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USGS1983

Land use and land cover digital data

The discipline of cartography is undergoing a number of profound changesthat center on the emerging influence ofdigital manipulation and analysis ofdata for the preparation of cartographic materials and for use in geographic information systems. Operational requirements have led to the development by the USGS National Mapping Division of several documents that establish in-house digital cartographic standards. In an effort to fulfill lead agency requirements for promulgation of Federal standards in the earth sciences, the documents have been edited and assembled with explanatory text into a USGS Circular. This Circular describes some of the pertinent issues relative to digital cartographic data standards, documents the digital cartographic data standards currently in use within the USGS, and details the efforts of the USGS related to the definition of national digital cartographic data standards. It consists of several chapters; the first is a general overview, and each succeeding chapter is made up from documents that establish in-house standards for one of the various types of digital cartographic data currently produced. This chapter 895-E, describes the Geographic Information Retrieval and Analysis System that is used in conjunction with the USGS land use and land cover classification system to encode, edit, manipuate, and analyze land use and land cover digital data.

Open-File Report↗
USGS2012

Geologic map of the MTM 85200 quadrangle, Olympia Rupes region of Mars

The north polar region of Mars is dominated by Planum Boreum, a roughly circular, domical plateau that rises >2,500 m above the surrounding lowland. Planum Boreum is >1,500 km in diameter, contains deep, curvilinear troughs and chasmata, isolated cavi, and marginal scarps and slopes. The north polar plateau is surrounded by low-lying and nearly horizontal plains of various surface texture, geologic origin, and stratigraphic significance. The MTM 85200 quadrangle spans 5° of latitude (lat 82.5° to 87.5° N.) and 40° of longitude (long 140° to 180° E.) within the eastern hemisphere of Mars. The quadrangle includes the high-standing Planum Boreum, curvilinear troughs of Boreales Scopuli, deep, sinuous scarps of Olympia Rupes, isolated and coalesced depressions of Olympia Cavi, margins of the circular polar erg Olympia Undae, and low-standing Olympia Planum. The surface of Planum Boreum within the MTM 85200 quadrangle is characterized by smoothly sculptured landforms with shallow slopes and variable relief at kilometer scales. Areas that are perennially covered with bright frost are generally smooth and planar at 100-m scales. However, MGS MOC and MRO HiRISE images show that much of the icy polar plateau is rough at decameter scale. The Martian polar plateaus are likely to contain a record of global climate history for >107 to as much as ~3 x 109 years. This record is partly observable as rhythmically layered deposits exposed in the curvilinear troughs of the north polar plateau, Planum Boreum. The north polar layered deposits are widely interpreted to be among the most youthful bedrock deposits on the Martian surface. These materials and their stratigraphic and structural relations provide a glimpse into some of the more recent geologic processes that have occurred on Mars. The ability of the massive polar deposits to periodically trap and release both volatiles and lithic particles may represent a globally important, recurring geologic process for Mars.

Scientific Investigations Map↗
USGS2016

Development and evaluation of clear-water pier and contraction scour envelope curves in the Coastal Plain and Piedmont Provinces of South Carolina

The U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the South Carolina Department of Transportation collected clear-water pier- and contraction-scour data at 116 bridges in the Coastal Plain and Piedmont Physiographic Provinces of South Carolina. Pier-scour depths collected in both provinces ranged from 0 to 8.0 feet. Contraction-scour depths collected in the Coastal Plain ranged from 0 to 3.9 feet. Using hydraulic data estimated with a one-dimensional flow model, predicted clear-water scour depths were computed with scour equations from the Federal Highway Administration Hydraulic Engineering Circular 18 and compared with measured scour. This comparison indicated that predicted clear-water scour depths, in general, exceeded measured scour depths and at times were excessive. Predicted clear-water contraction scour, however, was underpredicted approximately 30 percent of the time by as much as 7.1 feet. The investigation focused on clear-water pier scour, comparing trends in the laboratory and field data. This comparison indicated that the range of dimensionless variables (relative depth, flow intensity, relative grain size) used in laboratory investigations of pier scour, were similar to the range for field data in South Carolina, further indicating that laboratory relations may have some applicability to field conditions in South Carolina. Variables determined to be important in developing pier scour in laboratory studies were investigated to understand their influence on the South Carolina field data, and many of these variables appeared to be insignificant under field conditions in South Carolina. The strongest explanatory variables were pier width and approach velocity. Envelope curves developed from the field data are useful tools for evaluating reasonable ranges of clear-water pier and contraction scour in South Carolina. A modified version of the Hydraulic Engineering Circular 18 pier-scour equation also was developed as a tool for evaluating clearwater pier scour. The envelope curves and modified equation offer an improvement over the current methods for predicting clear-water scour in South Carolina. Data from this study were compiled into a database that includes photographs, measured scour depths, predicted scour depths, limited basin characteristics, limited soil data, and modeled hydraulic data. The South Carolina database can be used to compare studied sites with unstudied sites to evaluate the potential for scour at the unstudied sites. In addition, the database can be used to evaluate the performance of various methods for predicting clear-water pier and contraction scour.

