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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

Geomorphology and sediment regimes of intermittent rivers and ephemeral streams Geomorphology and sediment regimes of intermittent rivers and ephemeral streams

The geomorphology and sediment regimes of intermittent rivers and ephemeral streams (IRES) are extremely diverse, owing in large part to the substantial spatiotemporal variability of the associated hydrological regimes. We describe the geomorphological character and sediment transport processes along IRES within the context of four geomorphological zones—upland, piedmont, lowland, and...
Authors
Kristin L. Jaeger, Nicholas A. Sutfin, Stephen Tooth, Katerina Michaelides, Michael B. Singer

Hydrological connectivity in intermittent rivers and ephemeral streams Hydrological connectivity in intermittent rivers and ephemeral streams

In intermittent rivers and ephemeral streams (hereafter, IRES), hydrological connectivity mediated by either flowing or nonflowing water extends along three spatial dimensions—longitudinal, lateral, and vertical—and varies over time. Flow intermittence disrupts this connectivity, operating through complex hydrological transitions (e.g., between flowing and nonflowing phases). These...
Authors
Andrew J. Boulton, Robert J. Rolls, Kristin L. Jaeger, Thibault Datry

Allowable take of a population of red-winged blackbirds in the northern Great Plains Allowable take of a population of red-winged blackbirds in the northern Great Plains

Red-winged blackbirds (Agelaius phoeniceus) are protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA), which has provisions against take. Blackbirds may be taken legally without a Federal permit, however, under an existing Depredation Order (50 CFR 21.43), which allows for take of blackbirds that are in the process of doing, or about to do, agricultural damage. Modeling the effect of take...
Authors
Michael C. Runge, John R. Sauer

Examples of storm impacts on barrier islands Examples of storm impacts on barrier islands

This chapter focuses on the morphologic variability of barrier islands and on the differences in storm response. It describes different types of barrier island response to individual storms, as well as the integrated response of barrier islands to many storms. The chapter considers case study on the Chandeleur Island chain, where a decadal time series of island elevation measurements...
Authors
Nathaniel G. Plant, Kara S. Doran, Hilary F. Stockdon

Assessing welfare of individual sirenians in the wild and in captivity Assessing welfare of individual sirenians in the wild and in captivity

Assessing the welfare of wild populations of sirenians has required a “generalist” approach. The outcome has been a subjective decision as to whether what the observers are witnessing in an individual or group of animals is normal and whether that has positive or negative consequences. The understanding of sirenian welfare requirements, and a decision process for whether to support and...
Authors
Mark Flint, Robert K. Bonde

Human interactions with sirenians (manatees and dugongs) Human interactions with sirenians (manatees and dugongs)

There are three extant sirenian species of the Trichechidae family and one living Dugongidae family member. Given their close ties to coastal and often urbanized habitats, sirenians are exposed to many types of anthropogenic activities that result in challenges to their well-being, poor health, and even death. In the wild, they are exposed to direct and indirect local pressures as well...
Authors
Robert K. Bonde, Mark Flint

Mortality investigation Mortality investigation

No abstract available.
Authors
Brian Stacy, Allen M. Foley, Thierry M. Work, Terry M. Norton

Necropsy Necropsy

No abstract available.
Authors
Thierry M. Work, Brian A Stacy, Mark Flint

Recent climate extremes associated with the West Pacific Warming Mode Recent climate extremes associated with the West Pacific Warming Mode

Here we analyze empirical orthogonal functions (EOFs) of observations and a 30 member ensemble of Community Earth System Model version 1 (CESM1) simulations, and suggest that precipitation declines in the Greater Horn of Africa (GHA) and the northern Middle East/Southwestern Asia (NME/SWE: Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Syria, Saudi Arabia north of 25°N, Israel, Jordan, and Lebanon) may be...
Authors
Chris Funk, Andrew Hoell

Volcanic unrest and hazard communication in Long Valley Volcanic Region, California Volcanic unrest and hazard communication in Long Valley Volcanic Region, California

The onset of volcanic unrest in Long Valley Caldera, California, in 1980 and the subsequent fluctuations in unrest levels through May 2016 illustrate: (1) the evolving relations between scientists monitoring the unrest and studying the underlying tectonic/magmatic processes and their implications for geologic hazards, and (2) the challenges in communicating the significance of the...
Authors
David P. Hill, Margaret T. Mangan, Stephen R. McNutt

Earthquake source properties from instrumented laboratory stick-slip Earthquake source properties from instrumented laboratory stick-slip

Stick-slip experiments were performed to determine the influence of the testing apparatus on source properties, develop methods to relate stick-slip to natural earthquakes and examine the hypothesis of McGarr [2012] that the product of stiffness, k, and slip duration, Δt, is scale-independent and the same order as for earthquakes. The experiments use the double-direct shear geometry...
Authors
Brian D. Kilgore, Arthur F. McGarr, Nicholas M. Beeler, David A. Lockner
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