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At least 595 records · Page 33Linked to original sources
USGS2001

Experimental repatriation of boreal toad (Bufo boreas) eggs, metamorphs, and adults in Rocky Mountain National Park

The boreal toad ( Bufo boreas ) is an endangered species in Colorado and is considered a candidate species for federal listing by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. Boreal toads are absent from many areas of suitable habitat in the Southern Rocky Mountains of Colorado presumably due to a combination of causes. We moved boreal toads from existing populations and from captive rearing facilities to habitat which was historically, but is not currently, occupied by toads to experimentally examine methods of repatriation for this species. Repatriation is defined as the release of individuals into areas currently of historically occupied by that species (Dodd and Seigel, 1991). This effort was in response to one of the criteria for delisting the boreal toad in Colorado stated in the conservation plan and agreement for the management and recovery of the Southern Rocky Mountain population of the boreal toad (Loeffler, 1998:16); "...there must be at least 2 viable breeding populations of boreal toads in each of at least 9 of 11 mountain ranges of its historic distribution." Without moving eggs from established wild populations, or from captivity to historical localities, it is doubtful whether the recovery team will attain this ambitions goal.

Colorado↗
USGS1967

Mountains and plains Denver's geologic setting

A slice of geologic history is exposed to view in the Denver, Colorado area. Denver is situated on the High Plains near the east front of the Rocky Mountains. As one travels westward from Denver toward the mountains, successively older rocks are crossed from the geologically young rocks of the High Plains and the South Platte River valley to the older rocks of the foothills and the ancient rocks of the mountains. Thus, within a few miles,the journey turns back the pages of time in a lifesized textbook that vividly illustrates the geologic events that shaped the landscape.

Colorado↗
USGS1987

White mica geochemistry of the Catheart Mountain porphyry copper deposit, Maine

White micas from hydrothermally altered and mineralized zones in the Catheart Mountain Cu-Mo porphyry deposit have regular compositional variations that are generally related to the contents of copper, total iron, and sulfur in the whole rock. Micas in unmineralized rocks exhibit no such relationship. White mica compositions reflect primarily the control imposed by the celadonitic substitution AIIV +Aiv1 =Si+ (Fe, Mg). The variation in white mica composition in the Catheart Mountain porphyry may be explained by superposition and overprinting of mineral assemblages by ore fluids during mineralization and during the waning stages of hydrothermal alteration. Local bulk compositional differences, changing PHao and fluid compositions during mineralization, and superposition of mineral assemblages along microzoned veins contributed to variation in white mica composition. However, the general relation between white mica composition and base-metal content in the mineralized rocks at Catheart Mountain suggests that identification of this white mica population might be useful as an indicator of mineralization gradients.

Bulletin↗
USGS1926

Ore deposits of the Jerome and Bradshaw Mountains quadrangles, Arizona

In the summer of 1922, at the request of the Director of the United States Geological Survey, I undertook an examination of the ore deposits in the Jerome and Bradshaw Mountains quadrangles, Ariz. (See fig. 1.) The object of this work was not a detailed investigation of each deposit but rather a coordination and classification of the occurrences and an attempt to ascertain their origin and economic importance. Almost all the deposits occur in pre-Cambrian rocks or in rocks that are not readily differentiated from the pre-Cambrian. In the northern part of the Jerome quadrangle there are large areas of almost horizontal Paleozoic beds, and in both quadrangles there are also large areas of lava flows of Tertiary age. Finally there are wide spaces occupied by Tertiary tuff and limestone, or by Tertiary and Quaternary wash filling the valleys between the mountain ranges. But all these rocks except the pre-Cambrian are practically barren of ore deposits, and the problem therefore narrowed itself to an examination of the pre-Cambrian areas. This task was greatly facilitated by the careful work of Jaggar and Palache, set forth in the Bradshaw Mountains folio,l in which the southern quadrangle of the two under present consideration is mapped geologically and described, and which also includes a comprehensive though brief discussion of the mineral deposits. There is no published geologic map of the Jerome quadrangle, but I had the opportunity through the courtesy of Dr. G. M. Butler, Director of the Arizona Bureau of Mines, to use a manuscript map of this area prepared for the State by Mr. L. E. Reber, jr., and Mr. Olaf Jenkins.

