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Search indexed USGS publications on groundwater, aquifers, geologic maps, mineral resources and earthquakes. Explore source records by subject and place.

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At least 523 records · Page 29Linked to original sources
USGS2011

Interagency partnering for weed prevention-- Progress on development of a National Early Detection and Rapid Response System for Invasive Plants in the United States

Over the past 50 years, experience has shown that interagency groups provide an effective forum for addressing various invasive species issues and challenges on multiple land units. However, more importantly, they can also provide a coordinated framework for early detection, reporting, identification and vouchering, rapid assessment, and rapid response to new and emerging invasive plants in the United States. Interagency collaboration maximizes the use of available expertise, resources, and authority for promoting early detection and rapid response (EDRR) as the preferred management option for addressing new and emerging invasive plants. Currently, an interagency effort is underway to develop a National EDRR System for Invasive Plants in the United States. The proposed system will include structural and informational elements. Structural elements of the system include a network of interagency partner groups to facilitate early detection and rapid response to new invasive plants, including the Federal Interagency Committee for the Management of Noxious and Exotic Weeds (FICMNEW), State Invasive Species Councils, State Early Detection and Rapid Response Coordinating Committees, State Volunteer Detection and Reporting Networks, Invasive Plant Task Forces, and Cooperative Weed Management Areas. Informational elements and products being developed include Regional Invasive Plant Atlases, and EDRR Guidelines for EDRR Volunteer Network Training, Rapid Assessment and Rapid Response, and Criteria for Selection of EDRR Species. System science and technical support elements which are provided by cooperating state and federal scientists, include EDRR guidelines, training curriculum for EDRR volunteers and agency field personnel, plant identification and vouchering, rapid assessments, as well as predictive modeling and ecological range studies for invasive plant species.

Book chapter↗
USGS2012

Physical modeling of river spanning rock structures: Evaluating interstitial flow, local hydraulics, downstream scour development, and structure stability

Rock weir and ramp structures uniquely serve a necessary role in river management: to meet water deliveries in an ecologically sound manner. Uses include functioning as low head diversion dams, permitting fish passage, creating habitat diversity, and stabilizing stream banks and profiles. Existing information on design and performance of in-stream rock structures does not provide the guidance necessary to implement repeatable and sustainable construction and retrofit techniques. As widespread use of rock structures increases, the need for reliable design methods with a broad range of applicability at individual sites grows as well. Rigorous laboratory testing programs were implemented at the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) and at Colorado State University (CSU) as part of a multifaceted research project focused on expanding the current knowledge base and developing design methods to improve the success rate of river spanning rock structures in meeting project goals. Physical modeling at Reclamation is being used to measure, predict, and reduce interstitial flow through rock ramps. CSU is using physical testing to quantify and predict scour development downstream of rock weirs and its impact on the stability of rock structures. ?? 2009 ASCE.

Conference Paper↗
USGS2025

Seasonal movements of nonnative White Catfish in the Penobscot River estuary

Objective White Catfish Ameiurus catus has been introduced to coastal watersheds across the United States. In the Penobscot River, Maine, this species has become increasingly common in upstream habitats that have been made accessible by recent dam removals. We characterized the movements of White Catfish to understand the temporal variation in their movement patterns and contextualize these findings within the recent changes in watershed connectivity. Methods We captured and tagged 10 adult White Catfish (mean fork length = 271 mm) with acoustic transmitters in the lower Penobscot River in July 2022. The movements of the tagged fish were monitored through April 2023 with a large network of stationary receivers. Results The tagged catfish were detected up to 6 km upstream and 31 km downstream from the release site. The total distance that was traveled by individuals ranged from 0 to 154 km during the study. Fall and spring movements were associated with changes in river flow and water temperature, but fish were relatively stationary from December through March, when at least five individuals were assumed to have overwintered in lower river tributaries. Conclusion Our results show that individual White Catfish may move considerable distances within large river systems and that these movements are potentially facilitated by changing river conditions. Collectively, this study fills a long-standing knowledge gap about the movement ecology of this species, adds context to help explain a recent increase in observations within their introduced range, and shows how changes in river conditions may be used to predict when and where these fish will move within a tidal system.