South Carolina↗
USGS2014

Regional mapping of hydrothermally altered igneous rocks along the Urumieh-Dokhtar, Chagai, and Alborz Belts of western Asia using Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) data and Interactive Data Language (IDL) logical operators: a tool for porphyry copper exploration and assessment

Regional maps of phyllic and argillic hydrothermal alteration were compiled using Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) data and logical operator algorithms. The area mapped extends from northwestern Iran to southeastern Pakistan and includes volcanic and magmatic arcs that make up the Urumieh-Dokhtar volcanic belt (UDVB), the Chagai volcanic belt (CVB), and the central part of the Alborz magmatic belt (AMB). The volcanic belts span the Zagros-Makran transform zone and the present day Baluchistan (Makran) volcanic arc. ASTER visible near infrared (VNIR) data contain three bands between 0.52 and 0.86 micrometers (μm) and the short-wave infrared (SWIR) data consist of six bands spanning 1.6 to 2.43 μm with 15-meter (m), and 30-m resolution, respectively. During the 8-year project, three different calibration methods were used to correct ASTER SWIR anomalies and produce ASTER calibrated reflectance data, which were then used to map hydrothermally altered rocks. Logical operators, used to map hydrothermally altered rocks, perform multiple band ratios and thresholds that can be applied to multiple ASTER scenes using a single algorithm, thus eliminating separate production and application of vegetation and dark pixel masks. Argillic and phyllic band ratio logical operators use band ratios that define the 2.17- and 2.20-μm absorption features to map kaolinite and alunite, typical in argillized rocks, and muscovite, which is a common mineral in phyllic alteration. Band thresholds for ratios in argillic and phyllic logical operator algorithms were determined by mapping known argillic and phyllic rocks at a calibration test site in Cuprite, Nevada, in the United States. The regional argillic and phyllic hydrothermal alteration map and geologic and deposit maps of the study area illustrate that distinct patterns of altered rocks are typically associated with certain types of mineral deposits. The central part of the UDVB contains numerous circular to elliptical patterns (1 to 5 kilometers in diameter) of mapped phyllic- and argillic-altered rocks associated with Eocene to Miocene intrusive igneous rocks, some of which host known porphyry copper deposits such as at Meiduk, Sar Cheshmeh, and Seridune in Iran. The Zagros-Makran transform zone and areas adjacent to the Saindak porphyry deposit and Taftan Volcano contain primarily phyllic-altered rocks that form linear patterns associated with extensive faulting and fractures indicative of epithermal and (or) polymetallic vein deposits. The ASTER alteration map and corresponding geologic maps were used to select circular to elliptical patterns of argillic- and phyllic-altered volcanic and intrusive rocks as potential porphyry copper sites. One hundred and seventy eight potential porphyry copper sites were mapped along the UDVB, and 23 sites were mapped along the CVB. The potential sites were selected to assist in further exploration and assessments of undiscovered porphyry copper deposits.

