Reservoir Research ProgramScience-based information for protectingour most crucial natural resource

Kansas Biological Survey

Wilson Lake, in Russell County, has lost less than 5 percent of its capacity to sedimentation since operation began in 1963. Wilson Lake map: Kansas Biological Survey. Wilson Lake photo: Harland Schuster.

For more than a century, the State of Kansas has faced the continual 

challenge of providing the needed supply of water.  Since the mid‐

1800s, more than 200,000 surface water impoundments have been 

built, primarily in central and eastern Kansas. They continue to fill 

with sediment. To the west, thousands of groundwater wells continue 

to reach less water as more is removed than can naturally recharge. 

Many miles of perennial streams have been lost due to this lowering 

of the water table.  Just as we continue to draw upon science to care 

for Kansans’ health and food supply, we must seek science‐based 

solutions to care for and sustain our water supply.  

Two research agencies of the State—the Kansas Biological Survey and 

the Kansas Geological Survey—can help guide the better protection 

and use of our water supply. Researchers at these centers at the 

University of Kansas work together and with other university 

scientists to study both surface and groundwater resources. Research 

collaborations come from the Kansas Water Office and other agencies, 

organizations, institutions of higher education and the private sector.

To best manage a changing resource, we must recognize the causes 

of change. To address both quantity and quality of our water 

supplies, we rely on careful research to better understand our state’s 

water limitations and what causes them. In addition, we are learning 

what can be managed and what cannot—and, for the latter, what our 

options truly are.

Kansas is developing a long‐term vision for the future of water 

supply, and we must all work together, sharing our expertise and 

experience, to find sustainable solutions. 

Our shrinking water supply

Toronto Lake, completed in 1959 in Greenwood and Woodson counties, has lost nearly 45 percent of its original capacity to sedimentation. Toronto Lake map: Kansas Biological Survey. Toronto Lake photo: Harland Schuster.

Understanding the causesNatural lakes in North America are thousands of years old, but 

reservoirs never will be. Reservoirs constructed where they were 

not formed naturally are inherently less stable and thus difficult to 

manage. Natural conditions provide stability to areas where they 

prevail, but where they do not, management challenges appear.

There are few natural lakes in Kansas. Of our 200,000 constructed 

impoundments, the 24 federal reservoirs contain about three times as 

much water as all the others combined. By the end of this century, 

these 24 are expected to lose 44 percent of their capacity to 

sedimentation. Some of the 24 will have lost more than 50 percent, 

others less than 10 percent. Sedimentation rates are unknown for 

nearly all of the non‐federal impoundments, many of which are in 

the watersheds of the federal reservoirs.

We have not identified all the factors that consistently cause rapid 

sedimentation. Millions of dollars are being invested to mitigate 

upland and in‐stream erosion, but it is not certain that this is 

reducing the rate of reservoir capacity loss, as inflows can acquire 

sediment from other sources.

To achieve the most effective management, a better understanding of 

the causes of sedimentation will be necessary as the state works 

toward long‐term sustainability of our reservoir resources. 

Federal reservoir watershed map, capacity chart and Tuttle Creek Lake photo: Kansas Biological Survey.

The state’s federal reservoirs vary widely in capacity, age and capacity loss. With an 

average age of more than 50 years, these reservoirs have lost about 17 percent of their 

collective volume to sedimentation. The largest reservoir, Tuttle Creek, completed in 

1962 near Manhattan, has had the greatest capacity loss at 45 percent. Nearby Milford 

Lake, completed in 1967, has lost 12 percent capacity but has greater reoccurrence of 

cyanobacterial growth, which affects water quality. Understanding the causes for these 

differences, in the watersheds and in the reservoirs, will help define strategies for 

sustainable management. 

A decade ago, John Redmond Reservoir, in Coffey County, was projected to lose 

50 percent of its capacity by 2018. Since then, the lake level was raised 2 feet after 

considerable interactions with the federal government, and $20 million has been 

invested by the State to remove sediment through dredging. These actions are valuable, 

as they extend the date for 50 percent capacity loss by about 15 years. While it is likely 

that sediment removal from reservoirs must continue, it is clear that this approach 

manages a symptom but does not address causes.

