin America and the Caribbean
Michael S. Baker, Spencer D. Buteyn, Philip A. Freeman, Michael H. Trippi, Loyd M. Trimmer III
2017, Open-File Report 2017-1079
This report describes the U.S. Geological Survey’s (USGS) ongoing commitment to its mission of understanding the nature and distribution of global mineral commodity supply chains by updating and publishing the georeferenced locations of mineral commodity production and processing facilities, mineral exploration and development sites, and mineral commodity exporting ports in...
Simulated groundwater flow paths, travel time, and advective transport of nitrogen in the Kirkwood-Cohansey aquifer system, Barnegat Bay–Little Egg Harbor Watershed, New Jersey
Lois M. Voronin, Stephen J. Cauller
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2016-5169
Elevated concentrations of nitrogen in groundwater that discharges to surface-water bodies can degrade surface-water quality and habitats in the New Jersey Coastal Plain. An analysis of groundwater flow in the Kirkwood-Cohansey aquifer system and deeper confined aquifers that underlie the Barnegat Bay–Little Egg Harbor (BB-LEH) watershed and estuary was conducted...
Final Report fr critical thresholds and ecosystem services for coastal ecological and human climate adaptation
Michelle D. Staudinger, Emily J. Powell, Andrew Milliken, Megan C. Tyrrell
2017, Report
Understanding how climate change will impact natural and human communities is a crucial part of decision making and management related to the protection of our coasts. As the effects of climate change on ecological communities grow, the possibility of crossing tipping points or thresholds of viability increases the potential for...
Initial pulse of Siberian Traps sills as the trigger of the end-Permian mass extinction
Seth D. Burgess, James D. Muirhead, Samuel A. Bowring
2017, Nature Communications (8) 1-6
Mass extinction events are short-lived and characterized by catastrophic biosphere collapse and subsequent reorganization. Their abrupt nature necessitates a similarly short-lived trigger, and large igneous province magmatism is often implicated. However, large igneous provinces are long-lived compared to mass extinctions. Therefore, if large igneous provinces are an effective trigger, a...
Model selection for the North American Breeding Bird Survey: A comparison of methods
William A. Link, John R. Sauer, Daniel Niven
2017, Condor (119) 546-556
The North American Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) provides data for >420 bird species at multiple geographic scales over 5 decades. Modern computational methods have facilitated the fitting of complex hierarchical models to these data. It is easy to propose and fit new models, but little attention has been given to...
CO2 time series patterns in contrasting headwater streams of North America
John T. Crawford, Emily H. Stanley, Mark M. Dornblaser, Robert G. Striegl
2017, Aquatic Sciences (79) 473-486
We explored the underlying patterns of temporal stream CO2 partial pressure (pCO2) variability using highfrequency sensors in seven disparate headwater streams distributed across the northern hemisphere. We also compared this dataset of [40,000 pCO2 records with other published records from lotic systems. Individual stream sites exhibited relatively distinct pCO2 patterns...
Utilization of integrated correlative light and electron microscopy (iCLEM) for imaging sedimentary organic matter
Paul C. Hackley, Brett J. Valentine, Leonard M. Voortman, Daan van Oosten Slingeland, Javin J. Hatcherian
2017, Journal of Microscopy (267) 371-383
We report here a new microscopic technique for imaging and identifying sedimentary organic matter in geologic materials that combines inverted fluorescence microscopy with scanning electron microscopy and allows for sequential imaging of the same region of interest without transferring the sample between instruments. This integrated correlative...
Mapping the change of Phragmites australis live biomass in the lower Mississippi River Delta marshes
Elijah W. Ramsey III, Amina Rangoonwala
2017, Open-File Report 2017-1098
Multiyear remote sensing mapping of the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) was carried out as an indicator of live biomass composition of the Phragmites australis (hereafter Phragmites) marsh in the lower Mississippi River Delta (hereafter delta) from 2014 to 2017. Maps of NDVI change showed that the Phragmites condition was...
