A synthesis of thresholds for focal species along the U.S. Atlantic and Gulf Coasts: A review of research and applications
Emily J. Powell, Megan C. Tyrrell, Andrew Milliken, John M. Tirpak, Michelle D. Staudinger
2017, Ocean and Coastal Management (148) 75-88
The impacts from climate change are increasing the possibility of vulnerable coastal species and habitats crossing critical thresholds that could spur rapid and possibly irreversible changes. For species of high conservation concern, improved knowledge of quantitative thresholds could greatly improve management. To meet this need, we synthesized information pertaining to...
On extracting sediment transport information from measurements of luminescence in river sediment
Harrison J. Gray, Gregory E. Tucker, Shannon A. Mahan, Chris McGuire, Edward J. Rhodes
2017, Journal of Geophysical Research F: Earth Surface (122) 654-677
Accurately quantifying sediment transport rates in rivers remains an important goal for geomorphologists, hydraulic engineers, and environmental scientists. However, current techniques for measuring long-time scale (102–106 years) transport rates are laborious, and formulae to predict transport are notoriously inaccurate. Here we attempt to estimate sediment transport rates by using luminescence, a...
Devils Hole, Nevada—A photographic story of a restricted subaqueous environment
Ray J. Hoffman
2017, Open-File Report 2017-1058
This report presents selected photographic images taken by the author during U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) research into paleoclimatology and geochemistry in Devils Hole cavern during 1984 to 1993 in cooperation with the National Park Service. The unaltered suite of photographs was prepared by the USGS dive team as an aid...
New insights into the Kawah Ijen hydrothermal system from geophysical data
Corentin Caudron, G. Mauri, Glyn Williams-Jones, Thomas Lecocq, Devy Kamil Syahbana, Raphael de Plaen, Loic Peiffer, Alain Bernard, Ginette Saracco
2017, Geological Society of London Special Publications (437) 57-72
Volcanoes with crater lakes and/or extensive hydrothermal systems pose significant challenges with respect to monitoring and forecasting eruptions, but they also provide new opportunities to enhance our understanding of magmatic–hydrothermal processes. Their lakes and hydrothermal systems serve as reservoirs for magmatic heat and fluid emissions, filtering and delaying the surface...
Assessing multi-tissue lead burdens in free-flying obligate scavengers in eastern North America
Shannon Behmke, Patricia Mazik, Todd E. Katzner
2017, Environmental Monitoring and Assessment (189)
Avian scavengers are regularly exposed to anthropogenic lead. Although many studies evaluate lead concentrations of either blood or tissues of lead-poisoned birds, there is comparatively less research on lead burdens of free-flying, apparently healthy individuals and populations. Here, we address this lack of information by assessing lead levels of multiple...
A global multiproxy database for temperature reconstructions of the Common Era
Julian Emile-Geay, Nicholas P. McKay, Darrell S. Kaufman, Lucien von Gunten, Jianghao Wang, Kevin J. Anchukaitis, Nerilie J. Abram, Jason A. Addison, Mark A.J. Curran, Michael N. Evans, Benjamin J. Henley, Zhixin Hao, Belen Martrat, Helen V. McGregor, Raphael Neukom, Gregory T. Pederson, Barbara Stenni, Kaustubh Thirumalai, Johannes P. Werner, Chenxi Xu, Dmitry V. Divine, Bronwyn C. Dixon, Joelle Gergis, Ignacio A. Mundo, T. Nakatsuka, Steven J. Phipps, Cody C. Routson, Eric J. Steig, Jessica E. Tierney, Jonathan J. Tyler, Kathryn J. Allen, Nancy A. N. Bertler, Jesper Bjorklund, Brian M. Chase, Min-Te Chen, Ed Cook, Rixt de Jong, Kristine L. DeLong, Daniel A. Dixon, Alexey A. Ekaykin, Vasile Ersek, Helena L. Filipsson, Pierre Francus, Mandy B. Freund, M. Frezzotti, Narayan P. Gaire, Konrad Gajewski, Quansheng Ge, Hugues Goosse, Anastasia Gornostaeva, Martin Grosjean, Kazuho Horiuchi, Anne Hormes, Katrine Husum, Elisabeth Isaksson, Selvaraj Kandasamy, Kenji Kawamura, Nalan Koc, Guillaume Leduc, Hans W. Linderholm, Andrew M. Lorrey, Vladimir Mikhalenko, P. Graham Mortyn, Hideaki Motoyama, Andrew D. Moy, Robert Mulvaney, Philipp M. Munz, David J. Nash, Hans Oerter, Thomas Opel, Anais J. Orsi, Dmitriy V. Ovchinnikov, Trevor J. Porter, Heidi Roop, Casey Saenger, Masaki Sano, David Sauchyn, K.M. Saunders, Marit-Solveig Seidenkrantz, Mirko Severi, X. Shao, Marie-Alexandrine Sicre, Michael Sigl, Kate Sinclair, Scott St. George, Jeannine-Marie St. Jacques, Meloth Thamban, Udya Kuwar Thapa, E. Thomas, Chris Turney, Ryu Uemura, A.E. Viau, Diana O. Vladimirova, Eugene Wahl, James W. C. White, Z. Yu, Jens Zinke
2017, Scientific Data (4) 1-33
Reproducible climate reconstructions of the Common Era (1 CE to present) are key to placing industrial-era warming into the context of natural climatic variability. Here we present a community-sourced database of temperature-sensitive proxy records from the PAGES2k initiative. The database gathers 692 records from 648 locations, including all continental regions...
