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Publications

Publications from USGS science centers throughout the Southeast Region.

Filter Total Items: 9969

Selenium concentrations in the razorback sucker (Xyrauchen texanus): Substitution of non-lethal muscle plugs for muscle tissue in contaminant assessment

A single muscle plug was collected from each of 25 live razorback suckers inhabiting the Colorado River basin and analyzed for selenium by instrumental neutron activation. Eight fish from Ashley Creek and three from Razorback Bar exhibited selenium concentrations exceeding 8 μg/g, a level associated with reproductive failure in fish. Concentrations of selenium in eggs and milt were significantly c
Authors
B. Waddell, T. May

Postflood occurrence of selected agricultural chemicals and volatile organic compounds in near-surface unconsolidated aquifers in the upper Mississippi River basin, 1993

The historic stream flooding and intense rainfall across the upper Mississippi River Basin during summer 1993 had an immediate effect on near-surface unconsolidated aquifers by raising the water levels closer to the land surface . The objective of this study was to determine if this flooding also had immediate effects on groundwater quality . Water samples were collected during September and Octob
Authors
Dana W. Kolpin, E. Michael Thurman

Effect of increased water depth on growth of a common perennial freshwater-intermediate marsh species in Coastal Louisiana

The response of Sagittaria lancifolia to increased water depths of 7.5 and 15 cm was examined in this field study. Water-depth treatments were achieved by digging sods containing one or two individual plants or ramets of S. lancifolia from the marsh, removing sediment from the resulting hole, and replacing the sods in their original location at the appropriate lower elevation. Plants subjected to
Authors
Rebecca J. Howard, Irving A. Mendelssohn

Effects of agricultural land-management practices on water quality in northeastern Guilford County, North Carolina, 1985-90

The effects of selected agricultural land-management practices on water quality were assessed in a comparative study of four small basins in the Piedmont province of North Carolina. Agricultural practices, such as tillage and applications of fertilizer and pesticides, are major sources of sediment, nutrients, and pesticides in surface water, and of nutrients and pesticides in ground water. The
Authors
Douglas A. Harned

Species-specific patterns of hyperostosis in marine teleost fishes

The occurrence of swollen or hyperostotic bones in skeletal preparations, preserved museum material or whole fresh specimens of marine teleost fishes was identified in 92 species belonging to 22 families. Patterns of hyperostotic skeletal growth were typically consistent and often species-specific in all individuals larger than a certain size. The taxonomic distribution of hyperostosis in diverse
Authors
William F. Smith-Vaniz, L.S. Kaufman, J. Glowacki

Survey for blood parasites in redheads (Aythya americana) wintering at the Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana

We detected no infections with species of Plasmodium, Haemoproteus, Leucocytozoon, Sarcocystis or Trypanosoma in blood smears, liver and spleen impressions, and muscle tissue from 136 redheads (Aythya americana) collected or captured at the Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana (USA), during three winters (1987 to 1990). One bird, a juvenile male, was infected with an unidentified species of microfilaria.
Authors
Thomas C. Michot, Mary C. Garvin, Earl H. Weidner

A regional monitoring network to investigate the occurrence of agricultural chemicals in near-surface aquifers of the midcontinental USA

Previous state and national surveys conducted in the mid-continental USA have produced a wide range in results regarding the occurrence of agricultural chemicals in groundwater. At least some of these differences can be attributed to inconsistencies between the surveys, such as different analytical reporting limits. The US Geological Survey has designed a sampling network that is geographically a
Authors
D.W. Kolpin, D. A. Goolsby

Seagrass distribution in the Northern Gulf of Mexico

Seagrass ecosystems are widely recognized as some of the most productive benthic habitats in estuarine and nearshore waters of the gulf coast. Seagrass meadows provide food for wintering waterfowl and important spawning and foraging habitat for several species of commercially important finfish and shellfish. Physical structure provided by seagrasses affords juveniles refuge from predation and allo
Authors
Lawrence R. Handley

Use of semipermeable membrane devices (SPMDS) to determine bioavailable organochlorine pesticide residues in streams receiving irrigation drainwater

The semipermeable membrane device (SPMD), consisting of a neutral lipid (triolein) enclosed in polyethylene layflat tubing, is very effective in sequestering bioavailable organochlorine (OC) pesticides in the environment. We used SPMDs to sequester OC pesticide residues in streams receiving irrigation drainwater and found toxaphene, the DDT complex, dieldrin, and endrin. Ambient water concentratio
Authors
Jimmie D. Petty, James N. Huckins, D.B. Martin, T.G. Adornato

Use of the semipermeable membrane device as an in situ sampler of waterborne bioavailable PCDD and PCDF residues at sub-parts-per-quadrillion concentrations

Semipermeable membrane devices (SPMDs) were used to passively sample aqueous polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs) and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs) in Bayou Meto, AR. The two sites were upstream and downstream from the confluence with a tributary that delivers PCDDs and PCDFs to the Bayou. Following dialysis, cleanup, and fractionation, four replicate 17-9 SPMD samples from each site
Authors
Jon A. Lebo, Robert W. Gale, Jimmie D. Petty, Donald E. Tillitt, James N. Huckins, John C. Meadows, Carl E. Orazio, Kathy R. Echols, Dennis J. Schroeder, Lloyd E. Inmon

Toxicity of crude oil to the mayfly, Hexagenia bilineata (Ephemeroptera: Ephemeridae)

Effects of crude oil on survival and behavior of the mayfly Hexagenia bilineata were evaluated in laboratory studies. Mayfly nymphs were exposed to the water soluble and oil residue fractions of crude oil. Mayfly survival was not reduced by a 96-h exposure to either the water soluble fraction or the oil residue mixed with sediment. However, significant mortality did result from a 21-day exposure t
Authors
Mark P. Ort, Susan E. Finger, John R. Jones