Publications
This list of Water Resources Mission Area publications includes both official USGS publications and journal articles authored by our scientists. A searchable database of all USGS publications can be accessed at the USGS Publications Warehouse.
Filter Total Items: 19113
Sources, fate, and flux of geothermal solutes in the Yellowstone and Gardner Rivers, Yellowstone National Park, WY Sources, fate, and flux of geothermal solutes in the Yellowstone and Gardner Rivers, Yellowstone National Park, WY
The total discharge and thermal output from the numerous hydrothermal features in Yellowstone National Park (YNP) can be estimated from the chloride (Cl) flux in the Madison, Yellowstone, Falls, and Snake Rivers. Monitoring the Cl flux in these four major rivers provides a holistic view of the hydrothermal output from YNP and changes in the Cl flux may indicate changes in geothermal or...
Authors
R. Blaine McCleskey, David A. Roth, D. Mahony, D. Kirk Nordstrom, Stacy Kinsey
Seasonality of climatic drivers of flood variability in the conterminous United States Seasonality of climatic drivers of flood variability in the conterminous United States
Flood variability due to changes in climate is a major economic and social concern. Climate drivers can affect the amount and distribution of flood-generating precipitation through seasonal shifts in storm tracks. An understanding of how the drivers may change in the future is critical for identifying the regions where the magnitude of floods may change. Here we show the regions in the
Authors
Jesse E. Dickinson, Tessa M. Harden, Gregory J. McCabe
Modeling groundwater nitrate exposure in private wells of North Carolina for the Agricultural Health Study Modeling groundwater nitrate exposure in private wells of North Carolina for the Agricultural Health Study
Unregulated private wells in the United States are susceptible to many groundwater contaminants. Ingestion of nitrate, the most common anthropogenic private well contaminant in the United States, can lead to the endogenous formation of N-nitroso-compounds, which are known human carcinogens. In this study, we expand upon previous efforts to model private well groundwater nitrate...
Authors
Kyle P Messier, David C Wheeler, Abigail R Flory, Rena R Jones, Deven Patel, Bernard T. Nolan, Mary H Ward
Fossil tabulate corals reveal outcrops of Paleozoic sandstones in the Atlantic Coastal Plain Province, Southeastern USA Fossil tabulate corals reveal outcrops of Paleozoic sandstones in the Atlantic Coastal Plain Province, Southeastern USA
The geologic history of the Southeastern United States of America is missing nearly 350-million-years of rocks, sediments, and fossils. This gap defines the Fall Line nonconformity where Upper Ordovician consolidated rocks are directly overlain by Upper Cretaceous unconsolidated sediments of the Atlantic Coastal Plain Province. Here we begin to fill in the missing geologic record by...
Authors
James E. Landmeyer, Francis Tourneur, Julien Denayer, Mikolaj K Zapalski
Quantifying the eroded and deposited mass of mercury-contaminated sediment by using terrestrial laser scanning at the confluence of Humbug Creek and the South Yuba River, Nevada County, California, 2011–13 Quantifying the eroded and deposited mass of mercury-contaminated sediment by using terrestrial laser scanning at the confluence of Humbug Creek and the South Yuba River, Nevada County, California, 2011–13
High-resolution, terrestrial laser scanning, also known as ground-based lidar (light detection and ranging), was used to quantify the volume of mercury-contaminated sediment eroded from an outcrop of historical placer-mining debris at the confluence of Humbug Creek and the South Yuba River in the Sierra Nevada foothills, about 17 kilometers northeast of Grass Valley, California, and...
Authors
James F. Howle, Charles N. Alpers, Jeffrey Kitchen, Gerald W. Bawden, Sandra Bond
Dissolved organic carbon turnover in permafrost-influenced watersheds of interior Alaska: Molecular insights and the priming effect Dissolved organic carbon turnover in permafrost-influenced watersheds of interior Alaska: Molecular insights and the priming effect
Increased permafrost thaw due to climate change in northern high-latitudes has prompted concern over impacts on soil and stream biogeochemistry that affect the fate of dissolved organic carbon (DOC). Few studies to-date have examined the link between molecular composition and biolability of dissolved organic matter (DOM) mobilized from different soil horizons despite its importance in
Authors
Sadie R. Textor, Kimberly P. Wickland, David C. Podgorski, Sarah Ellen Johnston, Robert G.M. Spencer
Physical controls on salmon redd site selection in restored reaches of a regulated, gravel-bed river Physical controls on salmon redd site selection in restored reaches of a regulated, gravel-bed river
Large‐scale river restoration programs have emerged recently as a tool for improving spawning habitat for native salmonids in highly altered river ecosystems. Few studies have quantified the extent to which restored habitat is utilized by salmonids, which habitat features influence redd site selection, or the persistence of restored habitat over time. We investigated fall‐run Chinook...
