Chesapeake Bay Activities Newsletter April-June 2024
Phosphorus in the Susquehanna River may be tied to legacy sediment and changing pH
The Susquehanna River is the predominant source of freshwater and nutrients entering the Chesapeake Bay.
New insights for reducing nutrient and sediment loads in agricultural watersheds prioritized for management activities
Agricultural activities and natural factors may offset nutrient and sediment reductions from management activities.
Detecting the Presence of PFAS in Invasive Blue Catfish
USGS is working with Maryland Department of Natural Resources to sample blue catfish (Ictalurus furcatus) to measure levels of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS. Blue catfish are considered an invasive species in the Chesapeake Bay watershed and their spread is a growing concern for scientists and fisheries managers.
Agricultural and Urban Management Practices have Hidden Costs and Benefits to Stream Health
The findings of the study highlight that management practices can have both hidden costs and benefits to fish and macroinvertebrates depending on regional and local factors like how many and what type of management practices are implemented.
New studies reveal ecological importance of fine-scale groundwater connectivity for streams during drought
Stream ecosystems support vital resources that may be jeopardized by climate change and climate stressors such as drought.
Chesapeake Quarterly‘s Complicated Contaminants: Finding PFAS in the Chesapeake Bay
Collection of USGS-related articles from the Chesapeake Quarterly: Volume 23, Number 1 (May 2024)
Connecting Conservation Practices to Local Stream Health in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed
New Fact Sheet Published July 2024
Wastewater reuse may be detrimental to smallmouth bass abundance in the Shenandoah River Watershed
Issue: Municipal and industrial wastewater effluent is an important source of water for streams and rivers, especially during periods of low flow. The reuse of wastewater effluent may become even more important if climate change exacerbates low streamflow and drought conditions. However, wastewater effluent often contains chemicals that, when chronically present, can affect the health of aquatic organisms. Such is the case with the ecologically and socioeconomically important smallmouth bass in the Shenandoah River Watershed, where individuals have shown signs of chemical exposure in unison with mortality events of sexually mature bass. What researchers and managers know less about is how the detrimental effects of chemical exposure on individual fish translate to population-level impacts, which is an important aspect in sustaining the smallmouth bass fishery.
Experts forecast Chesapeake Bay dead zone to be near average in summer 2024
Chesapeake Bay Program — Press Release — June 21, 2024
Aligning Salt Marsh Science with Management Needs
USGS marsh vulnerability work and related geospatial products are a testament to the power of participatory science. As our collaborative network expands, so does the utility of this work. Federal, state, and NGO scientists along the Atlantic coast and beyond are finding great use in the geospatial products they helped co-produce.
Data & Publications
-
Attribution of benthic macroinvertebrate sampling data to NHDPlus V2 and NHDPlus HR catchments within the Chesapeake Bay Watershed
This data release links benthic macroinvertebrate sites to both the NHDPlus Version 2 and NHDPlus High Resolution Region 02 networks, hereafter referred to as V2 and HR, using the hydrolink methodology. Linked benthic macroinvertebrate sites are those included in the Chesapeake Bay Basin-wide Index of Biotic Integrity (Chessie BIBI) developed by the Interstate Commission on the Potomac River BasinWhen and where could rising seas cross thresholds for initiating wetland drowning across conterminous United States?
