Spatio-temporal mapping of plate boundary faults in California using geodetic imaging
Andrea Donnellan, Ramon Arrowsmith, Stephen B. DeLong
2017, Geosciences (7) 1-26
The Pacific–North American plate boundary in California is composed of a 400-km-wide network of faults and zones of distributed deformation. Earthquakes, even large ones, can occur along individual or combinations of faults within the larger plate boundary system. While research often focuses on the primary and secondary faults, holistic study...
USGS integrated drought science
Andrea C. Ostroff, Clint C. Muhlfeld, Patrick M. Lambert, Nathaniel L. Booth, Shawn L. Carter, Jason M. Stoker, Michael J. Focazio
2017, Circular 1430
Project Need and OverviewDrought poses a serious threat to the resilience of human communities and ecosystems in the United States (Easterling and others, 2000). Over the past several years, many regions have experienced extreme drought conditions, fueled by prolonged periods of reduced precipitation and exceptionally warm temperatures. Extreme drought has...
Evaluation of long-term trends in hydrologic and water-quality conditions, and estimation of water budgets through 2013, Chester County, Pennsylvania
Ronald A. Sloto, Andrew G. Reif
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5025
An evaluation of trends in hydrologic and water quality conditions and estimation of water budgets through 2013 was done by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the Chester County Water Resources Authority. Long-term hydrologic, meteorologic, and biologic data collected in Chester County, Pennsylvania, which included streamflow, groundwater levels, surface-water...
A shifting rift—Geophysical insights into the evolution of Rio Grande rift margins and the Embudo transfer zone near Taos, New Mexico
V. J. S. Grauch, Paul W. Bauer, Benjamin J. Drenth, Keith I. Kelson
2017, Geosphere (13) 870-910
We present a detailed example of how a subbasin develops adjacent to a transfer zone in the Rio Grande rift. The Embudo transfer zone in the Rio Grande rift is considered one of the classic examples and has been used as the inspiration for several theoretical models. Despite this...
Historical patterns of acidification and increasing CO2 flux associated with Florida springs
Kira E. Barrera, Lisa L. Robbins
2017, Limnology and Oceanography (62) 2404-2417
Florida has one of the highest concentrations of springs in the world, with many discharging into rivers and predominantly into eastern Gulf of Mexico coast, and they likely influence the hydrochemistry of these adjacent waters; however, temporal and spatial trends have not been well studied. We present over 20 yr...
Geodetic slip model of the 3 September 2016 Mw 5.8 Pawnee, Oklahoma, earthquake: Evidence for fault‐zone collapse
Frederick Pollitz, Charles W. Wicks Jr., Martin Schoenball, William L. Ellsworth, Mark Murray
2017, Seismological Research Letters (88) 983-993
The 3 September 2016 Mw 5.8 Pawnee earthquake in northern Oklahoma is the largest earthquake ever recorded in Oklahoma. The coseismic deformation was measured with both Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar and Global Positioning System (GPS), with measureable signals of order 1 cm and 1 mm, respectively. We derive a coseismic slip model from Sentinel‐1A...
Microhabitat selection of the Virginia Northern Flying Squirrel (Glaucomys sabrinus fuscus Miller) in the central Appalachians
Corinne A. Diggins, W. Mark Ford
2017, Northeastern Naturalist (24) 173-190
Glaucomys sabrinus fuscus (Virginia Northern Flying Squirrel; VNFS) is a rare Sciurid that occurrs in the Allegheny Mountains of eastern West Virginia and northwest Virginia. Previous work on this subspecies has confirmed close associations with Picea rubens (Red Spruce) at the landscape and stand levels in the region. However, ongoing Red Spruce restoration...
Seasonal movements of the Short-eared Owl (Asio flammeus) in western North America as revealed by satellite telemetry
James A. Johnson, Travis L. Booms, Lucas H. DeCicco, David C. Douglas
2017, Journal of Raptor Research (51) 115-128
The Short-eared Owl (Asio flammeus) is a widespread raptor whose abundance and distribution fluctuates in response to the varying amplitudes of its prey, which are predominately microtines. Previous efforts to describe the seasonal movements of Short-eared Owls have been hindered by few band recoveries and the species' cryptic and irruptive...
