Other Environmental Sciences Commons^™

Geology Of The Pre-Dune Strata, James B. Swinehart, Robert F. Diffendal Jr.

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Over the last 98 million years, four general geological processes have acted to shape the ancient landscapes buried beneath the Sand Hills. Three of these affected the area directly, either depositing sediments on the land surface or eroding it, while a fourth took place west of Nebraska, but affected the region nonetheless.

Shells of clams, oysters, and numerous other kinds of creatures similar to forms that live today in the seas are preserved as fossils in the chalks, limestones, and shales that form the oldest rocks beneath the Sand Hills that will be described. These deposits indicate to geologists that …

Leaf Optical And Indirect Lai Measurements In Wheat And Alfalfa At Maciv: Agmet Progress Report 89-4, E. A. Walter-Shea, B. L. Blad

School of Natural Resources: Documents and Reviews

Interpretation of remotely sensed vegetative surfaces requires an understanding of the interaction of radiation with the various components of vegetation. Leaves are the most important component. Thus it is important to know the optical properties of individual leaves as well as the amount and distribution of leaves making up the vegetative cover. The objectives of our study were 1) to characterize the reflectance from and transmittance through adaxial and abaxial surfaces of individual wheat and alfalfa leaves and 2) to compare the traditional, time-consuming, destructive method of estimating LAI (direct method) to a relatively quick, indirect estimate of LAI in …

Loss Of Biological Diversity: A Global Crisis Requiring International Solutions: A Report To The National Science Board, Craig Call Black, Perry L. Adkisson, Gardner Mallard Brown, Rita Rossi Colwell, Charles E. Hess, James B. Holderman, K. June Lindstedt-Siva, William A. Nierenberg, Peter Hamilton Raven, Theodore M. Smith, Edward O. Wilson, W. Franklin Harris

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Library Materials

Executive Summary

Biological diversity refers to the variety and variability among living organisms and the ecological complexes in which they occur. Diversity can be defined as the number of different items and their relative frequency. For biological diversity, these items are organized at many levels, ranging from complete ecosystems to the chemical structures that are the molecular basis of heredity. Thus, the term encompasses different ecosystems, species, genes, and their relative abundance (OTA, 1987).

There is an ongoing, unprecedented loss of the variety as well as absolute numbers of organisms-from the smallest microorganism to the largest and most spectacular of …

Plio-Pleistocene Glacial Deposits In Northeastern Nebraska: New Exposures And Interpretations, Michael R. Voorhies, R. G. Goodwin

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Recent interpretation of oxygen isotopic data for benthic and planktonic foraminifera recovered during ocean drilling programs suggest that world ice volume was greater than the ice volume of 18 thousand years ago (Late Wisconsinan) approximately 2.5 million years ago (Prentice and Matthews, Geology, November, 1988). This agrees well With biostratigraphic and paleoecologic interepretations drawn from sediment cores obtained from the Arctic Ocean Basin. The latter data suggest complete ice cover of the basin during the period 2.2-2.4 million years ago (Scott et at., G.S.A. Bulletin, February, 1989).

The Uranium-Trend Dating Method: Principles And Application For Southern California Marine Terrace Deposits, Daniel R. Muhs, John N. Rosholt, Charles L. Bush

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Uranium-trend dating is an open-system method for age estimation of Quaternary sediments, using disequilibrium in the ²³⁸U–²³⁴U–²³⁰Th decay series. The technique has been applied to alluvium, colluvium, loess, till, and marine sediments, in this study we tested the U-trend dating method on calcareous marine terrace deposits from the Palos Verdes Hills and San Nicolas Island, California. Independent age estimates indicate that terraces in these areas range from –80 ka to greater than 1.0 Ma. Two low terraces on San Nicolas Island yielded U-trend plots that have a clustered array of points and the ages of …

Irrigation Scheduling Of Soybeans, Corn, Wheat, And Potatoes (Camac Progress Report 87-8), Blaine L. Blad

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Comparison Of Measured And Modeled Radiation, Heat, And Water Vapor Fluxes: Fife Pilot Study (Camac Progress Report 87-7), Blaine L. Blad, Shashi B. Verma, Kenneth G. Hubbard, Patrick Starks, Cynthia Hays, John M. Norman, Elizabeth Walter-Shea

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

State Water Quality Standards Summary: Nebraska, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

United States Environmental Protection Agency: Publications

This publication was prepared by Battelle under contract to the U,S. Environmental Protection Agency (Contract 68-03-3534). Secondary information sources were used to compile data presented in this document. Each State was given an opportunity to review and provide comments on a draft of this information document. In no event shall either the United States or Battelle have any responsibility or liability for any use, misuse, or reliance upon the information contained herein, nor does either warrant or otherwise represent in any way .the accuracy, adequacy, efficacy, or applicability of the contents hereof.

