Understanding the effect of salinity tolerance on cyanobacteria associated with a harmful algal bloom in Lake Okeechobee, Florida
Barry H. Rosen, Keith A. Loftin, Jennifer L. Graham, Katherine N. Stahlhut, James M. Riley, Brett D. Johnston, Sarena Senegal
2018, Scientific Investigations Report 2018-5092
In an effort to simulate the survival of cyanobacteria asthey are transported from Lake Okeechobee to the estuarinehabitats that receive waters from the lake, a bioassayencompassing a range of salinities was performed. An overalldecline in cyanobacteria health in salinity treatments greaterthan 18 practical salinity units (psu) was indicated by loss...
Characterizing the Los Angeles Aqueduct crossing of the San Andreas Fault for improved earthquake resilience
Scott Lindvall, Scott Kerwin, Chris Heron, Craig A. Davis, Jeff Tyson, Jim Chestnut, Kevin Mass, Mike Farr, Katherine M. Scharer, Devin McPhillips
2018, Conference Paper, 11th United States National Conference on Earthquake Engineering
The five-mile-long Elizabeth Tunnel, which crosses the San Andreas fault (SAF) zone near Lake Hughes, California, is part of the Los Angeles Aqueduct (LAA) that delivers water from Owens Valley to the City of Los Angeles. Geologic characterization of the Elizabeth Tunnel alignment is focused on developing a better understanding...
Applications of the California pesticide use reporting database in more than 25 years of U.S. Geological Survey hydrological studies
Joseph L. Domagalski, James Orlando
Minghua Zhang, Scott Jackson, Mark A. Robertson, Michael R. Zeiss, editor(s)
2018, Book chapter, Managing and analyzing pesticide use data for pest management, environmental monitoring, public health, and public policy. ACS Symposium Series, Vol. 1283
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has been collecting data on the occurrence of pesticides in California surface and ground water since the 1970’s. The design of these studies benefited from the availability of the Pesticide Use Reporting (PUR) database of the California Department of Pesticide Regulation. Actual locations and dates...
Changing environmental gradients over forty years alter ecomorphological variation in Guadalupe Bass Micropterus treculii throughout a river basin
Jessica E. Pease, Timothy B. Grabowski, Allison A. Pease, Preston T. Bean
2018, Ecology and Evolution (8) 8508-8522
Understanding the degree of intraspecific variation within and among populations is a key aspect of predicting the capacity of a species to respond to anthropogenic disturbances. However, intraspecific variation is usually assessed at either limited temporal, but broad spatial scales or vice versa, which can make assessing changes in response...
SWB Version 2.0—A soil-water-balance code for estimating net infiltration and other water-budget components
Stephen M. Westenbroek, John A. Engott, Victor A. Kelson, Randall J. Hunt
2018, Techniques and Methods 6-A59
The U.S. Geological Survey’s Soil-Water-Balance (SWB) code was developed as a tool to estimate distribution and timing of net infiltration out of the root zone by means of an approach that uses readily available data and minimizes user effort required to begin a SWB application. SWB calculates other components of...
Linking transit times to catchment sensitivity to atmospheric deposition of acidity and nitrogen in mountains of the western United States
David W. Clow, M. Alisa Mast, James O. Sickman
2018, Hydrological Processes (32) 2456-2470
Transit times are hypothesized to influence catchment sensitivity to atmospheric deposition of acidity and nitrogen (N) because they help determine the amount of time available for infiltrating precipitation to interact with catchment soil and biota. Transit time metrics, including fraction of young water (Fyw) and mean transit time (MTT), were...
Geomorphology and vegetation change at Colorado River campsites, Marble and Grand Canyons, Arizona
Daniel R. Hadley, Paul E. Grams, Matthew A. Kaplinski, Joseph E. Hazel Jr., Roderic A. Parnell
2018, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5096
Sandbars along the Colorado River are used as campsites by river runners and hikers and are an important recreational resource within Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. Regulation of the flow of river water through Glen Canyon Dam has reduced the amount of sediment available to be deposited as sandbars, has...
Detections of current-use pesticides at 12 surface water sites in California during a 2-year period beginning in 2015
Corey J. Sanders, James L. Orlando, Michelle L. Hladik
2018, Data Series 1088
Surface water samples were collected by the U.S. Geological Survey and multiple cooperators during base flow/irrigation runoff and storm runoff conditions from 12 sites throughout California, over 2 consecutive years beginning in April 2015, from both urban and agriculturally dominated watersheds. Water samples were analyzed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry and...
