Geology Reports⌕ Search

SEARCH · Geology Reports

Results for “Stages”

Search indexed USGS publications on groundwater, aquifers, geologic maps, mineral resources and earthquakes. Explore source records by subject and place.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 595 records · Page 33Linked to original sources
USGS1999

Surface-Water Data, Georgia, Water Year 1999

Water resources data for the 1999 water year for Georgia consists of records of stage, discharge, and water quality of streams; and the stage and contents of lakes and reservoirs published in one volume in a digital format on a CD-ROM. This volume contains discharge records of 121 gaging stations; stage for 13 gaging stations; stage and contents for 18 lakes and reservoirs; continuous water quality records for 10 stations; and the annual peak stage and annual peak discharge for 75 crest-stage partial-record stations. These data represent that part of the National Water Data System collected by the U.S. Geological Survey and cooperating State and Federal agencies in Georgia. Records of discharge and stage of streams, and contents or stage of lakes and reservoirs were first published in a series of U.S. Geological water-supply papers entitled, 'Surface-Water Supply of the United States.' Through September 30, 1960, these water-supply papers were in an annual series and then in a 5-year series for 1961-65 and 1966-70. Records of chemical quality, water temperature, and suspended sediment were published from 1941 to 1970 in an annual series of water-supply papers entitled, 'Quality of Surface Waters of the United States.' Records of ground-water levels were published from 1935 to 1974 in a series of water-supply papers entitled, 'Ground-Water Levels in the United States.' Water-supply papers may be consulted in the libraries of the principal cities in the United States or may be purchased from the U.S. Geological Survey, Branch of Information Services, Federal Center, Box 25286, Denver, CO 80225. For water years 1961 through 1970, streamflow data were released by the U.S. Geological Survey in annual reports on a State-boundary basis prior to the two 5-year series water-supply papers, which cover this period. The data contained in the water-supply papers are considered the official record. Water-quality records for water years 1964 through 1970 were similarly released either in separate reports or in conjunction with streamflow records. Beginning with the 1971 water year, water data for streamflow, water quality, and ground water are published in official Survey reports on a State-boundary basis. These official Survey reports carry an identification number consisting of the two-letter State abbreviation, the last two digits of the water year, and the volume number. For example, this volume is identified as 'U.S. Geological Survey Water-Data Report GA-99-1.' These water-data reports are for sale in various formats, by the National Technical Information Service, U.S. Department of Commerce, Springfield, VA 22161.

Georgia↗
USGS1997

Hydrologic conditions and hazards in the Kennicott River Basin, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve, Alaska

McCarthy, Alaska, is on the Kennicott River, about 1 mile from the terminus of Kennicott Glacier in the Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve. Most visitors to McCarthy and the park cross the West Fork Kennicott River using a hand-pulled tram and cross the East Fork Kennicott River on a temporary footbridge. Outburst floods from glacier-dammed lakes result in channel erosion, aggradation, and migration of the Kennicott River, which disrupt transportation links, destroy property, and threaten life. Hidden Creek Lake, the largest of six glacier-dammed lakes in the Kennicott River Basin, has annual outbursts that cause the largest floods on the Kennicott River. Outbursts from Hidden Creek Lake occur from early fall to mid-summer, and lake levels at the onset of the outbursts have declined between 1909 and 1995. Criteria for impending outbursts for Hidden Creek Lake include lake stage near or above 3,000 to 3,020 feet, stationary or declining lake stage, evidence of recent calving of large ice blocks from the ice margin, slush ice and small icebergs stranded on the lakeshore, and fresh fractures in the ice-margin region. The lower Kennicott Glacier has thinned and retreated since about 1860. The East and West Fork Kennicott River channels migrated in response to changes in the lower Kennicott Glacier. The largest channel changes occur during outburst floods from Hidden Creek Lake, whereas channel changes from the other glacier-dammed lake outbursts are small. Each year, the West Fork Kennicott River conveys a larger percentage of the Kennicott Glacier drainage than it did the previous year. Outburst floods on the Kennicott River cause the river stage to rise over a period of several hours. Smaller spike peaks have a very rapid stage rise. Potential flood magnitude was estimated by combining known maximum discharges from Hidden Creek Lake and Lake Erie outburst floods with a theoretical large regional flood. Flood hazard areas at the transportation corridor were delineated, and possible future geomorphological changes were hypothesized. McCarthy, Alaska, is on the Kennicott River, about 1 mile from the terminus of Kennicott Glacier in the Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve. Most visitors to McCarthy and the park cross the West Fork Kennicott River using a hand-pulled tram and cross the East Fork Kennicott River on a temporary footbridge. Outburst floods from glacier-dammed lakes result in channel erosion, aggradation, and migration of the Kennicott River, which disrupt transportation links, destroy property, and threaten life. Hidden Creek Lake, the largest of six glacier-dammed lakes in the Kennicott River Basin, has annual outbursts that cause the largest floods on the Kennicott River. Outbursts from Hidden Creek Lake occur from early fall to mid-summer, and lake levels at the onset of the outbursts have declined between 1909 and 1995. Criteria for impending outbursts for Hidden Creek Lake include lake stage near or above 3,000 to 3,020 feet, stationary or declining lake stage, evidence of recent calving of large ice blocks from the ice margin, slush ice and small icebergs stranded on the lakeshore, and fresh fractures in the ice-margin region. The lower Kennicott Glacier has thinned and retreated since about 1860. The East and West Fork Kennicott River channels migrated in response to changes in the lower Kennicott Glacier. The largest channel changes occur during outburst floods from Hidden Creek Lake, whereas channel changes from the other glacier-dammed lake outbursts are small. Each year, the West Fork Kennicott River conveys a larger percentage of the Kennicott Glacier drainage than it did the previous year. Outburst floods on the Kennicott River cause the river stage to rise over a period of several hours. Smaller spike peaks have a very rapid stage rise. Potential flood magnitude was estimated by combining known maximum discharges from Hidden Creek Lake and Lake Erie outburst floods with

