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USGS2013

Ecosystem services: developing sustainable management paradigms based on wetland functions and processes

In the late nineteenth century and twentieth century, there was considerable interest and activity to develop the United States for agricultural, mining, and many other purposes to improve the quality of human life standards and prosperity. Most of the work to support this development was focused along disciplinary lines with little attention focused on ecosystem service trade-offs or synergisms, especially those that transcended boundaries of scientific disciplines and specific interest groups. Concurrently, human population size has increased substantially and its use of ecosystem services has increased more than five-fold over just the past century. Consequently, the contemporary landscape has been highly modified for human use, leaving behind a fragmented landscape where basic ecosystem functions and processes have been broadly altered. Over this period, climate change also interacted with other anthropogenic effects, resulting in modern environmental problems having a complexity that is without historical precedent. The challenge before the scientific community is to develop new science paradigms that integrate relevant scientific disciplines to properly frame and evaluate modern environmental problems in a systems-type approach to better inform the decision-making process. Wetland science is a relatively new discipline that grew out of the conservation movement of the early twentieth century. In the United States, most of the conservation attention in the earlier days was on wildlife, but a growing human awareness of the importance of the environment led to the passage of the National Environmental Policy Act in 1969. Concurrently, there was a broadening interest in conservation science, and the scientific study of wetlands gradually gained acceptance as a scientific discipline. Pioneering wetland scientists became formally organized when they formed The Society of Wetland Scientists in 1980 and established a publication outlet to share wetland research findings. In comparison to older and more traditional scientific disciplines, the wetland sciences may be better equipped to tackle today’s complex problems. Since its emergence as a scientific discipline, the study of wetlands has frequently required interdisciplinary and integrated approaches. This interdisciplinary/integrated approach is largely the result of the fact that wetlands cannot be studied in isolation of upland areas that contribute surface and subsurface water, solutes, sediments, and nutrients into wetland basins. However, challenges still remain in thoroughly integrating the wetland sciences with scientific disciplines involved in upland studies, especially those involved with agriculture, development, and other land-conversion activities that influence wetland hydrology, chemistry, and sedimentation. One way to facilitate this integration is to develop an understanding of how human activities affect wetland ecosystem services, especially the trade-offs and synergisms that occur when land-use changes are made. Used in this context, an understanding of the real costs of managing for a particular ecosystem service or groups of services can be determined and quantified in terms of reduced delivery of other services and in overall sustainability of the wetland and the landscapes that support them. In this chapter, we discuss some of the more salient aspects of a few common wetland types to give the reader some background on the diversity of functions that wetlands perform and the specific ecosystem services they provide to society. Wetlands are among the most complex ecosystems on the planet, and it is often difficult to communicate to a diverse public all of the positive services wetlands provide to mankind. Our goal is to help the reader develop an understanding that management options can be approached as societal choices where decisions can be made within a spatial and temporal context to identify trade-offs, synergies, and effects on long-term sustainability of wetland ecosystems. This will be especially relevant as we move into alternate climate futures where our portfolio of management options for mitigating damage to ecosystem function or detrimental cascading effects must be diverse and effective.

Book chapter↗

USGS1998

Processes of fluvial island formation, with examples from Plum Creek, Colorado and Snake River, Idaho

A fluvial island is a landform, elevated above and surrounded by stream-channel branches or waterways, that persists sufficiently long to establish permanent vegetation. Natural fluvial islands occur in any part of a drainage network but most commonly in montane, piedmont-valley, and coastal flood-plain environments. Processes, often interactive, by which islands form include avulsion (the sudden separation of land by a flood or by an abrupt change in the course of a stream), rapid and gradual channel incision, channel migration, dissection of both rapidly and slowly deposited bed sediment, and deposition of bed sediment on a vegetated surface or behind a channel obstruction. Products of high-energy conditions, fluvial islands typically lack stability over decades to millennia. Fluvial islands in Plum Creek, Colorado, USA, results of sorting processes following a recent high-magnitude flood, and in the Snake River, Idaho, USA, partly results of the Pleistocene Bonneville Flood, illustrate how islands form, develop, and disappear. The examples consider differing conditions of island shape, size, height, sediment, and vegetation.

