Occurrence and distribution of organic chemicals and nutrients and comparison of water-quality data from public drinking-water supplies in the Columbia aquifer in Delaware, 2000-08
Betzaida Reyes
2010, Scientific Investigations Report 2010-5206
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control and the Delaware Geological Survey, conducted a groundwater-quality investigation to (a) describe the occurrence and distribution of selected contaminants, and (b) document any changes in groundwater quality in the Columbia aquifer public water-supply wells...
Magnitude and frequency of floods for urban streams in Alabama, 2007
T.S. Hedgecock, K.G. Lee
2010, Scientific Investigations Report 2010-5012
Methods of estimating flood magnitudes for exceedance probabilities of 50, 20, 10, 4, 2, 1, 0.5, and 0.2 percent have been developed for urban streams in Alabama that are not significantly affected by dams, flood detention structures, hurricane storm surge, or substantial tidal fluctuations. Regression relations were developed using generalized...
Aquatic assessment of the Ely Copper Mine Superfund site, Vershire, Vermont
Robert R. Seal II, Richard G. Kiah, Nadine M. Piatak, John M. Besser, James F. Coles, Jane M. Hammarstrom, Denise M. Argue, Denise M. Levitan, Jeffrey R. Deacon, Christopher G. Ingersoll
2010, Scientific Investigations Report 2010-5084
The Ely Mine, which operated from 1821 to 1905, and its area of downstream impact constitute the Ely Copper Mine Superfund site. The site was placed on the National Priorities List in 2001. The mine comprises underground workings, foundations from historical structures, several waste-rock piles, roast beds associated with the...
Contamination movement around a permeable reactive barrier at Solid Waste Management Unit 12, Naval Weapons Station Charleston, North Charleston, South Carolina, 2009
Don A. Vroblesky, Matthew D. Petkewich, Kevin J. Conlon
2010, Scientific Investigations Report 2010-5086
The U.S. Geological Survey and the Naval Facilities Engineering Command Southeast investigated natural and engineered remediation of chlorinated volatile organic compound groundwater contamination at Solid Waste Management Unit 12 at the Naval Weapons Station Charleston, North Charleston, South Carolina, beginning in 2000. In early 2004, groundwater contaminants began moving around...
Report of the River Master of the Delaware River for the period December 1, 2005-November 30, 2006
Bruce E. Krejmas, Gary N. Paulachok, Stephen F. Blanchard
2010, Open-File Report 2011-1177
A Decree of the Supreme Court of the United States, entered June 7, 1954, established the position of Delaware River Master within the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). In addition, the Decree authorizes diversions of water from the Delaware River Basin and requires compensating releases from certain reservoirs, owned by New...
Epizootic ulcerative syndrome caused by Aphanomyces invadans in captive bullseye snakehead Channa marulius collected from south Florida, USA
Ryan K. Saylor, Debra L. Miller, Mark W. Vandersea, Mark S. Bevelhimer, Pamela J. Schofield, Wayne A. Bennett
2010, Diseases of Aquatic Organisms (88) 169-175
Epizootic ulcerative syndrome (EUS) caused by the oomycete Aphanomyces invadans is an invasive, opportunistic disease of both freshwater and estuarine fishes. Originally documented as the cause of mycotic granulomatosis of ornamental fishes in Japan and as the cause of EUS of fishes in southeast Asia and Australia, this pathogen is also present...
Enumeration of viruses and prokaryotes in deep-sea sediments and cold seeps of the Gulf of Mexico
Christina A. Kellogg
2010, Deep-Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography (57) 2002-2007
Little is known about the distribution and abundance of viruses in deep-sea cold-seep environments. Like hydrothermal vents, seeps support communities of macrofauna that are sustained by chemosynthetic bacteria. Sediments close to these communities are hypothesized to be more microbiologically active and therefore to host higher numbers of viruses than non-seep...
Relating the ability of mallards to ingest high levels of sediment to potential contaminant exposure in waterfowl
Gary Heinz, W. Nelson Beyer, David J. Hoffman, Daniel J. Audet
2010, Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (29) 1621-1624
When waterfowl feed from the bottom of bodies of water, they sometimes ingest sediments along with their food, and this sediment can be a major source of contaminants. Learning how much sediment waterfowl can consume in their diet and still maintain their health would be helpful in assessing potential threats...
Emergency use of groundwater as a backup supply: Quantifying hydraulic impacts and economic benefits
Eric G. Reichard, Zhen Li, Caroline Hermans
2010, Water Resources Research (46)
Groundwater can play an important role in water‐supply emergency planning. A framework is presented for assessing the hydraulic impacts and associated costs of using groundwater as a backup supply when imported‐water deliveries are disrupted, and for quantifying the emergency benefits of groundwater management strategies that enable better response to such...
