Strontium isotopes delineate fine-scale natal origins and migration histories of Pacific salmon
Sean R. Brennan, Christian E. Zimmerman, Diego P. Fernandez, Thure E. Cerling, Megan V. McPhee, Matthew J. Wooller
2015, Science Advances (1)
Highly migratory organisms present major challenges to conservation efforts. This is especially true for exploited anadromous fish species, which exhibit long-range dispersals from natal sites, complex population structures, and extensive mixing of distinct populations during exploitation. By tracing the migratory histories of individual Chinook salmon caught in fisheries using strontium...
Life-stage-specific physiology defines invasion extent of a riverine fish
David J. Lawrence, David A. Beauchamp, Julian D. Olden
2015, Journal of Animal Ecology (84) 879-888
Many ecologists have called for mechanism-based investigations to identify the underlying controls on species distributions. Understanding these controls can be especially useful to construct robust predictions of how a species range may change in response to climate change or the extent to which a non-native species may...
Optimizing water depth for wetland-dependent wildlife could increase wetland restoration success, water efficiency, and water security
Christopher P. Nadeau, Courtney J. Conway
2015, Restoration Ecology (23) 292-300
Securing water for wetland restoration efforts will be increasingly difficult as human populations demand more water and climate change alters the hydrologic cycle. Minimizing water use at a restoration site could help justify water use to competing users, thereby increasing future water security. Moreover, optimizing water depth for focal species...
A comparison of high-resolution specific conductance-based end-member mixing analysis and a graphical method for baseflow separation of four streams in hydrologically challenging agricultural watersheds
Scott C. Kronholm, Paul D. Capel
2015, Hydrological Processes (29) 2521-2533
Quantifying the relative contributions of different sources of water to a stream hydrograph is important for understanding the hydrology and water quality dynamics of a given watershed. To compare the performance of two methods of hydrograph separation, a graphical program [baseflow index (BFI)] and an end-member mixing analysis that used...
Crowdsourcing The National Map
Elizabeth McCartney, Kari J. Craun, Erin M. Korris, David A. Brostuen, Laurence R. Moore
2015, Cartography and Geographic Information Science (42) 54-57
Using crowdsourcing techniques, the US Geological Survey’s (USGS) Volunteered Geographic Information (VGI) project known as “The National Map Corps (TNMCorps)” encourages citizen scientists to collect and edit data about man-made structures in an effort to provide accurate and authoritative map data for the USGS National Geospatial Program’s web-based The National...
Consequences of actively managing a small Bull Trout population in a fragmented landscape
Robert K. Al-Chokhachy, Sean Moran, Peter McHugh, Shana Bernall, Wade Fredenberg, Joseph M. DosSantos
2015, Transactions of the American Fisheries Society (144) 515-531
Habitat fragmentation, which affects many native salmonid species, is one of the major factors contributing to the declines in distribution and abundance of Bull Trout Salvelinus confluentus. Increasingly, managers are considering options to maintain and enhance the persistence of isolated local populations through active management strategies. Understanding the ecological consequences of...
How a national vegetation classification can help ecological research and management
Scott Franklin, Patrick Comer, Julie Evens, Exequiel Ezcurra, Don Faber-Langendoen, Janet Franklin, Michael Jennings, Carmen Josse, Chris Lea, Orie Loucks, Esteban Muldavin, Robert K. Peet, Serguei Ponomarenko, David G. Roberts, Ayzik Solomeshch, Todd Keeler-Wolf, James Van Kley, Alan Weakley, Alexa McKerrow, Marianne Burke, Carol Spurrier
2015, Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment (13) 185-186
The elegance of classification lies in its ability to compile and systematize various terminological conventions and masses of information that are unattainable during typical research projects. Imagine a discipline without standards for collection, analysis, and interpretation; unfortunately, that describes much of 20th-century vegetation ecology. With differing methods, how do we...
