Controls on methane released through ebullition in peatlands affected by permafrost degradation
Sara J. Klapstein, Merritt R. Turetsky, A. David McGuire, Jennifer W. Harden, C.I. Czimczik, Xiaomei Xu, J. P. Chanton, James Michael Waddington
2014, Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences (119) 418-431
Permafrost thaw in peat plateaus leads to the flooding of surface soils and the formation of collapse scar bogs, which have the potential to be large emitters of methane (CH4) from surface peat as well as deeper, previously frozen, permafrost carbon (C). We used a network of bubble traps, permanently...
Great Lakes prey fish populations: a cross-basin overview of status and trends based on bottom trawl surveys, 1978-2013
Owen T. Gorman, Brian Weidel
2014, Report
The assessment of Great Lakes prey fish stocks have been conducted annually with bottom trawls since the 1970s by the Great Lakes Science Center, sometimes assisted by partner agencies. These stock assessments provide data on the status and trends of prey fish that are consumed by important commercial and recreational...
Hydrologic Drought Decision Support System (HyDroDSS)
Gregory E. Granato
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1003
The hydrologic drought decision support system (HyDroDSS) was developed by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in cooperation with the Rhode Island Water Resources Board (RIWRB) for use in the analysis of hydrologic variables that may indicate the risk for streamflows to be below user-defined flow targets at a designated site...
Hydrogeologic framework and salinity distribution of the Floridan aquifer system of Broward County, Florida
Ronald S. Reese, Kevin J. Cunningham
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5029
Concerns about water-level decline and seawater intrusion in the surficial Biscayne aquifer, currently the principal source of water supply to Broward County, prompted a study to refine the hydrogeologic framework of the underlying Floridan aquifer system to evaluate its potential as an alternative source of supply. This report presents cross...
The role of landscape features and density dependence in growth and fledging rates of Piping Plovers in North Dakota, USA
Michael J. Anteau, Mark T. Wiltermuth, Mark H. Sherfy, Terry L. Shaffer, Aaron T. Pearse
2014, BioOne (116) 195-204
For species with precocial young, survival from hatching to fledging is a key factor influencing recruitment. Furthermore, growth rates of precocial chicks are an indicator of forage quality and habitat suitability of brood-rearing areas. We examined how growth and fledging rates of Piping Plover (Charadrius melodus) chicks were influenced...
Monitoring fine-sediment volume in the Colorado River ecosystem, Arizona: construction and analysis of digital elevation models
Matt Kaplinski, Joseph E. Hazel Jr., Paul E. Grams, Philip A. Davis
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1052
Digital elevation models (DEMs) of eleven 2–5 kilometer reaches of the Colorado River ecosystem (CRE) in Grand Canyon were constructed from repeat bathymetric and topographic surveys collected between August 2000 and December 2004. The DEMs will be used by researchers to study the effects of Glen Canyon Dam (GCD) operations...
Acute and chronic sensitivity of white sturgeon (Acipenser transmontanus) and rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) to cadmium, copper, lead, or zinc in laboratory water-only exposures
Christopher G. Ingersoll, Ning Contributions by Wang, Robin D. Calfee, Erinn Beahan, William G. Brumbaugh, Rebecca A. Dorman, Doug K. Hardesty, James L. Kunz, Edward E. Little, Christopher A. Mebane, Holly J. Puglis
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2013-5204
White sturgeon (Acipenser transmontanus) are experiencing poor recruitment in the trans boundary reach of the upper Columbia River in eastern Washington State. Limited toxicity data indicated that early life stages of white sturgeon are sensitive to metals. In acute 4-day (d) exposures with larval white sturgeon, previous studies have reported...
The 3D Elevation Program: summary for Montana
William J. Carswell Jr.
2014, Fact Sheet 2014-3022
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 Montana, elevation data are critical for flood risk management, infrastructure and construction management, agriculture and precision farming, geologic resource assessment and hazard...
