A historical perspective on precipitation, drought severity, and streamflow in Texas during 1951-56 and 2011
Karl E. Winters
2013, Scientific Investigations Report 2013-5113
The intense drought throughout Texas during 2011 resulted in substantial declines in streamflow. By April 2011, nearly all of the State was experiencing severe to extreme drought according to data from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln Drought Monitor. By the end of July 2011, more than 75 percent of the State...
Water resources of Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana
Larry B. Prakken
2013, Fact Sheet 2013-3031
In 2010, about 85.1 million gallons per day (Mgal/d) of water were withdrawn in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana. Surface-water sources accounted for almost all withdrawals; groundwater sources accounted for only 0.04 Mgal/d. Industrial use accounted for about 92 percent of the total water withdrawn. Other categories of use included public supply,...
Water resources of Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana
Robert B. Fendick Jr., Larry B. Prakken, Jason M. Griffith
2013, Fact Sheet 2013-3012
In 2005, about 33.8 million gallons per day (Mgal/d) was withdrawn from water sources in Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana. Surface water sources accounted for about 86 percent (29.2 Mgal/d) of all withdrawals whereas groundwater sources accounted for about 14 percent (4.62 Mgal/d). Withdrawals for industrial use accounted for about 42 percent...
Evidence of territoriality and species interactions from spatial point-pattern analyses of subarctic-nesting geese
Matthew Reiter, David E. Andersen
2013, PLoS ONE (8)
Quantifying spatial patterns of bird nests and nest fate provides insights into processes influencing a species’ distribution. At Cape Churchill, Manitoba, Canada, recent declines in breeding Eastern Prairie Population Canada geese (Branta canadensis interior) has coincided with increasing populations of nesting lesser snow geese (Chen caerulescens caerulescens) and Ross’s geese...
Inferring fault rheology from low-frequency earthquakes on the San Andreas
Nicholas M. Beeler, Amanda Thomas, Roland Bürgmann, David R. Shelly
2013, Journal of Geophysical Research (118) 5976-5990
Families of recurring low-frequency earthquakes (LFEs) within nonvolcanic tremor (NVT) on the San Andreas fault in central California show strong sensitivity to shear stress induced by the daily tidal cycle. LFEs occur at all levels of the tidal shear stress and are in phase with the very small, ~400 Pa, stress...
A domain decomposition approach to implementing fault slip in finite-element models of quasi-static and dynamic crustal deformation
Brad T. Aagaard, M.G. Knepley, C.A. Williams
2013, Journal of Geophysical Research B: Solid Earth (118) 3059-3079
We employ a domain decomposition approach with Lagrange multipliers to implement fault slip in a finite-element code, PyLith, for use in both quasi-static and dynamic crustal deformation applications. This integrated approach to solving both quasi-static and dynamic simulations leverages common finite-element data structures and implementations of various boundary conditions, discretization...
Reconnaissance geologic map of Kodiak Island and adjacent islands, Alaska
Frederic H. Wilson
2013, Scientific Investigations Map 2999
Kodiak Island and its adjacent islands, located on the west side of the Gulf of Alaska, contain one of the largest areas of exposure of the flysch and melange of the Chugach terrane of southern Alaska. However, in the past 25 years, only detailed mapping covering small areas in the...
Inferential consequences of modeling rather than measuring snow accumulation in studies of animal ecology
Paul C. Cross, Robert W. Klaver, Angela Brennan, Scott Creel, Jon P. Beckmann, Megan D. Higgs, Brandon M. Scurlock
2013, Ecological Applications (23) 643-653
Abstract. It is increasingly common for studies of animal ecology to use model-based predictions of environmental variables as explanatory or predictor variables, even though model prediction uncertainty is typically unknown. To demonstrate the potential for misleading inferences when model predictions with error are used in place of direct measurements, we...
