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Publications

These publications showcase the significant science conducted in our Science Centers.

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Limits on the adaptability of coastal marshes to rising sea level Limits on the adaptability of coastal marshes to rising sea level

Assumptions of a static landscape inspire predictions that about half of the world's coastal wetlands will submerge during this century in response to sea-level acceleration. In contrast, we use simulations from five numerical models to quantify the conditions under which ecogeomorphic feedbacks allow coastal wetlands to adapt to projected changes in sea level. In contrast to previous...
Authors
Matthew L. Kirwan, Glenn R. Guntenspergen, Andrea D’Alpaos, James T. Morris, Simon M. Mudd, Stijn Temmerman

The national assessment of shoreline change: A GIS compilation of vector shorelines and associated shoreline change data for the New England and Mid-Atlantic Coasts The national assessment of shoreline change: A GIS compilation of vector shorelines and associated shoreline change data for the New England and Mid-Atlantic Coasts

Sandy ocean beaches are a popular recreational destination, often surrounded by communities containing valuable real estate. Development is on the rise despite the fact that coastal infrastructure is subjected to flooding and erosion. As a result, there is an increased demand for accurate information regarding past and present shoreline changes. The U.S. Geological Survey's National...
Authors
Emily A. Himmelstoss, Meredith G. Kratzmann, Cheryl Hapke, E. Robert Thieler, Jeffrey List

Regional seismic stratigraphy and controls on the Quaternary evolution of the Cape Hatteras region of the Atlantic passive margin, USA Regional seismic stratigraphy and controls on the Quaternary evolution of the Cape Hatteras region of the Atlantic passive margin, USA

Seismic and core data, combined with amino acid racemization and strontium-isotope age data, enable the definition of the Quaternary stratigraphic framework and recognition of geologic controls on the development of the modern coastal system of North Carolina, U.S.A. Seven regionally continuous high amplitude reflections are defined which bound six seismic stratigraphic units consisting...
Authors
D. J. Mallinson, S.J. Culver, S.R. Riggs, E.R. Thieler, D. Foster, J. Wehmiller, K.M. Farrell, J. Pierson

Rift-related volcanism and karst geohydrology of the southern Ozark Dome Rift-related volcanism and karst geohydrology of the southern Ozark Dome

This field trip examines the geology and geohydrology of a dissected part of the Salem Plateau in the Ozark Plateaus province of south-central Missouri. Rocks exposed in this area include karstified, flat-lying, lower Paleozoic carbonate platform rocks deposited on Mesoproterozoic basement. The latter is exposed as an uplift located about 40 mi southwest of the St. Francois Mountains and...
Authors
Richard W. Harrison, David J. Weary, Randall C. Orndorff, John E. Repetski, Herbert A. Pierce, Gary R. Lowell

Standards for documenting and monitoring bird reintroduction projects Standards for documenting and monitoring bird reintroduction projects

It would be much easier to assess the effectiveness of different reintroduction methods, and so improve the success of reintroductions, if there was greater standardization in documentation of the methods and outcomes. We suggest a series of standards for documenting and monitoring the methods and outcomes associated with reintroduction projects for birds. Key suggestions are...
Authors
W.J. Sutherland, D. Armstrong, S.H.M. Butchart, J.M. Earnhardt, J. Ewen, I. Jamieson, C.G. Jones, R. Lee, P. Newbery, J.D. Nichols, K.A. Parker, F. Sarrazin, P.J. Seddon, N. Shah, V. Tatayah

Effect of imperfect detectability on adaptive and conventional sampling: Simulated sampling of freshwater mussels in the upper Mississippi River Effect of imperfect detectability on adaptive and conventional sampling: Simulated sampling of freshwater mussels in the upper Mississippi River

Adaptive sampling designs are recommended where, as is typical with freshwater mussels, the outcome of interest is rare and clustered. However, the performance of adaptive designs has not been investigated when outcomes are not only rare and clustered but also imperfectly detected. We address this combination of challenges using data simulated to mimic properties of freshwater mussels...
Authors
D. R. Smith, B. R. Gray, T.J. Newton, D. Nichols

