Valentines snow squalls

A passing snow squall blocked the view of the cliffs on the other side of the river.

and three minutes later:

Micro rain shadows in Hampshire County

We're studying micro rain shadows that explain why the South Branch Valley gets less rainfall than nearby Swanton, Frostburg, and even Cumberland, but also Morgan and Frederick Counties.  

Our weather data is available online: LINK      Do you know of other Hampshire County weather stations?

Underwater ROV based on cuttlefish

As we experiment with freshwater ROV's in the South Branch, there's this:

Migrating Starlings

(This video is not from Hampshire County.)

Help control chronic wasting disease in Hampshire County

Today is the LAST DAY to purchase your Class RG stamp for an additional buck this season. 


To buy online visit: www.wvhunt.com

This is impressive.

Not so great as an instructional video as posted before, but impressive to watch.

DNR Bowhunter Survey

Bowhunters wanted! DNR needs volunteers for Bowhunter Survey

SOUTH CHARLESTON, W.Va. – With the opening of archery seasons for deer and bear over a month ago (Sept. 27, 2014), West Virginia bowhunters are encouraged to participate in the West Virginia Bowhunter Survey. The Bowhunter Survey was initiated in 1995 as a cooperative effort between the West Virginia Bowhunters Association and the DNR to monitor wildlife populations.

"The Bowhunter Survey supplies a wealth of information to the DNR and hunters about wildlife population trends, deer habitats and hunters' opinions in West Virginia," said Chris Ryan, Supervisor of Game Management Services for the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources (DNR).

"Bowhunters typically sit in one spot for long periods of time and are natural wildlife observers.

Viewing and Reporting Waterfowl Migrations

I'll look forward to reporting the annual American Merganser observations.  Click the image or go to http://www.ducks.org/migrationmap

2014-2015 Winter Weather Forecasts

Firsthand Weather’s Final 2014-15 Winter Forecast (each region is numbered):

Temperature Map:

Precipitation Map: 

Yellowjackets

Yellowjackets from the Extension Master Gardener FB page.

Yellowjackets are beneficial insects, but they can become trouble if you have exposed sugars on your patio or recycling bin.



Image by Digital Museum of Natural History

Taking a Soil Sample

Tabletop Whale Infographics

Reposted from the Green STEM Learning blog by Mary Van Dyke.

Infographics - Talking Pictures

A picture speaks a thousand words, and catches your attention and appreciation.

Wow your class with this fluttering butterflies infographic by Eleanor Lutz at Tabletop Whale.

http://tabletopwhale.com/2014/08/27/42-butterflies-of-north-america.html

Perhaps your students could also draw a couple of butterflies and animate them using simple gif-techniques?

Tabletop Whale publishes new infographics with science theme every two or three weeks. Check back frequently - or sign up to receive them.

Soil test alternative?

Butterfly Declines and Population Cycles

By the Washington Post's Adrian Higgins.  Notice the reference to Paw Paws and the Zebra Swallowtail butterfly (highlighted below).

Where have all the butterflies gone?

This year’s low numbers might be linked to the harsh winter.

By Adrian Higgins Gardening columnist August 6  

Several readers have written to me complaining that the garden seems to be devoid of its grace note this summer — that is, the butterfly.

A tiger swallowtail on lantana. (Butterfly Habitat Garden)

By this point in the growing season, the coneflowers and black-eyed Susans and other composites should be groaning under the weight of swallowtails, skippers and painted ladies. When it comes to lepidoptera, my garden is empty, too. Even the cabbage whites seem oddly thin on the ground.

Adrian Higgins has been writing about the intersection of gardening and life for more than 25 years, and joined the Post in 1994. He is the author of several books, including the "Washington Post Garden Book" and "Chanticleer, a Pleasure Garden." View Archive

So is this dearth real or imagined?

“Both,” said Jeffrey Glassberg, president of the North American Butterfly Association. Butterfly populations are highly sensitive to environmental conditions, and insect populations normally fluctuate greatly from year to year. This is distinct from long-term trends linked to problems such as habitat loss and pesticide use affecting the overall prospects of butterfly species.

“Every single day there are fewer butterflies in the United States than there were the day before,” said Glassberg, of Morristown, N.J. “Every time you take a meadow and turn it into a shopping center, you have decreased the world’s population of butterflies.”

Notice of Intent to Sue over Algae in Shenandoah

Shenandoah Riverkeeper Files Notice of Intent to Sue EPA for Failure to Address Algae in Shenandoah River

Tuesday, August 5, 2014 - 5:34pm

Shenandoah Riverkeeper Files Notice of Intent to Sue EPA

for Failure to Address Algae in Shenandoah River

WASHINGTON, DC –Public outcry arose last week over a water ban in Toledo, Ohio due to toxic algae blooms. But the threat from nuisance or toxic algae is not confined to the Midwest.

Shenandoah Riverkeeper has worked for four years to push the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) and the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to officially recognize severe annual algae blooms in the Shenandoah River and to begin implementing plans to eliminate them, but has found that it must now resort to legal action. 

