Phytoforensics: Trees as bioindicators of potential indoor exposure via vapor intrusion
Jordan L. Wilson, V.A. Samaranayake, Matthew A. Limmer, Joel G. Burken
2018, PLoS ONE (13) 1-17
Human exposure to volatile organic compounds (VOCs) via vapor intrusion (VI) is an emerging public health concern with notable detrimental impacts on public health. Phytoforensics, plant sampling to semi-quantitatively delineate subsurface contamination, provides a potential non-invasive screening approach to detect VI potential, and plant sampling is effective and also time-...
Combining InSAR and GPS to determine transient movement and thickness of a seasonally active low-gradient translational landslide
Xie Hu, Zhong Lu, Thomas C. Pierson, Rebecca Kramer, David L. George
2018, Geophysical Research Letters (45) 1453-1462
The combined application of continuous Global Positioning System data (high temporal resolution) with spaceborne interferometric synthetic aperture radar data (high spatial resolution) can reveal much more about the complexity of large landslide movement than is possible with geodetic measurements tied to only a few specific measurement sites. This approach is...
Characterizing the subsurface geology in and around the U.S. Army Camp Stanley Storage Activity, south-central Texas
Charles D. Blome, Allan K. Clark
2018, Fact Sheet 2017-3090
Several U.S. Geological Survey projects, supported by the National Cooperative Geologic Mapping Program, have used multi-disciplinary approaches over a 14-year period to reveal the surface and subsurface geologic frameworks of the Edwards and Trinity aquifers of central Texas and the Arbuckle-Simpson aquifer of south-central Oklahoma. Some of the project achievements...
Landsat classification of surface-water presence during multiple years to assess response of playa wetlands to climatic variability across the Great Plains Landscape Conservation Cooperative region
Daniel J. Manier, Jennifer R. Rover
2018, Open-File Report 2017-1166
To improve understanding of the distribution of ecologically important, ephemeral wetland habitats across the Great Plains, the occurrence and distribution of surface water in playa wetland complexes were documented for four different years across the Great Plains Landscape Conservation Cooperative (GPLCC) region. This information is important because it informs land...
Annotated bibliography of scientific research on greater sage-grouse published since January 2015
Sarah K. Carter, Daniel J. Manier, Robert S. Arkle, Aaron N. Johnston, Susan L. Phillips, Steven E. Hanser, Zachary H. Bowen
2018, Open-File Report 2018-1008
The greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus; hereafter GRSG) has been a focus of scientific investigation and management action for the past two decades. The 2015 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service listing determination of “not warranted” was in part due to a large-scale collaborative effort to develop strategies to conserve GRSG populations...
International Limnogeology Congress (ILIC6), Reno USA, special issue on new limnogeological research focused on Holocene lake systems
Scott W. Starratt, Michael R. Rosen
2018, Conference Paper, Journal of Paleolimnology
The 6th International Limnogeology Congress (ILIC6) of the International Association of Limnogeology (IAL) was held in Reno, Nevada, USA 15–19 June, 2015. The successful congress brought together a wide variety of academic, government, and industry participants from 20 countries and six continents. The highpoint of the four-day meeting were eight...
Factors affecting mercury stable isotopic distribution in piscivorous fish of the Laurentian Great Lakes
Ryan F. Lepak, Sarah E. Janssen, Runsheng Yin, Jacob M. Ogorek, David P. Krabbenhoft, John F. DeWild, Michael T. Tate, Thomas M. Holsen, James P. Hurley
Sarah E. Janssen, Runsheng Yin, Jacob M. Ogorek, John F. DeWild, Michael T. Tate, Thomas M. Holsen, James P. Hurley, editor(s)
2018, Environmental Science & Technology (52) 2768-2776
Identifying the sources of methylmercury (MeHg) and tracing the transformations of mercury (Hg) in the aquatic food web are important components of effective strategies for managing current and legacy Hg sources. In our previous work, we measured stable isotopes of Hg (δ202Hg, Δ199Hg, and Δ200Hg) in the Laurentian Great Lakes...
Egg turning behavior and incubation temperature in Forster’s terns in relation to mercury contamination
Gregory T. Taylor, Joshua T. Ackerman, Scott A. Shaffer
2018, PLoS ONE (13) 1-16
Egg turning behavior is an important determinant of egg hatchability, but it remains relatively understudied. Here, we examined egg turning rates and egg temperatures in Forster’s terns (Sterna forsteri). We used artificial eggs containing a data logger with a 3-D accelerometer, a magnetometer, and a temperature thermistor to monitor parental...
