Age, growth rates, and paleoclimate studies of deep sea corals
Nancy G Prouty, E. Brendan Roark, Allen Andrews, Laura Robinson, Tessa Hill, Owen Sherwood, Branwen Williams, Thomas P. Guilderson, Stewart Fallon
2015, Report, The state of deep-sea coral and sponge ecosystems of the United States: 2015
Deep-water corals are some of the slowest growing, longest-lived skeletal accreting marine organisms. These habitat-forming species support diverse faunal assemblages that include commercially and ecologically important organisms. Therefore, effective management and conservation strategies for deep-sea corals can be informed by precise and accurate age, growth rate, and lifespan characteristics for...
Development of conceptual ecological models linking management of the Missouri River to pallid sturgeon population dynamics
Robert B. Jacobson, Michael J. Parsley, Mandy L. Annis, Michael E. Colvin, Timothy L. Welker, Daniel A. James
2015, Open-File Report 2015-1038
This report documents the process of developing and refining conceptual ecological models (CEMs) for linking river management to pallid sturgeon (Scaphirhynchus albus) population dynamics in the Missouri River. The refined CEMs are being used in the Missouri River Pallid Sturgeon Effects Analysis to organize, document, and formalize an understanding of...
A stochastic bioenergetics model based approach to translating large river flow and temperature in to fish population responses: The pallid sturgeon example
Mark L. Wildhaber, Rima Dey, Christopher K. Wikle, Edward H. Moran, Christopher J. Anderson, Kristie J. Franz
2015, Geological Society of London Special Publications (408) 1-17
In managing fish populations, especially at-risk species, realistic mathematical models are needed to help predict population response to potential management actions in the context of environmental conditions and changing climate while effectively incorporating the stochastic nature of real world conditions. We provide a key component of such a model for...
Literature review of the potential effects of formalin on nitrogen oxidation efficiency of the biofilters of recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) for freshwater finfish
Kim T. Fredricks
2015, Open-File Report 2015-1097
A comprehensive literature review was done for the effects of formalin on biofilter function in recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) using these databases: ISI/Web of Knowledge, Scopus, and Pubmed. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were developed as the literature review was conducted. The initial search produced 5,682 potential citations. Once the literature...
Literature review of the potential effects of hydrogen peroxide on nitrogen oxidation efficiency of the biofilters of recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) for freshwater finfish
Kim T. Fredricks
2015, Open-File Report 2015-1096
A comprehensive literature review was done for the effects of hydrogen peroxide (HP) on biofilter function in recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) using these databases: ISI/Web of Knowledge, Scopus, and Pubmed. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were developed as the literature review was conducted. The initial search produced 5,748 potential citations. Once...
Fall spawning of Atlantic sturgeon in the Roanoke River, North Carolina
Joseph A. Smith, Joseph E. Hightower, H. Jared Flowers
2015, Transactions of the American Fisheries Society (144) 48-54
In 2012, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) declared Atlantic Sturgeon Acipenser oxyrinchus oxyrinchus to be threatened or endangered throughout its range in U.S. waters. Restoration of the subspecies will require much new information, particularly on the location and timing of spawning. We used a combination of acoustic telemetry and sampling...
Sea level, paleogeography, and archeology on California's Northern Channel Islands
Leslie Reeder-Myers, Jon M. Erlandson, Daniel R. Muhs, Torben C. Rick
2015, Quaternary Research (83) 263-272
Sea-level rise during the late Pleistocene and early Holocene inundated nearshore areas in many parts of the world, producing drastic changes in local ecosystems and obscuring significant portions of the archeological record. Although global forces are at play, the effects of sea-level rise are highly localized due to variability in...
Late Quaternary sea-level history and the antiquity of mammoths (Mammuthus exilis and Mammuthus columbi), Channel Islands NationalPark, California, USA
Daniel R. Muhs, Kathleen R. Simmons, Lindsey T. Groves, John P. McGeehin, R. Randall Schumann, Larry D. Agenbroad
2015, Quaternary Research (83) 502-521
Fossils of Columbian mammoths (Mammuthus columbi) and pygmy mammoths (Mammuthus exilis) have been reported from Channel Islands National Park, California. Most date to the last glacial period (Marine Isotope Stage [MIS] 2), but a tusk of M. exilis (or immature M. columbi) was found in the lowest marine terrace of Santa Rosa Island....
