Virginia News and Updates
| November 28, 2011 - PFW Biologist Will Smith Receives Conservationist of the Year Award from Back Bay Restoration Foundation |
|
 The Back Bay Restoration Foundation honored Will Smith of the Virginia Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program with their Conservationist of the Year Award for 2011. For nearly 50 years, Lake Tecumseh was a signifcant source of sedimentation, leading to decreased water quality of the Back Bay watershed. Because of the shallow depth and muddy bottom of Lake Tecumseh, sustained wind events caused significant turbidity in the lake which resulted in significant sedmentation being discharged into the Back Bay watershed through Asheville Bridge Canal. The turbidity on the lake also resulted in poor habitat conditions for aquatic life. Will lead the effort to construct weirs at Lake Tecumseh to maintain a constant water level at Lake Tecumseh. Several years of data were collected to ensure that the weirs were set at the appropriate height.Within a year after construction, water quality has significantly improved. Submerged aquatic vegetation is now present in the lake. Fish surveys completed by the Virginia Department of Game and Inalnd Fisheries indicate an increased number of native fishes and the presence of fish species that were not previously found within Lake Tecumseh. For more information, see the Press Release from the Back Bay Restoration Foundation. Photo Caption: Will Smith completed aquatic survey. Credit: USFWS. |
 |
October 5-6, 2011 - Virginia Farm Field Days at Highlands Dairy, Washington County |
 Virginia Farm Field Days was a two-day festival that was coordinated by the Holston River Soil and Water Conservation District. Over 600 6th grade students attended a series of field stations that demonstrated what a conservation farm looks like and how it operates. The field day took place at the Highland Dairy Farm, a farm located in Washington County, Virginia that has been dedicated to using best management practices that protect wildlife and water quality. Partners for Fish and Wildlife biologist, Melanie Carter, debuted a new stream demonstration table. The stream demonstration table is an Emriver EM2 River Simulator, and it is used to teach concepts about streamflow and geomorphology, as well as stormwater best management practices and stream restoration applications to all ages. It is being debuted this year in Russell, Scott, Tazewell, and Washington Counties in Southwest Virginia. The land owner and several other agencies and organizations including the HRSWCD, Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation, Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Virginia Department of Forestry, The Nature Conservancy, and Upper Tennessee River Roundtable also taught students about additional aspects of conservation such as chemical and biological monitoring of aquatic environments, land use, and farm practices. Photo Caption: Sixth grade students participating in a demonstration at Virginia Farm Field Days. Credit: USFWS
|
|
October 3, 2011 - Public and Private Partners Protect Virginia’s Shore for People and Wildlife |
 The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is working with the Bavon Beach community and many other partners to conserve shoreline habitat for the threatened northeastern beach tiger beetle and to help residents protect private property and maintain their coastal community in Mathews County, Va. The partners are working to develop and fund the construction of a breakwater system that will guard, restore and replenish the beach, which has continued to morph and narrow as the Chesapeake Bay rises. Photo Caption: Project partners from The Nature Conservancy, Mathews County, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the homeowners' associations discuss the plans for the offshore breakwater system. Credit: USFWS
Read more
Watch videos |
|
September 28, 2011 - American Eel May Warrant Protection Under the Endangered Species Act |
 The American eel may need federal protection as a threatened or endangered species, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced today, following an initial review of a petition seeking to protect the species under the Endangered Species Act. Today’s decision, a 90-day finding, is based on scientific information provided in the petition from the Council for Endangered Species Act Reliability and in the Service’s files. The Service will begin an extensive status review for the American eel to determine if protecting it under the ESA is warranted. Photo Caption: The American eel is a snake-like fish that migrates among ocean and freshwater bodies. Credit: Duane Raver/USFWS
Read more
Learn about the American eel |
|
September 26, 2011 - 86 Species in the Northeast May Need Endangered Species Act Protection |
 The Service will conduct an in-depth status review of 374 rare southeastern aquatic, riparian and wetland animal and plant species to determine if any or all of them warrant federal protection under the Endangered Species Act. This announcement follows an initial review of a petition seeking to protect 404 species under the Act. Of those species, 86 are reported to occur or to have historically occurred in the Northeast. The Service will undertake a more thorough status review before determining whether to propose any of them for listing. Photo Caption: The black rail is one species that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will review as it considers whether this bird and 374 other species need protection under the Endangered Species Act. Credit: George Kearns
Learn more
|
|
September 16, 2011 - Service, NOAA Revise Loggerhead Sea Turtle Listing; Changes Will Help Guide Conservation Efforts |
 The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and NOAA issued a final rule today changing the listing of loggerhead sea turtles under the Endangered Species Act from a single threatened species to nine distinct population segments listed as either threatened or endangered. Scientists believe this will help focus their sea turtle conservation efforts to the specific needs of the distinct populations. The Service and NOAA each share jurisdiction for loggerhead sea turtles listed under the Endangered Species Act. Photo Caption: Female loggerhead sea turtle at Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge in Virginia. Credit: USFWS
News Release
Learn About Loggerhead Turtles (NOAA) |
|
August 19, 2011 - Low-Effect Habitat Conservation Plan Received for Madison Cave Isopod
|
 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service received a Low-Effect Habitat Conservation Plan (LEHCP) and on August 22, 2011, in the Federal Register a Notice of Receipt of the LEHCP prepared by Dominion Virginia Power Inc., as part of an application for an Incidental Take Permit under the Endangered Species Act was published.
The Virginia Field Office and other partners have been working closely with Dominion Virginia Power on ways to avoid impacts to the federally listed threatened Madison Cave Isopod (MCI) during the construction of their new natural gas-fired combined-cycle power station in Warren County, Virginia, and the effort resulted in the development of the LEHCP. No incidental take is expected to occur during operation of the facility after it is built. Public comments on the LEHCP and the Service’s preliminary evaluation of the LEHCP will be accepted until September 21, 2011. For more information on the LEHCP click here. Photo Caption: Madison Cave Isopod. Credit: Craig Stihler, West Virginia DNR
|
View Archived News Stories
|
