Expanded online profiles put
Georgia's rare wildlife in focus
   Lavelle Badger has a close-up of conservation in action. With her and her husband’s OK, the DNR, Conasauga River Alliance and Tennessee Aquarium have pumped slugs of sediment from Colvard Spring, helping restore this Murray County haven for state-endangered coldwater darters ("Five-star recognition," February 2011).
   The spring has been in Lavelle’s family for generations. “We feel a responsibility to help in whatever way we can to protect what God has given us,” she said.
   Not all Georgia landowners have rare wildlife on their property, but all can learn more about conserving at-risk plants and animals in their area through a new online lineup of species profiles. The 400-plus expanded accounts detail the identification, habitat use, distribution, ecology and conservation status of Georgia’s protected species, plus selected rare species considered at risk but not officially protected.
   The effort is aimed at providing a reliable and current source on rare wildlife that can be used by all, from scientists to school students and from biological consultants to landowners and land managers.
   The multi-year project originated with the State Wildlife Action Plan and was developed with a federal State Wildlife Grant and matching funds from the Georgia Nongame Wildlife Conservation Fund.
   Since 2000, the State Wildlife Grants program has been the main funding source to help keep common species common and protect others before they become critically imperiled and more costly to recover from the brink of extinction. These grants enable DNR and its conservation partners to protect wildlife and wild places to maintain the state’s natural heritage.
   That heritage includes coldwater darters and a cold – and now much clearer – spring in Murray County.

Coming next month: Another snapshot of State Wildlife Grants at work in Georgia.




Fall Line WMA wetland
powers frog, newt projects
And dodges drought threat, with DNR’s help
   A seasonal wetland at Fall Line Sandhills Wildlife Management Area is proving a rich if sometimes fragile source of rare amphibians.
   The pond produced larval striped newts this spring for a captive-breeding project aimed at reintroducing the species in Florida’s Apalachicola National Forest. Ecologist and project leader Ryan Means of the Coastal Plains Institute and Land Conservancy called the wetland the only one known to reliably produce western striped newts.
   The shallow pond also has provided gopher frog eggs for a State Wildlife Grants effort to re-introduce the state-listed frogs to The Nature Conservancy’s Williams Bluff Preserve. At the preserve in Early County, UGA associate professor John Maerz is studying how artificial burrows boost survival rates for gopher frog metamorphs after they leave the water.
   Yet, drought is the enemy of these seasonal wetlands, and amphibians that depend on them.  DNR staff and volunteers dip-netted 574 gopher frog tadpoles and 44 striped newt larvae from the Fall Line Sandhills site May 11, and released them in a deeper pond on the WMA.
   Natural resources biologist John Jensen said that without rain, the home pond – which covers about 3 acres at full pool and rates as one of the best breeding sites for gopher frogs in Georgia – would be dry within days.
   He said biologists caught the wetland at the right time and saw the relocation as an “opportunity to help along these rare species ... in a time of drought and also help distribute them to another suitable breeding wetland on state property.”
   Gopher frogs have been found in the deeper pond, though not striped newts. Even without rain, Jensen expected the second pond to have water long enough for the gopher frogs to mature and leave. The newts, however, will need more time and some timely rain.

Waging war on aliens at WMAs
   With a little help from friends, DNR Game Management biologists in Northeast Georgia tackled invasive autumn olive and Chinese privet in pilot projects at Hart County and Dawson Forest WMAs.
   Using tracked mulching equipment provided by Georgia Power, about 4 acres of the exotics were cleared on Dawson Forest. Autumn olive was removed from powerline rights of way along Sweetwater-Juno and Steel Bridge roads. Privet in the understory was the target in 2 acres of hardwoods along Holly Creek.
   At Hart County WMA near Hartwell, work involved removing autumn olive in and around two wildlife openings, and thinning “over-mature” transition zones between the fields and forest. Total acres completed: about 12.
   Georgia’s Wildlife Action Plan emphasizes the threats posed by invasive plants and animals. Biologists will apply herbicides to the mulched areas this summer at Dawson Forest and Hart County WMAs. Once the autumn olive is reined in, the plan is to explore establishing native warm-season grasses in many of the areas this alien invader once ruled.
   In the words of staff, “We have a lot of this work to do in Region 2, and plan to do more as available funds and time allow.”