Diminishing capacity through sedimentation

LiDAR shaded relief for a portion of the Fourmile Creek floodplain in Morris County(background image) and 2007 land cover map: Kansas Biological Survey.

A dynamic landscapeKansas land cover patterns have been tracked by the Kansas Biological Survey for 

decades. While sediment and nutrients that end up in Kansas streams can come from 

cropland, grassland, urban areas or other cover types, contributions and characteristics 

can differ greatly. With high‐resolution LiDAR elevation data now available statewide, 

the door is open to high‐detail analysis of runoff and surface flow, which can be used to 

identify and prioritize sites where landscape preservation or remediation efforts can 

produce the most benefit.

A disproportionate amount of sediment is delivered to reservoirs during high‐water 

events. This suggests that reducing flood severity could be effective for slowing 

sedimentation. Over the years, many streams have become disconnected from their 

floodplain and its wetlands through flood control actions such as levee construction and 

channel straightening. Many streams have become entrenched through the buildup of 

legacy soils in their floodplain—a consequence of severe erosion that occurred before 

conservation‐minded farming practices became widespread. All of these factors intensify 

downstream flooding. Working with the Kansas Alliance for Wetlands & Streams and 

other entities, the Biological Survey seeks research and implementation opportunities 

focused on floodplain and wetland reconnection, in an effort to mitigate flood severity 

and thereby reduce sedimentation rates. Other benefits include improved wildlife habitat 

and water quality.

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In their historic state, Kansas streams were wider, more sinuous and better connected with 

their floodplains. Changes over the last 150 years—including cultivation and urbanization, and 

attempts at engineering water flow across the landscape—have resulted in a Kansas hydrology 

characterized by more rapid, concentrated and turbulent flows. These conditions lead to 

increased erosion. While conservation efforts in agriculture such as terracing and reduced tillage 

have substantially decreased cropland erosion, studies indicate that sedimentation rates of our 

federal reservoirs have changed little. Attention is now being directed toward channel and 

streambank erosion as possibly having a greater contribution to reservoir infilling.

Upstream flow modifications

As Kansans have continued to use and manage surface waters to meet human needs, many natural streams have become or have been intentionally straightened, narrowed and entrenched, which leads to increased channel erosion. In recent years, the state has invested in bank stabilization efforts to remediate erosion hotspots, such as areas along the Big Blue River

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south of Marysville (inset). Looking downstream, this hotspot has had wing dams installed to slow the current, in addition to a grass buffer that filters overflow and provides resistance to streambank erosion. Google Earth image. Photo of the Wolf River in Brown County near Robinson: Harland Schuster.

With thousands of miles of streams to address, approaches with holistic effects should be 

considered. For example, efforts directed toward floodplain reconnection will reduce flood 

intensity and thus have positive impacts that extend downstream, mimicking the natural 

approach to flood mitigation that was common historically. Coupling such tactics with more 

direct, localized erosion reduction efforts such as streambank stabilization presents a diverse, 

multi‐pronged approach that could prove effective at addressing both symptoms (erosion 

hotspots) and causes (flooding) of sedimentation.

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Since the 1970s, the Kansas Biological Survey has conducted surveys of streams across 

Kansas. This research has been wide‐ranging, from updating species lists of aquatic 

organisms to assessing levels of nutrients and pesticides in the water. Other work has 

included assessing land‐use practices in the Delaware River watershed, which includes Perry 

Lake. More recently, as Perry fills in, Biological Survey scientists have studied how aging 

farm ponds in this watershed can function as wetlands that trap sediment and filter water.

Stream quality ultimately impacts reservoir health. Because streams cross political 

boundaries, the Survey coordinates aquatic research and workgroups for states, Native 

American tribes and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Categories of research 

include: sediment in streams; biological criteria in streams; nutrient criteria in wetlands, 

streams and lakes; and taste and odor in water supplied by reservoirs and rivers.

