Isotope geochemistry and fluxes of carbon and organic matter in tropical small mountainous river systems and adjacent coastal waters of the Caribbean
Ryan Moyer, James Bauer, Andrea Grottoli
2012, Biogeochemistry
Recent studies have shown that small mountainous rivers (SMRs) may act as sources of aged and/or refractory carbon (C) to the coastal ocean, which may increase organic C burial at sea and subsidize coastal food webs and heterotrophy. However, the characteristics and spatial and temporal variability of C and organic...
Dealing with incomplete and variable detectability in multi-year, multi-site monitoring of ecological populations
Sarah J. Converse, J. Andrew Royle
Robert A. Gitzen, Joshua J. Millspaugh, Andrew B. Cooper, Daniel S. Licht, editor(s)
2012, Book chapter, Design and analysis of long-term ecological monitoring studies
An ecological monitoring program should be viewed as a component of a larger framework designed to advance science and/or management, rather than as a stand-alone activity. Monitoring targets (the ecological variables of interest; e.g. abundance or occurrence of a species) should be set based on the needs of that framework...
A unifying model for planform straightness of ripples and dunes in air and water
David M. Rubin
2012, Earth-Science Reviews (113) 176-185
Geologists, physicists, and mathematicians have studied ripples and dunes for more than a century, but despite considerable effort, no general model has been proposed to explain perhaps the most fundamental property of their morphology: why are some bedforms straight, continuous, parallel, and uniform in planform geometry (i.e. two-dimensional) whereas others...
Annual estimates of water and solute export from 42 tributaries to the Yukon River
Frederick Zanden, Suzanne P. Anderson, Robert G. Striegl
2012, Hydrological Processes (26) 1949-1961
Annual export of 11 major and trace solutes for the Yukon River is found to be accurately determined based on summing 42 tributary contributions. These findings provide the first published estimates of tributary specific distribution of solutes within the Yukon River basin. First, we show that annual discharge of the...
Fault populations
Richard A. Schultz, Roger Soliva, Chris Okubo, Daniel Mege
2012, Book chapter, Planetary tectonics
No abstract available....
Since “Groundwater and surface water–A single resource”: some U.S. Geological Survey advances in modeling groundwater/surface-water interactions
Daniel T. Feinstein
2012, Acque Sotterranee: Italian Journal of Groundwater (1) 9-24
Field and interpretive studies conducted by T.C. Winter and U.S. Geological Survey colleagues, and summarized in the 1998 publication “Groundwater and Surface Water – A Single Resource”, inspired a new generation of research centered on extensions of the groundwater-flow code MODFLOW to more sophisticated simulation of coupled...
Radar analysis of fall bird migration stopover sites in the Northeastern U.S.
Jeffrey J. Butler, Deanna K. Dawson
2012, Report
The national network of weather surveillance radars (WSR-88D/NEXRAD) detects birds in flight, and has proven to be a useful remote-sensing tool for ornithological study. We used data collected during Fall 2008 and 2009 by 16 WSR-88D and 3 terminal Doppler weather radars in the northeastern U.S. (U.S. Fish and Wildlife...
Prion protein degradation by lichens of the genus Cladonia
James P. Bennett, Cynthia M. Rodriguez, Christopher J. Johnson
2012, Lichenologist (44) 523-531
It has recently been discovered that lichens contain a serine protease capable of degrading the pathogenic prion protein, the etiological agent of prion diseases such as sheep scrapie and cervid chronic wasting disease. Limited methods are available to degrade or inactivate prion disease agents, especially in the environment, and lichens...
Flow-adjusted trends in dissolved selenium load and concentration in the Gunnison and Colorado Rivers near Grand Junction, Colorado, water years 1986--2008
John W. Mayo, Kenneth J. Leib
2012, Scientific Investigations Report 2012-5088
As a result of elevated selenium concentrations, many western Colorado rivers and streams are on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 2010 Colorado 303(d) list, including the main stem of the Colorado River from the Gunnison River confluence to the Utah border. Selenium is a trace metal that bioaccumulates in aquatic...
The offshore export of sand during exceptional discharge from California rivers
Jonathan A. Warrick, Patrick L. Barnard
2012, Geology (40) 787-790
Littoral cells along active tectonic margins receive large inputs of sand and gravel from coastal watersheds and commonly lose this sediment to submarine canyons. One hypothesis is that the majority of coarse (sand and gravel) river sediment discharge will be emplaced within and immediately “resupply” local littoral cells. A competing...
