Sea-cliff bedstraw (Galium buxifolium) patterns and trends, 2005–14, on Santa Cruz and San Miguel Islands, Channel Islands National Park, California
Kathryn McEachern, Katherine A. Chess, Karen Flagg, Kenneth G. Niessen
2019, Open-File Report 2019-1054
Sea-cliff bedstraw (Galium buxifolium [Rubiaceae]) is a delicate dioecious subshrub endemic to Santa Cruz and San Miguel Islands, in the northern California Channel Islands. It was listed as endangered in 1997 under the Federal Endangered Species Act, threatened by soil loss, habitat alteration, and herbivory from more than a century...
Radiometric ages of volcanic rocks on the fort rock dome and in the aquarius mountains, Yavapai and Mohave Counties, Arizona
Gary S. Fuis, Andrew T. Calvert, Katie Sullivan
2019, Open-File Report 2019-1038
The Fort Rock dome, in Yavapai County, Ariz., is a roughly circular geologic structure in plan view, 2.5 km in diameter, that is similar in many ways to an impact crater; however, it is a structural dome caused by a potassic mafic intrusion at depth, and the crater-like depression in...
Movements of juvenile Pacific Lamprey (Entosphenus tridentatus) in the Yakima and Columbia Rivers, Washington, 2018—A pilot study using acoustic telemetry
Theresa L. Liedtke, Ralph T. Lampman, Z. Daniel Deng, Tyler E. Beals, Michael S. Porter, Amy C. Hansen, Tobias J. Kock, Ryan G. Tomka, Patrick Monk
2019, Open-File Report 2019-1058
Telemetry has been an invaluable tool to improve our understanding of adult Pacific Lamprey (Entosphenus tridentatus) movements and to guide management approaches to protect and restore this species of concern. Juvenile and larval lamprey, however, are much smaller than adults, and have not been monitored with telemetry because available transmitters...
Data management plan for the U.S. Geological Survey Washington Water Science Center
Kathleen E. Conn, Mark C. Mastin, Andrew J. Long, Richard S. Dinicola, Cynthia Barton
2019, Open-File Report 2019-1049
The primary mission of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Water Mission Area is to collect and disseminate reliable, impartial, and timely information needed to understand the water resources of the Nation, including data on streamflow, groundwater, water quality, water use, and availability. Management of data throughout the entire data lifecycle...
It is raining plastic
Gregory A. Wetherbee, Austin K. Baldwin, James F. Ranville
2019, Open-File Report 2019-1048
Atmospheric deposition samples were collected using the National Atmospheric Deposition Program / National Trends Network (NADP/NTN) at 6 sites in the Denver-Boulder urban corridor and 2 adjacent sites in the Colorado Front Range. Weekly wet-only atmospheric deposition samples collected at these sites during winter-summer of 2017 were filtered (0.45...
Monitoring live vegetation in semiarid and arid rangeland environments with satellite remote sensing in northern Kenya
Amina Rangoonwala, Elijah W. Ramsey III
2019, Open-File Report 2019-1037
As part of the U.S. Department of the Interior’s (DOI) commitment to provide technical assistance to the Kenyan Northern Rangelands Trust (NRT), the U.S. Geological Survey, in collaboration with the DOI International Technical Assistance Program and the U.S. Agency for International Development’s regional mission in East Africa, created a high...
Analysis for agreement of the Northern Gulf of Mexico topobathymetric digital elevation model with 3-Dimensional Elevation Program 1/3 arc-second digital elevation models
Cynthia Miller-Corbett
2019, Open-File Report 2019-1016
Topographical differencing and edge-matching analyses were used to evaluate agreement of the Coastal National Elevation Database Applications Project’s Northern Gulf of Mexico topobathymetric digital elevation model (TBDEM) with The National Map 3-Dimensional Elevation Program (3DEP) 1/3 arc-second digital elevation models (DEMs). In addition to topographic map products provided through the...
Spatial integration of biological and social objectives to identify priority landscapes for waterfowl habitat conservation
Anastasia Krainyk, James E. Lyons, Michael G. Brasher, Dale D. Humburg, Greg J. Souilliere, John M. Coluccy, Mark J. Petrie, David W. Howerter, Stuart M. Slattery, Mindy B. Rice, Joe C. Fuller
2019, Open-File Report 2019-1029
Waterfowl population management and habitat conservation compose one of the oldest and most successful adaptive management frameworks in the world. Since its inception, the North American Waterfowl Management Plan (NAWMP) has emphasized strategically targeted conservation investments in regions that most affect waterfowl population dynamics. By 2012, regional conservation had progressively...
Adult sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) behavior and movement from Roza Dam to Cle Elum Dam, Washington, 2018
Tobias J. Kock, Scott D. Evans, Brian K. Ekstrom, Amy C. Hansen
2019, Open-File Report 2019-1053
An evaluation was conducted to describe adult sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) upstream movement patterns from Roza Dam to Cle Elum Dam in the Yakima Basin, Washington. Sockeye salmon adults that arrive at Roza Dam are currently trapped and transported upstream of Cle Elum Dam because upstream fish-passage facilities are...
