Whitebark pine, population density, and home-range size of grizzly bears in the greater Yellowstone ecosystem
Daniel D. Bjornlie, Frank T. van Manen, Michael R. Ebinger, Mark A. Haroldson, Daniel J. Thompson, Cecily M. Costello
2014, PLoS ONE (9) 1-7
Changes in life history traits of species can be an important indicator of potential factors influencing populations. For grizzly bears (Ursus arctos) in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE), recent decline of whitebark pine (WBP; Pinus albicaulis), an important fall food resource, has been paired with a slowing of population growth...
Water quality, discharge, and groundwater levels in the Palomas, Mesilla, and Hueco Basins in New Mexico and Texas from below Caballo Reservoir, New Mexico, to Fort Quitman, Texas, 1889-2013
Sarah E. McKean, Anne Marie Matherne, Nicole Thomas
2014, Data Series 884
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the New Mexico Environment Department, compiled data from various sources to develop a dataset that can be used to conduct an assessment of the total dissolved solids in surface water and groundwater of the Palomas, Mesilla, and Hueco Basins in New Mexico and...
Lake Michigan offshore ecosystem structure and food web changes from 1987 to 2008
Mark W. Rogers, David B. Bunnell, Charles P. Madenjian, David M. Warner
2014, Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences (71) 1072-7086
Ecosystems undergo dynamic changes owing to species invasions, fisheries management decisions, landscape modifications, and nutrient inputs. At Lake Michigan, new invaders (e.g., dreissenid mussels (Dreissena spp.), spiny water flea (Bythotrephes longimanus), round goby (Neogobius melanostomus)) have proliferated and altered energy transfer pathways, while nutrient concentrations and stocking rates to support...
A numerical study of vegetation impact on reducing storm surge by wetlands in a semi-enclosed estuary
Hu Kelin, Chen Qin, Hongqing Wang
2014, Coastal Engineering (95) 66-76
Coastal wetlands play a unique role in extreme hurricane events. The impact of wetlands on storm surge depends on multiple factors including vegetation, landscape, and storm characteristics. The Delft3D model, in which vegetation effects on flow and turbulence are explicitly incorporated, was applied to the semi-enclosed Breton Sound (BS) estuary...
EAARL-B submerged topography: Barnegat Bay, New Jersey, pre-Hurricane Sandy, 2012
C. Wayne Wright, Rodolfo J. Troche, Emily S. Klipp, Christine J. Kranenburg, Xan Fredericks, David B. Nagle
2014, Data Series 885
These remotely sensed, geographically referenced elevation measurements of lidar-derived submerged topography datasets were produced by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center, St. Petersburg, Florida. This project provides highly detailed and accurate datasets for part of Barnegat Bay, New Jersey, acquired pre-Hurricane Sandy on October 18,...
EAARL-B coastal topography: Fire Island, New York, pre-Hurricane Sandy, 2012: seamless (bare earth and submerged)
C. Wayne Wright, Christine J. Kranenburg, Emily S. Klipp, Rodolfo J. Troche, Xan Fredericks, Melanie L. Masessa, David B. Nagle
2014, Data Series 888
These remotely sensed, geographically referenced elevation measurements of lidar-derived seamless (bare-earth and submerged) topography datasets were produced by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center, St. Petersburg, Florida. This project provides highly detailed and accurate datasets for part of Fire Island, New York, acquired pre-Hurricane Sandy...
Diet of Mysis diluviana reveals seasonal patterns of omnivory and consumption of invasive species in offshore Lake Michigan
Brian P. O’Malley, David B. Bunnell
2014, Journal of Plankton Research (36) 989-1002
Recent changes in Lake Michigan’s lower trophic levels were hypothesized to have influenced the diet of omnivorous Mysis diluviana. In this study, the stomach contents of Mysis were examined from juvenile and adults collected monthly (April–October) from a 110-m bottom depth site to describe their seasonal diet in LakeMichigan during...
Limitations to estimating bacterial cross-speciestransmission using genetic and genomic markers: Inferences from simulation modeling
Julio Andre Benavides, Paul C. Cross, Gordon Luikart, Scott Creel
2014, Evolutionary Applications (7) 774-787
Cross‐species transmission (CST) of bacterial pathogens has major implications for human health, livestock, and wildlife management because it determines whether control actions in one species may have subsequent effects on other potential host species. The study of bacterial transmission has benefitted from methods measuring two types of...
