The National Wind Erosion Research Network: Building a standardized long-term data resource for aeolian research, modeling and land management
Nicholas P. Webb, Jeffrey E. Herrick, Justin W. Van Zee, Ericha M. Courtright, Ted M Hugenholtz, Ted M Zobeck, Gregory S. Okin, Thomas E Barchyn, Benjamin J Billings, Robert A. Boyd, Scott D Clingan, Brad F Cooper, Michael C. Duniway, Justin D. Derner, Fred A Fox, Kris M. Havstad, Philip Heilman, Valerie LaPlante, Noel A Ludwig, Loretta J Metz, Mark A Nearing, M Lee Norfleet, Frederick B Pierson, Matt A Sanderson, Brenton S Sharrat, Jean L Steiner, John Tatarko, Negussie H Tedela, David Todelo, Robert S Unnasch, R Scott Van Pelt, Larry Wagner
2016, Aeolian Research (22) 23-36
The National Wind Erosion Research Network was established in 2014 as a collaborative effort led by the United States Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service and Natural Resources Conservation Service, and the United States Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Land Management, to address the need for a long-term research...
Immunoglobulin detection in wild birds: Effectiveness of three secondary anti-avian IgY antibodies in direct ELISAs in 41 avian species
Carol A. Fassbinder-Orth, Travis E. Wilcoxen, Tiffany Tran, Raoul K. Boughton, Jeanne M. Fair, Erik K. Hofmeister, Jennifer L. Grindstaff, Jen C. Owen
2016, Methods in Ecology and Evolution (7) 1174-1181
1.Immunological reagents for wild, non-model species are limited or often non-existent for many species. 2. In this study, we compare the reactivity of a new anti-passerine IgY secondary antibody with existing secondary antibodies developed for use with birds. Samples from 41 species from the following six avian orders were analysed: Anseriformes...
Evaluation of Yersinia pestis transmission pathways for sylvatic plague in prairie dog populations in the western U.S.
Katherine L. D. Richgels, Robin E. Russell, Gebbiena Bron, Tonie E. Rocke
2016, EcoHealth (13) 415-427
Sylvatic plague, caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis, is periodically responsible for large die-offs in rodent populations that can spillover and cause human mortalities. In the western US, prairie dog populations experience nearly 100% mortality during plague outbreaks, suggesting that multiple transmission pathways combine to amplify plague dynamics....
Mortality monitoring design for utility-scale solar power facilities
Manuela M. Huso, Thomas Dietsch, Chris Nicolai
2016, Open-File Report 2016-1087
IntroductionSolar power represents an important and rapidly expanding component of the renewable energy portfolio of the United States (Lovich and Ennen, 2011; Hernandez and others, 2014). Understanding the impacts of renewable energy development on wildlife is a priority for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) in compliance with Department...
Intraguild predation by shore crabs affects mortality, behavior, growth, and densities of California horn snails
J. Lorda, R. F. Hechinger, S. D. Cooper, A. M. Kuris, Kevin D. Lafferty
2016, Ecosphere (7)
The California horn snail, Cerithideopsis californica, and the shore crabs, Pachygrapsus crassipesand Hemigrapsus oregonensis, compete for epibenthic microalgae, but the crabs also eat snails. Such intraguild predation is common in nature, despite models predicting instability. Using a series of manipulations and field surveys, we examined intraguild predation from several angles, including the effects...
Integrating local pastoral knowledge, participatory mapping, and species distribution modeling for risk assessment of invasive rubber vine (Cryptostegia grandiflora) in Ethiopia’s Afar region
Matthew Luizza, Tewodros Wakie, Paul Evangelista, Catherine S. Jarnevich
2016, Ecology and Society (21)
The threats posed by invasive plants span ecosystems and economies worldwide. Local knowledge of biological invasions has proven beneficial for invasive species research, but to date no work has integrated this knowledge with species distribution modeling for invasion risk assessments. In this study, we integrated pastoral knowledge with Maxent modeling...
Cyanotoxins in inland lakes of the United States: Occurrence and potential recreational health risks in the EPA National Lakes Assessment 2007
Keith A. Loftin, Jennifer L. Graham, Elizabeth Hilborn, Sarah Lehmann, Michael T. Meyer, Julie E. Dietze, Christopher Griffith
2016, Harmful Algae (56) 77-90
A large nation-wide survey of cyanotoxins (1161 lakes) in the United States (U.S.) was conducted during the EPA National Lakes Assessment 2007. Cyanotoxin data were compared with cyanobacteria abundance- and chlorophyll-based World Health Organization (WHO) thresholds and mouse toxicity data to evaluate potential recreational risks. Cylindrospermopsins, microcystins, and saxitoxins were...