Knowing requires data
Ramon C. Naranjo
2017, Groundwater (55) 674-677
Groundwater-flow models are often calibrated using a limited number of observations relative to the unknown inputs required for the model. This is especially true for models that simulate groundwater surface-water interactions. In this case, subsurface temperature sensors can be an efficient means for collecting long-term data that capture the...
Enhanced precipitation promotes decomposition and soil C stabilization in semiarid ecosystems, but seasonal timing of wetting matters
Xochi Campos, Matthew J. Germino, Marie-Anne de Graaff
2017, Plant and Soil (416) 427-436
AimsChanging precipitation regimes in semiarid ecosystems will affect the balance of soil carbon (C) input and release, but the net effect on soil C storage is unclear. We asked how changes in the amount and timing of precipitation affect litter decomposition, and soil C stabilization...
Volcano geodesy in the Cascade arc, USA
Michael P. Poland, Michael Lisowski, Daniel Dzurisin, Rebecca Kramer, Megan McLay, Benjamin Pauk
2017, Bulletin of Volcanology (79) 1-33
Experience during historical time throughout the Cascade arc and the lack of deep-seated deformation prior to the two most recent eruptions of Mount St. Helens might lead one to infer that Cascade volcanoes are generally quiescent and, specifically, show no signs of geodetic change until they are about to erupt....
A method for addressing differences in concentrations of fipronil and three degradates obtained by two different laboratory methods
Charles G. Crawford, Jeffrey D. Martin
2017, Open-File Report 2017-1056
In October 2012, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) began measuring the concentration of the pesticide fipronil and three of its degradates (desulfinylfipronil, fipronil sulfide, and fipronil sulfone) by a new laboratory method using direct aqueous-injection liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (DAI LC–MS/MS). This method replaced the previous method—in use since...
Partitioning evapotranspiration into green and blue water sources in the conterminous United States
Naga Manohar Velpuri, Gabriel B. Senay
2017, Scientific Reports (7)
In this study, we combined two 1 km actual evapotranspiration datasets (ET), one obtained from a root zone water balance model and another from an energy balance model, to partition annual ET into green (rainfall-based) and blue (surface water/groundwater) sources. Time series maps of green water ET...
Status and trends of adult Lost River (Deltistes luxatus) and shortnose (Chasmistes brevirostris) sucker populations in Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon, 2015
David A. Hewitt, Eric C. Janney, Brian S. Hayes, Alta C. Harris
2017, Open-File Report 2017-1059
Executive SummaryData from a long-term capture-recapture program were used to assess the status and dynamics of populations of two long-lived, federally endangered catostomids in Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon. Lost River suckers (LRS; Deltistes luxatus) and shortnose suckers (SNS; Chasmistes brevirostris) have been captured and tagged with passive integrated transponder (PIT)...
Territory and nest site selection patterns by Grasshopper Sparrows in southeastern Arizona
Janet M. Ruth, Susan K. Skagen
2017, The Condor (119) 469-483
Grassland bird populations are showing some of the greatest rates of decline of any North American birds, prompting measures to protect and improve important habitat. We assessed how vegetation structure and composition, habitat features often targeted for management, affected territory and nest site selection by Grasshopper Sparrows (Ammodramus savannarum ammolegus)...
Value of information analysis as a decision support tool for biosecurity
Michael C. Runge, Tracy Rout, Daniel Spring, Terry Walshe
2017, Book chapter, Invasive species: Risk assessment and management
This chapter demonstrates the economic concept of ‘value of information’(VOI), and how biosecurity managers can use VOI analysis to decide whether or not to reduce uncertainty by collecting additional information through monitoring, experimentation, or some other form of research. We first explore how some uncertainties may be scientifically interesting to...
Efficient processing of two-dimensional arrays with C or C++
David I. Donato
2017, Techniques and Methods 7-E1
Because fast and efficient serial processing of raster-graphic images and other two-dimensional arrays is a requirement in land-change modeling and other applications, the effects of 10 factors on the runtimes for processing two-dimensional arrays with C and C++ are evaluated in a comparative factorial study. This study’s factors include the...
Optimization of decision rules for hydroelectric operation to reduce both eel mortality and unnecessary turbine shutdown: A search for a win-win solution
David R. Smith, Paul L. Fackler, Sheila M. Eyler, Laura Villegas, Stuart A. Welsh
2017, Rivers Research and Applications (33) 1279-1285
Worldwide populations of freshwater eels have declined with one of the contributing causes related to mortality during passage through hydropower turbines. An inherent trade‐off underlies turbine management where the competing demand for more hydropower comes at the expense of eel survival. A win–win solution exists when an option performs better...
