A Natural History Summary and Survey Protocol for the Southwestern Willow Flycatcher
Mark K. Sogge, Water Resources Division, U.S. Geological Survey, Darrell Ahlers, Bureau of Reclamation, Susan J. Sferra, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
2010, Techniques and Methods 2-A10
The Southwestern Willow Flycatcher (Empidonax traillii extimus) has been the subject of substantial research, monitoring, and management activity since it was listed as an endangered species in 1995. When proposed for listing in 1993, relatively little was known about the flycatcher's natural history, and there were only 30 known breeding...
Water-the Nation's Fundamental Climate Issue A White Paper on the U.S. Geological Survey Role and Capabilities
Harry F. Lins, Robert M. Hirsch, Julie Kiang
2010, Circular 1347
Of all the potential threats posed by climatic variability and change, those associated with water resources are arguably the most consequential for both society and the environment (Waggoner, 1990). Climatic effects on agriculture, aquatic ecosystems, energy, and industry are strongly influenced by climatic effects on water. Thus, understanding changes in...
100-Year flood–it's all about chance
Robert R. Holmes Jr., Karen Dinicola
2010, General Information Product 106
In the 1960's, the United States government decided to use the 1-percent annual exceedance probability (AEP) flood as the basis for the National Flood Insurance Program. The 1-percent AEP flood was thought to be a fair balance between protecting the public and overly stringent regulation. Because the 1-percent AEP flood...
Tools for assessing contaminated sediments in freshwater, estuarine, and marine ecosystems
Donald D. MacDonald, Christopher G. Ingersoll
Cristiano Poleto, Susanne Charlesworth, editor(s)
2010, Book chapter, Sedimentology of aqueous systems
Traditionally, concerns about the management of aquatic resources in aquatic ecosystems have focused primarily on water quality. As such, early water resource management efforts were often directed at assuring the potability of surface water or groundwater sources. Subsequently, the scope of these management initiatives expanded to include protection of instream...
Advances in estimation methods of vegetation water content based on optical remote sensing techniques
Jiahua Zhang, Yun Xu, Fengmei Yao, PeiJuan Wang, WenJuan Guo, Li Li, Limin Yang
2010, Science China Technological Sciences (53) 1159-1167
Quantitative estimation of vegetation water content (VWC) using optical remote sensing techniques is helpful in forest fire assessment, agricultural drought monitoring and crop yield estimation. This paper reviews the research advances of VWC retrieval using spectral reflectance, spectral water index and radiative transfer model (RTM) methods. It also evaluates the...
Groundwater Quality in the Central Eastside San Joaquin Valley, California
Kenneth Belitz, Matthew K. Landon
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3001
The Central Eastside study unit is located in California's San Joaquin Valley. The 1,695 square mile study unit includes three groundwater subbasins: Modesto, Turlock, and Merced (California Department of Water Resources, 2003). The primary water-bearing units consist of discontinuous lenses of gravel, sand, silt, and clay, which are derived largely...
Seasonal and Spatial Distribution of Freshwater Flow and Salinity in the Ten Thousand Islands Estuary, Florida, 2007-2009
Lars E. Soderqvist, Eduardo Patino
2010, Data Series 501
The watershed of the Ten Thousand Islands (TTI) estuary has been substantially altered through the construction of canals and roads for the Southern Golden Gate Estates (SGGE), Barron River Canal, and U.S. 41 (Tamiami Trail). Two restoration projects designed to improve freshwater delivery to the estuary are the Picayune Strand...
Mercury assessment and monitoring protocol for the Bear Creek Watershed, Colusa County, California
Thomas H. Suchanek, Roger L. Hothem, James J. Rytuba, Julie L. Yee
2010, Scientific Investigations Report 2010-5018
This report summarizes the known information on the occurrence and distribution of mercury (Hg) in physical/chemical and biological matrices within the Bear Creek watershed. Based on these data, a matrix-specific monitoring protocol for the evaluation of the effectiveness of activities designed to remediate Hg contamination in the Bear Creek watershed...
Analysis of the Shallow Groundwater Flow System at Fire Island National Seashore, Suffolk County, New York
Christopher Schubert
2010, Scientific Investigations Report 2009-5259
Fire Island National Seashore (FIIS) occupies 42 kilometers of the barrier island for which it is named that lies off the southern shore of Suffolk County, N.Y. Freshwater in the highly permeable, sandy aquifer underlying Fire Island is bounded laterally by marine surface waters and at depth by saline groundwater....
