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At least 271 records · Page 15Linked to original sources

USGS2006

Modeling wetland plant community response to assess water-level regulation scenarios in the Lake Ontario-St. Lawrence River basin

The International Joint Commission has recently completed a five-year study (2000-2005) to review the operation of structures controlling the flows and levels of the Lake Ontario - St. Lawrence River system. In addition to addressing the multitude of stakeholder interests, the regulation plan review also considers environmental sustainability and integrity of wetlands and various ecosystem components. The present paper outlines the general approach, scientific methodology and applied management considerations of studies quantifying the relationships between hydrology and wetland plant assemblages (% occurrence, surface area) in Lake Ontario and the Upper and Lower St. Lawrence River. Although similar study designs were used across the study region, different methodologies were required that were specifically adapted to suit the important regional differences between the lake and river systems, range in water-level variations, and confounding factors (geomorphic types, exposure, sediment characteristics, downstream gradient of water quality, origin of water masses in the Lower River). Performance indicators (metrics), such as total area of wetland in meadow marsh vegetation type, that link wetland response to water levels will be used to assess the effects of different regulation plans under current and future (climate change) water-supply scenarios.

Environmental Monitoring and Assessment↗

USGS2010

Gypsies in the palace: Experimentalist's view on the use of 3-D physics-based simulation of hillslope hydrological response

As a fundamental unit of the landscape, hillslopes are studied for their retention and release of water and nutrients across a wide range of ecosystems. The understanding of these near-surface processes is relevant to issues of runoff generation, groundwater-surface water interactions, catchment export of nutrients, dissolved organic carbon, contaminants (e.g. mercury) and ultimately surface water health. We develop a 3-D physics-based representation of the Panola Mountain Research Watershed experimental hillslope using the TOUGH2 sub-surface flow and transport simulator. A recent investigation of sub-surface flow within this experimental hillslope has generated important knowledge of threshold rainfall-runoff response and its relation to patterns of transient water table development. This work has identified components of the 3-D sub-surface, such as bedrock topography, that contribute to changing connectivity in saturated zones and the generation of sub-surface stormflow. Here, we test the ability of a 3-D hillslope model (both calibrated and uncalibrated) to simulate forested hillslope rainfall-runoff response and internal transient sub-surface stormflow dynamics. We also provide a transparent illustration of physics-based model development, issues of parameterization, examples of model rejection and usefulness of data types (e.g. runoff, mean soil moisture and transient water table depth) to the model enterprise. Our simulations show the inability of an uncalibrated model based on laboratory and field characterization of soil properties and topography to successfully simulate the integrated hydrological response or the distributed water table within the soil profile. Although not an uncommon result, the failure of the field-based characterized model to represent system behaviour is an important challenge that continues to vex scientists at many scales. We focus our attention particularly on examining the influence of bedrock permeability, soil anisotropy and drainable porosity on the development of patterns of transient groundwater and sub-surface flow. Internal dynamics of transient water table development prove to be essential in determining appropriate model parameterization. ?? 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Hydrological Processes↗

USGS2017

Book review: Extreme ocean waves

“ Extreme Ocean Waves ”, edited by E. Pelinovsky and C. Kharif, second edition, Springer International Publishing, 2016; ISBN: 978-3-319-21574-7, ISBN (eBook): 978-3-319-21575-4 The second edition of “ Extreme Ocean Waves ” published by Springer is an update of a collection of 12 papers edited by Efim Pelinovsky and Christian Kharif following the April 2007 meeting of the General Assembly of the European Geosciences Union. In this edition, three new papers have been added and three more have been substantially revised. Color figures are now included, which greatly aids in reading several of the papers, and is especially helpful in visualizing graphs as in the paper on symbolic computation of nonlinear wave resonance (Tobisch et al.). A note on terminology: extreme waves in this volume broadly encompass different types of waves, including deep-water and shallow-water rogue waves (which are alternatively termed freak waves), and internal waves. One new paper on tsunamis (Viroulet et al.) is now included in the second edition of this volume. Throughout the book, the reader will find a combination of laboratory, theoretical, and statistical/empirical treatment necessary for the complete examination of this subject. In the Introduction, the editors underscore the importance of studying extreme waves, documenting a dramatic instance of damaging extreme waves that recently occurred in 2014.

