Unified Interior Regions
Louisiana
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We conduct impartial, multi- and interdisciplinary research and monitoring on a large range of natural-resource issues that impact the quality of life of citizens and landscapes of the Southeastern United States and the Caribbean region.
News
FINISHED!! TNMCorps Mapping Challenge for City / Town Halls in LA, MS, & AL
This challenge is now finished! Thank you to everyone who contributed!
Mapping Challenge Update (05/21/2020): City / Town Halls in LA, MS, & AL
This challenge is SO CLOSE to being finished! Louisiana and Mississippi are looking nice, but Alabama needs some attention. See our spatial analysis for tips.
Mapping Challenge Update (05/14/2020): City / Town Halls in LA, MS, & AL
This challenge is nearing completion with over 100 edits since last week! This includes ~60 points new points. See our spatial analysis for tips on remaining communities.
Publications
The relation of geogenic contaminants to groundwater age, aquifer hydrologic position, water type, and redox conditions in Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plain aquifers, eastern and south-central USA
Groundwater age distributions developed from carbon-14 (14C), tritium (3H), and helium-4 (4He) concentrations, along with aquifer hydrologic position, water type, and redox conditions, were compared to geogenic contaminants of concern (GCOC) from 252 public-supply wells in six Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plain unconsolidated-sediment aquifers....
Degnan, James R.; Lindsey, Bruce D.; Levitt, Joseph Patrick; Szabo, Zoltan Bat community response to silvicultural treatments in bottomland hardwood forests managed for wildlife in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley
Silvicultural treatments (e.g., selective timber harvests) that are prescribed to promote wildlife habitat are intended to alter the physical structure of forests to achieve conditions deemed beneficial for wildlife. Such treatments have been advocated for management of bottomland hardwood forests on public conservation lands in the Mississippi...
Ketzler, Loraine P.; Comer, Christopher E.; Twedt, Daniel J. Novel dermatophilosis and concurrent amyloidosis in Sanderlings (Calidris alba) from Louisiana, USA
We observed Sanderlings (Calidris alba) with facial growths in coastal Louisiana, US during summer of 2016. Severe lesions were associated with lethargy and lack of a flight response. We determined that the skin growth etiology was a bacterium of the genus Dermatophilus, rarely reported infecting birds. Sanderlings also exhibited severe...
Shearn-Bochsler, Valerie I.; Schulz, Jessica L.; Dobbs, Robert C.; Lorch, Jeffrey M.; Waddle, J. Hardin; Grear, Daniel A.
Interaction of Environmental Stressors and Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) Pathogen Loads on Survival of Green Frogs (Lithobates clamitans)
The U.S. Geological Survey Amphibian Research Monitoring Initiative (ARMI) is using a combination of swabbing, non-lethal tissue sampling, soil and water sampling, and collection of a variety of other environmental variables to determine the relationships between the prevalence and pathogen load of Bd infection and environmental stressors on green treefrog survival.
Diet and Reproductive Phenology in a Recently Established Population of Invasive Cuban Treefrogs (Osteopilus septentrionalis)
WARC researchers are exploring relationships between body size, time of year, sex, and reproductive development to better understand the reproductive phenology of the New Orleans population of Cuban treefrogs compared to Florida populations.
Alligator Snapping Turtle (Macrochelys temminckii) Research in Louisiana in Support of the Species Status Assessment and Listing Decision by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
WARC researchers are investigating individual movement, growth, and population dynamics of alligator snapping turtles in a southwest Louisiana creek.
Capture-Mark-Recapture of Treefrogs at Bayou Teche National Wildlife Refuge
WARC researchers are gathering amphibian data to better understand the impact of natural disasters on treefrog populations and examine post-event processes.
Forest Structure Resulting from ‘Wildlife Forestry Silviculture’
Wildlife forestry is management of forest resources, within sites and across landscapes, to provide sustainable, desirable habitat conditions for all forest-dependent (silvicolous) fauna while concurrently yielding economically viable, quality timber products. In practice, however, management decisions associated with wildlife forestry often reflect a desire to provide suitable habitat for...
