Geology topics

Research about Missouri

Source-linked reports with geographic coverage including Missouri.

At least 217 records · Page 12Linked to original sources

USGS2013

Concentrations of elements in fish fillets, fish muscle plugs, and crayfish from the 2011 Missouri Department of Conservation general contaminant monitoring program

This report presents the results of a contaminant monitoring survey conducted annually by the Missouri Department of Conservation to examine the levels of selected elemental contaminants in fish fillets, fish muscle plugs, and crayfish. Fillet samples of yellow bullhead ( Ameiurus natalis ), golden redhorse ( Moxostoma erythrurum ), longear sunfish ( Lepomis megalotis ), and channel catfish ( Ictalurus punctatus ) were collected from six sites as part of the Missouri Department of Conservation’s Fish Contaminant Monitoring Program. Fish dorsal muscle plugs were collected from largemouth bass ( Micropterus salmoides ) at eight of the sites, and crayfish from two sites. Following preparation and analysis of the samples, highlights of the data were as follows: cadmium and lead residues were most elevated in crayfish tissue samples from the Big River at Cherokee Landing, with 1 to 8 micrograms per gram dry weight and 22 to 45 micrograms per gram dry weight, respectively. Some dorsal muscle plugs from largemouth bass collected from Clearwater Lake, Lake St. Louis, Noblett Lake, Hazel Creek Lake, and Harrison County Lake contained mercury residues (1.7 to 4.7 micrograms per gram dry weight) that exceeded the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Water Quality Criterion of 1.5 micrograms per gram dry weight of fish tissue (equivalent to 0.30 micrograms per gram wet weight).

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USGS2013

Bathymetric surveys of selected lakes in Missouri--2000-2008

Years of sediment accumulation and abnormally dry conditions in the Midwest in 1999 and 2000 led to the water level decline of many water-supply lakes in Missouri, and caused renewed interest in modernizing outdated area/volume tables for these lakes. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Missouri Department of Natural Resources and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, surveyed the bathymetry of 51 lakes in Missouri from July 2000 to May 2008. The data were used to provide water managers with area/volume tables and bathymetric maps of the lakes at the time of the surveys. In 50 of the lakes, bathymetric surveys were made using a boat-mounted single-beam survey-grade fathometer. In Clearwater Lake, bathymetric data were collected primarily using a boat-mounted survey-grade multibeam fathometer, and some bathymetric data were collected using a single-beam fathometer in areas of the lake that were inaccessible to the multibeam fathometer. Data processing, area/volume table computation, and bathymetric map production were completed for each lake.

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USGS2013

Documenting the stages and streamflows associated with the 2011 activation of the New Madrid Floodway, Missouri

The U.S. Geological Survey initiated a substantial effort in the summer of 2011 to measure and document the record-setting floods of the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers, including the reach in and near the New Madrid Floodway. The activation of the floodway, which had not occurred since 1937, provided a rare opportunity to collect a unique dataset describing a flood wave downstream from a levee breach as well as the flow through a large floodway. A total of 42 submersible pressure transducers collected time series of water levels while crews collected hundreds of depth, velocity, and streamflow measurements at selected locations in and near the floodway throughout the period from late April to late June. These data are presented in this chapter.

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USGS2013

Geologic map of the Jam Up Cave and Pine Crest quadrangles, Shannon, Texas, and Howell Counties, Missouri

The Jam Up Cave and Pine Crest 7.5-minute quadrangles are located in south-central Missouri within the Salem Plateau region of the Ozark Plateaus physiographic province. About 2,400 to 3,100 feet (ft) of flat-lying to gently dipping Lower Paleozoic sedimentary rocks, mostly dolomite, chert, sandstone, and orthoquartzite, overlie Mesoproterozoic igneous basement rocks. Unconsolidated residuum, colluvium, terrace deposits, and alluvium overlie the sedimentary rocks. Numerous karst features, such as sinkholes, caves, and springs, have formed in the carbonate rocks. Many streams are spring fed. The topography is a dissected karst plain with elevations ranging from about 690 ft where the Jacks Fork River exits the northeastern corner of the Jam Up Cave quadrangle to about 1,350 ft in upland areas along the north-central edge and southwestern corner of the Pine Crest quadrangle. The most prominent physiographic feature is the valley of the Jacks Fork River. This reach of the upper Jacks Fork, with its clean, swiftly-flowing water confined by low cliffs and bluffs, provides one of the most beautiful canoe float trips in the nation. Most of the land in the quadrangles is privately owned and used primarily for grazing cattle and horses and growing timber. A large minority of the land within the quadrangles is publicly owned by the Ozark National Scenic Riverways of the National Park Service. Geologic mapping for this investigation was conducted in 2005 and 2006.

