Around the world and back: The amazing feats of our feathered friends

Today you're hearing from Deb Reynolds in our Division of Migratory Birds. She has worked as their outreach coordinator for eight years, and in her free time, she likes to run and play with her girls and dogs.

Whimbrel. Credit: Lynn Schmid

I love shorebirds.

They range from the cute little fluffy piping plover chick to the greater yellowlegs and its elegant long legs. But the shorebird I am most taken with these days is the whimbrel, a gray-brown wading bird characterized by its long, curved bill.

Roanoke makes river more popular for fish and recreation

Two years later, and the new and improved bridge that crosses the Roanoke River in Roanoke, Va., is still a gift to the fish that make the river their home, as well as to the people of the city.

Completed on May 20, 2010, the installation of the new bridge was the final step in the Wiley Drive Bridge replacement project that including replacing the previous bridge with one that would better serve the fish and other visitors to the Roanoke River.

The main purpose of the project was to allow more movement for groups of Roanoke logperch, a fish protected under the Endangered Species Act, that have been documented in upper and lower sections of the river. The former bridge acted almost as a dam, keeping the populations separated from one another and lowering genetic diversity. 

Before and after the bridge replacement. Credit: USFWS

 

Breaking sweat to protect W.Va.'s bats in Trout Cave

Today you're hearing from Devin Gill, an AmeriCorps volunteer with our West Virginia Field Office.

Trout Cave is one of Pendleton County’s best kept secrets.

Its large mouth beckons cavers away from a breathtaking overlook of the North Fork River as the river navigates its way through the mountains of Pendleton County. To the average passerby on U.S. Route 33, the steep trail leading to Trout Cave’s entrance is lost amidst the roadside greenery. But to cavers in the know, Trout Cave is a 200-foot, gut-busting climb up from the highway.

Early one hot July morning, employees from our West Virginia Field Office and the West Virginia DNR set out for Trout Cave with one goal in mind: to protect native bats.

Historically, Trout Cave was home to large populations of a variety of bat species. But the sizes and diversity of bat populations within the cave have declined in recent years, presumably due to increased recreational activity in the cave since the 1960’s. The once large population of little brown bats has dwindled down to only a handful. 

Reviving a river: Checking in at Great Works Dam

Each week, our folks at the Maine field office are driving by to check on the progress of the Great Works Dam removal, part of the Penobscot River Restoration Project.

Our Maine hydro licensing coordinator, Steve Shepard, tells us, "The folks with the big toys are making steady progress!"

Work is starting on the remains of the Legacy Dam which dates back to days of hydromechanical power when there were reportedly 120 mills between Old Town and Bangor.