Disequilibrium dihedral angles in dolerite sills
Marian B. Holness, Chris Richardson, Rosalind T. Helz
2012, Geology (40) 795-798
The geometry of clinopyroxene-plagioclase-plagioclase junctions in mafic rocks, measured by the median dihedral angle Θcpp, is created during solidification. In the solidifying Kilauea Iki (Hawaii) lava lake, the wider junctions between plagioclase grains are the first to be filled by pyroxene, followed by the narrower junctions. The final Θcpp, attained...
Coordinated bird monitoring: Technical recommendations for military lands
Jonathan Bart, Ann Manning, Richard Fischer, Chris Eberly
2012, Open-File Report 2010-1078
The Department of Defense (DoD) is subject to several rules and regulations establishing responsibilities for monitoring migratory birds. The Sikes Act requires all military installations with significant natural resources to prepare and implement Integrated Natural Resources Management Plans (INRMPs). These plans guide the conservation and long-term management of natural resources...
Quick-start guide for version 3.0 of EMINERS - Economic Mineral Resource Simulator
Walter J. Bawiec, Gregory T. Spanski
2012, Open-File Report 2009-1057
Quantitative mineral resource assessment, as developed by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), consists of three parts: (1) development of grade and tonnage mineral deposit models; (2) delineation of tracts permissive for each deposit type; and (3) probabilistic estimation of the numbers of undiscovered deposits for each deposit type (Singer and...
Shahejie-Shahejie/Guantao/Wumishan and Carboniferous/Permian Coal-Paleozoic Total Petroleum Systems in the Bohaiwan Basin, China (based on geologic studies for the 2000 World Energy Assessment Project of the U.S. Geological Survey)
Robert T. Ryder, Jin Qiang, Peter J. McCabe, Vito F. Nuccio, Felix M. Persits
2012, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5010
This report discusses the geologic framework and petroleum geology used to assess undiscovered petroleum resources in the Bohaiwan basin province for the 2000 World Energy Assessment Project of the U.S. Geological Survey. The Bohaiwan basin in northeastern China is the largest petroleum-producing region in China. Two total petroleum systems have...
The effect of changes in habitat conditions on the movement of juvenile Snail Kites Rostrhamus sociabilis
Andrea C. Bowling, Julien Martin, Wiley M. Kitchens
2012, Ibis (154) 554-565
The degradation of habitats due to human activities is a major topic of interest for the conservation and management of wild populations. There is growing evidence that the Florida Everglades ecosystem continues to suffer from habitat degradation. After a period of recovery in the 1990s, the Snail Kite Rostrhamus sociabilis...
Documentation of the U.S. Geological Survey sea floor stress and sediment mobility database
P. Soupy Dalyander, Bradford Butman, Christopher R. Sherwood, Richard P. Signell
2012, Open-File Report 2012-1137
The U.S. Geological Survey Sea Floor Stress and Sediment Mobility Database contains estimates of bottom stress and sediment mobility for the U.S. continental shelf. This U.S. Geological Survey database provides information that is needed to characterize sea floor ecosystems and evaluate areas for human use. The estimates contained in the...
Seasonal patterns in nutrients, carbon, and algal responses in wadeable streams within three geographically distinct areas of the United States, 2007-08
Kathy Lee, David L. Lorenz, James C. Petersen, John B. Greene
2012, Scientific Investigations Report 2012-5086
The U.S. Geological Survey determined seasonal variability in nutrients, carbon, and algal biomass in 22 wadeable streams over a 1-year period during 2007 or 2008 within three geographically distinct areas in the United States. The three areas are the Upper Mississippi River Basin (UMIS) in Minnesota, the Ozark Plateaus (ORZK)...
Home range, habitat use, and migrations of hawksbill turtles tracked from Dry Tortugas National Park, Florida, USA
Kristen M. Hart, Autumn R. Sartain-Iverson, Ikuko Fujisaki, Harold L. Pratt Jr., Danielle Morley, Michael W. Feeley
2012, Marine Ecology Progress Series (457) 193-207
To determine habitat-use patterns of sub-adult hawksbills Eretmochelys imbricata, we conducted satellite- and acoustic-tracking of 3 turtles captured in August 2008 within Dry Tortugas National Park (DRTO), south Florida, USA, in the Gulf of Mexico; turtles ranged in size from 51.9 to 69.8 cm straight carapace length. After 263, 699, and...
