Concentrations of hormones, pharmaceuticals and other micropollutants in groundwater affected by septic systems in New England and New York
Patrick J. Phillips, Christopher Schubert, Denise M. Argue, Irene J. Fisher, Edward T. Furlong, William T. Foreman, James L. Gray, Ann T. Chalmers
2015, Science of the Total Environment (512-513) 43-54
Septic-system discharges can be an important source of micropollutants (including pharmaceuticals and endocrine active compounds) to adjacent groundwater and surface water systems. Groundwater samples were collected from well networks tapping glacial till in New England (NE) and sandy surficial aquifer New York (NY) during one sampling round in 2011. The...
Development of a HEC-RAS temperature model for the North Santiam River, northwestern Oregon
Adam J. Stonewall, Norman L. Buccola
2015, Open-File Report 2015-1006
A one-dimensional, unsteady streamflow and temperature model (HEC-RAS) of the North Santiam and Santiam Rivers was developed by the U.S. Geological Survey to be used in conjunction with previously developed two-dimensional hydrodynamic water-quality models (CE-QUAL-W2) of Detroit and Big Cliff Lakes upstream of the study area. In conjunction with the...
Mineral evolution and Earth history
Dwight Bradley
2015, American Mineralogist (100) 4-5
The field of mineral evolution—a merger of mineralogy and Earth history—coalesced in 2008 with the first of several global syntheses by Robert Hazen and coworkers in the American Mineralogist. They showed that the cumulative abundance of mineral species has a stepwise trend with first appearances tied to various transitions in Earth history...
Late Quaternary chronostratigraphic framework of terraces and alluvium along the lower Ohio River, southwestern Indiana and western Kentucky, USA
Ronald C. Counts, Madhav K. Murari, Lewis A. Owen, Shannon Mahan, Michele Greenan
2015, Quaternary Science Reviews (110) 72-91
The lower Ohio River valley is a terraced fluvial landscape that has been profoundly influenced by Quaternary climate change and glaciation. A modern Quaternary chronostratigraphic framework was developed for the lower Ohio River valley using optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating and allostratigraphic mapping to gain insights into the nature of...
Roosting habitat use and selection by northern spotted owls during natal dispersal
Stan G. Sovern, Eric D. Forsman, Catherine M. Dugger, Margaret Taylor
2015, Journal of Wildlife Management (79) 254-262
We studied habitat selection by northern spotted owls (Strix occidentalis caurina) during natal dispersal in Washington State, USA, at both the roost site and landscape scales. We used logistic regression to obtain parameters for an exponential resource selection function based on vegetation attributes in roost and random plots in 76...
The roller coaster flight strategy of bar-headed geese conserves energy during Himalayan migrations
C.M. Bishop, R.J. Spivey, L. A. Hawkes, N. Batbayar, B. Chua, P.B. Frappell, W.K. Milsom, T. Natsagdorj, S. H. Newman, G. R. Scott, John Y. Takekawa, Martin Wikelski, Patrick J. Butler
2015, Science (347) 250-254
The physiological and biomechanical requirements of flight at high altitude have been the subject of much interest. Here, we uncover a steep relation between heart rate and wingbeat frequency (raised to the exponent 3.5) and estimated metabolic power and wingbeat frequency (exponent 7) of migratory bar-headed geese. Flight costs increase...
The effects of sample scheduling and sample numbers on estimates of the annual fluxes of suspended sediment in fluvial systems
Arthur J. Horowitz, Robin T. Clarke, Gustavo Henrique Merten
2015, Hydrological Processes (29) 531-543
Since the 1970s, there has been both continuing and growing interest in developing accurate estimates of the annual fluvial transport (fluxes and loads) of suspended sediment and sediment-associated chemical constituents. This study provides an evaluation of the effects of manual sample numbers (from 4 to 12 year−1) and sample scheduling (random-based,...
Evaluation of selected static methods used to estimate element mobility, acid-generating and acid-neutralizing potentials associated with geologically diverse mining wastes
Philip L. Hageman, Robert R. Seal, Sharon F. Diehl, Nadine M. Piatak, Heather Lowers
2015, Applied Geochemistry (57) 125-139
A comparison study of selected static leaching and acid–base accounting (ABA) methods using a mineralogically diverse set of 12 modern-style, metal mine waste samples was undertaken to understand the relative performance of the various tests. To complement this study, in-depth mineralogical studies were conducted in order to elucidate the relationships...
Mortality estimation from carcass searches using the R-package carcass: a tutorial
Franzi Korner-Nievergelt, Oliver Behr, Robert Brinkmann, Matthew A. Etterson, Manuela M. P. Huso, Daniel Dalthorp, Pius Korner-Nievergelt, Tobias Roth, Ivo Niermann
2015, Wildlife Biology (21) 30-43
This article is a tutorial for the R-package carcass. It starts with a short overview of common methods used to estimate mortality based on carcass searches. Then, it guides step by step through a simple example. First, the proportion of animals that fall into the search area is estimated. Second,...
