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Publications

USGS research activities relevant to Alaska have yielded more than 9400 historical publications. This page features some of the most recent newsworthy research findings.

Filter Total Items: 2891

Sockeye salmon evolution, ecology, and management

This collection of articles and photographs gives managers a good idea of recent research into what the sockeye salmon is and does, covering such topics as the vulnerability and value of sockeye salmon ecotypes, their homing ability, using new technologies to monitor reproduction, DNA and a founder event in the Lake Clark sockeye salmon, marine-derived nutrients, the exploitation of large prey, dy
Authors
Carol Ann Woody

Seismic detection and analysis of icequakes at Columbia Glacier, Alaska

Contributions to sea level rise from rapidly retreating marine-terminating glaciers are large and increasing. Strong increases in iceberg calving occur during retreat, which allows mass transfer to the ocean at a much higher rate than possible through surface melt alone. To study this process, we deployed an 11-sensor passive seismic network at Columbia Glacier, Alaska, during 2004–2005. We show t
Authors
Shad O'Neel, Hans P. Marshall, Daniel E. McNamara, William Tad Pfeffer

Determining the pattern of cementum annuli and relationship to reproduction in male sea otters

Since the early 1990s, the southwestern Alaskan sea otter (Enhydra lutris) population has declined dramatically and the cause has yet to be determined. Population trajectories of large mammals are determined by three factors: survival rate, reproduction rate, and age of first reproduction (AFR). Of these three, AFR should respond first to environmental change. Life history theory predicts that AFR
Authors
Josh Proper, Vanessa R. von Biela, Jennifer M. Burns

Assessment of hydrology, water quality, and trace elements in selected placer-mined creeks in the birch creek watershed near central, Alaska, 2001-05

Executive Summary The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Bureau of Land Management, completed an assessment of hydrology, water quality, and trace-element concentrations in streambed sediment of the upper Birch Creek watershed near Central, Alaska. The assessment covered one site on upper Birch Creek and paired sites, upstream and downstream from mined areas, on Frying Pan Creek and H
Authors
Ben W. Kennedy, Dustin E. Langley

Preliminary volcano-hazard assessment for the Tanaga volcanic cluster, Tanaga Island, Alaska

Summary of Volcano Hazards at Tanaga Volcanic Cluster The Tanaga volcanic cluster lies on the northwest part of Tanaga Island, about 100 kilometers west of Adak, Alaska, and 2,025 kilometers southwest of Anchorage, Alaska. The cluster consists of three volcanoes-from west to east, they are Sajaka, Tanaga, and Takawangha. All three volcanoes have erupted in the last 1,000 years, producing lava flow
Authors
Michelle L. Coombs, Robert G. McGimsey, Brandon L. Browne

Viability criteria for steelhead of the south-central and southern California coast

Recovery planning for threatened and endangered steelhead requires measurable, objective criteria for determining an acceptably low risk of extinction. Here we propose viability criteria for two levels of biological organization: individual populations, and groups of populations within the SouthCentral/Southern California Coast Steelhead Recovery Planning Domain. For populations, we adapt criteria
Authors
David A. Boughton, Peter B. Adams, Eric Anderson, Craig Fusaro, Edward A. Keller, Elsie Kelley, Leo Lentsch, Jennifer L. Nielsen, Katie Perry, Helen Regan, Jerry Smith, Camm C. Swift, Lisa Thompson, Fred Watson

Undiscovered locatable mineral resources in the Bay Resource Management Plan Area, Southwestern Alaska: A probabilistic assessment

The Bay Resource Management Plan (RMP) area in southwestern Alaska, north and northeast of Bristol Bay contains significant potential for undiscovered locatable mineral resources of base and precious metals, in addition to metallic mineral deposits that are already known. A quantitative probabilistic assessment has identified 24 tracts of land that are permissive for 17 mineral deposit model types
Authors
J. M. Schmidt, T. D. Light, L. J. Drew, Frederic H. Wilson, Marti L. Miller, R. W. Saltus

Geochemical and sulfur-isotopic signatures of volcanogenic massive sulfide deposits on Prince of Wales Island and vicinity, southeastern Alaska

Stratabound volcanogenic massive sulfide (VMS) deposits on Prince of Wales Island and vicinity, southeastern Alaska, occur in two volcanosedimentary sequences of Late Proterozoic through Cambrian and of Ordovician through Early Silurian age. This study presents geochemical data on sulfide-rich samples, in situ laser-ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) of sulfide miner
Authors
John F. Slack, Wayne C. Shanks, Susan M. Karl, Pamela A. Gemery, Peter E. Bittenbender, W. Ian Ridley

Food habits of rodents inhabiting arid and semi-arid ecosystems of central New Mexico

In this study, we describe seasonal dietary composition for 15 species of rodents collected in all major habitats on the Sevilleta National Wildlife Refuge (Socorro County) in central New Mexico. A comprehensive literature review of food habits for these species from throughout their distribution also is provided. We collected rodents in the field during winter, spring and late summer in 1998 from
Authors
Andrew G. Hope, Robert R. Parmenter

Major- and Trace-Element Concentrations in Rock Samples from the Sleetmute 1:250,000-Scale Quadrangle, Alaska

This report consists of geochemical data for rock samples collected in the Sleetmute 1:250,000-scale quadrangle by the U.S. Geological Survey between 1993 and 1999. Data were primarily used to conduct a mineral resource assessment of this quadrangle. The analytical results are presented here as digital tabular data with no interpretation.
Authors
Edward P. Klimasauskas, Marti L. Miller, William J. Keith

Proceedings of the Fourth Glacier Bay Science Symposium

Foreword Glacier Bay was established as a National Monument in 1925, in part to protect its unique character and natural beauty, but also to create a natural laboratory to examine evolution of the glacial landscape. Today, Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve is still a place of profound natural beauty and dynamic landscapes. It also remains a focal point for scientific research and includes con
Authors
John F. Piatt, Scott M. Gende

Alaska Science Center: Providing Timely, Relevant, and Impartial Study of the Landscape, Natural Resources, and Natural Hazards for Alaska and Our Nation

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the Nation's largest water, earth, and biological science and civilian mapping agency, has studied the natural features of Alaska since its earliest geologic expeditions in the 1800s. The USGS Alaska Science Center (ASC), with headquarters in Anchorage, Alaska, studies the complex natural science phenomena of Alaska to provide scientific products and results to a
Authors