The Survey’s work at the watershed level enables researchers to pool information to examine 

how upstream activities impact downstream reservoir health, addressing questions such as:

A history of stream research at the Biological Survey

The Kansas Biological Survey’s long-term study of the Perry Lake watershed in northeastern Kansas serves as a model for other watershed-reservoir systems. With major sediment accumulation at the mouth of the Delaware River (below right, top photo),

Perry is predicted to be 50 percent infilled by 2088. Perry Lake photo (background): Harland Schuster. Photos of Delaware sedimentation and field research, and watershed map for Perry Lake: Kansas Biological Survey.

● Does streambank erosion or land use 

practice have the greater impact on 

reservoirs? 

● How much water flows through small 

impoundments, such as farm ponds, before

entering reservoirs?  

● Do farm ponds eventually become 

sediment sources?

● Can farm ponds function as wetlands 

that better catch sediment?  

● How do bank stabilization projects affect 

endangered fish species?  

● Do the upper ends of reservoirs, as they 

become shallower, function as wetlands

that trap sediments and protect water quality?

Managing harmful algal blooms (HABs)Some of the state’s federal reservoirs and smaller impoundments, as well as rivers, 

experience harmful cyanobacterial blooms. Bloom occurrence does not appear to be related to 

the extent of infilling, indicating that more than sediment must be managed in surface waters.  

Cyanobacteria, also known as blue‐green algae, are among the oldest living organisms on Earth. 

Although these and other plants are responsible for helping to create the oxygen‐rich 

atmosphere on Earth today, cyanobacterial blooms cause problems in lakes, reservoirs and 

rivers because they can produce a potent suite of toxins. These toxins cause human and animal 

illnesses and have caused multiple animal deaths. Because cyanobacterial blooms represent 

health hazards, recreational reservoirs in Kansas are closed during toxic bloom events. 

Cyanobacterial blooms also can produce compounds that cause taste and odor issues in 

drinking water supplies, which ultimately increase drinking water costs. 

Certain conditions favor the growth and persistence of cyanobacteria. These include, but are not 

limited to, warm water temperatures, elevated nutrients (especially nitrogen and phosphorous) 

and calm water. Cyanobacteria generally are not eaten by the resident fauna, and they have 

greater buoyancy than other phytoplankton, which allows them to stay near the water surface. 

Not all bloom events produce harmful levels of toxins and taste‐and‐odor compounds, and 

research is ongoing to better anticipate problematic blooms. In addition, KU scientists are 

studying a broad spectrum of HABs management strategies, including some used outside the U.S.

Kansas Biological Survey researchers are studying conditions that lead to harmful cyanobacterial blooms. They collect samples from Milford, Marion and other reservoirs throughout the state that are prone to cyanobacterial blooms, then use these samples to

conduct experiments at the KU Field Station aimed at determining conditions that either foster or mitigate cyanobacterial growth and toxicity. Photos of Milford Reservoir (top; above left; and below, left) and KU Field Station experimental tanks (below, right): Kansas Biological Survey.

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The KU Field Station’s Cross Reservoir and its 50-hectare watershed have been studied and used for teaching for 25 years. Cross has never had a harmful algal bloom, is infilling much more slowly than nearby Perry Lake, and functions more like a natural, stable lake than a constructed reservoir. This condition can provide insight into reservoir management needs.

Aquatic field research facilities unmatched in the stateThe KU Field Station, managed by the Kansas Biological Survey and just 8 miles from the 

center of KU’s main campus, includes one of the largest aquatic research facilities in the U.S. 

With 100 experimental ponds, 80 tank enclosures, a variety of other enclosures and a model 

reservoir, it provides a setting for rigorous testing of ecological cause‐and‐effect relationships. 

Such examinations are difficult in natural settings because of the multiplicity of variables and 

complex interacting factors. At this facility, researchers can focus on specific questions with 

regard to reservoirs. Ongoing subjects of study include:

Harmful algal blooms (HABs)—Cyanobacteria collected from Milford and Marion reservoirs 

are being grown under controlled conditions. Researchers seek to determine growth 

characteristics, predict reservoir susceptibility to HABs, determine conditions enabling prediction 

of HABs as toxin release events, and, ultimately, develop management recommendations. 

