Mapped versus actual burned area within wildfire perimeters: Characterizing the unburned
Carl H Key, James Lutz, Carl H. Key, Jonathan Kane, Jan W Van Wagtendonk
2012, Forest Ecology and Management (286) 38-47
For decades, wildfire studies have utilized fire occurrence as the primary data source for investigating the causes and effects of wildfire on the landscape. Fire occurrence data fall primarily into two categories: ignition points and perimeter polygons which are used to calculate a ‘burned...
Importance of tributary streams for rainbow trout reproduction: insights from a small stream in Georgia and a bi-genomic approach
D. Lee, Justin B. Lack, Ronald A. Van Den Bussche, James M. Long
2012, River Research and Applications (28) 1587-1593
Tributaries of tailwater fisheries in the southeastern USA have been used for spawning by stocked rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss), but their importance may have been underestimated using traditional fish survey methods such as electrofishing and redd counts. We used a bi-genomic approach, mitochondrial DNA sequences and nuclear microsatellite loci, to...
The shallow-water fish assemblage of Isla del Coco National Park, Costa Rica: Structure and patterns in an isolated, predator-dominated ecosystem
Alan M. Friedlander, Brian J. Zgliczynski, Enric Ballesteros, Octavio Aburto-Oropeza, Allan Bolanos, Enric Sala
2012, Revista de Biología Tropical: International Journal of Tropical Biology and Conservation (60) 321-338
Fishes at Isla del Coco National Park, Costa Rica, were surveyed as part of a larger scientific expedition to the area in September 2009. The average total biomass of nearshore fishes was 7.8 tonnes per ha, among the largest observed in the tropics, with apex predators such as sharks, jacks,...
MiniSipper: A new in situ water sampler for high-resolution, long-duration acid mine drainage monitoring
Thomas P. Chapin, Andrew S. Todd
2012, Science of the Total Environment (439) 343-353
Abandoned hard-rock mines can be a significant source of acid mine drainage (AMD) and toxic metal pollution to watersheds. In Colorado, USA, abandoned mines are often located in remote, high elevation areas that are snowbound for 7–8 months of the year. The difficulty in accessing these remote sites, especially during...
Species-specific and transgenerational responses to increasing salinity in sympatric freshwater gastropods
Jamie G. Suski, Christopher J. Salice, Reynaldo Patino
2012, Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (31) 2517-2524
Freshwater salinization is a global concern partly attributable to anthropogenic salt contamination. The authors examined the effects of increased salinity (as NaCl, 250-4,000 µS/cm, specific conductance) on two sympatric freshwater gastropods (Helisoma trivolvis and Physa pomillia). Life stage sensitivities were determined by exposing naive eggs or naive juveniles (through adulthood...
Population ecology of breeding Pacific common eiders on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, Alaska
Heather M. Wilson, Paul L. Flint, Abby N. Powell, J. Barry Grand, Christine L. Moral
2012, Wildlife Monographs (182)
Populations of Pacific common eiders (Somateria mollissima v-nigrum) on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta (YKD) in western Alaska declined by 50–90% from 1957 to 1992 and then stabilized at reduced numbers from the early 1990s to the present. We investigated the underlying processes affecting their population dynamics by collection and analysis of...
Free tropospheric transport of microorganisms from Asia to North America
D. Smith, Dan Jaffe, Michele Birmele, Dale W. Griffin, Andrew Schuerger, J. Hee, Michael Roberts
2012, Microbial Ecology (64) 973-985
Microorganisms are abundant in the troposphere and can be transported vast distances on prevailing winds. This study measures the abundance and diversity of airborne bacteria and fungi sampled at the Mt. Bachelor Observatory (located 2.7 km above sea level in North America) where incoming free tropospheric air routinely arrives from...
Mapping temperature and radiant geothermal heat flux anomalies in the Yellowstone geothermal system using ASTER thermal infrared data
R. Greg Vaughan, Jacob B. Lowenstern, Laszlo P. Keszthelyi, Cheryl Jaworowski, Henry Heasler
2012, Geothermal Resources Council Transactions (36) 1403-1409
The purpose of this work was to use satellite-based thermal infrared (TIR) remote sensing data to measure, map, and monitor geothermal activity within the Yellowstone geothermal area to help meet the missions of both the U.S. Geological Survey Yellowstone Volcano Observatory and the Yellowstone National Park Geology Program. Specifically, the...
Incorporating movement patterns to improve survival estimates for juvenile bull trout
Tracy Bowerman, Phaedra Budy
2012, North American Journal of Fisheries Management (32) 1123-1136
Populations of many fish species are sensitive to changes in vital rates during early life stages, but our understanding of the factors affecting growth, survival, and movement patterns is often extremely limited for juvenile fish. These critical information gaps are particularly evident for bull trout Salvelinus confluentus, a threatened Pacific...
