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Read publications and other informational products to learn more about USGS science occurring in the Mississippi Basin.

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Old data, new problems Old data, new problems

Old data are a gold standard in climate change research, and much more use should be made of these data sets to document changes in wetlands in recent decades. Key data sets for the study of climate or land use change effects on wetlands may include historical field studies. Old data sets such as those from Iowa State University in the 1980s have immense value for assessing long term...
Authors
Beth Middleton

Can we improve the salinity tolerance of genotypes of Taxodium by using varietal and hybrid crosses? Can we improve the salinity tolerance of genotypes of Taxodium by using varietal and hybrid crosses?

Taxodium distichum (L.) Rich. var. distichum [baldcypress (BC)], Taxodium distichum var. mexicanum Gordon [Montezuma cypress (MC)], and a Taxodium hybrid (\'Nanjing Beauty\': BC x MC cross, T302) were evaluated for salt tolerance in 2006 at Nacogdoches, TX. Plants were irrigated weekly with four levels of salinity [0, 1, 3.5, and 6 ppt (0, 17, 60, and 102 mol*m-3)] for 13 weeks and then...
Authors
Lijing Zhou, David L. Creech, Ken W. Krauss, Yin Yunlong, David L. Kulhavy

Surface elevation change and susceptibility of different mangrove zones to sea-level rise on Pacific high islands of Micronesia Surface elevation change and susceptibility of different mangrove zones to sea-level rise on Pacific high islands of Micronesia

Mangroves on Pacific high islands offer a number of important ecosystem services to both natural ecological communities and human societies. High islands are subjected to constant erosion over geologic time, which establishes an important source of terrigeneous sediment for nearby marine communities. Many of these sediments are deposited in mangrove forests and offer mangroves a...
Authors
K. W. Krauss, Donald R. Cahoon, J. A. Allen, K. C. Ewel, J.C. Lynch, Nicole Cormier

Predicting the retreat and migration of tidal forests along the northern Gulf of Mexico under sea-level rise Predicting the retreat and migration of tidal forests along the northern Gulf of Mexico under sea-level rise

Tidal freshwater forests in coastal regions of the southeastern United States are undergoing dieback and retreat from increasing tidal inundation and saltwater intrusion attributed to climate variability and sea-level rise. In many areas, tidal saltwater forests (mangroves) contrastingly are expanding landward in subtropical coastal reaches succeeding freshwater marsh and forest zones
Authors
T.W. Doyle, K. W. Krauss, W.H. Conner, A.S. From

High mangrove density enhances surface accretion, surface elevation change, and tree survival in coastal areas susceptible to sea-level rise High mangrove density enhances surface accretion, surface elevation change, and tree survival in coastal areas susceptible to sea-level rise

Survival, growth, aboveground biomass accumulation, sediment surface elevation dynamics and nitrogen accumulation in sediments were studied in experimental treatments planted with four different densities (6.96, 3.26, 1.93 and 0.95 seedlings m−2) of the mangrove Rhizophora mucronata in Puttalam Lagoon, Sri Lanka. Measurements were taken over a period of 1,171 days and were compared with...
Authors
M.P. Kumara, L.P. Jayatissa, K. W. Krauss, D.H. Phillips, M. Huxham

Suspended-sediment concentration regimes for two biological reference streams in Middle Tennessee Suspended-sediment concentration regimes for two biological reference streams in Middle Tennessee

Temporal patterns of suspended-sediment concentration (SSC) duration and frequency (SSC regimes) were characterized and compared with biological impairment thresholds for two headwater streams in the Western Highland Rim of Tennessee. The SSC regimes were plotted as curves showing concentrations and durations of the annual longest and tenth-longest SSC excursions above 18 concentrations...
Authors
Timothy H. Diehl, William J. Wolfe

Stratospheric microbiology at 20 km over the Pacific Ocean Stratospheric microbiology at 20 km over the Pacific Ocean

An aerobiology sampling flight at 20 km was conducted on 28 April 2008 over the Pacific Ocean (36.5° N, 118–149° W), a period of time that coincided with the movement of Asian dust across the ocean. The aim of this study was to confirm the presence of viable bacteria and fungi within a transoceanic, atmospheric bridge and to improve the resolution of flight hardware processing techniques...
Authors
David J. Smith, Dale W. Griffin, Andrew C. Schuerger

Regional estimates of ecological services derived from U.S. Department of Agriculture conservation programs in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley Regional estimates of ecological services derived from U.S. Department of Agriculture conservation programs in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley

The Mississippi Alluvial Valley (MAV) is the Nation?s largest floodplain and this once predominantly forested ecosystem provided significant habitat for a diverse flora and fauna, sequestered carbon in trees and soil, and stored floodwater, sediments, and nutrients within the floodplain. This landscape has been substantially altered by the conversion of nearly 75% of the riparian forests
Authors
Stephen P. Faulkner, Michael J. Baldwin, Wylie C. Barrow, Hardin Waddle, Bobby D. Keeland, Susan C. Walls, Dale James, Tom Moorman

Climate change effects on an endemic-rich edaphic flora: resurveying Robert H. Whittaker's Siskiyou sites (Oregon, USA) Climate change effects on an endemic-rich edaphic flora: resurveying Robert H. Whittaker's Siskiyou sites (Oregon, USA)

Species with relatively narrow niches, such as plants restricted (endemic) to particular soils, may be especially vulnerable to extinction under a changing climate due to the enhanced difficulty they face in migrating to suitable new sites. To test for community-level effects of climate change, and to compare such effects in a highly endemic-rich flora on unproductive serpentine soils vs...
Authors
Ellen Ingman Damschen, Susan Harrison, James B. Grace

Detecting the spatial and temporal variability of chlorophyll-a concentration and total suspended solids in Apalachicola Bay, Florida using MODIS imagery Detecting the spatial and temporal variability of chlorophyll-a concentration and total suspended solids in Apalachicola Bay, Florida using MODIS imagery

Apalachicola Bay, Florida, accounts for 90% of Florida's and 10% of the nation's eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica) harvesting. Chlorophyll-a concentration and total suspended solids (TSS) are two important water quality variables, among other environmental factors such as salinity, for eastern oyster production in Apalachicola Bay. In this research, we developed regression models of...
Authors
Hongqing Wang, C.M. Hladik, W. Huang, K. Milla, L. Edmiston, M.A. Harwell, J.F. Schalles

Analytical models for the groundwater tidal prism and associated benthic water flux Analytical models for the groundwater tidal prism and associated benthic water flux

The groundwater tidal prism is defined as the volume of water that inundates a porous medium, forced by one tidal oscillation in surface water. The pressure gradient that generates the prism acts on the subterranean estuary. Analytical models for the groundwater tidal prism and associated benthic flux are presented. The prism and flux are shown to be directly proportional to porosity...
Authors
Jeffrey N. King, Ashish J. Mehta, Robert G. Dean
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