Maine↗
USGS1999

Digital mining claim density map for federal lands in Oregon: 1996

This report describes a digital map generated by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to provide digital spatial mining claim density information for federal lands in Oregon as of March 1997. Mining claim data is earth science information deemed to be relevant to the assessment of historic, current, and future ecological, economic, and social systems. There is no paper map included in this Open-File report. In accordance with the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (FLPMA), all unpatented mining claims, mill and tunnel sites must be recorded at the appropriate Bureau of Land Management (BLM) State office. BLM maintains a cumulative computer listing of mining claims in the Mining Claim Recordation System (MCRS) database with locations given by meridian, township, range, and section. A mining claim is considered closed when the claim is relinquished or a formal BLM decision declaring the mining claim null and void has been issued and the appeal period has expired. All other mining claims filed with BLM are considered to be open and actively held. The digital map (figure 1.) with the mining claim density database available in this report are suitable for geographic information system (GIS)-based regional assessments at a scale of 1:100,000 or smaller.

Oregon↗
USGS1999

Digital mining claim density map for federal lands in Idaho: 1996

This report describes a digital map generated by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to provide digital spatial mining claim density information for federal lands in Idaho as of March 1997. Mining claim data is earth science information deemed to be relevant to the assessment of historic, current, and future ecological, economic, and social systems. There is no paper map included in this Open-File report. In accordance with the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (FLPMA), all unpatented mining claims, mill and tunnel sites must be recorded at the appropriate Bureau of Land Management (BLM) State office. BLM maintains a cumulative computer listing of mining claims in the Mining Claim Recordation System (MCRS) database with locations given by meridian, township, range, and section. A mining claim is considered closed when the claim is relinquished or a formal BLM decision declaring the mining claim null and void has been issued and the appeal period has expired. All other mining claims filed with BLM are considered to be open and actively held. The digital map (figure 1.) with the mining claim density database available in this report are suitable for geographic information system (GIS)-based regional assessments at a scale of 1:100,000 or smaller.

Idaho↗
USGS2022

Using noninvasive genetics for estimating density and assessing diet of urban and rural coyotes in Florida, USA

Coyotes ( Canis latrans ) are expanding their range and due to conflicts with the public and concerns of Coyotes affecting natural resources such as game or sensitive species, there is interest and often a demand to monitor Coyote populations. A challenge to monitoring is that traditional invasive methods involving live-capture of individual animals are costly and can be controversial. Natural resource management agencies can benefit from contemporary noninvasive genetic sampling approaches aimed at determining key aspects of Coyote ecology (e.g., population density and food habits). However, the efficacy of such approaches under different environmental conditions is poorly understood. Our objectives were to 1) examine accumulation and nuclear DNA degradation rates of Coyote scats in metropolitan and rural sites in Florida to help optimize methods to estimate population density; and 2) explore new genetic methods for determining diet of Coyotes based on vertebrate, plant, and invertebrate species DNA identified in scat. Recently developed DNA metabarcoding approaches make it possible to simultaneously identify DNA from multiple prey species in predator scat samples, but an exploration of this tool for assessing Coyote diet has not been pursued. We observed that scat accumulation rates (0.02 scats/km/day) did not vary between sites and fecal DNA amplification success decreased and genotyping errors increased over time with exposure to sun and precipitation. DNA sampling allowed us to generate a Coyote density estimate for the urban environment of eight Coyotes per 100 km2, but lack of recaptures in the rural area precluded density estimation. DNA metabarcoding showed promise for assessing diet contributions of vertebrate species to Coyote diet. Feral Swine (Sus scrofa) were detected as prey at higher frequencies than previously reported. We identify several considerations that can be used to optimize future noninvasive sampling efforts for Coyotes in the southeastern United States. We also discuss strengths and drawbacks of utilizing DNA metabarcoding for assessing diet of generalist carnivores such as Coyotes.

