Volcanic unrest and hazard communication in Long Valley Volcanic Region, California
David P. Hill, Margaret T. Mangan, Stephen R. McNutt
2017, Book chapter, Advances in volcanology
The onset of volcanic unrest in Long Valley Caldera, California, in 1980 and the subsequent fluctuations in unrest levels through May 2016 illustrate: (1) the evolving relations between scientists monitoring the unrest and studying the underlying tectonic/magmatic processes and their implications for geologic hazards, and (2) the challenges in communicating...
PeRL: A circum-Arctic Permafrost Region Pond and Lake database
Sina Muster, Kurt Roth, Moritz Langer, Stephan Lange, Fabio Cresto Aleina, Annett Bartsch, Anne Morgenstern, Guido Grosse, Benjamin M. Jones, A. B. K. Sannel, Ylva Sjoberg, Frank Gunther, Christian Andresen, Alexandra Veremeeva, Prajna R. Lindgren, Frederic Bouchard, Mark J. Lara, Daniel Fortier, Simon Charbonneau, Tarmo A. Virtanen, Gustaf Hugelius, J. Palmtag, Matthias B. Siewert, William J. Riley, Charles Koven, Julia Boike
2017, Earth System Science Data (9) 317-348
Ponds and lakes are abundant in Arctic permafrost lowlands. They play an important role in Arctic wetland ecosystems by regulating carbon, water, and energy fluxes and providing freshwater habitats. However, ponds, i.e., waterbodies with surface areas smaller than 1. 0 × 104 m2, have not been inventoried on global and regional scales. The Permafrost...
Downscaling wind and wavefields for 21st century coastal flood hazard projections in a region of complex terrain
Andrea C. O'Neill, Li H. Erikson, Patrick L. Barnard
2017, Earth and Space Science (4) 314-334
While global climate models (GCMs) provide useful projections of near-surface wind vectors into the 21st century, resolution is not sufficient enough for use in regional wave modeling. Statistically downscaled GCM projections from Multivariate Adaptive Constructed Analogues provide daily averaged near-surface winds at an appropriate spatial resolution for wave modeling within...
Monitoring water content dynamics of biological soil crusts
Michael H. Young, Lynn F. Fenstermaker, Jayne Belnap
2017, Journal of Arid Environments (142) 41-49
Biological soil crusts (hereafter, “biocrusts”) dominate soil surfaces in nearly all dryland environments. To better understand the influence of water content on carbon (C) exchange, we assessed the ability of dual-probe heat-pulse (DPHP) sensors, installed vertically and angled, to measure changes in near-surface water content. Four DPHP sensors were installed...
Intra-reach headwater fish assemblage structure
James E. McKenna Jr.
2017, The Open Ecology Journal (10) 1-12
Large-scale conservation efforts can take advantage of modern large databases and regional modeling and assessment methods. However, these broad-scale efforts often assume uniform average habitat conditions and/or species assemblages within stream reaches....
Does bioelectrical impedance analysis accurately estimate the condition of threatened and endangered desert fish species?
Kimberly L. Dibble, Micheal D. Yard, David L. Ward, Charles B. Yackulic
2017, Transactions of the American Fisheries Society (146) 888-902
Bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) is a nonlethal tool with which to estimate the physiological condition of animals that has potential value in research on endangered species. However, the effectiveness of BIA varies by species, the methodology continues to be refined, and incidental mortality rates are unknown. Under laboratory conditions we...
Microbial-sized, carboxylate-modified microspheres as surrogate tracers in a variety of subsurface environments: An overview
Ronald W. Harvey, David W. Metge, Denis R. LeBlanc
2017, Procedia Earth and Planetary Science (17) 372-375
Since 1986, fluorescent carboxylate-modified polystyrene/latex microspheres (FCM) have been co-injected into aquifers along with conservative tracers and viruses, bacteria, and (or) protozoa. Use of FCM has resulted in new information about subsurface transport behaviors of microorganisms in fractured crystalline rock, karst limestone, soils, and granular aquifers. FCM have been used...
Tracking the fate of nitrate through pulse-flow wetlands: A mesocosm scale 15N enrichment tracer study
Tiffany L. Messer, Michael R. Burchell, J.K. Bohlke, Craig R. Tobias
2017, Ecological Engineering (106) 597-608
Quantitative information about the fate of applied nitrate (NO3-N) in pulse-flow constructed wetlands is essential for designing wetland treatment systems and assessing their nitrogen removal services for agricultural and stormwater applications. Although many studies have documented NO3-N losses in wetlands, controlled experiments indicating the relative importance of different processes and...
