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Research about Wisconsin

Source-linked reports with geographic coverage including Wisconsin.

At least 739 records · Page 41Linked to original sources
USGS1983

Geologic and aeromagnetic maps and mineral resource potential survey of the Blackjack Springs Wilderness, Vilas County, Wisconsin

The mineral resource potential of the Blackjack Springs Wilderness in the Nicolet National Forest, Vilas County, Wisc., was evaluated in 1982. No bedrock exposures are known in or near the wilderness. Geophysical data and regional geologic relations suggest that the area consists mostly of recrystallized and deformed mafic volcanic rocks and associated mafic intrusives of Early Proterozoic age. The only identified mineral resources in the Blackjack Springs Wilderness are sand and gravel, but these commodities are abundant regionally. While the occurrence of stratabound massive-sulfide (cooper-zinc-lead) and (or) magmatic sulfide (copper and (or) nickel)-type deposits are possible in the wilderness, their occurrence is not probable.

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USGS1983

Public-supply pumpage in Wisconsin

This report summarizes the amounts and distribution of the pumpage of ground water for public supplies from four aquifers in Wisconsin. The data are for 1979 and reflect the pumpage from about 1,100 wells in 485 communities. The distribution and amount of pumpage is estimated to be similar for subsequent years. Of the water pumped for public supplies, 95 percent comes from two major aquifers--the sand-and-gravel and the sandstone aquifers. Lesser amounts of water come from the Silurian dolomite, which is present onlyl in a narrow band in eastern Wisconsin, and from the generally low-yielding Precambrian basement rock that underlies the entire state.

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USGS1983

Drainage-area data for Wisconsin streams

Drainage areas were determined for more than 7,000 sites in Wisconsin's 11 major river basins, including all named streams draining 5 or more square miles, and all unnamed streams draining 10 or more square miles. Also determined are drainage areas for gaging stations, sewage-treatment plants, dams, major highway crossings, and other sites where discharge measurements or water-quality data are available. Drainage areas were delineated on U.S. Geological Survey topographic maps. Drainage areas are shown in tabular form under six headings: station number; stream name, rank, and location; township, range, and section; county; type of site; and drainage area. Eleven major-river-basin maps show the location and station number of key sites.

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USGS1983

Aspergillosis in a red-crowned crane

An unusual form of pulmonary aspergillosis in a red-crowned crane ( Grus japonensis ) is described in this report. The major lesion is unique because it closely resembles a lesion referred to as an aspergilloma. An aspergilloma is a single large granulomatous lesion that resembles a tumor and is caused by fungi of the genus Aspergillus.

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USGS1983

Ground-water resources and geology of Dodge County, Wisconsin

The ground-water resources of Dodge County were evaluated to aid planners in meeting the needs resulting from growth in population and industry. The sand-and-gravel, Silurian dolomite, Galena-Platteville, and sandstone aquifers are the principal sources of ground water. Probable well yields from the sand- and-gravel aquifer and the Galena-Platteville aquifer range from 100 to 500 gallons per minute. Probable well yields for the Silurian dolomite, which depend in part on the degree of fracturing, are about 100 gallons per minute. Probable well yields from the sandstone aquifer range from less than 100 to more than 1,000 gallons per minute. Calcium and bicarbonate are the principal ions in ground water in Dodge County. The water is very hard, and the concentration of iron commonly exceeds the recommended limit for drinking water and the desirable concentration for water used for high-pressure boiler feed, some food processing, and leather finishing industries. The ground water generally is of suitable chemical quality for domestic, agricultural, and most industrial purposes. In 1979, an average of about 13 million gallons of ground water was pumped daily for residential, industrial, commercial, irrigation, stock watering, and other purposes.

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USGS1983

Trends in ground-water levels in Wisconsin through 1981

Hydrographs of ground-water levels in Wisconsin display fluctuations in the potentiometric surface of confined and unconfined aquifers. The graphs are plotted from periodic (weekly or monthly) measurements and from continuous recording gage records. Two hundred and ten hydrographs having periods of record of at least 5 years between 1934 and 1981 are included. The water-level changes shown represent both natural fluctuations reflecting climatic control and declines or recovery brought about by pumping or cessation of pumping of ground water.

