Discussion and Review of “Seismology of the Oso-Steelhead landslide” by Hibert, Stark, and Ekstrom
Kate E. Allstadt
2015, Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences C3274-C3283
In this study, Hibert et al. use the seismic waves generated by the disastrous 22 March 2014 landslide near Oso, Washington to investigate the dynamics of the event by combining long-period source inversions and short period analysis. Overall the paper is concise and well written and takes an innovative approach...
Remote sensing of Sonoran Desert vegetation structure and phenology with ground-based LiDAR
Joel B. Sankey, Seth M. Munson, Robert H. Webb, Cynthia S.A. Wallace, Cesar M. Duran
2015, Remote Sensing (7) 342-359
Long-term vegetation monitoring efforts have become increasingly important for understanding ecosystem response to global change. Many traditional methods for monitoring can be infrequent and limited in scope. Ground-based LiDAR is one remote sensing method that offers a clear advancement to monitor vegetation dynamics at high spatial and temporal resolution. We...
Evaluating changes in stream fish species richness over a 50-year time-period within a landscape context
Stephen R. Midway, Tyler Wagner, Bryn H. Tracy, Gabriela M. Hogue, Wayne C. Starnes
2015, Environmental Biology of Fishes (98) 1295-1309
Worldwide, streams and rivers are facing a suite of pressures that alter water quality and degrade physical habitat, both of which can lead to changes in the composition and richness of fish populations. These potential changes are of particular importance in the Southeast USA, home to one of the richest...
Climate-induced range contraction of a rare alpine aquatic invertebrate
J. Joseph Giersch, Steve Jordan, Gordon Luikart, Leslie A. Jones, F. Richard Hauer, Clint C. Muhlfeld
2015, Freshwater Science (34) 53-65
Climate warming poses a serious threat to alpine-restricted species worldwide, yet few studies have empirically documented climate-induced changes in distributions. The rare stonefly, Zapada glacier (Baumann and Gaufin), endemic to alpine streams of Glacier National Park (GNP), Montana, was recently petitioned for listing under the US Endangered Species Act because of climate-change-induced...
Character, distribution, and ecological significance of storm wave-induced scour in Rhode Island Sound, USA
Katherine Y. McMullen, Lawrence J. Poppe, Castle E. Parker
2015, Geo-Marine Letters (35) 135-144
Multibeam bathymetry, collected during NOAA hydrographic surveys in 2008 and 2009, is coupled with USGS data from sampling and photographic stations to map the seabed morphology and composition of Rhode Island Sound along the US Atlantic coast, and to provide information on sediment transport and benthic habitats. Patchworks of scour...
Spatial and seasonal responses of precipitation in the Ganges and Brahmaputra river basins to ENSO and Indian Ocean dipole modes: Implications for flooding and drought
Md Shahriar Pervez, Geoffry M. Henebry
2015, Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences (2) 147-162
We evaluated the spatial and seasonal responses of precipitation in the Ganges and Brahmaputra basins as modulated by the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) modes using Global Precipitation Climatology Centre (GPCC) full data reanalysis of monthly global land-surface precipitation data from 1901 to 2010...
The 3D Elevation Program: summary for Wyoming
William J. Carswell Jr.
2015, Fact Sheet 2014-3108
Elevation data are essential to a broad range of applications, including forest resources management, wildlife and habitat management, national security, recreation, and many others. For the State of Wyoming, elevation data are critical for geologic resource assessment and hazard mitigation, flood risk management, water supply an quality, natural resources conservation,...
Late Holocene sea- and land-level change on the U.S. southeastern Atlantic Coast
Andrew C. Kemp, Christopher E. Bernhardt, Benjamin P. Horton, Robert E. Kopp, Christopher H. Vane, W. Richard Peltier, Andrea D. Hawkes, Jeffrey P. Donnelly, Andrew C. Parnell, Niamh Cahill
2015, Marine Geology (357) 90-100
Late Holocene relative sea-level (RSL) reconstructions can be used to estimate rates of land-level (subsidence or uplift) change and therefore to modify global sea-level projections for regional conditions. These reconstructions also provide the long-term benchmark against which modern trends are compared and an opportunity to understand the response of sea...
Using scenario planning to evaluate the impacts of climate change on wildlife populations and communities in the Florida Everglades
Christopher P. Catano, Stephanie S. Romañach, James M. Beerens, Leonard G. Pearlstine, Laura A. Brandt, Kristen M. Hart, Frank J. Mazzotti, Joel C. Trexler
2015, Environmental Management (55) 807-823
It is uncertain how climate change will impact hydrologic drivers of wildlife population dynamics in freshwater wetlands of the Florida Everglades, or how to accommodate this uncertainty in restoration decisions. Using projections of climate scenarios for the year 2060, we evaluated how several possible futures could affect wildlife populations (wading...
