Elk migration patterns and human activity influence wolf habitat use in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem
Abigail Nelson, Matthew J. Kauffman, Arthur D. Middleton, Mike Jimenez, Douglas McWhirter, Jarrett Barber, Ken Gerow
2012, Ecological Applications (22) 2293-2307
Identifying the ecological dynamics underlying human–wildlife conflicts is important for the management and conservation of wildlife populations. In landscapes still occupied by large carnivores, many ungulate prey species migrate seasonally, yet little empirical research has explored the relationship between carnivore distribution and ungulate migration strategy. In this study, we evaluate...
Field information links permafrost carbon to physical vulnerabilities of thawing
Jennifer W. Harden, Charles Koven, Chien-Lu Ping, Gustaf Hugelius, A. David McGuire, P. Camill, Torre Jorgenson, Peter Kuhry, Gary Michaelson, Jonathan A. O’Donnell, Edward A.G. Schuur, Charles Tamocai, Kevin Johnson, G. Grosse
2012, Geophysical Research Letters (39)
Deep soil profiles containing permafrost (Gelisols) were characterized for organic carbon (C) and total nitrogen (N) stocks to 3m depths. Using the Community Climate System Model (CCSM4) we calculate cumulative probability functions (PDFs) for active layer depths under current and future climates. The difference in PDFs over time was multiplied...
Evaluating changes in matrix based, recovery-adjusted concentrations in paired data for pesticides in groundwater
Tammy M. Zimmerman, Kevin J. Breen
2012, Journal of Environmental Quality (41) 1238-1245
Pesticide concentration data for waters from selected carbonate-rock aquifers in agricultural areas of Pennsylvania were collected in 1993–2009 for occurrence and distribution assessments. A set of 30 wells was visited once in 1993–1995 and again in 2008–2009 to assess concentration changes. The data include censored matched pairs (nondetections of a...
Evidence of recent climate change within the historic range of Rio Grande cutthroat trout: implications for management and future persistence
Matthew P. Zeigler, Andrew S. Todd, Colleen A. Caldwell
2012, Transactions of the American Fisheries Society (141) 1045-1059
Evidence of anthropogenically influenced climate change has motivated natural resource managers to incorporate adaptive measures to minimize risks to sensitive and threatened species. Detecting trends in climate variables (i.e., air temperature and hydrology) can serve as a valuable management tool for protecting vulnerable species by increasing our understanding of localized...
Habitat use by a freshwater dolphin in the low-water season
Gill T. Braulik, Albert P. Reichert, Tahir Ehsan, Samiullah Khan, Simon P. Northridge, Jason S. Alexander, Richard Garstang
2012, Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems (22) 533-546
1. Many river dolphin populations are most vulnerable during the low-water season when habitat is limited. Indus River dolphin habitat selection in the dry season was investigated using Generalized Linear Models of dolphin distribution and abundance in relation to physical features of river geomorphology and channel geometry in cross-section. 2....
Intraspecific variation in reproductive traits of burrowing owls
Meaghan Conway, Christopher P. Nadeau, Courtney J. Conway
2012, Journal of Ethology (30) 395-402
Reviews of hatching asynchrony in birds recommended more studies on intraspecific variation in the extent of hatching asynchrony. We examined intraspecific variation in clutch size, laying chronology, onset of incubation, incubation period, and hatching asynchrony in burrowing owls (Athene cunicularia) in the Imperial Valley of California. Mean clutch size was...
Evaluation of SNODAS snow depth and snow water equivalent estimates for the Colorado Rocky Mountains, USA
David W. Clow, Leora Nanus, Kristine L. Verdin, Jeffrey Schmidt
2012, Hydrological Processes (26) 2583-2591
The National Weather Service's Snow Data Assimilation (SNODAS) program provides daily, gridded estimates of snow depth, snow water equivalent (SWE), and related snow parameters at a 1-km2 resolution for the conterminous USA. In this study, SNODAS snow depth and SWE estimates were compared with independent, ground-based snow survey data in...
Designs and test results for three new rotational sensors
P. Jedlicka, J.T. Kozak, J.R. Evans, C. R. Hutt
2012, Journal of Seismology (16) 639-647
We discuss the designs and testing of three rotational seismometer prototypes developed at the Institute of Geophysics, Academy of Sciences (Prague, Czech Republic). Two of these designs consist of a liquid-filled toroidal tube with the liquid as the proof mass and providing damping; we tested the piezoelectric and pressure transduction...
Ecological effects of nitrogen and sulfur air pollution in the US: what do we know?