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USGS1982

Low-flow characteristics of streams in the Lake Michigan basin, Wisconsin

Low-flow characteristics of streams in the Lake Michigan basin are presented. Included are estimates of low-flow frequency at 30 gaging stations, flow duration at 13 gaging stations, and selected low-flow frequency characteristics at 22 low-flow partial-record stations and 123 miscellaneous sites. Equations are provided to estimate low-flow characteristics at sites where one base-flow discharge measurement is available. The equations were determined from multiple-regression analyses that related low-flow characteristics at gaging stations and low-flow partial-record stations to basin characteristics. Drainage area and base-flow index were the most significant characteristics in explaining the variation in low flow for sites where one low base-flow measurement (flow durations greater than 80%) has been made. The equations and corresponding standard errors of estimate are computed. Low-flow characteristics are not well defined in the Lake Michigan basin. Standard errors for low-flow characteristics at gaging stations, low-flow partial-record stations, and miscellaneous sites are much higher than State averages. The standard errors for the regression equations are also very high. This is due in part to the flow of many streams in the basin approaching 0 ft/s during low base-flow periods. The graphical regression relation lines are steep for stations on these streams and the resulting standard errors are relatively high. (USGS).

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USGS1982

Water-quality assessment of Steiner Branch basin, Lafayette County, Wisconsin

Steiner Branch basin in southwestern Wisconsin has rugged mature topography. Corn is planted in 30 percent of the basin on slopes ranging from 0 to 20 percent. Although contour stripcropping is a recommended practice for these easily eroded soil slopes, few conservation practices are followed to reduce soil losses. Because the stream drains into a manmade lake used for recreation, its water quality is of major concern. The purpose of this report is to assess the magnitude and types of nonpoint discharges that affect the water quality of Steiner Branch. Total stream discharge for the 1978 and 1979 water years was 1,500 cubic feet per second per day and 1,800 cubic feet per second per day, respectively. The 1978 water year discharge was about 90 percent of the average and the 1979 discharge was 120 percent of average. During the 1978 water year, base flow was about 60 percent of the stream discharge, and in 1979 it was about 78 percent. Streamflow during the 2-year study period ranged from 1.5 cubic feet per second, which is approximately the low flow that occurs on the average of once every 2 years, to 392 cubic feet per second, a discharge of about a 5-year flood-recurrence interval. Suspended-sediment yields were 369 tons per square mile in the 1978 water year and 84.6 tons per square mile in 1979. These yields were 1.66 times higher than those monitored in an adjoining basin where more typical conservation practices were employed. However, suspended-sediment yield per unit of stream discharge was only 1.30 times higher in the Steiner Branch basin than in the adjoining basin. The estimated long-term annual suspended-sediment yield for the Steiner Branch basin is 444 tons per square mile. Sediment concentrations in Steiner Branch ranged from 3 to 6,430 milligrams per liter. Most of the nutrient load of the stream was transported during runoff: total organic nitrogen, 80 percent; ammonia nitrogen, 80 percent; total phosphorus, 84 percent; and total orthophosphorus, 77 percent. Transport of nitrite plus nitrate nitrogen and total nitrogen occurred primarily during baseflow conditions, with 75 and 56 percent, respectively, of the total load for the study period being transported during these conditions. The time distribution of total phosphorus, total orthophosphorus, ammonia nitrogen, and total organic nitrogen transport was very similar to suspended-sediment transport in Steiner Branch.

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USGS1982

Effects of a floodwater-retarding structure on the hydrology and ecology of Trout Creek in southwestern Wisconsin

The primary effects of a floodwater-retarding structure (FRS) on the streamflow of Trout Creek, Wisconsin, are attenuation of flood peaks and extension of the time base of flood hydrographs. Reduction of flood peaks ranged from 58 to 91 percent during the study period from 1975 to 1979. There is an inverse relation between sediment concentration and outflow from the FRS during floods. As water went into storage in the flood pool in March 1976, the daily-mean total-sediment concentration in the FRS outflow dropped from 562 to 147 milligrams per liter. Sediment concentration subsequently increased to 809 milligrams per liter as the discharge from the FRS dropped; concentrations remained more than 400 milligrams per liter for several weeks thereafter. Most sediment stored in the flood pool during flood flows is released from the reservoir during subsequent reduced discharge. Sediment trapping efficiency of the FRS was about 7 percent for the 4-year period of the study. The bankfull capacity of the channel was reduced from 154 cubic feet per second upstream from the flood pool of the FRS to 65 cubic feet per second just downstream from the FRS. This latter discharge corresponds closely to the normal FRS outflow of 58 to 71 cubic feet per second during floods. Mean bankfull depth downstream from the FRS has adjusted to a value 45 percent less than upstream from the structure due to sedimentation of materials transported from the FRS during reduced flows. The hydraulic geometry and relationships between channel geometry and drainage area indicate little effect of the FRS near the mouth of Trout Creek, 2.4 miles downstream from the FRS. The arthropod fauna of Trout Creek is large and diverse. No effects of the FRS on these fauna were observed from April 1975 to October 1979. From fall 1975 to winter 1978, the most important factor contributing to increased brown trout egg survival and fry emergence in Trout Creek during a single reproductive season is higher water temperatures in the upper reaches of the stream. The FRS was not found to have any significant effect on trout reproduction during that period. From 1960 to 1979, winter floods seem to have had the greatest adverse effect on the survival of brown trout eggs and sac fry. Although construction of the FRS has eliminated some spawning gravels in the flood pool owing to sedimentation, the wild trout have adapted by using spawning grounds above the flood pool more extensively and intensively. The FRS has not blocked the upstream migration of spawning trout, but it has eliminated similar migrations of fish that compete with and prey on the trout. Controlled streamflows downstream from the FRS have had a stabilizing influence on the limited trout reproduction in this region.

