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Explore scientific publications from the USGS St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center.

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Filter Total Items: 915

A scuticociliate causes mass mortality of Diadema antillarum in the Caribbean Sea

Echinoderm mass mortality events shape marine ecosystems by altering the dynamics among major benthic groups. The sea urchin Diadema antillarum, virtually extirpated in the Caribbean in the early 1980s by an unknown cause, recently experienced another mass mortality beginning in January 2022. We investigated the cause of this mass mortality event through combined molecular biological and veterinar
Authors
Ian Hewson, Isabella T. Ritchie, James S. Evans, Ashley Altera, Donald Behringer, Erin Bowman, Marilyn E. Brandt, Kayla A. Budd, Ruleo A. Camacho, Tomas O. Cornwell, Peter D. Countway, Aldo Croquer, Gabriel A. Delgado, Christopher M. DeRito, Elizabeth Duermit-Moreau, Ruth Francis-Floyd, Samuel Gittens Jr., Leslie Henderson, Alwin Hylkema, Christina A. Kellogg, Yasu Kiryu, Kimani A. Kitson-Walters, Patricia Kramer, Judith C. Lang, Harilaos Lessios, Lauren Liddy, David Marancik, Stephen Nimrod, Joshua T. Patterson, Marit Pistor, Isabel C. Romero, Rita Sellares-Blasco, Moriah L. B. Sevier, William C. Sharp, Matthew Souza, Andreina Valdez-Trinidad, Marijn van der Laan, Brayan Vilanova-Cuevas, Maria Villalpando, Sarah D. Von Hoene, Matthew Warham, Tom Wijers, Stacey M. Williams, Thierry M. Work, Roy P. Yanong, Someira Zambrano, Alizee Zimmermann, Mya Breitbart
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, National Wildlife Health Center, St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center

The evolution of natural and developed barriers under accelerating sea levels

Communities residing on barrier islands depend upon the ability of barriers to withstand forcings such as waves, sea-level rise, and storms, particularly under stresses from climate change. Using a barrier island evolution model, we compare barrier response to linear versus accelerating sea-level rise. Results suggest that barriers are more likely to drown under accelerating rather than linear sea

Authors
Rose Elizabeth Palermo, Andrew D. Ashton, Di Jin, Porter Hoagland, Jorge Lorenzo-Trueba
By
Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center

Exploring centennial barrier-inlet evolution: Insights from undeveloped and developed phases at Barnegat Inlet, New Jersey

This study aims to identify the natural processes and the subsequent responses to coastal engineering and development on the alongshore evolution of the IB-BI-LBI inlet-barrier system. The primary focus will be the quantification of barrier island and inlet sediment partitioning at decadal to centennial timescales, from 1839-1941. We analyze historical alongshore evolution and track coastal engine
Authors
Shane Nichols-O'Neill, Jorge Lorenzo-Trueba, Daniel J. Ciarletta, Jennifer L. Miselis
By
St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center

Reconstructing the geomorphic evolution and sediment budget history of a dynamic barrier island: Anclote Key, Florida

Decadal to centennial variations in sediment availability are a primary driver of coastal change within barrier systems. Models help explore how barrier morphology relates to past changes in magnitude of sediment availability, but this requires insights and validation from field efforts. In this study, we investigate the progradation of Anclote Key via its morphostratigraphy, a presently dynamic b

Authors
Daniel J. Ciarletta, Jennifer L. Miselis, Julie Bernier, Arnell S. Forde, Shannon A. Mahan
By
Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Geosciences and Environmental Change Science Center, St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center

Mode and provenance of sediment deposition on a transgressive marsh

In this study, we use foraminifera as environmental indicators to aid in computing the historical volumetric inputs of estuarine sediments to adjacent marsh. These data can help assess the importance of estuarine sediment inputs to marsh accretion. The Grand Bay system (GBS), located on the southern coast of Alabama and Mississippi, has been described as a “self-cannibalizing bay-marsh complex” du
Authors
Christopher G. Smith, Alisha M. Ellis, Kathryn Smith
By
St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center

Changes in sediment transport processes at the Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana in response to storm impact

We analyzed elevation changes at the northern Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana, to quantify sediment fluxes and assess sediment transport processes over two time periods (1920 – 2007 and 2007 – 2015). Wave-driven alongshore sediment transport is the predominant fair-weather process, whereas storms transport sediment across the island platform and promote shoreline retreat. Major storm impacts, where

