A computer-aided approach for adapting stage-discharge ratings and characterizing uncertainties of streamflow data with discrete measurements
David J. Holtschlag
2022, Scientific Investigations Report 2022-5083
Relations between stage (water level) and discharge of streamflow through a natural channel are the result of time-varying processes, which are commonly described by time-varying stage-discharge ratings. Hydrographers with the U.S. Geological Survey successfully maintain the accuracy of streamflow data by manually applying time-tested approaches to adapt ratings to temporal...
Hydrologic and environmental thresholds in stream fish assemblage structure across flow regimes
John Tyler Fox, Daniel D. Magoulick
2022, Ecological Indicators (144)
The characteristic pattern of variation in flow magnitude, frequency, duration, timing, and rate of change defines the flow regime of rivers and streams and is a key driver of ecosystem processes in fluvial ecosystems. Understanding how freshwater biotic assemblages change across gradients of hydrology and anthropogenic-source disturbance in different streamflow...
Field investigation of sub-isokinetic sampling by the US D-96-type suspended-sediment sampler and its effect on suspended-sediment measurements
Thomas A. Sabol, David J. Topping, Ronald E. Griffiths, Guillaume Dramais
2022, Open-File Report 2022-1077
Collection of accurate suspended-sediment data using depth-integrating samplers requires that they operate isokinetically, that is, that they sample at the local stream velocity unaffected by the presence of the suspended-sediment sampler. Sub-isokinetic suspended-sediment sampling causes grain-size dependent positive biases in the suspended-sediment concentration measured by the suspended-sediment sampler. Collapsible bag...
Pharmaceuticals and personal care products in passive samplers at seven coastal sites off West Maui, Hawaiʻi:
Pamela L. Campbell, Nancy G. Prouty, Curt D. Storlazzi
2022, Open-File Report 2022-1065
Passive membrane samplers—semipermeable membrane devices and polar organic chemical integrative samplers—were deployed for 22 continuous days at 7 sites along the West Maui, Hawaiʻi, coastline in February and March 2017 to assess organic contaminants at shallow coral reef ecosystems from diverse upstream inputs. The distribution of organic compounds observed at...
Drought and water management in ancient Maya society
Tripti Bhattacharya, Samantha Krause, Dan Penny, David Wahl
2022, Progress in Physical Geography: Earth and Environment (47) 189-204
Paleoclimate research in the Maya region of Mesoamerica provides compelling evidence of drought during key periods of cultural transition in Maya society. These include the transition from the Preclassic to the Classic, and from Classic to the Postclassic. Previous research emphasized a causal relationship between drought and...
Groundwater and surface-water data collection for the Walla Walla River Basin, Washington, 2018–22
Elisabeth T. Fasser, Sarah B. Dunn
2022, Data Report 1163
The semi-arid Walla Walla River Basin (WWRB) spans 1777 square miles in the states of Washington and Oregon and supports a diverse agricultural region as well as cities and rural communities that are partially reliant on groundwater. Historically, surface water and groundwater data have been collected in the WWRB...
Tapwater exposures, effects potential, and residential risk management in Northern Plains Nations
Paul M. Bradley, Kristin M. Romanok, Kelly L. Smalling, Michael J. Focazio, Robert Charboneau, Christine Marie George, Ana Navas-Acien, Marcia O’Leary, Reno Red Cloud, Tracy Zacher, Sara E. Breitmeyer, Mary C. Cardon, Christa K. Cuny, Guthrie Ducheneaux, Kendra Enright, Nicola Evans, James L. Gray, David E. Harvey, Michelle L. Hladik, Leslie K. Kanagy, Keith A. Loftin, R. Blaine McCleskey, Elizabeth Medlock-Kakaley, Shannon M. Meppelink, Joshua F. Valder, Christopher P. Weis
2022, Environmental Science and Technology Water (2) 1772-1788
In the United States (US), private-supply tapwater (TW) is rarely monitored. This data gap undermines individual/community risk-management decision-making, leading to an increased probability of unrecognized contaminant exposures in rural and remote locations that rely on private wells. We assessed point-of-use (POU) TW in three northern plains Tribal Nations, where ongoing...
Biosiliceous, organic-rich, and phosphatic facies of Triassic strata of northwest Alaska: Transect across a high-latitude, low-angle continental margin
Julie A. Dumoulin, Katherine J. Whidden, William A. Rouse, Richard O. Lease, Adam Boehlke, Paul O’Sullivan
2022, Book chapter, Understanding the Monterey Formation and similar biosiliceous units across space and time
The Shublik Formation (Middle and Upper Triassic) is a mixed siliciclastic-carbonate-phosphatic unit in northern Alaska. It generated oil found in Prudhoe Bay and other accumulations and is a prospective self-sourced resource play on Alaska’s North Slope. Its distal, deeper-water equivalent—the Otuk Formation—consists largely of radiolarian chert, mudstone, and limestone and...
