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At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
USGS2025

RUSH: Rapid remote sensing Updates of land cover for Storm and Hurricane forecast models

Coastal vegetated ecosystems, including tidal marshes, vegetated dunes, and shrub- and forest-dominated wetlands, can mitigate hurricane impacts such as coastal flooding and erosion by increasing surface roughness and reducing wave energy. Land cover maps can be used as input to improve simulations of surface roughness in advanced hydro-morphological models. Consequently, there is a need for efficient tools to develop up-to-date land cover maps that include the accurate distribution of vegetation types prior to an extreme storm. In response, we developed the RUSH tool (Rapid remote sensing Updates of land cover for Storm and Hurricane forecast models). RUSH delivers high-resolution maps of coastal vegetation for near-real-time or historical conditions via a Jupyter Notebook application and a graphical user interface (GUI). The application generates 3 m spatial resolution land cover maps with classes relevant to coastal settings, especially along mainland beaches, headlands, and barrier islands, as follows: (1) open water; (2) emergent wetlands; (3) dune grass; (4) woody wetlands; and (5) bare ground. These maps are developed by applying one of two seasonal random-forest machine learning models to Planet Labs SuperDove multispectral imagery. Cool Season and Warm Season Models were trained on 665 and 594 reference points, respectively, located across study regions in the North Carolina Outer Banks, the Mississippi Delta in Louisiana, and a portion of the Florida Gulf Coast near Apalachicola. Cool Season and Warm Season Models were tested with 666 and 595 independent points, with an overall accuracy of 93% and 94%, respectively. The Jupyter Notebook application provides users with a flexible platform for customization for advanced users, whereas the GUI, designed with user-experience feedback, provides non-experts access to remote sensing capabilities. This application can also be used for long-term coastal geomorphic and ecosystem change assessments.

Florida, Louisiana, North Carolina↗
USGS2012

Introduction to emergent wetlands: Chapter A in Emergent wetlands status and trends in the northern Gulf of Mexico: 1950-2010

Throughout the past century, emergent wetlands have been declining across the Gulf of Mexico. Emergent wetland ecosystems provide a plethora of resources including plant and wildlife habitat, commercial and recreational economic activity, water quality improvement, and natural barriers against storms. As emergent wetland losses increase, so does the need for information on the causes and effects of these losses, for emergent wetland mapping, for monitoring and restoration efforts, and for increased education. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Gulf of Mexico Program Office (EPA GMPO) are committed to providing the best science to restore, enhance, and protect these important ecosystems. The Emergent Wetlands Status and Trends Report is a continuation of the completed Seagrass Status and Trends in the Northern Gulf of Mexico Report (Handley and others, 2007), both of which serve to update the EPA GMPO Status and Trends of Emergent and Submerged Vegetated Habitats of Gulf of Mexico Coastal Waters, USA Report (Duke and Kruczynski, 1992). The Emergent Wetlands Status and Trends Report is also part of the Gulf of Mexico Alliance Ecosystems Integration and Assessment Priority Issue Team’s work plan to provide resources that will aid in the ecological and economic enhancement of the Gulf of Mexico region. The purpose of this report is to provide scientists, managers, and citizens with valuable baseline information on the status and trends of emergent wetlands along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. The study upon which this report is based examines the emergent wetlands of eight individual estuarine areas within the northern Gulf of Mexico region and presents statewide summaries for Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida. Each estuarine area is detailed in vignettes that address current status and historical trends of estuarine and palustrine emergent wetlands, emergent wetlands mapping and monitoring, causes of status change, restoration and enhancement activities, background information for the study area, and the methodology employed to analyze and document the historical trends and current status of emergent wetlands. The eight individual estuarine areas examined in this report are:  Corpus Christi/ Nueces/Aransas Bays, Tex.  Galveston Bay, Tex.  Barataria/Terrebonne Bay, La.  Mississippi Delta, La.  Mississippi Sound, Miss.  Mobile Bay, Ala.  Florida Panhandle, Fla.  Tampa Bay, Fla.