2011 Kiwikiu (Maui Parrotbill) and Maui 'Alauahio abundance estimates and the effect of sampling effort on power to detect a trend
Kevin W. Brinck, Richard J. Camp, P. Marcos Gorresen, David L. Leonard, Hanna L. Mounce, Kelly J. Iknayan, Eben H. Paxton
2012, Report
The Kiwikiu (Pseudonestor xanthophrys), also called the Maui Parrotbill, is an endangered, forest bird found only in high elevation, wet forest of the eastern portion of Maui Island. Recent surveys, conducted at five year intervals, have revealed wide variation in abundance estimates (Camp et al. 2009). Effective management and conservation...
Using geochemistry to identify the source of groundwater to Montezuma Well, a natural spring in Central Arizona, USA: Part 2
Raymond H. Johnson, Ed DeWitt, Laurie Wirt, Andrew H. Manning, Andrew G. Hunt
2012, Environmental Earth Sciences (67) 1837-1853
Montezuma Well is a unique natural spring located in a sinkhole surrounded by travertine. Montezuma Well is managed by the National Park Service, and groundwater development in the area is a potential threat to the water source for Montezuma Well. This research was undertaken to better understand the sources of...
Eruptive history of Mount Katmai, Alaska
Edward Hildreth, Judith Fierstein
2012, Geosphere (8) 1527-1567
Mount Katmai has long been recognized for its caldera collapse during the great pyroclastic eruption of 1912 (which vented 10 km away at Novarupta in the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes), but little has previously been reported about the geology of the remote ice-clad stratovolcano itself. Over several seasons,...
Difference infiltrometer: a method to measure temporally variable infiltration rates during rainstorms
John A. Moody, Brian A. Ebel
2012, Hydrological Processes (26) 3312-3318
We developed a difference infiltrometer to measure time series of non-steady infiltration rates during rainstorms at the point scale. The infiltrometer uses two, tipping bucket rain gages. One gage measures rainfall onto, and the other measures runoff from, a small circular plot about 0.5-m in diameter. The small size allows...
Water quality and mass transport in four watersheds in eastern Puerto Rico: Chapter E in Water quality and landscape processes of four watersheds in eastern Puerto Rico
Robert F. Stallard, Sheila F. Murphy
Sheila F. Murphy, Robert F. Stallard, editor(s)
2012, Professional Paper 1789-E
Water quality of four small watersheds in eastern Puerto Rico has been monitored since 1991 as part of the U.S. Geological Survey's Water, Energy, and Biogeochemical Budgets program. These watersheds represent a montane, humid-tropical environment and differ in geology and land cover. Two watersheds are located on granitic rocks, and...
Distribution, abundance and production of Hemimysis anomala in Lake Ontario
Ana Carolina Taraborelli, Nina Jakobi, Timothy B. Johnson, Kelly Bowen, Brent Boscarino
2012, Journal of Great Lakes Research (38) 73-78
Hemimysis anomala is one of the latest macroinvertebrates to invade the Laurentian Great Lakes. Since first reported in 2006, Hemimysis have been confirmed in several locations within the Great Lakes basin. However, little is known about the seasonal and spatial variation in demographics and dynamics of Hemimysis populations. We used a standardised pier-based methodology to describe...
Effects of earthworms on slopewash, surface runoff, and fine-litter transport on a humid-tropical forested hillslope in eastern Puerto Rico: Chapter G in Water quality and landscape processes of four watersheds in eastern Puerto Rico
Matthew C. Larsen, Zhigang Liu Liu, Xiaoming Zou
Sheila F. Murphy, Robert F. Stallard, editor(s)
2012, Professional Paper 1789-G
Rainfall, slopewash (the erosion of soil particles), surface runoff, and fine-litter transport were measured in tropical wet forest on a hillslope in the Luquillo Experimental Forest, Puerto Rico, from February 1998 until April 2000. Slopewash data were collected using Gerlach troughs at eight plots, each 2 square meters in area....
Weathering processes in the Rio Icacos and Rio Mameyes watersheds in Eastern Puerto Rico: Chapter I in Water quality and landscape processes of four watersheds in eastern Puerto Rico
Heather L. Buss, Arthur F. White
Sheila F. Murphy, Robert F. Stallard, editor(s)
2012, Professional Paper 1789-I
Streams draining watersheds of the two dominant lithologies (quartz diorite and volcaniclastic rock) in the Luquillo Experimental Forest of eastern Puerto Rico have very high fluxes of bedrock weathering products. The Río Blanco quartz diorite in the Icacos watershed and the Fajardo volcaniclastic rocks in the Mameyes watershed have some...
