Publications
Browse more than 160,000 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.
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Evolution of Miocene normal and dextral faulting in the lower Colorado River region near Blythe, California, USA
The evolution of strain in nascent continental plate boundaries commonly involves distributed deformation and transitions between different styles of deformation as the plate boundary matures. Distributed NW-striking faults, many with km-scale right-lateral separation, are prevalent near Blythe, California, and have been variably interpreted to have accommodated either Middle Miocene NE-SW extensi
Authors
Skyler Pendleton Mavor, Scott E. K. Bennett, Ryan S. Crow, John S. Singleton, Victoria Langenheim, Daniel F. Stockli, Mark E. Stelten, Timothy Brickey Sr., Paul J. Umhoefer, L. Sue Beard
A residual oil zone (ROZ) assessment methodology with application to the central basin platform (Permian Basin, USA) for enhanced oil recovery (EOR) and long-term geologic CO2 storage
Residual oil zones (ROZ) form due to various geologic conditions and are located below the oil/water contact (OWC) of main pay zones (MPZ). Since ROZs usually contain immobile oil, they have not typically been considered commercially attractive for development by conventional primary recovery methods used in the initial phases of oil production. However, during the last decade some operators of th
Authors
C. Özgen Karacan, Sean T. Brennan, Marc L. Buursink, Philip A. Freeman, Celeste D. Lohr, Matthew D. Merrill, Ricardo A. Olea, Peter D. Warwick
A global biodiversity observing system to unite monitoring and guide action
The rate and extent of global biodiversity change is surpassing our ability to measure, monitor and forecast trends. We propose an interconnected worldwide system of observation networks — a global biodiversity observing system (GBiOS) — to coordinate monitoring worldwide and inform action to reach international biodiversity targets.
Authors
Andrew Gonzalez, Petteri Vihervaara, Patricia Balvanera, Amanda E. Bates, Elisa Bayraktarov, Peter J. Bellingham, Andreas Bruder, Jillian Campbell, Michael D. Catchen, Jeannine Cavender-Bares, Jonathan Chase, Nicholas Coops, Mark J. Costello, Maria Dornelas, Gregoire Dubois, Emmett J. Duffy, Hilde Eggermont, Nestor Fernandez, Simon Ferrier, Gary N. Geller, Michael J. Gill, Dominique Gravel, Carlos A. Guerra, Robert P. Guralnick, Michael Harfoot, Tim Hirsch, Sean M. Hoban, Alice C. Hughes, Maggie Hunter, Forest Isbell, Walter Jetz, Norbert Juergens, W. Daniel Kissling, Cornelia B. Krug, Yvan Le Bras, Brian Leung, Maria C. Londoño-Murcia, Jean-Michel Lord, Michel Loreau, Amy Luers, Keping Ma, Anna J. MacDonald, Melodie McGeoch, Katie L. Millette, Zsolt Molnár, Akira S. Mori, Frank E. Muller-Karger, Hiroyuki Muraoka, Laetitia M. Navarro, Tim Newbold, Aidin Niamir, David Obura, Mary O’Connor, Marc Paganini, Henrique M. Pereira, Timothée Poisot, Laura J. Pollock, Andy Purvis, Adriana Radulovici, Duccio Rocchini, Michael E. Schaepman, Gabriela Schaepman-Strub, Dirk S. Schmeller, Ute Schmiedel, Fabien D. Schneider, Mangal M. Shakya, Andrew K Skidmore, Andrew L. Skowno, Yayoi Takeuchi, Mao-Ning Tuanmu, Eren Turak, Woody Turner, Mark C. Urban, Nicolás Urbina-Cardona, Ruben Valbuena, Basile van Havre, Elaine Wright
Identifying drivers of population dynamics for a stream breeding amphibian using time series of egg mass counts
The decline in amphibian populations is one of the starkest examples of the biodiversity crisis. For stream breeding amphibians, alterations to natural flow regimes by dams, water diversions, and climate change have been implicated in declines and extirpations. Identifying drivers of amphibian declines requires long time series of abundance data because amphibian populations can exhibit high natur
Authors
Jonathan P. Rose, Sarah J. Kupferberg, Ryan A. Peek, Don Ashton, James B. Bettaso, Steven Bobzien, Ryan M. Bourque, Koen G.H. Breedveld, Alessandro Catenazzi, Joseph E. Drennan, Earl Gonsolin, Marcia Grefsrud, Andrea E. Herman, Matthew R. House, Matt R. Kluber, Amy J. Lind, Karla R. Marlow, Alan Striegle, Michael van Hattem, Clara A. Wheeler, Jeffery T. Wilcox, Kevin D. Wiseman, Brian J. Halstead
Genetic population assignments of Atlantic sturgeon provided to National Marine Fisheries Service, 2022
Acipenser oxyrinchus oxyrinchus (Atlantic sturgeon) were once abundant and supported large-scale fisheries throughout much of the east coast of the United States. However, historic overharvest and habitat loss resulted in dramatic declines in abundance and eventual listing under the Endangered Species Act of the United States. As part of this listing, Atlantic sturgeon populations were divided int
Authors
Shannon L. White, Robin L. Johnson, Barbara A. Lubinski, Michael S. Eackles, David C. Kazyak
Improving the Midwest Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment Tool to support regional climate adaptation
