Assessment of Mesozoic tight-oil and tight-gas resources in the Sichuan Basin of China, 2018
Christopher J. Potter, Christopher J. Schenk, Tracey J. Mercier, Marilyn E. Tennyson, Thomas M. Finn, Cheryl A. Woodall, Heidi M. Leathers-Miller, Kristen R. Marra, Phuong A. Le, Ronald M. Drake II, Michael E. Brownfield, Janet K. Pitman
2019, Fact Sheet 2019-3010
Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated undiscovered, technically recoverable mean resources of 1.2 billion barrels of tight oil and 29.1 trillion cubic feet of tight gas in Mesozoic formations in the Sichuan Basin of China....
Morphology and molecular data reveal invasion of cryptic golden tegus Tupinambis cryptus Murphy et al., 2016) in Florida
R. Alexander Pyron, Robert Reed, Timothy J. Colston, Michael R. Rochford
2019, BioInvasions Records (8) 465-470
Golden Tegus (Tupinambis teguixin sensu lato) are native to South America and have established a reproducing population in Miami-Dade County, Florida. Recent work divided the Golden Tegu into four separate species, leaving the specific identity of Golden Tegus in Florida unknown. We used morphometric and mitochondrial data to determine the...
The circumtropical swarm population of the longspined porcupinefish (Diodon holocanthus Linnaeus)
John E Randall, Caroline Rogers, John C Ogden
2019, Aqua (25) 53-80
Evidence is presented that Diodon holocanthus is a circumtropical swarm (not a hybrid swarm because the individuals are not hybrids). Some individuals are so differentfrom one another in both color and morphology that they appear to be different species. Thirty undersea and aquarium photographs from different global localities are provided to demonstrate...
Alaska Shorebird Conservation Plan, Version III
Daniel R. Ruthrauff
2019, Book
In recognition of declines among perhaps half of Alaska’s breeding shorebirds, ongoing or emerging threats to shorebirds and their habitats, and considerable knowledge of Alaska’s shorebirds acquired over the past decade, the Alaska Shorebird Group decided that the Alaska Shorebird Conservation Plan was due for updates. Similar to Version II...
The Kulanaokuaiki-3 tephra, 900 CE: Products of a remarkably energetic pyroclastic eruption at Kīlauea Volcano, Hawaiʻi, USA
Richard A. Fiske, Timothy R. Rose, Donald A. Swanson, Benjamin J. Andrews, Alexamder R. L. Nichols
2019, Geological Society of America Bulletin (131) 1537-1554
Eruptions of Kīlauea Volcano, Hawaiʻi, USA, can be more powerful than previously recognized. The Kulanaokuaiki-3 (K-3) eruption, ca. 900 CE, consisted of two episodes that dispersed lithic wall-rock clasts (Episode 1) and dominantly scoria (Episode 2; VEI-3) across >65 km2 southeast of the summit. Dense 12...
Risk factors and productivity losses associated with Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae infection in United States domestic sheep operations
Kezia R. Manlove, M Branan, K Baker, D Bradway, E. F. Cassirer, K.L Marshall, Ryan S. Miller, Steven J. Sweeney, Paul C. Cross, T. E. Besser
2019, Preventive Veterinary Medicine 30-38
Association of Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae with pneumonia in domestic small ruminants has been described in Europe, Asia, and New Zealand but has received less attention in the United States. In 2011, the US Department of Agriculture’s National Animal Health Monitoring Survey detected M. ovipneumoniae shedding in 88% of 453 domestic sheep...
Three-dimensional partitioning of resources by congeneric forest predators with recent sympatry
Julianna M Jenkins, Damon B. Lesmeister, David Wiens, Jonathan T Kane, Van R. Kane, Jake V Verschuyl
2019, Scientific Reports (9) 1-10
Coexistence of ecologically similar species can be maintained by partitioning along one or more niche axes. Three-dimensional structural complexity is central to facilitating resource partitioning between many forest species, but is underrepresented in field-based studies. We examined resource selection by sympatric northern spotted owls (Strix occidentalis caurina), a threatened species...
Eastern Carpenter Bee (Hymenoptera: Apidae): Nest structure, nest cell provisions, and trap nest acceptance in Rhode Island
Sara K Tucker, Howard S. Ginsberg, Steven R. Alm
2019, Environmental Entomology (48) 702-710
Analysis of pollen provisions in Xylocopa virginica (L.) nests in southern Rhode Island showed that this species produced pollen loaves from 21 different genera of plants in 2016, 19 in 2017, and 39 in 2018. Antirrhinium majus L. (garden snapdragon) pollen was the most common type collected in all three years (21.4%). Overall, wind-pollinated...
