Publications
Listed here are publications, reports and articles by the Land Change Science Program in the USGS Ecosystems Mission Area.
Filter Total Items: 1284
Early Pliocene (Zanclean) stratigraphic framework for PRISM5/PlioMIP3 time slices Early Pliocene (Zanclean) stratigraphic framework for PRISM5/PlioMIP3 time slices
Global reconstructions of Pliocene climate provide important insights into how the climate system operates under elevated temperatures and atmospheric CO2 levels. These reconstructions have been used extensively in paleoclimate modeling experiments for comparison to simulated conditions, and as boundary conditions.Most previous work focused on the Late Pliocene interval known as the mid...
Authors
Harry J. Dowsett, Marci M. Robinson, Kevin M. Foley, Steve Hunter, Aisling M Dolan, Julia C. Tindall
Inventory of glaciers and perennial snowfields of the conterminous USA Inventory of glaciers and perennial snowfields of the conterminous USA
This report summarizes an updated inventory of glaciers and perennial snowfields of the conterminous United States. The inventory is based on interpretation of mostly aerial imagery provided by the National Agricultural I magery Program, US Department of Agriculture, with some satellite imagery in places where aerial imagery was not suitable. The inventory includes all perennial snow and...
Authors
Andrew G. Fountain, Bryce Glenn, Christopher J. McNeil
Polar bear's range dynamics and survival in the Holocene Polar bear's range dynamics and survival in the Holocene
Polar bear (Ursus maritimus) is the apex predator of the Arctic, largely dependent on sea-ice. The expected disappearance of the ice cover of the Arctic seas by the mid 21st century is predicted to cause a dramatic decrease in the global range and population size of the species. To place this scenario against the backdrop of past distribution changes and their causes, we use a fossil...
Authors
Heikki Seppa, Marit-Solveig Seidenkrantz, Beth E. Caissie, Marc Macias Fauria
Upscaling wetland methane emissions from the FLUXNET-CH4 Eddy Covariance Network (UpCH4 v1.0): Model development, network assessment, and budget comparison Upscaling wetland methane emissions from the FLUXNET-CH4 Eddy Covariance Network (UpCH4 v1.0): Model development, network assessment, and budget comparison
Wetlands are responsible for 20%–31% of global methane (CH4) emissions and account for a large source of uncertainty in the global CH4 budget. Data-driven upscaling of CH4 fluxes from eddy covariance measurements can provide new and independent bottom-up estimates of wetland CH4 emissions. Here, we develop a six-predictor random forest upscaling model (UpCH4), trained on 119 site-years...
Authors
Gavin McNicol, Etienne Fluet-Chouinard, Zutao Ouyang, Sarah Knox, Zhang Zhen, Tuula Aalto, Sheel Bansal, Kuang-Yu Chang, Min Chen, Kyle Delwiche, Sarah Feron, Mathias Goeckede, Jinxun Liu, Avni Malhotra, Joe R. Melton, William Riley, Rodrigo Vargas, Kunxiaojia Yuan, Qing Yang, Qing Zhu, Pavel Alekseychik, Mika Aurela, David P. Billesbach, David I. Campbell, Jiquan Chen, Housen Chu, Ankur Desai, Eugenie Euskirchen, Jordan Goodrich, Timothy Griffis, Manuel Helbig, Takashi Hirano, Hiroki Iwata, Gerald Jurasinski, John King, Franziska Koebsch, Randall Kolka, Ken Krauss, Annalea Lohila, Ivan Mammarella, Mats Nilson, Asko Noormets, Walter Oechel, Matthias Peichl, Torsten Sachs, Ayaka Sakabe, Christopher Schulze, Oliver Sonnentag, Ryan C. Sullivan, Eeva-Stiina Tuittila, Masahito Ueyama, Timo Vesala, Eric Ward, Christian Wille, Guan Xhuan Wong, Donatella Zona, Lisamarie Windham-Myers, Benjamin Poulter, Robert B. Jackson
Nonlinear patterns of surface elevation change in coastal wetlands: The value of generalized additive models for quantifying rates of change Nonlinear patterns of surface elevation change in coastal wetlands: The value of generalized additive models for quantifying rates of change
In the face of accelerating climate change and rising sea levels, quantifying surface elevation change dynamics in coastal wetlands can help to develop a more complete understanding of the implications of sea-level rise on coastal wetland stability. The surface elevation table-marker horizon (SET-MH) approach has been widely used to quantify and characterize surface elevation change...
Authors
Laura Feher, Michael Osland, Darren Johnson, James Grace, Glenn R. Guntenspergen, David R. Stewart, Carlos A. Coronado-Molina, Fred H. Sklar
Comparing wetland elevation change using a surface elevation table, digital level, and total station Comparing wetland elevation change using a surface elevation table, digital level, and total station
The surface elevation table (SET) approach and two survey instruments, a digital level (DL) and a total station (TS), were used to evaluate elevation change at a 1-ha, micro-tidal, back-barrier salt marsh at Assateague Island National Seashore (Berlin, MD, USA) from 2016 to 2022. SET data were collected at 3 sampling stations along the perimeter of the plot, 36 pins per station, and the...