Potential effects of sea-level rise on the depth to saturated sediments of the Sagamore and Monomoy flow lenses on Cape Cod, Massachusetts
Donald A. Walter, Timothy D. McCobb, John P. Masterson, Michael N. Fienen
2016, Scientific Investigations Report 2016-5058
In 2014, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Association to Preserve Cape Cod, the Cape Cod Commission, and the Massachusetts Environmental Trust, began an evaluation of the potential effects of sea-level rise on water table altitudes and depths to water on central and western Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Increases...
Evaluation of flood inundation in Crystal Springs Creek, Portland, Oregon
Adam Stonewall, Glen Hess
2016, Open-File Report 2016-1079
Efforts to improve fish passage have resulted in the replacement of six culverts in Crystal Springs Creek in Portland, Oregon. Two more culverts are scheduled to be replaced at Glenwood Street and Bybee Boulevard (Glenwood/Bybee project) in 2016. Recently acquired data have allowed for a more comprehensive understanding of the...
Population trends for North American winter birds based on hierarchical models
Candan U. Soykan, John R. Sauer, Justin G. Schuetz, Geoffrey S. LeBaron, Kathy Dale, Gary M. Langham
2016, Ecosphere (7)
Managing widespread and persistent threats to birds requires knowledge of population dynamics at large spatial and temporal scales. For over 100 yrs, the Audubon Christmas Bird Count (CBC) has enlisted volunteers in bird monitoring efforts that span the Americas, especially southern Canada and the United States. We employed a...
End of the chain? Rugosity and fine-scale bathymetry from existing underwater digital imagery using structure-from-motion (SfM) technology
Curt D. Storlazzi, Peter Dartnell, Gerry Hatcher, Ann E. Gibbs
2016, Coral Reefs (35) 889-894
The rugosity or complexity of the seafloor has been shown to be an important ecological parameter for fish, algae, and corals. Historically, rugosity has been measured either using simple and subjective manual methods such as ‘chain-and-tape’ or complicated and expensive geophysical methods. Here, we demonstrate the application of structure-from-motion (SfM)...
Methane and sulfate dynamics in sediments from mangrove-dominated tropical coastal lagoons, Yucatan, Mexico
P. C. Chuang, Megan B. Young, Andrew W. Dale, Laurence G. Miller, Jorge A. Herrera-Silveira, Adina Paytan
2016, Biogeosciences (13) 2981-3001
Porewater profiles in sediment cores from mangrove-dominated coastal lagoons (Celestún and Chelem) on the Yucatán Peninsula, Mexico, reveal the widespread coexistence of dissolved methane and sulfate. This observation is interesting since dissolved methane in porewaters is typically oxidized anaerobically by sulfate. To explain the observations we used a numerical transport-reaction...
Observations of wave transformation over a fringing coral reef and the importance of low-frequency waves and offshore water levels to runup, overwash, and coastal flooding
Olivia Cheriton, Curt D. Storlazzi, Kurt J. Rosenberger
2016, Journal of Geophysical Research C: Oceans (121) 3121-3140
Many low-lying tropical islands are susceptible to sea level rise and often subjected to overwash and flooding during large wave events. To quantify wave dynamics and wave-driven water levels on fringing coral reefs, a 5 month deployment of wave gauges and a current meter was conducted across two shore-normal transects...
Algorithms used in the Airborne Lidar Processing System (ALPS)
David B. Nagle, C. Wayne Wright
2016, Open-File Report 2016-1046
The Airborne Lidar Processing System (ALPS) analyzes Experimental Advanced Airborne Research Lidar (EAARL) data—digitized laser-return waveforms, position, and attitude data—to derive point clouds of target surfaces. A full-waveform airborne lidar system, the EAARL seamlessly and simultaneously collects mixed environment data, including submerged, sub-aerial bare earth, and vegetation-covered topographies.ALPS uses three...
Carbon budgets of biological soil crusts at micro-, meso-, and global scales
Leopoldo G Sancho, Jayne Belnap, Claudia Colesie, Jose Raggio, Bettina Weber
2016, Book chapter, Ecological studies
The importance of biocrusts in the ecology of arid lands across all continents is widely recognized. In spite of this broad distribution, contributions of biocrusts to the global biogeochemical cycles have only recently been considered. While these studies opened a new view on the global role of biocrusts, they also...
Biological soil crusts: An organizing principle in dryland ecosystems (aka: the role of biocrusts in arid land hydrology)
Sonia Chamizo, Jayne Belnap, David J Elridge, Oumarou M Issa
2016, Book chapter, Ecological studies
Biocrusts exert a strong influence on hydrological processes in drylands by modifying numerous soil properties that affect water retention and movement in soils. Yet, their role in these processes is not clearly understood due to the large number of factors that act simultaneously and can mask the biocrust effect. The...
