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The National Hydrography Dataset Plus High Resolution (NHDPlus HR) is a scalable hydrologic geospatial fabric or framework, built from (1) the High Resolution (1:24,000-scale or better) National Hydrography Dataset (NHD), (2) nationally complete Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD), and (3) 1/3-arc-second 3D Elevation Program (3DEP) digital elevation model (DEM) data (at...

Fostering a sense of classroom community in earth science classes supports students’ sense of belonging within the classroom and the broader scientific community, helping them build a sense of identity as a geoscientist. This study examines the effects of incorporating a 2-week, collaborative role-playing activity on sense of classroom community...

Introduction In response to growing interest in beaver-assisted restoration in the Tualatin River Basin of northwestern Oregon, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in partnership with Clean Water Services, collected data from 2016–17 and completed a series of studies to: (1) inventory known locations of beaver dams and activity in the Tualatin...

Significant Findings American beaver (Castor canadensis) dams fundamentally alter stream hydraulics and hydrology by temporarily impounding water in stream channels. Water managers are interested in how this impoundment translates to changes in hydrograph dynamics, particularly regarding the magnitude and duration of high flows, the temporary storage of storm water, and the...

Significant Findings Beaver dams can help streams connect to their floodplains. These floodplain connections can expand the range of available aquatic habitats and aid in the restoration of stream and floodplain function and processes. American beavers (Castor canadensis) occupy a wide variety of aquatic habitats; however, their ability to build dams,...

Growing interest in beaver-assisted restoration in the Tualatin River Basin of northwestern Oregon motivated a series of studies by the U.S. Geological Survey to assess the capacity of the stream network to support beaver dams and to evaluate the effects of beaver dams and ponds on urban streams. This multichapter...

This report describes the techniques and methods for computing the mean-channel velocity and discharge using the entropy-based probability concept (probability concept). The method is an alternative to or augments standard streamgaging methods adopted by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). Although sensor technology for measuring the mean velocity and discharge has...

Gridded precipitation datasets are required for flood-typing historical annual peak streamflow events in basins across the Conterminous United States. Selected gridded precipitation datasets were validated over the period 1981–2013 through comparisons with gage data from the NOAA Global Historical Climatology Network daily (GHCNd). The ability of each gridded dataset to...

ContextFloodplain forests are being transformed by multiple pressures, prompting widespread management and restoration efforts. It is uncertain how disturbances, including hydrologic change, and management actions will interact to influence the ecology of these threatened forests.ObjectivesThis study examined the effects of alternative management and hydrologic regimes on...

Beavers (Castor canadensis) alter river corridor hydrology by creating ponds and inundating floodplains, and thereby improving surface water storage. However, the impact of inundation on groundwater, particularly in mountainous alluvial floodplains with permeable gravel/cobble layers overlain by a soil layer, remains uncertain. Numerical modeling across various floodplain structures considers topographic...

Study RegionCape Cod, Massachusetts, U.S.A.Study FocusAnthropogenic nitrogen (N) is a key factor in degrading groundwater and surface-water quality, particularly in coastal New England where onsite wastewater systems are prevalent. This study evaluated whether direct N-load measurements...

Salt marshes are dynamic biogeomorphic systems reliant on autochthonous and allochthonous input to maintain their three-dimensional configuration. Sea-level rise, subsidence, and sediment deficits can lead to submergence, open-water expansion, and ultimately loss of the vegetated marsh plain and associated ecosystem services. Widely used management-focused models focus on vegetation zonation in...

The Upper Mississippi River Restoration (UMRR) program, a broad partnership of State and Federal agencies administered by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, integrates ecosystem monitoring, research, and modeling to rehabilitate habitat and evaluate ecosystem trends over time in the Upper Mississippi River System. Hydrologic data are integral to the...

Freshwater-using utility-scale thermoelectric (TE) plant water-use estimates were evaluated for annual trends from 2008 to 2020 across the conterminous United States (CONUS) and within hydrologic regions. Overall, TE water withdrawal and consumption trends declined across CONUS by 14,335 and 278 million liters/day, respectively. Decreasing water withdrawal and consumption trends for...

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation, Office of Water Resources, computed selected at-site streamflow statistics at U.S. Geological Survey streamgages in and near Massachusetts and developed regional regression equations for estimating selected streamflows at ungaged stream sites in Massachusetts. Two sets of...

Forecasts of streamflow drought, when streamflow declines below typical levels, are notably less available than for floods or meteorological drought, despite widespread impacts. To address this gap, we apply machine learning (ML) models to forecast streamflow drought 1-13 weeks into the future at > 3,000 streamgage locations across the conterminous...

Aerial photography and satellite imagery can be used to characterize landscape change over time and help to understand how these changes are related to climate and hydrology. Publicly available optical imagery from sources such as the United States National Agricultural Imagery Program (NAIP) is particularly valuable in this context due...

Biological invasions threaten global biodiversity, with aquatic systems being particularly susceptible. Invasive crayfish drive native crayfish imperilment in North America and worldwide. Despite the probable increase in extreme hydrological events, the synergistic effects from invasive species and drought on crayfish are understudied. The invasion of Faxonius neglectus chaenodactylus in...

Large-scale hydrologic models are increasingly being developed for operational use in the forecasting and planning of water resources. However, the predictive strength of such models depends on how well they resolve various functions of catchment hydrology, which are influenced by gradients in climate, topography, soils, and land use. Most assessments...

The Zuni Salt Lake is located in a maar in west-central New Mexico and contains hypersaline water that has long been used by Native Americans for religious purposes and the collection of salt. There have been several investigations suggesting different sources for the water and salt to the lake. Springs,...

Hydrologic connectivity (HC), particularly in floodplain systems, is pivotal in regulating ecosystem services by facilitating the movement of nutrients, sediments, chemicals, and biota. However, human interventions such as dam construction, levee installation, water management practices, and alterations in vegetation have significantly disrupted natural HC patterns globally. To provide a structured entry...

Anthropogenically forced climate shifts disrupt the seasonal behavior of climatic and hydrologic processes. The seasonality of streamflow has significant implications for the ecology of riverine ecosystems and for meeting societal demands for water resources. We develop a hierarchical Bayesian model of daily streamflow to quantify how the...

Understanding habitat connectivity is critical for managing nonindigenous aquatic species (NAS) spread. Dams and watershed boundaries can be impassable to NAS during typical conditions but may become temporarily passable during flooding. The goal of our project was to develop an approach for identifying locations of aquatic connectivity...

Urbanization reshapes dissolved organic matter (DOM) sources, transport, and transformations through changes in vegetation, hydrology, and management of waste and water. Yet the impacts of urbanization on DOM are variable within and among cities. Predicting heterogeneous responses to urbanization is challenged by diverse human activities and underlying biophysical variation along...

Temporal patterns in chemistry of headwater streams reflect responses of water and elemental cycles to perturbations occurring at local to global scales. We evaluated multi-scale temporal patterns in up to 32 y of monthly observations of stream chemistry (ammonium, calcium, dissolved organic carbon, nitrate, total dissolved phosphorus, and sulfate) in...