Ecosystem services provided by playas in the High Plains: potential influences of USDA conservation programs
Loren M. Smith, David A. Haukos, Scott T. McMurry, David Willis
2011, Ecological Applications (21) S82-S92
Playas are shallow depressional wetlands and the dominant wetland type in the non-glaciated High Plains of the United States. This region is one of the most intensively cultivated regions in the Western Hemisphere, and playas are profoundly impacted by a variety of agricultural activities. Conservation practices promoted through Farm Bills...
Development of a depth-integrated sample arm to reduce solids stratification bias in stormwater sampling
William R. Selbig, Roger T. Bannerman
2011, Water Environment Research (83) 347-357
A new depth-integrated sample arm (DISA) was developed to improve the representation of solids in stormwater, both organic and inorganic, by collecting a water quality sample from multiple points in the water column. Data from this study demonstrate the idea of vertical stratification of solids in storm sewer runoff. Concentrations...
Groundwater quality in the Eastern Lake Ontario Basin, New York, 2008
Amy J. Risen, James E. Reddy
2011, Open-File Report 2011-1074
Water samples were collected from nine production wells and nine private residential wells in the Eastern Lake Ontario Basin of New York from August through October 2008 and analyzed to characterize the chemical quality of groundwater. The wells were selected to provide adequate spatial coverage of the 3,225-square-mile study area;...
‘Cape capture’: Geologic data and modeling results suggest the Holocene loss of a Carolina Cape
E. Robert Thieler, Andrew D. Ashton
2011, Geology (39) 339-342
For more than a century, the origin and evolution of the set of cuspate forelands known as the Carolina Capes—Hatteras, Lookout, Fear, and Romain—off the eastern coast of the United States have been discussed and debated. The consensus conceptual model is not only that these capes existed through much or...
ATV magnetometer systems for efficient ground magnetic surveying
Noah D. Athens, Jonathan M. G. Glen, Robert L. Morin, Simon L. Klemperer
2011, The Leading Edge (30) 394-398
Ground magnetic data contain information, not pre-sent in aeromagnetic data, which may be useful for precisely mapping near-surface faults and contacts, as well as constraining or aiding interpretation of other geophysical methods. However, collecting ground magnetic data on foot is labor-intensive and is therefore limited to small surveys. In this...
In Vivo fitness associated with high virulence in a vertebrate virus is a complex trait regulated by host entry, replication, and shedding
Andrew R. Wargo, Gael Kurath
2011, Journal of Virology (85) 3959-3967
The relationship between pathogen fitness and virulence is typically examined by quantifying only one or two pathogen fitness traits. More specifically, it is regularly assumed that within-host replication, as a precursor to transmission, is the driving force behind virulence. In reality, many traits contribute to pathogen fitness, and each trait...
Why I am not an academic (or am I?): A career influenced by Burt Slemmons
William U. Savage
2011, Conference Paper, 43rd Symposium on engineering geology and geotechnical engineering 2011
No abstract available....
A paleoseismic study along the central Denali Fault, Chistochina Glacier area, south-central Alaska
R. D. Koehler, Stephen Personius, David P. Schwartz, Peter J. Haeussler, G. G. Seitz
2011, Report of Investigations of the Alaska Department of Natural Resources, Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys 2011-1
In the Chistochina Glacier area of south-central Alaska, the active trace of the Denali fault is well defined by prominent tectonic geomorphology, including scarps, grabens, and mole tracks associated with the 2002 Mw=7.9 Denali fault earthquake. Interpretation of a trench excavated across the 2002 rupture trace places a constraint on...
Columbia River Project water use plan: Mid Columbia sturgeon incubation and rearing study (year 2)
Michael J. Parsley, Eric Kofoot, J. Timothy Blubaugh
2011, Report
This report describes the results from the second year of a three-year investigation on the effects of different thermal regimes on incubation and rearing early life stages of white sturgeon Acipenser transmontanus. The Columbia River has been significantly altered by the construction of dams resulting in annual flows and water...
