State Wildlife Grants & Projects

State Wildlife Grant funding supports a variety of essential conservation projects. Though the Virginia Wildlife Action Plan was approved within the past year, conservation projects began receiving funding through State Wildlife Grants as early as 2001.

Thus far, conservation efforts for all of the major groups of wildlife species have received some funding through the State Wildlife Grants Program. Funding through this program is also being used to manage invasive non-native species, support comprehensive wildlife information management and mapping, and assess impacts of land management actions on wildlife and the habitats that support them. A list of these projects provides more details about the important conservation work being realized already.

Visit teaming.com for more information about these grants.

Fish

Status of the ashy darter in the Clinch River, Virginia

The ashy darter is known from very few collection records in Virginia, all from the main channel of the Clinch River. Although a few records exist from the Clinch River in Tennessee, it is increasingly difficult to collect there as well. Scientists believe that the 1967 Clinch River fish kill, which eliminated virtually all fish in the main stem of the river from Carbo to the Tennessee line, likely eliminated this species from Virginia waters. It has never been known from the Holston or Powell rivers in Virginia. In October 2004, biologists from Conservation Fisheries, Inc., discovered one individual ashy darter in the Clinch River at St. Paul during a snorkel survey for the federally threatened yellowfin madtom (Noturus flavipinnis). DGIF biologists were unable to return to that site, or any others in the vicinity due to high water, which persisted into early winter. Ashy darter habitat differs somewhat from that of the madtom; therefore, surveying specifically for ashy darters might uncover other populations. Surveys specifically for this species will be performed via snorkeling at select known historic, current, and potential sites in the Clinch River from the Tennessee line upstream as far as the Cedar Bluff area.

Project Status: This project is being initiated in 2006.
Project Results: N/A
Final Report: N/A

Reptiles & Amphibians

Effects of clearcutting on movements and habitat use by canebrake rattlesnakes

For several years, the movement and habitat use of the state endangered canebrake rattlesnakes have been tracked by radiotelemetry research. With approximately 300 acres of the study area planned for clearcut in the near future, there is an opportunity to assess the impacts of large-scale habitat alteration on this endangered species within a well-documented and monitored population. Tracking of the population continues as it has in recent years, with the added evaluation of habitat alterations and their effects on the rattlesnake population. Old Dominion University is conducting a radiotelemetric study of the rattlesnakes at NSGA Northwest, Chesapeake, VA, and monitoring movements of rattlesnakes approximately five days per week during the active season and three days per week during hibernation period.

Project Status: This project was initiated in 2004
Project Results: N/A
Final Report: N/A

Virginia Frog & Toad Call Surveys

Suspected declines in amphibian populations are occurring throughout North America. The DGIF, in coordination with the U.S. Geological Survey, has developed a statewide network of amphibian call surveys according to protocols of the North American Amphibian Monitoring Program (NAAMP). The Virginia Frog and Toad Calling Survey serves to develop baseline data for population trend analyses, which help the Department fulfill its mission of managing Virginia's wildlife resources. For this work, DGIF created a set of permanent survey routes that are being used by observers to identify amphibians. The DGIF then recruited and trained observers to survey the routes. At the national level, this is the first effort to develop and evaluate trends in amphibian populations at state, regional, and national scales, and will be critical to documenting apparent declines in these species in Virginia and elsewhere.

Project Status: The project was initiated in 1998 and is an on-going project that continues to expand.
Project Results: N/A
Final Report: DGIF provides annual data and final maps to the national NAAMP coordinators.

Birds

Important Bird Areas

The Virginia Important Bird Areas Program is an initiative to help ensure the protection of the most essential sites for bird populations in our state. The Virginia Audubon Council partnered with the Virginia Society of Ornithology, the Virginia Department of Game & Inland Fisheries, and the National Audubon Society to establish the program in 2002. A Technical Committee was soon created to facilitate the nomination and review of potential Important Bird Areas (IBAs) throughout the state. Members on this committee and other important partners represent over 15 different conservation and management groups throughout the state. Selection of sites will be an ongoing process as more information about potential sites is gathered. The identification of IBAs is an important first step in larger bird conservation initiatives. IBA inventories provide a scientifically defensible method for prioritizing conservation activities and allocating limited conservation dollars to ensure the maximum benefit to birds.

Project Status: Currently, the Virginia IBA Technical Committee has recognized 12 official IBAs, identified 2 more, and with the help of public and private landowners, has identified several candidate IBAs.
Project Results: N/A
Final Report: N/A

Mammals

Indiana bat telemetry study

Indiana bats continue to decline in Virginia despite protection of over 90% of the known caves that they use for hibernation. The continued loss suggests summer habitat may be the problem. Random surveys for Indiana bats in habitat considered to be appropriate have yielded few summer captures in Virginia and all have been individual males. Surrounding states including North Carolina, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania all have documented summer maternity records, suggesting that maternity sites should occur in Virginia. In New York, radio telemetry has been used successfully to track females from caves to summer sites. We are tracking female Indiana bats with the use of radiotags from caves to summer sites. Upon locating summer habitat, individuals will be monitored to determine habitat use.