Land cover and topography affect the land transformation caused by wind facilities
Jay E. Diffendorfer, Roger W. Compton
2014, PLoS ONE (9)
Land transformation (ha of surface disturbance/MW) associated with wind facilities shows wide variation in its reported values. In addition, no studies have attempted to explain the variation across facilities. We digitized land transformation at 39 wind facilities using high resolution aerial imagery. We then modeled the effects of turbine size,...
1DTempPro: analyzing temperature profiles for groundwater/surface-water exchange
Emily B. Voytek, Anja Drenkelfuss, Frederick D. Day-Lewis, Richard Healy, John W. Lane Jr., Dale D. Werkema
2014, Ground Water (52) 298-302
A new computer program, 1DTempPro, is presented for the analysis of vertical one-dimensional (1D) temperature profiles under saturated flow conditions. 1DTempPro is a graphical user interface to the U.S. Geological Survey code Variably Saturated 2-Dimensional Heat Transport (VS2DH), which numerically solves the flow and heat-transport equations. Pre- and postprocessor features...
Quantifying restoration effectiveness using multi-scale habitat models: implications for sage-grouse in the Great Basin
Robert S. Arkle, David S. Pilliod, Steven E. Hanser, Matthew L. Brooks, Jeanne C. Chambers, James B. Grace, Kevin C. Knutson, David A. Pyke, Justin L. Welty
2014, Ecosphere (5)
A recurrent challenge in the conservation of wide-ranging, imperiled species is understanding which habitats to protect and whether we are capable of restoring degraded landscapes. For Greater Sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus), a species of conservation concern in the western United States, we approached this problem by developing multi-scale empirical models of...
Advances in a distributed approach for ocean model data interoperability
Richard P. Signell, Derrick P. Snowden
2014, Journal of Marine Science and Engineering (2) 194-208
An infrastructure for earth science data is emerging across the globe based on common data models and web services. As we evolve from custom file formats and web sites to standards-based web services and tools, data is becoming easier to distribute, find and retrieve, leaving more time for science....
Hierarchical spatial capture-recapture models: Modeling population density from stratified populations
J. Andrew Royle, Sarah J. Converse
2014, Methods in Ecology and Evolution (5) 37-43
Capture–recapture studies are often conducted on populations that are stratified by space, time or other factors. In this paper, we develop a Bayesian spatial capture–recapture (SCR) modelling framework for stratified populations – when sampling occurs within multiple distinct spatial and temporal strata.We describe a hierarchical model that integrates...
Simulation of the effects of seasonally varying pumping on intraborehole flow and the vulnerability of public-supply wells to contamination
Richard M. Yager, Charles E. Heywood
2014, Ground Water (52) 40-52
Public-supply wells with long screens in alluvial aquifers can produce waters of differing quality from different depths. Seasonal changes in quality are linked to seasonal changes in pumping rates that influence the distribution of flow into the well screens under pumping conditions and the magnitude and direction of intraborehole flow...
Mercury and methylmercury dynamics in the hyporheic zone of an Oregon stream
Stephen R. Hinkle, Kenneth E. Bencala, Dennis A. Wentz, David P. Krabbenhoft
2014, Water, Air, & Soil Pollution (225)
The role of the hyporheic zone in mercury (Hg) cycling has received limited attention despite the biogeochemically active nature of this zone and, thus, its potential to influence Hg behavior in streams. An assessment of Hg geochemistry in the hyporheic zone of a coarse-grained island in the Coast Fork Willamette...
New permafrost is forming around shrinking Arctic lakes, but will it last?
Martin A. Briggs, Michelle Ann Walvoord, Jeffrey M. McKenzie, Clifford I. Voss, Frederick D. Day-Lewis, John W. Lane Jr.
2014, Geophysical Research Letters (41) 1585-1592
Widespread lake shrinkage in cold regions has been linked to climate warming and permafrost thaw. Permafrost aggradation, however, has been observed within the margins of recently receded lakes, in seeming contradiction of climate warming. Here permafrost aggradation dynamics are examined at Twelvemile Lake, a retreating lake in interior Alaska. Observations...
