Influence of septic systems on stream base flow in the Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint River Basin near Metropolitan Atlanta, Georgia, 2012
John S. Clarke, Jaime A. Painter
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5144
Septic systems were identified at 241,733 locations in a 2,539-square-mile (mi2) study area that includes all or parts of 12 counties in the Metropolitan Atlanta, Georgia, area. Septic system percolation may locally be an important component of streamflow in small drainage basins where it augments natural groundwater recharge, especially during...
Effects of permafrost thaw on CO2 and CH4 exchange in a western Alaska peatland chronosequence
Carmel E. Johnston, Stephanie A. Ewing, Jennifer W. Harden, Ruth K. Varner, Kimberly P. Wickland, Joshua C. Koch, Christopher C. Fuller, Kristen L. Manies, M. Torre Jorgenson
2014, Environmental Research Letters (8) 1-12
Permafrost soils store over half of global soil carbon (C), and northern frozen peatlands store about 10% of global permafrost C. With thaw, inundation of high latitude lowland peatlands typically increases the surface-atmosphere flux of methane (CH4), a potent greenhouse gas. To examine the effects of lowland permafrost thaw over...
Resource manager information needs regarding hydrologic regime shifts for the North Pacific Landscape Conservation
Andrea Woodward, Karen Jenni
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1178
Landscape Conservation Cooperatives (LCCs) are a network of 22 public-private partnerships, defined by ecoregion, that share and provide science to ensure the sustainability of land, water, wildlife, and cultural resources in North America. LCCs were established by the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) in recognition of the fact that...
Behavior and dam passage of juvenile Chinook salmon at Cougar Reservoir and Dam, Oregon, March 2012 - February 2013
John W. Beeman, Hal C. Hansel, Amy C. Hansen, Scott D. Evans, Philip V. Haner, Tyson Hatton, Eric E. Kofoot, Jamie M. Sprando, Collin D. Smith
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1177
The movements and dam passage of individual juvenile Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) were studied at Cougar Reservoir and Dam, near Springfield, Oregon, during 2012 and 2013. Cougar Dam is a high-head flood-control reservoir with a temperature control tower as its outlet enabling selective withdrawals of water at various depths to...
Analysis of water quality in the Blue River watershed, Colorado, 1984 through 2007
Nancy J. Bauch, Lisa D. Miller, Sharon Yacob
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2013-5129
Water quality of streams, reservoirs, and groundwater in the Blue River watershed in the central Rocky Mountains of Colorado has been affected by local geologic conditions, historical hard-rock metal mining, and recent urban development. With these considerations, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Summit Water Quality Committee, conducted...
High-resolution topography and geomorphology of select archeological sites in Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Arizona
Brian D. Collins, Skye C. Corbett, Joel B. Sankey, Helen C. Fairley
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5126
Along the Colorado River corridor between Glen Canyon Dam and Lees Ferry, Arizona, located some 25 km downstream from the dam, archaeological sites dating from 8,000 years before present through the modern era are located within and on top of fluvial and alluvial terraces of the prehistorically undammed river. These...
Integration of seismic-reflection and well data to assess the potential impact of stratigraphic and structural features on sustainable water supply from the Floridan aquifer system, Broward County, Florida
Kevin J. Cunningham
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1136
The U.S. Geological Survey and Broward County water managers commenced a 3.5-year cooperative study in July 2012 to refine the geologic and hydrogeologic framework of the Floridan aquifer system (FAS) in Broward County. A lack of advanced stratigraphic knowledge of the physical system and structural geologic anomalies (faults and fractures...
Calcium oxalate contribution to calcium cycling in forests of contrasting nutrient status
Jenny M. Dauer, Steven S. Perakis
2014, Forest Ecology and Management (334) 64-73
Calcium oxalate (Ca oxalate) is an insoluble biomineral that forms in plants and fungi, and occurs in soils across many types of ecosystems. Assessing how Ca oxalate may shape ecosystem Ca cycling requires information on the distribution of Ca oxalate among plant biomass, detritus, and mineral soil, and how it...
