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At least 235 records · Page 13Linked to original sources
USGS2018

Construction and analysis of a giant gartersnake (Thamnophis gigas) population projection model

The giant gartersnake ( Thamnophis gigas ) is a state and federally threatened species precinctive to California. The range of the giant gartersnake has contracted in the last century because its wetland habitat has been drained for agriculture and development. As a result of this habitat alteration, giant gartersnakes now largely persist in and near rice agriculture in the Sacramento Valley, because the system of canals that conveys water for rice growing approximates historical wetland habitat. Many aspects of the demography of giant gartersnakes are unknown, including how individuals grow throughout their life, how size influences reproduction, and how survival varies over time and among populations. We studied giant gartersnakes throughout the Sacramento Valley of California from 1995 to 2016 using capture-mark-recapture to study the growth, reproduction, and survival of this threatened species. We then use these data to construct an Integral Projection Model, and analyze this demographic model to understand which vital rates contribute most to the growth rate of giant gartersnake populations. We find that giant gartersnakes exhibit indeterminate growth; growth slows as individuals’ age. Fecundity, probability of reproduction, and survival all increase with size, although survival may decline for the largest female giant gartersnakes. The population growth rate of giant gartersnakes is most influenced by the survival and growth of large adult females, and the size at which 1 year old recruits enter the population. Our results indicate that management actions benefitting these influential demographic parameters will have the greatest positive effect on giant gartersnake population growth rates, and therefore population persistence. This study informs the conservation and management of giant gartersnakes and their habitat, and illustrates the effectiveness of hierarchical Bayesian models for the study of rare and elusive species.

Open-File Report↗
USGS2026

End-user needs for remote sensing wetlands of the Prairie Pothole Region of North America

The Prairie Pothole Region (PPR) of North America comprises globally important grassland and wetland ecosystems critical for numerous populations of migratory birds. Due to the importance of this region for migratory birds, and particularly waterfowl, and the threats of habitat loss due to intensifying agriculture, there is a mature and diverse system of conservation organizations, agencies, and partnerships that spends hundreds of millions of dollars annually on habitat conservation to support migratory bird populations. Remote sensing can be a powerful tool for observing and evaluating global change at large scales as well as expanding inferences from field studies to the broader landscape with statistical models. However, development and utilization of these tools has lagged behind their demand for several reasons, including concerns over spatial and temporal resolution and accuracy of products; perception of a misalignment with decision-maker needs; technological barriers such as skill sets of conservation professionals, computing resources, data access, and usability. In this report, we summarize the needs of conservation professionals and scientists who use or want to use remote sensing data products to inform science about wetland change and conservation of wetlands in the PPR. We assembled this information through several methods leading up to, during, and following a January 2026 PPR Wetland Remote Sensing Workshop. The workshop included United States and Canadian scientists, conservation professionals, and policy experts. Our goal was to bring together end-users and remote sensing product developers jointly to explore reducing the lag between product development and utilization of products to inform science and conservation. Specifically, we aimed to identify gaps in wetland remote sensing that limit effective monitoring, management, and conservation in the PPR, and to develop a framework that outlines pathways to address these gaps by fostering collaboration, improving communication networks, encouraging discussion, and building on existing and ongoing efforts. This report summarizes our participants’ descriptions of end-user needs and the outcomes of the workshop.

Prairie Pothole region↗
USGS1989

Flow of ground water through fractured carbonate rocks in the Prairie du Chien-Jordan Aquifer, southeastern Minnesota