Greater sage-grouse science (2015–17)—Synthesis and potential management implications
Steven E. Hanser, Patricia A. Deibert, John C. Tull, Natasha B. Carr, Cameron L. Aldridge, Travis D. Bargsten, Thomas J. Christiansen, Peter S. Coates, Michele R. Crist, Kevin E. Doherty, Ethan A. Ellsworth, Lee J. Foster, Vicki A. Herren, Kevin H. Miller, Ann Moser, Robin M. Naeve, Karen L. Prentice, Thomas E. Remington, Mark A. Ricca, Douglas J. Shinneman, Richard L. Truex, Lief A. Wiechman, Dereck C. Wilson, Zachary H. Bowen
2018, Open-File Report 2018-1017
Executive SummaryThe greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus; hereafter called “sage-grouse”), a species that requires sagebrush (Artemisia spp.), has experienced range-wide declines in its distribution and abundance. These declines have prompted substantial research and management investments to improve the understanding of sage-grouse and its habitats and reverse declines in distribution and population...
Temperature variations in the southern Great Lakes during the last deglaciation: Comparison between pollen and GDGT proxies
Benjamin I. Watson, John W. Williams, James M. Russell, Stephen T. Jackson, Linda Shane, Thomas V. Lowell
2018, Quaternary Science Reviews (182) 78-92
Our understanding of deglacial climate history in the southern Great Lakes region of the United States is primarily based upon fossil pollen data, with few independent and multi-proxy climate reconstructions. Here we introduce a new, well-dated fossil pollen record from Stotzel-Leis, OH, and a new deglacial temperature record based on...
Consortial brown tide − picocyanobacteria blooms in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba
Nathan S Hall, R. Wayne Litaker, W. Judson Kenworthy, Mark W. Vandersea, William G. Sunda, James P. Reid, Daniel H. Slone, Susan M. Butler
2018, Harmful Algae (73) 30-43
A brown tide bloom of Aureoumbra lagunensis developed in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba during a period of drought in 2013 that followed heavy winds and rainfall from Hurricane Sandy in late October 2012. Based on satellite images and water turbidity measurements, the bloom appeared to initiate in January 2013. The causative species (A....
Modelling surface-water depression storage in a Prairie Pothole Region
Lauren E. Hay, Parker A. Norton, Roland J. Viger, Steven L. Markstrom, R. Steve Regan, Melanie K. Vanderhoof
2018, Hydrological Processes (32) 462-479
In this study, the Precipitation-Runoff Modelling System (PRMS) was used to simulate changes in surface-water depression storage in the 1,126-km2 Upper Pipestem Creek basin located within the Prairie Pothole Region of North Dakota, USA. The Prairie Pothole Region is characterized by millions of small water bodies (or surface-water depressions) that provide...
Stream-channel and watershed delineations and basin-characteristic measurements using lidar elevation data for small drainage basins within the Des Moines Lobe landform region in Iowa
David A. Eash, Kimberlee K. Barnes, Padraic S. O’Shea, Brian K. Gelder
2018, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5108
Basin-characteristic measurements related to stream length, stream slope, stream density, and stream order have been identified as significant variables for estimation of flood, flow-duration, and low-flow discharges in Iowa. The placement of channel initiation points, however, has always been a matter of individual interpretation, leading to differences in stream definitions...
Occurrence of quiescence in free-ranging migratory songbirds
Lynn N. Schofield, Jill L. Deppe, Robert H. Diehl, Michael P. Ward, Rachel T. Bolus, Theodore J. Zenzal Jr., Jaclyn A. Smolinsky, Frank R. Moore
2018, Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology (72)
Quiescence is a period of inactivity that occurs before the onset of migratory activity in nocturnally migrating birds. This behavior has been observed in captive birds in migratory disposition, but its occurrence in free-ranging migratory birds has been documented only anecdotally, and causal factors and function(s), if any, are unknown....
Development and characterization of two cell lines from gills of Atlantic salmon
Mona C. Gjessing, Maria Aamelfot, William N. Batts, Sylvie L. Benestad, Ole B. Dale, Even Thoen, Simon C. Weli, James R. Winton
2018, PLoS ONE (13) 1-13
Gill disease in Atlantic salmon, Salmo salar L., causes big losses in the salmon farming industry. Until now, tools to cultivate microorganisms causing gill disease and models to study the gill responses have been lacking. Here we describe the establishment and characterization of two cell lines from the gills of Atlantic salmon....
Assessing the impact of stocking northern-origin hatchery brook trout on the genetics of wild populations in North Carolina
David C. Kazyak, Jacob Rash, Barbara A. Lubinski, Tim L. King
2018, Conservation Genetics (19) 207-219
The release of hatchery-origin fish into streams with endemics can degrade the genetics of wild populations if interbreeding occurs. Starting in the 1800s, brook trout descendent from wild populations in the northeastern United States were stocked from hatcheries into streams across broad areas of North America to create and enhance...
