Conservation Easements Along the Housatonic River

Using funds from an NRDAR settlement, FWS obligated $557,810 ($2011) to TNC of Massachusetts for the purchase of permanent conservation easements on approximately 200 acres of riparian lands along the Housatonic River in Salisbury, Connecticut. Conservation of riparian habitat will help to (1) protect water quality; (2) protect nesting habitat for migratory songbirds and other wildlife, including several rare and endangered plants, turtles, salamanders and dragonflies; and (3) maintain the scenic, agrarian character of the region. These efforts provide a beneficial tradeoff from the harm to the river and associated wildlife caused by historical polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) contamination. Economic Impacts of...

Categories: Project; Types: Map Service, OGC WFS Layer, OGC WMS Layer, OGC WMS Service; Tags: Amphibians, Bank stabilization/erosion control, Birds, Connecticut, Farmland Preservation, All tags... Federally threatened or endangered species, Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), Habitat-based, Natural processes and hazards, Perennial stream/river, Reptiles, Riparian restoration, Species protection, The Nature Conservancy, The Nature Conservancy, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Fewer tags

Lone Mountain NRDAR Fresh Water Mussel Restoration

Background information.—Historically, the Powell River supported abundant and diverse populations of freshwater mussels. In recent decades, mussel density and species richness have declined and many freshwater mussel species are listed as either State or Federally threatened or endangered species. Environmental degradation from coal mining has been identified as one of the drivers of this decline. An example is the 1996 Lone Mountain slurry spill that directly affected mussel populations, as well as their host fish species. Freshwater mussels feed by filtering small particles from water, thereby improving water quality and providing an essential ecosystem service in rivers and streams. Mussels also serve as a food...

Categories: Project; Types: Map Service, OGC WFS Layer, OGC WMS Layer, OGC WMS Service; Tags: Aquatic, Aquatic species propagation, Bank stabilization/erosion control, Broadleaf, Conservation easement, All tags... Enhancement of existing (improve baseline conditions), Erosion control, Federally threatened or endangered species, Fish, Habitat-based, Hazardous substances (CERCLA) and hazardous materials (RCRA), Land acquisition, Lone Mountain Procession, Inc. coal slurry spill, Molluscs, Non-listed species, Organism-based, Perennial stream/river, Private land, Riverine (non-tidal), Species breeding/hatching/rearing, Species protection, Species reintroduction/translocation, State threatened or endangered species, Terrestrial, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Virginia, Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, Virginia Tech Freshwater Mollusk Conservation Center, Virginia Tech Freshwater Mollusk Conservation Center, Fewer tags

Glacial Ridge Prairie and Wetland Restoration

The Agassiz Beach Ridges landscape is located in the Red River watershed of northwestern Minnesota and falls and is within the larger Prairie Pothole Region (PPR). The PPR has been identified as being responsible for producing 50–80 percent of the continent’s waterfowl while accounting for only 10% of the available breeding habitat. It is estimated that less than 1% of Minnesota’s historic native prairie remains intact, with much of the remnant prairie scattered about in small clusters. Restoration of key sites within this landscape has been identified as the most important strategy to create a contiguous expanse of prairie/wetland mosaic and improve the ecological functioning of these systems. In the fall of...

Categories: Project; Types: Map Service, OGC WFS Layer, OGC WMS Layer, OGC WMS Service; Tags: Birds, Cropland conversion, Federally threatened or endangered species, Fish and Wildlife Service, Grasses, All tags... Habitat-based, Herbaceous (grass, sedge, forb), Mammals, Minnesota, Natural Resource Conservation Service, Natural Resource Conservation Service, Natural processes and hazards, Prairie restoration, Private land, Species protection, State threatened or endangered species, The Nature Conservancy, The Nature Conservancy, U.S. Department of the Interior land, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Wetland, Wetland Restoration, Wetland creation, Fewer tags

Piping Plover Nesting Habitat Management Program

This case study illustrates that even modest restoration projects can provide benefits to the environment and local economy. FWS provided $130,000 ($2011) over 2007–2011 to The Nature Conservancy of Rhode Island (TNC, RI) to implement a nesting habitat management program for the federally threatened piping plover, a shorebird that nests along sandy beaches on the Atlantic coast. The source of the funds was the NRDAR settlement for the North Cape Oil Spill. In 1996, the oil spill adversely impacted piping plover nesting habitat, resulting in fewer chicks produced during the following nesting season. To compensate for these impacts, natural resource trustees (FWS, RI, and NOAA) sought to increase the number of chicks...

Categories: Project; Types: Map Service, OGC WFS Layer, OGC WMS Layer, OGC WMS Service; Tags: Education (e.g., signage, visitor center, audio/visual materials, social media,, Education and Community Use Project, Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Rhode Island, All tags... Species nest creation/inserts, Species protection, The Nature Conservancy, The Nature Conservancy, Tidally influenced/coastal/beach, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Fewer tags