Geology topics

J.L. Meyer

Publications and source records attributed to J.L. Meyer.

11 recordsLinked to original sources

USGS2010

Inter-regional comparison of land-use effects on stream metabolism

1. Rates of whole-system metabolism (production and respiration) are fundamental indicators of ecosystem structure and function. Although first-order, proximal controls are well understood, assessments of the interactions between proximal controls and distal controls, such as land use and geographic region, are lacking. Thus, the influence of land use on stream metabolism across geographic regions is unknown. Further, there is limited understanding of how land use may alter variability in ecosystem metabolism across regions.2. Stream metabolism was measured in nine streams in each of eight regions (n = 72) across the United States and Puerto Rico. In each region, three streams were selected from a range of three land uses: agriculturally influenced, urban-influenced, and reference streams. Stream metabolism was estimated from diel changes in dissolved oxygen concentrations in each stream reach with correction for reaeration and groundwater input.3. Gross primary production (GPP) was highest in regions with little riparian vegetation (sagebrush steppe in Wyoming, desert shrub in Arizona/New Mexico) and lowest in forested regions (North Carolina, Oregon). In contrast, ecosystem respiration (ER) varied both within and among regions. Reference streams had significantly lower rates of GPP than urban or agriculturally influenced streams.4. GPP was positively correlated with photosynthetically active radiation and autotrophic biomass. Multiple regression models compared using Akaike's information criterion (AIC) indicated GPP increased with water column ammonium and the fraction of the catchment in urban and reference land-use categories. Multiple regression models also identified velocity, temperature, nitrate, ammonium, dissolved organic carbon, GPP, coarse benthic organic matter, fine benthic organic matter and the fraction of all land-use categories in the catchment as regulators of ER.5. Structural equation modelling indicated significant distal as well as proximal control pathways including a direct effect of land-use on GPP as well as SRP, DIN, and PAR effects on GPP; GPP effects on autotrophic biomass, organic matter, and ER; and organic matter effects on ER.6. Overall, consideration of the data separated by land-use categories showed reduced inter-regional variability in rates of metabolism, indicating that the influence of agricultural and urban land use can obscure regional differences in stream metabolism. ?? 2010 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Freshwater Biology↗

USGS2009

Nitrate removal in stream ecosystems measured by 15 N addition experiments: Total uptake

We measured uptake length of 15 NO- 3 in 72 streams in eight regions across the United States and Puerto Rico to develop quantitative predictive models on controls of NO- 3 uptake length. As part of the Lotic Intersite Nitrogen eXperiment II project, we chose nine streams in each region corresponding to natural (reference), suburban-urban, and agricultural land uses. Study streams spanned a range of human land use to maximize variation in NO- 3 concentration, geomorphology, and metabolism. We tested a causal model predicting controls on NO- 3 uptake length using structural equation modeling. The model included concomitant measurements of ecosystem metabolism, hydraulic parameters, and nitrogen concentration. We compared this structural equation model to multiple regression models which included additional biotic, catchment, and riparian variables. The structural equation model explained 79% of the variation in log uptake length (S Wtot ). Uptake length increased with specific discharge (Q/w) and increasing NO- 3 concentrations, showing a loss in removal efficiency in streams with high NO- 3 concentration. Uptake lengths shortened with increasing gross primary production, suggesting autotrophic assimilation dominated NO- 3 removal. The fraction of catchment area as agriculture and suburban-urban land use weakly predicted NO- 3 uptake in bivariate regression, and did improve prediction in a set of multiple regression models. Adding land use to the structural equation model showed that land use indirectly affected NO- 3 uptake lengths via directly increasing both gross primary production and NO- 3 concentration. Gross primary production shortened S Wtot , while increasing NO- 3 lengthened S Wtot resulting in no net effect of land use on NO- 3 removal. ?? 2009.

Limnology and Oceanography↗

USGS2009

Nitrate removal in stream ecosystems measured by 15 N addition experiments: Denitrification

We measured denitrification rates using a field 15 N-NO- 3 tracer-addition approach in a large, cross-site study of nitrate uptake in reference, agricultural, and suburban-urban streams. We measured denitrification rates in 49 of 72 streams studied. Uptake length due to denitrification (S Wden ) ranged from 89 m to 184 km (median of 9050 m) and there were no significant differences among regions or land-use categories, likely because of the wide range of conditions within each region and land use. N 2 production rates far exceeded N 2 O production rates in all streams. The fraction of total NO- 3 removal from water due to denitrification ranged from 0.5% to 100% among streams (median of 16%), and was related to NHz 4 concentration and ecosystem respiration rate (ER). Multivariate approaches showed that the most important factors controlling S Wden were specific discharge (discharge / width) and NO- 3 concentration (positive effects), and ER and transient storage zones (negative effects). The relationship between areal denitrification rate (U den ) and NO- 3 concentration indicated a partial saturation effect. A power function with an exponent of 0.5 described this relationship better than a Michaelis-Menten equation. Although Uden increased with increasing NO- 3 concentration, the efficiency of NO- 3 removal from water via denitrification declined, resulting in a smaller proportion of streamwater NO- 3 load removed over a given length of stream. Regional differences in stream denitrification rates were small relative to the proximate factors of NO- 3 concentration and ecosystem respiration rate, and land use was an important but indirect control on denitrification in streams, primarily via its effect on NO- 3 concentration. ?? 2009.

