Tuesday, October 30, 2018

Episode 444 (10-29-18): Water in the Barn


Click to listen to episode (3:59).

Transcript of audio, notes on the audio, photos, and additional information follow below.

Except as otherwise noted, all Web addresses mentioned were functional as of 10-26-18.
 

TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO


From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of October 29, 2018.

MUSIC – ~ 10 sec

This week, we mark the harvest season in Virginia with music about a type of agricultural building whose functions have a lot to do with water.  Have a listen for about another minute.

MUSIC - 43 sec –Lyrics in the excerpt: “I still love to drive here to see the stars at night, though the cities’ lights grow brighter every year.  Hear the barn creak in the summer breeze, watch the sky for satellites, imagine that old farmer standing near.  And the weather bugs and fungus make the barn lean more each year; the earth pulls on all things that stand above.  Neglect surrenders to the wind, no reason left to stand; next generation’s memories will be towns, and not the land.”

You’ve been listening to part of “The Barns,” by Bob Gramann of Fredericksburg, Va., from his 2001 album “See Further in the Darkness.”  The song describes the fading presence of barns in rural areas where working farms have been converted to residential developments, as has happened in much of Virginia in recent decades.  Despite those conversions, however, Virginia agriculture as of 2017 still included over 44,000 farms on over 8 million acres, producing over $3.4 billion in cash receipts from all commodities, from livestock to grains to fruits and vegetables.

So the Commonwealth is still home to many functional barns, and those functions are related to water in several ways. Barns keep crops, animals, and equipment dry from the weather’s water.  Barns can also be designed specifically for drying out certain crops.   Livestock barns have to allow for ventilating moisture produced by the animals and for removing livestock wastewater.  And thinking back to the theme of this episode’s opening music, in unmaintained barns water rusts the barn’s iron and supports the fungi, bacteria, and insects that break down a barn’s wood.

Virginia’s 21st Century landscape is home to barns old and new.  Round or rectangular, wooden or steel, agricultural or residential—barns display a history of ideas for managing the wet and dry of life.

Thanks to Bob Gramann for permission to use this week’s music, and we close with a few more seconds of “The Barns.”

MUSIC - ~ 15 sec

SHIP’S BELL

Virginia Water Radio is produced by the Virginia Water Resources Research Center, part of Virginia Tech’s College of Natural Resources and Environment.  For more Virginia water sounds, music, or information, visit us online at virginiawaterradio.org, or call the Water Center at (540) 231-5624.  Thanks to Ben Cosgrove for his version of “Shenandoah” to open and close the show.  In Blacksburg, I’m Alan Raflo, thanking you for listening, and wishing you health, wisdom, and good water.

AUDIO NOTES AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

“The Barns” from the 2001 album “See Further in the Darkness,” is copyright by Bob Gramann, used with permission.   More information about Bob Gramann is available online at https://www.bobgramann.com/folksinger.html.

Click here if you’d like to hear the full version (2 min./22 sec.) of the “Shenandoah” arrangement/performance by Ben Cosgrove that opens and closes this episode.  More information about Mr. Cosgrove is available online at http://www.bencosgrove.com.

Virginia Water Radio thanks Lesley Howard for her help with the photos accompanying this episode.

PHOTOS

A Sampler of Barns in Western Virginia and West Virginia, October 2018.


On Waiteville Road near Paint Bank, Va. (Craig County), October 27, 2018.


Along State Route 18 south of Covington, Va. (Alleghany County), October 27, 2018.


Along State Route 18 south of Covington, Va., (Alleghany County), October 27, 2018.


Along U.S. 220 north of Covington, Va. (Alleghany County), October 27, 2018.


At Garth Newell Music Center in Bath County, Va., October 28, 2018.


Along U.S. 311 at Sweet Springs, West Virginia (Monroe County), October 28, 2018.

SOURCES USED FOR AUDIO AND OFFERING MORE INFORMATION

Alberta [Canada] Agriculture and Forestry, “Cereal Grain Drying and Storage,” 6/19/01 (revised 10/22/18), online at https://www1.agric.gov.ab.ca/$department/deptdocs.nsf/all/crop1204.

Michael J. Auer, “The Preservation of Historic Barns,” National Park Service Preservation Brief 20, October 1989, online at https://www.nps.gov/tps/how-to-preserve/briefs/20-barns.htm.

M.C. Baker, “Decay of Wood,” National Research Council Canada, March 1969, online at http://web.mit.edu/parmstr/Public/NRCan/CanBldgDigests/cbd111_e.html.

Kiersten Lee-Nielsen, “The History of Barns in America,” Mother Earth News, 12/10/15, online at https://www.motherearthnews.com/homesteading-and-livestock/the-history-of-barns-in-america-zbcz1512.

