Use of airborne hyperspectral imagery to map soil parameters in tilled agricultural fields
W. Dean Hively, Gregory W. McCarty, James B. Reeves III, Megan W. Lang, Robert A. Oesterling, Stephen R. Delwiche
2011, Applied and Environmental Soil Science (2011)
Soil hyperspectral reflectance imagery was obtained for six tilled (soil) agricultural fields using an airborne imaging spectrometer (400–2450 nm, ~10 nm resolution, 2.5 m spatial resolution). Surface soil samples (n = 315) were analyzed for carbon content, particle size distribution, and 15 agronomically important elements (Mehlich-III extraction). When partial least...
Use of upscaled elevation and surface roughness data in two-dimensional surface water models
J.D. Hughes, J.D. Decker, C.D. Langevin
2011, Advances in Water Resources (34) 1151-1164
In this paper, we present an approach that uses a combination of cell-block- and cell-face-averaging of high-resolution cell elevation and roughness data to upscale hydraulic parameters and accurately simulate surface water flow in relatively low-resolution numerical models. The method developed allows channelized features that preferentially connect large-scale grid cells at...
Use of Rhodamine B as a biomarker for oral plague vaccination of prairie dogs
Julia Rodriguez-Ramos Fernandez, Tonie E. Rocke
2011, Journal of Wildlife Diseases (47) 765-768
Oral vaccination against Yersinia pestis could provide a feasible approach for controlling plague in prairie dogs (Cynomys spp.) for conservation and public health purposes. Biomarkers are useful in wildlife vaccination programs to demonstrate exposure to vaccine baits. Rhodamine B (RB) was tested as a potential biomarker for oral plague vaccination...
Use of non-alpine anthropogenic habitats by American pikas (Ochotona princeps) in western Oregon, USA
Tom Manning, Joan C. Hagar
2011, Western North American Naturalist (71) 106-112
The American pika (Ochotona princeps Richardson) has long been characterized in field guides and popular literature as an obligate inhabitant of alpine talus and as having relatively low dispersal capability. However, recent work reveals pikas to have broader habitat associations than previously reported. Over a large portion of the western...
A Markov decision process for managing habitat for Florida scrub-jays
Fred A. Johnson, David R. Breininger, Brean W. Duncan, James D. Nichols, Michael C. Runge, B. Ken Williams
2011, Journal of Fish and Wildlife Management (2) 234-246
Florida scrub-jays Aphelocoma coerulescens are listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act due to loss and degradation of scrub habitat. This study concerned the development of an optimal strategy for the restoration and management of scrub habitat at Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, which contains one of the few...
The story of the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory -- A remarkable first 100 years of tracking eruptions and earthquakes
Janet L. Babb, James P. Kauahikaua, Robert I. Tilling
2011, General Information Product 135
The year 2012 marks the centennial of the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO). With the support and cooperation of visionaries, financiers, scientists, and other individuals and organizations, HVO has successfully achieved 100 years of continuous monitoring of Hawaiian volcanoes. As we celebrate this milestone anniversary, we express our sincere mahalo—thanks—to the...
Improvement in precipitation-runoff model simulations by recalibration with basin-specific data, and subsequent model applications, Onondaga Lake Basin, Onondaga County, New York
William F. Coon
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5203
Water-resource managers in Onondaga County, New York, are faced with the challenge of improving the water quality of Onondaga Lake, which has the distinction of being one of the most contaminated lakes in the United States. To assist in this endeavor, during 2003-07 the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation...
Sheep vs. Palila on Mauna Kea: after 200 years of damage, can these native birds recover?
Steven C. Hess, Paul C. Banko
2011, The Wildlife Professional (5) 60-63
No abstract available ...
Twitter earthquake detection: Earthquake monitoring in a social world
Paul S. Earle, Daniel C. Bowden, Michelle R. Guy
2011, Annals of Geophysics (54) 708-715
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is investigating how the social networking site Twitter, a popular service for sending and receiving short, public text messages, can augment USGS earthquake response products and the delivery of hazard information. Rapid detection and qualitative assessment of shaking events are possible because people begin sending...
Tumor prevalence and biomarkers of genotoxicity in brown bullhead (Ameiurus nebulosus) in Chesapeake Bay tributaries
Alfred E. Pinkney, John C. Harshbarger, Natalie K. Karouna-Renier, Kathryn Jenko, Lennart Balk, Halldora Skarphedinsdottir, Birgitta Liewenborg, Michael A. Rutter
2011, Science of the Total Environment (410-411) 248-257
We surveyed four Chesapeake Bay tributaries for skin and liver tumors in brown bullhead (Ameiurus nebulosus). We focused on the South River, where the highest skin tumor prevalence (53%) in the Bay watershed had been reported. The objectives were to 1) compare tumor prevalence with nearby rivers (Severn and Rhode)...