Alaska↗
USGS2010

Reduced channel conveyance on the Wichita River at Wichita Falls, Texas, 1900-2009

Recent floods on the Wichita River at Wichita Falls, Texas, have reached higher stages compared to historical floods of similar magnitude discharges. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has operated streamflow-gaging station 07312500 Wichita River at Wichita Falls, Tex., since 1938 and flood measurements near the location of the present gage were first made in 1900. Floods recorded in 2007 and 2008 at this gaging station, including the record flood of June 30, 2007, reached higher stages compared to historical floods before 1972 of similar peak discharges. For flood measurements made at stages of more than 18 feet, peak stages were about 1 to 3 feet higher compared to peak stages of similar peak discharges measured before 1972. Flood measurements made at stages of more than 18 feet also indicate a decrease in the measured mean velocity from about 3.5 to about 2.0 feet per second from 1941 to 2008. The increase in stage and decrease in streamflow velocity for similar magnitude floods indicates channel conveyance has decreased over time. A study to investigate the causes of reduced channel conveyance in the Wichita River reach from Loop 11 downstream to River Road in Wichita Falls was done by the USGS in cooperation with the City of Wichita Falls. Historical photographs indicate substantial growth of riparian vegetation downstream from Loop 11 between 1950 and 2009. Aerial photographs taken between 1950 and 2008 also indicate an increase in riparian vegetation. Twenty-five channel cross sections were surveyed by the USGS in this reach in 2009. These cross sections were located at bridge crossings or collocated with channel cross sections previously surveyed in 1986 for use in a floodplain mapping study by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Four channel cross sections 3,400 to 11,900 feet downstream from Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard indicate narrowing of the channel. The remaining channel cross sections surveyed in 2009 by the USGS compared favorably with cross sections surveyed in 1986 for the Federal Emergency Management Agency, with no substantial differences noted. Comparison of channel cross sections surveyed in 2009 to those from historic bridge plans indicate no change in cross section has occurred at most of the bridges from Loop 11 downstream to River Road in Wichita Falls, except for obstructions noted at the Scott Avenue bridge and Martin Luther King Jr. bridge. Although obstructions in the channel at these bridges only partially block flow, they could also be contributing to reduced channel conveyance. Step-backwater profiles were used by the USGS to verify channel roughness. The main channel roughness coefficients (Manning's n values) from 2009 surveys were virtually unchanged from those used in a 1991 hydraulic model done for the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The average overbank roughness coefficient (Manning's n value) was 0.15, more than double the value of 0.06 used in the 1991 hydraulic model. Increased overbank vegetation has resulted in higher stages conveying the same amount of discharge, particularly for discharges more than 4,000 cubic feet per second.

Texas↗
USGS2017

A simulation method for combining hydrodynamic data and acoustic tag tracks to predict the entrainment of juvenile salmonids onto the Yolo Bypass under future engineering scenarios