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USGS2013

Assessment of macroinvertebrate communities in adjacent urban stream basins, Kansas City, Missouri, metropolitan area, 2007 through 2011

Macroinvertebrates were collected as part of two separate urban water-quality studies from adjacent basins, the Blue River Basin (Kansas City, Missouri), the Little Blue River and Rock Creek Basins (Independence, Missouri), and their tributaries. Consistent collection and processing procedures between the studies allowed for statistical comparisons. Seven Blue River Basin sites, nine Little Blue River Basin sites, including Rock Creek, and two rural sites representative of Missouri ecological drainage units and the area’s ecoregions were used in the analysis. Different factors or levels of urban intensity may affect the basins and macroinvertebrate community metrics differently, even though both basins are substantially developed above their downstream streamgages (Blue River, 65 percent; Little Blue River, 52 percent). The Blue River has no flood control reservoirs and receives wastewater effluent and stormflow from a combined sewer system. The Little Blue River has flood control reservoirs, receives no wastewater effluent, and has a separate stormwater sewer system. Analysis of macroinvertebrate community structure with pollution-tolerance metrics and water-quality parameters indicated differences between the Blue River Basin and the Little Blue River Basin. A four-metric score (total taxa richness, Ephemeroptera plus Plecoptera plus Trichoptera taxa richness, Macroinvertebrate Biotic Index, and Shannon Diversity Index) for richest-targeted habitat was used to calculate a Stream Condition Index (SCI) in order to evaluate the aquatic-life status of the streams. About 80 percent of all samples combined were determined to be less than fully biologically supporting, and about 11 percent of spring samples were fully biologically supporting. No sites within the Blue River Basin had a fully supporting score. The aquatic-life status scores for the Little Blue River and its tributaries were higher (indicating more optimal conditions) than for the Blue River and its tributaries. Fall samples scored higher than spring samples. However, fall samples were collected at the Little Blue River Basin and rural sites only. The Little Blue River sites scored higher for fall samples than spring samples; about 39 percent fully biologically supporting and 61 percent partially biologically supporting; more similar to the rural comparison sites, 40 percent fully biologically supporting and 60 percent partially biologically supporting. The SCI was compared to other multimetric indices with more or other component metrics to determine if the SCI effectively described differences among sites. Environmental variables (streamflow, water quality, land use, impervious cover, and population density) were used in statistical analyses to evaluate relations to macroinvertebrate metrics. Multimetric indices (MMIs) were modeled using step regression with a simple urban intensity index (SUII) based on percentage of impervious cover, population density, and forest cover in a 30-meter stream-buffer zone, and two were selected for further analysis. Three other multimetric indices composed of metrics common to local and national studies show results similar to the two modeled MMIs. A common Benthic Index of Biotic Integrity (R 2 equals 0.71) developed for a national study had the highest correlation with urban intensity as measured with the SUII, followed by a modeled 6-metric index (R 2 equals 0.61). The other MMIs and the SCI explained less than a half of the variability in macroinvertebrate communities in relation to the SUII. Wastewater-treatment plant discharges during base flow, which elevated specific conductance and nutrient concentrations, combined sewer overflows, and nonpoint sources likely contributed to water-quality impairment and lower aquatic-life status at the Blue River Basin sites. Releases from upstream reservoirs to the Little Blue River likely decreased specific conductance, suspended-sediment, and dissolved constituent concentrations and may have benefitted water quality and aquatic life of main-stem sites. Chloride concentrations in base-flow samples, attributable to winter road salt application, had the highest correlation with the SUII (Spearman’s ρ equals 0.87), were negatively correlated with the SCI (Spearman’s ρ equals -0.53) and several pollution sensitive Ephemeroptera plus Plecoptera plus Trichoptera abundance and percent richness metrics, and were positively correlated with pollution tolerant Oligochaeta abundance and percent richness metrics. Study results show that the easily calculated SUII and the selected modeled multimetric indices are effective for comparing urban basins and for evaluation of water quality in the Kansas City metropolitan area.