Formation of Fe-Mn crusts within a continental margin environment
Tracey A. Conrad, James R. Hein, Adina Paytan, David A. Clague
2017, Ore Geology Reviews (87) 25-40
This study examines Fe-Mn crusts that form on seamounts along the California continental-margin (CCM), within the United States 200 nautical mile exclusive economic zone. The study area extends from approximately 30° to 38° North latitudes and from 117° to 126° West longitudes. The area of study is a tectonically...
Summary of oceanographic and water-quality measurements in Chincoteague Bay, Maryland and Virginia, 2014–15
Steven E. Suttles, Neil K. Ganju, Sandra M. Brosnahan, Ellyn T. Montgomery, Patrick J. Dickhudt, Alexis Beudin, Daniel J. Nowacki, Marinna A. Martini
2017, Open-File Report 2017-1032
U.S. Geological Survey scientists and technical support staff measured oceanographic, waterquality, seabed-elevation-change, and meteorological parameters in Chincoteague Bay, Maryland and Virginia, during the period of August 13, 2014, to July 14, 2015, as part of the Estuarine Physical Response to Storms project (GS2–2D) supported by the Department of the Interior...
Estimated seepage rates from selected ditches, ponds, and lakes at the Camas National Wildlife Refuge, eastern Idaho
Gordon W. Rattray
2017, Journal of Environmental Management (203) 578-591
The Camas National Wildlife Refuge (Refuge) in eastern Idaho, established in 1937, contains wetlands, ponds, and wet meadows that are essential resting and feeding habitat for migratory birds and nesting habitat for waterfowl. Initially, natural sources of water supported these habitats. However, during the past few decades, changes in...
Performance and retention of lightweight satellite radio tags applied to the ears of polar bears (Ursus maritimus)
Oystein Wiig, Erik W. Born, Kristin L. Laidre, Rune Dietz, Mikkel Villum Jensen, George M. Durner, Anthony M. Pagano, Eric V. Regehr, Michelle St. Martin, Stephen N. Atkinson, Markus Dyck
2017, Animal Biotelemetry (5) 1-11
BackgroundSatellite telemetry studies provide information that is critical to the conservation and management of species affected by ecological change. Here we report on the performance and retention of two types (SPOT-227 and SPOT-305A) of ear-mounted Argos-linked satellite transmitters (i.e., platform transmitter terminal, or PTT) deployed...
Potential human impacts of overlapping land-use and climate in a sensitive dryland: a case study of the Colorado Plateau, USA
Stella M. Copeland, John B. Bradford, Michael C. Duniway, Rudy Schuster
2017, Ecosphere (8) 1-25
Climate and land-use interactions are likely to affect future environmental and socioeconomic conditions in drylands, which tend to be limited by water resources and prone to land degradation. We characterized the potential for interactions between land-use types and land-use and climate change in a model dryland system, the Colorado Plateau,...
Geologic controls on cave development in Burnsville Cove, Bath and Highland Counties, Virginia
Christopher S. Swezey, John T. Haynes, Philip C. Lucas, Richard A. Lambert
2017, GSA Field Guides (47) 89-123
Burnsville Cove in Bath and Highland Counties (Virginia, USA) is a karst region in the Valley and Ridge Province of the Appalachian Mountains. The region contains many caves in Silurian to Devonian limestone, and is well suited for examining geologic controls on cave location and cave passage morphology. In Burnsville...
Book review: Biology and management of invasive quagga and zebra mussels in the western United States
Amy J. Benson
2017, The Quarterly Review of Biology (92) 209-210
Water is a precious and limited commodity in the western United States and its conveyance is extremely important. Therefore, it is critical to do as much as possible to prevent the spread of two species of dreissenid mussels, both non-native and highly invasive aquatic species already well-established in the eastern...
Atmospheric deposition to forests in the eastern USA
Martin R. Risch, John F. DeWild, David A. Gay, Leiming Zhang, Elizabeth W. Boyer, David P. Krabbenhoft
2017, Environmental Pollution (228) 8-18
Atmospheric mercury (Hg) deposition to forests is important because half of the land cover in the eastern USA is forest. Mercury was measured in autumn litterfall and weekly precipitation samples at a total of 27 National Atmospheric Deposition Program (NADP) monitoring sites in deciduous and mixed deciduous-coniferous forests in 16...
Evidence for distributed clockwise rotation of the crust in the northwestern United States from fault geometries and focal mechanisms
Thomas M. Brocher, Ray E. Wells, Andrew P. Lamb, Craig S. Weaver
2017, Tectonics (36) 787-818
Paleomagnetic and GPS data indicate that Washington and Oregon have rotated clockwise for the past 16 Myr. Late Cenozoic and Quaternary fault geometries, seismicity lineaments, and focal mechanisms provide evidence that this rotation is accommodated by north directed thrusting and right-lateral strike-slip faulting in Washington, and SW to W directed normal...