Colorado, Idaho↗

USGS2025

Noble and base metal distribution and processes affecting ore tenors in the disrupted lower stratigraphy of the Stillwater Complex, USA

Exploration continues for contact-style Ni-Cu sulfide and chromitite-associated PGE mineralization in ultramafic rocks of the Stillwater Complex. At the Iron and Chrome Mountain areas, massive sulfides occur along the complex’s footwall contact and anomalous concentrations of PGE+Au are associated with the three lowermost chromitite seams. Southeast of Chrome Mountain, magmatic layering is highly disrupted by the presence of faults, magmatic breccias, serpentinized discordant dunites, pyroxenite pegmatoids, and disaggregated chromitite seams. The bulk rock chemistry, sulfide chemistry, and noble metal mineralogy of samples from this area were examined to determine the deportment of PGE and processes that led to enrichments in PGE, Au, Cu, Co and Ni. Results show that a sulfide liquid was the principal collector of PGE. If sulfide liquid was initially deposited with chromite, it was disaggregated or redistributed by subsequent melt or fluid infiltration, which may have resulted in the offset of peak PGE(+Cu, Ni) from peak Cr 2 O 3 concentrations, and upgraded PGE tenors. Upon cooling, PGE exsolved from sulfides to form discrete bismuth tellurides, arsenides, arsenic sulfides, antimonides, and alloys, commonly along the margins of sulfide globules. Calculated metal tenors are highest in the disseminated sulfides southwest of Chrome Mountain, whereas massive and net-textured sulfides near the Iron Mountain-Camp zone represent monosulfide solid solution cumulates. At progressively shallower levels, higher metal tenors combined with lower S/Se ratios are consistent with increasing R-factors from 100 to 100,000. Serpentinization and talc-tremolite alteration resulted in S loss through partial replacement of sulfides by secondary silicate+carbonate+magnetite+sulfide assemblages, further upgrading Ni-Cu-PGE tenors. The present work shows that processes responsible for the disruption of magmatic layering and post-magmatic fluid alteration along the intrusion’s lower contact led to noble and base metal enrichments.

Montana↗

USGS1997

Magmatic processes that generated the rhyolite of Glass Mountain, Medicine Lake volcano, N. California

Glass Mountain consists of a 1 km 3 , compositionally zoned rhyolite to dacite glass flow containing magmatic inclusions and xenoliths of underlying shallow crust. Mixing of magmas produced by fractional crystallization of andesite and crustal melting generated the rhyolite of Glass Mountain. Melting experiments were carried out on basaltic andesite and andesite magmatic inclusions at 100, 150 and 200 MPa, H 2 O-saturated with oxygen fugacity controlled at the nickel-nickel oxide buffer to provide evidence of the role of fractional crystallization in the origin of the rhyolite of Glass Mountain. Isotopic evidence indicates that the crustal component assimilated at Glass Mountain constitutes at least 55 to 60% of the mass of erupted rhyolite. A large volume of mafic andesite (2 to 2.5 km 3 ) periodically replenished the magma reservoir(s) beneath Glass Mountain, underwent extensive fractional crystallization and provided the heat necessary to melt the crust. The crystalline residues of fractionation as well as residual liquids expelled from the cumulate residues are preserved as magmatic inclusions and indicate that this fractionation process occurred at two distinct depths. The presence and composition of amphibole in magmatic inclusions preserve evidence for crystallization of the andesite at pressures of at least 200 MPa (6 km depth) under near H 2 O-saturated conditions. Mineralogical evidence preserved in olivine-plagioclase and olivine-plagioclase-high-Ca clinopyroxene-bearing magmatic inclusions indicates that crystallization under near H 2 O-saturated conditions also occurred at pressures of 100 MPa (3 km depth) or less. Petrologic, isotopic and geochemical evidence indicate that the andesite underwent fractional crystallization to form the differentiated melts but had no chemical interaction with the melted crustal component. Heat released by the fractionation process was responsible for heating and melting the crust.

