Publications

Macroevolutionary theory posits three processes leading to lineage diversification and the formation of regional biotas: dispersal (species geographic range expansion), speciation (species lineage splitting), and extinction (species lineage termination). The Theory of Island Biogeography (TIB) predicts species richness values using just two of these processes; dispersal and extinction...

The Chicago Area Waterway System (CAWS) includes the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal (CSSC) and the Calumet-Sag Channel (Cal-Sag), the two primary, man-made connections between the Mississippi River Basin and the Great Lakes. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) monitors diversion of Great Lakes water at a streamgage just downstream of the confluence of the CSSC and Cal-Sag (known as Sag...

In this chapter we will examine the hydrology of forested areas that are subject to soil saturation by rain, groundwater, or surface flooding. They include mangroves and other tidal forests, the forested portions of peatlands, and tree dominated wetlands defined by the Ramsar Convention (Mathews 1993). They also include estuarine tidal forests, palustrine forested wetlands, and the...

Adjustment of hunting season length is often used to regulate harvest of waterbirds but the effects are disputed. We describe the first results of season length extension on the harvest of the pink-footed goose, which has been selected as the first test case of adaptive harvest management of waterbirds in Europe. In Denmark, the season (previously 1 September to 31 December) was extended...

Animations of highly dynamic water-surface profiles through the St. Clair and Detroit Rivers have identified transient disturbances propagating from Lakes Huron and Erie into the St. Clair and Detroit Rivers, respectively. To determine any relation to seiche and tidal oscillations on Lakes Huron and Erie, a spectral analysis was performed on stage and discharge data from the Huron-Erie...

Introductions of alien species into aquatic ecosystems have been well documented, including invasions of crayfish species; however, little is known about the effects of these introductions on macroinvertebrate communities. The woodland crayfish (Orconectes hylas (Faxon)) has been introduced into the St. Francis River watershed in southeast Missouri and has displaced populations of native...

The U.S. Geological Survey developed a groundwater flow model for the Northern Atlantic Coastal Plain aquifer system from Long Island, New York, to northeastern North Carolina as part of a detailed assessment of the groundwater availability of the area and included an evaluation of how these resources have changed over time from stresses related to human uses and climate trends. The...

Executive Summary The U.S. Geological Survey began a multiyear regional assessment of groundwater availability in the Northern Atlantic Coastal Plain (NACP) aquifer system in 2010 as part of its ongoing regional assessments of groundwater availability of the principal aquifers of the Nation. The goals of this national assessment are to document effects of human activities on water levels...

Groundwater is the Nation’s principal reserve of freshwater. It provides about half our drinking water, is essential to food production, and facilitates business and industry in developing economic well-being. Groundwater is also an important source of water for sustaining the ecosystem health of rivers, wetlands, and estuaries throughout the country. The decreases in groundwater levels...

Quantification of streamflow characteristics in ungauged catchments remains a challenge. Hydrological modeling is often used to derive flow time series and to calculate streamflow characteristics for subsequent applications that may differ from those envisioned by the modelers. While the estimation of model parameters for ungauged catchments is a challenging research task in itself, it...

The Saline Valley Conservancy District (SVCD) operates wells that supply water to most of the water users in Saline and Gallatin Counties, Illinois. The SVCD wells draw water from a shallow sand and gravel aquifer located in close proximity to an abandoned underground coal mine, several abandoned oil wells, and at least one operational oil well. The aquifer that yields water to the SVCD...

Invasive species such as Asian carps have the potential to travel in the egg, larval, or fry stages from the Des Plaines River (DPR) to the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal (CSSC) by way of the network of secondary-permeability features in the dolomite aquifer between these water bodies. Such movement would circumvent the electric fish barrier on the canal and allow Asian carps to travel...