Three-dimensional seismic velocity structure of Mauna Loa and Kilauea volcanoes in Hawaii from local seismic tomography
Guoqing Lin, Peter M. Shearer, Robin S. Matoza, Paul G. Okubo, Falk Amelung
2014, Journal of Geophysical Research B: Solid Earth (119) 4377-4392
We present a new three-dimensional seismic velocity model of the crustal and upper mantle structure for Mauna Loa and Kilauea volcanoes in Hawaii. Our model is derived from the first-arrival times of the compressional and shear waves from about 53,000 events on and near the Island of Hawaii between 1992...
An analysis of potential water availability from the Charles Mill, Clendening, Piedmont, Pleasant Hill, Senecaville, and Wills Creek Lakes in the Muskingum River Watershed, Ohio
G. F. Koltun
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5071
This report presents the results of a study to assess potential water availability from the Charles Mill, Clendening, Piedmont, Pleasant Hill, Senecaville, and Wills Creek Lakes, located within the Muskingum River Watershed, Ohio. The assessment was based on the criterion that water withdrawals should not appreciably affect maintenance of recreation-season...
Connecting the dots: a collaborative USGS-NPS effort to expand the utility of monitoring data
James B. Grace, Donald R. Schoolmaster Jr., E. William Schweiger, Brian R. Mitchell, Kathryn Miller, Glenn R. Guntenspergen
2014, The George Wright Forum (31) 181-190
The Natural Resource Challenge (National Park Service 1999) was a call to action. It constituted a mandate for monitoring based on the twin premises that (1) natural resources in national parks require active management and stewardship if we are to protect them from gradual degradation, and (2) we cannot protect...
Lithium: for harnessing renewable energy
Dwight Bradley, Brian W. Jaskula
2014, Fact Sheet 2014-3035
Lithium, which has the chemical symbol Li and an atomic number of 3, is the first metal in the periodic table. Lithium has many uses, the most prominent being in batteries for cell phones, laptops, and electric and hybrid vehicles. Worldwide sources of lithium are broken down by ore-deposit type...
Winter browse selection by white-tailed deer and implications for bottomland forest restoration in the Upper Mississippi River Valley, USA
Benjamin J. Cogger, Nathan R. De Jager, Meredith Thomsen, Carrie Reinhardt Adams
2014, Natural Areas Journal (34) 144-153
White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) forage selectively, modifying upland forest species composition and in some cases shifting ecosystems to alternative stable states. Few studies, however, have investigated plant selection by deer in bottomland forests. Herbaceous invasive species are common in wetlands and their expansion could be promoted if deer avoid them...
Nonlethal screening of bat-wing skin with the use of ultraviolet fluorescence to detect lesions indicative of white-nose syndrome
Gregory G. Turner, Carol U. Meteyer, Hazel Barton, John F. Gumbs, DeeAnn M. Reeder, Barrie Overton, Hana Bandouchova, Tomas Bartonicka, Natalia Martinkova, Jiri Pikula, Jan Zukal, David S. Blehert
2014, Journal of Wildlife Diseases (50) 566-573
Definitive diagnosis of the bat disease white-nose syndrome (WNS) requires histologic analysis to identify the cutaneous erosions caused by the fungal pathogen Pseudogymnoascus [formerly Geomyces] destructans (Pd). Gross visual inspection does not distinguish bats with or without WNS, and no nonlethal, on-site, preliminary screening methods are available for WNS in...
Extending the turbidity record: making additional use of continuous data from turbidity, acoustic-Doppler, and laser diffraction instruments and suspended-sediment samples in the Colorado River in Grand Canyon
Nicholas Voichick, David J. Topping
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5097
Turbidity is a measure of the scattering and absorption of light in water, which in rivers is primarily caused by particles, usually sediment, suspended in the water. Turbidity varies significantly with differences in the design of the instrument measuring turbidity, a point that is illustrated in this study by side-by-side...
Electron microprobe analyses of glasses from Kīlauea tephra units, Kīlauea Volcano, Hawaii
Rosalind L. Helz, David A. Clague, Larry G. Mastin, Timothy R. Rose
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1090
This report presents approximately 2,100 glass analyses from three tephra units of Kīlauea Volcano: the Keanakākoʻi Tephra, the Kulanaokuaiki Tephra, and the Pāhala Ash. It also includes some new analyses obtained as part of a re-evaluation of the MgO contents of glasses in two of the three original datasets; this...