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USGS2013

Computed statistics at streamgages, and methods for estimating low-flow frequency statistics and development of regional regression equations for estimating low-flow frequency statistics at ungaged locations in Missouri

The weather and precipitation patterns in Missouri vary considerably from year to year. In 2008, the statewide average rainfall was 57.34 inches and in 2012, the statewide average rainfall was 30.64 inches. This variability in precipitation and resulting streamflow in Missouri underlies the necessity for water managers and users to have reliable streamflow statistics and a means to compute select statistics at ungaged locations for a better understanding of water availability. Knowledge of surface-water availability is dependent on the streamflow data that have been collected and analyzed by the U.S. Geological Survey for more than 100 years at approximately 350 streamgages throughout Missouri. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, computed streamflow statistics at streamgages through the 2010 water year, defined periods of drought and defined methods to estimate streamflow statistics at ungaged locations, and developed regional regression equations to compute selected streamflow statistics at ungaged locations. Streamflow statistics and flow durations were computed for 532 streamgages in Missouri and in neighboring States of Missouri. For streamgages with more than 10 years of record, Kendall’s tau was computed to evaluate for trends in streamflow data. If trends were detected, the variable length method was used to define the period of no trend. Water years were removed from the dataset from the beginning of the record for a streamgage until no trend was detected. Low-flow frequency statistics were then computed for the entire period of record and for the period of no trend if 10 or more years of record were available for each analysis. Three methods are presented for computing selected streamflow statistics at ungaged locations. The first method uses power curve equations developed for 28 selected streams in Missouri and neighboring States that have multiple streamgages on the same streams. Statistical estimates on one of these streams can be calculated at an ungaged location that has a drainage area that is between 40 percent of the drainage area of the farthest upstream streamgage and within 150 percent of the drainage area of the farthest downstream streamgage along the stream of interest. The second method may be used on any stream with a streamgage that has operated for 10 years or longer and for which anthropogenic effects have not changed the low-flow characteristics at the ungaged location since collection of the streamflow data. A ratio of drainage area of the stream at the ungaged location to the drainage area of the stream at the streamgage was computed to estimate the statistic at the ungaged location. The range of applicability is between 40- and 150-percent of the drainage area of the streamgage, and the ungaged location must be located on the same stream as the streamgage. The third method uses regional regression equations to estimate selected low-flow frequency statistics for unregulated streams in Missouri. This report presents regression equations to estimate frequency statistics for the 10-year recurrence interval and for the N-day durations of 1, 2, 3, 7, 10, 30, and 60 days. Basin and climatic characteristics were computed using geographic information system software and digital geospatial data. A total of 35 characteristics were computed for use in preliminary statewide and regional regression analyses based on existing digital geospatial data and previous studies. Spatial analyses for geographical bias in the predictive accuracy of the regional regression equations defined three low-flow regions with the State representing the three major physiographic provinces in Missouri. Region 1 includes the Central Lowlands, Region 2 includes the Ozark Plateaus, and Region 3 includes the Mississippi Alluvial Plain. A total of 207 streamgages were used in the regression analyses for the regional equations. Of the 207 U.S. Geological Survey streamgages, 77 were located in Region 1, 120 were located in Region 2, and 10 were located in Region 3. Streamgages located outside of Missouri were selected to extend the range of data used for the independent variables in the regression analyses. Streamgages included in the regression analyses had 10 or more years of record and were considered to be affected minimally by anthropogenic activities or trends. Regional regression analyses identified three characteristics as statistically significant for the development of regional equations. For Region 1, drainage area, longest flow path, and streamflow-variability index were statistically significant. The range in the standard error of estimate for Region 1 is 79.6 to 94.2 percent. For Region 2, drainage area and streamflow variability index were statistically significant, and the range in the standard error of estimate is 48.2 to 72.1 percent. For Region 3, drainage area and streamflow-variability index also were statistically significant with a range in the standard error of estimate of 48.1 to 96.2 percent. Limitations on the use of estimating low-flow frequency statistics at ungaged locations are dependent on the method used. The first method outlined for use in Missouri, power curve equations, were developed to estimate the selected statistics for ungaged locations on 28 selected streams with multiple streamgages located on the same stream. A second method uses a drainage-area ratio to compute statistics at an ungaged location using data from a single streamgage on the same stream with 10 or more years of record. Ungaged locations on these streams may use the ratio of the drainage area at an ungaged location to the drainage area at a streamgage location to scale the selected statistic value from the streamgage location to the ungaged location. This method can be used if the drainage area of the ungaged location is within 40 to 150 percent of the streamgage drainage area. The third method is the use of the regional regression equations. The limits for the use of these equations are based on the ranges of the characteristics used as independent variables and that streams must be affected minimally by anthropogenic activities.

