Future wave and wind projections for United States and United-States-affiliated Pacific Islands
Curt D. Storlazzi, James B. Shope, Li H. Erikson, Christine A. Hegermiller, Patrick L. Barnard
2015, Open-File Report 2015-1001
Changes in future wave climates in the tropical Pacific Ocean from global climate change are not well understood. Spatially and temporally varying waves dominate coastal morphology and ecosystem structure of the islands throughout the tropical Pacific. Waves also impact coastal infrastructure, natural and cultural resources, and coastal-related economic activities of...
An experimental investigation of chemical communication in the polar bear
Megan A. Owen, Ronald R. Swaisgood, C. Slocomb, Steven C. Amstrup, George M. Durner, Kristin S. Simac, Allan P. Pessier
2015, Journal of Zoology (295) 36-43
The polar bear (Ursus maritimus), with its wide-ranging movements, solitary existence and seasonal reproduction, is expected to favor chemosignaling over other communication modalities. However, the topography of its Arctic sea ice habitat is generally lacking in stationary vertical substrates routinely used for targeted scent marking in other bears. These environmental...
Determining the importance of model calibration for forecasting absolute/relative changes in streamflow from LULC and climate changes
Rewati Niraula, Thomas Meixner, Laura M. Norman
2015, Journal of Hydrology (522) 439-451
Land use/land cover (LULC) and climate changes are important drivers of change in streamflow. Assessing the impact of LULC and climate changes on streamflow is typically done with a calibrated and validated watershed model. However, there is a debate on the degree of calibration required. The objective of this study...
Large-scale dam removal on the Elwha River, Washington, USA: source-to-sink sediment budget and synthesis
Jonathan A. Warrick, Jennifer A. Bountry, Amy E. East, Christopher S. Magirl, Timothy J. Randle, Guy R. Gelfenbaum, Andrew C. Ritchie, George R. Pess, Vivian Leung, Jeff J. Duda
2015, Geomorphology (246) 729-750
Understanding landscape responses to sediment supply changes constitutes a fundamental part of many problems in geomorphology, but opportunities to study such processes at field scales are rare. The phased removal of two large dams on the Elwha River, Washington, exposed 21 ± 3 million m3, or ~ 30 million tonnes (t), of sediment that had been deposited...
Simulated runoff at many stream locations in the Methow River Basin, Washington
Mark C. Mastin
2015, Open-File Report 2015-1011
A collaborative Bureau of Reclamation-U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) team has been brought together to incorporate a conceptual geomorphic-habitat model with a process-based trophic model to understand the processes important to stream habitat for anadromous fish populations. The Methow River Basin was selected as a test basin for this hybrid geomorphic-habitat/trophic...
3D Elevation Program: summary for Nebraska
William J. Carswell Jr.
2015, Fact Sheet 2014-3112
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 Nebraska, elevation data are critical for agriculture and precision farming, natural resources conservation, flood risk management, infrastructure and construction management, geologic resource...
3D Elevation Program: summary for Vermont
William J. Carswell Jr.
2015, Fact Sheet 2015-3002
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 Vermont, elevation data are critical for hazard mitigation, geologic resource assessment, natural resources conservation, agriculture and precision farming, flood risk management, infrastructure...
Distribution and biophysical processes of beaded streams in Arctic permafrost landscapes
Christopher D. Arp, Matthew S. Whitman, Benjamin M. Jones, Guido Grosse, Benjamin V. Gaglioti, Kurt C. Heim
2015, Biogeosciences (12) 29-47
Beaded streams are widespread in permafrost regions and are considered a common thermokarst landform. However, little is known about their distribution, how and under what conditions they form, and how their intriguing morphology translates to ecosystem functions and habitat. Here we report on a Circum-Arctic survey of beaded streams and...
Growth rates and variances of unexploited wolf populations in dynamic equilibria
L. David Mech, John Fieberg
2015, Wildlife Society Bulletin (39) 41-48
Several states have begun harvesting gray wolves (Canis lupus), and these states and various European countries are closely monitoring their wolf populations. To provide appropriate perspective for determining unusual or extreme fluctuations in their managed wolf populations, we analyzed natural, long-term, wolf-population-density trajectories totaling 130 years of data from 3...
Areas contributing recharge to production wells and effects of climate change on the groundwater system in the Chipuxet River and Chickasheen Brook Basins, Rhode Island
Paul J. Friesz, Janet Radway Stone
2015, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5216
The Chipuxet River and Chickasheen Brook Basins in southern Rhode Island are an important water resource for public and domestic supply, irrigation, recreation, and aquatic habitat. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Rhode Island Department of Health, began a study in 2012 as part of an effort to...