During water year 2016 the U.S. Geological Survey California Water Science Center (USGS) collaborated with the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) to conduct a joint hydrodynamic and fisheries study to acquire data that could be used to evaluate the effects of proposed modifications to the Fremont Weir on outmigrating juvenile Chinook salmon. During this study the USGS surgically implanted acoustic tags in juvenile late fall run Chinook salmon from the Coleman National Fish Hatchery, released the acoustically tagged juvenile salmon into the Sacramento River upstream of the Fremont Weir, and tracked their movements as they emigrated past the western end of the Fremont Weir. The USGS analyzed tracking data from the acoustically tagged juvenile salmon along with detailed hydrodynamic data collected in the Sacramento River during the winter/spring of water year 2016 in the vicinity of the western end of the Fremont Weir to assess the potential for enhancing the entrainment of Sacramento River Chinook salmon onto the Yolo Bypass under six different Fremont Weir modification scenarios. Each modification scenario consists of a notch or multiple notches in the Fremont Weir which are designed to divert a portion of the Sacramento River onto the Yolo Bypass when the Sacramento River is below the crest of the Fremont Weir. The primary goal of this entrainment analysis was to investigate how the location of the notch or notches in each scenario affected the entrainment of juvenile Chinook salmon onto the Yolo Bypass, and to predict the notch location or locations that would result in maximum entrainment under each modification scenario. Stumpner et al.’s (in review) analysis of hydraulic data collected during the 2016 study period showed that backwater effects in the Sacramento River created significant variability in the relationship between Sacramento River stage and the proportion of the Sacramento River flow that we expect to be diverted onto the Yolo Bypass under the modification scenarios. Because of this variability, accurately evaluating the entrainment potential of possible notch locations for each scenario required combining historic abundance data for juvenile Sacramento River Chinook salmon with historic hydraulic data for the Sacramento River in the vicinity of the Fremont Weir, so that the entrainment estimates would reflect the covariance between Sacramento River stage, Sacramento River discharge, and juvenile salmon abundance within the historic record. We used a Monte Carlo simulation framework to combine the high resolution hydrodynamic data and acoustic tag track data collected in 2016 with historic juvenile salmon abundance, Sacramento River stage, and Sacramento River discharge data from a period spanning water years 1996-2010 to assess the entrainment potential of different weir modification scenarios under historic conditions. The scenarios we simulated consisted of four single notch configurations, and two multiple notch configurations in the vicinity of the western end of the Fremont Weir. For each notch configuration the 15-water-year entrainment simulation was repeated for 63 possible notch locations in the vicinity of the western end of the Fremont Weir. This approach allowed us to assess the effect of notch location on the entrainment of juvenile salmonids onto the Yolo Bypass for each of the six notch configurations that we evaluated. The entrainment simulations showed that the location of each notch configuration had a major impact on the entrainment for each scenario; the predicted entrainment of some scenarios varied by as much as 400% based on where the notch (or notches) was (were) located in the study area. All of the single notch scenarios performed best when they were located within a 330 ft (100 meter) long section of the Sacramento River bank adjacent to the western terminus of the Fremont Weir (Table 1). Both of the multiple notch scenarios performed best when their upstream notches were located about 660 ft (200 meters) upstream of the western terminus of the Fremont Weir (Table 1). The results of the entrainment simulations indicated that for each notch configuration the same notch location produced near-maximum entrainment regardless of run abundance timing; this result suggests that there are areas within the study are where a notch (or notches) can be sited to achieve maximum entrainment for all runs (barring significant behavioral or physiological differences between runs). In addition, the simulation results indicate that for each notch configuration the same location is expected to produce nearmaximum entrainment for both wet water years and dry water years. Based on the results of the entrainment simulation we make three general recommendations for strategies to improve the entrainment potential of a notch in the Fremont Weir: 1) Comparisons between the maximum entrainment potential for each scenario suggested that total entrainment of winter run, spring run, and fall run salmon onto the Yolo Bypass can be increased by increasing the amount of water entering a notch when the Sacramento River stage is between 19 ft and 22 ft NAVD88; this could be accomplished by lowering notch invert elevations or by adding a control section to the Sacramento River to raise stage for a given discharge. 2) The relationship between Sacramento River stage and entrainment for each scenario indicated that entrainment efficiency for each scenario declined significantly once Sacramento River stage exceeded bankfull (approximately 28.5 ft NAVD88). This effect was likely due to inundation of the floodplain between the Sacramento River and the Fremont Weir; Stumpner et. al (In Review) have documented a reduction in the strength of the secondary circulation and centralization of the downwelling zone in the Sacramento River when this floodplain is inundated. Therefore, increasing the height of the river right bank of the Sacramento River to coincide with the height of the Fremont Weir is recommended to increase entrainment at higher stages. 3) Bathymetric features upstream of notch openings appeared to have a major impact on the entrainment potential of the simulated notches. For this reason we recommend taking care to avoid siting notches immediately downstream of bank features that alter the sidewall boundary layer, and we expect that smoothing the bank bathymetry upstream of a notch will enhance entrainment. Finally, we caution that the entrainment simulation was based on the behavior of large hatchery smolts, so it is likely that our results will be sensitive to any differences in behavior and physiology between these hatchery surrogates and naturally migrating juvenile salmon.

California↗
USGS2014

Acute sensitivity of white sturgeon ( Acipenser transmontanus ) and rainbow trout ( Oncorhynchus mykiss ) to copper, cadmium, or zinc in water-only laboratory exposures

The acute toxicity of cadmium, copper, and zinc to white sturgeon ( Acipenser transmontanus ) and rainbow trout ( Oncorhynchus mykiss ) were determined for 7 developmental life stages in flow-through water-only exposures. Metal toxicity varied by species and by life stage. Rainbow trout were more sensitive to cadmium than white sturgeon across all life stages, with median effect concentrations (hardness-normalized EC50s) ranging from 1.47 µg Cd/L to 2.62 µg Cd/L with sensitivity remaining consistent during later stages of development. Rainbow trout at 46 d posthatch (dph) ranked at the 2nd percentile of a compiled database for Cd species sensitivity distribution with an EC50 of 1.46 µg Cd/L and 72 dph sturgeon ranked at the 19th percentile (EC50 of 3.02 µg Cd/L). White sturgeon were more sensitive to copper than rainbow trout in 5 of the 7 life stages tested with biotic ligand model (BLM)-normalized EC50s ranging from 1.51 µg Cu/L to 21.9 µg Cu/L. In turn, rainbow trout at 74 dph and 95 dph were more sensitive to copper than white sturgeon at 72 dph and 89 dph, indicating sturgeon become more tolerant in older life stages, whereas older trout become more sensitive to copper exposure. White sturgeon at 2 dph, 16 dph, and 30 dph ranked in the lower percentiles of a compiled database for copper species sensitivity distribution, ranking at the 3rd (2 dph), 5th (16 dph), and 10th (30 dph) percentiles. White sturgeon were more sensitive to zinc than rainbow trout for 1 out of 7 life stages tested (2 dph with an biotic ligand model–normalized EC50 of 209 µg Zn/L) and ranked in the 1st percentile of a compiled database for zinc species sensitivity distribution.

Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry↗
USGS2011

Geographic distribution of the mid-continent population of sandhill cranes and related management applications