Scientific Investigations Report↗
USGS2014

Modeling uncertainty in coal resource assessments, with an application to a central area of the Gillette coal field, Wyoming

Standards for the public disclosure of mineral resources and reserves do not require the use of any specific methodology when it comes to estimating the reliability of the resources. Unbeknownst to most intended recipients of resource appraisals, such freedom commonly results in subjective opinions or estimations based on suboptimal approaches, such as use of distance methods. This report presents the results of a study of the third of three coal deposits in which drilling density has been increased one order of magnitude in three stages. Applying geostatistical simulation, the densest dataset was used to check the results obtained by modeling the sparser drillings. We have come up with two summary displays of results based on the same simulations, which individually and combined provide a better assessment of uncertainty than traditional qualitative resource classifications: (a) a display of cell 90 percent confidence interval versus cumulative cell tonnage, and (b) a histogram of total resources. The first graph allows classification of data into any number of bins with dividers to be decided by the assessor on the basis of a discriminating variable that is statistically accepted as a measure of uncertainty, thereby improving the quality and flexibility of the modeling. The second display expands the scope of the modeling by providing a quantitative measure of uncertainty for total tonnage, which is a fundamental concern for stockholders, geologists, and decision makers. Our approach allows us to correctly model uncertainty issues not possible to predict with distance methods, such as (a) different levels of uncertainty for individual beds with the same pattern and density of drill holes, (b) different local degrees of reduction of uncertainty with drilling densification reflecting fluctuation in the complexity of the geology, (c) average reduction in uncertainty at a disproportionately lesser rate than the reduction in area per drill hole, (d) the proportional effect of higher uncertainty in areas of higher tonnages, despite a regular drilling pattern, (e) the possibility of a local increase in uncertainty despite drilling densification to reflect a more complex geology as the deposit is known in more detail, and (f) for exactly the same drilling pattern, tonnage per individual beds with different uncertainty than the aggregated tonnage. These results should be considered realistic improvements over distance methods used for quantitative classification of uncertainty in coal resource, such as U.S. Geological Survey Circular 891. 1 The approach should be a welcome addition to the toolkit of Competent Persons preparing public disclosures according to international mineral codes such as those promoted by the Combined Reserves International Reporting Standards Committee 2 and the Joint Ore Reserve Committee. 3 1 Wood, G.H., Jr., Kehn, T.M., Carter, M.D., and Culbertson, W.C., 1983, Coal resources classification system of the U.S. Geological Survey: U.S. Geological Survey Circular 891, 65 p. 2 CRIRSCO (Combined Reserves International Reporting Standards Committee), 2013, International reporting template for the public reporting of exploration results, mineral resources and mineral reserves: Accessed February 2014 at http://www.crirsco.com/crirsco_template_may2013.pdf. 3 JORC (Joint Ore Reserves Committee), 2012, Australasian code for reporting of exploration results, mineral resources and ore reserves: Accessed September 2014 at http://www.jorc.org/docs/jorc_code2012.pdf.

Wyoming↗
USGS1954

U.S. Geological Survey Trace Elements and related reports through 1953

This report combines and brings up-to-date the information previously given in Trace Elements Investigations Report 325, "Numerical list of U.S. Geological Survey Trace Elements Reports to April 30, 1953," and Trace Elements Investigations Report 301, "Topical index and bibliography of U.S. Geological Survey Trace Elements and related reports." Part I is a numerical list of U.S. Geological Survey Trace Elements Investigations and Memorandum reports. It supersedes TEI-325. This part lists not only reports (followed by a date) that have been transmitted to the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission, but also reports in preparation (followed by an asterisk) for which tentative titles were available on December 31, 1953. Reports that have been published are indicated by the abbreviation of the medium of publication. (See also part II.) Part II is a reference guide to Trace Elements and related reports that are available to the public; this part supersedes Part 2 of the TEI-301 (published as Geological survey Circular 281). These reports are grouped according to the type of publication or release. Abstracts published in Nuclear Science Abstracts are not included in Part II, although certain TEI and TEM reports, the abstracts of which have been published in NSA, are so indicated in Part I. Publications in process on December 31, 1953, are designated by an asterisk. Part III is a finding list of states, areas, and subjects. It is based on information derived mostly from the titles of reports and, where titles are of a general nature, from a cursory review of the reports. This list is not a complete index of the information given in Trace Elements and related reports, but is designed to find subjects of major interest. Because of the numerous entries for Colorado and Utah, information has been listed by counties and, where possible, by subject under these states. Other states have county listings only if a county is included in the title of a report; otherwise, areas may be listed separately under the state. Major subjects are listed separately in the index and also where appropriate under states. Analytical methods and subjects related to analytical research are listed under Analytical Methods and Research, but not separately throughout the index. Most mineralogic studies are included under the heading Mineralogy, but are not necessarily listed according to location. Part IV is a finding list of authors. The words “with” and “and” are used to indicate seniority of authorship. For example, a listing of Jones and Brown indicates that Jones is the senior author. A listing of Jones with Brown indicates that Brown is the senior author. In both parts III and IV all Trace Elements reports are listed, as well as other related reports that have not been issued as Trace Elements reports. The following standard abbreviations have been used: TEI, Trace Elements Investigations report; TEM, Trace Elements Memorandum report; P, Professional Paper; B, Bulletin; C, Circular; J, Journal; OF, open file; TIS, Technical Information Service release; NSA, Nuclear Science Abstracts; QM, Quadrangle Map Series; and OM, Oil and Gas map or Mineral Investigations map or report.

