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Publications

Explore scientific publications from the USGS St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center.

Filter Total Items: 956

Evaluating the influence of constructed subtidal reefs on marsh shoreline erosion, sediment deposition, and wave energy Evaluating the influence of constructed subtidal reefs on marsh shoreline erosion, sediment deposition, and wave energy

Salt marshes play a critical role in providing economic and ecological benefits but are susceptible to shoreline erosion. Natural and nature-based features (NNBF), such as breakwater reefs, are often used to reduce shoreline exposure to wave action and provide biogenic benefits. However, waves and water level are also responsible for the sediment supply necessary for marsh accretion, a...
Authors
Kathryn Smith, Jonathan L. Pitchford, Eric L. Sparks, Michael J. Archer, Matthew Virden, Joseph F. Terrano, Christopher G. Smith

Assessment of active sand volumes at Rockaway Beach and Fire Island in New York and Seven Mile Island in New Jersey Assessment of active sand volumes at Rockaway Beach and Fire Island in New York and Seven Mile Island in New Jersey

Between 2018 and 2023, the U.S. Geological Survey assessed shoreface sediment availability at three Atlantic Coast barrier island study sites in support of a National Fish and Wildlife Foundation project entitled, “Monitoring Hurricane Sandy Beach and Marsh Resilience in New York and New Jersey.” The three study sites are Seven Mile Island, New Jersey, Rockaway Beach peninsula, New York...
Authors
Noreen A. Buster, Jennifer L. Miselis, Emily A. Wei, Arnell S. Forde

Resolution sensitivities for subgrid modeling of coastal flooding Resolution sensitivities for subgrid modeling of coastal flooding

Flooding due to storm surge can propagate through coastal regions to threaten the built and natural environments. This propagation is controlled by geographic features of varying scales, from the largest oceans to the smallest marsh channels and sandy dunes. Numerical models to predict coastal flooding have been improved via the use of subgrid corrections, which use information about the...
Authors
Johnathan Lucas Woodruff, Joel C. Dietrich, Damrongsak Wirasaet, Andrew B. Kennedy, Diogo Bolster, Richard A. Luettich

Shifting baselines of coral-reef species composition from the Late Pleistocene to the present in the Florida Keys Shifting baselines of coral-reef species composition from the Late Pleistocene to the present in the Florida Keys

The ongoing global-scale reassembly of modern coral reefs is unprecedented compared with the observed stability of most late Quaternary reef assemblages. One notable exception is the marine isotope stage (MIS) 5e (ca 130–116 thousand years ago [ka]) reefs in the Florida Keys, where the ubiquitous shallow-water coral, Acropora palmata, was near absent. Little is known, however, about...
Authors
Lauren Toth, Anastasios Stathakopoulos, Scarlette Shan-Hwei Hsia, David A. Weinstein

Insights from growing Globorotalia truncatulinoides and Globorotalia menardii in the laboratory Insights from growing Globorotalia truncatulinoides and Globorotalia menardii in the laboratory

The vast majority of planktic foraminiferal culture studies have been carried out on spinose species of foraminifera, with relatively few studies on non-spinose species. We conducted a pilot study to test whether live specimens of the non-spinose planktic foraminifera, Globorotalia truncatulinoides and Globorotalia menardii, could be successfully harvested from offshore plankton tow...
Authors
Caitlin E. Reynolds, Jennifer S. Fehrenbacher, Kaustubh Thirumalai, Eric J. Tappa, Julie N. Richey

Discovery of late Holocene-aged Acropora palmata reefs in Dry Tortugas National Park, Florida, USA: The past as a key to the future? Discovery of late Holocene-aged Acropora palmata reefs in Dry Tortugas National Park, Florida, USA: The past as a key to the future?

Emblematic of global coral-reef ecosystem decline, the coral ecosystem-engineer Acropora palmata is now rare throughout much of the western Atlantic. Understanding when and where this foundation species occurred during the past can provide information about the environmental limits defining its distribution through space and time. In this paper, the present, historical and newly dated...
Authors
Anastasios Stathakopoulos, Lauren Toth, Peter Alexander Bacon Modys, Selena Anne-Marie Johnson, Ilsa B. Kuffner

Microbiome data management in action workshop: Atlanta, GA, USA, June 12–13, 2024 Microbiome data management in action workshop: Atlanta, GA, USA, June 12–13, 2024