Using reverse-time egg transport analysis for predicting Asian Carp spawning grounds in the Illinois River
Zhenduo Zhu, David Soong, Tatiana Garcia, Mina Shahed Behrouz, Steven E. Butler, Elizabeth A. Murphy, Matthew J. Diana, James J. Duncker, David H. Wahl
2018, Ecological Modelling (384) 53-62
Identifying spawning grounds of Asian carp is important for determining the reproductive front of invasive populations. Ichthyoplankton monitoring along the Illinois Waterway (IWW) has provided information on abundances of Asian carp eggs in the IWW's navigation pools. Post-fertilization times derived from egg development stages and water temperatures can be used...
Rating stability, and frequency and magnitude of shifts, for streamgages in Virginia through water year 2013
Terence Messinger, Robert W. Burgholzer
2018, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5137
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, has quantified several measures of rating stability and the frequency and magnitude of changes to ratings through time for 174 real-time continuous streamgages active in Virginia as of September 30, 2013. Generalized additive models (GAMs) were fitted...
Carving Grand Canyon’s inner gorge: A test of steady incision versus rapid knickzone migration
Ryan S. Crow, Karl E. Karlstrom, Laura J. Crossey, Victor Polyak, Yemane Asmerom, William C. McIntosh
2018, Geosphere (14) 1-17
A recent study posits that much of the 240-m-deep inner gorge of Grand Canyon was carved between 500 and 400 ka via passage of a migrating knickzone with incision rates of ~1600 m/Ma during that time period; this was based on dating of a ca. 500 ka travertine deposit perched...
A method for determining avian influenza virus hemagglutinin and neuraminidase subtype association
Christopher Ottinger, Deborah D. Iwanowicz, Luke R. Iwanowicz, Cynthia R. Adams, Lakyn R. Sanders, Christine L. Densmore
2018, Open-File Report 2018-1102
Methods for grouping specific avian influenza virus (AIV) hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA) subtype reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) products into HA:NA subtypes when egg incubation is technically not feasible were evaluated. These approaches were adopted for use as post hoc methods after melt curve analysis. The methods are based...
Abundance and productivity of marbled murrelets (Brachyramphus marmoratus) off central California during the 2017 breeding season
Jonathan J. Felis, Josh Adams, Emily C. Kelsey
2018, Data Series 1093
Marbled murrelets (Brachyramphus marmoratus) have been listed as “Endangered” by the State of California and “Threatened” by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service since 1992 in California, Oregon, and Washington. Information regarding marbled murrelet abundance, distribution, population trends, and habitat associations is critical for risk assessment, effective management and...
Spatial and temporal trends in selenium in the upper Blackfoot River watershed, southeastern Idaho, 2001–16
Lauren M. Zinsser, Christopher A. Mebane, Greg C. Mladenka, Lynn R. Van Every, Marshall L. Williams
2018, Scientific Investigations Report 2018-5081
Phosphate mining in southeastern Idaho has been an important economic driver for the region and State for over 100 years, but weathering of mining waste rock has also released selenium into the Blackfoot River. This report analyzes and presents data from three separate but complementary studies monitoring selenium in streams...
UFINCH: A method for simulating unit and daily flows in networks of channels described by NHDPlus using continuous flow data at U.S. Geological Survey streamgages
David J. Holtschlag
2018, Scientific Investigations Report 2016-5074
The UFINCH (Unit Flows In Networks of Channels) computer application can be used to simulate daily and unit flows in networks of streams based on geospatial data in the National Hydrography Dataset NHDPlus (with value added attributes), and U.S. Geoogical Survey daily streamflow data from a downstream (or base) streamgage....
Temporal evaluation of estrogenic endocrine disruption markers in smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) reveals seasonal variability in intersex
Luke R. Iwanowicz, A.E. Pinkney, C.P. Guy, A.M. Major, K. Munney, Vicki S. Blazer, David Alvarez, Heather L. Walsh, Adam J. Sperry, Lakyn R. Sanders, D. R. Smith
2018, Science of the Total Environment (646) 245-256
A reconnaissance project completed in 2009 identified intersex and elevated plasma vitellogenin in male smallmouth bass inhabiting the Missisquoi River, VT. In an attempt to identify the presence and seasonality of putative endocrine disrupting chemicals or other factors associated with these observations, a comprehensive reevaluation was conducted between September 2012...
