Water Resource Management Commons^™

Bats Increased Foraging Activity At Experimental Prey Patches Near Hibernacula, Winifred F. Frick, Yvonne A. Dzal, Kristin A. Jonasson, Michael D. Whitby, Amanda M. Adams, Christen Long, John E. Depue, Christian M. Newman, Craig K. R. Willis, Tina L. Cheng

Nebraska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit: Staff Publications

1. Emerging infectious diseases in wildlife can threaten vulnerable host populations. Actions targeting habitat improvements to aid population resilience and recovery may be beneficial long-term strategies, yet testing the efficacy of such strategies before major conservation investments are made can be challenging.

2. The disease white-nose syndrome (WNS) has caused severe declines in several species of North American hibernating bats. We tested a novel conservation approach targeted at improving foraging conditions near bat hibernacula by experimentally manipulating insect density in the pre-hibernation fattening period and spring emergence recovery period. We measured foraging (feeding buzzes) and echolocation activity of little brown bats Myotis …

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Time Domain Reflectometry Waveform Interpretation With Convolutional Neural Networks, Zhuangji Wang, Shan Hua, Dennis Timlin, Yuki Kojima, Songtao Lu, Wenguang Sun, David Fleisher, Robert Horton, Vangimalla R. Reddy, Katherine Tully

Nebraska Water Center: Faculty Publications

Interpreting time domain reflectometry (TDR) waveforms obtained in soils with non-uniform water content is an open question. We design a new TDR waveform interpretation model based on convolutional neural networks (CNNs) that can reveal the spatial variations of soil relative permittivity and water content along a TDR sensor. The proposed model, namely TDR-CNN, is constructed with three modules. First, the geometrical features of the TDR waveforms are extracted with a simplified version of VGG16 network. Second, the reflection positions in a TDR waveform are traced using a 1D version of the region proposal network. Finally, the soil relative permittivity values …

Globally Scalable Approach To Estimate Net Ecosystem Exchange Based On Remote Sensing, Meteorological Data, And Direct Measurements Of Eddy Covariance Sites, Ruslan Zhuravlev, Andrey Dara, André Luís Diniz Dos Santos, Oleg Demidov, George Burba

Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute: Faculty Publications

Despite a rapid development of Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) for carbon removal in recent years, the methods for evaluating NBS still have certain gaps. We propose an approach based on a combination of remote sensing data and meteorological variables to reconstruct the spatiotemporal variation of net ecosystem exchange from eddy-covariance stations. A Lagrangian particle dispersion model was used for upscaling satellite images and flux towers. We trained data-driven models based on kernel methods separately for each selected land-cover class. The results suggest that the proposed approach to quantifying carbon exchange on a medium-to-large scale by blending eddy covariance flux data with …

Role Of Social Determinants Of Health In Differential Respiratory Exposure And Health Outcomes Among Children, Jagadeesh Puvvula, Jill A. Poole, Yeongjin Gwon, Eleanor G. Rogan, Jesse E. Bell

Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute: Faculty Publications

Background Attributes defining the Social Determinants of Health (SDoH) are associated with disproportionate exposures to environmental hazards and differential health outcomes among communities. The dynamics between SDoH, disproportionate environmental exposures, and differential health outcomes are often specific to micro-geographic areas.

Methods This study focused on children less than 20 years of age who lived in Douglas County, Nebraska, during 2016–2019. To assess the role of SDoH in differential exposures, we evaluated the association between SDoH metrics and criteria pollutant concentrations and the association between SDoH and pediatric asthma exacerbations to quantify the role of SDoH in differential pediatric asthma outcomes. …

Multi-Scale Adaptive Management Of Social-Ecological Systems, A. Garmestani, Craig R. Allen, D. G. Angeler, L. Gunderson, J. B. Ruhl

School of Natural Resources: Documents and Reviews

No abstract provided.

Local-Scale Impacts Of Water Hyacinth On Water Quality In A Hypereutrophic Lake, J. R. Corman, A. Z. Roegner, Z. Ogari, T. R. Miller, C. M. Aura

School of Natural Resources: Documents and Reviews

No abstract provided.

Spatiotemporal Analysis Of Extreme Precipitation In The Southern Great Plains Hydroclimate Region, P. Flanagan, R. Mahmood

School of Natural Resources: Documents and Reviews

No abstract provided.

Resilience Theory And Coerced Resilience In Agriculture, S. M. Sundstrom, D. G. Angeler, C. R. Allen

School of Natural Resources: Documents and Reviews

No abstract provided.

