A multi-sensor lidar, multi-spectral and multi-angular approach for mapping canopy height in boreal forest regions
David J. Selkowitz, Gordon Green, Birgit E. Peterson, Bruce Wylie
2012, Remote Sensing of Environment (121) 458-471
Spatially explicit representations of vegetation canopy height over large regions are necessary for a wide variety of inventory, monitoring, and modeling activities. Although airborne lidar data has been successfully used to develop vegetation canopy height maps in many regions, for vast, sparsely populated regions such as the boreal forest biome,...
The impact of antecedent fire area on burned area in southern California coastal ecosystems
Owen F. Price, Ross A. Bradstock, Jon E. Keeley, Alexandra D. Syphard
2012, Journal of Environmental Management (113) 301-307
Frequent wildfire disasters in southern California highlight the need for risk reduction strategies for the region, of which fuel reduction via prescribed burning is one option. However, there is no consensus about the effectiveness of prescribed fire in reducing the area of wildfire. Here, we use 29 years of historical...
Cenozoic tectono-thermal history of the Tordrillo Mountains, Alaska: Paleocene-Eocene ridge subduction, decreasing relief, and late Neogene faulting
Jeff A. Benowitz, Peter J. Haeussler, Paul W. Layer, Paul B. O'Sullivan, Wes K. Wallace, Robert J. Gillis
2012, Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems (13)
Topographic development inboard of the continental margin is a predicted response to ridge subduction. New thermochronology results from the western Alaska Range document ridge subduction related orogenesis. K-feldspar thermochronology (KFAT) of bedrock samples from the Tordrillo Mountains in the western Alaska Range complement existing U-Pb, 40Ar/39Ar and AFT (apatite fission track)...
Evidence of accelerated beak growth associated with avian keratin disorder in black-capped chickadees (Poecile atricapillus)
Caroline R. Van Hemert, Colleen M. Handel, Todd M. O'Hara
2012, Journal of Wildlife Diseases (48) 686-694
We recently documented an epizootic of beak deformities in more than 2,000 Black-capped Chickadees (Poecile atricapillus) and other wild bird species in North America. This emerging avian disease, which has been termed avian keratin disorder, results in gross overgrowth of the rhamphotheca, the outer, keratinized layer of the beak. To...
Toxicity of waters from the St. Lawrence River at Massena Area-of-Concern to the plankton species Selenastrum capricornutum and Ceriodaphnia dubia
Barry P. Baldigo, Brian T. Duffy, Christopher J. Nally, Anthony M. David
2012, Journal of Great Lakes Research (38) 812-820
In 1972, the US and Canada committed to restore the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the Great Lakes Ecosystem under the first Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement. During subsequent amendments, part of the St. Lawrence River at Massena NY, and segments of three tributaries, were designated as one Area...
Bioenergetics model for estimating food requirements of female Pacific walruses (Odobenus rosmarus divergens)
S.R. Noren, Mark S. Udevitz, C.V. Jay
2012, Marine Ecology Progress Series (460) 261-275
Pacific walruses Odobenus rosmarus divergens use sea ice as a platform for resting, nursing, and accessing extensive benthic foraging grounds. The extent of summer sea ice in the Chukchi Sea has decreased substantially in recent decades, causing walruses to alter habitat use and activity patterns which could affect their energy...
Local-area-enhanced, 2.5-meter resolution natural-color and color-infrared satellite-image mosaics of the North Takhar mineral district in Afghanistan: Chapter D in Local-area-enhanced, high-resolution natural-color and color-infrared satellite-image mosaics of mineral districts in Afghanistan
Philip A. Davis, Laura E. Cagney
2012, Data Series 709-D
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Defense Task Force for Business and Stability Operations, prepared databases for mineral-resource target areas in Afghanistan. The purpose of the databases is to (1) provide useful data to ground-survey crews for use in performing detailed assessments of the...
Behavioral vs. molecular sources of conflict between nuclear and mitochondrial DNA: The role of male-biased dispersal in a Holarctic sea duck
Jeffrey L. Peters, Kimberly A. Bolender, John M. Pearce
2012, Molecular Ecology (21) 3562-3575
Genetic studies of waterfowl (Anatidae) have observed the full spectrum of mitochondrial (mt) DNA population divergence, from apparent panmixia to deep, reciprocally monophyletic lineages. Yet, these studies often found weak or no nuclear (nu) DNA structure, which was often attributed to male-biased gene flow, a common behaviour within this family....