Report↗
USGS2022

Integrated modeling of dynamic marsh feedbacks and evolution under sea-level rise in a mesotidal estuary (Plum Island, MA, USA)

Around the world, wetland vulnerability to sea-level rise (SLR) depends on different factors including tidal regimes, topography, creeks and estuary geometry, sediment availability, vegetation type, etc. The Plum Island estuary (PIE) is a mesotidal wetland system on the east coast of the United States. This research applied a newly updated Hydro-MEM (integrated hydrodynamic-marsh) model to assess the impacts of intermediate-low (50 cm), intermediate (1 m), and intermediate-high (1.5 m) SLR on marsh evolution by the year 2100. Model advancements include capturing vegetation change, inorganic and below and aboveground organic matter portion of marsh platform accretion, and mudflat creation. Although the results indicate a low vulnerability marsh at the PIE, the vegetation changes from high to low marsh under all SLR scenarios (2%–22%), with the higher bounds belonging to higher rise scenarios. Lower SLR produces more productive marsh (13% gain in high productivity regions), whereas the highest SLR scenario causes increased tidal inundation, which leads to loss in productivity (12% change from high to low productivity regions), generation of mudflats (17% of the domain land), and marsh migration to higher lands. Sensitive nonlinear tidal flow changes, which may be increased or decreased with SLR as a result of mudflat creation, marsh migration, and bottom friction change, emphasize the importance of integrated modeling approaches that include dynamic marsh feedbacks in hydrodynamic modeling and varying hydrodynamic effects on the marsh system.

Massachusetts↗
USGS2015

Testing assumptions for conservation of migratory shorebirds and coastal managed wetlands

Managed wetlands provide critical foraging and roosting habitats for shorebirds during migration; therefore, ensuring their availability is a priority action in shorebird conservation plans. Contemporary shorebird conservation plans rely on a number of assumptions about shorebird prey resources and migratory behavior to determine stopover habitat requirements. For example, the US Shorebird Conservation Plan for the Southeast-Caribbean region assumes that average benthic invertebrate biomass in foraging habitats is 2.4 g dry mass m −2 and that the dominant prey item of shorebirds in the region is Chironomid larvae. For effective conservation and management, it is important to test working assumptions and update predictive models that are used to estimate habitat requirements. We surveyed migratory shorebirds and sampled the benthic invertebrate community in coastal managed wetlands of South Carolina. We sampled invertebrates at three points in time representing early, middle, and late stages of spring migration, and concurrently surveyed shorebird stopover populations at approximately 7-day intervals throughout migration. We used analysis of variance by ranks to test for temporal variation in invertebrate biomass and density, and we used a model based approach (linear mixed model and Monte Carlo simulation) to estimate mean biomass and density. There was little evidence of a temporal variation in biomass or density during the course of spring shorebird migration, suggesting that shorebirds did not deplete invertebrate prey resources at our site. Estimated biomass was 1.47 g dry mass m −2 (95 % credible interval 0.13–3.55), approximately 39 % lower than values used in the regional shorebird conservation plan. An additional 4728 ha (a 63 % increase) would be required if habitat objectives were derived from biomass levels observed in our study. Polychaetes, especially Laeonereis culveri (2569 individuals m −2 ), were the most abundant prey in foraging habitats at our site. Polychaetes have lower caloric content than levels assumed in the regional plan; when lower caloric content and lower biomass levels are used to determine habitat objectives, an additional 6395 ha would be required (86 % increase). Shorebird conservation and management plans would benefit from considering the uncertainty in parameters used to derive habitat objectives, especially biomass and caloric content of prey resources. Iterative testing of models that are specific to the planning region will provide rapid advances for management and conservation of migratory shorebirds and coastal managed wetlands.

