Monitoring the recovery of seabirds and forage fish following a major ecosystem disruption in Lower Cook Inlet
Mayumi L. Arimitsu, Sarah K. Schoen, John F. Piatt, Caitlin Elizabeth Marsteller, Gary S. Drew
2021, OCS Study 2021-031
Following the North Pacific marine heatwave of 2014-2016 and associated extreme die-off of seabirds in the winter of 2015-2016, we repeated historical marine bird and forage fish surveys around two seabird colonies (Gull Island, Chisik Island) in lower Cook Inlet during 2016-2019 in order to document immediate and lingering impacts...
Constraints on deep, CO2-rich degassing at arc volcanoes from solubility experiments on hydrous basaltic andesite of Pavlof Volcano, Alaska Peninsula, at 300 to 1200 MPa
Margaret Mangan, Thomas W. Sisson, W. Ben Hankins, Nobumichi Shimizu, Torsten W. Vennemann
2021, American Mineralogist (106) 762-773
The solubility of CO2 in hydrous basaltic andesite was examined in fO2-controlled experiments at a temperature of 1125 °C and pressures between 310–1200 MPa. Concentrations of dissolved H2O and CO2 in experimental glasses were determined by ion microprobe calibrated on a subset of run glasses analyzed by high-temperature vacuum manometry. Assuming that the...
lsforce: A Python-based single-force seismic inversion framework for massive landslides
Liam Toney, Kate E. Allstadt
2021, Seismological Research Letters (4) 2610-2626
We present an open‐source Python package, lsforce, for performing single‐force source inversions of long‐period (tens to hundreds of seconds) seismic signals. Although the software is designed primarily for landslides, it can be used for any single‐force seismic source. The package allows users to produce estimates...
U.S. Geological Survey wildland fire science strategic plan, 2021–26
Paul F. Steblein, Rachel A. Loehman, Mark P. Miller, Joseph R. Holomuzki, Suzanna C. Soileau, Matthew L. Brooks, Mia Drane-Maury, Hannah M. Hamilton, Jason W. Kean, Jon E. Keeley, Mason Jr., Alexa McKerrow, James Meldrum, Edmund B. Molder, Sheila F. Murphy, Birgit Peterson, Geoffrey S. Plumlee, Douglas J. Shinneman, Phillip J. van Mantgem, Alison York
2021, Circular 1471
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Wildland Fire Science Strategic Plan defines critical, core fire science capabilities for understanding fire-related and fire-responsive earth system processes and patterns, and informing management decision making. Developed by USGS fire scientists and executive leadership, and informed by conversations with external stakeholders, the Strategic Plan is...
Arctic insect emergence timing and composition differs across thaw ponds of varying morphology
Sarah M. Laske, Kirsty E. B. Gurney, Joshua C. Koch, Joel A. Schmutz, Mark S. Wipfli
2021, Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research (53) 110-126
Freshwater ponds provide habitats for aquatic insects that emerge and subsidize consumers in terrestrial ecosystems. In the Arctic, insects provide an important seasonal source of energy to birds that breed and rear young on the tundra. The abundance and timing of insect emergence from arctic thaw ponds is poorly understood,...
Assessment of undiscovered gas resources in Upper Devonian to Lower Cretaceous strata of the western North Slope, Alaska, 2021
David W. Houseknecht, Tracey J. Mercier, Christopher J. Schenk, Thomas E. Moore, William A. Rouse, Julie A. Dumoulin, William H. Craddock, Richard O. Lease, Palma J. Botterell, Margaret M. Sanders, Rebecca A. Smith, Christopher D. Connors, Christopher P. Garrity, Katherine J. Whidden, Jared T. Gooley, John W. Counts, Joshua H. Long, Christina A. DeVera
2021, Fact Sheet 2021-3003
Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated a mean of 1,407 billion (1.4 trillion) cubic feet of gas in conventional accumulations in Upper Devonian to Lower Cretaceous strata of the western North Slope, Alaska....
