Linking non-culturable (qPCR) and culturable enterococci densities with hydrometeorological conditions
Muruleedhara N. Byappanahalli, Richard L. Whitman, Dawn A. Shively, Meredith B. Nevers
2010, Science of the Total Environment (408) 3096-3101
Quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) measurement of enterococci has been proposed as a rapid technique for assessment of beach water quality, but the response of qPCR results to environmental conditions has not been fully explored. Culture-based E. coli and enterococci have been used in empirical predictive models to characterize their...
Global mineral resource assessment
M. L. Zientek, J. M. Hammarstrom, K. M. Johnson, F. W. Pierce, editor(s)
2010, Scientific Investigations Report 2010-5090
Introduction In response to the growing demand for information on the global mineral-resource base, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is conducting the Quantitative Global Mineral Resource Assessment Project (GMRAP), a cooperative international project, begun in 2002, to assess the world's undiscovered nonfuel mineral resources. Primary Objectives The USGS conducts national and global assessments...
The need for simultaneous evaluation of ecosystem services and land use change
Ned H. Euliss Jr., Loren M. Smith, Shu-Guang Liu, Min Feng, David M. Mushet, Roger F. Auch, Thomas R. Loveland
2010, Environmental Science & Technology (44) 7761-7763
We are living in a period of massive global change. This rate of change may be almost without precedent in geologic history (1). Even the most remote areas of the planet are influenced by human activities. Modern landscapes have been highly modified to accommodate a growing human population that the...
Factors associated with hunter success for ducks on state-owned lands in Illinois, USA
Joshua D. Stafford, Aaron T. Pearse, Christopher S. Hine, Aaron P. Yetter, Michelle M. Horath
2010, Wildlife Biology (16) 113-122
Factors that influence hunter success for waterfowl are subject to varying levels of control by managers. The relative influence of these factors is poorly understood, but such information may be valuable to guide management actions intended to promote successful hunting and communicate management decisions to constituents. We used bag-check data...
Nitrogen-limitation and invasive sweetclover impacts vary between two Great Plains plant communities
Laura C. Van Riper, Diane L. Larson, Jennifer L. Larson
2010, Biological Invasions (12) 2735-2749
Yellow sweetclover is an exotic herbaceous legume common in the Great Plains of the US. Although woody legumes have been shown to affect ecosystem processes through nitrogen (N) fixation (i.e., they can be considered "transformers" sensu Richardson et al. (2000)), the same has not been shown for short-lived herbaceous species....
Microbial production of isotopically light iron(II) in a modern chemically precipitated sediment and implications for isotopic variations in ancient rocks
G.E. Tangalos, B.L. Beard, C.M. Johnson, Charles N. Alpers, E.S. Shelobolina, H. Xu, H. Konishi, E. E. Roden
2010, Geobiology (8) 197-208
The inventories and Fe isotope composition of aqueous Fe(II) and solid-phase Fe compounds were quantified in neutral-pH, chemically precipitated sediments downstream of the Iron Mountain acid mine drainage site in northern California, USA. The sediments contain high concentrations of amorphous Fe(III) oxyhydroxides [Fe(III)am] that allow dissimilatory iron reduction (DIR) to...
Phytoestrogens and mycotoxins in Iowa streams: An examination of underinvestigated compounds in agricultural basins
Dana W. Kolpin, Corinne C. Hoerger, Michael T. Meyer, Felix E. Wettstein, Laura E. Hubbard, Thomas D. Bucheli
2010, Journal of Environmental Quality (39) 2089-2099
This study provides the first broad-scale investigation on the spatial and temporal occurrence of phytoestrogens and mycotoxins in streams in the United States. Fifteen stream sites across Iowa were sampled five times throughout the 2008 growing season to capture a range of climatic and crop-growth conditions. Basin size upstream from...
Intraspecific variation in gill morphology of juvenile Nile perch, Lates niloticus, in Lake Nabugabo, Uganda
Jaclyn A. Paterson, Lauren J. Chapman, Pamela J. Schofield
2010, Environmental Biology of Fishes (88) 97-104
Several studies have demonstrated intraspecific variation in fish gill size that relates to variation in dissolved oxygen (DO) availability across habitats. In Lake Nabugabo, East Africa, ecological change over the past 12 years has coincided with a shift in the distribution of introduced Nile perch such that a larger proportion...
