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ObjectiveInternal tagging for telemetry studies requires invasive surgery procedures, necessitating sufficient sedation to support animal welfare. Challenges with existing chemical sedatives have resulted in technological alternatives, including electrosedation, with these newer methods less extensively studied. Our primary objective was to understand long-term survival, body-condition effects, and...

Between 2018 and 2023, the U.S. Geological Survey assessed shoreface sediment availability at three Atlantic Coast barrier island study sites in support of a National Fish and Wildlife Foundation project entitled, “Monitoring Hurricane Sandy Beach and Marsh Resilience in New York and New Jersey.” The three study sites are Seven...

The interplay of disturbance and stability drives vegetation dynamics. Disturbance reduces vegetation biomass, and stability fosters its development. In riparian systems, natural disturbance is largely manifested through flood-driven fluvial processes, but other forms of disturbance, such as herbivory or fire, may influence vegetation dynamics. We studied the successional trajectories of...

Harmful algal blooms, particularly cyanobacterial harmful algal blooms, threaten aquatic ecosystems, drinking water supplies, and recreational resources. In 2019, the U.S. Geological Survey, in collaboration with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, deployed solid phase adsorption toxin tracking (SPATT) samplers in Seneca Lake, Owasco Lake, and Skaneateles Lake...

A geometric accuracy assessment of lidar data collected in eastern Iowa in 2019 as part of the 3D Elevation Program (3DEP) was conducted. The assessment involved evaluating interswath accuracy, same surface precision, point density, absolute accuracy, and consistency with adjacent 3DEP datasets. The results demonstrate that the data meet or...

Landsat Analysis Ready Data (ARD)-based time-series present challenges in monitoring surface urban heat islands (SUHI) due to rapid changes in land surface temperature (LST) compared to cloud-free satellite observations. This research investigates the use of a spatiotemporal gap-filling model as a feasible and cost-effective solution to produce Landsat time-series LST...

Managing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in water resources requires a basin-scale approach. Predicted environmental concentrations (PEC) and stream-vulnerability scores for PFAS were determined for the Potomac River watershed in the eastern United States. Approximately 15% of stream reaches contained municipal and/or industrial wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) discharges that are...

Contamination of groundwater by oil-field fluids in proximity to oil and gas development has been an issue of concern to water users and regulators given long histories of development and legacy disposal practices. A robust set of geochemical tracers including petroleum hydrocarbon compounds, thermogenic gases, inorganic ion concentrations, stable isotopes,...

Captive breeding and translocation programs are an increasingly common conservation tool and management strategy used for some of the rarest and most endangered species in the world. These programs come at a high cost, and many translocation programs fail to monitor animals after release. Light-footed Ridgway’s rails (Rallus obsoletus levipes)...

Urban riverine systems are heterogeneous, and the substantial variability in impervious cover, riparian cover, wetlands, and wastewater and stormwater infrastructure affect sources and transport of dissolved organic matter (DOM), of which dissolved organic C (DOC) is a substantial component. An understanding of the quantity, bioavailability, and timing of DOM inputs...

In 2021, landbird surveys were conducted at Kalaupapa National Historical Park on the island of Molokaʻi to assess changes in species composition, distribution, and population densities since 2005. Point-transect distance sampling surveys were conducted on six transects at 50 landbird monitoring stations within an 1,834-hectare area. A total of nine...

Deposition of inorganic sediment is essential for the sustainability of tidal salt marshes. Understanding variability in sediment sources and the processes of sediment delivery to salt marshes are high priorities for decision-makers responsible for managing sediment and conserving and restoring marshes....

ʻŌhiʻa lehua (Metrosideros polymorpha Gaudich.) is the dominant tree in native Hawaiian forests but is threatened by two pathogenic fungi (Ceratocystis spp.) which cause Rapid ʻŌhiʻa Death (ROD). Understanding the spread of ROD is vital to informing prevention and management strategies. Ambrosia beetles (Coleoptera:...

No abstract available....

Thiamine deficiency in lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) eggs has been linked to early life-stage mortality in the Great Lakes from the 1960s through the 1990s, potentially affecting lake trout recruitment. In response, the U.S. Geological Survey’s Great Lakes Science Center (GLSC), Eastern Ecological Science Center (EESC), and Columbia Environmental Research...

The Eastern North American Temperate Freshwater Marsh, Wet Meadow and Shrubland is a hydrologically dynamic ecosystem highly sensitive to shifts in water availability. Across the Midwest, climate change is expected to intensify two primary stressors, flooding and drought, resulting in increased hydrologic variability that may threaten the persistence of these...

No abstract available....

The North American Bog and Fen ecosystem may be increasingly vulnerable to climate stressors, particularly water deficits and warming temperatures. These peat-forming wetlands, found at the southern extent of their range in the Midwest, depend on relatively stable hydrological and thermal conditions. Climate change may disrupt these conditions through projected...

The value of national parks as bird habitat depends not only on local conditions within the parks, but also on the landscape habitat matrices in which they are located. However, the influences of local and landscape habitat matrices on birds vary by species and have not been quantified. Similarly, the...

Declines in the distribution and abundance of bull trout (Salvelinus confluentus) across much of the historical range in the Pacific Northwest region of Canada and the United States have been well documented (Post and Johnston 2002; Rieman et al. 1997). Recent estimates of population trends appear to vary considerably across...

Annual point counts are commonly used to monitor birds to track population densities across space and time. Palila (Loxioides bailleui) are surveyed annually in the first quarter, but we recently instituted quarterly sampling that offers a unique opportunity to improve estimator precision. We conducted point-transect distance sampling point counts during...

Flooding due to storm surge can propagate through coastal regions to threaten the built and natural environments. This propagation is controlled by geographic features of varying scales, from the largest oceans to the smallest marsh channels and sandy dunes. Numerical models to predict coastal flooding have been improved via the...

Orogenic and Coeur d’Alene-type mineral systems are produced by metamorphic devolatilization of thick volcanic or siliciclastic sedimentary rock sequences and the focused flow of hydrothermal fluids upwards along crustal-scale faults. Most orogenic systems are found along the Cordilleran orogen, stretching from California northwards into Alaska, whereas most Coeur d’Alene-type systems...

Several per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are Great Lakes binational chemicals of mutual concern. Although known to be persistent, data gaps regarding PFAS prevalence and biological effects exist, especially within Lake Superior’s watershed. In this 2022 study of 27 United States tributaries to Lake Superior, water samples were collected during...

Monitoring populations is challenging for cryptic species with seasonal life cycles, where data from multiple field techniques are commonly collected and analyzed as multiple lines of evidence. Data integration can provide comprehensive inferences while improving accuracy, precision, and scope but faces challenges in modeling misaligned resolutions and observational uncertainties. We...