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USGS2013

Changes to oak woodland stand structure and ground flora composition caused by thinning and burning

Our objective was to quantify the cumulative eﬀects of prescribed burning and thinning on forest stocking and species composition at a woodland restoration experiment site in the Ozark Highlands of Missouri. Our study used four treatments (burn, harvest, harvest and burn, control) on three slope position and aspect combinations (south, north, ridge) replicated in three complete blocks. Harvested stands were thinned from below to 40 percent residual stocking. Two prescribed ﬁres were applied to both burn and harvest-burn treatment units in a 5-year period. Results reﬂect changes that have taken place over a 6-year period, from pretreatment conditions to 1 year after the last ﬁre. In this period, there was a 10-percent reduction in the stocking in burned stands compared to control and a 6-percent reduction in harvested and burned stands compared to harvested stands. Compared to the control, percentage ground cover of woodland indicators was seven times greater in burned stands, six times greater in harvested stands, and 22 percent greater in harvested and burned stands. Th ere was no signiﬁcant (P > 0.05) interaction between aspect and treatment on stocking or ground ﬂora cover. Th is study indicated that silvicultural treatments do achieve various goals that are common to managers who aim to restore woodland communities.

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USGS2012

Toxicity of chloride under winter low-flow conditions in an urban watershed in central Missouri, USA

Deicers such as sodium chloride and calcium chloride are used to treat snow and ice on road surfaces and have been identified as potential stressors on aquatic life. Hinkson Creek is an urban stream on the Missouri 303(d) list of impaired waters and is classified as impaired due to urban non-point source pollution. A 7-day toxicity test using Ceriodaphnia dubia was conducted to assess the toxicity of stream water during snowmelt at seven sites within the Hinkson Creek watershed. Chloride concentrations at two sites (Site 6, 1252 mg Cl/L; Site 4, 301 mg Cl/L) exceeded the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency chronic criterion (230 mg Cl/L). Survival (30 %) and total reproduction (6.9 young/adult) of C. dubia at Site 6 was significantly lower than survival (100 %) and total reproduction (30.4 young/adult) at Site 1 (reference site). Results indicate that chloride concentrations are elevated above water-quality criteria and that chloride may be a significant chemical stressor for macroinvertebrate communities during winter low-flow conditions in the Hinkson Creek watershed.

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USGS2012

Identifying potential areas for biofuel production and evaluating the environmental effects: a case study of the James River Basin in the Midwestern United States

Biofuels are now an important resource in the United States because of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. Both increased corn growth for ethanol production and perennial dedicated energy crop growth for cellulosic feedstocks are potential sources to meet the rising demand for biofuels. However, these measures may cause adverse environmental consequences that are not yet fully understood. This study 1) evaluates the long-term impacts of increased frequency of corn in the crop rotation system on water quantity and quality as well as soil fertility in the James River Basin and 2) identifies potential grasslands for cultivating bioenergy crops (e.g. switchgrass), estimating the water quality impacts. We selected the soil and water assessment tool, a physically based multidisciplinary model, as the modeling approach to simulate a series of biofuel production scenarios involving crop rotation and land cover changes. The model simulations with different crop rotation scenarios indicate that decreases in water yield and soil nitrate nitrogen (NO 3 -N) concentration along with an increase in NO 3 -N load to stream water could justify serious concerns regarding increased corn rotations in this basin. Simulations with land cover change scenarios helped us spatially classify the grasslands in terms of biomass productivity and nitrogen loads, and we further derived the relationship of biomass production targets and the resulting nitrogen loads against switchgrass planting acreages. The suggested economically efficient (planting acreage) and environmentally friendly (water quality) planting locations and acreages can be a valuable guide for cultivating switchgrass in this basin. This information, along with the projected environmental costs (i.e. reduced water yield and increased nitrogen load), can contribute to decision support tools for land managers to seek the sustainability of biofuel development in this region.