Mountain landscapes offer few opportunities for high-elevation tree species migration
David M. Bell, John B. Bradford, William K. Lauenroth
2014, Global Change Biology (20) 1441-1451
Climate change is anticipated to alter plant species distributions. Regional context, notably the spatial complexity of climatic gradients, may influence species migration potential. While high-elevation species may benefit from steep climate gradients in mountain regions, their persistence may be threatened by limited suitable habitat as land area decreases with elevation....
Groundwater Dating with Atmospheric Halogenated Compounds
Karl B. Haase, Eurybiades Busenberg
2014, Book chapter, Encyclopedia of Scientific Dating Methods
"Atmospheric environmental releases refer to the emission of stable, long-lived compounds of solely anthropogenic origin into the atmosphere and the use of the compounds to estimate dates of their incorporation into groundwater."...
Proceedings of the U.S. Geological Survey Eighth Biennial Geographic Information Science Workshop and first The National Map Users Conference, Denver, Colorado, May 10-13, 2011
Jennifer B. Sieverling, Jeffrey Dietterle, editor(s)
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5053
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is sponsoring the first The National Map Users Conference in conjunction with the eighth biennial Geographic Information Science (GIS) Workshop on May 10-13, 2011, in Lakewood, Colorado. The GIS Workshop will be held at the USGS National Training Center, located on the Denver Federal Center,...
Simulation of natural flows in major river basins in Alabama
Alexandria M. Hunt, Ana María García
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5021
The Office of Water Resources (OWR) in the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs (ADECA) is charged with the assessment of the State’s water resources. This study developed a watershed model for the major river basins that are within Alabama or that cross Alabama’s borders, which serves as a...
Organizing phenological data resources to inform natural resource conservation
Alyssa H. Rosemartin, Theresa Crimmins, Carolyn A.F. Enquist, Katharine L. Gerst, Jherime L. Kellermann, Erin E. Posthumus, Ellen G. Denny, Patricia Guertin, Lee Marsh, Jake F. Weltzin
2014, Biological Conservation (173) 90-97
Changes in the timing of plant and animal life cycle events, in response to climate change, are already happening across the globe. The impacts of these changes may affect biodiversity via disruption to mutualisms, trophic mismatches, invasions and population declines. To understand the nature, causes and consequences of changed, varied...
An approach for filtering hyperbolically positioned underwater acoustic telemetry data with position precision estimates
Trevor D. Meckley, Christopher M. Holbrook, C. Michael Wagner, Thomas R. Binder
2014, Animal Biotelemetry (2)
Background Telemetry systems that estimate animal positions with hyperbolic positioning algorithms also provide a technology-specific estimate of position precision (e.g., horizontal position error (HPE) for the VEMCO positioning system). Position precision estimates (e.g., dilution of precision for a global positioning system (GPS)) have been used extensively to identify and remove positions...
Standardized phenology monitoring methods to track plant and animal activity for science and resource management applications
Ellen G. Denny, Katharine L. Gerst, Abraham J. Miller-Rushing, Geraldine L. Tierney, Theresa Crimmins, Carolyn A.F. Enquist, Patricia Guertin, Alyssa H. Rosemartin, Mark D. Schwartz, Kathryn A. Thomas, Jake F. Weltzin
2014, International Journal of Biometeorology (58) 591-601
Phenology offers critical insights into the responses of species to climate change; shifts in species’ phenologies can result in disruptions to the ecosystem processes and services upon which human livelihood depends. To better detect such shifts, scientists need long-term phenological records covering many taxa and across a broad geographic distribution....
Mercury speciation in the Mt. Amiata mining district (Italy): interplay between urban activities and mercury contamination
Valentina Rimondi, Fabrizio Bardelli, Marco Benvenuti, Pilario Costagliola, John E. Gray, Pierfranco Lattanzi
2014, Chemical Geology (380) 110-118
A fundamental step to evaluate the biogeochemical and eco-toxicological significance of Hg dispersion in the environment is to determine speciation of Hg in solid matrices. In this study, several analytical techniques such as scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), sequential chemical extractions (SCEs), and X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XANES) were...
Quantifying the effectiveness of conservation measures to control the spread of anthropogenic hybridization in stream salmonids: A climate adaptation case study
Robert K. Al-Chokhachy, Clint C. Muhlfeld, Matthew Boyer, Leslie A. Jones, Amber Steed, Jeffrey L. Kershner
2014, North American Journal of Fisheries Management (34) 642-652
Quantifying the effectiveness of management actions to mitigate the effects of changing climatic conditions (i.e., climate adaptation) can be difficult, yet critical for conservation. We used population genetic data from 1984 to 2011 to assess the degree to which ambient climatic conditions and targeted suppression of sources of nonnative Rainbow...
