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.
Science Quality and Integrity
Science Quality and Integrity
The USGS provides unbiased, objective, and impartial scientific information upon which our audiences, including resource managers, planners, and other entities, rely.
Mission Area Publications
Mission Area Publications
We are focused on some of the most significant issues society faces, and our science is making a substantial contribution to the well-being of the Nation and the world. Learn more about the major topics our research covers and the programs focused on those topics.
Filter Total Items: 171816
Assessing conservation and management actions with ecosystem services better communicates conservation value to the public
Fish and wildlife populations are under unprecedented threats from changes in land use and climate. With increasing threats comes a need for an expanded constituency that can contribute to the public support and financial capital needed for habitat conservation and management. Using an ecosystem services approach can provide a framework for a more holistic accounting of conservation benefits. Our
Authors
David M. Mushet, Max Post van der Burg, Michael J. Anteau
Integrated geochemical approach to determine the source of methane in gas hydrate from Green Canyon Block 955 in the Gulf of Mexico
Massive volumes of gas are sequestered within gas hydrate in subsurface marine sediments in the Gulf of Mexico. Methane associated with gas hydrate is a potentially important economic resource and a significant reservoir of carbon within the global carbon cycle. Nevertheless, uncertainties remain about the genetic source (e.g., microbial, thermogenic) and possible migration history of natural gas
Authors
Myles T. Moore, Stephen C. Phillips, Ann Cook, Thomas H. Darrah
A forested wetland at a climate-induced tipping-point: 17-year demographic evidence of widespread tree recruitment failure
Regeneration and survival of forested wetlands are affected by environmental variables related to the hydrologic regime. Climate change, specifically alterations to precipitation patterns, may have outsized effects on these forests. In Tennessee, USA, precipitation has increased by 15% since 1960. The goal of our research was to assess the evidence for whether this change in precipitation patterns
Authors
Jonathan Evans, Sarah McCarthy-Neumann, Angus Pritchard, Jennifer M. Cartwright, William J. Wolfe
Toxicity of wildland fire-fighting chemicals in pulsed exposures to rainbow trout and fathead minnows
Intrusions of fire-fighting chemicals in streams can result from containment and suppression of wildfires and may be harmful to native biota. We investigated the toxicity of seven current-use fire-fighting chemicals to juvenile rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) and fathead minnows (Pimephales promelas) by simulating chemical intrusions under variable field conditions to provide insight on the po
Authors
Holly J. Puglis, Michael G. Iacchetta, Christina M. Mackey
Microtremor array method using spatial autocorrelation analysis of Rayleigh‑wave data
Microtremor array measurements (MAM) and passive surface wave methods in general, have been increasingly used to non-invasively estimate shear-wave velocity structures (Vs) for various purposes. The methods estimate dispersion curves and invert them for retrieving S-wave velocity profiles. This paper summarizes principles, limitations, data collection and processing methods. It intends to enable s
Authors
Koichi Hayashi, Michael W. Asten, William J. Stephenson, Cécile Cornou, Manuel Hobiger, Marco Pilz, Hiroaki Yamanaka
Statewide quantitative microbial risk assessment for waterborne viruses, bacteria, and protozoa in public water supply wells in Minnesota
Infection risk from waterborne pathogens can be estimated via quantitative microbial risk assessment (QMRA) and forms an important consideration in the management of public groundwater systems. However, few groundwater QMRAs use site-specific hazard identification and exposure assessment, so prevailing risks in these systems remain poorly defined. We estimated the infection risk for 9 waterborne p
Authors
Tucker R. Burch, Joel P. Stokdyk, Nancy Rice, Anita C. Anderson, James F. Walsh, Sue Spencer, Aaron Firnstahl, Mark A. Borchardt
