Assessing spatial variability of nutrients, phytoplankton, and related water-quality constituents in the California Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta at the landscape scale—Comparison of four (2018, 2020, 2021, 2022) spring high-resolution mapping surveys
Emily Richardson, Tamara Kraus, Katy O’Donnell, Jeniffer Soto-Perez, Crystal Sturgeon, Elizabeth Stumpner, Brian Bergamaschi
2025, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5035
Executive SummaryThis report summarizes results from boat-based, high-resolution water-quality mapping surveys completed before, during, and after upgrades to the EchoWater Resource Recovery Facility (EchoWater Facility), the regional wastewater facility for the City of Sacramento and surrounding areas, near Elk Grove, California. Surveys were completed in the tidal aquatic environments of...
Groundwater surveillance of swine pathogens from private wells supplying swine farms in Iowa
Gabrielle Doughan, Becca Walthart, Michele Moncrief, Elise Snezek, Kristin Skoland, Aaron D. Firnstahl, Phillip Gauger, Justin Brown, J. L. Bonnema, Mark A. Borchardt, Joe Heffron, Joel P. Stokdyk, Tucker R. Burch, Locke Karriker
2025, Conference Paper
Biosecurity practices are essential for maintaining pig health and productivity. Despite these measures, pathogen spread still occurs. Water is one of the largest daily inputs on swine farms by volume and is not routinely tested or disinfected before it is consumed by the animals [1-3], making it a poorly understood...
Hydrologic response of groundwater and streamflow to natural and anthropogenic drivers of change in headwaters of the upper Colorado River basin during recent wet (1982–1999) and drought (2000–2022) conditions
Fred D. Tillman, Melissa D. Masbruch, Jacob E. Knight, John A. Engott, Samuel Francisco Lopez, Casey J.R. Jones, Jesse E. Dickinson, Matthew P. Miller
2025, Journal of Hydrology: Regional Studies (60)
Study region: Headwaters of the upper Colorado River basin (UCOL), USAStudy focus: Surface-water and groundwater numerical models incorporating water-use information were used to investigate changes in climate, water use, and simulated hydrologic responses of snow processes, evapotranspiration, groundwater, and streamflow during recent wet (1982–1999) and drought (2000–2022) periods in the...
Angler dynamics in the St. Clair-Detroit River System after decades of change
Dana Castle, T. Galarowitz, Edward Roseman, T. Claramunt, J. Chiotti, R. Dvorak
2025, Journal of Great Lakes Research (51)
Habitat and water quality were historically degraded within the St. Clair-Detroit River System (SCDRS). Beginning in 2004, extensive habitat restoration projects were implemented remediating losses of fish spawning beds and shoreline areas. Monitoring of post-restoration activities documented recovering fish populations; however, angler response remains unknown. Extensive creel surveys were conducted...
Salmonid sensory system development is affected by climate change driven temperature increases
Aubree Jones, Matthew J. O'Donnell, Amy M. Regish, Jacqueline Webb
2025, Scientific Reports (15)
Increases in water temperature due to global climate change are known to alter the course and timing of fish development. The mechanosensory lateral line (LL) system mediates flow-sensing behaviors vital for survival in fishes, but the effects of increased water temperatures resulting from climate change on its development have not...
Lake Ontario spring prey fish bottom trawl survey and Alewife assessment, 2025
Brian Weidel, Jessica Goretzke, Jeremy P. Holden, Emma Bloomfield, Scott David Stahl, Olivia Margaret Mitchinson, Brian O’Malley, Nicole Lynn Berry, Katie Victoria Anweiler, Amanda Susanne Ackiss
2025, Report
The multi-agency Lake Ontario spring prey fish survey quantifies changes in pelagic prey fish populations, in particular Alewife Alosa pseudoharengus, which are the primary prey supporting the lake’s sport fishes. The 2025 survey included 230 trawls in the main lake and embayments and sampled depths from 5.5 to 245 m...
Paralytic shellfish toxins and seabirds: Evaluating sublethal effects, behavioral responses, and ecological implications of saxitoxin ingestion by common murres (Uria aalge)
Matthew M. Smith, Robert J. Dusek, Tuula E. Hollmen, Sarah K. Schoen, Caroline R. Van Hemert, Kristen Steinmetzer, Aidan Lee, Jenna Schlenner, Vijay P. Patil, D. Ransom Hardison, David Kulis, Donald M. Anderson, Clark D. Ridge, Sherwood Hall
2025, Harmful Algae (148)
Paralytic shellfish toxins (PSTs), including saxitoxin (STX) and its congeners, are neurotoxins that can be produced during harmful algal blooms and cause illness or death in humans, fish, seabirds, and marine mammals. Since 2014, multiple large-scale seabird mortality events have occurred in Alaska waters, with STXs detected in some carcasses....