Assembling evidence for identifying reservoirs of infection
Mafalda Viana, Rebecca Mancy, Roman Biek, Sarah Cleaveland, Paul C. Cross, James O. Lloyd-Smith, Daniel T. Haydon
2014, Trends in Ecology and Evolution (29) 270-279
Many pathogens persist in multihost systems, making the identification of infection reservoirs crucial for devising effective interventions. Here, we present a conceptual framework for classifying patterns of...
Estimation of regional flow-duration curves for Indiana and Illinois
Thomas M. Over, James D. Riley, Mackenzie K. Marti, Jennifer B. Sharpe, Donald V. Arvin
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5177
Flow-duration curves (FDCs) of daily streamflow are useful for many applications in water resources planning and management but must be estimated at ungaged sites. One common technique for estimating FDCs at ungaged sites in a given region is to use equations obtained by linear regression of FDC quantiles against multiple...
Geologic and geophysical data for wells drilled at Raft River Valley, Cassia County, Idaho, in 1977-1978 and data for wells drilled previously
Manuel Nathenson, Thomas C. Urban, Harry R. Covington
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1201
In order to better define the size of the thermal anomaly in the Raft River Valley, Idaho, the U.S. Geological Survey drilled a series of intermediate-depth (nominal 500-ft depth) wells in 1977 and 1978. This report presents geologic, geophysical, and temperature data for these drill holes, along with data for...
Water-quality characteristics indicative of wastewater in selected streams in the upper Neuse River Basin, Durham and Orange Counties, North Carolina, from 2004 to 2013
Gloria M. Ferrell, Matthew S. Yearout, Barbara H. Grimes, Alexandria K. Graves, Sharon A. Fitzgerald, Michael T. Meyer
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1215
Data were collected during three time periods to assess the effects of wastewater treatment and disposal practices on the occurrence of selected contaminants indicative of wastewater in the upper Neuse River Basin, North Carolina. The first phase of data collection, December 2004 to June 2005, and the second phase, April...
Simulation of hydrologic conditions and suspended-sediment loads in the San Antonio River Basin downstream from San Antonio, Texas, 2000-12
J. Ryan Banta, Darwin J. Ockerman
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5182
Suspended sediment in rivers and streams can play an important role in ecological health of rivers and estuaries and consequently is an important issue for water-resource managers. To better understand suspended-sediment loads and transport in a watershed, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the San Antonio River Authority, developed a...
Bull trout in the Boundary System: managing connectivity and the feasibility of a reintroduction in the lower Pend Oreille River, northeastern Washington
Jason B. Dunham, Eric B. Taylor, Fred W. Allendorf
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1229
Many of the World’s rivers are influenced by large dams (>15 m high) most of which have fragmented formerly continuous habitats, and significantly altered fish passage, natural flow, temperature, and sediment fluxes (Nilsson and others, 2005; Arthington, 2012; Liermann and others, 2012). In the Pacific Northwest, dams on major rivers...
Low-head hydropower assessment of the Brazilian State of São Paulo
Guleid A. Artan, W. Matthew Cushing, Melissa L. Mathis, Larry L. Tieszen
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1206
This study produced a comprehensive estimate of the magnitude of hydropower potential available in the streams that drain watersheds entirely within the State of São Paulo, Brazil. Because a large part of the contributing area is outside of São Paulo, the main stem of the Paraná River was excluded from...
Estimates of growth and mortality of under-yearling smallmouth bass in Spednic Lake, from 1970 through 2008
Robert W. Dudley, Joan G. Trial
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5164
This report is the product of a 2013 cooperative agreement between the U.S. Geological Survey, the International Joint Commission, and the Maine Bureau of Sea Run Fisheries and Habitat to quantify the effects of meteorological conditions (from 1970 through 2008) on the survival of smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) in the...
Long Valley Caldera 2003 through 2014: Overview of low level unrest in the past decade
Stuart K. Wilkinson, David P. Hill, John O. Langbein, Michael Lisowski, Margaret T. Mangan
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1222
Long Valley Caldera is located in California along the eastern escarpment of the Sierra Nevada Range. The caldera formed about 760,000 years ago as the eruption of 600 km3 of rhyolite magma (Bishop Tuff) resulted in collapse of the partially evacuated magma chamber. Resurgent doming in the central part of...
