Decadal-scale variability of diffuse CO2 emissions and seismicity revealed from long-term monitoring (1995–2013) at Mammoth Mountain, California, USA
Cynthia A. Werner, Deborah Bergfeld, Chris Farrar, Michael P. Doukas, Peter J. Kelly, Christoph Kern
2014, Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research (289) 51-63
Mammoth Mountain, California, is a dacitic volcano that has experienced several periods of unrest since 1989. The onset of diffuse soil CO2 emissions at numerous locations on the flanks of the volcano began in 1989–1990 following an 11-month period of heightened seismicity. CO2 emission rates were measured yearly from 1995...
Landsat: Sustaining earth observations beyond Landsat 8
Francis P. Kelly, Thomas M. Holm
2014, Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing (80) 15-15
The Landsat series of Earth-observing satellites began 41-years ago as a partnership between the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) of the Department of the Interior (DOI) and The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). For the past 41 years, Landsat satellites and associated U.S. Government ground processing, distribution, and archiving systems...
Science is the first step to siting nuclear waste repositories
Christopher E. Neuzil
2014, Eos, Earth and Space Science News (95) 71-71
As Shaw [2014] notes, U.S. research on shale as a repository host was halted before expending anything close to the effort devoted to studying crystalline rock, salt, and - most notably - tuff at Yucca Mountain. The new political reality regarding Yucca Mountain may allow reconsideration of the decision to...
Bacterial pathogen gene abundance and relation to recreational water quality at seven Great Lakes beaches
Ryan J. Oster, Rasanthi U. Wijesinghe, Lisa Reynolds Fogarty, Sheridan K. Haack, Lisa R. Fogarty, Taaja R. Tucker, Stephen Riley
2014, Environmental Science & Technology (48) 14148-14157
Quantitative assessment of bacterial pathogens, their geographic variability, and distribution in various matrices at Great Lakes beaches are limited. Quantitative PCR (qPCR) was used to test for genes from E. coli O157:H7 (eaeO157), shiga-toxin producing E. coli (stx2), Campylobacter jejuni (mapA), Shigella spp. (ipaH), and a Salmonella enterica-specific (SE) DNA sequence at seven Great Lakes beaches, in algae, water,...
Predicting Impacts of tropical cyclones and sea-Level rise on beach mouse habitat
Q. Chen, Hongqing Wang, Lixia Wang, Robert Tawes, Drew Rollman
2014, Journal of Coastal Research (68) 12-19
Alabama beach mouse (ABM) (Peromyscus polionotus ammobates) is an important component of the coastal dune ecosystem along the Gulf of Mexico. Due to habitat loss and degradation, ABM is federally listed as an endangered species. In this study, we examined the impacts of storm surge and wind waves, which are...
Reptilia: Testudines: Emydidae Graptemys gibbonsi - Pascagoula Map Turtle
Jeffrey E. Lovich, Joshua R. Ennen
2014, Book chapter, Catalogue of American Amphibians and Reptile
The Pascagoula Map Turtle, Graptemys gibbonsi, is a large riverine species that exhibits pronounced sexual dimorphism, where females attain a maximum carapace length (CL) of 295 mm and males a maximum of 141 mm (Lovich et al. 2009). Mean adult female CL (248 mm) can be well over twice the...
Assessment of lesser prairie-chicken use of wildlife water guzzlers
Clint W. Boal, Philip K. Borsdorf, Trevor S. Gicklhorn
2014, Bulletin of the Texas Ornithological Society (46) 10-18
Man-made water sources have been used as a management tool for wildlife, especially in arid regions, but the value of these water sources for wildlife populations is not well understood. In particular, the value of water as a conservation tool for Lesser Prairie-Chickens (Tympanuchus pallidicinctus) is unknown. However, this is...
Survival of female white-cheeked pintails during brood rearing in Puerto Rico
Marisel Lopez-Flores, J. Brian Davis, Francisco Vilella, Richard M. Kaminski, Jose A. Cruz-Burgos, Joseph D. Lancaster
2014, Caribbean Naturalist (10) 1-12
Anas bahamensis (White-cheeked Pintail) is widely distributed across the Caribbean islands and South America. The species is classified as threatened in Puerto Rico and a species of least concern across most of its range. Little demographic data exist for the species, particularly during the breeding season. During 2000-2002, we radiomarked...
Probing reservoir-triggered earthquakes in Koyna, India, through scientific deep drilling
H. Gupta, Shailesh Nayak, William L. Ellsworth, Y. J. B. Rao, S. Rajan, B.K. Bansal, N. Purnachandra Rao, S. Roy, K. Arora, R. Mohan, V. M. Tiwari, H. V. S. Satyanarayana, P. K. Patro, D. Shashidhar, K. Mallika
2014, Scientific Drilling (18) 5-9
We report here the salient features of the recently concluded International Continental Scientific Drilling Program (ICDP) workshop in Koyna, India. This workshop was a sequel to the earlier held ICDP workshop in Hyderabad and Koyna in 2011. A total of 49 experts (37 from India and 12 from 8...