The Mid-continent Population (MCP) of sandhill cranes ( Grus canadensis ) is widely hunted in North America and is separated into the Gulf Coast Subpopulation and Western Subpopulation for management purposes. Effective harvest management of the MCP requires detailed knowledge of breeding distribution of subspecies and subpopulations, chronology of their use of fall staging areas and wintering grounds, and exposure to and harvest from hunting. To address these information needs, we tagged 153 sandhill cranes with Platform Transmitting Terminals (PTTs) during 22 February–12 April 1998–2003 in the Central and North Platte River valleys of south-central Nebraska. We monitored PTT-tagged sandhill cranes, hereafter tagged cranes, from their arrival to departure from breeding grounds, during their fall migration, and throughout winter using the Argos satellite tracking system. The tracking effort yielded 74,041 useable locations over 49,350 tag days; median duration of tracking of individual cranes was 352 days and 73 cranes were tracked >12 months. Genetic sequencing of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) from blood samples taken from each of our random sample of tagged cranes indicated 64% were G. c. canadensis and 34% were Grus canadensis tabida . Tagged cranes during the breeding season settled in northern temperate, subarctic, and arctic North America (U.S. [23%, n = 35], Canada [57%, n = 87]) and arctic regions of northeast Asia (Russia [20%, n = 31]). Distribution of tagged cranes by breeding affiliation was as follows: Western Alaska–Siberia (WA–S, 42 ± 4% [SE]), northern Canada–Nunavut (NC–N, 21 ± 4%), west-central Canada–Alaska (WC–A, 23 ± 4%) and East-central Canada–Minnesota (EC–M, 14 ± 3%). All tagged cranes returned to the same breeding affiliation used during the previous year with a median distance of 1.60 km (range: 0.08–7.7 km, n = 53) separating sites used in year 1 and year 2. Fall staging occurred primarily in central and western Saskatchewan (69%), North Dakota (16%), southwestern Manitoba (10%), and northwestern Minnesota (3%). Space-use sharing indices showed that except for NC–N and WC–A birds, probability of finding a crane from one breeding affiliation within the home range of another breeding affiliation was low during fall staging. Tagged cranes from WC–A and EC–M breeding affiliations, on average, spent 25 and 20 days, respectively, longer on fall staging areas in the northern plains than did WA–S and NC–N birds. Cranes in the NC–N, WA–S, and WC–A affiliations spent 99%, 74%, and 64%, respectively, of winter in western Texas in Hunting Zone A; EC–M cranes spent 83% of winter along the Texas Gulf Coast in Hunting Zone C. Tagged cranes that settled within the breeding range of the Gulf Coast Subpopulation spent 28% and 42% of fall staging and winter within the range of the Western Subpopulation, indicating sufficient exchange of birds to potentially limit effectiveness of MCP harvest management. Harvests of EC–M and WC–A cranes during 1998–2003 were disproportionately high to their estimated numbers in the MCP, suggesting more conservative harvest strategies may be required for these subpopulations in the future, and for sandhill cranes to occupy major parts of their historical breeding range in the Prairie Pothole Region. Exceptionally high philopatry of MCP cranes of all 4 subpopulations to breeding sites coupled with strong linkages between crane breeding distribution, and fall staging areas and wintering grounds, provide managers guidance for targeting MCP crane harvest to meet management goals. Sufficient temporal or spatial separation exists among the 4 subpopulations on fall staging areas and wintering grounds to allow harvest to be targeted at the subpopulation level in all states and provinces (and most hunting zones within states and provinces) when conditions warrant. Knowledge gained from our study provides decision-makers in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Russia with improved guidance for developing sound harvest regulations, focusing conservation efforts, and generating collaborative efforts among these nations on sandhill crane research and management to meet mutually important goals.

Nebraska↗
USGS2014

Spring migration ecology of the mid-continent sandhill crane population with an emphasis on use of the Central Platte River Valley, Nebraska

We conducted a 10-year study (1998–2007) of the Mid-Continent Population (MCP) of sandhill cranes (Grus canadensis) to identify spring-migration corridors, locations of major stopovers, and migration chronology by crane breeding affiliation (western Alaska–Siberia [WA–S], northern Canada–Nunavut [NC–N], west-central Canada–Alaska [WC–A], and east-central Canada–Minnesota [EC–M]). In the Central Platte River Valley (CPRV) of Nebraska, we evaluated factors influencing staging chronology, food habits, fat storage, and habitat use of sandhill cranes. We compared our findings to results from the Platte River Ecology Study conducted during 1978–1980. We determined spring migration corridors used by the breeding affiliations (designated subpopulations for management purposes) by monitoring 169 cranes marked with platform transmitter terminals (PTTs). We also marked and monitored 456 cranes in the CPRV with very high frequency (VHF) transmitters to evaluate length and pattern of stay, habitat use, and movements. An estimated 42% and 58% of cranes staging in the CPRV were greater sandhill cranes (G. c. tabida) and lesser sandhill cranes (G. c. canadensis), and they stayed for an average of 20 and 25 days (2000–2007), respectively. Cranes from the WA–S, NC–N, WC–A, and EC–M affiliations spent an average of 72, 77, 52, and 53 days, respectively, in spring migration of which 28, 23, 24, and 18 days occurred in the CPRV. The majority of the WA–S subpopulation settled in the CPRV apparently because of inadequate habitat to support more birds upstream, although WA–S cranes accounted for >90% of birds staging in the North Platte River Valley. Crane staging duration in the CPRV was negatively correlated with arrival dates; 92% of cranes stayed >7 days. A program of annual mechanical removal of mature stands of woody growth and seedlings that began in the early 1980s primarily in the main channel of the Platte River has allowed distribution of crane roosts to remain relatively stable over the past 2 decades. Most cranes returned to nocturnal roost sites used in previous years. Corn residues dominated the diet of sandhill cranes in the CPRV, as in the 1970s, despite a marked decline in standing crop of corn residues. Only 14% (10 of 74) of PTT-marked migrant cranes stayed at stopovers for ≥5 days before arriving in the CPRV, which limited the contribution of sites south of the CPRV for fat accumulation needed for migration and reproduction. Body masses of cranes (after adjusting for body size [an index of fat]) at arrival in the CPRV varied widely among years (1998–2006), indicating the importance of maintaining productive habitats on the wintering grounds to condition cranes for migration and reproduction. Average rates of fat gain by adult females while in the CPRV remained similar from 1978–1979 to 1998–1999 but declined among males. Distances cranes flew to feeding grounds in the CPRV increased as the percentage of cropland planted to soybeans increased and as density of cranes on nocturnal roosts increased. These results suggest that as habitats of limited or no value to cranes increase on the landscape, more flight time and higher maintenance costs may reduce fat storage. An estimated 40% of diurnal use occurred north of Interstate 80 (I-80) where ≤5% of lands dedicated to crane conservation are located. Seventy-four and 40% of PTT-marked EC–M and WC–A cranes had spring migrations that included staging in eastern South Dakota for an average of 11 and 10 days, respectively. Cranes of the NC–N, WA–S, and WC–A subpopulations staged an average of 25, 17, and 12 days in central and western Saskatchewan/eastern Alberta. Females in these affiliations increased their fat reserves after leaving Nebraska by an estimated 450, 451, and 452 g, respectively, underscoring the key role of these staging areas in preparing the 3 subpopulations for reproduction. After departing Nebraska, MCP cranes roosted primarily in basin wetlands. Most of these wetlands are in private ownership and lack adequate protection, emphasizing the need for effective laws and policies to ensure their long-term protection. The continued success of the current management goal of maintaining the MCP at approximately its current size and providing diverse recreational opportunities over a wide area of midcontinent and western North America is predicated on the ability of MCP cranes to continue to store large fat reserves in the CPRV in advance of breeding. For the CPRV to remain a key fat storage site, active channel maintenance (e.g., clearing of woody vegetation) likely will need to continue, along with establishing minimum stream flows. These actions would help ensure nocturnal roosting habitat remains sufficiently dispersed to provide cranes with daily intake of high-energy food adequate for major fat storage and limit risk of high mortality from storms and disease. Published 2014. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.

