A landsat data tiling and compositing approach optimized for change detection in the conterminous United States
Kurtis Nelson, Daniel R. Steinwand
2015, Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing (81) 573-586
Annual disturbance maps are produced by the LANDFIRE program across the conterminous United States (CONUS). Existing LANDFIRE disturbance data from 1999 to 2010 are available and current efforts will produce disturbance data through 2012. A tiling and compositing approach was developed to produce bi-annual images optimized for change detection. A...
Climate-water quality relationships in Texas reservoirs
Rodica Gelca, Katharine Hayhoe, Ian Scott-Fleming, Caleb Crow, D. Dawson, Reynaldo Patino
2015, Hydrological Processes (30) 12-29
Water temperature, dissolved oxygen, and concentrations of salts in surface water bodies can be affected by the natural environment, local human activities such as surface and ground water withdrawals, land use, and energy extraction, and variability and long-term trends in atmospheric conditions including temperature and precipitation. Here, we quantify the...
Organic contaminant transport and fate in the subsurface: evolution of knowledge and understanding
Hedeff I. Essaid, Barbara A. Bekins, Isabelle M. Cozzarelli
2015, Water Resources Research (51) 4861-4902
Toxic organic contaminants may enter the subsurface as slightly soluble and volatile nonaqueous phase liquids (NAPLs) or as dissolved solutes resulting in contaminant plumes emanating from the source zone. A large body of research published in Water Resources Research has been devoted to characterizing and understanding processes controlling the transport and fate...
Observational data on the effects of infection by the copepod Salmincola californiensis on the short- and long-term viability of juvenile Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) implanted with telemetry tags
John W. Beeman, Amy C. Hansen, Jamie M. Sprando
2015, Animal Biotelemetry (3) 1-7
Background Fish movements are often studied using radio or acoustic tags assuming the handling and tagging procedures have little effect on the behavior of the animal. Indeed, many studies provide guidelines for acceptable methods. However, these studies generally assume the fish are otherwise healthy but this may not...
Reproductive traits of shovelnose sturgeon Scaphirhynchus platorynchus (Rafinesque, 1820) in the lower Platte River, Nebraska
M. J. Hamel, M.L. Rugg, M.A. Pegg, Reynaldo Patino, J.J. Hammen
2015, Journal of Applied Ichthyology (31) 592-602
We assessed reproductive status, fecundity, egg size, and spawning dynamics of shovelnose sturgeon Scaphirhynchus platorynchus in the lower Platte River. Shovelnose sturgeon were captured throughout each year during 2011 and 2012 using a multi-gear approach designed to collect a variety of fish of varying sizes and ages. Fish were collected monthly for...
Shear Wave Velocity and Site Amplification Factors for 25 Strong-Motion Instrument Stations Affected by the M5.8 Mineral, Virginia, Earthquake of August 23, 2011
Robert E. Kayen, Brad A. Carkin, Skye C. Corbett, Aliza Zangwill, Ivan Estevez, Lena Lai
2015, Open-File Report 2015-1099
Vertical one-dimensional shear wave velocity (Vs) profiles are presented for 25 strong-motion instrument sites along the Mid-Atlantic eastern seaboard, Piedmont region, and Appalachian region, which surround the epicenter of the M5.8 Mineral, Virginia, Earthquake of August 23, 2011. Testing was performed at sites in Pennsylvania, Maryland, West Virginia, Virginia, the...
Temperature profile around a basaltic sill intruded into wet sediments
Leslie Baker, Andrew Bernard, William C. Rember, Moses P. Milazzo, Colin M. Dundas, Oleg Abramov, Laszlo P. Keszthelyi
2015, Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research (302) 81-86
The transfer of heat into wet sediments from magmatic intrusions or lava flows is not well constrained from field data. Such field constraints on numerical models of heat transfer could significantly improve our understanding of water–lava interactions. We use experimentally calibrated pollen darkening to measure the temperature profile around a...
Novel associations between contaminant body burdens and biomarkers of reproductive condition in male Common Carp along multiple gradients of contaminant exposure in Lake Mead National Recreation Area, USA
Reynaldo Patino, Matthew M. VanLandeghem, Steven L. Goodbred, Erik Orsak, Jill A. Jenkins, Kathy R. Echols, Michael R. Rosen, Leticia Torres
2015, General and Comparative Endocrinology (219) 112-124
Adult male Common Carp were sampled in 2007/08 over a full reproductive cycle at Lake Mead National Recreation Area. Sites sampled included a stream dominated by treated wastewater effluent, a lake basin receiving the streamflow, an upstream lake basin (reference), and a site below Hoover Dam. Individual body burdens for...