Limnology and Oceanography↗

USGS2008

Stream denitrification across biomes and its response to anthropogenic nitrate loading

Anthropogenic addition of bioavailable nitrogen to the biosphere is increasing and terrestrial ecosystems are becoming increasingly nitrogen-saturated, causing more bioavailable nitrogen to enter groundwater and surface waters. Large-scale nitrogen budgets show that an average of about 20-25 per cent of the nitrogen added to the biosphere is exported from rivers to the ocean or inland basins, indicating that substantial sinks for nitrogen must exist in the landscape. Streams and rivers may themselves be important sinks for bioavailable nitrogen owing to their hydrological connections with terrestrial systems, high rates of biological activity, and streambed sediment environments that favour microbial denitrification. Here we present data from nitrogen stable isotope tracer experiments across 72 streams and 8 regions representing several biomes. We show that total biotic uptake and denitrification of nitrate increase with stream nitrate concentration, but that the efficiency of biotic uptake and denitrification declines as concentration increases, reducing the proportion of in-stream nitrate that is removed from transport. Our data suggest that the total uptake of nitrate is related to ecosystem photosynthesis and that denitrification is related to ecosystem respiration. In addition, we use a stream network model to demonstrate that excess nitrate in streams elicits a disproportionate increase in the fraction of nitrate that is exported to receiving waters and reduces the relative role of small versus large streams as nitrate sinks. ??2008 Nature Publishing Group.

Nature↗

USGS2006

Leaf breakdown in streams differing in catchment land use

1. The impact of changes in land use on stream ecosystem function is poorly understood. We studied leaf breakdown, a fundamental process of stream ecosystems, in streams that represent a range of catchment land use in the Piedmont physiographic province of the south-eastern United States. 2. We placed bags of chalk maple (Acer barbatum) leaves in similar-sized streams in 12 catchments of differing dominant land use: four forested, three agricultural, two suburban and three urban catchments. We measured leaf mass, invertebrate abundance and fungal biomass in leaf bags over time. 3. Leaves decayed significantly faster in agricultural (0.0465 day-1) and urban (0.0474 day-1) streams than in suburban (0.0173 day-1) and forested (0.0100 day-1) streams. Additionally, breakdown rates in the agricultural and urban streams were among the fastest reported for deciduous leaves in any stream. Nutrient concentrations in agricultural streams were significantly higher than in any other land-use type. Fungal biomass associated with leaves was significantly lower in urban streams; while shredder abundance in leaf bags was significantly higher in forested and agricultural streams than in suburban and urban streams. Storm runoff was significantly higher in urban and suburban catchments that had higher impervious surface cover than forested or agricultural catchments. 4. We propose that processes accelerating leaf breakdown in agricultural and urban streams were not the same: faster breakdown in agricultural streams was due to increased biological activity as a result of nutrient enrichment, whereas faster breakdown in urban streams was a result of physical fragmentation resulting from higher storm runoff. ?? 2006 The Authors.

Freshwater Biology↗

USGS2006

Importance of riparian forests in urban catchments contingent on sediment and hydrologic regimes

Forested riparian corridors are thought to minimize impacts of landscape disturbance on stream ecosystems; yet, the effectiveness of streamside forests in mitigating disturbance in urbanizing catchments is unknown. We expected that riparian forests would provide minimal benefits for fish assemblages in streams that are highly impaired by sediment or hydrologic alteration. We tested this hypothesis in 30 small streams along a gradient of urban disturbance (1–65% urban land cover). Species expected to be sensitive to disturbance (i.e., fluvial specialists and “sensitive” species that respond negatively to urbanization) were best predicted by models including percent forest cover in the riparian corridor and a principal components axis describing sediment disturbance. Only sites with coarse bed sediment and low bed mobility (vs. sites with high amounts of fine sediment) had increased richness and abundances of sensitive species with higher percent riparian forests, supporting our hypothesis that response to riparian forests is contingent on the sediment regime. Abundances of Etheostoma scotti , the federally threatened Cherokee darter, were best predicted by models with single variables representing stormflow ( r 2 = 0.34) and sediment ( r 2 = 0.23) conditions. Lentic-tolerant species richness and abundance responded only to a variable representing prolonged duration of low-flow conditions. For these species, hydrologic alteration overwhelmed any influence of riparian forests on stream biota. These results suggest that, at a minimum, catchment management strategies must simultaneously address hydrologic, sediment, and riparian disturbance in order to protect all aspects of fish assemblage integrity.