Pure and Applied Geophysics↗

USGS2023

Stocking fish in inland waters: Opportunities and risks for sustainable food systems

Stocking is one of the foremost tools in the inland fisheries management toolbox, but it comes with both opportunities and risks. Stocking is often used as compensation for depleted wild populations, particularly where recruitment processes have been disrupted, but it can introduce disease, disrupt community structures, reduce genetic integrity, and cause conflicts between fishery stakeholders. Despite its widespread use, examples of effective stocking for food fisheries in inland waters are sparse in the peer-reviewed literature. Nevertheless, it is well established that stocking is frequently used to maintain fish yield, so there is a need to conduct the practice in a robust manner that minimises the potential risks. This paper serves as the front matter for a special section of Fisheries Management and Ecology focused on fresh waters feeding the world, which resulted from two panel sessions, one focused on aquaculture and one focused on stocking, hosted by the international InFish research network ( https://infish.org/ ). The paper highlights current practices of fish stock enhancement in inland waters for food, examines potential synergies and interactions of stock enhancement programmes with aquaculture, and provides an outline framework for responsible management of fish stock enhancement.

Fisheries Management and Ecology↗

USGS1976

Evaluation of hydrologic properties of the Long Island ground-water reservoir using cross-sectional electric-analog models

Variables necessary for constructing a quantitative model to predict the response of ground-water reservoirs to hydrologic stresses are in four classes: (a) external and internal geometry of the reservoir, (b) nature of the reservoir boundaries, (c) areal distribution of horizontal and vertical hydraulic conductivities, and (d) areal distribution of storage capability within the reservoir. In this report, the sensitivity of the Long Island ground-water reservoir's reponse to the first three of these variables was evaluated using analog models.

New York↗

USGS2022

Osmoregulation and acid-base balance.

Maintaining relatively constant levels of internal cellular ions is critical to the normal function of all animals. For many organisms this is achieved primarily by regulating the ion and acid-base composition of the blood within narrow limits. This understanding of the importance of “le milieu interior,” first espoused by Claude Bernard in the mid-1800s and later described as “homeostasis” by Walter Cannon, is a cornerstone of modern physiology. “It was Bernard’s view that we achieve a free and independent life, physically and mentally, because of the constancy of the composition of our internal environment” (Smith 1961:1). Direct contact between the gills and water makes ion, water, and acid-base balance especially challenging and important to fish and, in turn, makes fish important subjects for understanding the evolution and control of all of these homeostatic processes. Several strategies exist within fishes for regulating ion concentrations in the blood relative to external (environmental) salt concentrations. Hagfishes, which are one extant group representing the ancestral jawless condition of vertebrates, are restricted to seawater (SW) and have an osmoconforming strategy in which the internal (blood) and external osmotic concentrations are very similar (Currie and Edwards 2010), but important differences do exist (Sardella et al. 2009). Lampreys are the other group of extant jawless fishes and either live wholly in freshwater (FW) or are anadromous . Lampreys have an osmoregulatory strategy in which the internal concentrations of ions are approximately one-third that of SW (Reis-Santos et al. 2008). Their underlying mechanisms of ion transport and osmoregulation appear to be nearly identical to those of the more recently evolved ray-finned fishes (Figure 9.1), which have adopted a similar osmoregulatory strategy. Elasmobranchs and coelacanths in SW retain high levels of urea in their plasma and are osmoconformers (Figure 9.2), whereas in the relatively rare instances elasmobranchs are found in FW, they are hyperosmoregulators, maintaining plasma ion levels in excess of environmental levels via mechanisms similar to FW ray-finned fishes (Ballantyne and Robinson 2010).