Storms And Ph Of Dam Releases Affects Downstream Phosphorus Cycling In An Arid Regulated River, B. R. Deemer, R. H. Reibold, A. Fatta, J. R. Corman, C. B. Yackulic, S. C. Reed

School of Natural Resources: Documents and Reviews

No abstract provided.

Modified Tracer Gas Injection For Measuring Stream Gas Exchange Velocity In The Presence Of Significant Temperature Variation, C. R. Jensen, D. P. Genereux, T. E. Gilmore, D. K. Solomon

School of Natural Resources: Documents and Reviews

No abstract provided.

Characterization Of Particulate Size Distributions And Water-Soluble Ions Measured At A Broiler Farm, P. J. Silva, T. Cress, R. Drover, C. Michael, G. Docekal, P. Larkin, A. Godoy, D. A. Cavero, C. Sin, J. Waites, Rezaul Mamood, M. Cohron, K. L. Purvis-Roberts

School of Natural Resources: Documents and Reviews

No abstract provided.

A Workshop On Using Nasa Airs Data To Monitor Drought For The U.S. Drought Monitor, Alireza Farahmand,, Sharon Ray, Heidar Thrastarson, Stephen Licata, Stephanie Granger, Brian Fuchs

National Drought Mitigation Center: Faculty Publications

Recent studies indicate that drought indicators based on near-surface air relative humidity (RH), air temperature (T), and air vapor pressure deficit (VPD), derived from the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) instrument aboard NASA’s Aqua satellite can detect the onset of drought earlier than other drought indicators, specifically standardized precipitation index (SPI), which is widely used for drought onset detection. A recent study showed that standardized relative humidity index (SRHI) can detect drought signals earlier than SPI (Farahmand et al. 2015). Relative humidity is a climate variable defined as the ratio of air vapor pressure to saturated vapor pressure. Precipitation and relative …

Trust And Subjective Knowledge Influence Perceived Risk Of Lead Exposure, Madeline Goebel, Chloe B. Wardropper

National Drought Mitigation Center: Faculty Publications

Lead exposure is a persistent environmental hazard that poses risks to human health. But motivating protective action is challenging with this low visibility hazard whose health effects are often subtle and chronic. Higher risk perception is generally associated with taking protective measures, so public health efforts prioritize risk messaging. Yet, little is known about perceptions of lead exposure risk among the U.S. public. Using cross-sectional data from a national survey of 1035 U.S. residents, we measured the role of trust in government management of lead and subjective knowledge about lead as predictors of perceived risk of lead exposure, controlling for …

Flood-Inundation Maps For An 8-Mile Reach Of Papillion Creek Near Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska, 2022, Kellan R. Strauch, Christopher M. Hobza

United States Geological Survey: Water Reports and Publications

Digital flood-inundation maps for an 8-mile reach of Papillion Creek near Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska, were created by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in cooperation with the U.S. Air Force, Offutt Air Force Base. The flood-inundation maps, which can be accessed through the USGS Flood Inundation Mapping Program website at https://www.usgs.gov/mission-areas/water-resources/science/flood-inundation-mapping-fim-program, depict estimates of the areal extent and depth of flooding corresponding to selected water levels (stages) at the USGS streamgages Papillion Creek at Fort Crook, Nebr. (station 06610795), and Papillion Creek at Harlan Lewis Road near La Platte, Nebr. (station 06610798). Near-real-time stages at these streamgages may …

Selected Anthropogenic Contaminants In Groundwater, Papio-Missouri River Natural Resources District, Eastern Nebraska, 1992–2020, Brent M. Hall, Cory L. Kavan, Amanda Flynn, Mikaela L. Cherry

United States Geological Survey: Water Reports and Publications

A study in cooperation with the Papio-Missouri River Natural Resources District was completed in 2019 to determine the concentration of contaminants of emerging concern (CEC) in groundwater in the Papio-Missouri River Natural Resources District, eastern Nebraska. Each well was sampled twice (in June and October or November) in 2019, totaling 34 samples. Samples were analyzed for 132 CECs, which include pharmaceutical, steroid hormone, and other organic chemicals. Seven of the 132 CEC analytes were detected in samples collected during this study. The most commonly detected CEC in this study was the antibiotic sulfamethoxazole. Other CECs detected in this study were …

An Integrated Hydrologic Model To Support The Central Platte Natural Resources District Groundwater Management Plan, Central Nebraska, Jonathan (Jp) Traylor, Moussa Guira, Steven M. Petersen

United States Geological Survey: Water Reports and Publications

The groundwater and surface-water supply of the Central Platte Natural Resources District supports a large agricultural economy from the High Plains aquifer and Platte River, respectively. This study provided the Central Platte Natural Resources District with an advanced numerical modeling tool to assist with the update of their Groundwater Management Plan.

