The role of mangroves in attenuating storm surges
Keqi Zhang, Huiqing Liu, Yuepeng Li, Hongzhou Xu, Jian Shen, Jamie Rhome, J. Smith III
2012, Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science (102-3) 11-23
Field observations and numerical simulations indicate that the 6-to-30-km-wide mangrove forest along the Gulf Coast of South Florida effectively attenuated stormsurges from a Category 3 hurricane, Wilma, and protected the inland wetland by reducing an inundation area of 1800 km2 and restricting surge inundation inside the mangrove zone. The surge...
Ultraviolet irradiation effects incorporation of nitrate and nitrite nitrogen into aquatic natural organic matter
Kevin A. Thorn, Larry G. Cox
2012, Journal of Environmental Quality (41) 865-881
One of the concerns regarding the safety and efficacy of ultraviolet radiation for treatment of drinking water and wastewater is the fate of nitrate, particularly its photolysis to nitrite. In this study, 15N NMR was used to establish for the first time that UV irradiation effects the incorporation of nitrate...
Hydrologic conditions controlling runoff generation immediately after wildfire
Brian A. Ebel, John A. Moody, Deborah A. Martin
2012, Water Resources Research (48)
We investigated the control of postwildfire runoff by physical and hydraulic properties of soil, hydrologic states, and an ash layer immediately following wildfire. The field site is within the area burned by the 2010 Fourmile Canyon Fire in Colorado, USA. Physical and hydraulic property characterization included ash thickness, particle size...
Erosion, storage, and transport of sediment in two subbasins of the Rio Puerco, New Mexico
A. C. Gellis, M.J. Pavich, A.L. Ellwein, S. Aby, I. Clark, M.E. Wieczorek, R. Viger
2012, GSA Bulletin (124) 817-841
Arroyos in the American Southwest proceed through cut-and-fill cycles that operate at centennial to millennial time scales. The geomorphic community has put much effort into understanding the causes of arroyo cutting in the late Quaternary and in the modern record (late 1800s), while little effort has gone into understanding how...
Population size of snowy plovers breeding in North America
Susan M. Thomas, James E. Lyons, Brad A. Andres, Elise Elliot T-Smith, Eduardo Palacios, John F. Cavitt, J. Andrew Royle, Suzanne D. Fellows, Kendra Maty, William H. Howe, Eric Mellink, Stefani Melvin, Tara Zimmerman
2012, Waterbirds (35) 1-14
Snowy Plovers (Charadrius nivosus) may be one of the rarest shorebirds in North America yet a comprehensive assessment of their abundance and distribution has not been completed. During 2007 and 2008, 557 discrete wetlands were surveyed and nine additional large wetland complexes sampled in México and the USA. From these...
High-resolution geophysical data collected within Red Brook Harbor, Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts, in 2009
Aaron M. Turecek, William W. Danforth, Wayne E. Baldwin, Walter A. Barnhardt
2012, Open-File Report 2010-1091
The U.S. Geological Survey conducted a high-resolution geophysical survey within Red Brook Harbor, Massachusetts, from September 28 through November 17, 2009. Red Brook Harbor is located on the eastern edge of Buzzards Bay, south of the Cape Cod Canal. The survey area was approximately 7 square kilometers, with depths ranging...
Factors controlling nitrate fluxes in groundwater in agricultural areas
Lixia Liao, Christopher T. Green, Barbara A. Bekins, J.K. Böhlke
2012, Water Resources Research (48)
The impact of agricultural chemicals on groundwater quality depends on the interactions of biogeochemical and hydrologic factors. To identify key processes affecting distribution of agricultural nitrate in groundwater, a parsimonious transport model was applied at 14 sites across the U.S. Simulated vertical profiles of NO3-, N2 from denitrification, O2, Cl-,...
Spatiotemporal associations between Pacific herring spawn and surf scoter spring migration: evaluating a "silver wave" hypothesis
Erica K. Lok, Daniel Esler, John Y. Takekawa, Susan E.W. De La Cruz, W. Sean Boyd, David R. Nysewander, Joseph R. Evenson, David H. Ward
2012, Marine Ecology Progress Series (457) 139-150
Surf scoters Melanitta perspicillata are sea ducks that aggregate at spawning events of Pacific herring Clupea pallasi and forage on the eggs, which are deposited in abundance during spring at discrete sites. We evaluated whether migrating scoters followed a ‘silver wave’ of resource availability, analogous to the ‘green wave’ of high-quality foraging conditions that...