Simulated big sagebrush regeneration supports predicted changes at the trailing and leading edges of distribution shifts
Daniel R. Schlaepfer, Kyle A. Taylor, Victoria E. Pennington, Kellen N. Nelson, Trace E. Martin, Caitlin M. Rottler, William K. Lauenroth, John B. Bradford
2015, Ecosphere (6)
Many semi-arid plant communities in western North America are dominated by big sagebrush. These ecosystems are being reduced in extent and quality due to economic development, invasive species, and climate change. These pervasive modifications have generated concern about the long-term viability of sagebrush habitat and sagebrush-obligate wildlife species (notably greater...
Late Quaternary slip history of the Mill Creek strand of the San Andreas fault in San Gorgonio Pass, southern California: The role of a subsidiary left-lateral fault in strand switching
Katherine J. Kendrick, Jonathan C. Matti, Shannon A. Mahan
2015, Geological Society of America Bulletin (127) 825-849
The fault history of the Mill Creek strand of the San Andreas fault (SAF) in the San Gorgonio Pass region, along with the reconstructed geomorphology surrounding this fault strand, reveals the important role of the left-lateral Pinto Mountain fault in the regional fault strand switching. The Mill Creek strand has...
North America's net terrestrial CO2 exchange with the atmosphere 1990–2009
A.W. King, R.J. Andres, K.J. Davis, M. Hafer, D.J. Hayes, Deborah N. Huntzinger, Bernardus de Jong, W.A. Kurz, A. David McGuire, Rodrigo I. Vargas, Y. Wei, Tristram O. West, Christopher W. Woodall
2015, Biogeosciences (12) 399-414
Scientific understanding of the global carbon cycle is required for developing national and international policy to mitigate fossil fuel CO2 emissions by managing terrestrial carbon uptake. Toward that understanding and as a contribution to the REgional Carbon Cycle Assessment and Processes (RECCAP) project, this paper provides a synthesis of net land–atmosphere...
Hydrogeology of the Ramapo River-Woodbury Creek valley-fill aquifer system and adjacent areas in eastern Orange County, New York
Paul M. Heisig
2015, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5156
The hydrogeology of the valley-fill aquifer system and surrounding watershed areas was investigated within a 23-mile long, fault-controlled valley in eastern Orange County, New York. Glacial deposits form a divide within the valley that is drained to the north by Woodbury Creek and is drained to the south by the...
Enhanced understanding of ectoparasite: host trophic linkages on coral reefs through stable isotope analysis
Amanda W.J. Demopoulos, Paul C. Sikkel
2015, International Journal for Parasitology: Parasites and Wildlife (4) 125-134
Parasitism, although the most common type of ecological interaction, is usually ignored in food web models and studies of trophic connectivity. Stable isotope analysis is widely used in assessing the flow of energy in ecological communities and thus is a potentially valuable tool in understanding the cryptic trophic relationships mediated...
Assessment of undiscovered copper resources associated with the Permian Kupferschiefer, Southern Permian Basin, Europe
Michael L. Zientek, Slawomir Oszczepalski, Heather L. Parks, James D. Bliss, Gregor Borg, Stephen E. Box, Paul Denning, Timothy S. Hayes, Volker Spieth, Cliff D. Taylor
2015, Scientific Investigations Report 2010-5090-U
This study synthesizes available information and estimates the location and quantity of undiscovered copper associated with a late Permian bituminous shale, the Kupferschiefer, of the Southern Permian Basin in Europe. The purpose of this study is to (1) delineate permissive areas (tracts) where undiscovered reduced-facies sediment-hosted stratabound copper deposits could...
Development of a HEC-RAS temperature model for the North Santiam River, northwestern Oregon
Adam J. Stonewall, Norman L. Buccola
2015, Open-File Report 2015-1006
A one-dimensional, unsteady streamflow and temperature model (HEC-RAS) of the North Santiam and Santiam Rivers was developed by the U.S. Geological Survey to be used in conjunction with previously developed two-dimensional hydrodynamic water-quality models (CE-QUAL-W2) of Detroit and Big Cliff Lakes upstream of the study area. In conjunction with the...
Late Quaternary chronostratigraphic framework of terraces and alluvium along the lower Ohio River, southwestern Indiana and western Kentucky, USA
Ronald C. Counts, Madhav K. Murari, Lewis A. Owen, Shannon Mahan, Michele Greenan
2015, Quaternary Science Reviews (110) 72-91
The lower Ohio River valley is a terraced fluvial landscape that has been profoundly influenced by Quaternary climate change and glaciation. A modern Quaternary chronostratigraphic framework was developed for the lower Ohio River valley using optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating and allostratigraphic mapping to gain insights into the nature of...
