The Chuar Petroleum System, Arizona and Utah
Paul G. Lillis
2016, Book chapter, Hydrocarbon source rocks in unconventional plays, Rocky Mountain Region
The Neoproterozoic Chuar Group consists of marine mudstone, sandstone and dolomitic strata divided into the Galeros and Kwagunt Formations, and is exposed only in the eastern Grand Canyon, Arizona. Research by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in the late 1980s identified strata within the group to be possible petroleum source...
Environmental implications of the use of sulfidic back-bay sediments for dune reconstruction — Lessons learned post Hurricane Sandy
Geoffrey S. Plumlee, William Benzel, Todd M. Hoefen, Philip L. Hageman, Suzette A. Morman, Timothy J. Reilly, Monique Adams, Cyrus J. Berry, Jeffrey Fischer, Irene Fisher
2016, Marine Pollution Bulletin (107) 459-471
Some barrier-island dunes damaged or destroyed by Hurricane Sandy's storm surges in October 2012 have been reconstructed using sediments dredged from back bays. These sand-, clay-, and iron sulfide-rich sediments were used to make berm-like cores for the reconstructed dunes, which were then covered by beach sand. In November 2013,...
Case study: 2016 Natural glide and wet slab avalanche cycle, Going-to-the-Sun Road, Glacier National Park, Montana, USA
Jacob Hutchinson, Erich H. Peitzsch, Adam Clark
2016, Conference Paper, Proceedings of the International Snow Science Workshop
The Going-to-the-Sun Road (GTSR) is the premier tourist attraction in Glacier National Park, Montana. The GTSR also traverses through and under 40 avalanche paths which pose a hazard to National Park Service (NPS) road crews during the annual spring snow plowing operation. Through a joint collaboration between the NPS and the U.S. Geological...
Selected streambed sediment compounds and water toxicity results for Westside Creeks, San Antonio, Texas, 2014
Cassi L. Crow, Jennifer T. Wilson, James L. Kunz
2016, Fact Sheet 2016-3096
IntroductionThe Alazán, Apache, Martínez, and San Pedro Creeks in San Antonio, Texas, are part of a network of urban tributaries to the San Antonio River, known locally as the Westside Creeks. The Westside Creeks flow through some of the oldest neighborhoods in San Antonio. The disruption of streambed sediment is...
Geological, geochemical, and reservoir characterization of the Uteland Butte member of the Green River Formation, Uinta Basin, Utah
Justin E. Birdwell, Michael D. Vanden Berg, Ronald C. Johnson, Tracey J. Mercier, Adam Boehlke, Michael E. Brownfield
Michael P. Dolan, Debra K. Higley, Paul G. Lillis, editor(s)
2016, Book chapter, Hydrocarbon source rocks in unconventional plays, Rocky Mountain Region
No abstract available....
Modeling the effects of tile drain placement on the hydrologic function of farmed prairie wetlands
Brett Werner, John Tracy, W. Carter Johnson, Richard A. Voldseth, Glenn R. Guntenspergen, Bruce Millett
2016, Journal of the American Water Resources Association (52) 1482-1492
The early 2000s saw large increases in agricultural tile drainage in the eastern Dakotas of North America. Agricultural practices that drain wetlands directly are sometimes limited by wetland protection programs. Little is known about the impacts of tile drainage beyond the delineated boundaries of wetlands in upland catchments that may...
Overpressure development through time using 4D pressure-volume-temperature modeling in the deep Anadarko Basin, Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas
Debra K. Higley
2016, Book chapter, Hydrocarbon source rocks in unconventional plays, Rocky Mountain region: RMAG guidebook
No abstract available....
Creating a Coastal National Elevation Database (CoNED) for science and conservation applications
Cindy A. Thatcher, John Brock, Jeffrey J. Danielson, Sandra K. Poppenga, Dean B. Gesch, Monica Palaseanu-Lovejoy, John Barras, Gayla A. Evans, Ann Gibbs
2016, Journal of Coastal Research (Special Issue 76) 64-74
The U.S. Geological Survey is creating the Coastal National Elevation Database, an expanding set of topobathymetric elevation models that extend seamlessly across coastal regions of high societal or ecological significance in the United States that are undergoing rapid change or are threatened by inundation hazards. Topobathymetric elevation models are raster...
The geomorphology of Ceres
D.L. Buczkowski, B.E. Schmidt, D.A. Williams, S.C. Mest, J.E.C. Scully, A. Ermakov, F. Preusker, P. Schenk, K. A. Otto, H. Hiesinger, D. O'Brien, S. Marchi, H.G. Sizemore, K. Hughson, H. Chilton, M. Bland, S. Byrne, N. Schorghofer, T. Platz, R. Jaumann, T. Roatsch, M. V. Sykes, A. Nathues, De Sanctis, C.A. Raymond, C.T. Russell
2016, Science (353)
Analysis of Dawn spacecraft Framing Camera image data allows evaluation of the topography and geomorphology of features on the surface of Ceres. The dwarf planet is dominated by numerous craters, but other features are also common. Linear structures include both those associated with impact craters and those that do not...