Evidence of bottom-up limitations in nearshore marine systems based on otolith proxies of fish growth
Vanessa R. von Biela, Gordon H. Kruse, Franz J. Mueter, Bryan A. Black, David C. Douglas, Thomas E. Helser, Christian E. Zimmerman
2015, Marine Biology (162) 1019-1031
Fish otolith growth increments were used as indices of annual production at nine nearshore sites within the Alaska Coastal Current (downwelling region) and California Current (upwelling region) systems (~36–60°N). Black rockfish (Sebastes melanops) and kelp greenling (Hexagrammos decagrammus) were identified as useful indicators in pelagic and...
Comparing activated alumina with indigenous laterite and bauxite as potential sorbents for removing fluoride from drinking water in Ghana
Laura Craig, Lisa L. Stillings, David L. Decker, James M. Thomas
2015, Applied Geochemistry (56) 50-66
Fluoride is considered beneficial to teeth and bones when consumed in low concentrations, but at elevated concentrations it can cause dental and skeletal fluorosis. Most fluoride-related health problems occur in poor, rural communities of the developing world where groundwater fluoride concentrations are high and the primary sources of drinking water...
What lies beneath: geophysical mapping of a concealed Precambrian intrusive complex along the Iowa–Minnesota border
Benjamin J. Drenth, Raymond R. Anderson, Klaus J. Schulz, Joshua M. Feinberg, Val W. Chandler, William F. Cannon
2015, Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences (52) 279-293
Large-amplitude gravity and magnetic highs over northeast Iowa are interpreted to reflect a buried intrusive complex composed of mafic–ultramafic rocks, the northeast Iowa intrusive complex (NEIIC), intruding Yavapai province (1.8–1.72 Ga) rocks. The age of the complex is unproven, although it has been considered to be Keweenawan (∼1.1 Ga). Because...
Intertidal biological indicators of coseismic subsidence during the Mw 7.8 Haida Gwaii, Canada, earthquake
Peter J. Haeussler, Robert C. Witter, Kelin Wang
2015, Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America (105) 1265-1279
The 28 October 2012 Mw 7.8 Haida Gwaii earthquake was a megathrust earthquake along the very obliquely convergent Queen Charlotte margin of British Columbia, Canada. Coseismic deformation is not well constrained by geodesy, with only six Global Positioning System (GPS) sites and two tide gauge stations within 250 km of the rupture area....
Using Landsat imagery to detect, monitor, and project net landscape change
Ryan R. Reker, Terry L. Sohl, Alisa L. Gallant
2015, All Bird Bulletin (Spring 2015) 13-17
Detailed landscape information is a necessary component to bird habitat conservation planning. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center has been providing information on the Earth’s surface for over 40 years via the continuous series of Landsat satellites. In addition to operating, processing, and disseminating...
Hydrogeologic framework of the Santa Clara Valley, California
Randall T. Hanson
2015, Geosphere (11) 606-637
The hydrologic framework of the Santa Clara Valley in northern California was redefined on the basis of new data and a new hydrologic model. The regional groundwater flow systems can be subdivided into upper-aquifer and lower-aquifer systems that form a convergent flow system within a basin bounded by mountains...
Structure of the Koyna-Warna Seismic Zone, Maharashtra, India: A possible model for large induced earthquakes elsewhere
Rufus D. Catchings, M.M. Dixit, Mark R. Goldman, S. Kumar
2015, Journal of Geophysical Research (120) 3479-3506
The Koyna-Warna area of India is one of the best worldwide examples of reservoir-induced seismicity, with the distinction of having generated the largest known induced earthquake (M6.3 on 10 December 1967) and persistent moderate-magnitude (>M5) events for nearly 50 years. Yet, the fault structure and tectonic setting that has accommodated the...
Source limitation of carbon gas emissions in high-elevation mountain streams and lakes
John T. Crawford, Mark M. Dornblaser, Emily H. Stanley, David W. Clow, Robert G. Striegl
2015, Journal of Geophysical Research G: Biogeosciences (120) 952-964
Inland waters are an important component of the global carbon cycle through transport, storage, and direct emissions of CO2 and CH4 to the atmosphere. Despite predictions of high physical gas exchange rates due to turbulent flows and ubiquitous supersaturation of CO2—and perhaps also CH4—patterns of gas emissions are essentially undocumented...
