Field calibration and validation of remote-sensing surveys
Shachak Pe’eri, Andy McLeod, Paul Lavoie, Seth D. Ackerman, James Gardner, Christopher Parrish
2013, International Journal of Remote Sensing (34) 6423-6436
The Optical Collection Suite (OCS) is a ground-truth sampling system designed to perform in situ measurements that help calibrate and validate optical remote-sensing and swath-sonar surveys for mapping and monitoring coastal ecosystems and ocean planning. The OCS system enables researchers to collect underwater imagery with real-time feedback, measure the spectral...
A five-year study of Hawaiian hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus semotus) occupancy on the island of Hawai`i
Marcos P. Gorressen, Frank J. Bonaccorso, Corinna A. Pinzari, Christopher M. Todd, Kristina Montoya-Aiona, Kevin W. Brinck
2013, Report
Using acoustic recordings of the vocalizations of the endangered Hawaiian hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus semotus) collected over a five-year period (2007–2011) from 25 survey areas across the island of Hawai`i, we modeled the relationship between habitat attributes and bat occurrence. Our data support the conclusion that hoary bats concentrate in...
Uncertainty in simulated groundwater-quality trends in transient flow
J. Jeffrey Starn, Amvrossios Bagtzoglou, Gary A. Robbins
2013, Hydrogeology Journal (21) 813-827
In numerical modeling of groundwater flow, the result of a given solution method is affected by the way in which transient flow conditions and geologic heterogeneity are simulated. An algorithm is demonstrated that simulates breakthrough curves at a pumping well by convolution-based particle tracking in a transient flow field for...
Comparative phylogeography reveals deep lineages and regional evolutionary hotspots in the Mojave and Sonoran Deserts
Dustin A. Wood, Amy G. Vandergast, Kelly R. Barr, Richard D. Inman, Todd C. Esque, Kenneth E. Nussear, Robert N. Fisher
2013, Diversity and Distributions (19) 722-737
Aim: We explored lineage diversification within desert-dwelling fauna. Our goals were (1) to determine whether phylogenetic lineages and population expansions were consistent with younger Pleistocene climate fluctuation hypotheses or much older events predicted by pre-Pleistocene vicariance hypotheses, (2) to assess concordance in spatial patterns of genetic divergence and diversity among...
Carnivore use of avocado orchards across an agricultural-wildland gradient
Theresa M. Nogeire, Frank W. Davis, Jennifer M. Duggan, Kevin R. Crooks, Erin E. Boydston
2013, PLoS ONE (8)
Wide-ranging species cannot persist in reserves alone. Consequently, there is growing interest in the conservation value of agricultural lands that separate or buffer natural areas. The value of agricultural lands for wildlife habitat and connectivity varies as a function of the crop type and landscape context, and quantifying these differences...
A long-term comparison of carbon sequestration rates in impounded and naturally tidal freshwater marshes along the lower Waccamaw River, South Carolina
Judith Z. Drexler, Ken W. Krauss, M. Craig Sasser, Christopher C. Fuller, Christopher M. Swarzenski, Amber Powell, Kathleen M. Swanson, James L. Orlando
2013, Wetlands
Carbon storage was compared between impounded and naturally tidal freshwater marshes along the Lower Waccamaw River in South Carolina, USA. Soil cores were collected in (1) naturally tidal, (2) moist soil (impounded, seasonally drained since ~1970), and (3) deeply flooded “treatments” (impounded, flooded to ~90 cm since ~2002). Cores were...
Impacts on groundwater recharge areas of megacity pumping: analysis of potential contamination of Kolkata, India, water supply
Paulami Sahu, Holly A. Michael, Clifford I. Voss, Pradip K. Sikdar
2013, Hydrological Sciences Journal (58) 1340-1360
Water supply to the world's megacities is a problem of quantity and quality that will be a priority in the coming decades. Heavy pumping of groundwater beneath these urban centres, particularly in regions with low natural topographic gradients, such as deltas and floodplains, can fundamentally alter the hydrological system. These...
Natural ecosystems
Erica Fleishman, Jayne Belnap, Neil Cobb, Carolyn A.F. Enquist, Karl Ford, Glen MacDonald, Mike Pellant, Tania Schoennagel, Lara M. Schmit, Mark Schwartz, Suzanne van Drunick, Anthony LeRoy Westerling, Alisa Keyser, Ryan Lucas
2013, Book chapter, Assessment of climate change in the southwestern United States: a report prepared for the National Climate Assessment
Natural Ecosystems analyzes the association of observed changes in climate with changes in the geographic distributions and phenology (the timing of blossoms or migrations of birds) for Southwestern ecosystems and their species, portraying ecosystem disturbances—such as wildfires and outbreaks of forest pathogens—and carbon storage and release, in relation to climate...