Life history attributes of Arizona Grasshopper Sparrow (Ammodramus savannarum ammolegus) and comparisons with other North American subspecies
Janet M. Ruth
2017, The American Midland Naturalist (178) 64-81
Ammodramus savannarum ammolegus—commonly referred to as the Arizona Grasshopper Sparrow—occurs in the desert and plains grasslands of southeastern Arizona, southwestern New Mexico, and northern Sonora, Mexico. Although a subspecies of conservation concern, this is the first intensive study of its life history and breeding ecology, providing baseline data and facilitating comparisons...
Estimating incision healing rate for surgically implanted acoustic transmitters from recaptured fish
Abby Schoonyan, Richard T. Kraus, Matthew D. Faust, Christopher Vandergoot, Steven J. Cooke, H. Andrew Cook, Todd A. Hayden, Charles C. Krueger
2017, Animal Biotelemetry (5)
Background Intracoelomic implantation of electronic tags has become a common method in fishery research, but rarely are fish examined by scientists after release to understand the extent that surgical incisions have healed. Walleye (Sander vitreus) are a valuable, highly exploited fishery resource in the Laurentian Great Lakes. Here, fishery capture...
Response of deep groundwater to land use change in desert basins of the Trans-Pecos region, Texas, USA: Effects on infiltration, recharge, and nitrogen fluxes
Wendy Marie Robertson, J.K. Bohlke, John M. Sharp
2017, Hydrological Processes (31) 2349-2364
Quantifying the effects of anthropogenic processes on groundwater in arid regions can be complicated by thick unsaturated zones with long transit times. Human activities can alter water and nutrient fluxes, but their impact on groundwater is not always clear. This study of basins in the Trans-Pecos region of Texas links...
Two-step adaptive management for choosing between two management actions
Alana L. Moore, Leila Walker, Michael C. Runge, Eve McDonald-Madden, Michael A McCarthy
2017, Ecological Applications (27) 1210-1222
Adaptive management is widely advocated to improve environmental management. Derivations of optimal strategies for adaptive management, however, tend to be case specific and time consuming. In contrast, managers might seek relatively simple guidance, such as insight into when a new potential management action should be considered, and how much effort...
Yellowstone grizzly bears: Ecology and conservation of an icon of wildness
P.J. White, Kerry A. Gunther, Frank T. van Manen, editor(s)
2017, Book
No abstract available....
How can climate change and engineered water conveyance affect sediment dynamics in the San Francisco Bay-Delta system?
Fernanda Achete, Mick Van der Wegen, Jan Adriaan Roelvink, Bruce E. Jaffe
2017, Climatic Change (142) 375-389
Suspended sediment concentration is an important estuarine health indicator. Estuarine ecosystems rely on the maintenance of habitat conditions, which are changing due to direct human impact and climate change. This study aims to evaluate the impact of climate change relative to engineering measures on estuarine fine sediment dynamics and sediment...
Active tectonics of the northern Mojave Desert: The 2017 Desert Symposium field trip road log
David M. Miller, R.E. Reynolds, Geoffrey Phelps, Jeffrey S. Honke, Andrew J. Cyr, David C. Buesch, Kevin M. Schmidt, G. Losson
2017, Conference Paper, ECSZ Does It: Revisiting the Eastern California Shear Zone
The 2017 Desert Symposium field trip will highlight recent work by the U.S. Geological Survey geologists and geophysicists, who have been mapping young sediment and geomorphology associated with active tectonic features in the least well-known part of the eastern California Shear Zone (ECSZ). This area, stretching from Barstow eastward in...
Land before water: The relative temporal sequence of human alteration of freshwater ecosystems in the conterminous United States
Ellen Wohl, Katherine B. Lininger, Jill Baron
2017, Anthropocene (18) 27-46
Human alteration of ecosystems prior to Euro-American contact in the area that became the conterminous United States disproportionately affected terrestrial systems compared to freshwater ecosystems, primarily through the use of fire and agriculture in some regions of the United States. After circa 1600 AD, trapping of beaver, along with intensive modification of rivers and...
Assessment of continuous oil and gas resources in the Pannonian Basin Province, Hungary, 2016
Christopher J. Schenk, Timothy R. Klett, Phuong A. Le, Michael E. Brownfield, Heidi M. Leathers-Miller
2017, Fact Sheet 2017-3033
Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated mean undiscovered, technically recoverable continuous resources of 119 million barrels of oil and 944 billion cubic feet of gas in the Hungarian part of the Pannonian Basin Province....