Database for the geologic map of Newberry Volcano, Deschutes, Klamath, and Lake Counties, Oregon
Joseph A. Bard, David W. Ramsey, Norman S. MacLeod, David R. Sherrod, Lawrence A. Chitwood, Robert A. Jensen
2013, Data Series 771
Newberry Volcano, one of the largest Quaternary volcanoes in the conterminous United States, is a broad shield-shaped volcano measuring 60 km north-south by 30 km east-west with a maximum elevation of more than 2 km. Newberry Volcano is the product of deposits from thousands of eruptions, including at least 25...
A national streamflow network gap analysis
Julie E. Kiang, David W. Stewart, Stacey A. Archfield, Emily B. Osborne, Ken Eng
2013, Scientific Investigations Report 2013-5013
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) conducted a gap analysis to evaluate how well the USGS streamgage network meets a variety of needs, focusing on the ability to calculate various statistics at locations that have streamgages (gaged) and that do not have streamgages (ungaged). This report presents the results of analysis...
Aggregation of carbon dioxide sequestration storage assessment units
Madalyn S. Blondes, John H. Schuenemeyer, Ricardo A. Olea, Lawrence J. Drew
2013, Stochastic Environmental Research and Risk Assessment (27) 1839-1859
The U.S. Geological Survey is currently conducting a national assessment of carbon dioxide (CO2) storage resources, mandated by the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. Pre-emission capture and storage of CO2 in subsurface saline formations is one potential method to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the negative impact of...
At-sea behavior varies with lunar phase in a nocturnal pelagic seabird, the swallow-tailed gull
Sebastian M. Cruz, Mevin Hooten, Kathryn P. Huyvaert, Carolina B. Proano, David J. Anderson, Vsevolod Afanasyev, Martin Wikelski
2013, PLoS ONE (8)
Strong and predictable environmental variability can reward flexible behaviors among animals. We used long-term records of activity data that cover several lunar cycles to investigate whether behavior at-sea of swallow-tailed gulls Creagrus furcatus, a nocturnal pelagic seabird, varied with lunar phase in the Galápagos Islands. A Bayesian hierarchical model showed...
Spatial occupancy models for large data sets
Devin S. Johnson, Paul B. Conn, Mevin Hooten, Justina C. Ray, Bruce A. Pond
2013, Ecology (94) 801-808
Since its development, occupancy modeling has become a popular and useful tool for ecologists wishing to learn about the dynamics of species occurrence over time and space. Such models require presence–absence data to be collected at spatially indexed survey units. However, only recently have researchers recognized the need to correct...
Age-specific survival of tundra swans on the lower Alaska Peninsula
Brandt W. Meixell, Mark S. Lindberg, Paul B. Conn, Christian P. Dau, John E. Sarvis, Kristine M. Sowl
2013, The Condor (115) 280-289
The population of Tundra Swans (Cygnus columbianus columbianus) breeding on the lower Alaska Peninsula represents the southern extremity of the species' range and is uniquely nonmigratory. We used data on recaptures, resightings, and recoveries of neck-collared Tundra Swans on the lower Alaska Peninsula to estimate collar loss, annual apparent survival,...
Temporal variation and scale in movement-based resource selection functions
M.B. Hooten, E.M. Hanks, D.S. Johnson, M.W. Alldredge
2013, Statistical Methodology (17) 82-98
A common population characteristic of interest in animal ecology studies pertains to the selection of resources. That is, given the resources available to animals, what do they ultimately choose to use? A variety of statistical approaches have been employed to examine this question and each has advantages and disadvantages with...
One hundred and six years of population and community dynamics of Sonoran Desert Laboratory perennials
Susana Rodriguez-Buritica, Helen Raichle, Robert H. Webb, Raymond M. Turner, Larry Venable
2013, Ecological Archives (94) 976-976
This data set constitutes all information associated with the Spalding-Shreve permanent vegetation plots from 1906 through 2012, which is the longest-running plant monitoring program in the world. The program consists of detailed maps of all Sonoran Desert perennial plants in 30 permanent plots located on Tumamoc Hill, near Tucson, Arizona,...
