Hierarchical Bayesian Markov switching models with application to predicting spawning success of shovelnose sturgeon
S. H. Holan, G. M. Davis, M. L. Wildhaber, A. J. DeLonay, D. M. Papoulias
2009, Journal of the Royal Statistical Society. Series C: Applied Statistics (58) 47-64
The timing of spawning in fish is tightly linked to environmental factors; however, these factors are not very well understood for many species. Specifically, little information is available to guide recruitment efforts for endangered species such as the sturgeon. Therefore, we propose a Bayesian hierarchical model for predicting the success...
An integrated approach to assess broad-scale condition of coastal wetlands - The Gulf of Mexico Coastal Wetlands pilot survey
J.A. Nestlerode, V.D. Engle, P. Bourgeois, P.T. Heitmuller, J.M. Macauley, Y.C. Allen
2009, Conference Paper, Environmental Monitoring and Assessment
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) initiated a two-year regional pilot survey in 2007 to develop, test, and validate tools and approaches to assess the condition of northern Gulf of Mexico (GOM) coastal wetlands. Sampling sites were selected from estuarine and palustrine wetland areas with herbaceous,...
How processing digital elevation models can affect simulated water budgets
E. L. Kuniansky, M.A. Lowery, B. G. Campbell
2009, Ground Water (47) 97-107
For regional models, the shallow water table surface is often used as a source/sink boundary condition, as model grid scale precludes simulation of the water table aquifer. This approach is appropriate when the water table surface is relatively stationary. Since water table surface maps are not readily available, the elevation...
Evaluating the validity of using unverified indices of body condition
J.L. Schamber, Daniel Esler, Paul L. Flint
2009, Journal of Avian Biology (40) 49-56
Condition indices are commonly used in an attempt to link body condition of birds to ecological variables of interest, including demographic attributes such as survival and reproduction. Most indices are based on body mass adjusted for structural body size, calculated as simple ratios or residuals from regressions. However, condition indices...
A Mid-Late Quaternary loess-paleosol record in Simmons Farm in southern Illinois, USA
Hongfang Wang, C.C. Lundstrom, Z. Zhang, D.A. Grimley, W.L. Balsam
2009, Quaternary Science Reviews (28) 93-106
In unglaciated areas of the Mississippi Valley region, the typical full loess-paleosol succession contains the Modern Soil developed in Peoria Silt, weakly developed Farmdale Geosol developed in Roxana Silt, Sangamon Geosol developed in Loveland Silt, and Yarmouth Geosol developed in Crowley's Ridge Silt. Although a fifth loess called the Marianna...
Effects of an invasive plant on a desert sand dune landscape
C.W. Barrows, E.B. Allen, M.L. Brooks, M.F. Allen
2009, Biological Invasions (11) 673-686
Given the abundance of non-native species invading wildland habitats, managers need to employ informed triage to focus control efforts on weeds with the greatest potential for negative impacts. Our objective here was to determine the level of threat Sahara mustard, Brassica tournefortii, represents to meeting regional goals for protecting biodiversity....
Exotic plant species associations with horse trails, old roads, and intact native communities in the Missouri Ozarks
E.D. Stroh, M.A. Struckhoff
2009, Natural Areas Journal (29) 50-56
We compared the extent to which exotic species are associated with horse trails, old roads, and intact communities within three native vegetation types in Ozark National Scenic Riverways, Missouri. We used a general linear model procedure and a Bonferroni multiple comparison test to compare exotic species richness, exotic to native...
Geochemical evidence for African dust and volcanic ash inputs to terra rossa soils on carbonate reef terraces, northern Jamaica, West Indies
D.R. Muhs, J. R. Budahn
2009, Quaternary International (196) 13-35
The origin of red or reddish-brown, clay-rich, "terra rossa" soils on limestone has been debated for decades. A traditional qualitative explanation for their formation has been the accumulation of insoluble residues as the limestone is progressively dissolved over time. However, this mode of formation often requires unrealistic or impossible amounts...
Providing public standardized data access function: Lessons learned from accessing USGS Landsat archive
X. Cheng, Y. Bai, L. Di, D. Nebert
2009, Conference Paper, 2009 17th International Conference on Geoinformatics, Geoinformatics 2009
The geospatial community is experiencing a shift from having data locally to sharing them over the Web. However, not all the data accessing systems are built in compliance with open geospatial standards and thus are weak in terms of interoperability. The USGS Landsat data are now available through free electronic...