Preliminary stage and streamflow data at selected U.S. Geological Survey streamgages in New England for the floods of April 2019
Richard G. Kiah, Brianna A. Smith, Nicholas W. Stasulis
2019, Open-File Report 2019-1052
The combination of rainfall and snowmelt in northern New England and rainfall in southern New England resulted in minor to major flooding from April 15 to 24, 2019, according to stage and streamflow data collected at 63 selected U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) streamgages. A typical USGS streamgage measures and records...
Groundwater quality in the Sacramento Metropolitan shallow aquifer, California
George L. Bennett V
2019, Open-File Report 2019-1047
The Sacramento metropolitan (SacMetro) study unit covers approximately 3,250 square kilometers of the Central Valley along the eastern edge of the northern and southern ends of the San Joaquin and Sacramento Valleys, respectively. Groundwater withdrawals supply a significant portion of the water-resource needs of the region. In the southern portion...
An experimental test of weed-suppressive bacteria effectiveness in rangelands in southwestern Idaho, 2016–18
Brynne E. Lazarus, Matthew J. Germino
2019, Open-File Report 2019-1050
Approaches and techniques for control of exotic annual grasses are a high priority in sagebrush-steppe and other rangelands. Strains of the soil bacterium Pseudomonas fluorescens (Pf) have been proposed to be selectively pathogenic to multiple species of exotic annual grasses with effects evident by the second year, and with...
Effectiveness of fish screens in protecting lamprey (Entosphenus and Lampetra spp.) ammocoetes—Pilot testing of variable screen angle
Theresa L. Liedtke, Daniel J. Didricksen, Lisa K. Weiland, Joshua A. Ragala, Ralph Lampman
2019, Open-File Report 2019-1044
Thousands of screened water diversions throughout the Columbia River Basin of the Pacific Northwest are sources of entrainment (unintended diversion into an unsafe passage route), injury, and mortality for a range of fish species and screening criteria have been developed to reduce and mitigate these effects. Large knowledge gaps...
Rigorously valuing the role of U.S. coral reefs in coastal hazard risk reduction
Curt D. Storlazzi, Borja G. Reguero, Aaron Cole, Erik Lowe, James B. Shope, Ann E. Gibbs, Barry A. Nickel, Robert T. McCall, Ap R. van Dongeren, Michael W. Beck
2019, Open-File Report 2019-1027
The degradation of coastal habitats, particularly coral reefs, raises risks by increasing the exposure of coastal communities to flooding hazards. The protective services of these natural defenses are not assessed in the same rigorous economic terms as artificial defenses, such as seawalls, and therefore often are not considered in decision...
Identification of single nucleotide polymorphisms for use in a genetic stock identification system for greater white-fronted goose (Anser albifrons) subspecies wintering in California
Robert E. Wilson, Sarah A. Sonsthagen, Jeffrey M. DaCosta, Craig R. Ely, Michael D. Sorenson, Sandra L. Talbot
2019, Open-File Report 2019-1040
California provides wintering habitat for most greater white-fronted geese (Anser albifrons [GWFG]) in the Pacific Flyway and this population has rapidly increased since the 1980s. Increased harvest of GWFG wintering in California may prevent agricultural depredation while providing increased hunting opportunities. However, changes in harvest levels are unlikely to...
Geochemistry and mineralogy of soils collected in the lower Rio Grande valley, Texas
Helen A. Whitney, Federico Solano, Bernard E. Hubbard
2019, Open-File Report 2019-1010
Presented in this report are the chemical and mineralogical results of a soil study conducted in the lower Rio Grande valley, Texas. Samples were collected from soils formed on Holocene alluvial flood-plain and distributary channel deposits of the Rio Grande, flood plain and meander-belt deposits of the Pliocene Goliad...
Monitoring annual trends in abundance of eelgrass (Zostera marina) at Izembek National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska, 2018
David H. Ward, Courtney L. Amundson
2019, Open-File Report 2019-1042
A lagoon-wide, point-sampling survey of eelgrass (Zostera marina) abundance was conducted in Izembek Lagoon, Alaska, August 7–16, 2018, the ninth year of annual surveys (2007–11, 2015–18). Mean predicted aboveground biomass of eelgrass across 116 sampled points was 238 grams per square meter (g m-2) (95 percent confidence interval: 203–278 g...
Adaptive management of flows from R.L. Harris Dam (Tallapoosa River, Alabama)—Stakeholder process and use of biological monitoring data for decision making
Elise R. Irwin, Mary Freeman, James T. Peterson, Kathryn D.M. Kennedy, M. Clint Lloyd, Kristie M. Ouellette Coffman, Ely Kosnicki, Tom Hess
Elise R. Irwin, editor(s)
2019, Open-File Report 2019-1026
Adaptive management has been applied to problems with multiple conflicting objectives in various natural resources settings to learn how management actions affect divergent values regarding system response. Hydropower applications have only recently begun to emerge in the field, yet in the specific example reported herein, stakeholders invested in determining the...
