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The USGS provides unbiased, objective, and impartial scientific information upon which our audiences, including resource managers, planners, and other entities, rely.
Browse more than 65,000 articles authored by our scientists over the past 100+ year history of the USGS and refine search by topic, location, year, and advanced search.
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Responses of soil extracellular enzyme activities and bacterial community composition to seasonal stages of drought in a semiarid grassland Responses of soil extracellular enzyme activities and bacterial community composition to seasonal stages of drought in a semiarid grassland
Extreme drought can strongly impact belowground communities and biogeochemical processes, including soil microbial community composition and extracellular enzyme activities (EEAs), which are considered key agents in ecosystem carbon (C) and nutrient cycling. However, our understanding of how seasonal timing of drought during the growing season affects soil microbial communities and their...
Authors
Wenlan Gao, Sasha C. Reed, Seth M. Munson, Yichao Rui, Wenyuan Fan, Zhenzhen Zheng, Linfeng Li, Rongxiao Che, Kai Xue, Jianqing Du, Xiaoyong Cui, Yanfen Wang, Yanbin Hao
Optimizing preservation for multiple types of historic structures under climate change Optimizing preservation for multiple types of historic structures under climate change
Cultural resources in coastal parks and recreation areas are vulnerable to climate change. The US National Park Service (NPS) is facing the challenge of insufficient budget allocations for both maintenance and climate adaptation of historic structures. Research on adaptation planning for cultural resources has predominately focused on vulnerability assessments of heritage sites; however...
Authors
Xiao Xiao, Erin Seekamp, Junyu Lu, Mitchell J. Eaton, Max Post van der Burg
Leveraging existing technology: Developing a trusted digital repository for the U.S. Geological Survey Leveraging existing technology: Developing a trusted digital repository for the U.S. Geological Survey
As Federal Government agencies in the United States pivot to increase access to scientific data (Sheehan, 2016), the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has made substantial progress (Kriesberg et al., 2017). USGS authors are required to make federally funded data publicly available in an approved data repository (USGS, 2016b). This type of public data product, known as a USGS data release...
Authors
Vivian B. Hutchison, Tamar Norkin, Madison Langseth, Drew Ignizio, Lisa Zolly, Ricardo McClees-Funinan, Amanda N. Liford
Gap-filling eddy covariance methane fluxes: Comparison of machine learning model predictions and uncertainties at FLUXNET-CH4 wetlands Gap-filling eddy covariance methane fluxes: Comparison of machine learning model predictions and uncertainties at FLUXNET-CH4 wetlands
Time series of wetland methane fluxes measured by eddy covariance require gap-filling to estimate daily, seasonal, and annual emissions. Gap-filling methane fluxes is challenging because of high variability and complex responses to multiple drivers. To date, there is no widely established gap-filling standard for wetland methane fluxes, with regards both to the best model algorithms and...