This week, Shenandoah Riverkeeper, represented by Earthjustice, filed a notice of intent to sue the

Floods and Plant Adaptations

From In Defense of Plants and ScienceDirect:

Riparian zones can be pretty rough places for plant life. Despite readily a available water supply, the unpredictable, disturbance-prone nature of these habitats means that static lifeforms such as plants need to be quite adaptable to survive and persist. Some riparian shrubs and trees have adopted a "live fast, die young" strategy for survival. They must be able to cope with things like floods, ice scour, and erosion.
Putting all their energy into quick growth is useful but it also means that many species, like willows and cottonwoods, have relatively weak wood. As you may know, these trees are quite prone to breaking. The same goes for riparian shrubs like dogwoods. After a flood or massive ice breakup, it is not uncommon to find bits and pieces of these woody plants strewn all over, usually jumbled up in a log jam somewhere downstream. Though this may seem disastrous, but looks can be deceiving.

Whereas they all produce seeds, they can also reproduce vegetatively. This is exactly what you are seeing in this picture. A willow branch, ripped from its parent plant, has settled downstream into the mud. Undifferentiated cells under the bark are now producing roots and stems. In time, this may become a whole new willow tree. Provided the branches and logs contain enough living material, a new plant can take root and grow rather quickly. After a heavy flood event, one of these trees or shrubs can suddenly become multiple clones of the same individual. Research has even shown that this form of vegetative reproduction makes for better survival during flood events than that of seedlings.

Restoration practitioners have taken advantage of this adaptation as well. One of the quickest and easiest forms of riparian restoration is the use of live stakes. Live stakes are simply branches (roughly thumb sized in diameter) cut off from a parent plant and driven into the ground. Success is best achieved when the plant is dormant in either early fall or spring. Once the branches awake from dormancy, they begin growing and entire stream banks can be replanted over the span of a couple hours with only a handful of volunteers.

Further Reading:
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S037811270200600X

Tracking Black-Crowned Night Herons

Source: www.digital-images.net

We see both black-crowned and
yellow-crowned night herons in
Hampshire County.



==============








Re-posted from Washington Post Local News

Scientists hope to track black-crowned night herons

By Martin Weil August 2 

Say what you will about the National Zoo, some animals definitely like it there and have showed their fondness by voting with their wings.

These are the black-crowned night herons, which return every spring to the zoo to breed, thus giving firm evidence of their affinities for the District, Rock Creek Park and the zoo.

But starting around this time of year, they fly off again, and just where they go has been a subject of ornithological uncertainty. But this year, authorities think that they will find out: They have attached miniature radio transmitters to six of the birds.

It happened on July 7. Using food as the attraction, scientists lured the herons from their perches, which were not in the birdhouse, but in the trees around it.

They briefly confined the birds, caught them, according to the zoo, and fitted them with custom-crafted backpack-style transmitters.

The birds are fine with the added baggage, the zoo said in an online account of the procedure. After being fitted, the birds were released again, and have been seen flying about with them.

If the past is a guide, the solar-powered radios will report back to scientists on the birds’ position after they take wing on their annual migration. This generally occurs some time after the start of August and is understood to involve days of flying over routes that cover hundreds of miles.

An effort was made last year to subject the herons to electronic monitoring in flight. That pilot study worked for a while, the zoo said.

At least three herons fitted with satellite transmitters were tracked for a time. One left on Sept. 22, and in six days flew to Fort Myers, Fla.

Swimmable WV Rivers Weekend

Details on Pipeline Route Across MD/WV State Line?

The proposed pipeline appears to cross the Potomac near the mouth of the South Branch.  It's hard to determine from the tiny map shared by the gas company whether it crosses the South Branch or travels east of the river to Levels.  

The terrain map below shows that there are possible routes along the North Branch floodplain, French's Station Road, or along the South Branch meander that creates the French's Neck West / Blue Meadow's North floodplain. 

This seems like an opportunity for planners and our government leaders to negotiate a better bridge crossing at Oldtown/Green Spring, or possible road improvements wherever the pipeline travels.

Potomac Downriver Race Rescheduled - Saturday, May 24th

Potomac Downriver Race - Saturday, May 24th

The 59^th running of the CCA Potomac Downriver Race, which was postponed due to high water, will be held this Saturday, May 24th.  Registration opens at 9:00 AM, at Angler's.

The forecast for Little Falls on Saturday morning is 5.1 feet.  
The race start and registration will be at Angler's.
Obtain a registration form from http://www.canoecruisers.org/notices.html. Follow the instructions for mailing. The entrance fee is $25. Note also that $5 per paddler must be included in the fee for insurance unless the paddler is a member of the ACA (American Canoe Association) and your ACA number is provided. Tandem teams pay as two individuals.

Liability forms must be signed on race day.  All boats must have flotation.  All paddlers must wear helmets and PFDs (life jackets).

For additional information and registration form, click this link.http://www.canoecruisers.org/notices.html

Water Level Forecast:  http://water.weather.gov/ahps2/hydrograph.php?wfo=lwx&gage=brkm2
Little Falls Gauge:  http://waterdata.usgs.gov/md/nwis/uv?site_no=01646500