Introduced aquatic species—Studies are designed to identify ecological side effects that 

introduced or managed organisms have on a reservoir system. For example, gizzard shad 

native to our reservoirs are a desirable food source for larger sport fish, but their activity 

may move nutrients out of sediment, possibly spurring cyanobacterial growth. Grass carp 

are sometimes introduced to control larger plants but thereby reduce nutrient competition 

for cyanobacteria, also possibly spurring their growth.  

With the continuing reduction of baseflow in streams across western and central 

Kansas due to declining water tables, headwater stream habitat is lost first; it can change 

from flowing to pooled water, then to intermittency or no water at all. Ponds and tanks at 

the KU Field Station are used to study behavior and reproduction of some headwater fish 

as they are forced into more pooled environments and further downstream, possibly even 

into impoundments, where they may not survive. 

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Fish studied in the Field Station’s research ponds include federally-protected Topeka shiners, which share spawning sites with orange-spotted sunfish in headwater streams. Images: Kansas Biological Survey, Garold Sneegas (fish), Google Earth.

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Sampling technology—Drones can be used to identify and compare conditions among small 

impoundments. With landowner permission, the Biological Survey recently completed a 

ground survey of conditions of 100 ponds in the Perry Lake watershed. Knowing conditions 

of these ponds from direct measures, researchers can collect drone data from the same 

locations to develop calibration parameters that could facilitate broader landscape 

assessments. Drones also can be used to monitor real‐time sediment movement around 

stabilization sites in streams as well as for long‐term stream position change detection.

KU researchers study the potential for using drones to address water issues. One application is taking water samples from hard-to-reach locations, such as within large cyanobacterial blooms to test for toxic chemicals. Drones also can be used to sample expansive weed beds,which are becoming more common as reservoirs become shallower.

Conditions of the state’s 200,000 impoundments—A wide range of pond conditions can 

be created and controlled in the Field Station’s experimental ponds and tanks. Drones with 

particular direct‐sampling mechanisms and aerial sensors can be flown over these ponds 

and tanks that have controlled conditions, calibrating measures including suspended silt, 

plant growth and bank erosion. Aerial imagery already available for the Kansas landscape 

then can be scanned for conditions of smaller impoundments to expand our knowledge 

about the state’s surface waters.

Photos of KU Field Station research tanks and ponds: Kansas Biological Survey.

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The interactive Kansas Lakes and Reservoirs Data Portal and its mobile version provide current and historical data via more than 20 layers of geophysical information, including water quality characteristics, about the state’s reservoirs. The portal is housed on the Kansas Applied Remote Sensing program website of the Kansas Biological Survey.

Recognizing a need for readily accessible information about the state’s impoundments, 

the Kansas Biological Survey has compiled data obtained through its own studies of 76 

reservoirs and made it publicly available in three forms. The 240‐page Atlas of Kansas Lakes, 

as well as the online Kansas Lakes and Reservoirs Data Portal and the Portal’s mobile 

version, provide information on 21 federal and 55 state reservoirs in Kansas. In addition to 

reservoir maps, the current and historical data in the online portal include bathymetry, 

watershed boundary, precipitation, elevation and other geophysical data layers. The portal 

can display graphs of water quality through time.

These tools serve as a resource for communities, policy makers, planners and private  

individuals, as well as educators. The online portal was launched by the Survey with 

funding from the Kansas Water Office and the Kansas GIS Policy Board. The portal

Kansas Lakes and Reservoirs Data Portalprovides a dynamic connection to directly access 

datasets housed and maintained by various agencies 

and groups around the state and elsewhere. 

The Survey encourages others to contribute 

web‐ready data to enhance the portal’s attributes and 

utility. All contributors maintain control and 

ownership of their data, and all information is credited 

to the contributors. The portal is at http://kars.ku.edu/

maps/kansaslakes, and the mobile version at 

http://kars.ku.edu/mobile‐apps/lakes.