Nebraska↗
USGS1995

Hazard assessment of inorganics to three endangered fish in the Green River, Utah

Acute toxicity tests were conducted with three life stages of Colorado squawfish ( Ptychocheilus lucius ), razorback sucker ( Xyrauchen texanus ), and bonytail ( Gila elegans ) in a reconstituted water quality simulating the middle part of the Green River of Utah. Tests were conducted with boron, lithium, selenate, selenite, uranium, vanadium, and zinc. The overall rank order of toxicity to all species and life stages combined from most to least toxic was vanadium = zinc > selenite > lithium = uranium > selenate > boron. There was no difference between the three species in their sensitivity to the seven inorganics based on a rank-order evaluation at the species level. Colorado squawfish were 2-5 times more sensitive to selenate and selenite at the swimup life stage than older stages, whereas razorback suckers displayed equal sensitivity among life stages. Bonytail exhibited equal sensitivity to selenite, but were five times more sensitive to selenate at the swimup life stage than the older stages. Comparison of 96-hr LC 50 values with a limited number of environmental water concentrations in Ashley Creek, Utah, which receives irrigation drainwater, revealed moderate hazard ratios for boron, selenate, selenite, and zinc, low hazard ratios for uranium and vanadium, but unknown ratios for lithium. These inorganic contaminants in drainwaters may adversely affect endangered fish in the Green River.

Utah↗
USGS2013

Controls of biological soil crust cover and composition shift with succession in sagebrush shrub-steppe

Successional stage may determine strength and causal direction of interactions among abiotic and biotic factors; e.g., species that facilitate the establishment of other species may later compete with them. We evaluated multivariate hypotheses about abiotic and biotic factors shaping biological soil crusts (BSCs) in early and late successional stages. We surveyed vegetation and BSC in the shrub-steppe ecosystem of the Columbia Basin. We analyzed the relationships with bryophyte and lichen covers using structural equation models, and analyzed the relationships with BSC composition using Indicator Species Analysis and distance-based linear models. Cover, indicator species, and composition varied with successional stage. Increasing elevation and bryophyte cover had higher lichen cover early in succession; these relationships were negative in the later successional stage. Lichen cover did not appear to impede B. tectorum cover, but B. tectorum appeared to strongly negatively affect lichen cover in both stages. Biological soil crust composition varied with bunchgrass cover in the early successional stage, but with elevation and B. tectorum cover later in succession. Our findings support the hypotheses that as succession progresses, the strength and direction of certain community interactions shift, and B. tectorum leads to reductions in biological soil crust cover regardless of successional stage.

Journal of Arid Environments↗
USGS2019

A process-based model of pre-eruption seismicity patterns and its use for eruption forecasting at dormant stratovolcanoes

Using long-term data sets, the eruptive size, timing and style can typically be successfully forecast for dormant volcanoes using current monitoring data and knowledge of precursory eruptive patterns. The USAID-USGS Volcano Disaster Assistance Program (VDAP) utilizes seismic data over multiple eruption cycles and across volcano types to successfully forecast eruption size, style and onset times, as well as changes within ongoing eruptions. From millions of seismic event observations, we show that seismic data, a proxy for rate-dependent strain changes in the magmatic system, combined with a process-based conceptual geologic model enables eruption forecasting, especially for stratovolcanoes dormant >20 years. We show that this model often works for some open systems, ones that sufficiently reseal to plug the conduit, and also where a deep intrusion occurs after phreatic or phreatomagmatic explosions have begun. This model is divided into four seismicity and geologic stages. We describe each of the four stages of seismicity in detail and how they relate to the ongoing geologic process of that stage: Stage 1. Deep intrusion and seismicity occurring at 10 to 40 + km depth below the volcanic edifice; Stage 2. Distal VT seismicity induced at distances from 2 to >30 km laterally from the summit by magma intruding into and inflating the upper-crustal magma storage region; Stage 3. Vent-clearing seismicity associated with the initial vent creation and clearing phase of eruptive activity. Stage 4. Repetitive event seismicity associated with the final ascent of magma from 2 km to the surface. We present 36 examples of this seismic progression from 26 volcanoes. We believe that this progression generally correlates with the magma flux and the eventual explosivity and is invaluable for forecasting eruptions.

Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research↗
USGS1998

Erosional valleys in the Thaumasia region of Mars: Hydrothermal and seismic origins

Analysis of erosional valleys, geologic materials and features, and topography through time in the Thaumasia region of Mars using co-registered digital spatial data sets reveals significant associations that relate to valley origin. Valleys tend to originate (1) on Noachian to Early Hesperian (stages 1 and 2) large volcanoes, (2) within 50–100 km of stages 1 and 2 rift systems, and (3) within 100 km of Noachian (stage 1) impact craters >50 km in diameter. These geologic preferences explain observations of higher valley-source densities (VSDs) in areas of higher elevations and regional slopes (>1°) because the volcanoes, rifts, and craters form high, steep topography or occur in terrain of high relief. Other stage 1 and stage 2 high, steep terrains, however, do not show high VSDs. The tendency for valleys to concentrate near geologic features and the overall low drainage densities in Thaumasia compared to terrestrial surfaces rule out widespread precipitation as a major factor in valley formation (as is proposed in wann, wet climate scenarios) except perhaps during the Early Noachian, for which much of the geologic record has been obliterated. Instead, volcanoes and rifts may indicate the presence of shallow crustal intrusions that could lead to local hydrothermal circulation, melting of ground ice and snow, and groundwater sapping. However, impact-crater melt would provide a heat source at the surface that might drive away water, fonning valleys in the process. Post-stage 1 craters mostly have low nearby VSDs, which, for valleys incised in older rocks, suggests burial by ejecta and, for younger valleys, may indicate desiccation of near-surface water and deepening of the cryosphere. Later Hesperian and Amazonian (stages 3 and 4) valleys originate within 100–200 km of three young, large impact craters and near rifts systems at Warrego Valles and the southern part of Coprates rise. These valleys likely developed when the cryosphere was a couple kilometers or more thick, inhibiting valley development by hydrothermal circulation. However, eruption of groundwater may have occurred from impact-induced fracturing and lateral and perhaps minor upward transport of water due to seismic pumping. The two smaller craters formed along the plateau margin where the highest potential hydraulic head would occur in aquifers beneath the plateau. In the case of the larger crater (Lowell, 200 km in diameter), potential aquifers would likely be at depths of kilometers below the cryosphere. Seismic energy generated by the Lowell impactor would have been much greater, pumping both groundwater and perhaps fluidized slurry to the surface from beneath the cryosphere to form the young valleys and flow deposit. Along the margin of Thaumasia, tectonic pressurization of groundwater also may have contributed to valley formation. Dissection of rim materials of the Argyre impact may relate to tectonic activity and the unconsolidated state of basin ejecta.

Journal of Geophysical Research E: Planets↗
USGS1995

The Grayback Pluton: Magmatism in a Jurassic back-arc environment, Klamath Mountains, Oregon

The Jurassic Grayback pluton was emplaced in a back-arc setting behind a contemporaneous oceanic arc. Th\alphae main stage of the pluton consists of an early, reversely zoned tonalite to gabbro that was intruded by synplutonic noritic and gabbroic magmas. Late-stage activity was characterized by intrusion of tonalitic and granitic dikes, many of which contain mafic enclaves and hybrid zones. Most mafic rocks in the pluton are calc-alkaline, with characteristic magnesian clinopyroxene, calcic cores in plagioclase, and elemental abundances similar to H 2 O-rich arc basalts. However, some mafic rocks contain relatively Fe-rich clinopyroxene, lack calcic cores in plagioclase, and are compositionally similar to evolved high-alumina tholeiite. Compositional variation in the main stage can be modeled in part by fractional crystallization and crusted assimilation during which parental calc-alkaline basalt evolved to granitic compositions. Cumulates related to this process are represented by modally variable melagabbro and pyroxenite. Mixing of basaltic and tonalitic magmas accounts for the compositions of most main-stage intermediate rocks, but mixing of basaltic and granitic magmas was uncommon until late in the pluton's history. Oxygen, Sr and Nd isotopic data indicate that virtually all main-stage magmas in the pluton contain a crustal component. Isotopic and trace element data further suggest that late-stage tonalitic dikes represent melts derived from older, metavolcanic arc crust Deep crustal contamination of main-stage rocks took place below the level of emplacement, probably in a magma-rich zone where basalts ponded and mixed with crustal melts. The Grayback pluton illustrates the diversity of Jurassic back-arc magmatism in the Klamath province and demonstrates that ancient magmatism with arc-like features need not be situated in an arc setting.

Oregon↗
USGS2000

Nest predation increases with parental activity: Separating nest site and parental activity effects

Alexander Skutch hypothesized that increased parental activity can increase the risk of nest predation. We tested this hypothesis using ten open-nesting bird species in Arizona, USA. Parental activity was greater during the nestling than incubation stage because parents visited the nest frequently to feed their young during the nestling stage. However, nest predation did not generally increase with parental activity between nesting stages across the ten study species. Previous investigators have found similar results. We tested whether nest site effects might yield higher predation during incubation because the most obvious sites are depredated most rapidly. We conducted experiments using nest sites from the previous year to remove parental activity. Our results showed that nest sites have highly repeatable effects on nest predation risk; poor nest sites incurred rapid predation and caused predation rates to be greater during the incubation than nestling stage. This pattern also was exhibited in a bird species with similar (i.e. controlled) parental activity between nesting stages. Once nest site effects are taken into account, nest predation shows a strong proximate increase with parental activity during the nestling stage within and across species. Parental activity and nest sites exert antagonistic influences on current estimates of nest predation between nesting stages and both must be considered in order to understand current patterns of nest predation, which is an important source of natural selection.