Status and understanding of groundwater quality in the central-eastside San Joaquin Basin, 2006: California GAMA Priority Basin Project
Matthew K. Landon, Kenneth Belitz, Bryant C. Jurgens, Justin T. Kulongoski, Tyler D. Johnson
2010, Scientific Investigations Report 2009-5266
Groundwater quality in the approximately 1,695-square-mile Central Eastside San Joaquin Basin (Central Eastside) study unit was investigated as part of the Priority Basin Project (PBP) of the Groundwater Ambient Monitoring and Assessment (GAMA) Program. The GAMA PBP was developed in response to the California Groundwater Quality Monitoring Act of 2001,...
River-corridor habitat dynamics, Lower Missouri River
Robert B. Jacobson
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3022
Intensive management of the Missouri River for navigation, flood control, and power generation has resulted in substantial physical changes to the river corridor. Historically, the Missouri River was characterized by a shifting, multithread channel and abundant unvegetated sandbars. The shifting channel provided a wide variety of hydraulic environments and large...
Assessment of soil-gas, surface-water, and soil contamination at the Installation Railhead, Fort Gordon, Georgia, 2008-2009
James Landmeyer, Larry G. Harrelson, W. Hagan Ratliff, John B. Wellborn
2010, Open-File Report 2010-1054
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of the Army Environmental and Natural Resources Management Office of the U.S. Army Signal Center and Fort Gordon, assessed soil gas, surface water, and soil for contaminants at the Installation Railhead (IR) at Fort Gordon, Georgia, from October 2008 to...
Estimated Withdrawals and Use of Water in Colorado, 2005
Tamara Ivahnenko, Jennifer L. Flynn
2010, Scientific Investigations Report 2010-5002
The future health and economic welfare of the people and environment of Colorado depend on a continuous supply of fresh water. Detailed, comprehensive information on the use of water from Colorado's diverse surface-water and groundwater resources is important to water managers and planners by providing information they need to quantify...
The transition of benthic nutrient sources after planned levee breaches adjacent to upper Klamath and Agency Lakes, Oregon
James S. Kuwabara, Brent R. Topping, James L. Carter, Francis Parchaso, Jason M. Cameron, Jessica R. Asbill, Steven V. Fend, John H. Duff, Anita C. Engelstad
2010, Open-File Report 2010-1062
Four sampling trips were coordinated after planned levee breaches that hydrologically reconnected both Upper Klamath Lake and Agency Lake, Oregon, to adjacent wetlands. Sets of nonmetallic pore-water profilers were deployed during these trips in November 2007, June 2008, May 2009, and July 2009. Deployments temporally spanned the annual cyanophyte bloom...
Studies of Climate Change in the Yukon River Basin: Connecting Community and Science Through a Unique Partnership
Paul F. Schuster, Karonhiakta’tie Byran Maracle
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3020
An exciting new partnership between the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the Yukon River Inter-Tribal Watershed Council (YRITWC) is yielding critical data for the assessment of climate change effects in the Yukon River Basin. The foundation of this partnership is a shared interest in the current and future water quality...
Fate of estrogenic compounds during municipal sludge stabilization and dewatering
Edward T. Furlong, James L. Gray, David M. Quanrud, S.E. Teske, K.J. Esposito, Jeremy Marine, Wendell P. Ela, Patrick J. Phillips, Dana W. Kolpin, B. Stinson
2010, Report
This project brought together a team of experts in the fields of environmental engineering, analytical chemistry and hydrogeology, and biological assay analysis to evaluate the occurrence and fate of estrogenic compounds and the estrogenicity of biosolids derived from wastewater treatment. The primary objective of the study was to provide key...
Geophysical investigations at Hidden Dam, Raymond, California: Summary of fieldwork and data analysis
Burke J. Minsley, Bethany L. Burton, Scott Ikard, Michael H. Powers
2010, Open-File Report 2010-1013
Geophysical field investigations have been carried out at the Hidden Dam in Raymond, California for the purpose of better understanding the hydrogeology and seepage-related conditions at the site. Known seepage areas on the northwest right abutment area of the downstream side of the dam are documented by Cedergren. Subsequent to...