Using publicly available data to quantify plant–pollinator interactions and evaluate conservation seeding mixes in the Northern Great Plains
Clint Otto, Samuel O’Dell, R. B. Bryant, Ned H. Jr. Euliss, Rachel Bush, Matthew Smart
2017, Environmental Entomology (46) 565-578
Concern over declining pollinators has led to multiple conservation initiatives for improving forage for bees in agroecosystems. Using data available through the Pollinator Library (npwrc.usgs.gov/pollinator/), we summarize plant–pollinator interaction data collected from 2012–2015 on lands managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and private lands enrolled in U.S. Department...
Characterization of peak streamflows and flood inundation at selected areas in North Carolina following Hurricane Matthew, October 2016
Jonathan W. Musser, Kara M. Watson, Anthony J. Gotvald
2017, Open-File Report 2017-1047
The passage of Hurricane Matthew through central and eastern North Carolina during October 7–9, 2016, brought heavy rainfall, which resulted in major flooding. More than 15 inches of rain was recorded in some areas. More than 600 roads were closed, including Interstates 95 and 40, and nearly 99,000 structures were...
Biogeographic comparison of Lophelia-associated bacterial communities in the Western Atlantic reveals conserved core microbiome
Christina A. Kellogg, Dawn B. Goldsmith, Michael A. Gray
2017, Frontiers in Microbiology (8)
Over the last decade, publications on deep-sea corals have tripled. Most attention has been paid to Lophelia pertusa, a globally distributed scleractinian coral that creates critical three-dimensional habitat in the deep ocean. The bacterial community associated with L. pertusa has been previously described by a number of studies at sites...
Eastern Denali Fault surface trace map, eastern Alaska and Yukon, Canada
Adrian M. Bender, Peter J. Haeussler
2017, Open-File Report 2017-1049
We map the 385-kilometer (km) long surface trace of the right-lateral, strike-slip Denali Fault between the Totschunda-Denali Fault intersection in Alaska, United States and the village of Haines Junction, Yukon, Canada. In Alaska, digital elevation models based on light detection and ranging and interferometric synthetic aperture radar data enabled our...
Developing an effective Agassiz's Desert Tortoise monitoring program: Final report to the Coachella Valley Conservation Commission
Jeffrey E. Lovich, Shellie R. Puffer
2017, Report
Agassiz’s desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii) is a conservation-reliant species with populations north and west of the Colorado River protected as threatened under the Endangered Species Act (Averill-Murray et al. 2012). Since it was listed under this category in 1990, a great deal has been learned about the natural history of...
Datasheet: Pseudogymnoascus destructans (white-nose syndrome fungus)
David S. Blehert, Emily W. Lankau
2017, Book chapter, Invasive species compendium
Pseudogymnoascus destructans is a psychrophilic (cold-loving) fungus that causes white-nose syndrome (WNS), an emerging disease of North American bats that has caused unprecedented population declines. The fungus is believed to have been introduced to North America from Europe or Asia (where it is present but does not cause significant mortality),...
Geologic map of the northeast flank of Mauna Loa volcano, Island of Hawai'i, Hawaii
Frank A. Trusdell, John P. Lockwood
2017, Scientific Investigations Map 2932-A
SummaryMauna Loa, the largest volcano on Earth, has erupted 33 times since written descriptions became available in 1832. Some eruptions were preceded by only brief seismic unrest, while others followed several months to a year of increased seismicity.The majority of the eruptions of Mauna Loa began in the summit area...
Low stress drops observed for aftershocks of the 2011 Mw 5.7 Prague, Oklahoma, earthquake
Danielle F. Sumy, Corrie J. Neighbors, Elizabeth S. Cochran, Katie M. Keranen
2017, Journal of Geophysical Research B: Solid Earth (122) 3813-3834
In November 2011, three Mw ≥ 4.8 earthquakes and thousands of aftershocks occurred along the structurally complex Wilzetta fault system near Prague, Oklahoma. Previous studies suggest that wastewater injection induced a Mw 4.8 foreshock, which subsequently triggered a Mw 5.7 mainshock. We examine source properties of aftershocks with a standard Brune-type spectral model and jointly solve for...