Arizona↗
USGS2017

Isotopic data for Late Cretaceous intrusions and associated altered and mineralized rocks in the Big Belt Mountains, Montana

The quartz monzodiorite of Mount Edith and the concentrically zoned intrusive suite of Boulder Baldy constitute the principal Late Cretaceous igneous intrusions hosted by Mesoproterozoic sedimentary rocks of the Newland Formation in the Big Belt Mountains, Montana. These calc-alkaline plutonic masses are manifestations of subduction-related magmatism that prevailed along the western edge of North America during the Cretaceous. Radiogenic isotope data for neodymium, strontium, and lead indicate that the petrogenesis of the associated magmas involved a combination of (1) sources that were compositionally heterogeneous at the scale of the geographically restricted intrusive rocks in the Big Belt Mountains and (2) variable contamination by crustal assimilants also having diverse isotopic compositions. Altered and mineralized rocks temporally, spatially, and genetically related to these intrusions manifest at least two isotopically distinct mineralizing events, both of which involve major inputs from spatially associated Late Cretaceous igneous rocks. Alteration and mineralization of rock associated with the intrusive suite of Boulder Baldy requires a component characterized by significantly more radiogenic strontium than that characteristic of the associated igneous rocks. However, the source of such a component was not identified in the Big Belt Mountains. Similarly, altered and mineralized rocks associated with the quartz monzodiorite of Mount Edith include a component characterized by significantly more radiogenic strontium and lead, particularly as defined by 207 Pb/ 204 Pb values. The source of this component appears to be fluids that equilibrated with proximal Newland Formation rocks. Oxygen isotope data for rocks of the intrusive suite of Boulder Baldy are similar to those of subduction-related magmatism that include mantle-derived components; oxygen isotope data for altered and mineralized equivalents are slightly lighter.

Montana↗
USGS2018

Compilation of new and previously published geochemical and modal data for Mesoproterozoic igneous rocks of the St. Francois Mountains, southeast Missouri

The purpose of this report is to present recently acquired as well as previously published geochemical and modal petrographic data for igneous rocks in the St. Francois Mountains, southeast Missouri, as part of an ongoing effort to understand the regional geology and ore deposits of the Mesoproterozoic basement rocks of southeast Missouri, USA. The report includes geochemical data that is (1) newly acquired by the U.S. Geological Survey and (2) compiled from numerous sources published during the last fifty-five years. These data are required for ongoing petrogenetic investigations of these rocks. Voluminous Mesoproterozoic igneous rocks in the St. Francois Mountains of southeast Missouri constitute the basement buried beneath Paleozoic sedimentary rock that is over 600 meters thick in places. The Mesoproterozoic rocks of southeast Missouri represent a significant component of approximately 1.4 billion-year-old (Ga) igneous rocks that crop out extensively in North America along the southeast margin of Laurentia and subsequent researchers suggested that iron oxide-copper deposits in the St. Francois Mountains are genetically associated with ca. 1.4 Ga magmatism in this region. The geochemical and modal data sets described herein were compiled to support investigations concerning the tectonic setting and petrologic processes responsible for the associated magmatism.

Missouri↗
USGS2019

Regional hydraulic geometry characteristics of stream channels in the Ouachita Mountains of Arkansas

Many stream channel infrastructure, habitat, and restoration projects are being undertaken on small streams throughout Arkansas by various Federal, State, and local agencies and by private organizations and businesses with limited data on local geomorphology and streamflow relations. Equations are needed that relate drainage area above stable stream reaches and the associated basin characteristics to bankfull streamflow and the associated channel dimensions. These equations, along with streambed material particle information, provide information that can improve stream channel projects. The U.S. Geological Survey and the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission in cooperation with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Little Rock District, undertook a study to develop these equations for streams in the Ouachita Mountains of Arkansas. Seventeen streamgages operated by the U.S. Geological Survey, located on streams in the Ouachita Mountains, were selected for analysis. Regional hydraulic geometry curves that express the mathematical relation between the bankfull channel dimensions (cross-sectional area, top width, mean depth, and streamflow) and the contributing drainage areas were developed. Streambed material measurements were collected to develop descriptive statistics of the streambed particle-size distributions and percentages of substrate type at each study site. Stream reaches at each study site were classified to the Rosgen level II stream type based on the average of stream channel metrics collected from site cross sections and profiles. Of the 17 selected Ouachita Mountain stream reaches, 6 were classified as B stream types, and 11 were classified as C stream types. The B stream types have infrequently spaced pools; very stable plan forms, profiles, and banks; and narrow, gently sloping valleys, where bank vegetation is a moderate component of stability. The C stream types are meandering, point bar, riffle-pool channels associated with broad valleys having well-defined flood plains and terraces composed of alluvial soils, where bank vegetation is typically a high component of stability.