Biocrusts in the context of global change
Sasha C. Reed, Fernando T. Maestre, Raul Ochoa-Hueso, Cheryl Kuske, Anthony N. Darrouzet-Nardi, Brian Darby, Bob Sinsabaugh, Mel Oliver, Leo Sancho, Jayne Belnap
2016, Book chapter, Biological soil crusts: An organizing principle in drylands
A wide range of studies show global environmental change will profoundly affect the structure, function, and dynamics of terrestrial ecosystems. The research synthesized here underscores that biocrust communities are also likely to respond significantly to global change drivers, with a large potential for modification to their abundance, composition, and function....
Spatially explicit modeling of annual and seasonal habitat for greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) in Nevada and Northeastern California—An updated decision-support tool for management
Peter S. Coates, Michael L. Casazza, Brianne E. Brussee, Mark A. Ricca, K. Benjamin Gustafson, Erika Sanchez-Chopitea, Kimberly Mauch, Lara Niell, Scott Gardner, Shawn Espinosa, David J. Delehanty
2016, Open-File Report 2016-1080
Successful adaptive management hinges largely upon integrating new and improved sources of information as they become available. As a timely example of this tenet, we updated a management decision support tool that was previously developed for greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus, hereinafter referred to as “sage-grouse”) populations in Nevada and California....
Dendritic network models: Improving isoscapes and quantifying influence of landscape and in-stream processes on strontium isotopes in rivers
Sean R. Brennan, Christian E. Torgersen, Jeff P. Hollenbeck, Diego P. Fernandez, Carrie K Jensen, Daniel E. Schindler
2016, Geophysical Research Letters (43) 5043-5051
A critical challenge for the Earth sciences is to trace the transport and flux of matter within and among aquatic, terrestrial, and atmospheric systems. Robust descriptions of isotopic patterns across space and time, called “isoscapes,” form the basis of a rapidly growing and wide-ranging body of research aimed at quantifying...
Waterfowl endozoochory: An overlooked long-distance dispersal mode for Cuscuta (dodder)
Mihai Costea, Sasa Stefanovic, Miguel A. Garcia, Susan De La Cruz, Michael L. Casazza, Andy J. Green
2016, American Journal of Botany (103) 957-962
REMISE OF THE STUDY: Dispersal of parasitic Cuscuta species (dodders) worldwide has been assumed to be largely anthropomorphic because their seeds do not match any previously known dispersal syndrome and no natural dispersal vectors have been reliably documented. However, the genus has a subcosmopolitan distribution and recent phylogeographic results have...
Toward improved simulation of river operations through integration with a hydrologic model
Eric D. Morway, Richard G. Niswonger, Enrique Triana
2016, Environmental Modelling and Software 255-274
Advanced modeling tools are needed for informed water resources planning and management. Two classes of modeling tools are often used to this end–(1) distributed-parameter hydrologic models for quantifying supply and (2) river-operation models for sorting out demands under rule-based systems such as the prior-appropriation doctrine. Within each of these two...
Aquatic Trophic Productivity model: A decision support model for river restoration planning in the Methow River, Washington
Joseph R. Benjamin, J. Ryan Bellmore
2016, Open-File Report 2016-1075
Introduction The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has developed a dynamic food-web simulation model to provide decision support for Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) river restoration projects in the Methow River, Washington. This modeling effort was done to contribute to Reasonable and Prudent Alternative actions 56 and 57of the 2014 Federal Columbia River...
Development of a CE-QUAL-W2 temperature model for Crystal Springs Lake, Portland, Oregon
Norman L. Buccola, Adam J. Stonewall
2016, Open-File Report 2016-1076
During summer 2014, lake level, streamflow, and water temperature in and around Crystal Springs Lake in Portland, Oregon, were measured by the U.S. Geological Survey and the City of Portland Bureau of Environmental Services to better understand the effect of the lake on Crystal Springs Creek and Johnson Creek downstream....
A partial exponential lumped parameter model to evaluate groundwater age distributions and nitrate trends in long-screened wells
Bryant C. Jurgens, John Karl Bohlke, Leon J. Kauffman, Kenneth Belitz, Bradley K. Esser
2016, Journal of Hydrology (543) 109-126
A partial exponential lumped parameter model (PEM) was derived to determine age distributions and nitrate trends in long-screened production wells. The PEM can simulate age distributions for wells screened over any finite interval of an aquifer that has an exponential distribution of age with depth. The PEM has...
Predicting tree biomass growth in the temperate-boreal ecotone: is tree size, age, competition or climate response most important?
Jane R. Foster, Andrew O. Finley, Anthony W. D’Amato, John B. Bradford, Sudipto Banerjee
2016, Global Change Biology (22) 2138-2151
As global temperatures rise, variation in annual climate is also changing, with unknown consequences for forest biomes. Growing forests have the ability to capture atmospheric CO2and thereby slow rising CO2 concentrations. Forests’ ongoing ability to sequester C depends on how tree communities respond to changes in climate variation. Much of what...
