Thermal influences on spontaneous rock dome exfoliation
Brian D. Collins, Greg M. Stock, Martha C. Eppes, Scott W. Lewis, Skye C. Corbett, Joel B. Smith
2018, Nature Communications (9) 1-12
Rock domes, with their onion-skin layers of exfoliation sheets, are among the most captivating landforms on Earth. Long recognized as integral in shaping domes, the exact mechanism(s) by which exfoliation occurs remains enigmatic, mainly due to the lack of direct observations of natural events. In August 2014, during the hottest...
Infectious canine hepatitis in a brown bear (Ursus arctos horribilis) from Alaska.
Susan Knowles, Barbara Bodenstein, Troy Hamon, Michael W. Saxton, Jeffrey S. Hall
2018, Journal of Wildlife Diseases (54) 642-645
We diagnosed infectious canine hepatitis in a free-ranging brown bear (Ursus arctos horribilis) cub from Alaska, US, found dead in October 2015. Intranuclear inclusion bodies were present in hepatocytes, and immunohistochemistry showed reactivity to adenoviral antigens. Sequencing of the hexon protein of adenovirus showed 100% identity to canine adenovirus 1....
Modeling intrinsic potential for beaver (Castor canadensis) habitat to inform restoration and climate change adaptation
Benjamin J. Dittbrenner, Michael M. Pollack, Jason W. Schilling, Julian D. Olden, Joshua J. Lawler, Christian E. Torgersen
2018, PLoS ONE (13)
Through their dam-building activities and subsequent water storage, beaver have the potential to restore riparian ecosystems and offset some of the predicted effects of climate change by modulating streamflow. Thus, it is not surprising that reintroducing beaver to watersheds from which they have been extirpated is an often-used restoration and...
Volcanic ash deposition, eelgrass beds, and inshore habitat loss from the 1920s to the 1990s at Chignik, Alaska
Mark Zimmermann, Gregory T. Ruggerone, Jeffrey T. Freymueller, Nicole Kinsman, David H. Ward, Kyle R. Hogrefe
2018, Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science (202) 69-86
We quantified the shallowing of the seafloor in five of six bays examined in the Chignik region of the Alaska Peninsula, confirming National Ocean Service observations that 1990s hydrographic surveys were shallower than previous surveys from the 1920s. Castle Bay, Chignik Lagoon, Hook Bay, Kujulik Bay and Mud Bay lost volume as calculated from...
Volcanic history of the northernmost part of the Harrat Rahat volcanic field, Saudi Arabia
Drew T. Downs, Mark E. Stelten, Duane E. Champion, Hannah R. Dietterich, Zohair Nawab, Hani M. Zahran, Khalid Hassan, Jamal Shawali
2018, Geosphere (14) 1253-1282
We present a detailed geologic investigation of Pleistocene to Holocene mafic volcanism within the northernmost part of the Harrat Rahat volcanic field, proximal to the city of Al-Madinah, Saudi Arabia. Our study area covers ∼570 km2, and encompasses lava flows, scoria cones, and shield volcanoes of 32 mapped eruptive units...
Carbon budget of tidal wetlands, estuaries, and shelf waters of eastern North America
R.G. Najjar, M. Herrmann, Richard B. Alexander, E.W. Boyer, D. J. Burdige, D. Butman, W.-J. Cai, E.A. Canuel, R.F. Chen, M. A. M. Friedrichs, R.A. Feagin, P. C. Griffith, A.L. Hinson, J.R. Holmquist, X. Hu, W.M. Kemp, Kevin D. Kroeger, A. Mannino, S.L. McCallister, W.R. McGillis, M.R. Mulholland, C. H. Pilskaln, J. Salisbury, S. R. Signorini, P. St. Laurent, H. Tian, M Tzortziou, P. Vlahos, Zhanming Wan, R. C. Zimmerman
2018, Global Biogeochemical Cycles (32) 389-416
Carbon cycling in the coastal zone affects global carbon budgets and is critical for understanding the urgent issues of hypoxia, acidification, and tidal wetland loss. However, there are no regional carbon budgets spanning the three main ecosystems in coastal waters: tidal wetlands, estuaries, and shelf waters. Here we construct such...