Contamination of groundwater from point and nonpoint sources (such as landfills, feedlots, agricultural chemicals applied to fields, and septic systems) is a recognized problem in the karst area of southeastern Minnesota. The US Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and the Legislative Commission on Minnesota Resources, Began a study in October 1987 to improve the understanding of local groundwater flow through karst terrain in southeastern Minnesota. The objectives of the study are to: (1) describe the orientations of systematic rock fractures and solution channels of the Prairie du Chien Group of Ordovician-age carbonate rocks in southeastern Minnesota, and, if possible, to define the principal and minor axes of these orientations; and (2) evaluate the effect of fractures and solution channels in the Prairie du Chien Group on the local flow of groundwater. Groundwater in the Upper Carbonate aquifer regionally flows toward the periphery of the aquifer and locally flows into streams and bedrock valleys. The hydraulic gradient in this aquifer generally is greatest near areas of groundwater seepage to streams. Regional groundwater flow in the Prairie du Chien-Jordan aquifer generally is to the south and east in much of Fillmore and Houston Counties and in the southern parts of Olmsted and Winona Counties. Groundwater seepage to selected streams was evaluated by current-meter measurements of downstream gains or losses of streamflow and by an experimental approach based on radon activity in streams. The activity of radon in groundwater ranges from two to four orders of magnitude greater than the activity in surface water; therefore, groundwater seepage to streams generally increases the in-stream radon activity.

Minnesota↗
USGS1996

Occurrence of selected contaminants in water, fish tissue, and streambed sediments in central Nebraska, 1992-95

Surface and ground water in Nebraska may contain contaminants resulting from human activities. For purposes of this publication, a contaminant is any element or compound whose presence may affect the water's suitability for certain uses. For example, herbicide concentrations may exceeed the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (USEPA) Health Advisory Levels (HAL) for drinking water or trace-element concentrations may exceed guidelines for the protection of aquatic life. In general, the contaminats discussed in this report enter the aquatic system through nonpoint-source runoff from agricultural lands that dominate the Nebraska landscape. However,because this assessment was conducted as part of a larger, national program, a screening for contaminants with non-agricultural origins was included. The measurement of water quality involves a variety of steps, each contributing unique information while also aggregating to an overall assessment. One aspect of water-quality assesment is to describe the occurrence and distribution of contaminants. Some contaminants may be hundreds or thousands of times more concentrated in the tissues of aquatic organisms or in fine sediments than they are in the water. As a result, fish tissue and streambed sediments are well suited for the detection of certain contaminants. For example, pesticides used in the United States prior to the early 1970's, such as DDT, may have degraded into more stable but still toxic compounds that are highly concentrated in fish tissues. Conversely, other contaminants are not concentrated in sediments or tissues but are readily detected in water samples. Organonitrogen herbicides (such as atrazine), the most commonly used herbicides in Nebraska, are examples of water-soluble contaminants. Several sampling strategies were used to address specific questions. Some sites were sampled repeatedly through time and during all hydrologic conditions, whereas others were sampled only once to determine presence of contaminants. Because a strong relation between concentration and streamflow often exists for contaminants originating from nonpoint sources, streams typically were sampled near gaging stations that monitor streamflow.

Nebraska↗
USGS2008

Nutrient Concentrations and Their Relations to the Biotic Integrity of Nonwadeable Rivers in Wisconsin

