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Book Chapters

Browse more than 5,500 book chapters authored by our scientists over the past 100+ year history of the USGS and refine search by topic, location, year, and advanced search.

Filter Total Items: 6158

Deep-ocean ferromanganese crusts and nodules Deep-ocean ferromanganese crusts and nodules

Ferromanganese crusts and nodules may provide a future resource for a large variety of metals, including many that are essential for emerging high- and green-technology applications. A brief review of nodules and crusts provides a setting for a discussion on the latest (past 10 years) research related to the geochemistry of sequestration of metals from seawater. Special attention is...
Authors
James R. Hein, Andrea Koschinsky

Preface Preface

No abstract available.
Authors
Robert I. Tilling

Regional assessment of North America: Urbanization trends, biodiversity patterns, and ecosystem services Regional assessment of North America: Urbanization trends, biodiversity patterns, and ecosystem services

North America contains some of the most urbanized landscapes in the world. In the United States (U.S.) and Canada, approximately 80 % of the population is urban, with Mexico slightly less (Kaiser Family Foundation 2013). Population growth combined with economic growth has fueled recent urban land expansion in North America. Between 1970 and 2000, urban land area expanded at a rate of 3...
Authors
Timon McPhearson, Roger F. Auch, Marina Alberti

Pesticides in amphibian habitats of Central and Northern California, USA Pesticides in amphibian habitats of Central and Northern California, USA

Previous studies have indicated that toxicity from pesticide exposure may be contributing to amphibian declines in California and that atmospheric deposition could be a primary pathway for pesticides to enter amphibian habitats. We report on a survey of California wetlands sampled along transects associated with Lassen Volcanic National Park, Lake Tahoe, Yosemite National Park, and...
Authors
Gary M. Fellers, W Sparling, Laura McConnell, Patrick M. Kleeman, Leticia Drakeford

Plant invasions in protected areas of tropical pacific islands, with special reference to Hawaii Plant invasions in protected areas of tropical pacific islands, with special reference to Hawaii

Isolated tropical islands are notoriously vulnerable to plant invasions. Serious management for protection of native biodiversity in Hawaii began in the 1970s, arguably at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. Concerted alien plant management began there in the 1980s and has in a sense become a model for protected areas throughout Hawaii and Pacific Island countries and territories. We review...
Authors
R. Flint Hughes, Jean-Yves Meyer, Lloyd L. Loope

North America North America

Plant phenological observations and networks in North America have been largely local and regional in extent until recent decades. In the USA, cloned plant monitoring networks were the exception to this pattern, with data collection spanning the late 1950s until approximately the early 1990s. Animal observation networks, especially for birds have been more extensive. The USA National...
Authors
Mark D. Schwartz, Elisabeth G. Beaubien, Theresa Crimmins, Jake Weltzin

Surface water quality in streams and rivers: Scaling, and climate change Surface water quality in streams and rivers: Scaling, and climate change

This chapter explores spatial and temporal scaling and the impact of climate change on four basic water quality parameters: temperature, pH, dissolved oxygen, and suspended sediment. An introduction describing the conditions and changes in these water quality parameters is presented. Temporal scaling of water quality parameters is discussed on diel (24 h), precipitation event, and...
Authors
John Loperfido

The music of earthquakes and Earthquake Quartet #1 The music of earthquakes and Earthquake Quartet #1

Earthquake Quartet #1, my composition for voice, trombone, cello, and seismograms, is the intersection of listening to earthquakes as a seismologist and performing music as a trombonist. Along the way, I realized there is a close relationship between what I do as a scientist and what I do as a musician. A musician controls the source of the sound and the path it travels through their...
Authors
Andrew J. Michael

Animal migration and risk of spread of viral infections Animal migration and risk of spread of viral infections

The potential contribution of migration towards the spread of disease is as varied as the ecology of the pathogens themselves and their host populations. This chapter outlines multiple examples of viral diseases in animal populations and their mechanisms of viral spread. Many species of insects, mammals, fish, and birds exhibit migratory behavior and have the potential to disperse...
Authors
Diann J. Prosser, Jessica L. Nagel, John Y. Takekawa

Structured decision making Structured decision making

Wildlife management is a decision-focused discipline. It needs to integrate traditional wildlife science and social science to identify actions that are most likely to achieve the array of desires society has surrounding wildlife populations. Decision science, a vast field with roots in economics, operations research, and psychology, offers a rich set of tools to help wildlife managers...
Authors
Michael C. Runge, J. Barry Grand, Michael S. Mitchell

Forest ecosystems: Vegetation, disturbance, and economics Forest ecosystems: Vegetation, disturbance, and economics

Forests cover about 47% of the Northwest (NW–Washington, Oregon, and Idaho) (Smith et al. 2009, fig. 5.1, table 5.1). The impacts of current and future climate change on NW forest ecosystems are a product of the sensitivities of ecosystem processes to climate and the degree to which humans depend on and interact with those systems. Forest ecosystem structure and function, particularly in
Authors
Jeremy S. Littell, Jeffrey A. Hicke, Sarah L. Shafer, Susan M. Capalbo, Laurie L. Houston, Patty Glick
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