The mysterious wolves of Belarus
Shannon Barber-Meyer
2015, International Wolf 22-24
It was just after 3 a.m. as we very quietly exited the van, making sure our water-resistant clothes didn’t make too much noise. A wolf researcher howled into the cold and murky mist. We waited in darkness, hoping for an answer. A single wolf howl from about 300 meters in...
The Effect of modeled recharge distribution on simulated groundwater availability and capture
Fred D. Tillman, Donald R. Pool, Stanley A. Leake
2015, Groundwater (53) 378-388
Simulating groundwater flow in basin-fill aquifers of the semiarid southwestern United States commonly requires decisions about how to distribute aquifer recharge. Precipitation can recharge basin-fill aquifers by direct infiltration and transport through faults and fractures in the high-elevation areas, by flowing overland through high-elevation areas to infiltrate at basin-fill margins...
Similarities and differences in 13C and 15N stable isotope ratios in two non-lethal tissue types from shovelnose sturgeon Scaphirhynchus platorynchus (Rafinesque, 1820)
R. J. DeVries, Harold L. Schramm Jr.
2015, Journal of Applied Ichthyology (31) 474-478
We tested the hypothesis that δ13C and δ15N signatures of pectoral spines would provide measures of δ13C and δ15N similar to those obtained from fin clips for adult shovelnose sturgeon Scaphirhynchus platorynchus. Thirty-two shovelnose sturgeon (fork length [FL] = 500–724 mm) were sampled from the lower Mississippi River, USA on 23 February 2013. Isotopic...
Genetic diversity is related to climatic variation and vulnerability in threatened bull trout
Ryan Kovach, Clint C. Muhlfeld, Alisa A. Wade, Brian K. Hand, Diane C. Whited, Patrick W. DeHaan, Robert K. Al-Chokhachy, Gordon Luikart
2015, Global Change Biology (21) 2510-2524
Understanding how climatic variation influences ecological and evolutionary processes is crucial for informed conservation decision-making. Nevertheless, few studies have measured how climatic variation influences genetic diversity within populations or how genetic diversity is distributed across space relative to future climatic stress. Here, we tested whether patterns of genetic diversity (allelic...
Chloride concentrations, loads, and yields in four watersheds along Interstate 95, southeastern Connecticut, 2008-11: factors that affect peak chloride concentrations during winter storms
Craig J. Brown, John R. Mullaney, Jonathan Morrison, Joseph W. Martin, Thomas J. Trombley
2015, Scientific Investigations Report 2015-5057
Chloride (Cl-) concentrations and loads and other water chemistry characteristics were assessed to evaluate potential effects of road-deicer applications on streamwater quality in four watersheds along Interstate 95 (I–95) in southeastern Connecticut from November 1, 2008, through September 30, 2011. Streamflow and water quality were studied in the Four Mile...
National assessment of shoreline change: historical change along the north coast of Alaska, U.S.-Canadian border to Icy Cape
Ann E. Gibbs, Bruce M. Richmond
2015, Open-File Report 2015-1048
Beach erosion is a persistent problem along most open-ocean shores of the United States. Along the Arctic coast of Alaska, coastal erosion is widespread, may be accelerating, and is threatening defense and energy-related infrastructure, coastal habitats, and Native communities. As coastal populations continue to expand and infrastructure and habitat are...
National assessment of shoreline change: a GIS compilation of vector shorelines and associated shoreline change data for the north coast of Alaska, U.S.-Canadian border to Icy Cape
Ann E. Gibbs, Karen A. Ohman, Bruce M. Richmond
2015, Open-File Report 2015-1030
The Arctic Coastal Plain of northern Alaska is an area of strategic economic importance to the United States, is home to remote Native communities, and encompasses unique habitats of global significance. Coastal erosion along the Arctic coast is chronic, widespread, and may be accelerating, which threatens defense- and energy-related infrastructure,...
Trench logs, terrestrial lidar system imagery, and radiocarbon data from the kilometer-62 site on the Greenville Fault, southeastern Alameda County, California, 2014
James J. Lienkaemper, Stephen B. DeLong, Nikita N. Avdievitch, Alexandra J. Pickering, Thomas P. Guilderson
2015, Open-File Report 2015-1122
In 2014, we investigated an abrupt 8.5-meter (m), right-laterally deflected stream channel located near the Greenville Fault in southeastern Alameda County, California (-121.56224° E, 37.53430° N) that we discovered using 0.5-m resolution, 2011 aerial lidar imagery flown along the active fault trace. Prior to trenching we surveyed the site using...
Chemical mixtures and environmental effects: a pilot study to assess ecological exposure and effects in streams
Herbert T. Buxton, Timothy J. Reilly, Kathryn Kuivila, Dana W. Kolpin, Paul M. Bradley, Daniel L. Villeneuve, Marc A. Mills
2015, Open-File Report 2015-1113
Assessment and management of the risks of exposure to complex chemical mixtures in streams are priorities for human and environmental health organizations around the world. The current lack of information on the composition and variability of environmental mixtures and a limited understanding of their combined effects are fundamental obstacles to...
