Hysteresis in suspended sediment to turbidity relations due to changing particle size distributions
Mark N. Landers, Terry W. Sturm
2013, Water Resources Research (49) 5487-5500
Turbidity (T) is the most ubiquitous of surrogate technologies used to estimate suspended-sediment concentration (SSC). The effects of sediment size on turbidity are well documented; however, effects from changes in particle size distributions (PSD) are rarely evaluated. Hysteresis in relations of SSC-to-turbidity (SSC~T) for single stormflow events was observed and...
Development of a geodatabase for springs within and surrounding outcrops of the Trinity aquifer in northern Bexar County, Texas, 2010-11
Allan K. Clark, Diane E. Pedraza
2013, Fact Sheet 2013-3044
The Trinity aquifer is an important source of groundwater in central Texas, including Bexar County, where population growth has resulted in an increased demand for water (Ashworth, 1983; Mace and others, 2000). Numerous springs issue from rock outcrops within and surrounding the Trinity aquifer in northern Bexar County (fig. 1)....
Software for analysis of chemical mixtures--composition, occurrence, distribution, and possible toxicity
Jonathon C. Scott, Kenneth A. Skach, Patricia L. Toccalino
2013, Scientific Investigations Report 2013-5030
The composition, occurrence, distribution, and possible toxicity of chemical mixtures in the environment are research concerns of the U.S. Geological Survey and others. The presence of specific chemical mixtures may serve as indicators of natural phenomena or human-caused events. Chemical mixtures may also have ecological, industrial, geochemical, or toxicological effects....
Variability common to first leaf dates and snowpack in the western conterminous United States
Gregory J. McCabe, Julio L. Betancourt, Gregory T. Pederson, Mark D. Schwartz
2013, Earth Interactions (17)
Singular value decomposition is used to identify the common variability in first leaf dates (FLDs) and 1 April snow water equivalent (SWE) for the western United States during the period 1900–2012. Results indicate two modes of joint variability that explain 57% of the variability in FLD and 69% of the...
Controls on recent Alaskan lake changes identified from water isotopes and remote sensing
Lesleigh Anderson, Jean Birks, Jennifer R. Rover, Nikki Guldager
2013, Geophysical Research Letters (40) 3413-3418
High-latitude lakes are important for terrestrial carbon dynamics and waterfowl habitat driving a need to better understand controls on lake area changes. To identify the existence and cause of recent lake area changes in the Yukon Flats, a region of discontinuous permafrost in north central Alaska, we evaluate remotely sensed imagery with lake water isotope compositions...
The National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program planned monitoring and modeling activities for Texas, 2013–23
Patricia Ging
2013, Fact Sheet 2013-3038
The U.S. Geological Survey’s (USGS) National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program was established by Congress in 1992 to answer the following question: What is the status of the Nation’s water quality and is it getting better or worse? Since 1992, NAWQA has been a primary source of nationally consistent data and...
Linear extension rates of massive corals from the Dry Tortugas National Park (DRTO), Florida
Adis Muslic, Jennifer A. Flannery, Christopher D. Reich, Daniel K. Umberger, Joseph M. Smoak, Richard Z. Poore
2013, Open-File Report 2013-1121
Colonies of three coral species, Montastraea faveolata, Diploria strigosa, and Siderastrea siderea, located in the Dry Tortugas National Park (DRTO), Florida, were sampled and analyzed to evaluate annual linear extension rates. Montastraea faveolata had the highest average linear extension and variability in (DRTO: C2 = 0.67 centimeters/year (cm yr-1) ± 0.04, B3 = 0.85 cm...
Source and transport of human enteric viruses in deep municipal water supply wells
Kenneth R. Bradbury, Mark A. Borchardt, Madeline Gotkowitz, Susan K. Spencer, Jun Zhu, Randall J. Hunt
2013, Environmental Science & Technology (47) 4096-4103
Until recently, few water utilities or researchers were aware of possible virus presence in deep aquifers and wells. During 2008 and 2009 we collected a time series of virus samples from six deep municipal water-supply wells. The wells range in depth from approximately 220 to 300 m and draw water...
