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At least 523 records · Page 29Linked to original sources

Three-dimensional crustal structure of Long Valley caldera, California, and evidence for the migration of CO2 under Mammoth Mountain

A temporary network of 69 three-component seismic stations captured a major seismic sequence in Long Valley caldera in 1997. We performed a tomographic inversion for crustal structure beneath a 28 km ?? 16 km area encompassing part of the resurgent dome, the south moat, and Mammoth Mountain. Resolution of crustal structure beneath the center of the study volume was good down to ???3 km below sea level (???5 km below the surface). Relatively high wave speeds are associated with the Bishop Tuff and lower wave speeds characterize debris in the surrounding moat. A low-Vp/Vs anomaly extending from near the surface to ???1 km below sea level beneath Mammoth Mountain may represent a CO2 reservoir that is supplying CO2-rich springs, venting at the surface, and killing trees. We investigated temporal variations in structure beneath Mammoth Mountain by differencing our results with tomographic images obtained using data from 1989/1990. Significant changes in both Vp and Vs were consistent with the migration of CO2 into the upper 2 km or so beneath Mammoth Mountain and its depletion in peripheral volumes that correlate with surface venting areas. Repeat tomography is capable of detecting the migration of gas beneath active silicic volcanoes and may thus provide a useful volcano monitoring tool.

Journal of Geophysical Research B: Solid Earth↗

Variation in fire regimes of the rocky mountains: Implications for avian communities and fire management

Information about avian responses to fire in the U.S. Rocky Mountains is based solely on studies of crown fires. However, fire management in this region is based primarily on studies of low-elevation ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) forests maintained largely by frequent understory fires. In contrast to both of these trends, most Rocky Mountain forests are subject to mixed severity fire regimes. As a result, our knowledge of bird responses to fire in the region is incomplete and skewed toward ponderosa pine forests. Research in recent large wildfires across the Rocky Mountains indicates that large burns support diverse avifauna. In the absence of controlled studies of bird responses to fire, we compared reproductive success for six cavity-nesting species using results from studies in burned and unburned habitats. Birds in ponderosa pine forests burned by stand-replacement fire tended to have higher nest success than individuals of the same species in unburned habitats, but unburned areas are needed to serve species dependent upon live woody vegetation, especially foliage gleaners. Over the last century, fire suppression, livestock grazing, and logging altered the structure and composition of many low-elevation forests, leading to larger and more severe burns. In higher elevation forests, changes have been less marked. Traditional low-severity prescribed fire is not likely to replicate historical conditions in these mixed or high-severity fire regimes, which include many mixed coniferous forests and all lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta) and spruce-fir (Picea-Abies) forests. We suggest four research priorities: (1) the effects of fire severity and patch size on species' responses to fire, (2) the possibility that postfire forests are ephemeral sources for some bird species, (3) the effect of salvage logging prescriptions on bird communities, and (4) experiments that illustrate bird responses to prescribed fire and other forest restoration methods. This research is urgent if we are to develop fire management strategies that reduce fire risk and maintain habitat for avifauna and other wildlife of the Rocky Mountains.

Conference Paper↗

Morphological variation and zoogeography of racers ( Coluber constrictor ) in the central Rocky Mountains

We examined 63 specimens of Coluber constrictor from Colorado and Utah using eight external morphological characters that have been used to distinguish C. c. mormon from C. c. flaviventris . We grouped the snakes into three Operational Taxonomic Units (OTU's) in a transect across the Rocky Mountains: the eastern Front Range foothills in Colorado; the inter-mountain region (western slope of Colorado and northeastern Utah); and the western foothills of the Wasatch Mountains in Utah. Statistically significant variation among the OTU's was discovered for ration of tail length to total length, number of central and subcaudal scales, and number of dentary teeth. However, variation is clinal with nearly complete overlap from one end f the transect to the other for each character, suggesting a wide zone of intergradiation in the inter-mountain region. We do not believe reported differences in reproductive parameters between Great Plains and Great Basin racers are sufficient grounds for recognition of species, because clutch size is both geographically variable and dependent on the environment. The distribution of C. constrictor is similar to that of other reptiles with transmontane distributions in the western United States, and we suggest two possible routes of dispersal across the Continental Divide in southwestern Wyoming. Thus, elevation of C. c. mormon to species status is not supported by morphological, reproductive, or zoogeographic evidence.

