Potential water-quality effects of coal-bed methane production water discharged along the upper Tongue River, Wyoming and Montana
Stacy M. Kinsey, David A. Nimick
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5196
Water quality in the upper Tongue River from Monarch, Wyoming, downstream to just upstream from the Tongue River Reservoir in Montana potentially could be affected by discharge of coal-bed methane (CBM) production water (hereinafter referred to as CBM discharge). CBM discharge typically contains high concentrations of sodium and other ions...
Airborne electromagnetic and magnetic geophysical survey data of the Yukon Flats and Fort Wainwright areas, central Alaska, June 2010
Lyndsay B. Ball, Bruce D. Smith, Burke J. Minsley, Jared D. Abraham, Clifford I. Voss, Beth N. Astley, Maria Deszcz-Pan, James C. Cannia
2011, Open-File Report 2011-1304
In June 2010, the U.S. Geological Survey conducted airborne electromagnetic and magnetic surveys of the Yukon Flats and Fort Wainwright study areas in central Alaska. These data were collected to estimate the three-dimensional distribution of permafrost at the time of the survey. These data were also collected to evaluate the...
Geographic information system (GIS) representation of coal-bearing areas in India and Bangladesh
Michael H. Trippi, Susan J. Tewalt
2011, Open-File Report 2011-1296
Geographic information system (GIS) information may facilitate energy studies, which in turn provide input for energy policy decisions. Prior to this study, no GIS file representing the occurrence of coal-bearing units in India or Bangladesh was known to exist. This Open-File Report contains downloadable shapefiles representing the coalfields of India...
Effects of brush management on the hydrologic budget and water quality in and adjacent to Honey Creek State Natural Area, Comal County, Texas, 2001-10
J. Ryan Banta, Richard N. Slattery
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5226
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Edwards Region Grazing Lands Conservation Initiative, the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board, the San Antonio River Authority, the Edwards Aquifer Authority, Texas Parks and Wildlife, the Guadalupe Blanco River Authority, and...
Top 40 priorities for science to inform conservation and management policy in the United States
Erica Fleishman, David E. Blockstein, John A. Hall, Michael B. Mascia, Murray A. Rudd, J. Michael Scott, William J. Sutherland, Ann M. Bartuska, A. Gordon Brown, Catherine A. Christen, Joel P. Clement, Dominick DellaSala, Clifford D. Duke, Shirley J. Fiske, Hannah Gosnell, J. Christopher Haney, Michael Hutchins, Mary L. Klein, Jeffrey Marqusee, Barry R. Noon, John R. Nordgren, Paul M. Orbuch, Jimmie Powell, Steven P. Quarles, Kathryn A. Saterson, Bruce A. Stein, Michael S. Webster, Amy Vedder
2011, BioScience (61) 290-300
To maximize the utility of research to decisionmaking, especially given limited financial resources, scientists must set priorities for their efforts. We present a list of the top 40 high-priority, multidisciplinary research questions directed toward informing some of the most important current and future decisions about management of species, communities, and...
Tidal Boundary Conditions in SEAWAT
Ann E. Mulligan, Christian Langevin, Vincent Post
2011, Ground Water (49) 866-879
SEAWAT, a U.S. Geological Survey groundwater flow and transport code, is increasingly used to model the effects of tidal motion on coastal aquifers. Different options are available to simulate tidal boundaries but no guidelines exist nor have comparisons been made to identify the most effective approach. We test seven methods...
The role of surface and subsurface processes in keeping pace with sea level rise in intertidal wetlands of Moreton Bay, Queensland, Australia
Catherine E. Lovelock, Vicki Bennion, Alistair Grinham, Donald R. Cahoon
2011, Ecosystems (14) 745-757
Increases in the elevation of the soil surfaces of mangroves and salt marshes are key to the maintenance of these habitats with accelerating sea level rise. Understanding the processes that give rise to increases in soil surface elevation provides science for management of landscapes for sustainable coastal wetlands. Here, we...
The role of demographic compensation theory in incidental take assessments for endangered species
Conor P. McGowan, Mark R. Ryan, Michael C. Runge, Joshua J. Millspaugh, Jean Fitts Cochrane
2011, Biological Conservation (144) 730-737
Many endangered species laws provide exceptions to legislated prohibitions through incidental take provisions as long as take is the result of unintended consequences of an otherwise legal activity. These allowances presumably invoke the theory of demographic compensation, commonly applied to harvested species, by allowing limited harm as long as the...