The Response of Coastal Wetlands to Sea-level Rise: Understanding how Macroscale Drivers Influence Local Processes and Feedbacks
The purpose of this work is to advance our understanding of how coastal wetland responses to sea-level rise (SLR) within the conterminous United States are likely to vary as a function of local, regional, and macroscale drivers, including climate. Based on our interactions with managers and decision makers, as well as our knowledge of the current state of the science, we propose to: (a)...
Critical Coastal Habitats: Sustainability, Restoration and Forecasting
USGS WARC scientists are monitoring both the long- and short-term effects of coastal restoration efforts on ecosystem health in coastal habitats of Louisiana’s Barataria Basin.
Water Quality in Lake Pontchartrain and western Mississippi Sound during openings of Bonnet Carré Spillway
The Bonnet Carré Spillway, located about 28 miles northwest of New Orleans, Louisiana, was constructed in the early 1930s as part of an integrated flood-control structure for the lower Mississippi River Plain. The spillway is designed to divert water from the Mississippi River into Lake Pontchartrain, thus relieving pressure on levees downstream. Opening of the spillway occurs when measured...
Using Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) Capabilities to Help Identify Giant Salvinia (Salvinia molesta) and the effects of Salvinia weevil (Cyrtogagous salviniae)
USGS is collecting remotely sensed data to classify Salvinia molesta, a non-native aquatic species that reduces light and oxygen levels in water, making it unsuitable for fish and other aquatic plant life.
Louisiana Public Awareness, Hydrologic Studies, and Hydrologic Data
Louisiana Public Awareness, Hydrologic Studies, and Hydrologic Data
Real-Time Storm Response
Coastal change forecasts and pre- and post-storm photos documenting coastal change for landfalling storms. Currently responding to Hurricane Dorian.
Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council Monitoring and Assessment Program Development
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and USGS will jointly lead the development of foundational components for Gulf region-wide monitoring.
Domestic wells provide drinking water supply for approximately 40 million people in the United States. Knowing the location of these wells, and the populations they serve, is important for identifying heavily used aquifers, locations susceptible to contamination, and populations potentially impacted by poor-quality groundwater.
From August 16 to 21, 2018, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) conducted a geophysical survey to investigate the geologic controls on barrier island evolution and medium-term and interannual sediment transport along the sand berm constructed in 2011 (offshore, at the northern end of the Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana) as mitigation of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. This investigat
This data release contains the boundaries of assessment units and input data for the assessment of undiscovered gas hydrate resources on the north slope of Alaska. The Assessment Unit is the fundamental unit used in the National Assessment Project for the assessment of undiscovered oil and gas resources. The Assessment Unit is defined within the context of the higher-level Total Petroleum Syste
Information about scientific data collected through field activities conducted by scientists in the USGS Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources program
The NWIS mapper provides access to over 1.5 million sites contained in the USGS National Water Information System (NWIS), including sites where current and historical surface-water, groundwater, springs, and atmospheric data has been collected. Users can search by site type, data type, site number, or place.
The Mississippi Alluvial Plain (MAP) Project contains several geologic units which act as important aquifers. We collected several sets of time-domain electromagnetic (TEM) data consisting of two higher-density surveys and six regional-scale transects. The higher density surveys were collected to compare and contrast to other geophysical data not included in this data release, such as a
Follow this link to access downloadable GIS and tabular data for this province.
Interactively explore assessment summary information for continuous (unconventional) assessments conducted at the USGS from 2000-2018. The assessment results data used to generate this visualization can be downloaded here in Excel Format. These data represent all assessment results for Continuous Assessments only from 2000-2018.
USGS Publications in Louisiana
Selected Publications
- News Releases
- Abstracts
- Recent Publications
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Bibliographies—Searchable categories of lists of publications resulting from USGS water-related activities in Louisiana, including publications printed by the USGS or by other Federal, State, or local cooperators.
Fact Sheets for Louisiana by Parish.
Key Findings for Scenario-Based Assessment for Hurricanes
Percentage of sandy beaches very likely (probability > 0.9) to experience erosion associated with collision, overwash, and inundation during category 1-5 hurricane landfall.
Obique photos offer a unique perspective of the coast. Features such as beach erosion or accretion, dune erosion and overwash can all be clearly characterized in this imagery. It also documents coastal infrastructure, as well as the damage that infrastructure may incur as the result of an impacting hurricane.
