Watershed and estuarine controls both influence plant community and tree growth changes in tidal freshwater forested wetlands along two U.S. mid-Atlantic rivers
Gregory E. Noe, Norman A Bourg, Ken Krauss, Jamie A. Duberstein, Cliff R. Hupp
2021, Forests (9)
The tidal freshwater zone near the estuarine head-of-tide is potentially sensitive to both sea-level rise and associated salinity increases as well as changing watershed inputs of freshwater and nutrients. We evaluated the vegetation response of tidal freshwater forested wetlands (TFFW) to changes in nontidal river versus estuarine...
Predicting non-native insect impact: Focusing on the trees to see the forest
Ashley N. Schulz, Angela M. Mech, Matthew P. Ayres, Kamal J.K. Gandhi, Nathan P. Havill, Daniel A. Herms, Angela Marie Hoover, Ruth A. Hufbauer, Andrew M. Liebhold, Travis D. Marsico, Kenneth F. Raffa, Patrick C. Tobin, Daniel R. Uden, Kathryn A. Thomas
2021, Biological Invasions (23) 3921-3936
Non-native organisms have invaded novel ecosystems for centuries, yet we have only a limited understanding of why their impacts vary widely from minor to severe. Predicting the impact of non-established or newly detected species could help focus biosecurity measures on species with the highest potential to...
Interagency Ecological Program long-term monitoring element review: Pilot approach and methods development (2020)
Jereme W. Gaeta, Samuel M. Bashevkin, Frederick V. Feyrer, Brock Huntsman, Brian Mahardja, Steven D Culberson, Michael P Beakes, Stephanie Fong, Stephen Louie
2021, Report
This report describes the first-year, pilot-phase of what is intended to be a larger, multiple-year review of all IEP core long-term monitoring elements (LTMEs). Here we hope to provide evidence that the review team arrangement and communication schedule was effective at developing a framework to objectively evaluate a suite of...
Consequences of changing water clarity on the fish and fisheries of the Laurentian Great Lakes
David Bunnell, Stuart A. Ludsin, Roger L. Knight, Lars G. Rudstam, Craig E. Williamson, Tomas O. Hook, Paris D. Collingsworth, Barry M. Lesht, Richard P. Barbiero, Anne E. Scofield, Edward S. Rutherford, Layne Gaynor, Henry A. Vanderploeg, Marten A. Koops
2021, Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences (78) 1524-1542
Human-driven environmental change underlies recent changes in water clarity in many of the world’s great lakes, yet our understanding of the consequences of these changes on the fish and fisheries they support remains incomplete. Herein, we offer a framework to organize current knowledge, guide future research, and help fisheries managers...
Using ALOS-2 synthetic aperture radar (SAR) and interferometric SAR to detect landslides on the mountainous island of Pohnpei, Federated States of Micronesia
Elijah W. Ramsey III, Amina Rangoonwala
2021, Open-File Report 2021-1084
This study was undertaken by the U.S. Geological Survey to assess the detectability of landslides in the densely forested and mountainous island of Pohnpei in the Federated States of Micronesia. The study used existing field-observed land-cover changes and landslides visible on Google Earth (GE) images. A limited number of ALOS-2...
Behavior and survival of hatchery rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) in the upper Cowlitz River Basin, Washington, 2013 and 2017
Amy C. Hansen, Tobias J. Kock, Brian K. Ekstrom, Theresa L. Liedtke
2021, Open-File Report 2021-1085
A two-year study (2013 and 2017) was conducted to determine if annual releases of hatchery rainbow trout (resident Oncorhynchus mykiss) in the upper Cowlitz River Basin, Washington adversely affected anadromous fish in the basin. Rainbow trout tagged with radio transmitters were monitored after release to describe movement patterns, entrainment...
Historical hydrologic and geomorphic conditions on the Black River and selected tributaries, Arkansas and Missouri
Jessica Z. LeRoy, Richard J. Huizinga, David C. Heimann, Evan M. Lindroth, Henry F. Doyle
2021, Scientific Investigations Report 2021-5067
The Black River flows through southeast Missouri and northeast Arkansas to its confluence with the White River in Arkansas. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers operates Clearwater Dam on the Black River and a series of dams in the White River Basin primarily for flood control. In this study, the...
Flow dynamics influence fish recruitment in hydrologically connected river-reservoir landscapes
J. Dattilo, Shannon K. Brewer, D. E. Shoup
2021, North American Journal of Fisheries Management (41) 1752-1763
Hydrologic processes are often important determinants of successful recruitment of native fishes. However, water management practices can result in abnormal changes in daily and seasonal hydrology patterns. Rarely has fish recruitment across river–reservoir landscapes been considered in relation to flow management, despite the direct relationship between reservoir water management and...
