Publications from USGS science centers throughout the Southeast Region.
Filter Total Items: 9723
Machine-learning predictions of groundwater specific conductance in the Mississippi Alluvial Plain, south-central United States, with evaluation of regional geophysical aerial electromagnetic data as explanatory variables
The Mississippi Alluvial Plain, located in the south-central United States, is undergoing long-term groundwater-level declines within the surficial Mississippi River Valley alluvial aquifer (hereinafter referred to as “alluvial aquifer”), which has raised concerns about future groundwater availability. In some parts of the alluvial aquifer, groundwater availability for common uses such as irrigati
Authors
Courtney D. Killian, Katherine J. Knierim
Expanding our view of the cold-water coral niche and accounting of the ecosystem services of the reef habitat
Coral reefs are iconic ecosystems that support diverse, productive communities in both shallow and deep waters. However, our incomplete knowledge of cold-water coral (CWC) niche space limits our understanding of their distribution and precludes a complete accounting of the ecosystem services they provide. Here, we present the results of recent surveys of the CWC mound province on the Blake Plateau
Authors
Erick E. Cordes, Amanda Demopoulos, Andrew Davies, Ryan Gasbarro, Alexandria Rhoads, Elizabeth Lobecker, Dereck Sowers, Jason Chaytor, Cheryl Morrison, Alexis Marie Weinnig, Sandra Brooke, Jay J. Lunden, Furu Mienis, Samantha B. Joye, Andrea M. Quattrini, Tracey Sutton, Catherine McFadden, Jill Bourque, Jennifer McClain Counts, Brian D. Andrews, Melissa Betters, Peter Etnoyer, Gary Wolff, Bernie Bernard, James Brooks, Michael Rasser, Caitlin Adams
Development of the North Carolina stormwater-treatment decision-support system by using the Stochastic Empirical Loading and Dilution Model (SELDM)
The Federal Highway Administration and State departments of transportation nationwide need an efficient method to assess potential adverse effects of highway stormwater runoff on receiving waters to optimize stormwater-treatment decisions. To this end, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Federal Highway Administration and the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT), dev
Authors
Gregory E. Granato, Charles C. Stillwell, J. Curtis Weaver, Andrew H. McDaniel, Brian S. Lipscomb, Susan C. Jones, Ryan M. Mullins
Two centuries of southwest Iceland annually-resolved marine temperature reconstructed from Arctica islandica shells
Iceland's exposure to major ocean current pathways of the central North Atlantic makes it a useful location for developing long-term proxy records of past marine climate. Such records provide more detailed understanding of the full range of past variability which is necessary to improve predictions of future changes. We constructed a 225-year (1791–2015 CE) master shell growth chronology from 29 s
Authors
Madelyn Jean Mette, Carin Andersson, Bernd Schöne, Fabian Bonitz, Vilde Melvik, Tamara Trofimova, Martin Miles
Field observations and long short-term memory modeling of spectral wave evolution at living shorelines in Chesapeake Bay, USA
Living shorelines as a nature-based solution for climate change adaptation were constructed in many places around the world. The success of this type of projects requires long-term monitoring for adaptive management. The paper presents a novel framework leveraging scientific machine learning methods for accurate and rapid prediction of long-term hydrodynamic forcing impacting living shorelines usi
Authors
Nan Wang, Qin Chen, Hongqing Wang, William D. Capurso, Lukasz M. Niemoczynski, Ling Zhu, Gregg Snedden
Exploring centennial barrier-inlet evolution: Insights from undeveloped and developed phases at Barnegat Inlet, New Jersey
This study aims to identify the natural processes and the subsequent responses to coastal engineering and development on the alongshore evolution of the IB-BI-LBI inlet-barrier system. The primary focus will be the quantification of barrier island and inlet sediment partitioning at decadal to centennial timescales, from 1839-1941. We analyze historical alongshore evolution and track coastal engine
Authors
Shane Nichols-O'Neill, Jorge Lorenzo-Trueba, Daniel J. Ciarletta, Jennifer L. Miselis
Incorporating wave climate complexity into modeling lower shoreface morphology and transport
