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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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Tectonostratigraphic record of late Miocene–early Pliocene transtensional faulting in the Eastern California shear zone, southwestern USA Tectonostratigraphic record of late Miocene–early Pliocene transtensional faulting in the Eastern California shear zone, southwestern USA
The Eastern California shear zone (ECSZ; southwestern USA) accommodates ~20%–25% of Pacific–North America relative plate motion east of the San Andreas fault, yet little is known about its early tectonic evolution. This paper presents a detailed stratigraphic and structural analysis of the uppermost Miocene to lower Pliocene Bouse Formation in the southern Blythe Basin, lower Colorado...
Authors
Rebecca J. Dorsey, Brennan O’Connell, Kevin Gardner, Mindy B. Homan, Scott E.K. Bennett, Jacob Thacker, Michael H. Darin
Expansion of intertidal mussel beds following disease-driven reduction of a keystone predator Expansion of intertidal mussel beds following disease-driven reduction of a keystone predator
Disease shapes community composition by removing species with strong interactions. To test whether the absence of keystone predation due to disease produced changes to the species composition of rocky intertidal communities, we leverage a natural experiment involving mass mortality of the keystone predator Pisaster ochraceus from Sea Star Wasting Syndrome. Over four years, we measured...
Authors
Monica Mei Jeen Moritsch
Emerging dominance of Paratrochammina simplissima (Cushman and McCulloch) in the northern Gulf of Mexico following hydrologic and geomorphic changes Emerging dominance of Paratrochammina simplissima (Cushman and McCulloch) in the northern Gulf of Mexico following hydrologic and geomorphic changes
Grand Bay estuary in coastal Mississippi and Alabama (USA) has undergone significant geomorphic changes over the last few centuries as a result of anthropogenic (bridge, road, and hardened shoreline construction) and climatic (extreme storm events) processes, which reduce freshwater input, sediment supply, and degrade barrier islands. To investigate how geomorphic changes may have...
Authors
Alisha M. Ellis, Christopher G. Smith
Heat flux from a vapor-dominated hydrothermal field beneath Yellowstone Lake Heat flux from a vapor-dominated hydrothermal field beneath Yellowstone Lake
We report results from 149 heat flux measurements made over n ∼2-year interval at sites in and around a vapor-dominated geothermal field located at water depths of ∼100–120 m in Yellowstone Lake, Wyoming. Measurements of both in situ temperature and thermal conductivity as a function of depth were made with a 1 m probe via a remotely operated vehicle, and are combined to compute the...
Authors
Julia E. Favorito, Robert N. Harris, Robert A. Sohn, Shaul Hurwitz, Karen Luttrell
The 2018 update of the US National Seismic Hazard Model: Ground motion models in the western US The 2018 update of the US National Seismic Hazard Model: Ground motion models in the western US
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Seismic Hazard Model (NSHM) is the scientific foundation of seismic design regulations in the United States and is regularly updated to consider the best available science and data. The 2018 update of the conterminous U.S. NSHM includes significant changes to the underlying ground motion models (GMMs), most of which are necessary to enable the...
Authors
Peter M. Powers, Sanaz Rezaeian, Allison Shumway, Mark D. Petersen, Nico Luco, Oliver S. Boyd, Morgan P. Moschetti, Arthur D. Frankel, Eric M. Thompson
Land conversion and pesticide use degrade forage areas for honey bees in America’s beekeeping epicenter Land conversion and pesticide use degrade forage areas for honey bees in America’s beekeeping epicenter
A diverse range of threats have been associated with managed bee declines globally. Recent increases of two known threats, land-use change and pesticide use, have resulted from agricultural expansion and intensification notably in the top honey producing state in the United States (U.S.): North Dakota. This study investigated the dual threat from land conversion and pesticide use...
Authors
Dan J. Dixon, Haochi Zheng, Clint Otto
Demographic responses to density-dependence by two populations of the Florida Tree Snail, Liguus fasciatus (Gastropoda: Orthalicidae), in Everglades National Park Demographic responses to density-dependence by two populations of the Florida Tree Snail, Liguus fasciatus (Gastropoda: Orthalicidae), in Everglades National Park
During May-October 1996, we captured and individually marked and released Florida Tree Snails, Liguus fasciatus, from two sites, a subclimax hammock and a large isolated wild tamarind tree, in the Long Pine Key region of Everglades National Park. Populations shared the same two dominant morphs, castaneozonatus and. cingulatus, both of which are strong colonizers. Monthly survivorship...
