All Publications

Because use of high-resolution hydrologic models is becoming more widespread and estimates are made over large domains, there is a pressing need for systematic evaluation of their performance. Most evaluation efforts to date have focused on smaller basins that have been relatively undisturbed by human activity, but there is also a need to benchmark model performance more comprehensively, including

Sandy beaches are important resources providing recreation, tourism, habitat, and coastal protection. They evolve over various time scales due to local winds, waves, storms, and changes in sea level. A common method used to monitor change in sandy beaches is to measure the movement of the shoreline over time. Typically, the rate of change is estimated by fitting a linear regression through a time

Highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAIV) H5N1 was introduced in North America in late 2021 through trans-Atlantic pathways via migratory birds. These introductions have resulted in an unprecedented epizootic, a widespread disease event in animals, heavily affecting poultry, wild birds, and recently mammals. The North American incursions occurred during the largest epidemic season (2021–2022

Growth of the Tibetan Plateau, Earth’s broadest and highest elevation collisional system, shapes orographic barriers, reorganizes drainage networks, and influences surface erosion and sediment delivery, whose changes in space and provenance feed back to intracontinental tectonic processes. Studies of interior basins within the northern Tibetan Plateau provide new sediment accumulation, provenance,

Nutrient limitation of tree growth can intensify when nutrients are lost to forest harvest, creating challenges for forest growth and sustainability. Forest harvest accelerates nutrient loss by removing nutrient-containing biomass and by increasing nutrient leaching, shaping patterns of nutrient depletion that cause long-term shifts in nutrient limitation. Nitrogen most frequently limits tree grow

The 2016 moment magnitude 7.8 Kaikoura, New Zealand, earthquake occurred at the southern end of the Hikurangi subduction zone where the upper plate above the shallow megathrust is exposed sub-aerially. As a result, the substantial co-seismic deformation in the upper plate above the megathrust rupture was observed geologically and geodetically. We explore the relationship between this surface fault

Wild waterbirds, and especially wild waterfowl, are considered to be a reservoir for avian influenza viruses, with transmission likely occurring at the agricultural-wildlife interface. In the past few decades, avian influenza has repeatedly emerged in China along the East Asian-Australasian Flyway (EAAF), where extensive habitat conversion has occurred. Rapid environmental changes in the EAAF, esp

Future water use was projected for public-water systems in Tennessee. Water-use information was compiled for Tennessee for 2010, and projections were made to 2020 and 2030. The water-use models were based on two primary datasets: baseline water-use information for 2010 for Tennessee and projected population in Tennessee.Population and water withdrawals in Tennessee are expected to increase through

We present new X-ray fluorescence compositions of 27 core samples from Phase 3, Hole G of the San Andreas Fault Observatory at Depth, nearly doubling the published dataset for the core. The new analyses consist of major and trace element compositions and the first published data for rare earth elements from Hole G. Whole-rock compositions were obtained to further the analysis of active geochemical

The volcanic aquifers of the Hawaiian Islands supply water to 1.46 million residents, diverse industries, and a large component of the U.S. military in the Pacific. Groundwater also supplies fresh water that supports ecosystems in streams and near the coast. Hawaii’s aquifers are remarkably productive given their small size, but the capacity of the islands to store fresh groundwater is limited bec

Fire regimes in sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) ecosystems have been greatly altered across the western United States. Broad-scale invasion of non-native annual grasses, climate change, and human activities have accelerated wildfire cycles, increased fire size and severity, and lengthened fire seasons in many sagebrush ecosystems to the point that current wildfire-management practices and postfire rest

Amaranthus pumilus (seabeach amaranth) is a federally threatened plant species that has been the focus of restoration efforts at Assateague Island National Seashore (ASIS). Despite several years with strong population numbers prior to 2010, monitoring efforts have revealed a significant decline in the seabeach amaranth population since that time, the causes of which have been unclear. To examine p