Project Status: This project was initiated in 2005.
Project Results: N/A
Final Report: N/A

Freshwater Mussels

Aquatic Wildlife Conservation Center Design/Buller Fish Cultural Station Plan

Complete engineering design for the Aquatic Wildlife Conservation Center (AWCC), and a site plan for Buller Fish Cultural Station complex, will facilitate construction of a new freshwater mussel and nongame fishes propagation facility. Current operations and enhancements in progress will maximize use of current space and water resources available to AWCC, and we cannot proceed with facility expansion to meet freshwater mussel restoration objectives until the long-term strategy and site plan for the entire Buller / AWCC complex have been developed. A design/engineering firm has been contracted to complete the Buller/AWCC site plan and AWCC engineering design with input from DGIF Fisheries, Wildlife Diversity, and Capital Facilities staff.

Project Status: This project was initiated in 2005 and is nearing completion.
Project Results: N/A
Final Report: N/A

Genetic Analysis of the Virginia lanceolate Elliptio species

The most problematic genus in the diversity of North America's freshwater mussels is Elliptio. There are approximately 38 species recognized with over 170 synonyms, most of these found in rivers on the South Atlantic Slope in the Southeastern United States. The lanceolate Elliptio group is just as problematic. DGIF currently recognizes 4 lanceolate Elliptio species in Virginia: E. lanceolata, E. producta, E. angustata, and E. fisheriana; however, the most recent and all-encompassing review of Elliptio (Richard Johnson, Harvard University, 1970) synonomized 25 lanceolate Elliptio species as Elliptio lanceolata (yellow lance), including all 4 of the Virginia species. Due to confusion over true distribution of these species in Virginia, especially yellow lance (E. lanceolata), it has been difficult to apply appropriate management and conservation strategies. Genetic analysis has shown that the "true" yellow lance can be distinguished from the other lanceolate Elliptio species. A new analysis may provide resolution for the other species, if distinct species do exist in this group. To accomplish this work, approximately 5 yellow lance and other lanceolate Elliptio specimens will be collected from each of 5 sites in the James, Chowan, Rappahannock, York, and Potomac River basins (25 sites total, 250 specimens total). All specimens will be preserved and catalogued at the NC State Museum of Natural Sciences, and tissue samples will be taken for genetic and other analyses at NC State University (NCSU).

Project Status: This project was initiated in 2005.
Project Results: N/A
Final Report: N/A

Invasive Species Control

Eradication of Invasive Zebra Mussels from a Virginia Quarry

An infestation of zebra mussels in a Virginia quarry has been eliminated, marking what biologists and environmental experts believe is the first successful extermination of this extremely invasive species in an open waterbody. Zebra mussels, Dreissena polymorpha, are fingernail-sized, freshwater mussels that are native to the Caspian and Black sea region in Eurasia. This species was most likely introduced to North America via ballast water from a transoceanic vessel. Zebra mussels can have vast impacts on our economy, and lakes & oceans' ecosystem. They are extremely efficient filter-feeders, consuming large portions of the microscopic plants and animals which form the base of the food chain. In time, this can affect a lake's entire ecological balance, significantly shifting native species populations. Their rapid reproduction causes another negative effect. Zebra mussels have clogged water and drain pipes at municipal water supplies and industries. Preliminary estimates say they will cost the US $5 billion in control efforts and reparation. Infestation of the Virginia quarry may have occurred via improperly washed diving equipment, or via intentional introduction.

Project Status: Complete as of Spring 2006, except for monitoring that will take place to be certain eradication was indeed successful and further prevention efforts are successful.
Project Results: Eradication of zebra mussels from the only known site in Virginia is successful.
Final Report: N/A

Land Acquisition

Cavalier Wildlife Management Area, Chesapeake, Virginia

A purchase of land, commonly referred to as the Cavalier property, is an enormous coup for conservation advocates, some of whom have eyed the property since 1989. The purchase of about 3,800 acres in southern Chesapeake adds a gigantic piece to the protected-land puzzle and ensures that the city's rural heritage remains intact while providing hunting, hiking, bird-watching, and camping opportunities. This tract of land is part of the Great Dismal Swamp ecosystem and will play an important role in realizing the restoration of Atlantic white cedar and longleaf pine communities in this region of Virginia.

Project Status: Property acquired in 2005.
Project Results: N/A
Final Report: N/A

Information Management and Mapping

Virginia Fish and Wildlife Information Service

The DGIF has developed, and continues to enhance, an integrated database and mapping system called the Virginia Fish and Wildlife Information Service (www.vafwis.org) that provided much of the information for developing the Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Plan (CWCP). This application contains species distribution and habitat association information, locations of species occurrences, threatened and endangered species locations, Breeding Bird Atlas, Breeding Bird Survey, colonial waterbird survey, cold- and warm-water stream survey data, anadromous fish use areas, and threatened and endangered species waters. The system was recently re-engineered and enhanced with the addition of new databases (Terrestrial GAP Species Distributions with Species Richness and DGIF biologists' observations, for example) and new mapping and query functions. This system is an essential tool for responding to demands for large quantities of biological data in a timely manner and provides an efficient way to share data with other agencies and organizations.

Project Status: On-going
Project Results: N/A
Final Report: N/A