Excessive nutrient [phosphorus (P) and nitrogen (N)] input from point and nonpoint sources is frequently associated with degraded water quality in streams and rivers. Point-source discharges of nutrients are fairly constant and are controlled by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (USEPA) National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System. To reduce inputs from nonpoint sources, agricultural performance standards and regulations for croplands and livestock operations are being proposed by various States. In addition, the USEPA is establishing regionally based nutrient criteria that can be refined by each State to determine whether actions are needed to improve water quality. More confidence in the environmental benefits of the proposed performance standards and nutrient criteria would be possible with improved understanding of the biotic responses to a range of nutrient concentrations in different environmental settings. To achieve this general goal, the U.S. Geological Survey and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources collected data from 282 streams and rivers throughout Wisconsin during 2001 through 2003 to: (1) describe how nutrient concentrations and biotic-community structure differ throughout the State, (2) determine which environmental characteristics are most strongly related to the distribution of nutrient concentrations and biotic-community structure, (3) determine reference conditions for water quality and biotic indices for streams and rivers in the State, (4) determine how the biotic communities in streams and rivers in different areas of the State respond to differences in nutrient concentrations, (5) determine the best regionalization scheme to describe the patterns in reference conditions and the corresponding responses in water quality and the biotic communities (primarily for smaller streams), and (6) develop algorithms to estimate nutrient concentrations in streams and rivers from a combination of biotic indices. The ultimate goal of this study is to provide the information needed to guide the development of regionally based nutrient criteria for Wisconsin streams and rivers. In this report, data collected, primarily in 2003, from 42 nonwadeable rivers are used to describe nutrient concentrations and their relations to the biotic integrity of rivers in Wisconsin. In a separate report by Robertson and others (2006a), the data collected from 240 wadeable streams are used to describe these relations in streams in Wisconsin. Reference water-quality conditions for nonwadeable rivers were found to be similar throughout Wisconsin (approximately 0.035 milligrams per liter (mg/L) for total P (TP), 0.500 mg/L for total N (TN), 4 micrograms per liter for suspended chlorophyll a (SCHL), and greater than 110 centimeters for Secchi-tube depth (SD)). For each category of the biotic community (SCHL, macroinvertebrates, and fish), a few indices were more strongly related to differences in nutrient concentrations than were others. For the indices most strongly related to nutrient concentrations, reference conditions were obtained with a regression approach, from values corresponding to the worst 75th-percentile value from a subset of minimally impacted streams (streams having reference nutrient concentrations), and from the best 25th-percentile value of all the data. Concentrations of TP and TN in nonwadeable rivers increased as the percentage of agricultural land in the basin increased; these increases resulted in increased SCHL concentrations and decreased SDs. The responses in SDs and SCHL concentrations to changes in nutrient concentrations were similar throughout most of the State except in rivers in the southeastern part, where SCHL concentrations were lower than would be expected given their nutrient concentrations. Rivers in the southeastern part of the State had high concentrations of total suspended sediment compared to the SCHL concentrations. Many biotic indices responded to increases in nu

Professional Paper↗
USGS2011

Baseline and projected future carbon storage and greenhouse-gas fluxes in the Great Plains region of the United States

This assessment was conducted to fulfill the requirements of section 712 of the Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) of 2007 and to improve understanding of carbon and greenhouse gas (GHG) fluxes in the Great Plains region in the central part of the United States. The assessment examined carbon storage, carbon fluxes, and other GHG fluxes (methane and nitrous oxide) in all major terrestrial ecosystems (forests, grasslands/shrublands, agricultural lands, and wetlands) and freshwater aquatic systems (rivers, streams, lakes, and impoundments) in two time periods: baseline (generally in the first half of the 2010s) and future (projections from baseline to 2050). The assessment was based on measured and observed data collected by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and many other agencies and organizations and used remote sensing, statistical methods, and simulation models.

Great Plains↗
USGS2019

Hydrogeologic framework of the Treasure Valley and surrounding area, Idaho and Oregon

Most of the population of the Treasure Valley and the surrounding area of southwestern Idaho and easternmost Oregon depends on groundwater for domestic supply, either from domestic or municipal-supply wells. As of 2017, 41 percent of Idaho’s population was concentrated in Idaho’s portion of the Treasure Valley, and current and projected rapid population growth in the area has caused concern about the long-term sustainability of the groundwater resource. In 2016, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Idaho Water Resource Board and the Idaho Department of Water Resources, began a project to construct a numerical groundwater-flow model of the westernmost western Snake River Plain (WSRP) aquifer system. As part of this project, a three-dimensional hydrogeologic framework model (3D HFM) of the aquifer system was generated, primarily from lithologic data compiled from 291 well-driller reports. Four major hydrogeologic units are shown in the 3D HFM: Coarse-grained fluvial and alluvial deposits, Pliocene-Pleistocene and Miocene basalts, fine-grained lacustrine deposits, and granitic and rhyolitic bedrock. Generally, the 3D HFM is in agreement with the geologic history of the WSRP and hydrogeologic frameworks developed by previous authors. The resolution (voxel size) of the 3D HFM is sufficient for the construction of a regional groundwater-flow model. The major components of inflow (or recharge) to the WSRP aquifer system are seepage from irrigation canals, direct infiltration from precipitation and excess irrigation water, seepage from the Boise and Payette Rivers and Lake Lowell, and subsurface inflow from adjoining uplands. The major components of outflow (or discharge) from the aquifer system are discharge to surface water (rivers, agricultural drains, and streams), groundwater pumping, and direct evapotranspiration from groundwater.