A proxy for high-resolution regional reanalysis for the Southeast United States: assessment of precipitation variability in dynamically downscaled reanalyses
Lydia Stefanova, Vasubandhu Misra, Steven Chan, Melissa Griffin, James J. O’Brien, Thomas J. Smith III
2012, Climate Dynamics (38) 2449-2466
We present an analysis of the seasonal, subseasonal, and diurnal variability of rainfall from COAPS Land- Atmosphere Regional Reanalysis for the Southeast at 10-km resolution (CLARReS10). Most of our assessment focuses on the representation of summertime subseasonal and diurnal variability.Summer precipitation in the Southeast United States is a particularly challenging...
Manatees mapping seagrass (USA & Puerto Rico)
Daniel H. Slone, James P. Reid, W. Judson Kenworthy, Giuseppe Di Carlo, Susan M. Butler
2012, Seagrass-Watch (46) 8-11
West Indian manatees (Trichechus manatus) are secretive creatures. While some of their behaviours at winter aggregation sites in Florida are readily visible to the casual observer, many of their habits and movements are difficult to observe. They rely on submerged vegetation for nutrition, and seagrasses are one of their most...
Novel praziquantel treatment regime for controlling Asian tapeworm infections in pond-reared fish
Alison C. Iles, Thomas P. Archdeacon, Scott A. Bonar
2012, North American Journal of Aquaculture (74) 113-117
The Asian tapeworm Bothriocephalus achelognathii is an intestinal fish parasite that is nonnative to but widespread throughout the southwestern United States. Praziquantel is an anthelminthic drug commonly used to treat fish for Asian tapeworm; however, it does not kill tapeworm eggs, so the water in ponds used for fish rearing...
Fire reinforces structure of pondcypress (Taxodium distichum var. imbricarium) domes in a wetland landscape
Adam C. Watts, Leda N. Kobziar, James R. Snyder
2012, Wetlands (32) 439-448
Fire periodically affects wetland forests, particularly in landscapes with extensive fire-prone uplands. Rare occurrence and difficulty of access have limited efforts to understand impacts of wildfires fires in wetlands. Following a 2009 wildfire, we measured tree mortality and structural changes in wetland forest patches. Centers of these circular landscape features...
A conceptual model of the hydrogeologic framework, geochemistry, and groundwater-flow system of the Edwards-Trinity and related aquifers in the Pecos County region, Texas
Johnathan R. Bumgarner, Gregory P. Stanton, Andrew Teeple, Jonathan V. Thomas, Natalie A. Houston, Jason Payne, MaryLynn Musgrove
2012, Scientific Investigations Report 2012-5124
A conceptual model of the hydrogeologic framework, geochemistry, and groundwater-flow system of the Edwards-Trinity and related aquifers, which include the Pecos Valley, Igneous, Dockum, Rustler, and Capitan Reef aquifers, was developed as the second phase of a groundwater availability study in the Pecos County region in west Texas. The first...
Frequent arousal from hibernation linked to severity of infection and mortality in bats with white-nose syndrome
DeeAnn M. Reeder, Craig L. Frank, Gregory G. Turner, Carol U. Meteyer, Allen Kurta, Eric R. Britzke, Megan E. Vodzak, Scott R. Darling, Craig W. Stihler, Alan C. Hicks, Roymon Jacob, Laura E. Grieneisen, Sarah A. Brownlee, Laura K. Muller, David S. Blehert
2012, PLoS ONE (7)
White-nose syndrome (WNS), an emerging infectious disease that has killed over 5.5 million hibernating bats, is named for the causative agent, a white fungus (Geomyces destructans (Gd)) that invades the skin of torpid bats. During hibernation, arousals to warm (euthermic) body temperatures are normal but deplete fat stores. Temperature-sensitive dataloggers...
A Climate Trend Analysis of Burkina Faso
Christopher C. Funk, Jim Rowland, Gary Eilerts, Alkhalil Adoum, Libby White
2012, Fact Sheet 2012-3084
This brief report, drawing from a multi-year effort by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET), examines recent trends in rainfall and air temperatures. These analyses are based on quality controlled station observations. Conclusions: * Summer rains have remained steady over the past...
