Publications
Listed here are publications, reports and articles by the Land Change Science Program in the USGS Ecosystems Mission Area.
Filter Total Items: 1284
Geochemistry and mineralogy of late Quaternary loess in the upper Mississippi River valley, USA: Provenance and correlation with Laurentide Ice Sheet history Geochemistry and mineralogy of late Quaternary loess in the upper Mississippi River valley, USA: Provenance and correlation with Laurentide Ice Sheet history
The midcontinent of North America contains some of the thickest and most extensive last-glacial loess deposits in the world, known as Peoria Loess. Peoria Loess of the upper Mississippi River valley region is thought to have had temporally varying glaciogenic sources resulting from inputs of sediment to the Mississippi River from different lobes of the Laurentide Ice Sheet. Here, we...
Authors
Daniel R. Muhs, E. Arthur Bettis, Gary L. Skipp
Desert wetlands record hydrologic variability within the Younger Dryas chronozone, Mojave Desert, USA Desert wetlands record hydrologic variability within the Younger Dryas chronozone, Mojave Desert, USA
One of the enduring questions in the field of paleohydrology is how quickly desert wetland ecosystems responded to past episodes of abrupt climate change. Recent investigations in the Las Vegas Valley of southern Nevada have revealed that wetlands expanded and contracted on millennial and sub-millennial timescales in response to changes in climate during the late Quaternary. Here, we...
Authors
Jeffrey S. Pigati, Kathleen B. Springer, Jeffrey S. Honke
Herbivory and eutrophication mediate grassland plant nutrient responses across a global climatic gradient Herbivory and eutrophication mediate grassland plant nutrient responses across a global climatic gradient
Plant stoichiometry, the relative concentration of elements, is a key regulator of ecosystem functioning and is also being altered by human activities. In this paper we sought to understand the global drivers of plant stoichiometry and compare the relative contribution of climatic vs. anthropogenic effects. We addressed this goal by measuring plant elemental (C, N, P and K) responses to
Authors
T. Michael Anderson, Daniel M. Griffith, James B. Grace, Eric M. Lind, Peter B. Adler, Lori A. Biederman, Dana M. Blumenthal, Pedro Daleo, Jennifer Firn, Nicole Hagenah, W. Stanley Harpole, Andrew S. MacDougall, Rebecca L. McCulley, Suzanne M. Prober, Anita C. Risch, Mahesh Sankaran, Martin Schutz, Eric W. Seabloom, Carly J. Stevens, Lauren Sullivan, Peter Wragg, Elizabeth T. Borer
A new indicator framework for quantifying the intensity of the terrestrialwater cycle A new indicator framework for quantifying the intensity of the terrestrialwater cycle
A quantitative framework for characterizing the intensity of the water cycle over land is presented, and illustrated using a spatially distributed water-balance model of the conterminous United States (CONUS). We approach water cycle intensity (WCI) from a landscape perspective; WCI is defined as the sum of precipitation (P) and actual evapotranspiration (AET) over a spatially explicit...
Authors
Thomas G. Huntington, Peter Weiskel, David M. Wolock, Gregory J. McCabe
T.D.A. Cockerell (1866–1948) of the University of Colorado: His contributions to the natural history of the California islands and the establishment of Channel Islands National Monument T.D.A. Cockerell (1866–1948) of the University of Colorado: His contributions to the natural history of the California islands and the establishment of Channel Islands National Monument
Theodore Dru Alison Cockerell was a naturalist at the University of Colorado from 1904 to 1947 and studied botany, zoology, and paleontology in North and South America, Asia, Australia, Africa, and Europe. In the latter part of his career, he studied the California islands and published many papers on their natural history, 16 of them in four years (1937–1940). He made important...
Authors
Daniel R. Muhs
A North American Hydroclimate Synthesis (NAHS) of the Common Era A North American Hydroclimate Synthesis (NAHS) of the Common Era
This study presents a synthesis of century-scale hydroclimate variations in North America for the Common Era (last 2000 years) using new age models of previously published multiple proxy-based paleoclimate data. This North American Hydroclimate Synthesis (NAHS) examines regional hydroclimate patterns and related environmental indicators, including vegetation, lake water elevation, stream...
