Evaluation of wave runup predictions from numerical and parametric models
Hilary F. Stockdon, David M. Thompson, Nathaniel G. Plant, Joseph W. Long
2014, Coastal Engineering (92) 1-11
Wave runup during storms is a primary driver of coastal evolution, including shoreline and dune erosion and barrier island overwash. Runup and its components, setup and swash, can be predicted from a parameterized model that was developed by comparing runup observations to offshore wave height, wave period, and local beach...
The nation’s top 25 construction aggregates producers
Jason C. Willett
2014, Aggregates Manager
U.S. production of construction aggregates in 2012 was 2.18 billion short tons valued at $17.6 billion, free on board (f.o.b.) at plant. In 2012, construction aggregates production remained virtually unchanged from the levels of the last two years because of a very slight increase compared with that of 2011 in...
40Ar/39Ar geochronology, paleomagnetism, and evolution of the Boring volcanic field, Oregon and Washington, USA
Robert J. Fleck, Jonathan T. Hagstrum, Andrew T. Calvert, Russell C. Evarts, Richard M. Conrey
2014, Geosphere (10) 1283-1314
The 40Ar/39Ar investigations of a large suite of fine-grained basaltic rocks of the Boring volcanic field (BVF), Oregon and Washington (USA), yielded two primary results. (1) Using age control from paleomagnetic polarity, stratigraphy, and available plateau ages, 40Ar/39Ar recoil model ages are defined that provide reliable age results in the absence of...
Late winter and early spring home range and habitat use of the endangered Carolina northern flying squirrel in western North Carolina
W. Mark Ford, Christine A. Kelly, Jane L. Rodrigue, Richard H. Odom, Douglas Newcomb, L. Michelle Gilley, Corinne A. Diggins
2014, Endangered Species Research (23) 73-82
The Carolina northern flying squirrel Glaucomys sabrinus coloratus is an endangered subspecies that is restricted to high elevation forests in the southern Appalachian Mountains. Owing to rugged terrain and nocturnal habits, the subspecies’ natural history, home range characteristics and habitat preferences are poorly known. We radio-tracked 3 female and 2 male Carolina...
Estimating ages of white-tailed deer: Age and sex patterns of error using tooth wear-and-replacement and consistency of cementum annuli
Michael D. Samuel, Daniel J. Storm, Robert E. Rolley, Thomas Beissel, Bryan J. Richards, Timothy R. Van Deelen
2014, Wildlife Society Bulletin (38) 849-856
The age structure of harvested animals provides the basis for many demographic analyses. Ages of harvested white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) and other ungulates often are estimated by evaluating replacement and wear patterns of teeth, which is subjective and error-prone. Few previous studies however, examined age- and sex-specific error rates. Counting...
Influence of habitat characteristics on shore-spawning kokanee
Steven L. Whitlock, Michael C. Quist, Andrew M. Dux
2014, Transactions of the American Fisheries Society (143) 1404-1418
Sockeye Salmon Oncorhynchus nerka and kokanee (lacustrine Sockeye Salmon) commonly spawn in both lentic and lotic environments; however, the habitat requirements of shore spawners are virtually unknown relative to those of stream spawners. A laboratory experiment and an in situ incubation study were conducted to better understand the influence of habitat characteristics...
Nitrogen cycling processes and microbial community composition in bed sediments in the Yukon River at Pilot Station
Deborah A. Repert, Jennifer C. Underwood, Richard L. Smith, Bongkeun Song
2014, Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences (119) 2328-2344
Information on the contribution of nitrogen (N)-cycling processes in bed sediments to river nutrient fluxes in large northern latitude river systems is limited. This study examined the relationship between N-cycling processes in bed sediments and N speciation and loading in the Yukon River near its mouth at the Bering Sea....
Natural hazards and risk reduction in Hawaii
James P. Kauahikaua, Robert I. Tilling
Michael P. Poland, T. Jane Takahashi, Claire M. Landowski, editor(s)
2014, Professional Paper 1801-10
Significant progress has been made over the past century in understanding, characterizing, and communicating the societal risks posed by volcanic, earthquake, and tsunami hazards in Hawai‘i. The work of the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO), with a century-long commitment to serving the public with credible hazards information, contributed substantially to this...
Key recovery factors for the August 24, 2014, South Napa Earthquake
Kenneth W. Hudnut, Thomas M. Brocher, Carol S. Prentice, John Boatwright, Benjamin A. Brooks, Brad T. Aagaard, J. Luke Blair, Jon Peter B. Fletcher, Jemile Erdem, Charles W. Wicks Jr., Jessica R. Murray, Fred F. Pollitz, John O. Langbein, Jerry L. Svarc, David P. Schwartz, Daniel J. Ponti, Suzanne Hecker, Stephen B. DeLong, Carla M. Rosa, Brenda Jones, Rynn M. Lamb, Anne M. Rosinski, Timothy P. McCrink, Timothy E. Dawson, Gordon G. Seitz, Craig Glennie, Darren Hauser, Todd Ericksen, Dan Mardock, Don F. Hoirup, Jonathan D. Bray, Ron S. Rubin
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1249
Through discussions between the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) following the South Napa earthquake, it was determined that several key decision points would be faced by FEMA for which additional information should be sought and provided by USGS and its partners. This report addresses...