Florida↗
USGS2023

Diverse portfolios: Investing in tributaries for restoration of large river fishes in the Anthropocene

Rehabilitation of large Anthropocene rivers requires engagement of diverse stakeholders across a broad range of sociopolitical boundaries. Competing objectives often constrain options for ecological restoration of large rivers whereas fewer competing objectives may exist in a subset of tributaries. Further, tributaries contribute toward building a “portfolio” of river ecosystem assets through physical and biological processes that may present opportunities to enhance the resilience of large river fishes. Our goal is to review roles of tributaries in enhancing mainstem large river fish populations. We present case histories from two greatly altered and distinct large-river tributary systems that highlight how tributaries contribute four portfolio assets to support large-river fish populations: 1) habitat diversity, 2) connectivity, 3) ecological asynchrony, and 4) density-dependent processes. Finally, we identify future research directions to advance our understanding of tributary roles and inform conservation actions. In the Missouri River United States, we focus on conservation efforts for the state endangered lake sturgeon, which inhabits large rivers and tributaries in the Midwest and Eastern United States. In the Colorado River, Grand Canyon United States, we focus on conservation efforts for recovery of the federally threatened humpback chub. In the Missouri River, habitat diversity focused on physical habitats such as substrate for reproduction, and deep-water habitats for refuge, whereas augmenting habitat diversity for Colorado River fishes focused on managing populations in tributaries with minimally impaired thermal and flow regimes. Connectivity enhancements in the Missouri River focused on increasing habitat accessibility that may require removal of physical structures like low-head dams; whereas in the Colorado River, the lack of connectivity may benefit native fishes as the disconnection provides refuge from non-native fish predation. Hydrologic variability among tributaries was present in both systems, likely underscoring ecological asynchrony. These case studies also described density dependent processes that could influence success of restoration actions. Although actions to restore populations varied by river system, these examples show that these four portfolio assets can help guide restoration activities across a diverse range of mainstem rivers and their tributaries. Using these assets as a guide, we suggest these can be transferable to other large river-tributary systems.

Frontiers in Environmental Science↗
USGS2020

Use of museum specimens to refine historical pronghorn subspecies boundaries

Endangered Sonoran ( Antilocapra americana sonoriensis ) and Peninsular ( A. a. peninsularis ) pronghorn persist largely because of captive breeding and reintroduction efforts. Recovery team managers want to re-establish pronghorn in their native range, but there is currently uncertainty regarding the subspecies status of extinct pronghorn populations that historically inhabited southern California, USA, and northern Baja California, Mexico. To address this uncertainty, we genotyped museum specimens and conducted phylogenetic and population genetic analyses of historical data in the context of 3 contemporary pronghorn populations. The historical northern Baja California pronghorn share the most ancestry with contemporary Peninsular pronghorn, whereas pronghorn in southern California share more ancestry with contemporary American ( A. a. americana ) pronghorn. For reintroductions into northern Baja California, the Peninsular subspecies is more appropriate based on museum genetic data. For reintroductions into Southern California, ecological and genetic factors are both important, as the subspecies most genetically related to historical populations (American) may not be well-adapted to the hot, low-elevation deserts of the reintroduction area. © 2019 The Wildlife Society.

California↗
USGS2019

Better approaches to managing drought in the American Southwest

The second in a series of USGS Southwest Region (SWR) “Science Exchange” annual workshops, focused on USGS drought science. The participants considered how extreme drought conditions are evolving in much of the American southwest, with an emphasis on integrated drought science planning at the USGS bureau and program levels. The increased need for interdisciplinary science to support resource-management decisions systems, was highlighted. The workshop brought together scientists and program managers from USGS with Bureau of Land Management, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, US Bureau of Reclamation and state water management departments. Key objectives of the workshop were to improve awareness of ongoing drought-science work within the region, highlight the capabilities of USGS-SWR science centers in drought science, and build new relationships to advance best approaches in drought science. Topics covered in presentations and demonstrations were broad-ranging and included monitoring for drought early warning; water use and water production associated with petroleum production; paleo perspectives on drought, and ecological consequences of drought to native fish.