Phylogeography and population genetic structure of double-crested cormorants (Phalacrocorax auritus)
Dacey Mercer, Susan M. Haig, Daniel D. Roby
2013, Conservation Genetics (14) 823-836
We examined the genetic structure of doublecrested cormorants (Phalacrocorax auritus) across their range in the United States and Canada. Sequences of the mitochondrial control region were analyzed for 248 cormorants from 23 breeding sites. Variation was also examined at eight microsatellite loci for 409 cormorants from the same sites. The mitochondrial...
The effects of Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee on the bed sediment geochemistry of U.S. Atlantic coastal rivers
Arthur J. Horowitz
2013, Hydrological Processes (28) 1250-1259
Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee, both of which made landfall in the U.S. between late August and early September 2011, generated record or near record water discharges in 41 coastal rivers between the North Carolina/South Carolina border and the U.S./Canadian border. Despite the discharge of substantial amounts of suspended...
Pilot study of natural attenuation of arsenic in well water discharged to the Little River above Lake Thunderbird, Norman, Oklahoma, 2012
William J. Andrews, Jason R. Masoner, Samuel H. Rendon, Kevin A. Smith, James R. Greer, Logan A. Chatterton
2013, Scientific Investigations Report 2013-5055
The City of Norman, Oklahoma, wanted to augment its water supplies to meet the needs of an increasing population. Among the city’s potential water sources are city wells that produce water that exceeds the 10 micrograms per liter primary drinking-water standard for arsenic. The City of Norman was interested in...
The role of viscous magma mush spreading in volcanic flank motion at Kīlauea Volcano, Hawai‘i
C. Plattner, F. Amelung, S. Baker, R. Govers, Michael P. Poland
2013, Journal of Geophysical Research B: Solid Earth (118) 2474-2487
Multiple mechanisms have been suggested to explain seaward motion of the south flank of Kīlauea Volcano, Hawai‘i. The consistency of flank motion during both waxing and waning magmatic activity at Kīlauea suggests that a continuously acting force, like gravity body force, plays a substantial role. Using finite element models, we...
Tourism values for Mexican free-tailed bat (Tadarida brasiliensis mexicana) viewing
Kenneth J. Bagstad, Ruscena Widerholdt
2013, Human Dimensions of Wildlife (4) 307-311
Migratory species provide diverse ecosystem services to people, but these values have seldom been estimated rangewide for a single species. In this article, we summarize visitation and consumer surplus for recreational visitors to viewing sites for the Mexican free-tailed bat (Tadarida brasiliensis mexicana) throughout the Southwestern United States. Public bat...
Training the next generation of river warriors
Mary Freeman
2013, BioScience (63) 499-500
Review of: Environmental Flows: Saving Rivers in the Third Millennium. Angela H. Arthington. University of California Press, 2012. 422 pp., illus. $75.00 (ISBN 9780520273696 cloth)....
Historical and contemporary geographic data reveal complex spatial and temporal responses of vegetation to climate and land stewardship
Miguel L. Villarreal, Laura M. Norman, Robert H. Webb, Raymond M. Turner
2013, Land (2) 194-224
Vegetation and land-cover changes are not always directional but follow complex trajectories over space and time, driven by changing anthropogenic and abiotic conditions. We present a multi-observational approach to land-change analysis that addresses the complex geographic and temporal variability of vegetation changes related to climate and land use. Using land-ownership...
Habitat selection by juvenile Swainson’s thrushes (Catharus ustulatus) in headwater riparian areas, northwestern Oregon, USA
Stephanie R. Jenkins, Matthew G. Betts, Manuela M. Huso, Joan C. Hagar
2013, Forest Ecology and Management (305) 88-95
Lower order, non-fish-bearing streams, often termed “headwater streams”, have received minimal research effort and protection priority, especially in mesic forests where distinction between riparian and upland vegetation can be subtle. Though it is generally thought that breeding bird abundance is higher in riparian zones, little is known about species distributions...
Habitat and co-occurrence of native and invasive crayfish in the Pacific Northwest, USA
Christopher A. Pearl, M. J. Adams, Brome McCreary
2013, Aquatic Invasions (8) 171-184
Biological invasions can have dramatic effects on freshwater ecosystems and introduced crayfish can be particularly impacting. We document crayfish distribution in three large hydrographic basins (Rogue, Umpqua, Willamette/Columbia) in the Pacific Northwest USA. We used occupancy analyses to investigate habitat relationships and evidence for displacement of native Pacifastacus leniusculus (Dana,...
