Life Sciences Commons^™

Assessment Of Organic And Metal Contaminants In Lower Back Bay And Upper Currituck Sound, Kate Benkert

V. Poster Abstracts

Studies were conducted at Mackay Island National Wildlife Refuge in 1988 and 1989 to provide baseline data for an assessment of organic chemicals and metal contaminants in the aquatic ecosystem. Longnose gar, gizzard shad, snapping turtles, common rangia clams and sediments were collected from sites in lower Back Bay and upper Currituck Sound for contaminant analyses.

Composite sediment samples were analyzed for the presence of metals, organochlorine pesticides and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Organochlorine pesticides were not detected in the sediments. Various PAH compounds were detected in the sediments, although at trace concentrations which just exceeded the analytical detection limit …

Environmental Education: A Chance For The Future, Ben Mathias

V. Poster Abstracts

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is committed to providing environmental education opportunities for the Nation's student body. Local, regional and national educators are invited to investigate and utilize the resources of Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge with their colleagues and students. Teacher workshops at the Refuge provide orientation to Refuge lands, outdoor classroom sites, trails, interpretive facilities and equipment, and potential field activities. Refuge staff members are available to assist with: • Preliminary planning • Group scheduling • Library research • Workshop registration • Trip logistics and • On-site group orientation. Most classroom sites, associated trails/boardwalks, and Visitor Contact …

Rx For Success At Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge: Take Two Committed Partners-Add Water, Janet Taylor, Julia Herrick, Ben Mathias

V. Poster Abstracts

As part of a major effort to improve habitats for waterfowl and other wetland-dependent wildlife, Ducks Unlimited, Inc. is contributing $187,500 in matching funds to help the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service rehabilitate wetland impoundments at Back Bay NWR.

The three-year project will increase Refuge management capabilities on existing wetland areas, create 300 acres of new marsh habitat and increase water management flexibility throughout the impoundment system. Components of the project include:

• Raising and re-sloping 8 miles of existing dikes
• Installing 13 new water control structures
• Constructing 6,000 feet of new dikes
• Creating two storage pools totalling 53 acres and …

U.S. Fish And Wildlife Service Back Bay Initiative: Goals And Objectives, David A. Stilwell

V. Poster Abstracts

Back Bay has historically been noted for its abundant wildlife and fisheries. A testimony to this fact has been the establishment of two U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service National Wildlife Refuges (Back Bay and Mackey Island National Wildlife Refuges), three Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries Waterfowl Management Areas (Pocahontas, Barbours's Hill, and Trojan Waterfowl Management Areas) and a State park (False Cape State Park). Back Bay has been a major stopover point for waterfowl in the North Atlantic flyway, it had prodigious submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) beds and an outstanding fisheries. Since the l 920's these resources have …

Refuge Land Acquisition: Helping Preserve Back Bay's Wildlife Heritage, Julia Herrick, Ben Mathias, Janet Taylor

V. Poster Abstracts

The once-renowned waterfowl populations and bass fishery of Back Bay, Virginia have declined dramatically in recent years. Lands surrounding Back Bay are increasingly threatened by on-going and potential land development. These lands serve as an important filter for pollutant and sediment-laden runoff from adjacent areas. The boundary of the Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge was expanded in 1989 to include an additional 6,340 acres of brackish marsh, forested swamp, and "critical edge" upland habitat, important to a variety of wildlife species and for its natural filtering effect. Within the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's policy of working with willing sellers, …