Fish response to contemporary timber harvest practices in a second-growth forest from the central Coast Range of Oregon
Douglas S. Bateman, Robert E. Gresswell, Dana Warren, David Hockman-Wert, David W. Leer, Jeffrey T. Light, John D. Stednick
2018, Forest Ecology and Management (411) 142-157
We used a paired-watershed approach to investigate the effects of contemporary logging practices on headwater populations of coastal cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii clarkii) and juvenile coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) in a second-growth Douglas-fir forested catchment in Oregon. Stream habitat and fish population characteristics, including biomass, abundance, growth, size, and movement,...
Convergence of marine megafauna movement patterns in coastal and open oceans
A. M. M. Sequeira, J.P. Rodriguez, V. M. Eguíluz, R. Harcourt, M. Hindell, D.W. Sims, C.M. Duarte, D.P. Costa, J. Fernandez-Gracia, L.C. Ferreira, G.C. Hays, M. R. Heupel, M.G. Meekan, A. Aven, F. Bailleul, A. M. M. Baylis, M. L. Berumen, C. D. Braun, J. Burns, M.J. Caley, R. Campbell, R.H. Carmichael, E. Clua, L. D. Einoder, Ari Friedlaender, M. E. Goebel, S.D. Goldsworthy, C. Guinet, J. Gunn, D. Hamer, N. Hammerschlag, M. Hammill, L.A. Hückstädt, N.E. Humphries, M.-A. Lea, A. Lowther, A. Mackay, E. McHuron, J. Mckenzie, L. McLeay, C.R. McMahon, K. Mengersen, M. M. C. Muelbert, Anthony M. Pagano, B. Page, N. Queiroz, P. W. Robinson, S. A. Shaffer, M. Shivji, G. B. Skomal, S. Thorrold, S. Villegas-Amtmann, M. Weise, R. Wells, B. Wetherbee, A. Wiebkin, B. Wienecke, M. Thums
2018, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (115) 3072-3077
The extent of increasing anthropogenic impacts on large marine vertebrates partly depends on the animals’ movement patterns. Effective conservation requires identification of the key drivers of movement including intrinsic properties and extrinsic constraints associated with the dynamic nature of the environments the animals inhabit. However, the relative importance of intrinsic...
Modeling wildfire-induced permafrost deformation in an Alaskan boreal forest using InSAR observations
Yusef Eshqi Molan, Jin-Woo Kim, Zhong Lu, Bruce K. Wylie, Zhiliang Zhu
2018, Remote Sensing (10)
The discontinuous permafrost zone is one of the world’s most sensitive areas to climate change. Alaskan boreal forest is underlain by discontinuous permafrost, and wildfires are one of the most influential agents negatively impacting the condition of permafrost in the arctic region. Using interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) of Advanced...
DEEP SEARCH: Deep sea exploration to advance research on coral/canyon/cold seep habitats
Erik E. Cordes, Amanda W. J. Demopoulos, Gregory Boland, Caitlin Adams
2018, Oceanography (31) 97-98
Launched in August 2017, Deep Sea Exploration to Advance Research on Coral/Canyon/Cold seep Habitats (DEEP SEARCH) is a multiyear, multi-agency study to characterize the deep-sea ecosystems of the US Mid- and South Atlantic (Figure 1). The study is funded through an interagency partnership between NOAA, the Bureau of Ocean Energy...
A phylogenetic overview of the genus Vertigo O. F. Müller, 1773 (Gastropoda: Pulmonata: Pupillidae: Vertigininae)
Jeffrey C. Nekola, Satoshi Chiba, Brian F. Coles, Charles A. Drost, Ted von Proschwitz, Michal Horsak
2018, Malacologia (62) 21-161
We document global phylogenetic pattern in the pupillid land snail genus Vertigo by analyses of nDNA (ITS1 and ITS2) and mtDNA (CytB and 16S) sequence from 424 individuals representing 91 putative specific and subspecific Vertigo taxa. nDNA and mtDNA data were separately subjected to neighbor-joining, minimum evolution, maximum likelihood and Bayesian reconstruction methods, with...