Integrating fish assemblage data, modeled stream temperatures, and thermal tolerance metrics to develop thermal guilds for water temperature regulation: Wyoming case study
Caitlin P. Mandeville, Frank J. Rahel, Lindsay S. Patterson, Annika W. Walters
2019, Transactions of the American Fisheries Society (148) 739-754
Many streams are experiencing increased average temperatures due to anthropogenic activity and climate change. As a result, surface water temperature regulation is critical for preserving a diverse stream fish species assemblage. The development of temperature regulations has generally been based on laboratory measurements of individual species' thermal tolerances rather than...
Quantifying ecological integrity of terrestrial systems to inform management of multiple-use public lands in the United States
Sarah K. Carter, Erica Fleishman, Ian I.F. Leinwand, Curtis H. Flather, Natasha B. Carr, Frank A. Fogarty, Matthias Leu, Barry R. Noon, M.E. Wohlfeil, David J. A. Wood
2019, Environmental Management (64) 1-19
The concept of ecological integrity has been applied widely to management of aquatic systems, but still is considered by many to be too vague and difficult to quantify to be useful for managing terrestrial systems, particularly across broad areas. Extensive public lands in the western United States are managed for...
Satellite tracking of gulls and genomic characterization of fecal bacteria reveals environmentally mediated acquisition and dispersal of antimicrobial resistant Escherichia coli on the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska
Christina Ahlstrom, Jonas Bonnedahl, Hanna Woksepp, Jorge Hernandez, John Reed, T. Lee Tibbitts, Bjorn Olsen, David C. Douglas, Andrew M. Ramey
2019, Molecular Ecology (28) 2531-2545
Gulls (Larus spp.) have frequently been reported to carry Escherichia coli exhibiting antimicrobial resistance (AMR E. coli); however, the pathways governing the acquisition and dispersal of such bacteria are not well-described. We equipped 17 landfill-foraging gulls with satellite transmitters and collected gull fecal samples longitudinally from four locations on the...
A framework for characterising and evaluating the effectiveness of environmental modelling
Serena H Hamilton, Baihua Fu, Joseph H. A. Guillaume, Jennifer Badham, Sondoss Elsawah, Patricia Gober, Randall J. Hunt, Takuya Iwanaga, Anthony J. Jakeman, Daniel P. Ames, Allan Curtis, Mary C Hill, Suzanne A Pierce, Fateme Zare
2019, Environmental Modelling and Software (118) 83-98
Environmental modelling is transitioning from the traditional paradigm that focuses on the model and its quantitative performance to a more holistic paradigm that recognises successful model-based outcomes are closely tied to undertaking modelling as a social process, not just as a...
Can multi-element fingerprinting of soils inform assessments of chemical connectivity between depressional wetlands?
Xiaoyan Zhu, Yuxiang Yuan, David M. Mushet, Marinus L. Otte
2019, Wetlands (39) 1015-1027
The question of wetland connectivity is particularly relevant regarding depressional wetlands because these wetlands often seem to be “isolated” from other wetlands on a landscape. In this study, multi-element fingerprinting of soils was used to assess similarity in element composition of depressional-wetland soils as a measure of wetland connectivity. We...
Bats in a changing landscape: Linking occupancy and traits of a diverse montane bat community to fire regime
Elisabeth B. Webb, R.V. Blakely, Dylan C. Kesler, R. B. Siegel, D.C. Barrios, J.M. Johnson
2019, Ecology and Evolution (9) 5324-5337
1. Wildfires are increasing in incidence and severity across the western US, leading to changes in forest structure and wildlife habitats. Knowledge of how species respond to fire-driven habitat changes in these landscapes is limited and generally disconnected from our understanding of adaptations that underpin responses to fire. 2. We...
Stratigraphic and structural relations in trench exposures and geomorphology at the Big Burn, Lily Lake, and Lester Ranch sites, Bear River Fault Zone, Utah and Wyoming
Suzanne Hecker, Christopher DuRoss, David P. Schwartz, Francesca R. Cinti, Riccardo Civico, William R. Lund, Adam I. Hiscock, Michael W. West, Tarka Wilcox, Alivia R. Stoller
2019, Scientific Investigations Map 3430
This report provides trench photomosaics, logs and related site information, age data, and earthquake event evidence from three paleoseismic trench sites on the Bear River Fault Zone. Our motivation for studying the Bear River Fault Zone—a nascent normal fault in the Rocky Mountains east of the Basin and Range physiographic...