Colorado;Utah↗

Growth and survival of Mountain Plovers

Growth and survival rates of Mountain Plovers ( Charadrius montanus ) were monitored using radiotelemetry from hatching until birds left the breeding grounds on the Pawnee National Grassland, Weld County, Colorado. Chick weights increased logarithmically ( r ) = 0.961) and tarsus length linearly ( r = 0.948) with age. Using the average fledgling weight of 69.8 g and an age/weight regression we predicted that the average age at fledging was 36 d. Fourteen Mountain Plover nests each had three effs; an average of 2.6 eggs hatched in seven nests, whereas remaining nests were lost to predation, storms, or trampling by a cow. Twenty-four adult Mountain Plovers were monitored for 275 telemetry days with no mortalities. Twenty flightless chicks had a calculated daily survival rate of 0.979 for 233 telemetry-days. Mortalities of flightless chicks were due to predation or unknown causes. The daily survival rate predicted that 1.2 of the 2.6 chicks hatched per nest lived to fly. Eight fledged chicks were monitored for 74 telemetry-days, with a daily survival rate of 0.974. Mortalities of fledglings were all attributed to predation. The combined survival rates predicted that 0.7 or the 2.6 hatched chicks lived to leave the nesting area. Survival rates of flightless chicks were similar to those reported 20 yr ago, implying that recent declines in Mountain Plover numbers on the continent are not attributable to either longer-term declines in nesting productivity or phenomena occurring at non-breeding locales.

Journal of Field Ornithology↗

Sustaining Rocky Mountain landscapes: Science, policy and management for the Crown of the Continent ecosystem

Prato and Fagre offer the first systematic, multi-disciplinary assessment of the challenges involved in managing the Crown of the Continent Ecosystem ( CCE), an area of the Rocky Mountains that includes northwestern Montana, southwestern Alberta, and southeastern British Columbia. The spectacular landscapes, extensive recreational options, and broad employment opportunities of the CCE have made it one of the fastest growing regions in the United States and Canada, and have lead to a shift in its economic base from extractive resource industries to service-oriented recreation and tourism industries. In the process, however, the amenities and attributes that draw people to this “New West” are under threat. Pastoral scenes are disappearing as agricultural lands and other open spaces are converted to residential uses, biodiversity is endangered by the fragmentation of fish and wildlife habitats, and many areas are experiencing a decline in air and water quality. Sustaining Rocky Mountain Landscapes provides a scientific basis for communities to develop policies for managing the growth and economic transformation of the CCE without sacrificing the quality of life and environment for which the land is renowned. This forthcoming edited volume focuses on five aspects of sustaining mountain landscapes in the CCE and similar regions in the Rocky Mountains. The five aspects are: 1) how social, economic, demo graphic and environmental forces are transforming ecosystem structure and function, 2) trends in use and conditions for human and environmental resources, 3) activating science, policy and education to enhance sustainable landscape management, 4) challenges to sustainable management of public and private lands, and 5) future prospects for achieving sustainable landscapes.

Idaho, Montana↗

Preliminary isostatic residual gravity map of the Newfoundland Mountains 30' by 60' quadrangle and east part of the Wells 30' by 60' quadrangle, Box Elder County, Utah

A new isostatic residual gravity map of the Newfoundland Mountains and east of the Wells 30×60 quadrangles of Utah is based on compilation of preexisting data and new data collected by the Utah and U.S. Geological Surveys. Pronounced gravity lows occur over Grouse Creek Valley and locally beneath the Great Salt Lake Desert, indicating significant thickness of low-density Tertiary sedimentary rocks and deposits. Gravity highs coincide with exposures of dense pre-Cenozoic rocks in the Newfoundland, Silver Island, and Little Pigeon Mountains. Gravity values measured on pre-Tertiary basement to the north in the Bovine and Hogup Mountains are as much as 10mGal lower. Steep, linear gravity gradients may define basin-bounding faults concealed along the margins of the Newfoundland, Silver Island, and Little Pigeon Mountains, Lemay Island and the Pilot Range.