Eos, Transactions, American Geophysical Union↗
USGS2024

Landscape fragmentation overturns classical metapopulation thinking

Habitat loss and isolation caused by landscape fragmentation represent a growing threat to global biodiversity. Existing theory suggests that the process will lead to a decline in metapopulation viability. However, since most metapopulation models are restricted to simple networks of discrete habitat patches, the effects of real landscape fragmentation, particularly in stochastic environments, are not well understood. To close this major gap in ecological theory, we developed a spatially explicit, individual-based model applicable to realistic landscape structures, bridging metapopulation ecology and landscape ecology. This model reproduced classical metapopulation dynamics under conventional model assumptions, but on fragmented landscapes, it uncovered general dynamics that are in stark contradiction to the prevailing views in the ecological and conservation literature. Notably, fragmentation can give rise to a series of dualities: a) positive and negative responses to environmental noise, b) relative slowdown and acceleration in density decline, and c) synchronization and desynchronization of local population dynamics. Furthermore, counter to common intuition, species that interact locally (“residents”) were often more resilient to fragmentation than long-ranging “migrants.” This set of findings signals a need to fundamentally reconsider our approach to ecosystem management in a noisy and fragmented world.

PNAS↗
USGS2022

Eastern Ecological Science Center — Fish and aquatic animal health

Science provided by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Eastern Ecological Science Center (EESC) helps to protect fish and aquatic animal health and support disease management of our Nation’s fisheries and aquatic animal populations. Our capabilities and expertise span diverse, yet highly integrated disciplines related to all aspects of biology, ecology, and animal health. Our scientists work to identify novel and emerging pathogens and diseases to assess fish and aquatic animal responses to parasites, pathogens, adverse environmental conditions, and chemical exposures. Eastern Ecological Science Center research is conducted both in laboratories and in the field in various aquatic environments ranging from headwater streams to the ocean. The EESC team provides science leadership and support for fisheries and aquatic species specialists nationwide.

Fact Sheet↗
USGS2011

Conservation of greater sage-grouse- a synthesis of current trends and future management

Recent analyses of Greater Sage-Grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) populations indicate substantial declines in many areas but relatively stable populations in other portions of the species? range. Sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) habitats neces-sary to support sage-grouse are being burned by large wildfires, invaded by nonnative plants, and developed for energy resources (gas, oil, and wind). Management on public lands, which con-tain 70% of sagebrush habitats, has changed over the last 30 years from large sagebrush control projects directed at enhancing livestock grazing to a greater emphasis on projects that often attempt to improve or restore ecological integrity. Never-theless, the mandate to manage public lands to provide traditional consumptive uses as well as recreation and wilderness values is not likely to change in the near future. Consequently, demand and use of resources contained in sagebrush land-scapes plus the associated infrastructure to sup-port increasing human populations in the western United States will continue to challenge efforts to conserve Greater Sage-Grouse. The continued widespread distribution of sage-grouse, albeit at very low densities in some areas, coupled with large areas of important sagebrush habitat that are relatively unaffected by the human footprint, sug-gest that Greater Sage-Grouse populations may be able to persist into the future. We summarize the status of sage-grouse populations and habitats, provide a synthesis of major threats and chal-lenges to conservation of sage-grouse, and suggest a roadmap to attaining conservation goals.

Book chapter↗
USGS2018

Potential impacts of projected climate change on vegetation management in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park

Climate change will likely alter the seasonal and annual patterns of rainfall and temperature in Hawai`i. This is a major concern for resource managers at Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park where intensely managed Special Ecological Areas (SEAs), focal sites for managing rare and endangered plants, may no longer provide suitable habitat under future climate. Expanding invasive species’ distributions also may pose a threat to areas where native plants currently predominate. We combine recent climate modeling efforts for the state of Hawai`i with plant species distribution models to forecast changes in biodiversity in SEAs under future climate conditions. Based on this bioclimatic envelope model, we generated projected species range maps for four snapshots in time (2000, 2040, 2070, and 2090) to assess whether the range of 39 native and invasive species of management interest are expected to contract, expand, or remain the same under a moderately warmer and more variable precipitation scenario. Approximately two-thirds of the modeled native species were projected to contract in range, while one-third were shown to increase. Most of the park’s SEAs were projected to lose a majority of the native species modeled. Nine of the 10 modeled invasive species were projected to contract within the park; this trend occurred in most SEAs, including those at low, middle, and high elevations. There was good congruence in the current (2000) distribution of species richness and SEA configuration; however, the congruence between species richness hotspots and SEAs diminished by the end of this century. Over time the projected species-rich hotspots increasingly occurred outside of current SEA boundaries. Our research brought together managers and scientists to increase understanding of potential climate change impacts, and provide needed information to address how plants may respond under future conditions relative to current managed areas.