An investigation into the Swan Island Honduras collecting event of Tiaporus fuliginosus Cope (Reptilia: Teiidae) and its systematic status
James R. McCranie, Steve W. Gotte
2015, Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington (127) 543-556
Confusion exists in the literature concerning the collecting event of the teiid lizard Tiaporus fuliginosus. We investigated the literature and documents stored at the Smithsonian Institution Archives involving the collector of those specimens in an effort to resolve that confusion. We conclude that the type series was collected on the...
USGS National Wildlife Health Center quarterly mortality report
Anne E. Ballmann, C. LeAnn White, Barbara L. Bodenstein, Jennifer L. Buckner
2015, Wildlife Disease Association Newsletter 4-5
No abstract available....
Patterns of floodplain sediment deposition along the regulated lower Roanoke River, North Carolina: annual, decadal, centennial scales
Cliff R. Hupp, Edward R. Schenk, Daniel Kroes, Debra A. Willard, Phil A. Townsend, Robert K. Peet
2015, Geomorphology (228) 666-680
The lower Roanoke River on the Coastal Plain of North Carolina is not embayed and maintains a floodplain that is among the largest on the mid-Atlantic Coast. This floodplain has been impacted by substantial aggradation in response to upstream colonial and post-colonial agriculture between the mid-eighteenth and mid-nineteenth centuries. Additionally,...
Distribution and dynamics of mangrove forests of South Asia
Chandra Giri, Jordan Long, Sawaid Abbas, R. Mani Murali, Faisal M. Qamer, Bruce Pengra, David Thau
2015, Journal of Environmental Management (148) 10-111
Mangrove forests in South Asia occur along the tidal sea edge of Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. These forests provide important ecosystem goods and services to the region's dense coastal populations and support important functions of the biosphere. Mangroves are under threat from both natural and anthropogenic stressors; however...
An analysis of three new infrasound arrays around Kīlauea Volcano
Weston A. Thelen, Jennifer Cooper
2015, Open-File Report 2014-1253
A network of three new infrasound station arrays was installed around Kīlauea Volcano between July 2012 and September 2012, and a preliminary analysis of open-vent monitoring has been completed by Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO). Infrasound is an emerging monitoring method in volcanology that detects perturbations in atmospheric pressure at frequencies...
Estimated annual agricultural pesticide use for counties of the conterminous United States, 2008-12
Nancy T. Baker, Wesley W. Stone
2015, Data Series 907
Annual county-level pesticide use was estimated for 423 herbicides, insecticides, and fungicides applied to agricultural crops grown in the conterminous United States during 2008–12. For all States except California, pesticide-use data were compiled from proprietary surveys of farm operations located within U.S. Department of Agriculture Crop Reporting Districts (CRDs). Surveyed...
Elk monitoring in Mount Rainier and Olympic national parks: 2008-2011 synthesis report
Kurt J. Jenkins, Paul C. Griffin, Patricia J. Happe, Mason E. Reid, David J. Vales, Barbara J. Moeller, Michelle Tirhe, Scott McCorquodale, Katherine Beirne, John Boetsch, William Baccus, Bruce C. Lubow
2015, Natural Resource Report NPS/NCCN/NRR - 2015/904
In 2008, the USGS collaborated with the NPS, the Muckleshoot and Puyallup Indian Tribes, and WDFW to develop a protocol tor monitor changes in abundance, population composition, and spatial distribution of elk on summer ranges in MORA and OLYM and winter ranges in OLYM. We developed double-observer sightability (DO-S) models...
Attenuation of monkeypox virus by deletion of genomic regions
Juan G. Lopera, Elizabeth A. Falendysz, Tonie E. Rocke, Jorge E. Osorio
2015, Virology (475) 129-138
Monkeypox virus (MPXV) is an emerging pathogen from Africa that causes disease similar to smallpox. Two clades with different geographic distributions and virulence have been described. Here, we utilized bioinformatic tools to identify genomic regions in MPXV containing multiple virulence genes and explored their roles in pathogenicity; two selected regions...
Phenological synchrony of bird migration with tree flowering at desert riparian stopover sites
Jherime L. Kellermann, Charles van Riper III
2015, Book chapter, Studies in Avian Biology book series
Small-bodied songbirds replenish fat reserves during migration at stopover sites where they continually encounter novel and often unpredictable environmental conditions. The ability to select and utilize high quality habitats is critical to survival and fitness. Vegetation phenology is closely linked with emergence of insect prey and may provide valid cues...