The reader should consult the water quality standards …

Seasonal Variations In The Diurnal Characteristics Of Heavy Hourly Precipitation Across The United States, Julie A. Winkler, Brent Robert Skeeter, Paul Yamamoto

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Hourly precipitation data from 1967 to 1983 for the conterminous United States were harmonically analyzed in order to document the diurnal variability of several categories of heavy precipitation during winter, spring, summer, and autumn. The analysis revealed that the diurnal characteristics of hourly precipitation vary considerably with season, geographic region, and precipitation intensity. During winter and spring, a weak, later-morning frequency maximum prevails for the lightest (2.5-6.2 mm h-1) precipitation category. As intensity increases (to 6.3-12.6, 12.7-25.3 and >25.4 mm h-1), the amplitude of the diurnal cycle also increases, and a nocturnal maximum becomes apparent across much of the eastern …

A New Late Miocene Herpetofauna From Franklin County, Nebraska, R. M. Joeckel

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Drought In The Great Plains: A Bibliography (Camac Progress Report 87-5), Donald A. Wilhite, Deborah A. Wood

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Fox Squirrel Interaction With Electrical Transformers, J. Christopher Hamilton

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

No abstract provided.

Fox Squirrel Interaction With Electrical Transformers, J. Christipher Hamilton

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

No abstract provided.

A Field Test Of Habitat Evaluation Procedures For Creek Chub (Semotilus Atromaculatus) And Channel Catfish (Ictalurus Punctatus), Donald W. Zaroban

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

No abstract provided.

A Preliminary Study Of The Hydrogeology Of The Dakota Formation In Douglas, Sarpy And Washington Counties, Eastern Nebraska, Thomas Mark O'Connor

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This study provides preliminary information on the hydrogeology of the Dakota Formation within a 1,000 square-mile area in eastern Nebraska. Isopach maps of the Dakota Formation and individual sand and gravel beds were constructed using a computer contouring program. Hydraulic conductivity values for water-bearing sand beds in the Dakota were estimated using the equation for calculating the specific capacity of wells and results from a grain-size analysis. Concentrations of major dissolved species were determined for samples collected from twenty five wells. The Dakota Formation is characterized by an increase in thickkness and an increase in percentage of clay versus sand …

A Demonstration And Evaluation Of The Use Of Climate Information To Support Irrigation Scheduling And Other Agricultural Operations (Camac Progress Report 87-4), K. G. Hubbard, D. A. Wilhite, S. J. Meyer, J. Booysen, R. Sagar, J. J. Schmidt, J. R. Hines

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Effect Of Shelterbelts On Growth, Yield, And Quality Of Alfalfa (Medicago Sativa L.), Thomas G. Hans

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

No abstract provided.

Prairie Dog Population Growth: Relationships To Population Density, Habitat, And Livestock Grazing Management, Kelly A. Cable

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

No abstract provided.

Effects Of Sediment Addition On The Drift Of Aquatic Macroinvertebrates In Nine Mile Creek, Nebraska, Laurence Angle

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

No abstract provided.

Use Of Climatic Data To Identify Potential Sites In The United States For Growing Papaver Bracteatum As A Pharmaceutical Crop, R.E. Neild

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

A procedure utilizing maps in the National Climatic Atlas was used to survey the United States to find areas for domesticating Papaver bracteatum, a wild poppy from the Trans-Causasus. This poppy had unique properties which make it a possible heroinless source of codeine. Climatic conditions similar to the native habitat and requirements of Papaver bracteatum can be found in areas of western Utah, northern Nevada, southern Idaho, eastern Washington and Oregon, northeastern California and southwestern Wyoming. A detailed climatic analysis was made to evaluate more specific locations within this large area. A site near Medford, Oregon was selected as best …

A Test Of Habitat Evaluation Models Using Avian Densities, Jeremy B. Cable

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

No abstract provided.

A Climatology Of Mean Monthly Snowfall For The Conterminous United States: Temporal And Spatial Patterns, John A. Harrington Jr., Randall S. Cerveny, Kenneth F. Dewey

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Mean monthly snowfall data for 216 stations across the conterminous United States were analyzed to produce a climatology that identifies statistical, spatial and intraseasonal aspects. Geographic variations in the length of the snowfall season are characterized using two statistics: the number of months of snow and the Snow Concentration Index (SCI).

