Search

Railway transport of coal poses an environmental risk, because coal dust contains polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), mercury, and other trace metals. In the Pacific Northwest of the United States, proposed infrastructure projects could result in an increase in coal transport by train through the Columbia River corridor. Baseline information is needed on current distributions, levels, and spatial patterns of coal dust-derived contaminants in habitats and organisms adjacent to existing coal transport lines. To that end, we collected aquatic surface sediments, aquatic insects, and juvenile fish in 2014 and 2015 from Horsethief Lake State Park and Steigerwald National Wildlife Refuge, both located in Washington state close to the rail line and within the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area. Two subsites in each area were selected: one close to the rail line and one far from the rail line. Detected PAH concentrations were relatively low compared with those measured at more urbanized areas. Some contaminants were measured at higher concentrations at the subsites close to the rail line, but it was not possible to link the contaminants to a definitive source. Trace metal concentrations were only slightly higher than background concentrations, but a few of the more sensitive benchmarks were exceeded, including those for arsenic, lead, and selenium in fish tissue and fluoranthene, cadmium, copper, manganese, nickel, zinc, iron, and arsenic in sediments. At Horsethief Lake, Chinook salmon and yellow perch showed lower total mercury body burdens than other species, but PAH body burdens did not differ significantly among species. Differences in the species caught among subsites and the low number of invertebrate samples rendered food web comparisons difficult, but these data show that the PAHs and trace metals, including mercury, are accumulating in these wetland sites and in some resident organisms.

Marine and freshwater plastic pollution is a challenging issue receiving large amounts of research and media attention. Yet, few studies have documented the impact of microplastic ingestion to aquatic organisms. In the Pacific Northwest, Chinook salmon are a culturally and commercially significant fish species. The presence of marine and freshwater microplastic pollution is well documented in Chinook salmon habitat, yet no research has investigated the impacts to salmon from microplastic ingestion. The majority of the marine microplastics found in the Salish Sea are microfibers, synthetic extruded polymers that come from commonly worn clothing. To understand the potential impacts of microfiber ingestion to fish, we ran a feeding experiment with juvenile Chinook salmon to determine if ingested fibers are retained or digestion rates altered over a 10 day digestion period. The experiment was completed in two trials, each consisted of 20 control and 20 treatment fish. Treatment fish were each fed an amended ration of 12 food pellets spiked with 20 polyester microfibers and control fish were fed the same ration without added microfibers. Fish were sampled at day 0, 3, 5, 7, and 10 to assess if fibers were retained in their gastrointestinal tract and to determine the rate of digestion. Fibers for the experiment came from washing a red polyester fleece jacket in a microfiber retention bag. Fibers had a mean length of 4.98 mm. Results showed fish were able to clear up to 94% of fed fibers over 10 days. Differences in mean gastrointestinal mass were not statistically significant at any sampled time between treatment and controls, suggesting that the ingestion of microfibers did not alter digestion rates. Further work is needed to understand if repeated exposures, expected in the environment, alter digestion or food assimilation for growth.

A major challenge in the biological monitoring of stream ecosystems in protected wilderness areas is discerning whether temporal changes in community structure are significantly outside of a reference condition that represents natural or acceptable annual variation in population cycles. Otherwise sites could erroneously be classified as impaired. Long-term datasets are essential for understanding these trends, to ascertain whether any changes in community structure significantly beyond the reference condition are permanent shifts or with time move back to within previous limits. To this end, we searched for long-term (>8 years) quantitative data sets of macroinvertebrate communities in wadeable rivers collected by similar methods and time of year in protected wilderness areas with minimal anthropogenic disturbance. Four geographic areas with datasets that met these criteria in the USA were identified, namely: McLaughlin Nature Reserve in California (1 stream), Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Tennesse-North Carolina (14 streams), Wind River Wilderness Areas in Wyoming (3 streams) and Denali National Park and Preserve in Alaska (6 streams). Two statistical approaches were applied: Taxonomic Distinctness (TD) to describe changes in diversity over time and non-metric multidimensional scaling (MDS) to describe changes over time in community persistence (Jaccards Index) and community stability (Bray–Curtis Index). Control charts were used to determine if years in MDS plots were significantly outside a reference condition. For Hunting Creek, TD showed three years outside natural variation which could be attributed to severe hydrological events but years outside the natural-variation funnel at sites in other geographical areas were inconsistent and could not be explained by environmental variables. TD identified simulated severe pollutant events which caused the removal of entire invertebrate assemblages but not simulated water temperature shifts. Within a region, both MDS analyses typically identified similar years as exceeding reference condition variation, illustrating the utility of the approach for identifying wider spatial scale effects that influence more than one stream. MDS responded to both simulated water temperature stress and a pollutant event, and generally outlying years on MDS plots could be explained by environmental variables, particularly higher precipitation. Multivariate control charts successfully identified whether shifts in community structure identified by MDS were significant and whether the shift represented a press disturbance (long-term change) or a pulse disturbance. We consider a combination of TD and MDS with control charts to be a potentially powerful tool for determining years significantly outside of a reference condition variation.