Hydrocyclonic separation of invasive New Zealand mudsnails from an aquaculture water source
R. Jordan Nielson, Christine M. Moffitt, Barnaby J. Watten
2012, Aquaculture (326-9) 156-162
Invasive New Zealand mudsnails (Potamopyrgus antipodarum, NZMS) have infested freshwater aquaculture facilities in the western United States and disrupted stocking or fish transportation activities because of the risk of transporting NZMS to naive locations. We tested the efficacy of a gravity-fed, hydrocyclonicseparation system to remove NZMS from an aquaculture water...
Simulated effects of host fish distribution on juvenile unionid mussel dispersal in a large river
J.A. Daraio, L.J. Weber, S. J. Zigler, T.J. Newton, J.M. Nestler
2012, River Research and Applications (28) 594-608
Larval mussels (Family Unionidae) are obligate parasites on fish, and after excystment from their host, as juveniles, they are transported with flow. We know relatively little about the mechanisms that affect dispersal and subsequent settlement of juvenile mussels in large rivers. We used a three-dimensional hydrodynamic model of a reach...
Pre-spawning migration of adult Pacific lamprey, Entosphenus tridentatus, in the Willamette River, Oregon, U.S.A.
Benjamin J. Clemens, Matthew G. Mesa, Robert J. Magie, Douglas A. Young, Carl B. Schreck
2012, Environmental Biology of Fishes (93) 245-254
We describe the migration distances and timing of the adult Pacific lamprey, Entosphenus tridentatus, in the Willamette River Basin (Oregon, U.S.A.). We conducted aerial surveys to track radio-tagged fish upstream of a major waterfall and hydropower complex en route to spawning areas. We detected 24 out of the...
Conservation implications when the nest predators are known
Christine Ribic, Frank Thompson
2012, Studies in Avian Biology (43) 23-34
Conservation and management of passerines has largely focused on habitat manipulation or restoration because the natural communities on which these birds depend have been destroyed and fragmented. However, productivity is another important aspect of avian conservation, and nest predation can be a large source of nesting mortality for passerines. Recent...
Modelling rating curves using remotely sensed LiDAR data
Marcus Nathanson, Jason W. Kean, Thomas J. Grabs, Jan Seibert, Hjalmar Laudon, Steve W. Lyon
2012, Hydrological Processes (26) 1427-1434
Accurate stream discharge measurements are important for many hydrological studies. In remote locations, however, it is often difficult to obtain stream flow information because of the difficulty in making the discharge measurements necessary to define stage-discharge relationships (rating curves). This study investigates the feasibility of defining rating curves by using...
USGS Environmental health science strategy: providing environmental health science for a changing world: Public review release
Patricia R. Bright, Herbert T. Buxton, Laurie S. Balistrieri, Larry B. Barber, Francis H. Chapelle, Paul C. Cross, David P. Krabbenhoft, Geoffrey S. Plumlee, Jonathan M. Sleeman, Donald E. Tillitt, Patricia L. Toccalino, James R. Winton
2012, Open-File Report 2012-1069
America has an abundance of natural resources. We have bountiful clean water, fertile soil, and unrivaled national parks, wildlife refuges, and public lands. These resources enrich our lives and preserve our health and wellbeing. These resources have been maintained because of our history of respect for their value and an...
Science strategy for Core Science Systems in the U.S. Geological Survey, 2013-2023
R. Sky Bristol, Ned H. Euliss Jr., Nathaniel L. Booth, Nina Burkardt, Jay E. Diffendorfer, Dean B. Gesch, Brian E. McCallum, David M. Miller, Suzette A. Morman, Barbara S. Poore, Richard P. Signell, Roland J. Viger
2012, Open-File Report 2012-1093
Core Science Systems is a new mission of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) that grew out of the 2007 Science Strategy, “Facing Tomorrow’s Challenges: U.S. Geological Survey Science in the Decade 2007–2017.” This report describes the vision for this USGS mission and outlines a strategy for Core Science Systems to...
The U.S. Geological Survey Ecosystem Science Strategy, 2012-2022 - Advancing discovery and application through collaboration
Byron K. Williams, G. Lynn Wingard, Gary Brewer, James E. Cloern, Guy R. Gelfenbaum, Robert B. Jacobson, Jeffrey L. Kershner, Anthony D. McGuire, James D. Nichols, Carl D. Shapiro, Charles van Riper III, Robin P. White
2012, Open-File Report 2012-1092
Ecosystem science is critical to making informed decisions about natural resources that can sustain our Nation’s economic and environmental well-being. Resource managers and policy-makers are faced with countless decisions each year at local, state, tribal, territorial, and national levels on issues as diverse as renewable and non-renewable energy development, agriculture,...