The 3D Elevation Program: summary for South Carolina
William Carswell Jr.
2015, Fact Sheet 2015-3029
Elevation data are essential to a broad range of applications, including forest resources management, wildlife and habitat management, national security, recreation, and many others. For the State of South Carolina, elevation data are critical for flood risk management, natural resources conservation, agriculture and precision farming, infrastructure and construction management, forest...
Geologic map of the Montauk quadrangle, Dent, Texas, and Shannon Counties, Missouri
David J. Weary
2015, Scientific Investigations Map 3320
The Montauk 7.5-minute quadrangle is located in south-central Missouri within the Salem Plateau region of the Ozark Plateaus physiographic province. About 2,000 feet (ft) of flat-lying to gently dipping lower Paleozoic sedimentary rocks, mostly dolomite, chert, sandstone, and orthoquartzite, overlie Mesoproterozoic igneous basement rocks. Unconsolidated residuum, colluvium, terrace deposits, and...
Evaluation of the short term 12 hour toxicity of 3-trifluoromethyl-4-nitrophenol (TFM) to multiple life stages of Venustaconcha ellipsiformis and Epioblasma triquetra and its host fish (Percina caprodes)
Michael A. Boogaard, Teresa Newton, Terrance D. Hubert, Cheryl Kaye, M. Christopher Barnhart
2015, Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (34) 1634-1641
The present study evaluated the risk of 12-h exposures of the lampricide 3-trifluoromethyl-4-nitrophenol (TFM) to multiple life stages of the federally endangered snuffbox (Epioblasma triquetra) and its primary host fish the common logperch (Percina caprodes) as well as a surrogate to the snuffbox, the ellipse (Venustaconcha ellipsiformis). Life stages examined...
Icefield-to-ocean linkages across the northern Pacific coastal temperate rainforest ecosystem
Shad O’Neel, Eran Hood, Allison L. Bidlack, Sean W. Fleming, Mayumi L. Arimitsu, Anthony Arendt, Evan W. Burgess, Christopher J. Sergeant, Anne E. Beaudreau, Kristin Timm, Gregory D. Hayward, Joel H. Reynolds, Sanjay Pyare
2015, BioScience (65) 499-512
Rates of glacier mass loss in the northern Pacific coastal temperate rainforest (PCTR) are among the highest on Earth, and changes in glacier volume and extent will affect the flow regime and chemistry of coastal rivers, as well as the nearshore marine ecosystem of the Gulf of Alaska. Here we...
Glaciological and marine geological controls on terminus dynamics of Hubbard Glacier, southeast Alaska
Leigh A. Stearns, Gordon S. Hamilton, C. J. van der Veen, D. C. Finnegan, Shad O’Neel, J. B. Scheick, D. E. Lawson
2015, Journal of Geophysical Research F: Earth Surface (120) 1065-1081
Hubbard Glacier, located in southeast Alaska, is the world's largest non-polar tidewater glacier. It has been steadily advancing since it was first mapped in 1895; occasionally, the advance creates an ice or sediment dam that blocks a tributary fjord (Russell Fiord). The sustained advance raises the probability of long-term closure...
Geospatial association between adverse birth outcomes and arsenic in groundwater in New Hampshire, USA
Xun Shi, Joseph D. Ayotte, Akikazu Onda, Stephanie Miller, Judy Rees, Diane Gilbert-Diamond, Tracy L Onega, Jiang Gui, Margaret R. Karagas, John B Moeschler
2015, Environmental Geochemistry and Health (37) 333-351
There is increasing evidence of the role of arsenic in the etiology of adverse human reproductive outcomes. Because drinking water can be a major source of arsenic to pregnant women, the effect of arsenic exposure through drinking water on human birth may be revealed by a geospatial association between arsenic...