Coking coal of the United States—Modern and historical coking coal mining locations and chemical, rheological, petrographic, and other data from modern samples
Michael H. Trippi, Leslie F. Ruppert, Cortland F. Eble, James C. Hower
2021, Open-File Report 2020-1113
Coking coal, or metallurgical coal, has been produced in the United States for nearly 200 years. Coking coal is primarily used in the production of coke for use in the steel industry, and for other uses (for example, foundries, blacksmithing, heating buildings, and brewing). Currently, U.S. coking coal is produced...
Red-throated loon (Gavia stellata) use of nearshore marine habitats—Results from a 2019 pilot study in northern Alaska
Brian D. Uher-Koch, Christopher J. Latty, Joel A. Schmutz
2021, Open-File Report 2021-1029
Red-throated loons (Gavia stellata) are a species of conservation concern in Alaska due to recent evidence of a population decline on the Arctic Coastal Plain (ACP) in northern Alaska. In 2019, the U.S. Geological Survey and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service conducted a pilot study to evaluate diet...
Multi-decadal shifts in the distribution and timing of Pacific herring (Clupea pallasii) spawning in Prince William Sound, Alaska
David W. McGowan, Trevor A. Branch, Stormy Haught, Mark David Scheuerell
Trevor A. Branch, editor(s)
2021, Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences (78) 1611-1627
The location and timing of spawning play a critical role in pelagic fish survival during early life stages and can affect subsequent recruitment. Spawning patterns of Pacific herring (Clupea pallasii) were examined in Prince William Sound (1973–2019) where the population has failed to recover since its collapse in 1993. Abrupt...
Golden Eagle
Todd E. Katzner, Michael N. Kochert, Karen Steenhof, Carol L. McIntyre, Erica H. Craig, Tricia A. Miller
2021, Book chapter, Birds of the world
The Golden Eagle inhabits a wide range of latitudes and habitats throughout the Palearctic and into northern Africa, where it is largely resident. In North America, its breeding distribution includes most of Canada and Alaska, as well as the western half of the United States and northern and western Mexico....
Abundance of a recently discovered Alaskan rhodolith bed in a shallow, seagrass-dominated lagoon
David H. Ward, Courtney Amundson, Patrick Fitzmorris, Damian M. Menning, Joel Markis, Kristine M. Sowl, Sandra C. Lindstrom
2021, Botanica Marina (64) 119-127
Rhodoliths are important foundation species of the benthic photic zone but are poorly known and rarely studied in Alaska. A bed of Lithothamnion soriferum rhodoliths was discovered in 2008 in Kinzarof Lagoon, Alaska, a shallow-water embayment dominated by eelgrass (Zostera marina). Rhodolith presence and biomass were estimated to...
Nitrogen biogeochemistry in a boreal headwater stream network in interior Alaska
Richard L. Smith, Deborah A. Repert, Joshua C. Koch
2021, Science of the Total Environment (764)
High latitude, boreal watersheds are nitrogen (N)-limited ecosystems that export large amounts of organic carbon (C). Key controls on C cycling in these environments are the biogeochemical processes affecting the N cycle. A study was conducted in Nome Creek, an upland headwater tributary of the Yukon River,...
Metabarcoding of environmental samples suggest wide distribution of eelgrass (Zostera marina) pathogens in the north Pacific
Damian M. Menning, Hunter A Gravley, Melissa N. Cady, Daniel J Pepin, Sandy Wyllie-Echeverria, David H. Ward, Sandra L. Talbot
2021, Metabarcoding and Metagenomics (5) 35-42
Seagrass meadows provide important ecological services to the marine environment but are declining worldwide. Although eelgrass meadows in the north Pacific are thought to be relatively healthy, few studies have assessed the presence of known disease pathogens in these meadows. In a pilot study to test the efficacy...