Simulation of water-use conservation scenarios for the Mississippi Delta using an existing regional groundwater flow model
Jeannie R.B. Barlow, Brian R. Clark
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5019
The Mississippi River alluvial plain in northwestern Mississippi (referred to as the Delta), once a floodplain to the Mississippi River covered with hardwoods and marshland, is now a highly productive agricultural region of large economic importance to Mississippi. Water for irrigation is supplied primarily by the Mississippi River Valley alluvial...
Effects of natural and human factors on groundwater quality of basin-fill aquifers in the southwestern United States: Conceptual models for selected contaminants
Laura M. Bexfield, Susan A. Thiros, David W. Anning, Jena M. Huntington, Tim S. McKinney
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5020
As part of the U.S. Geological Survey National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program, the Southwest Principal Aquifers (SWPA) study is building a better understanding of the factors that affect water quality in basin-fill aquifers in the Southwestern United States. The SWPA study area includes four principal aquifers of the United States:...
Water Resources of Lafayette Parish
Robert B. Fendick Jr., Jason M. Griffith, Lawrence B. Prakken
2011, Fact Sheet 2010-3048
Fresh groundwater and surface water resources are available in Lafayette Parish, which is located in south-central Louisiana. In 2005, more than 47 million gallons per day (Mgal/d) were withdrawn from water sources in Lafayette Parish. About 92 percent (43.7 Mgal/d) of withdrawals was groundwater, and 8 percent (3.6 Mgal/d) was...
Habitat suitability of patch types: a case study of the Yosemite toad
Christina T. Liang, Thomas J. Stohlgren
2011, Frontiers of Earth Science (5) 217-228
Understanding patch variability is crucial in understanding the spatial population structure of wildlife species, especially for rare or threatened species. We used a well-tested maximum entropy species distribution model (Maxent) to map the Yosemite toad (Anaxyrus (= Bufo) canorus) in the Sierra Nevada mountains of California. Twenty-six environmental variables were...
Buffelgrass-Integrated modeling of an invasive plant
Tracy R. Holcombe
2011, Fact Sheet 2011-3022
Buffelgrass (Pennisetum ciliare) poses a problem in the deserts of the United States, growing in dense stands and introducing a wildfire risk in an ecosystem not adapted to fire. The Invasive Species Science Branch of the Fort Collins Science Center has worked with many partners to develop a decision support...
Use of instantaneous streamflow measurements to improve regression estimates of index flow for the summer month of lowest streamflow in Michigan
David J. Holtschlag
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2010-5236
In Michigan, index flow Q50 is a streamflow characteristic defined as the minimum of median flows for July, August, and September. The state of Michigan uses index flow estimates to help regulate large (greater than 100,000 gallons per day) water withdrawals to prevent adverse effects on characteristic fish populations. At...
Trends in nutrient concentrations, loads, and yields in streams in the Sacramento, San Joaquin, and Santa Ana Basins, California, 1975-2004
Charles R. Kratzer, Robert Kent, Dina K. Seleh, Donna L. Knifong, Peter D. Dileanis, James L. Orlando
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2010-5228
A comprehensive database was assembled for the Sacramento, San Joaquin, and Santa Ana Basins in California on nutrient concentrations, flows, and point and nonpoint sources of nutrients for 1975-2004. Most of the data on nutrient concentrations (nitrate, ammonia, total nitrogen, orthophosphate, and total phosphorus) were from the U.S. Geological Survey's...
Holocene evolution of Apalachicola Bay, Florida
Lisa E. Osterman, David C. Twichell
2011, Fact Sheet 2011-3028
A program of geophysical mapping and vibracoring was conducted in 2007 to better understand the geologic evolution of Apalachicola Bay and its response to sea-level rise. A detailed geologic history could help better understand how this bay may respond to both short-term (for example, storm surge) and long-term sea-level rise....