Idaho, Oregon↗
USGS2018

Water

Ensuring a reliable supply of clean freshwater to individuals, communities, and ecosystems , together with effective management of floods and droughts, is the foundation of human and ecological health. The water sector is also central to the economy and contributes significantly to the resilience of many other sectors, including agriculture, energy, urban environments, and industry. Water systems face considerable risk , even without anticipated future climate changes. Limited surface water storage, as well as a limited ability to make use of long-term drought forecasts and to trade water across uses and basins, has led to a significant depletion of aquifers in many regions in the United States. Across the Nation, much of the critical water and wastewater infrastructure is nearing the end of its useful life. To date, no comprehensive assessment exists of the climate-related vulnerability of U.S. water infrastructure (including dams, levees, aqueducts, sewers, and water and wastewater distribution and treatment systems), the potential resulting damages, or the cost of reconstruction and recovery. Paleoclimate information (reconstructions of past climate derived from ice cores or tree rings) shows that over the last 500 years, North America has experienced pronounced wet/dry regime shifts that sometimes persisted for decades. Because such protracted exposures to extreme floods or droughts in different parts of the country are extraordinary compared to events experienced in the 20th century, they are not yet incorporated in water management principles and practice. Anticipated future climate change will exacerbate this risk in many regions. A central challenge to water planning and management is learning to plan for plausible future climate conditions that are wider in range than those experienced in the 20th century. Doing so requires approaches that evaluate plans over many possible futures instead of just one, incorporate real-time monitoring and forecast products to better manage extremes when they occur, and update policies and engineering principles with the best available geoscience-based understanding of planetary change. While this represents a break from historical practice, recent examples of adaptation responses undertaken by large water management agencies, including major metropolitan water utilities and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, are promising.

Report↗
USGS2017

Water-quality sampling plan for evaluating the distribution of bigheaded carps in the Illinois Waterway

The two nonnative invasive bigheaded carp species (bighead carp Hypophthalmichthys nobilis and silver carp H. molitrix ) that were accidentally released in the 1970s have spread widely into the rivers and waterways of the Mississippi River Basin. First detected in the lower reaches of the Illinois Waterway (IWW, the combined Illinois River-Des Plaines River-Chicago Area Waterway System) in the 1990s, bighead and silver carps moved quickly upstream, approaching the Chicago Area Waterway System. The potential of substantial negative ecological and economic impact to the Great Lakes from the presence of these species is a concern. However, since 2006, the population front of bigheaded carps has remained in the vicinity of Joliet, Illinois, near river mile 278. This reach of the IWW is characterized by stark changes in habitat, water quality, and food resources as the waterway transitions from a primarily agricultural landscape to a metropolitan and industrial canal system. This report describes a 2015 plan for sampling the IWW to establish water-quality conditions that might be contributing to the apparent stalling of the population front of bigheaded carps in this reach. A detailed description of the study plan, Lagrangian-style sampling approach, selected analytes, sampling methods and protocols are provided. Hydrographs from streamflow-gaging stations show IWW conditions during the 2015 sampling runs.