Reclaiming freshwater sustainability in the Cadillac Desert
John L. Sabo, Tushar Sinha, Laura C. Bowling, Gerrit H.W. Schoups, Wesley W. Wallender, Michael E. Campana, Keith A. Cherkauer, Pam L. Fuller, William L. Graf, Jan W. Hopmans, John S. Kominoski, Carissa Taylor, Stanley W. Trimble, Robert H. Webb, Ellen E. Wohl
2010, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (107) 21263-21269
Increasing human appropriation of freshwater resources presents a tangible limit to the sustainability of cities, agriculture, and ecosystems in the western United States. Marc Reisner tackles this theme in his 1986 classic Cadillac Desert: The American West and Its Disappearing Water. Reisner's analysis paints a portrait of region-wide hydrologic dysfunction...
Outdoor water use and water conservation opportunities in Virginia Beach, Virginia
John R. Eggleston
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3007
How much water do you use to water your lawn, wash your car, or fill your swimming pool? Your answers to these questions have important implications for water supplies in the City of Virginia Beach. To help find the answers, the City cooperated with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and...
Total mercury, methylmercury, and selected elements in soils of the Fishing Brook watershed, Hamilton County, New York, and the McTier Creek watershed, Aiken County, South Carolina, 2008
Laurel G. Woodruff, William F. Cannon, Christopher D. Knightes, Francis H. Chapelle, Paul M. Bradley, Douglas A. Burns, Mark E. Brigham, Mark A. Lowery
2010, Data Series 516
Mercury is an element of on-going concern for human and aquatic health. Mercury sequestered in upland and wetland soils represents a source that may contribute to mercury contamination in sensitive ecosystems. An improved understanding of mercury cycling in stream ecosystems requires identification and quantification of mercury speciation and transport dynamics...
Extreme drought to extreme floods: summary of hydrologic conditions in Georgia, 2009
Andrew E. Knaak, Timothy K. Pojunas, Michael F. Peck
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3101
The United States Geological Survey (USGS) Georgia Water Science Center (WSC) maintains a long-term hydrologic monitoring network of more than 317 real-time streamgages, more than 180 groundwater wells of which 31 are real-time, and 10 lake-level monitoring stations. One of the many benefits of data collected from this monitoring network...
Quantifying large-scale historical formation of accommodation in the Mississippi Delta
Robert A. Morton, Julie Bernier, Kyle W. Kelso, John A. Barras
2010, Earth Surface Processes and Landforms (35) 1625-1641
Large volumes of new accommodation have formed within the Mississippi Delta plain since the mid-1950s in association with rapid conversion of coastal wetlands to open water. The three-dimensional aspects and processes responsible for accommodation formation were quantified by comparing surface elevations, water depths, and vertical displacements of stratigraphic contacts that...
Reduced channel conveyance on the Wichita River at Wichita Falls, Texas, 1900-2009
Karl Winters, Stanley Baldys, Russell Schreiber
2010, Journal of Environmental Hydrology (18) Paper 8
Recent floods on the Wichita River at Wichita Falls, Texas, have reached higher stages compared to historical floods of similar magnitude discharges. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has operated streamflow-gaging station 07312500 Wichita River at Wichita Falls, Tex., since 1938 and flood measurements near the location of the present gage...
Prairie wetland complexes as landscape functional units in a changing climate
W. Carter Johnson, Brett Werner, Glenn R. Guntenspergen, Richard A. Voldseth, Bruce Millett, David E. Naugle, Mirela Tulbure, Rosemary W.H. Carroll, John Tracy, Craig Olawsky
2010, BioScience (60) 128-140
The wetland complex is the functional ecological unit of the prairie pothole region (PPR) of central North America. Diverse complexes of wetlands contribute high spatial and temporal environmental heterogeneity, productivity, and biodiversity to these glaciated prairie landscapes. Climatewarming simulations using the new model WETLANDSCAPE (WLS) project major reductions in water...
Predictors of occurrence of the aquatic macrophyte Podostemum ceratophyllum in a southern Appalachian River
Jane E. Argentina, Mary Freeman, Byron J. Freeman
2010, Southeastern Naturalist (9) 465-476
The aquatic macrophyte Podostemum ceratophyllum (Hornleaf Riverweed) commonly provides habitat for invertebrates and fishes in flowing-water portions of Piedmont and Appalachian streams in the eastern US. We quantified variation in percent cover by P. ceratophyllum in a 39-km reach of the Conasauga River, TN and GA, to test the hypothesis...