Freshwater mussel salvage and relocation at the Pond Eddy Bridge, Delaware River, New York and Pennsylvania
Heather S. Galbraith, Carrie J. Blakeslee, Jeffrey C. Cole
2018, Open-File Report 2018-1009
In a study conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, freshwater mussels were salvaged and relocated from the anticipated zone of impact for the Pond Eddy Bridge construction project in New York and Pennsylvania. Five 25-meter (m) by 25-m cells along the Pennsylvania...
ModelArchiver—A program for facilitating the creation of groundwater model archives
Richard B. Winston
2018, Open-File Report 2017-1149
ModelArchiver is a program designed to facilitate the creation of groundwater model archives that meet the requirements of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) policy (Office of Groundwater Technical Memorandum 2016.02, https://water.usgs.gov/admin/memo/GW/gw2016.02.pdf, https://water.usgs.gov/ogw/policy/gw-model/). ModelArchiver version 1.0 leads the user step-by-step through the process of creating a USGS...
Smallmouth bass predation on subyearling fall Chinook salmon in Lower Granite Reservoir, 2016–2017
John M. Erhardt, Kenneth F. Tiffan, Rulon J. Hemingway, Brad K. Bickford, Tobyn N. Rhodes
2018, Report, Snake River fall Chinook salmon life history investigations
Predation by nonnative fishes is one factor that has been implicated in the decline of juvenile salmonids in the Pacific Northwest. Impoundment of much of the Snake and Columbia Rivers has altered food webs and created habitat favorable for species such as smallmouth bass Micropterus dolomieu. Smallmouth bass are common...
Challenges of forecasting flooding on coral reef–lined coasts
Curt D. Storlazzi
2018, Eos, Earth and Space Science News (99)
Understanding wave-driven coastal flooding is a challenging scientific problem; the need for forecasts is becoming more urgent because of sea level rise, climate change, and ever-growing coastal populations. The tools developed for sandy shorelines are generally not applicable to coral reef–lined coasts with their complex bathymetry, hydrodynamically rough reef platforms,...
Chronic wasting disease—Status, science, and management support by the U.S. Geological Survey
Christina M. Carlson, M. Camille Hopkins, Natalie T. Nguyen, Bryan J. Richards, Daniel P. Walsh, W. David Walter
2018, Open-File Report 2017-1138
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) investigates chronic wasting disease (CWD) at multiple science centers and cooperative research units across the Nation and supports the management of CWD through science-based strategies. CWD research conducted by USGS scientists has three strategies: (1) to understand the biology, ecology, and causes and distribution of...
Discovering the deep: Exploring remote Pacific marine protected areas
Amanda W.J. Demopoulos, Steven Auscavitch, Derek Sowers, Nikolai Pawlenko, Brian R. C. Kennedy
2018, Oceanography (31) 76-77
The 2017 Discovering the Deep expedition provided the first glimpse of the deep-sea geology and ecology of the deepwater regions of Swains Island, the Howland and Baker Islands Unit of PRIMNM, Phoenix Islands Protected Areas (PIPA), and the Tokelau Region (Figure 1). Prior to this expedition, virtually no visual reconnaissance...
Environmental, anthropogenic, and dietary influences on fine-scale movement patterns of Atlantic salmon through challenging waters
Andrew B. Harbicht, Theodore R. Castro-Santos, Dimitry Gorsky, D.M. Hand, D.J. Fraser, W.R. Ardren
2018, Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences (75) 2198-2210
Partial barriers to migration can affect migratory fish population dynamics and be influenced by many biotic, abiotic, and anthropogenic factors, including nutritional deficiencies. We investigated how such variables (including a thiamine deficiency) impact fine-scale movement of landlocked Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) by treating returning spawners with thiamine and observing their...