Domestic wells provide drinking water supply for approximately 40 million people in the United States. Knowing the location of these wells, and the populations they serve, is important for identifying heavily used aquifers, locations susceptible to contamination, and populations potentially impacted by poor-quality groundwater.
This map shows the provinces assessed by the USGS for undiscovered oil and gas resources.
Louisiana Fact Sheets by Parish
Shreveport Area—Caddo and Bossier Parishes Flood Map
Ascension Parish
Amite River Basin
River and Coastal Forecast Information
Lower Mississippi River Forecast Center, Slidell, Louisiana—(NWS)
June 1 marks the beginning of hurricane season. Should storms arrive on the Louisiana coast, the people in coastal communities across the State, along with many Federal, State, and local agencies will need to know how the storms are affecting the coastal and low-lying areas.The USGS maintains an extensive network of coastal gages that provides critical time-sensitive water level.
Subsurface geometry of the Mississippi Embayment Regional Aquifer Study (MERAS)
The 3DEP products and services available through The National Map consist of standard digital elevation models (DEMs) at various horizontal resolutions, elevation source and associated datasets, an elevation point query service and bulk point query service. All 3DEP products are available, free of charge and without use restrictions.
River and Coastal Forecast Information
Mississippi and Ohio River 7-Day Summary and Forecast
The Union County Water Conservation Board with funding from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency began a study in 2003 with the U.S. Geological Survey, the Union County Conservation District, Burns & McDonnell to monitor the impact of water-level recovery and water-quality characteristics of the Sparta aquifer system in southern Arkansas and northern Louisiana.
The relation of geogenic contaminants to groundwater age, aquifer hydrologic position, water type, and redox conditions in Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plain aquifers, eastern and south-central USA
Groundwater age distributions developed from carbon-14 (14C), tritium (3H), and helium-4 (4He) concentrations, along with aquifer hydrologic position, water type, and redox conditions, were compared to geogenic contaminants of concern (GCOC) from 252 public-supply wells in six Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plain unconsolidated-sediment aquifers....
Degnan, James R.; Lindsey, Bruce D.; Levitt, Joseph Patrick; Szabo, Zoltan Using mercury injection pressure analyses to estimate sealing capacity of the Tuscaloosa marine shale in Mississippi, USA: Implications for carbon dioxide sequestration
This work used mercury injection capillary pressure (MICP) analyses of the Tuscaloosa Group in Mississippi, including the Tuscaloosa marine shale (TMS), to assess their efficacy and sealing capacity for geologic carbon dioxide (CO2) sequestration. Tuscaloosa Group porosity and permeability from MICP were evaluated to calculate CO2 column...
Lohr, Celeste D.; Hackley, Paul C. Bat community response to silvicultural treatments in bottomland hardwood forests managed for wildlife in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley
Silvicultural treatments (e.g., selective timber harvests) that are prescribed to promote wildlife habitat are intended to alter the physical structure of forests to achieve conditions deemed beneficial for wildlife. Such treatments have been advocated for management of bottomland hardwood forests on public conservation lands in the Mississippi...
Ketzler, Loraine P.; Comer, Christopher E.; Twedt, Daniel J. Novel dermatophilosis and concurrent amyloidosis in Sanderlings (Calidris alba) from Louisiana, USA
We observed Sanderlings (Calidris alba) with facial growths in coastal Louisiana, US during summer of 2016. Severe lesions were associated with lethargy and lack of a flight response. We determined that the skin growth etiology was a bacterium of the genus Dermatophilus, rarely reported infecting birds. Sanderlings also exhibited severe...
Shearn-Bochsler, Valerie I.; Schulz, Jessica L.; Dobbs, Robert C.; Lorch, Jeffrey M.; Waddle, J. Hardin; Grear, Daniel A.
Land area change in coastal Louisiana (1932 to 2016)
Coastal Louisiana wetlands are one of the most critically threatened environments in the United States. These wetlands are in peril because Louisiana currently experiences greater coastal wetland loss than all other States in the contiguous United States combined. The analyses of landscape change presented here have utilized historical surveys,...
