Water resources of Acadia Parish, Louisiana
Larry B. Prakken, Vincent E. White
2014, Fact Sheet 2014-3043
Information concerning the availability, use, and quality of water in Acadia Parish, Louisiana, is critical for proper water-supply management. The purpose of this fact sheet is to present information that can be used by water managers, parish residents, and others for stewardship of this vital resource. Information on the availability,...
Hawaiian forest bird trends: using log-linear models to assess long-term trends is supported by model diagnostics and assumptions (reply to Freed and Cann 2013)
Richard J. Camp, Thane K. Pratt, P. Marcos Gorresen, Bethany L. Woodworth, John J. Jeffrey
2014, Condor (116) 97-101
Freed and Cann (2013) criticized our use of linear models to assess trends in the status of Hawaiian forest birds through time (Camp et al. 2009a, 2009b, 2010) by questioning our sampling scheme, whether we met model assumptions, and whether we ignored short-term changes in the population time series. In...
Hierarchical spatial genetic structure in a distinct population segment of greater sage-grouse
Sara J. Oyler-McCance, Michael L. Casazza, Jennifer A. Fike, Peter S. Coates
2014, Conservation Genetics (15) 1299-1311
Greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) within the Bi-State Management Zone (area along the border between Nevada and California) are geographically isolated on the southwestern edge of the species’ range. Previous research demonstrated that this population is genetically unique, with a high proportion of unique mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) haplotypes and with significant...
Using a Bayesian Network to predict shore-line change vulnerability to sea-level rise for the coasts of the United States
Benjamin T. Gutierrez, Nathaniel G. Plant, Elizabeth A. Pendleton, E. Robert Thieler
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1083
Sea-level rise is an ongoing phenomenon that is expected to continue and is projected to have a wide range of effects on coastal environments and infrastructure during the 21st century and beyond. Consequently, there is a need to assemble relevant datasets and to develop modeling or other analytical approaches to...
Quality-assurance and data management plan for groundwater activities by the U.S. Geological Survey in Kansas, 2014
James E. Putnam, Cristi V. Hansen
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1060
As the Nation’s principle earth-science information agency, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is depended on to collect data of the highest quality. This document is a quality-assurance plan for groundwater activities (GWQAP) of the Kansas Water Science Center. The purpose of this GWQAP is to establish a minimum set of...
Archive of digital chirp subbottom profile data collected during USGS cruise 12BIM03 offshore of the Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana, July 2012
Arnell S. Forde, Jennifer L. Miselis, Dana S. Wiese
2014, Data Series 856
From July 23 - 31, 2012, the U.S. Geological Survey conducted geophysical surveys to investigate the geologic controls on barrier island framework and long-term sediment transport along the oil spill mitigation sand berm constructed at the north end and just offshore of the Chandeleur Islands, La. (figure 1). This effort...
Using a network modularity analysis to inform management of a rare endemic plant in the northern Great Plains, USA
Diane L. Larson, Sam Droege, Paul A. Rabie, Jennifer L. Larson, Jelle Devalez, Milton Haar, Margaret McDermott-Kubeczko
2014, Journal of Applied Ecology (51) 1024-1032
1. Analyses of flower-visitor interaction networks allow application of community-level information to conservation problems, but management recommendations that ensue from such analyses are not well characterized. Results of modularity analyses, which detect groups of species (modules) that interact more with each other than with species outside their module, may...
Natural uranium and strontium isotope tracers of water sources and surface water-groundwater interactions in arid wetlands: Pahranagat Valley, Nevada, USA
James B. Paces, Frederic C. Wurster
2014, Journal of Hydrology (517) 213-225
Near-surface physical and chemical process can strongly affect dissolved-ion concentrations and stable isotope compositions of water in wetland settings, especially under arid climate conditions. In contrast, heavy radiogenic isotopes of strontium (87Sr/86Sr) and uranium (234U/238U) remain largely unaffected and can be used to help identify unique signatures from different...
Comparative bioenergetics modeling of two Lake Trout morphotypes
Megan V. Kepler, Tyler Wagner, John A. Sweka
2014, Transactions of the American Fisheries Society (143) 1592-1604
Efforts to restore Lake Trout Salvelinus namaycush in the Laurentian Great Lakes have been hampered for decades by several factors, including overfishing and invasive species (e.g., parasitism by Sea Lampreys Petromyzon marinus and reproductive deficiencies associated with consumption of Alewives Alosa pseudoharengus). Restoration efforts are complicated by the presence of multiple body forms (i.e., morphotypes)...