Aragonite saturation states and nutrient fluxes in coral reef sediments in Biscayne National Park, FL, USA
John T. Lisle, Christopher D. Reich, Robert B. Halley
2014, Marine Ecology Progress Series (509) 71-85
Some coral reefs, such as patch reefs along the Florida Keys reef tract, are not showing significant reductions in calcification rates in response to ocean acidification. It has been hypothesized that this recalcitrance is due to local buffering effects from biogeochemical processes driven by seagrasses. We investigated the influence that...
Uranium series, volcanic rocks
Jorge A. Vazquez
2014, Book chapter, Encyclopedia of Scientific Dating Methods
Application of U-series dating to volcanic rocks provides unique and valuable information about the absolute timing of crystallization and differentiation of magmas prior to eruption. The 238U–230Th and 230Th-226Ra methods are the most commonly employed for dating the crystallization of mafic to silicic magmas that erupt at volcanoes. Dates derived...
Construction, water-level, and water-quality data for multiple-well monitoring sites and test wells, Fort Irwin National Training Center, San Bernardino County, California, 2009-12
Adam R. Kjos, Jill N. Densmore, Joseph M. Nawikas, Anthony A. Brown
2014, Data Series 788
Because of increasing water demands at the U.S. Army Fort Irwin National Training Center, the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the U.S. Army carried out a study to evaluate the water quality and potential groundwater supply of undeveloped basins within the U.S. Army Fort Irwin National Training Center. In...
Sediment and water chemistry of the San Juan River and Escalante River deltas of Lake Powell, Utah, 2010-2011
Nancy J. Hornewer
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1096
Recent studies have documented the presence of trace elements, organic compounds including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and radionuclides in sediment from the Colorado River delta and from sediment in some side canyons in Lake Powell, Utah and Arizona. The fate of many of these contaminants is of significant concern to the...
SAHM:VisTrails (Software for Assisted Habitat Modeling for VisTrails): training course
Tracy Holcombe
2014, Fact Sheet 2014-3007
VisTrails is an open-source management and scientific workflow system designed to integrate the best of both scientific workflow and scientific visualization systems. Developers can extend the functionality of the VisTrails system by creating custom modules for bundled VisTrails packages. The Invasive Species Science Branch of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)...
Simulating water-quality trends in public-supply wells in transient flow systems
J. Jeffrey Starn, Christopher T. Green, Stephen R. Hinkle, Amvrossios C. Bagtzoglou, Bernard J. Stolp
2014, Ground Water (52) 53-62
Models need not be complex to be useful. An existing groundwater-flow model of Salt Lake Valley, Utah, was adapted for use with convolution-based advective particle tracking to explain broad spatial trends in dissolved solids. This model supports the hypothesis that water produced from wells is increasingly younger with higher proportions...
Generating nested wetland catchments with readily-available digital elevation data may improve evaluations of land-use change on wetlands
Lisa A. McCauley, Michael J. Anteau
2014, Wetlands (34) 1123-1132
The important ecosystem functions wetlands perform are influenced by land-use changes in their surrounding uplands and thus, identifying the upland area that flows into a wetland is important. We provide a method to define wetland catchments as the portion of the landscape that flows into a wetland; we allowed catchments...
How hot is too hot? Live-trapped gray wolf rectal temperatures and 1-year survival
Shannon M. Barber-Meyer, L. David Mech
2014, Wildlife Society Bulletin (38) 767-772
The ability of physically restrained and anesthetized wolves to thermoregulate is lessened and could lead to reduced survival, yet no information is available about this subject. Therefore, we analyzed rectal temperatures related to survival 1 year post-capture from 173 adult (non-pup) gray wolves (Canis lupus) captured in modified foot-hold traps...
Description of landscape features, summary of existing hydrologic data, and identification of data gaps for the Osage Nation, northeastern Oklahoma, 1890-2012
William J. Andrews, S. Jerrod Smith
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5134
The Osage Nation of northeastern Oklahoma, conterminous with Osage County, is characterized by gently rolling uplands and incised stream valleys that have downcut into underlying sedimentary rock units of Pennsylvanian through Permian age. Cattle ranching and petroleum and natural-gas extraction are the principal land uses in this rural area. Freshwater...