Arkansas↗
USGS2009

Rocky Mountain Snowpack Physical and Chemical Data for Selected Sites, 1993-2008

The Rocky Mountain Snowpack program established a network of snowpack-sampling sites in the Rocky Mountain region from New Mexico to Montana to monitor the chemical content of snow to help in the understanding of the effects of atmospheric deposition to this region. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the National Park Service, the USDA Forest Service, Teton County in Wyoming, Rio Blanco County in Colorado, Pitkin County in Colorado, and others, collected and analyzed snowpack samples annually for 48 or more sites in the Rocky Mountain region during 1993-2008. Forty-eight of the 162 snow-sampling sites have been sampled annually since 1993. Data include acid-neutralization capacity, specific conductance, pH, hydrogen ion concentrations, dissolved concentrations of major constituents (calcium, magnesium, sodium, potassium, ammonium, chloride, sulfate, and nitrate), dissolved organic carbon concentrations, snow/ water equivalent, snow depth, stable sulfur isotope ratios, total mercury concentrations (beginning in 2001), and ionic charge balance. Quality-assurance data for field and laboratory blanks and field replicates for individual years (1993-2008) also are included.

Data Series↗
USGS2010

Rocky Mountain snowpack physical and chemical data for selected sites, 2009

The Rocky Mountain Snowpack program established a network of snowpack-sampling sites in the Rocky Mountain region from New Mexico to Montana to monitor the chemical content of snow and to understand the effects of regional atmospheric deposition. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the National Park Service; the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service; the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment; Teton County, Wyoming; and others, collected and analyzed snowpack samples annually for 48 or more sites in the Rocky Mountain region during 1993-2009. Sixty-three snowpack-sampling sites were sampled once each in 2009 and data are presented in this report. Data include acid-neutralization capacity, specific conductance, pH, hydrogen ion concentrations, dissolved concentrations of major constituents (calcium, magnesium, sodium, potassium, ammonium, chloride, sulfate, and nitrate), dissolved organic carbon concentrations, snow-water equivalent, snow depth, total mercury concentrations, and ionic charge balance. Quality-assurance data for field and laboratory blanks and field replicates for 2009 also are included.

Data Series↗
USGS2011

Rocky Mountain snowpack physical and chemical data for selected sites, 2010

The Rocky Mountain Snowpack program established a network of snowpack-sampling sites in the Rocky Mountain region, from New Mexico to Montana, to monitor the chemical content of snow and to understand the effects of regional atmospheric deposition on freshwater systems. Scientists with the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the National Park Service; the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service; the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment; Teton County, Wyoming; and others, annually collected and analyzed snow-pack samples at 48 or more sites in the Rocky Mountain region during 1993-2010. Sixty-three snowpack-sampling sites were each sampled once in 2010, and those data are presented in this report. Data include acid-neutralization capacity, specific conductance, pH, hydrogen ion concentrations, dissolved concentrations of major constituents (calcium, magnesium, sodium, potassium, ammonium, chloride, sulfate, and nitrate), dissolved organic carbon concentrations, snow-water equivalent, snow depth, total mercury concentrations, and ionic charge balance. Quality-assurance data for field and laboratory blanks and field replicates for 2010 also are included.

Rocky Mountains↗
USGS2000

Invisible CO2 gas killing trees at Mammoth Mountain, California

Since 1980, scientists have monitored geologic unrest in Long Valley Caldera and at adjacent Mammoth Mountain, California. After a persistent swarm of earthquakes beneath Mammoth Mountain in 1989, geologists discovered that large volumes of carbon dioxide (CO2 ) gas were seeping from beneath this volcano. This gas is killing trees on the mountain and also can be a danger to people. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) continues to study the CO2 emissions to help protect the public from this invisible potential hazard.