Wetlands Ecology and Management↗
USGS2023

Status of spectacled eiders (Somateria fischeri) on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, Alaska, 2022—Testing and updating predictive models

The nesting biology and demography of spectacled eiders ( Somateria fischeri ) along the lower Kashunuk River on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, Alaska, were studied from 1993 to 2002. This previous work demonstrated that the breeding population on the study area was declining, and demographic modeling predicted that the population would continue to decline from 2002 forward. The predicted decline was primarily because of lead shot in tundra wetlands in the area, exposure of nesting females to lead, resulting in low adult female survival. The model predicted that lead pellets already in wetlands would slowly settle beyond the foraging depth of eiders, and that, lead exposure rates would decline. The goal of this project was to test this prediction by revisiting the lower Kashunuk River study area in 2022 to (1) update previous datasets regarding demographic parameters and (2) validate (or refute) existing models relative to lead exposure rates and the effects of lead on population dynamics. In the summer of 2022, a total of 37 nests were found in a sub-area of the historical study area. Comparing to past efforts in this same sub-area, more nests were found than predicted but the proportion of nesting female spectacled eiders exposed to lead in 2022 (24.3 percent) was still similar to levels of exposure observed between 1994 and 2002 (28.5 percent). Thus, data from the 2022 survey suggests that the earlier decline in numbers of nesting spectacled eiders has reversed, but there has been little decrease in lead exposure over time.

Alaska↗
USGS2023

Data integration reveals dynamic and systematic patterns of breeding habitat use by a threatened shorebird

Incorporating species distributions into conservation planning has traditionally involved long-term representations of habitat use where temporal variation is averaged to reveal habitats that are most suitable across time. Advances in remote sensing and analytical tools have allowed for the integration of dynamic processes into species distribution modeling. Our objective was to develop a spatiotemporal model of breeding habitat use for a federally threatened shorebird (piping plover, Charadrius melodus ). Piping plovers are an ideal candidate species for dynamic habitat models because they depend on habitat created and maintained by variable hydrological processes and disturbance. We integrated a 20-year (2000–2019) nesting dataset with volunteer-collected sightings (eBird) using point process modeling. Our analysis incorporated spatiotemporal autocorrelation, differential observation processes within data streams, and dynamic environmental covariates. We evaluated the transferability of this model in space and time and the contribution of the eBird dataset. eBird data provided more complete spatial coverage in our study system than nest monitoring data. Patterns of observed breeding density depended on both dynamic (e.g., surface water levels) and long-term (e.g., proximity to permanent wetland basins) environmental processes. Our study provides a framework for quantifying dynamic spatiotemporal patterns of breeding density. This assessment can be iteratively updated with additional data to improve conservation and management efforts, because reducing temporal variability to average patterns of use may cause a loss in precision for such actions.

Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota↗
USGS2022

Database of biodiversity, habitat, and aquatic-resource quantification tools used in market-based conservation — 2022 update

Market-based conservation makes use of economic incentives to promote actions that avoid, minimize, or compensate for detrimental effects on natural resources and the environment. Examples of market-based conservation mechanisms include aquatic-resource (such as, streams, wetlands, and estuaries) compensatory mitigation, conservation banking, habitat exchanges, and payments for ecosystem services. A critical component in the operation of these market-based conservation mechanisms is the methods (hereafter referred to as “quantification tools”) used to assess existing (sometimes referred to as “baseline”) or potential site conditions. Quantification tools are used to assign values to the benefits provided by preservation, restoration, or enhancement actions, as well as the negative effects of human activities (for example, infrastructure development, energy extraction, and anthropogenic disasters). In 2018, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) published a database describing the attributes of 69 quantification tools developed for United States conservation markets. The database focused on tools used for species-based mitigation, payments for ecosystem services, and ecolabel programs (Chiavacci and Pindilli, 2020). Recently, the USGS, in collaboration with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, revised the original database by updating the existing tool information, adding newly developed tools, and broadening the scope to include tools developed for compensatory mitigation under the Clean Water Act Section 404 Regulatory Program.