Environmental Management↗

USGS2005

Flow regime alterations under changing climate in two river basins: Implications for freshwater ecosystems

We examined impacts of future climate scenarios on flow regimes and how predicted changes might affect river ecosystems. We examined two case studies: Cle Elum River, Washington, and Chattahoochee-Apalachicola River Basin, Georgia and Florida. These rivers had available downscaled global circulation model (GCM) data and allowed us to analyse the effects of future climate scenarios on rivers with (1) different hydrographs, (2) high future water demands, and (3) a river-floodplain system. We compared observed flow regimes to those predicted under future climate scenarios to describe the extent and type of changes predicted to occur. Daily stream flow under future climate scenarios was created by either statistically downscaling GCMs (Cle Elum) or creating a regression model between climatological parameters predicted from GCMs and stream flow (Chattahoochee-Apalachicola). Flow regimes were examined for changes from current conditions with respect to ecologically relevant features including the magnitude and timing of minimum and maximum flows. The Cle Elum's hydrograph under future climate scenarios showed a dramatic shift in the timing of peak flows and lower low flow of a longer duration. These changes could mean higher summer water temperatures, lower summer dissolved oxygen, and reduced survival of larval fishes. The Chattahoochee-Apalachicola basin is heavily impacted by dams and water withdrawals for human consumption; therefore, we made comparisons between pre-large dam conditions, current conditions, current conditions with future demand, and future climate scenarios with future demand to separate climate change effects and other anthropogenic impacts. Dam construction, future climate, and future demand decreased the flow variability of the river. In addition, minimum flows were lower under future climate scenarios. These changes could decrease the connectivity of the channel and the floodplain, decrease habitat availability, and potentially lower the ability of the river to assimilate wastewater treatment plant effluent. Our study illustrates the types of changes that river ecosystems might experience under future climates. Copyright ?? 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

River Research and Applications↗

USGS2005

Investigating hydrologic alteration as a mechanism of fish assemblage shifts in urbanizing streams

Stream biota in urban and suburban settings are thought to be impaired by altered hydrology; however, it is unknown what aspects of the hydrograph alter fish assemblage structure and which fishes are most vulnerable to hydrologic alterations in small streams. We quantified hydrologic variables and fish assemblages in 30 small streams and their subcatchments (area 8–20 km 2 ) in the Etowah River Catchment (Georgia, USA). We stratified streams and their subcatchments into 3 landcover categories based on imperviousness (<10%, 10–20%, >20% of subcatchment), and then estimated the degree of hydrologic alteration based on synoptic measurements of baseflow yield. We derived hydrologic variables from stage gauges at each study site for 1 y (January 2003–2004). Increased imperviousness was positively correlated with the frequency of storm events and rates of the rising and falling limb of the hydrograph (i.e., storm “flashiness”) during most seasons. Increased duration of low flows associated with imperviousness only occurred during the autumn low-flow period, and this measure corresponded with increased richness of lentic tolerant species. Altered storm flows in summer and autumn were related to decreased richness of endemic, cosmopolitan, and sensitive fish species, and decreased abundance of lentic tolerant species. Species predicted to be sensitive to urbanization, based on specific life-history or habitat requirements, also were related to stormflow variables and % fine bed sediment in riffles. Overall, hydrologic variables explained 22 to 66% of the variation in fish assemblage richness and abundance. Linkages between hydrologic alteration and fish assemblages were potentially complicated by contrasting effects of elevated flows on sediment delivery and scour, and mediating effects of high stream gradient on sediment delivery from elevated flows. However, stormwater management practices promoting natural hydrologic regimes are likely to reduce the impacts of catchment imperviousness on stream fish assemblages.

Journal of the North American Benthological Societ↗

USGS2005

Reach-scale effects of riparian forest cover on urban stream ecosystems

We compared habitat and biota between paired open and forested reaches within five small streams (basin area 10?20 km2) in suburban catchments (9%?49% urban land cover) in the Piedmont of Georgia, USA. Stream reaches with open canopies were narrower than forested reaches (4.1 versus 5.0 m, respectively). There were no differences in habitat diversity (variation in velocity, depth, or bed particle size) between open and forested reaches. However, absence of local forest cover corresponded to decreased large wood and increased algal chlorophyll a standing crop biomass. These differences in basal food resources translated into higher densities of fishes in open (9.0 individuals?m?2) versus forested (4.9 individuals?m?2) reaches, primarily attributed to higher densities of the herbivore Campostoma oligolepis. Densities of terrestrial invertebrate inputs were higher in open reaches; however, trends suggested higher biomass of terrestrial inputs in forested reaches and a corresponding higher density of terrestrial prey consumed by water column feeding fishes. Reach-scale biotic integrity (macroinvertebrates, salamanders, and fishes) was largely unaffected by differences in canopy cover. In urbanizing areas where catchment land cover drives habitat and biotic quality, management practices that rely exclusively on forested riparian areas for stream protection are unlikely to be effective at maintaining ecosystem integrity.

Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences↗

USGS1997

Effects of climate change on freshwater ecosystems of the south-eastern United States and the Gulf Coast of Mexico

The south-eastern United States and Gulf Coast of Mexico is physiographically diverse, although dominated by a broad coastal plain. Much of the region has a humid, warm temperate climate with little seasonality in precipitation but strong seasonality in runoff owing to high rates of summer evapotranspiration. The climate of southern Florida and eastern Mexico is subtropical with a distinct summer wet season and winter dry season. Regional climate models suggest that climate change resulting from a doubling of the pre-industrial levels of atmospheric CO2 may increase annual air temperatures by 3-4??C. Changes in precipitation are highly uncertain, but the most probable scenario shows higher levels over all but the northern, interior portions of the region, with increases primarily occurring in summer and occurring as more intense or clustered storms. Despite the increases in precipitation, runoff is likely to decline over much of the region owing to increases in evapotranspiration exceeding increases in precipitation. Only in Florida and the Gulf Coast areas of the US and Mexico are precipitation increases likely to exceed evapotranspiration increases, producing an increase in runoff. However, increases in storm intensity and clustering are likely to result in more extreme hydrographs, with larger peaks in flow but lower baseflows and longer periods of drought. The ecological effects of climate change on freshwaters of the region include: (1) a general increase in rates of primary production, organic matter decomposition and nutrient cycling as a result of higher temperatures and longer growing seasons: (2) reduction in habitat for cool water species, particularly fish and macroinvertebrates in Appalachian streams; (3) reduction in water quality and in suitable habitat in summer owing to lower baseflows and intensification of the temperature-dissolved oxygen squeeze in many rivers and reservoirs; (4) reduction in organic matter storage and loss of organisms during more intense flushing events in some streams and wetlands; (5) shorter periods of inundation of riparian wetlands and greater drying of wetland soils, particularly in northern and inland areas; (6) expansion of subtropical species northwards, including several non-native nuisance species currently confined to southern Florida; (7) expansion of wetlands in Florida and coastal Mexico, but increase in eutrophication of Florida lakes as a result of greater runoff from urban and agricultural areas; and (8) changes in the flushing rate of estuaries that would alter their salinity regimes, stratification and water quality as well as influence productivity in the Gulf of Mexico. Many of the expected climate change effects will exacerbate current anthropogenic stresses on the region's freshwater systems, including increasing demands for water, increasing waste heat loadings and land use changes that alter the quantity and quality of runoff to streams and reservoirs. Research is needed especially in several critical areas: long-term monitoring of key hydrological, chemical and biological properties (particularly water balances in small, forested catchments and temperature-sensitive species); experimental studies of the effects of warming on organisms and ecosystem processes under realistic conditions (e.g. in situ heating experiments); studies of the effects of natural hydrological variation on biological communities; and assessment of the effects of water management activities on organisms and ecosystem processes, including development and testing of management and restoration strategies designed to counteract changes in climate.

Hydrological Processes↗

USGS1996

Incorporation of bacterial extracellular polysaccharide by black fly larvae (Simuliidae)

Black fly larvae (Simulium) assimilated, with high efficiency (80-90%), bacterial extracellular polysaccharide (EPS) extracted from laboratory cultures of a pseudomonad isolated from the Ogeechee River. Incorporation was traced using 13C-labelled EPS offered to larvae as a coating on a mixture of 1-μm latex beads and kaolin particles. These EPS-coated particles were used to simulate natural particles, both living and dead. Solubility, protein, and nitrogen content of the EPS suggested it was a slime rather than a capsular polysaccharide. Glycosyl composition of the EPS was glucose and galactose in α and β linkages, with pyruvate, succinate, and possibly malonate constituent groups. To evaluate the incorporation of C derived from protein associated with the EPS matrix, feeding experiments were conducted using EPS with and without proteins extracted. Black fly larvae incorporated 7.2 μg EPS C larva-1 d-1 from EPS that did not have proteins extracted, and 19.5 μg EPS C larva-1 d-1 from EPS with proteins extracted. Carbon in protein that is typically associated with EPS was not solely or selectively incorporated. EPS incorporation rates are similar to rates of cellular bacterial carbon incorporation previously estimated for Ogeechee River black fly larvae. If EPS is generally available as a food resource, the importance of bacteria in detrital food webs may be underestimated by studies that examine only the consumption of bacterial cells.

Journal of the North American Benthological Societ↗