Quality and age of shallow groundwater in the Bakken Formation production area, Williston Basin, Montana and North Dakota
Peter B. McMahon, Rodney R. Caldwell, Joel M. Galloway, Joshua F. Valder, Andrew G. Hunt
2015, Groundwater (53) 81-94
The quality and age of shallow groundwater in the Bakken Formation production area were characterized using data from 30 randomly distributed domestic wells screened in the upper Fort Union Formation. Comparison of inorganic and organic chemical concentrations to health based drinking-water standards, correlation analysis of concentrations with oil and gas...
Uncertainty estimates in broadband seismometer sensitivities using microseisms
Adam T. Ringler, Tyler L. Storm, Lind S. Gee, Charles R. Hutt, David C. Wilson
2015, Journal of Seismology (19) 317-327
The midband sensitivity of a seismic instrument is one of the fundamental parameters used in published station metadata. Any errors in this value can compromise amplitude estimates in otherwise high-quality data. To estimate an upper bound in the uncertainty of the midband sensitivity for modern broadband instruments, we compare daily...
Permafrost-associated gas hydrate: is it really approximately 1% of the global system?
Carolyn Ruppel
2015, Journal of Chemical & Engineering Data (60) 429-436
Permafrost-associated gas hydrates are often assumed to contain ∼1 % of the global gas-in-place in gas hydrates based on a study26 published over three decades ago. As knowledge of permafrost-associated gas hydrates has grown, it has become clear that many permafrost-associated gas hydrates are inextricably linked to an associated conventional...
User guide to Exploration and Graphics for RivEr Trends (EGRET) and dataRetrieval: R packages for hydrologic data
Robert M. Hirsch, Laura A. De Cicco
2015, Techniques and Methods 4-A10
Evaluating long-term changes in river conditions (water quality and discharge) is an important use of hydrologic data. To carry out such evaluations, the hydrologist needs tools to facilitate several key steps in the process: acquiring the data records from a variety of sources, structuring it in ways that facilitate the...
Threshold-dependent sample sizes for selenium assessment with stream fish tissue
Nathaniel P. Hitt, David R. Smith
2015, Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management (11) 143-149
Natural resource managers are developing assessments of selenium (Se) contamination in freshwater ecosystems based on fish tissue concentrations. We evaluated the effects of sample size (i.e., number of fish per site) on the probability of correctly detecting mean whole-body Se values above a range of potential management thresholds. We modeled...
Understanding heat and groundwater flow through continental flood basalt provinces: insights gained from alternative models of permeability/depth relationships for the Columbia Plateau, USA
Erick R. Burns, Colin F. Williams, Steven E. Ingebritsen, Clifford I. Voss, Frank A. Spane, Jacob DeAngelo
2015, Geofluids (15) 120-138
Heat-flow mapping of the western USA has identified an apparent low-heat-flow anomaly coincident with the Columbia Plateau Regional Aquifer System, a thick sequence of basalt aquifers within the Columbia River Basalt Group (CRBG). A heat and mass transport model (SUTRA) was used to evaluate the potential impact of groundwater flow...
Development of ten microsatellite loci in the invasive giant African land snail, Achatina (=Lissachatina) fulica Bowdich, 1822
Cheryl L. Morrison, Marcus J. Springmann, Deborah D. Iwanowicz, Christopher M. Wade
2015, Conservation Genetics Resources (7) 201-202
A suite of tetra-nucleotide microsatellite loci were developed for the invasive giant African land snail, Achatina (=Lissachatina) fulica Bowdich, 1822, from Ion Torrent next-generation sequencing data. Ten of the 96 primer sets tested amplified consistently in 30 snails from Miami, Florida, plus 12 individuals representative of their native East Africa,...
Processes of arroyo filling in northern New Mexico, USA
Jonathan M. Friedman, Kirk R. Vincent, Eleanor R. Griffin, Michael L. Scott, Patrick B. Shafroth, Gregor T. Auble
2015, Geological Society of America Bulletin (127) 621-640
We documented arroyo evolution at the tree, trench, and arroyo scales along the lower Rio Puerco and Chaco Wash in northern New Mexico, USA. We excavated 29 buried living woody plants and used burial signatures in their annual rings to date stratigraphy in four trenches across the arroyos. Then, we...