Fact Sheet↗
USGS2016

LANDFIRE 2010—Updates to the national dataset to support improved fire and natural resource management

The Landscape Fire and Resource Management Planning Tools (LANDFIRE) 2010 data release provides updated and enhanced vegetation, fuel, and fire regime layers consistently across the United States. The data represent landscape conditions from approximately 2010 and are the latest release in a series of planned updates to maintain currency of LANDFIRE data products. Enhancements to the data products included refinement of urban areas by incorporating the National Land Cover Database 2006 land cover product, refinement of agricultural lands by integrating the National Agriculture Statistics Service 2011 cropland data layer, and improved wetlands delineations using the National Land Cover Database 2006 land cover and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service National Wetlands Inventory data. Disturbance layers were generated for years 2008 through 2010 using remotely sensed imagery, polygons representing disturbance events submitted by local organizations, and fire mapping program data such as the Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity perimeters produced by the U.S. Geological Survey and the U.S. Forest Service. Existing vegetation data were updated to account for transitions in disturbed areas and to account for vegetation growth and succession in undisturbed areas. Surface and canopy fuel data were computed from the updated vegetation type, cover, and height and occasionally from potential vegetation. Historical fire frequency and succession classes were also updated. Revised topographic layers were created based on updated elevation data from the National Elevation Dataset. The LANDFIRE program also released a new Web site offering updated content, enhanced usability, and more efficient navigation.

Open-File Report↗
USGS2015

Groundwater and surface-water interaction and effects of pumping in a complex glacial-sediment aquifer, phase 2, east-central Massachusetts

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Town of Framingham, Massachusetts, has investigated the potential of proposed groundwater withdrawals at the Birch Road well site to affect nearby surface water bodies and wetlands, including Lake Cochituate, the Sudbury River, and the Great Meadows National Wildlife Refuge in east-central Massachusetts. In 2012, the U.S. Geological Survey developed a Phase 1 numerical groundwater model of a complex glacial-sediment aquifer to synthesize hydrogeologic information and simulate potential future pumping scenarios. The model was developed with MODFLOW-NWT, an updated version of a standard USGS numerical groundwater flow modeling program that improves solution of unconfined groundwater flow problems. The groundwater model and investigations of the aquifer improved understanding of groundwater–surface-water interaction and the effects of groundwater withdrawals on surface-water bodies and wetlands in the study area. The initial work also revealed a need for additional information and model refinements to better understand this complex aquifer system. In this second phase of the study, the original groundwater flow model was revised to improve representation of groundwater and surface-water hydrology, stabilize the model, and reduce model error. The model was simplified by reducing the number of layers from 5 to 3 and adding the MODFLOW lake package (LAK) to simulate Lake Cochituate and Pod Meadow Pond and better represent interaction between the lakes and the aquifer. Model revisions improved stability and shortened run times, allowing use of automated parameter estimation software (PEST) to further refine the model hydraulic parameters and reduce simulation errors. Model simulations indicate that under average base-flow conditions, the Birch Road wells have a small effect on flow in the Sudbury River during most months, even at the maximum pumping rate of 4.9 ft 3 /s (3.17 Mgal/d). Maximum percent streamflow depletion in the Sudbury River caused by simulated pumping takes place during simulated drought conditions, when streamflow decreased by as much as 21 percent under maximum continuous pumping. Simulations also indicate that groundwater withdrawals at the Birch Road site could be managed so that adverse streamflow impacts are substantially ameliorated. Under the most ecologically conservative simulated drought conditions, simulated streamflow depletion was reduced from 21 percent to 3 percent by pumping at the maximum rate for 6 months rather than for 12 months. Simulations that return 10 percent of the Birch Road well withdrawals to Pod Meadow Pond indicate a modest reduction in the Sudbury River streamflow depletion and provide a larger percentage increase to streamflow just downstream of the pond. The groundwater model also indicates that well locations can have a large effect on the sustainable pumping rate and so should be chosen carefully. The model provides a tool for evaluating alternative pumping rates and schedules not included in this analysis.