Hawai`i↗
USGS2016

Tolerance to multiple climate stressors: A case study of Douglas-fir drought and cold hardiness

Drought and freeze events are two of the most common forms of climate extremes which result in tree damage or death, and the frequency and intensity of both stressors may increase with climate change. Few studies have examined natural covariation in stress tolerance traits to cope with multiple stressors among wild plant populations. We assessed the capacity of coastal Douglas‐fir ( Pseudotsuga menziesii var. menziesii ), an ecologically and economically important species in the northwestern USA, to tolerate both drought and cold stress on 35 populations grown in common gardens. We used principal components analysis to combine drought and cold hardiness trait data into generalized stress hardiness traits to model geographic variation in hardiness as a function of climate across the Douglas‐fir range. Drought and cold hardiness converged among populations along winter temperature gradients and diverged along summer precipitation gradients. Populations originating in regions with cold winters had relatively high tolerance to both drought and cold stress, which is likely due to overlapping adaptations for coping with winter desiccation. Populations from regions with dry summers had increased drought hardiness but reduced cold hardiness, suggesting a trade‐off in tolerance mechanisms. Our findings highlight the necessity to look beyond bivariate trait–climate relationships and instead consider multiple traits and climate variables to effectively model and manage for the impacts of climate change on widespread species.

California, Oregon, Washington↗
USGS2016

Hydrologic exchange flows and their ecological consequences in river corridors

The actively flowing waters of streams and rivers remain in close contact with surrounding off-channel and subsurface environments. These hydrologic linkages between relatively fast flowing channel waters, with more slowly flowing waters off-channel and in the subsurface, are collectively referred to as hydrologic exchange flows (HEFs). HEFs include surface exchange with a channel’s marginal areas and subsurface flow through the streambed (hyporheic flow), as well as storm-driven bank storage and overbank flows onto floodplains. HEFs are important, not only for storing water and attenuating flood peaks, but also for their role in influencing water conservation, water quality improvement, and related outcomes for ecological values and services of aquatic ecosystems. Biogeochemical opportunities for chemical transformations are increased by HEFs as a result of the prolonged contact between flowing waters and geochemically and microbially active surfaces of sediments and vegetation. Chemical processing is intensified and water quality is often improved by removal of excess nutrients, metals, and organic contaminants from flowing waters. HEFs also are important regulators of organic matter decomposition, nutrient recycling, and stream metabolism that helps establish a balanced and resilient aquatic food web. The shallow and protected storage zones associated with HEFs support nursery and feeding areas for aquatic organisms that sustain aquatic biological diversity. Understanding of these varied roles for HEFs has been driven by the related disciplines of stream ecology, fluvial geomorphology, surface-water hydraulics, and groundwater hydrology. A current research emphasis is on the role that HEFs play in altered flow regimes, including restoration to achieve diverse goals, such as expanding aquatic habitats and managing dissolved and suspended river loads to reduce over-fertilization of coastal waters and offset wetland loss. New integrative concepts and models are emerging (eg, hydrologic connectivity) that emphasize HEF functions in river corridors over a wide range of spatial and temporal scales.