The tail of the Storegga Slide: Insights from the geochemistry and sedimentology of the Norwegian Basin deposits The tail of the Storegga Slide: Insights from the geochemistry and sedimentology of the Norwegian Basin deposits

Deposits within the floor of the Norwegian Basin were sampled to characterize the deposition from the Storegga Slide, the largest known Holocene-aged continental margin slope failure complex. A 29 to 67 cm thick veneer of variable-coloured, finely layered Holocene sediment caps a homogeneous, extremely well-sorted, poorly consolidated, very fine-grained, grey-coloured sediment section...
Authors
C. K. Paull, W. Ussler, W.S. Holbrook, T.M. Hill, H. Haflidason, W. Winters, T. Lorenson, I. Aiello, J.E. Johnson, E. Lundsten

Landscape indicators and land cover change in the Mid-Atlantic Region of the United States, 1973-2001 Landscape indicators and land cover change in the Mid-Atlantic Region of the United States, 1973-2001

Landscape indicators, derived from land use and land cover data as well as other data, were used to calculate the ecological consequences of land cover change in terms of nitrate loading and physical bird habitat. Both were modeled from 1973, 1992, and 2001 land cover data in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. Land cover statistics and trends are calculated for three time...
Authors
E. Terrence Slonecker, Lesley Milheim, Peter R. Claggett

Aviation response to a widely dispersed volcanic ash and gas cloud from the August 2008 eruption of Kasatochi, Alaska, USA Aviation response to a widely dispersed volcanic ash and gas cloud from the August 2008 eruption of Kasatochi, Alaska, USA

The extensive volcanic cloud from Kasatochi's 2008 eruption caused widespread disruptions to aviation operations along Pacific oceanic, Canadian, and U.S. air routes. Based on aviation hazard warnings issued by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Geological Survey, the Federal Aviation Administration, and Meteorological Service of Canada, air carriers largely...
Authors
Marianne Guffanti, David J. Schneider, Kristi L. Wallace, Tony Hall, Dov R. Bensimon, Leonard J. Salinas

The use of early summer mosquito surveillance to predict late summer West Nile virus activity The use of early summer mosquito surveillance to predict late summer West Nile virus activity

Utility of early-season mosquito surveillance to predict West Nile virus activity in late summer was assessed in Suffolk County, NY. Dry ice-baited CDC miniature light traps paired with gravid traps were set weekly. Maximum-likelihood estimates of WNV positivity, minimum infection rates, and % positive pools were generally well correlated. However, positivity in gravid traps was not...
Authors
Howard S. Ginsberg, Ilia Rochlin, Scott R. Campbell

Systematics of the Platyrrhinus helleri species complex (Chiroptera: Phyllostomidae), with descriptions of two new species Systematics of the Platyrrhinus helleri species complex (Chiroptera: Phyllostomidae), with descriptions of two new species

Platyrrhinus is a diverse genus of small to large phyllostomid bats characterized by a comparatively narrow uropatagium thickly fringed with hair, a white dorsal stripe, comparatively large inner upper incisors that are convergent at the tips, and three upper and three lower molars. Eighteen species are currently recognized, the majority occurring in the Andes. Molecular, morphological...
Authors
Paul M. Velazco, Alfred L. Gardner, Bruce D. Patterson

Modeling spatial variation in avian survival and residency probabilities Modeling spatial variation in avian survival and residency probabilities

The importance of understanding spatial variation in processes driving animal population dynamics is widely recognized. Yet little attention has been paid to spatial modeling of vital rates. Here we describe a hierarchical spatial autoregressive model to provide spatially explicit year-specific estimates of apparent survival (phi) and residency (pi) probabilities from capture-recapture...
Authors
James F. Saracco, J. Andrew Royle, David F. DeSante, Beth Gardner
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