Chase County State Fishing Lake photo: Harland Schuster. Photo of bathymetry field work, and bathymetric and watershed maps for Chase County Lake: Atlas of Kansas Lakes, Kansas Biological Survey.

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Reservoir Research GroupUniversity of Kansas

Associate Scientist, Kansas Biological Survey; Associate Professor, KU Environmental Studies Specialization:Aquatic biogeochemistry and water quality, Harmful algal blooms (HABs), wetlands and nutrient pollution. Research interests: Microbial ecology, ecosystem ecology, agricultural landscapes.

Debbie Baker

Kirsten Bosnak

Amy Burgin

Assistant Director and Informatics Specialist, Central Plains Center for BioAssessment/Kansas Biological Survey Specialization: Informatics and aquatic ecology, database development. Research interests: Reconciling disparate sampling methods and databases of aquatic research and monitoring entities in the Central Plains.

Communications Director, Kansas Biological Survey Responsibilities: Media relations and external affairs, website, publications, photography.

LeeAnn BennettSenior Research Assistant/Entomological Specialist, Kansas Biological Survey Specialization: Aquatic entomology, insect behavior and taxonomy, algal taxonomy and enumeration. Responsibilities: Database development for field data; graphical and statistical analysis of data trends; curation of field-collected aquatic invertebrate specimens.

Elk City Lake photo: Harland Schuster

Aquatic ecologist, Kansas Biological Survey Specialization: Aquatic ecology, ichthyology, Kansas natural history. Research interests: Reservoir monitoring and assessment; ecology of the endangered Topeka shiner; aquatic invasive species; algal biofuels.

Haiyang Chao

Ed Carney

Scott Campbell

Senior Scientist Emeritus, Kansas Biological Survey Specialization: Aquatic ecology and entomology. Research interests: Ecotoxicology; community and ecosystem assessment of human disturbance; playas and wetlands; stream ecosystem responses to sediment and nutrient enrichment.

Don Huggins

Associate Research Professor, Kansas Biological Survey Specialization:Numerical analysis, statistics, geographical information systems (GIS). Research interests: Remote sensing, agriculture, land cover, flood mapping, wetlands, reservoir studies, ecological modeling.

Jude Kastens

Ted HarrisAssistant Research Professor, Kansas Biological Survey Specialization:Harmful algal blooms (HABs), cyanobacterial toxins, predictive modeling. Research interests: HAB distribution, abundance and toxicity; modeling techniques for forecasting HABs; quantifying the effects of persistent organic pollutants on aquatic ecosystems.

Adjunct Scientist, Kansas Biological Survey; Environmental Scientist, KDHE, retired Specialization: Reservoir monitoring and assessment, harmful algal blooms, aquatic ecology and botany. Research interests: Predictive models for eutrophication; trophic state condition; harmful algal bloom risk in reservoirs.

Assistant Professor, KU Aerospace Engineering Specialization: Unmanned systems and remote sensing. Research interests: Small unmanned aircraft systems, multispectral aerial mapping, disaster surveying, cooperative estimation and control.

Mark JakubauskasDirector of Science Programs, KU Edwards Campus; Program Director, Professional Science Master’s, Environmental Studies Program Specialization: Reservoir bathymetry and remote sensing. Research interests: Remote sensing of water quality; bathymetric mapping; sediment characterization by acoustic and optical remote sensing.

Jerry deNoyellesDeputy Director and Senior Scientist, Kansas Biological Survey; Director of KU Field Station aquatic research facility; KU Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Specialization: Natural lake and reservoir ecology. Research interests: Experimental ponds and lakes, conditions disturbing aquatic ecosystems.

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Reservoir Research GroupUniversity of Kansas

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Atchison County Lake photo: Harland Schuster

Director and Senior Scientist, Kansas Biological Survey; KU Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, and Environmental Studies Specialization:Remote sensing applications, GIS technology, landscape ecology. Research interests: Human impacts on the environment, land use change.

Ed Martinko

Assistant Scientist, Kansas Biological Survey; Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies Specialization:Aquatic community, ecosystem and macrosystems ecology. Research interests: The effect of climate change on water quality; water quality in agricultural landscapes; the aquatic-terrestrial interface.