Tara L. Greaver, Timothy J. Sullivan, Jeffrey D. Herrick, Mary C. Barber, Jill Baron, Bernard J. Cosby, Marion E. Deerhake, Robin L. Dennis, Jean-Jacque B. Dubois, Christine L. Goodale, Alan T. Herlihy, Gregory B. Lawrence, Lingli Liu, Jason A. Lynch, Kristopher J. Novak
2012, Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment (10) 365-372
Four decades after the passage of the US Clean Air Act, air-quality standards are set to protect ecosystems from damage caused by gas-phase nitrogen (N) and sulfur (S) compounds, but not from the deposition of these air pollutants to land and water. Here, we synthesize recent scientific literature on the...
Insight on invasions and resilience derived from spatiotemporal discontinuities of biomass at local and regional scales
David G. Angeler, Criag R. Allen, Richard K. Johnson
2012, Ecology and Society (17)
Understanding the social and ecological consequences of species invasions is complicated by nonlinearities in processes, and differences in process and structure as scale is changed. Here we use discontinuity analyses to investigate nonlinear patterns in the distribution of biomass of an invasive nuisance species that could indicate scale-specific organization. We...
Effects of soil-engineering properties on the failure mode of shallow landslides
Jonathan Peter McKenna, Paul Michael Santi, Xavier Amblard, Jacquelyn Negri
2012, Landslides (9) 215-228
Some landslides mobilize into flows, while others slide and deposit material immediately down slope. An index based on initial dry density and fine-grained content of soil predicted failure mode of 96 landslide initiation sites in Oregon and Colorado with 79% accuracy. These material properties can be used to identify potential...
Interseasonal movements of greater sage-grouse, migratory behavior, and an assessment of the core regions concept in Wyoming
Bradley C. Fedy, Cameron L. Aldridge, Kevin E. Doherty, Michael S. O’Donnell, Jeffrey L. Beck, Bryan Bedrosian, Matthew J. Holloran, Gregory D. Johnson, Nicholas W. Kaczor, Christopher P. Kirol, Cheryl A. Mandich, David Marshall, Gwyn McKee, Chad Olson, Christopher C. Swanson, Brett L. Walker
2012, Journal of Wildlife Management (76) 1062-1071
Animals can require different habitat types throughout their annual cycles. When considering habitat prioritization, we need to explicitly consider habitat requirements throughout the annual cycle, particularly for species of conservation concern. Understanding annual habitat requirements begins with quantifying how far individuals move across landscapes between key life stages to access...
By the numbers: how is recovery defined by the U.S. Endangered Species Act?
Maile C. Neel, Allison K. Leidner, Aaron Haines, Dale D. Goble, J. Michael Scott
2012, BioScience (62) 646-657
Nearly 40 years after passage of the US Endangered Species Act, the prospects for listed species remain dim because they are too severely imperiled by the time they receive the act's protection. Even if threats are abated, the low abundances required for recovery often preclude a high probability of persistence....
Carbon and sediment accumulation in the Everglades (USA) during the past 4000 years: rates, drivers, and sources of error
Paul H. Glaser, John C. Volin, Thomas J. Givnish, Barbara C. S. Hansen, Craig A. Stricker
2012, Journal of Geophysical Research G: Biogeosciences (117) G03026
Tropical and sub-tropical wetlands are considered to be globally important sources for greenhouse gases but their capacity to store carbon is presumably limited by warm soil temperatures and high rates of decomposition. Unfortunately, these assumptions can be difficult to test across long timescales because the chronology, cumulative mass, and completeness...
Concentrations of selected metals in Quaternary-age fluvial deposits along the lower Cheyenne and middle Belle Fourche Rivers, western South Dakota, 2009-10
John F. Stamm, Galen K. Hoogestraat
2012, Data Series 695
The headwaters of the Cheyenne and Belle Fourche Rivers drain the Black Hills of South Dakota and Wyoming, an area that has been affected by mining and ore-milling operations since the discovery of gold in 1875. A tributary to the Belle Fourche River is Whitewood Creek, which drains the area...
Changes in permeability caused by transient stresses: field observations, experiments, and mechanisms
Michael Manga, Igor Beresnev, Emily E. Brodsky, Jean E. Elkhoury, Derek Elsworth, Steve E. Ingebritsen, David C. Mays, Chi-Yuen Wang
2012, Reviews of Geophysics (50)
Oscillations in stress, such as those created by earthquakes, can increase permeability and fluid mobility in geologic media. In natural systems, strain amplitudes as small as 10–6 can increase discharge in streams and springs, change the water level in wells, and enhance production from petroleum reservoirs. Enhanced permeability typically recovers...
