Hydrology

Joint Ecosystem Modeling (JEM) provides ecological models tailored to address specific management issues, for example, the Western Everglades Restoration Project.

Mottled ducks rely on the coastal marshes of the Texas Chenier Plain, which are considered among the most critically endangered habitats in the United States. USGS scientists are evaluating what might be contributing to the degradation of high-quality mottled duck habitat to better understand the causes of habitat loss and subsequently mitigate those losses.

The Nonindigenous Aquatic Species (NAS) program has developed a new tool, the NAS Alert Risk Mapper (ARM), to characterize waterbodies in the conterminous U.S. and Hawaii at potential risk of invasion from a new nonindigenous species sighting.

Critical information predicting condition changes in manatee habitat resulting from the alteration of freshwater flows to estuaries is needed to develop the PSRP Detailed Design and PSRP Operations Plan components and complete consultation under the Endangered Species Act.

Freshwater wetlands provide critical habitat for a diverse array of organisms, including many amphibians. Yet, under the threat of climate change, these habitats are among the most imperiled ecosystems on Earth.

Environmental flows describes the quantity, quality, and timing of water flows required to sustain freshwater and estuarine ecosystems and the human livelihoods and well-being that depend on these ecosystems.

Hydrologic restoration is one of several approaches to rehabilitate mangroves on a large-scale. USGS evaluates how solely restoring tidal hydrologic flows affect the recovery of mangroves in Florida.

The Wax Lake Delta is an ideal ecosystem to study the effects of a large-scale river diversion on the biogeochemistry of coastal wetlands, and the capacity of these wetlands to assimilate nutrients delivered by these diversions. USGS works to develop a better understanding of surface water hydrology and nitrate dynamics in this area.

Dongting Lake, one of the wetlands that make up the floodplains of China's Yangtze River, is important habitat for migratory waterfowl and other wildlife. However, the re-engineering of the water way and the intensification of agricultural practices has contributed to changes in hydrology and sedimentation. USGS and partners from China are assessing the potential impact of these changes to the...

Habitat alteration and climate, when combined, are serious threats to amphibians and other wildlife. Habitat suitability models are being used to predict the responses of an amphibian community to hydrological and habitat restoration in the Greater Everglades Ecosystem.

Florida's springs are a source of cultural, recreational, and ecological importance. But land-use changes and increased demands for groundwater due to the state's growing population have led to widespread impairment of these unique ecosystems.