Terry Loecke

Rolfe MandelInterim Director, Kansas Geological Survey; University Distinguished Professor of AnthropologySpecialization: Geomorphology, landscape evolution, soils, paleoenvironmental reconstruction. Research interests: Streambank stabilization, stream erosion and sediment yields.

Assistant Research Professor, Kansas Geological Survey Specialization:Quaternary geology; fluvial geomorphology. Research interests: Streambank erosion; fluvial response to environmental drivers and human modifications.

Tony LayzellSenior Scientist, Kansas Biological Survey; KU Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Specialization: Aquatic community, ecosystem and macrosystemecology. Research interests: Community through macrosystem ecology of aquatic systems (especially rivers), with an emphasis on food webs, traits, and large scale processes.

Jim Thorp

Gina Ross

Dana Peterson

Bryan Young

D. Christopher Rogers

Steve Randtke Jerry Whistler

Associate Researcher, Kansas Biological Survey Specialization: Remote sensing and geographic information systems. Research interests: GIS and remote sensing for agricultural and ecological applications, land use/land cover mapping and land use/land cover change.

Research Assistant Professor, Kansas Biological Survey Specialization:Bioassessment methods for temporary aquatic habitats. Research interests: Mosquito and mosquito borne diseases; aquatic macroinvertebrates as a model for habitat health and functionality; aquatic bioassessment; wetland ecology.

Research Assistant, Kansas Biological Survey Specialization: Geoinformatics, Geographic Information Systems (GIS), cartography, and mapping applications. Responsibilities: Development and maintenance of the Kansas Lakes and Reservoirs Data Portal and mobile application and other mapping tools.

Associate Researcher and Laboratory Director, Kansas Applied Remote Sensing program, Kansas Biological Survey Specialization: Remote sensing applications. Responsibilities: Digital land use/land cover inventories, use of remote sensing data for agricultural management and environmental assessment.

KU Professor of Civil, Environmental and Architectural Engineering Specialization: Water quality and treatment. Research interests: Drinking water supply and treatment; occurrence and removal of taste- and odor-causing chemicals, algal toxins, pesticides and disinfection by-products; water quality management in lakes and reservoirs; and water reuse.

KU Associate Professor of Civil, Environmental and Architectural Engineering Specialization: Hydrology.Research interests: Environmental hydrology, reservoir modeling, stream stability/natural channel design, radar-based rainfall estimation, urban and agricultural stormwater BMPs.

Don WhittemoreSenior Scientist Emeritus, Kansas Geological Survey Specialization:Hydrogeochemistry. Research interests: Hydrogeology and hydrogeochemistry of water resources in Kansas, especially the High Plains aquifer, stream-aquifer systems and saline waters.

Selected publications

Campbell, S.W., C.S. Szuwalski, V.M. Tabbor, and J. deNoyelles. 2016. Challenges to reintroduction of a captive population of Topeka Shiner (Notropis Topeka) into former habitats in Kansas. Transactions of the Kansas Academy of Science, 119: 83-92.

Carney, Edward. 2009. Relative influence of lake age and watershed land use on trophic state and water quality of artificial lakes in Kansas. Lake and Reservoir Management, 25(2): 199-207.

Chao, H., Y. Gu, J. Gross, J., M. Rhudy, and M. Napolitano. 2016. Flight-test evaluation of navigation information in wide-field optical flow.Journal of Aerospace Information Systems, 13(11): 419-432.

deNoyelles, J., and J.H. Kastens. 2016. Reservoir sedimentation challenges in Kansas. Transactions of the Kansas Academy of Science, 119(1): 69-81.

deNoyelles, J., W.D. Kettle, and D.E. Sinn. 1982. The responses of plankton communities in experimental ponds to atrazine, the most heavily used pesticide in the United States. Ecology, 63: 1285-1293.

Dzialowski, A., V.H. Smith, D. Huggins, J. deNoyelles, N. Lim, D. Baker, andJ. Beury. 2009. Development of predictive models for geosmin-related taste and odor in Kansas, USA, drinking water reservoirs. Water Research, 43: 2829-2840.

