Publications
Browse more than 160,000 publications authored by our scientists over the past 100+ year history of the USGS. Publications available are: USGS-authored journal articles, series reports, book chapters, other government publications, and more.
Mission Area Publications
Mission Area Publications
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Amphibian diversity of the western Colorado canyonlands including potential threats from nonnative bullfrogs and disease Amphibian diversity of the western Colorado canyonlands including potential threats from nonnative bullfrogs and disease
Throughout the canyons of the Colorado and Uncompahgre Plateaus, water is a limited resource for wildlife, with patchy distribution and seasonal availability. Tributary creeks within these canyons drain into mainstem rivers, providing habitat and breeding sites for native amphibians. Yet, little is known about the diversity and distribution of amphibians that live in these harsh, dynamic
Authors
Denita M Weeks, David Pilliod, Madeline (Nikki) Grant-Hoffman, Anjelica F Quintana Spencer, Daniel Neubaum, Paul Hampton, Michaela Ray Grossklaus, Matthew B Laramie, Erin L. Muths
Landsat-derived rainfed and irrigated-area product for conterminous United States for the year 2020 (LRIP30 CONUS 2020) using supervised and unsupervised machine learning on the cloud Landsat-derived rainfed and irrigated-area product for conterminous United States for the year 2020 (LRIP30 CONUS 2020) using supervised and unsupervised machine learning on the cloud
Accurate maps of irrigated and rainfed croplands are crucial for assessing global food and water security. Irrigated croplands yield two to four times more grain and biomass than rainfed croplands. To meet rising food demand, the proportion of cropland that is irrigated must be increased globally. Because agriculture uses 80% to 90% of global fresh water, understanding changes in...
Authors
Pardhasaradhi Teluguntla, Prasad Thenkabail, Adam Oliphant, Itiya Aneece, Trent Biggs, Murali Krishna Gumma, Daniel Foley, Richard L McCormick, Neelam Rohitha, Emerson Long, Jake Lawton
Effects of flow on pesticides in water and zooplankton in the northern Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Effects of flow on pesticides in water and zooplankton in the northern Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta
Zooplankton are a key food source for juvenile fishes in estuaries worldwide, including California’s Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta (hereafter Delta); both zooplankton quality and quantity are critical to ecosystem health. Zooplankton may be affected by pesticides in water and the food web, and the Delta is known to contain complex pesticide mixtures. In this study, we evaluated pesticide
Authors
James Orlando, Laura Twardochleb, David Bosworth, Michelle Hladik, Corey Sanders, Matt De Parsia, Brittany E. Davis
Drone-based radiometric surveys provide high-resolution mine waste characterization Drone-based radiometric surveys provide high-resolution mine waste characterization
Airborne radiometric surveys use passive geophysical techniques to characterize geochemical variations at or near earth’s surface. These methods have been used for a variety of mapping applications, including mineral resource evaluation. However, detailed characterization of smaller geologic targets, including mine waste features, requires flying at lower altitudes and with tighter line...
Authors
Chloe Danielle Gustafson, Anjana K. Shah, Matthew Alexander Burgess, Josip Adams, Virginia McLemore, Evan J. Owen
The Mammoth magnetic anomaly, Pinal County, Arizona The Mammoth magnetic anomaly, Pinal County, Arizona
A high-resolution Earth Mapping Resources Initiative airborne geophysical survey was flown in the southwest North American porphyry copper province to improve bedrock geologic maps and to identify areas that have unrecognized critical mineral resource potential. During the review of the aeromagnetic data, a distinctly monopolar-shaped, negative magnetic anomaly was observed at a flight...
Authors
Callum Andrew Walter, Daniel S. Scheirer, Carl Joseph Beno, Jackson Stone Borchardt, Dylan Mark Connell
Measurement of in situ-produced cosmogenic nuclides in fine-grained quartz from shale Measurement of in situ-produced cosmogenic nuclides in fine-grained quartz from shale
In situ-produced 10Be in quartz is widely used to constrain exposure ages and denudation rates, traditionally measured in sand-sized grains. Here we report a new method for isolating fine-grained quartz from shale and demonstrate its reliability for grain sizes down to single microns. Sequential dissolution tests and analyses of grain size separates show that meteoric 10Be is eliminated...
