One of the catches:
Rainbow Darter (isn't it gorgeous?):
Did you know that those of us who live near the Flint River in northern Alabama and southern Tennessee are right in the middle of one of the hotspots for aquatic biodiversity? The rivers and streams here have some of the highest biodiversity in the world. Get involved in a river conservation group near you to help protect these unique resources.Freshwater species and habitats are, on average around the world, more imperiled than their terrestrial counterparts. Yet, large-scale conservation planning efforts have rarely targeted freshwater biodiversity. This inattention is due in part to the fact that, compared to better-studied terrestrial taxa, there has been a severe lack of comprehensive, synthesized data on the distributions of freshwater species. Existing worldwide species-level data have covered only the largest river basins or select hotspots, rather than all inland waters. Additionally, these data syntheses have made little attempt to describe biogeographic patterns.
Freshwater Ecoregions of the World (FEOW) is a collaborative project providing the first global biogeographic regionalization of the Earth's freshwater biodiversity, and synthesizing biodiversity and threat data for the resulting ecoregions. We define a freshwater ecoregion as a large area encompassing one or more freshwater systems that contains a distinct assemblage of natural freshwater communities and species. The freshwater species, dynamics, and environmental conditions within a given ecoregion are more similar to each other than to those of surrounding ecoregions and together form a conservation unit.
Next, our volunteers headed out into the field! We took maps that identified possible habitat sites and drove to those locations. Once we found the stream, we simply visually inspected the stream to see if it looked like stream slackwater darters would like. We filled out a form to specify the water quality (is the water clear or full of sediment?), how steep each bank is, an estimated width and depth of the stream, if there was any flooding adjacent to the stream, and whether or not vegetation was growing in the stream. We also used a GPS unit to get an exact location for the site. Here are some of our volunteers surveying a stream:
Here is a FRCA board member documenting one of the more promising sites:
We've managed to visually inspect a LOT of sites during April. If you want to learn how our project is progressing, come to our June meeting! Our intern will give a presentation about this project, our results so far, and what the results mean for the conservation of this threatened species!
Photo of the Hays Nature Preserve by Emmett Given
Explore and enjoy the
When: Saturday, April 5, 2008 (9:30 – 4:00)
What: Learn about and assist in habitat assessments for the slackwater darter in the Flint River Watershed. Following orientation and training, groups will be assigned local habitats to asses. Getting your feet wet is optional!
How to sign up: Call Allison Bohlman at (256) 656-3334 for more information or send an email to flintriverconservation@gmail.com.
Location: Orientation will be at the Winfred Thomas Agricultural Research Station (
We hope you join us!
Are you interested in doing your part to protect the environment? Well, Alabama now has a new resource to help us create a smaller footprint: The Green Resource Center for Alabama.Drugs are in the water. Does it matter?
From the New York Times, April 3, 2008
Residues of birth control pills, antidepressants, painkillers, shampoos and a host of other compounds are finding their way into the nation’s waterways, and they have public health and environmental officials in a regulatory quandary.On the one hand, there is no evidence the traces of the chemicals found so far are harmful to human beings. On the other hand, it would seem cavalier to ignore them.
The pharmaceutical and personal care products, or P.P.C.P.’s, are being flushed into the nation’s rivers from sewage treatment plants or leaching into groundwater from septic systems. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, researchers have found these substances, called “emerging contaminants,” almost everywhere they have looked for them.
This story reminds us not to flush unused medications down the toilet. Throw unused medicine away in the trash (mix them with something unpleasant, like cat litter or coffee grounds). You can also ask your pharmacist about a "take back" program.
Depleted Aquifers and Water RouletteAnd even though we're getting a lot of rain lately, we're still officially in a drought (although now it's only "extreme" instead of "exceptional"). How can that be? Our groundwater hasn't fully recharged from the almost two years of drought. To read another article from the New York Times about drought issues in our area:
Droves of well-intentioned Americans are annually buying over 10 billion bottles of water that costs 1,000 times more than tap water. Why? In general bottled water is not any healthier than tap water, and in some cases, less so. The manufacture and transport of these single-use plastic bottles require precious energy, while releasing toxic chemicals both in their making and disposal in landfills or outright litter. Drinking water of course is vital for good health. But every citizen is entitled to clean water. If tap water quality is at issue, then the municipality should clean it up; or the homeowner can simply install a filter. Responsible citizens might also reuse a stainless steel container filled with tap water instead of supporting the bottling industry.
New to Being Dry, the South Struggles to Adapt
Alabama, where severe drought is even more widespread, is even further behind in its planning.A realistic statewide plan, experts say, would tell developers that they could not build if no water was available, and might have restricted some of the enormous growth in the Atlanta area over the last decade. Already, officials have little notion how to provide for a projected doubling of demand over the next 30 years. The ideas that have been floated, including piping in water from Tennessee or desalinating ocean water, would require hundreds of billions of dollars and painful decision making the state has been reluctant to undertake.
''It's been develop first and ask questions later,'' said Gil Rogers, a lawyer with the Southern Environmental Law Center.
Explore and enjoy the
When: Saturday, April 5, 2008 (9:30 – 4:00)
What: Learn about and assist in habitat assessments for the slackwater darter in the Flint River Watershed. Following orientation and training, groups will be assigned local habitats to asses. Getting your feet wet is optional!
How to sign up: Call Allison Bohlman at (256) 656-3334 for more information or send an email to flintriverconservation@gmail.com.
Location: Orientation will be at the Winfred Thomas Agricultural Research Station (
We hope you join us!