Authors
Jeremy Irvin, Sharon Zhou, Gavin McNicol, Fred Lu, Vincent Liu, Etienne Fluet-Chouinard, Zutao Ouyang, Sara Helen Knox, Antje Lucas-Moffat, Carlo Trotta, Dario Papale, Domenico Vitale, Ivan Mammarella, Pavel Alekseychik, Mika Aurela, Anand Avati, Dennis Baldocchi, Sheel Bansal, Gil Bohrer, David I. Campbell, Jiquan Chen, Housen Chu, Higo J. Dalmagro, Kyle B. Delwiche, Ankur R. Desai, Eugenie S. Euskirchen, Sarah Feron, Mathias Goeckede, Martin Heimann, Manuel Helbig, Carole Helfter, Kyle S. Hemes, Takashi Hirano, Hiroki Iwata, Gerald Jurasinski, Aram Kalhori, Andrew Kondrich, Derrick Y. F. Lai, Annalea Lohila, Avni Malholtra, Lutz Merbold, Bhaskar Mitra, Andrew Ng, Mats B. Nilsson, Asko Noormets, Matthias Peichl, A. Camilo Rey-Sanchez, Andrew D. Richardson, Benjamin R. K. Runkle, Karina V. R. Schafer, Oliver Sonnentag, Ellen Stuart-Haëntjens, Cove Sturtevant, Masahito Ueyama, Alex C. Valach, Rodrigo Vargas, George L. Vourlitis, Eric Ward, Guan Xhuan Wong, Donatella Zona, Ma. Carmelita R. Alberto, David P. Billesbach, Gerardo Celis, Han Dolman, Thomas Friborg, Kathrin Fuchs, Sebastien Gogo, Mangaliso J. Gondwe, Jordan P. Goodrich, Pia Gottschalk, Lukas Hortnagl, Adrien Jacotot, Franziska Koebsch, Kuno Kasak, Regine Maier, Timothy H. Morin, Eiko Nemitz, Walter C. Oechel, Patricia Y. Oikawa, Keisuke Ono, Torsten Sachs, Ayaka Sakabe, Edward A. Schuur, Robert Shortt, Ryan C. Sullivan, Daphne J. Szutu, Eeva-Stiina Tuittila, Andrej Varlagin, Joseph G. Verfaillie, Christian Wille, Lisamarie Windham-Myers, Benjamin Poulter, Robert B. Jackson
The Miocene stratigraphy of the Laberinto area (Río Ica Valley) and its bearing on the geological history of the East Pisco Basin (south-central Peru) The Miocene stratigraphy of the Laberinto area (Río Ica Valley) and its bearing on the geological history of the East Pisco Basin (south-central Peru)
Global sea-level changes and substantial vertical displacement along the Monte Grande Fault (MGF) in the lower Río Ica Valley of south-central Peru influenced the accumulation of bioclast-bearing and diatom-bearing Miocene siliciclastic sediments in an area of the East Pisco forearc basin (EPB) colloquially known as Laberinto. Two depositional hiatuses in the Laberinto area (∼17–14 Ma,...
Authors
Thomas J. Devries, John A. Barron, Mario Urbina-Schmitt, Diana Ochoa, Raul Esperante, Lawrence W. Snee
Genetic structure and diversity of the mustard hill coral Porites astreoides along the Florida Keys reef tract Genetic structure and diversity of the mustard hill coral Porites astreoides along the Florida Keys reef tract
Increases in local and global stressors have led to major declines in coral populations throughout the western Atlantic. While abundances of other species have declined, however, the relative abundance of the mustard hill coral, Porites astreoides, has increased. Porites astreoides is relatively resilient to some stressors, and because of its mixed reproductive strategies, its...
Authors
Dominique N. Gallery, Michelle L. Green, Ilsa B. Kuffner, Elizabeth A. Lenz, Lauren T. Toth
BERM: A Belowground Ecosystem Resiliency Model for estimating Spartina alterniflora belowground biomass BERM: A Belowground Ecosystem Resiliency Model for estimating Spartina alterniflora belowground biomass
SummarySpatiotemporal patterns of Spartina alterniflora belowground biomass (BGB) are important for evaluating salt marsh resiliency. To solve this, we created the BERM (Belowground Ecosystem Resiliency Model), which estimates monthly BGB (30-m spatial resolution) from freely available data such as Landsat-8 and Daymet climate summaries.Our modeling framework relied on extreme gradient...
Authors
Jessica L. O'Connell, Deepak Mishra, Merryl Alber, Kristin B. Byrd
Forecasting the distribution of a range-expanding bat reveals future response to climate change and habitat Forecasting the distribution of a range-expanding bat reveals future response to climate change and habitat
Many terrestrial vertebrate species are exhibiting geographic distribution changes including poleward range limit shifts in response to increases in regional temperature. Bats are a highly mobile taxa capable of rapid responses to changes in abiotic or biotic conditions. In North America, recent extralimital records of the non-hibernating Lasiurus seminolus (Seminole bat) have been...