Quantifying the success of stormwater control measure networks using effective imperviousness
Aditi S. Bhaskar, Charles C. Stillwell, Matthew J. Burns, Kristina G. Hopkins, Christopher J. Walsh
2025, PLOS Water (4)
The deleterious effects of directly-connected impervious surfaces on urban streams have been widely recognized. To deal with these effects, the use of stormwater control measures that aim to disconnect impervious surfaces and prevent stormwater from reaching the stream has surged. However, we lack widespread use of consistent metrics that describe...
Pyrethroid insecticides implicated in mass mortality of monarch butterflies at an overwintering site in California
Staci Cibotti, Michelle L. Hladik, Emily May, Emma Pelton, Timothy Bargar, Natalie Johnston, Aimee Code
2025, Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (44) 2716-2724
Since the 1980s, monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus plexippus) populations across North America have declined by 80–95%. Although several studies have implicated pesticides as a contributing factor to their population declines, our understanding of monarch exposure levels in nature remains limited. In January 2024, a mass mortality event near an overwintering...
Over, under, and through: Hydrologic connectivity and the future of coastal landscape salinization
Ashley Helton, James Dennedy-Frank, Ryan Emanuel, Scott C Neubauer, Kyra Adams, Marcelo Ardon, Lawrence Band, Kevin A. Befus, Hanne Borstlap, Jamie Duberstein, Adam Gold, Kominoski John, Alex Manda, Holly A. Michael, Stephen Moysey, Allison Myers-Pigg, Justine Annaliese Neville, Gregory E. Noe, Jeeban Panthi, Elnaz Pezeshki, Matthew Sirianni, Ward.Nicolas
2025, Water Resources Research (61)
Seawater intrusion (SWI) affects coastal landscapes worldwide. Here we describe the hydrologic pathways through which SWI occurs - over land via storm surge or tidal flooding, under land via groundwater transport, and through watersheds via natural and artificial surface water channels—and how human modifications to those pathways alter patterns of...
Assessment and validation of depressions in digital elevation models from multiple elevation data sources and delineation of depressions, sinking streams, and their watersheds in Tennessee and parts of Kentucky, Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi
David E. Ladd, John K. Carmichael
2025, Scientific Investigations Report 2024-5134
Closed depressions and sinking streams in karst landscapes pose difficulties for water-resources management, in the construction of roads and other public works, and in hydrologic and hydrogeomorphic analyses. Digital elevation models (DEMs) can be used to identify the location and determine the size and shape of closed depressions, but separating...
In situ, modeled, and earth observation monitoring of surface water availability in West African rangelands
Kimberly Slinski, Gabriel B. Senay, Alkhalil Adoum, Shraddhanand Shukla, Amy McNally, James Rowland, Erwan Fillol, Soni Yatheendradas, Chris Funk, Andrew Hoell, Michael Jasinski
2025, Frontiers in Water (7)
Introduction: Rangeland ponds are vital to the livelihoods of pastoral and agropastoral communities in Africa, providing an important source of water for livestock. However, sparse instrumentation across much of Africa makes it extremely challenging to monitor surface water availability in these areas. Model estimates of surface water, for example, as...
Using public participatory geographic information systems (PPGIS) to explore uses and values for Mojave Trails National Monument, California
Emily J. Wilkins, Sarah M. Lindley, Karla Rogers, Rudy Schuster, Mark T. Hannon, Parker T. Rowland, Michael J. Runnels
2025, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5037
Many people ascribe a variety of values to public lands and waters, but some values are more difficult to assess and quantify than others. Public participatory geographic information systems (PPGIS) are tools that have been used to help quantify and map the public’s diverse values for a landscape. This work...
Characterization of the hydrogeologic framework, groundwater-flow system, geochemistry, and aquifer hydraulic properties of the shallow groundwater system in the Wilcox and Lorraine process areas of the Wilcox Oil Company Superfund site near Bristow, Oklahoma, 2022
Andrew P. Teeple, Zulimar Lucena, Christopher L. Braun, Evin J. Fetkovich, Isaac A. Dale, Shana L. Mashburn
2025, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5042
The Wilcox Oil Company Superfund site (hereinafter referred to as “the site”) was formerly an oil refinery northeast of Bristow in Creek County, Oklahoma. Historical refinery operations contaminated the soil, surface water, streambed sediments, alluvium, and groundwater with refined and stored products at the site. The Wilcox and Lorraine process...