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USGS2012

Quality of surface water in Missouri, water year 2011

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, designed and operates a series of monitoring stations on streams throughout Missouri known as the Ambient Water-Quality Monitoring Network. During the 2011 water year (October 1, 2010, through September 30, 2011), data were collected at 75 stations—72 Ambient Water-Quality Monitoring Network stations, 2 U.S. Geological Survey National Stream Quality Accounting Network stations, and 1 spring sampled in cooperation with the U.S. Forest Service. Dissolved oxygen, specific conductance, water temperature, suspended solids, suspended sediment, fecal coliform bacteria, Escherichia coli bacteria, dissolved nitrate plus nitrite, total phosphorus, dissolved and total recoverable lead and zinc, and select pesticide compound summaries are presented for 72 of these stations. The stations primarily have been classified into groups corresponding to the physiography of the State, primary land use, or unique station types. In addition, a summary of hydrologic conditions in the State including peak discharges, monthly mean discharges, and 7-day low flow is presented.

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USGS2012

Geologic map of the Alley Spring quadrangle, Shannon County, Missouri

The Alley Spring 7.5-minute quadrangle is located in south-central Missouri within the Salem Plateau region of the Ozark Plateaus physiographic province. About 1,990 feet (ft) of flat-lying to gently dipping Lower Paleozoic sedimentary rocks, mostly dolomite, chert, sandstone, and orthoquartzite, overlie Mesoproterozoic volcanic rocks. A small exposure of the volcanic rocks exists near the eastern edge of the quadrangle. Unconsolidated residuum, colluvium, terrace deposits, and alluvium overlie the sedimentary rocks. Karst features, such as sinkholes, caves, and springs, have formed in the carbonate rocks. Many streams are spring fed. Alley Spring, the largest karst spring in the quadrangle, has an average discharge of 81 million gallons per day. The topography is a dissected karst plain with elevation ranging from 630 ft where the Jacks Fork River exits the quadrangle to more than 1,140 ft at numerous places in the northern half of the quadrangle. The most prominent physiographic feature is the valley of the Jacks Fork River. Most of the land in the quadrangle is privately owned and used primarily for grazing cattle and horses and growing timber. A large minority of the land within the quadrangle is publicly owned, either by the Missouri State Forests or by the Ozark National Scenic Riverways of the National Park Service. Geologic mapping for this investigation was conducted in 2003 and 2004.

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USGS2012

Algal community characteristics and response to nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations in streams in the Ozark Plateaus, Southern Missouri, 1993-95 and 2006-07

Nutrient and algae data were collected in the 1990s and 2000s by the U.S. Geological Survey for the National Water- Quality Assessment program in the Ozark Highlands, southern Missouri. These data were collected at sites of differing drainage area, land use, nutrient concentrations, and physiography. All samples were collected at sites with a riffle/pool structure and cobble/gravel bed material. A total of 60 samples from 45 sites were available for analyses to determine relations between nutrient concentrations and algal community structure in this region. This information can be used by the Missouri Department of Natural Resources to develop the State's nutrient criteria plan. Water samples collected for this study had total nitrogen concentrations ranging from 0.07 to 4.41 milligram per liter (mg/L) with a median of 0.26 mg/L, and total phosphorus concentrations ranging from 0.003 to 0.78 mg/L with a median of 0.007 mg/L. These nutrient concentrations were transformed into nutrient categories consisting of varying percentiles of data. Algal community data were entered into the U.S. Geological Survey's Algae Data Analysis System for the computation of more than 250 metrics. These metrics were correlated with nutrient categories, and four metrics with the strongest relation with the nutrient data were selected. These metrics were Organic Nitrogen Tolerance, Oxygen Tolerance, Bahls Pollution Class, and the Saprobien index with the 25th and 80th percentile nutrient categories. These data indicate that near the 80th percentile (Total Nitrogen = 0.84 mg/L, Total Phosphorus = 0.035 mg/L) the algae communities significantly changed from nitrogen-fixing species dominance to those species more tolerant of eutrophic conditions.