Authors
Michael C. True, Roger W. Perry, W. Mark Ford
A comparative baseline of coral disease in three regions along the Saudi Arabian coast of the central Red Sea A comparative baseline of coral disease in three regions along the Saudi Arabian coast of the central Red Sea
Coral disease is a growing problem for coral reefs globally and diseases have been linked to thermal stress, excess nutrients, overfishing and other human impacts. The Red Sea is a unique environment for corals with a strong environmental gradient characterized by temperature extremes and high salinities, but minimal terrestrial runoff or riverine input and their associated pollution...
Authors
Greta S. Aeby, Amanda Shore, Thor Jensen, Maren Ziegler, Thierry M. Work, Christian Voolstra
Brine-driven destruction of clay minerals in Gale crater, Mars Brine-driven destruction of clay minerals in Gale crater, Mars
Mars’ sedimentary rock record preserves information on geological (and potential astrobiological) processes that occurred on the planet billions of years ago. The Curiosity rover is exploring the lower reaches of Mount Sharp, in Gale crater on Mars. A traverse from Vera Rubin ridge to Glen Torridon has allowed Curiosity to examine a lateral transect of rock strata laid down in a martian...
Authors
T. F. Bristow, John P. Grotzinger, E. Rampe, J. Cuadros, S. J. Chipera, G. Downs, Christopher M. Fedo, Jens Frydenvang, A. C. McAdam, R. V. Morris, C. N. Achilles, D. F. Blake, N. Castle, P. Craig, D. J. Des Marais, R. T. Downs, R. M. Hazen, D. W. Ming, S. M. Morrison, M. T. Thorpe, A. H. Treiman, V. Tu, D. T. Vaniman, A. S. Yen, R. Gellert, P. R. Mahaffy, Roger C. Wiens, A. B. Bryk, Kristen A. Bennett, V. K. Fox, R. E. Milliken, Abigail A. Fraeman, A. R. Vasavada
Earlier winter/spring runoff and snowmelt during warmer winters lead to lower summer chlorophyll-a in north temperate lakes Earlier winter/spring runoff and snowmelt during warmer winters lead to lower summer chlorophyll-a in north temperate lakes
Winter conditions, such as ice cover and snow accumulation, are changing rapidly at northern latitudes and can have important implications for lake processes. For example, snowmelt in the watershed—a defining feature of lake hydrology because it delivers a large portion of annual nutrient inputs—is becoming earlier. Consequently, earlier and a shorter duration of snowmelt are expected to...
Authors
Allison R. Hrycik, Peter D. F. Isles, Rita Adrian, Matthew Albright, Linda C. Bacon, Stella A. Berger, Ruchi Bhattacharya, Hans-Peter Grossart, Josef Hejzlar, Amy L. Hetherington, Lesley B. Knoll, Alo Laas, Cory P. McDonald, Kellie Merrell, Jens C. Nejstgaard, Kirsten Nelson, Peeter Noges, Andrew M. Paterson, Rachel M. Pilla, Dale M. Robertson, Lars G. Rudstam, James A. Rusak, Steven Sadro, Eugene A. Silow, Jason D. Stockwell, Huaxia Yao, Kiyoko Yokota, Donald C. Pierson
Who’s your daddy? On the identity and distribution of the paternal hybrid ancestor of the parthenogenetic gecko Lepidodactylus lugubris (Reptilia: Squamata: Gekkonidae) Who’s your daddy? On the identity and distribution of the paternal hybrid ancestor of the parthenogenetic gecko Lepidodactylus lugubris (Reptilia: Squamata: Gekkonidae)
The widespread parthenogenetic gecko Lepidodactylus lugubris is comprised of several clonal lineages, at least one of which has been known for some time to have originated from hybridization between its maternal ancestor, Lepidodactylus moestus, and a putatively undescribed paternal ancestor previously known only from remote islands in the Central Pacific. By integrating new genetic...
Authors
Benjamin R. Karin, Paul M. Oliver, Alexander L. Stubbs, Umilaela Afirin, Djoko T. Iskandar, Evy Arida, Zheng Oong, Jimmy A. McGuire, Frederick Kraus, Matthew K. Fujita, Ivan Ineich, Hidetoshi Ota, Stacie A. Hathaway, Robert N. Fisher