Continuous monitoring of sediment and nutrients in the Illinois River at Florence, Illinois, 2012-13
Paul J. Terrio, Timothy D. Straub, Marian M. Domanski, Nicholas A. Siudyla
2015, Scientific Investigations Report 2015-5040
The Illinois River is the largest river in Illinois and is the primary contributing watershed for nitrogen, phosphorus, and suspended-sediment loading to the upper Mississippi River from Illinois. In addition to streamflow, the following water-quality constituents were monitored at the Illinois River at Florence, Illinois (U.S. Geological Survey station number...
Integrated Environmental Modelling: Human decisions, human challenges
Pierre D. Glynn
2015, Geological Society of London Special Publications (408)
Integrated Environmental Modelling (IEM) is an invaluable tool for understanding the complex, dynamic ecosystems that house our natural resources and control our environments. Human behaviour affects the ways in which the science of IEM is assembled and used for meaningful societal applications. In particular, human biases and heuristics reflect adaptation...
The 3D Elevation Program: summary for Delaware
William J. Carswell Jr.
2015, Fact Sheet 2015-3031
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 Delaware, elevation data are critical for agriculture and precision farming, river and stream resource management, natural resources conservation, flood risk management, coastal...
Development of conceptual ecological models linking management of the Missouri River to pallid sturgeon population dynamics
Robert B. Jacobson, Michael J. Parsley, Mandy L. Annis, Michael E. Colvin, Timothy L. Welker, Daniel A. James
2015, Open-File Report 2015-1038
This report documents the process of developing and refining conceptual ecological models (CEMs) for linking river management to pallid sturgeon (Scaphirhynchus albus) population dynamics in the Missouri River. The refined CEMs are being used in the Missouri River Pallid Sturgeon Effects Analysis to organize, document, and formalize an understanding of...
A stochastic bioenergetics model based approach to translating large river flow and temperature in to fish population responses: The pallid sturgeon example
Mark L. Wildhaber, Rima Dey, Christopher K. Wikle, Edward H. Moran, Christopher J. Anderson, Kristie J. Franz
2015, Geological Society of London Special Publications (408) 1-17
In managing fish populations, especially at-risk species, realistic mathematical models are needed to help predict population response to potential management actions in the context of environmental conditions and changing climate while effectively incorporating the stochastic nature of real world conditions. We provide a key component of such a model for...
Sea level, paleogeography, and archeology on California's Northern Channel Islands
Leslie Reeder-Myers, Jon M. Erlandson, Daniel R. Muhs, Torben C. Rick
2015, Quaternary Research (83) 263-272
Sea-level rise during the late Pleistocene and early Holocene inundated nearshore areas in many parts of the world, producing drastic changes in local ecosystems and obscuring significant portions of the archeological record. Although global forces are at play, the effects of sea-level rise are highly localized due to variability in...
Intersexual allometry differences and ontogenetic shifts of coloration patterns in two aquatic turtles, Graptemys oculifera and Graptemys flavimaculata
Joshua R. Ennen, Peter V. Lindeman, Jeffrey E. Lovich
2015, Ecology and Evolution (5) 2296-2305
Coloration can play critical roles in a species' biology. The allometry of color patterns may be useful for elucidating the evolutionary mechanisms responsible for shaping the traits. We measured characteristics relating to eight aspects of color patterns from Graptemys oculifera and G. flavimaculata to investigate the allometric differences among male, female, and unsexed juvenile specimens....
Performance of species occurrence estimators when basic assumptions are not met: a test using field data where true occupancy status is known
David A. W. Miller, Larissa L. Bailey, Evan H. Campbell Grant, Brett T. McClintock, Linda A. Weir, Theodore R. Simons
2015, Methods in Ecology and Evolution (6) 557-565
Populations are rarely censused. Instead, observations are subject to incomplete detection, misclassification and detection heterogeneity that result from human and environmental constraints. Though numerous methods have been developed to deal with observational uncertainty, validation under field conditions is rare because truth is rarely known in these cases. We...
Slipstream: an early Holocene slump and turbidite record from the frontal ridge of the Cascadia accretionary wedge off western Canada and paleoseismic implications
T.S. Hamilton, Randolph J. Enkin, Michael Riedel, Gary C. Rogers, John W. Pohlman, Heather M. Benway
2015, Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences (52) 1-26
Slipstream Slump, a well-preserved 3 km wide sedimentary failure from the frontal ridge of the Cascadia accretionary wedge 85 km off Vancouver Island, Canada, was sampled during Canadian Coast Guard Ship (CCGS) John P. Tully cruise 2008007PGC along a transect of five piston cores. Shipboard sediment analysis and physical property logging revealed...