Evaluation of selected static methods used to estimate element mobility, acid-generating and acid-neutralizing potentials associated with geologically diverse mining wastes
Philip L. Hageman, Robert R. Seal, Sharon F. Diehl, Nadine M. Piatak, Heather Lowers
2015, Applied Geochemistry (57) 125-139
A comparison study of selected static leaching and acid–base accounting (ABA) methods using a mineralogically diverse set of 12 modern-style, metal mine waste samples was undertaken to understand the relative performance of the various tests. To complement this study, in-depth mineralogical studies were conducted in order to elucidate the relationships...
Patterns of floodplain sediment deposition along the regulated lower Roanoke River, North Carolina: annual, decadal, centennial scales
Cliff R. Hupp, Edward R. Schenk, Daniel Kroes, Debra A. Willard, Phil A. Townsend, Robert K. Peet
2015, Geomorphology (228) 666-680
The lower Roanoke River on the Coastal Plain of North Carolina is not embayed and maintains a floodplain that is among the largest on the mid-Atlantic Coast. This floodplain has been impacted by substantial aggradation in response to upstream colonial and post-colonial agriculture between the mid-eighteenth and mid-nineteenth centuries. Additionally,...
Elk monitoring in Mount Rainier and Olympic national parks: 2008-2011 synthesis report
Kurt J. Jenkins, Paul C. Griffin, Patricia J. Happe, Mason E. Reid, David J. Vales, Barbara J. Moeller, Michelle Tirhe, Scott McCorquodale, Katherine Beirne, John Boetsch, William Baccus, Bruce C. Lubow
2015, Natural Resource Report NPS/NCCN/NRR - 2015/904
In 2008, the USGS collaborated with the NPS, the Muckleshoot and Puyallup Indian Tribes, and WDFW to develop a protocol tor monitor changes in abundance, population composition, and spatial distribution of elk on summer ranges in MORA and OLYM and winter ranges in OLYM. We developed double-observer sightability (DO-S) models...
Landslide mobility and hazards: implications of the 2014 Oso disaster
Richard M. Iverson, David L. George, Kate E. Allstadt, Mark E. Reid, Brian D. Collins, James W. Vallance, Steve P. Schilling, Jonathan W. Godt, Charles Cannon, Christopher S. Magirl, Rex L. Baum, Jeffrey A. Coe, William H. Schulz, J. Brent Bower
2015, Earth and Planetary Science Letters (412) 197-208
Landslides reflect landscape instability that evolves over meteorological and geological timescales, and they also pose threats to people, property, and the environment. The severity of these threats depends largely on landslide speed and travel distance, which are collectively described as landslide “mobility”. To investigate causes and effects of mobility, we...
Fluid pressure responses for a Devil's Slide-like system: problem formulation and simulation
Matthew A. Thomas, Keith Loague, Clifford I. Voss
2015, Hydrological Processes (29) 1450-1465
This study employs a hydrogeologic simulation approach to investigate subsurface fluid pressures for a landslide-prone section of the central California, USA, coast known as Devil's Slide. Understanding the relative changes in subsurface fluid pressures is important for systems, such as Devil's Slide, where slope creep can be interrupted by episodic...
U.S. Geological Survey groundwater toolbox, a graphical and mapping interface for analysis of hydrologic data (version 1.0): user guide for estimation of base flow, runoff, and groundwater recharge from streamflow data
Paul M. Barlow, William L. Cunningham, Tong Zhai, Mark Gray
2015, Techniques and Methods 3-B10
This report is a user guide for the streamflow-hydrograph analysis methods provided with version 1.0 of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Groundwater Toolbox computer program. These include six hydrograph-separation methods to determine the groundwater-discharge (base-flow) and surface-runoff components of streamflow—the Base-Flow Index (BFI; Standard and Modified), HYSEP (Fixed Interval, Sliding...
Evaluating and ranking threats to the long-term persistence of polar bears
Todd C. Atwood, Bruce G. Marcot, David C. Douglas, Steven C. Amstrup, Karyn D. Rode, George M. Durner, Jeffrey F. Bromaghin
2015, Open-File Report 2014-1254
The polar bear (Ursus maritimus) was listed as a globally threatened species under the U.S. Endangered Species Act (ESA) in 2008, mostly due to the significant threat to their future population viability from rapidly declining Arctic sea ice. A core mandate of the ESA is the development of a recovery...