Massachusetts↗
USGS2019

Moving at the speed of flight: Dabbling duck-movement rates and the relationship with electronic tracking interval

Context. Effective wildlife management requires information on habitat and resource needs, which can be estimated with movement information and modelling energetics. One necessary component of avian models is flight speeds at multiple temporal scales. Technology has limited the ability to accurately assess flight speeds, leading to estimates of questionable accuracy, many of which have not been updated in almost a century. Aims. We aimed to update flight speeds of ducks, and differentiate between migratory and non-migratory flight speeds, a detail that was unclear in previous estimates. We also analysed the difference in speeds of migratory and non-migratory flights, and quantified how data collected at different temporal intervals affected estimates of flight speed. Methods. We tracked six California dabbling duck species with high spatio-temporal resolution GPS–GSM transmitters, calculated speeds of different flight types, and modelled how estimates varied by flight and data interval (30 min to 6 h). Key results. Median migratory speeds were faster (but non-significant) for the larger mallard (Anas platyrhynchos; 82.5 km h–1), northern pintail (Anas acuta; 79.0 km h–1) and gadwall (Mareca strepera; 70.6 km h–1), than the smaller-bodied northern shoveler (Spatula clypeata; 65.7 km h–1), cinnamon teal (Spatula cyanoptera; 63.5 km h–1) and American wigeon (Mareca Americana; 52 km h–1). Migratory flights were faster than non-migratory flights for all species and speeds were consistently slower with an increasing data interval. Implications. The need to balance time and energy requirements may drive different speeds for migratory and non-migratory flights. Lower speeds at longer intervals are likely to be due to a greater proportion of ‘loafing’ time included in flighted segments, demonstrating that data acquired at different intervals provide a means to evaluate and estimate behaviours that influence speed estimation. Shorter-interval data should be the most accurate, but longer-interval data may be easier to collect over lengthier timeframes, so it may be expedient to trade-off a degree of accuracy in broad-scale studies for the larger dataset. Our updated flight speeds for dabbling duck species can be used to parameterise and validate energetics models, guide management decisions regarding optimal habitat distribution, and, ultimately, improve conservation management of wetlands for waterfowl.

Wildlife Research↗
USGS1998

Combining satellite data with ancillary data to produce a refined land-use/land-cover map

As part of the U.S. Geological Survey's National Water-Quality Assessment Program in the Western Lake Michigan Drainages Study Unit, a current map of land use and land cover is needed to gain a better understanding of how land use and land cover may influence water quality. Satellite data from the Landsat Thematic Mapper provides a means to map and measure the type and amount of various land-cover types across the Study Unit and can be easily updated as changes occur in the landscape or in water quality. Translating these land cover categories to land use, however, requires the use of other thematic maps or ancillary data layers, such as wetland inventories, population data, or road networks. This report describes a process of (1) using satellite imagery to produce a land-cover map for the Fox/Wolf River basin, a portion of the Western Lake Michigan Drainages NAWQA Study Unit and (2) improving the satellite-derived land-cover map by using other thematic maps. The multiple data layers are processed in a geographic information system (GIS), and the combination provides more information than individual sources alone.