Depositional conditions for the Kuna Formation, Red Dog Zn-PB-Ag-Barite District, Alaska, inferred from isotopic and chemical proxies
Craig A. Johnson, Julie A. Dumoulin, Robert A. Burruss, John F. Slack
2015, Economic Geology (110) 1143-1156
Water column redox conditions, degree of restriction of the depositional basin, and other paleoenvironmental parameters have been determined for the Mississippian Kuna Formation of northwestern Alaska from stratigraphic profiles of Mo, Fe/Al, and S isotopes in pyrite, C isotopes in organic matter, and N isotopes in bulk rock. This unit...
Bacterial dominance in subseafloor sediments characterized by methane hydrates
Brandon R. Briggs, Fumio Inagaki, Yuki Morono, Taiki Futagami, Carme Huguet, Antoni Rosell-Mele, T.D. Lorenson, Frederick S. Colwell
2015, FEMS Microbiology Ecology (81) 88-98
The degradation of organic carbon in subseafloor sediments on continental margins contributes to the largest reservoir of methane on Earth. Sediments in the Andaman Sea are composed of ~ 1% marine-derived organic carbon and biogenic methane is present. Our objective was to determine microbial abundance and diversity in sediments that...
Intersexual allometry differences and ontogenetic shifts of coloration patterns in two aquatic turtles, Graptemys oculifera and Graptemys flavimaculata
Joshua R. Ennen, Peter V. Lindeman, Jeffrey E. Lovich
2015, Ecology and Evolution (5) 2296-2305
Coloration can play critical roles in a species' biology. The allometry of color patterns may be useful for elucidating the evolutionary mechanisms responsible for shaping the traits. We measured characteristics relating to eight aspects of color patterns from Graptemys oculifera and G. flavimaculata to investigate the allometric differences among male, female, and unsexed juvenile specimens....
The central uplift of Ritchey crater, Mars
Ning Ding, Veronica J. Bray, Alfred S. McEwen, Sarah S. Mattson, Chris H. Okubo, Matthew Chojnacki, Livio L. Tornabene
2015, Icarus (252) 255-270
Ritchey crater is a ∼79 km diameter complex crater near the boundary between Hesperian ridged plains and Noachian highland terrain on Mars (28.8°S, 309.0°E) that formed after the Noachian. High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) images of the central peak reveal fractured massive bedrock and megabreccia with large clasts. Compact Reconnaissance...
Evaluating rehabilitation efforts following the Milford Flat Fire: successes, failures, and controlling factors
Michael C. Duniway, Emily C. Palmquist, Mark E. Miller
2015, Ecosphere (6)
Uncontrolled wildfire in arid and semiarid ecosystems has become an increasing concern in recent decades. Active rehabilitation of fire-affected areas is often quickly initiated to minimize long-term ecosystem damage. However, the complex soil-geomorphic-vegetation patterns and low and variable moisture conditions in these regions makes restoration challenging. To further inform these...
Functional skeletal morphology and its implications for locomotory behavior among three genera of myosoricine shrews (Mammalia: Eulipotyphla: Soricidae)
Neal Woodman, Frank A. Stabile
2015, Journal of Morphology (276) 550-563
Myosoricinae is a small clade of shrews (Mammalia, Eulipotyphla, Soricidae) that is currently restricted to the African continent. Individual species have limited distributions that are often associated with higher elevations. Although the majority of species in the subfamily are considered ambulatory in their locomotory behavior, species of the myosoricine genus Surdisorex are...
Performance of species occurrence estimators when basic assumptions are not met: a test using field data where true occupancy status is known
David A. W. Miller, Larissa L. Bailey, Evan H. Campbell Grant, Brett T. McClintock, Linda A. Weir, Theodore R. Simons
2015, Methods in Ecology and Evolution (6) 557-565
Populations are rarely censused. Instead, observations are subject to incomplete detection, misclassification and detection heterogeneity that result from human and environmental constraints. Though numerous methods have been developed to deal with observational uncertainty, validation under field conditions is rare because truth is rarely known in these cases. We...
Slipstream: an early Holocene slump and turbidite record from the frontal ridge of the Cascadia accretionary wedge off western Canada and paleoseismic implications
T.S. Hamilton, Randolph J. Enkin, Michael Riedel, Gary C. Rogers, John W. Pohlman, Heather M. Benway
2015, Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences (52) 1-26
Slipstream Slump, a well-preserved 3 km wide sedimentary failure from the frontal ridge of the Cascadia accretionary wedge 85 km off Vancouver Island, Canada, was sampled during Canadian Coast Guard Ship (CCGS) John P. Tully cruise 2008007PGC along a transect of five piston cores. Shipboard sediment analysis and physical property logging revealed...