Trout piscivory in the Colorado River, Grand Canyon: Effects of turbidity, temperature, and fish prey availability
Michael D. Yard, Coggins Jr., Colden V. Baxter, Glenn E. Bennett, Josh Korman
2011, Transactions of the American Fisheries Society (140) 471-486
Introductions of nonnative salmonids, such as rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss and brown trout Salmo trutta, have affected native fishes worldwide in unforeseen and undesirable ways. Predation and other interactions with nonnative rainbow trout and brown trout have been hypothesized as contributing to the decline of native fishes (including the endangered...
Economic importance of bats in agriculture
Justin G. Boyles, Paul M. Cryan, Gary F. McCracken, Thomas H. Kunz
2011, Science (332) 41-42
White-nose syndrome (WNS) and the increased development of wind-power facilities are threatening populations of insectivorous bats in North America. Bats are voracious predators of nocturnal insects, including many crop and forest pests. We present here analyses suggesting that loss of bats in North America could lead to agricultural losses estimated...
Trophic relationships between a native and a nonnative predator in a system of natural lakes
Michael H. Meeuwig, Christopher S. Guy, Wade A. Fedenberg
2011, Ecology of Freshwater Fish (20) 315-325
Bull trout, a species of char listed as threatened under the US Endangered Species Act, have been displaced from portions of their historic range following the introduction of nonnative lake trout. It has been suggested that competitive exclusion as a result of trophic overlap between bull trout and lake trout...
Trematode communities in snails can indicate impact and recovery from hurricanes in a tropical coastal lagoon
Maria Leopoldina Aguirre-Macedo, Victor M. Vidal-Martinez, Kevin D. Lafferty
2011, International Journal for Parasitology (41) 1403-1408
In September 2002, Hurricane Isidore devastated the Yucatán Peninsula, Mexico. To understand its effects on the parasites of aquatic organisms, we analyzed long-term monthly population data of the horn snail Cerithidea pliculosa and its trematode communities in Celestún, Yucatán, Mexico before and after the hurricane (February 2001 to December 2009)....
Tree species and soil nutrient profiles in old-growth forests of the Oregon Coast Range
Alison Cross, Steven S. Perakis
2011, Canadian Journal of Forest Research (41) 195-210
Old-growth forests of the Pacific Northwest provide a unique opportunity to examine tree species – soil relationships in ecosystems that have developed without significant human disturbance. We characterized foliage, forest floor, and mineral soil nutrients associated with four canopy tree species (Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirbel) Franco), western hemlock (Tsuga heterophylla...
Transient groundwater chemistry near a river: Effects on U(VI) transport in laboratory column experiments
Jun Yin, Roy Haggerty, Deborah L. Stoliker, Douglas B. Kent, Jonathan D. Istok, Janek Greskowiak, John M. Zachara
2011, Water Resources Research (47)
In the 300 Area of a U(VI)-contaminated aquifer at Hanford, Washington, USA, inorganic carbon and major cations, which have large impacts on U(VI) transport, change on an hourly and seasonal basis near the Columbia River. Batch and column experiments were conducted to investigate the factors controlling U(VI) adsorption/desorption by changing...
Trace and minor element variations and sulfur isotopes in crystalline and colloform ZnS: Incorporation mechanisms and implications for their genesis
Katharina Pfaff, Alan Koenig, Thomas Wenzel, Ian Ridley, Ludwig H. Hildebrandt, David L. Leach, Gregor Markl
2011, Chemical Geology (286) 118-134
Various models have been proposed to explain the formation mechanism of colloform sphalerite, but the origin is still under debate. In order to decipher influences on trace element incorporation and sulfur isotope composition, crystalline and colloform sphalerite from the carbonate-hosted Mississippi-Valley Type (MVT) deposit near Wiesloch, SW Germany, were investigated...
Toxicity of silicon carbide nanowires to sediment-dwelling invertebrates in water or sediment exposures
Joseph N. Mwangi, Ning Wang, Andrew Ritts, James L. Kunz, Christopher G. Ingersoll, Hao Li, Baolin Deng
2011, Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (30) 981-987
Silicon carbide nanowires (SiCNW) are insoluble in water. When released into an aquatic environment, SiCNW would likely accumulate in sediment. The objective of this study was to assess the toxicity of SiCNW to four freshwater sediment-dwelling organisms: amphipods (Hyalella azteca), midges (Chironomus dilutus), oligochaetes (Lumbriculus variegatus), and mussels (Lampsilis siliquoidea)....
