Direct observations of ice seasonality reveal changes in climate over the past 320–570 years
Sapna Sharma, John J. Magnuson, Ryan D. Batt, Luke Winslow, Johanna Korhonen, Yasuyuki Aono
2016, Scientific Reports (6)
Lake and river ice seasonality (dates of ice freeze and breakup) responds sensitively to climatic change and variability. We analyzed climate-related changes using direct human observations of ice freeze dates (1443–2014) for Lake Suwa, Japan, and of ice breakup dates (1693–2013) for Torne River, Finland. We found a rich array...
The bee microbiome: Impact on bee health and model for evolution and ecology of host-microbe interactions
Philipp Engel, Waldan K. Kwong, Quinn McFrederick, Kirk E. Anderson, Seth Michael Barribeau, James Angus Chandler, Robert S. Cornman, Jacques Dainat, Joachim R. de Miranda, Vincent Doublet, Olivier Emery, Jay D. Evans, Laurent Farinelli, Michelle Flenniken, Fredrik Granberg, Juris A. Grasis, Laurent Gauthier, Juliette Hayer, Hauke Koch, Sarah Kocher, Vincent G. Martinson, Nancy Moran, Monica Munoz-Torres, Irene Newton, Robert J. Paxton, Eli Powell, Ben M. Sadd, Paul Schmid-Hempel, Regula Schmid-Hempel, Jin Song, Ryan S. Schwarz, Dennis vanEngelsdorp, Benjamin Dainat
2016, mBio
As pollinators, bees are cornerstones for terrestrial ecosystem stability and key components in agricultural productivity. All animals, including bees, are associated with a diverse community of microbes, commonly referred to as the microbiome. The bee microbiome is likely to be a crucial factor affecting host health. However, with the exception...
Spatial and temporal patterns of mercury concentrations in freshwater fish across the Western United States and Canada
Collin A. Eagles-Smith, Joshua T. Ackerman, James J. Willacker, Michael T. Tate, Michelle A. Lutz, Jacob Fleck, A. Robin Stewart, James G. Wiener, David C. Evers, Jesse M. Lepak, Jay A. Davis, Colleen Flanagan Pritz
2016, Science of the Total Environment (568) 1171-1184
Methylmercury contamination of fish is a global threat to environmental health. Mercury (Hg) monitoring programs are valuable for generating data that can be compiled for spatially broad syntheses to identify emergent ecosystem properties that influence fish Hg bioaccumulation. Fish total Hg (THg) concentrations were evaluated across the Western United States...
Carbon dioxide as a tool to deter the movement of invasive bigheaded carps
Michael R. Donaldson, Jon Amberg, Shivani Adhikari, Aaron R. Cupp, Nathan Jensen, Jason G. Romine, Adam Wright, Mark P. Gaikowski, Cory D. Suski
2016, Transactions of the American Fisheries Society (145) 657-670
Nonnative bigheaded carps are established in the Mississippi River and there is substantial concern about their potential entry into the interconnected Laurentian Great Lakes. While electrical barriers currently exist as a preventative measure, there is need for additional control mechanisms to promote barrier security through redundancy. We tested the effectiveness...
Magnetotelluric investigation of the Vestfold Hills and Rauer Group, East Antarctica
Jared R. Peacock, Katherine Selway
2016, Journal of Geophysical Research B: Solid Earth (121) 2258-2273
The Vestfold Hills and Rauer Group in East Antarctica have contrasting Archean to Neoproterozoic geological histories and are believed to be juxtaposed along a suture zone that now lies beneath the Sørsdal Glacier. Exact location and age of this suture zone are unknown, as is its relationship to regional deformation...
Will changes in phenology track climate change? A study of growth initiation timing in coast Douglas-fir
Kevin R. Ford, Constance A. Harrington, Sheel Bansal, Petter J. Gould, Bradley St. Clair
2016, Global Change Biology (22) 3712-3723
Under climate change, the reduction of frost risk, onset of warm temperatures and depletion of soil moisture are all likely to occur earlier in the year in many temperate regions. The resilience of tree species will depend on their ability to track these changes in climate with shifts in phenology...
Fluctuating water depths affect American alligator (Alligator mississippiensis) body condition in the Everglades, Florida, USA
Laura A. Brandt, Jeffrey S. Beauchamp, Brian M. Jeffery, Michael S. Cherkiss, Frank J. Mazzotti
2016, Ecological Indicators (67) 441-450
Successful restoration of wetland ecosystems requires knowledge of wetland hydrologic patterns and an understanding of how those patterns affect wetland plant and animal populations.Within the Everglades, Florida, USA restoration, an applied science strategy including conceptual ecological models linking drivers to indicators is being used to organize current scientific understanding to...