Authors
James Flocks, Julie Bernier
By
Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center, Gulf of Mexico

Modeling total water level and coastal change at Pea Island, North Carolina, USA

The DUring Nearshore Event eXperiment (DUNEX) was carried out on Pea Island, North Carolina, USA between September-October 2021. We use a coupled numerical model (Windsurf) to hindcast the evolution of the DUNEX transect and produce a time series of hourly water levels at the shoreline from the model output. In addition to assessing the ability of Windsurf to reproduce TWL, we use model output pai

Authors
Michael Christopher Itzkin, Margaret Louise Palmsten, Mark L. Buckley, Christopher R. Sherwood, Jenna A. Brown, Jin-Si R. Over, Peter A. Traykovski
By
Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Toward a total water level forecast of the Great Lakes

The combined effect of storm surge and large waves is the main driving mechanism that erodes beaches, inundates low-lying areas, leading to millions of dollars in property damage, loss of natural resources, and lives. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) aims to expand the real-time total water level (TWL) forecast provided in the Operational Total Water Level and Coastal Change Forecasts (TWL&CC) to
Authors
Erdinc Sogut, Alfredo Aretxabaleta, Andrew Ashton, Walter Barnhardt, Kara S. Doran, Margaret Louise Palmsten
By
St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Hindcast of Hurricane Sally impacts on barrier islands in the Gulf of Mexico

We performed XBeach and ADIRC+SWAN model simulations of Hurricane Sally over Dauphin and Petit Bois Islands off the Alabama-Mississippi coast to evaluate the morphologic response. Simulated water levels compared well with NOAA tide gauge observations to the east of Dauphin Island with a high model skill of 0.9. In addition, the XBeach model results of water levels, mean current speeds and signific
Authors
Donya P. Frank-Gilchrist, Davina Passeri, Matthew V. Bilskie
By
Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center, Gulf of Mexico, Hurricane Sally

Wave-scale observations of coarse-grained sediment resuspension and subsequent transport across a fringing reef flat, Molokaʻi, Hawaiʻi, USA

During a 3-month deployment on a broad, fringing reef flat in Moloka’i, Hawai’i, we observed over 28,000 wave-driven resuspension (WDR) events of coarse-grained sediment in order to identify major factors. These events were short-lived (2-11 s) and distinct from the longer-duration patterns of water-column backscatter. The wave-driven transport of WDR events was onshore, but the net cross-shore tr
Authors
Olivia Cheriton, Curt Storlazzi, Kurt J. Rosenberger, Joshua B. Logan, Andrew W. M. Pomeroy, Mark L. Buckley, Jeff E. Hansen, Ryan J. Lowe
By
Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center

Fusing geophysical and remotely sensed data for observing overwash occurrence, frequency, and impact

Overwash is an important process that enables a barrier island to migrate landward to adapt to rising sea levels but can also impact vegetated areas and create coastal hazards for populated barrier islands. Our overall objectives were to hindcast overwash events from September 2008 to November 2009 and assess whether overwash impacts could be detected using moderate-resolution imagery (30 m). Esti
Authors
Nicholas Enwright, P. Soupy Dalyander, Robert L Jenkins, Elizabeth S. Godsey, Spencer J. Stelly
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center

Rapid prototyping for quantifying belief weights of competing hypotheses about emergent diseases

Emerging diseases can have devastating consequences for wildlife and require a rapid response. A critical first step towards developing appropriate management is identifying the etiology of the disease, which can be difficult to determine, particularly early in emergence. Gathering and synthesizing existing information about potential disease causes, by leveraging expert knowledge or relevant exis
Authors
Ellen Padgett Robertson, Daniel P. Walsh, Julien Martin, Thierry M. Work, Christina A. Kellogg, James S. Evans, Aine C. Hawthorn, Greta Aeby, Valerie J. Paul, Brian Walker, Yasu Kiryu, Cheryl M. Woodley, Julie L. Meyer, Stephanie M. Rosales, Michael S. Studivan, Jennifer Moore, Marilyn E. Brandt, Andrew Bruckner
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Cooperative Research Units, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center , Eastern Ecological Science Center, National Wildlife Health Center, St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center