Laboratory simulation of groundwater along uranium-mining-affected flow paths near the Grand Canyon, Arizona, USA
Mining of volumetrically small, but relatively enriched (average 0.6% U3O8) breccia pipe uranium (BPU) deposits near the Grand Canyon, Arizona, USA has the potential to affect groundwater and springs in the area. Such deposits also contain base metal sulfides that can oxidize to generate acid mine drainage and release trace metals. In this study, sequential batch experiments were conducted to simu
Authors
Carleton R. Bern, Kate M. Campbell, Katherine Walton-Day, Bradley S. Van Gosen
Presence of the herbaceous marsh species Schoenoplectus americanus enhances surface elevation gain in transitional coastal wetland communities exposed to elevated CO2 and sediment deposition events
Coastal wetlands are dynamic ecosystems that exist along a landscape continuum that can range from freshwater forested wetlands to tidal marsh to mudflat communities. Climate-driven stressors, such as sea-level rise, can cause shifts among these communities, resulting in changes to ecological functions and services. While a growing body of research has characterized the landscape-scale impacts of
Authors
Camille Stagg, Claudia Laurenzano, William C. Vervaeke, Ken Krauss, Karen L. McKee
Major point and nonpoint sources of nutrient pollution to surface water have declined throughout the Chesapeake Bay watershed
Understanding drivers of water quality in local watersheds is the first step for implementing targeted restoration practices. Nutrient inventories can inform water quality management decisions by identifying shifts in nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) balances over space and time while also keeping track of the likely urban and agricultural point and nonpoint sources of pollution. The Chesapeake Bay
Authors
Robert D. Sabo, Breck Maura Sullivan, Cuiyin Wu, Emily M. Trentacoste, Qian Zhang, Gary W. Shenk, Gopal Bhatt, Lewis C. Linker
Movement and habitat use by smallmouth bass Micropterus dolomieu velox in a dynamic Ozark Highlands riverscape
Stream fish movement in response to changing resource availability and habitat needs is important for fish growth, survival and reproduction. The authors used radio telemetry to evaluate individual movements, daily movement rates, home ranges and habitat-use characteristics of adult (278–464 mm LT) Neosho smallmouth bass Micropterus dolomieu velox in three Ozark Highlands streams from June 2016 to
Authors
Andrew D. Miller, Shannon K. Brewer
Structured elicitation of expert judgement in real-time eruption scenarios: An exercise for Piton de la Fournaise volcano, La Réunion island
Formalised elicitation of expert judgements has been used to help tackle several problematic societal issues, including volcanic crises and pandemic threats. We present an expert elicitation exercise for Piton de la Fournaise volcano, La Réunion island, held remotely in April 2021. This involved 28 experts from nine countries who considered a hypothetical effusive eruption crisis involving a new v
Authors
Alessandro Tadini, Andrew J. L. Harris, Julie Morin, Andrea Bevilacqua, Aline Peltier, Willy Aspinall, Stefano Ciolli, Patrick Bachèlery, Benjamin Bernard, Jonas Biren, António Brum da Silveira, Valéry Cayol, Oryaëlle Chevrel, Diego Coppola, Hannah R. Dietterich, Amy Donovan, Olaya Dorado, Stéphane Drenne, Olivier Dupéré, Lucia Gurioli, Stephan Kolzenburg, Jean-Christophe Komorowski, Philippe Labazuy, Domenico Mangione, Stefano Mannini, François Martel-Asselin, Etienne Médard, Sophie Pailot-Bonnétat, Victoria Rafflin, Michael Ramsey, Nicole Richter, Silvia Vallejo-Vargas, Nicolas Villeneuve, Silvia Zafrilla
Invasion of annual grasses following wildfire corresponds to maladaptive habitat selection by a sagebrush ecosystem indicator species
Numerous wildlife species within semi-arid shrubland ecosystems across western North America are experiencing substantial habitat loss and fragmentation. These changes in habitat are often attributed to a diverse suite of factors including prolonged and increasingly severe droughts, conifer expansion, anthropogenic development, domestic and feral livestock grazing, and invasion of exotic annual gr
Authors
Brianne E. Brussee, Peter S. Coates, Shawn T. O'Neil, Michael L. Casazza, Shawn P. Espinosa, John D. Boone, Elisabeth M. Ammon, Scott C. Gardner, David J. Delehanty