Aquatic invasive species: Lessons from cancer research
Adam J. Sepulveda, Andrew Ray, Robert K. Al-Chokhachy, Clint C. Muhlfeld, Robert E. Gresswell, Jackson A. Gross, Jeffrey L. Kershner
2014, American Scientist (100) 234-242
Aquatic invasive species are disrupting ecosystems with increasing frequency. Successful control of these invasions has been rare: Biologists and managers have few tools for fighting aquatic invaders. In contrast, the medical community has long worked to develop tools for preventing and fighting cancer. Its successes are marked by a coordinated...
Accounting for tagging-to-harvest mortality in a Brownie tag-recovery model by incorporating radio-telemetry data
Frances E. Buderman, Duane R. Diefenbach, Mary Jo Casalena, Christopher S. Rosenberry, Bret D. Wallingford
2014, Ecology and Evolution (4) 1439-1450
The Brownie tag-recovery model is useful for estimating harvest rates but assumes all tagged individuals survive to the first hunting season; otherwise, mortality between time of tagging and the hunting season will cause the Brownie estimator to be negatively biased. Alternatively, fitting animals with radio transmitters can be used to...
Using urban forest assessment tools to model bird habitat potential
Susannah B. Lerman, Keith H. Nislow, David J. Nowak, Stephen DeStefano, David I. King, D. Todd Jones-Farrand
2014, Landscape and Urban Planning (122) 29-40
The alteration of forest cover and the replacement of native vegetation with buildings, roads, exotic vegetation, and other urban features pose one of the greatest threats to global biodiversity. As more land becomes slated for urban development, identifying effective urban forest wildlife management tools becomes paramount to ensure the urban...
2014 update of the U.S. national seismic hazard maps
Mark D. Petersen, Morgan P. Moschetti, Peter M. Powers, Charles S. Mueller, Kathleen M. Haller, Arthur D. Frankel, Yuehua Zeng, Sanaz Rezaeian, Stephen C. Harmsen, Oliver S. Boyd, Edward H. Field, R Chen, Kenneth S. Rukstales, Nicolas Luco, Russell L. Wheeler, Anna H. Olsen
2014, Book
We held 8 regional and topical workshops across the U.S. to gather information for these maps. The maps were available to the public for comment during a 60-day period. A Steering Committee (9 experts) was assembled to review the inputs and results and provide additional insights. The maps have been...
Re-evaluating neonatal-age models for ungulates: Does model choice affect survival estimates?
Troy W. Grovenburg, Kevin L. Monteith, Christopher N. Jacques, Robert W. Klaver, Christopher S. DePerno, Todd J. Brinkman, Kyle B. Monteith, Sophie L. Gilbert, Joshua B. Smith, Vernon C. Bleich, Christopher C. Swanson, Jonathan A. Jenks
2014, PLoS ONE (9)
New-hoof growth is regarded as the most reliable metric for predicting age of newborn ungulates, but variation in estimated age among hoof-growth equations that have been developed may affect estimates of survival in staggered-entry models. We used known-age newborns to evaluate variation in age estimates among existing hoof-growth equations and...
Does age matter? The influence of age on response rates in a mixed-mode survey
Larry M. Gigliotti, Alia Dietsch
2014, Human Dimensions of Wildlife: An International Journal (19) 280-287
The appeal of cost savings and faster results has fish and wildlife management agencies considering the use of Internet surveys instead of traditional mail surveys to collect information from their constituents. Internet surveys, however, may suffer from differential age-related response rates, potentially producing biased results if certain age groups respond...
Trouble in the aquatic world: How wildlife professionals are battling amphibian declines
Deanna H. Olson, Tara E. Chestnut
2014, The Wildlife Professional (8) 28-31
A parasitic fungus, similar to the one that caused the extinction of numerous tropical frog and toad species, is killing salamanders in Europe. Scientists first identified the fungus, Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans, in 2013 as the culprit behind the death of fire salamanders (Salamandra salamandra) in the Netherlands (Martel et al....
A global assessment of the conservation status of the American Oystercatcher Haematopus palliatus
Rob Clay, Arne J. Lesterhuis, Shiloh A. Schulte, Stephen Brown, Debra Reynolds, Theodore R. Simons
2014, International Wader Studies (20) 62-82
The American Oystercatcher Haematopus palliatus is the most widely distributed of the four oystercatcher species in the Western Hemisphere. Its range covers almost the entire Atlantic Coast from northeastern United States to southern Argentina; on the Pacific Coast it is found from northern Mexico to central Chile. This assessment covers the entire range of the...
