The relevance of a type locality: The case of Mephitis interrupta Rafinesque, 1820 (Carnivora: Mephitidae)
Neal Woodman, Adam W. Ferguson
2021, Journal of Mammalogy (102) 1583-1591
For more than 130 years, the type locality of the Plains Spotted Skunk, Spilogale putorius interrupta (Rafinesque, 1820) has been accepted to be along the upper Missouri River. The species’ description was based on a specimen observed by Constantine S. Rafinesque during his 1818 exploration of the Ohio River Valley, but...
Technique to estimate generalized skew coefficients of annual peak streamflow for natural watershed conditions in Texas, Oklahoma, and eastern New Mexico
William H. Asquith, Monica Veale Yesildirek, Raven N. Landers, Theodore G Cleveland, Zheng N. Fang, Jiaqi Zhang
2021, Book chapter, Generalized skew update and regional study of distribution shape for Texas flood frequency analyses
Reliable information about the frequency of annual peak streamflow is needed for floodplain management, objective assessment of flood risk, and cost-effective design of dams, levees, other flood-control structures, and roads, bridges, and culverts. Generalized skew coefficients are among the data needed for log-Pearson type III peak-streamflow frequency analyses of annual...
Bottom trawl assessment of Lake Ontario's benthic preyfish community, 2021
Brian O’Malley, Scott P. Minihkeim, Thomas Andrew Sanfilippo, Jessica A Goretzke, Jeremy P. Holden
2021, Report, 2021 Annual report: Bureau of Fisheries, Lake Ontario Unit and St. Lawrence River Unit to the Great Lakes Fishery Commission's Lake Ontario Committee
Since 1978, the Lake Ontario preyfish community survey has provided information on the status and trends of the benthic preyfish community related to Fish Community Objectives that includes understanding preyfish population dynamics and community diversity. Beginning in 2015, the benthic preyfish survey expanded from US-only to incorporate lake-wide sampling sites...
A desert tortoise-common raven viable conflict threshold
Kerry L. Holcomb, Peter S. Coates, Brian G. Prochazka, Timothy Shields, William I. Boarman
2021, Human–Wildlife Interactions (15) 405-421
Since 1966, common raven (Corvus corax; raven) abundance has increased throughout much of this species’ Holarctic distribution, fueled by an ever-expanding supply of anthropogenic resource subsidies (e.g., water, food, shelter, and nesting substrate) to ecoregion specific raven population carrying capacities. Consequently, ravens are implicated in declines of both avian and...
Stop 3 – The Petersburg “Granite” redefined: Recognition and implications of Silurian to Devonian rocks in central-eastern Virginia
Mark W. Carter, Ryan J. McAleer, Marcie Occhi, Christopher S. Holm-Denoma, Jorge A. Vazquez, Brent E. Owens
2021, Conference Paper, From the Eastern Piedmont to the Coastal Plain: a cross section through the Richmond Area Fall Zone: Guidebook for 2021 Virginia Geologic Field Conference
Introduction Although the Petersburg Granite had long been in practical use as a building stone since the 1830s (Watson, 1906; 1907; 1910; Darton, 1911; Steidtmann, 1945), it was first formally defined as a geologic unit by Anna Jonas on the 1928 geologic map of Virginia. Anna Jonas defined this unit...
Geologic map of the Middendorf quadrangle, Chesterfield County, South Carolina
Christopher S. Swezey, Bradley A. Fitzwater, G. Richard Whittecar
2021, South Carolina Geological Survey Geologic Quadrangle Map GQM-56
The Middendorf 7.5-minute quadrangle is located entirely within the Carolina Sandhills region of the upper Atlantic Coastal Plain province in Chesterfield County, South Carolina. The Carolina Sandhills, which has been recognized as a separate region for a long time (e.g., McGee, 1890, 1891; Holmes, 1893), extends from central North Carolina...
Revising the marine range of the endangered black-capped petrel Pterodroma hasitata: occurrence in the northern Gulf of Mexico and exposure to conservation threats
Patrick G.R. Jodice, P.E. Michael, J.S. Gleason, J.C. Haney, Y.G. Satge
2021, Endangered Species Research (46) 49-65
The black-capped petrel Pterodroma hasitata is an Endangered seabird endemic to the western North Atlantic. Although estimated at ~1000 breeding pairs, only ~100 nests have been located at 2 sites in Haiti and 3 sites in the Dominican Republic. At sea, the species primarily occupies waters of the western Gulf Stream...
Kittlitz’s murrelet seasonal distribution and post-breeding migration from the Gulf of Alaska to the Arctic Ocean
John F. Piatt, David C. Douglas, Mayumi L. Arimitsu, Michelle Kissling, Erica N. Madison, Sarah K. Schoen, Kathy J. Kuletz, Gary S. Drew
2021, Arctic (74) 482-495
Kittlitz’s Murrelets (Brachyramphus brevirostris) nest during summer in glaciated or recently deglaciated (post-Wisconsin) landscapes. They forage in adjacent marine waters, especially those influenced by glacial meltwater. Little is known of their movements and distribution outside the breeding season. To identify post-breeding migrations of murrelets, we attached satellite transmitters to...