Water quality in the surficial aquifer near agricultural areas in the Delaware Coastal Plain, 2014
Brandon J. Fleming, Laura L. Mensch, Judith M. Denver, Roberto M. Cruz, Mark R. Nardi
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5054
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Delaware Department of Agriculture, developed a network of wells to monitor groundwater quality in the surficial aquifer of the Delaware Coastal Plain. Well-drained soils, a flat landscape, and accessible water in the Delaware Coastal Plain make for a productive agricultural setting. As...
Determining the sources of fine-grained sediment using the Sediment Source Assessment Tool (Sed_SAT)
Lillian E. Gorman Sanisaca, Allen C. Gellis, David L. Lorenz
2017, Open-File Report 2017-1062
A sound understanding of sources contributing to instream sediment flux in a watershed is important when developing total maximum daily load (TMDL) management strategies designed to reduce suspended sediment in streams. Sediment fingerprinting and sediment budget approaches are two techniques that, when used jointly, can qualify and quantify the major...
Drilling, construction, geophysical log data, and lithologic log for boreholes USGS 142 and USGS 142A, Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho
Brian V. Twining, Mary K.V. Hodges, Kyle Schusler, Christopher Mudge
2017, Data Series 1058
Starting in 2014, the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Energy, drilled and constructed boreholes USGS 142 and USGS 142A for stratigraphic framework analyses and long-term groundwater monitoring of the eastern Snake River Plain aquifer at the Idaho National Laboratory in southeast Idaho. Borehole USGS...
Use of North American Breeding Bird Survey data in avian conservation assessments
Kenneth V. Rosenberg, Peter J. Blancher, Jessica C. Stanton, Arvind O. Panjabi
2017, The Condor (119) 594-606
Conservation resources are limited, and prioritizing species based on their relative vulnerability and risk of extinction is a fundamental component of conservation planning. In North America, the conservation consortium Partners in Flight (PIF) has developed and implemented a data-driven species assessment process, at global and regional scales, based on quantitative...
Tackling an intractable problem: Can greater taxon sampling help resolve relationships within the Stenopelmatoidea (Orthoptera: Ensifera)?
Amy G. Vandergast, David B Weissman, Dustin Wood, David C F Rentz, Corinna S Bazelet, Norihiro Ueshima
2017, Zootaxa (4291) 1-33
The relationships among and within the families that comprise the orthopteran superfamily Stenopelmatoidea (suborder Ensifera) remain poorly understood. We developed a phylogenetic hypothesis based on Bayesian analysis of two nuclear ribosomal and one mitochondrial gene for 118 individuals (84 de novo and 34 from GenBank). These included Gryllacrididae from North,...
The first 50 years of the North American Breeding Bird Survey
John R. Sauer, David Ziolkowski Jr., Keith L. Pardieck, Adam C. Smith, Marie-Anne R. Hudson, Vicente Rodriguez, Humberto Berlanga, Daniel Niven, William A. Link
2017, The Condor (119) 576-593
The vision of Chandler (Chan) S. Robbins for a continental-scale omnibus survey of breeding birds led to the development of the North American Breeding Bird Survey (BBS). Chan was uniquely suited to develop the BBS. His position as a government scientist had given him experience with designing and implementing continental-scale...
Streamflow investigations on a reach of Hobble Creek near Springville, Utah
Steven J. Gerner
2017, Open-File Report 2017-1084
The Central Utah Water Conservancy District (CUWCD) is proposing to deliver supplemental flow to Hobble Creek from Strawberry Reservoir through the Mapleton-Springville Lateral pipeline. A substantial portion of the supplemental water is intended to benefit June Sucker recovery and other fish and wildlife along Hobble Creek. The objective of this...
Historical and projected trends in landscape drivers affecting carbon dynamics in Alaska
Neal J. Pastick, Paul A. Duffy, Hélène Genet, T. Scott Rupp, Bruce K. Wylie, Kristofer Johnson, M. Torre Jorgenson, Norman B. Bliss, Anthony D. McGuire, Elchin Jafarov, Joseph F. Knight
2017, Ecological Applications (27) 1383-1402
Modern climate change in Alaska has resulted in widespread thawing of permafrost, increased fire activity, and extensive changes in vegetation characteristics that have significant consequences for socioecological systems. Despite observations of the heightened sensitivity of these systems to change, there has not been a comprehensive assessment of factors that drive...