Temporal variations of Escherichia coli concentrations in a large Midwestern river
K. E. Schilling, Y.-K. Zhang, D.R. Hill, C.S. Jones, C.F. Wolter
2009, Journal of Hydrology (365) 79-85
The Raccoon River used by the Des Moines Water Works to serve more than 400,000 people in central Iowa is threatened by contamination from Escherichia coli bacteria from point and nonpoint sources. The 9389 km2 watershed is highly agricultural, with 73% of the land in row crop production and widespread...
Survival and migration behavior of juvenile salmonids at McNary Dam, 2007
N.S. Adams, T.D. Counihan
2009, Report
n/a ...
Depleted uranium analysis in blood by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry
T.I. Todorov, H. Xu, J.W. Ejnik, F.G. Mullick, K. Squibb, M.A. McDiarmid, J.A. Centeno
2009, Journal of Analytical Atomic Spectrometry (24) 189-193
In this study we report depleted uranium (DU) analysis in whole blood samples. Internal exposure to DU causes increased uranium levels as well as change in the uranium isotopic composition in blood specimen. For identification of DU exposure we used the 235U/238U ratio in blood samples, which ranges from 0.00725...
Emissions from the copper-nickel industry on the Kola Peninsula and at Noril'sk, Russia
Ron Boyd, S.-J. Barnes, P. De Caritat, V.A. Chekushin, V.A. Melezhik, C. Reimann, M. L. Zientek
2009, Atmospheric Environment (43) 1474-1480
Published estimates for base metal emissions from the copper-nickel industry on the Kola Peninsula are re-examined in the light of (a) chemical data on the composition of the ores; (b) official emission figures for 1994; and (c) modelled emissions based on dry and wet deposition estimates derived from data for...
Groundwater's significance to changing hydrology, water chemistry, and biological communities of a floodplain ecosystem, Everglades, South Florida, USA
J. W. Harvey, P.V. McCormick
2009, Hydrogeology Journal (17) 185-201
The Everglades (Florida, USA) is one of the world's larger subtropical peatlands with biological communities adapted to waters low in total dissolved solids and nutrients. Detecting how the pre-drainage hydrological system has been altered is crucial to preserving its functional attributes. However, reliable tools for hindcasting historic conditions in the...
Timing and petroleum sources for the Lower Cretaceous Mannville Group oil sands of northern Alberta based on 4-D modeling
D.K. Higley, M. D. Lewan, L. N. R. Roberts, M. Henry
2009, American Association of Petroleum Geologists Bulletin (93) 203-230
The Lower Cretaceous Mannville Group oil sands of northern Alberta have an estimated 270.3 billion m3 (BCM) (1700 billion bbl) of in-place heavy oil and tar. Our study area includes oil sand accumulations and downdip areas that partially extend into the deformation zone in western Alberta. The oil sands are...
Geologic columns for the ICDP-USGS Eyreville A and C cores, Chesapeake Bay impact structure: Postimpact sediments, 444 to 0 m depth
Lucy E. Edwards, David S. Powars, J.V. Browning, P.P. McLaughlin Jr., K.G. Miller, Self-Trail J.M., A.A. Kulpecz, T. Elbra
2009, Special Paper of the Geological Society of America 91-114
A 443.9-m-thick, virtually undisturbed section of postimpact deposits in the Chesapeake Bay impact structure was recovered in the Eyreville A and C cores, Northampton County, Virginia, within the "moat" of the structure's central crater. Recovered sediments are mainly fine-grained marine siliciclastics, with the exception of Pleistocene sand, clay, and gravel....
Hydrograph separation for karst watersheds using a two-domain rainfall-discharge model
Andrew J. Long
2009, Journal of Hydrology (364) 249-256
Highly parameterized, physically based models may be no more effective at simulating the relations between rainfall and outflow from karst watersheds than are simpler models. Here an antecedent rainfall and convolution model was used to separate a karst watershed hydrograph into two outflow components: one originating from focused recharge in...