Stratigraphy and age of a prominent paleosol in a late Pleistocene sedimentary sequence, Mason Neck, Virginia
Helaine W. Markewich, Douglas A. Wysocki, Milan J. Pavich, Joseph P. Smoot, Ronald J. Litwin
2021, Open-File Report 2021-1113
The High Point paleosol is 2.28-meters-thick aggradational soil developed in fining upward estuarine-alluvial sand and loess. The paleosol is exposed in a few shoreline cliff faces of Mason Neck, Virginia. Although a former A horizon is missing, the E, Bw, Bt, and C horizon sequence seen in the sediments indicates...
Agkistrodon conanti (Florida Cottonmouth) and Python bivittatus (Burmese Python). Diet and Predation
Ian A. Bartoszek, Gretchen Erika Anderson, Ian Easterling, Jillian Maureen Josimovich, Alex Furst, Frank N. Ridgley, Austin Lee Fitzgerald, Amy A. Yackel Adams, Andrea Faye Currylow
2021, Herpetological Review (52) 860-862
Python bivittatus is established in the Greater Everglades Ecosystem in southern Florida, USA. Documented predators on pythons in Florida include Alligator mississippiensis (American Alligator; Snow et al. 2006. Herpetol. Rev. 37:81–81), Drymarchon couperi (Gulf Coast Indigo Snake; Andreadis et al. 2018. Herpetol. Rev. 49:341–342), Lynx rufus (Bobcat; McCollister et al....
Optimization of salt marsh management at the Eastern Shore of Virginia and Fisherman Island National Wildlife Refuges, Virginia, through use of structured decision making
Hilary A. Neckles, James E. Lyons, Jessica L. Nagel, Susan C. Adamowicz, Toni Mikula, Pamela Denmon, Robert Leffel
2021, Open-File Report 2021-1117
Structured decision making is a systematic, transparent process for improving the quality of complex decisions by identifying measurable management objectives and feasible management actions; predicting the potential consequences of management actions relative to the stated objectives; and selecting a course of action that maximizes the total benefit achieved and balances...
Optimization of salt marsh management at the Moosehorn National Wildlife Refuge, Maine, through use of structured decision making
Hilary A. Neckles, James E. Lyons, Jessica L. Nagel, Susan C. Adamowicz, Toni Mikula, Maurice Mills, Raymond E. Brown, Keith Ramos
2021, Open-File Report 2021-1115
Structured decision making is a systematic, transparent process for improving the quality of complex decisions by identifying measurable management objectives and feasible management actions; predicting the potential consequences of management actions relative to the stated objectives; and selecting a course of action that maximizes the total benefit achieved and balances...
Completion summary for boreholes USGS 148, 148A, and 149 at the Materials and Fuels Complex, Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho
Brian V. Twining, Neil V. Maimer, Roy C. Bartholomay, Blair W. Packer
2021, Scientific Investigations Report 2021-5131
In 2019, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Energy, drilled and constructed boreholes USGS 148A and USGS 149 for stratigraphic framework analyses and long-term groundwater monitoring of the eastern Snake River Plain aquifer at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) in southeastern Idaho. Initially,...
Mapping habitat quality and threats for eastern Black Rails (Laterallus jamaicensis jamaicensis)
Bryan S. Stevens, Courtney J. Conway
2021, Waterbirds (44) 245-256
Documenting the spatial distribution of high-quality habitat patches, the distributions of threats and protected areas, and the vulnerability of habitat patches to changes in environmental conditions is vital for conservation of rare species. Range-wide species distribution models were developed for Black Rails (Laterallus jamaicensis) to...
Revealing migratory path, important stopovers and non-breeding areas of a boreal songbird in steep decline
Julie C Hagelin, Michael T. Hallworth, Christopher P Barger, James A. Johnson, Kristin A DuBour, Grey W Pendelton, Lucas H. DeCicco, Laura A McDuffie, Steven M. Matsuoka, Marian A Snively, Peter P. Marra
2021, Animal Migration (8) 168-191
The Olive-sided Flycatcher (Contopus cooperi) is a steeply declining aerial insectivore with one of the longest migrations of any North American passerine. We deployed light-level geolocators and archival GPS tags on breeders in boreal Alaska to determine migratory routes, important stopovers and non-breeding locations. Data from 16 individuals revealed a...
Characterizing methane emission hotspots from thawing permafrost
Clayton D. Elder, David R. Thompson, Andrew K Thorpe, Hrishikesh Chandanpurkar, Philip J Hanke, Nicholas Hasson, Stephanie R. James, Burke J. Minsley, Neal J. Pastick, David Olefeldt, Katey M Walter Anthony, Charles E. Miller
2021, Global Biogeochemical Cycles (35)
Methane (CH4) emissions from climate-sensitive ecosystems within the northern permafrost region represent a potentially large but highly uncertain source, with current estimates spanning a factor of seven (11–75 Tg CH4 yr−1). Accelerating permafrost thaw threatens significant increases in pan-Arctic CH4 emissions, amplifying the permafrost carbon feedback. We used airborne imaging...