Hydrologic impacts of changes in climate and glacier extent in the Gulf of Alaska watershed
Jordan Beamer, Dave Hill, Daniel Mcgrath, Anthony A. Arendt, Christian Kienholz
2017, Water Resources Research (53) 7502-7520
High‐resolution regional‐scale hydrologic models were used to quantify the response of late 21st century runoff from the Gulf of Alaska (GOA) watershed to changes in regional climate and glacier extent. NCEP Climate Forecast System Reanalysis data were combined with five Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 general circulation models (GCMs)...
Water-quality models to assess algal community dynamics, water quality, and fish habitat suitability for two agricultural land-use dominated lakes in Minnesota, 2014
Erik A. Smith, Richard L. Kiesling, Jeffrey R. Ziegeweid
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5056
Fish habitat can degrade in many lakes due to summer blue-green algal blooms. Predictive models are needed to better manage and mitigate loss of fish habitat due to these changes. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, developed predictive water-quality models for two...
The saltiest springs in the Sierra Nevada, California
James G. Moore, Michael F. Diggles, William C. Evans, Karin Klemic
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5053
The five saltiest springs in the Sierra Nevada in California are found between 38.5° and 38.8° N. latitude, on the South Fork American River; on Caples Creek, a tributary of the Silver Fork American River; and on the North Fork Mokelumne River. The springs issue from Cretaceous granitic rocks in...
Evolutionary dynamics of an expressed MHC class IIβ locus in the Ranidae (Anura) uncovered by genome walking and high-throughput amplicon sequencing
Kevin P. Mulder, Maria Cortazar-Chinarro, D. James Harris, Angelica Crottini, Evan H. Campbell Grant, Robert C. Fleischer, Anna E. Savage
2017, Developmental and Comparative Immunology (76) 177-188
The Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC) is a genomic region encoding immune loci that are important and frequently used markers in studies of adaptive genetic variation and disease resistance. Given the primary role of infectious diseases in contributing to global amphibian declines, we characterized the hypervariable exon 2 and flanking introns...
Higher sensitivity and lower specificity in post-fire mortality model validation of 11 western US tree species
Jeffrey M. Kane, Phillip J. van Mantgem, Laura Lalemand, MaryBeth Keifer
2017, International Journal of Wildland Fire (26) 444-454
Managers require accurate models to predict post-fire tree mortality to plan prescribed fire treatments and examine their effectiveness. Here we assess the performance of a common post-fire tree mortality model with an independent dataset of 11 tree species from 13 National Park Service units in the western USA. Overall model...
Seroprevalence of Baylisascaris procyonis infection among humans, Santa Barbara County, California, USA, 2014–2016
Sara B. Weinstein, Camille M. Lake, Holly M. Chastain, David Fisk, Sukwan Handali, Philip L. Kahn, Susan P. Montgomery, Patricia P. Wilkins, Armand M. Kuris, Kevin D. Lafferty
2017, Emerging Infectious Diseases (23) 1397-1399
Baylisascaris procyonis (raccoon roundworm) infection is common in raccoons and can cause devastating pathology in other animals, including humans. Limited information is available on the frequency of asymptomatic human infection. We tested 150 adults from California, USA, for B. procyonis antibodies; 11 were seropositive, suggesting that subclinical infection does occur....
Trends and drivers of fire activity vary across California aridland ecosystems
Alexandra D. Syphard, Jon E. Keeley, John T. Abatzoglou
2017, Journal of Arid Environments (144) 110-122
Fire activity has increased in western US aridland ecosystems due to increased human-caused ignitions and the expansion of flammable exotic grasses. Because many desert plants are not adapted to fire, increased fire activity may have long-lasting ecological impacts on native vegetation and the wildlife that depend on it. Given the...
Carrying capacity in a heterogeneous environment with habitat connectivity
Bo Zhang, Alex Kula, Keenan M.L. Mack, Lu Zhai, Arrix L. Ryce, Wei-Ming Ni, Donald L. DeAngelis, J. David Van Dyken
2017, Ecology Letters (20) 1118-1128
A large body of theory predicts that populations diffusing in heterogeneous environments reach higher total size than if non-diffusing, and, paradoxically, higher size than in a corresponding homogeneous environment. However, this theory and its assumptions have not been rigorously tested. Here, we extended previous theory to include exploitable resources, proving...
Observations of indirect filial cannibalism in response to nest failure of Black-crowned Night-Herons (Nycticorax nycticorax)
Brianne E. Brussee, Peter S. Coates, Ian Dwight, Laura G. Young
2017, Wilson Journal of Ornithology (129) 390-394
During 2011, four separate instances of indirect filial cannibalism, whereby adults consumed their young that died from unknown causes, were observed using video-monitoring techniques in a nesting colony of Black-crowned Night-Herons (Nycticorax nycticorax) on Alcatraz Island. Though they were not observed actively killing their young, in all four observations adult...
