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Book Chapters

Browse more than 5,500 book chapters authored by our scientists over the past 100+ year history of the USGS and refine search by topic, location, year, and advanced search.

Filter Total Items: 6071

The logic of selecting an appropriate map projection in a Decision Support System (DSS)

There are undeniable practical consequences to consider when choosing an appropriate map projection for a specific region. The surface of a globe covered by global, continental, and regional maps are so singular that each type distinctively affects the amount of distortion incurred during a projection transformation because of the an assortment of effects caused by distance, direction, scale , and
Authors
Michael P. Finn, E. Lynn Usery, Laura N. Woodard, Kristina H. Yamamoto

Goose migration across the Himalayas: Migratory routes and movement patterns of Bar-headed Geese

No abstract available.
Authors
John Y. Takekawa, Eric C. Palm, Diann J. Prosser, Lucy Hawkes, Nyambayar Batbayar, Sivananinthaperumal Balachandran, Ze Luo, Xiangming Xiao, Scott H. Newman

Himalayan thoroughfare: Migratory routes of ducks over the rooftop of the world

No abstract available.
Authors
Tsewang Namgail, John Y. Takekawa, Sivananinthaperumal Balachandran, Eric C. Palm, Taej Mundkur, Victor Martin Velez, Diann J. Prosser, Scott H. Newman

Migratory ducks and protected wetlands in India

India is the most important wintering ground for migratory ducks in the Central Asian Flyway. Because of its latitudinal and climatic extent, the country provides a diversity of wetland habitats for migratory ducks (Ali & Ripley 1978). India is the seventh largest country in the world with an area of about 3.3 million km2 or 2.4% of the world’s land-area. Mainland India stretches nearly 3200 km fr
Authors
Tsewang Namgail, John Y. Takekawa, Sivananinthaperumal Balachandran, Taej Mundkur, Ponnusamy Sathiyaselvam, Diann J. Prosser, Tracy McCracken, Scott H. Newman

2016 status of the Lake Ontario Lower Trophic levels

Significant Findings for Year 2016: 1) Offshore spring total phosphorus (TP) in 2016 was 6.2 μg/L, higher than 2014 and 2015 (4.0 and 4.2 μg/L); there was no significant decline 2001 - 2016. Offshore soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP) was very low in 2016; Apr/May – Oct mean values were
Authors
Kristen T. Holeck, Lars G. Rudstam, Christopher Hotaling, Russ McCullough, Dave Lemon, Web Pearsall, Jana Lantry, Mike Connerton, Steve LaPan, Zy Biesinger, Brian F. Lantry, Maureen Walsh, Brian C. Weidel

Geomyces and Pseudogymnoascus: Emergence of a primary pathogen, the causative agent of bat white-nose syndrome

Geomyces and Pseudogymnoascus (Fungi, Ascomycota, Leotiomycetes, aff. Thelebolales) are closely related groups of globally occurring soil-associated fungi. Recently, these genera of fungi have received attention because a newly identified species, Pseudogymnoascus (initially classified as Geomyces) destructans, was discovered in association with significant and unusual mortality of hibernating bat
Authors
Michelle L. Verant, Andrew M. Minnis, Daniel L. Lindner, David S. Blehert

Role of raptors in contaminant research

This chapter reviews the history of and approaches used in studies focused on the effects of contaminants on raptors and raptor populations at the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center (Patuxent) in Laurel, MD. Worldwide raptor declines following World War II were unprecedented and resulted in a sequence of major efforts at Patuxent to understand their cause(s). The peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus)
Authors
Charles J. Henny

San Francisco Bay living shorelines: Restoring Eelgrass and Olympia Oysters for habitat and shore protection

Living shorelines projects utilize a suite of sediment stabilization and habitat restoration techniques to maintain or build the shoreline, while creating habitat for a variety of species, including invertebrates, fish, and birds (see National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration [NOAA] 2015 for an overview). The term “living shorelines” denotes provision of living space and support for estuarin
Authors
Katharyn E. Boyer, Chela Zabin, Susan De La Cruz, Edwin D. Grosholz, Michelle Orr, Jeremy Lowe, Marilyn Latta, Jen Miller, Stephanie Kiriakopolos, Cassie Pinnell, Damien Kunz, Julien Modéran, Kevin Stockmann, Geana Ayala, Robert Abbott, Rena Obernolte

Ecology and space: A case study in mapping harmful invasive species

The establishment and invasion of non-native plant species have the ability to alter the composition of native species and functioning of ecological systems with financial costs resulting from mitigation and loss of ecological services. Spatially documenting invasions has applications for management and theory, but the utility of maps is challenged by availability and uncertainty of data, and the
Authors
David T. Barnett, Catherine S. Jarnevich, Geneva W. Chong, Thomas J. Stohlgren, Sunil Kumar, Tracy R. Holcombe

Tsunamis: Bayesian probabilistic hazard analysis

No abstract available.
Authors
Anita Grezio, Stefano Lorito, Tom Parsons, Jacopo Selva

Computer modelling for ecosystem service assessment

Computer models are simplified representations of the environment that allow biophysical, ecological, and/or socio-economic characteristics to be quantified and explored. Modelling approaches differ from mapping approaches (Chapter 5) as (i) they are not forcibly spatial (although many models do produce spatial outputs); (ii) they focus on understanding and quantifying the interactions between dif
Authors
Robert Dunford, Paula Harrison, Kenneth J. Bagstad