The relation of harvesting intensity to changes in soil, soil water, and stream chemistry in a northern hardwood forest, Catskill Mountains, USA
Jason Siemion, Douglas A. Burns, Peter S. Murdoch, Rene H. Germain
2011, Forest Ecology and Management (261) 1510-1519
Previous studies have shown that clearcutting of northern hardwood forests mobilizes base cations, inorganic monomeric aluminum (Alim), and nitrate (NO3--N) from soils to surface waters, but the effects of partial harvests on NO3--N have been less frequently studied. In this study we describe the effects of a series of partial...
The present and future role of coastal wetland vegetation in protecting shorelines: Answering recent challenges to the paradigm
Keryn B. Gedan, Matthew L. Kirwan, Eric Wolanski, Edward B. Barbier, Brian R. Silliman
2011, Climatic Change (106) 7-29
For more than a century, coastal wetlands have been recognized for their ability to stabilize shorelines and protect coastal communities. However, this paradigm has recently been called into question by small-scale experimental evidence. Here, we conduct a literature review and a small meta-analysis of wave attenuation data, and we find...
Nest survival of American Coots relative to grazing, burning, and water depths
Jane E. Austin, Deborah A. Buhl
2011, Avian Conservation and Ecology (6) 1-14
Water and emergent vegetation are key features influencing nest site selection and success for many marsh-nesting waterbirds. Wetland management practices such as grazing, burning, and water-level manipulations directly affect these features and can influence nest survival. We used model selection and before-after-control-impact approaches to evaluate the effects of water depth...
Interface between black-footed ferret research and operational conservation
Dean E. Biggins, Travis M. Livieri, Stewart W. Breck
2011, Journal of Mammalogy (92) 699-704
Questions and problems that emerged during operational conservation of black-footed ferrets (Mustela nigripes) have been addressed by a wide variety of studies. Early results from such studies often were communicated orally during meetings of recovery groups and in written form using memoranda, unpublished reports, and theses. Typically, implementation of results...
The influence of the Atlantic Warm Pool on the Florida panhandle sea breeze
Vasubandhu Misra, Lauren Moeller, Lydia Stefanova, Steven Chan, James J. O’Brien, Thomas J. Smith III, Nathaniel Plant
2011, Journal of Geophysical Research Atmospheres (116)
In this paper we examine the variations of the boreal summer season sea breeze circulation along the Florida panhandle coast from relatively high resolution (10 km) regional climate model integrations. The 23 year climatology (1979–2001) of the multidecadal dynamically downscaled simulations forced by the National Centers for Environmental Prediction–Department...
Hyperspectral remote sensing of vegetation and agricultural crops: Knowledge gain and knowledge gap after 40 years of research
Prasad S. Thenkabail, John G. Lyon, Alfredo Huete
Prasad S. Thenkabail, John G. Lyon, Alfredo Huete, editor(s)
2011, Book chapter, Hyperspectral remote sensing of vegetation
The focus of this chapter was to summarize the advances made over last 40+ years, as reported in various chapters of this book, in understanding, modeling, and mapping terrestrial vegetation using hyperspectral remote sensing (or imaging spectroscopy) using sensors that are ground-based, truck-mounted, airborne, and spaceborne. As we have seen...
Advances in hyperspectral remote sensing of vegetation and agricultural croplands
Prasad S. Thenkabail, John G. Lyon, Alfredo Huete
Prasad S. Thenkabail, John G. Lyon, Alfredo Huete, editor(s)
2011, Book, Hyperspectral remote sensing of vegetation
Recent advances in hyperspectral remote sensing (or imaging spectroscopy) demonstrate a great utility for a variety of land monitoring applications. It is now possible to be diagnostic in sensing species and plant communities using remotely sensed data and to do so in a direct and informed manner using modern tools...
Hydrostratigraphic interpretation of test-hole and geophysical data, Upper Loup River Basin, Nebraska, 2008-10
Christopher M. Hobza, Theodore H. Asch, Paul A. Bedrosian
2011, Open-File Report 2011-1289
Nebraska's Upper Loup Natural Resources District is currently (2011) participating in the Elkhorn-Loup Model to understand the effect of various groundwater-management scenarios on surface-water resources. During Phase 1 of the Elkhorn-Loup Model, a lack of subsurface geological information in the Upper Loup Natural Resources District, hereafter referred to as the...