Couvillion, Brady R.; Beck, Holly; Schoolmaster, Donald; Fischer, Michelle Prevalence of Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis and B. salamandrivorans in the Gulf Coast Waterdog, Necturus beyeri, from Southeast Louisiana, USA
The globally widespread amphibian fungal pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) has been linked to amphibian declines worldwide (Lips et al. 2006; Skerratt et al. 2007). In Louisiana, USA, Bd has been found in several amphibian species (Chatfield et al. 2012; Rothermel et al. 2008), but to our knowledge no population-level die-offs have been...
Glorioso, Brad M.; Waddle, J. Hardin; Richards-Zawacki, Corinne L. Nocturnal arboreality in snakes in the swamplands of the Atchafalaya Basin of south-central Louisiana and Big Thicket National Preserve of Southeast Texas
The southeastern United States is home to a diverse assemblage of snakes, but only one species, the Rough Greensnake (Opheodrys aestivus), is considered specialized for a predominantly arboreal lifestyle. Other species, such as Ratsnakes (genus Pantherophis) and Ribbonsnakes/Gartersnakes (genus Thamnophis), are widely known to climb into...
Glorioso, Brad M.; Waddle, J. Hardin Macroclimatic change expected to transform coastal wetland ecosystems this century
Coastal wetlands, existing at the interface between land and sea, are highly vulnerable to climate change. Macroclimate (for example, temperature and precipitation regimes) greatly influences coastal wetland ecosystem structure and function. However, research on climate change impacts in coastal wetlands has concentrated primarily on sea-level...
Gabler, Christopher A.; Osland, Michael J.; Grace, James B.; Stagg, Camille L.; Day, Richard H.; Hartley, Stephen B.; Enwright, Nicholas M.; From, Andrew; McCoy, Meagan L.; McLeod, Jennie L. A modeling study of the impacts of Mississippi River diversion and sea-level rise on water quality of a deltaic estuary
Freshwater and sediment management in estuaries affects water quality, particularly in deltaic estuaries. Furthermore, climate change-induced sea-level rise (SLR) and land subsidence also affect estuarine water quality by changing salinity, circulation, stratification, sedimentation, erosion, residence time, and other physical and ecological...
Wang, Hongqing; Chen, Qin; Hu, Kelin; LaPeyre, Megan K. Determining the spatial variability of wetland soil bulk density, organic matter, and the conversion factor between organic matter and organic carbon across coastal Louisiana, U.S.A.
Soil bulk density (BD), soil organic matter (SOM) content, and a conversion factor between SOM and soil organic carbon (SOC) are often used in estimating SOC sequestration and storage. Spatial variability in BD, SOM, and the SOM–SOC conversion factor affects the ability to accurately estimate SOC sequestration, storage, and the benefits (e.g.,...
Wang, Hongqing; Piazza, Sarai C.; Sharp, Leigh A.; Stagg, Camille L.; Couvillion, Brady R.; Steyer, Gregory D.; McGinnis, Thomas E. Wetland shoreline recession in the Mississippi River Delta from petroleum oiling and cyclonic storms
We evaluate the relative impact of petroleum spill and storm surge on near-shore wetland loss by quantifying the lateral movement of coastal shores in upper Barataria Bay, Louisiana (USA), between June 2009 and October 2012, a study period that extends from the year prior to the Deepwater Horizon spill to 2.5 years following the spill. We document...
Rangoonwala, Amina; Jones, Cathleen E.; Ramsey, Elijah W.
Historical files from Federal Government mineral exploration-assistance programs, 1950 to 1974
The Defense Minerals Administration (DMA), Defense Minerals Exploration Administration (DMEA), and Office of Minerals Exploration (OME) mineral exploration programs were active over the period 1950–1974. Under these programs, the Federal Government contributed financial assistance in the exploration for certain strategic and critical minerals. The...
Frank, David G.
Outstanding in the Field (Ep 4): Amphibian Surveys – Call of the Frog
The USGS Ecosystems Mission Area brings you Outstanding in the Field, a series of stories about our science, our adventures, and our efforts to better understand our fish and wildlife and the ecosystems that support them. In this episode we describe the USGS’s efforts to track frog populations in the southeast United States.