In situ quantification of Br and Cl in minerals and fluid inclusions by LA-ICP-MS: a powerful tool to identify fluid sources
Johannes Hammerli, Brian Rusk, Carl Spandler, Poul Emsbo, Nicholas H.S. Oliver
2013, Chemical Geology (337-338) 75-87
Bromine and chlorine are important halogens for fluid source identification in the Earth's crust, but until recently we lacked routine analytical techniques to determine the concentration of these elements in situ on a micrometer scale in minerals and fluid inclusions. In this study, we evaluate the potential of in situ...
Hydrogeology of the West Branch Delaware River basin, Delaware County, New York
Richard J. Reynolds
2013, Scientific Investigations Report 2013-5025
In 2009, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, began a study of the hydrogeology of the West Branch Delaware River (Cannonsville Reservoir) watershed. There has been recent interest by energy companies in developing the natural gas reserves that are trapped within...
The 3D Elevation Program: summary for Wisconsin
William J. Carswell Jr.
2013, Fact Sheet 2013-3032
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 Wisconsin, elevation data are critical for agriculture and precision farming, natural resources conservation, flood risk management, infrastructure and construction management, water supply...
New perspectives on the geometry of the Albuquerque Basin, Rio Grande rift, New Mexico: Insights from geophysical models of rift-fill thickness
V. J. Grauch, Sean D. Connell
2013, Special Paper of the Geological Society of America (494) 427-462
Discrepancies among previous models of the geometry of the Albuquerque Basin motivated us to develop a new model using a comprehensive approach. Capitalizing on a natural separation between the densities of mainly Neogene basin fill (Santa Fe Group) and those of older rocks, we developed a three-dimensional (3D) geophysical model...
History and evaluation of national-scale geochemical data sets for the United States
David B. Smith, Steven M. Smith, John D. Horton
2013, Geoscience Frontiers (4) 167-183
Six national-scale, or near national-scale, geochemical data sets for soils or stream sediments exist for the United States. The earliest of these, here termed the ‘Shacklette’ data set, was generated by a U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) project conducted from 1961 to 1975. This project used soil collected from a depth...
Groundwater well inventory and assessment in the area of the proposed Normally Pressured Lance natural gas development project, Green River Basin, Wyoming, 2012
Michael J. Sweat
2013, Data Series 770
During May through September 2012, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Bureau of Land Management, inventoried and assessed existing water wells in southwestern Wyoming for inclusion in a possible groundwater-monitor network. Records were located for 3,282 wells in the upper Green River Basin, which includes the U.S. Geological...
UNLV’s environmentally friendly Science and Engineering Building is monitored for earthquake shaking
Erol Kalkan, Woody Savage, Shahneam Reza, Eric Knight, Ying Tian
2013, Fact Sheet 2013-3022
The University of Nevada Las Vegas’ (UNLV) Science and Engineering Building is at the cutting edge of environmentally friendly design. As the result of a recent effort by the U.S. Geological Survey’s National Strong Motion Project in cooperation with UNLV, the building is now also in the forefront of buildings...
Documenting the stages and streamflows associated with the 2011 activation of the New Madrid Floodway, Missouri
Todd A. Koenig, Robert R. Holmes Jr.
2013, Professional Paper 1798-E
The U.S. Geological Survey initiated a substantial effort in the summer of 2011 to measure and document the record-setting floods of the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers, including the reach in and near the New Madrid Floodway. The activation of the floodway, which had not occurred since 1937, provided a rare...
The timing of scour and fill in a gravel-bedded river measured with buried accelerometers
Andrew S. Gendaszek, Christopher S. Magirl, Christiana R. Czuba, Christopher P. Konrad
2013, Journal of Hydrology (495) 186-196
A device that measures the timing of streambed scour and the duration of sediment mobilization at specific depths of a streambed was developed using data-logging accelerometers placed within the gravel substrate of the Cedar River, Washington, USA. Each accelerometer recorded its orientation every 20 min and remained stable until the...