Water resources of West Feliciana Parish, Louisiana
Lawrence B. Prakken, John K. Lovelace, Dan J. Tomaszewski, Jason M. Griffith
2014, Fact Sheet 2014-3039
Information concerning the availability, use, and quality of water in West Feliciana Parish, Louisiana, is critical for proper water-supply management. The purpose of this fact sheet is to present information that can be used by water managers, parish residents, and others for stewardship of this vital resource. Information on the...
Hydrosalinity studies of the Virgin River, Dixie Hot Springs, and Littlefield Springs, Utah, Arizona, and Nevada
Steven J. Gerner, Susan A. Thiros
Steven J. Gerner, Susan A. Thiros, editor(s)
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5093
The Virgin River contributes a substantial amount of dissolved solids (salt) to the Colorado River at Lake Mead in the lower Colorado River Basin. Degradation of Colorado River water by the addition of dissolved solids from the Virgin River affects the suitability of the water for municipal, industrial, and agricultural...
Baseline coastal oblique aerial photographs collected from Dauphin Island, Alabama, to Breton Island, Louisiana, August 8, 2012
Karen L.M. Morgan, Karen A. Westphal
2014, Data Series 860
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) conducts baseline and storm response photography missions to document and understand the changes in vulnerability of the Nation's coasts to extreme storms. On August 8, 2012, the USGS conducted an oblique aerial photographic survey from Dauphin Island, Alabama, to Breton Island, Louisiana, aboard a Cessna...
Book review: Spatial capture-recapture
Robin E. Russell
2014, Journal of Wildlife Management (78) 1319-1320
Understanding how animals use space is a vital aspect of conservation planning and wildlife management. Technological developments (e.g., increased computer power and desktop geographic information system [GIS] applications) are bringing the ability to analyze spatial data sets to the individual biologist. Therefore, it is not surprising that methodologies have been...
Baseline coastal oblique aerial photographs collected from Breton Island, Louisiana, to the Alabama-Florida border, July 13, 2013
Karen L.M. Morgan, Karen A. Westphal
2014, Data Series 857
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) conducts baseline and storm response photography missions to document and understand the changes in vulnerability of the Nation's coasts to extreme storms. On July 13, 2013, the USGS conducted an oblique aerial photographic survey from Breton Island, Louisiana, to the Alabama-Florida border, aboard a Cessna...
Water resources of Caldwell Parish, Louisiana
Lawrence B. Prakken, Vincent E. White
2014, Fact Sheet 2014-3044
Information concerning the availability, use, and quality of water in Caldwell Parish, Louisiana, is critical for proper water-supply management. The purpose of this fact sheet is to present information that can be used by water managers, parish residents, and others for stewardship of this vital resource. Information on the availability,...
Utilizing hunter harvest effort to survey for wildlife disease: a case study of West Nile virus in greater sage-grouse
Robert J. Dusek, Christian A. Hagen, J. Christian Franson, David A. Budeau, Erik K. Hofmeister
2014, Wildlife Society Bulletin (38) 721-727
Greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus; sage-grouse) are highly susceptible to infection with West Nile virus (WNV), with substantial mortality reported in wild populations and in experimentally infected birds. Although sage-grouse are hunted throughout much of their range, they have also recently been considered for protection under the Endangered Species Act. We...
Assessment of ethylene dibromide, dibromochloropropane, other volatile organic compounds, radium isotopes, radon, and inorganic compounds in groundwater and spring water from the Crouch Branch and McQueen Branch aquifers near McBee, South Carolina, 2010-2012
James Landmeyer, Bruce G. Campbell
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5114
Public-supply wells near the rural town of McBee, in southwestern Chesterfield County, South Carolina, have provided potable water to more than 35,000 residents throughout Chesterfield County since the early 1990s. Groundwater samples collected between 2002 and 2008 in the McBee area by South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control...