A new clarification method to visualize biliary degeneration during liver metamorphosis in sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus)
Yu-Wen Chung-Davidson, Peter J. Davidson, Anne M. Scott, Erin J. Walaszczyk, Cory O. Brant, Tyler Buchinger, Nicholas S. Johnson, Weiming Li
2014, Journal of Visualized Experiments (88)
Biliary atresia is a rare disease of infancy, with an estimated 1 in 15,000 frequency in the southeast United States, but more common in East Asian countries, with a reported frequency of 1 in 5,000 in Taiwan. Although much is known about the management of biliary atresia, its pathogenesis is...
Concentrations, loads, and yields of total nitrogen and total phosphorus in the Barnegat Bay-Little Egg Harbor watershed, New Jersey, 1989-2011, at multiple spatial scales
Ronald J. Baker, Christine M. Wieben, Richard G. Lathrop, Robert S. Nicholson
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5072
Concentrations, loads, and yields of nutrients (total nitrogen and total phosphorus) were calculated for the Barnegat Bay-Little Egg Harbor (BB-LEH) watershed for 1989–2011 at annual and seasonal (growing and nongrowing) time scales. Concentrations, loads, and yields were calculated at three spatial scales: for each of the 81 subbasins specified by...
Continuous water-quality monitoring and regression analysis to estimate constituent concentrations and loads in the Red River of the North at Fargo and Grand Forks, North Dakota, 2003-12
Joel M. Galloway
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5064
The Red River of the North (hereafter referred to as “Red River”) Basin is an important hydrologic region where water is a valuable resource for the region’s economy. Continuous water-quality monitors have been operated by the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the North Dakota Department of Health, Minnesota Pollution...
Monitoring recharge in areas of seasonally frozen ground in the Columbia Plateau and Snake River Plain, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington
Mark Mastin, Edward Josberger
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5083
Seasonally frozen ground occurs over approximately one‑third of the contiguous United States, causing increased winter runoff. Frozen ground generally rejects potential groundwater recharge. Nearly all recharge from precipitation in semi-arid regions such as the Columbia Plateau and the Snake River Plain in Idaho, Oregon, and Washington, occurs between October and...
Investigation of methods for successful installation and operation of Juvenile Salmon Acoustic Telemetry System (JSATS) hydrophones in the Willamette River, Oregon, 2012
Gary L. Rutz, Matthew D. Sholtis, Noah S. Adams, John W. Beeman
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1112
Acoustic telemetry equipment was installed at three sites in the Willamette River during October 2012 to test the effectiveness of using the Juvenile Salmon Acoustic Telemetry System to monitor the movements of fish in a high-flow, high-velocity riverine environment. Hydrophones installed on concrete blocks were placed on the bottom of...
Alexandrium fundyense cysts in the Gulf of Maine: long-term time series of abundance and distribution, and linkages to past and future blooms
Donald M. Anderson, Bruce A. Keafer, Judith L. Kleindinst, Dennis J. McGillicuddy Jr., Jennifer L. Martin, Kerry Norton, Cynthia H. Pilskaln, Juliette L. Smith, Christopher R. Sherwood, Bradford Butman
2014, Deep-Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography (103) 6-26
Here we document Alexandrium fundyense cyst abundance and distribution patterns over nine years (1997 and 2004–2011) in the coastal waters of the Gulf of Maine (GOM) and identify linkages between those patterns and several metrics of the severity or magnitude of blooms occurring before and after each autumn cyst survey....
Controls of vegetation structure and net primary production in restored grasslands
Seth M. Munson, William K. Lauenroth
2014, Journal of Applied Ecology (51) 988-996
1. Vegetation structure and net primary production (NPP) are fundamental properties of ecosystems. Understanding how restoration practices following disturbance interact with environmental factors to control these properties can provide insight on how ecosystems recover and guide management efforts. 2. We assessed the relative contribution of environmental and restoration factors in...
Aggression and coexistence in female caribou
Floyd W. Weckerly, Mark A. Ricca
2014, Arctic (67) 189-195
Female caribou (Rangifer tarandus) are highly gregarious, yet there has been little study of the behavioral mechanisms that foster coexistence. Quantifying patterns of aggression between male and female, particularly in the only cervid taxa where both sexes grow antlers, should provide insight into these mechanisms. We asked if patterns of...
