Proximate composition, lipid utilization and validation of a non‐lethal method to determine lipid content in migrating American shad Alosa sapidissima
Shannon Michael Bayse, Amy M. Regish, Stephen D. McCormick
2018, Journal of Fish Biology (92) 1832-1848
Lipid content forms the most important energy reserve in anadromous fish and can limit survival, migration and reproductive success. A fat meter was evaluated and compared with a traditional extractive method of measuring available lipid for migrating American shad Alosa sapidissima in the Connecticut River, U.S.A. The fat meter gives rapid (<10 s)...
Overview of the geologic effects of the November 14, 2016, Mw 7.8 Kaikoura, New Zealand, earthquake
Randall W. Jibson, Kate E. Allstadt, Francis K. Rengers, Jonathan W. Godt
2018, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5146
The November 14, 2016, Kaikoura, New Zealand, earthquake (moment magnitude [Mw] 7.8) triggered more than 10,000 landslides over an area of about 12,000 square kilometers in the northeastern part of the South Island of New Zealand. In collaboration with GNS Science (the Institute of Geological and Nuclear Science Limited), we...
One-meter topobathymetric digital elevation model for Majuro Atoll, Republic of the Marshall Islands, 1944 to 2016
Monica Palaseanu-Lovejoy, Sandra K. Poppenga, Jeffrey J. Danielson, Dean J. Tyler, Dean B. Gesch, Maria Kottermair, Andrea Jalandoni, Edward Carlson, Cindy A. Thatcher, Matthew M. Barbee
2018, Scientific Investigations Report 2018-5047
Atoll and island coastal communities are highly exposed to sea-level rise, tsunamis, storm surges, rogue waves, king tides, and the occasional combination of multiple factors, such as high regional sea levels, extreme high local tides, and unusually strong wave set-up. The elevation of most of these atolls averages just under...
A North American Hydroclimate Synthesis (NAHS) of the Common Era
Jessica R. Rodysill, Lesleigh Anderson, Thomas M. Cronin, Miriam C. Jones, Robert S. Thompson, David B. Wahl, Debra A. Willard, Jason A. Addison, Jay R. Alder, Katherine H. Anderson, Lysanna Anderson, John A. Barron, Christopher E. Bernhardt, Steven W. Hostetler, Natalie M. Kehrwald, Nicole Khan, Julie N. Richey, Scott W. Starratt, Laura E. Strickland, Michael Toomey, Claire C. Treat, G. Lynn Wingard
2018, Global and Planetary Change (162) 175-198
This study presents a synthesis of century-scale hydroclimate variations in North America for the Common Era (last 2000 years) using new age models of previously published multiple proxy-based paleoclimate data. This North American Hydroclimate Synthesis (NAHS) examines regional hydroclimate patterns and related environmental indicators, including vegetation, lake water elevation, stream flow...
Identifying holes in the greater sage-grouse conservation umbrella
Jason D. Carlisle, Douglas A. Keinath, Shannon E. Albeke, Anna D. Chalfoun
2018, Journal of Wildlife Management (82) 948-957
The umbrella species concept, wherein multiple species are indirectly protected under the umbrella of a reserve created for one, is intended to enhance conservation efficiency. Although appealing in theory and common in practice, empirical tests of the concept have been scarce. We used a real-world, semi-protected reserve established to protect...
Evaluating and monitoring forest fuel treatments using remote sensing applications in Arizona, U.S.A.
Roy Petrakis, Miguel L. Villarreal, Zhuoting Wu, Robert Hetzler, Barry R. Middleton, Laura M. Norman
2018, Forest Ecology and Management (413) 48-61
The practice of fire suppression across the western United States over the past century has led to dense forests, and when coupled with drought has contributed to an increase in large and destructive wildfires. Forest management efforts aimed at reducing flammable fuels through various fuel treatments can help to restore...
Anthropocene landscape change and the legacy of nineteenth- and twentieth-century mining in the Fourmile Catchment, Colorado Front Range
David P. Dethier, William B. Ouimet, Sheila F. Murphy, Maneh Kotikian, Will Wicherski, Rachel M. Samuels
2018, Annals of the American Association of Geographers (108) 917-937
Human impacts on earth surface processes and materials are fundamental to understanding the proposed Anthropocene epoch. This study examines the magnitude, distribution, and long-term context of nineteenth- and twentieth-century mining in the Fourmile Creek catchment, Colorado, coupling airborne LiDAR topographic analysis with historical documents and field studies of river banks...
Lessons learned from research and surveillance directed at highly pathogenic influenza A viruses in wild birds inhabiting North America
Andrew M. Ramey, Thomas J. DeLiberto, Yohannes Berhane, David E. Swayne, David E. Stallknecht
2018, Virology (518) 55-63
Following detections of highly pathogenic (HP) influenza A viruses (IAVs) in wild birds inhabiting East Asia after the turn of the millennium, the intensity of sampling of wild birds for IAVs increased throughout much of North America. The objectives for many research and surveillance efforts were directed towards detecting Eurasian...