Rivermouth alteration of agricultural impacts on consumer tissue δ15N
James H. Larson, William B. Richardson, Jonathan M. Vallazza, J. C. Nelson
2013, PLoS ONE (8)
Terrestrial agricultural activities strongly influence riverine nitrogen (N) dynamics, which is reflected in the δ15N of riverine consumer tissues. However, processes within aquatic ecosystems also influence consumer tissue δ15N. As aquatic processes become more important terrestrial inputs may become a weaker predictor of consumer tissue δ15N. In a previous study,...
Nest site characteristics and nesting success of the Western Burrowing Owl in the eastern Mojave Desert
Kathleen M. Longshore, Dorothy E. Crowe
2013, Journal of Arid Environments (94) 113-120
We evaluated nest site selection at two spatial scales (microsite, territory) and reproductive success of Western Burrowing Owls (Athene cunicularia hypugaea) at three spatial scales (microsite, territory, landscape) in the eastern Mojave Desert. We used binary logistic regression within an information-theoretic approach to assess factors influencing nest site choice and...
Phenology monitoring protocol: Northeast Temperate Network
Geri Tierney, Brian Mitchell, Abraham J. Miller-Rushing, Jonathan Katz, Ellen Denny, Corinne Brauer, Therese Donovan, Andrew D. Richardson, Michael Toomey, Adam Kozlowski, Jake F. Weltzin, Kathy Gerst, Ed Sharron, Oliver Sonnentag, Fred Dieffenbach
2013, National Park Service Natural Resource Report NPS/NETN/NRR—2013/681
Phenology is critical to many aspects of human life and nearly all ecological relationships and processes. Recent climate change has already led to widespread changes in phenological patterns across the globe, and more change is inevitable. This protocol has been developed to provide standardized methods for monitoring phenology within the National Park Service...
Relationships between river discharge and abundance of age 0 redhorses (Moxostoma spp.) in the Oconee River, Georgia, USA, with implications for robust redhorse
R. Peterson, Cecil A. Jennings, J.T. Peterson
2013, River Research and Applications (29) 734-742
Robust redhorse (Moxostoma robustum) and notchlip redhorse (M. collapsum) are two species of redhorses that reside in the lower Oconee River, Georgia. Robust redhorse is listed as a state endangered species in Georgia and North Carolina, and attempts to investigate factors affecting its reproductive success have met with limited success....
Delivering integrated HAZUS-MH flood loss analyses and flood inundation maps over the Web
Hearn Jr., Herbert E. Longenecker III, John J. Aguinaldo, Ami N. Rahav
2013, Journal of Emergency Management (11) 293-302
Catastrophic flooding is responsible for more loss of life and damages to property than any other natural hazard. Recently developed flood inundation mapping technologies make it possible to view the extent and depth of flooding on the land surface over the Internet; however, by themselves these technologies are unable to...
Rebuilding after collapse: evidence for long-term cohort dynamics in the native Hawaiian rain forest
Hans Juergen Boehmer, Helene H. Wagner, James D. Jacobi, Grant C. Gerrish, Dieter Mueller-Dombois
2013, Journal of Vegetation Science (24) 639-650
Questions: Do long-term observations in permanent plots confirm the conceptual model of Metrosideros polymorpha cohort dynamics as postulated in 1987? Do regeneration patterns occur independently of substrate age, i.e. of direct volcanic disturbance impact? Location: The windward mountain slopes of the younger Mauna Loa and the older Mauna Kea volcanoes (island...
Evaluating chemical extraction techniques for the determination of uranium oxidation state in reduced aquifer sediments
Deborah L. Stoliker, Kate M. Campbell, Patricia M. Fox, David M. Singer, Nazila Kaviani, Minna Carey, Nicole E. Peck, John R. Barger, Douglas B. Kent, James A. Davis
2013, Environmental Science & Technology (47) 9225-9232
Extraction techniques utilizing high pH and (bi)carbonate concentrations were evaluated for their efficacy in determining the oxidation state of uranium (U) in reduced sediments collected from Rifle, CO. Differences in dissolved concentrations between oxic and anoxic extractions have been proposed as a means to quantify the U(VI) and U(IV) content...
Ambient response of a unique performance-based design tall building with dynamic response modification features
Mehmet Celebi, Moh Huang, Anthony Shakal, John Hooper, Ron Klemencic
2013, The Structural Design of Tall and Special Buildings (22) 816-829
A 64-story, performance-based design building with reinforced concrete core shear walls and unique dynamic response modification features (tuned liquid sloshing dampers and buckling-restrained braces) has been instrumented with a monitoring array of 72 channels of accelerometers. The responses of the building to ambient motions from ground or...