Flood-inundation maps for the Hoosic River, North Adams and Williamstown, Massachusetts, from the confluence with the North Branch Hoosic River to the Vermont State line
Pamela J. Lombard, Gardner C. Bent
2015, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5236
A series of nine digital flood-inundation maps were developed for an 8-mile reach of the Hoosic River in North Adams and Williamstown, Massachusetts, by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in cooperation with the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The coverage of the maps extends from the confluence with the North Branch...
Effectiveness of two commercial rotenone formulations in the eradication of virile crayfish Orconectes virillis
Matthew S. Recsetar, Scott A. Bonar
2015, North American Journal of Fisheries Management (35) 616-620
The virile or northern crayfish Orconectes virilis is an invasive species throughout much of the USA, damaging aquatic communities where it is introduced. Therefore, identification of effective methods for its eradication from areas in which it is unwanted is important. We studied the effectiveness of two commercial formulations of rotenone,...
Unusual downhole and surface free-field records near the Carquinez Strait bridges during the 24 August 2014 Mw6.0 South Napa, California earthquake
Mehmet Çelebi, S. Farid Ghahari, Ertugrul Taciroglu
2015, Seismological Research Letters (86) 1128-1134
This paper reports the results of Part A of a study of the recorded strong-motion accelerations at the well-instrumented network of the two side-by-side parallel bridges over the Carquinez Strait during the 24 August 2014 (Mw6.0 ) South Napa, Calif. earthquake that occurred at 03:20:44 PDT with epicentral coordinates...
Geologic map of the southern White Ledge Peak and Matilija quadrangles, Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties, California
Scott A. Minor, Theodore R. Brandt
2015, Scientific Investigations Map 3321
This report presents a digital geologic strip map of the southern parts of the contiguous White Ledge Peak and Matilija 7.5’ quadrangles in coastal southern California. With a compilation scale of 1:24,000 (one inch on the map to 2,000 feet on the ground), the map depicts the distribution of bedrock...
Estimates of hydraulic fracturing (Frac) sand production, consumption, and reserves in the United States
Donald I. Bleiwas
2015, Rock Products (118) 60-60
The practice of fracturing reservoir rock in the United States as a method to increase the flow of oil and gas from wells has a relatively long history and can be traced back to 1858 in Fredonia, New York, when a gas well situated in shale of the Marcellus Formation...
Evaluating turbidity and suspended-sediment concentration relations from the North Fork Toutle River basin near Mount St. Helens, Washington; annual, seasonal, event, and particle size variations - a preliminary analysis.
Mark A. Uhrich, Kurt R. Spicer, Adam R. Mosbrucker, Tami S. Christianson
2015, Conference Paper, Proceedings of the joint federal interagency conference 2015
Regression of in-stream turbidity with concurrent sample-based suspended-sediment concentration (SSC) has become an accepted method for producing unit-value time series of inferred SSC (Rasmussen et al., 2009). Turbidity-SSC regression models are increasingly used to generate suspended-sediment records for Pacific Northwest rivers (e.g., Curran et al., 2014; Schenk and Bragg, 2014;...
Initiation of migration and movement rates of Atlantic salmon smolts in fresh water
Daniel S. Stich, Michael T. Kinnison, John F. Kocik, Joseph D. Zydlewski
2015, Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences (72) 1339-1351
Timing of ocean entry is critical for marine survival of both hatchery and wild Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) smolts. Management practices and barriers to migration such as dams may constrain timing of smolt migrations resulting in suboptimal performance at saltwater entry. We modeled influences of stocking location, smolt development, and...
Estimating exposure of piscivorous birds and sport fish to mercury in California lakes using prey fish monitoring: a predictive tool for managers
Joshua T. Ackerman, C. Alex Hartman, Collin A. Eagles-Smith, Mark P. Herzog, Jay Davison, Gary Ichikawa, Autumn Bonnema
2015, Open-File Report 2015-1106
Numerous water bodies in California are listed under the Clean Water Act as being impaired due to mercury (Hg) contamination. The Surface Water Ambient Monitoring Program (SWAMP), via the Bioaccumulation Oversight Group (BOG), has recently completed statewide surveys of contaminants in sport fish tissue from more than 250 lakes and...
Book review: Flight ways: Life and loss at the edge of extinction.
Paul C. Banko
2015, Journal of Field Ornithology (86) 180-182
In less than 200 pages, Thom van Dooren aims in his ambitious book, Flight Ways, to reconnect humans empathetically with the rest of the planet's inhabitants, but especially vanishing species. This is asking a lot, but he succeeds—or at least makes great strides—using evocative storytelling and compelling discourse. A number of...
