Interrelations among the soil-water retention, hydraulic conductivity, and suction-stress characteristic curves
Ning Lu, Murat Kaya, Jonathan W. Godt
2014, Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering (140)
The three fundamental constitutive relations that describe fluid flow, strength, and deformation behavior of variably saturated soils are the soil-water retention curve (SWRC), hydraulic conductivity function (HCF), and suction-stress characteristic curve (SSCC). Until recently, the interrelations among the SWRC, HCF, and SSCC have not been well established. This work sought...
Resource selection and space use by sea ducks during the non-breeding season: Implications for habitat conservation planning in urbanized estuaries
Susan E. W. De La Cruz, John M. Eadie, A. Keith Miles, Julie Yee, Kyle A. Spragens, Eric C. Palm, John Y. Takekawa
2014, Biological Conservation (169) 68-78
Wide-ranging marine birds rely on multiple habitats for wintering, breeding, and migrating, and their conservation may be dependent on protecting networks of key areas. Urbanized estuaries are critical wintering and stopover areas for many declining sea ducks in North America; however, conservation measures within estuaries are difficult to establish given...
Automated Cropland Classification Algorithm (ACCA) for California using multi-sensor remote sensing
Zhuoting Wu, Prasad S. Thenkabail, James Verdin
2014, Photogrammetric Engineering & Remote Sensing (80) 81-90
Increasing pressure to feed the growing population with scarce water resources requires accurate and routine cropland mapping. This paper develops and implements a rule-based automated cropland classification algorithm (ACCA) using multi-sensor remote sensing data. Pixel-by-pixel accuracy assessments showed that ACCA produced an overall accuracy of 96 percent (Khat = 0.8) when...
Rhynchelmis subgenus Sutroa Eisen new rank, with two new species from western North America (Annelida, Clitellata, Lumbriculidae)
Steven V. Fend, James L. Carter
2014, Zootaxa (3760) 180-210
The lumbriculid Rhynchelmis subgenus Sutroa Eisen, 1888 new rank is defined for a group of Nearctic species having multiple diverticula originating at the spermathecal ducts and eversible penial bulbs. Characters are confirmed in specimens of the type species, Rhynchelmis (Sutroa) rostrata (Eisen, 1888), collected from the type locality. Rhynchelmis (Sutroa)...
2012 monitoring and tracking wet nitrogen deposition at Rocky Mountain National Park
Kristi Morris, Alisa Mast, Gregory Wetherbee, Jill Baron, Curt Taipale, Tamara Blett, David Gay, Jared Heath
2014, Natural Resource Report NPS/NRSS/ARD/NRR--2014/757
No abstract available....
Linking channel hydrology with riparian wetland accretion in tidal rivers
Scott H. Ensign, Gregory B. Noe, Cliff R. Hupp
2014, Journal of Geophysical Research F: Earth Surface (119) 28-44
The hydrologic processes by which tide affects river channel and riparian morphology within the tidal freshwater zone are poorly understood, yet are fundamental to predicting the fate of coastal rivers and wetlands as sea level rises. We investigated patterns of sediment accretion in riparian wetlands along the non-tidal through oligohaline...
Trace element geochemistry (Li, Ba, Sr, and Rb) using Curiosity's ChemCam: early results for Gale crater from Bradbury Landing Site to Rocknest
Ann M. Ollila, Horton E. Newsom, Benton Clark III, Roger C. Wiens, Agnes Cousin, Jen G. Blank, Nicolas Mangold, Violaine Sautter, Sylvestre Maurice, Samuel M. Clegg, Olivier Gasnault, Olivier Forni, Robert Tokar, Eric Lewin, M. Darby Dyar, Jeremie Lasue, Ryan Anderson, Scott M. McLennan, John Bridges, Dave Vaniman, Nina Lanza, Cecile Fabre, Noureddine Melikechi, Glynis M. Perett, John L. Campbell, Penelope L. King, Bruce Barraclough, Dorothea Delapp, Stephen Johnstone, Pierre-Yves Meslin, Anya Rosen-Gooding, Josh Williams
2014, Journal of Geophysical Research E: Planets (119) 255-285
The ChemCam instrument package on the Mars rover, Curiosity, provides new capabilities to probe the abundances of certain trace elements in the rocks and soils on Mars using the laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy technique. We focus on detecting and quantifying Li, Ba, Rb, and Sr in targets analyzed during the first...
The influence of light, stream gradient, and iron on Didymosphenia geminata bloom development in the Black Hills, South Dakota
Daniel A. James, Kyle Mosel, Steven R. Chipps
2014, Hydrobiologia (721) 117-127
The aquatic nuisance species Didymosphenia geminata was first documented in Rapid Creek of South Dakota’s Black Hills during 2002. Since then, blooms have occurred primarily in a 39-km section of Rapid Creek while blooms were rarely observed in other Black Hills streams. In this study, we evaluated factors related to...