Agricultural land use has often been linked to nutrient enrichment, habitat degradation, hydrologic alteration, and loss of biotic integrity in streams. The U.S. Geological Survey's National Water Quality Assessment Program sampled 226 stream sites located in eight agriculture-dominated study units across the United States to investigate the geographic variability and causes of agricultural impacts on stream biotic integrity. In this analysis we used structural equation modeling (SEM) to develop a national and set of regional causal models linking agricultural land use to measured instream conditions. We then examined the direct, indirect, and total effects of agriculture on biotic integrity as it acted through multiple water quality and habitat pathways. In our nation-wide model, cropland affected benthic communities by both altering structural habitats and by imposing water quality-related stresses. Region-specific modeling demonstrated that geographic context altered the relative importance of causal p...

Many streams within the United States are impaired due to nutrient enrichment, particularly in agricultural settings. The present study examines the response of benthic algal communities in agricultural and minimally disturbed sites from across the western United States to a suite of environmental factors, including nutrients, collected at multiple scales. The first objective was to identify the relative importance of nutrients, habitat and watershed features, and macroinvertebrate trophic structure to explain algal metrics derived from deposition and erosion habitats. The second objective was to determine if thresholds in total nitrogen (TN) and total phosphorus (TP) related to algal metrics could be identified and how these thresholds varied across metrics and habitats. Nutrient concentrations within the agricultural areas were elevated and greater than published threshold values. All algal metrics examined responded to nutrients as hypothesized. Although nutrients typically were the most important variables in explaining the variation in each of the algal metrics, environmental factors operating at multiple scales also were important. Calculated thresholds for TN or TP based on the algal metrics generated from samples collected from erosion and deposition habitats were not significantly different. Little variability in threshold values for each metric for TN and TP was observed. The consistency of the threshold values measured across multiple metrics and habitats suggest that the thresholds identified in this study are ecologically relevant. Additional work to characterize the relationship between algal metrics, physical and chemical features, and nuisance algal growth would be of benefit to the development of nutrient thresholds and criteria.

Like many fragmented reptile populations, the ornate box turtle (Terrapene ornata ornata) is located in isolated, often small, populations in eastern Iowa. If populations are to remain viable, genetic diversity within these populations must be maintained, which is done most efficiently by migration among populations. Population viability was accessed using 3 microsatellite loci to determine population genetic structure in 2 locally dispersed subpopulations of ornate box turtles. Although these subpopulations were determined to be 1 large population with the normal range of heterozygosity, further examination revealed evidence of genetic divergence from a once larger population that is now geographically separated into fragments. We concluded that the central population studied was genetically healthy, and with proper management that continues to promote gene flow, the population should remain viable in the near future.