Illinois↗
USGS1987

Effects of surface coal mining and reclamation on the geohydrology of six small watersheds in west-central Indiana

The watersheds studied include mined and reclaimed; mined and unreclaimed; and unmined, agricultural land uses, and are each < 3 sq mi in area. Surface water, groundwater, and meteorologic data for the 1981 and 1982 water years were used to describe and compare hydrologic systems of the six watersheds and to identify hydrologic effects of mining and reclamation. Peak discharges were greater at the agricultural watersheds than at the unreclaimed watersheds, primarily because of large final-cut lakes in the unreclaimed watersheds. Annual runoff was greatest at the unreclaimed watersheds, intermediate at the agricultural watersheds, and least at the reclaimed watersheds. Hydrologic effects of mining were identified by comparing the hydrologic systems at mined and unreclaimed watersheds with those at unmined, agricultural watersheds. Comparisons of the hydrologic systems of these watersheds indicate that surface coal mining without reclamation has the potential to increase annual runoff, base flow, and groundwater recharge to the bedrock; reduce peak flow rates and variation in flow; lower the water table in upland areas; change the relation between surface water and groundwater divides; and create numerous, local flow systems in the shallow groundwater. Hydrologic effects of reclamation were identified by comparing the hydrologic systems at mined and reclaimed watersheds with those at mined and unreclaimed watersheds. Reclamation has the potential to decrease annual runoff, base flow, and recharge to the bedrock; increase peak flow rates, variation in flow, and response to thunderstorms; reestablish the premining relation between surface and groundwater divides; and create fewer local flow systems in the shallow groundwater.

Indiana↗
USGS1995

Applications of isotopes to tracing sources of solutes and water in shallow systems

New awareness of the potential danger to water supplies posed by the use of agricultural chemicals has focused attention on the nature of groundwater recharge and the mobility of various solutes, especially nitrate and pesticides, in shallow systems. A better understanding of hydrologic flowpaths and solute sources is required to determine the potential impact of sources of contamination on water supplies, to develop management practices for preserving water quality, and to develop remediation plans for sites that are already contaminated. In many cases, environmental isotopes can be employed as 'surgical tools' for answering very specific questions about water and solute sources. Isotopic data can often provide more accurate information about the system than hydrologic measurements or complicated hydrologic models. This note focuses on practical and cost-effective examples of how naturally-occurring isotopes can be used to track water and solutes as they move through shallow systems.

Conference Paper↗
USGS2013

Modeling the long-term fate of agricultural nitrate in groundwater in the San Joaquin Valley, California

Nitrate contamination of groundwater systems used for human water supplies is a major environmental problem in many parts of the world. Fertilizers containing a variety of reduced nitrogen compounds are commonly added to soils to increase agricultural yields. But the amount of nitrogen added during fertilization typically exceeds the amount of nitrogen taken up by crops. Oxidation of reduced nitrogen compounds present in residual fertilizers can produce substantial amounts of nitrate which can be transported to the underlying water table. Because nitrate concentrations exceeding 10 mg/L in drinking water can have a variety of deleterious effects for humans, agriculturally derived nitrate contamination of groundwater can be a serious public health issue. The Central Valley aquifer of California accounts for 13 percent of all the groundwater withdrawals in the United States. The Central Valley, which includes the San Joaquin Valley, is one of the most productive agricultural areas in the world and much of this groundwater is used for crop irrigation. However, rapid urbanization has led to increasing groundwater withdrawals for municipal public water supplies. That, in turn, has led to concern about how contaminants associated with agricultural practices will affect the chemical quality of groundwater in the San Joaquin Valley. Crop fertilization with various forms of nitrogen-containing compounds can greatly increase agricultural yields. However, leaching of nitrate from soils due to irrigation has led to substantial nitrate contamination of shallow groundwater. That shallow nitrate-contaminated groundwater has been moving deeper into the Central Valley aquifer since the 1960s. Denitrification can be an important process limiting the mobility of nitrate in groundwater systems. However, substantial denitrification requires adequate sources of electron donors in order to drive the process. In many cases, dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and particulate organic carbon (POC) are the primary electron donors driving active denitrification in groundwater. The purpose of this chapter is to use a numerical mass balance modeling approach to quantitatively compare sources of electron donors (DOC, POC) and electron acceptors (dissolved oxygen, nitrate, and ferric iron) in order to assess the potential for denitrification to attenuate nitrate migration in the Central Valley aquifer.