Staying alive: Post-translocation apparent survival of fishes in headwater springs following drought
Sophia Marie Bonjour, Keith B. Gido, Peter J. Pfaff, Abigail Rick, Aiden Masek
2025, North American Journal of Fisheries Management (45) 659-668
ObjectiveIncreasing fragmentation from constructed barriers, increased water use, and climate change limits the resiliency of stream fish metapopulations by reducing colonization. Management actions such as stocking or translocating fish may help contribute to the resilience of isolated habitats and increase redundancy of populations in intermittent stream...
Trait-based selection of seeds ingested and dispersed by North American waterfowl
Bia A. Almeida, Mihai Costea, Giliandro G. Silva, Leonardo Maltchik, Susan E.W. De La Cruz, John Y. Takekawa, Andy J. Green
2025, Plants (14)
There are few studies on the extent to which waterfowl select plant food compared with what is available in wetland ecosystems. We used a new dataset on the presence of seeds in the alimentary canal or feces to identify flowering plant species whose seeds are ingested by North American ducks...
Hydrogeology, water budget, and simulated groundwater availability in the Salt Fork Arkansas River and Chikaskia River alluvial aquifers, northern Oklahoma, 1980–2020
Nicole C. Gammill, S. Jerrod Smith
2025, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5043
The 1973 Oklahoma Groundwater Law (Oklahoma Statute §82–1020.5) requires that the Oklahoma Water Resources Board conduct hydrologic investigations of the State’s aquifers to determine the maximum annual yield for each groundwater basin. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Oklahoma Water Resources Board, conducted an updated hydrologic investigation of...
Aquifer storage change and storage properties, Rio Rancho, New Mexico, 2019–23
Jeffrey R. Kennedy, Meghan T. Bell, William G. Seelig
2025, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5040
To better understand changes in groundwater storage and groundwater elevations, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the City of Rio Rancho, New Mexico, carried out a multiyear groundwater monitoring project. Groundwater-level data were collected at 27 locations, including sites having multiple wells screened at different depths and those having...
Network of networks: Time series clustering of AmeriFlux sites
David E. Reed, Housen Chu, Brad G. Peter, Jiquan Chen, Michael Abraha, Brian Amiro, Ray G. Anderson, M. Altaf Arain, Paulo Arruda, Greg A. Barron-Gafford, Carl Bernacchi, Daniel P. Beverly, Sebastien C. Biraud, T. Andrew Black, Peter D. Blanken, Gil Bohrer, Rebecca Bowler, David R. Bowling, M. Syndonia Bret-Harte, Mario Bretfeld, Nathaniel A. Brunsell, Stephen H. Bullock, Gerardo Celis, Xingyuan Chen, Aimee T. Classen, David R. Cook, Alejandro Cueva, Higo J. Dalmagro, Kenneth J. Davis, Ankur Desai, Alison J. Duff, Allison L. Dunn, David Durden, Colin W. Edgar, Eugenie Euskirchen, Rosvel Bracho, Brent E. Ewers, Lawrence B. Flanagan, Christopher R. Florian, Vanessa Foord, Inke Forbrich, Brandon R. Forsythe, John Frank, Jaime Garatuza-Payan, Sarah Goslee, Christopher M. Gough, Mark B. Green, Timothy Griffis, Manuel Helbig, Andrew C. Hill, Ross Hinkle, Jason Horne, Elyn Humphreys, Hiroki Ikawa, Go Iwahana, Rachhpal Jassal, Bruce K. Johnson, Mark Johnson, Steven A. Kannenberg, Eric Kelsey, John King, John F. Knowles, Sara Knox, Hideki Kobayashi, Thomas Kolb, Randy Kolka, Ken Krauss, Lars Kutzbach, Brian T. Lamb, Beverly E. Law, Sung-Ching Lee, Xuhui Lee, Heping Liu, Henry W. Loescher, Sparkle L. Malone, Roser Matamala, Marguerite Mauritz, Stefan Metzger, Gesa Meyer, Bhaskar Mitra, J. William Munger, Zoran Nesic, Asko Noormets, Thomas L. O'Halloran, Patrick T. O'Keeffe, Steven F. Oberbauer, Walter Oechel, Patty Oikawa, Paulo C. Olivas, Andrew Ouimette, Gilberto Pastorello, Jorge F. Perez-Quezada, Claire Phillips, Gabriela Posse, Bo Qu, William L. Quinton, Michele L. Reba, Andrew D. Richardson, Valentin Picasso, Adrian V. Rocha, Julio C. Rodriguez, Roel Ruzol, Scott Saleska, Russell L. Scott, Adam P. Schreiner-McGraw, Edward A.G. Schuur, Maria Silveira, Oliver Sonnentag, David L. Spittlehouse, Ralf Staebler, Gregory Starr, Christina Staudhammer, Chris Still, Cove Sturtevant, Ryan C. Sullivan, Andy Suyker, David Trejo, Masahito Ueyama, Rodrigo Vargas, Brian Viner, Enrique R. Vivoni, Dong Wang, Eric J. Ward, Susanne Wiesner, Lisamarie Windham-Myers, David Yannick, Enrico A. Yepez, Terenzio Zenone, Junbin Zhao, Donatella Zona
2025, Agricultural and Forest Meteorology (372)
Environmental observation networks, such as AmeriFlux, are foundational for monitoring ecosystem response to climate change, management practices, and natural disturbances; however, their effectiveness depends on their representativeness for the regions or continents. We proposed an empirical, time series approach to quantify the similarity of ecosystem fluxes across AmeriFlux sites. We...