Streamflow of 2009--Water year summary
Jian Xiaodong, David M. Wolock, Harry F. Lins, Steve Brady
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3058
The maps and graph in this summary describe streamflow conditions for water-year 2009 (October 1, 2008 to September 30, 2009) in the context of the 80-year period 1930-2009, unless otherwise noted. The illustrations are based on observed data from the U.S. Geological Survey's National Streamflow Information Program. The period 1930-2009...
Influence of environmental factors on biotic responses to nutrient enrichment in agricultural streams
Terry R. Maret, Christopher P. Konrad, Andrew W. Tranmer
2010, Journal of the American Water Resources Association (46) 498-513
The influence of environmental factors on biotic responses to nutrients was examined in three diverse agricultural regions of the United States. Seventy wadeable sites were selected along an agricultural land use gradient while minimizing natural variation within each region. Nutrients, habitat, algae, macroinvertebrates, and macrophyte cover were sampled during a...
Evidence for a novel marine harmful algal bloom: Cyanotoxin (Microcystin) transfer from land to sea otters
Melissa A. Miller, Raphael M. Kudela, Abdu Mekebri, Dave Crane, Stori C. Oates, M. Tim Tinker, Michelle Staedler, Woutrina A. Miller, Sharon Toy-Choutka, Clare Dominik, Dane Hardin, Gregg Langlois, Michael Murray, Kim Ward, David A. Jessup
2010, PLoS ONE (5) 1-11
"Super-blooms" of cyanobacteria that produce potent and environmentally persistent biotoxins (microcystins) are an emerging global health issue in freshwater habitats. Monitoring of the marine environment for secondary impacts has been minimal, although microcystin-contaminated freshwater is known to be entering marine ecosystems. Here we confirm deaths of marine mammals from microcystin...
Evaluation of nontarget effects of methoprene applied to catch basins for mosquito control
Mari Butler, Howard S. Ginsberg, Roger A. LeBrun, Alan Gettman
2010, Journal of Vector Ecology (35) 372-384
The mosquito larvicide methoprene is a juvenile growth hormone mimic that is widely used to control mosquito larvae in stormwater catch basins. This study addresses two concerns pertaining to methoprene's use for mosquito control. First, measurements of methoprene concentrations were made from water in catch basins that had been treated...
Effects of hydrologic infrastructure on flow regimes of California's Central Valley rivers: Implications for fish populations
Larry R. Brown, Marissa L. Bauer
2010, River Research and Applications (26) 751-765
Alteration of natural flow regimes is generally acknowledged to have negative effects on native biota; however, methods for defining ecologically appropriate flow regimes in managed river systems are only beginning to be developed. Understanding how past and present water management has affected rivers is an important part of developing such...
Old data, new problems
Beth Middleton
2010, SWS Research Brief (2010-0002)
Old data are a gold standard in climate change research, and much more use should be made of these data sets to document changes in wetlands in recent decades. Key data sets for the study of climate or land use change effects on wetlands may include historical field studies. Old...
A comparison of litter production in young and old baldcypress (Taxodium distichum L.) stands at Caddo Lake, Texas
John W. McCoy, Rassa O. Draugelis-Dale, Bobby D. Keeland, Roy Darville
2010, Texas Journal of Science (62) 25-40
Aboveground primary productivity for cypress forests was assessed from measurements of litter production in two age groups and in two hydrological regimes (standing water and free-flowing). Caddo Lake, located in northeast Texas on the Texas-Louisiana border, offered a unique study site since it is dominated by extensive stands composed entirely...
A new methodology for the quantitative visualization of coherent flow structures in alluvial channels using multibeam echo-sounding (MBES)
Jim Best, Stephen Simmons, Daniel Parsons, Kevin Oberg, Jonathan Czuba, Chris Malzone
2010, Geophysical Research Letters (37)
In order to investigate the interactions between turbulence and suspended sediment transport in natural aqueous environments, we ideally require a technique that allows simultaneous measurement of fluid velocity and sediment concentration for the whole flow field. Here, we report on development of a methodology using the water column acoustic backscatter...
Bayesian change point analysis of abundance trends for pelagic fishes in the upper San Francisco Estuary
James R. Thompson, Wim J. Kimmerer, Larry R. Brown, Ken B. Newman, Ralph Mac Nally, William A. Bennett, Frederick Feyrer, Erica Fleishman
2010, Ecological Applications (20) 1431-1448
We examined trends in abundance of four pelagic fish species (delta smelt, longfin smelt, striped bass, and threadfin shad) in the upper San Francisco Estuary, California, USA, over 40 years using Bayesian change point models. Change point models identify times of abrupt or unusual changes in absolute abundance (step changes)...