Flood-inundation maps for the Hoosic River, North Adams and Williamstown, Massachusetts, from the confluence with the North Branch Hoosic River to the Vermont State line
Pamela J. Lombard, Gardner C. Bent
2015, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5236
A series of nine digital flood-inundation maps were developed for an 8-mile reach of the Hoosic River in North Adams and Williamstown, Massachusetts, by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in cooperation with the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The coverage of the maps extends from the confluence with the North Branch...
Evaluating turbidity and suspended-sediment concentration relations from the North Fork Toutle River basin near Mount St. Helens, Washington; annual, seasonal, event, and particle size variations - a preliminary analysis.
Mark A. Uhrich, Kurt R. Spicer, Adam R. Mosbrucker, Tami S. Christianson
2015, Conference Paper, Proceedings of the joint federal interagency conference 2015
Regression of in-stream turbidity with concurrent sample-based suspended-sediment concentration (SSC) has become an accepted method for producing unit-value time series of inferred SSC (Rasmussen et al., 2009). Turbidity-SSC regression models are increasingly used to generate suspended-sediment records for Pacific Northwest rivers (e.g., Curran et al., 2014; Schenk and Bragg, 2014;...
Initiation of migration and movement rates of Atlantic salmon smolts in fresh water
Daniel S. Stich, Michael T. Kinnison, John F. Kocik, Joseph D. Zydlewski
2015, Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences (72) 1339-1351
Timing of ocean entry is critical for marine survival of both hatchery and wild Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) smolts. Management practices and barriers to migration such as dams may constrain timing of smolt migrations resulting in suboptimal performance at saltwater entry. We modeled influences of stocking location, smolt development, and...
End-of-winter snow depth variability on glaciers in Alaska
Daniel Mcgrath, Louis C. Sass, Shad O’Neel, Anthony Arendt, Gabriel Wolken, Alessio Gusmeroli, Christian Kienholz, Christopher J. McNeil
2015, Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface (120) 1530-1550
A quantitative understanding of snow thickness and snow water equivalent (SWE) on glaciers is essential to a wide range of scientific and resource management topics. However, robust SWE estimates are observationally challenging, in part because SWE can vary abruptly over short distances in complex terrain due to interactions between topography...
Groundwater flow in the Brunswick/Glynn County area, Georgia, 2000-04
Gregory S. Cherry
2015, Scientific Investigations Report 2015-5061
An existing regional steady-state model for coastal Georgia, and parts of South Carolina and Florida, was revised to evaluate the local effects of pumping on the migration of high chloride (saline) water in the Upper Floridan aquifer located in the Brunswick/Glynn County, Georgia (Ga.) area. Revisions were focused on enhancing...
Comparisons of estimates of annual exceedance-probability discharges for small drainage basins in Iowa, based on data through water year 2013
David A. Eash
2015, Scientific Investigations Report 2015-5055
Traditionally, the Iowa Department of Transportation has used the Iowa Runoff Chart and single-variable regional-regression equations (RREs) from a U.S. Geological Survey report (published in 1987) as the primary methods to estimate annual exceedance-probability discharge (AEPD) for small (20 square miles or less) drainage basins in Iowa. With the publication...
Evaluation of groundwater levels in the South Platte River alluvial aquifer, Colorado, 1953-2012, and design of initial well networks for monitoring groundwater levels
Tristan Wellman
2015, Scientific Investigations Report 2015-5015
The South Platte River and underlying alluvial aquifer form an important hydrologic resource in northeastern Colorado that provides water to population centers along the Front Range and to agricultural communities across the rural plains. Water is regulated based on seniority of water rights and delivered using a network of administration...
Simulated effects of Lower Floridan aquifer pumping on the Upper Floridan aquifer at Rincon, Effingham County, Georgia
Gregory S. Cherry, John S. Clarke
2015, Scientific Investigations Report 2015-5072
Steady-state simulations using a revised regional groundwater-flow model based on MODFLOW were run to assess the potential long-term effects on the Upper Floridan aquifer (UFA) of pumping the Lower Floridan aquifer (LFA) at well (36S048) near the City of Rincon in coastal Georgia near Savannah. Simulated pumping of well 36S048...