Rapid growth and genetic diversity retention in an isolated reintroduced black bear population in the central appalachians
Sean M. Murphy, John J. Cox, Joseph D. Clark, Benjamin J. Augustine, John T. Hast, Dan Gibbs, Michael Strunk, Steven Dobey
2015, Journal of Wildlife Management (79) 807-818
Animal reintroductions are important tools of wildlife management to restore species to their historical range, and they can also create unique opportunities to study population dynamics and genetics from founder events. We used non-invasive hair sampling in a systematic, closed-population capture-mark-recapture (CMR) study design at the Big South Fork (BSF)...
Genes indicative of zoonotic and swine pathogens are persistent in stream water and sediment following a swine manure spill
Sheridan K. Haack, Joseph W. Duris, Dana W. Kolpin, Lisa R. Fogarty, Heather E. Johnson, Kristen E. Gibson, Michael J. Focazio, Kellogg J. Schwab, Laura E. Hubbard, William T. Foreman
2015, Applied and Environmental Microbiology (81) 3430-3441
Manure spills to streams are relatively frequent, but no studies have characterized stream contamination with zoonotic and veterinary pathogens, or fecal chemicals, following a spill. We tested stream water and sediment over 25 days and downstream for 7.6 km for: fecal indicator bacteria (FIB); the fecal indicator chemicals cholesterol and...
A nonlinear, implicit one-line model to predict long-term shoreline change
Sean Vitousek, Patrick L. Barnard
2015, Conference Paper, The proceedings of the coastal sediments 2015
We present the formulation, validation, and application of a nonlinear, implicit one-line model to simulate long-term (decadal and longer) shoreline change. The purpose of the implicit numerical method presented here is to allow large time steps without sacrificing model stability compared to explicit approaches, and thereby improve computational efficiency. The...
Precise interpolar phasing of abrupt climate change during the last ice age
WAIS Divide Project Members, Christo Buizert, Betty M. Adrian, Jinho Ahn, Mary Albert, Richard B. Alley, Daniel Baggenstos, Thomas K. Bauska, Ryan C. Bay, Brian B. Bencivengo, Charles R. Bentley, Edward J. Brook, Nathan J. Chellman, Gary D. Clow, Jihong Cole-Dai, Howard Conway, Eric Cravens, Kurt M. Cuffey, Nelia W. Dunbar, Jon S. Edwards, John M. Fegyveresi, Dave G. Ferris, Joan J. Fitzpatrick, T. J. Fudge, Chris J. Gibson, Vasileios Gkinis, Joshua J. Goetz, Stephanie Gregory, Geoffrey Mill Hargreaves, Nels Iverson, Jay A. Johnson, Tyler R. Jones, Michael L. Kalk, Matthew J. Kippenhan, Bess G. Koffman, Karl Kreutz, Tanner W. Kuhl, Donald A. Lebar, James E. Lee, Shaun A. Marcott, Bradley R. Markle, Olivia J. Maselli, Joseph R. McConnell, Kenneth C. McGwire, Logan E. Mitchell, Nicolai B. Mortensen, Peter D. Neff, Kunihiko Nishiizumi, Richard M. Nunn, Anais J. Orsi, Daniel R. Pasteris, Joel B. Pedro, Erin C. Pettit, P. Buford Price, John C. Priscu, Rachael H. Rhodes, Julia L. Rosen, Andrew J. Schauer, Spruce W. Schoenemann, Paul J. Sendelbach, Jeffrey P. Severinghaus, Alexander J. Shturmakov, Michael Sigl, Kristina R. Slawny, Joseph M. Souney, Todd A. Sowers, Matthew K. Spencer, Eric J. Steig, Kendrick C. Taylor, Mark S. Twickler, Bruce H. Vaughn, Donald E. Voigt, Edwin D. Waddington, Kees C. Welten, Anthony W. Wendricks, James W. C. White, Mai Winstrup, Gifford J. Wong, Thomas E. Woodruff
2015, Nature (520) 661-665
The last glacial period exhibited abrupt Dansgaard–Oeschger climatic oscillations, evidence of which is preserved in a variety of Northern Hemisphere palaeoclimate archives1. Ice cores show that Antarctica cooled during...