Longitudinal evaluation of leukocyte transcripts in killer whales (Orcinus Orca)
Tatjana Sitt, Lizabeth Bowen, Chia-Shan Lee, Myra Blanchard, James McBain, Christopher Dold, Jeffrey L. Stott
2016, Veterinary Immunology and Immunopathology (175) 7-15
Early identification of illness and/or presence of environmental and/or social stressors in free-ranging and domestic cetaceans is a priority for marine mammal health care professionals. Incorporation of leukocyte gene transcript analysis into the diagnostic tool kit has the potential to augment classical diagnostics based upon ease of sample storage and...
Interactions between hatch dates, growth rates, and mortality of Age-0 native Rainbow Smelt and nonnative Alewife in Lake Champlain
Donna L. Parrish, Paul W. Simonin, Lars G. Rudstam, Bernard Pientka, Patrick J. Sullivan
2016, Transactions of the American Fisheries Society (145) 649-656
Timing of hatch in fish populations can be critical for first-year survival and, therefore, year-class strength and subsequent species interactions. We compared hatch timing, growth rates, and subsequent mortality of age-0 Rainbow Smelt Osmerus mordax and Alewife Alosa pseudoharengus, two common open-water fish species of northern North America. In our study site, Lake...
Wave attenuation in the shallows of San Francisco Bay
Jessica R. Lacy, Lissa J. MacVean
2016, Coastal Engineering (114) 159-168
Waves propagating over broad, gently-sloped shallows decrease in height due to frictional dissipation at the bed. We quantified wave-height evolution across 7 km of mudflat in San Pablo Bay (northern San Francisco Bay), an environment where tidal mixing prevents the formation of fluid mud. Wave height was measured along a...
Numerical experiments to explain multiscale hydrological responses to mountain pine beetle tree mortality in a headwater watershed
Colin A. Penn, Lindsay A. Bearup, Reed M. Maxwell, David W. Clow
2016, Water Resources Research (52) 3143-3161
The effects of mountain pine beetle (MPB)-induced tree mortality on a headwater hydrologic system were investigated using an integrated physical modeling framework with a high-resolution computational grid. Simulations of MPB-affected and unaffected conditions, each with identical atmospheric forcing for a normal water year, were compared at multiple scales to evaluate...
U.S. Geological Survey response to flooding in Texas, May–June 2015
Jeffery W. East
2016, Fact Sheet 2016-3027
As a Federal science agency within the Department of the Interior, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) collects and disseminates streamflow stage and discharge information along with other types of water information as a major part of its Water mission area. Data collected at USGS streamflow-gaging stations (hereinafter referred to as...
Analysis of stable isotope ratios (δ18O and δ2H) in precipitation of the Verde River watershed, Arizona 2003 through 2014
Kimberly R. Beisner, Nicholas V. Paretti, Rachel S. Tucci
2016, Open-File Report 2016-1053
Stable isotope delta values (δ18O and δ2H) of precipitation can vary with elevation, and quantification of the precipitation elevation gradient can be used to predict recharge elevation within a watershed. Precipitation samples were analyzed for stable isotope delta values between 2003 and 2014 from the Verde River watershed of north-central...
Impacts of climate change on mangrove ecosystems: A region by region overview
Raymond D. Ward, Daniel A. Friess, Richard H. Day, Richard A. MacKenzie
2016, Ecosystem Health and Sustainability (2)
Inter-related and spatially variable climate change factors including sea level rise, increased storminess, altered precipitation regime and increasing temperature are impacting mangroves at regional scales. This review highlights extreme regional variation in climate change threats and impacts, and how these factors impact the structure of mangrove communities, their biodiversity and...
Fishing for ecosystem services
Kevin L. Pope, Mark A. Pegg, Nicholas W. Cole, Stephen F. Siddons, Alexis D. Fedele, Brian S. Harmon, Ryan L. Ruskamp, Dylan R. Turner, Caleb C. Uerling
2016, Journal of Environmental Management (183) 408-417
Ecosystems are commonly exploited and manipulated to maximize certain human benefits. Such changes can degrade systems, leading to cascading negative effects that may be initially undetected, yet ultimately result in a reduction, or complete loss, of certain valuable ecosystem services. Ecosystem-based management is intended to maintain ecosystem quality and minimize...
Macrofaunal communities associated with chemosynthetic habitats from the U.S. Atlantic margin: A comparison among depth and habitat types
Jill R. Bourque, Craig M. Robertson, Sandra Brooke, Amanda W.J. Demopoulos
2016, Deep-Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography (137) 42-55
Hydrocarbon seeps support distinct benthic communities capable of tolerating extreme environmental conditions and utilizing reduced chemical compounds for nutrition. In recent years, several locations of methane seepage have been mapped along the U.S. Atlantic continental slope. In 2012 and 2013, two newly discovered seeps were investigated in this region: a...