Exotic updates

• J.L. Lester WMA: 500 river cane plugs were planted with help from the Georgia Forestry Commission and The Nature Conservancy, part of efforts to eradicate privet and restore river cane at the WMA near Cedartown.
• Townsend WMA: Loggers have removed more than 300 acres of sand pine as the first step to returning this area near Jesup to a longleaf pine-wiregrass ecosystem.
• Ossabaw Island: Staff and volunteers from The Nature Conservancy's Global Marine Team have been removing Chinese tallowtree seedlings.

Study sizes up mussel misses
Experience rates key to correct IDs
   Most know that mussels are hard to identify. Until recently, however, no one had quantified how hard.
   How about as hard as missing one in every four mussels?
   Research by a team including DNR’s Jason Wisniewski pegged the average mussel misidentification rate at 27 percent, based on a study conducted in the Appalachicola-Chattachoochee-Flint River basin. The project led also by UGA doctoral student Colin Shea and James Peterson and Nate Johnson of the U.S. Geological Survey affirmed the expected: Experience increases accuracy. Yet even observers with five to six years in the field misnamed one out of every 10 mussels, on average.
   With mussels found on rare species lists worldwide, knowing which species is which is vital to estimating populations and trends. The study suggests misidentification is a significant issue for field surveys.
   In their article in a recent Journal of the North American Benthological Society, the four researchers suggest combating the problem with certification programs, regional workshops and testing. Making specimens and tissue samples available through museums could also help.
  Wisniewski, a mussel specialist with DNR’s Nongame Conservation Section, emphasized the correlation between field experience and greater accuracy. “This is a very difficult group of animals to handle and learn,” he said. “You’ve got to put in some time up front.”
   A 2009 fish and mussel workshop at Joseph W. Jones Ecological Research Center at Ichauway set the stage. Participants were asked to ID three mussels at each of about 25 stations. About 30 species from the Appalachicola-Chattachoochee-Flint basin were used. Five to six rated very difficult to identify.
   It’s not surprising that smooth-shelled species proved harder to identify than those with shell texturing.
   Five federally listed mussels included were correctly identified more often than species not listed. However, getting the listed species right at least 95 percent of the time required, on average, three to four years of observer experience. An error rate of 5 percent is often considered the mark beyond which bias significantly affects population and trend models.
   The study does beg the question, how did project leaders know they ID’d the test mussels right?
   Experience – the group featured mussel veterans and noted malacologist Jim Williams – and cooperation, said Wisniewski, who, for the record, missed three of 75.

Sampling made simpler
   The June issue of Journal of the North American Benthological Society also profiles a study that combined the better of the two main mussel sampling methods. Robust Design uses sampling along line-transects – a survey method often used for other wildlife – to blend timed searches of an area with the more labor-intensive sampling by quadrat.
   The approach, explored on the Altamaha River, offers “easier ways to get at some of the same questions,” DNR’s Jason Wisniewski said. Former UGA graduate student Jason Meador, now of the Little Tennessee Watershed Association, authored the study with Wisniewski and James Peterson of the USGS Oregon Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit.

'Spiny' feedback sought
   The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is seeking comments on a draft economic analysis for designating 149 miles of the mainstem upper Altamaha, Ohoopee and lower Ocmulgee rivers as critical habitat for the Altamaha spinymussel. The analysis predicts little impact. The deadline for comments on the separate critical habitat proposal has been extended to June 13.
   Found only in the Altamaha River basin, the Altamaha spinymussel was proposed for listing as an endangered species in October.


