Introduction
The important messages in this document are the foundation of Conte National Fish and Wildlife Refuge outreach and environmental education program. Using these messages, the Conte Refuge staff will design, carry out, and evaluate specific environmental education projects, with other organizations or on its own. Potential partners can use them as the basis for cooperative education projects involving environmental monitoring, teacher training, telecommunications or interpretation. Existing educational programs can incorporate them. The Conte Refuge Advisory Committee can use them as the basis for evaluating and providing guidance on outreach and environmental education programs. In these ways, the messages can become part of outreach and environmental education efforts throughout the watershed.
Visualizing Watershed Education
Through outreach and education the Conte Refuge will develop a public that:
The Conte Refuge Messages
The messages are presented under the following categories:
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
The mission of the Service is to conserve, protect and enhance fish and wildlife species and their habitats for the benefit of people.
The Service manages a network of over 500 refuges in 50 states to provide habitat for fish and wildlife.
*The Service also manages national fish hatcheries, and provides federal leadership in habitat protection, technical assistance, and the conservation and protection of migratory birds, certain marine mammals and threatened and endangered species.*
The charge of the Silvio O. Conte
National Fish and Wildlife Refuge is to protect the natural
diversity of the Connecticut watershed.
Natural diversity is the variety of life in all its forms.
Natural diversity is critically important to maintain the resilience of the environment.
A healthy environment will produce an abundance of fish and wildlife.
Managing for natural diversity over a large area is a new scientific and social challenge. It can only be accomplished through the cooperation of many people.
The Connecticut River watershed has abundant natural diversity. Some diversity has been lost due to development, pollution, habitat fragmentation and introduced invasive species.
Protecting special habitats will help protect natural diversity.
We all have an impact on fish and wildlife. We can have a positive impact through well-informed choices.
Informed, coordinated local actions can have broad impacts.
Some species need active management to overcome a lack of suitable habitat.
Habitat management is changing the habitat to produce more favorable conditions.
Dedicated open space and private land can be managed to provide better habitat.
A watershed is the land and water area that collects the rain and snow for a waterbody.
Upstream actions affect downstream areas. Everything in a watershed is downstream.
Everyone in a watershed affects the water shared with all those downstream.
Clean water is important to fish, wildlife, and people.
Buffer strips along waterbodies improve water quality and provide important habitat.
Controlling point and non-point sources of pollution is important.
Freshwater mussels are sensitive water quality indicators; 47% of U.S. mussel species are extinct, endangered or threatened.
The Connecticut River watershed has one endangered mussel and two mussels that are at risk of becoming threatened or endangered.
Anadromous fish are migratory
fish that spend part of their life in the ocean and return to
fresh water to spawn.
The major species of Connecticut River anadromous fish are: Atlantic salmon, American shad, alewives, and blueback herring.
Human activities caused the disappearance of Atlantic salmon and the decline of other anadromous fish.
The coordinated restoration efforts of federal and state governments, corporations, and private citizens continue to show success.
The restoration efforts have benefitted other fish and non-fish species.
The restoration efforts have
provided recreational opportunities and have increased the
interest for other Connecticut River conservation efforts.
Most species are not endangered.
When a species becomes
endangered, something is wrong in its and our environment.
The Connecticut River watershed contains 10 species that are federally listed as endangered or threatened, and 18 more which may be listed in the future.
Over three hundred species of
plants and animals are rare, threatened or endangered in the
Connecticut River watershed.
Actions to increase populations of rare species before they become threatened or endangered may save a great deal of effort and money.
Most of the land in the watershed is privately owned. Asking permission to enter private land is always a good idea.
Recreational use of land and water can negatively affect fish, wildlife, and plants. Informed users can reduce the impact.
The Conte Refuge has identified 180,000 acres of special habitats in the watershed.
One half of the United States
wetlands has been destroyed.
Wetlands have many benefits to people, fish and wildlife. They control flooding, purify water, recharge groundwater, and provide productive habitat.
Tidal wetlands are very productive ecosystems.
The Connecticut River has internationally significant tidal wetlands.
Grasslands, especially large areas, are a declining habitat type in the Connecticut River watershed. Grassland bird species need habitat management to maintain open areas.
Some species require large areas of unbroken forest. The timber rattlesnake and some songbirds are examples.
In the southern half of the watershed, efforts to preserve and manage large blocks of unbroken habitat must be made. The unfragmented habitats in the northern half of the watershed should be recognized as important habitat.
Some urban habitats are important to the conservation of fish and wildlife resources, including endangered and threatened species. Protecting and enhancing urban natural areas can benefit wildlife and people.
Important migratory stopover sites for waterfowl, shorebirds, and songbirds should be protected.
Buffer strip areas along rivers, lakes, and other wetlands are important habitat and reduce water pollution.