Characterizing lentic freshwater fish assemblages using multiple sampling methods
Jesse R. Fischer, Michael C. Quist
2014, Environmental Monitoring and Assessment (186) 4461-4474
Characterizing fish assemblages in lentic ecosystems is difficult, and multiple sampling methods are almost always necessary to gain reliable estimates of indices such as species richness. However, most research focused on lentic fish sampling methodology has targeted recreationally important species, and little to no information is available regarding the influence...
Survival of hatchery Gulf sturgeon (Acipenser oxyrinchus desotoi Mitchill, 1815) in the Suwannee River, Florida: a 19-year evaluation
Kenneth J. Sulak, Michael T. Randall, James P. Clugston
2014, Journal of Applied Ichthyology (30) 1428-1440
An experimental release of 1192 hatchery-reared, individually PIT tagged, 220 days old (296–337 mm TL) Gulf sturgeon, Acipenser oxyrinchus desotoi, was undertaken in 1992 in the Suwannee River, Florida. The original objectives of the 1992 release experiment were to: (1) evaluate survival rate of cultured Gulf sturgeon in the wild vs survival...
Development of dietary-based toxic reference values to assess the risk of chlorophacinone to non-target raptorial birds
Barnett A. Rattner, Rebecca S. Lazarus, S. L. Shultz, Katherine E. Horak, Benjamin G. Abbo, Steven F. Volker
R. M. Timms, J. M. O’Brien, editor(s)
2014, Conference Paper, Proceedings of the 26th Vertebrate Pest Conference
Regulatory changes in the use of some second-generation anticoagulant rodenticides in parts of North America may result in expanded use of first-generation anticoagulant rodenticides (FGARs). Recent toxicological studies with captive raptors have demonstrated that these species are considerably more sensitive to the FGAR diphacinone than traditional avian wildlife test species...
Foraging and growth potential of juvenile Chinook Salmon after tidal restoration of a large river delta
Aaron T. David, Christopher Ellings, Isa Woo, Charles A. Simenstad, John Y. Takekawa, Kelley L. Turner, Ashley L. Smith, Jean E. Takekawa
2014, Transactions of the American Fisheries Society (143) 1515-1529
We evaluated whether restoring tidal flow to previously diked estuarine wetlands also restores foraging and growth opportunities for juvenile Chinook Salmon Oncorhynchus tshawytscha. Several studies have assessed the value of restored tidal wetlands for juvenile Pacific salmon Oncorhynchus spp., but few have used integrative measures of salmon performance, such as habitat-specific growth potential,...
Mercury and methylmercury stream concentrations in a Coastal Plain watershed: A multi-scale simulation analysis
Christopher D. Knightes, Heather E. Golden, Celeste A. Journey, Gary M. Davis, Paul Conrads, Mark Marvin-DiPasquale, Mark E. Brigham, Paul M. Bradley
2014, Environmental Pollution (187) 182-192
Mercury is a ubiquitous global environmental toxicant responsible for most US fish advisories. Processes governing mercury concentrations in rivers and streams are not well understood, particularly at multiple spatial scales. We investigate how insights gained from reach-scale mercury data and model simulations can be applied at broader watershed scales using...
Quantifying understorey vegetation in the US Lake States: a proposed framework to inform regional forest carbon stocks
Matthew B. Russell, Anthony W. D’Amato, Bethany K. Schulz, Christopher W. Woodall, Grant M. Domke, John B. Bradford
2014, Forestry (87) 629-638
The contribution of understorey vegetation (UVEG) to forest ecosystem biomass and carbon (C) across diverse forest types has, to date, eluded quantification at regional and national scales. Efforts to quantify UVEG C have been limited to field-intensive studies or broad-scale modelling approaches lacking field measurements. Although large-scale inventories of UVEG...
Rapidly spreading seagrass invades the Caribbean with unknown ecological consequences
Caroline S. Rogers, Demian A Willette, Jeff Miller
2014, Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment (12) 546-547
The non-native seagrass Halophila stipulacea has spread rapidly throughout the Caribbean Sea (Willette et al. 2014); without additional research, the ecological ramifications of this invasion are difficult to predict. Biodiversity, connectivity of marine ecosystems, and recovery of degraded coral reefs could all be affected. The invasive seagrass, native to the...
Tectonic evolution of the Tualatin basin, northwest Oregon, as revealed by inversion of gravity data
Darcy McPhee, Victoria E. Langenheim, Ray E. Wells, Richard J. Blakely
2014, Geosphere (10) 264-275
The Tualatin basin, west of Portland (Oregon, USA), coincides with a 110 mGal gravity low along the Puget-Willamette lowland. New gravity measurements (n = 3000) reveal a three-dimensional (3-D) subsurface geometry suggesting early development as a fault-bounded pull-apart basin. A strong northwest-trending gravity gradient coincides with the Gales Creek fault,...