Setback levees, in which levees are reconstructed at a greater distance from a river channel, are a promising restoration technique particularly for alluvial rivers with broad floodplains where river-floodplain connectivity is essential to ecological processes. Documenting the ecological outcomes of restoration activities is essential for assessing the comparative benefits of different restoration approaches and for justifying new restoration projects. Remote sensing of aquatic habitats offers one approach for comprehensive, objective documentation of river and floodplain habitats, but is difficult in glacial rivers because of high suspended-sediment concentrations, braiding and a lack of large, well-differentiated channel forms such as riffles and pools. Remote imagery and field surveys were used to assess the effects of recent and planned setback levees along the Puyallup River and, more generally, the application of multispectral imagery for classifying aquatic and riparian habitats in glacial-melt water rivers. Airborne images were acquired with a horizontal ground resolution of 0.5 m in three spectral bands (0.545-0.555, 0.665-0.675 and 0.790-0.810 μm) spanning from green to near infrared (NIR) wavelengths. Field surveys identified river and floodplain habitat features and provided the basis for a comparative hydraulic analysis. Broad categories of aquatic habitat (smooth and rough water surface), exposed sediment (sand and boulder) and vegetated surfaces (herbaceous and deciduous shrub/forest) were classified accurately using the airborne images. Other categories [e.g. conifers, boulder, large woody debris (LWD)] and subdivisions of broad categories (e.g. riffles and runs) were not successfully classified either because these features did not form large patches that could be identified on the imagery or their spectral reflectances were not distinct from those of other habitat types. Airborne imagery was critical for assessing fine-scale aquatic habitat heterogeneity including shallow, low-velocity regions that were not feasible or practical to map in the field in many cases due to their widespread distribution, small size and poorly defined boundaries with other habitat types. At the reach-scale, the setback levee affected the amount and distribution of riparian and aquatic habitats: (1) the area of all habitats was greater where levees had been set back and with relatively more vegetated floodplain habitat and relatively less exposed sediment and aquatic habitat, (2) where levees confine the river, less low-velocity aquatic habitat is present over a range of flows with a higher degree of bed instability during high flows. As river restoration proceeds in the Pacific Northwest and elsewhere, remotely acquired imagery will be important for documenting its effects on the amount and distribution of aquatic and floodplain habitats, complimenting field data as a quantitative basis for evaluating project efficacy. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

We quantified home range size and philopatry in ornate box turtles, Terrapene ornata ornata, with minimum convex polygons (MCP) and 95% Kernel areas (K) calculated from radio telemetry data in Iowa during 1999–2001. We also analyzed philopatry by mark-recapture data during 1994–2000. Ten adult turtles were followed every other day from May to Sep. 2000 and seven of the turtles were followed in 2001. Mean monthly MCP and K home ranges of males and females did not significantly differ. Mean annual MCP and K home ranges for males were significantly larger than those of females. For an individual, monthly MCP home ranges overlapped on average 19.3% between years and K home ranges overlapped an average of 6.0%. There were no significant differences in annual or monthly home range overlap between sexes for K home ranges, but MCP monthly home range overlap was significantly larger for males. Annual MCP home ranges overlapped on average 40.9% between years and K annual home range overlap averaged 6.8%. S...

The carapace temperatures of ornate box turtles (Terrapene ornata ornata) were monitored by affixing temperature dataloggers during two winters, 2001–2002 and 2003–2004. The dataloggers recorded temperature every 3 h to the nearest 0.5 C. Date of burrowing in the fall, emergence time in the spring and temperatures 48 h prior to emergence were analyzed along with the entire temperature profile of the turtles during the winter. In 2003–2004 soil temperatures from the surface to 0.75 m depth were also monitored. Most turtles did not experience freezing temperatures during either winter, but two turtles were below freezing for up to 54 consecutive days during winter 2001–2002. During 2001–2002, eight of nine turtles began burrowing within 7 d of each other in the fall, and all nine emerged within 7 d of each other in the spring. During 2003–2004, fall burrowing for 16 turtles occurred within 14–21 d, and emergence happened within 15 d. Overwintering periods varied between 172–201 d, which was interme...

As part of the National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program, the USGS is investigating contaminants in Streambed sediment and aquatic organisms and their relation to land use. One such study is being done in the Puget Sound Basin, which is located in northwestern Washington State and includes streams and rivers that drain to the Puget Sound, the Strait of Georgia, and the Strait of Juan de Fuca, but does not include marine waters. The basin encompasses 13,700 square miles; forest, urban, and agriculture are the principal land uses.

Macroinvertebrate assemblages and environmental variables were evaluated at 45 stream sites throughout the Puget Sound Basin, Washington, USA. Environmental variables were measured at 3 spatial scales: reach, local, and whole watershed. Macroinvertebrate distributions were related to environmental variables using canonical correspondence analysis to determine which variables and spatial scales best explained the observed community composition and to identify biota–land cover optima. The calculation of a biota–land cover optimum was a 2-step process. First, an individual taxon's optimum was estimated for a particular land cover by weighting the mean value for that land cover by the abundance of that taxon at all sites. Second, the biota–land cover optimum was determined as the point at which the greatest numbers of taxa, at their calculated optima, appeared for a particular land cover. Sampling reaches were located on streams in watersheds with varying levels of forest, agriculture, and urban/subu...

