Attenuation of acid rock drainage by stimulating sulfur-reducing bacteria
Thomas D. Byl, Ronald Oniszczak, Diarra Fall, Petra Kim Byl, Michael Bradley
2023, Environmental Earth Sciences (82) 18
Iron-sulfide minerals found in shale formations are stable under anaerobic conditions. However, in the presence of oxygen and water, acid-loving chemolithotrophic bacteria can transform the iron-sulfide minerals into a toxic solution of sulfuric acid and dissolved iron and minerals known as acid rock drainage (ARD). The...
Hydrogeologic characterization of Area B, Fort Detrick, Maryland
Phillip J. Goodling, Brandon J. Fleming, John Solder, Alexander M. Soroka, Jeff P. Raffensperger
2023, Scientific Investigations Report 2022-5054
Groundwater in the karst groundwater system at Area B of Fort Detrick in Frederick County, Maryland, is contaminated with chlorinated solvents from the past disposal of laboratory wastes. In cooperation with U.S. Army Environmental Command and U.S. Army Garrison Fort Detrick, the U.S. Geological Survey performed a 3-year study to...
Multi-proxy record of ocean-climate variability during the last 2 millennia on the Mackenzie Shelf, Beaufort Sea
Laura Gemery, Thomas M. Cronin, Lee W. Cooper, Lucy Roberts, Lloyd D Keigwin, Jason A. Addison, Melanie Leng, Peigen Lin, Cedric Magen, Marci E. Marot, Valerie Schwartz
2023, Micropaleontology (69) 345-366
A 2,000 year-long oceanographic history, in sub-centennial resolution, from a Canadian Beaufort Sea continental shelf site (60meters water depth) near the Mackenzie River outlet is reconstructed from ostracode and foraminifera faunal assemblages, shell stable isotopes (delta 18O, delta 13C) and sediment biogenic silica. The chronology of three sediment cores making...
Sediment transport in two tributaries to the San Joaquin River immediately below Friant Dam—Cottonwood Creek and Little Dry Creek, California
Dan R.W. Haught, Mathieu D. Marineau, Justin Toby Minear, Scott Wright, Joan V. Lopez
2023, Scientific Investigations Report 2023-5023
Two tributaries to the greater San Joaquin River watershed, Cottonwood and Little Dry Creeks, in California’s Central Valley, were assessed for sediment and streamflow dynamics between October 1, 2011, and September 30, 2019. The two systems deliver sediment to the San Joaquin River below Friant Dam, California. Dams create downstream...
Discovery of a rare pillar coral (Dendrogyra cylindrus) death assemblage off southeast Florida reveals multi-century persistence during the late Holocene
Alexander B. Modys, Lauren Toth, Richard A. Mortlock, Anton E. Olenik, William F. Precht
2023, Coral Reefs (42) 801-807
In recent years, coral populations in the western Atlantic have undergone widespread declines from climate change, anthropogenic stressors, and infectious disease outbreaks. The pillar coral, Dendrogyra cylindrus, has been one of the most affected species, prompting its listing as threatened under the United States Endangered Species Act...
Four conservation challenges and a synthesis
Byron K. Williams, Ellie Brown
2023, Ecology and Evolution (13)
Conservation and management of biological systems involves decision-making over time, with a generic goal of sustaining systems and their capacity to function in the future. We address four persistent and difficult conservation challenges: (1) prediction of future consequences of management, (2) uncertainty about the system's...
Isotopic niche of New Jersey terrapins suggests intraspecific resource partitioning, and little variability following a major hurricane
Mathew Denton, Kristen Hart, John Wnek, Sarah A. Moss, Harold W. Avery
2023, Hydrobiologia (850) 2975-2990
Diamondback terrapins (Malaclemys terrapin) are sexually dimorphic generalist turtles that inhabit salt marshes and estuaries along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of the United States. On October 29th, 2012, Hurricane Sandy made landfall in New Jersey, USA, directly impacting terrapin populations inhabiting central and southern Barnegat...
Interim guidance for calibration checks on a submersible acoustic backscatter sediment sensor
Jason S. Alexander, Jonathan P. O’Connell, Jeb E. Brown
2023, Open-File Report 2023-1039
Over the past two decades, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and other agencies have pioneered the use of active acoustic sensors to monitor suspended-sediment concentrations and particle sizes in rivers and streams at the subdaily time scale. The LISST-ABS submersible acoustic backscatter sediment sensor (or “ABS sensor”) was developed by...