Development of a generic auto-calibration package for regional ecological modeling and application in the Central Plains of the United States
Yiping Wu, Shuguang Liu, Zhengpeng Li, Devendra Dahal, Claudia J. Young, Gail L. Schmidt, Jinxun Liu, Brian Davis, Terry L. Sohl, Jeremy M. Werner, Jennifer Oeding
2014, Ecological Informatics (19) 35-46
Process-oriented ecological models are frequently used for predicting potential impacts of global changes such as climate and land-cover changes, which can be useful for policy making. It is critical but challenging to automatically derive optimal parameter values at different scales, especially at regional scale, and validate the model performance. In...
Width and dip of the southern San Andreas Fault at Salt Creek from modeling of geophysical data
Victoria E. Langenheim, Noah D. Athens, Daniel S. Scheirer, Gary S. Fuis, Michael J. Rymer, Mark R. Goldman
Robert E. Reynolds, editor(s)
2014, Conference Paper, Not a drop left to drink
We investigate the geometry and width of the southernmost stretch of the San Andreas Fault zone using new gravity and magnetic data along line 7 of the Salton Seismic Imaging Project. In the Salt Creek area of Durmid Hill, the San Andreas Fault coincides with a complex magnetic signature, with...
Chromic and iron oxides as fecal markers to identify individual whooping cranes
Megan E. Brown, Robert Doyle, Jane N. Chandler, Glenn H. Olsen, John B. French, David E Wildt, Sarah J. Converse, Carol L Keefer, Nucharin Songsasen
David Aborn, Richard P. Urbanek, editor(s)
2014, Conference Paper, Proceedings of the twelfth North American crane workshop
The whooping crane (Grus americana) is listed as endangered under the IUCN Red List, the United States Endangered Species Act, and the Canadian Species at Risk Act (BirdLife International 2012, CWS and USFWS 2007). A major focus of recovery efforts for this endangered species is reintroduction to establish new populations...
Mapping advanced argillic alteration at Cuprite, Nevada, using imaging spectroscopy
Gregg A. Swayze, Roger N. Clark, Alexander F.H. Goetz, K. Eric Livo, George N. Breit, Fred A. Kruse, Stephen J. Sutley, Lawrence W. Snee, Heather A. Lowers, James L. Post, Roger E. Stoffregen, Roger P. Ashley
2014, Economic Geology (109) 1179-1221
Mineral maps based on Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) data were used to study late Miocene advanced argillic alteration at Cuprite, Nevada. Distributions of Fe-bearing minerals, clays, micas, sulfates, and carbonates were mapped using the Tetracorder spectral-shape matching system. The Al content of white micas increases toward altered areas and...
Predicting the spatial extent of liquefaction from geospatial and earthquake specific parameters
Jing Zhu, Laurie G. Baise, Eric M. Thompson, David J. Wald, Keith L. Knudsen
George Deodatis, Bruce R. Ellingwood, Dan M. Frangopol, editor(s)
2014, Conference Paper, Safety, reliability, risk and life-cycle performance of structures and infrastructures: Proceedings of the 11th international conference on structural safety and reliability
The spatially extensive damage from the 2010-2011 Christchurch, New Zealand earthquake events are a reminder of the need for liquefaction hazard maps for anticipating damage from future earthquakes. Liquefaction hazard mapping as traditionally relied on detailed geologic mapping and expensive site studies. These traditional techniques are difficult to apply globally...
Experimental additions of aluminum sulfateand ammonium nitrate to in situ mesocosms toreduce cyanobacterial biovolume and microcystinconcentration
Theodore D. Harris, Frank M. Wilhelm, Jennifer L. Graham, Keith A. Loftin
2014, Lake and Reservoir Management (30) 84-93
Recent studies suggest that nitrogen additions to increase the total nitrogen:total phosphorus (TN:TP) ratio may reduce cyanobacterial biovolume and microcystin concentration in reservoirs. In systems where TP is >100 μg/L, however, nitrogen additions to increase the TN:TP ratio could cause ammonia, nitrate, or nitrite toxicity to terrestrial and aquatic organisms. Reducing phosphorus via...
2011 Summary: Coastal wetland restoration research
Kurt P. Kowalski, Michael J. Wiley, Douglas A. Wilcox, Martha L. Carlson Mazur, Alex Czayka, Andrea Dominguez, Susan Doty, Mike Eggleston, Sean Green, Amanda Sweetman
2014, Report
The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) projects currently taking place in Great Lakes coastal wetlands provide a unique opportunity to study ecosystem response to management actions as practitioners strive to improve wetland function and increase ecosystem services. Through a partnership between the U.S. Geological Survey – Great Lakes Science Center...