Geohydrology and water quality of the stratified-drift aquifers in West Branch Cayuga Inlet and Fish Kill Valleys, Newfield, Tompkins County, New York
Benjamin N. Fisher, Paul M. Heisig, William M. Kappel
2021, Scientific Investigations Report 2021-5064
From 2011 to 2016, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Town of Newfield and the Tompkins County Planning Department, performed a study of the stratified-drift aquifers in the West Branch Cayuga Inlet and Fish Kill Valleys in Newfield, Tompkins County, New York. Both confined and unconfined aquifers were...
Swipe left on the “big one”: Better dates for Cascadia quakes
Jessie K. Pearl, Lydia M. Staisch
2021, Eos Science News
Improving our understanding of hazards posed by future large earthquakes on the Cascadia Subduction Zone requires advancements in the methods and sampling used to date and characterize past events....
Book review of "A most remarkable creature: The hidden life and epic journey of the world’s smartest birds of prey"
David E. Andersen
2021, Journal of Field Ornithology (92) 305-306
No abstract available....
Early Pleistocene climate-induced erosion of the Alaska Range formed the Nenana Gravel
Rachel Sortor, Brent Goehring, Sean Bemis, Chester A. Ruleman, Marc Caffee, Dylan Ward
2021, Geology (49) 1473-1477
The Pliocene-Pleistocene transition resulted in extensive global cooling and glaciation, but isolating this climate signal within erosion and exhumation responses in tectonically active regimes can be difficult. The Nenana Gravel is a foreland basin deposit in the northern foothills of the Alaska Range (USA) that...
The role of genome duplication in big sagebrush growth and fecundity
Bryce Richardson, Matthew Germino, Marcus V Warwell, Sven Buerki
2021, American Journal of Botany (108) 1405-1416
PremiseAdaptive traits can be dramatically altered by genome duplication. The study of interactions among traits, ploidy, and the environment are necessary to develop an understanding of how polyploidy affects niche differentiation and to develop restoration strategies for resilient native ecosystems.MethodsGrowth...
Surface energy balance of sub-Arctic roads with varying snow regimes and properties in permafrost regions
Lin Chen, Clifford I. Voss, Daniel Fortier, Jeffrey M. McKenzie
2021, Permafrost and Periglacial Processes (32) 681-701
Surface energy balance (SEB) strongly influences the thermal state of permafrost, cryohydrological processes, and infrastructure stability. Road construction and snow accumulation affect the energy balance of underlying permafrost. Herein, we use an experimental road section of the Alaska Highway to develop a SEB model to quantify the surface energy components...
Resilience of terrestrial and aquatic fauna to historical and future wildfire regimes in western North America
Henriette I. Jager, Jonathan W. Long, Rachel L Malison, Brendan P. Murphy, Ashley J. Rust, Luiz Silva, Rahel Sollmann, Zachary L Steel, Mark D Bowen, Jason B. Dunham, Joseph L. Ebersole, Rebecca L. Flitcroft
2021, Ecology and Evolution (11) 12259-12284
Wildfires in many western North American forests are becoming more frequent, larger, and severe, with changed seasonal patterns. In response, coniferous forest ecosystems will transition toward dominance by fire-adapted hardwoods, shrubs, meadows, and grasslands, which may benefit some faunal communities, but not others. We...
GeoAI in the US Geological Survey for topographic mapping
E. Lynn Usery, Samantha Arundel, Ethan J. Shavers, Larry Stanislawski, Philip T. Thiem, Dalia E. Varanka
2021, Transactions in GIS (26) 25-40
Geospatial artificial intelligence (GeoAI) can be defined broadly as the application of artificial intelligence methods and techniques to geospatial data, processes, models, and applications. The application of these methods to topographic data and phenomena is a focus of research in the US Geological Survey (USGS)....
Visitors count! Guidance for protected areas on the economic analysis of visitation
Anna Spenceley, Jan Philipp Schagner, Barbara Engels, Catherine Cullinane Thomas, Mauel Engelbauer, Joel Erkkonen, Hubert Job, Liisa Kajala, Lisa Majewski, Daniel Metzler, Marius Mayer, Andrew Rylance, Manuel Woltering, Niklas Scheder, Cecile Smith-Christensen, Thiago Beraldo Souza
2021, Book
The value of protected areas is often hidden from direct view. Once managers understand the number and behaviour of visitors they host, and the revenues and costs they generate, informed decisions on management plans and tourism strategies can be made. Demonstrating the positive impact of protected areas on the local economy can...