Genetic variation and structure in remnant population of critically endangered Melicope zahlbruckneri
J. A. Raji, Carter T. Atkinson
2016, Journal of Biodiversity & Endangered Species (4) 1-8
The distribution and amount of genetic variation within and between populations of plant species are important for their adaptability to future habitat changes and also critical for their restoration and overall management. This study was initiated to assess the genetic status of the remnant population of Melicope zahlbruckneri–a critically endangered...
mizuRoute version 1: A river network routing tool for a continental domain water resources applications
Naoki Mizukami, Martyn P. Clark, Kevin Sampson, Bart Nijssen, Yixin Mao, Hilary McMillan, Roland J. Viger, Steven L. Markstrom, Lauren E. Hay, Ross Woods, Jeffrey R. Arnold, Levi D. Brekke
2016, Geoscientific Model Development (9) 2223-2238
This paper describes the first version of a stand-alone runoff routing tool, mizuRoute. The mizuRoute tool post-processes runoff outputs from any distributed hydrologic model or land surface model to produce spatially distributed streamflow at various spatial scales from headwater basins to continental-wide river systems. The tool can utilize both traditional...
Application of ground penetrating radar for identification of washover deposits and other stratigraphic features: Assateague Island, MD
Nicholas Zaremba, Christopher G. Smith, Julie Bernier, Arnell S. Forde
2016, Journal of Environmental & Engineering Geophysics (21) 173-186
A combination of ground penetrating radar (GPR) data, core data, and aerial photographs were analyzed to better understand the evolution of two portions of Assateague Island, Maryland. The focus of the study was to investigate the applicability of using GPR data to image washover deposits in the stratigraphic record. High...
Temperature response of soil respiration largely unaltered with experimental warming
Joanna C. Carey, Jianwu Tang, Pamela H. Templer, Kevin D. Kroeger, Thomas W. Crowther, Andrew J. Burton, Jeffrey S. Dukes, Bridget Emmett, Serita D. Frey, Mary A. Heskel, Lifen Jiang, Megan B. Machmuller, Jacqueline Mohan, Anne Marie Panetta, Peter B. Reich, Sabine Reinsch, Xin Wang, Steven D. Allison, Chris Bamminger, Scott D. Bridgham, Scott L. Collins, Giovanbattista de Dato, William C. Eddy, Brian J. Enquist, Marc Estiarte, John Harte, Amanda Henderson, Bart R. Johnson, Klaus Steenberg Larsen, Yiqi Luo, Sven Marhan, Jerry M. Melillo, Josep Penuelas, Laurel Pfeifer-Meister, Christian Poll, Edward B. Rastetter, Andrew B. Reinmann, Lorien L. Reynolds, Inger K. Schmidt, Gaius R. Shaver, Aaron L. Strong, Vidya Suseela, Albert Tietema
2016, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (113) 13797-13802
The respiratory release of carbon dioxide (CO2) from soil is a major yet poorly understood flux in the global carbon cycle. Climatic warming is hypothesized to increase rates of soil respiration, potentially fueling further increases in global temperatures. However, despite considerable scientific attention in recent decades, the overall response of...
Historical reconstructions of California wildfires vary by data source
Alexandra D. Syphard, Jon E. Keeley
2016, International Journal of Wildland Fire (25) 1221-1227
Historical data are essential for understanding how fire activity responds to different drivers. It is important that the source of data is commensurate with the spatial and temporal scale of the question addressed, but fire history databases are derived from different sources with different restrictions. In California, a frequently used...
Evolution of the Lower Tertiary Elko Lake Basin, a potential hydrocarbon source rock in Northeast Nevada
Ronald C. Johnson, Justin E. Birdwell
Michael P. Dolan, Debra K. Higley, Paul G. Lillis, editor(s)
2016, Book chapter, Hydrocarbon Source Rocks in Unconventional Plays, Rocky Mountain Region
No abstract available....
Using resilience and resistance concepts to manage threats to sagebrush ecosystems, Gunnison sage-grouse, and Greater sage-grouse in their eastern range: A strategic multi-scale approach
Jeanne C. Chambers, Jeffrey L. Beck, Steve Campbell, John Carlson, Thomas J. Christiansen, Karen J. Clause, Jonathan B. Dinkins, Kevin E. Doherty, Kathleen A. Griffin, Douglas W. Havlina, Kenneth F. Mayer, Jacob D. Hennig, Laurie L. Kurth, Jeremy D. Maestas, Mary E. Manning, Brian A. Mealor, Clinton McCarthy, Marco A. Perea, David A. Pyke
2016, General Technical Report RMRS-GTR-356
This report provides a strategic approach developed by a Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies interagency working group for conservation of sagebrush ecosystems, Greater sage-grouse, and Gunnison sage-grouse. It uses information on (1) factors that influence sagebrush ecosystem resilience to disturbance and resistance to nonnative invasive annual grasses and...