Can the eastern red-backed salamander (Plethodon cinereus) persist in an acidified landscape?
Cheryl A Bondi, Colin M. Beier, Peter K Ducey, Gregory B. Lawrence, Scott W. Bailey
2016, Ecosphere (7)
Hardwood forests of eastern North America have experienced decades of acidic deposition, leading to soil acidification where base cation supply was insufficient to neutralize acid inputs. Negative impacts of soil acidity on amphibians include disrupted embryonic development, lower growth rates, and habitat loss. However, some amphibians exhibit intraspecific variation in...
A new look at liming as an approach to accelerate recovery from acidic deposition effects
Gregory B. Lawrence, Douglas A. Burns, Karen Riva-Murray
2016, Science of the Total Environment (562) 35-46
Acidic deposition caused by fossil fuel combustion has degraded aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems in North America for over four decades. The only management option other than emissions reductions for combating the effects of acidic deposition has been the application of lime to neutralize acidity after it has been deposited on...
The Northeast Stream Quality Assessment
Peter C. Van Metre, Karen Riva-Murray, James F. Coles
2016, Fact Sheet 2016-3021
In 2016, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) is assessing stream quality in the northeastern United States. The goal of the Northeast Stream Quality Assessment (NESQA) is to assess the quality of streams in the region by characterizing multiple water-quality factors that are stressors to aquatic life...
Historical water-quality data from the Harlem River, New York
Shawn C. Fisher
2016, Scientific Investigations Report 2016-5044
Data specific to the Harlem River, New York, have been summarized and are presented in this report. The data illustrate improvements in the quality of water for the past 65 years and emphasize the importance of a continuous water-quality record for establishing trends in environmental conditions. Although there is a...
Vegetation as a tool in the interpretation of fluvial geomorphic processes and landforms
Cliff R. Hupp, S Dufour, G Bornette
2016, Book chapter, Tools in fluvial geomorphology
This chapter exemplifies that vegetation can be used as a tool for geomorphic interpretation in several major ways. It presents a general overview: through dendrogeomorphic analysis (tree rings) to estimate the timing of important geomorphic events including floods and mass wasting and to estimate rates of erosion and sedimentation; through...
The structure of genetic diversity in eelgrass (Zostera marina L.) along the North Pacific and Bering Sea coasts of Alaska
Sandra L. Talbot, George K. Sage, Jolene R. Rearick, Megan C. Fowler, Raquel Muñiz-Salazar, Bethany Baibak, Sandy Wyllie-Echeverria, Alehandro Cabello-Pasini, David H. Ward
2016, PLoS ONE (11)
Eelgrass (Zostera marina) populations occupying coastal waters of Alaska are separated by a peninsula and island archipelago into two Large Marine Ecosystems (LMEs). From populations in both LMEs, we characterize genetic diversity, population structure, and polarity in gene flow using nuclear microsatellite fragment and chloroplast and nuclear sequence data. An...
Modeling flow, sediment transport and morphodynamics in rivers
Jonathan M. Nelson, Richard R. McDonald, Yasuyuki Shimizu, Ichiro Kimura, Mohamed Nabi, Kazutake Asahi
2016, Book chapter
Predicting the response of natural or man-made channels to imposed supplies of water and sediment is one of the difficult practical problems commonly addressed by fluvial geomorphologists. This problem typically arises in three situations. In the first situation, geomorphologists are attempting to understand why a channel or class of channels...
Surficial geological tools in fluvial geomorphology: Chapter 2
Robert B. Jacobson, James E. O'Connor, Takashi Oguchi
2016, Book chapter, Tools in fluvial geomorphology
Increasingly, environmental scientists are being asked to develop an understanding of how rivers and streams have been altered by environmental stresses, whether rivers are subject to physical or chemical hazards, how they can be restored, and how they will respond to future environmental change. These questions present substantive challenges to...
Interpreting the role of pH on stable isotopes in large benthic foraminifera
Lisa L. Robbins, P. O. Knorr, J.G. Wynn, P. Hallock, P. Harries
2016, ICES Journal of Marine Science
Large benthic foraminifera (LBF) are prolific producers of calcium carbonate sediments in shallow, tropical environments that are being influenced by ocean acidification (OA). Two LBF species, Amphistegina gibbosa (Order Rotaliida) with low-Mg calcite tests and Archaias angulatus (Order Miliolida) with high-Mg calcite tests, were studied to assess the effects of...