Utah↗

Regional and local correlations of feldspar geochemistry of the Peach Spring Tuff, Alvord Mountain, California

The chemical composition of feldspar grains in an ignimbrite from the Spanish Canyon Formation in the Alvord Mountain area, California, have been used to confirm similarities in three measured sections locally, and they are similar to exposures of the Peach Spring Tuff (PST) regionally. Feldspar grains were identified on the basis of texture (zoning, as mantled feldspars, or in crystal clusters), whether the grains were attached to glass or were in pumice clasts, or were simply crystal fragments with no textural context. Chemistry was determined by electron microprobe analysis, and each analysis is calculated in terms of the percent endmember and plotted on orthoclase (Or) versus anorthite (An) plots. In general, the PST has sanidine and plagioclase compositions that are consistent with having formed in high-silica rhyolite and trachyte within a zoned magma chamber. Feldspars from the PST in Spanish Canyon area cluster along the rhyolitic trend with no grains along the trachytic trend. Similar clustering of feldspars along the rhyolitic trend with no grains along the trachytic trend also occur in the PST from Granite Spring and Providence Mountains to the east of the Alvord Mountain area, and the ranges in compositions are also similar in these locations. In contrast, the PST in the Kane Wash area of the Newberry Mountains has feldspars only from the rhyolitic trend in the basal deposits, but some grains from the trachytic trend are in the upper part of the deposit, and the range in compositions are greater than in the Spanish Canyon area. The variations in vertical compositional zoning and compositional range in these different deposits suggests there were probably different flow paths (or timing of the delivery) during the eruption and runout of the pyroclastic flow(s) generated from the climactic eruption of the PST magma chamber.

Arizon, California, Nevada↗

Connecting the Soda–Avawatz and Bristol–Granite Mountains faults with gravity andaeromagnetic data, Mojave Desert, California

The Soda–Avawatz and Bristol–Granite Mountains faults are considered by some to form the northeastern margin of the eastern California shear zone yet their connectivity and extents are obscured by surficial deposits and the estimates of total right-lateral offset from geologic data range from 0 to as much as 24 km. We use gravity and recently released detailed aeromagnetic data to map strands of these faults, examine structure within the fault zones and provide estimates of right-lateral offset. Gradients in gravity and aeromagnetic data define physical property contrasts that coincide with mapped strands of the faults and allow for extension of these faults, where concealed, to indicate continuity between the Soda–Avawatz and Bristol–Granite Mountains faults. Gravity data reveal local tectonic basins west of Silver Lake, beneath Soda Lake, and southwest of the Marble Mountains that are approximately 9–15 km long, 3–5 km wide, and 1–1.5 km deep. The basins are located where the local fault traces strike more northerly than the overall fault zone strike, suggesting that these basins are transtensional (pull-apart). If the lengths of these basins can be used as a proxy for rightlateral offset, the Soda–Avawatz and Bristol–Granite Mountains faults may have up to 9–15 km of post-early Miocene offset, consistent with our offset estimates from correlative magnetic anomalies across the fault zone.

California↗

Shrimp U-Pb zircon and opal geochronology, isotope geochemistry, and genesis of the super large Be deposit at Spor Mountain, Utah, USA

Ongoing studies of the Spor Mountain beryllium (Be) deposit are focused on (1) characterizing the role of igneous rocks in the genesis of the ore zones, (2) determining the timing and duration of magmatic-hydrothermal events, and (3) establishing processes related to beryllium transport and accumulation. The Spor Mountain Formation (SMF) hosts the deposit, which is the largest known volcanic rock-related Be deposit in the world. Discovery of the Be deposit at Spor Mountain in the 1960s displaced beryl as the main commercial source of beryllium in the global supply chain. Technological advances in mineral processing enabled bertrandite (Be4Si2O7(OH)2) ore of variable grade and composition from Spor Mountain to compete with beryl ore derived from pegmatite. The deposit currently accounts for approximately 85% of the global beryllium mine production. The Be deposit is in the Basin and Range province of North America, which is characterized by Oligocene and Eocene calderas, extensive alkalic rhyolitic lava and ash flow tuffs, widespread uranium and fluorite occurrences, and Precambrian to Paleozoic sedimentary rocks. The SMF consists of a hydrothermally-altered, fluorite-bearing, lithic-rich (clasts of carbonate, quartzite, and older volcanic rocks) pyroclastic tuff (informal name: Be tuff member) that is overlain by altered, porphyritic, and topaz-rich rhyolite (alkali rhyolite member). The tuff encloses elongate mineralized layers containing numerous nodules that consist of calcite, chalcedony, opal, fluorite, and bertrandite (Be4Si2O7(OH)2, the main ore mineral.