Trace Elements Investigations↗
USGS2004

Guidelines for preparation of state water-use estimates for 2000

This report describes the water-use categories and data elements required for the 2000 national water-use compilation conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) as part of its National Water Use Information Program. It identifies sources of water-use information, guidelines for estimating water use, and required documentation for preparation of the national compilation by State for the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The data are published in USGS Circular 1268, Estimated Use of Water in the United States in 2000. USGS has published circulars on estimated use of water in the United States at 5-year intervals since 1950. As part of this USGS program to document water use on a national scale for the year 2000, all States prepare estimates of water withdrawals for public supply, industrial, irrigation, and thermoelectric power generation water uses at the county level. All States prepare estimates of domestifc use and population served by public supply at least at the State level. All States provide estimates of irrigated acres by irrigation system type (sprinkler, surface, or microirrigation) at the county level. County-level estimates of withdrawals for mining, livestock, and aquaculture uses are compiled by selected States that comprised the largest percentage of national use in 1995 for these categories, and are optional for other States. Ground-water withdrawals for public-supply, industrial, and irrigation use are aggregated by principal aquifer or aquifer system, as identified by the USGS Office of Ground Water. Some categories and data elements that were mandatory in previous compilations are optional for the 2000 compilation, in response to budget considerations at the State level. Optional categories are commercial, hydroelectric, and wastewater treatment. Estimation of deliveries from public supply to domestic, commercial, industrial, and thermoelectric uses, consumptive use for any category, and irrigation conveyance loss are optional data elements. Aggregation of data by the eight-digit hydrologic cataloging unit is optional. Water-use data compiled by the States are stored in the USGS Aggregated Water-Use Data System (AWUDS). This database is designed to store both mandatory and optional data elements. AWUDS contains several routines that can be used for quality assurance and quality control of the data, and also produces tables of water-use data compiled for 1985, 1990, 1995, and 2000. These water-use data are used by USGS, other agencies, organizations, academic institutions, and the public for research, water-management decisions, trend analysis, and forecasting.