Public lands profile


Big Hammock: Land
of surprising contrasts
By Lisa Kruse
   Across its 800 acres, Big Hammock Natural Area showcases a fascinating diversity of natural communities of the lower Atlantic Coastal Plain. For this reason, the property near Glennville was secured by the state in 1973 and designated a National Natural Landmark in 1976. Despite past harvest of the native longleaf pine and extensive livestock grazing, significant habitat for rare plant and animal species remains.
   A hammock is a rise in elevation of an otherwise flat landscape. Big Hammock is dominated by an ancient sand dune that rises from the Altamaha River floodplain to 100 feet above sea level. The dune underlies the area's natural diversity. The topography causes extreme environmental conditions that morph the vegetation into dramatic contrasts.
   Evergreen hardwood forest dominates the deep sands of the hammock. Natural fire is suppressed by the Altamaha on the south side, encouraging the persistence of this fire-intolerant forest type. A canopy of live oak and Darlington oak is interspersed with southern magnolia.
   Beneath the canopy is the largest known population of Georgia plume, a small tree that puts on a show in June with sprays of beautiful white flowers. Georgia plume is state-protected, and Georgia is the only place it occurs in the world. Overall, Georgia plume has more than 50 documented occurrences; however, most are in decline and only nine are on protected lands.
   Also of interest is the most extensive inland population of the shrubby myrtle oak in Georgia. This oak thrives on the hammock, even though it is most typical of sand dunes on the coast. Shrubby myrtle oak shares space with thickets of farkleberry, holly, devilwood, red bay, horsesugar, deerberry and witchhazel. In this closed forest, look and listen for songbirds, gray squirrels, deer and armadillo.   
   Xeric longleaf pine/oak sandhill scrub forest is represented on the portions of the hammock adjacent to pine flatwoods. Historically, naturally occurring fire would sweep across the flatwoods landscape and burn onto Big Hammock, which is favorable for this fire-adapted community. Old-growth longleaf pine forms the sparse canopy, with a few pines likely 200 years old. The shrub layers feature a diverse suite of oaks: Sand post oak, myrtle oak, turkey oak and sand live oak are characteristic. Despite the lack of a tall hardwood canopy, Georgia plume is still abundant in this community.
   The extremely dry conditions result in wide swaths of open sands. These microhabitats are essential to maintaining Big Hammock’s biodiversity. Herbaceous plants are able to germinate and persist. In autumn, tansy-colored, woody goldenrod flowers can be glimpsed against a backdrop of golden grasses and pink dicerandra mints. Woody goldenrod is a plant typical of the Florida coast.
   Several representatives of Georgia’s rare herpetofauna depend on these open patches. Gopher tortoises burrow here and need the herbaceous plants for food. The burrows are used by other species, including the federally threatened eastern indigo snake and southern hognose snake.
    Longleaf harvest and fire suppression have changed the ecology of the hammock. Because longleaf pine depends on fire for regeneration, Big Hammock has few young longleaf and the scrub oak is becoming denser. With increasing habitat homogeneity, species that depend on unique microsites will decline. Therefore, the primary focus of management at Big Hammock is restoring the natural fire ecology. Controlled burns are an essential for conserving and enhancing the biodiversity of this site.
   For visitors, a nature trail traverses the high hammock. Walk through gnarled evergreen forests dwarfed by the xeric, or dry, infertile sands. In open areas, old-growth longleaf pine radiates the sun. Descend the hammock into low pine flatwoods that edge deep cypress-tupelo swamps fed by tributaries of the powerful Altamaha River, less than two miles away. See the fresh spring green of lichens and turkey oak, early-summer blooms of Georgia plume, or the brilliant show of golden grasses and wildflowers in autumn.
   Visiting Big Hammock Natural Area is a magical experience.

Getting there
From Glennville, take Ga. 144 south 10 miles. Before reaching the Altamaha River, turn left (east) onto Mack Phillips Road/County Road 441. Go two miles. The area entrance is a gravel drive on the right. A kiosk in the parking lot has maps and other information. Big Hammock is open during the day year-round. Camping and motorized vehicles are not allowed. Travel is by foot only. Hunting is available.

For Lisa Kruse’s full profile of Big Hammock, click here. Lisa is a botanist with DNR's Nongame Conservation Section.









Out my backdoor
Cicada buzz? Brood 19 is back
By Terry W. Johnson
   Not all cicadas are created equal. There are cicadas and then there are periodical cicadas.
   Periodical cicadas are loudly reminding us this spring just how different they are.
   Most everyone is familiar with the annual cicada. Often called dog day cicadas, these 2-inch-long green, black and brown insects make the loud buzzing calls that are one of the most familiar sounds of those hot, humid days common to the South in July and August.
   Periodical cicadas may appear at first glance as only a smaller version of annual cicadas. Yet a closer look will reveal the bright red eyes, black head and bodies, and transparent wings fringed with orange.
   Like annual cicadas, the periodical cicada lives in backyards and forests across much of Georgia. However, it only makes its presence known when it emerges from the ground. At such times, usually at night, annual cicadas appear in mind-boggling numbers. As many as 1.5 million per acre have been recorded! But typically their numbers range from tens to hundreds of thousands per acre.
  While annual cicadas are seen every summer, periodical cicadas emerge either every 13 or 17 years. Entomologists have identified 12 broods of 17-year cicadas and three broods of 13-year cicadas. Broods are identified by Roman numerals. This is the year for Brood XIX to appear. All members of this brood in the 16 states within its known range will appear at the same time. Brood XIX is found from Indiana and Maryland to Texas and Georgia, and is the only 13-year cicada brood in the Peach State.