California↗
USGS2001

Use of the USDA Forest Service Geographic Information System for determining cover type use by white-tailed deer

Cover type use by white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus dacotensis) in the central Black Hills of South Dakota was compared to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Service digital data using a Geographic Information System (GIS). Cover types were determined from observations of radiocollared deer and random locations and from corresponding point locations in the Forest Service digital data. Cover type information was collected at 3,145 white-tailed deer locations and 1,044 random locations. On winter range, cover types determined from observations of radiocollared deer included pine (Pinus ponderosa), pine-deciduous, aspen (Populus tremuloides), aspen-coniferous, burned pine, and meadows; cover types determined from Forest Service data included pine, aspen, grasslands, and private land. On summer range, cover types determined from observations of radiocollared deer included pine, pine-deciduous, aspen, aspen-coniferous, white spruce (Picea glauca), white spruce-deciduous, and meadows; cover types determined from Forest Service digital map data included pine, aspen, grasslands, and private land. Cover types used by white-tailed deer compared to the Forest Service data resulted in 42% agreement on summer range and 62% agreement on winter range. On winter and summer range, Forest Service data tended to overestimate ponderosa pine and aspen habitats used by white-tailed deer, while failing to account for mixed (secondary) cover types. To improve the accuracy of habitat management decisions relative to white-tailed deer, the Forest Service GIS would be strengthened if mixed (secondary) cover type classifications were included in the database.

South Dakota, Wyoming↗
USGS1993

Application of a geographic information system in analyzing the occurrence of atrazine in groundwater of the mid-continental United States

The US Geological Survey, US Department of Agriculture, and US Environmental Protection Agency are conducting research and regional assessments in support of policy alternatives intended to protect water resources from agricultural chemical contamination. The mid-continent was selected because of the intense row crop agriculture and associated herbicide application in this region. An application of a geographic information system is demonstrated for analyzing and comparing the distribution of estimated atrazine use to the detection rate of atrazine in groundwater. Understanding the relations between atrazine use and detection in groundwater is important in policy deliberations to protect water resources. Relational analyses between measures of chemical use and detection rate by natural resource units may provide insight into critical factors controlling the processes that result in groundwater contamination from agricultural chemicals.

Conference Paper↗
USGS2025

From subsidies to stressors: Shifting ecological baselines alter biological responses to nutrients in highly modified agricultural streams

Subsidy–stress gradients offer a useful framework for understanding ecological responses to perturbation and may help inform ecological metrics in highly modified systems. Historic, region-wide shifts from bottomland hardwood forest to row crop agriculture can cause positively skewed impact gradients in alluvial plain ecoregions, resulting in tolerant organisms that typically exhibit a subsidy response (increased abundance in response to environmental stressors) shifting to a stress response (declining abundance at higher concentrations). As a result, observed biological tolerance in modified ecosystems may differ from less modified regions, creating significant challenges for detecting biological responses to restoration efforts. Using the agriculturally dominated Mississippi Alluvial Plain (MAP) ecoregion in Mississippi, USA, as a case study, we tested the hypothesis that macroinvertebrate taxa that typically display a subsidy response to nutrient enrichment in less modified ecoregions (i.e., nutrient-tolerance) shift to a stress response to increasing nutrients in highly modified watersheds with elevated baseline nutrient conditions (i.e., nutrient intolerance). The abundance and diversity of MAP-specific intolerant taxa identified with threshold indicator taxa analysis were either unresponsive or exhibited a subsidy response to increasing nutrients in less modified ecoregions in Mississippi with less land alteration and lower nutrient concentrations, but declined at higher concentrations, providing evidence for a stress response to elevated nutrients in the MAP. Additionally, MAP-specific tolerant and intolerant taxa richness responded to increased nutrients predictably and consistently across space and time within the MAP. However, in MAP streams, elevated specific conductance was predicted to dampen the response of tolerant and intolerant taxa richness to increasing nutrient concentrations, highlighting the importance of considering multistressor interactions when interpreting biological data. Lastly, we demonstrate the efficacy of this approach with sediment bacterial communities characterized with amplicon sequencing, which lack sufficient life history characteristics necessary for the development of multimetric indices. Both macroinvertebrate and bacterial communities responded similarly to increasing nutrient concentrations, suggesting DNA-based approaches may provide an efficient biological assessment tool for monitoring water quality improvements in highly modified watersheds.