Seasonality and prevalence of pollen collected from Hawaiian nectarivorous birds
Kathryn van Dyk, Kristina L. Paxton, Patrick J. Hart, Eben H. Paxton
2019, Pacific Science (73) 187-197
Hawaiian nectarivorous forest birds play a vital ecological role as pollinators in Hawaiian ecosystems. However, little is known about what nectar resources are utilized by Hawai‘i’s nectarivorous birds, how seasonality influences nectar availability, and how nectar preference differs by bird species. We sampled pollen from the heads of ‘i‘iwi (Drepanis...
Advancing barrier island habitat mapping using landscape position information
Nicholas Enwright, Lei Wang, Sinéad M. Borchert, Richard Day, Laura Feher, Michael Osland
2019, Progress in Physical Geography: Earth and Environment (43) 425-450
Barrier islands are dynamic ecosystems that change gradually from coastal processes, including currents and tides, and rapidly from episodic events, such as storms. These islands provide many important ecosystem services, including storm protection and erosion control to the mainland, habitat for fish and wildlife, and tourism. Habitat maps, developed by...
The rise of an apex predator following deglaciation
Mevin Hooten, George G. Esslinger
2019, Diversity and Distributions (25) 895-908
AimSea otters (Enhydra lutris) are an apex predator of the nearshore marine community and nearly went extinct at the turn of the 20th century. Reintroductions and legal protection allowed sea otters to re‐colonize much of their former range. Our objective was to chronicle the colonization of...
Three-dimensional basin and fault structure from a detailed seismic velocity model of Coachella Valley, Southern California
Rasheed Ajala, Patricia Persaud, Joann M. Stock, Gary S. Fuis, John A. Hole, Mark Goldman, Daniel S. Scheirer
2019, Journal of Geophysical Research (124) 4728-4750
The Coachella Valley in the northern Salton Trough is known to produce destructive earthquakes, making it a high seismic hazard area. Knowledge of the seismic velocity structure and geometry of the sedimentary basins and fault zones is required to improve earthquake hazard estimates in this region. We simultaneously inverted first...
To forage or flee: Lessons from an elk migration near a protected area
Nathaniel Mikle, Tabitha A. Graves, Edward M. Olexa
2019, Ecosphere (10) 1-15
Alteration of wide-ranging wildlife migrations can drastically impact the structure and function of ecosystems, yet the causes and consequences of shifting migration patterns remain largely unknown. Management decisions made in one portion of a landscape may induce spatial and temporal shifts of wildlife use in another, creating tension among private,...
Rare earth element mineral deposits in the United States
Bradley S. Van Gosen, Philip L. Verplanck, Poul Emsbo
2019, Circular 1454
Because of their unique special chemical properties, many of the metals in the group of rare earth elements (REEs) have essential applications in 21st century technologies. Examples of products that use REEs are cell phones, computers, fluorescent and light-emitting-diode lights, flat-screen television and computer monitors, and in high-strength magnets used...
Environmental DNA sampling reveals high occupancy rates of invasive Burmese pythons at wading bird breeding aggregations in the central Everglades
Sophia C. M. Orzechowski, Peter C. Frederick, Robert M. Dorazio, Margaret Hunter
2019, PLoS ONE (14)
The Burmese python (Python bivittatus) is now established as a breeding population throughout south Florida, USA. However, the extent of the invasion, and the ecological impacts of this novel apex predator on animal communities are incompletely known, in large part because Burmese pythons (hereafter “pythons”) are extremely cryptic...
Spatial and Temporal Patterns of Best Management Practice Implementation in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed, 1985–2014
Andrew J. Sekellick, Olivia H. Devereux, Jennifer L. D. Keisman, Jeffrey S. Sweeney, Joel D. Blomquist
2019, Scientific Investigations Report 2018-5171
Efforts to restore water quality in Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries often include extensive Best Management Practice (BMP) implementation on agricultural and developed lands. These BMPs include a variety of methods to reduce nutrient and sediment loads, such as cover crops, conservation tillage, urban filtering systems, and other practices.Estimates of...
Groundwater quality and nutrient trends near Marsing, southwestern Idaho, 2018
Kenneth D. Skinner
2019, Open-File Report 2019-1032
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality, sampled groundwater from 15 wells during spring 2018 near the city of Marsing in rural northwestern Owyhee County, southwestern Idaho. Samples were analyzed for field parameters, nutrients, trace elements, major inorganics, and dissolved gas, including methane....
A landscape model of variable social-ecological fire regimes
Robert M Scheller, Alec Kretchun, Todd Hawbaker, Paul D. Henne
2019, Ecological Modelling (401) 85-93
Fire regimes are now recognized as the product of social processes whereby fire on any landscape is the product of human-generated drivers: climate change, historical patterns of vegetation manipulation, invasive species, active fire suppression, ongoing fuel management efforts, prescribed burning, and accidental ignitions. We developed a new fire...