Prevalence, transmission, and genetic diversity of blood parasites infecting tundra-nesting geese in Alaska
Andrew M. Ramey, John A. Reed, Joel A. Schmutz, Tom F. Fondell, Brandt W. Meixell, Jerry W. Hupp, David H. Ward, John Terenzi, Craig R. Ely
2014, Canadian Journal of Zoology (92) 699-706
A total of 842 blood samples collected from five species of tundra-nesting geese in Alaska was screened for haemosporidian parasites using molecular techniques. Parasites of the generaLeucocytozoon Danilewsky, 1890, Haemoproteus Kruse, 1890, and Plasmodium Marchiafava and Celli, 1885 were detected in 169 (20%), 3 (<1%), and 0 (0%) samples, respectively. Occupancy modeling was used to...
Invasive hybridization in a threatened species is accelerated by climate change
Clint C. Muhlfeld, Ryan P. Kovach, Leslie A. Jones, Robert K. Al-Chokhachy, Matthew C. Boyer, Robb F. Leary, Winsor H. Lowe, Gordon Luikart, Fred W. Allendorf
2014, Nature Climate Change (4) 620-624
Climate change will decrease worldwide biodiversity through a number of potential pathways1, including invasive hybridization<a id="ref-link-section-d51451e531" title="Hoffmann, A. A. & Sgro, C....
Factors affecting temporal variability of arsenic in groundwater used for drinking water supply in the United States
Joseph D. Ayotte, Marcel Belaval, Scott A. Olson, Karen R. Burow, Sarah M. Flanagan, Stephen R. Hinkle, Bruce D. Lindsey
2014, Science of the Total Environment (505) 1370-1379
The occurrence of arsenic in groundwater is a recognized environmental hazard with worldwide importance and much effort has been focused on surveying and predicting where arsenic occurs. Temporal variability is one aspect of this environmental hazard that has until recently received less attention than other aspects. For this study, we...
Regional differentiation among populations of the Diamondback terrapin (Malaclemys terrapin)
Kristen M. Hart, Margaret E. Hunter, Tim L. King
2014, Conservation Genetics (15) 593-603
The Diamondback terrapin (Malaclemys terrapin) is a brackish-water turtle species whose populations have been fragmented due to anthropogenic activity such as development of coastal habitat and entrapment in commercial blue crab (Callinectes sapidus) fishing gear. Genetic analyses can improve conservation efforts for the long-term protection of the species. We used...
Tsunami forecast by joint inversion of real-time tsunami waveforms and seismic of GPS data: application to the Tohoku 2011 tsunami
Wei Yong, Andrew V. Newman, Gavin P. Hayes, Vasily V. Titov, Liujuan Tang
2014, Pure and Applied Geophysics (171) 3281-3305
Correctly characterizing tsunami source generation is the most critical component of modern tsunami forecasting. Although difficult to quantify directly, a tsunami source can be modeled via different methods using a variety of measurements from deep-ocean tsunameters, seismometers, GPS, and other advanced instruments, some of which in or near real time....
Tsunami vertical-evacuation planning in the U.S. Pacific Northwest as a geospatial, multi-criteria decision problem
Nathan Wood, Jeanne Jones, John Schelling, Mathew Schmidtlein
2014, International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction (9) 68-83
Tsunami vertical-evacuation (TVE) refuges can be effective risk-reduction options for coastal communities with local tsunami threats but no accessible high ground for evacuations. Deciding where to locate TVE refuges is a complex risk-management question, given the potential for conflicting stakeholder priorities and multiple, suitable sites. We use the coastal community...
Development of flood-inundation maps for the Mississippi River in Saint Paul, Minnesota
Christiana R. Czuba, James D. Fallon, Corby R. Lewis, Diane F. Cooper
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5079
Digital flood-inundation maps for a 6.3-mile reach of the Mississippi River in Saint Paul, Minnesota, were developed through a multi-agency effort by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and in collaboration with the National Weather Service. The inundation maps, which can be accessed...
Assessing climate-change risks to cultural and natural resources in the Yakima River Basin, Washington, USA
James R. Hatten, Stephen M. Waste, Alec G. Maule
2014, Climatic Change (124) 363-370
We provide an overview of an interdisciplinary special issue that examines the influence of climate change on people and fish in the Yakima River Basin, USA. Jenni et al. (2013) addresses stakeholder-relevant climate change issues, such as water availability and uncertainty, with decision analysis tools. Montag et al. (2014) explores...