Mississippi↗
USGS2018

Threats to cranes related to agriculture

The greatest threats to cranes worldwide are related to agricultural activities. They include direct losses of wetlands or grasslands; altered wetland hydrology due to water control systems such as dams or irrigation ditches; fire; direct and indirect impacts from agricultural chemicals; human disturbances; disease risks where cranes congregate in high densities on crops or in association with domestic birds; and collisions with power lines in cropland areas. Loss and degradation of wetland and grassland habitats by conversion to agriculture pose the greatest threats to all crane species. However, some agricultural uses of these ecosystems, such as paddy wetlands and grazing, can be beneficial to cranes and allow sustainable use by both cranes and farmers. Effects of agricultural burning on crane habitats can vary widely depending on fire severity, timing relative to plant growth and its response to burning, environmental conditions during and after fire, impact on predators and alternative prey, and relation of these factors to life-history stage for cranes. Cranes are increasingly exposed to agricultural chemicals that may affect them directly, through consumption of contaminated foods, or indirectly, through loss of important foods, or altered habitats. Cranes in agricultural areas can be intentionally or unintentionally disturbed by normal farming activities; where they directly threaten crops, farmers may destroy nests or kill birds. Birds may become habituated to some disturbances, but repeated, intensive, or targeted disturbances can result in reproductive failure, abandonment of breeding territories, or avoidance of roost or foraging areas. Dense congregations of cranes on crops increase risks of rapid spread of infectious diseases. Widespread concerns about avian collisions with power lines, a leading source of mortality or injury for some crane populations, have led to various approaches to reduce or prevent avian mortalities in problem areas. Alternative actions or programs that could help prevent or mitigate these threats are outlined.

Book chapter↗
USGS2018

Interactions and impacts of domesticated animals on cranes in agriculture

Affiliations of most cranes to humans and agriculture means they often interact with a variety of domestic animals. Those interactions can be beneficial or neutral when domestic animal densities and their impact on wetland or grassland systems are low to moderate, as found in more traditional agricultural practices. The most common interaction is with grazers, primarily domestic ungulates such as cattle, horses, and sheep. Cranes can benefit from the rapid recycling of grassland nutrients, maintenance of open areas, and invertebrate foods that grazers facilitate. Examples of the close interactions among cranes and grazers are found in South Africa, Central Eurasia, China, India, and North America. Overgrazing and direct disturbances from domestic livestock are usually detrimental to cranes and interact with other factors such as altered wetland hydrology, fire, and changing climate. Cranes are most likely to interact with domestic birds in wetlands (ducks and geese) or farm areas (poultry) where they are attracted to areas where the domestic birds are being fed and maintained in large open areas. Risks of disease transmission between domestic birds and cranes are the greatest concern. Dogs associated with humans and agricultural activities are generally a threat where cranes are raising their chicks nearby.

Book chapter↗
USGS2019

Understanding the central Great Plains as a coupled climatic-hydrological-human system: Lessons learned in operationalizing interdisciplinary collaboration

This chapter discusses an interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary project to understand the interactions of agriculture, climate, and water resources in the Central Great Plains as a coupled natural-human system. We focus on the Smoky Hills Watershed in Kansas, where we gathered socioeconomic, hydrological, and climatic data, along with ecological data on fish species. The project involved substantial stakeholder engagement, which was complicated by post-truth attitudes about climate science and environmental regulation by some groups. We discuss the challenges of team management, stakeholder engagement, and data integration for modeling, notably the incorporation of stakeholder support for environmental policy in the context of extreme climatic events. We conclude by offering a framework for good collaborative practice to manage the complications of crossing boundaries in transdisciplinary research and outreach.

Kansas↗