Simultaneous modeling of habitat suitability, occupancy, and relative abundance: African elephants in Zimbabwe
Julien Martin, Simon Chamaille-Jammes, James D. Nichols, Herve Fritz, James E. Hines, Christopher J. Fonnesbeck, Darryl I. MacKenzie, Larissa L. Bailey
2010, Ecological Applications (20) 1173-1182
The recent development of statistical models such as dynamic site occupancy models provides the opportunity to address fairly complex management and conservation problems with relatively simple models. However, surprisingly few empirical studies have simultaneously modeled habitat suitability and occupancy status of organisms over large landscapes for management purposes. Joint modeling...
Potential nitrogen fixation activity of different aged biological soil crusts from rehabilitated grasslands of the hilly Loess Plateau, China
Y. Zhao, M. Xu, J. Belnap
2010, Journal of Arid Environments (74) 1186-1191
Biological soil crusts (biocrusts) cover up to 60–70% of the soil surface in grasslands rehabilitated during the "Grain for Green" project implemented in the hilly Loess Plateau region in 1999. As biocrusts fix nitrogen (N), they are an important part of restoring soil fertility. We measured nitrogenase activity (NA) in...
Satellite tracking reveals habitat use by juvenile green sea turtles Chelonia mydas in the Everglades, Florida, USA
Kristen M. Hart, Ikuko Fujisaki
2010, Endangered Species Research (11)
We tracked the movements of 6 juvenile green sea turtles captured in coastal areas of southwest Florida within Everglades National Park (ENP) using satellite transmitters for periods of 27 to 62 d in 2007 and 2008 (mean ± SD: 47.7 ± 12.9 d). Turtles ranged in size from 33.4 to...
Zn and Cu isotopes as tracers of anthropogenic contamination in a sediment core from an urban lake
Anita Thapalia, David M. Borrok, Peter C. Van Metre, MaryLynn Musgrove, Edward R. Landa
2010, Environmental Science & Technology (44) 1544-1550
In this work, we use stable Zn and Cu isotopes to identify the sources and timing of the deposition of these metals in a sediment core from Lake Ballinger near Seattle, Washington, USA. The base of the Lake Ballinger core predates settlement in the region, while the upper sections record...
Introduction - The impacts of the 2008 eruption of Kasatochi Volcano on terrestrial and marine ecosystems in the Aleutian Islands, Alaska
Anthony R. DeGange, G. Vernon Byrd, Lawrence R. Walker, C. F. Waythomas
2010, Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research (42) 245-249
The Aleutian Islands are situated on the northern edge of the so-called “Pacific Ring of Fire,” a 40,000-km-long horseshoe-shaped assemblage of continental landmasses and islands bordering the Pacific Ocean basin that contains many of the world's active and dormant volcanoes. Schaefer et al. (2009) listed 27 historically active volcanoes in...
Fine-scale population genetic structure in Alaskan Pacific halibut (Hippoglossus stenolepis)
Jennifer L. Nielsen, Sara L. Graziano, Andrew C. Seitz
2010, Conservation Genetics (11) 999-1012
Pacific halibut collected in the Aleutian Islands, Bering Sea and Gulf of Alaska were used to test the hypothesis of genetic panmixia for this species in Alaskan marine waters. Nine microsatellite loci and sequence data from the mitochondrial (mtDNA) control region were analyzed. Eighteen unique mtDNA haplotypes were found with...
Population structure and relatedness among female Northern Pintails in three California wintering regions
Joseph P. Fleskes, Ada C. Fowler, Michael L. Casazza, John M. Eadie
2010, Waterbirds (33) 1-9
Female Northern Pintails (Anas acuta) were sampled in California's three main Central Valley wintering regions (Sacramento Valley, Suisun Marsh, San Joaquin Valley) during September–October before most regional movements occur and microsatellite and mitochondrial DNA were analyzed to examine population structure and relatedness. Despite reportedly high rates of early-fall pairing and...
Physiological response of wild dugongs (Dugong dugon) to out-of-water sampling for health assessment
Janet M. Lanyon, Helen L. Sneath, Trevor Long, Robert K. Bonde
2010, Aquatic Mammals (36) 46-58
The dugong (Dugong dugon) is a vulnerable marine mammal with large populations living in urban Queensland waters. A mark-recapture program for wild dugongs has been ongoing in southern Queensland since 2001. This program has involved capture and in-water sampling of more than 700 dugongs where animals have been held at...