California↗

USGS2020

Constraints on eruption processes and event masses for the 2016–2017 eruption of Bogoslof volcano, Alaska, through evaluation of IASI satellite SO2 masses and complementary datasets

Bogoslof volcano, Alaska, experienced at least 70 explosive eruptions between 12 December 2016 and 31 August 2017. Due to its remote location and limited local monitoring network, this eruption was monitored and characterized primarily using remote geophysical and satellite techniques. SO 2 emissions from Bogoslof were persistently detected by the Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer (IASI) satellite sensors. Of Bogoslof’s 70 explosive events, 50% produced measurable SO 2 masses ranging from 0.1 to 21.5 kt, with a median and standard deviation of 0.7 ± 4.0 kt SO 2 , respectively. Here, we compare IASI-derived SO 2 masses from Bogoslof events to complementary geophysical datasets to provide insights into eruption source processes, namely the degree of seawater scrubbing of water-soluble SO 2 and variations in magma flux. Correlations with the number of lightning strokes and infrasound energy are expected to indicate magma-flux as a controlling process, while correlations with infrasound frequency index are expected to indicate variations in vent-water content as a controlling factor. These comparisons suggest that the measured SO 2 masses are primarily a function of eruption magnitude (degassed magma mass) and that scrubbing of SO 2 emissions by vent seawater may have exerted a minor effect on the observed SO 2 masses. SO 2 masses were combined with petrologic constraints on melt inclusion and matrix glass S concentrations to calculate degassed magma masses and volumes. The cumulative SO 2 -derived degassed magma mass and estimated volume (dense-rock equivalent) for the full Bogoslof eruption were found to be 2.8 × 10 10 kg and 9.3 × 10 6 m 3 , respectively. When individual event masses are compared against event masses calculated using an empirical plume-height method, a strong correlation is found ( R 2 = 0.83), with better than order-of-magnitude agreement in most cases. These estimates of eruption masses provide useful information on the magnitude, behavior, and associated hazards of the 2016–2017 eruption, and potentially future unrest at Bogoslof volcano.

Alaska↗

USGS2021

Benthic and planktonic inorganic nutrient processing rates at the interface between a river and lake

The interface between lotic and lentic ecosystems is often a zone of intense metabolic activity, as primary production in streams and rivers can be light limited whereas nutrients often limit primary production in lake ecosystems. Our objective was to model the influence that rivermouths (the lotic-lentic interface) could have on the loads of soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP) and dissolved inorganic nitrogen (N) passing from the tributary to the nearshore zone of a lake. To achieve this objective, we modeled the combined role of water column nutrient transformation rates with sediment nutrient flux rates. For sensitivity analysis, we picked plausible parameter ranges based on values previously measured in the Fox rivermouth (a tributary to Lake Michigan). Sensitivity analysis of the model demonstrated that overall the importance of water column processing rates increases with increasing nutrient concentration and discharge. We then applied the model to the Fox rivermouth, simulating the change in nutrients on four dates where all of the necessary parameters had been estimated. This modeling suggests that the Fox rivermouth is often a net sink for SRP and source for ammonia (NH 4 ), with water column processing driving SRP removal and both water column and sediment flux driving NH 4 dynamics. Removal of SRP in the water column means conversion to particulate and/or organic P, and those P pools are generally considered to be less bioavailable than SRP, so it may be that rivermouths disconnect upstream sources of nutrients from nearshore food webs. These results demonstrate that the interface zone between lotic and lentic systems has the potential to substantially alter the load and character of nutrients as river waters pass through rivermouths to adjacent nearshore areas.