Barry's wave, surge likely to affect beaches in four states
This Coastal Change Storm Hazard Team map was created Friday, July 12, 2019 and shows forecast beach erosion (the strip of colored bars closest to the coast), overwash (middle strip) and inundation (outer strip) effects of Tropical Storm Barry’s predicted landfall in Louisiana. See https://marine.
...
Barry's wave, surge likely to affect beaches in four states
This Coastal Change Storm Hazard Team map was created Friday, July 12, 2019 and shows forecast beach erosion (the strip of colored bars closest to the coast), overwash (middle strip) and inundation (outer strip) effects of Tropical Storm Barry’s predicted landfall in Louisiana. See https://marine.
...
National Oil and Gas Assessment Provinces
This is a graphic from the USGS National Oil and Gas Assessment Explorer application, which allows user to drill into 70 oil and gas assessment provinces throughout the United States.
Aerial photograph looking southwest along Breton Island, Louisiana, ta
Aerial photograph looking southwest along Breton Island, Louisiana, taken July 2013
Eosin-nigrosin staining of spermatozoa from common carp
Eosin-nigrosin staining of spermatozoa from common carp (Cyprinus carpio) testes collected from the Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Nevada
Microscopic video imaging for computerized analysis of sperm motility
Microscopic video imaging is used for computerized analysis of sperm motility parameters
Habitat Connectivity: Assessing Threats and IDing Conservation Actions
An important conservation strategy for climate change is to enhance and maintain regional habitat connectivity for the long-term viability of wildlife populations. Modeling habitat connectivity for wildlife species often results in a mapped network of linkages between habitat patches. A critical next step is to determine which of those linkages are priorities for
Waterfowl Seeking Submerged Aquatic Vegetation
Waterfowl populations in the northern Gulf of Mexico (NGOM) rely extensively on plants that grow under the surface in shallow waters, know as submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV), as a critical food resource in the winter season. SAV roots, shoots, and seeds provide high carbohydrate wildlife food that sustains valuable waterfowl species, including the American Wigeon,
Bee pollinating a flowering coastal prairie plant - WARC
Bee pollinating a flowering coastal prairie plant
Global Fiducials East Timbalier Island, LA
Paired images for East Timbalier Island (Louisiana) showing land mass difference over time.
Global Fiducials East Timbalier Island, LA
Paired images for East Timbalier Island (Louisiana) showing land mass difference over time.
This challenge is now finished! Thank you to everyone who contributed!
This challenge is SO CLOSE to being finished! Louisiana and Mississippi are looking nice, but Alabama needs some attention. See our spatial analysis for tips.
This challenge is nearing completion with over 100 edits since last week! This includes ~60 points new points. See our spatial analysis for tips on remaining communities.
This challenge is moving along nicely with another 100 edits in the last week! This includes more than 20 new points that were added. See our spatial overlay analysis for tips on remaining communities.
These maps are filling in with another 100 points added since last week!
Almost 250 points have come during the last week! That's IMPRESSIVE!
TNMCorps Mapping Challenges approach the Gulf of Mexico with a new challenge for city/town halls in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama!
Budget Focuses on Bringing Science, Facilities, and Infrastructure into the 21st Century
Though Louisiana landfall is likely, highest waves expected to strike east of the storm
To better understand storm impacts on the coast, the USGS National Assessment of Storm-Induced Coastal Change Hazards group is responding to Tropical Storm Barry.
NOAA's annual prediction based on USGS data
Astrangia poculata, the northern star coral, is a temperate scleractinian coral that has been documented on the Atlantic Coast of the United States from Maine to Florida, as well as the Gulf Coasts of Florida, Louisiana, and Texas.
Social Media
Locations
Louisiana Water Science Center
Phone: (225) 298-5481
Fax: (225) 298-5490
Fork Polk Project Office
Phone: (337) 531-4522 Fax:
Fax: (337) 531-6039
Ruston Program Office
Phone: (318) 251-9630
Fax: (318) 251-0372
Lower Mississippi-Gulf Water Science Center - Baton Rouge, LA Office
Phone: (225) 298-5481
Fax: (225) 298-5490
Wetland and Aquatic Research Center - Lafayette, LA
Phone: 337-266-8500
Fax: 337-266-8513
Lower Mississippi-Gulf Water Science Center - Ruston, LA Office
Phone: (318) 251-9630