Authors
Walter E. Meshaka, Kenneth G. Rice, Oron L. Bass, Hardin Waddle
Short-term responses to a human-altered landscape do not affect fat dynamics of a migratory ungulate Short-term responses to a human-altered landscape do not affect fat dynamics of a migratory ungulate
According to risk-sensitive foraging theory, animals should make foraging decisions that balance nutritional costs and gains to promote fitness. Human disturbance is a form of perceived risk that can prompt avoidance of risky habitat over acquisition of food. Consequently, behavioural responses to perceived risk could induce nutritional costs.Population declines often coincide with...
Authors
Samantha P. H. Dwinnell, Hall Sawyer, Matthew J. Kauffman, Jill E. Randall, Rusty Kaiser, Mark A. Thonhoff, Gary L. Fralick, Kevin L. Monteith
Species and population specific gene expression in blood transcriptomes of marine turtles Species and population specific gene expression in blood transcriptomes of marine turtles
Background Transcriptomic data has demonstrated utility to advance the study of physiological diversity and organisms’ responses to environmental stressors. However, a lack of genomic resources and challenges associated with collecting high-quality RNA can limit its application for many wild populations. Minimally invasive blood sampling combined with de novo transcriptomic approaches...
Authors
Shreya M. Banjeree, Jamie Adkins Stoll, Camryn D. Allen, Jennifer M. Lynch, Heather S. Harris, Lauren Kenyon, Richard E. Connon, Eleanor J. Sterling, Eugenia Naro-Maciel, Kathryn McFadden, Margaret Lamont, James Benge, Nadia B. Fernandez, Jeffrey A. Seminoff, Scott R. Benson, Rebecca L. Lewison, Tomoharu Eguchi, Tammy M. Summers, Jessy R. Hapdei, Marc R. Rice, Summer Martin, T. Todd Jones, Peter H. Dutton, George H. Balazs, Lisa M. Komoroske
What's left before participatory modeling can fully support real-world environmental planning processes: A case study review What's left before participatory modeling can fully support real-world environmental planning processes: A case study review
In environmental participatory modeling (PM), both computer and non-computer-based modeling techniques are used to aid participatory problem description, solution, and decision-making actions in environmental contexts. Although many PM case studies have been published, few efforts have sought to systematically describe and understand dominant PM processes or establish best practices for...
Authors
B. Hedelin, S. Gray, S. Woehlke, T. K. BenDor, A. Singer, R. Jordan, M. Zellner, P. Giabbanelli, P. Glynn, K. Jenni, A Jetter, N. Kolgani, B. Laursen, K. M. Leong, L. Schmitt Olabisi, E. Sterling
Rapid monitoring of the abundance and spread of exotic annual grasses in the western United States using remote sensing and machine learning Rapid monitoring of the abundance and spread of exotic annual grasses in the western United States using remote sensing and machine learning
Exotic annual grasses (EAG) are one of the most damaging agents of change in western North America. Despite known socio-environmental effects of EAG there remains a need to enhance monitoring capabilities for better informing conservation and management practices. Here, we integrate field observations, remote sensing and climate data with machine-learning techniques to estimate and...
Authors
Neal Pastick, Bruce Wylie, Matthew B. Rigge, Devendra Dahal, Stephen P. Boyte, Matthew O. Jones, Brady W Allred, Sujan Parajuli, Zhuoting Wu
Trophic transfer efficiency in the Lake Superior food web: Assessing the impacts of non-native species Trophic transfer efficiency in the Lake Superior food web: Assessing the impacts of non-native species
Ecosystem-based management relies on understanding how perturbations influence ecosystem structure and function (e.g., invasive species, exploitation, abiotic changes). However, data on unimpacted systems are scarce; therefore, we often rely on impacted systems to make inferences about ‘natural states.’ Among the Laurentian Great Lakes, Lake Superior provides a unique case study to...
Authors
Bryan G. Mathias, Thomas R. Hrabik, Joel C. Hoffman, Owen Gorman, Michael J. Seider, Michael E. Sierszen, Mark R. Vinson, Daniel L. Yule, Peder M. Yurista