Fluctuations in groundwater levels related to regional and local withdrawals in the fractured-bedrock groundwater system in northern Wake County, North Carolina, March 2008-February 2009
Melinda J. Chapman, Naser Almanaseer, Bryce McClenney, Natalie Hinton
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2010-5219
A study of dewatering of the fractured-bedrock aquifer in a localized area of east-central North Carolina was conducted from March 2008 through February 2009 to gain an understanding of why some privately owned wells and monitoring wells were intermittently dry. Although the study itself was localized in nature, the resulting...
Seafloor erosional processes offshore of the Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana
David C. Twichell, John Brock
2011, Fact Sheet 2011-3026
The Chandeleur Islands are a chain of barrier islands that lies along the eastern side of the modern Mississippi River Delta plain. The island chain is located near the seaward edge of the relict St. Bernard Delta, the part of the Mississippi Delta that formed between approximately 4,000 and 2,000...
Big Spring spinedace and associated fish populations and habitat conditions in Condor Canyon, Meadow Valley Wash, Nevada
Ian G. Jezorek, Patrick J. Connolly, Carrie S. Munz, Chris Dixon
2011, Open-File Report 2011-1072
Executive Summary: This project was designed to document habitat conditions and populations of native and non-native fish within the 8-kilometer Condor Canyon section of Meadow Valley Wash, Nevada, with an emphasis on Big Spring spinedace (Lepidomeda mollispinis pratensis). Other native fish present were speckled dace (Rhinichthys osculus) and desert sucker...
Early results from the Northern Gulf of Mexico Ecosystem Change and Hazard Susceptibility Project
John Brock, Dawn L. Lavoie, Richard Z. Poore
2011, Fact Sheet 2011-3031
The northern Gulf of Mexico coastal region and its diverse ecosystems are threatened by population and development pressure and by the impacts of rising sea level and severe storms such as the series of hurricanes that has impacted the northern Gulf in recent years. In response to the complex management...
Evidence of multidecadal climate variability in the Gulf of Mexico
Richard Z. Poore, John Brock
2011, Fact Sheet 2011-3027
The northern Gulf of Mexico coastal region is vulnerable to a variety of natural hazards, many of which are linked to climate and climate variability. Hurricanes, which are one such climate-related hazard, are a major recurring problem, and the active hurricane seasons of 2004 and 2005 raised interest in better...
Mines and mineral processing facilities in the vicinity of the March 11, 2011, earthquake in northern Honshu, Japan
W. David Menzie, Michael S. Baker, Donald I. Bleiwas, Chin Kuo
2011, Open-File Report 2011-1069
U.S. Geological Survey data indicate that the area affected by the March 11, 2011, magnitude 9.0 earthquake and associated tsunami is home to nine cement plants, eight iodine plants, four iron and steel plants, four limestone mines, three copper refineries, two gold refineries, two lead refineries, two zinc refineries, one...
Tillage practices in the conterminous United States, 1989-2004: Datasets aggregated by watershed
Nancy T. Baker
2011, Data Series 573
This report documents the methods used to aggregate county-level tillage practices to the 8-digit hydrologic unit (HU) watershed. The original county-level data were collected by the Conservation Technology Information Center (CTIC). The CTIC collects tillage data by conducting surveys about tillage systems for all counties in the United States. Tillage...
Simulated effects of allocated and projected 2025 withdrawals from the Potomac-Raritan-Magothy aquifer system, Gloucester and Northeastern Salem Counties, New Jersey
Emmanuel G. Charles, John P. Nawyn, Lois M. Voronin, Alison D. Gordon
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5033
Withdrawals from the Potomac-Raritan-Magothy aquifer system in New Jersey, which includes the Upper, Middle, and Lower Potomac-Raritan-Magothy aquifers, are the principal source of groundwater supply in northern Gloucester and northeastern Salem Counties in the New Jersey Coastal Plain. Water levels in these aquifers have declined in response to pumping. With...