The lower shoreface, a transitional subaqueous region extending from the seaward limit of the surf zone to beyond the closure depth, serves as a sediment reservoir and pathway in sandy beach environments over annual to millennial time scales. Despite the important role this region plays in shoreline dynamics, the morphodynamics of the lower shoreface remain poorly quantified and understood. To bet
Authors
Megan N. Gillen, Andrew D. Ashton, Jennifer L. Miselis, Daniel J. Ciarletta, Emily A. Wei, Christopher R. Sherwood
Reconstructing the geomorphic evolution and sediment budget history of a dynamic barrier island: Anclote Key, Florida
Decadal to centennial variations in sediment availability are a primary driver of coastal change within barrier systems. Models help explore how barrier morphology relates to past changes in magnitude of sediment availability, but this requires insights and validation from field efforts. In this study, we investigate the progradation of Anclote Key via its morphostratigraphy, a presently dynamic b
Authors
Daniel J. Ciarletta, Jennifer L. Miselis, Julie Bernier, Arnell S. Forde, Shannon A. Mahan
Decadal shifts in the population growth, regeneration, and health of Taxodium distichum in swamps of the Cache River Watershed, Illinois
Population projection models based on long-term trends in regeneration and tree survival can be used to predict the future stability of swamp forest species using water management. Population growth and regeneration of a foundational tree species in North American cypress swamps (Taxodium distichum) were compared in the Cache River watershed of southern Illinois USA over several decades. This stud
Authors
Beth Middleton, Darren Johnson
Broad-scale assessment of methylmercury in adult amphibians
Mercury (Hg) is a toxic contaminant that has been mobilized and distributed worldwide and is a threat to many wildlife species. Amphibians are facing unprecedented global declines due to many threats including contaminants. While the biphasic life history of many amphibians creates a potential nexus for methylmercury (MeHg) exposure in aquatic habitats and subsequent health effects, the broad-scal
Authors
Brian J. Tornabene, Blake R. Hossack, Brian J. Halstead, Collin Eagles-Smith, Michael J. Adams, Adam R. Backlin, Adrianne Brand, Colleen Emery, Robert N. Fisher, Jillian Elizabeth Fleming, Brad Glorioso, Daniel A. Grear, Evan H. Campbell Grant, Patrick M. Kleeman, David Miller, Erin L. Muths, Christopher Pearl, Jennifer Rowe, Caitlin Teresa Rumrill, J. Hardin Waddle, Megan Winzeler, Kelly Smalling
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Water Resources Mission Area, Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center, Fort Collins Science Center, National Wildlife Health Center, New Jersey Water Science Center, Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center, Western Ecological Research Center (WERC), Wetland and Aquatic Research Center , Eastern Ecological Science Center
Monitoring population-level foraging distribution of a marine migratory species from land: Strengths and weaknesses of the isotopic approach on the Northwest Atlantic loggerhead turtle aggregation
Assessing the linkage between breeding and non-breeding areas has important implications for understanding the fundamental biology of and conserving animal species. This is a challenging task for marine species, and in sea turtles a combination of stable isotope analysis (SIA) and satellite telemetry has been increasingly used. The Northwest Atlantic (NWA) loggerhead (Caretta caretta) Regional Man
Authors
Simona A. Ceriani, Susan Murasko, David S. Addison, David Anderson, Greg Curry, Nicole A. Desjardin, Scott F. Eastman, Daniel R. Evans, Nancy Evou, Mariana M.P.B. Fuentes, Matthew H. Godfrey, Kristen Hart, Paul Hillbrand, Sarah E. Hirsch, Cody R. Mott, Katherine L. Mansfield, Kristen T. Mazzarella, Sarah V. Norris, S. Michelle Pate, Katrina F. Phillips, Kirt W. Rusenko, Brian M. Shamblin, Amber Stevenson, Kelly A. Sloan, Anton D. Tucker, Ryan C. Welsh, Paolo Casale
Ammonia and aquatic ecosystems – A review of global sources, biogeochemical cycling, and effects on fish
The purpose of this review is to better understand the full life cycle and influence of ammonia from an aquatic biology perspective. While ammonia has toxic properties in water and air, it also plays a central role in the biogeochemical nitrogen (N) cycle and regulates mechanisms of normal and abnormal fish physiology. Additionally, as the second most synthesized chemical on Earth, ammonia contrib
Authors
Thea Margaret Edwards, Holly J. Puglis, Jonathan Lopez Duran, Lillian Bradshaw, Douglas B. Kent, Aida Farag