Authors
James C. Lynch, Neil Winn, Katya E. Kovalenko, Glenn R. Guntenspergen
Assessing environmental change associated with early Eocene hyperthermals in the Atlantic Coastal Plain, USA Assessing environmental change associated with early Eocene hyperthermals in the Atlantic Coastal Plain, USA
Eocene transient global warming events (hyperthermals) can provide insight into a future warmer world. While much research has focused on the Paleocene–Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM), hyperthermals of a smaller magnitude can be used to characterize climatic responses over different magnitudes of forcing. This study identifies two events, namely the Eocene Thermal Maximum 2 (ETM2 and H2)...
Authors
William Rush, Jean Self-Trail, Yan Zhan, Appy Sluijs, Henk Brinkhuis, James Zachos, James G. Ogg, Marci M. Robinson
Integrating remote sensing with ground-based observations to quantify the effects of an extreme freeze event on black mangroves (Avicennia germinans) at the landscape scale Integrating remote sensing with ground-based observations to quantify the effects of an extreme freeze event on black mangroves (Avicennia germinans) at the landscape scale
Climate change is altering the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events. Quantifying ecosystem responses to extreme events at the landscape scale is critical for understanding and responding to climate-driven change but is constrained by limited data availability. Here, we integrated remote sensing with ground-based observations to quantify landscape-scale vegetation damage from...
Authors
Melinda Martinez, Michael Osland, James B. Grace, Nicholas Enwright, Camille L. Stagg, Simen Kaalstad, Gordon Anderson, Anna R. Armitage, Just Cebrian, Karen L. Cummins, Richard Day, Donna J. Devlin, Kenneth H. Dunton, Laura Feher, Alejandro Fierro-Cabo, Elena A. Flores, Andrew From, A. Randall Hughes, David A. Kaplan, Amy K. Langston, Christopher J. Miller, Charles E. Proffitt, Nathan G.F. Reaver, Colt R. Sanspree, Caitlin M. Snyder, Andrew P. Stetter, Kathleen M. Swanson, Jamie E. Thompson, Carlos Zamora-Tovar
Biophysical factors control invasive annual grass hot spots in the Mojave Desert Biophysical factors control invasive annual grass hot spots in the Mojave Desert
Invasive annual grasses can promote ecosystem state changes and habitat loss in the American Southwest. Non-native annual grasses such as Bromus spp. and Schismus spp. have invaded the Mojave Desert and degraded habitat through increased fire occurrence, severity, and shifting plant community composition. Thus, it is important to identify and characterize the areas where persistent...
Authors
Tanner Corless Smith, Tara B.B. Bishop, Michael C. Duniway, Miguel L. Villarreal, Anna C. Knight, Seth M. Munson, Eric K. Waller, Ryan Jensen, Richard A. Gill
Twenty-year record of salt marsh elevation dynamics in response to sea-level rise and storm-driven barrier island geomorphic processes: Fire Island, New York, USA Twenty-year record of salt marsh elevation dynamics in response to sea-level rise and storm-driven barrier island geomorphic processes: Fire Island, New York, USA
Twenty years of surface elevation table and marker horizon monitoring at three sites along the Fire Island (New York, USA) barrier island indicates that rates of marsh surface elevation change (Watch Hill, 4.4 mm year−1; Hospital Point, 3.5 mm year−1; Great Gun, − 0.3 mm year−1) were lower than the rate of monthly mean sea-level rise during the 2002–2022 monitoring period (5.1 mm year−1...
Authors
Charles T. Roman, James C. Lynch, Donald R. Cahoon
Tidal restriction likely has greater impact on the carbon sink of coastal wetland than climate warming and invasive plant Tidal restriction likely has greater impact on the carbon sink of coastal wetland than climate warming and invasive plant
Aims Coastal salt marshes are productive ecosystems that are highly efficient carbon sinks, but there is uncertainty regarding the interactions among climate warming, plant species, and tidal restriction on C cycling.Methods Open-top chambers (OTCs) were deployed at two coastal wetlands in Yancheng, China, where native Phragmites australis (Phragmites) and invasive Spartina alterniflora...
Authors
Pan Zhou, Siyuan Ye, Liujuan Xie, Ken Krauss, Lixin Pei, Samantha K. Chapman, Hans Brix, Edward A. Laws, Hongming Yuan, Shixiong Yang, Xigui Ding, Shucheng Xie
Estuarine salinity extremes: Using the Coastal Salinity Index to quantify the role of droughts, floods, hurricanes, and freshwater flow alteration Estuarine salinity extremes: Using the Coastal Salinity Index to quantify the role of droughts, floods, hurricanes, and freshwater flow alteration
In the face of accelerating climate change, advancing understanding of how extreme climatic events influence estuarine salinities can help to inform resource management. Extreme salinities driven by droughts, hurricanes, floods, and freshwater flow alterations can lead to ecological transformations in estuarine ecosystems. Here, we applied the Coastal Salinity Index (CSI; Conrads and...
Authors
Laura Feher, Michael Osland, Christopher Swarzenski