Authors
Lee R. Harrison, Erin Bray, Brandon T. Overstreet, Carl J. Legleiter, Rocko A. Brown, Joseph E. Merz, Roselea M. Bond, Colin L Nicol, Thomas Dunne
Draft genome sequence of the Mn(II)-oxidizing bacterium Oxalobacteraceae sp. AB_14 Draft genome sequence of the Mn(II)-oxidizing bacterium Oxalobacteraceae sp. AB_14
Biological Mn(II) oxidation produces reactive manganese oxides that help to mitigate metal contamination in the environment. Here we present the genome of Oxalobacteraceae sp. AB_14, a species of Mn(II)-oxidizing bacteria (MOB) notable for its ability to catalyze Mn oxidation at low pH (5.5).
Authors
Timothy Bushman, Denise M. Akob, Tsing Bohu, Andrea Beyer, Tanja Woyke, Nicole Shapiro, Alla Lapidus, Hans-Peter Klenk, Kirsten Küsel
Recovery of soils from acidic deposition may exacerbate nitrogen export from forested watersheds Recovery of soils from acidic deposition may exacerbate nitrogen export from forested watersheds
Effects of ambient decreases in N deposition on forest N cycling remain unclear as soils recover from acidic deposition. To investigate, repeated soil sampling data were related to deposition, vegetation, and stream data, for 2000–2015 in North and South Buck Creek watersheds, in the Adirondack region of New York, USA. In 63 other Adirondack streams, NO3− concentrations were also...
Authors
Gregory B. Lawrence, Sara E. Scanga, Robert D. Sabo
Resolving a paradox—high mercury deposition, but low bioaccumulation in northeastern Puerto Rico Resolving a paradox—high mercury deposition, but low bioaccumulation in northeastern Puerto Rico
At a “clean air” trade winds site in northeastern Puerto Rico, we found an apparent paradox: atmospheric total mercury (THg) deposition was highest of any site in the USA Mercury Deposition Network, but assimilation into the local food web was quite low. Avian blood THg concentrations (n = 31, from eight species in five foraging guilds) ranged widely from 0.2 to 32 ng g−1 (median of 4.3...
Authors
James B. Shanley, Mark C. Marvin-DiPasquale, Oksana P. Lane, Wayne J. Arendt, Steven J. Hall, William H. McDowell
Solute transport and transformation in an intermittent, headwater mountain stream with diurnal discharge fluctuations Solute transport and transformation in an intermittent, headwater mountain stream with diurnal discharge fluctuations
Time-variable discharge is known to control both transport and transformation of solutes in the river corridor. Still, few studies consider the interactions of transport and transformation together. Here, we consider how diurnal discharge fluctuations in an intermittent, headwater stream control reach-scale solute transport and transformation as measured with conservative and reactive...
Authors
Adam S Ward, Marie J Kurz, Noah M. Schmadel, Julia LA Knapp, Phillip J Blaen, Ciaran Harman, Jennifer D. Drummond, David M Hannah, Stefan Krause, Angang Li, Eugenia Marti, Alexander Milner, Kerry Neil, Stephen Plont, Aaron I. Packman, Nathan I Wisnoski, Steven Wondzell, Jay P. Zarnetske
The Life of P: A biogeochemical and sociopolitical challenge in the Everglades The Life of P: A biogeochemical and sociopolitical challenge in the Everglades
• Phosphorus (P) is an essential element for all life forms, yet to understand its life cycle and impact we need to grasp not only the biogeochemical life of P, but also how P intersects with human activities and values. • Phosphorus is the limiting nutrient in the oligotrophic Everglades ecosystem. Thus, the anthropogenic addition of P to the landscape and its subsequent transport...
Authors
Victor H. Rivera-Monroy, Jessica Cattelino, Jeffrey R Wozniak, Katrina Schwartz, Gregory B. Noe, Edward Castaneda-Moya, Gregory R Koch