Michigan, Wisconsin↗
USGS2019

Simulation of the regional groundwater-flow system in the St. Louis River basin, Minnesota

The St. Louis River Basin (SLRB) covers 3,600 square miles in northeastern Minnesota, with headwaters in the Mesabi Range and extensive wetlands and lakes throughout the basin. To better understand the regional groundwater system in the SLRB, a two-dimensional, steady-state groundwater-flow model of the SLRB was developed by the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Minnesota Ojibwe Bands, using the analytic-element computer code GFLOW. The parameter-estimation software suite PEST was used to obtain a best fit of the modeled to measured groundwater levels and streamflows. The calibrated regional model was locally refined to create a smaller version of the model, the central SLRB model, that was used to evaluate hydrologic effects from extensive ditching in wetlands of the central SLRB. The refinements included adding ditches that were not represented in the regional model and modifying the aquifer base elevation to be more representative of the localized area. The central SLRB model was recalibrated to better match the distribution of mapped wetlands. Two scenarios were run of the central SLRB model: one with ditches and one without ditches. The model results were compared between the two scenarios to assess the effect of ditching on the groundwater system and potential changes to hydrologic conditions that support wetlands. Calibration of the regional SRLB model resulted in average horizontal hydraulic conductivity values of 6–39 feet per day for the glacial deposits and 3–4 feet per day for the uppermost fractured bedrock in the Biwabik Iron-Formation on the Mesabi Range. Average recharge across the calibrated model was 5.9 inches per year. Linesink resistance for the routed stream network was calibrated by using resistance categories based on the mapped soil hydrologic groups. The modeled regional groundwater-flow direction was generally to the south near the Mesabi Range topographic high and south or southwest across the rest of the basin. The updated calibration of the central SLRB model resulted in average horizontal hydraulic conductivity values of 5–36 feet per day for the glacial deposits and 3 feet per day for the uppermost fractured Biwabik Iron-Formation of the Mesabi Range. Average recharge across the ditch scenarios was 4.1 inches per year. Comparison of the preditch and postditch model scenarios showed that ditching reduced the area where the modeled water table was within 1 foot of the land surface (a wetland hydrology indicator) in as much as 40,000 acres, or 37 percent, of mapped permanent wetlands in the SLRB. An increase in the depth to the water table in wetland areas has the potential to degrade wetland persistence or function.

Minnesota↗
USGS2012

Florida Bay salinity and Everglades wetlands hydrology circa 1900 CE: A compilation of paleoecology-based statistical modeling analyses

Throughout the 20th century, the Greater Everglades Ecosystem of south Florida was greatly altered by human activities. Construction of water-control structures and facilities altered the natural hydrologic patterns of the south Florida region and consequently impacted the coastal ecosystem. Restoration of the Greater Everglades Ecosystem is guided by the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP), which is attempting to reverse some of the impacts of water management. In order to achieve this goal, it is essential to understand the predevelopment conditions (circa 1900 Common Era, CE) of the natural system, including the estuaries. The purpose of this report is to use empirical data derived from analyses of estuarine sediment cores and observations of modern hydrologic and salinity conditions to provide information on the natural system circa 1900 CE. A three-phase approach, developed in 2009, couples paleosalinity estimates derived from sediment cores to upstream hydrology using statistical models prepared from existing monitoring data. Results presented here update and improve previous analyses. A statistical method of estimating the paleosalinity from the core information improves the previous assemblage analyses, and the system of linear regression models was significantly upgraded and expanded. The upgraded method of coupled paleosalinity and hydrologic models was applied to the analysis of the circa-1900 CE segments of five estuarine sediment cores collected in Florida Bay. Comparisons of the observed mean stage (water level) data to the paleoecology-based model's averaged output show that the estimated stage in the Everglades wetlands was 0.3 to 1.6 feet higher at different locations. Observed mean flow data compared to the paleoecology-based model output show an estimated flow into Shark River Slough at Tamiami Trail of 401 to 2,539 cubic feet per second (cfs) higher than existing flows, and at Taylor Slough Bridge an estimated flow of 48 to 218 cfs above existing flows. For salinity in Florida Bay, the difference between paleoecology-based and observed mean salinity varies across the bay, from an aggregated average salinity of 14.7 less than existing in the northeastern basin to 1.0 less than existing in the western basin near the transition into the Gulf of Mexico. When the salinity differences are compared by region, the difference between paleoecology-based conditions and existing conditions are spatially consistent.

