Flooding in the Northeastern United States, 2011
Thomas P. Suro, Mark A. Roland, Richard G. Kiah
2015, Professional Paper 1821
Flooding in the Northeastern United States during 2011 was widespread and record setting. This report summarizes peak streamflows that were recorded by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) during separate flooding events in February, March, April, May, July, August, and September. The flooding of late April, which combined snowmelt and heavy...
Using noble gas tracers to constrain a groundwater flow model with recharge elevations: A novel approach for mountainous terrain
Jessica M. Doyle, Tom Gleeson, Andrew H. Manning, K. Ulrich Mayer
2015, Water Resources Research (51) 8094-8113
Environmental tracers provide information on groundwater age, recharge conditions, and flow processes which can be helpful for evaluating groundwater sustainability and vulnerability. Dissolved noble gas data have proven particularly useful in mountainous terrain because they can be used to determine recharge elevation. However, tracer-derived recharge elevations have not been utilized...
Insights into controls on hexavalent chromium in groundwater provided by environmental tracers, Sacramento Valley, California, USA
Andrew H. Manning, Christopher T. Mills, Jean M. Morrison, Lyndsay B. Ball
2015, Applied Geochemistry (62) 186-199
Environmental tracers are useful for determining groundwater age and recharge source, yet their application in studies of geogenic Cr(VI) in groundwater has been limited. Environmental tracer data from 166 wells located in the Sacramento Valley, northern California, were interpreted and compared to Cr concentrations to...
Detecting sea-level hazards: Simple regression-based methods for calculating the acceleration of sea level
Kara S. Doran, Peter A. Howd, Sallenger Jr.
2015, Open-File Report 2015-1187
This report documents the development of statistical tools used to quantify the hazard presented by the response of sea-level elevation to natural or anthropogenic changes in climate and ocean circulation. A hazard is a physical process (or processes) that, when combined with vulnerability (or susceptibility to the hazard), results in...
Statistical summaries of selected Iowa streamflow data through September 2013
David A. Eash, Padraic S. O'Shea, Jared R. Weber, Kevin T. Nguyen, Nicholas L. Montgomery, Adrian J. Simonson
2015, Open-File Report 2015-1214
Statistical summaries of streamflow data collected at 184 streamgages in Iowa are presented in this report. All streamgages included for analysis have at least 10 years of continuous record collected before or through September 2013. This report is an update to two previously published reports that presented statistical summaries of...
Evaluation of a fine sediment removal tool in spring-fed and snowmelt driven streams
Adam J. Sepulveda, Megan J. Layhee, Zach Sutphin, Juddson D. Sechrist
2015, Ecological Restoration (33) 303-315
The accumulation of fine-grained sediments impairs the structure and function of streams, so removing fine sediments may be required to achieve restoration objectives. There has been little work on methods of removing excess sediment or on the efficacy of the methods. We used a 4-year before-after-control-impact design in southeastern Idaho...
New insight into California’s drought through open data
Emily K. Read, Mary Bucknell, Megan Hines, James M. Kreft, Jessica M. Lucido, Jordan S. Read, Carl Schroedl, David M. Sibley, Shirley Stephan, Ivan Suftin, Phethala Thongsavanh, Jamon Van Den Hoek, Jordan I. Walker, Martin R Wernimont, Luke A. Winslow, Andrew N. Yan
2015, BayGEO Journal (8)
Historically unprecedented drought in California has brought water issues to the forefront of the nation’s attention. Crucial investigations that concern water policy, management, and research, in turn, require extensive information about the quality and quantity of California’s water. Unfortunately, key sources of pertinent data are unevenly distributed and frequently hard...
GOES-derived fog and low cloud indices for coastal north and central California ecological analyses
Alicia A. Torregrosa, Cindy Combs, Jeff Peters
2015, Earth and Space Science (3) 46-67
Fog and low cloud cover (FLCC) changes the water, energy, and nutrient flux of coastal ecosystems. Easy-to-use FLCC data are needed to quantify the impacts of FLC on ecosystem dynamics during hot, dry Mediterranean climate summers. FLCC indices were generated from 26,000 hourly night and day FLCC maps derived from...
Applied groundwater modeling, 2nd Edition
Mary P. Anderson, William W. Woessner, Randall J. Hunt
2015, Book
This second edition is extensively revised throughout with expanded discussion of modeling fundamentals and coverage of advances in model calibration and uncertainty analysis that are revolutionizing the science of groundwater modeling. The text is intended for undergraduate and graduate level courses in applied groundwater modeling and as a comprehensive reference...
