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Publications

Since 1966, CERC scientists have published over 2000 peer reviewed articles and reports. Browse our publications below or search CERC's publications by author or title through the USGS Publications Warehouse.

If you need assistance in locating a specific CERC publication, please contact the CERC Librarian.

Filter Total Items: 1407

A comparison of water quality criteria for the Great Lakes based on human and wildlife health

Water quality criteria (WQC) can be derived in several ways. The usual techniques involve hazard and risk assessment procedures. For non-persistent, non-biomagnified compounds and elements, WQC are experimentally derived from their acute and chronic toxicity to aquatic organisms. For those persistent chlorinated hydrocarbons (PCHs) that are bioaccumulated and biomagnified, these traditional techni
Authors
James P. Ludwig, John P. Giesy, Cheryl L. Summer, William Bowerman, Richard J. Aulerich, Steven J. Bursian, Heidi J. Auman, Paul D. Jones, Lisa L. Williams, Donald E. Tillitt, Michael Gilbertson

Boron, molybdenum, and selenium in aquatic food chains from the lower San Joaquin River and its tributaries, California

Boron (B), molybdenum (Mo), and selenium (Se) were measured in water, sediment, particulate organic detritus, and in various biota—filamentous algae, net plankton, macroinvertebrates, and fishes—to determine if concentrations were elevated from exposure to agricultural subsurface (tile) drainage during the spring and fall 1987, in the San Joaquin River, California. Concentrations of B and Se, but
Authors
Michael K. Saiki, Mark R. Jennings, William G. Brumbaugh

Toxicity of contaminated sediments in dilution series with control sediments

The use of dilutions has been the foundation of our approach for assessing contaminated water, and accordingly, it may be important to establish similar or parallel approaches for sediment dilutions. Test organism responses to dilution gradients can identify the degree of necessary sediment alteration to reduce the toxicity. Using whole sediment dilutions to represent the complex interactions of i
Authors
M.K. Nelson, P.F. Landrum, G.A. Burton, S.J. Klaine, E.A. Crecelius, T.D. Byl, Duane C. Gossiaux, V.N. Tsymbal, L. Cleveland, Christopher G. Ingersoll, G. Sasson-Brickson

Uptake of planar polychlorinated biphenyls and 2,3,7,8-substituted polychlorinated dibenzofurans and dibenzo-p-dioxins by birds nesting in the lower Fox River and Green Bay, Wisconsin, USA

The uptake of persistent polychlorinated hydrocarbons (PCHs) by four avian species was investigated at upper trophic levels of two aquatic food chains of the lower Fox River and Green Bay, Wisconsin. Accumulation of total and specific planar polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs), polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxin (PCDDs), and H411E rat hepatoma cell bioassay-derive
Authors
Gerald T. Ankley, Gerald J. Niemi, Keith B. Lodge, Hallett J. Harris, Donald L. Beaver, Donald E. Tillitt, Ted R. Schwartz, John P. Giesy, Paul D. Jones, Cynthia Hagley

Use of mesocosm data to predict effects in aquatic ecosystems: Limits to interpretation: Chapter 16

Aquatic mesocosm studies are being used to refute a presumption of risk derived from laboratory toxicity tests conducted under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). Mesocosm studies incorporate many biological, chemical and physical characteristics of natural ecosystems. Hence, they serve as realistic surrogates of natural ecosystems and allow tests of pesticide effect a
Authors
Thomas W. La Point, James F. Fairchild

Toxicity of sediments and pore water from Brunswick Estuary, Georgia

A chlor-alkali plant in Brunswick, Georgia, USA, discharged >2 kg mercury/d into a tributary of the Turtle River-Brunswick Estuary from 1966 to 1971. Mercury concentrations in sediments collected in 1989 along the tributary near the chlor-alkali plant ranged from 1 to 27 μg/g (dry weight), with the highest concentrations found in surface (0–8 cm) sediments of subtidal zones in the vicinity of the
Authors
Parley V. Winger, Peter J. Lasier, Harvey Geitner

Habitat suitability index model for brook trout in streams of the Southern Blue Ridge Province: Surrogate variables, model evaluation, and suggested improvements

Data from several sources were collated and analyzed by correlation, regression, and principal components analysis to define surrrogate variables for use in the brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) habitat suitability index (HSI) model, and to evaluate the applicability of the model for assessing habitat in high elevation streams of the southern Blue Ridge Province (SBRP). In all data sets examined
Authors
C. J. Schmitt, A.D. Lemly, P. V. Winger

Flow cytometry, morphometry and histopathology as biomarkers of benzo[a]pyrene exposure in brown bullheads (ameiurus nebulosus)

Brown bullheads were given a single intraperitoneal dose of 0, 5, 25 or 125 mg kg−1 benzo[a]pyrene (BaP), a carcinogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon, and evaluated over 18 months. Flow cytometric analyses of hepatocyte DNA content indicated an increase in DNA synthesis in BaP-exposed fish prior to day 14 post-exposure. Thereafter, all flow cytometric variables returned to initial levels. Histo
Authors
Andrew W. Grady, Ronald M. McLaughlin, Charles W. Caldwell, Christopher J. Schmitt, David L. Stalling

Investigations into the effects of PCB congeners on reproduction in lake trout from the Great Lakes

Eggs of feral lake trout collected in Lake Michigan were reared under laboratory conditions and monitored for egg hatchability, physical abnormalities, and survival of fry. Subsamples of eggs were also analyzed for PCB congeners. A negative correlation was found between egg hatchability and total PCBs but expressing PCB dose as dioxin equivalents did not produce as strong a correlation. No other m
Authors
Michael J. Mac, T.R. Schwartz

Toxicity of agricultural subsurface drainwater from the San Joaquin Valley, California to juvenile chinook salmon and striped bass

Juvenile chinook salmon Oncorhynchus tshawytscha (40-50 mm total length, TL) and striped bass Morone saxatilis (30-40 mm TL) were exposed to serial dilutions (100, 50, 25, and 12.5%) of agricultural subsurface drainwater (WWD), reconstituted drainwater (RWWD), and reconstituted seawater (IO). Agricultural subsurface drainwater contained naturally elevated concentrations of major ions (such as sodi
Authors
Michael K. Saiki, Mark R. Jennings, Raymond H. Wiedmeyer

Toxicity of trace element and salinity mixtures to striped bass (Morone saxatilis) and Daphnia magna

Acute toxicity tests with reconstituted water were conducted to investigate the relationship between water hardness, salinity, and a mixture of trace elements found in irrigation drain waters entering Stillwater Wildlife Management Area (SWMA), near Fallon, Nevada. The SWMA has been the site of many fish kills in recent years, and previous toxicity studies indicated that one drain water, Pintail B
Authors
F.J. Dwyer, S.A. Burch, C.G. Ingersoll, J. B. Hunn