Book chapter↗

USGS2004

Effects of changes in reservoir operations on water quality and trophic state indicators in Voyageurs National Park, northern Minnesota, 2001-03

Implementation of an order by the International Joint Commission in January 2000 has changed operating procedures for dams that regulate two large reservoirs in Voyageurs National Park in northern Minnesota. These new procedures were expected to restore a more natural water regime and affect water levels, water quality, and trophic status. Results of laboratory analyses and field measurements of chemical and physical properties from May 2001 through September 2003 were compared to similar data collected prior to the change in operating procedures. Rank sum tests showed significant decreases in chlorophyll-a concentrations and trophic state indices for Kabetogama Lake (p=0.021) and Black Bay (p=0.007). There were no significant decreases in total phosphorus concentration, however, perhaps due to internal cycling of phosphorus. No sites had significant trends in seasonal total phosphorus concentrations, with the exception of May samples from Sand Point Lake, which had a significant decreasing trend (tau=-0.056, probability=0.03). May chlorophyll-a concentrations for Kabetogama Lake showed a significant decreasing trend (tau=-0.42, probability=0.05). Based on mean chlorophyll trophic-state indices (2001-03), Sand Point, Namakan, and Rainy Lakes would be classified oligotrophic to mesotrophic, and Kabetogama Lake and Rainy Lake at Black Bay would be classified as mesotrophic. The classification of Sand Point, Namakan, and Rainy Lakes remain the same for data collected prior to the change in operating procedures. In contrast, the trophic classification of Kabetogama Lake and Rainy Lake at Black Bay has changed from eutrophic to mesotrophic.

Minnesota↗

USGS2026

Field methods, quality-assurance, and data management plan for water-quality activities and water-level measurements, Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho

Introduction Water-quality activities and water-level measurements conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Idaho National Laboratory (INL) Project Office coincide with the USGS mission of evaluating the quantity and quality of the Nation’s water resources. The activities are conducted in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Idaho Operations Office. Results of water-quality and hydraulic head research efforts are presented in various USGS and scientific journal publications (refer to Fisher, 2022). These data are stored internally in the Aquarius Time Series and Aquarius Samples databases and are publicly accessible through National Water Quality Monitoring Council (2025) and U.S. Geological Survey (2025). Data collected from our studies are used by researchers, Federal and State agencies, water management and regulatory organizations, as well as the public. This quality assurance plan (QAP) describes the methods and processes for field methods, data collection, data management, data auditing, and equipment management for both the water-quality and water-level programs at the USGS INL Project Office (hereto referred to as INL Project Office). A comprehensive quality assurance (QA) plan ensures that the processes defined in this document will guide the program staff to collect and publish reliable, useful, and defensible data products for stakeholders. This QAP supersedes previous versions of this document and is intended to complement the Quality Assurance and Data Management (QADM) Plan for the Idaho Water Science Center (IDWSC; Christopher Mebane and Lauren Zinsser, written commun., 2024).

Idaho↗

USGS2021

Changes in seabed mining

Chapter 23 of the First World Ocean Assessment (WOA I) focused on marine mining, and particularly on established extractive industries, which are predominantly confined to near-shore areas, where shallow-water, near-shore aggregate and placer deposits, and somewhat deeper water phosphate deposits are found (United Nations, 2017a). At the time of publication, there were no commercially developed deep-water seabed mining (DSM) deposits but an assessment of mining leases and exploration activity was included. Since WOA I, the number of deep-water (depths greater than 200 m below the ocean surface) seabed exploration licenses has increased both within national jurisdictions of coastal, island and archipelagic States, and beyond in the Area (the seabed, ocean floor and subsoil thereof beyond the limits of national jurisdiction) under the administration of the International Seabed Authority (ISA). For the first time, in 2017 deep-water seabed test-mining was carried out by Japan at a water depth of 1,600 m within its exclusive economic zone (EEZ) (METI, 2017). The update in the present Chapter will focus on the nascent deep-water seabed mining industry and mineral deposits. Hereafter, we use seabed for deep-water seabed. Environmental issues focused on impacts from dredging activities and a list of references for some mining operations were provided. However, WOA I could not provide an environmental baseline for DSM and considered that environmental, social and economic aspects were often not adequately understood with available data. Data on potential environmental impacts are still scarce and can differ greatly between mineral extraction from near-shore and seabed mining sites. Information on economic benefits, and to some extent social impacts, of mining is becoming progressively more accessible due to several initiatives promoting an increase in transparency of extractive industries. In 2015, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development was adopted by all United Nations Member States. It includes 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to be addressed on the basis of a global partnership. DSM activities may have implications for the achievement of SDGs 1, 5, 7–10, 12–14, and 17.