In November 2013, U.S. Geological Survey streamgaging equipment was installed at a historical water-quality station on the Duwamish River, Washington, within the tidal influence at river kilometer 16.7 (U.S. Geological Survey site 12113390; Duwamish River at Golf Course at Tukwila, WA). Publicly available, real-time continuous data includes river streamflow, stream velocity, and turbidity. Between November 2013 and March 2015, the U.S. Geological Survey collected representative samples of water, suspended sediment, or bed sediment from the streamgaging station during 28 periods of differing flow conditions. Samples were analyzed by Washington-State-accredited laboratories for a large suite of compounds, including metals, dioxins/furans, semivolatile compounds including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, pesticides, butytins, polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) Aroclors and the 209 PCB congeners, volatile organic compounds, hexavalent chromium, and total and dissolved organic carbon. Metals, PCB congeners, and dioxins/furans were frequently detected in unfiltered-water samples, and concentrations typically increased with increasing suspended-sediment concentrations. Chemical concentrations in suspendedsediment samples were variable between sampling periods. The highest concentrations of many chemicals in suspended sediment were measured during summer and early autumn storm periods. Median chemical concentrations in suspended-sediment samples were greater than median chemical concentrations in fine bed sediment (less than 62.5 μm) samples, which were greater than median chemical concentrations in paired bulk bed sediment (less than 2 mm) samples. Suspended-sediment concentration, sediment particle-size distribution, and general water-quality parameters were measured concurrent with the chemistry sampling. From this discrete data, combined with the continuous streamflow record, estimates of instantaneous sediment and chemical loads from the Green River to the Lower Duwamish Waterway were calculated. For most compounds, loads were higher during storms than during baseline conditions because of high streamflow and high chemical concentrations. The highest loads occurred during dam releases (periods when stored runoff from a prior storm is released from the Howard Hanson Dam into the upper Green River) because of the high river streamflow and high suspended-sediment concentration, even when chemical concentrations were lower than concentrations measured during storm events. Introduction The Lower Duwamish Waterway (LDW) is the final 8-km-long reach of the Green/Duwamish River. The LDW enters Puget Sound’s Elliott Bay in Seattle, Washington (fig. 1) and is the site of intense current and historical anthropogenic influence that has resulted in contaminated sediments. Land uses include numerous residential, industrial, and commercial activities such as manufacturing of airplane parts, boats, concrete, food processing, marinas, and roads. In 2001–02, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology) required remedial investigations and feasibility studies on the 1.8 km2 LDW under the Federal Superfund law and the Washington Model Toxics Control Act because of concerns about human health risks from exposure to contaminated sediments. The main contaminants of concern for human health include polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), dioxins/furans, carcinogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (cPAHs), and arsenic. Additionally, about 47 compounds (including individual metals, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons [PAHs], phthalates, and other volatile and semivolatile organic compounds) have numeric criteria in the Ecology Sediment Management Standards for protection of the benthic community. Five locations with highly contaminated sediment were identified for early cleanup, and those cleanup activities are complete or near completion (with a target date of 2015). The EPA’s final cleanup plan for the remaining areas was released in November 2014 and includes using combinations of dredging, capping, natural sedimentation, and enhanced natural recovery. Chemical Concentrations and Instantaneous Loads, Green River to the Lower Duwamish Waterway near Seattle, Washington, 2013–15 By Kathleen E. Conn, Robert W. Black, Ann M. Vanderpool-Kimura, James R. Foreman, Norman T. Peterson, Craig A. Senter, and Stephen K. Sissel 2 Chemical Concentrations and Instantaneous Loads, Green River to Lower Duwamish Waterway, Washington, 2013–15 Figure 1. U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) sampling station relative to the Lower Duwamish Waterway, Seattle, Washington. Modified from Conn and Black (2014). watac13-0877_fig 01 Tukwila Lake Washington Elliott Bay Green River Black R iver Damish iver Seattle Damish iver 2013 NAIP (National Agricultural Imagery Program) 1 meter imagery, U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm Service Agency, Washington State Plane South, NAD83 12113390 8 0 16.7 18 Washington Figure location EXPLANATION USGS sample site Lower Duwamish Waterway 0 2 0.5 1 1.5 MILES 0 2 0.5 1 1.5 KILOMETERS Approximate river kilometer 18 122°15' 122°18' 122°21'