Land use, population dynamics, and land-cover change in eastern Puerto Rico: Chapter B in Water quality and landscape processes of four watersheds in eastern Puerto Rico
William A. Gould, Sebastián Martinuzzi, Isabel K. Pares-Ramos, Sheila F. Murphy, Robert F. Stallard
Sheila F. Murphy, Robert F. Stallard, editor(s)
2012, Professional Paper 1789-B
We assessed current and historic land use and land cover in the Luquillo Mountains and surrounding area in eastern Puerto Rico, including four small subwatersheds that are study watersheds of the U.S. Geological Survey's Water, Energy, and Biogeochemical Budgets (WEBB) program. This region occupies an area of 1,616 square kilometers,...
Weathering, landscape equilibrium, and carbon in four watersheds in eastern Puerto Rico: Chapter H in Water quality and landscape processes of four watersheds in eastern Puerto Rico
Robert F. Stallard
Sheila F. Murphy, Robert F. Stallard, editor(s)
2012, Professional Paper 1789-H
The U.S. Geological Survey's Water, Energy, and Biogeochemical Budgets (WEBB) program research in eastern Puerto Rico involves a double pair-wise comparison of four montane river basins, two on granitic bedrock and two on fine-grained volcaniclastic bedrock; for each rock type, one is forested and the other is developed. A confounding...
Physiography, geology, and land cover of four watersheds in eastern Puerto Rico: Chapter A in Water quality and landscape processes of four watersheds in eastern Puerto Rico
Sheila F. Murphy, Robert F. Stallard, Matthew C. Larsen, William A. Gould
Sheila F. Murphy, editor(s)
2012, Professional Paper 1789-A
Four watersheds with differing geology and land cover in eastern Puerto Rico have been studied on a long-term basis by the U.S. Geological Survey to evaluate water, energy, and biogeochemical budgets. These watersheds are typical of tropical, island-arc settings found in many parts of the world. Two watersheds are located...
Uncertainty quantification for environmental models
Mary C. Hill, Dan Lu, Dmitri Kavetski, Martyn P. Clark, Ming Ye
2012, SIAM News (45)
Environmental models are used to evaluate the fate of fertilizers in agricultural settings (including soil denitrification), the degradation of hydrocarbons at spill sites, and water supply for people and ecosystems in small to large basins and cities—to mention but a few applications of these models. They also play a role...
Externally triggered renewed bubble nucleation in basaltic magma: the 12 October 2008 eruption at Halema‘uma‘u Overlook vent, Kīlauea, Hawai‘i, USA
Rebecca J. Carey, Michael Manga, Wim Degruyter, Donald Swanson, Bruce F. Houghton, Tim R. Orr, Matthew R. Patrick
2012, Journal of Geophysical Research B: Solid Earth (117)
From October 2008 until present, dozens of small impulsive explosive eruptions occurred from the Overlook vent on the southeast side of Halema‘uma‘u Crater, at Kīlauea volcano, USA. These eruptions were triggered by rockfalls from the walls of the volcanic vent and conduit onto the top of the lava column. Here...
The effect of nonylphenol on gene expression in Atlantic salmon smolts
Laura S. Robertson, Stephen D. McCormick
2012, Aquatic Toxicology (122-123) 36-43
The parr–smolt transformation in Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) is a complex developmental process that culminates in the ability to migrate to and live in seawater. Exposure to environmental contaminants like nonylphenol can disrupt smolt development and may be a contributing factor in salmon population declines. We used GRASP 16K cDNA...
Effect of Feeding-Fasting Cycles on Oxygen Consumption and Bioenergetics of Yellow Perch
Steven R. Chipps, Travis W. Schaeffer, Daniel E. Spengler, Casey W. Schoenebeck, Michael L. Brown
2012, Transactions of the American Fisheries Society (141) 1480-1491
We measured growth and oxygen consumption of age-1 yellow perch Perca flavescenssubjected to ad libitum (control) or variable feeding cycles of 2 (i.e., 2 d of feed, 2 d of deprivation), 6, or 12 d for a 72-d period. Individual, female yellow perch (initial weight = 51.9 ± 0.9 g [mean...
Morphological and chemical evidence of stromatolitic deposits in the 2.75 Ga Carajás banded iron formation, Brazil
Beatriz Ribeiro da Luz, James K. Crowley
2012, Earth and Planetary Science Letters (355-356) 60-72
We describe evidence of biogenicity in the morphology and carbon content of well-preserved, Neoarchean samples of banded iron formation (BIF) from Carajás, Brazil. Silica-rich BIF layers contain translucent ellipsoidal or trapezoidal structures (∼5–10 μm diameter) composed of silica, hematite, and kerogen, which are arranged in larger ring-like forms (rosettes). Stable...