Authors
Xianmei Huang, Darryl E. Granger, William Elijah Odom, Brody Conner, Lan Luo
Freshwater turtle assemblages and densities in agricultural ditches and aquaculture ponds of eastern Arkansas Freshwater turtle assemblages and densities in agricultural ditches and aquaculture ponds of eastern Arkansas
The Mississippi Alluvial Plain (MAP) of Arkansas is a landscape where many wetlands have been altered for use as aquaculture ponds or agricultural ditches. Commercial harvest of freshwater turtles within the MAP is not restricted or limited, with reported harvest numbers for 2019 alone exceeding 4000 for spiny softshell turtles (Apalone spinifera) and 39,000 for red-eared sliders...
Authors
Andrhea D. Massey, John D. Willson, Brett Alexander DeGregorio
Ultralong, supershear rupture of the 2025 Mw 7.7 Mandalay earthquake reveals unaccounted risk Ultralong, supershear rupture of the 2025 Mw 7.7 Mandalay earthquake reveals unaccounted risk
The 28 March 2025 moment magnitude (Mw) 7.7 earthquake in Mandalay, Burma (Myanmar), ruptured 475 kilometers of the Sagaing Fault, which was more than twice the length predicted by magnitude scaling relationships. Kinematic slip models and observation of a Rayleigh Mach wave that passed through parts of Thailand confirmed that rupture occurred at supershear velocities of greater than 5...
Authors
Dara Elyse Goldberg, William L. Yeck, Catherine Elise Hanagan, James William Atterholt, Haiyang Liam Kehoe, Nadine G. Reitman, William D. Barnhart, David R. Shelly, Alexandra Elise Hatem, David Wald, Paul S. Earle
A spatiotemporal interrogation of hydrologic drought model performance for machine learning model interpretability A spatiotemporal interrogation of hydrologic drought model performance for machine learning model interpretability
The predictive accuracy of regional hydrologic models often varies across both time and space. Interpreting relationships between watershed characteristics, hydrologic regimes, and model performance can reveal potential areas for model improvement. In this study, we use machine learning to assess model performance of a regional hydrologic model to forecast the occurrence of streamflow...
Authors
Ali Dadkhah, Scott Douglas Hamshaw, Ryan van der Heijden, Donna M. Rizzo
Comparative life history of mud turtles (genus: Kinosternon) from the North American deserts Comparative life history of mud turtles (genus: Kinosternon) from the North American deserts
The warm deserts of North America are characterized by diverse environments that include the transition zone between tropical and temperate regions on the continent. This vast region includes the Sonoran and Chihuahuan deserts, which have different precipitation regimes and are composed of different floras and faunas, separated by the Cochise Filter Barrier. Inhabiting these deserts are...
Authors
Rodrigo Macipríos, Jeffrey E. Lovich
Insight 4. Climate change and biodiversity loss amplify each other Insight 4. Climate change and biodiversity loss amplify each other
Key messages: • Climate change is impacting biodiversity from local to global scales, and growing evidence suggests that further loss of biodiversity can contribute to climate change, creating a destabilizing feedback. • Loss of plant diversity due to climate and land-use change can weaken ecosystem functioning, leading to a decrease in biomass accumulation and reduced carbon storage. •...
Authors
Luiz Domeignoz-Horta, Guilherme Mazzochini, Akira S. Mori, Estelle Razanatsoa, Sarah R. Weiskopf, Adrian Heilemann
Earthquake stress-drop values delineate spatial variations in maximum shear stress in the Japanese forearc lithosphere Earthquake stress-drop values delineate spatial variations in maximum shear stress in the Japanese forearc lithosphere
Earthquake stress drop (Δσ) may increase with depth and stress in the brittle lithosphere. However, the range of uncertainty in Δσ and the lack of constraints on absolute stress make it difficult to establish whether they are correlated. Here, we investigate Δσ dependence on depth and maximum shear stress (τmax) based on ~11 years of seismicity in the northeastern Japanese forearc...
Authors
Gian Maria Bocchini, Armin Dielforder, Kilian B. Kemna, Rebecca M. Harrington, Elizabeth S. Cochran