Fact Sheet↗
USGS1996

Invisible CO2 gas killing trees at Mammoth Mountain, California

Since 1980, scientists have monitored geologic unrest in Long Valley Caldera and at adjacent Mammoth Mountain, California. After a persistent swarm of earthquakes beneath Mammoth Mountain in 1989, earth scientists discovered that large volumes of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) gas were seeping from beneath this volcano. This gas is killing trees on the mountain and also can be a danger to people. The USGS continues to study the CO 2 emissions to help protect the public from this invisible potential hazard.

California↗
USGS2008

Western Mountain Initiative: predicting ecosystem responses to climate change

Mountain ecosystems of the western United States provide irreplaceable goods and services such as water, timber, biodiversity, and recreational opportunities, but their responses to climatic changes are complex and not well understood. The Western Mountain Initiative (WMI), a collaboration between USGS and U.S. Forest Service scientists, catalyzes assessment and synthesis of the effects of disturbance and climate change across western mountain areas, focusing on national parks and surrounding national forests. The WMI takes an ecosystem approach to science, integrating research across science disciplines at scales ranging from field studies to global trends.

Fact Sheet↗
USGS2023

U.S. Geological Survey Rocky Mountain Region 2022 science exchange, showcasing interdisciplinary and state-of-the-art USGS science

Introduction The Rocky Mountains and the Colorado River Basin in the Western United States represent complex, interconnected systems that sustain a number of species, including tens of millions of humans. These systems face several challenges, including worsening drought, altered wildfire regimes, climate change, and the spread of invasive species. These factors can exacerbate one another, further contributing to habitat loss and affecting species of conservation concern. Characterizing and managing these challenges require interdisciplinary communities of scientists to develop information and decision-support tools that can inform holistic land and water management solutions. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Rocky Mountain Region 2022 Science Exchange focused on the use of interdisciplinary and state-of-the-art science being conducted by USGS scientists in the region to address these complex problems. The USGS Rocky Mountain Regional Office organized its first Science Exchange in 2017 to share scientific information between leaders and early career scientists throughout the region. Science Exchanges held in 2018 and 2020 focused on drought science relevant to the region and the Earth Monitoring, Analyses, and Prediction (EarthMAP) concept, which is designed to facilitate interdisciplinary, timely, and actionable science related to drought in the Colorado River Basin and other areas. Based on the emerging need for more holistic approaches to address increasingly complex natural resource issues that affect society, the Region hosted a virtual fourth Science Exchange for three days in April 2022. This event focused on barriers and bridges to interdisciplinary science and highlighted studies from the Region to inspire collaboration across disciplines. Presentations described recent and ongoing research that applied collaborative and state-of-the-art methods to address problems in the fields of geology, hydrology, ecology, and natural hazards. Science collaboration and outreach to all levels of stakeholders are vital elements needed for providing timely and actionable data, interpretations, analytical tools, and products. These presentations led to active online chats and panel discussions and showcased interdisciplinary science and advanced methods that may inform and lead to more effective, holistic management decisions as the Western United States adapts to ongoing and future changes.

Fact Sheet↗
USGS1996

Quality of ground water and surface water in intermontane basins of the northern Rocky Mountains, Montana and Idaho

The Regional Aquifer-System Analysis (RASA) program is a series of studies by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to analyze regional ground-water systems that compose a major portion of the Nations water supply (Sun, 1986). The Northern Rocky Mountains Intermontane Basins is one of the study regions in this national program. The main objectives of the RASA studies are to: (1) describe the ground-water systems as they exist today, (2) analyze the known changes that have led to the system's present condition, (3) combine results of previous studies in a regional analysis, where possible, and (4) provide means by which effects of future ground-water development can be estimated. The purpose of this study, which began in 1990, was to increase understanding of the hydrogeology of the intermontane basins of the Northern Rocky Mountains area. This report is Chapter C of a three-part series and describes the quality of ground water and surface water in the study area. Chapter A (Tuck and others, 1996) describes the geologic history and generalized hydrogeologic units. Chapter B (Briar and others, 1996) describes the general distribution of ground-water levels in basin-fill deposits. Water-quality data illustrated in this report represent the distribution of concentrations and composition of dissolved solids in ground water and surface water in the intermontane areas. The chemistry of ground and surface water in the intermontane areas is influenced by the chemical and physical nature of the rocks in the basin deposits of the valleys and surrounding bedrock in the mountains.