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USGS2012

Groundwater monitoring plan for the Missouri River alluvial aquifer in the vicinity of the City of Independence, Missouri, well field

Source contributions to monitoring and supply wells, contributing recharge areas, groundwater travel times, and current (2012) understanding of alluvial water quality were used to develop a groundwater monitoring plan for the Missouri River alluvial aquifer in the vicinity of the City of Independence, Missouri well field. The plan was designed to evaluate long-term alluvial water quality and assess potential changes in, and threats to, well-field water quality. Source contributions were determined from an existing groundwater flow model in conjunction with particle-tracking analysis and verified with water-quality data collected from 1997 through 2010 from a network of 68 monitoring wells. Three conjunctive factors - well-field pumpage, Missouri River discharge, and aquifer recharge - largely determined groundwater flow and, therefore, source contributions. The predominant source of groundwater to most monitoring wells and supply wells is the Missouri River, and this was reflected, to some extent, in alluvial water quality. To provide an estimate of the maximum potential lead time available for remedial action, monitoring wells where groundwater travel times from the contributing recharge areas are less than 2 years and predominately singular sources (such as the Missouri River or the land surface) were selected for annual sampling. The sample interval of the remaining wells, which have varying travel times and intermediate mixtures of river and land-surface contributions, were staggered on a 2-, 3-, or 4-year rotation. This was done to provide data from similar contributing areas and account for inherent aquifer variability yet minimize sample redundancy.

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USGS2012

Hydrologic and sediment data collected from selected basins at the Fort Leonard Wood Military Reservation, Missouri--2010-11

Commercial and residential development within a basin often increases the amount of impervious area, which changes the natural hydrologic response to storm events by increasing runoff. Land development and disturbance combined with increased runoff from impervious areas potentially can increase sediment transport. At the Fort Leonard Wood Military Reservation in Missouri, there has been an increase in population and construction activities in the recent past, which has initiated an assessment of the hydrology in selected basins. From April 2010 to December 2011, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Army Maneuver Support Center at the Fort Leonard Wood Military Reservation, collected hydrologic and suspended-sediment concentration data in six basins at Fort Leonard Wood. Storm-sediment concentration, load, and yield varied from basin to basin and from storm to storm. In general, storm-sediment yield, in pounds per square mile per minute, was greatest from Ballard Hollow tributary (06928410) and Dry Creek (06930250), and monthly storm-sediment yield, in tons per square mile, estimates were largest in Ballard Hollow tributary (06928410), East Gate Hollow tributary (06930058), and Dry Creek (06930250). Sediment samples, collected at nine sites, primarily were collected using automatic samplers and augmented with equal-width-increment cross-sectional samples and manually collected samples when necessary. Storm-sediment load and yield were computed from discharge and suspended-sediment concentration data. Monthly storm-sediment yields also were estimated from the total storm discharge and the mean suspended-sediment concentration at each given site.

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USGS2012

Spatial and temporal trends of freshwater mussel assemblages in the Meramec River Basin, Missouri, USA

The Meramec River basin in east-central Missouri has one of the most diverse unionoid mussel faunas in the central United States with >40 species identified. Data were analyzed from historical surveys to test whether diversity and abundance of mussels in the Meramec River basin (Big, Bourbeuse, and Meramec rivers, representing >400 river miles) decreased between 1978 and 1997. We found that over 20y, species richness and diversity decreased significantly in the Bourbeuse and Meramec rivers but not in the Big River. Most species were found at fewer sites and in lower numbers in 1997 than in 1978. Federally endangered species and Missouri Species of Conservation Concern with the most severe temporal declines were Alasmidonta viridis, Arcidens confragosus, Elliptio crassidens, Epioblasma triquetra, Fusconaia ebena, Lampsilis abrupta, Lampsilis brittsi , and Simpsonaias ambigua . Averaged across all species, mussels were generally being extirpated from historical sampling sites more rapidly than colonization was occurring. An exception was one reach of the Meramec River between river miles 28.4 and 59.5, where mussel abundance and diversity were greater than in other reaches and where colonization of Margaritiferidae, Lampsilini, and Quadrulini exceeded extirpation. The exact reasons mussel diversity and abundance have remained robust in this 30- mile reach is uncertain, but the reach is associated with increased gradients, few long pools, and vertical rock faces, all of which are preferable for mussels. Complete loss of mussel communities at eight sites (16%) with relatively diverse historical assemblages was attributed to physical habitat changes including bank erosion, unstable substrate, and sedimentation. Mussel conservation efforts, including restoring and protecting riparian habitats, limiting the effects of in-stream sand and gravel mining, monitoring and controlling invasive species, and protecting water quality, may be warranted in the Meramec River basin.