Tsunami recurrence in the eastern Alaska-Aleutian arc: A Holocene stratigraphic record from Chirikof Island, Alaska
Alan R. Nelson, Richard W. Briggs, Tina Dura, Simon E. Engelhart, Guy Gelfenbaum, Lee-Ann Bradley, S.L. Forman, Christopher H. Vane, K.A. Kelley
2015, Geosphere (11) 1203
Despite the role of the Alaska-Aleutian megathrust as the source of some of the largest earthquakes and tsunamis, the history of its pre–twentieth century tsunamis is largely unknown west of the rupture zone of the great (magnitude, M 9.2) 1964 earthquake. Stratigraphy in core transects at two boggy lowland sites...
Linking state-and-transition simulation and timber supply models for forest biomass production scenarios
Jennifer Costanza, Robert C. Abt, Alexa McKerrow, Jaime Collazo
2015, AIMS Environmental Science (2) 180-202
We linked state-and-transition simulation models (STSMs) with an economics-based timber supply model to examine landscape dynamics in North Carolina through 2050 for three scenarios of forest biomass production. Forest biomass could be an important source of renewable energy in the future, but there is currently much uncertainty about how biomass...
Hydraulic fracturing water use variability in the United States and potential environmental implications
Tanya J. Gallegos, Brian A. Varela, Seth S. Haines, Mark A. Engle
2015, Water Resources Research (51) 5839-5845
Until now, up-to-date, comprehensive, spatial, national-scale data on hydraulic fracturing water volumes have been lacking. Water volumes used (injected) to hydraulically fracture over 263,859 oil and gas wells drilled between 2000 and 2014 were compiled and used to create the first U.S. map of hydraulic fracturing water use. Although median...
Water's Way at Sleepers River watershed – revisiting flow generation in a post-glacial landscape, Vermont USA
James B. Shanley, Stephen D. Sebestyen, Jeffrey J. McDonnell, Brian L. McGlynn, Thomas Dunne
2015, Hydrological Processes (29) 3447-3459
The Sleepers River Research Watershed (SRRW) in Vermont, USA, has been the site of active hydrologic research since 1959 and was the setting where Dunne and Black demonstrated the importance and controls of saturation-excess overland flow (SOF) on streamflow generation. Here, we review the early studies from the SRRW and...
Habitat quality from individual- and population-level perspectives and implications for management
Than J. Boves, Amanda D. Rodewald, Petra Bohall Wood, David A. Buehler, Jeffrey L. Larkin, T. Bently Wigley, Patrick D. Keyser
2015, Wildlife Society Bulletin (39) 443-447
Many wildlife management prescriptions are either implicitly or explicitly designed to improve habitat quality for a focal species, but habitat quality is often difficult to quantify. Depending upon the approach used to define and identify high-quality habitat, management decisions may differ widely. Although individual-level measures of habitat quality based on...
Exposure and food web transfer of pharmaceuticals in ospreys (Pandion haliaetus): Predictive model and empirical data
Rebecca S. Lazarus, Barnett A. Rattner, Bowen Du, Peter C. McGowan, Vicki S. Blazer, Mary Ann Ottinger
2015, Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management (11) 118-129
The osprey (Pandion haliaetus) is a well-known sentinel of environmental contamination, yet no studies have traced pharmaceuticals through the water–fish–osprey food web. A screening-level exposure assessment was used to evaluate the bioaccumulation potential of 113 pharmaceuticals and metabolites, and an artificial sweetener in this food web. Hypothetical concentrations in water...
The distribution of selected elements and minerals in soil of the conterminous United States
Laurel G. Woodruff, William F. Cannon, David B. Smith, Federico Solano
2015, Journal of Geochemical Exploration (154) 49-60
In 2007, the U.S. Geological Survey initiated a low-density (1 site per 1600 km2, 4857 sites) geochemical and mineralogical survey of soil of the conterminous United States as part of the North American Soil Geochemical Landscapes Project. Three soil samples were collected, if possible, from each site; (1) a sample from...
Diverting lava flows in the lab
Hannah R. Dietterich, Katharine V. Cashman, Alison C. Rust, Einat Lev
2015, Nature Geoscience (8) 494-496
Recent volcanic eruptions in Hawai'i, Iceland and Cape Verde highlight the challenges of mitigating hazards when lava flows threaten infrastructure. Diversion barriers are the most common form of intervention, but historical attempts to divert lava flows have met with mixed success and there has been little systematic analysis of optimal barrier...