Flopy: The Python interface for MODFLOW
Andrew T. Leaf, Michael N. Fienen
2022, Groundwater (60) 710-712
No abstract available....
Decision-making for managing harmful algal blooms
Jennifer L. Graham
2022, General Information Product 215
Cyanobacteria are a global water-quality concern because these organisms can develop into harmful blooms that affect ecologic, economic, and public health. U.S. Geological Survey scientists worked with the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation to develop a structured decision-making template for managing cyanobacterial harmful algal blooms. This...
Evaluating acid-aluminum stress in streams of the Northeastern U.S. at watershed, fish community and physiological scales
Benjamin J Zdasiuk, Celia Y. Chen, Stephen D. McCormick, Keith H. Nislow, Joel G Singley, John T. Kelly
2022, Ecological Indicators (144)
In spite of overall improvements in air and water quality, biological stress from low pH and high concentrations of inorganic aluminum continue to impact fish and fish habitat in northeastern North America, with independent and interactive effects on individuals, populations and communities. Integrative indicators can therefore be useful in monitoring...
Inventory of eelgrass (Zostera marina) and seaweeds at the end of the Alaska Peninsula, August–September 2012:
David H. Ward, Kyle R. Hogrefe, Tyronne F. Donnelly, Neils C. Dau, Orville Lind, Kevin J. Payne, Sandra C. Lindstrom
2022, Open-File Report 2021-1034
Coastal communities in Alaska are undergoing rapid environmental change from increasing temperatures and baseline data are needed to monitor potential impacts. We conducted the first surveys of the abundance and distribution of eelgrass (Zostera marina) and seaweeds in the western part of Izembek National Wildlife Refuge at the end of...
Eelgrass (Zostera marina) and seaweed abundance along the coast of Nunivak Island, Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska, 2010
David H. Ward, Kyle R. Hogrefe, Tyrone F. Donnelly, Lucretia L. Fairchild
2022, Open-File Report 2020-1143
Eelgrass (<em>Zostera marina</em>) is a highly productive seagrass that plays an essential role in the health of the estuarine and coastal ecosystems; however, information about its abundance and distribution is insufficient in the Bering Sea along the Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge. We inventoried the spatial extent and abundance of...
Eelgrass (Zostera marina) and Seaweed Abundance along the Coast of Togiak National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska, 2008–10
David H. Ward, Kyle R. Hogrefe, Michael A. Swaim, Tyronne F. Donnelly, Lucretia L. Fairchild
2022, Open-File Report 2020-1114
We conducted a point-sampling survey to determine eelgrass (Zostera marina) and seaweed abundance in coastal waters adjacent to Togiak National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska, in July 2008–10. Eelgrass was known to be abundant in protected embayments of the southeastern Bering Sea and near the Togiak National Wildlife Refuge, but prior to...
Distribution of eelgrass (Zostera marina) in coastal waters adjacent to Togiak National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska
David H. Ward, Kyle R. Hogrefe, Tyronne F. Donnelly, Michael A. Swaim
2022, Open-File Report 2020-1080
Declines in the distribution and abundance of seagrasses worldwide have prompted a need for baseline distribution maps of eelgrass (Zostera marina) in Alaska. We used high-resolution digital-color aerial photography and multi-spectral satellite imagery to map the distribution and spatial extent of eelgrass at 21 sites in coastal waters adjacent...
Abundance and distribution of eelgrass (Zostera marina) and seaweeds at Izembek National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska, 2007–10
David H. Ward, Kyle R. Hogrefe, Tyronne F. Donnelly, Lucretia L. Fairchild, Kristine M. Sowl, Sandra C. Lindstrom
2022, Open-File Report 2020-1035
Eelgrass (Zostera marina) meadows are expansive along the lower Alaska Peninsula, supporting a rich diversity of marine life, yet little is known about their status and trends in the region. We tested techniques to inventory and monitor trends in the spatial extent and abundance of eelgrass in lagoons of...
Oxygenation of a karst subterranean estuary during a tropical cyclone: Mechanisms and implications for the carbon cycle
David Brankovits, John Pohlman, Laura Lapham
2022, Limnology & Oceanography (67) 2691-2705
Seasonal precipitation affects carbon turnover and methane accumulation in karst subterranean estuaries, the region of coastal carbonate aquifers where hydrologic and biogeochemical processes regulate material exchange between the land and ocean. However, the impact that tropical cyclones exert on subsurface carbon cycling within karst landscapes is...