Geochronologic, isotopic, and geochemical data from pre-Cretaceous plutonic rocks in the Lane Mountain area, San Bernardino County, California
Paul Stone, Howard J. Brown, M. Robinson Cecil, Robert J. Fleck, Jorge A. Vazquez, John A. Fitzpatrick
2021, Open-File Report 2021-1094
Pre-Cretaceous, predominantly dioritic plutonic rocks in the Lane Mountain area, California, intrude metasedimentary and metavolcanic rocks considered part of the El Paso terrane. New geochronologic (uranium-lead zircon), geochemical, and isotopic data provide a reliable basis for dividing these pre-Cretaceous plutonic rocks into two mappable suites of Permian–Triassic and Late Jurassic...
Asynchronous flowering patterns in saguaro cacti (Carnegiea gigantea)
Theresa Foley, Don E. Swann, Guadalupe Sotelo, Nicholas Perkins, Daniel E. Winkler
2021, Ecosphere (12)
The saguaro cactus (Carnegiea gigantea [Engelm.] Britton & Rose) is a keystone species endemic to the Sonoran Desert of northern Mexico and the southwestern United States. The saguaro produces large white flowers near its stem apex (crown) during April–June, which bloom at night and close the following...
Influence of antecedent geology on the Holocene formation and evolution of Horn Island, Mississippi, USA
Nina S Gal, Davin J Wallace, Michael Miner, Robert S Hollis, Clayton H Dike, James Flocks
2021, Marine Geology (431)
Horn Island, one of the two most stable barriers along the Mississippi-Alabama chain (Cat, East and West Ship, Horn, West Petit Bois, Petit Bois, and Dauphin), provides critical habitat, helps regulate estuarine conditions in the Mississippi Sound, and reduces wave energy...
Experimental tree mortality does not induce marsh transgression in a Chesapeake Bay low-lying coastal forest
David Walters, Joel A. Carr, Alyssa Hockaday, Joshua A Jones, Eliza McFarland, Katya Kovalenko, Matthew L. Kirwan, Donald R. Cahoon, Glenn R. Guntenspergen
2021, Frontiers in Marine Science (8)
Transgression into adjacent uplands is an important global response of coastal wetlands to accelerated rates of sea level rise. “Ghost forests” mark a signature characteristic of marsh transgression on the landscape, as changes in tidal inundation and salinity cause bordering upland tree mortality, increase light availability, and the...
Spatial network clustering reveals elk population structure and local variation in prevalence of chronic wasting disease
Glen A. Sargeant, Margaret A. Wild, Gregory M. Schroeder, Jenny G. Powers, Nathan L. Galloway
2021, Ecosphere (12)
Spatial organization plays prominent roles in disease transmission, genetics, and demography of wildlife populations and is therefore an important consideration not only for wildlife management, but also for inference about populations and processes. We used hierarchical agglomerative clustering of a spatial graph network to partition Wind...
Stock composition of the historical New York Bight Atlantic sturgeon (Acipenser oxyrinchus oxyrinchus) intercept fishery revealed through microsatellite analysis of archived spines
Shannon L. White, Robin L. Johnson, Barbara A. Lubinski, Michael S. Eackles, David H. Secor, David C. Kazyak
2021, Marine and Coastal Fisheries: Dynamics, Management, and Ecosystem Science (13) 720-727
A targeted commercial fishery for Atlantic Sturgeon Acipenser oxyrinchus oxyrinchus once operated in the New York Bight, where it was assumed that most harvested Atlantic Sturgeon were natal to the Hudson River population. However, more recent evidence suggests that the fishery may have been targeting a mixed-stock aggregation, in which case harvested...
Reproductive health and endocrine disruption in smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) from the Lake Erie drainage, Pennsylvania, USA
Heather L. Walsh, Sean D. Rafferty, Stephanie E. Gordon, Vicki S. Blazer
2021, Environmental Monitoring and Assessment (194)
Smallmouth bass Micropterus dolomieu were sampled from three sites within the Lake Erie drainage (Elk Creek, Twentymile Creek, and Misery Bay, an embayment in Presque Isle Bay). Plasma, tissues for histopathological analyses, and liver and testes preserved in RNALater® were sampled from 30 smallmouth bass (of both sexes)...
Simulation of potential water allocation changes, Cape May County, New Jersey
Glen B. Carleton
2021, Scientific Investigations Report 2020-5052
Saltwater intrusion and declining water levels have been a water-supply problem in Cape May County, New Jersey, for decades. Cape May County is surrounded by saltwater on three sides. Several communities in the county have only one aquifer from which freshwater withdrawals can be made, and that sole source is...
The water quality of selected streams in the Catskill and Delaware water-supply watersheds in New York, 1999–2009
Michael R. McHale, Jason Siemion, Peter S. Murdoch
2021, Scientific Investigations Report 2020-5049
From October 1, 1999, through September 30, 2009, water-quality samples were collected, and discharge was measured at 13 streamgages within the Catskill and Delaware watersheds of the New York City water supply system. The Catskill and Delaware watersheds supply about 90 percent of the water needed by 9 million customers....
