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The maps presented here provide an update to the 2008 data contained in U.S Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Map 3195 (http://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3195/).Probabilistic seismic-hazard maps were prepared for the conterminous United States for 2014 portraying peak horizontal acceleration and horizontal spectral response acceleration for 0.2- and 1.0-second periods with probabilities of...

Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated means of 222 million barrels of unconventional oil; 2,092 billion cubic feet of unconventional gas; 18 million barrels of conventional oil; and 47 billion cubic feet of conventional gas resources in the Paris Basin of France....

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has initiated a multi-disciplinary study investigating the applicability of remote sensing technologies for geologic mapping and identification of prospective areas for base and precious metal deposits in remote parts of Alaska. The Kahiltna terrane in southwestern Alaska was selected for investigation because of its known...

Summary 1. Extreme hydrologic events are becoming more common with changing climate. Although the impacts of winter and spring floods on lotic ecosystems have been well studied, the effects of summer floods are less well known. 2. The Upper Esopus Creek Basin in the Catskill Mountains, NY, experienced severe flooding from Tropical...

Inundation and salinity directly affect plant productivity and processes that regulate vertical accretion in coastal wetlands, and are expected to increase as sea level continues to rise. In the Mississippi River deltaic plain, river diversions, which are being implemented as ecosystem restoration tools, can also strongly increase inundation in coastal...

Quantifying fine-scale locomotor behaviours associated with different activities is challenging for free-swimming fish.Biologging and biotelemetry tools can help address this problem. An open channel flume was used to generate volitionalswimming speed (Us) estimates of cultured lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens Rafinesque, 1817) and these were paired withsimultaneously recorded...

Molt is a dynamic process occurring throughout much of the year in waterfowl. The molt of flight feathers by waterfowl, especially sea ducks, however, occurs over a compressed period of time and in spcific areas used each year. We provide an overview of the flight feather molt of sea ducks....

In this chapter, I explore population dynamics of sea ducks by developing population models. In determining which life history characteristics had the greatest influence on future population dynamics, adult female survival consistently had the highest sensitivity and elasticity and this result was robust across a wide range of life history...

Many environments occupied by North American sea ducks are remote and difficult to access, and as a result, detailed information about life history characteristics that drive population dynamics within and across species is limited. Nevertheless, progress on this front during the past several decades has benefited by the application of...

Breeding, molting, fall and spring staging, and wintering habitats of the sea duck tribe Mergini are described based on geographic locations and distribution in North America, geomorphology, vegetation and soil types, and fresh water and marine characteristics. The dynamics of habitats are discussed in light of natural and anthropogenic events...

The material in this volume reflects the burgeoning interest in sea ducks, both as study species with compelling and unique ecological attributes and as taxa of conservation concern. In this review, we provide perspective on the current state of sea duck knowledge by highlighting key findings in the preceding chapters...

On 4 September 2010, a Mw7.1 earthquake occurred in Canterbury, New Zealand. Following the initial earthquake, an aftershock sequence was initiated, with the most significant aftershock being a Mw6.3 earthquake occurring on 22 February 2011. This aftershock caused severe damage to the city of Christchurch and building failures that killed...

Anthropogenic habitat fragmentation can disrupt the ability of species to disperse across landscapes, which can alter the levels and distribution of genetic diversity within populations and negatively impact long-term viability. The giant gartersnake (Thamnophis gigas) is a state and federally threatened species that historically occurred in the wetland...

Understanding the dietary habits of yellow-billed loons (Gavia adamsii) can give important insights into their ecology, however, studying the diet of loons is difficult when direct observation or specimen collection is impractical. We investigate the diet of yellow-billed loons nesting on the Arctic Coastal Plain of Alaska using...

Advanced borehole-geophysical methods were used to investigate the hydrogeology of the crystalline bedrock in three boreholes on Roosevelt Island, New York County, New York. Cornell University was evaluating the feasibility of using geothermal energy for a future campus at the site. The borehole-logging techniques were used to delineate bedrock fractures,...

A high number of coral colonies, Montipora spp., with progressive tissue loss were reported from the north shore of Kaua‘i by a member of the Eyes of the Reef volunteer reporting network. The disease has a distinct lesion (semi-circular pattern of tissue loss with an adjacent dark band) that was first observed...

The computer program, Scoops3D, evaluates slope stability throughout a digital landscape represented by a digital elevation model (DEM). The program uses a three-dimensional (3D) method of columns approach to assess the stability of many (typically millions) potential landslides within a user-defined size range. For each potential landslide (or failure), Scoops3D...

The purpose of this forum is to respond to a rebuttal submitted by Julian et al., Environ Manag 55:1–5, 2015 where they outlined their overall disagreement with the data preparation, methods, and interpretation of results presented in Gabriel et al. (Environ Manag 53:583–593, 2014). Here, we provide background information on the...

Fifty years ago, infectious diseases were rarely considered threats to wildlife populations, and the study of wildlife diseases was largely a neglected endeavor. Furthermore, public health leaders at that time had declared that “it is time to close the book on infectious diseases and the war against pestilence won,” a quote attributed to Dr....

Water availability and use are closely connected with energy development and use. Water cannot be delivered to homes, businesses, and industries without energy, and most forms of energy development require large amounts of water. The United States faces two significant and sometimes competing challenges: to provide sustainable supplies of freshwater...

Large-scale land uses such as residential wastewater discharge and coal mining practices, particularly surface coal extraction and associated valley fills, are of particular ecological concern in central Appalachia. Identification and quantification of both alterations across scales are a necessary first-step to mitigate negative consequences to biota. In central Appalachian headwater...

This report presents Phase 2 of the review and development of the mass balance water-quality model, originally developed in 2001, that guided establishment of the phosphorus (P) total maximum daily load (TMDL) for Upper Klamath and Agency Lakes, Oregon. The purpose of Phase 2 was to incorporate a longer (19-year)...

Use cases, information modeling, and linked data techniques are Semantic Web technologies used to develop a prototype system that integrates scientific observations from four independent USGS and cooperator data systems. The techniques were tested with a use case goal of creating a data set for use in exploring potential relationships...

Large quantities of organic carbon are stored in frozen soils (permafrost) within Arctic and sub-Arctic regions. A warming climate can induce environmental changes that accelerate the microbial breakdown of organic carbon and the release of the greenhouse gases carbon dioxide and methane. This feedback can accelerate climate change, but the...

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Colorado Water Conservation Board, evaluated the predictive uncertainty of mean-monthly streamflow-regression equations representative of natural streamflow conditions in Colorado. This study evaluates the predictive uncertainty of mean-monthly streamflow-regression equations developed in a 2009 U.S. Geological Survey study using streamflow data collected over...