Techniques and Methods↗
USGS1972

Water-temperature data acquisition activities in the United States

Along with the growing interest in water quality during the last decade, the need for data on all types of water-quality parameters has also increased. One parameter of particular interest, because of its many ramifications, is temperature. It influences many of the chemical and physical processes that take place in water. The solubility of gases--for example, oxygen and carbon dioxide--and the solution of mineral matter in water are functions of temperature. Such physical properties as density and viscosity vary with temperature. Oxidation of organic materials, as well as algal and bacterial growth, is promoted or retarded by favorable or unfavorable temperatures. Further, temperature bears on the utility of water: as a source of public water supplies; for industrial use, particularly if the water is used for cooling; and in the field of recreation involving contact sports, fishing, and fish culture. In recent years, temperature changes resulting from inflow of heated industrial waste, particularly effluent from power generating plants, have increased the need for temperature data to determine the degree of change, its effect on ecology, and the effect of any remedial action. Thus, because of the many extensive and intensive effects, a large amount of temperature data is collected on surface and ground waters by many agencies throughout the country. Moreover, because of its importance, there is a widespread interest in temperature even by those who are not active collectors of the data themselves. The industrialist, the manager, the public official, and others at one time or another may have need for temperature data and may well raise the questions: Who is collecting temperature data? What is the extent of the activity? Where are the data being collected? The purpose of this report is to answer these questions. The information in the report is confined to the activities of Federal and non-Federal agencies. It is based on information furnished to the Office of Water Data Coordination, U.S. Geological Survey, and published in the "Catalog of Information on Water Data, Index to Water Quality Section, Edition 1970." This is one of four indexes, each of which is a separate section of the Catalog. Three of the indexes, "Index to Water-Quality Section," "Index to Surface-Water Section," and "Index to Ground-.Water Stations," contain information on data acquired on a recurrent basis at specific locations for a period of 3 years or more. The fourth section, "Index to Areal Investigations and Miscellaneous Activities," is concerned with specific projects or shorter-term data activities that involve field or laboratory measurements or observations not included in any other section of the Catalog. The Catalog is a record of activities throughout the country (and in some places along the international border between the United States and Canada) conducted by Federal and non-Federal agencies engaged in the acquisition of water data and who furnish such information for presentation in the Catalog. The Catalog itself is an outgrowth of an assignment to the Department of the Interior and in turn to the Geological Survey, by the Office of Management and Budget, through the medium of OMB Circular A-67. This Circular states in part that one of the assigned responsibilities will be maintenance of a "central catalog of information on...water data and on Federal activities being planned or conducted to acquire such data." As an extension of this activity, non-Federal agencies are solicited to participate in the program. In this report, information is presented by means of tables and illustrations preceded by brief explanations. It includes the agencies collecting the data, the number of stations located on surface and ground waters where temperature measurements are made, the distribution of stations by States and by the 21 regions of the Water Resources Council (WRC) (a Federal agency created in accordance with the Water Resources Planning Act of 1965), and the frequency of measurements. Acquisition activities were not reported for those areas left blank on some illustrations. The report does not contain the actual temperature data. For this information, the particular agency, Federal or non-Federal, acquiring the data will have to be contacted. However, a bibliography at the end of this report lists 194 references which contain temperature data. Many of these references, especially the publications of the Geological Survey, may be available in major public and university libraries and libraries of Federal and non-Federal agencies.

Water-Resources Investigations Report↗
USGS1905

Preliminary list of deep borings in the United States

The first preliminary list of deep borings in the United States was issued as Water-Supply Papers Nos. 57 and 61. The present publication includes all of the wells listed in these two papers, together with many additional borings, mostly of recent date. Messrs. M. L. Fuller and A. C. Veatch, of the eastern section of hydrology, and other geologists of the Survey have contributed many new data. Descriptions of borings published in reports issued since 1901 have been incorporated as far as practicable. All the entries are by counties. The wells and borings reported in the paper are all more than 400 feet in depth. The information concerning them has been obtained partly from replies to circular letters sent to all parts of the United States and partly from geological reports and other published sources. Owing to the difficulty of obtaining replies to the circulars, to lack of knowledge on the part of correspondents, and to the incompleteness of published records, doubtless there are borings which have not been reported. In regions of oil and gas wells, where borings are numerous, the individual wells can not be listed here, but representative wells are given. References to logs or records of the wells or extended descriptions of them are given in footnotes, and after the list of wells in each State there is added a list of the principal publications relating to deep borings in that State. The bearing of the information given in the columns of the lists probably is apparent unless, perhaps, in the one headed "Height to which the water rises." In this column an entry such as "-45" indicates that the water rises to within 45 feet of the surface; "+45" indicates that it is a flowing well and has sufficient head to raise the water 45 feet above the surface in an open pipe 45 feet or more in height. The yield in gallons per minute usually is estimated. Depths and diameters often have been reported from memory and different sources of publication sometimes give different figures. Most wells which are not stated to be "for oil," "for gas," "brine," "abandoned," etc., in the remarks column, or "not any" in the yield column, generally afford more or less water. Many of the gas and oil wells, active or abandoned, yield salt water.

