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The popularity of reservoirs to support sport fisheries has led to the stocking of species that did not co-evolve, creating novel reservoir fish communities. In Utah, the Bear Lake strain of Bonneville Cutthroat Trout Oncorhynchus clarkii utah and tiger trout (female Brown Trout Salmo trutta × male Brook Trout Salvelinus fontinalis) are being more frequently...

Mercury (Hg) is an element that occurs naturally, but evidence suggests that human activities have resulted in increased amounts being released to the atmosphere and land surface. When Hg is converted to methylmercury (MeHg) in aquatic ecosystems, MeHg accumulates and increases in the food web so that some fish contain...

In 2007, the California Ocean Protection Council initiated the California Seafloor Mapping Program (CSMP), designed to create a comprehensive seafloor map of high-resolution bathymetry, marine benthic habitats, and geology within the 3-nautical-mile limit of California’s State Waters. The CSMP approach is to create highly detailed seafloor maps through collection, integration,...

Strong‐motion accelerometers provide onscale seismic recordings during moderate‐to‐large ground motions (e.g., up to tens of m/s2 peak). Such instruments have played a fundamental role in improving our understanding of earthquake source physics (Bocketal., 2011), earthquake engineering (Youdet al., 2004), and regional seismology (Zollo et al., 2010). Although strong‐motion accelerometers tend...

The endangered West Indian manatee (Trichechus manatus), especially the Florida subspecies (T. m. latirostris), has been the focus of conservation efforts and extensive research since its listing under the Endangered Species Act. On the basis of the best information available as of December 2012, the threats facing the Florida manatee...

Studies in Iowa have long documented the vulnerability of wells with less than 50 feet (15 meters) of confining materials above the source aquifer to contamination from nitrate and various pesticides. Recent studies in Wisconsin have documented the occurrence of viruses in untreated groundwater, even in wells considered to have...

Marine geology and geomorphology were mapped along the continental shelf and upper slope between Point Piedras Blancas and Pismo Beach, California. The map area is divided into the following three (smaller) map areas, listed from north to south: San Simeon, Morro Bay, and Point San Luis. Each smaller map area...

In 2007, the California Ocean Protection Council initiated the California Seafloor Mapping Program (CSMP), designed to create a comprehensive seafloor map of high-resolution bathymetry, marine benthic habitats, and geology within the 3-nautical-mile limit of California’s State Waters. The CSMP approach is to create highly detailed seafloor maps through collection, integration,...

Multiple factors, including limitation in food resources, have been proposed as possible causes for the lack of recovery of the endangered western segment of the Steller sea lion population in the United States. Because maternal body condition has important consequences on fetal development and neonatal survival, the diets of pregnant...

Three invasive fishes of considerable concern to aquatic resource managers are the Hypophthalmichthys nobilis (bighead carp),Hypophthalmichthys molitrix (silver carp), and Ctenopharyngodon idella (grass carp), collectively known as Asian carps. There is a need for an effective chemical control agent for Asian carps. Isoniazid was identified as a potential toxicant for grass carp. The selective toxicity...

In 2004, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) completed an assessment of the undiscovered oil and gas potential of the U.S. portion of the Michigan Basin. For this assessment, the Michigan Basin includes most of the State of Michigan, as well as parts of Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin. The...

Investigation of the water sources used by trees of different ages is essential to formulate a conservation strategy for the riparian tree, P. euphratica. This study addressed the contributions of different potential water sources to P. euphratica based on levels of stable oxygen and hydrogen isotopes (δ18<span...

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with State and local agencies, systematically collects groundwater data at varying measurement frequencies to monitor the hydrologic conditions on Long Island, New York. Each year during April and May, the USGS conducts a synoptic survey of water levels to define the spatial distribution...

In the second year of 2 years of study, the movements of juvenile spring Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) and juvenile summer steelhead (Oncorhynchus mykiss) through Detroit Reservoir, passing Detroit Dam, and migrating downstream to Portland, Oregon, were studied during a 1-year-long period beginning in February 2013. The primary purpose of...

In 2007, the California Ocean Protection Council initiated the California Seafloor Mapping Program (CSMP), designed to create a comprehensive seafloor map of high-resolution bathymetry, marine benthic habitats, and geology within California’s State Waters. The CSMP approach is to create highly detailed seafloor maps through collection, integration, interpretation, and visualization of...

We analyzed remote detection data from PIT-tagged Lost River Suckers Deltistes luxatus at four shoreline spawning areas in Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon, to determine whether spawning of this endangered species was affected by low water levels. Our investigation was motivated by the observation that the surface elevation of the lake...

The Pressure Water Level Data Logger manufactured by Infinities USA, Inc., was evaluated by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Hydrologic Instrumentation Facility for conformance with the manufacturer’s stated accuracy specifications for measuring pressure throughout the device’s operating temperature range and with the USGS accuracy requirements for water-level measurements. The Pressure...

We studied 18 sampling stations along a transect to investigate the similarity between live (rose Bengal stained) foraminiferal populations and dead assemblages, their small-scale spatial variations and the distribution of infaunal foraminifera in a salt marsh (Toms Creek marsh) at the upper end of the South Slough arm of the...

Groundwater provides more than 40 percent of California’s drinking water. To protect this vital resource, the State of California created the Groundwater Ambient Monitoring and Assessment (GAMA) Program. The Priority Basin Project of the GAMA Program provides a comprehensive assessment of the State’s groundwater quality and increases public access to...

Groundwater quality in the Cascade Range and Modoc Plateau study unit was investigated as part of the California State Water Resources Control Board’s Groundwater Ambient Monitoring and Assessment (GAMA) Program Priority Basin Project. The study was designed to provide a statistically unbiased assessment of untreated groundwater quality in the primary...

This report presents information used to characterize the groundwater-flow system in the Puyallup River Watershed and vicinity, and includes descriptions of the geology and hydrogeologic framework; groundwater recharge and discharge; groundwater levels and flow directions; seasonal groundwater level fluctuations; interactions between aquifers and the surface-water system; and a water budget....

The Bighead Carp Hypophthalmichthys nobilis and Silver Carp H. molitrix are nonnative species that pose a threat to Great Lakes ecosystems should they advance into those areas. Thus, technologies to impede Asian carp movement into the Great Lakes are needed; one potential technology is the seismic water gun. We evaluated the efficacy of a...

Desert springs are sensitive aquatic ecosystems that pose unique challenges to natural resource managers and researchers. Among the most important of these is the need to accurately quantify population parameters for resident fish, particularly when the species are of special conservation concern. We evaluated the efficiency of baited minnow traps...

Accurate species identification is vital to conservation and management of species at risk. Species identification is challenging when taxa express similar phenotypic characters and form hybrids, for example the endangered shortnose sucker (Chasmistes brevirostris) and Lost River sucker (Deltistes luxatus). Here, we developed 20 Taqman assays that differentiate these species...

The Sparta aquifer is used in 15 parishes in north-central Louisiana, primarily for public supply and industrial purposes. Of those parishes, eight (Bienville, Claiborne, Jackson, Lincoln, Ouachita, Union, Webster, and Winn) rely on the Sparta aquifer as their principal source of groundwater. In 2010, withdrawals from the Sparta aquifer in...