Recent data syntheses have clarified future relative sea-level rise exposure and sensitivity thresholds for drowning. We integrated these advances to estimate when and where rising sea levels could cross thresholds for initiating wetland drowning across the conterminous United States. We evaluated three sea-level rise thresholds for wetland drowning (4, 7, and 10 mm/yr). Our study area spans the cRising seas could cross thresholds for initiating coastal wetland drowning within decades across much of the United States
Accelerated sea-level rise is an existential threat to coastal wetlands, but the timing and extent of wetland drowning are debated. Recent data syntheses have clarified future relative sea-level rise exposure and sensitivity thresholds for drowning. Here, we integrate these advances to estimate when and where rising sea levels could cross thresholds for initiating wetland drowning across the conteData describing highly pathogenic H5N1 in Double-crested Cormorants of the Chesapeake Bay
These data describe the prevalence of HP H5N1 infection and antibodies in Double-crested Cormorants at a single breeding site in the Chesapeake Bay.Effects of estrogens and atrazine on functional immune responses of largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides)
Disease outbreaks, skin lesions, fish kill events, and reproductive abnormalities have been observed in wild populations of bass in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Occurrence of synthetic and natural hormones from wastewater treatment plants and livestock operations, pesticides from agricultural lands, and phytoestrogens from cover crops have been implicated as potential causes of these adverse effeNitrogen, phosphorus, and suspended-sediment loads and trends measured at the Chesapeake Bay River Input Monitoring stations: Water years 1985-2023
Nitrogen, phosphorus, and suspended-sediment loads, and changes in loads, in major rivers across the Chesapeake Bay watershed have been calculated using monitoring data from the Chesapeake Bay River Input Monitoring (RIM) Network stations for the period 1985 through 2023. Nutrient and suspended-sediment loads and changes in loads were determined by applying a weighted regression approach called WRIdentifying the forage base and critical forage taxa for Chesapeake waterbirds
To effectively maximize the conservation value of management plans intended to capture ecosystem-wide health, it is essential to obtain an understanding of emergent patterns in dietary dynamics spanning many species. Chesapeake Bay, USA, is a critical ecosystem used annually by a diverse assortment of waterbird species, including several of conservation concern. However, the ecosystem is threateneCausal inference approaches reveal both positive and negative unintended effects of agricultural and urban management practices on instream biological condition
Agricultural and urban management practices (MPs) are primarily designed and implemented to reduce nutrient and sediment concentrations in streams. However, there is growing interest in determining if MPs produce any unintended positive effects, or co-benefits, to instream biological and habitat conditions. Identifying co-benefits is challenging though because of confounding variables (i.e., thoseEvaluating the effectiveness of joint species distribution modeling for fresh water fish communities within large watersheds
Accurately predicting species’ distributions is critical for the management and conservation of fish and wildlife populations. Joint Species Distribution Models (JSDMs) account for dependencies between species often ignored by traditional species distribution models. We evaluated how a JSDM approach could improve predictive strength for stream fish communities within large watersheds (the ChesapeaEffects of episodic stream dewatering on brook trout spatial population structure
Stream dewatering is expected to become more prevalent due to climate change, and we explored the potential consequences for brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) within a temperate forest ecosystem in eastern North America.We estimated fish density within stream pools (n = 386) from electrofishing surveys over 10 years (2012–2021) to compare a stream that exhibits episodic dewatering (Paine Run) agIntegrated science for the study of microplastics in the environment—A strategic science vision for the U.S. Geological Survey
Executive SummaryEvidence of the widespread occurrence of microplastics throughout our environment and exposure to humans and other organisms over the past decade has led to questions about the possibility of health hazards and mitigation of exposures. This document discusses nanoplastics as well as microplastics (referred to solely as microplastics); the microplastics have a range from 1 micrometEvaluating an improved systems approach to wetland crediting: Consideration of wetland ecosystem services
The Chesapeake Bay Agreement (CBA) has numerous direct goals for improving habitat, living resources, and water quality, conserving lands, engaging communities and addressing a changing climate. To date, the progress toward the wetlands outcome (creation/ restoration of 85,000 acres and enhancement of 150,000 acres) has been very slow and the outcome is projected to be off course for 2025. Two speGenetic structure of restored Brook Trout populations in the Southern Appalachian Mountains indicates successful reintroductions
Wildlife reintroduction is an important conservation tool for threatened species, yet identifying appropriate source populations poses a challenge. In particular, the possibility of outbreeding depression is cited as a constraint limiting the range of candidate source populations for translocation. When multiple source lineages are mixed during reintroduction, genetic monitoring is necessary to evChesapeake Bay Watershed 1:24k 10, 30 and 90-meter Riparian Buffer Zones
This data release contains three 10-meter resolution GeoTIFFs representing 10-meter (35-foot), 30-meter (100-foot) and 90-meter (300-foot) riparian buffer zones along shorelines, rivers, streams, and other lotic (flowing) water features. The layers are binary, where the value of each cell represents the presence or absence of the buffer zone. In addition, the data release contains shapefile layersRemotely mapping gullying and incision in Maryland Piedmont headwater streams using repeat airborne lidar
Headwater streams can contribute significant amounts of fine sediment to downstream waterways, especially when severely eroded and incised. Potential upstream sediment source identification is crucial for effective management of water quality, aquatic habitat, and sediment loads in a watershed. This study explored topographic openness (TO) derived from 1-m lidar for its ability to predict incisionIdentifying an understudied interface: Preliminary evaluation of the use of retention ponds on commercial poultry farms by wild waterfowl
While the recent incursion of highly pathogenic avian influenza into North America has resulted in notable losses to the commercial poultry industry, the mechanism by which virus enters commercial poultry houses is still not understood. One theorized mechanism is that waterfowl shed virus into the environment surrounding poultry farms, such as into retention ponds, and is then transmitted into pou