None The Nature Conservancy in Georgia Press Releases Search All Press Releases Christine Griffiths Phone: (912) 437-2161, ext. 225 Email: cgriffiths@tnc.org

Get Your Feet Wet and Learn About Freshwater Ecology

Glennville, GA—September 6, 2003—On Saturday, September 6 from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., The Nature Conservancy will host the second of a two-part training session on freshwater ecology. The event, which is free and open to the public, will be held at Adamson's Fish Camp near Glennville. The training is sponsored by the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, International Paper, and Plum Creek.

Under the instruction of experienced biologists, participants will search the shallows of the Altamaha River for freshwater mussels and fish, learning about the various species and how they contribute to the health of the river system.

The United States is one of the richest aquatic regions in the world, supporting almost one-third (approximately 300 species) of all known freshwater mussels with about 70 percent of those species considered endangered or threatened, making them one of the most at-risk groups of organisms in the country.

Particularly sensitive to changes in water quality, mussels are considered an indicator species, similar to the concept of a canary in a coal mine. When mussel populations are healthy and flourishing, it is a good indication that the river system is healthy. But if the mussels are in distress, biologists begin to look for the cause. Habitat disturbances, such as dredging, the construction of dams, the introduction of non-native species, and the effects of siltation and contaminants associated with construction and agriculture, impact the fragile life cycle of mussels and their host fish.

Of the 88 known mussel species in, the Altamaha River supports seven mussel species found no where else in the world. With imaginative names such as the Altamaha spiny mussel, the Georgia elephant ear and the rayed pink fatmucket, these mussels and their complex life cycles have fascinated biologists.

From 2000-2002, the Georgia DNR and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service funded three surveys of the lower Altamaha River watershed in search of the Altamaha spiny mussel. Searching nearly 100 sites for the Altamaha spiny mussel, a candidate for federal listing, biologists found under 20 live specimens. Disturbingly, no spiny mussels were found in the Ohoopee River, a major tributary of the Altamaha and a locale once considered a refuge for the spiny mussel.

"While we can identify stresses to the river system, we really don't know why mussel populations are declining," said Chris Skelton, an assistant professor of biological and environmental sciences with Georgia College and formerly an aquatics zoologist with the Georgia DNR. "We need to understand things about their biology and life history before we can make any kind of determination."

Skelton, along with DNR aquatics biologist Brett Albanese, river ecologist Mary Davis of The Nature Conservancy, and biologist Gene Keferl, will assist workshop participants as their search for freshwater mussels and seine for fish.

"Most people don't really think about mussels and their importance to a river system. But by communicating the connection of these species to the overall health of the river, including water quality and quantity issues, we are hoping to minimize the human impacts to the habitat," said Christi Lambert, southeast Georgia conservation director for The Nature Conservancy.

For more information or to register for the training, call Christine Griffiths at 912/437-2161, ext. 225.

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