Bioavailability and bioaccumulation of metal-based engineered nanomaterials in aquatic environments: Concepts and processes
Samuel N. Luoma, Farhan R. Khan, Marie-Noele Croteau
2014, Book chapter, Frontiers of nanoscience: Nanoscience and the environment
Bioavailability of Me-ENMs to aquatic organisms links their release into the environment to ecological implications. Close examination shows some important differences in the conceptual models that define bioavailability for metals and Me-ENMs. Metals are delivered to aquatic animals from Me-ENMs via water, ingestion, and incidental surface exposure. Both metal released...
Spatially explicit modeling to evaluate regional stream water quality
Stephen D. Preston, Richard B. Alexander, Gregory Schwarz, Richard A. Smith
2014, Book chapter, Comprehensive water quality and purification
Spatially referenced regressions on watershed attributes (SPARROW) models have been developed and applied over the past two decades to address the need for large-scale, spatially explicit information on stream water quality conditions. The strength of SPARROW models is that they describe the primary environmental processes that affect the supply and transport of...
Size of age-0 crappies (Pomoxis spp.) relative to reservoir habitats and water levels
Levi J. Kaczka, Leandro E. Miranda
2014, Journal of Freshwater Ecology (29) 525-534
Variable year-class strength is common in crappie Pomoxis spp. populations in many reservoirs, yet the mechanisms behind this variability are poorly understood. Size-dependent mortality of age-0 fishes has long been recognized in the population ecology literature; however, investigations about the effects of environmental factors on age-0 crappie size are lacking....
Influence of sediment presence on freshwater mussel thermal tolerance
Jennifer M. Archambault, W. Gregory Cope, Thomas J. Kwak
2014, Freshwater Science (33) 56-65
Median lethal temperature (LT50) data from water-only exposures with the early life stages of freshwater mussels suggest that some species may be living near their upper thermal tolerances. However, evaluation of thermal sensitivity has never been conducted in sediment. Mussels live most of their lives burrowed in sediment, so understanding...
Fractionation of fulvic acid by iron and aluminum oxides: influence on copper toxicity to Ceriodaphnia dubia
Kathleen S. Smith, James F. Ranville, Emily K. Lesher, Daniel J. Diedrich, Diane M. McKnight, Ruth M. Sofield
2014, Environmental Science & Technology (48) 11934-11943
This study examines the effect on aquatic copper toxicity of the chemical fractionation of fulvic acid (FA) that results from its association with iron and aluminum oxyhydroxide precipitates. Fractionated and unfractionated FAs obtained from streamwater and suspended sediment were utilized in acute Cu toxicity tests on ,i>Ceriodaphnia dubia. Toxicity test...
Density and abundance of Wilson's snipe Gallinago delicata in winter in the Lower Mississippi Flyway, USA
James M. Carroll, David G. Krementz
2014, Wildlife Biology (20) 108-114
Wilson's snipe Gallinago delicata is one of the least studied North American game birds, and information on snipe populations and abundance is mostly unknown. We conducted roadside surveys stratified at the township level in the lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley (LMAV) in Arkansas, Mississippi and Louisiana, as well as the Red...
Influence of riparian and watershed alterations on sandbars in a Great Plains river
Jeffrey M. Fischer, Craig P. Paukert, M.L. Daniels
2014, River Research and Applications (31) 1140-1150
Anthropogenic alterations have caused sandbar habitats in rivers and the biota dependent on them to decline. Restoring large river sandbars may be needed as these habitats are important components of river ecosystems and provide essential habitat to terrestrial and aquatic organisms. We quantified factors within the riparian zone of the...
Potential environmental effects of pack stock on meadow ecosystems of the Sierra Nevada, USA
Steven M. Ostoja, Matthew L. Brooks, Peggy E. Moore, Eric L. Berlow, Robert Blank, Jim Roche, Jennifer T. Chase, Sylvia Haultain
2014, Rangeland Journal (36) 411-427
Pack and saddle stock, including, but not limited to domesticated horses, mules, and burros, are used to support commercial, private and administrative activities in the Sierra Nevada. The use of pack stock has become a contentious and litigious issue for land management agencies in the region inter alia due to...
A Global Lake Ecological Observatory Network (GLEON) for synthesising high-frequency sensor data for validation of deterministic ecological models
David P. Hamilton, Cayelan C. Carey, Lauri Arvola, Peter Arzberger, Carol A. Brewer, Jon J Cole, Evelyn Gaiser, Paul C. Hanson, Bas W Ibelings, Eleanor Jennings, Tim K Kratz, Fang-Pang Lin, Christopher G. McBride, David de Motta Marques, Kohji Muraoka, Ami Nishri, Boqiang Qin, Jordan S. Read, Kevin C. Rose, Elizabeth Ryder, Kathleen C. Weathers, Guangwei Zhu, Dennis Trolle, Justin D Brookes
2014, Inland Waters (5) 49-56
A Global Lake Ecological Observatory Network (GLEON; www.gleon.org) has formed to provide a coordinated response to the need for scientific understanding of lake processes, utilising technological advances available from autonomous sensors. The organisation embraces a grassroots approach to engage researchers from varying disciplines, sites spanning geographic and ecological gradients, and...