Analysis of low-frequency seismic signals generated during a multiple-iceberg calving event at Jakobshavn Isbræ, Greenland
Fabian Walter, Jason M. Amundson, Shad O’Neel, Martin Truffer, Mark Fahnestock, Helen A. Fricker
2012, Journal of Geophysical Research (117)
We investigated seismic signals generated during a large-scale, multiple iceberg calving event that occurred at Jakobshavn Isbræ, Greenland, on 21 August 2009. The event was recorded by a high-rate time-lapse camera and five broadband seismic stations located within a few hundred kilometers of the terminus. During the event two full-glacier-thickness...
Peat accumulation in drained thermokarst lake basins in continuous, ice-rich permafrost, northern Seward Peninsula, Alaska
Miriam C. Jones, Guido Grosse, Benjamin M. Jones, Katey Walter Anthony
2012, Journal of Geophysical Research G: Biogeosciences (117) G00M07
Thermokarst lakes and peat-accumulating drained lake basins cover a substantial portion of Arctic lowland landscapes, yet the role of thermokarst lake drainage and ensuing peat formation in landscape-scale carbon (C) budgets remains understudied. Here we use measurements of terrestrial peat thickness, bulk density, organic matter content, and basal radiocarbon age...
Under trees and water at Crater Lake National Park, Oregon
Joel E. Robinson, Charles R. Bacon, Chris Wayne
2012, Scientific Investigations Map 3223
Crater Lake partially fills the caldera that formed approximately 7,700 years ago during the eruption of a 12,000-ft-high volcano known as Mount Mazama. The caldera-forming, or climactic, eruption of Mount Mazama devastated the surrounding landscape, left a thick deposit of pumice and ash in adjacent valleys, and spread a blanket...
Soil data for a collapse-scar bog chronosequence in Koyukuk Flats National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska, 2008
Jonathan A. O’Donnell, Jennifer W. Harden, Kristen L. Manies, M. Torre Jorgenson
2012, Open-File Report 2012-1230
Peatlands in the northern permafrost region store large amounts of organic carbon, most of which is currently stored in frozen peat deposits. Recent warming at high-latitudes has accelerated permafrost thaw in peatlands, which will likely result in the loss of soil organic carbon from previously frozen peat deposits to the...
Carry-over effects of winter location contribute to variation in timing of nest initiation and clutch size in black brant (Branta bernicla nigricans)
Jason L. Schamber, James S. Sedinger, David H. Ward
2012, The Auk (129) 205-210
We assessed carry-over effects from winter location on timing of nest initiation and clutch size of Black Brant (Branta bernicla nigricans) using observations of individually marked brant breeding at the Tutakoke River colony in Alaska, and wintering along a latitudinal gradient at three areas on the Pacific coast of Baja...
Predicted eelgrass response to sea level rise and its availability to foraging Black Brant in Pacific coast estuaries
Frank J. Shaughnessy, Whelan Gilkerson, Jeffrey M. Black, David H. Ward, Mark Petrie
2012, Ecological Applications (22) 1743-1761
Managers need to predict how animals will respond to habitat redistributions caused by climate change. Our objective was to model the effects of sea level rise on total eelgrass (Zostera marina) habitat area and on the amount of that area that is accessible to Brant geese (Branta bernicla), specialist grazers...
Hydrostratigraphic interpretation of test-hole and surface geophysical data, Elkhorn and Loup River Basins, Nebraska, 2008 to 2011
Christopher M. Hobza, Paul A. Bedrosian, Benjamin R. Bloss
2012, Open-File Report 2012-1227
The Elkhorn-Loup Model (ELM) was begun in 2006 to understand the effect of various groundwater-management scenarios on surface-water resources. During phase one of the ELM study, a lack of subsurface geological information was identified as a data gap. Test holes drilled to the base of the aquifer in the ELM...
Polar and brown bear genomes reveal ancient admixture and demographic footprints of past climate change
Webb Miller, Stephan C. Schuster, Andreanna J. Welch, Aakrosh Ratan, Oscar C. Bedoya-Reina, Fangqing Zhao, Hie Lim Kim, Richard C. Burhans, Daniela I. Drautz, Nicola E. Wittekindt, Lynn P. Tomsho, Enrique Ibarra-Laclette, Luis Herrera-Estrella, Elizabeth L. Peacock, Sean Farley, George K. Sage, Karyn D. Rode, Martyn E. Obbard, Rafael Montiel, Lutz Bachmann, Olafur Ingolfsson, Jon Aars, Thomas Mailund, Øystein Wiig, Sandra L. Talbot, Charlotte Lindqvist
2012, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (109) E2382-E2390
Polar bears (PBs) are superbly adapted to the extreme Arctic environment and have become emblematic of the threat to biodiversity from global climate change. Their divergence from the lower-latitude brown bear provides a textbook example of rapid evolution of distinct phenotypes. However, limited mitochondrial and nuclear DNA evidence conflicts in...
