Skip to main content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Publications

These publications showcase the significant science conducted in our Science Centers.

Filter Total Items: 16780

Comparison of three preservation techniques for slowing dissolution of calcareous nannofossils in organic rich sediments

In an attempt to halt or reduce dissolution of calcareous nannofossils in organic and/or pyrite-rich sediments, three different methods of short-term storage preservation were tested for efficacy: vacuum packing, argon gas replacement, and buffered water. Abundance counts of calcareous nannofossil assemblages over a six month period showed that none of the three preservation methods were consisten
Authors
Ellen Seefelt, Jean Self-Trail, Arthur P. Schultz

Geospatial association between adverse birth outcomes and arsenic in groundwater in New Hampshire, USA

There is increasing evidence of the role of arsenic in the etiology of adverse human reproductive outcomes. Because drinking water can be a major source of arsenic to pregnant women, the effect of arsenic exposure through drinking water on human birth may be revealed by a geospatial association between arsenic concentration in groundwater and birth problems, particularly in a region where private
Authors
Xun Shi, Joseph D. Ayotte, Akikazu Onda, Stephanie Miller, Judy Rees, Diane Gilbert-Diamond, Tracy L Onega, Jiang Gui, Margaret R. Karagas, John B Moeschler

Assessment of bauxite, clay, and laterite deposits in Afghanistan

Bauxite-bearing rocks are present in several regions of Afghanistan; specifically, the southeast segment of the North Afghanistan Platform, the eastern parts of South Afghanistan, and within the Afghanistan-North and -South Pamir Fold Regions. Bauxite-bearing rocks occur at various stratigraphic levels, in lithologically different sequences of sedimentary rocks. The bauxites are paleosols and repr
Authors
Karine M. Renaud, Bruce R. Wardlaw, Bernard E. Hubbard

Spatial structure of morphological and neutral genetic variation in Brook Trout

Brook Trout Salvelinus fontinalis exhibit exceptional levels of life history variation, remarkable genetic variability, and fine-scale population structure. In many cases, neighboring populations may be highly differentiated from one another to an extent that is comparable with species-level distinctions in other taxa. Although genetic samples have been collected from hundreds of populations and t
Authors
David C. Kazyak, Robert H. Hilderbrand, Stephen R. Keller, Mark C. Colaw, Amanda E. Holloway, Raymond P. Morgan, Tim L. King

Isolation and characterization of microsatellite DNA loci in the threatened flat-spired three-toothed land snail Triodopsis platysayoides

The hermaphroditic flat-spired three-tooth land snail (Triodopsis platysayoides) is endemic to a 21-km stretch of the Cheat River Gorge of northeastern West Virginia, USA. We document isolation and characterization of ten microsatellite DNA markers in this at-risk species. The markers displayed a moderate level of allelic diversity (averaging 7.1 alleles/locus) and heterozygosity (averaging 58.6 %
Authors
Tim L. King, Michael S. Eackles, B. A. Garner, M. van Tuinen, B. S. Arbogast

Diel patterns and temporal trends in spawning activities of Robust Redhorse and River Redhorse in Georgia, assessed using passive acoustic monitoring

The conservation of imperiled species depends upon understanding threats to the species at each stage of its life history. In the case of many imperiled migratory fishes, understanding how timing and environmental influences affect reproductive behavior could provide managers with information critical for species conservation. We used passive acoustic recorders to document spawning activities for
Authors
Carrie A. Straight, C. Rhett Jackson, Byron J. Freeman, Mary Freeman

Evaluation and application of regional turbidity-sediment regression models in Virginia

Conventional thinking has long held that turbidity-sediment surrogate-regression equations are site specific and that regression equations developed at a single monitoring station should not be applied to another station; however, few studies have evaluated this issue in a rigorous manner. If robust regional turbidity-sediment models can be developed successfully, their applications could greatly
Authors
Kenneth Hyer, John D. Jastram, Douglas Moyer, James S. Webber, Jeffrey G. Chanat

Obituary: Graham W. Smith (1950-2015)

No abstract available.
Authors
Allan F. O'Connell

Water quality of groundwater and stream base flow in the Marcellus Shale Gas Field of the Monongahela River Basin, West Virginia, 2011-12

The Marcellus Shale gas field underlies portions of New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Virginia, Maryland, Tennessee, and West Virginia. Development of hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling technology led to extensive development of gas from the Marcellus Shale beginning about 2007. The need to identify and monitor changes in water-quality conditions related to development of the Marcellus Shale
Authors
Douglas B. Chambers, Mark D. Kozar, Terence Messinger, Michon L. Mulder, Adam J. Pelak, Jeremy S. White

The modelling and assessment of whale-watching impacts

In recent years there has been significant interest in modelling cumulative effects and the population consequences of individual changes in cetacean behaviour and physiology due to disturbance. One potential source of disturbance that has garnered particular interest is whale-watching. Though perceived as ‘green’ or eco-friendly tourism, there is evidence that whale-watching can result in statist
Authors
Leslie New, Ailsa J. Hall, Robert Harcourt, Greg Kaufman, E.C.M. Parsons, Heidi C. Pearson, A. Mel Cosentino, Robert S Schick

Accelerometer-derived activity correlates with volitional swimming speed in lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens)

Quantifying fine-scale locomotor behaviours associated with different activities is challenging for free-swimming fish.Biologging and biotelemetry tools can help address this problem. An open channel flume was used to generate volitionalswimming speed (Us) estimates of cultured lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens Rafinesque, 1817) and these were paired withsimultaneously recorded accelerometer-der
Authors
J.D. Thiem, J.W. Dawson, A.C. Gleiss, E.G. Martins, Alexander J. Haro, Theodore R. Castro-Santos, A. J. Danylchuk, R. P. Wilson, S. J. Cooke