Evaluation of methods for assessing physiological biomarkers of stress in freshwater mussels
Andrea K. Fritts, James T. Peterson, Peter D. Hazelton, Robert B. Bringolf
2015, Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences (72) 1450-1459
Freshwater mussel populations are highly susceptible to environmental alterations because of their diminished numbers and primarily sessile behaviors; nonlethal biomonitoring programs are needed to evaluate the health of populations prior to mass mortality events. Our objectives were to determine (i) which biochemical parameters in freshwater mussel hemolymph could be consistently...
Evaluation of multiple-frequency, active and passive acoustics as surrogates for bedload transport
Molly S. Wood, Ryan L. Fosness, Gregory Pachman, Mark Lorang, Diego Tonolla
2015, Conference Paper
The use of multiple-frequency, active acoustics through deployment of acoustic Doppler current profilers (ADCPs) shows potential for estimating bedload in selected grain size categories. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the University of Montana (UM), evaluated the use of multiple-frequency, active and passive acoustics as surrogates for bedload...
The effects of flow and stream characteristics on the variation in freshwater mussel growth in a Southeast US river basin
Justin C. Dycus, Jason M. Wisniewski, James T. Peterson
2015, Freshwater Biology (60) 395-409
Summary The evaluation of the age and growth of animal populations is essential for understanding and predicting how populations will respond to changes in environmental conditions and anthropogenic stressors. We used a novel, von Bertalanffy hierarchical modelling approach to quantify relationships between the growth of three freshwater mussel...
An evaluation of the relations between flow regime components, stream characteristics, species traits and meta-demographic rates of warmwater stream fishes: Implications for aquatic resource management
James T. Peterson, C.P. Shea
2015, River Research and Applications (31) 1227-1241
Fishery biologists are increasingly recognizing the importance of considering the dynamic nature of streams when developing streamflow policies. Such approaches require information on how flow regimes influence the physical environment and how those factors, in turn, affect species-specific demographic rates. A more cost-effective alternative could be the use of dynamic...
Hydraulic modeling development and application in water resources engineering
Francisco J. Simoes
Chih Ted Yang, Lawrence K. Wang, editor(s)
2015, Book chapter, Advances in water resources engineering
The use of modeling has become widespread in water resources engineering and science to study rivers, lakes, estuaries, and coastal regions. For example, computer models are commonly used to forecast anthropogenic effects on the environment, and to help provide advanced mitigation measures against catastrophic events such as natural and dam-break...
The continuing medical mystery of Balkan Endemic Nephropathy
Lynn M. Crosby, Calin A. Tatu, William H. Orem, Nikola Pavlovic MD PhD
2015, Journal of Rare Diseases (3) 22-37
Balkan Endemic Nephropathy (BEN) is a disease of subtle onset and insidious progression that typically occurs between the 4th and 6th decade in long‐resident individuals in highly specific geographic locations of the Balkan region and affects 1 – 5% of the population. Though it does not follow typical Mendelian genetics,...
Spatial and temporal migration of a landfill leachate plume in alluvium
Jason R. Masoner, Isabelle M. Cozzarelli
2015, Water, Air, & Soil Pollution (226)
Leachate from unlined or leaky landfills can create groundwater contaminant plumes that last decades to centuries. Understanding the dynamics of leachate movement in space and time is essential for monitoring, planning and management, and assessment of risk to groundwater and surface-water resources. Over a 23.4-year period (1986–2010), the spatial extent...
Implications of climate and land use change
Jefferson S. Hall, Enrique Murgueitio, Zoraida Calle, Ciara Raudsepp-Hearne, Robert F. Stallard, Patricia Balvanera
Jefferson S. Hall, Vanessa Kirn, Estrella Yanguas-Fernandez, editor(s)
2015, Book chapter, Managing watersheds for ecosystem services in the steepland neotropics
This chapter relates ecosystem services to climate change and land use. The bulk of the chapter focuses on ecosystem services and steepland land use in the humid Neotropics – what is lost with land-cover changed, and what is gained with various types of restoration that are sustainable given private ownership....
Representativeness of soil samples collected to assess mining-related contamination of flood plains in southeast Kansas
Kyle E. Juracek
2015, Conference Paper, 2015 Joint Federal Interagency Conference on Sedimentation and Hydrologic Modeling (SEDHYD 2015)
Historical lead and zinc mining in the Tri-State Mining District (TSMD), located in parts of southeast Kansas, southwest Missouri, and northeast Oklahoma, has resulted in a substantial ongoing input of lead and zinc to the environment (Juracek, 2006; Juracek and Becker, 2009). In response to concern about the mining-related contamination,...