Water Supply Paper↗
USGS1996

The Government Information Locator Service (GILS)

In coordination with the Information Infrastructure Task Force (IITF), the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is promoting the establishment of an agency-based Government Information Locator Service (GILS) to help the public locate and access information throughout the Federal Government. This report presents a vision of how GILS will be implemented. Working primarily with OMB and the Locator Subgroup of the Interagency Working Group on Public Access, Eliot Christian of the US Geological Survey prepared this report under the auspices of the IITF Committee on Information Policy. This vision of GILS has also received extensive review by various Federal agencies and other interested parties, including some non-Federal organizations and by the general public through notices in both the Federal Register and the Commerce Business Daily and at a public meeting held in December, 1993. As part of the Federal role in the National Information Infrastructure, GILS will identify and describe information resources throughout the Federal government, and provide assistance in obtaining the information. It will be decentralized and will supplement other agency and commercial information dissemination mechanisms. The public will use GILS directly or through intermediaries, such as the Government Printing Office, the National Technical Information Service, the Federal depository libraries, other public libraries, and private sector information services. Direct users will have access to a GILS Core accessible on the Internet without charge. Intermediate access may include kiosks, "800 numbers", electronic mail, bulletin boards, fax, and off-line media such as floppy disks, CD-ROM, and printed works. GILS will use standard network technology and the American National Standards Institute Z39.50 standard for information search and retrieval so that information can be retrieved in a variety of ways. Direct users will eventually have access to many other Federal and non-Federal information resources, linkages to data systems, and electronic delivery of information products. Development of this report proceeded in tandem with a GILS Profile development project that produced an Implementors Agreement in the voluntary standards process. The National Institute of Standards and Technology is now establishing a Federal Information Processing Standard referencing the GILS Profile Implementors Agreement and making mandatory its application for Federal agencies establishing locators for government information. Existing law and policy, as articulated in OMB Circular A-130, the Records Disposal Act, and the Freedom of Information Act, require agencies to create and maintain an inventory of their information systems and information dissemination products. Although compliance with these requirements varies greatly, the incremental cost of making those inventories accessible through GILS is expected to be minimal. Accordingly, participation in establishing and maintaining GILS may be accomplished as a collective effort executed within existing funds and authorities. OMB will publish in 1994 a Bulletin following on Circular A-130 that will specify agency responsibilities in GILS and set implementation schedules. A process for ongoing evaluation will also be established to evaluate the degree to which GILS meets the information needs of the public.

Information Services and Use↗
USGS2023

DNA virome composition of two sympatric wild felids, bobcat (Lynx rufus) and puma (Puma concolor) in Sonora, Mexico

With viruses often having devastating effects on wildlife population fitness and wild mammals serving as pathogen reservoirs for potentially zoonotic diseases, determining the viral diversity present in wild mammals is both a conservation and One Health priority. Additionally, transmission from more abundant hosts could increase the extinction risk of threatened sympatric species. We leveraged an existing circular DNA enriched metagenomic dataset generated from bobcat ( Lynx rufus , n = 9) and puma ( Puma concolor , n = 13) scat samples non-invasively collected from Sonora, Mexico, to characterize fecal DNA viromes of each species and determine the extent that viruses are shared between them. Using the metaWRAP pipeline to co-assemble viral genomes for comparative metagenomic analysis, we observed diverse circular DNA viruses in both species, including circoviruses, genomoviruses, and anelloviruses. We found that differences in DNA virome composition were partly attributed to host species, although there was overlap between viruses in bobcats and pumas. Pumas exhibited greater levels of alpha diversity, possibly due to bioaccumulation of pathogens in apex predators. Shared viral taxa may reflect dietary overlap, shared environmental resources, or transmission through host interactions, although we cannot rule out species-specific host-virus coevolution for the taxa detected through co-assembly. However, our detection of integrated feline foamy virus (FFV) suggests Sonoran pumas may interact with domestic cats. Our results contribute to the growing baseline knowledge of wild felid viral diversity. Future research including samples from additional sources (e.g., prey items, tissues) may help to clarify host associations and determine the pathogenicity of detected viruses.