Linking physical monitoring to coho and Chinook salmon populations in the Redwood Creek Watershed, California—Summary of May 3–4, 2012 Workshop
Mary Ann Madej, Alicia A. Torregrosa, Andrea Woodward
2012, Open-File Report 2012-1245
On Thursday, May 3, 2012, a science workshop was held at the Redwood National and State Parks (RNSP) office in Arcata, California, with researchers and resource managers working in RNSP to share data and expert opinions concerning salmon populations and habitat in the Redwood Creek watershed. The focus of the...
Temporal and spatial trends of chloride and sodium in groundwater in New Hampshire, 1960–2011
Laura Medalie
2012, Open-File Report 2012-1236
Data on concentrations of chloride and sodium in groundwater in New Hampshire were assembled from various State and Federal agencies and organized into a database. This report provides documentation of many assumptions and limitations of disparate data that were collected to meet wide-ranging objectives and investigates temporal and spatial trends...
Susceptibility of Pacific herring to viral hemorrhagic septicemia is influenced by diet
Joshua Beaulaurier, N. Bickford, J.L. Gregg, C.A. Grady, A.L. Gannam, J. R. Winton, P.K. Hershberger
2012, Journal of Aquatic Animal Health (24) 43-48
Groups of specific-pathogen-free Pacific herring Clupea pallasii were highly susceptible to infection by viral hemorrhagic septicemia virus (VHSV); however, the level of mortality was influenced by diet during the 40–71 d before, during, and after the first exposure to the virus. Cumulative mortality was highest among the herring maintained on...
Slope-Area Computation Program Graphical User Interface 1.0—A Preprocessing and Postprocessing Tool for Estimating Peak Flood Discharge Using the Slope-Area Method
D. Nathan Bradley
2012, Fact Sheet 2012-3112
The slope-area method is a technique for estimating the peak discharge of a flood after the water has receded (Dalrymple and Benson, 1967). This type of discharge estimate is called an “indirect measurement” because it relies on evidence left behind by the flood, such as high-water marks (HWMs) on trees...
The Fort Collins Science Center
Juliette T. Wilson, Michele M. Banowetz
2012, General Information Product 139
With a focus on biological research, the U.S. Geological Survey Fort Collins Science Center (FORT) develops and disseminates science-based information and tools to support natural resource decision-making. This brochure succinctly describes the integrated science capabilities, products, and services that the FORT science community offers across the disciplines of aquatic systems,...
Preliminary catalog of the sedimentary basins of the United States
James L. Coleman Jr., Steven M. Cahan
2012, Open-File Report 2012-1111
One hundred forty-four sedimentary basins (or groups of basins) in the United States (both onshore and offshore) are identified, located, and briefly described as part of a Geographic Information System (GIS) data base in support of the Geologic Carbon Dioxide Sequestration National Assessment Project (Brennan and others, 2010). This catalog...
Expanded stream gauging includes groundwater data and trends
James E. Constantz, Jeannie R. B. Barlow, Cheryl Eddy-Miller, Rodney R. Caldwell, Jerrod D. Wheeler
2012, Eos, Transactions, American Geophysical Union (93) 497-497
Population growth has increased water scarcity to the point that documenting current amounts of worldwide water resources is now as critical as any data collection in the Earth sciences. As a key element of this data collection, stream gauges yield continuous hydrologic information and document long-term trends, recording high-frequency hydrologic...
Application of empirical predictive modeling using conventional and alternative fecal indicator bacteria in eastern North Carolina waters
Raul Gonzalez, Kathleen E. Conn, Joey Crosswell, Rachel Noble
2012, Water Research (46) 5871-5882
Coastal and estuarine waters are the site of intense anthropogenic influence with concomitant use for recreation and seafood harvesting. Therefore, coastal and estuarine water quality has a direct impact on human health. In eastern North Carolina (NC) there are over 240 recreational and 1025 shellfish harvesting water quality monitoring sites...
Geomorphic and hydrologic study of peak-flow management on the Cedar River, Washington
Christopher S. Magirl, Andrew S. Gendaszek, Christiana R. Czuba, Christopher P. Konrad, Mathieu D. Marineau
2012, Open-File Report 2012-1240
Assessing the linkages between high-flow events, geomorphic response, and effects on stream ecology is critical to river management. High flows on the gravel-bedded Cedar River in Washington are important to the geomorphic function of the river; however, high flows can deleteriously affect salmon embryos incubating in streambed gravels. A geomorphic...
