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Browse more than 150,000 publications authored by our scientists over the past 100+ year history of the USGS.  Publications available are: USGS-authored journal articles, series reports, book chapters, other government publications, and more.

Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center Publications

Filter Total Items: 3223

Water resources data Minnesota water year 2001

Water resources data for the 2001 water year for Minnesota consist of records of stage, discharge, and water quality of streams; stage of lakes and reservoirs; ground-water quality; and water quality in wells. This report contains discharge records for 100 stream-gaging stations; stage for 13 lakes and reservoirs; water quality for 24 stream-gaging stations; peak flow data for 88 highflow partial-
Authors
G.B. Mitton, K.G. Guttormson, G.W. Stratton, E.S. Wakeman

Methylmercury in flood-control impoundments and natural waters of northwestern Minnesota, 1997-99

We studied methylmercury (MeHg) and total mercury (HgT) in impounded and natural surface waters in northwestern Minnesota, in settings ranging from agricultural to undeveloped. In a recently constructed (1995) permanent-pool impoundment, MeHg levels typically increased from inflow to outflow during 1997; this trend broke down from late 1998 to early 1999. MeHg levels in the outflow reached seasona
Authors
M. E. Brigham, D. P. Krabbenhoft, M.L. Olson, J.F. DeWild

Effects of topography on the transport of agricultural chemicals to groundwater in a sand-plain setting

Geochemical data were collected to investigate the effects of topography and focused recharge on the transport of agricultural chemicals to groundwater through sandy soils. The research was done at a topographically high (upland) site and a depressional (lowland) site within a corn field. Agricultural chemicals that move readily with water were most directly affected by focused recharge to the low
Authors
G. N. Delin, M.K. Landon

Seasonal patterns in the soil water balance of a Spartina marsh site at North Inlet, South Carolina, USA

Time series of ground-water head at a mid-marsh site near North Inlet, South Carolina, USA can be classified into five types of forcing signatures based on the dominant water flux governing water-level dynamics during a given time interval. The fluxes that can be recognized are recharge by tides and rain, evapotranspiration (ET), seepage into the near surface soil from below, and seepage across th
Authors
L. R. Gardner, Howard W. Reeves

Long-term evolution of biodegradation and volatilization rates in a crude oil-contaminated aquifer

Volatilization and subsequent biodegradation near the water Table make up a coupled natural attenuation pathway that results in significant mass loss of hydrocarbons. Rates of biodegradation and volatilization were documented twice 12 years apart at a crude-oil spill site near Bemidji, Minnesota. Biodegradation rates were determined by calibrating a gas transport model to O2, CO2, and CH4 gas-conc
Authors
B.P. Chaplin, G. N. Delin, R.J. Baker, M.A. Lahvis

The oral bioavailability and toxicokinetics of methylmercury in common loon (Gavia immer) chicks

We compared the toxicokinetics of methylmercury in captive common loon chicks during two time intervals to assess the impact of feather growth on the kinetics of mercury. We also determined the oral bioavailability of methylmercury during these trials to test for age-related changes. The blood concentration-time curves for individuals dosed during feather development (initiated 35 days post hatch)
Authors
F. Fournier, W. H. Karasov, K.P. Kenow, M.W. Meyer, R. K. Hines

Dioxins and congener-specific polychlorinated biphenyls in three avian species from the Wisconsin River, Wisconsin

Sediments from the Wisconsin River, WI, USA are contaminated with 2,3,7,8-tetrachloro-p-dioxin (TCDD) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). Wet weight concentrations of TCDD and PCBs in eggs were at background levels and highest in the piscivorous hooded merganser (Lophodytes cucullatus; geometric mean=7 pg/g TCDD and 0.92 μg/g PCBs) and lowest in the omnivorous wood duck (Aix sponsa) (<1 pg/g and
Authors
T. W. Custer, Christine M. Custer, Randy K. Hines

Feeding habitat selection by Great Blue Herons and Great Egrets nesting in east central Minnesota

Great Blue Herons (Ardea herodias) and Great Egrets (Casmerodius albus) partitioned feeding habitat based on wetland size at Peltier Lake rookery in east central Minnesota. Great Blue Herons preferred large waterbodies (350 ha), whereas Great Egrets fed most often at small ponds (<25 ha). Forty-nine percent of Great Blue Herons used wetlands 301-400 hectares in size and 83% of Great Egrets fed in
Authors
Christine M. Custer, J. Galli

Benthic algae of benchmark streams in agricultural areas of eastern Wisconsin

Benthic algae were collected from 20 streams in the Western Lake Michigan Drainages by the U.S. Geological Survey in May and June of 1993 as part of the National Water-Quality Assessment program. These streams were selected to represent "benchmark" streams that were minimally affected by human activities, especially agriculture, for comparison to other streams in similar environmental settings. St
Authors
Barbara C. Scudder, Jana S. Stewart

Optimal estimation of suspended-sediment concentrations in streams

Optimal estimators are developed for computation of suspended-sediment concentrations in streams. The estimators are a function of parameters, computed by use of generalized least squares, which simultaneously account for effects of streamflow, seasonal variations in average sediment concentrations, a dynamic error component, and the uncertainty in concentration measurements. The parameters are us
Authors
D. J. Holtschlag

Relation between fish communities and riparian zone conditions at two spatial scales

 The relation offish community composition to riparian cover at two spatial scales was compared at 18 streams in the agricultural Minnesota River Basin. The two spatial scales were: (1) local riparian zone (a 200 meter wide buffer extending 2 to 3 kilometers upstream of the sampling reach); and (2) the upstream riparian zone (a 200 m wide buffer on the mainstem and all perennial tributaries upstre
Authors
K. E. Lee, R. M. Goldstein, P. E. Hanson

Short-duration electrical immobilization of lake trout

Chemical anesthetics induce stress responses, and most leave residues in fish tissues that require a certain withdrawal time before the animal can be released into the environment. Therefore, alternatives are needed in cases when fish must be released immediately, for example, during egg-collecting operations or after implanting elastomer tags. To evaluate pulsed direct current as an alternative m
Authors
Mark P. Gaikowski, William H. Gingerich, Steve Gutreuter