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The chucky madtom (Noturus crypticus) is a newly described species (Burr et al 2005) It is a candidate for federal listing and is known from only two streams in east Tennessee Dunn Creek in the French Broad River drainage and Little Chucky Creek in the Nolichucky River drainage. This QR project Final Report includes data collected under two separate contracts. The combined objectives were to: (1) conduct a survey for the chucky madtom in at least one reach of each tributary (contingent upon landowner permission), (2) survey Little Chucky Creek upstream of Rader, TN, (3) describe habitat at each tributary site sampled, and (4) transfer all chucky madtoms collected to CFI for propagation.
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One of the most diverse freshwater mussel assemblages in the world once occurred in the Cumberland and Tennessee Rivers. Several of these species are now extinct; others linger on as relic, nonreproducing populations, and populations of the remaining species have also declined. Although many factors contributed to the decline of mussels, habitat loss from impoundments and poor water quality in tailwaters have been major causes. Recently, the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) initiated a major program to improve water quality in the tailwaters by maintaining minimum flows and by oxygenating discharged water. This program has resulted in significant improvements in water quality. These improvements have resulted in...
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This SSP project resulted in a dissertation: Lethal and sub-lethal physiological effects of behavioral responses of endangered freshwater mussels to reductions in streamflow. Little is known about the behavioral responses and physiological effects of freshwater mussels to reductions in streamflow and their ecological significance, but movement behavior of animals is often an important adaptation for responding to changing environmental conditions. Mussels are primarily thought of as sessile organisms typically exhibiting little to no movement during their life span. To better understand this aspect of mussel ecology, flume, mesocosm, and in-situ field studies were conducted to determine behavioral responses to...
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The goal of this QR project was to identify how mussels responded to reductions in stream discharge. The primary objective was to identify the movement strategy used in response to diminishing water levels for each species. Additionally, determine if these movement strategies are consistent within genera or closely related species.
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