Nitrogen
Lori E. Apodaca
2013, Mining Engineering (65) 89-89
The article presents an overview of the nitrogen chemical market as of July 2013, including the production of ammonia compounds. Industrial uses for ammonia include fertilizers, explosives, and plastics. Other topics include industrial capacity of U.S. ammonia producers CF Industries Holdings Inc., Koch Nitrogen Co., PCS Nitrogen, Inc., and Agrium...
Optimal placement of off-stream water sources for ephemeral stream recovery
Matthew B. Rigge, Alexander Smart, Bruce Wylie
2013, Rangeland Ecology and Management (66) 479-486
Uneven and/or inefficient livestock distribution is often a product of an inadequate number and distribution of watering points. Placement of off-stream water practices (OSWP) in pastures is a key consideration in rangeland management plans and is critical to achieving riparian recovery by improving grazing evenness, while improving livestock performance. Effective...
Peat
Lori E. Apodaca
2013, Mining Engineering (65) 89-89
The article looks at the U.S. peat market as of July 2013. Peat is produced from deposits of plant organic materials in wetlands and includes varieties such as reed-sedge, sphagnum moss, and humus. Use for peat include horticultural soil additives, filtration, and adsorbents. Other topics include effects of environmental protection...
Seismicity around Parkfield correlates with static shear stress changes following the 2003 Mw6.5 San Simeon earthquake
Xiaoteng Meng, Zhigang Peng, Jeanne L. Hardebeck
2013, Journal of Geophysical Research B: Solid Earth (118) 3576-3591
Earthquakes trigger other earthquakes, but the physical mechanism of the triggering is currently debated. Most studies of earthquake triggering rely on earthquakes listed in catalogs, which are known to be incomplete around the origin times of large earthquakes and therefore missing potentially triggered events. Here we apply a waveform matched-filter...
Holocene tectonics and fault reactivation in the foothills of the north Cascade Mountains, Washington
Brian L. Sherrod, Elizabeth Barnett, Elizabeth Schermer, Harvey M. Kelsey, Jonathan Hughes, Franklin F. Foit Jr., Craig S. Weaver, Ralph Haugerud, Tim Hyatt
2013, Geosphere (9) 827-852
We use LiDAR imagery to identify two fault scarps on latest Pleistocene glacial outwash deposits along the North Fork Nooksack River in Whatcom County, Washington (United States). Mapping and paleoseismic investigation of these previously unknown scarps provide constraints on the earthquake history and seismic hazard in the northern Puget Lowland....
Cost-effectiveness analysis of sandhill crane habitat management
Andrew C. Kessler, James W. Merchant, Steven D. Shultz, Craig R. Allen
2013, Journal of Wildlife Management (77) 1301-1310
Invasive species often threaten native wildlife populations and strain the budgets of agencies charged with wildlife management. We demonstrate the potential of cost-effectiveness analysis to improve the efficiency and value of efforts to enhance sandhill crane (Grus canadensis) roosting habitat. We focus on the central Platte River in Nebraska (USA),...
Biological nitrogen fixation: rates, patterns and ecological controls in terrestrial ecosystems
Peter M. Vitousek, Duncan N.L. Menge, Sasha C. Reed, Cory C. Cleveland
2013, Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences (368)
New techniques have identified a wide range of organisms with the capacity to carry out biological nitrogen fixation (BNF)—greatly expanding our appreciation of the diversity and ubiquity of N fixers—but our understanding of the rates and controls of BNF at ecosystem and global scales has not advanced at the same...
Movements and habitat-use of loggerhead sea turtles in the northern Gulf of Mexico during the reproductive period
Kristen M. Hart, Margaret M. Lamont, Autumn R. Sartain-Iverson, Ikuko Fujisaki, Brail S. Stephens
2013, PLoS ONE (8)
Nesting strategies and use of important in-water habitats for far-ranging marine turtles can be determined using satellite telemetry. Because of a lack of information on habitat-use by marine turtles in the northern Gulf of Mexico, we used satellite transmitters in 2010 through 2012 to track movements of 39 adult female...
Potential climate change impacts on temperate forest ecosystem processes
Emily B. Peters, Kirk R. Wythers, Shuxia Zhang, John B. Bradford, Peter B. Reich
2013, Canadian Journal of Forest Research
Large changes in atmospheric CO2, temperature and precipitation are predicted by 2100, yet the long-term consequences for carbon, water, and nitrogen cycling in forests are poorly understood. We applied the PnET-CN ecosystem model to compare the long-term effects of changing climate and atmospheric CO2 on productivity, evapotranspiration, runoff, and net...