Postglacial eruptive history and geochemistry of Semisopochnoi volcano, western Aleutian Islands, Alaska
Michelle L. Coombs, Jessica F. Larsen, Christina A. Neal
2018, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5150
Semisopochnoi Island, located in the Rat Islands group of the western Aleutian Islands and Aleutian volcanic arc, is a roughly circular island composed of scattered volcanic vents, the prominent caldera of Semisopochnoi volcano, and older, ancestral volcanic rocks. The oldest rocks on the island are gently radially dipping lavas that...
Pulsed flows, tributary inputs, and food web structure in a highly regulated river
John Sabo, Melanie Caron, Richard R. Doucett, Kimberly L. Dibble, Albert Ruhi, Jane Marks, Bruce Hungate, Theodore A. Kennedy
2018, Journal of Applied Ecology (55) 1884-1895
1.Dams disrupt the river continuum, altering hydrology, biodiversity, and energy flow. Although research indicates that tributary inputs have the potential to dilute these effects, knowledge at the food web level is still scarce.2.Here we examined the riverine food web structure of the Colorado River below Glen Canyon Dam, focusing on...
Opal-A in glassy pumice, acid alteration, and the 1817 phreatomagmatic eruption at Kawah Ijen (Java), Indonesia
Jacob B. Lowenstern, Vincent van Hinsberg, Kim Berlo, Moritz Liesegang, Kayla D. Iacovino, Ilya N. Bindeman, Heather M. Wright
2018, Frontiers in Earth Science (6)
At Kawah Ijen (Indonesia), vigorous SO2 and HCl degassing sustains a hyperacid lake (pH ~0) and intensely alters the subsurface, producing widespread residual silica and advanced argillic alteration products. In 1817, a VEI 2 phreatomagmatic eruption evacuated the lake, depositing a widespread layer of muddy ash fall, and sending lahars down...
Assessment of undiscovered continuous oil and gas resources in the Hanoi Trough, Vietnam, 2017
Christopher J. Schenk, Marilyn E. Tennyson, Tracey J. Mercier, Cheryl A. Woodall, Phuong A. Le, Timothy R. Klett, Thomas M. Finn, Heidi M. Leathers-Miller, Stephanie B. Gaswirth, Kristen R. Marra
2018, Fact Sheet 2017-3086
Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated mean undiscovered, technically recoverable continuous resources of 52 million barrels of oil and 591 billion cubic feet of gas in the Hanoi Trough of Vietnam....
On the depth extent of co-seismic rupture
Nicholas M. Beeler, G. Hirth, T.E. Tullis, C. H. Webb
2018, Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America (108) 761-780
We investigate the implications of deformation experiments for the coseismic down‐dip extent of rupture in quasi‐dynamic, whole‐cycle earthquake models of a fault for which the depth of the transition between seismic and aseisimic fault slip depends on strain rate. The calculations use a dislocation fault model from <a class="link link-ref xref-bibr"...
Evidence and opportunities for integrating landscape ecology into natural resource planning across multiple-use landscapes
E. Jamie Trammel, Sarah K. Carter, Travis S. Haby, Jason J. Taylor
2018, Current Landscape Ecology Reports (3) 1-11
Enhancing natural resource management has been a focus of landscape ecology since its inception, but numerous authors argue that landscape ecology has not yet been effective in achieving the underlying goal of planning and designing sustainable landscapes. We developed nine questions reflecting the application of fundamental research topics in landscape...
Unique parasite aDNA in moa coprolites from New Zealand suggests mass parasite extinctions followed human-induced megafauna extinctions
Kevin D. Lafferty, Skylar R. Hopkins
2018, PNAS (115) 1411-1413
Having split early from Gondwana, Zealandia (now modern New Zealand) escaped discovery until the late 13th century, and therefore remains an important glimpse into a human-free world. Without humans or other land mammals, diverse and peculiar birds evolved in isolation, including several flightless moa species, the giant pouakai eagle (Harpagornis...
Estimating floodwater depths from flood inundation maps and topography
Sagy Cohen, G. Robert Brakenridge, Albert Kettner, Bradford Bates, Jonathan M. Nelson, Richard R. McDonald, Yu-Fen Huang, Dinuke Munasinghe, Jiaqi Zhang
2018, Journal of the American Water Resources Association (54) 847-858
Information on flood inundation extent is important for understanding societal exposure, water storage volumes, flood wave attenuation, future flood hazard, and other variables. A number of organizations now provide flood inundation maps based on satellite remote sensing. These data products can efficiently and accurately provide the areal extent of a...
Water pressure and ground vibrations induced by water guns near Brandon Road Lock and Dam and Lemont, Illinois
Ryan F. Adams, Carolyn M. Koebel, William S. Morrow
2018, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5153
Multiple geophysical sensors were used to characterize the underwater pressure field and ground vibrations of a seismic water gun and its suitability to deter the movement of Asian carps (particularly the silver [Hypophthalmichthys molitrix] and bighead [Hypophthalmichthys nobilis] carps) while ensuring the integrity of surrounding structures. The sensors used...