Biogeochemistry↗

USGS2015

Climate change impacts on ecosystems and ecosystem services in the United States: Process and prospects for sustained assessment

The third United States National Climate Assessment emphasized an evaluation of not just the impacts of climate change on species and ecosystems, but also the impacts of climate change on the benefits that people derive from nature, known as ecosystem services. The ecosystems, biodiversity, and ecosystem services component of the assessment largely drew upon the findings of a transdisciplinary workshop aimed at developing technical input for the assessment, involving participants from diverse sectors. A small author team distilled and synthesized this and hundreds of other technical input to develop the key findings of the assessment. The process of developing and ranking key findings hinged on identifying impacts that had particular, demonstrable effects on the U.S. public via changes in national ecosystem services. Findings showed that ecosystem services are threatened by the impacts of climate change on water supplies, species distributions and phenology, as well as multiple assaults on ecosystem integrity that, when compounded by climate change, reduce the capacity of ecosystems to buffer against extreme events. As ecosystems change, such benefits as water sustainability and protection from storms that are afforded by intact ecosystems are projected to decline across the continent due to climate change. An ongoing, sustained assessment that focuses on the co-production of actionable climate science will allow scientists from a range of disciplines to ascertain the capability of their forecasting models to project environmental and ecological change and link it to ecosystem services; additionally, an iterative process of evaluation, development of management strategies, monitoring, and reevaluation will increase the applicability and usability of the science by the U.S. public.

Climatic Change↗

USGS2011

An experimental test and models of drift and dispersal processes of pallid sturgeon (Scaphirhynchus albus) free embryos in the Missouri River

Free embryos of wild pallid sturgeon Scaphirhynchus albus were released in the Missouri River and captured at downstream sites through a 180-km reach of the river to examine ontogenetic drift and dispersal processes. Free embryos drifted primarily in the fastest portion of the river channel, and initial drift velocities for all age groups (mean = 0.66–0.70 m s −1 ) were only slightly slower than mean water column velocity (0.72 m s −1 ). During the multi-day long-distance drift period, drift velocities of all age groups declined an average of 9.7% day −1 . Younger free embryos remained in the drift upon termination of the study; whereas, older age groups transitioned from drifting to settling during the study. Models based on growth of free embryos, drift behavior, size-related variations in drift rates, and channel hydraulic characteristics were developed to estimate cumulative distance drifted during ontogenetic development through a range of simulated water temperatures and velocity conditions. Those models indicated that the average free embryo would be expected to drift several hundred km during ontogenetic development. Empirical data and model results highlight the long-duration, long-distance drift and dispersal processes for pallid sturgeon early life stages. In addition, results provide a likely mechanism for lack of pallid sturgeon recruitment in fragmented river reaches where dams and reservoirs reduce the length of free-flowing river available for pallid sturgeon free embryos during ontogenetic development.

Environmental Biology of Fishes↗

USGS2006

Regional processes in mangrove ecosystems: Spatial scaling relationships, biomass, and turnover rates following catastrophic disturbance

Physiological processes and local-scale structural dynamics of mangroves are relatively well studied. Regional-scale processes, however, are not as well understood. Here we provide long-term data on trends in structure and forest turnover at a large scale, following hurricane damage in mangrove ecosystems of South Florida, U.S.A. Twelve mangrove vegetation plots were monitored at periodic intervals, between October 1992 and March 2005. Mangrove forests of this region are defined by a -1.5 scaling relationship between mean stem diameter and stem density, mirroring self-thinning theory for mono-specific stands. This relationship is reflected in tree size frequency scaling exponents which, through time, have exhibited trends toward a community average that is indicative of full spatial resource utilization. These trends, together with an asymptotic standing biomass accumulation, indicate that coastal mangrove ecosystems do adhere to size-structured organizing principles as described for upland tree communities. Regenerative dynamics are different between areas inside and outside of the primary wind-path of Hurricane Andrew which occurred in 1992. Forest dynamic turnover rates, however, are steady through time. This suggests that ecological, more-so than structural factors, control forest productivity. In agreement, the relative mean rate of biomass growth exhibits an inverse relationship with the seasonal range of porewater salinities. The ecosystem average in forest scaling relationships may provide a useful investigative tool of mangrove community biomass relationships, as well as offer a robust indicator of general ecosystem health for use in mangrove forest ecosystem management and restoration. ?? Springer 2006.

