Lead and eagles: demographic and pathological characteristics of poisoning, and exposure levels associated with other causes of mortality
J. Christian Franson, Robin E. Russell
2014, Ecotoxicology (23) 1722-1731
We conducted a retrospective analysis to evaluate demographic and pathologic characteristics in 484 bald eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) and 68 golden eagles (Aquila chrysaetos) diagnosed with lead poisoning at the U.S. Geological Survey National Wildlife Health Center. As part of our analysis, we compared characteristics of lead poisoned eagles with those...
Molecular identification of erythrocytic necrosis virus (ENV) from the blood of Pacific herring (Clupea pallasii)
Eveline J. Emmenegger, Jolene A. Glenn, James R. Winton, William N. Batts, Jacob L. Gregg, Paul K. Hershberger
2014, Veterinary Microbiology (174) 16-26
Viral erythrocytic necrosis (VEN) is a condition affecting the red blood cells of more than 20 species of marine and anadromous fishes in the North Atlantic and North Pacific Oceans. Among populations of Pacific herring (Clupea pallasii) on the west coast of North America the disease causes anemia and elevated...
Assessment of potential shale-oil and shale-gas resources in Silurian shales of Jordan, 2014
Christopher J. Schenk, Janet K. Pitman, Ronald R. Charpentier, Timothy R. Klett, Marilyn E. Tennyson, Tracey J. Mercier, Philip H. Nelson, Michael E. Brownfield, Mark J. Pawlewicz, Craig J. Wandrey
2014, Fact Sheet 2014-3082
Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated means of 11 million barrels of potential shale-oil and 320 billion cubic feet of shale-gas resources in Silurian shales of Jordan....
Nearshore bathymetric mapping along a 7-mile reach of Lake Sharpe shoreline near Lower Brule, South Dakota, 2013
Ryan F. Thompson
2014, Scientific Investigations Map 3307
Shoreline erosion rates along Lake Sharpe, a Missouri River reservoir, near the community of Lower Brule, South Dakota, were studied previously during 2011–12 by the U.S. Geological Survey, the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe, and Oglala Lakota College. The rapid shoreline retreat has caused many detrimental effects along the shoreline of...
Map of assessed tight-gas resources in the United States
Laura R. H. Biewick (compiler), USGS National Assessment of Oil and Gas Resources Team
2014, Data Series 69-HH
This report presents a digital map of tight-gas resource assessments in the United States as part of the U.S. Geological Survey’s (USGS) National Assessment of Oil and Gas Project. Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the USGS quantitatively estimated potential volumes of undiscovered, technically recoverable natural gas resources within tight-gas assessment...
Predicting foundation bunchgrass species abundances: Model-assisted decision-making in protected-area sagebrush steppe
Thomas J. Rodhouse, Kathryn M. Irvine, Roger L. Sheley, Brenda S. Smith, Shirley Hoh, Daniel M. Esposito, Ricardo Mata-Gonzalez
2014, Ecosphere (5) 1-19
Foundation species are structurally dominant members of ecological communities that can stabilize ecological processes and influence resilience to disturbance and resistance to invasion. Being common, they are often overlooked for conservation but are increasingly threatened from land use change, biological invasions, and over-exploitation. The pattern of foundation species abundances over...
Surficial geologic map of the Red Rock Lakes area, southwest Montana
Kenneth L. Pierce, Tara L. Chesley-Preston, Richard L. Sojda
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1157
The Centennial Valley and Centennial Range continue to be formed by ongoing displacement on the Centennial fault. The dominant fault movement is downward, creating space in the valley for lakes and the deposition of sediment. The Centennial Valley originally drained to the northeast through a canyon now represented by a...
Report on workshop to incorporate basin response in the design of tall buildings in the Puget Sound region, Washington
Susan Chang, Arthur D. Frankel, Craig S. Weaver
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1196
On March 4, 2013, the City of Seattle and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) convened a workshop of 25 engineers and seismologists to provide recommendations to the City for the incorporation of amplification of earthquake ground shaking by the Seattle sedimentary basin in the design of tall buildings in Seattle....