Analysis of pelagic species decline in the upper San Francisco Estuary using multivariate autoregressive modeling (MAR)
Ralph Mac Nally, James R. Thomson, Wim J. Kimmerer, Frederick Feyrer, Ken B. Newman, Andy Sih, William A. Bennett, Larry R. Brown, Erica Fleishman, Steven D. Culberson, Gonzalo Castillo
2010, Ecological Applications (20) 1417-1430
Four species of pelagic fish of particular management concern in the upper San Francisco Estuary, California, USA, have declined precipitously since ca. 2002: delta smelt (Hypomesus transpacificus), longfin smelt (Spirinchus thaleichthys), striped bass (Morone saxatilis), and threadfin shad (Dorosoma petenense). The estuary has been monitored since the late 1960s with...
Can lowland dry forests represent a refuge from avian malaria for native Hawaiian birds?
Katherine Tucker-Mohl, Patrick Hart, Carter T. Atkinson
2010, Pacific Conservation Biology (16) 181-186
Hawaii's native birds have become increasingly threatened over the past century. Introduced mosquito borne diseases such as avian malaria may be responsible for the near absence of endemic Hawaiian forest birds in low-elevation habitats. The recent recognition that some native Hawaiian forest birds may be repopulating moist lowland habitats as...
An approach for modeling sediment budgets in supply-limited rivers
Scott Wright, David J. Topping, David M. Rubin, Theodore S. Melis
2010, Water Resources Research (46)
Reliable predictions of sediment transport and river morphology in response to variations in natural and human-induced drivers are necessary for river engineering and management. Because engineering and management applications may span a wide range of space and time scales, a broad spectrum of modeling approaches has been developed, ranging from...
Nitrate in groundwater of the United States, 1991-2003
Karen R. Burow, Bernard T. Nolan, Michael G. Rupert, Neil M. Dubrovsky
2010, Environmental Science & Technology (44) 4988-4997
An assessment of nitrate concentrations in groundwater in the United States indicates that concentrations are highest in shallow, oxic groundwater beneath areas with high N inputs. During 1991-2003, 5101 wells were sampled in 51 study areas throughout the U.S. as part of the U.S. Geological Survey National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA)...
Tapping environmental history to recreate America's colonial hydrology
Christopher L. Pastore, Mark B. Green, Daniel J. Bain, Andrea Munoz-Hernandez, Charles J. Vorosmarty, Jennifer Arrigo, Sara Brandt, Jonathan M. Duncan, Francesca Greco, Hyojin Kim, Sanjiv Kumar, Michael Lally, Anthony J. Parolari, Brian A. Pellerin, Nira Salant, Adam Schlosser, Kate Zalzal
2010, Environmental Science & Technology (44) 8798-8803
Throughout American history water resources have played integral roles in shaping patterns of human settlement and networks of biological and economic exchange. In turn, humans have altered hydrologic systems to meet their needs. A paucity of climate and water discharge data for the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, however, has left...
Vegetation index methods for estimating evapotranspiration by remote sensing
Edward P. Glenn, Pamela L. Nagler, Alfredo R. Huete
2010, Surveys in Geophysics (31) 531-555
Evapotranspiration (ET) is the largest term after precipitation in terrestrial water budgets. Accurate estimates of ET are needed for numerous agricultural and natural resource management tasks and to project changes in hydrological cycles due to potential climate change. We explore recent methods that combine vegetation indices (VI) from satellites with...
Application of the control volume mixed finite element method to a triangular discretization
R.L. Naff
2010, Conference Paper, Proceedings XVIII International Conference on Computational Methods in Water Resources
A control volume mixed finite element scheme for a triangular discretization of a 2-D domain is presented; several control-volume scenarios for use with the scheme are explored....
Using a distribution and conservation status weighted hotspot approach to identify areas in need of conservation action to benefit Idaho bird species
Aaron M. Haines, Matthias Leu, Leona K. Svancara, Gina Wilson, J. Michael Scott
2010, Northwest Science (84) 170-182
Identification of biodiversity hotspots (hereafter, hotspots) has become a common strategy to delineate important areas for wildlife conservation. However, the use of hotspots has not often incorporated important habitat types, ecosystem services, anthropogenic activity, or consistency in identifying important conservation areas. The purpose of this study was to identify hotspots...