Analysis of pharmaceutical and other organic wastewater compounds in filtered and unfiltered water samples by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry
Steven D. Zaugg, Patrick J. Phillips, Steven G. Smith
2014, Open-File Report 2013-1297
Research on the effects of exposure of stream biota to complex mixtures of pharmaceuticals and other organic compounds associated with wastewater requires the development of additional analytical capabilities for these compounds in water samples. Two gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) analytical methods used at the U.S. Geological Survey National Water Quality...
The 3D Elevation Program: summary for Maine
William J. Carswell Jr.
2014, Fact Sheet 2014-3013
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 Maine, elevation data are critical for natural resources conservation, flood risk management, forest resources management, agriculture and precision farming, coastal zone management,...
Large natural pH, CO2 and O2 fluctuations in a temperate tidal salt marsh on diel, seasonal, and interannual time scales
Hannes Baumann, Ryan Wallace, Tristen N. Tagliaferri, Christopher J. Gobler
2014, Estuaries and Coasts (38) 220-231
Coastal marine organisms experience dynamic pH and dissolved oxygen (DO) conditions in their natural habitats, which may impact their susceptibility to long-term anthropogenic changes. Robust characterizations of all temporal scales of natural pH and DO fluctuations in different marine habitats are needed; however, appropriate time series of pH and DO...
Transmission of chronic wasting disease in Wisconsin white-tailed deer: Implications for disease spread and management
Christopher S. Jennelle, Viviane Henaux, Gideon Wasserberg, Bala Thiagarajan, Robert E. Rolley, Michael D. Samuel
2014, PLoS ONE (9) 1-12
Few studies have evaluated the rate of infection or mode of transmission for wildlife diseases, and the implications of alternative management strategies. We used hunter harvest data from 2002 to 2013 to investigate chronic wasting disease (CWD) infection rate and transmission modes, and address how alternative management approaches affect disease...
Strength of evidence for the effects of feral cats on insular wildlife: The Club Med Syndrome Part II
Steve C. Hess
2014, Conference Paper
Various types of evidence have been promulgated as proof for the effects of feral cats on wildlife, typically including numerous studies on predation inferred from diet, mortality attributed to pathogens, and photographic or videographic documentation. The strength of these types of evidence is often short of conclusive. For example, studies...
Quantity and quality of groundwater discharge in a hypersaline lake environment
R.B. Anderson, D. L. Naftz, F. D. Day-Lewis, R.D. Henderson, D.O. Rosenberry, Bernard J. Stolp, P. Jewell
2014, Journal of Hydrology (512) 177-194
Geophysical and geochemical surveys were conducted to understand groundwater discharge to Great Salt Lake (GSL) and assess the potential significance of groundwater discharge as a source of selenium (Se). Continuous resistivity profiling (CRP) focusing below the sediment/water interface and fiber-optic distributed temperature sensing (FO-DTS) surveys were conducted along the south...
Geomorphic changes caused by the 2011 flood at selected sites along the lower Missouri River and comparison to historical floods
Kyle E. Juracek
2014, Professional Paper 1798-H
An analysis of recent and historical U.S. Geological Survey streamgage information was used to assess geomorphic changes caused by the 2011 flood, in comparison to selected historical floods, at three streamgage sites along the lower Missouri River—Sioux City, Iowa; Omaha, Nebraska; and Kansas City, Missouri. Channel-width change was not evident...
Methods for estimating the magnitude and frequency of floods for urban and small, rural streams in Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina, 2011
Toby D. Feaster, Anthony J. Gotvald, J. Curtis Weaver
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5030
Reliable estimates of the magnitude and frequency of floods are essential for the design of transportation and water-conveyance structures, flood-insurance studies, and flood-plain management. Such estimates are particularly important in densely populated urban areas. In order to increase the number of streamflow-gaging stations (streamgages) available for analysis, expand the geographical...
Topographic data of selected areas along the Alabama River near Montgomery, Alabama, collected using mobile terrestrial light detection and ranging (T-LiDAR) technology
D.R. Kimbrow
2014, Data Series 826
Topographic data at selected areas within the Alabama River flood plain near Montgomery, Alabama, were collected using a truck-mounted mobile terrestrial light detection and ranging system. These data were collected for inclusion in a flood inundation model developed by the National Weather Service in Birmingham, Alabama. Data are presented as...