Phenologically-tuned MODIS NDVI-based production anomaly estimates for Zimbabwe
Chris Funk, Michael E. Budde
2009, Remote Sensing of Environment (113) 115-125
For thirty years, simple crop water balance models have been used by the early warning community to monitor agricultural drought. These models estimate and accumulate actual crop evapotranspiration, evaluating environmental conditions based on crop water requirements. Unlike seasonal rainfall totals, these models take into account the phenology of the crop,...
Sexing California Clapper Rails using morphological measurements
Cory T. Overton, Michael L. Casazza, John Y. Takekawa, Tobias M. Rohmer
2009, North American Bird Bander (34) 58-64
California Clapper Rails (Rallus longirostris obsoletus) have monomorphic plumage, a trait that makes identification of sex difficult without extensive behavioral observation or genetic testing. Using 31 Clapper Rails (22 females, 9 males), caught in south San Francisco Bay, CA, and using easily measurable morphological characteristics, we developed a discriminant function...
Characterisation of carbon nanotubes in the context of toxicity studies
D. Berhanu, A. Dybowska, S.K. Misra, C.J. Stanley, P. Ruenraroengsak, A.R. Boccaccini, T.D. Tetley, S. N. Luoma, J.A. Plant, E. Valsami-Jones
2009, Environmental Health (8)
Nanotechnology has the potential to revolutionise our futures, but has also prompted concerns about the possibility that nanomaterials may harm humans or the biosphere. The unique properties of nanoparticles, that give them novel size dependent functionalities, may also have the potential to cause harm. Discrepancies in existing human health...
Mapping of accumulated nitrogen in the sediment pore water of a eutrophic lake in Iowa, USA
M.Z. Iqbal, C.L. Fields
2009, Environmental Geology (57) 465-475
A large pool of nitrogen in the sediment pore fluid of a eutrophic lake in Iowa, USA, was mapped in this study. Previously, the lake had supported fishing and boating, but today it no longer supports its designated uses as a recreational water body. In the top 5 cm of...
Habitat occupancy and detection of the pacific sheath-tailed bat (emballonura semicaudata) on aguiguan, commonwealth of the northern Mariana Islands
P. M. Gorresen, F.J. Bonaccorso, C.A. Pinzari
2009, Acta Chiropterologica (11) 331-342
Occupancy analysis was used to quantify Pacific sheath-tailed bat (Emballonura semicaudata) foraging activity and its relationship to forest structure and proximity to cave roosts on Aguiguan Island in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. Bat occurrence was most closely associated with canopy cover, vegetation stature and distance to known...
Integrating terrestrial LiDAR and stereo photogrammetry to map the Tolay lakebed in northern San Francisco Bay
Isa Woo, Rune Storesund Rune, John Y. Takekawa, Rachel J. Gardiner, Steve Ehret Steve
2009, Conference Paper, Planning for an uncertain future - Monitoring, integration, and adaptation
The Tolay Creek Watershed drains approximately 3,520 ha along the northern edge of San Francisco Bay. Surrounded by a mosaic of open space conservation easements and public wildlife areas, it is one of the only watersheds in this urbanized estuary that is protected from its headwaters to the bay. Tolay...
Post-breeding season distribution of black-footed and Laysan albatrosses satellite-tagged in Alaska: Inter-specific differences in spatial overlap with North Pacific fisheries
K.N. Fischer, R.M. Suryan, D.D. Roby, G.R. Balogh
2009, Biological Conservation (142) 751-760
We integrated satellite-tracking data from black-footed albatrosses (Phoebastria nigripes; n = 7) and Laysan albatrosses captured in Alaska (Phoebastria immutabilis; n = 18) with data on fishing effort and distribution from commercial fisheries in the North Pacific in order to assess potential risk from bycatch. Albatrosses were satellite-tagged at-sea in...
Experimental infection of cliff swallows (Petrochelidon pyrrhonota) with varying doses of West Nile virus
P.T. Oesterle, N.M. Nemeth, Kaci K. VanDalen, H. Sullivan, K.T. Bentler, G.R. Young, R. G. McLean, L. Clark, C. Smeraski, Jeffrey S. Hall
2009, American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (81) 1159-1164
Cliff swallows (Petrochelidon pyrrhonota) were inoculated with differing doses of West Nile virus (WNV) to evaluate their potential role as reservoir hosts in nature. Swallows often nest in large colonies in habitats and months associated with high mosquito abundance and early WNV transmission in North America. Additionally, cliff swallow diet...