Utah↗

Ordovician and middle Silurian rocks of the Wildhorse window, northeastern Pioneer Mountains, central Idaho

Along Wildhorse Creek in the northeastern Pioneer Mountains, autochthonous Ordovician and Silurian rocks of an eastern carbonate assemblage are exposed in a structural window through allochthonous flysch deposits of the Mississippian Copper Basin Group. Graptolite-bearing Middle and Upper Ordovician dolomite and cherty dolomite 210 ft (64 m) thick are lithologically and faunally similar to the Hanson Creek Formation of central Nevada and the Saturday Mountain Formation of central Idaho. Monograptus -bearing Middle Silurian platy limestone at least 130 ft (40 m) thick resembles the Roberts Mountains Formation of central Nevada and rocks improperly designated Trail Creek Formation in the Bayhorse region of central Idaho. Allochthonous age-equivalent units of a more western transitional assemblage (the type Phi Kappa and Trail Creek Formations) occur 5 mi (8 km) west of the Wildhorse window, along the crest of the Pioneer Mountains.

Idaho↗

High-level plateaus of the southeastern Beartooth Mountains, Montana and Wyoming: remnants of an exhumed sub-Cambrian marine plain

The Beartooth Mountains of south-central Montana and northwestern Wyoming are a northwesterly trending high rugged range made up mainly of Precambrian metamorphic rocks. The southeastern part of the range is characterized by extensive high-altitude flat or gently rolling plateaus separated by deep glaciated canyons. The plateaus along the crest of the range are at altitudes of more than 3,350 metres (11,000 ft), whereas those on the flanks of the range are much lower. They are almost entirely on Precambrian rocks, and only small patches of Cambrian sedimentary rocks still remain at a few places in the high mountains. Topographic profiles across the southeastern Beartooth Mountains show that: (1) plateaus bearing the sedimentary remnants lie very close to the position of the sub-Cambrian depositional surface as projected from known occurrences of that surface along the south side of the mountains; (2) other plateaus on the crest and southwest flank also lie near this projected position; and (3) high plateaus and other summits on the northeast slope in areas distant from known or projected positions of the sub-Cambrian surface are markedly accordant. We believe the plateaus along the crest and southwest flank of the range to be remnants of an exhumed marine plain of Early Cambrian or Precambrian age, and those on the northeast flank may possibly have a similar origin. The sub-Cambrian depositional surface was protected until early Tertiary time by a cover of Paleozoic sedimentary rocks, and parts of it probably were covered until Pliocene time by Eocene volcanic rocks. The surface subsequently has been profoundly modified by fluvial and glacial erosion and by mass wasting.

Montana, Wyoming↗

Pleistocene rhyolite of the Mineral Mountains, Utah: Geothermal and archeological significance

Little-eroded rhyolitic tuffs, flows, and domes extend over about 25 km 2 along the western side of the Mineral Mountains, southwestern Utah, which is along the eastern edge of the Roosevelt KGBA (Known Geothermal Resource Area). Initial eruptions resulted in two low-viscosity lava flows of nonporphyritic rhyolite. These were followed by bedded pumice falls and nonwelded ash flows. The youngest activity produced at least nine viscous domes and small lava flows of rhyolite that contain 1-5 percent phenocrysts of quartz, plagioclase, sodic sanidine, and biotite; distinction between domes and eroded flow segments locally is difficult. Potassium-argon ages indicate that all the rhyolite of the Mineral Mountains was erupted between 0.8 and 0.5 m.y. ago. The rhyolite rests on dissected granite of the Mineral Mountains pluton, the largest intrusion in Utah, which has yielded published K-Ar ages of 9 and 15 m.y. A small older dissected rhyolite dome, about 8 m.y. old, occurs just west of the range front. Whether the young ages of the pluton represent time of intrusion or of later reheating, they, in conjunction with the Pleistocene rhyolite in the Mineral Mountains, do indicate a major late Cenozoic thermal anomaly, the size and age of which is significant to evaluation of the Roosevelt KGRA. The rhyolite is also the only known source of implement-grade obsidian in the southwest between eastern California and northern New Mexico.