Social and Economic Analysis Branch: integrating policy, social, economic, and natural science
Rudy Schuster, Katie D. Walters
2015, Fact Sheet 2014-3070
The Fort Collins Science Center's Social and Economic Analysis Branch provides unique capabilities in the U.S. Geological Survey by leading projects that integrate social, behavioral, economic, and natural science in the context of human–natural resource interactions. Our research provides scientific understanding and support for the management and conservation of our...
A summary of the benthic-invertebrate and fish-community data from streams in the Indianapolis metropolitan area, Indiana, 1981-2012
David C. Voelker, Aubrey R. Bunch, Edward G. Dobrowolski, Megan E. Shoda
2015, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5225
Intermittently, during 1981–2012, the U.S. Geological Survey sampled sites in the White River and several tributaries in the Indianapolis metropolitan area of Indiana for benthic invertebrates and fish communities. During 1981–87, one study focused on benthic-invertebrate data collection at three sites along the White River. During 1994–96, 21 sites were...
Plant diversity predicts beta but not alpha diversity of soil microbes across grasslands worldwide
Suzanne M. Prober, Jonathan W. Leff, Scott T. Bates, Elizabeth T. Borer, Jennifer Firn, W. Stanley Harpole, Eric M. Lind, Eric W. Seabloom, Peter B. Adler, Jonathan D. Bakker, Elsa E. Cleland, Nicole DeCrappeo, Elizabeth DeLorenze, Nicole Hagenah, Yann Hautier, Kirsten S. Hofmockel, Kevin P. Kirkman, Johannes M. H. Knops, Kimberly J. La Pierre, Andrew S. MacDougall, Rebecca L. McCulley, Charles E. Mitchell, Anita C. Risch, Martin Schuetz, Carly J. Stevens, Ryan J. Williams, Noah Fierer
2015, Ecology Letters (18) 85-95
Aboveground–belowground interactions exert critical controls on the composition and function of terrestrial ecosystems, yet the fundamental relationships between plant diversity and soil microbial diversity remain elusive. Theory predicts predominantly positive associations but tests within single sites have shown variable relationships, and associations between plant and microbial diversity across broad spatial...
Landslide mobility and hazards: implications of the 2014 Oso disaster
Richard M. Iverson, David L. George, Kate E. Allstadt, Mark E. Reid, Brian D. Collins, James W. Vallance, Steve P. Schilling, Jonathan W. Godt, Charles Cannon, Christopher S. Magirl, Rex L. Baum, Jeffrey A. Coe, William H. Schulz, J. Brent Bower
2015, Earth and Planetary Science Letters (412) 197-208
Landslides reflect landscape instability that evolves over meteorological and geological timescales, and they also pose threats to people, property, and the environment. The severity of these threats depends largely on landslide speed and travel distance, which are collectively described as landslide “mobility”. To investigate causes and effects of mobility, we...
Total- and methyl-mercury concentrations and methylation rates across the freshwater to hypersaline continuum of the Great Salt Lake, Utah, USA
William P. Johnson, Neil Swanson, Brooks Black, Abigail Rudd, Gregory Carling, Diego P. Fernandez, John Luft, Jim Van Leeuwen, Mark C. Marvin-DiPasquale
2015, Science of the Total Environment (511) 489-500
We examined mercury (Hg) speciation in water and sediment of the Great Salt Lake and surrounding wetlands, a locale spanning fresh to hypersaline and oxic to anoxic conditions, in order to test the hypothesis that spatial and temporal variations in Hg concentration and methylation rates correspond to observed spatial and...
Quantifying water requirements of riparian river red gum (Eucalyptus camaldulensis) in the Murray-Darling Basin, Australia: Implications for the management of environmental flows
Tanya M. Doody, Matthew J. Colloff, Micah Davies, Vijay Koul, Richard G. Benyon, Pamela L. Nagler
2015, Ecohydrology (8) 1471-1487
Water resource development and drought have altered river flow regimes, increasing average flood return intervals across floodplains in the Murray-Darling Basin, Australia, causing health declines in riparian river red gum (Eucalyptus camaldulensis) forests and woodlands. Environmental flow allocations helped to alleviate water stress during the recent Millennium Drought (1997–2010), however,...
Lithologic and hydrologic controls of mixed alluvial-bedrock channels in flood-prone fluvial systems: bankfull and macrochannels in the Llano River watershed, central Texas, USA
Frank T. Heitmuller, Paul F. Hudson, William H. Asquith
2015, Geomorphology (232) 1-19
The rural and unregulated Llano River watershed located in central Texas, USA, has a highly variable flow regime and a wide range of instantaneous peak flows. Abrupt transitions in surface lithology exist along the main-stem channel course. Both of these characteristics afford an opportunity to examine hydrologic, lithologic, and sedimentary...