Arizona↗
USGS2009

Simulations of cataclysmic outburst floods from Pleistocene Glacial Lake Missoula

Using a flow domain that we constructed from 30 m digital-elevation model data of western United States and Canada and a two-dimensional numerical model for shallow-water flow over rugged terrain, we simulated outburst floods from Pleistocene Glacial Lake Missoula. We modeled a large, but not the largest, flood, using initial lake elevation at 1250 m instead of 1285 m. Rupture of the ice dam, centered on modern Lake Pend Oreille, catastrophically floods eastern Washington and rapidly fills the broad Pasco, Yakima, and Umatilla Basins. Maximum flood stage is reached in Pasco and Yakima Basins 38 h after the dam break, whereas maximum flood stage in Umatilla Basin occurs 17 h later. Drainage of these basins through narrow Columbia gorge takes an additional 445 h. For this modeled flood, peak discharges in eastern Washington range from 10 to 20 × 10 6 m 3 /s. However, constrictions in Columbia gorge limit peak discharges to <6 × 10 6 m 3 /s and greatly extend the duration of flooding. We compare these model results with field observations of scabland distribution and high-water indicators. Our model predictions of the locations of maximum scour (product of bed shear stress and average flow velocity) match the distribution of existing scablands. We compare model peak stages to high-water indicators from the Rathdrum-Spokane valley, Walulla Gap, and along Columbia gorge. Though peak stages from this less-than-maximal flood model attain or exceed peak-stage indicators along Rathdrum-Spokane valley and along Columbia gorge, simulated peak stages near Walulla Gap are 10–40 m below observed peak-stage indicators. Despite this discrepancy, our match to field observations in most of the region indicates that additional sources of water other than Glacial Lake Missoula are not required to explain the Missoula floods.

Montana↗
USGS2014

White-nose syndrome initiates a cascade of physiologic disturbances in the hibernating bat host

Background The physiological effects of white-nose syndrome (WNS) in hibernating bats and ultimate causes of mortality from infection with Pseudogymnoascus (formerly Geomyces ) destructans are not fully understood. Increased frequency of arousal from torpor described among hibernating bats with late-stage WNS is thought to accelerate depletion of fat reserves, but the physiological mechanisms that lead to these alterations in hibernation behavior have not been elucidated. We used the doubly labeled water (DLW) method and clinical chemistry to evaluate energy use, body composition changes, and blood chemistry perturbations in hibernating little brown bats ( Myotis lucifugus ) experimentally infected with P. destructans to better understand the physiological processes that underlie mortality from WNS. Results These data indicated that fat energy utilization, as demonstrated by changes in body composition, was two-fold higher for bats with WNS compared to negative controls. These differences were apparent in early stages of infection when torpor-arousal patterns were equivalent between infected and non-infected animals, suggesting that P. destructans has complex physiological impacts on its host prior to onset of clinical signs indicative of late-stage infections. Additionally, bats with mild to moderate skin lesions associated with early-stage WNS demonstrated a chronic respiratory acidosis characterized by significantly elevated dissolved carbon dioxide, acidemia, and elevated bicarbonate. Potassium concentrations were also significantly higher among infected bats, but sodium, chloride, and other hydration parameters were equivalent to controls. Conclusions Integrating these novel findings on the physiological changes that occur in early-stage WNS with those previously documented in late-stage infections, we propose a multi-stage disease progression model that mechanistically describes the pathologic and physiologic effects underlying mortality of WNS in hibernating bats. This model identifies testable hypotheses for better understanding this disease, knowledge that will be critical for defining effective disease mitigation strategies aimed at reducing morbidity and mortality that results from WNS.

BMC Physiology↗
USGS2014

Design of a sediment-monitoring gaging network on ephemeral tributaries of the Colorado River in Glen, Marble, and Grand Canyons, Arizona

Management of sediment in rivers downstream from dams requires knowledge of both the sediment supply and downstream sediment transport. In some dam-regulated rivers, the amount of sediment supplied by easily measured major tributaries may overwhelm the amount of sediment supplied by the more difficult to measure lesser tributaries. In this first class of rivers, managers need only know the amount of sediment supplied by these major tributaries. However, in other regulated rivers, the cumulative amount of sediment supplied by the lesser tributaries may approach the total supplied by the major tributaries. The Colorado River downstream from Glen Canyon has been hypothesized to be one such river. If this is correct, then management of sediment in the Colorado River in the part of Glen Canyon National Recreation Area downstream from the dam and in Grand Canyon National Park may require knowledge of the sediment supply from all tributaries. Although two major tributaries, the Paria and Little Colorado Rivers, are well documented as the largest two suppliers of sediment to the Colorado River downstream from Glen Canyon Dam, the contributions of sediment supplied by the ephemeral lesser tributaries of the Colorado River in the lowermost Glen Canyon, and Marble and Grand Canyons are much less constrained. Previous studies have estimated amounts of sediment supplied by these tributaries ranging from very little to almost as much as the amount supplied by the Paria River. Because none of these previous studies relied on direct measurement of sediment transport in any of the ephemeral tributaries in Glen, Marble, or Grand Canyons, there may be significant errors in the magnitudes of sediment supplies estimated during these studies. To reduce the uncertainty in the sediment supply by better constraining the sediment yield of the ephemeral lesser tributaries, the U.S. Geological Survey Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center established eight sediment-monitoring gaging stations beginning in 2000 on the larger of the previously ungaged tributaries of the Colorado River downstream from Glen Canyon Dam. The sediment-monitoring gaging stations consist of a downward-looking stage sensor and passive suspended-sediment samplers. Two stations are equipped with automatic pump samplers to collect suspended-sediment samples during flood events. Directly measuring discharge and collecting suspended-sediment samples in these remote ephemeral streams during significant sediment-transporting events is nearly impossible; most significant run-off events are short-duration events (lasting minutes to hours) associated with summer thunderstorms. As the remote locations and short duration of these floods make it prohibitively expensive, if not impossible, to directly measure the discharge of water or collect traditional depth-integrated suspended-sediment samples, a method of calculating sediment loads was developed that includes documentation of stream stages by field instrumentation, modeling of discharges associated with these stages, and automatic suspended-sediment measurements. The approach developed is as follows (1) survey and model flood high-water marks using a two-dimensional hydrodynamic model, (2) create a stage-discharge relation for each site by combining the modeled flood flows with the measured stage record, (3) calculate the discharge record for each site using the stage-discharge relation and the measured stage record, and (4) calculate the instantaneous and cumulative sediment loads using the discharge record and suspended-sediment concentrations measured from samples collected with passive US U-59 samplers and ISCO TM pump samplers. This paper presents the design of the gaging network and briefly describes the methods used to calculate discharge and sediment loads. The design and methods herein can easily be used at other remote locations where discharge and sediment loads are required.