Sonora↗
USGS2021

Phylogeographic genetic diversity in the white sucker hepatitis B Virus across the Great Lakes Region and Alberta, Canada

Hepatitis B viruses belong to a family of circular, double-stranded DNA viruses that infect a range of organisms, with host responses that vary from mild infection to chronic infection and cancer. The white sucker hepatitis B virus (WSHBV) was first described in the white sucker (Catostomus commersonii), a freshwater teleost, and belongs to the genus Parahepadnavirus. At present, the host range of WSHBV and its impact on fish health are unknown, and neither genetic diversity nor association with fish health have been studied in any parahepadnavirus. Given the relevance of genomic diversity to disease outcome for the orthohepadnaviruses, we sought to characterize genomic variation in WSHBV and determine how it is structured among watersheds. We identified WSHBV-positive white sucker inhabiting tributaries of Lake Michigan, Lake Superior, Lake Erie (USA), and Lake Athabasca (Canada). Copy number in plasma and in liver tissue was estimated via qPCR. Templates from 27 virus-positive fish were amplified and sequenced using a primer-specific, circular long-range amplification method coupled with amplicon sequencing on the Illumina MiSeq. Phylogenetic analysis of the WSHBV genome identified phylogeographical clustering reminiscent of that observed with human hepatitis B virus genotypes. Notably, most non-synonymous substitutions were found to cluster in the pre-S/spacer overlap region, which is relevant for both viral entry and replication. The observed predominance of p1/s3 mutations in this region is indicative of adaptive change in the polymerase open reading frame (ORF), while, at the same time, the surface ORF is under purifying selection. Although the levels of variation we observed do not meet the criteria used to define sub/genotypes of human and avian hepadnaviruses, we identified geographically associated genome variation in the pre-S and spacer domain sufficient to define five WSHBV haplotypes. This study of WSHBV genetic diversity should facilitate the development of molecular markers for future identification of genotypes and provide evidence in future investigations of possible differential disease outcomes.

Alberta, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Wisconsin↗
USGS1999

Vocalization behavior and response of black rails

We measured the vocal responses and movements of radio-tagged black rails (Laterallus jamaicensis) (n = 43, 26 males, 17 females) to playback of vocalizations at 2 sites in Florida during the breeding seasons of 1992-95. We used regression coefficients from logistic regression equations to model the probability of a response conditional to the birds' sex, nesting status, distance to playback source, and the time of survey. With a probability of 0.811, non-nesting male black rails were most likely to respond to playback, while nesting females were the least likely to respond (probability = 0.189). Linear regression was used to determine daily, monthly, and annual variation in response from weekly playback surveys along a fixed route during the breeding seasons of 1993-95. Significant sources of variation in the linear regression model were month (F = 3.89, df = 3, p = 0.0140), year (F = 9.37, df = 2, p = 0.0003), temperature (F = 5.44, df=1, p = 0.0236), and month*year (F = 2.69, df = 5, p = 0.0311). The model was highly significant (p < 0.0001) and explained 53% of the variation of mean response per survey period (R2 = 0.5353). Response probability data obtained from the radio-tagged black rails and data from the weekly playback survey route were combined to provide a density estimate of 0.25 birds/ha for the St. Johns National Wildlife Refuge. Density estimates for black rails may be obtained from playback surveys, and fixed radius circular plots. Circular plots should be considered as having a radius of 80 m and be located so the plot centers are 150 m apart. Playback tapes should contain one series of Kic-kic-kerr and Growl vocalizations recorded within the same geographic region as the study area. Surveys should be conducted from 0-2 hours after sunrise or 0-2 hours before sunset, during the pre-nesting season, and when wind velocity is < 20 kph. Observers should listen for 3-4 minutes after playing the survey tape and record responses heard during that time. Observers should be trained to identify black rail vocalizations and should have acceptable hearing ability. Given the number of variables that may have large effects on the response behavior of black rails to tape playback, we recommend that future studies using playback surveys should be cautious when presenting estimates of 'absolute' density. Though results did account for variation in response behavior, we believe that additional variation in vocal response between sites, with breeding status, and bird density remains in question. Playback surveys along fixed routes providing a simple index of abundance would be useful to monitor populations over large geographic areas, and over time. Considering the limitations of most agency resources for webless waterbirds, index surveys may be more appropriate. Future telemetry studies of this type on other species and at other sites would be useful to calibrate information obtained from playback surveys whether reporting an index of abundance or density estimate.