Reconstructing the dynamics of the highly similar May 2016 and June 2019 Iliamna Volcano, Alaska ice–rock avalanches from seismoacoustic data
Liam Toney, David Fee, Kate E. Allstadt, Matthew M. Haney, Robin S. Matoza
2021, Earth Surface Dynamics (9) 271-293
Surficial mass wasting events are a hazard worldwide. Seismic and acoustic signals from these often remote processes, combined with other geophysical observations, can provide key information for monitoring and rapid response efforts and enhance our understanding of event dynamics. Here, we present seismoacoustic data and analyses for two very large...
Effects of midazolam on corticosterone and blood gases in spectacled eiders prior to transmitter implantation
Maria Spriggs, Daniel Rizzolo, Kate Martin, Gwen E. Myers, Matthew G. Sexson
2021, Journal of Wildlife Management (85) 909-919
Stress and physical exertion may affect the physiology and behavior of wildlife during and after capture, and consequently, survival following release. Such effects may reduce the quality and quantity of the data obtained from captured wildlife. We captured spectacled eiders (Somateria fischeri), a species listed as...
The extent and variability of storm‐induced temperature changes in lakes measured with long‐term and high‐frequency data
Jonathan P. Doubek, Orlane Anneville, Gael Dur, Aleksandra M. Lewandowska, Vijay P. Patil, James A. Rusak, Nico Salmaso, Christian T. Seltmann, Dietmar Straile, Pablo Urrutia-Cordero, Patrick Venail, Rita Adrian, Maria B. Alfonso, Curtis L. DeGasperi, Elvira de Eyto, Heidrun Feuchtmayr, Evelyn Gaiser, Scott F Girdner, Jennifer L. Graham, Hans-Peter Grossart, Josef Hejzlar, Stephan Jacquet, Georgiy Kirillin, Maria E. Llames, Shin-Ichiro S. Matsuzaki, Emily Nodine, Maria Cintia Piccolo, Donald C. Pierson, Alon Rimmer, Lars G. Rudstam, Steven Sadro, Hilary M. Swain, Stephen J. Thackeray, Wim Thiery, Piet Verburg, Tamar Zohary, Jason D. Stockwell
2021, Limnology and Oceanography (66) 1979-1992
The intensity and frequency of storms are projected to increase in many regions of the world because of climate change. Storms can alter environmental conditions in many ecosystems. In lakes and reservoirs, storms can reduce epilimnetic temperatures from wind‐induced mixing with colder hypolimnetic waters, direct precipitation...
The American Kestrel (Falco sparverius) genoscape: Implications for monitoring, management, and subspecies boundaries
K. C. Ruegg, M. Brinkmeyer, C. M. Bossu, R. Bay, E. C. Anderson, Clint W. Boal, R. D. Dawson, A. Eschenbauch, C. J. W. McClure, K. E. Miller, L. Morrow, J. R. Morrow, M. D. Oleyar, B. Ralph, S. Schulwitz, T. Swem, J. F. Therrien, Rich Van Buskirk, T. B. Smith, J. A. Heath
J-F. Therrien, editor(s)
2021, Ornithology (138)
Identifying population genetic structure is useful for inferring evolutionary process and comparing the resulting structure with subspecies boundaries can aid in species management. The American Kestrel (Falco sparverius) is a widespread and highly diverse species with 17 total subspecies, only 2 of which are found north of U.S./Mexico border (F....
Water reliability in the west -- SECURE Water Act Section 9503(C)
Marketa McGuire, Subhrendu Gangopadhyay, Justin T. Martin, Gregory T. Pederson, Connie A. Woodhouse, Jeremy Littell
2021, Report, Technical Memorandum No. ENV-2021-001
No abstract available....