Arizona↗
USGS1997

1997 flood tracking chart for the Red River of the North basin

The flood tracking chart for the Red River of the North Basin can be used by local citizens and emergency response personnel to determine the latest river stage. By comparing the current stage (water-surface elevation above some datum) and predicted flood crest to the recorded peak stages of previous floods, emergency response personnel and residents can make informed decisions concerning the threat to life and property. The flood tracking chart shows a map of the basin with the location of major real-time streamflow-gaging stations in the basin. Click on a station in the map or in the list below the map. Streamflow and stage information for the last 7 days, current stage relative to recorded peak stages, and streamflow for the previous 18 months are provided in graphic form, along with information such as station location and length of record. The National Weather Service has direct access to all information collected by the USGS for use in their forecasting models and routinely broadcasts the forecast information to the news media and on shortwave radio. The radio frequencies are 162.400 MHz (megahertz) in Petersburg, N. Dak., and Detroit Lakes, Minn.; 162.425 MHz in Webster, N. Dak., and Bemidji, Minn.; 162.450 MHz in Roosevelt, Minn.; 162.475 MHz in Grand Forks and Amenia, N. Dak.; and 162.550 MHz in Thief River Falls, Minn. To use the flood tracking chart for a particular property, determine the approximate elevation of the threatened property and the elevation of the gaging station that is closest to the threatened property. For example, most people in Grand Forks, N. Dak., probably will use the Red River of the North at Grand Forks station. Record the flood elevation for the gaging station. Compare the flood elevation to the elevation of the property to immediately know if the property has an impending threat of flooding. One must be cautioned by the fact that the surface of flowing water is not flat but has a slope. Therefore, the water-surface elevation near a threatened property might not be the same as the river stages at the gaging stations. The network of river-gaging stations in the Red River of the North Basin is operated by the USGS in cooperation with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the North Dakota State Water Commission, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, the Southeast Cass Water Resources District, the Cass County Joint Water Resource District, the Red River Joint Water Resource Board, and the Red River Watershed Management Board. For more information about USGS programs in North Dakota, contact the District Chief, U.S. Geological Survey, North Dakota District, at (701) 250-7400.

Open-File Report↗
USGS2012

Flood-inundation maps for the Leaf River at Hattiesburg, Mississippi

Digital flood-inundation maps for a 1.7-mile reach of the Leaf River were developed by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in cooperation with the City of Hattiesburg, City of Petal, Forrest County, Mississippi Emergency Management Agency, Mississippi Department of Homeland Security, and the Emergency Management District. The Leaf River study reach extends from just upstream of the U.S. Highway 11 crossing to just downstream of East Hardy/South Main Street and separates the cities of Hattiesburg and Petal, Mississippi. The inundation maps, which can be accessed through the USGS Flood Inundation Mapping Science Web site at http://water.usgs.gov/osw/flood_inundation/ , depict estimates of the areal extent of flooding corresponding to selected water-surface elevations (stages) at the USGS streamgage at Leaf River at Hattiesburg, Mississippi (02473000). Current conditions at the USGS streamgage may be obtained through the National Water Information System Web site at http://waterdata.usgs.gov/ms/nwis/uv/?site_no=02473000&PARAmeter_cd=00065,00060 . In addition, the information has been provided to the National Weather Service (NWS) for incorporation into their Advanced Hydrologic Prediction Service (AHPS) flood-warning system ( http://water.weather.gov/ahps/ ). The NWS forecasts flood hydrographs at many places that are often collocated at USGS streamgages. The forecasted peak-stage information, available on the AHPS Web site, may be used in conjunction with the maps developed in this study to show predicted areas of flood inundation. In this study, flood profiles were computed for the stream reach by means of a one-dimensional step-backwater model. The model was calibrated using the most current stage-discharge relations at the Leaf River at Hattiesburg, Mississippi, streamgage and documented high-water marks from recent and historical floods. The hydraulic model was then used to determine 13 water-surface profiles for flood stages at 1.0-foot intervals referenced to the streamgage datum and ranging from bankfull to approximately the highest recorded water-surface elevation at the streamgage. The simulated water-surface profiles were then combined with a geographic information system digital elevation model [derived from Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) data having a 0.6-foot vertical accuracy and 9.84-foot horizontal resolution] in order to delineate the area flooded at each 1-foot increment of stream stage. The availability of these maps, when combined with real-time stage information from USGS streamgages and forecasted stream stage from the NWS, provides emergency management personnel and residents with critical information during flood-response activities, such as evacuations and road closures, as well as for post-flood recovery efforts.

Mississippi↗