Hydrobiologia↗

USGS2010

Nitrogen and phosphorus in the Upper Mississippi River: Transport, processing, and effects on the river ecosystem

Existing research on nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus) in the Upper Mississippi River (UMR) can be organized into the following categories: (1) Long-term changes in nutrient concentrations and export, and their causes; (2) Nutrient cycling within the river; (3) Spatial and temporal patterns of river nutrient concentrations; (4) Effects of elevated nutrient concentrations on the river; and (5) Actions to reduce river nutrient concentrations and flux. Nutrient concentration and flux in the Mississippi River have increased substantially over the last century because of changes in land use, climate, hydrology, and river management and engineering. As in other large floodplain rivers, rates of processes that cycle nitrogen and phosphorus in the UMR exhibit pronounced spatial and temporal heterogeneity because of the complex morphology of the river. This spatial variability in nutrient processing creates clear spatial patterns in nutrient concentrations. For example, nitrate concentrations generally are much lower in off-channel areas than in the main channel. The specifics of in-river nutrient cycling and the effects of high rates of nutrient input on UMR have been less studied than the factors affecting nutrient input to the river and transport to the Gulf of Mexico, and important questions concerning nutrient cycling in the UMR remain. Eutrophication and resulting changes in river productivity have only recently been investigated the UMR. These recent studies indicate that the high nutrient concentrations in the river may affect community composition of aquatic vegetation (e. g., the abundance of filamentous algae and duckweeds), dissolved oxygen concentrations in off-channel areas, and the abundance of cyanobacteria. Actions to reduce nutrient input to the river include changes in land-use practices, wetland restoration, and hydrological modifications to the river. Evidence suggests that most of the above methods can contribute to reducing nutrient concentration in, and transport by, the UMR, but the impacts of mitigation efforts will likely be only slowly realized. ?? USGS, US Government 2010.

Hydrobiologia↗

USGS2014

Effects of invasive European bird cherry (Prunus padus) on leaf litter processing by aquatic invertebrate shredder communities in urban Alaskan streams

European bird cherry (Prunus padus) (EBC) is an invasive ornamental tree that is spreading rapidly in riparian forests of urban Alaska. To determine how the spread of EBC affects leaf litter processing by aquatic invertebrate shredders, we conducted complementary leaf pack experiments in two streams located in Anchorage, Alaska. The first experiment contrasted invasive EBC with three native tree species—thin-leaf alder (Alnus tenuifolia), paper birch (Betula neoalaskana), and black cottonwood (Populus trichocarpa)—in one reach of Chester Creek; finding that EBC leaf litter broke down significantly faster than birch and cottonwood, but at a similar rate to alder. The second experiment contrasted EBC with alder in four reaches of Campbell and Chester creeks; finding that while EBC leaf litter broke down significantly faster than alder in Chester Creek, EBC broke down at a similar rate to alder in Campbell Creek. Although EBC sometimes supported fewer shredders by both count and mass, shredder communities did not differ significantly between EBC and native plants. Collectively, these data suggest that invasive EBC is not currently exhibiting strong negative impacts on leaf litter processing in these streams, but could if it continues to spread and further displaces native species over time.

Alaska↗

USGS2016

Interactions of landscape disturbances and climate change dictate ecological pattern and process: spatial modeling of wildfire, insect, and disease dynamics under future climates

Context Interactions among disturbances, climate, and vegetation influence landscape patterns and ecosystem processes. Climate changes, exotic invasions, beetle outbreaks, altered fire regimes, and human activities may interact to produce landscapes that appear and function beyond historical analogs. Objectives We used the mechanistic ecosystem-fire process model FireBGCv2 to model interactions of wildland fire, mountain pine beetle ( Dendroctonus ponderosae ), and white pine blister rust ( Cronartium ribicola ) under current and future climates, across three diverse study areas. Methods We assessed changes in tree basal area as a measure of landscape response over a 300-year simulation period for the Crown of the Continent in north-central Montana, East Fork of the Bitterroot River in western Montana, and Yellowstone Central Plateau in western Wyoming, USA. Results Interacting disturbances reduced overall basal area via increased tree mortality of host species. Wildfire decreased basal area more than beetles or rust, and disturbance interactions modeled under future climate significantly altered landscape basal area as compared with no-disturbance and current climate scenarios. Responses varied among landscapes depending on species composition, sensitivity to fire, and pathogen and beetle suitability and susceptibility. Conclusions Understanding disturbance interactions is critical for managing landscapes because forest responses to wildfires, pathogens, and beetle attacks may offset or exacerbate climate influences, with consequences for wildlife, carbon, and biodiversity.