Application of imaging spectroscopy for mineral exploration in Alaska: A study over porphyry Cu deposits in the eastern Alaska Range
Garth E. Graham, Raymond F. Kokaly, Karen D. Kelley, Todd M. Hoefen, Michaela Johnson, Bernard E. Hubbard
2018, Economic Geology (113) 489.-510
The U.S. Geological Survey tested the utility of imaging spectroscopy (also referred to as hyperspectral remote sensing) as an aid to regional mineral exploration efforts in remote parts of Alaska. Airborne imaging spectrometer data were collected in 2014 over unmined porphyry Cu deposits in...
High‐prevalence and low‐intensity Ichthyophonus infections in Pacific Halibut
Paul Hershberger, Jacob L. Gregg, Claude L. Dykstra
2018, Journal of Aquatic Animal Health (30) 13-19
Ichthyophonus occurred at high prevalence but low intensity in Pacific Halibut Hippoglossus stenolepis throughout the West Coast of North America, ranging from coastal Oregon to the Bering Sea. Infection prevalence in adults was variable on spatial and temporal scales, with the lowest prevalence typically occurring on the edges of the geographic range and...
Fire and grazing influence site resistance to Bromus tectorum through their effects on shrub, bunchgrass and biocrust communities in the Great Basin (USA)
Lea A. Condon, David A. Pyke
2018, Ecosystems (21) 1416-1431
Shrubs, bunchgrasses and biological soil crusts (biocrusts) are believed to contribute to site resistance to plant invasions in the presence of cattle grazing. Although fire is a concomitant disturbance with grazing, little is known regarding their combined impacts on invasion resistance. We are the first to date to test the...
Osteopilus septentrionalis (Cuban treefrog)
Brad M. Glorioso, Philip Vanbergen, Joseph Roy, Matthew Walter, Lauren Leonpacher, Mark Freistak
2018, Herpetological Review (49) 70-71
USA: LOUISIANA: east baton Rouge paRish: private property in a garden center on a bromeliad in the 1700 block of Millerville Road in Baton Rouge (ca. 30.443°N, 91.023°W; WGS 84). 29 November 2016. Joseph Roy. Verified by Hardin Waddle. Florida Museum of Natural History (UF 181952; photo voucher). New parish...
National Gas Hydrate Program Expedition 01 offshore India; gas hydrate systems as revealed by hydrocarbon gas geochemistry
Thomas Lorenson, Timothy S. Collett
2018, Marine and Petroleum Geology (92) 477-492
The National Gas Hydrate Program Expedition 01 (NGHP-01) targeted gas hydrate accumulations offshore of the Indian Peninsula and along the Andaman convergent margin. The primary objectives of coring were to understand the geologic and geochemical controls on the accumulation of methane hydrate and their linkages to underlying petroleum systems....
Demographic drivers of a refugee species: Large‐scale experiments guide strategies for reintroductions of hirola
Abdullahi H. Ali, Matthew J. Kauffman, Rajan Amin, Amos Kibara, Juliet King, David P. Mallon, Charles Musyoki, Jacob R. Goheen
2018, Ecological Applications (28) 275-283
Effective reintroduction strategies require accurate estimates of vital rates and the factors that influence them. The hirola (Beatragus hunteri) is the rarest antelope on Earth, with a global population size of <500 individuals restricted to the Kenya–Somali border. We estimated vital rates of hirola populations exposed to varying levels of...
Fire and climate suitability for woody vegetation communities in the south central United States
Esther Stroh, Matthew Struckhoff, Michael C. Stambaugh, Richard P. Guyette
2018, Fire Ecology (14) 106-124
Climate and fire are primary drivers of plant species distributions. Long-term management of south central United States woody vegetation communities can benefit from information on potential changes in climate and fire frequencies, and how these changes might affect plant communities. We used historical (1900 to 1929) and future (2040 to...
