Tag: Virginia
The content below has been tagged with the term “Virginia.”
Articles
-
Combat town at Camp Lejeune with a pine tree that is home to a red-cockaded woodpecker cluster. Photo by Dan Chapman, USFWS.
Marines and woodpeckers share the high ground
March 22, 2018 | 8 minute read
Jacksonville, North Carolina — Above the distant din of 50-caliber machine gun fire and Cobra attack helicopters, John Hammond hears the unmistakable sound of a red-cockaded woodpecker. He is approaching Combat Town, where U.S. Marines routinely assault a mock Iraqi village at Camp Lejeune. A sign for Combat Town at Camp Lejeune. Photo by Dan Chapman, USFWS. It is an incongruous spot for an endangered bird to make its home – the middle of a war zone where artillery boom and tanks prowl. Learn more...
-
Seabeach amaranth at Onslow Beach, Camp Lejeune, NC. Photo by Lilibeth Serrano, USFWS.
From Massachusetts to South Carolina, recovering seabeach amaranth
December 7, 2017 | 6 minute read
This is a story about people, places and a plant — but it’s more than just that. This is a story about faith in a tiny little seed and the huge potential for recovering a threatened species. First things first — the plant Most people have probably never heard of seabeach amaranth, but for such an obscure little dune plant, it bears a mighty burden. This low-growing annual colonizes newly disturbed habitats such as over-wash areas at the end of barrier islands and flat, low-lying areas along the foremost dunes. Learn more...
-
It’s a girl(s)! Endangered woodpeckers deliver the goods at Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge
June 27, 2017 | 4 minute read
Suffolk, Virginia — The matchmaking has paid off. Biologists this week report that red-cockaded woodpeckers trucked from the Carolinas have bred and raised two chicks at Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge. The two young mark a milestone in the effort to establish a new population of the endangered bird since it was last seen there more than 40 years ago. The two chicks hatched in mid-May. Biologists with the Center for Conservation Biology and U. Learn more...
-
A red-cockaded woodpecker has dinner outside its nesting cavity. Photo by USFWS.
Endangered woodpeckers translocated to Great Dismal Swamp after a 40-year absence
October 29, 2015 | 3 minute read
Four pairs of endangered red-cockaded woodpeckers took flight in their new home last Friday at Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge in Suffolk, Virginia, which hasn’t seen the woodpecker since 1974. The goal is to establish Virginia’s second population and the only population to date on public land, as well as to boost populations at the northern limit of the species’ natural range in the state. “The potential to restore the endangered red-cockaded woodpecker to Great Dismal Swamp is very exciting,” said refuge manager Chris Lowie. Learn more...
Faq
-
Big Sandy crayfish. Photo by Zachary Loughman, West Liberty University.
Endangered Species Act protects two Appalachian crayfish
April 6, 2016 | 7 minute read
Following a review of the best available science, peer review and public comment, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has protected the Guyandotte River crayfish as endangered and the Big Sandy crayfish as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. What are the ranges of the Guyandotte River and Big Sandy crayfish? Occurrence data, historical habitat characteristics, and information from species experts indicate that the Big Sandy crayfish’s historical range likely included streams throughout the upper Big Sandy River basin, which covers 10 counties in Kentucky, Virginia, and West Virginia. Learn more...
News
-
Golden riffleshell mussel gets placed in Indian Creek. Photo by Gary Peeples, USFWS.
Clinch River mussel pulled back from the brink of extinction
October 16, 2017 | 6 minute read
The plight of the golden riffleshell, which is listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act, took a leap forward on September 21, as 700 captively-reared individuals were released into three sites – on Indian Creek, and on the Clinch River on the edge of Richlands, Virginia, and further upstream at a site owned by The Nature Conservancy. Read the full story...
-
Yellow lance in the Tar River in North Carolina. Photo by Sarah McRae, USFWS.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service finds yellow lance mussel warrants Endangered Species Act protection
April 4, 2017 | 4 minute read
A freshwater mussel native to waters from Maryland to North Carolina along the Atlantic seaboard is declining. Recent surveys showed the yellow lance mussel has lost 57 percent of its historical range. Read the full story...
-
Big Sandy crayfish. Photo by Zachary Loughman, West Liberty University.
Endangered Species Act protections finalized for two Appalachian crayfishes in Kentucky, Virginia and West Virginia
April 6, 2016 | 4 minute read
Just months after the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s April 2015 proposal to protect the Big Sandy crayfish and Guyandotte River crayfish as endangered, the agency sent a crayfish expert into the central Appalachians to look for more. The goal: to determine if the outlook for the two creatures was better than previous data indicated. After combing hundreds of likely sites in the Big Sandy and Guyandotte River watersheds in Virginia, West Virginia, and Kentucky, the survey team from West Liberty University had mixed results. Read the full story...
-
Red wolf. Photo by Valerie, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.
Eastern North Carolina Red wolf population under review
August 29, 2014 | 3 minute read
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service awarded a contract to conduct a review of the Eastern North Carolina non-essential, experimental red wolf population to the Wildlife Management Institute (WMI), of Cabot, Virginia. Founded in 1911, WMI is a private, non-profit, scientific and educational organization, dedicated to the conservation, enhancement, and professional management of North America’s wildlife and other natural resources. The evaluation will be completed in 60 days by October 10, 2014. Read the full story...
Podcasts
-
Cluster of Virginia big-eared bats (Corynorhinus townsendii virginianus). Photo by Dave Riggs, CC BY-SA 2.0.
Grants go to help the struggle against White Nose Syndrome
January 12, 2010 | 2 minute read
Transcript Greetings and welcome to the Southern Appalachian Creature Feature. Winter is approaching - a season that has become a time of apprehension among wildlife biologists. White nose syndrome, a mysterious affliction responsible for the deaths of more than a million bats, is most lethal during this time, and the collective hibernation of bats means winter presents the greatest opportunity for spreading the malady. In response to the threat of white nose syndrome, the Fish and Wildlife Service recently announced $800,000 in grants to fund six research projects that will provide insight into this mysterious, menacing threat, and help ensure the survival of some of our rarest bats. Learn more...