Forida↗
USGS2017

High pressure size exclusion chromatography (HPSEC) determination of dissolved organic matter molecular weight revisited: Accounting for changes in stationary phases, analytical standards, and isolation methods

We reassessed the molecular weight of dissolved organic matter (DOM) determined by high pressure size exclusion chromatography (HPSEC) using measurements made with different columns and various generations of polystyrenesulfonate (PSS) molecular weight standards. Molecular weight measurements made with a newer generation HPSEC column and PSS standards from more recent lots are roughly 200 to 400 Da lower than initial measurements made in the early 1990s. These updated numbers match DOM molecular weights measured by colligative methods and fall within a range of values calculated from hydroxyl radical kinetics. These changes suggest improved accuracy of HPSEC molecular weight measurements that we attribute to improved accuracy of PSS standards and changes in the column packing. We also isolated DOM from wetlands in the Prairie Pothole Region (PPR) using XAD-8, a cation exchange resin, and PPL, a styrene-divinylbenzene media, and observed little difference in molecular weight and specific UV absorbance at 280 nm (SUVA 280 ) between the two solid phase extraction resins, suggesting they capture similar DOM moieties. PPR DOM also showed lower SUVA 280 at similar weights compared to DOM isolates from a global range of environments, which we attribute to oxidized sulfur in PPR DOM that would increase molecular weight without affecting SUVA 280 .

Environmental Science & Technology↗
USGS2000

Northeastern Gulf of Mexico Coastal and Marine Ecosystem Program: Coastal Characterization: an overview and update

The U.S. Geological Surveys Biological Resources Division (BRD) mission is to provide leadership in gathering, analyzing, and disseminating biological information as support for sound management of the Nation's natural resources. Since becoming operational in October of 1996 through the transfer of programs from various bureaus within the Department of the Interior, the BRD, in cooperation with other Federal, State, and local partners, has begun research, inventory and monitoring, information sharing, and technology transfer. Through these activities, the BRD is fostering an understanding of biological systems and their benefits to society, and providing the essential scientific support and technical assistance required for management and policy decisions. The role of BRD' s National Wetlands Research Center (NWRC) in Lafayette, Louisiana, with project offices in Baton Rouge, LA and Gulf Breeze, FL, is to provide leadership in research and development related to the Nation's natural resources for the Southeast. The research focuses on wetlands ecology, animal ecology, and the development and application of spatial analysis techniques for natural resource related studies. Current geographic information system (GIS) technologies in use at NWRC are designed to provide natural resource managers with the on-line data and computerized techniques necessary to make informed decisions. Major GIS activities at NWRC include: compilation and analysis of digital databases for monitoring of natural resources; integration and transfer of databases with existing digital databases from various sources into a comprehensive GIS; and development of multifunctional decision support systems for natural resource managers using these data. NWRC is also an active participant in the National Information Infrastructure (NIT), in particular the National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI) and the National Biological Information Infrastructure (NBTI), which will facilitate the dissemination of research results and other knowledge and information gained from these efforts. This summary and the three summaries that follow provides an overview and update of a four year study entitled, Northeastern Gulf of Mexico Coastal and Marine Ecosystem Program: Coastal Characterization.

Minerals Management Service↗
USGS2022

Development and application of Landsat-based wetland vegetation cover and unvegetated-vegetated marsh ratio (UVVR) for the conterminous United States