Groundwater quality in the Columbia Plateau, Snake River Plain, and Oahu basaltic-rock and basin-fill aquifers in the Northwestern United States and Hawaii, 1992-2010
Lonna M. Frans, Michael G. Rupert, Charles D. Hunt Jr., Kenneth D. Skinner
2012, Scientific Investigations Report 2012-5123
This assessment of groundwater-quality conditions of the Columbia Plateau, Snake River Plain, and Oahu for the period 1992–2010 is part of the U.S. Geological Survey’s National Water Quality Assessment (NAWQA) program. It shows where, when, why, and how specific water-quality conditions occur in groundwater of the three study areas and...
Combined sewer overflows: an environmental source of hormones and wastewater micropollutants
P. J. Phillips, A.T. Chalmers, J.L. Gray, D.W. Kolpin, W.T. Foreman, G. R. Wall
2012, Environmental Science & Technology (46) 5336-5343
Data were collected at a wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) in Burlington, Vermont, USA, (serving 30,000 people) to assess the relative contribution of CSO (combined sewer overflow) bypass flows and treated wastewater effluent to the load of steroid hormones and other wastewater micropollutants (WMPs) from a WWTP to a lake. Flow-weighted...
Flood-inundation maps for the West Branch Delaware River, Delhi, New York, 2012
William F. Coon, Brian K. Breaker
2012, Scientific Investigations Map 3216
Digital flood-inundation maps for a 5-mile reach of the West Branch Delaware River through the Village and part of the Town of Delhi, New York, were created by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in cooperation with the Village of Delhi, the Delaware County Soil and Water Conservation District, and the...
Integrated monitoring of ecological conditions in wetland-upland landscapes
Alisa Gallant, Walt Sadinski
2012, Fact Sheet 2012-3103
Landscapes of interwoven wetlands and uplands offer a rich set of ecosystem goods and services. Managing lands to maximize ecosystem services requires information that distinguishes change caused by local actions from broader-scale shifts in climate, land use, and other forms of global change. Satellite and airborne sensors collect valuable data...
Assessment of undiscovered, conventional oil and gas resources of Mexico, Guatemala, and Belize, 2012
Christopher J. Schenk, Michael E. Brownfield, Ronald R. Charpentier, Troy A. Cook, Timothy R. Klett, Janet K. Pitman, Richard M. Pollastro, Jean N. Weaver
2012, Fact Sheet 2012-3069
Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated means of 19 billion barrels of oil and 83 trillion cubic feet of undiscovered natural gas resources in 10 geologic provinces of Mexico, Guatemala, and Belize....
Coal-tar-based pavement sealcoat and PAHs: implications for the environment, human health, and stormwater management
Barbara Mahler, Peter C. Van Metre, Judy L. Crane, Alison W. Watts, Mateo Scoggins, E. Spencer Williams
2012, Environmental Science & Technology (46) 3039-3045
Coal-tar-based sealcoat products, widely used in the central and eastern U.S. on parking lots, driveways, and even playgrounds, are typically 20−35% coal-tar pitch, a known human carcinogen that contains about 200 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) compounds. Research continues to identify environmental compartments—including stormwater runoff, lake sediment, soil, house dust, and...
Development of regional skews for selected flood durations for the Central Valley Region, California, based on data through water year 2008
Jonathan R. Lamontagne, Jery R. Stedinger, Charles Berenbrock, Andrea G. Veilleux, Justin C. Ferris, Donna L. Knifong
2012, Scientific Investigations Report 2012-5130
Flood-frequency information is important in the Central Valley region of California because of the high risk of catastrophic flooding. Most traditional flood-frequency studies focus on peak flows, but for the assessment of the adequacy of reservoirs, levees, other flood control structures, sustained flood flow (flood duration) frequency data are needed....
Assessment and harvest of largemouth bass-bluegill ponds: Chapter 7
Harold Schramm Jr., David W. Willis
2012, Book chapter, Small impoundment management in North America
No abstract available....
The fluorescent tracer experiment on Holiday Beach near Mugu Canyon, Southern California
Nicole Kinsman, J. P. Xu
2012, Open-File Report 2012-1131
After revisiting sand tracer techniques originally developed in the 1960s, a range of fluorescent coating formulations were tested in the laboratory. Explicit steps are presented for the preparation of the formulation evaluated to have superior attributes, a thermoplastic pigment/dye in a colloidal mixture with a vinyl chloride/vinyl acetate copolymer. In...