Investigating the morphological and genetic divergence of arctic char (Salvelinus alpinus) populations in lakes of arctic Alaska
Stephen L. Klobucar, Jessica A. Rick, Elizabeth G. Mandeville, Catherine E. Wagner, Phaedra E. Budy
2021, Ecology and Evolution (11) 3040-3057
Polymorphism facilitates coexistence of divergent morphs (e.g., phenotypes) of the same species by minimizing intraspecific competition, especially when resources are limiting. Arctic char (Salvelinus sp.) are a Holarctic fish often forming morphologically, and sometimes genetically, divergent morphs. In this study, we assessed the morphological and genetic diversity and divergence of 263...
Linear deconvolution applied to ASTER imagery of terrestrial dune analog sites
Donald M. Hooper, Bernard E. Hubbard
2021, Conference Paper
Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflec-tion (ASTER) radiometer onboard NASA’s Terra satellite has nearly complete global coverage in the 8 – 14 µm thermal infrared (TIR) atmospheric window and is the highest resolution sensor providing TIR emissivity data at 90-m spatial resolution and five multispectral bands. ASTER imagery enables mapping...
Biological correlates of sea urchin recruitment in kelp forest and urchin barren habitats
Ben Weitzman, Brenda H. Konar
2021, Marine Ecology Progress Series (663) 115-125
Shifts between the alternate stable states of sea urchin barren grounds and kelp forests correspond to sea urchin density. In the Aleutian Archipelago, green sea urchins Strongylocentrotus polyacanthus are the dominant herbivores that graze kelp forests. Sea urchin recruitment is an important driver that influences sea urchin density, particularly in the absence...
Glacial dust surpasses both volcanic ash and desert dust in its iron fertilization potential
Bess G. Koffman, Meg F. Yoder, Taylor Methven, Lena Hanschka, Helen B. Sears, Patrick L. Saylor, Kristi L. Wallace
2021, Global Biogeochemical Cycles (35)
The subarctic Pacific Ocean and Bering Sea comprise the second-largest high nitrate, low chlorophyll region in the world, where primary production is limited by the availability of iron (Fe). To estimate the potential impact of different terrestrial aerosol Fe sources on marine ecosystems, we performed a suite of laboratory assessments...
U.S. Geological Survey Arctic ecosystem assessments
John M. Pearce, Caroline R. Van Hemert
2021, Fact Sheet 2021-3016
The U.S Geological Survey (USGS) conducts natural hazard and resource assessments of the Earth’s ecosystems and the response of those ecosystems to environmental change, human activities, and land use. Arctic regions of Alaska are important for cultural and economic sustainability and host a wide variety of wildlife species, many of...
Investigation of algal toxins in a multispecies seabird die-off in the Bering and Chukchi seas
Caroline R. Van Hemert, Robert J. Dusek, Matthew M. Smith, Robert Kaler, Gay Sheffield, Lauren M. Divine, Kathy J. Kuletz, Susan Knowles, Julia S. Lankton, D. Ransom Hardison, R. Wayne Litaker, Timothy Jones, Hillary K. Burgess, Julia K. Parrish
2021, Journal of Wildlife Diseases (57) 399-407
Between 2014 and 2017, widespread seabird mortality events were documented annually in the Bering and Chukchi seas, concurrent with dramatic reductions of sea ice, warmer than average ocean temperatures, and rapid shifts in marine ecosystems. Among other changes in the marine environment, harmful algal blooms (HABs) that produce the neurotoxins...
Dating fault damage along the eastern Denali fault zone with hematite (U-Th)/He thermochronometry
Robert G. McDermott, Alexis K. Ault, Jonathan Saul Caine
2021, Earth and Planetary Science Letters (563)
Unraveling complex slip histories in fault damage zones to understand relations among deformation, hydrothermal alteration, and surface uplift remains a challenge. The dextral eastern Denali fault zone (EDFZ; southwest Yukon, Canada) bounds the Kluane Ranges and hosts a variety of fault-related rocks, including hematite fault surfaces, which have been exhumed...