A century of ocean warming on Florida Keys coral reefs: historic in situ observations
Ilsa B. Kuffner, Barbara H. Lidz, J. Harold Hudson, Jeffery S. Anderson
2015, Estuaries and Coasts (38) 1085-1096
There is strong evidence that global climate change over the last several decades has caused shifts in species distributions, species extinctions, and alterations in the functioning of ecosystems. However, because of high variability on short (i.e., diurnal, seasonal, and annual) timescales as well as the recency of a comprehensive instrumental...
A protocol for coordinating post-tsunami field reconnaissance efforts in the USA
Rick I. Wilson, Nathan J. Wood, Laura Kong, Michael V. Shulters, Kevin D. Richards, Paula Dunbar, Tamura, Edward J. Young
2015, Natural Hazards (75) 2153-2165
In the aftermath of a catastrophic tsunami, much is to be learned about tsunami generation and propagation, landscape and ecological changes, and the response and recovery of those affected by the disaster. Knowledge of the impacted area directly helps response and relief personnel in their efforts to reach and care...
Comparing methods for estimating larval sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) density in the St. Marys River for the purposes of control
Jason M. Robinson, Michael J. Wilberg, Jean V. Adams, Michael L. Jones
2015, Journal of Great Lakes Research (40) 739-747
The St. Marys River is a major producer of parasitic sea lampreys (Petromyzon marinus) to Lake Huron making it an important area for larval control. Bayluscide treatments are conducted in areas of high larval density requiring density estimation at fine spatial scales to inform treatment...
Trophic state in Voyageurs National Park lakes before and after implementation of a revised water-level management plan
Victoria G. Christensen, Ryan P. Maki
2015, Journal of the American Water Resources Association (51) 99-111
We compiled Secchi depth, total phosphorus, and chlorophyll a (Chla) data from Voyageurs National Park lakes and compared datasets before and after a new water-level management plan was implemented in January 2000. Average Secchi depth transparency improved (from 1.9 to 2.1 m, p = 0.020) between 1977-1999 and 2000-2011 in...
The role of citzens in detecting and responding to a rapid marine invasion
Stephen B. Scyphers, Sean P. Powers, J. Lad Akins, J. Marcus Drymon, Charles M. Martin, Zeb H. Schobernd, Pamela J. Schofield, Robert L. Shipp, Theodore S. Switzer
2015, Conservation Letters (8) 242-250
Documenting and responding to species invasions requires innovative strategies that account for ecological and societal complexities. We used the recent expansion of Indo-Pacific lionfish (Pterois volitans/miles) throughout northern Gulf of Mexico coastal waters to evaluate the role of stakeholders in documenting and responding to a rapid marine invasion. We coupled...
Standardization of reflectance measurements in dispersed organic matter: results of an exercise to improve interlaboratory agreement
Paul C. Hackley, Carla Viviane Araujo, Angeles G. Borrego, Antonis Bouzinos, Brian Cardott, Alan C. Cook, Cortland Eble, Deolinda Flores, Thomas Gentzis, Paula Alexandra Goncalves, Joao Graciano Mendonca Filho, Maria Hamor-Vido, Iwona Jelonek, Kees Kommeren, Wayne Knowles, Jolanta Kus, Maria Mastalerz, Taissa Rego Menezes, Jane Newman, Mark Pawlewicz, Walter Pickel, Judith Potter, Paddy Ranasinghe, Harold Read, Julito Reyes, Genaro De La Rosa Rodriguez, Igor Viegas Alves Fernandes de Souza, Isabel Suarez-Ruiz, Ivana Sykorova, Brett J. Valentine
2015, Marine and Petroleum Geology (59) 22-34
Vitrinite reflectance generally is considered the most robust thermal maturity parameter available for application to hydrocarbon exploration and petroleum system evaluation. However, until 2011 there was no standardized methodology available to provide guidelines for vitrinite reflectance measurements in shale. Efforts to correct this deficiency resulted in publication of ASTM D7708:...
Please don't misuse the museum: 'declines' may be statistical
Evan H. Campbell Grant
2015, Global Change Biology (21) 1018-1024
Detecting declines in populations at broad spatial scales takes enormous effort, and long-term data are often more sparse than is desired for estimating trends, identifying drivers for population changes, framing conservation decisions or taking management actions. Museum records and historic data can be available at large scales across multiple decades,...
Evaluating the predictive performance of empirical estimators of natural mortality rate using information on over 200 fish species
Amy Y. Then, John M Hoenig, Norman G. Hall, David A. Hewitt
2015, ICES Journal of Marine Science (72) 82-92
Many methods have been developed in the last 70 years to predict the natural mortality rate, M, of a stock based on empirical evidence from comparative life history studies. These indirect or empirical methods are used in most stock assessments to (i) obtain estimates of M in the absence of direct information, (ii)...