Managing harvest and habitat as integrated components
Erik E. Osnas, Michael C. Runge, Brady J. Mattsson, Jane E. Austin, G. S. Boomer, R. G. Clark, P. Devers, J. M. Eadie, E. V. Lonsdorf, Brian G. Tavernia
2014, Wildfowl (Special Issue No. 4) 305-328
In 2007, several important initiatives in the North American waterfowl management community called for an integrated approach to habitat and harvest management. The essence of the call for integration is that harvest and habitat management affect the same resources, yet exist as separate endeavours with very different regulatory contexts. A...
Trends in groundwater quality in principal aquifers of the United States, 1988-2012
Bruce D. Lindsey, Michael G. Rupert
2014, Book, 9th National Monitoring Conference
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program analyzed trends in groundwater quality throughout the nation for the sampling period of 1988-2012. Trends were determined for networks (sets of wells routinely monitored by the USGS) for a subset of constituents by statistical analysis of paired water-quality measurements...
Survival of adult Red-throated Loons (Gavia stellata) may be linked to marine conditions
Joel A. Schmutz
2014, Waterbirds (37) 118-124
Large variations in the summering population size of Red-throated Loons (Gavia stellata) have occurred in recent decades in Alaska. Little information exists about annual or seasonal survival rates of adult Red-throated Loons. This study used tracking data from satellite transmitters implanted into 33 Red-throated Loons captured on breeding areas in Alaska...
Transport and retention of vertically migrating adult mysid and decapod shrimp in the tidal front on Georges Bank
R. Gregory Lough, Alfredo L. Aretxabaleta
2014, Marine Ecology Progress Series (514) 119-135
Vertical profiles of the adult epibenthic shrimp Neomysis americana and Crangon septemspinosus obtained during June 1985 were used to simulate possible rates of ascent from bottom (40 to 50 m) to near surface at night and return by day, and the consequence of these rates on their horizontal distribution. Numerical...
Presence of the Corexit component dioctyl sodium sulfosuccinate in Gulf of Mexico waters after the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill
James L. Gray, Leslie K. Kanagy, Edward T. Furlong, Chris J. Kanagy, Jeff W. McCoy, Andrew Mason, Gunnar Lauenstein
2014, Chemosphere (95) 124-130
Between April 22 and July 15, 2010, approximately 4.9 million barrels of oil were released into the Gulf of Mexico from the Deepwater Horizon oil well. Approximately 16% of the oil was chemically dispersed, at the surface and at 1500 m depth, using Corexit 9527 and Corexit 9500, which contain...
A simple headspace equilibration method for measuring dissolved methane
C Magen, L. L. Lapham, John W. Pohlman, Kristin N. Marshall, S. Bosman, Michael Casso, J. P. Chanton
2014, Limnology and Oceanography: Methods (12) 637-650
Dissolved methane concentrations in the ocean are close to equilibrium with the atmosphere. Because methane is only sparingly soluble in seawater, measuring it without contamination is challenging for samples collected and processed in the presence of air. Several methods for analyzing dissolved methane are described in the literature, yet none...
Ancient aqueous environments at Endeavour crater, Mars
R. E. Arvidson, S. W. Squyres, J.F. Bell III, J.G. Catalano, B. C. Clark, L.S. Crumpler, P.A. de Souza Jr., A.G. Fairén, W. H. Farrand, V.K. Fox, Ralf Gellert, A. Ghosh, M.P. Golombeck, J.P. Grotzinger, E.A. Guinness, Kenneth E. Herkenhoff, B.L. Jolliff, A.H. Knoll, R. Li, S. M. McLennan, D. W. Ming, D. W. Mittlefehldt, Johnnie N. Moore, R.V. Morris, S.L. Murchie, T. J. Parker, G. Paulsen, J.W. Rice, S. W. Ruff, M. D. Smith, M.J. Wolff
2014, Science (343)
Opportunity has investigated in detail rocks on the rim of the Noachian age Endeavour crater, where orbital spectral reflectance signatures indicate the presence of Fe+3-rich smectites. The signatures are associated with fine-grained, layered rocks containing spherules of diagenetic or impact origin. The layered rocks are overlain by breccias, and both...
Uranium-series ages of corals, sea level history, and palaeozoogeography, Canary Islands, Spain: an exploratory study for two Quaternary interglacial periods
Daniel R. Muhs, Joaquin Meco, Kathleen R. Simmons
2014, Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology (394) 99-118
We present the first U-series ages of corals from emergent marine deposits on the Canary Islands. Deposits at + 20 m are 481 ± 39 ka, possibly correlative to marine isotope stage (or MIS) 11, while those at + 12 and + 8 m are 120.5 ± 0.8 ka and...