Utah↗

Variation in fire regimes of the Rocky Mountains: Implications for avian communities and fire management

Information about avian responses to fire in the U.S. Rocky Mountains is based solely on studies of crown fires. However, fire management in this region is based primarily on studies of low-elevation ponderosa pine ( Pinus ponderosa ) forests maintained largely by frequent understory fires. In contrast to both of these trends, most Rocky Mountain forests are subject to mixed severity fire regimes. As a result, our knowledge of bird responses to fire in the region is incomplete and skewed toward ponderosa pine forests. Research in recent large wildfires across the Rocky Mountains indicates that large burns support diverse avifauna. In the absence of controlled studies of bird responses to fire, we compared reproductive success for six cavity-nesting species using results from studies in burned and unburned habitats. Birds in ponderosa pine forests burned by stand-replacement fire tended to have higher nest success than individuals of the same species in unburned habitats, but unburned areas are needed to serve species dependent upon live woody vegetation, especially foliage gleaners. Over the last century, fire suppression, livestock grazing, and logging altered the structure and composition of many low-elevation forests, leading to larger and more severe burns. In higher elevation forests, changes have been less marked. Traditional low-severity prescribed fire is not likely to replicate historical conditions in these mixed or high-severity fire regimes, which include many mixed coniferous forests and all lodgepole pine ( Pinus contorta ) and spruce-fi r ( Picea-Abies ) forests. We suggest four research priorities: (1) the effects of fire severity and patch size on species’ responses to fire, (2) the possibility that postfire forests are ephemeral sources for some bird species, (3) the effect of salvage logging prescriptions on bird communities, and (4) experiments that illustrate bird responses to prescribed fire and other forest restoration methods. This research is urgent if we are to develop fire management strategies that reduce fire risk and maintain habitat for avifauna and other wildlife of the Rocky Mountains.

Studies in Avian Biology↗

Cascading effects of fire exclusion in Rocky Mountain ecosystems: A literature review

The health of many Rocky Mountain ecosystems is in decline because of the policy of excluding fire in the management of these ecosystems. Fire exclusion has actually made it more difficult to fight fires, and this poses greater risks to the people who fight fires and for those who live in and around Rocky Mountain forests and rangelands. This paper discusses the extent of fire exclusion in the Rocky Mountains, then details the diverse and cascading effects of suppressing fires in the Rocky Mountain landscape by spatial scale, ecosystem characteristic, and vegetation type. Also discussed are the varied effects of fire exclusion on some important, keystone ecosystems and human concerns.

U.S. Forest Service General Technical Report↗

A new reference section for palynostratigraphic zonation of Paleocene rocks in the Rocky Mountain region

A biostratigraphic (palynostratigraphic) zonation of Paleocene rocks was established in the northeastern Wind River Basin near Waltman, Natrona County, Wyoming, in 1978 and subsequently applied extensively by various workers throughout the Rocky Mountain region. Because the original study on which the zonation was based was proprietary, precise details about the locations of the two reference sections and the samples on which the zonation was based were not published and are no longer retrievable. Therefore, it is useful (although not required) to designate formally a new reference section for the Paleocene biozones. Accordingly, exposures of Paleocene and associated strata within and west of the Castle Gardens Petroglyph Site in Fremont County, Wyoming, in the east-central part of the Wind River Basin, were selected for this purpose. At this location, composite stratigraphic sections encompassing 740 m of strata were measured, described, and sampled. Productive samples yielded characteristic Maastrichtian palynomorphs from the lower part of the sampled interval and diagnostic species of the six palynological biozones zones widely known as P1 (lower Paleocene) through P6 (upper Paleocene), through an interval of about 580 m. The Paleocene biozones are present in the same consistent stratigraphic order in the Castle Gardens area as observed in the 1978 study and subsequent studies throughout the Rocky Mountain region. In accordance with the North American Stratigraphic Code, the historical background is presented; intent to establish the Castle Gardens reference section is declared; the category, rank, and formal names of biostratigraphic units within it are specified; and the features of the biozonation are described, including biozone boundaries, ages, and regional relations. Occurrences of biostratigraphically significant palynological species within each biozone in the reference section are tabulated, and presence of these and other species in correlative biozones are discussed. The new reference section in the Castle Gardens area replaces the original reference sections near Waltman and provides a better-documented foundation for Paleocene palynostratigraphy in the Rocky Mountain region.