An integrated hydrologic model, called the Central Platte Integrated Hydrologic Model, was constructed using the MODFLOW-One-Water Hydrologic Model code with the Newton solver. This code integrates climate, landscape, surface water, and groundwater-flow processes in a fully coupled approach. Model framework included 163 rows; 327 columns; 2,640 feet cell sides; …

Droughtscape, Winter 2023, National Drought Mitigation Center

DroughtScape: Quarterly Newsletter of the National Drought Mitigation Center (2007–2023)

DroughtScape, Winter 2023

Nebraska Water Center Annual Report 2023, Nebraska Water Center, Daugherty Water For Food Global Institute

Nebraska Water Center: Administrative Materials

The report's highlights updates including the water sciences laboratory, AltEn contamination monitoring and the Know your well project.

Mapping Accuracy Of Close-Range Terrestrial Digital Photogrammetry, Y. Zhou, C. B. Weerasekara, A, Y, Sheshukov

School of Natural Resources: Documents and Reviews

No abstract provided.

Moving Beyond The Panarchy Heuristic, David G. Angeler, Craig R. Allen

School of Natural Resources: Documents and Reviews

No abstract provided.

Evolution Of The Southwest Drought Learning Network: Collective Response To Exceptional Drought, E. Elias, B. Fuchs, J. Lisonbee, T. Bernadt, V. Martinez, T. Haigh

School of Natural Resources: Documents and Reviews

No abstract provided.

Ancient Bears Provide Insights Into Pleistocene Ice Age Refugia In Southeast Alaska, Flavio Augusto Da Silva Coelho, Stephanie Gill, Crystal M. Tomlin, Marilena Papavassiliou, Sean D. Farley, Joseph A. Cook, Sarah A. Sonsthagen, George K. Sage, Timothy H. Heaton, Sandra L. Talbot, Charlotte Lindqvist

Nebraska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit: Staff Publications

During the Late Pleistocene, major parts of North America were periodically covered by ice sheets. However, there are still questions about whether ice-free refugia were present in the Alexander Archipelago along the Southeast (SE) Alaska coast during the last glacial maximum (LGM). Numerous subfossils have been recovered from caves in SE Alaska, including American black (Ursus americanus) and brown (U. arctos) bears, which today are found in the Alexander Archipelago but are genetically distinct from mainland bear populations. Hence, these bear species offer an ideal system to investigate long-term occupation, potential refugial survival and lineage turnover. Here, we present genetic …

Movement And Genomic Methods Reveal Mechanisms Promoting Connectivity In A Declining Shorebird: The Lesser Yellowlegs, K. Christie, R. E. Wilson, J. A. Johnson, C. Friis, C. M. Harwood, L. A. Mcduffie, E. Nol, Sarah A. Sonsthagen

Nebraska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit: Staff Publications

No abstract provided.

Fecal Dna Metabarcoding Shows Credible Short-Term Prey Detections And Explains Variation In The Gut Microbiome Of Two Polar Bear Subpopulations, M. Franz, L. Whyte, T. C. Atwood, D. Menning, Sarah A. Sonsthagen, S. L. Talbot, K. L. Laidre, E. Gonzalez, M. A. Mckinney

Nebraska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit: Staff Publications

No abstract provided.

Labile Carbon And Soil Texture Control Nitrogen Transformation In Deep Vadose Zone, Lidong Li, Jordan Shields, Daniel D. Snow, Michael Kaiser, Arindam Malakar

Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute: Faculty Publications

Understanding transient nitrogen (N) storage and transformation in the deep vadose zone is critical for controlling groundwater contamination by nitrate. The occurrence of organic and inorganic forms of carbon (C) and nitrogen and their importance in the deep vadose zone is not well characterized due to difficulty in sampling and the limited number of studies. We sampled and characterized these pools beneath 27 croplands with different vadose zone thicknesses (6–45 m). We measured nitrate and ammonium in different depths for the 27 sites to evaluate inorganic N storage. We measured total Kjeldahl nitrogen (TKN), hot-water extractable organic carbon (EOC), soil …