Benthic algal communities were assessed in an agriculturally dominated landscape in the Central Columbia Plateau, Washington, to determine which environmental variables best explained species distributions, and whether algae species optima models were useful in predicting specific water-quality parameters. Land uses in the study area included forest, range, urban, and agriculture. Most of the streams in this region can be characterized as open-channel systems influenced by intensive dryland (nonirrigated) and irrigated agriculture. Algal communities in forested streams were dominated by blue-green algae, with communities in urban and range streams dominated by diatoms. The predominance of either blue-greens or diatoms in agricultural streams varied greatly depending on the specific site. Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) indicated a strong gradient effect of several key environmental variables on benthic algal community composition. Conductivity and % agriculture were the dominant explanator...

We analyzed streambed sediment and fish tissue (Cottus sp.) at 30 sites in the Puget Sound and Willamette basins in Washington and Oregon, USA, respectively, for organochlorine pesticides and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). The study was designed to determine the concentrations of organochlorine pesticides and PCBs in fish tissue and sediment by land use within these basins and to develop an empirical relation between land use and the probability of detecting these compounds in fish tissue or sediment. We identified 14 organochlorines in fish tissue and sediment; three compounds were unique to either fish tissue or sediment samples. The highest number of organochlorines detected in both fish tissue and streambed sediment was at those sites located in watersheds dominated by urban land uses. Using logistic regression, we found a significant relation between percentage agriculture and urban land use and organochlorines in fish tissue. The results of this study indicate that organochlorine pesticides and PCBs are still found in fish tissues and bed sediments in these two basins. In addition, we produced statistically significant models capable of predicting the probability of detecting specific organochlorines in fish on the basis of land use. Although the presented models are specific to the two study basins, the modeling approach could be applied to other basins as well.

In this paper, we report the sizes and distributional orientation of woody debris in a headwater rainforest stream in the Luquillo Experimental Forest (LEF), Puerto Rico. We also provide results of a 4-month study of a wood addition experiment designed to increase cover for benthic macroinvertebrates (freshwater shrimp). We added branch-sized woody debris to 20 pools in three streams. We trapped four species of freshwater shrimp (two species of benthic detritivores and two predatory shrimp species) during each of the 4 months following wood additions. An analysis of pool morphology (maximum depth, surface area and volume) provided a useful predictor of shrimp abundances. In general, numbers of shrimps increased with sizes of stream pools. A repeated measures ANOVA demonstrated no effect of woody debris additions on total numbers of shrimp per pool area. Two detritivore species (Atya lanipes, a filter feeder and Xiphocaris elongata, a shredder) decreased in abundance with increased woody debris and there was no statistical relationship between woody debris additions and predators ( Macrobrachium carcinus and M. crenulatum). Small woody debris additions may have altered flow velocities that were important to filter-feeding Atya at the microhabitat scale, although the overall velocities within pools were not altered by wood additions. Lower numbers of Atya and Xiphocaris in two of the three streams may result from the occurrence of two predaceous fishes (American eel and mountain mullet) and more predatory Macrobrachium in these streams. One likely interpretation of the results of this study is that the stream pools in these study reaches had sufficient habitat structure provided by numerous rock crevices (among large rocks and boulders) to provide refuge from predators. Addition of woody debris did not add significantly to the existing structure. These results may not apply to stream channels with sand and gravel substrata where crevices and undercut banks are lacking and where woody debris often plays a major role by providing structure and refuge.

