ENDANGERED SPECIES RESEARCH AT THE VIRGINIA COOPERATIVE FISH AND WILDLIFE RESEARCH UNIT

1. ENDANGERED SPECIES RESEARCH AT THE VIRGINIA COOPERATIVE FISH AND WILDLIFE RESEARCH UNIT Richard J. Neves1, M. R. Vaughan2, and P. L. Angermeier3. Virginia Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, U. S. Geological Survey, Department of Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, U.S.A. 1mussel@vt.edu, 2mvaughan@vt.edu, and 3biota@vt.edu EXAMPLES OF PROJECTS ONGOING Mussel Restoration Plan for the Powell River Coal Slurry Spill A Cooperative Agreement was entered into by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University for the purpose of implementing restoration activities described within the Coal Slurry Spill Natural Resource Damage Assessment (Plan). The Plan was developed with public input to meet the requirements of the consent decree (CD) to address natural resource damages resulting from the 1996 spill. Unit staff perform expected tasks associated with accepted protocols for the artificial propagation, restoration, and monitoring of priority freshwater mussel species for propagation. Unit staff may participate in the translocation of those species that exhibit low propagation success rates and are found within relatively stronger populations farther downstream in the Powell River watershed. Translocation efforts are coordinated through the Service Project Officer, in coordination with the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and endangered species permitting officials. Mussel Injury Study Plan for North Fork and Mainstem Holston River The Saltville Waste Disposal Site (Site) was listed as a Superfund Site in 1983. The Site is located in Smyth County between the towns of Saltville and Allison Gap, Virginia. The Olin Corporation and its predecessors used the Site for industrial processes from 1895 to 1972. The waste disposal practices at the Site resulted in mercury-contaminated wastewaters being lost daily into the NFHR system downstream of Saltville, Virginia and in sediment adjacent to the Site. Industrial impact above and below Saltville include large quantities of elemental mercury (Hg) and chloride salts discharged into the NFHR at Saltville during the 20th century, contaminating more than 185 km of the NFHR. Two settling ponds were created adjacent to the NFHR at Saltville to store this waste, covering approximately 122 hectares (ha). In 1977, the ponds contained an estimated 100 metric tons of Hg. An estimated 100 g of Hg per day continued to seep from these ponds into the NFHR. The objectives of this study are to determine the recruitment rates of freshwater mussels, species diversity, and site-specific mussel densities at approximately twelve selected survey sites on the river in Virginia and Tennessee and to assess levels of Hg and chlorides still entering the river. The Status of Clouded Leopards in Taiwan Clouded leopards are listed by the IUCN as vulnerable throughout their range from the southeastern Himalayas, southern China and Taiwan to Malasia, Sumatra, and Kalimantan. They are not abundant anywhere. The Formosan clouded leopard is listed as endangered by the Taiwan government. Only a handful have been sighted in Taiwan since the 1960’s. The Tawu Nature preserve in Taiwan was established to protect clouded leopards, but now it is threatened by a proposed highway which will bisect the preserve. Thus, it is important to determine the abundance of clouded leopards in Taiwan and to understand their ecological requirements. _WWF_PHKA_VATech Density and Distribution of Sumatran Tigers on the Tesso Nilo Conservation Landscape Fifty years ago Sumatra was covered by rainforests, but today the lowland rain forests are nearly gone, converted to oil palm and pulp wood plantations or planted to agriculture; the Tesso Nilo forest is one of the few large forest tracts remaining. Sumatran tigers, the most endangered of tiger subspecies, inhabit this forest, but distribution and abundance of tigers is unknown. Poaching of tigers is a problem, and records indicate 34 tigers were poached during 1998-2001. This research uses camera trapping and pattern recognition analysis, DNA analysis of hair samples, and presence/absence data (site occupancy) to determine distribution and relative abundance of tigers on Tesso Nilo. This project is being conducted jointly by Drs. Marcella Kelly and Mike Vaughan. Dr. Michael R. Vaughan Dr. Richard J. Neves Dr. Paul L. Angermeier ABSTRACT The Virginia Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit at Virginia Tech consists of 3 federal employees who conduct research approved by the university, Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, and the U.S. Geological Survey. The research projects are supported by external funding and are conducted by MS and PhD students in the Department of Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences. Each of the scientists has an endangered species component to his research, and examples of the domestic and international projects are summarized in this poster. INTRODUCTION The Virginia Unit is a component of the federal Cooperative Research Units (CRU) and operates under a cooperative agreement with the Biological Resources Division of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (VDGIF), Virginia Tech (VPI&SU), and the Wildlife Management Institute (WMI). The mission of this and other Units is to conduct research on fish, wildlife, and their habitats as approved by Cooperators; contribute to the education and training of graduate students; provide technical assistance to Cooperators and other agencies; and report research results to other scientists and the general public in journals, technical reports, and semi‑technical and popular literature. The Unit receives salaries and operating funds from the USGS, but most research funds are derived from contracts, research work orders, and other sources of research support. The Virginia Cooperative Wildlife Research Unit was established in 1935, and the Virginia Cooperative Fishery Research Unit, in 1967. These Units were formally combined into the Virginia Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit in March 1985. The Unit is housed in the Department of Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences at Virginia Tech. Unit scientists conduct research on a wide range of topics related to the biology, ecology, and conservation of aquatic and terrestrial animals. Herein, we present selected examples of projects focused on management and recovery of imperiled species. _WWF_PHKA_VATech Range-wide Assessment of Habitat Suitability for Roanoke Logperch (Percina rex) The Roanoke logperch (Percina rex) is a federally endangered fish inhabiting six disjunct areas in Virginia, including the Pigg, upper Roanoke, Smith, and Nottoway river drainages. Siltation from highway projects is one of the main threats to this species. Permits are required for each Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) construction project in the vicinity of its known range, resulting in survey costs and project delays. With the potential construction of I-73 through much of its known range, these costs are expected to dramatically increase. This project will include identification and ranking of sites with relatively high habitat suitability for this species, and the creation of a screening model that will eliminate the need for the majority of these surveys.