Phylogeny and species traits predict bird detectability
Peter Solymos, Steven M. Matsuoka, Diana Stralberg, Nicole K. S. Barker, Erin M. Bayne
2018, Ecography (41) 1595-1603
Avian acoustic communication has resulted from evolutionary pressures and ecological constraints. We therefore expect that auditory detectability in birds might be predictable by species traits and phylogenetic relatedness. We evaluated the relationship between phylogeny, species traits, and field‐based estimates of the two processes that determine species detectability (singing rate and...
Antibiotic-resistant Escherichia coli in migratory birds inhabiting remote Alaska
Andrew M. Ramey, Jorge Hernandez, Veronica Tyrlov, Brian D. Uher-Koch, Joel A. Schmutz, Clara Atterby, Josef D. Jarhult, Jonas Bonnedahl
2018, EcoHealth (15) 72-81
We explored the abundance of antibiotic-resistant Escherichia coli among migratory birds at remote sites in Alaska and used a comparative approach to speculate on plausible explanations for differences in detection among species. At a remote island site, we detected antibiotic-resistant E. coli phenotypes in samples collected from glaucous-winged gulls (<i...
Effects of contemporary land-use and land-cover change on the carbon balance of terrestrial ecosystems in the United States
Benjamin M. Sleeter, Jinxun Liu, Colin Daniel, Bronwyn Rayfield, Jason T. Sherba, Todd Hawbaker, Zhiliang Zhu, Paul Selmants, Thomas R. Loveland
2018, Environmental Research Letters (13)
Changes in land use and land cover (LULC) can have profound effects on terrestrial carbon dynamics, yet their effects on the global carbon budget remain uncertain. While land change impacts on ecosystem carbon dynamics have been the focus of numerous studies, few efforts have been based on observational data incorporating...
Mineral constraints on arctic caribou (Rangifer tarandus): a spatial and phenological perspective
K. W. Oster, P.S. Barboza, David D. Gustine, Kyle Joly, R. D. Shively
2018, Ecosphere (9)
Arctic caribou (Rangifer tarandus) have the longest terrestrial migration of any ungulate but little is known about the spatial and seasonal variation of minerals in summer forages and the potential impacts of mineral nutrition on the foraging behavior and nutritional condition of arctic caribou. We investigated the phenology, availability, and...
Water-quality, bed-sediment, and biological data (October 2015 through September 2016) and statistical summaries of data for streams in the Clark Fork Basin, Montana
Kent A. Dodge, Michelle I. Hornberger, Matthew A. Turner
2018, Open-File Report 2017-1136
Water, bed sediment, and biota were sampled in selected streams from Butte to near Missoula, Montana, as part of a monitoring program in the upper Clark Fork Basin of western Montana. The sampling program was led by the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, to...
GIS database and discussion for the distribution, composition, and age of Cenozoic volcanic rocks of the Pacific Northwest Volcanic Aquifer System study area
David R. Sherrod, Mackenzie K. Keith
2018, Open-File Report 2018-1030
A substantial part of the U.S. Pacific Northwest is underlain by Cenozoic volcanic and continental sedimentary rocks and, where widespread, these strata form important aquifers. The legacy geologic mapping presented with this report contains new thematic categorization added to state digital compilations published by the U.S. Geological Survey for Oregon,...
Wave attenuation across a tidal marsh in San Francisco Bay
Madeline R. Foster-Martinez, Jessica R. Lacy, Matthew C. Ferner, Evan A. Variano
2018, Coastal Engineering (136) 26-40
Wave attenuation is a central process in the mechanics of a healthy salt marsh. Understanding how wave attenuation varies with vegetation and hydrodynamic conditions informs models of other marsh processes that are a function of wave energy (e.g. sediment transport) and allows for the incorporation of marshes into coastal protection...
The Ozark Plateaus Regional Aquifer Study—Documentation of a groundwater-flow model constructed to assess water availability in the Ozark Plateaus
Brian R. Clark, Joseph M. Richards, Katherine J. Knierim
2018, Scientific Investigations Report 2018-5035
Recent short-term drought conditions have emphasized the need to better understand the delicate balance between abundance, sustainability, and scarcity of groundwater in the Ozark Plateaus aquifer system. In 2014, the U.S. Geological Survey began construction of a groundwater-flow model as a tool for the assessment of groundwater availability in the...
Benthic assemblages of mega epifauna on the Oregon continental margin
Lenaig G. Hemery, Sarah K. Henkel, Guy R. Cochrane
2018, Continental Shelf Research (159) 24-32
Environmental assessment studies are usually required by a country's administration before issuing permits for any industrial activities. One of the goals of such environmental assessment studies is to highlight species assemblages and habitat composition that could make the targeted area unique. A section of the Oregon continental slope that had...