Data compilation for assessing sediment and toxic chemical loads from the Green River to the lower Duwamish Waterway, Washington
Kathleen E. Conn, Robert W. Black
2014, Data Series 880
Between February and June 2013, the U.S. Geological Survey collected representative samples of whole water, suspended sediment, and (or) bed sediment from a single strategically located site on the Duwamish River, Washington, during seven periods of different flow conditions. Samples were analyzed by Washington-State-accredited laboratories for a large suite of...
Building a better sticky trap: description of an easy-to-use trap and pole mount for quantifying the abundance of adult aquatic insects
Joshua T. Smith, Theodore A. Kennedy, Jeffrey D. Muehlbauer
2014, Freshwater Science (33) 972-977
Insect emergence is a fundamental process in freshwaters. It is a critical life-history stage for aquatic insects and provides an important prey resource for terrestrial and aquatic consumers. Sticky traps are increasingly being used to sample these insects. The most common design consists of an acetate sheet coated with a...
Biodiversity and community composition of sediment macrofauna associated with deep-sea Lophelia pertusa habitats in the Gulf of Mexico
Amanda W.J. Demopoulos, Jill R. Bourque, Janessy Frometa
2014, Deep Sea Research Part A, Oceanographic Research Papers (93) 91-103
Scleractinian corals create three-dimensional reefs that provide sheltered refuges, facilitate sediment accumulation, and enhance colonization of encrusting fauna. While heterogeneous coral habitats can harbor high levels of biodiversity, their effect on the community composition within nearby sediments remains unclear, particularly in the deep sea. Sediment macrofauna from deep-sea coral habitats...
The effects of hydropattern and predator communities on amphibian occupancy
Staci Amburgey, L.L. Bailey, M.A. Murphy, Erin L. Muths, W. C. Funk
2014, Canadian Journal of Zoology (92) 927-937
Complex, interactive ecological constraints regulate species distributions, and understanding these factors is crucial for predicting species persistence. We used occupancy analysis, which corrects for imperfect detection, to test the importance of abiotic and biotic habitat and landscape factors on probability of occupancy by Boreal Chorus Frog (Pseudacris maculata (Agassiz, 1850)) tadpoles....
Organization of marine phenology data in support of planning and conservation in ocean and coastal ecosystems
Kathryn A. Thomas, Mark D. Fornwall, Jake F. Weltzin, R.B. Griffis
2014, Ecological Informatics (24) 169-176
Among the many effects of climate change is its influence on the phenology of biota. In marine and coastal ecosystems, phenological shifts have been documented for multiple life forms; however, biological data related to marine species' phenology remain difficult to access and is under-used. We conducted an assessment of potential...
A compilation of K-Ar-ages for southern California
Fred K. Miller, Douglas M. Morton, Janet L. Morton, David M. Miller
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1195
The purpose of this report is to make available a large body of conventional K-Ar ages for granitic, volcanic, and metamorphic rocks collected in southern California. Although one interpretive map is included, the report consists primarily of a systematic listing, without discussion or interpretation, of published and unpublished ages that...
A generalization of the double-corner-frequency source spectral model and its use in the SCEC BBP validation exercise
David M. Boore, Carola Di Alessandro, Norman A. Abrahamson
2014, Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America (104) 2387-2398
The stochastic method of simulating ground motions requires the specification of the shape and scaling with magnitude of the source spectrum. The spectral models commonly used are either single-corner-frequency or double-corner-frequency models, but the latter have no flexibility to vary the high-frequency spectral levels for a specified seismic moment....
Digital database of microfossil localities in Alameda and Contra Costa Counties, California
Kristin McDougall, Debra L. Block
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5120
The eastern San Francisco Bay region (Contra Costa and Alameda Counties, California) is a geologically complex area divided by faults into a suite of tectonic blocks. Each block contains a unique stratigraphic sequence of Tertiary sediments that in most blocks unconformably overlie Mesozoic sediments. Age and environmental interpretations based on...