Book chapter↗
USGS2012

Bedrock basins in the Sierra Nevada, Alta California

A 360-km-long belt of more than 1,400 meter-sized granitic bedrock basins occurs at 1,200 to 2,500 m elevation on the west flank of the Sierra Nevada. The circular, smooth basins are 0.7 to 1.7 min diameter and are commonly 50 to 1,000 liters in volume. They are man-made as shown by their restricted size and elevation range, uniform circular shape, distinct basin shapes in different cultural areas, and the presence of bedrock mortars at 80 percent of the basin sites. Moreover, the juxtaposition of a northern cluster of basins to the vicinity of a rare salt spring suggests that these basins were constructed to evaporate salt. Several basins contain an A.O. 1350 volcanic ash, indicating that some existed before the end of the Medieval Climatic Anomaly (MCA; A.O. 800-1350). The basin belt was more productive in terms of food sources during the MCA, and it is postulated that warmer, drier conditions promoted the construction of cisterns to contain fresh water in order to prolong the time of occupation of mountain camps in late summer. Construction of the granitic basins required enormous energy and produced one of the largest and better preserved sets of Native Californian features.

California Archaeology↗
USGS1989

Effects of fire in the Northern Great Plains

This publication is a review of selected literature about prescribed burning in the Northern Great Plains (NGP) for management of wildlife. It also will be useful to other resource managers and researchers and to persons interested in the NGP. It is more 'descriptive' than 'interpretative.'The publication is a joint effort of the South Dakota State Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit (SDCFWRU), South Dakota State University, Brookings; the Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center (NPWRC), Jamestown, N.D.; and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), Fergus Falls, Minn. Manuscript typing and library services were shared between SDCFWRU and NPWRC.This publication (EC 761) is the second of three SDSU Extension circulars on grassland fires. EC 760 is Prescribed burning guidelines in the Northern Great Plains; EC 762 is Annotated bibliography of fire literature relative to northern grasslands in South-Central Canada and North-Central United States and contains many more citations than presented in this publication. All three circulars may be obtained from either the Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences Department; SDSU Box 2206; ph (605) 688-6121; or from the Ag Communications Bulletin Room; SDSU Box 2231; ph (605) 688-5628; both in Brookings, S.D. 57007.

Report↗
USGS1970

Common marsh plants of the United States and Canada

This is the fourth of a series of publications on field identification of North American marsh and water plants. It describes the emergent and semiemergent plants most likely to be found in inland and coastal marshes. It omits hundreds of uncommon marsh plants and plants less characteristic of marshes than of marsh edges, lake and stream shores, or wet meadows. The first of the series, "Pondweeds and Pondweedlike Plants of Eastern North America," Circular 187, was broadened in scope as Resource Publication 44, "Underwater and Floating-leaved Plants of the United States and Canada," and is superseded by it. The present publication, widens the scope of "Bulrushes and Bulrushlike Plants of Eastern North America," Circular 221, and contains most of the species listed therein. This guide is designed for identification of marsh plants without recourse to technical botanical keys. To use it, read pages 1 to 4 and then look at the drawings. To identify a plant, find the group in which it fits, then find a drawing and description that match it.

Resource Publication↗
USGS1896

Hydrographic surveys

This circular is intended to answer questions asked by correspondents regarding the progress and character of the work of the "Irrigation Survey" and of related investigations being carried on by the Division of Hydrography of the United States Geological Survey. It also gives a review of the legislation authorizing this work, together with a list of publications of the Geological Survey showing the results accomplished.

Division of Hydrography Circular↗
USGS1988

Geologic studies in Alaska by the U.S. Geological Survey during 1987

This volume is a continuation of the annual United States Geological Survey (USGS) Circulars reporting results of work in progress on earth science investigations in Alaska. The series began in 1975 under the title "The United States Geological Survey in Alaska - Accomplishments during 19xx" and has continued since 1986 under the present title. The 40 short papers and the feature article presented here report on some of the geologic studies undertaken in Alaska during 1987 by the USGS, cooperating agencies, and universities.

Alaska↗