Stimulation of aquatic bacteria from Mammoth Cave, Kentucky, by sublethal concentrations of antibiotics
Thomas D. Byl, Petra Kim Byl, Jacob P. Byl, Rickard Toomey III
2023, Journal of Cave and Karst Studies (85) 16-27
Many microorganisms secrete secondary metabolites with antibiotic properties; however, there is debate whether the secretions evolved as a means to gain a competitive edge or as a chemical signal to coordinate community growth. The objective of this research was to investigate if select antibiotics acted as a weapon or as...
Forecasting sea level rise-driven inundation in diked and tidally restricted coastal lowlands
Kevin A. Befus, A Kurnizki, Kevin D. Kroeger, Meagan J. Eagle, Timothy P. Smith
2023, Estuaries and Coasts (46) 1157-1169
Diked and drained coastal lowlands rely on hydraulic and protective infrastructure that may not function as designed in areas with relative sea-level rise. The slow and incremental loss of the hydraulic conditions required for a well-drained system make it difficult to identify if and when the flow structures no longer...
Techniques for restoring damaged Mojave and western Sonoran ecosystems, including those for threatened desert tortoises and Joshua trees
Scott R Abella, Kristin H. Berry, Stefanie Ferrazzano
2023, Desert Plants (38) 4-52
Ecological restoration has potential for contributing to conservation activities for threatened Mojave desert tortoises (Gopherus agassizii) and Joshua trees (Yucca brevifolia, Y. jaegeriana) and their broader ecosystems in the Mojave and western Sonoran deserts. To be effective, restoration actions deployed strategically need to halt and reverse habitat degradation, replenish or...
Incorporating uncertainty in susceptibility criteria into probabilistic liquefaction hazard analysis
Andrew James Makdisi
2023, Conference Paper, PEER workshop on liquefaction susceptibility, PEER report 2023-02
Most conventional approaches for assessing liquefaction triggering hazards generally rely on simplified procedures that involve identifying liquefaction susceptible layers and calculating a factor of safety against liquefaction (FSL) in each layer. Such procedures utilize deterministic semi-empirical models for standard penetration test (SPT), cone penetrometer test (CPT), or shear wave velocity...
MTAB 104, May 2023
Kyra Harvey
2023, Newsletter
This Memo to All Banders (MTAB 104) was released in May 2023. Subjects in this memo are 1. The Chief’s Chirp; 2. Alerts – Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza and reminder that banders cannot submit data through Bandit, only manage data; 3. Staff updates – Jennifer McKay joins the BBL; 4....
Exploring the geology of the Midcontinent Rift under western Lake Superior using a preliminary velocity model of seismic line GLIMPCE C
V. J. S. Grauch, Samuel J. Heller, Esther K. Stewart, Laurel G. Woodruff
2023, Conference Paper, Proceedings of the 69th ILSG annual meeting
Seismic-reflection data were collected in the 1980s as part of the Great Lakes International Multidisciplinary Program on Crustal Evolution (GLIMPCE) to investigate the 1.1 Ga Midcontinent Rift System (MRS). GLIMPCE Line C crosses western Lake Superior from north to south shores (Fig. 1 inset). Many previous workers have interpreted the...
Subsurface characterization of the Duluth Complex and related intrusions from 3D modeling of gravity and magnetotelluric data
Dana E. Peterson, Paul A. Bedrosian, Carol A. Finn
2023, Conference Paper, Proceedings of the 69th ILSG annual meeting
No abstract available....
A highly-contiguous and annotated genome assembly of the Lesser Prairie-Chicken (Tympanuchus pallidicinctus).
Andrew N . Black, Kristin J. Bondo, Andrew Mularo, Alvaro Hernandez, Yachi Yu, Carleigh M. Stein, Andy Gregory, Kent A. Fricke, Jeff Prendergast, Dan Sullins, David A. Haukos, Michael Whitson, Blake Grisham, Zach Lowe, J. Andrew DeWoody
2023, Genome Biology and Evolution (15)
The Lesser Prairie-Chicken (Tympanuchus pallidicinctus; LEPC) is an iconic North American prairie grouse, renowned for ornate and spectacular breeding season displays. Unfortunately, the species has disappeared across much of its historical range, with corresponding precipitous declines in contemporary population abundance, largely due to climatic and anthropogenic factors. These declines led...
Constraints on the composition and thermal structure of Ariel’s icy crust as inferred from its largest observed impact crater
Michael T. Bland, Chloe B. Beddingfield, Tom A. Nordheim, Donald A. Patthoff, Steven D. Vance
2023, Icarus (395)
The large graben-like troughs and smooth plains visible on the surface of Ariel are indicative of a period of high heat flow in the Uranian moon's past. High heat flows on icy moons like Ariel can also enable viscous flow that removes impact crater topography, a process called viscous relaxation. Here we use numerical modeling to...