Microbiome research is revolutionizing human and environmental health, but the value and reuse of microbiome data are significantly hampered by the limited development and adoption of data standards. While several ongoing efforts are aimed at improving microbiome data management, significant gaps still remain in terms of defining and promoting adoption of consensus standards for these...
Authors
Julia Kelliher, Mashael Aljumaah, Sarah R. Bordenstein, J. Rodney Brister, Patrick Chain, JosePablo Dunduore-Arias, Joanne B. Emerson, Vanessa Moreira C. Ferdandes, Roberto Flores, Antonio Gonzalez, Zoe A. Hansen, Eneida L. Hatcher, Scott A. Jackson, Christina A. Kellogg, Ramana Madupu, Cassandra Maria Luz Miller, Chloe Mirzayi, Emmanuel F. Mongodin, Ahmed M. Moustafa, Chris Mungall, Aaron Oliver, Nonia Pariente, Jennifer Pett-Ridge, Sydne Record, Linta Reji, Anna-Louise Reysenbach, Virginia Rich, Lorna Richardson, Lynn M. Schriml, Reed S. Shabman, Maria Sierra, Matthew Sullivan, Punithavathi Sundaramurthy, K. M. Thibault, Luke R. Thompson, Scott W. Tighe, Ethell Vereen, Emiley A. Eloe-Fadrosh

Acute heat stress and the extirpation of a threatened coral species from a remote, subtropical reef system Acute heat stress and the extirpation of a threatened coral species from a remote, subtropical reef system

The ecological significance of the reef-building elkhorn coral, Acropora palmata, is threatened by heat-stress-induced mortality. The intensity and duration of the ocean heatwave affecting Dry Tortugas National Park in the summer of 2023 was historically unprecedented in its early timing and maximum temperatures reached and resulted in 100% A. palmata mortality. To understand the...
Authors
Ava Madeline Thompson, Anastasios Stathakopoulos, Karli J. Hollister, Amelia M. Lynch, Jordan C. Holder, Ilsa B. Kuffner

Ecological thresholds and transformations due to climate change: The role of abiotic stress Ecological thresholds and transformations due to climate change: The role of abiotic stress

An ecological threshold is the point at which a comparatively small environmental change triggers an abrupt and disproportionately large ecological response. In the face of accelerating climate change, there is concern that abrupt ecosystem transformations will become more widespread as critical ecological thresholds are crossed. There has been ongoing debate, however, regarding the...
Authors
Michael Osland, John B. Bradford, Lauren Toth, Matthew J. Germino, James Grace, Judith Z. Drexler, Camille L. Stagg, Eric E. Grossman, Karen M. Thorne, Stephanie Romanach, Davina Passeri, Gregory E. Noe, Jessica R. Lacy, Ken Krauss, Kurt P. Kowalski, Glenn R. Guntenspergen, Neil K. Ganju, Nicholas Enwright, Joel A. Carr, Kristin B. Byrd, Kevin Buffington

Geologic framework and Holocene sand thickness offshore of Seven Mile Island, New Jersey Geologic framework and Holocene sand thickness offshore of Seven Mile Island, New Jersey

The U.S. Geological Survey assessed the Quaternary evolution of Seven Mile Island, New Jersey, to quantify coastal sediment availability, which is crucial for establishing sediment budgets, understanding sediment dispersal, and managing coastlines. This report presents preliminary interpretations of seismic profiles, maps of Holocene sand thickness from the shoreline to 2 kilometers...
Authors
Emily A. Wei, Jennifer L. Miselis, Noreen A. Buster, Arnell S. Forde

Investigating the influence of Diadematidae scuticociliatosis on host microbiome composition Investigating the influence of Diadematidae scuticociliatosis on host microbiome composition

Mass mortality of Diadematidae urchins, caused by the Diadema antillarum scuticociliatosis Philaster clade (DScPc), affected the Caribbean in spring 2022 and subsequently spread to the eastern Mediterranean, Red Sea, and western Indian Ocean. A key question around Diadematidae scuticociliatosis (DSc), the disease caused by the scuticociliate, is whether the urchin microbiome varies...
Authors
Brayan Vilanova-Cuevas, Christopher M. DeRito, Isabella T. Ritchie, Christina A. Kellogg, James S. Evans, Alizee Zimmermann, Stacey M. Williams, Marilyn E. Brandt, Moriah L. B. Sevier, Samuel Gittens, Kayla A. Budd, Matthew Warham, William C. Sharp, Gabriel A. Delgado, Alwin Hylkema, Kimani A. Kitson-Walters, Jean-Pascal Quod, Mya Breitbart, Ian Hewson

Snapshots of mid-to-late Holocene sea-surface temperature variability from a subtropical western Atlantic coral reef Snapshots of mid-to-late Holocene sea-surface temperature variability from a subtropical western Atlantic coral reef

Large-scale Holocene climate reconstructions rely heavily on extratropical proxy records. Coral-based temperature reconstructions from the tropical and subtropical oceans therefore fill a critical spatial and temporal data gap, allowing for reconstruction of seasonally resolved temperature variability. We present five new, monthly-resolved sea-surface temperature (SST) reconstructions...
Authors
Jessica A. Jacobs, Julie N. Richey, Jennifer A. Flannery, Kaustubh Thiumalai, Lauren Toth
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