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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.

Filter Total Items: 175589

Vegetation loss following vertical drowning of Mississippi River deltaic wetlands leads to faster microbial decomposition and decreases in soil carbon Vegetation loss following vertical drowning of Mississippi River deltaic wetlands leads to faster microbial decomposition and decreases in soil carbon

Wetland ecosystems hold nearly a third of the global soil carbon pool, but as wetlands rapidly disappear the fate of this stored soil carbon is unclear. The aim of this study was to quantify and then link potential rates of microbial decomposition after vertical drowning of vegetated tidal marshes in coastal Louisiana to known drivers of anaerobic decomposition altered by vegetation loss...
Authors
Courtney Creamer, Mark Waldrop, Camille Stagg, Kristen L. Manies, Melissa Millman Baustian, Claudia Laurenzano, Tiong Gim Aw, Monica Haw, Sergio Merino, Donald R. Schoolmaster, Sabrina N. Sevilgen, Rachel Katherine Villani, Eric Ward

Multi-scale effects of behavioral movement deterrents on invasive carp metapopulations Multi-scale effects of behavioral movement deterrents on invasive carp metapopulations

Behavioral deterrents of among-pool movement represent a promising tool for controlling invasive fish populations. To date, much of the research in this area has been focused on the direct effectiveness of different methods of deterrence. However, the effect of these structures on populations in spatially complex habitats is unknown. We combine a metacommunity model with movement data of...
Authors
Donald R. Schoolmaster, Aaron R. Cupp, Alison A. Coulter, Richard A. Erickson

Paleoenvironmental and paleoecological dynamics of the U.S. Atlantic Coastal Plain prior to and during the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum Paleoenvironmental and paleoecological dynamics of the U.S. Atlantic Coastal Plain prior to and during the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum

We studied the rapid paleo-environmental changes and the corresponding biotic responses of benthic foraminifera of a shallow shelf site during the late Paleocene and the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM). The PETM is globally characterized by a negative δ13C excursion in marine and terrestrial sediments. Isotope data from the Atlantic Coastal Plain from the South Dover Bridge core...
Authors
Monika Doubrawa, Peter Stassen, Marci M. Robinson, Robert P. Speijer

Following the tug of the audience from complex to simplified hazards maps at Cascade Range volcanoes Following the tug of the audience from complex to simplified hazards maps at Cascade Range volcanoes

Volcano-hazard maps are broadly recognized as important tools for forecasting and managing volcanic crises and for disseminating spatial information to authorities and people at risk. As scientists, we might presume that hazards maps can be developed at the time and with the methods of our discretion, yet the co-production of maps with stakeholder groups, who have programmatic needs of...
Authors
Carolyn L. Mastin, David W. Ramsey, William E. Scott, Lisa M. Faust, Joseph A. Bard, Patti Wold

Benthic foraminiferal community changes across the Miocene climatic optimum Identified by SHEBI analysis (SHE analysis for biozone identification), Calvert Cliffs, Maryland, USA Benthic foraminiferal community changes across the Miocene climatic optimum Identified by SHEBI analysis (SHE analysis for biozone identification), Calvert Cliffs, Maryland, USA

The Calvert Cliffs, MD, an iconic section of Middle Miocene strata, have been well studied both paleontologically and stratigraphically for over a century. However, few studies of the Calvert Cliffs have looked at the benthic foraminifera. This study uses SHEBI analysis (SHE analysis for biozone identification) of benthic foraminiferal assemblages to analyze community change in the...
Authors
Seth R. Sutton, Stephen J. Culver, Lee-Ann Hayek, David J. Mallinson, Marci M. Robinson, Harry J. Dowsett, Martin A. Buzas

Remotely mapping gullying and incision in Maryland Piedmont headwater streams using repeat airborne lidar Remotely mapping gullying and incision in Maryland Piedmont headwater streams using repeat airborne lidar

Headwater streams can contribute significant amounts of fine sediment to downstream waterways, especially when severely eroded and incised. Potential upstream sediment source identification is crucial for effective management of water quality, aquatic habitat, and sediment loads in a watershed. This study explored topographic openness (TO) derived from 1-m lidar for its ability to...
Authors
Marina J. Metes, Andrew J. Miller, Matthew E. Baker, Kristina G. Hopkins, Daniel K. Jones