Book chapter↗

USGS2022

Selenium in the Kootenai River Basin, Montana and Idaho, United States, and British Columbia, Canada

Selenium entering the 90-mile long transboundary Koocanusa Reservoir (also called Lake Koocanusa) in southeastern British Columbia, Canada, and northwestern Montana, United States, has been measured at concentrations above State and Federal water-quality and aquatic life standards. The reservoir is within the international Kootenai (or “Kootenay” in Canada) drainage basin, which contains critical habitat for native fish species and is impounded by Libby Dam 16 miles upstream from Libby, Montana. Since 1984, selenium concentrations have ranged from below detection to greater than 8 micrograms per liter in the Elk River, measured 2.2 miles above its discharge into Koocanusa Reservoir at a British Columbia environmental monitoring station (site 0200016). Selenium is a required micro-nutrient, but elevated concentrations in water bioaccumulate in egg-laying fish and birds, causing various sublethal effects and death. One possible source of selenium in the Kootenai River Basin is the excavation of bedrock in the Elk River Valley to access coal seams for metallurgical steelmaking and coal production. Five open-pit coal mines are operating in this region of southeastern British Columbia that produce about 21 million tons of metallurgical coal annually. Site-specific selenium standards were established for the reservoir in 2020 following collaborative work by the U.S. Geological Survey, Montana Department of Environmental Quality, the British Columbia Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy, the Lake Koocanusa Monitoring and Research Working Group, and the Selenium Technical Subcommittee. The standards of 0.8 microgram per liter for dissolved selenium in the water column and 15.1 milligrams per kilogram dry weight for fish egg (ovary) tissue (in addition to the muscle and wholebody standards) were adopted into Montana State law in 2020 and approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in 2021.

British Columbia, Idaho, Montana↗

USGS1987

An automated technique for flow measurements from mariotte reservoirs

The mariotte reservoir supplies water at a constant hydraulic pressure by self-regulation of its internal gas pressure. Automated outflow measurements from mariotte reservoirs are generally difficult because of the reservoir's self-regulation mechanism. This paper describes an automated flow meter specifically designed for use with mariotte reservoirs. The flow meter monitors changes in the mariotte reservoir's gas pressure during outflow to determine changes in the reservoir's water level. The flow measurement is performed by attaching a pressure transducer to the top of a mariotte reservoir and monitoring gas pressure changes during outflow with a programmable data logger. Using a simple linear relation between reservoir gas pressure and water-level changes with time, the data logger converts the transducer signal into outflow-flux values. To demonstrate the usefulness of the new technique, two constant-head experiments are described that have vastly different flux ranges and time durations. The first experiment was a 1-h infiltration run in which infiltration rates dropped from 0.6 to 0.2 cm/min. The second experiment was a 3-week evaporation experiment in which the evaporation rate ranged from 1.0 to 3.0 cm/d. Results indicate that the automated flow measurement technique performed well when compared to a manual sight-tube technique for flux measurements; the difference between the two methods was never more than 9% for the infiltration experiment and 5% for the evaporation experiment. The advantages of the new technique over previously available automated flow measurement techniques include: (i) the ability to rapidly record a large range of fluxes without restricting outflow, and (ii) the ability to accurately average the pulsing flow, which commonly occurs during outflow from the mariotte reservoir.

