Freshwater ecoregions of the world

Want to learn more about freshwater ecoregions? The World Wildlife Fund and the Nature Conservancy have just launched a great new site called Freshwater Ecoregions of the World that will allow you to learn all about freshwater 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.

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.

Flint River Cleanup, Saturday June 7

Please join us for a day on the Flint! We'll meet Saturday, June 7 at 9:00 am at the Publix in Hampton Cove, off of highway 431 S. Just look for cars with canoes! If you don't have a canoe, you can still join us! Just let Soos Weber know you would like to borrow a canoe and we'll set you up! Please call soon so we can figure out how many canoes to rent. Call Soos at 256-427-5116 to sign up. If she doesn't answer, leave a message that includes how many people are in your group and how many canoes you need to borrow.

Slackwater Darter Workshop photos

FRCA hosted two successful workshop in April to look for Slackwater Darter habitat. The Slackwater Darter is federally listed as an "threatened" species, and very little is know about its habitat and how to protect the species. With the information we learn during our study, we will be able to better protect its habitat and work closely with surrounding landowners and other conservation organizations to implement best management practices. FRCA hopes to expand the habitat of the Slackwater Darter, and possibly identify current habitat sites.

For these workshops, we gave a brief "in class" overview of the darter, its habitat, and habitat loss in north Alabama.

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!

Upcoming Events at the Hays Nature Preserve & Goldsmith Schiffman Wildlife Sanctuary:

The Hays Nature Preserve & Goldsmith Schiffman Wildlife Sanctuary are two nature preserves just east of Huntsville right on the Flint River. Please join us for two fun events this month:

May 17: Get that Bloomin’ Privet Round Up! Meet at 9 a.m. at the Hays Parking lot and we'll carpool over to Goldsmith Schiffman. Bring gloves and the heaviest cutting tools you have. Soos Weber will provide long handled loppers for loaners.

May 31: GIANT bonfire (in big field) and a night ecohike, combined with a potluck (bring a dish—preferably not one that needs heating) to share, and a utensil if needed. The bonfire begins at 6:00, ecohike at 8:30, and no flashlights allowed (for the Ecohike).

For more information about either event, call Soos Weber at 256-427-5116.

Photo of the Hays Nature Preserve by Emmett Given