Theme section on “Mesophotic coral ecosystems: Characterization, ecology, and management”
Lara M. Hinderstein, John C.A. Marr, Felix A. Martinez, Michael J. Dowgiallo, Richard L. Puglise, R. L. Pyle, David G. Zawada, R. Appeldoorn
2010, Coral Reefs (29) 247-251
Mesophotic coral ecosystems (MCEs) are characterized by the presence of light-dependent corals and associated communities that are typically found at depths ranging from 30 to 40 m and extending to over 150 m in tropical and subtropical regions. The dominant communities providing structural habitat in the mesophotic zone can be comprised of...
Ferromanganese crusts as archives of deep water Cd isotope compositions
T. J. Horner, M. Schonbachler, M. Rehkämper, S.G. Nielsen, H. Williams, A. N. Halliday, Z. George Xue, James R. Hein
2010, Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems (11)
The geochemistry of Cd in seawater has attracted significant attention owing to the nutrient-like properties of this element. Recent culturing studies have demonstrated that Cd is a biologically important trace metal that plays a role in the sequestration of inorganic carbon. This conclusion is supported by recent isotope data for...
Distribution and trends in reference evapotranspiration in the North China plain
Z. W. Song, Hailin Zhang, Richard L. Snyder, Frank Anderson, F. Chen
2010, Journal of Irrigation and Drainage Engineering (136) 240-247
The distribution and trends in reference evapotranspiration (ET(o)) are extremely important to water resources planning for agriculture, and it is widely believed that rates of ET(o) will increase with global warming. This is a big concern in China, where water deficits are common in the North China Plain (NCP). In...
Hydrology, water quality, and causes of changes in vegetation in the vicinity of the Spring Bluff Nature Preserve, Lake County, Illinois, May 2007–August 2008
Robert T. Kay, James J. Miner, Debbie A. Maurer, Charles W. Knight
2010, Scientific Investigations Report 2009-5237
Agriculture and urbanization have altered the hydrology and water quality of the coastal wetland complex along the shore of Lake Michigan at the Spring Bluff Nature Preserve and Illinois Beach State Park in northeastern Lake County, Ill., and the adjacent Chiwaukee Prairie State Natural Area in southeastern Wisconsin. Culverts, roads,...
Stratigraphy and Mesozoic–Cenozoic tectonic history of northern Sierra Los Ajos and adjacent areas, Sonora, Mexico
William R. Page, Floyd Gray, Alexander Iriondo, Daniel P. Miggins, Robert B. Blodgett, Florian Maldonado, Robert J. Miller
2010, Journal of South American Earth Sciences (29) 557-571
Geologic mapping in the northern Sierra Los Ajos reveals new stratigraphic and structural data relevant to deciphering the Mesozoic–Cenozoic tectonic evolution of the range. The northern Sierra Los Ajos is cored by Proterozoic, Cambrian, Devonian, Mississippian, and Pennsylvanian strata, equivalent respectively to the Pinal Schist, Bolsa Quartzite and Abrigo...
Viral hemorrhagic septicemia virus (VHSV IVb) risk factors and association measures derived by expert panel
VHSV Expert Panel And Working Group
2010, Preventive Veterinary Medicine 128-139
Viral hemorrhagic septicemia virus (VHSV) is an OIE-listed pathogen of fish, recently expanding in known host and geographic range in North America. Through a group process designed for subjective probability assessment, an international panel of fish health experts identified and weighted risk factors perceived important to the emergence and spread...
Abandoned mine drainage in the Swatara Creek Basin, southern anthracite coalfield, Pennsylvania, USA: 1. stream quality trends coinciding with the return of fish
Charles A. Cravotta III, Robin A. Brightbill, Michael J. Langland
2010, Mine Water and the Environment (29) 176-199
Acidic mine drainage (AMD) from legacy anthracite mines has contaminated Swatara Creek in eastern Pennsylvania. Intermittently collected base-flow data for 1959–1986 indicate that fish were absent immediately downstream from the mined area where pH ranged from 3.5 to 7.2 and concentrations of sulfate, dissolved iron, and dissolved aluminum were as...
Stable isotopes differentiate bottlenose dolphins off west-central Florida
Nélio B. Barros, P. H. Ostrom, Craig A. Stricker, R.S. Wells
2010, Marine Mammal Science (26) 324-336
Distinguishing discrete population units among continuously distributed coastal small cetaceans is challenging and crucial to conservation. We evaluated the utility of stable isotopes in assessing group membership in bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) off west-central Florida by analyzing carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur isotope values (δ13C, δ15N, and δ34S) of tooth collagen...
