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.
Science Quality and Integrity
Science Quality and Integrity
The USGS provides unbiased, objective, and impartial scientific information upon which our audiences, including resource managers, planners, and other entities, rely.
Mission Area Publications
Mission Area Publications
We are focused on some of the most significant issues society faces, and our science is making a substantial contribution to the well-being of the Nation and the world. Learn more about the major topics our research covers and the programs focused on those topics.
Filter Total Items: 175589
A guide to creating an effective big data management framework A guide to creating an effective big data management framework
Many agencies and organizations, such as the U.S. Geological Survey, handle massive geospatial datasets and their auxiliary data and are thus faced with challenges in storing data and ingesting it, transferring it between internal programs, and egressing it to external entities. As a result, these agencies and organizations may inadvertently devote unnecessary time and money to convey...
Authors
Samantha T. Arundel, Kevin G McKeehan, Bryan B Campbell, Andrew N. Bulen, Philip T. Thiem
Using down-scan capabilities from recreational-grade side-scan sonar systems to sample paddlefish and evaluate depth use in a reservoir Using down-scan capabilities from recreational-grade side-scan sonar systems to sample paddlefish and evaluate depth use in a reservoir
Recreational-grade side-scan sonar (SSS) has only recently been applied to estimate abundance of Paddlefish Polyodon spathula, a large pelagic planktivore, in reservoirs. Current recreational-grade SSS units also have a dedicated down-scan channel, which may be useful for detecting Paddlefish in reservoirs because the range of depths they inhabit. We investigated the utility of down-scan...
Authors
James M. Long, P. Joyce, L. Bruckerhoff, Robert Charles Lonsinger, W. Wolfenkoehler
Long-term water-quality constituent trends in the Little Arkansas River, south-central Kansas, 1995–2021 Long-term water-quality constituent trends in the Little Arkansas River, south-central Kansas, 1995–2021
The Equus Beds aquifer and Cheney Reservoir are primary sources for the city of Wichita’s current (2023) water supply. The Equus Beds aquifer storage and recovery (ASR) project was developed by the city of Wichita in the early 1990s to meet future water demands using the Little Arkansas River as an artificial aquifer recharge water source during above-base-flow conditions. Little...
Authors
Mandy L. Stone, Brian J. Klager
Multiphysics modelling in PyLith: Poroelasticity Multiphysics modelling in PyLith: Poroelasticity
PyLith, a community, open-source code for modelling quasi-static and dynamic crustal deformation with an emphasis on earthquake faulting, has recently been updated with a flexible multiphysics implementation. We demonstrate the versatility of the multiphysics implementation by extending the code to model fully coupled continuum poromechanics. We verify the newly incorporated physics...
Authors
Robert L. Walker, Matthew G. Knepley, Brad T. Aagaard, Charles A. Williams
Informing ASR treatment practices in a Florida aquifer through a human health risk approach Informing ASR treatment practices in a Florida aquifer through a human health risk approach
Aquifer storage and recovery (ASR) can augment water supplies and hydrologic flows under varying climatic conditions. However, imposing drinking water regulations on ASR practices, including pre-treatment before injection into the aquifer, remains arguable. Microbial inactivation data—Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, poliovirus type 1 and Cryptosporidium parvum—were used in a...
Authors
Anna Gitter, Kristina Mean, John T. Lisle
Vegetation change over 140 years in a sagebrush landscape of the Rio Grande del Norte National Monument, New Mexico, USA Vegetation change over 140 years in a sagebrush landscape of the Rio Grande del Norte National Monument, New Mexico, USA
Questions Big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata) ecosystems across the western United States have experienced many changes in ecosystem dynamics and vegetation composition over the last century due to livestock grazing, non-native species, and changing climate and fire regimes. We conducted the first systematic investigation of historical vegetation composition and vegetation change in a...
Authors
Kara Fox, Ellis Q. Margolis, Manuel K. Lopez, Ella Kasten, J.T. Stevens
Using multiple metal mixture models to predict toxicity of riverine sediment porewater to the benthic life stage of juvenile white sturgeon (Acipenser transmontanus) Using multiple metal mixture models to predict toxicity of riverine sediment porewater to the benthic life stage of juvenile white sturgeon (Acipenser transmontanus)
Five metal mixture dose–response models were used to predict the toxicity of porewater to young sturgeon at areas of interest in the Upper Columbia River (WA, USA/BC, Canada) and to evaluate these models as tools for risk assessments. Dose components of metal mixture models included exposure to free metal ion activities or metal accumulation by biotic ligands or humic acid, and links of...