Basin-scale responses of groundwater-resource quality to drought and recovery, San Joaquin Valley, California Basin-scale responses of groundwater-resource quality to drought and recovery, San Joaquin Valley, California

Groundwater-resource quality is assumed to be less responsive to drought compared to that of surface water due to relatively long transit times of recharge to drinking-supply wells. Here, we evidence dynamic perturbations in aquifer pressure dynamics during drought and subsequent recovery periods cause dramatic shifts in groundwater quality on a basin scale. We used a novel application...
Authors
Zeno F. Levy, Bryant C. Jurgens, Kirsten Faulkner, Jennifer S. Harkness, Miranda S. Fram

Stream water sourcing from high-elevation snowpack inferred from stable isotopes of water: A novel application of d-excess values Stream water sourcing from high-elevation snowpack inferred from stable isotopes of water: A novel application of d-excess values

About 80 % of the precipitation at the Colorado River's headwaters is snow, and the resulting snowmelt-driven hydrograph is a crucial water source for about 40 million people. Snowmelt from alpine and subalpine snowpack contributes substantially to groundwater recharge and river flow. However, the dynamics of snowmelt progression are not well understood because observations of the high...
Authors
Matthias Sprenger, Rosemary W.H. Carroll, David W Marchetti, Carleton R. Bern, Harsh Beria, Wendy Brown, Alexander Newman, Curtis Beutler, Kenneth H. Williams

Late Triassic paleogeography of southern Laurentia and its fringing arcs: Insights from detrital zircon U-Pb geochronology and Hf isotope geochemistry, Auld Lang Syne basin (Nevada, USA) Late Triassic paleogeography of southern Laurentia and its fringing arcs: Insights from detrital zircon U-Pb geochronology and Hf isotope geochemistry, Auld Lang Syne basin (Nevada, USA)

Fluvial strata of the Upper Triassic Chinle Formation and Dockum Group, exposed across the Western Interior of North America, have long been interpreted to record a transcontinental river system that connected the ancestral Ouachita orogen of Texas and Oklahoma, USA, to the Auld Lang Syne basin of northwestern Nevada, USA, its inferred marine terminus. Fluvial strata are well...
Authors
Theresa Maude Schwartz, Sandra J. Wyld, Joseph P. Colgan, Douglas W. Prihar

Holocene foraminifera, climate, and decelerating rise in sea level on the mud patch, southern New England continental shelf Holocene foraminifera, climate, and decelerating rise in sea level on the mud patch, southern New England continental shelf

We examined Holocene benthic foraminiferal biofacies, % planktonic foraminifera, and lithofacies changes from New England mud patch cores and present a relative sea-level (RSL) record to evaluate evolution of these rapidly deposited (30–79 cm/kyr) muds. Sandy lower Holocene sections are dominated by Bulimina marginata. The mud patch developed from 11–9 ka as RSL rise slowed from 10 to 7...
Authors
Kenneth G. Miller, James V. Browning, Lloyd D Keigwin, Jason Chaytor, Emily Schneider, Matthew Richtmyer, W. John Schmelz

Detrital zircons and the magmatic history of Viti Levu, Fiji Detrital zircons and the magmatic history of Viti Levu, Fiji

We integrate the existing detrital zircon data from multiple modern river sediment samples on Viti Levu, Fiji, with the most current available geological and topographic mapping of the respective river drainage basins to compare detrital populations with potential bedrock sources. The temporal and spatial variations in zircon geochemistry supplement what is known from igneous rocks and...
Authors
Allen Stork, James B Gill, Erin Todd, Elizabeth Kathleen Drewes-Todd

Passive acoustic monitoring and convolutional neural networks facilitate high-resolution and broadscale monitoring of a threatened species Passive acoustic monitoring and convolutional neural networks facilitate high-resolution and broadscale monitoring of a threatened species

Population monitoring is an essential component of biodiversity conservation and management, but low detection probabilities for rare and/or cryptic species makes estimating abundance and occupancy challenging. Passive acoustic monitoring combined with machine learning algorithms represents a potential path forward to effectively and efficiently monitor the occurrence of rare vocalizing...
Authors
Adam Duarte, Matthew J. Weldy, Damon B. Lesmeister, Zachary J. Ruff, Julianna Jenkins, Jonathon Joseph Valente, Matthew G. Betts
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