An online climate vulnerability assessment dashboard was developed in 2021 through collaboration between U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) to support regional climate adaptation efforts. The dashboard included 15 climate change impact metrics (five each from three categories: hydrology, precipitation, and temperature) and five metrics representing each watershe
Authors
John T. Delaney, Kristen L. Bouska
Geographic and taxonomic variation in adaptive capacity among mountain-dwelling small mammals: implications for conservation status and actions
Contemporary climate change is modifying the distribution, morphology, phenology, physiology, evolution, and interspecific interactions of species. Effects of climate change are mediated not only through the magnitude of change experienced (exposure) and an animal's sensitivity to such changes, but also through the ability of the population or species to adjust to climatic variability and change g
Authors
Erik A. Beever, Jennifer L. Wilkening, Peter D. Billman, Lindsey Thurman, Kristina A. Ernest, David H. Wright, Alisha M. Gill, April C. Craighead, Nolan A. Helmstetter, Leona K. Svancara, Meghan J. Camp, Sabuj Bhattacharyya, Jedediah Fitzgerald, Jocelyn M. R. Hirose, Marie L. Westover, Francis D. Gerraty, Kelly B. Klingler, Danielle A. Schmidt, Dylan K. Ryals, Richard N. Brown, Steven L. Clark, Neil Clayton, Gail H. Collins, Kyle A. Cutting, Daniel F. Doak, Clinton W. Epps, Janet E. Foley, Johnnie French, Charles L. Hayes, Zachary A. Mills, Lucas Moyer-Horner, Lyle B. Nichols, Kate B. Orlofsky, Mary M. Peacock, Nicholas C. Penzel, Johnny Peterson, Nathan G. Ramsay, Tom Rickman, Megan M. Robinson, Hillary L. Robison, Karen M. C. Rowe, Kevin C. Rowe, Michael A. Russello, Adam B. Smith, Joseph A. E. Stewart, Will W. Thompson, James H. Thorne, Matthew D. Waterhouse, Shana S. Weber, Kenneth C. Wilson
Time, climate, and soil settings set the course for reclamation outcomes following dryland energy development
Soil attributes, climate, and time since reclamation have important implications for oil and gas reclamation success on drylands. It is uncertain if reclaimed well pads, on highly degraded drylands, can successfully regain ecological function or meet indicator benchmarks for reclamation. Here, our goals were to assess patterns in reclamation outcomes relative to (1) soil attributes, climate, and t
Authors
Randi C. Lupardus, Aarin Sengsirirak, Keven Griffen, Anna C Knight, Brandon E McNellis, John B. Bradford, Seth M. Munson, Sasha C. Reed, Miguel L. Villarreal, Michael C. Duniway
Comparing wetland elevation change using a surface elevation table, digital level, and total station
The surface elevation table (SET) approach and two survey instruments, a digital level (DL) and a total station (TS), were used to evaluate elevation change at a 1-ha, micro-tidal, back-barrier salt marsh at Assateague Island National Seashore (Berlin, MD, USA) from 2016 to 2022. SET data were collected at 3 sampling stations along the perimeter of the plot, 36 pins per station, and the DL and TS
Authors
James C. Lynch, Neil Winn, Katya Kovalenko, Glenn R. Guntenspergen
Complex styles of phreatomagmatic explosions at Kīlauea Volcano, Hawaii, controlled by magma structure
Explosive eruptions at basaltic volcanoes remain poorly understood. Kīlauea Volcano is a type locality for basaltic eruptions and is well-known for effusive activity. However, more than 7 m of phreatomagmatic Keanakākoʻi Tephra unit D deposits from explosive eruptions crown the southern rim of the summit caldera and provide a stark reminder of Kīlauea’s explosive past and future potential. We used
Authors
Jo Schmith, Donald A. Swanson
Evaluating a prospective fault-based stress-transfer forecast for the M7.9 Wenchuan earthquake region 15 years later
Four days after the 12 May 2008 M 7.9 Wenchuan earthquake struck the Sichuan region of China, we submitted a prospective earthquake forecast based on transfer of stress from the mainshock onto significant faults crossing through populated areas. We identified where the largest aftershocks were likely to occur that could cause loss of life. We returned the revised article to the journal on 5 June 2
Authors
Thomas E. Parsons, Chen Ji, Eric Kirby
Multi-scale assessment of roost selection by ‘ōpe‘ape‘a, the Hawaiian hoary bat (Lasiurus semotus)
The Hawaiian hoary bat (Lasiurus semotus; Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae), commonly and locally known as ‘ōpe‘ape‘a, is a solitary, insectivorous, and foliage-roosting species distributed across a wide range of habitats in lowland and montane environments. The species, as with many others in the Hawaiian archipelago, are facing a suite of challenges due to habitat loss and degradation, introduced pr
Authors
Kristina Montoya-Aiona, P. Marcos Gorresen, Karen Courtot, Aaron A. Aguirre, Flor A. Calderon, Sean P. Casler, Sarah G. Ciarrachi, Julia P. S. Hoeh, Josephine L. Tupu, Terry L. Zinn