Geochemistry and microbiology of groundwater and solids from extraction and monitoring wells and their relation to well efficiency at a Federally operated confined disposal facility, East Chicago, Indiana
Randall E. Bayless, Travis R. Cole, David C. Lampe, R. E. Travis, Marjorie S. Schulz, Paul M. Buszka
2018, Scientific Investigations Report 2018-5073
In cooperation with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Chicago District, the U.S. Geological Survey investigated the processes affecting water quality, geochemistry, and microbiology in representative extraction and monitoring wells at a confined disposal facility (CDF) in East Chicago, Indiana. The CDF is a 140-acre Federally-managed facility that was the...
Groundwater discharge characteristics for selected streams within the Loup River Basin, Nebraska, 2014–16
Christopher M. Hobza, Aaron R. Schepers
2018, Scientific Investigations Report 2018-5093
Streams in the Loup River Basin are sensitive to groundwater withdrawals because of the close hydrologic connection between groundwater and surface water. Groundwater discharge is the primary component of streamflow in the Loup River Basin and constitutes more than 90 percent of streamflow in the central part of the Sand...
Preliminary groundwater salinity mapping near selected oil fields using historical water-sample data, central and southern California
Loren F. Metzger, Matthew K. Landon
2018, Scientific Investigations Report 2018-5082
The distribution of groundwater salinity was mapped for 31 oil fields and adjacent aquifers and summarized by 8 subregions across major oil-producing areas of central and southern California. The objectives of this study were to describe the distribution of groundwater near oil fields having total dissolved solids less than 10,000...
Refinement of a regression-based method for prediction of flow-duration curves of daily streamflow in the conterminous United States
Thomas M. Over, William H. Farmer, Amy M. Russell
2018, Scientific Investigations Report 2018-5072
Regional regression is a common tool used to estimate daily flow-duration curves (FDCs) at ungaged locations. In this report, several refinements to a particular implementation of the regional regression method for estimating FDCs are evaluated by consideration of different methodological options through a leave-one-out cross-validation procedure in the 19 major...
Survival, travel time, and utilization of Yolo Bypass, California, by outmigrating acoustic-tagged late-fall Chinook salmon
Adam C. Pope, Russell W. Perry, Dalton J. Hance, Hal C. Hansel
2018, Open-File Report 2018-1118
Juvenile Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) migrating through California's Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta toward the Pacific Ocean face numerous challenges to their survival. The Yolo Bypass is a broad floodplain of the Sacramento River that floods in about 70 percent of years in response to large, uncontrolled runoff events. As...
Evaluation of sockeye salmon after passage through an innovative upstream fish-passage system at Cle Elum Dam, Washington, 2017
Tobias J. Kock, Scott D. Evans, Amy C. Hansen, Russell W. Perry, Hal C. Hansel, Philip V. Haner, Ryan G. Tomka
2018, Open-File Report 2018-1116
Executive SummaryThe Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) and the Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology), working with the Yakima River Basin Water Enhancement Project Workgroup (composed of representatives of the Yakama Nation; Federal, State, county, and city governments; environmental organizations; and irrigation districts), developed the Yakima Basin Integrated Plan (Integrated...
Subseasonal variations in marine reservoir age from pre-bomb Donax obesulus and Protothaca asperrima shell carbonate
Miguel F. Etayo-Cadavid, C. Fred T. Andrus, Kevin B. Jones, Gregory W. L. Hodgins
2018, Chemical Geology (526) 110-116
Two Donax obesulus and two Protothaca asperrima shells collected prior to the nuclear testing of the 1950's were micromilled at sub-seasonal resolution to yield new reservoir effect (ΔR) estimates for the coast of Peru. Shells from northern (4°40′S to 8°14′S) and central (13°52′S) Peru produced ΔR values of 123 ± 50 and 110 ± 49 years respectively. We found...
Coeur d’Alene Basin Environmental Monitoring Program, surface water, northern Idaho—Annual data summary, water year 2017
Lauren M. Zinsser
2018, Open-File Report 2018-1113
Streams within the Coeur d’Alene River drainage basin in northern Idaho have been extensively affected by historical mining activities and are subject to ongoing remedial actions as part of the Bunker Hill Mining & Metallurgical Complex Superfund Site. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) operates 12 real-time streamgages and collects...
Quality-assurance plan for groundwater activities, U.S. Geological Survey Dakota Water Science Center
Joshua F. Valder, Janet M. Carter, Steven M. Robinson, Christopher D. Laveau, Joel A. Petersen
2018, Open-File Report 2018-1103
As the Nation’s principal earth-science information agency, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is depended upon to collect accurate data and produce factual and impartial interpretive reports. Methods for data collection and analysis that were developed by the USGS have become standard techniques used by numerous Federal, State, and local agencies...