The consistent cold temperatures and large amount of precipitation in the Olympic and Cascade ranges of Washington State are thought to enhance atmospheric deposition of contaminants. However, little is known about contaminant levels in organisms residing in these remote high elevation lakes. We measured total mercury and 28 organochlorine compounds in trout collected from 14 remote lakes in the Olympic, Mt. Rainer, and North Cascades National Parks. Mercury was detected in trout from all lakes sampled (15 to 262 microg/kg ww), while two organochlorines, total polychlorinated biphenyls (tPCB) and dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (DDE), were also detected in these fish tissues (25 microg/kg ww). In sediments, organochlorine levels were below detection, while median total and methyl mercury were 30.4 and 0.34 microg/kg dry weight (ww), respectively. Using fish from two lakes, representing different contaminant loading levels (Wilcox lake: high; Skymo lake: low), we examined transcriptional response in the liver using a custom-made low-density targeted rainbow trout cDNA microarray. We detected significant differences in liver transcriptional response, including significant changes in metabolic, endocrine, and immune-related genes, in fish collected from Wilcox Lake compared to Skymo Lake. Overall, our results suggest that local urban areas contribute to the observed contaminant patterns in these high elevation lakes, while the transcriptional changes point to a biological response associated with exposure to these contaminants in fish. Specifically, the gene expression pattern leads us to hypothesize a role for mercury in disrupting the metabolic and reproductive pathways in fish from high elevation lakes in western Washington.

The Granger Drain and DR2 basins are located in the Yakima River basin in south central Washington. These agricultural basins are one of five areas in the United States selected for study as part of the National Water-Quality Assessment Program Agricultural Chemicals: Source, Transport, and Fate Study. The Program is designed to describe water-quality conditions and trends based on representative surfaceand ground-water resources across the Nation. The objective of the Agricultural Chemicals topical study is to investigate the sources, transport, and fate of selected agricultural chemicals in a variety of agriculturally diverse environmental settings. The Granger Drain and DR2 basins were selected for the Agricultural Chemicals topical study because they represent the irrigated agricultural setting that characterizes eastern Washington. These basins are located in one of the most productive agricultural areas in the United States. This report describes the environmental setting of the Granger Drain and DR2 basins in the context of how agricultural practices, including agricultural chemical applications and irrigation methods, interface with natural settings and hydrologic processes. Introduction The Granger Drain and DR2 basins are located in the Yakima River basin in south central Washington (fig. 1). These agricultural basins are one of five areas in the United States selected for study as part of the National Water-Quality Assessment Program (NAWQA) Agricultural Chemicals: Source, Transport, and Fate Study (ACT). These basins are located in one of the most productive agricultural areas in the United States. As in many agricultural areas, crop production, pastures, and animal feeding operations in the Granger Drain and DR2 basins have been identified as sources of chemical contamination for surface and ground water in the area (Morace and McKenzie, 2002). To improve our understanding of how agricultural chemicals move through the environment and ways to best manage these chemicals, intensive chemical studies within the Granger Drain and DR2 basins were begun in 2001. Chemical samples were collected from all major hydrologic compartments within these basins, including the atmosphere, the subsurface unsaturated zone, ground water, overland flow, surface water, and the streambed surface-water/ ground-water interface. This report details the environmental setting within Granger Drain and DR2 basins. The information presented here is intended for scientists and managers working in these and similar basins and provides a context in which to evaluate current and future work conducted as part of the NAWQA program in these basins. Purpose and Scope The purpose of this report is to present an overview of the current environmental setting of the Granger Drain and DR2 basins and identify factors influencing water quality in these basins. The environmental factors described here include the natural factors of physiography, geology, soils, hydrology, and climate, and the cultural factors of population and land use. This report largely represents a compilation of the results of selected water-quality studies and existing data with respect to the environmental factors in these basins. However, some new data are presented on land use and pesticide application rates. Environmental Setting of Granger Drain and DR2 Basins The Granger Drain and DR2 basins are located in south central Washington State. The study area is bounded on the south by the Yakima River and Snipes Mountain and on the north by the Rattlesnake Hills (fig. 1). Granger Drain basin includes about 62 mi, and the DR2 basin, nested within the Granger Drain basin, has a drainage area of 2.1 mi (fig. 1). Because the region lies in the rain shadow east of the Cascade Mountains, it receives about 7 in. of precipitation per year (Western Regional Climate Center, 2005). The city of Granger, a community of about 2,500 people, is in the southwest part of the basin. Agriculture is the primary economic activity in these basins. The area was selected for this study because environmental conditions and agricultural practices are similar to other parts of the lower Yakima River basin. Environmental Setting of the Granger Drain and DR2 Basins, Washington, 2003–04 By Karen L. Payne, Henry M. Johnson, and Robert W. Black

As part of the National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program, the USGS is investigating contaminants in Streambed sediment and aquatic organisms and their relation to land use. One such study is being done in the Puget Sound Basin, which is located in northwestern Washington State and includes streams and rivers that drain to the Puget Sound, the Strait of Georgia, and the Strait of Juan de Fuca, but does not include marine waters. The basin encompasses 13,700 square miles; forest, urban, and agriculture are the principal land uses.

not Available.

not Available.

