Eighty years of cooperative water science
Mandy L. Stone
2017, General Information Product 174
The Equus Beds aquifer in south-central Kansas is a primary water source for the city of Wichita. The Equus Beds aquifer storage and recovery (ASR) project was developed to help the city of Wichita meet increasing current and future demands. The Equus Beds ASR project is a recent part of...
Impacts to ecosystem services from aquatic acidification: Using FEGS-CS to understand the impacts of air pollution
Claire O’Dea, Sarah M. Anderson, Timothy Sullivan, Dixon H. Landers, C. Frank Casey
2017, Ecosphere (8)
Increases in anthropogenic emissions of sulfur (S) and nitrogen (N) have resulted in increases in the associated atmospheric deposition of acidic compounds. In sensitive watersheds, this deposition has initiated a cascade of negative environmental effects on aquatic ecosystems, resulting in a degradation or loss of valuable ecosystem goods and services....
Geophysical data collected during the 2014 minute 319 pulse flow on the Colorado River below Morelos Dam, United States and Mexico
Jeffrey R. Kennedy, James B. Callegary, Jamie P. Macy, Jaime Reyes-Lopez, Marco Perez-Flores
2017, Open-File Report 2017-1050
Geophysical methods were used to monitor infiltration during a water release, referred to as a “pulse flow,” in the Colorado River delta in March and April 2014. The pulse flow was enabled by Minute 319 of the 1944 United States–Mexico Treaty concerning water of the Colorado River. Fieldwork was carried...
Drought, multi-seasonal climate, and wildfire in northern New Mexico
Ellis Margolis, Connie A. Woodhouse, Thomas W. Swetnam
2017, Climatic Change (142) 433-446
Wildfire is increasingly a concern in the USA, where 10 million acres burned in 2015. Climate is a primary driver of wildfire, and understanding fire-climate relationships is crucial for informing fire management and modeling the effects of climate change on fire. In the southwestern USA, fire-climate relationships have been informed...
Development of a coastal drought index using salinity data
Paul Conrads, Lisa S. Darby
2017, Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society (98) 753-766
A critical aspect of the uniqueness of coastal drought is the effects on the salinity dynamics of creeks, rivers, and estuaries. The location of the freshwater–saltwater interface along the coast is an important factor in the ecological and socioeconomic dynamics of coastal communities. Salinity is a critical response variable that...
Concentration and biochemical gradients of seston in Lake Ontario
Patrick T. Kelly, Brian Weidel, Matthew R. Paufve, Brian P. O'Malley, James M. Watkins, Lars G. Rudstam, Stuart E. Jones
2017, Journal of Great Lakes Research (43) 795-803
Spatial variability in resource quantity and quality may have important implications for the distribution and productivity of primary consumers. In Lake Ontario, ecosystem characteristics suggest the potential for significant spatial heterogeneity in seston quantity and quality, particularly due to the potential for nearshore-offshore gradients in allochthonous nutrient supply, and the...
Enhanced CO2 uptake at a shallow Arctic Ocean seep field overwhelms the positive warming potential of emitted methane
John W. Pohlman, J. Greinert, Carolyn D. Ruppel, A Silyakova, L Vielstadte, Michael Casso, J Mienert, S Bunz
2017, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (114) 5355-5360
Continued warming of the Arctic Ocean in coming decades is projected to trigger the release of teragrams (1 Tg = 106 tons) of methane from thawing subsea permafrost on shallow continental shelves and dissociation of methane hydrate on upper continental slopes. On the shallow shelves (<100 m...
Evidence for distributed clockwise rotation of the crust in the northwestern United States from fault geometries and focal mechanisms
Thomas M. Brocher, Ray E. Wells, Andrew P. Lamb, Craig S. Weaver
2017, Tectonics (36) 787-818
Paleomagnetic and GPS data indicate that Washington and Oregon have rotated clockwise for the past 16 Myr. Late Cenozoic and Quaternary fault geometries, seismicity lineaments, and focal mechanisms provide evidence that this rotation is accommodated by north directed thrusting and right-lateral strike-slip faulting in Washington, and SW to W directed normal...
Evaluation of Caspian tern (Hydroprogne caspia) and snowy plover (Charadrius alexandrinus nivosus) nesting on modified islands at the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge, California—2016 Annual Report
C. Alex Hartman, Joshua T. Ackerman, Mark P. Herzog, Cheryl Strong, David Trachtenbarg, Crystal A. Shore
2017, Open-File Report 2017-1055
Executive SummaryIn order to address the 2008/10 and Supplemental 2014 NOAA Fisheries Biological Opinion for operation of the Federal Columbia River Power System, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) developed and have begun implementation of Caspian tern (Hydroprogne caspia) management plans. This implementation...