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USGS2011

The distributions of one invasive and two native crayfishes in relation to coarse-scale natural and anthropogenic factors

1.&ensp;Native crayfishes are often extirpated from portions of their range because of interactions with invasive species, anthropogenic alterations to environmental conditions or a combination of these factors. Our goal was to identify coarse-scale natural and anthropogenic factors related to the current distributions of the invasive crayfish, Orconectes hylas , and two endemic crayfishes, Orconectes peruncus and Orconectes quadruncus in the St. Francis River drainage, Missouri, U.S.A. and to provide wider insights into the potential role of anthropogenic factors in facilitating species displacement. 2.&ensp;We used classification trees to model coarse-scale natural and anthropogenic environmental factors and their relation to the presence or absence of each species. Model results were then used to predict probability of presence for each species within each stream segment throughout the entire St. Francis River drainage. 3.&ensp;Factors related to geology and soils were the best predictors of species distributions. A dichotomy of these factors explained much of the discrete distributions of the two native species. Agricultural-related factors were identified as the most influential anthropogenic activity related to species distributions. All associations between the invasive species and anthropogenic factors were negative which suggested the invader was not likely to establish in heavily impacted areas. Overall, our models had high correct classification rates, and we were able to reliably predict the presence of the invader in the invaded drainage. 4.&ensp;Given the negative associations of the invader with anthropogenic alterations at a coarse spatial scale, we believe other mechanisms are likely to be responsible for the widespread displacement of the two native species. These findings can be used to assist in conservation activities such as creation of refugia for native species and may direct future research to identify the mechanism(s) of species displacement.

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USGS2011

3-D flow and scour near a submerged wing dike: ADCP measurements on the Missouri River

Detailed mapping of bathymetry and three-dimensional water velocities using a boat-mounted single-beam sonar and acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP) was carried out in the vicinity of two submerged wing dikes located in the Lower Missouri River near Columbia, Missouri. During high spring flows the wing dikes become submerged, creating a unique combination of vertical flow separation and overtopping (plunging) flow conditions, causing large-scale three-dimensional turbulent flow structures to form. On three different days and for a range of discharges, sampling transects at 5 and 20 m spacing were completed, covering the area adjacent to and upstream and downstream from two different wing dikes. The objectives of this research are to evaluate whether an ADCP can identify and measure large-scale flow features such as recirculating flow and vortex shedding that develop in the vicinity of a submerged wing dike; and whether or not moving-boat (single-transect) data are sufficient for resolving complex three-dimensional flow fields. Results indicate that spatial averaging from multiple nearby single transects may be more representative of an inherently complex (temporally and spatially variable) three-dimensional flow field than repeated single transects. Results also indicate a correspondence between the location of calculated vortex cores (resolved from the interpolated three-dimensional flow field) and the nearby scour holes, providing new insight into the connections between vertically oriented coherent structures and local scour, with the unique perspective of flow and morphology in a large river.

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USGS2011

Home range and space use patterns of flathead catfish during the summer-fall period in two Missouri streams

Flathead catfish Pylodictis olivaris were radio-tracked in the Grand River and Cuivre River, Missouri, from late July until they moved to overwintering habitats in late October. Fish moved within a definable area, and although occasional long-distance movements occurred, the fish typically returned to the previously occupied area. Seasonal home range was calculated with the use of kernel density estimation, which can be interpreted as a probabilistic utilization distribution that documents the internal structure of the estimate by delineating portions of the range that was used a specified percentage of the time. A traditional linear range also was reported. Most flathead catfish (89%) had one 50% kernel-estimated core area, whereas 11% of the fish split their time between two core areas. Core areas were typically in the middle of the 90% kernel-estimated home range (58%), although several had core areas in upstream (26%) and downstream (16%) portions of the home range. Home-range size did not differ based on river, sex, or size and was highly variable among individuals. The median 95% kernel estimate was 1,085 m (range, 70– 69,090 m) for all fish. The median 50% kernel-estimated core area was 135 m (10–2,260 m). The median linear range was 3,510 m (150–50,400 m). Fish pairs with core areas in the same and neighboring pools had static joint space use values of up to 49% (area of intersection index), indicating substantial overlap and use of the same area. However, all fish pairs had low dynamic joint space use values (<0.07; coefficient of association), indicating that fish pairs were temporally segregated, rarely occurring in the same location at the same time.

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