Impact Of Eastern Redcedar Encroachment On Water Resources In The Nebraska Sandhills, Yaser Kishawi, Aaron R. Mittelstet, Troy E. Gilmore, Dirac Twidwell, Tirthankar Roy, Nawaraj Shrestha

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

Worldwide, tree or shrub dominated woodlands have encroached into herbaceous dominated grasslands. While very few studies have evaluated the impact of Eastern Redcedar (redcedar) encroachment on the water budget, none have analyzed the impact on water quality. In this study, we evaluated the impact of redcedar encroachment on the water budget in the Nebraska Sand Hills and how the decreased streamflow would increase nitrate and atrazine concentrations in the Platte River. We calibrated a Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT model) for streamflow, recharge, and evapotranspiration. Using a moving window with a dilate morphological filter, encroachment scenarios of 11.9%, 16.1%, …

Sturgeon Chub Distributional Patterns And Habitat Use And Benthic Fish Assemblage Structure In Missouri River Tributaries Of South Dakota, Mitchell R. Magruder

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

Native species of the Missouri River drainage inhabiting benthic habitats dominate state and federal lists of species at risk. Sicklefin Chub Macrhybopsis meeki and Sturgeon Chub Macrhybopsis gelida are two native Missouri River benthic minnows that are currently under review for federal listing under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) due to extensive population declines and local extirpations within their native range. Substantial alterations to the Missouri River threaten Macrhybopsis spp. and other benthic fishes; however, large, less impacted tributaries in South Dakota may act as refugia for native species. The extent of Sicklefin Chub and Sturgeon Chub populations is largely …

Earlier Snowmelt May Lead To Late Season Declines In Plant Productivity And Carbon Sequestration In Arctic Tundra Ecosystems, Donatella Zona, Peter M. Lafleur, Koen Hufkens, Barbara Bailey, Beniamino Gioli, George Burba, Jordan P. Goodrich, Anna K. Liljedahl, Eugénie S. Euskirchen, Jennifer D. Watts, Mary Farina, John S. Kimball, Martin Heimann, Mathias Göckede, Martijn Pallandt, Torben R. Christensen, Mikhail Mastepanov, Efrén López-Blanco, Marcin Jackowicz-Korczynski, Albertus J. Dolman, Luca Belelli Marchesini, Roisin Commane, Steven C. Wofsy, Charles E. Miller, David A. Lipson, Josh Hashemi, Kyle A. Arndt, Lars Kutzbach, David Holl, Julia Boike, Christian Wille, Torsten Sachs, Aram Kalhori, Xia Song

Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute: Faculty Publications

Arctic warming is affecting snow cover and soil hydrology, with consequences for carbon sequestration in tundra ecosystems. The scarcity of observations in the Arctic has limited our understanding of the impact of covarying environmental drivers on the carbon balance of tundra ecosystems. In this study, we address some of these uncertainties through a novel record of 119 site-years of summer data from eddy covariance towers representing dominant tundra vegetation types located on continuous permafrost in the Arctic. Here we found that earlier snowmelt was associated with more tundra net CO2 sequestration and higher gross primary productivity (GPP) only in June …

Wics Conference 2022: Water And Integrated Cropping Systems: Driving Research, Teaching, And Extension Impact --Slide Presentation, Wics Conference

Water and Integrated Cropping Systems Conferences

What conference attendees had to say:

"The teaching overview and panel discussion provided many insights on how education pathways are evolving and the need to create diverse opportunities to meet dynamic needs."

"The extension component was valuable in seeing how those doing research can collaborate with and assist extension educators to make a greater impact in the state."

"It was good to learn what relevant research is being conducted and also the work being done in teaching in regards to water and cropping systems."

It was a great first WICS Conference. The discussions have only just begun.

The North Platte River Valley: The Intersectionality Between Water Quality And People, Anni Poetzl

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

The North Platte River (NPR) Valley of western Nebraska is a semi-arid watershed with row crop production, livestock production, and urban land use activity and has a population of diverse stakeholders. These land use activities contribute to the enrichment of surface waters, such as streams, which can affect human and ecosystem health, as well as economic development and recreational activities. The project objectives are to: (1) quantify the movement of dissolved inorganic nutrients from the land within the NPR Valley to the NPR via tributaries and canals, (2) identify spatiotemporal variability of nutrient limitation of periphyton growth within the NPR, …