USDA/National Agricultural Statistics Service, “2017 State Agricultural Overview—Virginia,” online at https://www.nass.usda.gov/Quick_Stats/Ag_Overview/stateOverview.php?state=VIRGINIA.

USDA/National Agricultural Statistics Service/Virginia Field Office, “2018 Virginia Annual Statistical Bulletin,” online at https://www.nass.usda.gov/Statistics_by_State/Virginia/Publications/Annual_Statistical_Bulletin/index.php.

P.J. Pellitteri and W.L. Gojmerac, “Identifying and Controlling Wood-destroying Insects,” Wisconsin Cooperative Extension A3093, undated, online at https://learningstore.uwex.edu/Identifying-and-Controlling-Wood-Destroying-Insects-P299.aspx.

Preservation Virginia, “Tobacco Barn Preservation Project,” online at https://preservationvirginia.org/our-work/tobacco-barn-preservation-project/.

Superior Buildings LLC, Harrisonburg, online at https://www.superiorbuildings.net/pole-building-types/agricultural/.

Virginia Barn Builders—DC Barns (headquartered in Bend, Ore.), online at https://www.dcbuilding.com/us/virginia-barn-builders/.

Virginia Barn Company, Dillwyn, online at https://www.virginiabarncompany.com/.

Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, “Virginia Agriculture,” online at https://www.farmflavor.com/virginia-agriculture/.

Virginia Farm Bureau, “Harvest is at the heart of fall farming in Virginia,” 2017, online at https://www.vafb.com/membershipwork/news-resources/Harvest_in_Virginia.”

RELATED VIRGINIA WATER RADIO EPISODES

All Water Radio episodes are listed by category at the Index link above (http://www.virginiawaterradio.org/p/index.html).  See particularly the “Overall Importance of Water” subject category.

FOR VIRGINIA TEACHERS – RELATED STANDARDS OF LEARNING (SOLs) AND OTHER INFORMATION

2013 Music SOLs

SOLs at various grade levels that call for “examining the relationship of music to the other fine arts and other fields of knowledge.”

2010 Science SOLs

Grades K-6 Earth Patterns, Cycles, and Change Theme
K.10 – Changes in natural and human-made things over time.
1.7 – changes in temperature, light, and precipitation affect plants and animals, including humans.
2.7 – Weather and seasonal changes affecting plants and animals.
3.8 – Basic patterns and cycles in nature.

2015 Social Studies SOLs

Grades K-6 History Theme
1.2 – Virginia history and life in present-day Virginia.

Grades K-6 Geography Theme
1.6 – Virginia climate, seasons, and landforms.

Grades K-6 Economics Theme
3.8 – understanding of cultures and of how natural, human, and capital resources are used for goods and services.

Virginia Studies Course
VS.10 – knowledge of government, geography, and economics in present-day Virginia.

World Geography Course
WG.2 – how selected physical and ecological processes shape the Earth’s surface, including climate, weather, and how humans influence their environment and are influenced by it.
WG.3 – how regional landscapes reflect the physical environment and the cultural characteristics of their inhabitants.

Virginia’s SOLs are available from the Virginia Department of Education, online at http://www.doe.virginia.gov/testing/.

Following are links to Water Radio episodes (various topics) designed especially for certain K-12 grade levels.
Episode 250 (1-26-15) – on boiling, for kindergarten through 3rd grade.
Episode 255 (3-2-15) – on density, for 5th and 6th grade.
Episode 282 (9-21-15) – on living vs. non-living, for kindergarten.
Episode 309 (3-28-16) – on temperature regulation in animals, for kindergarten through 12th grade.
Episode 332 (9-12-16) – on dissolved gases, especially dissolved oxygen in aquatic habitats, for 5th grade.
Episode 403 (1-15-18) – on freezing and ice, for kindergarten through 3rd grade.
Episode 404 (1-22-18) – on ice on ponds and lakes, for 4th through 8th grade. Episode 406 (2-5-18) – on ice on rivers, for middle school.
Episode 407 (2-12-19) – on snow chemistry and physics, for high school.

Tuesday, October 23, 2018

Episode 443 (10-22-18): Wood Duck


Click to listen to episode (4:09).


Transcript of audio, notes on the audio, images, and additional information follow below.

Except as otherwise noted, all Web addresses mentioned were functional as of 10-19-18.
 

TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO


From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of October 22, 2018.

This week, we feature a multi-colored, winged, wet-area-inhabiting mystery sound.   Have a listen for about 10 seconds, and see if you can guess what’s making the following calls and whistles.  And here’s a hint: for this mystery, thinking of what makes up trees may bring you good luck.

