Publications

This report summarizes aquatic biological studies relevant to water-quality assessment that have been done in the Western Lake Michigan Drainages from 1891 to 1996. The objective of the summary was to compile sources of biological data for the U.S. Geological Survey's National Water-Quality Assessment Program. The studies are divided into four categories: (1) populations and community...

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has served as the Nation’s principal collector, repository, and interpreter of earth science data for more than a century. In this capacity, the USGS in Wisconsin works in partnership with State, county, municipal public works departments, public health agencies, water and sanitation districts, Indian agencies, and other Federal agencies. This Fact Sheet

Park Lake extends to the northeast from the village of Pardeeville in Columbia County (fig. 1). Local residents perceive water-quality problems in the lake that include excessive algae and aquatic plant growth. Algae and plant growth in a lake are controlled, in part, by the availability of phosphorus in the water. However, no measurements of phosphorus enter- ing the lake or of other...

We evaluated the potential loss of target benthic macroinvertebrates from coarse-mesh field wash down of samples through a 1.18-mm mesh sieve nested on a 0.60-mm mesh sieve. Visible target organisms (midges, mayflies, and fingernail clams) in the 1.18-mm mesh sieve were removed from the sample and enumerated in the field. The entire contents of both sieves were preserved for subsequent...

Food habits of Redheads (Aythya americana) investigated at the Horicon National Wildlife Refuge, Wisconsin, during 1983-1985. Prelaying females consumed plant material almost exclusively, primarily seeds of moist-soil plant species. The diet of laying and incubating females was dominated by seeds but also contained 16-17% animal matter. Consumption of animal matter during egg production...

Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) eggs were collected from ten colonies between Clinton, Iowa and Royalton, Minnesota on the Mississippi River in 1993, a year of record floods in the midwestern United States. In the live southernmost colonies where record flooding occurred, Great Blue Herons initiated nesting two weeks later than herons nesting in the five northernmost colonies that were...

We compared four different methods for estimating predation rates by North Sea cod (Gadus morhua). Three estimates, based on gastric evacuation rates, came from an ICES multispecies working group and the fourth from a bioenergetics model. The bioenergetics model was developed from a review of literature on cod physiology. The three gastric evacuation rate models produced very different...

The Finger Lakes habitat-rehabilitation project is intended to improve physical and chemical conditions for fish in six connected back water lakes in Navigation Pool 5 of the upper Missouri River. The primary management objective is to improve water temperature, dissolved oxygen concentration and current velocity during winter for bluegills, Lepomis macrochirus, and black crappies...

Bottomland forests of the Central Forest Region of the Upper Midwest are found primarily on the floodplains of large rivers and include at least six types of forest communities. Birds breeding in bottomland forests are affected by extensive variation in latitude, climate, hydrology, forest succession, and change caused by anthropogenic disturbances. The floodplain forest bird community...

Monroe County relies heavily on its aquifers and streams for drinking water, irrigation, and other ~ses; however, increased water use, high concentrations of certain constituents in ground water, and droughts may limit the availability of water resources. Although the most densely populated parts of the county use water from the Great Lakes, large amounts of ground water are withdrawn...

Chemistry and stable-isotope data for water from wells completed in the Marshall aquifer within the Michigan Basin were used to prepare maps that show area! variations of δ18O; distribution of dissolved solids, dissolved chloride, dissolved iron, and dissolved sulfate; and distribution of hydrochemical facies. Delta oxygen-18 values indicate the presence of modern meteoric water (δ18O

Unconsolidated glacial sand and gravel deposits provide virtually all water used by residents of the Lac du Flambeau Indian Reservation. Well yields of 10 to 20 gallons per minutecan be obtained from these deposits throughoutthe reservation. Yields of 1,200 gallons perminute are obtained from wells for a fish-rearingfacility near the village of Lac du Flambeau. Thesaturated thickness of...