Soil Science Society of America Journal↗

USGS2014

Density-stratified flow events in Great Salt Lake, Utah, USA: implications for mercury and salinity cycling

Density stratification in saline and hypersaline water bodies from throughout the world can have large impacts on the internal cycling and loading of salinity, nutrients, and trace elements. High temporal resolution hydroacoustic and physical/chemical data were collected at two sites in Great Salt Lake (GSL), a saline lake in the western USA, to understand how density stratification may influence salinity and mercury (Hg) distributions. The first study site was in a causeway breach where saline water from GSL exchanges with less saline water from a flow restricted bay. Near-surface-specific conductance values measured in water at the breach displayed a good relationship with both flow and wind direction. No diurnal variations in the concentration of dissolved (<0.45 μm) methylmercury (MeHg) were observed during the 24-h sampling period; however, the highest proportion of particulate Hg total and MeHg loadings was observed during periods of elevated salinity. The second study site was located on the bottom of GSL where movement of a high-salinity water layer, referred to as the deep brine layer (DBL), is restricted to a naturally occurring 1.5-km-wide “spillway” structure. During selected time periods in April/May, 2012, wind-induced flow reversals in a railroad causeway breach, separating Gunnison and Gilbert Bays, were coupled with high-velocity flow pulses (up to 55 cm/s) in the DBL at the spillway site. These flow pulses were likely driven by a pressure response of highly saline water from Gunnison Bay flowing into the north basin of Gilbert Bay. Short-term flow reversal events measured at the railroad causeway breach have the ability to move measurable amounts of salt and Hg from Gunnison Bay into the DBL. Future disturbance to the steady state conditions currently imposed by the railroad causeway infrastructure could result in changes to the existing chemical balance between Gunnison and Gilbert Bays. Monitoring instruments were installed at six additional sites in the DBL during October 2012 to assess impacts from any future modifications to the railroad causeway.

Utah↗

USGS2013

Geodatabase compilation of hydrogeologic, remote sensing, and water-budget-component data for the High Plains aquifer, 2011

The High Plains aquifer underlies almost 112 million acres in the central United States. It is one of the largest aquifers in the Nation in terms of annual groundwater withdrawals and provides drinking water for 2.3 million people. The High Plains aquifer has gained national and international attention as a highly stressed groundwater supply primarily because it has been appreciably depleted in some areas. The U.S. Geological Survey has an active program to monitor the changes in groundwater levels for the High Plains aquifer and has documented substantial water-level changes since predevelopment: the High Plains Groundwater Availability Study is part of a series of regional groundwater availability studies conducted to evaluate the availability and sustainability of major aquifers across the Nation. The goals of the regional groundwater studies are to quantify current groundwater resources in an aquifer system, evaluate how these resources have changed over time, and provide tools to better understand a systems response to future demands and environmental stresses. The purpose of this report is to present selected data developed and synthesized for the High Plains aquifer as part of the High Plains Groundwater Availability Study. The High Plains Groundwater Availability Study includes the development of a water-budget-component analysis for the High Plains completed in 2011 and development of a groundwater-flow model for the northern High Plains aquifer. Both of these tasks require large amounts of data about the High Plains aquifer. Data pertaining to the High Plains aquifer were collected, synthesized, and then organized into digital data containers called geodatabases. There are 8 geodatabases, 1 file geodatabase and 7 personal geodatabases, that have been grouped in three categories: hydrogeologic data, remote sensing data, and water-budget-component data. The hydrogeologic data pertaining to the northern High Plains aquifer is included in three separate geodatabases: (1) base data from a groundwater-flow model; (2) hydrogeology and hydraulic properties data; and (3) groundwater-flow model data to be used as calibration targets. The remote sensing data for this study were developed by the U. S. Geological Survey Earth Resources Observation and Science Center and include historical and predicted land-use/land-cover data and actual evapotranspiration data by using remotely sensed temperature data. The water-budget-component data contains selected raster data from maps in the “Selected Approaches to Estimate Water-Budget Components of the High Plains, 1940 Through 1949 and 2000 Through 2009” report completed in 2011 ( http://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2011/5183/ ). Federal Geographic Data Committee compliant metadata were created for each spatial and tabular data layer in the geodatabases.

Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, ↗

USGS2014

On glaciers

The changes in the sizes of glaciers has for long attracted the attention of glacialists on account of the scientific interest and the development of water‐power from the streams issuing from the glaciers. The International Congress of Geologists, at its Zurich meeting in 1894, appointed a committee, with members from many countries, to collect and publish information bearing on this subject. Annual reports were published in the Archives des Sciences , Geneva, from 1896 to 1906, after which they appeared in the Zeitschrift für Gletscherkunde until the war. It was not until the Prague meeting of the International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics in 1927 that a new Commission des Glaciers was appointed, which is about to resume publication.

Eos, Transactions, American Geophysical Union↗

USGS2010

Seasonal and Spatial Distribution of Freshwater Flow and Salinity in the Ten Thousand Islands Estuary, Florida, 2007-2009

The watershed of the Ten Thousand Islands (TTI) estuary has been substantially altered through the construction of canals and roads for the Southern Golden Gate Estates (SGGE), Barron River Canal, and U.S. 41 (Tamiami Trail). Two restoration projects designed to improve freshwater delivery to the estuary are the Picayune Strand Restoration Project, which includes the Southern Golden Gate Estates, and the Tamiami Trail Culverts Project; both are part of the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan. To address hydrologic information needs critical for monitoring the effects of these restoration projects, the U.S. Geological Survey initiated a study in October 2006 to characterize freshwater outflows from the rivers, internal circulation and mixing within the estuary, and surface-water exchange between the estuary and Gulf of Mexico. The effort is conducted in cooperation with the South Florida Water Management District and complemented by monitoring performed by the Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve. Surface salinity was measured during moving boat surveys using a flow-through system that operated at planing speeds averaging 20 miles per hour. The data were logged every 10 seconds by a data recorder that simultaneously logged location information from a Global Positioning System. The major rivers, bays, and nearshore Gulf of Mexico region of the TTI area were surveyed in approximately 5 hours by two boats traversing about 200 total miles. Salinity and coordinate data were processed using inverse distance weighted interpolation to create salinity contour maps of the entire TTI region. Ten maps were created from salinity surveys performed between May 2007 and May 2009 and illustrate the dry season, transitional, and wet season salinity patterns of the estuarine rivers, inner bays, mangrove islands, and Gulf of Mexico boundary. The effects of anthropogenic activities are indicated by exceptionally low salinities associated with point discharge into the estuary from the Faka Union Canal and Barron River during the wet season. Low salinities in Faka Union Bay may cause reduced diversity and density of submerged aquatic vegetation, fish, and benthic organisms compared with neighboring Fakahatchee Bay. The Faka Union Canal System reduced the size of the watershed for the western TTI estuary, resulting in increased wet season salinities compared to those for the eastern TTI estuary, the watershed of which is composed of the relatively pristine Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park. Minimal river discharge and high evaporation caused hypersaline conditions to develop throughout the entire TTI region during the dry season. The 2007-2008 drought and passage of Tropical Storm Fay on August 18-19, 2008, demonstrated the effects of seasonal rainfall on salinity patterns, with substantially higher salinities observed during the 2007 wet season compared to those for the 2008 wet season. The salinity maps, coupled with data from the monitoring stations, provide baseline information of seasonal and spatial distribution of freshwater flow and salinity in the TTI estuary, and a means of monitoring the effects of restoration in improving freshwater delivery to the estuary.