Spatiotemporal drivers of water quality and phytoplankton communities in a cyanobacteria-dominated reservoir provide management insights
Linnea A. Rock, William W. Fetzer, Lindsay Patterson, Samuel J. Sillen, Ron Steg, Annika W. Walters, Sarah M. Collins
2025, Environmental Monitoring and Assessment (197)
Reservoirs serve critical roles providing drinking water, irrigation, flood control, hydropower, recreation, fisheries, and aquatic habitat. Yet their physical position, complex shape, and large watersheds make reservoirs especially susceptible to eutrophication and harmful algal bloom (HAB) production. Boysen Reservoir, WY, is a high priority for proactive nutrient management because it...
Select elements of concern in surface water of three hydrologic basins (Delaware River, Illinois River, and Upper Colorado River)—Data screening for the development of spatial and temporal models
Mark C. Marvin-DiPasquale, R. Blaine McCleskey, Samantha L. Sullivan, Jonathan Casey Root, Serena M. Seawolf, Katherine M. Ransom, Susan Wherry, Evangelos Kakouros, Shaun Baesman
2025, Open-File Report 2025-1033
The report focuses on the screening of previously published concentration data associated with 12 elements of concern (aluminum, arsenic, cadmium, chromium, copper, iron, mercury, manganese, lead, selenium, uranium, and zinc) measured in stream surface waters of three hydrologic basins (Delaware River Basin, Illinois River Basin, and the Upper Colorado River...
Effects of total suspended solids on photomineralization of dissolved organic matter in the Peace-Athabasca Delta, Canada
Wayana Dolan, Tamlin M. Pavelsky, Julianne Davis, Nathan LaFramboise, Catherine Polik, Rose Cory
2025, JGR Biogeosciences (130)
Northern deltas receive chromophoric dissolved organic matter (CDOM) from their watersheds, which can be oxidized to carbon dioxide upon absorption of sunlight (i.e., photomineralized). These deltas also receive total suspended solids (TSS), which may shade sunlight absorption by CDOM, thus limiting photomineralization. To quantify this interaction for the first time,...
Urban trees and cooling: A review of the recent literature (2018 to 2024)
Michael Alonzo, Peter Christian Ibsen, Dexter Locke
2025, Arboriculture and Urban Forestry (51)
Urban trees mitigate extreme heat through shading and evapotranspiration, but cooling effectiveness varies with tree traits, spatial configurations, and climate. This systematic mapping review synthesizes findings from 115 studies (2018 to 2024) using RepOrting standards for Systematic Evidence Syntheses (ROSES) protocols. Studies were categorized based on geographic location, climate zone,...
Effects of nest exclosure on nest and adult survival of piping plover (Charadrius melodus) in the lower Platte River System, Nebraska
Elsa M. Forsberg, Joel G. Jorgensen, Rose J. Swift, Larkin A. Powell, Mark P. Vrtiska
2025, Waterbirds (48) 1-11
Conservation of imperiled species often includes management strategies intended to improve specific vital rates. However, some management practices can have unforeseen consequences that negate the intended benefit. For example, nest exclosures are often used for ground-nesting avian species to reduce nest predation but may increase depredation of adults. Tradeoffs between...
Disparate groundwater responses to wildfire
Michelle A. Walvoord, Brian A. Ebel, Trevor Fuess Partridge, David M. Rey, D.O. Rosenberry
2025, WIREs Water (12)
Post-wildfire investigations of groundwater response reveal a range of outcomes, varying from substantial increases to notable decreases in recharge and baseflow, with some studies indicating negligible or short-lived effects. This review assesses these varied responses within five critical categories: climate, vegetation, hydrogeology, fire characteristics, and the cryosphere, examining both short-term...