Eastern Whip-poor-wills (Antrostomus vociferus) are positively associated with low elevation forest In the central Appalachians
Christina L. Slover, Todd E. Katzner
2016, Wilson Journal of Ornithology (128) 846-856
Populations of the Eastern Whip-poor-will (Antrostomus vociferus) are thought to be declining because of a range of potential factors including habitat loss, pesticide use, and predation. However, this species is nocturnal and, as a consequence, it is poorly studied, and its population status is not well assessed by traditional diurnal...
Conservation status of polar bears (Ursus maritimus) in relation to projected sea-ice declines
Eric V. Regehr, Kristin L. Laidre, H. Resit Akcakaya, Steven C. Amstrup, Todd C. Atwood, Nicholas J. Lunn, Martyn E. Obbard, Harry Stern, Gregory W. Thiemann, Øystein Wiig
2016, Biology Letters (12) 1-5
Loss of Arctic sea ice owing to climate change is the primary threat to polar bears throughout their range. We evaluated the potential response of polar bears to sea-ice declines by (i) calculating generation length (GL) for the species, which determines the timeframe for conservation assessments; (ii) developing a standardized...
Complete genome sequence of a novel aquareovirus that infects the endangered fountain darter, Etheostoma fonticola
Luke R. Iwanowicz, Deborah D. Iwanowicz, Cynthia R. Adams, Teresa D. Lewis, Thomas M. Brandt, Robert S. Cornman, Lakyn R. Sanders
2016, Genome Announcements (4)
Here, we report the complete genome of a novel aquareovirus isolated from clinically normal fountain darters, Etheostoma fonticola, inhabiting the San Marcos River, Texas, USA. The complete genome consists of 23,958 bp consisting of 11 segments that range from 783 bp (S11) to 3,866 bp (S1)....
Environmental extremes and biotic interactions facilitate depredation of endangered California Ridgway’s rail in a San Francisco Bay tidal marsh
Cory T. Overton, Steven Bobzien, Marcia Grefsrud
2016, California Fish and Game (102) 157-161
On 23 December 2015 while performing a high tide population survey for endangered Ridgway’s rails (Rallus obsoletus obsoletus; formerly known as the California clapper rail) and other rail species at Arrowhead Marsh, Martin Luther King Jr. Regional Shoreline, Oakland, California, the authors observed a series of species interactions resulting in...
Spatial and ecological variation in dryland ecohydrological responses to climate change: implications for management
Kyle A. Palmquist, Daniel R. Schlaepfer, John B. Bradford, William K. Lauenroth
2016, Ecosphere (7)
Ecohydrological responses to climate change will exhibit spatial variability and understanding the spatial pattern of ecological impacts is critical from a land management perspective. To quantify climate change impacts on spatial patterns of ecohydrology across shrub steppe ecosystems in North America, we asked the following question: How will climate change...
Deglacial temperature history of West Antarctica
Kurt M. Cuffey, Gary D. Clow, Eric J. Steig, Christo Buizert, T.J. Fudge, Michelle Koutnik, Edwin D. Waddington, Richard B. Alley, Jeffrey P. Severinghaus
2016, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (113) 14249-14254
The most recent glacial to interglacial transition constitutes a remarkable natural experiment for learning how Earth’s climate responds to various forcings, including a rise in atmospheric CO2. This transition has left a direct thermal remnant in the polar ice sheets, where the exceptional purity and continual accumulation of ice permit...
Temporal and spatial trends in nutrient and sediment loading to Lake Tahoe, California-Nevada, USA
Robert Coats, Jack Lewis, Nancy L. Alvarez, Patricia Arneson
2016, Journal of the American Water Resources Association (52) 1347-1365
Since 1980, the Lake Tahoe Interagency Monitoring Program (LTIMP) has provided stream-discharge and water quality data—nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and suspended sediment—at more than 20 stations in Lake Tahoe Basin streams. To characterize the temporal and spatial patterns in nutrient and sediment loading to the lake, and improve the usefulness...
Haemosporidian parasite infections in grouse and ptarmigan: Prevalence and genetic diversity of blood parasites in resident Alaskan birds
Matthew M. Smith, Caroline R. Van Hemert, Richard Merizon
2016, International Journal for Parasitology: Parasites and Wildlife (5) 229-239
Projections related to future climate warming indicate the potential for an increase in the distribution and prevalence of blood parasites in northern regions. However, baseline data are lacking for resident avian host species in Alaska. Grouse and ptarmigan occupy a diverse range of habitat types throughout the northern hemisphere and...
High nitrate concentrations in some Midwest United States streams in 2013 after the 2012 drought
Peter C. Van Metre, Jeffrey W. Frey, MaryLynn Musgrove, Naomi Nakagaki, Sharon L. Qi, Barbara Mahler, Michael E. Wieczorek, Daniel T. Button
2016, Journal of Environmental Quality (45) 1696-1704
Nitrogen sources in the Mississippi River basin have been linked to degradation of stream ecology and to Gulf of Mexico hypoxia. In 2013, the USGS and the USEPA characterized water quality stressors and ecological conditions in 100 wadeable streams across the midwestern United States. Wet conditions in 2013 followed a...