Effective management and restoration of salt marshes and other vegetated intertidal habitats require objective and spatially integrated metrics of geomorphic status and vulnerability. The unvegetated-vegetated marsh ratio (UVVR), a recently developed metric, can be used to establish present-day vegetative cover, identify stability thresholds, and quantify vulnerability to open-water conversion over a range of spatial scales. We developed a Landsat-based approach to quantify the within-pixel vegetated fraction and UVVR for coastal wetlands of the conterminous United States, at 30-m resolution for 2014–2018. Here we present the methodology used to generate the UVVR from spectral indices, along with calibration, validation, and spatial autocorrelation assessments. We then demonstrate multiple applications of the data across varying spatial scales: first, we aggregate the UVVR across individual states and estuaries to quantify total vegetated wetland area for the nation. On the state level, Louisiana and Florida account for over 50% of the nation’s total, while on the estuarine level, the Chesapeake Bay Estuary and selected Louisiana coastal areas each account for over 6% of the nation’s total vegetated wetland area. Second, we present cases where this dataset can be used to track wetland change (e.g., expansion due to restoration and loss due to stressors). Lastly, we propose a classification methodology that delineates areas vulnerable to open-water expansion based on the 5-year mean and standard deviation of the UVVR. Calculating the UVVR for the period-of-record back to 1985, as well as regular updating, will fill a critical gap for tracking national status of salt marshes and other vegetated habitats through time and space.

Estuaries and Coasts↗
USGS2015

General classification handbook for floodplain vegetation in large river systems

This handbook describes the General Wetland Vegetation Classification System developed as part of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Upper Mississippi River Restoration (UMRR) Program, Long Term Resource Monitoring (LTRM) element. The UMRR is a cooperative effort between the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Geological Survey, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the states of Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, and Wisconsin. The classification system consists of 31 general map classes and has been used to create systemic vegetation data layers throughout the diverse Upper Mississippi River System (UMRS), which includes the commercially navigable reaches of the Mississippi River from Minneapolis, Minnesota, in the north to Cairo, Illinois, in the south, the Illinois River, and navigable portions of the Kaskaskia, Black, St. Croix, and Minnesota Rivers. In addition, this handbook describes the evolution of the General Wetland Vegetation Classification System, discusses the process of creating a vegetation data layer, and describes each of the 31 map classes in detail. The handbook also acts as a pictorial guide to each of the map classes as they may appear in the field, as well as on color-infrared imagery. This version is an update to the original handbook published in 2004.

Techniques and Methods↗
USGS1988

Conservation of North American rallids

The Rallidae are a diverse group in their habitat selection, yet most North American species occur in or near wetlands As a consequence, most species are subject to habitat enhancement or perturbation from waterfowl management programs. The overall effects of these management programs relative to rallid conservation have been assessed for few species, and there is a need for synthesis of such information. In the cases of some species or raves, population status is not known, and suggested directions for conservation and management are needed. Rare, endangered, or status undetermined species or races often occur in areas where related species are classified as game birds, and the effects of such hunting on rarer forms are not known. Their generally secretive nature, the endangered status of several races and populations, and continued loss of habitat and threats to present habitat, warrant an examination of the conservation status of the North American taxa in this group. In 1977, a committee of the International Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies summarized available information on management and biology of American Coots ( Fulica americana ), rails, and gallinules in North America (Holliman 1977). That summary was intended to provide relatively complete information on conservation of these species, and also to provide guidance for research within the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's (FWS) Accelerated Research Program for Webless Migratory Shore and Upland Game Birds (ARP). Subsequently, a number of rallid studies were funded under this program. The program was eliminated in 1982, following substantial research activities on North American rallids. Since the demise of the ARP, additional research on rallids in North America has focused on an area the International Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies report failed to cover in detail--that of endangered rallids in the U.S. and their possessions. Most of these studies have been of threatened and endangered taxa in western coastal marshes. This report updates and summarizes information on North American rallids since the ARP report and identifies the major conservation problems of this group with the intent of focusing future efforts on these priority issues. Consideration of island forms occurring within U.S. possessions is beyond the scope of this report, mainly because of the special conservation problems associated with their insular distribution. The major topics include habitat requirements, effects of habitat and hunting management techniques currently practiced on wetland areas, and conservation of endangered and threatened populations. Research needs are identified. Habitats of the American Coot are similar to those of several waterfowl species, and the biology of coots is considered only as it is typical of rails in general.

The Wilson Bulletin↗