Authors
Laurie S. Balistrieri
Survey optimization for invasive Burmese pythons informed by camera traps Survey optimization for invasive Burmese pythons informed by camera traps
The Burmese python (Python bivittatus) is an invasive predator responsible for broad mammal declines in South Florida, United States. Despite their large size, pythons remain cryptic and require multifaceted approaches for detection. We evaluated a novel technique by deploying camera traps at known locations of radiotagged pythons in the Florida Keys. We estimated daily detection...
Authors
Michael V. Cove, Jeremy Dixon, Katherine King, Matthew Willson, Kristen Hart
Temperature thresholds for leaf damage from two extreme freeze events (2018 and 2021) near the northern range limit of black mangroves (Avicennia germinans) in southeastern North America Temperature thresholds for leaf damage from two extreme freeze events (2018 and 2021) near the northern range limit of black mangroves (Avicennia germinans) in southeastern North America
Extreme winter temperatures govern the northern range limit of black mangroves (Avicennia germinans) in southeastern North America. There is a pressing need for studies that advance our understanding of how extreme cold temperature events affect mangroves near their range limits. However, such events are infrequent and challenging to study at regional scales. Here, we compared the damage...
Authors
Simen Kaalstad, Michael Osland, Donna J. Devlin, C. Edward Proffitt, Laura Feher, Anna R. Armitage, Richard Day, Kathleen M. Swanson, Gordon Anderson, Brigid Berger, Just Cebrian, Karen L. Cummins, Kenneth H. Dunton, Ilka C. Feller, Alejandro Fierro-Cabo, Elena A. Flores, Andrew From, A. Randall Hughes, David A. Kaplan, Amy K. Langston, Melinda Martinez, Briana Martinez, Christopher J. Miller, Nathan G.F. Reaver, Colt R. Sanspree, Caitlin M. Snyder, Andrew P. Stetter, Jamie E. Thompson, Carlos Zamora-Tovar
Lessons learned in applying decision analysis to natural resource management for high stakes issues surrounded by uncertainty Lessons learned in applying decision analysis to natural resource management for high stakes issues surrounded by uncertainty
Management agencies are tasked with difficult decisions for conservation and management of natural resources. These decisions are difficult because of ecological and social uncertainties, the potential for multiple decision makers from multiple jurisdictions, and the need to account for the diverse values of stakeholders. Decision analysis provides a framework for accounting for these...
Authors
Kelly Filer Robinson, Mark Richard Dufour, Jason L. Fischer, Seth J. Herbst, Michael L. Jones, Lucas R. Nathan, Tammy J. Newcomb
Lessons learned from community and citizen science monitoring projects on the Elwha River Restoration Project Lessons learned from community and citizen science monitoring projects on the Elwha River Restoration Project
Community and citizen science (CCS) projects – initiatives that involve public participation in scientific research – can both sustain and expand long-term monitoring of large dam removal projects. In this article, we discuss our perspectives on CCS associated with the Elwha River dam removals. We summarize how the public has been or could be involved in monitoring and distill lessons...
Authors
M. V. Eitzel, Ryan Meyer, Sarah A. Morley, Ian M. Miller, Patrick B. Shafroth, Chelsea Behymer, Christopher Jadallah, David Parks, Anna Kagley, Anne Shaffer, Heidi L. Ballard
Synergistic behavioral antagonists of a sex pheromone reduce reproduction of invasive sea lamprey Synergistic behavioral antagonists of a sex pheromone reduce reproduction of invasive sea lamprey
Sex pheromones impart maximal attraction when their components are present at optimal ratios that confer balanced olfactory inputs in potential mates. Altering ratios or adding pheromone analogs to optimal mixtures may disrupt balanced olfactory antagonism and result in reduced attraction, however, tests in natural populations are lacking. We tested this hypothesis in sea lamprey...
Authors
Anne M. Scott, Nicholas S. Johnson, Michael J. Siefkes, Weiming Li