Authors
Jessica R. Rodysill, Lesleigh Anderson, Thomas M. Cronin, Miriam C. Jones, Robert S. Thompson, David B. Wahl, Debra A. Willard, Jason A. Addison, Jay R. Alder, Katherine H. Anderson, Lysanna Anderson, John A. Barron, Christopher E. Bernhardt, Steven W. Hostetler, Natalie M. Kehrwald, Nicole Khan, Julie N. Richey, Scott W. Starratt, Laura E. Strickland, Michael Toomey, Claire C. Treat, G. Lynn Wingard
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Ecosystems Land Change Science Program, Energy Resources Program, Groundwater and Streamflow Information Program, Mineral Resources Program, Science and Decisions Center, Florence Bascom Geoscience Center, Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center, Geosciences and Environmental Change Science Center, St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center
Research frontiers for improving our understanding of drought‐induced tree and forest mortality Research frontiers for improving our understanding of drought‐induced tree and forest mortality
Accumulating evidence highlights increased mortality risks for trees during severe drought, particularly under warmer temperatures and increasing vapour pressure deficit (VPD). Resulting forest die‐off events have severe consequences for ecosystem services, biophysical and biogeochemical land–atmosphere processes. Despite advances in monitoring, modelling and experimental studies of the...
Authors
Henrik Hartmann, Catarina Moura, William R. L. Anderegg, Nadine K. Ruehr, Yann Salmon, Craig D. Allen, Stefan K. Arndt, David D. Breshears, Hendrik Davi, David Galbraith, Katinka X. Ruthrof, Jan Wunder, Henry D. Adams, Jasper Bloemen, Maxime Cailleret, Richard Cobb, Arthur Gessler, Thorsten E. E. Grams, Steven Jansen, Markus Kautz, Francisco Lloret, Michael O’Brien
Microspatial ecotone dynamics at a shifting range limit: plant–soil variation across salt marsh–mangrove interfaces Microspatial ecotone dynamics at a shifting range limit: plant–soil variation across salt marsh–mangrove interfaces
Ecotone dynamics and shifting range limits can be used to advance our understanding of the ecological implications of future range expansions in response to climate change. In the northern Gulf of Mexico, the salt marsh–mangrove ecotone is an area where range limits and ecotone dynamics can be studied in tandem as recent decreases in winter temperature extremes have allowed for mangrove...
Authors
Erik S. Yando, Michael J. Osland, Mark H. Hester
Spatial and temporal variation in sources of atmospheric nitrogen deposition in the Rocky Mountains using nitrogen isotopes Spatial and temporal variation in sources of atmospheric nitrogen deposition in the Rocky Mountains using nitrogen isotopes
Variation in source areas and source types of atmospheric nitrogen (N) deposition to high-elevation ecosystems in the Rocky Mountains were evaluated using spatially and temporally distributed N isotope data from atmospheric deposition networks for 1995-2016. This unique dataset links N in wet deposition and snowpack to mobile and stationary emissions sources, and enhances understanding...
Authors
Leora Nanus, Donald H. Campbell, Christopher M.B. Lehmann, M. Alisa Mast
Context-dependent interactions and the regulation of species richness in freshwater fish Context-dependent interactions and the regulation of species richness in freshwater fish
Species richness is regulated by a complex network of scale-dependent processes. This complexity can obscure the influence of limiting species interactions, making it difficult to determine if abiotic or biotic drivers are more predominant regulators of richness. Using integrative modeling of freshwater fish richness from 721 lakes along an 11olatitudinal gradient, we find negative...
Authors
Andrew S. MacDougall, Eric Harvey, Jenny L. McCune, Karin A. Nilsson, Joseph Bennett, Jennifer Firn, Timothy Bartley, James B. Grace, Jocelyn Kelly, Tyler D. Tunney, Bailey C. McMeans, Shin-Ichiro S. Matsuzaki, Taku Kadoya, Ellen Esch, Kevin Cazelles, Nigel Lester, Kevin S. McCann
Anthropogenic impact in the Mayan Lowlands of Petén, Guatemala, during the last 5500 years Anthropogenic impact in the Mayan Lowlands of Petén, Guatemala, during the last 5500 years
Trace and rare earth elements from a Lake Peten Itzá (Guatemala) sediment core depict the geochemical dynamics affecting the lake from ~5500 y BP to the present. This timing encompasses the Preclassic (4000 to 1700 y BP) and Classic Periods (1700-1000 y BP) when thriving Maya societies extensively cleared land for agriculture. We demonstrate that this land use occurred during times of...
Authors
D. Battistel, Marco Roman, A Marchetti, Natalie M. Kehrwald, Marta Radaelli, Eleanora Balliana, Giuseppina Toscano, Carlo Barbante
The geochemistry of loess: Asian and North American deposits compared The geochemistry of loess: Asian and North American deposits compared
Loess is widely distributed over Asia and North America and constitutes one of the most important surficial deposits that serve as terrestrial records of the Quaternary. The oldest Pleistocene loess in China is likely ∼2.6 Ma, thus spanning much or all of the Pleistocene. In North America, most loess is no older than the penultimate glacial period, with the exception of Alaska, where the...
Authors
Daniel R. Muhs