Invasive crayfish as vectors of mercury in freshwater food webs of the Pacific Northwest
Branden L. Johnson, James J. Willacker, Collin A. Eagles-Smith, Christopher A. Pearl, M. J. Adams
2014, Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (33) 2639-2645
Invasive species are important drivers of environmental change in aquatic ecosystems and can alter habitat characteristics, community composition, and ecosystem energetics. Such changes have important implications for many ecosystem processes, including the bioaccumulation and biomagnification of contaminants through food webs. Mercury concentrations were measured in 2 nonnative and 1 native...
Quantifying fall migration of Ross's gulls (Rhodostethia rosea) past Point Barrow, Alaska
Mark Maftei, Shanti E. Davis, Brian D. Uher-Koch, Callie Gesmundo, R.S. Suydam, Mark L. Mallory
2014, Polar Biology (37) 1705-1710
The Ross’s gull (Rhodostethia rosea) is a poorly known seabird of the circumpolar Arctic. The only place in the world where Ross’s gulls are known to congregate is in the near-shore waters around Point Barrow, Alaska, where they undertake an annual passage in late fall. Ross’s gulls seen at Point...
U.S. response to a report of infectious salmon anemia virus in Western North America
Kevin H Amos, Lori Gustafson, Janet Warg, Janet Whaley, Maureen K. Purcell, Jill B. Rolland, James R. Winton, Kevin Snekvik, Theodore Meyers, Bruce Stewart, John Kerwin, Marilyn Blair, Joel Bader, Joy Evered
2014, Fisheries (39) 501-506
Federal, state, and tribal fishery managers, as well as the general public and their elected representatives in the United States, were concerned when infectious salmon anemia virus (ISAV) was suspected for the first time in free-ranging Pacific Salmon collected from the coastal areas of British Columbia, Canada. This article documents...
An objective and parsimonious approach for classifying natural flow regimes at a continental scale
Stacey A. Archfield, Jonathan G. Kennen, Daren M. Carlisle, David M. Wolock
2014, River Research and Applications (30) 1166-1183
Hydro-ecological stream classification-the process of grouping streams by similar hydrologic responses and, by extension, similar aquatic habitat-has been widely accepted and is considered by some to be one of the first steps towards developing ecological flow targets. A new classification of 1543 streamgauges in the contiguous USA is presented by...
Using mark-recapture distance sampling methods on line transect surveys
Louise M. Burt, David L. Borchers, Kurt J. Jenkins, Tigao A Marques
2014, Methods in Ecology and Evolution (5) 1180-1191
Mark–recapture distance sampling (MRDS) methods are widely used for density and abundance estimation when the conventional DS assumption of certain detection at distance zero fails, as they allow detection at distance zero to be estimated and incorporated into the overall probability of detection to better estimate density and...
Development of the Coastal Storm Modeling System (CoSMoS) for predicting the impact of storms on high-energy, active-margin coasts
Patrick L. Barnard, Maarten van Ormondt, Li H. Erikson, Jodi Eshleman, Cheryl J. Hapke, Peter Ruggiero, Peter Adams, Amy C. Foxgrover
2014, Natural Hazards (74) 1095-1125
The Coastal Storm Modeling System (CoSMoS) applies a predominantly deterministic framework to make detailed predictions (meter scale) of storm-induced coastal flooding, erosion, and cliff failures over large geographic scales (100s of kilometers). CoSMoS was developed for hindcast studies, operational applications (i.e., nowcasts and multiday forecasts), and future climate scenarios (i.e.,...
Attenuation and scattering tomography of the deep plumbing system of Mount St. Helens
Luca De Siena, Christine Thomas, Greg P. Waite, Seth C. Moran, Stefan Klemme
2014, Journal of Geophysical Research B: Solid Earth (119) 8223-8238
We present a combined 3-D P wave attenuation, 2-D S coda attenuation, and 3-D S coda scattering tomography model of fluid pathways, feeding systems, and sediments below Mount St. Helens (MSH) volcano between depths of 0 and 18 km. High-scattering and high-attenuation shallow anomalies are indicative of magma and fluid-rich zones within and below the volcanic...
Differential susceptibility in steelhead trout populations to an emergent MD strain of infectious hematopoietic necrosis virus
R. Breyta, Amelia Jones, Gael Kurath
2014, Diseases of Aquatic Organisms (112) 17-28
A significant emergence of trout-adapted MD subgroup infectious hematopoietic necrosis virus (IHNV) began in the coastal region of Washington State, USA, in 2007. This emergence event lasted until 2011 and caused both asymptomatic adult fish infection and symptomatic epidemic disease and mortality in juvenile fish. Incidence of virus during this...