Landscape Ecology↗

USGS2025

UAS-based geomorphic change detection of incised montane meadow stream channels with low-tech process-based restoration treatments

Context Montane meadows play an important hydrologic role in headwater catchments, but past land use has largely degraded their condition. Low-tech restoration methods, such as beaver dam analogs (BDAs), are increasingly used to support recovery of incised streams by promoting key geomorphic processes. However, there remains a need for studies that leverage UAS for monitoring low-tech restoration treatments in incised meadow systems. Objectives This study maps and characterizes geomorphic changes in two incised meadow stream channels in Red Clover Valley, CA with installed beaver dam analog structures. We used UAS-based photogrammetric surveys to track changes over a three-year period (2021–2023). Methods Geomorphic change was assessed using DEM differencing with error thresholding, repeat geomorphic unit (GU) classification, and Shannon Diversity Index (SHDI) to measure spatial shifts in geomorphic complexity. Results Geomorphic responses varied by site and survey period. The subchannel B (SCB) site exhibited net deposition, while the lower Dixie Creek (LDC) site showed net erosion. BDAs appeared to enhance geomorphic activity, particularly in LDC, where near BDA areas showed greater sediment deposition and localized erosion compared to reference sites. SHDI values were positively correlated with erosion at both sites, suggesting that erosional processes may have promoted geomorphic diversity by creating or reorganizing GU in the incised channels. Conclusions UAS-SfM surveys captured erosion and deposition patterns and revealed the influence of BDAs and local channel characteristics on geomorphic change and unit diversity. These findings highlight the utility of UAS methods for monitoring restoration impacts in incised montane meadow streams.

California↗

USGS2012

Warming and increased precipitation frequency on the Colorado Plateau: Implications for biological soil crusts and soil processes

Aims Changes in temperature and precipitation are expected to influence ecosystem processes worldwide. Despite their globally large extent, few studies to date have examined the effects of climate change in desert ecosystems, where biological soil crusts are key nutrient cycling components. The goal of this work was to assess how increased temperature and frequency of summertime precipitation affect the contributions of crust organisms to soil processes. Methods With a combination of experimental 2°C warming and altered summer precipitation frequency applied over 2 years, we measured soil nutrient cycling and the structure and function of crust communities. Results We saw no change in crust cover, composition, or other measures of crust function in response to 2°C warming and no effects on any measure of soil chemistry. In contrast, crust cover and function responded to increased frequency of summer precipitation, shifting from moss to cyanobacteria-dominated crusts; however, in the short timeframe we measured, there was no accompanying change in soil chemistry. Total bacterial and fungal biomass was also reduced in watered plots, while the activity of two enzymes increased, indicating a functional change in the microbial community. Conclusions Taken together, our results highlight the limited effects of warming alone on biological soil crust communities and soil chemistry, but demonstrate the substantially larger effects of altered summertime precipitation.

Plant and Soil↗

USGS2016

A science of integration: frameworks, processes, and products in a place-based, integrative study

Integrative research is increasingly a priority within the scientific community and is a central goal for the evolving field of sustainability science. While it is conceptually attractive, its successful implementation has been challenging and recent work suggests that the move towards interdisciplinarity and transdisciplinarity in sustainability science is being only partially realized. To address this from the perspective of social-ecological systems (SES) research, we examine the process of conducting a science of integration within the Southcentral Alaska Test Case (SCTC) of Alaska-EPSCoR as a test-bed for this approach. The SCTC is part of a large, 5 year, interdisciplinary study investigating changing environments and adaptations to those changes in Alaska. In this paper, we review progress toward a science of integration and present our efforts to confront the practical issues of applying proposed integration frameworks. We: (1) define our integration framework; (2) describe the collaborative processes, including the co-development of science through stakeholder engagement and partnerships; and (3) illustrate potential products of integrative, social-ecological systems research. The approaches we use can also be applied outside of this particular framework. We highlight challenges and propose improvements for integration in sustainability science by addressing the need for common frameworks and improved contextual understanding. These insights may be useful for capacity-building for interdisciplinary projects that address complex real-world social and environmental problems.

