Publications

The implementation of freshwater diversions in large-scale coastal restoration schemes presents several scientific and management considerations. Large-scale environmental restructuring necessitates aquatic biomonitoring, and during such field studies, photographs that document animals and habitat may be captured. Among the biomonitoring studies performed in conjunction with the Davis...

The Meramec River Basin in east-central Missouri is an important stronghold for native freshwater mussels (Order: Unionoida) in the United States. Whereas the basin supports more than 40 mussel species, previous studies indicate that the abundance and distribution of most species are declining. Therefore, resource managers have identified the need to prioritize threats to native mussel...

Effective monitoring programs are designed to track changes in the distribution, occurrence, and abundance of species. We developed an extension of Royle and Kéry's (2007) single species model to estimate simultaneously temporal changes in probabilities of detection, occupancy, colonization, extinction, and species turnover using data on calling anuran amphibians, collected from 2002 to...

Amphibians are a diverse group of animals that includes frogs, toads, and salamanders. They are adapted to living in a variety of habitats, but most require water for at least one life stage. Amphibians have recently become a worldwide conservation concern because of declines and extinctions even in remote protected areas previously thought to be safe from the pressures of habitat loss...

This report presents suspended-sediment concentration and streamflow data, describes load-estimation techniques used in the computation of annual suspended-sediment loads, and presents annual suspended-sediment loads for 48 streamgaging stations within the Mississippi River Basin. Available published, unpublished, and computed annual total suspended-sediment and suspended-sand loads are...

The area contributing recharge to Barton Springs is undergoing rapid growth, accompanied by increased generation of wastewater. This study found that nitrate, a major component of wastewater and a nutrient that can degrade water quality, has increased in Barton Springs and the creeks that provide its recharge.

During 2008–10, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the City of Austin, the City of Dripping Springs, the Barton Springs/Edwards Aquifer Conservation District, the Lower Colorado River Authority, Hays County, and Travis County, collected and analyzed water samples from five streams (Barton, Williamson, Slaughter, Bear, and Onion Creeks), two groundwater wells (Marbridge well...

Soil gas and soil were assessed for contaminants at the South Prong Creek Disposal Area at Fort Gordon, Georgia, from October 2009 to September 2010. The assessment included identifying and delineating organic contaminants present in soil-gas and inorganic contaminants present in soil samples collected from the area estimated to be the South Prong Creek Disposal Area, including two seeps...

Soil gas and soil were assessed for contaminants at the Patterson Anti-Tank Range at Fort Gordon, Georgia, from October 2009 to September 2010. The assessment included identifying and delineating organic contaminants present in soil-gas samplers from the area estimated to be the Patterson Anti-Tank Range and in the hyporheic zone and floodplain of Brier Creek. This assessment was...

Geophysical techniques are an increasingly important tool for scientific investigations, environmental planning, and resource management. During 2005-10 the U.S. Geological Survey Texas Water Science Center greatly expanded its capabilities of using surface and borehole geophysical techniques to gain insights into how groundwater systems work and the occurrence and distribution of...

The objective of this study was to provide a moderate resolution 30-m fractional water map of the Chenier Plain for 2003, 2006 and 2009 by using information contained in high-resolution satellite imagery of a subset of the study area. Indices and transforms pertaining to vegetation and water were created using the high-resolution imagery, and a threshold was applied to obtain a...

Sixteen hurricanes have made landfall along the U.S. east and Gulf coasts over the past decade. For most of these storms, the USGS with our partners in NASA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have flown before and after lidar missions to detect changes in beaches and dunes. The most dramatic changes occurred when the coasts were completely submerged in an inundation regime. Where this...