Sea Level Affecting Marshes Model (SLAMM) ‐ New functionality for predicting changes in distribution of submerged aquatic vegetation in response to sea level rise
Henry Lee II, Deborah A. Reusser, Melanie R Frazier, Lee M McCoy, Patrick J. Clinton, Jonathan S. Clough
2014, Report
Introduction Submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) is an ecologically important habitat world‐wide. In Pacific Northwest (PNW) estuaries, SAV in the lower intertidal and shallow subtidal habitats are dominated by the native seagrass, Zostera marina Linnaeus, 1753. Within this report, SAV and seagrass refer to Z. marina seagrass beds in PNW estuaries. Z....
Concentrations, loads, and yields of total phosphorus, total nitrogen, and suspended sediment and bacteria concentrations in the Wister Lake Basin, Oklahoma and Arkansas, 2011-13
Stephanie D. Buck
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5170
The Poteau Valley Improvement Authority uses Wister Lake in southeastern Oklahoma as a public water supply. Total phosphorus, total nitrogen, and suspended sediments from agricultural runoff and discharges from wastewater treatment plants and other sources have degraded water quality in the lake. As lake-water quality has degraded, water-treatment cost, chemical...
Hydrologic conditions in urban Miami-Dade County, Florida, and the effect of groundwater pumpage and increased sea level on canal leakage and regional groundwater flow
Joseph D. Hughes, Jeremy T. White
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5162
The extensive and highly managed surface-water system in southeastern Florida constructed during the 20th Century has allowed for the westward expansion of urban and agricultural activities in Miami-Dade County. In urban areas of the county, the surface-water system is used to (1) control urban flooding, (2) supply recharge to production...
Coastal subsidence and relative sea level rise
Steven E. Ingebritsen, Devin L. Galloway
2014, Environmental Research Letters (9)
Subsurface fluid-pressure declines caused by pumping of groundwater or hydrocarbons can lead to aquifer-system compaction and consequent land subsidence. This subsidence can be rapid, as much as 30 cm per year in some instances, and large, totaling more than 13 m in extreme examples. Thus anthropogenic subsidence may be the...
Effects of seasonal operation on the quality of water produced by public-supply wells
Laura M. Bexfield, Bryant C. Jurgens
2014, Groundwater (52) 10-24
Seasonal variability in groundwater pumping is common in many places, but resulting effects of seasonal pumping stress on the quality of water produced by public-supply wells are not thoroughly understood. Analysis of historical water-quality samples from public-supply wells completed in deep basin-fill aquifers in Modesto, California (134 wells) and Albuquerque,...
Correlations of turbidity to suspended-sediment concentration in the Toutle River Basin, near Mount St. Helens, Washington, 2010-11
Mark A. Uhrich, Jasna Kolasinac, Pamela L. Booth, Robert L. Fountain, Kurt R. Spicer, Adam R. Mosbrucker
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1204
Researchers at the U.S. Geological Survey, Cascades Volcano Observatory, investigated alternative methods for the traditional sample-based sediment record procedure in determining suspended-sediment concentration (SSC) and discharge. One such sediment-surrogate technique was developed using turbidity and discharge to estimate SSC for two gaging stations in the Toutle River Basin near Mount...
The 3D Elevation Program: Summary for New Jersey
William J. Carswell Jr.
2014, Fact Sheet 2014-3091
Elevation data are essential to a broad range of applications, including forest resources management, wildlife and habitat management, national security, recreation, and many others. For the State of New Jersey, elevation data are critical for water supply and quality, flood risk management, natural resources conservation, agriculture and precision farming, infrastructure...
Tribal engagement strategy of the South Central Climate Science Center, 2014
William J. Andrews, April Taylor, Kimberly T. Winton
2014, Circular 1396
The South Central Climate Science Center was established by the U.S. Department of the Interior in 2012 to increase understanding of climate change and coordinate an effective response to climate-change effects on Native American tribes and natural and cultural resources that the Department manages. The eight regional Climate Science Centers...
Strong influence of El Niño Southern Oscillation on flood risk around the world
Philip J. Ward, B Jongman, M. Kummu, Mike Dettinger, F.C Sperna Weiland, H.C Winsemius
2014, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (111) 15659-15664
El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) is the most dominant interannual signal of climate variability and has a strong influence on climate over large parts of the world. In turn, it strongly influences many natural hazards (such as hurricanes and droughts) and their resulting socioeconomic impacts, including economic damage and loss...