Trends in lake chemistry in response to atmospheric deposition and climate in selected Class I wilderness areas in Colorado, Idaho, Utah, and Wyoming, 1993-2009
M. Alisa Mast, George P. Ingersoll
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5123
In 2010, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service, Air Resource Management, began a study to evaluate long-term trends in lake-water chemistry for 64 high-elevation lakes in selected Class I wilderness areas in Colorado, Idaho, Utah, and Wyoming during 1993 to 2009. The...
Response of lake chemistry to atmospheric deposition and climate in selected Class I wilderness areas in the western United States, 1993-2009
M. Alisa Mast
2011, Fact Sheet 2011-3084
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service, Air Resource Management, conducted a study to evaluate long-term trends in lake-water chemistry for 64 high-elevation lakes in selected Class I wilderness areas in Colorado, Idaho, Utah, and Wyoming during 1993 to 2009. Understanding how and...
Pathogenic bacteria and microbial-source tracking markers in Brandywine Creek Basin, Pennsylvania and Delaware, 2009-10
Joseph W. Duris, Andrew G. Reif, Leif E. Olson, Heather E. Johnson
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5164
The City of Wilmington, Delaware, is in the downstream part of the Brandywine Creek Basin, on the main stem of Brandywine Creek. Wilmington uses this stream, which drains a mixed-land-use area upstream, for its main drinking-water supply. Because the stream is used for drinking water, Wilmington is in need of...
Trends in sea otter population abundance in western Prince William Sound, Alaska: Progress toward recovery following the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill
James L. Bodkin, Brenda E. Ballachey, George G. Esslinger
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5213
Sea otters in western Prince William Sound (WPWS) and elsewhere in the Gulf of Alaska suffered widespread mortality as a result of oiling following the 1989 T/V Exxon Valdez oil spill. Following the spill, extensive efforts have been directed toward identifying and understanding long-term consequences of the spill and the...
Analysis of trends in climate, streamflow, and stream temperature in north coastal California
Mary Ann Madej
C. Nicholas Medley, Glenn Patterson, Melanie J. Parker, editor(s)
2011, Conference Paper, Observing, studying, and managing for change - Proceedings of the Fourth Interagency Conference on Research in the Watersheds: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2011–5169
As part of a broader project analyzing trends in climate, streamflow, vegetation, salmon, and ocean conditions in northern California national park units, we compiled average monthly air temperature and precipitation data from 73 climate stations, streamflow data from 21 river gaging stations, and limited stream temperature data from salmon-bearing rivers...
Potential climate change effects on water tables and pyrite oxidation in headwater catchments in Colorado
Richard M. Webb, M. Alisa Mast, Andrew H. Manning, David W. Clow, Donald H. Campbell
C. Nicholas Medley, Glenn Patterson, Melanie J. Parker, editor(s)
2011, Conference Paper, Observing, studying, and managing for change - Proceedings of the Fourth Interagency Conference on Research in the Watersheds: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2011–5169
A water, energy, and biogeochemical model (WEBMOD) was constructed to simulate hydrology and pyrite oxidation for the period October 1992 through September 1997. The hydrologic model simulates processes in Loch Vale, a 6.6-km² granitic watershed that drains the east side of the Continental Divide. Parameters describing pyrite oxidation were derived...
Forest bird monitoring protocol for strategic habitat conservation and endangered species management on O'ahu Forest National Wildlife Refuge, Island of O'ahu, Hawai'i
Richard J. Camp, P. Marcos Gorresen, Paul C. Banko
2011, Report
This report describes the results of a pilot forest bird survey and a consequent forest bird monitoring protocol that was developed for the O'ahu Forest National Wildlife Refuge, O'ahu Island, Hawai'i. The pilot survey was conducted to inform aspects of the monitoring protocol and to provide a baseline with which...
Nest predation and circulating corticosterone levels within and among species
Joseph J. Fontaine, Elena Arriero, Hubert Schwabl, Thomas E. Martin
2011, The Condor (113) 825-833
Variation in the risk of predation to offspring can influence the expression of reproductive strategies both within and among species. Appropriate expression of reproductive strategies in environments that differ in predation risk can have clear advantages for fitness. Although adult-predation risk appears to influence glucocorticosteroid levels, leading to changes in...
Severe bill deformity of an American Kestrel wintering in California
William M. Iko, Robert J. Dusek
2011, Western Birds (42) 251-254
During a recent survey for West Nile virus in wild birds around the Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge, Imperial County, California (Dusek et al. 2010), we captured a female American Kestrel (Falco sparverius) with a severe bill deformity (Figure 1). The kestrel was captured on 9 March 2006,...