Laysan albatross exhibit complex behavioral plasticity in the subtropical and subarctic North Pacific Ocean
Morgan Elizabeth Gilmour, Jonathan J. Felis, Michelle M. Hester, Lindsay C. Young, Josh Adams
2022, Marine Ecology Progress Series (697) 125-147
Animals that regularly traverse habitat extremes between the subtropics and subarctic are expected to exhibit foraging behaviors that respond to changes in dynamic ocean habitats, and these behaviors may facilitate adaptations to novel and changing climates. During the chick-provisioning stage, Laysan albatross Phoebastria immutabilis parents regularly undertake short- and long-distance foraging trips...
Foraging ecology of Red-billed Tropicbird Phaethon aethereus in the Caribbean during early chick rearing revealed by GPS tracking
H. Madden, Y. G. Satgé, B. Wilkinson, Patrick G.R. Jodice
2022, Marine Ornithology: Journal of Seabird Research and Conservation (50) 165-175
Investigating the foraging patterns of tropical seabirds can provide important information about their ocean habitat affinities as well as prey choice. Foraging studies of Red-billed Tropicbird Phaethon aethereus populations in the Caribbean are lacking. We sought to rectify this by opportunistically sampling regurgitates at nest sites on the island of St....
Loss of street tree canopy increases stormwater runoff
William R. Selbig, Steven P. Loheide II, William Shuster, Bryant C. Scharenbroch, Robert C. Coville, James Kruegler, William Avery, Ralph J. Haefner, David Nowak
2022, Fact Sheet 2022-3074
Urban forests have largely been overlooked for the role they play in reducing stormwater runoff volume by using hydrologic processes such as interception (rainfall intercepted by tree canopy), evapotranspiration (the transfer of water from vegetation into the atmosphere) and infiltration (percolation of rainwater into the Earth’s soil). Early research into...
Postbreeding movements and molting ecology of female gadwalls and mallards
Jeffrey D Kohl, Michael L. Casazza, Cory T. Overton, Mark P. Herzog, Joshua T. Ackerman, Cliff L. Feldheim, John M. Eadie
2022, Journal of Wildlife Management (86)
The wing molt is an important annual life-history event that occurs in waterfowl and molt site selection can play an important role in determining survival. We tracked postbreeding movements of gadwall (Mareca strepera) and mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) females that bred in the Suisun Marsh (Suisun) of...
Using biological responses to monitor freshwater post-spill conditions over 3 years in Blacktail Creek, North Dakota, USA
Aida Farag, David Harper, Isabelle M. Cozzarelli, Douglas B. Kent, Adam C. Mumford, Denise M. Akob, Travis W. Schaeffer, Luke R. Iwanowicz
2022, Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology (83) 253-271
A pipeline carrying unconventional oil and gas (OG) wastewater spilled approximately 11 million liters of wastewater into Blacktail Creek, North Dakota, USA. Flow of the mix of stream water and wastewater down the channel resulted in storage of contaminants in the hyporheic zone and along...
Growth of complex volcanic ash aggregates in the Tierra Blanca Joven eruption of Ilopango Caldera, El Salvador
Henry Hoult, Richard J. Brown, Alexa R. Van Eaton, Walter Hernandez, Katherine J Dobson, Bryan Woodward
2022, Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research (431)
Aggregation processes control both the residence time and dispersal of volcanic ash during eruptions yet remain incompletely understood. The products of aggregation vary from simple ash clusters to large, complexly layered accretionary lapilli. Here we detail the micro-stratigraphy of a single population of accretionary lapilli that grew during the ∼431 CE...
Water-level data for the Albuquerque Basin and adjacent areas, central New Mexico, period of record through September 30, 2021
Meghan T. Bell, N.Y. Montero
2022, Data Report 1162
The Albuquerque Basin, located in central New Mexico, is about 100 miles long and 25–40 miles wide. The basin is hydrologically defined as the extent of consolidated and unconsolidated deposits of Tertiary and Quaternary age that encompasses the structural Rio Grande Rift between San Acacia to the south and Cochiti...
Predator movements in relation to habitat features reveal vulnerability of duck nests to predation
Sarah H. Peterson, Joshua T. Ackerman, Meghan P Keating, Carley Rose Schacter, C. Alex Hartman, Michael L. Casazza, Mark P. Herzog
2022, Ecology and Evolution (12)
Nest predation is the main cause of nest failure for ducks. Understanding how habitat features influence predator movements may facilitate management of upland and wetland breeding habitats that reduces predator encounter rates with duck nests and increases nest survival rates. For 1618 duck nests, nest survival...