Risk factors associated with mortality of age-0 Smallmouth Bass in the Susquehanna River basin, Pennsylvania
Heather L. Walsh, Vicki S. Blazer, Geoffrey Smith, Michael Lookenbill, David A. Alvarez, Kelly L. Smalling
2018, Journal of Aquatic Animal Health (30) 65-80
Evidence of disease and mortalities of young of the year (age‐0) Smallmouth Bass Micropterus dolomieu has occurred during the late spring and summer in many parts of the Susquehanna River watershed since 2005. To better understand contributing factors, fish collected from multiple areas throughout the watershed as well as out‐of‐basin reference populations...
A consistent global approach for the morphometric characterization of subaqueous landslides
Michael Clare, Jason Chaytor, Oliver Dabson, Davide Gamboa, Aggeliki Georgiopoulou, Harry Eady, James Hunt, Christopher Jackson, Oded Katz, Sebastian Krastel, Ricardo Leon, Aaron Micallef, Jasper Moernaut, Roberto Moriconi, Lorena Moscardelli, Christof Mueller, Alexandre Normandeau, Marco Patacci, Michael Steventon, Morelia Urlaub, David Volker, Lesli Wood, Zane R. Jobe
2018, Geological Society, London, Special Publications (477)
Landslides are common in aquatic settings worldwide, from lakes and coastal environments to the deep sea. Fast-moving, large-volume landslides can potentially trigger destructive tsunamis. Landslides damage and disrupt global communication links and other critical marine infrastructure. Landslide deposits act as foci for localized, but important, deep-seafloor biological communities. Under...
Hierarchical modeling assessment of the influence of watershed stressors on fish and invertebrate species in Gulf of Mexico estuaries
Jonathan Miller, Peter C. Esselman, Ibrahim Alameddine, Kristan Blackhart, Daniel R. Obenour
2018, Ecological Indicators (90) 142-153
The northern Gulf of Mexico (GoM) spans five U.S. states and encompasses estuaries that vary greatly in size, shape, upstream river input, eutrophication status, and biotic communities. Given the variability among these estuaries, assessing their biological condition relative to anthropogenic stressors is challenging, but...
Spatiotemporal heterogeneity in prey abundance and vulnerability shapes the foraging tactics of an omnivore
Nathaniel D. Rayl, Guillaume Bastille-Rousseau, John F. Organ, Matthew Mumma, Shane P. Mahoney, Colleen Soulliere, Keith Lewis, Robert Otto, Dennis Murray, Lisette Waits, Todd Fuller
2018, Journal of Animal Ecology (87) 874-887
Prey abundance and prey vulnerability vary across space and time, but we know little about how they mediate predator–prey interactions and predator foraging tactics. To evaluate the interplay between prey abundance, prey vulnerability and predator space use, we examined patterns of black bear (Ursus americanus) predation of caribou (Rangifer...
Microspatial ecotone dynamics at a shifting range limit: plant–soil variation across salt marsh–mangrove interfaces
Erik S. Yando, Michael J. Osland, Mark H. Hester
2018, Oecologia (187) 319-331
Ecotone dynamics and shifting range limits can be used to advance our understanding of the ecological implications of future range expansions in response to climate change. In the northern Gulf of Mexico, the salt marsh–mangrove ecotone is an area where range limits and ecotone dynamics can be studied in tandem...
Brook trout distributional response to unconventional oil and gas development: Landscape context matters
Eric R. Merriam, J. Todd Petty, Kelly O. Maloney, John A. Young, Stephen Faulkner, E. Terrence Slonecker, Lesley E. Milheim, Atesmachew Hailegiorgis, Jonathan M. Niles
2018, Science of the Total Environment (628-629) 338-349
We conducted a large-scale assessment of unconventional oil and gas (UOG) development effects on brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) distribution. We compiled 2231 brook trout collection records from the Upper Susquehanna River Watershed, USA. We used boosted regression tree (BRT) analysis to predict occurrence probability at the 1:24,000 stream-segment scale as...
Influence of governance structure on green stormwater infrastructure investment
Kristina G. Hopkins, Nancy B. Grimm, Abigail M. York
2018, Environmental Science and Policy (84) 124-133
Communities are faced with the challenge of meeting regulatory requirements mandating reductions in water pollution from stormwater and combined sewer overflows (CSO). Green stormwater infrastructure and gray stormwater infrastructure are two types of water management strategies communities can use to address water pollution. In this study, we used long-term control...
Modeling habitat for Marbled Murrelets on the Siuslaw National Forest, Oregon, using lidar data
Joan C. Hagar, Ramiro Aragon, Patricia Haggerty, Jeff P. Hollenbeck
2018, Open-File Report 2018-1035
Habitat models using lidar-derived variables that quantify fine-scale variation in vegetation structure can improve the accuracy of occupancy estimates for canopy-dwelling species over models that use variables derived from other remote sensing techniques. However, the ability of models developed at such a fine spatial scale to maintain accuracy at...