Using publicly available data to quantify plant–pollinator interactions and evaluate conservation seeding mixes in the Northern Great Plains
Clint Otto, Samuel O’Dell, R. B. Bryant, Ned H. Jr. Euliss, Rachel Bush, Matthew Smart
2017, Environmental Entomology (46) 565-578
Concern over declining pollinators has led to multiple conservation initiatives for improving forage for bees in agroecosystems. Using data available through the Pollinator Library (npwrc.usgs.gov/pollinator/), we summarize plant–pollinator interaction data collected from 2012–2015 on lands managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and private lands enrolled in U.S. Department...
Historical analysis of riparian vegetation change in response to shifting management objectives on the Middle Rio Grande
Roy Petrakis, Willem van Leeuwen, Miguel L. Villarreal, Paul Tashjian, Regina Dello Russo, Christopher A. Scott
2017, Land (6) 1-23
Riparian ecosystems are valuable to the ecological and human communities that depend on them. Over the past century, they have been subject to shifting management practices to maximize human use and ecosystem services, creating a complex relationship between water policy, management, and the natural ecosystem. This has necessitated research on...
Quality-assurance plan for water-quality activities in the U.S. Geological Survey Washington Water Science Center
Kathleen E. Conn, Raegan L. Huffman, Cynthia Barton
2017, Open-File Report 2017-1044
In accordance with guidelines set forth by the Office of Water Quality in the Water Mission Area of the U.S. Geological Survey, a quality-assurance plan has been created for use by the Washington Water Science Center (WAWSC) in conducting water-quality activities. This qualityassurance plan documents the standards, policies, and...
Unconventional oil and gas spills: Materials, volumes, and risks to surface waters in four states of the U.S.
Kelly O. Maloney, Sharon Baruch-Mordo, Lauren A. Patterson, Jean-Philippe Nicot, Sally Entrekin, Joe E. Fargione, Joseph M. Kiesecker, Kate E. Konschnik, Joseph N. Ryan, Anne M. Trainor, James E. Saiers, Hannah J. Wiseman
2017, Science of the Total Environment (581-582) 369-377
Extraction of oil and gas from unconventional sources, such as shale, has dramatically increased over the past ten years, raising the potential for spills or releases of chemicals, waste materials, and oil and gas. We analyzed spill data associated with unconventional wells from Colorado, New Mexico, North Dakota and Pennsylvania...
Report of the workshop on evidence-based design of national wildlife health programs
Natalie T. Nguyen, J. Paul Duff, Dolores Gavier-Widen, Tiggy Grillo, Hongxuan He, Hang Lee, Parntep Ratanakorn, Jolianne M. Rijks, Marie-Pierre Ryser-Degiorgis, Jonathan M. Sleeman, Craig Stephen, Toni Tana, Marcela Uhart, Patrick Zimmer
2017, Open-File Report 2017-1038
SummaryThis report summarizes a Wildlife Disease Association sponsored workshop held in 2016. The overall objective of the workshop was to use available evidence and selected subject matter expertise to define the essential functions of a National Wildlife Health Program and the resources needed to deliver a robust and reliable program,...
Review: The size of the risk: Histories of multiple use in the Great Basin by Leisl Carr Childers
Craig A. Johnson
2017, Pacific Historical Review (86) 348-349
In The Size of the Risk, Leisl Carr Childers chronicles the changing ways in which public lands of the Great Basin have been managed from the latter half of the nineteenth century through the late 1970s. The main focus is the State of Nevada, which constitutes the core of the...
Additive impacts of experimental climate change increase risk to an ectotherm at the Arctic's edge
Jon M. Davenport, Blake R. Hossack, LeeAnn Fishback
2017, Global Change Biology (23) 2262-2271
Globally, Arctic and Subarctic regions have experienced the greatest temperature increases during the last 30 years. These extreme changes have amplified threats to the freshwater ecosystems that dominate the landscape in many areas by altering water budgets. Several studies in temperate environments have examined the adaptive capacity of organisms to enhance...
Beyond exposure, sensitivity and adaptive capacity: A response based ecological framework to assess species climate change vulnerability
Lucas B. Fortini, Olivia Schubert
2017, Climate Change Responses (4)
As the impacts of global climate change on species are increasingly evident, there is a clear need to adapt conservation efforts worldwide. Species vulnerability assessments (VAs) are increasingly used to summarize all relevant information to determine a species’ potential vulnerability to climate change and are frequently the first step in...