Toxic effects of dietary methylmercury on immune system development in nestling American kestrels (Falco sparverius)
Dawn M. Fallacara, Richard S. Halbrook, John B. French
2011, Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (30) 1328-1337
This study evaluated the effects of dietary methylmercury (MeHg) on immune system development in captive-reared nestling American kestrels (Falco sparverius) to determine whether T cell–mediated and antibody-mediated adaptive immunity are targets for MeHg toxicity at environmentally relevant concentrations. Nestlings received various diets, including 0 (control), 0.6, and 3.9 μg/g (dry...
Transport of trace metals in runoff from soil and pond ash feedlot surfaces
J. R. Vogel, J.E. Gilley, G.L. Cottrell, B.L. Woodbury, E.D. Berry, R.A. Eigenbert
2011, Transactions of the ASABE (54) 1269-1279
The use of pond ash (fly ash that has been placed in evaporative ponds for storage and subsequently dewatered) for feedlot surfaces provides a drier environment for livestock and furnishes economic benefits. However, pond ash is known to have high concentrations of trace elements, and the runoff water-quality effects of...
National Acid Precipitation Assessment Program Report to Congress: An integrated assessment
Douglas A. Burns, Mark E. Fenn, Jill Baron, Jason A. Lynch, Bernard J. Cosby
2011, Report
Acid deposition, more commonly known as acid rain, occurs when emissions of sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) react in the atmosphere with water, oxygen, and oxidants to form various acidic compounds. Prevailing winds transport the acidic compounds hundreds of miles, often across state and national borders. These acidic...
Toxic effects of dietary methylmercury on immune function and hematology in American kestrels (Falco sparverius)
Dawn M. Fallacara, Richard S. Halbrook, John B. French
2011, Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (30) 1320-1327
Fifty-nine adult male American kestrels (Falco sparverius) were assigned to one of three diet formulations including 0 (control), 0.6, and 3.9 μg/g (dry wt) methylmercury (MeHg). Kestrels received their diets daily for 13 weeks to assess the effects of dietary MeHg on immunocompetence. Immunotoxic endpoints included assessment of cell-mediated immunity...
Towards identifying the next generation of superfund and hazardous waste site contaminants
Wendell P. Ela, David L. Sedlak, Morton A. Barlaz, Heather F. Henry, Derek C.G. Muir, Deborah L. Swackhamer, Eric J. Weber, Robert G. Arnold, P. Lee Ferguson, Jennifer A. Field, Edward T. Furlong, John P. Giesy, Rolf U. Halden, Tala Henry, Ronald A. Hites, Keri C. Hornbuckle, Philip H. Howard, Richard G. Luthy, Anita K. Meyer, A. Eduardo Saez, Frederick S. vom Saal, Chris D. Vulpe, Mark R. Wiesner
2011, Environmental Health Perspectives (119) 6-10
Background This commentary evolved from a workshop sponsored by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences titled "Superfund Contaminants: The Next Generation" held in Tucson, Arizona, in August 2009. All the authors were workshop participants. Objectives Our aim was to initiate a dynamic, adaptable process for identifying contaminants of emerging concern...
Ruddy Shelduck Tadorna ferruginea home range and habitat use during the non-breeding season in Assam, India
T. Namgail, John Y. Takekawa, B. Sivananinthaperumal, G. Areendran, P. Sathiyaselvam, T. Mundkur, T. Mccracken, S. Newman
2011, Wildfowl (61) 182-193
India is an important non-breeding ground for migratory waterfowl in the Central Asian Flyway. Millions of birds visit wetlands across the country, yet information on their distribution, abundance, and use of resources is rudimentary at best. Limited information suggests that populations of several species of migratory ducks are declining due...
Observations and relocation of a West Indian Manatee (Trichechus manatus) off Bimini, The Bahamas
Kelly Melillo-Sweeting, James P. Reid, Lester Gittens, Nicole Adimey, Jared Z. Dillet
2011, Aquatic Mammals (37) 502-505
West Indian manatees (Trichechus manatus) are listed as vulnerable (IUCN Red List, 7 March 2009; Deutsch et al., 2008), with the subspecies Trichechus manatus latirostris and T. m. manatus (Florida and Antillean, respectively) considered endangered (IUCN Red List, 21 January 2011; Deutsch, 2008; Self-Sullivan & Mignucci-Giannoni, 2008). Manatees are not...