Sustainability Science↗

USGS2020

Processes influencing marsh elevation change in low- and high-elevation zones of a temperate salt marsh

The movement of salt marshes into uplands and marsh submergence as sea level rises is well documented; however, predicting how coastal marshes will respond to rising sea levels is constrained by a lack of process-based understanding of how various marsh zones adjust to changes in sea level. To assess the way in which salt marsh zones differ in their elevation response to sea-level change, and to evaluate how potential hydrologic drivers influence the response, surface elevation tables, marker horizons, and shallow rod surface elevation tables were installed in a Virginia salt marsh in three zones that differed in elevation and vegetation type. Decadal rates of elevation change, surface accretion, and shallow subsidence or expansion were examined in the context of hydrologic drivers that included local sea-level rise, flooding frequency, hurricane storm surge, and precipitation. Surface elevation increases were fastest in the low-elevation zone, intermediate in the middle-elevation zone, and slowest in the high-elevation zone. These rates are similar to (low and middle marsh) or less than (high marsh) local rates of sea-level rise. Root zone expansion, presumably due to root growth and organic matter accumulation, varied among the three salt marsh zones and accounted for 37%, but probably more, of the increase in marsh surface elevation. We infer that, during marsh transgression, soil-forming processes shift from biogenic (high marsh) to minerogenic (low marsh) in response, either directly or indirectly, to changing hydrologic drivers.

Virginia↗

USGS1978

Redox processes at surfaces of manganese oxide and their effects on aqueous metal ions

Mn oxides precipitated from aerated solutions of Mn2+ by raising the pH are reported in various publications to have the approximate composition Mn3O4 or MnOOH. These oxyhydroxides in turn can disproportionate to Mn2+ and MnO2 resulting in a substantial decrease in equilibrium Mn solubility. The disproportionation can catalyze the oxidation of Mn2+ and other metals by facilitating electron-transfer processes. Diversion of some electron transfers from Mn species to other metal ions can greatly decrease the equilibrium solubility of Co, Pb, Ni and some other elements in the presence of mixed-valence Mn oxides. Some scavenging and coprecipitation effects involving Mn oxides may be attributable to redox processes. Equilibrium solubilities for Mn, Co and Pb are summarized in four graphs. ?? 1978.

Chemical Geology↗

USGS1981

East Pacific rise at 21°N: the volcanic, tectonic, and hydrothermal processes of the central axis

Photographs obtained by the ANGUS survey system at 21°N reveal many similarities to the geological processes delineated at other spreading centers and in particular those observed in the Galapagos Rift at 86°W. The region of recent volcanism is restricted to a narrow zone (Zone 1) approximately 1 km wide. This suggests that the width of the magma chamber feeding these flows is also narrow at the top. Variations in sediment cover are used to subdivide the flows within Zone 1 into three sheet-flow/pillow-flow pairs. The youngest pair appears to have erupted form a linear fissure 8 km long running parallel to the valley axis. This fissure is part of a larger en echelon pattern of eruptive fissures. Active hydrothermal vents associated with the youngest flows are situated directly above the apparent eruptive fissure. The high (350°C) temperature for some of the fluids exiting from the vents suggests a highly restricted circulation system involving, at times, little to no mixing with cold seawater. The lava terrain in the remainder of Zone 1 and bordering regions is characterized by extensive fracturing, further suggesting a narrow upper dimension to the magma chamber and also that subsurface hydrothermal deposition of massive sulfides may lead to a reduction in the mixing processes.

Earth and Planetary Science Letters↗