War of the Worlds: Part 2
   If you live in the northern half of the state, I don’t need to tell you Brood XIX is here.
   If you live close to them, for a few weeks now as soon as you step outside you hear a sound that could easily pass for the noise made by aliens in War of the Worlds.
   The billions of insects creating this noise began crawling out of the ground once the soil temperature reached roughly 64 degrees Fahrenheit. Weeks before, the flightless cicada nymphs tunneled to the surface. You might spot their exits – a roughly ½-inch diameter hole or short mud turret extending above the soil.
   After escaping their subterranean home, cicadas seek a vertical structure – maybe a tree, building, shrub or garden tool propped against a fence. Some climb 10 feet or more. Others are satisfied with something that protrudes just above the ground.
   Once they find the right place, they stop climbing and begin shedding their outer skin, or exoskeleton, for the last time. It takes about four to six days for the cicadas to fully mature. The adults then feed on plants, and males begin congregating in large numbers.
   It seems that males are drawn to the calls of other males. The high-pitched sounds we are hearing are made only by the males: They use tiny drum-like structures on the sides of their bodies.
   While the sounds don’t come close to the crooning of Elvis or Frank Sinatra, they strike a chord with female cicadas, which come from far and wide.
   After mating, females lay rice-shaped eggs in slits cut in the tips of branches. The cicada nymphs hatch, topple to the ground and quickly burrow into the soil that will be their home for the next 13 years.  Remarkably, the 13-year cicadas we are now hearing hatched in 1998, when gas cost $1.06 a gallon!

Food for all
   Many critters just can’t get their fill of cicadas. To them, it is like hamburgers falling from the sky. The nymphs are also a favorite of burrowing animals like moles. Wildlife biologists have found that mole populations seem to surge just before cicadas emerge and plummet after the mass exodus.
   The crunchy adults are also devoured by everything from squirrels and spiders to turtles, fish and snakes. One insect, known as the cicada killer, specializes in eating cicadas.
   Naturally, insect-eating birds don’t pass up a chance to nab one. Among the birds that eat adult cicadas are wild turkeys, grackles, robins and woodpeckers. I have seen summer tanagers and blue jays capture cicadas in my backyard.
   Fortunately for us, cicadas don’t bite and they rarely harm plants. Also, as they die, their bodies recycle nutrients back into the soil.
   For the next several weeks, we are going to have to listen to the love songs of male cicadas just outside our backdoor.
   In the meantime, we can ponder what gasoline will cost when Brood XIX reappears in 13 years.

Terry Johnson is a former Nongame program manager with the Wildlife Resources Division and executive director of TERN, the friends group of the Nongame Conservation Section. (Permission is required to reprint this column. Contact rick.lavender@dnr.state.ga.us .)

Read his full column on cicadas, including how they taste (clam-flavored potatoes, anyone?) and tips on watching one bust loose!

Snacks on the wing
Dirk Stevenson of The Orianne Society recently spotted kites preying on Brood XIX cicadas near Hazlehurst. His notes from May 9: “Yesterday at Bullard Creek WMA, I watched in awe as two swallow-tailed kites and a single Mississippi kite soared just above me for 20 minutes plucking these weak-flying cicadas from branches. Wow, what a natural moment! As I hiked to the bottomlands at Bullard for a few hours, the omnipresent drone of many thousands of cicadas was always with and above, waxing in intensity, making it a very special field day.”


Parting shot

Youth Birding Competition participant John Mark Simmons of Watkinsville photographed this clapper rail almost at his feet on April 16. John Mark and his father Kevin had driven to Bloody Marsh on St. Simons Island a few hours before the competition began, hoping to photograph a green heron. The heron was gone, but John Mark heard splashing. The rail, usually a secretive bird, was taking a bath about 2 feet away! John Mark got the shot, and took advantage of advice he remembered from a wildlife photography book: “The problem with birders is they don't look right down at their feet."
    Crazy about Cuckoos: The Country Cuckoos, four brothers and a first cousin from Bainbridge, saw or heard 133 species to win the 2011 Youth Birding Competition. The event drew some 25 teams of contestants from preschoolers to teen-agers.