Culvert Analysis Program Graphical User Interface 1.0--A preprocessing and postprocessing tool for estimating flow through culvert
D. Nathan Bradley
2013, Fact Sheet 2013-3045
The peak discharge of a flood can be estimated from the elevation of high-water marks near the inlet and outlet of a culvert after the flood has occurred. This type of discharge estimate is called an “indirect measurement” because it relies on evidence left behind by the flood, such as...
Geometry and earthquake potential of the shoreline fault, central California
Jeanne L. Hardebeck
2013, Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America (103) 447-462
The Shoreline fault is a vertical strike‐slip fault running along the coastline near San Luis Obispo, California. Much is unknown about the Shoreline fault, including its slip rate and the details of its geometry. Here, I study the geometry of the Shoreline fault at seismogenic depth, as well as the...
Reorganization of vegetation, hydrology and soil carbon after permafrost degradation across heterogeneous boreal landscapes
M.T. Jorgenson, Jennifer W. Harden, M. Kanevskiy, J.A. O'Donnell, Kimberly Wickland, S. Ewing, Kristen L. Manies, Q. Zhuang, Y. Shur, Robert G. Striegl, Joshua C. Koch
2013, Enivronmental Research Letters (8)
The diversity of ecosystems across boreal landscapes, successional changes after disturbance and complicated permafrost histories, present enormous challenges for assessing how vegetation, water and soil carbon may respond to climate change in boreal regions. To address this complexity, we used a chronosequence approach to assess changes in vegetation composition, water...
A thermogenic secondary sexual character in male sea lamprey
Yu-Wen Chung-Davidson, M. Cody Priess, Chu-Yin Yeh, Cory O. Brant, Nicholas S. Johnson, Ke Li, Kaben G. Nanlohy, Mara B. Bryan, C. Titus Brown, Jongeun Choi, Weiming Li
2013, Journal of Experimental Biology (216) 2702-2712
Secondary sexual characters in animals are exaggerated ornaments or weapons for intrasexual competition. Unexpectedly, we found that a male secondary sexual character in sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus ) is a thermogenic adipose tissue that instantly increases its heat production during sexual encounters. This secondary sexual character, developed in front of...
Fire regimes of quaking aspen in the Mountain West
Douglas J. Shinneman, William L. Baker, Paul C. Rogers, Dominik Kulakowski
2013, Forest Ecology and Management (299) 22-34
Quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.) is the most widespread tree species in North America, and it is found throughout much of the Mountain West (MW) across a broad range of bioclimatic regions. Aspen typically regenerates asexually and prolifically after fire, and due to its seral status in many western conifer...
Water resources of Claiborne Parish, Louisiana
Robert B. Fendick Jr., Lawrence B. Prakken, Jason M. Griffith
2013, Fact Sheet 2013-3029
This fact sheet summarizes basic information on the water resources of Claiborne Parish. Information on groundwater and surface-water availability, quality, development, use, and trends is based on previously published reports listed in the Cited References section. In 2010, about 2.60 million gallons per day (Mgal/d) of water were withdrawn in...
Experimental infection studies demonstrating Atlantic salmon as a host and reservoir of viral hemorrhagic septicemia virus type IVa with insights into pathology and host immunity
Jan Lovy, P. Piesik, P.K. Hershberger, K.A. Garver
2013, Veterinary Microbiology (166) 91-101
In British Columbia, Canada (BC), aquaculture of finfish in ocean netpens has the potential for pathogen transmission between wild and farmed species due to the sharing of an aquatic environment. Viral hemorrhagic septicemia virus (VHSV) is enzootic in BC and causes serious disease in wild Pacific herring, Clupea pallasii, which...
Evolution of dike opening during the March 2011 Kamoamoa fissure eruption, Kīlauea Volcano, Hawai`i
Paul Lundgren, Michael P. Poland, Asta Miklius, Tim R. Orr, Sang-Ho Yun, Eric Fielding, Zhen Liu, Akiko Tanaka, Walter Szeliga, Scott Hensley, Susan Owen
2013, Journal of Geophysical Research B: Solid Earth (118) 897-914
The 5–9 March 2011 Kamoamoa fissure eruption along the east rift zone of Kīlauea Volcano, Hawai`i, followed months of pronounced inflation at Kīlauea summit. We examine dike opening during and after the eruption using a comprehensive interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) data set in combination with continuous GPS data. We...