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USGS1982

Water use in Wisconsin, 1979

This report summarizes the uses of water in Wisconsin for 1979, except aesthetics, navigation, and recreational use. The greatest single use of water, an instream use, was for hydroelectric power production. About 26 trillion gallons, or 93 percent, was used for this purpose. Of the other 7 percent where water is pumped to a different location, 81 percent (6 percent of all water use) was cooling water for thermoelectric powerplants. Withdrawals of surface water and ground water by public and private systems are for residential, industrial, commercial, irrigation, and stock uses.

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USGS1982

Aquatic biology in Nederlo Creek, southwestern Wisconsin

This report presents the results of biologic investigations by the U.S. Geological Survey and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources during a study of hydrology and water quality in a small drainage basin in the "Driftless Area" of southwest Wisconsin. The investigation included aquatic macrophytes, periphytic and planktonic algae, benthic invertebrates, and trout population dynamics during 1967-78. The aquatic community is diverse and reasonably stable with little indication of environmental disturbance. Aquatic macrophyte population (dominated by Ranunculus aquatilis L., Veronica catenata Penn., and Nasturtium offlcinale) varies little from spring to fall. Periphytic and planktonic algae are predominantly diatoms, with the genus Achnanthes dominating both communities. Most genera of planktonic algae originate in the periphyton, but some true planktonic algae were identified. The benthic invertebrate population is dominated by Trichoptera and is a major food source for trout and forage fish. Biotic index values calculated from benthic invertebrate data indicate that water quality is very good to excellent. The trout population is low and represents only a small part of the total fish population both in biomass and numbers. Brown trout are usually stocked annually in the spring to enhance sport fishing, but by fall most trout are wild. The major environmental factors limiting trout population seem to be insufficient cover, insufficient pool depth and volume, and small spawning areas. The wild trout population is highly dependent on spawning success the previous fall.

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USGS1982

Occlusion of the syrinx as a manifestation of aspergillosis in Canada geese

Aspergillosis has been described in many species of wild waterfowl, primarily as a disease of the respiratory tract. Typically, mycotic granulomas are found in the lungs. Air sacs may be thickened and contain discoid individual or coalescing greenish or bluish plaques resembling bread mold. Occasionally, there is systemic involvement, with granulomas in multiple organs. Carcasses often are emaciated, indicating a long-term course. In the present report, we describe a fatal acute manifestation of Aspergillus fumigatus infection that easily may be overlooked when examining wild waterfowl.

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USGS1982

Hydrology of Wisconsin wetlands

Data from 15 wetland study sites, supplemented by data from reconnaissance visits to 219 additional wetlands, were used to describe the hydrologic characteristics of Wisconsin wetlands and to suggest a simple hydrologic classification system. Wisconsin's wetlands OCCUf in depressions and on slopes. They may be in contact with ground water or totally surface-water supported. Hydrologically, wetlands may be classed as surface-water depression, surface-water slope, ground-water depression, or ground-water slope wetlands. Precipitation comprises more than half of the inflow to all but the ground-water slope wetlands, where ground water may provide as much as 90 percent of the inflow. Flood peaks may be as much as 80 percent lower in basins with much wetland area than in similar basins with little or no wetland area. Ground-water recharge appears to be less in basins with much wetland area than in basins with little or no wetland area. Wetlands retain sediment, and sediment loads in streams draining basins with much wetland area may be 90 percent lower than those in streams draining basins with little or no wetland area.

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USGS1981

Return of the gray wolf to Wisconsin

Five gray wolf ( Canis lupus ) specimens were examined from Wisconsin from 1975 through 1979; each had been killed by human beings, accidentally or intentionally. This confirms the presence of wolves in Wisconsin and supports the hypothesis that human-related mortality is the factor limiting the population.

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