Grand challenges for integrated USGS science — A workshop report
Karen E. Jenni, Martin B. Goldhaber, Julio L. Betancourt, Jill S. Baron, Sky Bristol, Mary Cantrill, Paul E. Exter, Michael J. Focazio, John W. Haines, Lauren E. Hay, Leslie Hsu, Victor F. Labson, Kevin D. Lafferty, K. A. Ludwig, Paul C. D. Milly, Toni L. Morelli, Suzette A. Morman, Nedal T. Nassar, Timothy R. Newman, Andrea C. Ostroff, Jordan S. Read, Sasha C. Reed, Carl D. Shapiro, Richard A. Smith, Ward E. Sanford, Terry L. Sohl, Edward G. Stets, Adam J. Terando, Donald E. Tillitt, Michael A. Tischler, Patricia L. Toccalino, David J. Wald, Mark P. Waldrop, Anne Wein, Jake F. Weltzin, Christian E. Zimmerman
2017, Open-File Report 2017-1076
Executive SummaryThe U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has a long history of advancing the traditional Earth science disciplines and identifying opportunities to integrate USGS science across disciplines to address complex societal problems. The USGS science strategy for 2007–2017 laid out key challenges in disciplinary and interdisciplinary arenas, culminating in a call...
Historical Topographic Map Collection bookmark
Kristin A. Fishburn, Gregory J. Allord
2017, General Information Product 179
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Geospatial Program is scanning published USGS 1:250,000-scale and larger topographic maps printed between 1884, the inception of the topographic mapping program, and 2006. The goal of this project, which began publishing the historical scanned maps in 2011, is to provide a digital repository of...
Developing a landscape‐scale, multi‐species, and cost‐efficient conservation strategy for imperilled aquatic species in the Upper Tennessee River Basin, USA
David R. Smith, Robert S. Butler, Jess W Jones, Catherine M Gatenby, Roberta Hylton, Mary Parkin, Cindy Schulz
2017, Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems (27) 1224-1239
Strategic conservation of imperilled species faces several major challenges including uncertainty in species response to management actions, budgetary constraints that limit options, and the need to scale expected conservation benefits from local to landscape levels and from single to multiple species.A structured decision‐making process was applied to address these...
Landsat-based trend analysis of lake dynamics across northern permafrost regions
Ingmar Nitze, Guido Grosse, Benjamin M. Jones, Christopher D. Arp, Mathias Ulrich, Alexander Federov, Alexandra Veremeeva
2017, Remote Sensing (9)
Lakes are a ubiquitous landscape feature in northern permafrost regions. They have a strong impact on carbon, energy and water fluxes and can be quite responsive to climate change. The monitoring of lake change in northern high latitudes, at a sufficiently accurate spatial and temporal resolution, is crucial for understanding...
A new species of iguana Brachylophus Cuvier 1829 (Sauria: Iguania: Iguanidae) from Gau Island, Fiji Islands
Robert N. Fisher, Jone Niukula, Dick Watling, Peter S. Harlow
2017, Zootaxa (4273) 407-422
The south Pacific iguanas (Brachylophus) currently have three recognized living species in Fiji. Recent surveys have uncovered more specific variation (morphological and genetic) within the genus and have better defined the geographic ranges of the named species. One of these recent discoveries is a strikingly different iguana from all other...
On the probability distribution of daily streamflow in the United States
Annalise G. Blum, Stacey A. Archfield, Richard M. Vogel
2017, Hydrology and Earth System Sciences (21) 3093-3103
Daily streamflows are often represented by flow duration curves (FDCs), which illustrate the frequency with which flows are equaled or exceeded. FDCs have had broad applications across both operational and research hydrology for decades; however, modeling FDCs has proven elusive. Daily streamflow is a complex time series with flow values...
The U.S. Geological Survey Flagstaff Science Campus—Providing expertise on planetary science, ecology, water resources, geologic processes, and human interactions with the Earth
Robert J. Hart, R. Greg Vaughan, Kristin McDougall, Todd Wojtowicz, Prasad Thenkenbail
2017, Fact Sheet 2017-3051
The U.S. Geological Survey’s Flagstaff Science Campus is focused on interdisciplinary study of the Earth and solar system, and has the scientific expertise to detect early environmental changes and provide strategies to minimize possible adverse effects on humanity. The Flagstaff Science Campus (FSC) is located in Flagstaff, Arizona,...
Rare earth mineral potential in the southeastern U.S. Coastal Plain from integrated geophysical, geochemical, and geological approaches
Anjana K. Shah, Carleton R. Bern, Bradley S. Van Gosen, David L. Daniels, William Benzel, James R. Budahn, Karl J. Ellefsen, Adam T. Karst, Richard Davis
2017, GSA Bulletin (129) 1140-1157
We combined geophysical, geochemical, mineralogical, and geological data to evaluate the regional presence of rare earth element (REE)−bearing minerals in heavy mineral sand deposits of the southeastern U.S. Coastal Plain. We also analyzed regional differences in these data to determine probable sedimentary provenance. Analyses of heavy mineral separates covering the...