Hydrologic Atlas↗
USGS1981

Oil and gas resources of the Cheat Mountain Further Planning Area (RARE II), Randolph County, West Virginia

The Wilderness Act (Public Law 88-577, September 3, 1964) and related acts require the U.S. Geological Survey and the U.S. Bureau of Mines to survey certain areas on Federal lands to determine their mineral resource potential. Results must be made available to the public and be submitted to the President and the Congress. This map presents an analysis of the oil and gas resources of the Cheat Mountain Further Planning Area in the Monongahela National Forest, Randolph County, West Virginia. The area was classified as a further planning area during the Second Roadless Area Review and Evaluation (RARE II) by the U.S. Forest Service, January 1979. Cheat Mountain Further Planning Area comprises about 7,720 acres in the Monongahela National Forest in east-central West Virginia, southeast of Elkins. The study area lies on a northeast-trending linear ridge bordered on the west by the Right Fork of Tygart River and on the east by Shavers Fork. It averages about 2 mi in length and 1 ½ mi in width. Altitudes on Cheat Mountain range from about 2,550 to 3,900 ft.

West Virginia↗
USGS1983

Mineral resource potential map of the Blanco Mountain and Black Canyon Roadless Areas, Inyo and Mono Counties, California

On the basis of geologic, geochemical, and geophysical investigations and a survey of mines and prospects, the mineral resource potential for gold, silver, lead, zinc, tungsten, and barite of the Blanco Mountain and Black Canyon Roadless Areas is judged to be low to moderate, except for one local area that has high potential for gold and tungsten resources. A geochemical survey detected moderately anomalous amounts of lead, copper, and zinc and less anomalous concentrations of tungsten, gold, and silver. Elements in anomalous samples were grouped as suites known to form in various ore deposits. Four element suites that may be indicative of mineralization are recognized in the White Mountains: (1) lead, zinc, and silver in carbonate rocks; (2) copper, barite, and lead in veins and replacement bodies; (3) tungsten, molybdenum, and bismuth in skarns; and (4) gold and arsenic in mineralized quartz veins. The assessment of the areas of resource potential was made in part by the application of ore deposit models to the geochemical results. A mineral deposit survey by the U.S. Bureau of Mines indicates that there are no properties with identified mineral resources in the Blanco Mountain Roadless Area. There is one active placer claim. In the Black Canyon Roadless Area, two properties have 40,000 tons of indicated and inferred low-grade gold, silver, or lead-bearing rock. Five properties near this roadless area have 150,000 tons of indicated and inferred low-grade gold, silver, lead, zinc, or tungsten-bearing rock. About 90 percent of this tonnage is estimated to occur at the Mirage-Mariposa and the Hope mines. The roadless areas have no known resource potential for geothermal energy, coal, oil, or gas.

California↗
USGS1982

Reconnaissance geologic map and mineral resource potential of the Gearhart Mountain Wilderness and Roadless Area (6225), Lake and Klamath counties, Oregon

The Gearhart Mountain Wilderness, Lake and Klamath Counties, Oreg., is devoid of mines and mineral prospects and there are no known mining claims within the area. Furthermore, the results of this mineral appraisal indicate that there is little likelihood that commercial deposits of metallic minerals will be found in the area. Commercial uranium deposits, like those at the White King and Lucky Lass mines about 16 mi (~25 km) to the southeast of the wilderness, and deposits of mercury, like those south-southeast of the wilderness, are not likely to be found within the wilderness, even though all of these areas are characterized by middle and late Cenozoic intrusive and extrusive volcanic rocks. Rock of low commercial value for construction purposes is present, but better and more accessible deposits are present in adjacent regions. There is no evidence to indicate that mineral fuels are present in the area. Higher than normal heat floe characterizes the region containing Gerheart Mountain, indicating that it may have some, as yet undefined, potential for the development of geothermal energy. Data are not available to determine whether this higher than normal heat flow is meaningful in terms of a potential energy source or as a guide to possible future exploration; lack of thermal springs or other evidence of localized geothermal anomalies within the Gerhart Mountain suggest, however, that the potential for the development of geothermal energy is probably low.

Oregon↗