The Annual distribution of mean monthly snowfall is also examined using harmonic analysis. Snowfall across the conterminous United States generally peaks in February; earlier snowfall maxima are found in the Great Lakes area and in the Pacific Northwest, whereas late February or March maxima occur in the western High …

Satellite-Derived Maps Of Snow Cover Frequency For The Northern Hemisphere, Kenneth F. Dewey

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

A satellite imagery-based Northern Hemisphere snow cover data archive was mapped for the period 1966-84: The maps were digitized in order to create the first hemispheric, spatially data-continuous climatologies of snow cover. Annual and monthly climatologies were created and compared to several standard or frequently referenced climatologies. Results of this analysis indicate that the satellite-based climatology provides a much more detailed climatology for the higher latitude and highland regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The satellite imagery-based maps, when compared to the historical snow cover climatologies, indicated more extensive high-latitude snow cover concurrent with a northward shift in the southern extent …

A Preliminary Investigation Of A Relationship Between South American Snow Cover And The Southern Oscillation, Randall S. Cerveny, Brent R. Skeeter, Kenneth F. Dewey

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

A ten-year (1974-83) satellite record of snow cover is compared to a standard index of the Southern Oscillation. South American snow cover area during the May-October snow season is found to be correlated significantly with the winter SOI values of the same year. The relationship is inverse; periods of low SOI values are associated with extensive South American snow cover while periods of high SOI values occur during years of diminished snow cover. The movements of the Pacific anticyclone and the midlatitude westerlies and subsequent changes in precipitation and temperature patterns are discussed in an analysis of this relationship.

Windbreaks And Crop Production, James R. Brandle

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Paleogeomorphic Significance Of Two Paleosols In The Dakota Formation (Cretaceous), Southeastern Nebraska, R. M. Joeckel

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Genesis Of Marine Terrace Soils, Barbados, West Indies: Evidence From Mineralogy And Geochemistry, Daniel R. Muhs, Russell C. Crittenden, John N. Rosholt, Charles A. Bush, Kathleen C. Stewart

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Well-developed, clay-rich soils dominated by interstratified kaolinite-smectite are found on the uplifted coral reef terraces on the island of Barbados. The reef limestone is unlikely to have been the soil parent material however, because it is 98 per cent CaCO, and geomorphic evidence argues against the 20 m of reef solution required to produce the soils by this process. The mineralogy of the sand, silt, and clay fractions of the soils, and trace element geochemistry, suggest that aeolian materials carried on the trade winds from Africa, volcanic ash from the island of St. Vincent, and quartz from Tertiary bedrock on …

Cliff-Height And Slope-Angle Relationships In A Chronosequence Of Quaternary Marine Terraces, San Clemente Island, California, Russell Crittenden, Daniel R. Muhs

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Zusammenfassung. Eine Abfolge quartarer Strandterrassen auf ~an Clemente Island, Kalifornien, liefert einen Rahmen fur die quantitative Analyse der Anderungen an vom Meer verlassenen Kustenkliffen als Funktion der Zeit. Es wurde eine Abschatzung der Anwendbarkeit von BUCKNAM & ANDERSON (1979) log-lin~arer Beziehung zwischen Wandhohe und Hangwinkel durchgefuhrt, indem Brandungskliffhohe und maximale Hangwinkel verwendet wurden. Die Ergebnisse zeigen eine regelhafte Zunahme des Hangwinkels mit dem Logarithmus der Kliffhohe, und Kliffe einer bestimmten Hohe zeigen m,it der Zeit eine Abnahmedes maximalen Hangwinkels. 1m ganzen waren die Relationen schwacher als fur FluBterrassen und Bruchstufen in unverfestigten Materialen, aber die Methode kann wahrscheinlich verwendet werden, …

Effect Of Pre-Burn Artificial Litter And Prescribed Burning On Smooth Brome (Bromus Inermis Leyss), Patricia R. Boehner

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

No abstract provided.

Publications For The Center For Agricultural Meteorology And Climatology 1976-1986 (Camac Special Report 86-1), B. L. Blad, K. G. Hubbard, R. E. Neild, N. J. Rosenberg, S. B. Verma, A. Weiss, D. A. Wilhite, M. H. Glantz, J. M. Norman, L. Hahn, D. C. Rundquist

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.