Breeding ecology of Wandering Tattlers Tringa incana: a study from south-central Alaska
Robert E. Gill Jr., Pavel S. Tomkovich, Maksim N. Dementyev
2015, Wader Study Group Bulletin (122) 99-114
Montane-nesting shorebirds are arguably the least studied of the Charadriiformes, owing in part to the remoteness of their breeding areas, low nesting densities, and specialized behaviors. We studied a marked population of the Wandering Tattler Tringa incana, during a three-year period (1997–1999) on nesting grounds in south-central Alaska. Two aspects...
Movement patterns and dispersal potential of Pecos bluntnose shiner (Notropis simus pecosensis) revealed using otolith microchemistry
Nathan M. Chase, Colleen A. Caldwell, Scott A. Carleton, William R. Gould, James A. Hobbs
2015, Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences (72) 1575-1583
Natal origin and dispersal potential of the federally threatened Pecos bluntnose shiner (Notropis simus pecosensis) were successfully characterized using otolith microchemistry and swimming performance trials. Strontium isotope ratios (87Sr:86Sr) of otoliths within the resident plains killifish (Fundulus zebrinus) were successfully used as a surrogate for strontium isotope ratios in water...
Blood lead exposure concentrations in mottled ducks (Anas fulvigula) on the upper Texas coast
Stephen K. McDowell, Warren C. Conway, David A. Haukos, Jena A. Moon, Christopher E. Comer, I-Kuai Hung
2015, Journal of the Southeastern Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (2) 221-228
The mottled duck (Anas fulvigula) is a non-migratory waterfowl species dependent upon coastal marsh systems, including those on the Texas Chenier Plain National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) Complex, and considered a regional indicator species of marsh habitat quality. Research from the early 1970s, 1990s, and early-2000s indicated that mottled ducks continued...
A predictive model to inform adaptive management of double-crested cormorants and fisheries in Michigan
Iyob Tsehaye, Michael L. Jones, Brian J. Irwin, David G. Fielder, James E. Breck, David R. Luukkonen
2015, Natural Resource Modeling (28) 348-376
The proliferation of double-crested cormorants (DCCOs; Phalacrocorax auritus) in North America has raised concerns over their potential negative impacts on game, cultured and forage fishes, island and terrestrial resources, and other colonial water birds, leading to increased public demands to reduce their abundance. By combining fish surplus production and bird functional...
Guidelines for evaluating performance of oyster habitat restoration
Lesley P. Baggett, Sean P. Powers, Robert D. Brumbaugh, Loren D. Coen, Bryan M. DeAngelis, Jennifer K. Greene, Boze T. Hancock, Summer M. Morlock, Brian L. Allen, Denise L. Breitburg, David Bushek, Jonathan H. Grabowski, Raymond E. Grizzle, Edwin D. Grosholz, Megan K. LaPeyre, Mark W. Luckenbach, Kay A. McGraw, Michael F. Piehler, Stephanie R. Westby, Philine S. E. zu Ermgassen
2015, Restoration Ecology (23) 737-745
Restoration of degraded ecosystems is an important societal goal, yet inadequate monitoring and the absence of clear performance metrics are common criticisms of many habitat restoration projects. Funding limitations can prevent adequate monitoring, but we suggest that the lack of accepted metrics to address the diversity of restoration objectives also...
The effects of harvest regulations on behaviors of duck hunters
Matthew T. Haugen, Larkin A. Powell, Mark P. Vrtiska, Kevin L. Pope
2015, Human Dimensions of Wildlife: An International Journal (20) 15-29
Uncertainty exists as to how duck harvest regulations influence waterfowl hunter behavior. We used the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Parts Collection Survey to examine how harvest regulations affected behaviors of Central Flyway duck hunters. We stratified hunters into ranked groups based on seasonal harvest and identified three periods (1975–1984,...
Population characteristics of channel catfish near the northern edge of their distribution: implications for management
K. P. Carter-Lynn, Michael C. Quist
2015, Fisheries Management and Ecology (22) 530-538
Channel catfish, Ictalurus punctatus (Rafinesque), populations in six lakes in northern Idaho, USA, were sampled to describe their population characteristics. During the summers of 2011 and 2012, 4864 channel catfish were sampled. Channel catfish populations had low to moderate catch rates, and length structure was dominated by fish <400 mm. Channel catfish were...