Demonstrating the value of Earth observations—methods, practical applications, and solutions—group on Earth observations side event proceedings
Francoise Pearlman, Collin B. Lawrence, Emily Pindilli, Denna Geppi, Carl D. Shapiro, Monica Grasso, Jay Pearlman, Jeffery Adkins, Geoff Sawyer, Alessandra Tassa
2019, Open-File Report 2019-1033
Executive SummaryThe U.S. Geological Survey, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the European Association for Remote Sensing Companies, and the European Space Agency in coordination with the GEOValue Community hosted a side event to the Group on Earth Observations Plenary on October 23–24, 2017, in Washington, D.C. The workshop, entitled...
Monitoring storm tide and flooding from Hurricane Irma along the U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, and the Southeastern United States, September 2017
Michael J. Byrne Sr., Mark R. Dickman
2019, Open-File Report 2019-1013
Hurricane Irma skirted the northern coasts of the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico, with maximum sustained winds of 185 miles per hour (mi/h) on September 6, 2017. The hurricane first made landfall in Florida near Cudjoe Key, in the lower Florida Keys, with maximum sustained winds of 130 mi/h...
Groundwater quality and nutrient trends near Marsing, southwestern Idaho, 2018
Kenneth D. Skinner
2019, Open-File Report 2019-1032
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality, sampled groundwater from 15 wells during spring 2018 near the city of Marsing in rural northwestern Owyhee County, southwestern Idaho. Samples were analyzed for field parameters, nutrients, trace elements, major inorganics, and dissolved gas, including methane....
Hurricane Sandy impacts on coastal wetland resilience
Donald R. Cahoon, Jennifer H. Olker, Alice G. Yeates, Glenn R. Guntenspergen, James B. Grace, Susan C. Adamowicz, Shimon C. Anisfeld, Andrew H. Baldwin, Nels Barrett, Leah Beckett, Alice Benzecry, Linda K. Blum, David M. Burdick, William Crouch, Marci Cole Ekberg, Sarah Fernald, Kristin Wilson Grimes, Joseph Grzyb, Ellen Kracauer Hartig, Danielle A. Kreeger, Marit Larson, Scott Lerberg, James C. Lynch, Nicole Maher, Martha Maxwell-Doyle, Laura R. Mitchell, Jordan Mora, Victoria O’Neill, Angela Padeletti, Diann J. Prosser, Tracy Quirk, Kenneth B. Raposa, William G. Reay, Drexel Siok, Christopher Snow, Adam Starke, J. Court Stevenson, Lorie Staver, Vincent Turner
2019, Open-File Report 2018-1142
The goal of this research was to evaluate the impacts of Hurricane Sandy on surface elevation trends in estuarine marshes located across the northeast region of the United States from Virginia to Maine using data from an opportunistic (in other words, not strategic) and collaborative network (from here on, an...
Optimizing historical preservation under climate change—An overview of the optimal preservation model and pilot testing at Cape Lookout National Seashore
Erin Seekamp, Max Post van der Burg, Sandra Fatoric, Mitchell J. Eaton, Xiao Xiao, Allie McCreary
2019, Open-File Report 2018-1180
Adapting cultural resources to climate-change effects challenges traditional cultural resource decision making because some adaptation strategies can negatively affect the integrity of cultural resources. Yet, the inevitability of climate-change effects—even given the uncertain timing of those effects—necessitates that managers begin prioritizing resources for climate-change adaptation. Prioritization imposes an additional management...
Annual wastewater nutrient data preparation and load estimation using the Point Source Load Estimation Tool (PSLoadEsT)
Lillian E. Gorman Sanisaca, Kenneth D. Skinner, Molly A. Maupin
2019, Open-File Report 2019-1025
The Point-Source Load Estimation Tool (PSLoadEsT) provides a user-friendly interface for generating reproducible load calculations for point source dischargers while managing common data challenges including duplicates, incompatible input tables, and incomplete or missing nutrient concentration or effluent flow data. Maintaining a consistent method across an entire study area is important...
Potential sea level rise for the Chitimacha Tribe of Louisiana
Kathryn A. Spear, William Jones, Kereen Griffith, Blair E. Tirpak, Kimberly Walden
2019, Open-File Report 2019-1030
Situated in the Mississippi Alluvial Plain of the Gulf Coast Prairie Landscape Conservation Cooperative (GCP LCC), the Chitimacha Tribe is one of four federally recognized tribes in Louisiana. The Tribal seat, trust lands/ reservation, and adjacent Tribal owned lands are located near Charenton, Louisiana, totaling nearly 1,000 acres. The...