Harris, T.D., and J.L. Graham. 2017. Predicting cyanobacterial abundance, geosmin, and microcystin in a eutrophic drinking water reservoir using a 14 year dataset. Lake and Reservoir Management, 33(1-1): 32-48.

Huggins, D., M. Jakubauskas, and J. Kastens. 2011. Lakes and wetlands of the Great Plains. LakeLine, 31(4): 19-25.

Jakubauskas, M., and J. deNoyelles. 2008. Methods for assessing sedimentation in reservoirs. Pp. 25-34 in Sedimentation in our Reservoirs: Causes and Solutions. Kansas State University, Manhattan, Kan. Contribution No. 008-250-S from the Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station.

Layzell, T.L., and R.D. Mandel. 2014. An assessment of the erodibility of Holocene Lithounits comprising streambanks in northeastern Kansas, USA. Geomorphology, 213: 116-127.

Loecke T.D., A.J. Burgin, D.A. Riveros-Iregui, et al. 2017. Weather whiplash in agricultural regions drives deterioration of water quality. Biogeochemistry, 33(1): 7-15.

Martinko, E., J. deNoyelles, K. Bosnak, M. Jakubauskas, D. Huggins, J.H. Kastens, A. Shreders, D. Baker, A. Blackwood, S. Campbell, and D.C. Rogers. 2014. Atlas of Kansas Lakes: A resource for communities, policy makers and planners. A publication of the Kansas Biological Survey. 242 pp.

McEnroe, B.M., C.B. Young, and J.E. Shelley. 2014. Scaling of reference reach for desired bankfull discharge. International Journal of Geosciences, 5: 475-477.

Peterson, D., J. Whistler, C. Bishop, S. Egbert, and E. Martinko. 2009. The Kansas next-generation land use/land cover mapping initiative. Proceedings, American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing. 12 pp.

Randtke, S.J., S. Pan, F. deNoyelles, D.W. Graham, V.H. Smith, and H.L. Holm. 2003. Occurrence, biodegradation, and control of geosmin in Midwestern surface water supplies. Proceedings, 53rd Annual Environmental Engineering Conference, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kan.

Song, K., and A.J. Burgin. 2017. Perpetual phosphorus cycling: Eutrophication amplifies biological control on internal phosphorus loading in agricultural reservoirs. Ecosystems, 20: 1-11.

Thorp, J.H., and R.E. Bowes. 2016. Carbon sources in riverine food webs—new evidence from amino acid isotopic techniques. Ecosystems, 19: 1-13.

Williams, B., E. D’Amico, J.H. Kastens, J. Thorp, J. Flotemersch, and M. Thoms. 2013. Automated riverine landscape characterization: GIS-basedtools for watershed-scale research, assessment, and management. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 185: 7485-7499.

Whittemore, D.O. 2012. Potential impacts of stormwater runoff on water quality in urban sand pits and adjacent groundwater. Journal of the American Water Resources Association, 48(3): 584-602.

Published 2017 by the Kansas Biological Survey. Ed Martinko, Director; Jerry deNoyelles, Deputy Director. Kirsten Bosnak, editing and design. Jude Kastens, technical editing and data presentation.

Photo, McPherson County State Fishing and Maxwell WildlifeRefuge: Harland Schuster.

The Kansas Biological Survey holds dual status as a research agency of the State of Kansas and as a research unit of the University of Kansas. As a research entity, it is charged with conducting basic science and providing impartial information. The Survey does not serve as an authority to set State or agency priorities or agendas, nor does it benefit from a permanent State-supported budget for projects it recommends.

Chase County State Fishing Lake, completed in 1954, is one of the impoundments studied by the Kansas Biological Survey, with bathymetric mapping completed in 2012. Reservoir health and water quality are key research areas for the Survey. Cover photo: Harland Schuster. Inset photos, top to bottom: Field research at a rural pond, Kansas Biological Survey; Topeka Shiners at the KU Field Station, Joel Sartore/National Geographic; agricultural fields along the Republican River in Clay County, FSA NAIP image.

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