Unconventional oil and gas spills: Risks, mitigation priorities, and state reporting requirements
Lauren A. Patterson, Katherine E. Konschnik, Hannah Wiseman, Joseph Fargione, Kelly O. Maloney, Joseph M. Kiesecker, Jean-Philippe Nicot, Sharon Baruch-Mordo, Sally Entrekin, Anne Trainor, James Saiers
2017, Environmental Science & Technology (51) 2563-2573
Rapid growth in unconventional oil and gas (UOG) has produced jobs, revenue, and energy, but also concerns over spills and environmental risks. We assessed spill data from 2005 to 2014 at 31 481 UOG wells in Colorado, New Mexico, North Dakota, and Pennsylvania. We found 2–16% of wells reported a spill...
Large wood and in-stream habitat for juvenile coho salmon and larval lampreys in a Pacific Northwest stream
Rosalinda Gonzalez, Jason B. Dunham, Scott W. Lightcap, Jeffery R. McEnroe
2017, North American Journal of Fisheries Management (37) 683-699
The influences of large wood on Pacific salmon are well-studied, but studies of nonsalmonid species such as lampreys are uncommon. To address this need, we evaluated the potential effects of large wood on larval lampreys (Pacific Lamprey, Entosphenus tridentatus; and potentially Western Brook Lamprey Lampetra richardsoni), as well as juvenile...
Characterization of peak streamflows and flood inundation at selected areas in North Carolina following Hurricane Matthew, October 2016
Jonathan W. Musser, Kara M. Watson, Anthony J. Gotvald
2017, Open-File Report 2017-1047
The passage of Hurricane Matthew through central and eastern North Carolina during October 7–9, 2016, brought heavy rainfall, which resulted in major flooding. More than 15 inches of rain was recorded in some areas. More than 600 roads were closed, including Interstates 95 and 40, and nearly 99,000 structures were...
U.S. Geological Survey Science—Improving the value of the Chesapeake Bay watershed
Scott W. Phillips, Kenneth Hyer, Elizabeth Goldbaum
2017, Fact Sheet 2017-3031
IntroductionCongress directed the Federal Government to work with States to restore the Nation’s largest estuary.Chesapeake Bay restoration provides important economic and ecological benefits:18 million people live and work in the Bay watershed and enjoy its benefits.3,600 types of fish, wildlife, and plants underpin the economic value of the Bay...
Oil and gas development influences big-game hunting in Wyoming
Monica Dorning, Steven L. Garman, James E. Diffendorfer, Darius J. Semmens, Todd Hawbaker, Kenneth J. Bagstad
2017, Journal of Wildlife Management (81) 379-392
Development from extracting oil and gas resources can have unintended effects on multiple ecosystem functions, with cascading effects on wildlife, ecosystem services, and local economies. Big-game hunting opportunities may be closely related to these effects, but empirical analyses of impacts of energy development on hunting are limited. We examined the...
Biogeographic comparison of Lophelia-associated bacterial communities in the Western Atlantic reveals conserved core microbiome
Christina A. Kellogg, Dawn B. Goldsmith, Michael A. Gray
2017, Frontiers in Microbiology (8)
Over the last decade, publications on deep-sea corals have tripled. Most attention has been paid to Lophelia pertusa, a globally distributed scleractinian coral that creates critical three-dimensional habitat in the deep ocean. The bacterial community associated with L. pertusa has been previously described by a number of studies at sites...
Using strain rates to forecast seismic hazards
Eileen Evans
2017, Eos, Earth and Space Science News (98)
One essential component in forecasting seismic hazards is observing the gradual accumulation of tectonic strain accumulation along faults before this strain is suddenly released as earthquakes. Typically, seismic hazard models are based on geologic estimates of slip rates along faults and historical records of seismic activity, neither of which records...
Patterns in Greater Sage-grouse population dynamics correspond with public grazing records at broad scales
Adrian P. Monroe, Cameron L. Aldridge, Timothy J. Assal, Kari E. Veblen, David A. Pyke, Michael L. Casazza
2017, Ecological Applications (27) 1096-1107
Human land use, such as livestock grazing, can have profound yet varied effects on wildlife interacting within common ecosystems, yet our understanding of land-use effects is often generalized from short-term, local studies that may not correspond with trends at broader scales. Here we used public land records to characterize livestock...