Data Series↗

USGS2007

Dissolved solids in basin-fill aquifers and streams in the southwestern United States

The U.S. Geological Survey National Water-Quality Assessment Program performed a regional study in the Southwestern United States (Southwest) to describe the status and trends of dissolved solids in basin-fill aquifers and streams and to determine the natural and human factors that affect dissolved solids. Basin-fill aquifers, which include the Rio Grande aquifer system, Basin and Range basin-fill aquifers, and California Coastal Basin aquifers, are the most extensively used ground-water supplies in the Southwest. Rivers, such as the Colorado, the Rio Grande, and their tributaries, are also important water supplies, as are several smaller river systems that drain internally within the Southwest, or drain externally to the Pacific Ocean in southern California. The study included four components that characterize (1) the spatial distribution of dissolved-solids concentrations in basin-fill aquifers, and dissolved-solids concentrations, loads, and yields in streams; (2) natural and human factors that affect dissolved-solids concentrations; (3) major sources and areas of accumulation of dissolved solids; and (4) trends in dissolved-solids concentrations over time in basin-fill aquifers and streams, and the relation of trends to natural or human factors.

Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, New ↗

USGS2015

First satellite tracks of the Endangered black-capped petrel

The black-capped petrel Pterodroma hasitata is an endangered seabird with fewer than 2000 breeding pairs restricted to a few breeding sites in Haiti and the Dominican Republic. To date, use areas at sea have been determined entirely from vessel-based surveys and opportunistic sightings and, as such, spatial and temporal gaps in our understanding of the species’ marine range are likely. To enhance our understanding of marine use areas, we deployed satellite tags on 3 black-capped petrels breeding on Hispaniola, representing the first tracking study for this species and one of the first published tracking studies for any breeding seabird in the Caribbean. During chick rearing, petrels primarily used marine habitats in the southern Caribbean Sea (ca. 18.0° to 11.5°N, 70.0° to 75.5°W) between the breeding site and the coasts of Venezuela and Colombia. Maximum distance from the breeding sites ranged from ca. 500 to 1500 km during the chick-rearing period. During the post-breeding period, each bird dispersed north and used waters west of the Gulf Stream offshore of the mid- and southern Atlantic coasts of the USA as well as Gulf Stream waters and deeper pelagic waters east of the Gulf Stream. Maximum distance from the breeding sites ranged from ca. 2000 to 2200 km among birds during the nonbreeding period. Petrels used waters located within 14 different exclusive economic zones, suggesting that international collaboration will benefit the development of management strategies for this species.

Endangered Species Research↗

USGS2011

Estimation of land surface evapotranspiration with A satellite remote sensing procedure

There are various methods available for estimating magnitude and trends of evapotranspiration. Bowen ratio energy balance system and eddy correlation techniques offer powerful alternatives for measuring land surface evapotranspiration. In spite of the elegance, high accuracy, and theoretical attractions of these techniques for measuring evapotranspiration, their practical use over large areas can be limited due to the number of sites needed and the related expense. Application of evapotranspiration mapping from satellite measurements can overcome the limitations. The objective of this study was to utilize the METRIC TM (Mapping Evapotranspiration at High Resolution using Internalized Calibration) model in Great Plains environmental settings to understand water use in managed ecosystems on a regional scale. We investigated spatiotemporal distribution of a fraction of reference evapotranspiration (ETrF) using eight Landsat 5 images during the 2005 and 2006 growing season for path 29, row 32. The ETrF maps generated by METRIC TM allowed us to follow the magnitude and trend in ETrF for major land-use classes during the growing season. The ETrF was lower early in the growing season for agricultural crops and gradually increased as the normalized difference vegetation index of crops increased, thus presenting more surface area over which water could transpire toward the midseason. Comparison of predictions with Bowen ratio energy balance system measurements at Clay Center, NE, showed that METRIC TM performed well at the field scale for predicting evapotranspiration from a cornfield. If calibrated properly, the model could be a viable tool to estimate water use in managed ecosystems in subhumid climates at a large scale.

Great Plains Research↗