A multi-level assessment of biological effects associated with mercury concentrations in smallmouth bass, Micropterus dolomieu
Vicki S. Blazer, Heather L. Walsh, Adam Sperry, Brenna Raines, James Willacker, Collin A. Eagles-Smith
2023, Environmental Pollution (392)
Total mercury (THg) was measured in muscle (fillet) and liver tissue of adult smallmouth bass Micropterus dolomieu collected at multiple sites in the Potomac and Susquehanna River drainages within the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Smallmouth bass in these drainages have experienced episodic mortality events, a high prevalence of skin...
Asteroid impacts and cascading hazards
Timothy N. Titus, D. G. Robertson, Joel B. Sankey, Larry G. Mastin
2023, Conference Paper
The initial effects from an asteroid impact are generally well characterized and include thermal radiation and blast waves. If the impactor is sufficiently large, either an earthquake or tsunami can also result, depending on whether the impact occurs over land or water. However, the longer-term effects that extend beyond...
First investigations on lamprey responses to elevated total dissolved gas exposure and risk of gas bubble trauma
Theresa L. Liedtke, Kenneth Tiffan, Lisa K. Weiland, Brian K. Ekstrom
2023, Report
A flexible spill program in the federal Columbia River power system increased the total dissolved gas (TDG) water quality standards (i.e., the gas cap) from 120% to 125%. Spill is used to pass juvenile salmon (Oncorhynchus spp.) over dams, but it can generate elevated TDG, and exposed fish can develop...
So goes the snow: Alaska snowpack changes and impacts on pacific salmon in a warming climate
Jeremy Littell, Joel H. Reynolds, Krista K. Bartz, Stephanie A. McAfee, Gregory D. Hayward
2023, Alaska Park Science (19) 62-75
In Alaska’s watersheds, climate change is altering the nature and role of the snowpack, defined as snow accumulation that melts in spring. Generally, the amount of precipitation that falls as snow and the length of the snow-cover season both decrease as temperatures exceed 0°C (32°F) more frequently. The impacts of...
Magnitude and frequency of floods for rural streams in Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina, 2017—Summary
Toby D. Feaster, Anthony J. Gotvald, Jonathan W. Musser, J. Curtis Weaver, Katharine Kolb
2023, Fact Sheet 2023-3011
Reliable flood-frequency estimates are important for hydraulic structure design and floodplain management in Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina. Annual peak streamflows (hereafter, referred to as peak flows) measured at 965 U.S. Geological Survey streamgages were used to compute flood-frequency estimates with annual exceedance probabilities (AEPs) of 50, 20, 10,...
Magnitude and frequency of floods for rural streams in Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina, 2017—Results
Toby D. Feaster, Anthony J. Gotvald, Jonathan W. Musser, J. Curtis Weaver, Katharine Kolb, Andrea G. Veilleux, Daniel M. Wagner
2023, Scientific Investigations Report 2023-5006
Reliable estimates of the magnitude and frequency of floods are an important part of the framework for hydraulic-structure design and flood-plain management in Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina. Annual peak flows measured at U.S. Geological Survey streamgages are used to compute flood‑frequency estimates at those streamgages. However, flood‑frequency estimates...
U.S. Geological Survey invasive carp strategic framework, 2023–27
Duane Chapman, Jon Amberg, Robin D. Calfee, Enrika Hlavacek, Jon Hortness, P. Ryan Jackson, David C. Kazyak, Brent Knights, James Roberts
2023, Circular 1504
U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) research has supported management of Hypophthalmichthys nobilis (bighead carp), Mylopharyngodon piceus (black carp), Ctenopharyngodon idella (grass carp), and H. molitrix (silver carp), hereafter referred to collectively as invasive carps, for over a decade. This strategic framework identifies thematic research areas to guide funding decisions for USGS...
Remote characterization of the 12 January 2020 eruption of Taal Volcano, Philippines, using seismo-acoustic, volcanic lightning, and satellite observations
Anna Perttu, Jelle D. Assink, Alexa R. Van Eaton, Corentin Caudron, Chris Vagasky, Janine Krippner, Kathleen McKee, Silvio De Angelis, Brian Perttu, Benoit Taisne, Gert Lube
2023, Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America (113) 1471-1492
On 12 January 2020, an eruption began on the shores of the Main Crater Lake (MCL) of Taal Volcano—a caldera system on the southern end of Luzon Island in the Philippines. Taal, one of the most active volcanoes in the Philippines, is located 30 km south of Manila—a major metropolitan area...