Book chapter↗
USGS2017

The future of fish passage science, engineering, and practice

Much effort has been devoted to developing, constructing and refining fish passage facilities to enable target species to pass barriers on fluvial systems, and yet, fishway science, engineering and practice remain imperfect. In this review, 17 experts from different fish passage research fields (i.e., biology, ecology, physiology, ecohydraulics, engineering) and from different continents (i.e., North and South America, Europe, Africa, Australia) identified knowledge gaps and provided a roadmap for research priorities and technical developments. Once dominated by an engineering‐focused approach, fishway science today involves a wide range of disciplines from fish behaviour to socioeconomics to complex modelling of passage prioritization options in river networks. River barrier impacts on fish migration and dispersal are currently better understood than historically, but basic ecological knowledge underpinning the need for effective fish passage in many regions of the world, including in biodiversity hotspots (e.g., equatorial Africa, South‐East Asia), remains largely unknown. Designing efficient fishways, with minimal passage delay and post‐passage impacts, requires adaptive management and continued innovation. While the use of fishways in river restoration demands a transition towards fish passage at the community scale, advances in selective fishways are also needed to manage invasive fish colonization. Because of the erroneous view in some literature and communities of practice that fish passage is largely a proven technology, improved international collaboration, information sharing, method standardization and multidisciplinary training are needed. Further development of regional expertise is needed in South America, Asia and Africa where hydropower dams are currently being planned and constructed.

Fish and Fisheries↗
USGS2019

Predicting species distributions: unifying model selection and scale optimization for multi-scale occupancy models

Geographic distributions are a basic component of a species’ ecology, and predicting distributions is a fundamental task of conservation and resource management. Reliable prediction depends on identification of appropriate scales of effect for environmental data, and scale-optimization techniques are thus desirable to identify optimal scales for predictor variables. Recent statistical developments have also advanced methods of model selection based explicitly on predictive ability, which differ from commonly-used methods that regulate model structures via anticipated predictive performance. Such methods are beginning to permeate into species distribution models (SDMs), yet there remains no consensus methodology for developing optimally-predictive multi-scale SDMs when covariate data are collected over a range of scales. Thus, we compared the performance of common approaches for scale optimization and model selection in terms of their ability to produce optimally predictive multi-scale Bayesian occupancy models for predicting a species distribution, using models of the breeding distribution for King Rails (Rallus elegans) as a case study. Our results demonstrate sizable gains in predictive performance for hierarchical occupancy models selected explicitly via their ability to predict out-of-sample data using the logarithmic scoring rule, as compared to models selected using information criteria (DIC and WAIC). Information criteria commonly selected individual covariates, as well as scales of effect for those covariates, with suboptimal predictive performance. Performance of models selected using the logarithmic scoring rule was robust across method of scale optimization, which was not true for models selected using DIC and WAIC. Thus, we empirically demonstrate benefits of study designs that enable covariate and scale selection based explicitly on predictive ability. Our results also imply that more careful consideration of what constitutes an optimal scale is warranted in many ecological studies, as the meaning of optimal is not independent of the technique used for scale selection.

Ecosphere↗
USGS2024

Effect of water delivery and irrigation for riparian restoration in the Colorado River Delta, Mexico

Along Mexico's arid Colorado River Delta, the riparian corridor lacks water due to a reduction in frequent flows, climate change, human infrastructure, and altered riparian landcover from disturbances to invasive species, fire, and high soil and water salinities, which have led to declines in riparian plant health in recent decades. Restoration efforts focusing on small plots have successfully revitalized habitat, which is the motivation for this research. Accurate estimations of water use by riparian vegetation are crucial in arid environments, where measuring actual evapotranspiration (ETa) poses a significant challenge in these narrow corridors. This study utilizes field-validated remote sensing techniques to quantify ETa at restoration sites. Our methods are twofold; we use the Landsat-8 two-band Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI2) to monitor changes in vegetation greenness—a proxy of plant health—and we integrate EVI2 with potential evapotranspiration (ET) to calculate ETa. Our findings reveal a notable increase in vegetation greenness within the restoration sites over 9 years, with an average increase of 41.3%. Conversely, greenness in adjacent, unrestored control areas declined by 27.3%. The study also indicates a 22.1% increase in ETa in the restored areas, compared to a 30.8% reduction in the unrestored regions. Restored sites in reach 4 experienced ETa increases ranging from 9.2 to 12.2%, whereas their unrestored counterparts show a decline of 21.4%. Valuable estimates are provided of riparian greenness and water use that may assist natural resource managers who are tasked with allocating water and managing habitats within similar riparian corridors.

Colorado River Delta↗