The cyclomorphosis exhibited by a population ofEubosmina longispina in Bullhead Pond, Rhode Island is documented and compared to that reported for similar species of Bosminidae. Cyclomorphosis inEubosmina longispina involves the same morphological characters that exhibit seasonal changes in related species, but the temporal patterns of these changes are quite distinct. We suggest that the cyclomorphosis exhibited byEubosmina longispina is caused by simultaneous, but very different selective predation by planktivorous copepods and fish.

Cyclomorphosis was examined in the long-featured species of the Bosmina longirostris complex at an inshore study site in Lake Washington, State of Washington, USA, in 1975 and 1976. Summertime decreases were observed in the mean size and relative growth of four morphological characters in 1975 and in the mean size of three of these characters in 1976. Seasonal changes in antennule length, the number of antennule segments, mucro length, and the number of mucro sutures were determined to be unrelated to the age structure of the population. Samples of clones that were isolated from the field population and acclimated to a single set of laboratory conditions contained significant between-clone heterogeneity with respect to the mean size of three characters: antennule length, mucro length, and the number of mucro sutures. Furthermore, acclimated clone sets isolated from springtime populations contained significantly larger characters than did sets that were isolated from summertime populations and acclimated to the same conditions. These findings not only indicate that clones can be genetically distinct with respect to these three cyclomorphic characters and that the field population contained considerable genetic diversity with respect to these characters at any one time, but also show that genetic changes occurred in the population with respect to each character. Evidence suggests that these genetic changes did not occur as large-scale extinctions of clones, but probably involved the succession of morphologically distinct clones as the numerically dominant clone. Comparison of the observed cyclomorphosis with those patterns predicted by the various hy- potheses for the causes of this phenomenon has revealed that the seasonal morphological changes shown by this species were probably caused by the selective predation of a temporally important predator. Cyclomorphosis in the long-featured species was not related to water temperature or oxygen stress in the manner proposed for other species by previous investigators.

Since local authorities have a particular need for accurate population information for small areas they have developed various methods for obtaining up-to-date population data. The paper examines in some detail one technique the enhancement of electoral registers drawing up on the experience of [Scotlands] Strathclyde Regional Council. Conclusions are drawn regarding the effectiveness of this technique and its potential for further development in the United Kingdom. (EXCERPT)

The nest and colony characteristics, distribution, and ecology of four taxonomically diverse species of ants that build nests on leaf surfaces in a tropical wet forest are documented and compared. Significant differences were observed in the material used to construct nests, in the nest architecture, nest and colony size, social organization, nest density and distribution, and in the apparent food habits of the four species. The observed differences between the four species reflect the great taxonomic distance between them and indicate that each evolved the leaf nesting habit independently rather than through a common leaf nesting ancestor. The leaf nesting habit does not put obvious, common constraints on the nest or colony characteristics or the ecology of ant species, but may limit ants of this lifestyle to habitats and microsites that have a narrow range in ambient temperature and relative humidity. NEST BUILDING IS AN ALMOST UNIVERSAL BEHAVIOR IN ANTS. The majority of species build nests (see Wheeler 1910, Sudd 1967 for review) in the soil, but other species nest above ground in crevices (Forel 1874), rotting wood (Riordan 1960, Soulie 1961), the specialized parts of plants (Bequaert 1922, Brown 1960), in carton nests on the sides of trees (Forel 1899, Wheeler 1922), and on leaf surfaces (Forel 1894, H6lldobler & Wilson 1983). Descriptions of the nest and colony characteristics and ecology of ant species that nest on leaf surfaces are infrequent and largely limited to species of the genera Oecophylla (Wheeler 1910, Way 1954), and Polyrachis (Forel 1928, H611dobler & Wilson 1983), which make nests by weaving leaves together with silk. Other ant taxa that build carton or fungal nests on leaf surfaces have been reported (Wheeler 1910, Forsyth 1981) and described taxonomically, but very little information is available on the distribution, abundance, social organization, ecology, and evolution of