Mountain Geologist↗

A spatially distributed energy balance snowmelt model for application in mountain basins

Snowmelt is the principal source for soil moisture, ground-water re-charge, and stream-flow in mountainous regions of the western US, Canada, and other similar regions of the world. Information on the timing, magnitude, and contributing area of melt under variable or changing climate conditions is required for successful water and resource management. A coupled energy and mass-balance model ISNOBAL is used to simulate the development and melting of the seasonal snowcover in several mountain basins in California, Idaho, and Utah. Simulations are done over basins varying from 1 to 2500 km 2 , with simulation periods varying from a few days for the smallest basin, Emerald Lake watershed in California, to multiple snow seasons for the Park City area in Utah. The model is driven by topographically corrected estimates of radiation, temperature, humidity, wind, and precipitation. Simulation results in all basins closely match independently measured snow water equivalent, snow depth, or runoff during both the development and depletion of the snowcover. Spatially distributed estimates of snow deposition and melt allow us to better understand the interaction between topographic structure, climate, and moisture availability in mountain basins of the western US. Application of topographically distributed models such as this will lead to improved water resource and watershed management. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Hydrological Processes↗

Source limitation of carbon gas emissions in high-elevation mountain streams and lakes

Inland waters are an important component of the global carbon cycle through transport, storage, and direct emissions of CO 2 and CH 4 to the atmosphere. Despite predictions of high physical gas exchange rates due to turbulent flows and ubiquitous supersaturation of CO 2 —and perhaps also CH 4 —patterns of gas emissions are essentially undocumented for high mountain ecosystems. Much like other headwater networks around the globe, we found that high-elevation streams in Rocky Mountain National Park, USA, were supersaturated with CO 2 during the growing season and were net sources to the atmosphere. CO 2 concentrations in lakes, on the other hand, tended to be less than atmospheric equilibrium during the open water season. CO 2 and CH 4 emissions from the aquatic conduit were relatively small compared to many parts of the globe. Irrespective of the physical template for high gas exchange (high k ), we found evidence of CO 2 source limitation to mountain streams during the growing season, which limits overall CO 2 emissions. Our results suggest a reduced importance of aquatic ecosystems for carbon cycling in high-elevation landscapes having limited soil development and high CO 2 consumption via mineral weathering.

Journal of Geophysical Research G: Biogeosciences↗

Tomographic image of a seismically active volcano: Mammoth Mountain, California

High-resolution tomographic P wave, S wave, and V P / V S velocity structure models are derived for Mammoth Mountain, California, using phase data from the Northern California Seismic Network and a temporary deployment of broadband seismometers. An anomalous volume (5.1 × 10 9 to 5.9 × 10 10 m 3 ) of low P and low S wave velocities is imaged beneath Mammoth Mountain, extending from near the surface to a depth of ∼2 km below sea level. We infer that the reduction in seismic wave velocities is due to the presence of CO 2 distributed in oblate spheroid pores with mean aspect ratio α = 1.6 × 10 −3 to 7.9 × 10 −3 (crack-like pores) and mean gas volume fraction ϕ = 8.1 × 10 −4 to 3.4 × 10 −3 . The pore density parameter κ = 3 ϕ /(4π α ) = na 3 =0.11, where n is the number of pores per cubic meter and a is the mean pore equatorial radius. The total mass of CO 2 is estimated to be 4.6 × 10 9 to 1.9 × 10 11 kg. The local geological structure indicates that the CO 2 contained in the pores is delivered to the surface through fractures controlled by faults and remnant foliation of the bedrock beneath Mammoth Mountain. The total volume of CO 2 contained in the reservoir suggests that given an emission rate of 500 tons day −1 , the reservoir could supply the emission of CO 2 for ∼25–1040 years before depletion. Continued supply of CO 2 from an underlying magmatic system would significantly prolong the existence of the reservoir.

California↗