Topographic lidar survey of the Alabama, Mississippi, and Southeast Louisiana Barrier Islands, from September 5 to October 11, 2012
Kristy K. Guy, Kara S. Doran, Hilary F. Stockdon, Nathaniel G. Plant
2014, Data Series 839
This Data Series Report contains lidar elevation data collected from September 5 to October 11, 2012, for the barrier islands of Alabama, Mississippi and southeast Louisiana, including the coast near Port Fourchon. Most of the data were collected September 5–10, 2012, with a reflight conducted on October 11, 2012, to...
Topographic lidar survey of the Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana, February 6, 2012
Kristy K. Guy, Nathaniel G. Plant, Jamie M. Bonisteel-Cormier
2014, Data Series 840
This Data Series Report contains lidar elevation data collected February 6, 2012, for Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana. Point cloud data in lidar data exchange format (LAS) and bare earth digital elevation models (DEMs) in ERDAS Imagine raster format (IMG) are available as downloadable files. The point cloud data—data points described in...
Topographic lidar survey of Dauphin Island, Alabama and Chandeleur, Stake, Grand Gosier and Breton Islands, Louisiana, July 12-14, 2013
Kristy K. Guy, Nathaniel G. Plant
2014, Data Series 838
This Data Series Report contains lidar elevation data collected on July 12 and 14, 2013, for Dauphin Island, Alabama, and Chandeleur, Stake, Grand Gosier and Breton Islands, Louisiana. Classified point cloud data—data points described in three dimensions—in lidar data exchange format (LAS) and bare earth digital elevation models (DEMs) in...
Brine contamination to aquatic resources from oil and gas development in the Williston Basin, United States
Tara L. Chesley-Preston, James L. Coleman, Robert A. Gleason, Seth S. Haines, Karen E. Jenni, Timothy L. Nieman, Zell E. Peterman, Max Post van der Burg, Todd M. Preston, Bruce D. Smith, Brian A. Tangen, Joanna N. Thamke
Robert A. Gleason, Brian A. Tangen, editor(s)
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5017
The Williston Basin, which includes parts of Montana, North Dakota, and South Dakota in the United States and the provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan in Canada, has been a leading domestic oil and gas producing region for more than one-half a century. Currently, there are renewed efforts to develop oil...
Demography of a reintroduced population: moving toward management models for an endangered species, the whooping crane
Sabrina Servanty, Sarah J. Converse, Larissa L. Bailey
2014, Ecological Applications (24) 927-937
The reintroduction of threatened and endangered species is now a common method for reestablishing populations. Typically, a fundamental objective of reintroduction is to establish a self-sustaining population. Estimation of demographic parameters in reintroduced populations is critical, as these estimates serve multiple purposes. First, they support evaluation of progress toward the...
A screening tool for delineating subregions of steady recharge within groundwater models
Jesse E. Dickinson, T.P.A. Ferre, Mark Bakker, Becky Crompton
2014, Vadose Zone Journal (13)
We have developed a screening method for simplifying groundwater models by delineating areas within the domain that can be represented using steady-state groundwater recharge. The screening method is based on an analytical solution for the damping of sinusoidal infiltration variations in homogeneous soils in the vadose zone. The damping depth...
Compilation of gallium resource data for bauxite deposits
Ruth F. Schulte, Nora K. Foley
2014, Open-File Report 2013-1272
Gallium (Ga) concentrations for bauxite deposits worldwide have been compiled from the literature to provide a basis for research regarding the occurrence and distribution of Ga worldwide, as well as between types of bauxite deposits. In addition, this report is an attempt to bring together reported Ga concentration data into...
Hurricane Sandy: observations and analysis of coastal change
Kristin L. Sopkin, Hilary F. Stockdon, Kara S. Doran, Nathaniel G. Plant, Karen L.M. Morgan, Kristy K. Guy, Kathryn E. L. Smith
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1088
Hurricane Sandy, the largest Atlantic hurricane on record, made landfall on October 29, 2012, and impacted a long swath of the U.S. Atlantic coastline. The barrier islands were breached in a number of places and beach and dune erosion occurred along most of the Mid-Atlantic coast. As a part of...