ARkStorm@Tahoe: Stakeholder perspectives on vulnerabilities and preparedness for an extreme storm event in the greater Lake Tahoe, Reno, and Carson City region
Christine M. Albano, Dale A. Cox, Michael D. Dettinger, Kevin Shaller, Toby L. Welborn, Maureen McCarthy
2014, Report
Atmospheric rivers (ARs) are strongly linked to extreme winter precipitation events in the Western U.S., accounting for 80 percent of extreme floods in the Sierra Nevada and surrounding lowlands. In 2010, the U.S. Geological Survey developed the ARkStorm extreme storm scenario for California to quantify risks from extreme winter storms...
U.S. Geological Survey Science for the Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative - 2013 Annual Report
Zachary H. Bowen, Cameron L. Aldridge, Patrick J. Anderson, Timothy J. Assal, Carleton R. Bern, Laura R Biewick, Gregory K. Boughton, Anna D. Chalfoun, Geneva W. Chong, Marie K. Dematatis, Bradley C. Fedy, Steven L. Garman, Steve Germaine, Matthew G. Hethcoat, Collin G. Homer, Christopher Huber, Matthew J. Kauffman, Natalie Latysh, Daniel J. Manier, Cynthia P. Melcher, Kirk A. Miller, Christopher J. Potter, Spencer Schell, Michael J. Sweat, Annika W. Walters, Anna B. Wilson
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1213
This is the sixth report produced by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) for the Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative (WLCI) to detail annual activities conducted by USGS for addressing specific management needs identified by WLCI partners. In FY2013, there were 25 ongoing and new projects conducted by the USGS. These projects...
Carcass analog provides marine subsidies for macroinvertebrates and juvenile Atlantic 8 salmon in temperate oligotrophic streams
Margaret Q. Guyette, Cynthia S. Loftin, Joseph D. Zydlewski, Richard Cunjak
2014, Freshwater Biology (59) 392-406
Anadromous fish populations entering freshwater ecosystems provide organic matter and marine-derived nutrients during spawning and subsequent mortalities of adults. Dams and other impediments to connectivity in rivers and streams have affected anadromous fish populations in many regions and prevented or reduced this influx of organic materials and...
Multielevation calibration of frequency-domain electromagnetic data
Burke J. Minsley, M. Andy Kass, Greg Hodges, Bruce D. Smith
2014, Geophysics (79) E201-E216
Systematic calibration errors must be taken into account because they can substantially impact the accuracy of inverted subsurface resistivity models derived from frequency-domain electromagnetic data, resulting in potentially misleading interpretations. We have developed an approach that uses data acquired at multiple elevations over the same location to assess calibration errors....
Potentiometric surface and water-level difference maps of selected confined aquifers in Southern Maryland and Maryland’s Eastern Shore, 1975-2013
Andrew W. Staley, David C. Andreasen, Stephen E. Curtin
2014, Open-File Report 14-02-02
Groundwater is the principal source of freshwater supply in most of Southern Maryland and Maryland’s Eastern Shore. It is also the source of freshwater supply used in the operation of the Calvert Cliffs, Chalk Point, and Morgantown power plants. Increased groundwater withdrawals over the last several decades have caused groundwater...
Social impact analysis: monetary valuation
Lisa A. Wainger, Robert J. Johnston, Kenneth J. Bagstad, Frank Casey, Tibor Vegh
2014, Book chapter, Federal Resource Management and Ecosystem Services Guidebook
This section provides basic guidance for using and conducting economic valuation, including criteria for judging whether valuation is appropriate for supporting decisions. It provides an introduction to the economic techniques used to measure changes in social welfare and describes which methods may be most appropriate for use in valuing particular...
Plenary: Progress in Regional Landslide Hazard Assessment—Examples from the USA
Rex L. Baum, William H. Schulz, Dianne L. Brien, William J. Burns, Mark E. Reid, Jonathan W. Godt
2014, Conference Paper, Landslide science for a safer geoenvironment
Landslide hazard assessment at local and regional scales contributes to mitigation of landslides in developing and densely populated areas by providing information for (1) land development and redevelopment plans and regulations, (2) emergency preparedness plans, and (3) economic analysis to (a) set priorities for engineered mitigation projects and (b) define...
USGS48 Puerto Rico precipitation - A new isotopic reference material for δ2H and δ18O measurements of water
Haiping Qi, Tyler B. Coplen, Lauren V. Tarbox, Jennifer M. Lorenz, Martha A. Scholl
2014, Isotopes in Environmental and Health Studies (50) 442-447
A new secondary isotopic reference material has been prepared from Puerto Rico precipitation, which was filtered, homogenised, loaded into glass ampoules, sealed with a torch, autoclaved to eliminate biological activity, and calibrated by dual-inlet isotope-ratio mass spectrometry. This isotopic reference material, designated as USGS48, is intended to be one of...
A design for a sustained assessment of climate forcings and feedbacks on land use land cover change
Thomas Loveland, Rezaul Mahmood
2014, Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society (95) 1563-1572
Land use and land cover change (LULCC) significantly influences the climate system. Hence, to prepare the nation for future climate change and variability, a sustained assessment of LULCC and its climatic impacts needs to be undertaken. To address this objective, not only do we need to determine contemporary trends in...