American eel personality and body length influence passage success in an experimental fishway
Matthew A. Mensinger, Allison M. Brehm, Alessio Mortelliti, Erik J. Blomberg, Joseph D. Zydlewski
2021, Journal of Applied Ecology (58) 2760-2769
Millions of dams impair watershed connectivity across the globe and have severely affected migratory fish populations. Fishways offer upstream passage opportunities, but artificial selection may be imposed by these structures. Using juvenile American eel Anguilla rostrata as a model species, we consider whether individual differences in behaviour (i.e. personality) and fish...
Groundwater, biodiversity, and the role of flow system scale
Allison R Aldous, Marshall W. Gannett
2021, Ecohydrology (14)
Groundwater-dependent ecosystems and species (GDEs) are found throughout watersheds at locations of groundwater discharge, yet not all GDEs are the same, nor are the groundwater systems supporting them. Groundwater moves along a variety of flow paths of different lengths and with different contributing areas, ranging from...
Taxonomic and functional differences between winter and summer crustacean zooplankton communities in lakes across a trophic gradient
Kirill Shchapov, P. Wilburn, A. Bramburger, G. Silsbe, L. Olmanson, Christopher J. Crawford, E. Litchmann, T. Ozersky
2021, Journal of Plankton Research (43) 732-750
Despite increasing interest in winter limnology, few studies have examined under-ice zooplankton communities and the factors shaping them in different types of temperate lakes. To better understand drivers of zooplankton community structure in winter and summer, we sampled 13 lakes across a large trophic status gradient for crustacean zooplankton...
LiDAR and paleoseismology solve earthquake mystery in the Pacific Northwest, USA
Brian Sherrod, Richard J. Blakely, Craig S. Weaver
2021, Geophysical Research Letters (48)
One of the largest historical earthquakes in the U.S. Pacific Northwest occurred on December 15, 1872 near the south end of Lake Chelan. Lack of recognized surface deformation suggested that the earthquake occurred on a blind, perhaps deep, fault. New LiDAR data revealed a NW-side-up scarp along the north side...
Water quality, instream habitat, and the distribution of suckers in the upper Lost River watershed of Oregon and California, summer 2018
Barbara A. Martin, Summer M. Burdick, Stephen T. Staiger, Caylen M. Kelsey
2021, Open-File Report 2021-1077
Executive SummaryEndangered Lost River (Deltistes luxatus) and shortnose (Chasmistes brevirostris) suckers primarily use lotic habitats during the spring spawning season in the Upper Klamath Lake watershed. However, summer-time surveys of the upper Lost River watershed in 1972, 1975 and 1989–90 indicated that adults of both endangered species use tributaries...
Evaluation of movement and survival of juvenile steelhead (Oncorhynchus mykiss) and coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) in the Klickitat River, Washington, 2018–2019
Scott D. Evans, David S. Lindley, Tobias J. Kock, Amy C. Hansen, Russell W. Perry, Joseph S Zendt, Nicolas Romero
2021, Open-File Report 2021-1083
A 2-year telemetry study was conducted April–July in 2018 and 2019 to evaluate migration behavior and survival of juvenile steelhead (Oncorhynchus mykiss) and coho salmon (O. kisutch) in the Klickitat River, Washington. A total of 612 natural-origin steelhead, collected in a smolt trap on the Klickitat River, were tagged,...
Development of demographic models to analyze populations with multi-year data—Using Agassiz’s Desert Tortoise (Gopherus agassizii) as a case study
Kristin H. Berry, Julie L. Yee
2021, Open-File Report 2018-1094
We developed a model for analyzing multi-year demographic data for long-lived animals and used data from a population of Agassiz’s desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii) at the Desert Tortoise Research Natural Area in the western Mojave Desert of California as a case study. The study area was 7.77 square kilometers and...
An efficient Bayesian framework for updating PAGER loss estimates
Hae Young Noh, Kishor S. Jaiswal, Davis T. Engler, David J. Wald
2021, Earthquake Spectra Journal (36) 1719-1742
We introduce a Bayesian framework for incorporating time-varying noisy reported data on damage and loss information to update near real-time loss estimates/alerts for the U.S. Geological Survey’s Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER) system. Initial loss estimation by PAGER immediately following an earthquake includes several uncertainties. Historically, the...