Strategic directions for U.S. Geological Survey water science, 2012-2022 - Observing, understanding, predicting, and delivering water science to the Nation
Eric J. Evenson, Randall C. Orndorff, Charles D. Blome, John Karl Böhlke, Paul K. Hershberger, Victoria E. Langenheim, Gregory J. McCabe, Scott E. Morlock, Howard W. Reeves, James P. Verdin, Holly S. Weyers, Tamara M. Wood
2012, Open-File Report 2012-1066
Executive Summary This report expands the Water Science Strategy that was begun in the USGS Science Strategy, “Facing Tomorrow’s Challenges—U.S. Geological Survey Science in the Decade 2007–2017” (U.S. Geological Survey, 2007). The report looks at the relevant issues facing society and develops a strategy built around observing, understanding, predicting, and delivering...
Optimizing bankfull discharge and hydraulic geometry relations for streams in New York state
Christiane I. Mulvihill, Barry P. Baldigo
2012, Journal of the American Water Resources Association (48) 449-463
This study analyzes how various data stratification schemes can be used to optimize the accuracy and utility of regional hydraulic geometry (HG) models of bankfull discharge, width, depth, and cross-sectional area for streams in New York. Topographic surveys and discharge records from 281 cross sections at 82 gaging stations with...
The Colorado Plateau V: research, environmental planning, and management for collaborative conservation
Charles van Riper III, Miguel L. Villarreal, Carena J. van Riper, Matthew J. Johnson, editor(s)
2012, Book
Roughly centered on the Four Corners region of the southwestern United States, the Colorado Plateau covers some 130,000 square miles of sparsely vegetated plateaus, mesas, canyons, arches, and cliffs in Arizona, Utah, Colorado, and New Mexico. With elevations ranging from 3,000 to 14,000 feet, the natural systems found within the...
Modelling effects of chemical exposure on birds wintering in agricultural landscapes: The western burrowing owl (Athene cunicularia hypugaea) as a case study
Catherine A. Engelman, William E. Grant, Miguel A. Mora, Marc Woodin
2012, Ecological Modelling (224) 90-102
We describe an ecotoxicological model that simulates the sublethal and lethal effects of chronic, low-level, chemical exposure on birds wintering in agricultural landscapes. Previous models estimating the impact on wildlife of chemicals used in agro-ecosystems typically have not included the variety of pathways, including both dermal and oral, by which...
Persistence of soil organic matter in eroding versus depositional landform positions
Asmeret Asefaw Berhe, Jennifer W. Harden, Margaret S. Torn, Markus Kleber, Sarah D. Burton, John Harte
2012, Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences (117)
Soil organic matter (SOM) processes in dynamic landscapes are strongly influenced by soil erosion and sedimentation. We determined the contribution of physical isolation of organic matter (OM) inside aggregates, chemical interaction of OM with soil minerals, and molecular structure of SOM in controlling storage and persistence of SOM in different...
Dam-breach analysis and flood-inundation mapping for Lakes Ellsworth and Lawtonka near Lawton, Oklahoma
Samuel H. Rendon, Chad E. Ashworth, S. Jerrod Smith
2012, Scientific Investigations Report 2012-5026
Dams provide beneficial functions such as flood control, recreation, and reliable water supplies, but they also entail risk: dam breaches and resultant floods can cause substantial property damage and loss of life. The State of Oklahoma requires each owner of a high-hazard dam, which the Federal Emergency Management Agency defines...
Movement of resident rainbow trout transplanted below a barrier to anadromy
Margaret A. Wilzbach, Mark J. Ashenfelter, Seth J. Ricker
2012, Transactions of the American Fisheries Society (141) 294-304
We tracked the movement of resident coastal rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss irideus that were experimentally transplanted below a migration barrier in a northern California stream. In 2005 and 2006, age-1 and older rainbow trout were captured above a 5-m-high waterfall in Freshwater Creek and individually marked with passive integrated transponder...
Spatially telescoping measurements for improved characterization of groundwater-surface water interactions
Colin Kikuchi, Ty P.A. Ferre, Jeffery M. Welker
2012, Journal of Hydrology (446-447) 1-12
The suite of measurement methods available to characterize fluxes between groundwater and surface water is rapidly growing. However, there are few studies that examine approaches to design of field investigations that include multiple methods. We propose that performing field measurements in a spatially telescoping sequence improves measurement flexibility and accounts...
Effects of lead on Na+, K+-ATPase and hemolymph ion concentrations in the freshwater mussel Elliptio complanata
Shad Mosher, W. Gregory Cope, Frank X. Weber, Damian Shea, Thomas J. Kwak
2012, Environmental Toxicology (27) 268-276
Freshwater mussels are an imperiled fauna exposed to a variety of environmental toxicants such as lead (Pb) and studies are urgently needed to assess their health and condition to guide conservation efforts. A 28-day laboratory toxicity test with Pb and adult Eastern elliptio mussels (Elliptio complanata) was conducted to determine...