Modeling apple snail population dynamics on the Everglades landscape
Phil Darby, Donald L. DeAngelis, Stephanie S. Romanach, Kevin J. Suir, Joshua L. Bridevaux
2015, Landscape Ecology (30) 1497-1510
Context The Florida Everglades has diminished in size and its existing wetland hydrology has been altered. The endangered snail kite (Rostrhamus sociabilis) has nearly abandoned the Everglades, and its prey, the apple snail (Pomacea paludosa), has declined. Objective We developed a population model (EverSnail) to understand apple snail response to inter- and intra-annual...
Automated calculation of surface energy fluxes with high-frequency lake buoy data
R. Iestyn Woolway, Ian D. Jones, David P. Hamilton, Stephen C Maberly, Kohji Muroaka, Jordan S. Read, Robyn L Smyth, Luke A. Winslow
2015, Environmental Modelling and Software (70) 191-198
Lake Heat Flux Analyzer is a program used for calculating the surface energy fluxes in lakes according to established literature methodologies. The program was developed in MATLAB for the rapid analysis of high-frequency data from instrumented lake buoys in support of the emerging field of aquatic sensor network science. To...
Mercury and methylmercury in reservoirs in Indiana
Martin R. Risch, Amanda L. Fredericksen
2015, Professional Paper 1813
Mercury (Hg) is an element that occurs naturally, but evidence suggests that human activities have resulted in increased amounts being released to the atmosphere and land surface. When Hg is converted to methylmercury (MeHg) in aquatic ecosystems, MeHg accumulates and increases in the food web so that some fish contain...
Self-noise models of five commercial strong-motion accelerometers
Adam T. Ringler, John R. Evans, Charles R. Hutt
2015, Seismological Research Letters (86) 1143-1147
Strong‐motion accelerometers provide onscale seismic recordings during moderate‐to‐large ground motions (e.g., up to tens of m/s2 peak). Such instruments have played a fundamental role in improving our understanding of earthquake source physics (Bocketal., 2011), earthquake engineering (Youdet al., 2004), and regional seismology (Zollo et al., 2010). Although strong‐motion accelerometers tend...
Status and threats analysis for the Florida manatee (Trichechus manatus latirostris), 2012
Michael C. Runge, Catherine A. Langtimm, Julien Martin, Christopher J. Fonnesbeck
2015, Open-File Report 2015-1083
The endangered West Indian manatee (Trichechus manatus), especially the Florida subspecies (T. m. latirostris), has been the focus of conservation efforts and extensive research since its listing under the Endangered Species Act. On the basis of the best information available as of December 2012, the threats facing the Florida manatee...
Offshore geology and geomorphology from Point Piedras Blancas to Pismo Beach, San Luis Obispo County, California
Janet Watt, Samuel Y. Johnson, Stephen R. Hartwell, Michelle Roberts
2015, Scientific Investigations Map 3327
Marine geology and geomorphology were mapped along the continental shelf and upper slope between Point Piedras Blancas and Pismo Beach, California. The map area is divided into the following three (smaller) map areas, listed from north to south: San Simeon, Morro Bay, and Point San Luis. Each smaller map area...
Stable isotope values in pup vibrissae reveal geographic variation in diets of gestating Steller sea lions Eumetopias jubatus
Rick D. Scherer, Andrew C. Doll, Lorrie D. Rea, Aaron M. Christ, Craig A. Stricker, Briana Witteveen, Thomas C. Kline, Carolyn M. Kurle, Michael B. Wunder
2015, Marine Ecology Progress Series (527) 261-274
Multiple factors, including limitation in food resources, have been proposed as possible causes for the lack of recovery of the endangered western segment of the Steller sea lion population in the United States. Because maternal body condition has important consequences on fetal development and neonatal survival, the diets of pregnant...
Water-table and potentiometric-surface altitudes in the Upper Glacial, Magothy, and Lloyd aquifers of Long Island, New York, April-May 2013
Michael D. Como, Michael L. Noll, Jason S. Finkelstein, Jack Monti Jr., Ronald Busciolano
2015, Scientific Investigations Map 3326
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with State and local agencies, systematically collects groundwater data at varying measurement frequencies to monitor the hydrologic conditions on Long Island, New York. Each year during April and May, the USGS conducts a synoptic survey of water levels to define the spatial distribution...