SOUNDS - ~12 sec

If you guessed a Wood Duck, you’re right!  This widespread duck has been described as “stunningly pretty” and “startlingly beautiful,” mostly because of the multi-colored, iridescent breeding plumage of the males.  Wood Ducks are found throughout Virginia and much of North America in forested swamps and in woodlands near streams, ponds, or other water bodies.   In those habitats, the bird nests in tree cavities or in wooden nest boxes that humans provide.   It uses sharp claws on its feet to climb and perch in trees, and it uses a long, squared tail and short, broad wings to make rapid, agile flights among trees.   Such flights caught the 19th Century attention of John James Audubon, who noted, “The flight of this species is remarkable for its speed…ease and elegance…. [W]while removing from some secluded haunt to its breeding-grounds, at the approach of night, it shoots over the trees like a meteor, scarcely emitting any sound from its wings.”

This bird is also known also as the Swamp Duck, Carolina Duck, and Acorn Duck, the latter because of one of its important food sources.   Wood Ducks will eat a variety of plant seeds, nuts, and fruits as well as flies, beetles, snails, and other animals.  In turn, Wood Duck eggs, ducklings, and sometimes adults are prey for raccoons, snakes, minks, opossums, turtles, fish, and predatory birds.

Wood Duck breeding in Virginia is from May to August, but breeding pair bonds can form as early as October and last through the winter.  The species was believed to be near extinction in the early 1900’s. Populations have recovered through protections by the 1918 Migratory Bird Treaty Act, a hunting ban from 1918 to 1941, followed by hunting limits, and other management actions.  Ducks Unlimited currently describes Wood Duck populations as “stable or increasing”; the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, however, currently notes that habitat loss, including draining of wetlands, “prevents the [Wood Duck] population [in Virginia] from returning to [its] former abundance.”

Striking in appearance, important as an ecological component, and popular as a game species, the Wood Duck is, as Ducks Unlimited calls it, “one of North America’s most recognizable and celebrated waterfowl.”

Thanks to Lang Elliott for permission to use this week’s sounds, from the Stokes Field Guide to Bird Songs, and we close with another short listen to a Wood Duck.

SOUNDS - ~ 3 sec

SHIP’S BELL

Virginia Water Radio is produced by the Virginia Water Resources Research Center, part of Virginia Tech’s College of Natural Resources and Environment.  For more Virginia water sounds, music, or information, visit us online at virginiawaterradio.org, or call the Water Center at (540) 231-5624.  Thanks to Stewart Scales for his banjo version of Cripple Creek to open and close this show.  In Blacksburg, I’m Alan Raflo, thanking you for listening, and wishing you health, wisdom, and good water.

AUDIO NOTES AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The sounds of the Wood Duck were taken from the Stokes Field Guide to Bird Songs-Eastern Region CD set, by Lang Elliott with Donald and Lillian Stokes (Time Warner Audio Books, copyright 1997), used with permission of Lang Elliott, whose work is available online at the “Music of Nature” Web site, http://www.musicofnature.org/.

Click here if you’d like to hear the full version (1 min./11 sec.) of the “Cripple Creek” arrangement/performance by Stewart Scales that opens and closes this episode.   More information about Mr. Scales and the group New Standard, with which Mr. Scales plays, is available online at http://newstandardbluegrass.com.

IMAGES


Summer or Wood Duck painting originally published between 1827 and 1838 by John James Audubon in Birds of America (plate CCVI [206]), as reprinted in 1985 by Abbeville Press, New York.  Photo taken October 22, 2018, from the reprint copy (no. 6 of 350 copies printed in 1985) owned by Special Collections of Virginia Tech Libraries.  Virginia Water Radio thanks Special Collections for permission to photograph their copy and for their assistance.  Information about Birds of America is available from the National Audubon Society, online at http://www.audubon.org/birds-of-america.


Male Wood Duck preparing to take flight in William L. Finley National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon.  Photo by George Gentry, made available for public use by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's National Digital Library, online at https://digitalmedia.fws.gov/digital/collection/natdiglib/id/9846/rec/2, accessed 10-22-18.


Female Wood Duck in Shiawassee National Wildlife Refuge in Michigan.  Photo by Jim Hudgins, made available for public use by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's National Digital Library, online at https://digitalmedia.fws.gov/digital/collection/natdiglib/id/28062/rec/1, accessed 10-22-18.

EXTRA FACTS ABOUT WOOD DUCKS

The scientific name of the Wood Duck is Aix sponsa.  Those words, respectively, are Greek for “water bird” and Latin for “betrothed,” collectively meaning a waterfowl with plumage suitable for a wedding.

Following is some extra information about Wood Ducks, excerpted from the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, “Fish and Wildlife Information Service/Wood Duck,” online at http://vafwis.org/fwis/booklet.html?&bova=040061&Menu=_.Taxonomy&version=17822.

Physical Description
“The adult length is 17-21 inches with a wingspread of 28 inches.  This is the only native duck with a long, smoothed down crest, evident in both sexes at great distance.  This species rides high in the water and has a long, rectangular tail, short neck, and short broad wings allowing it to fly with ease through woods.   It has a habit of bobbing the head in flight.  The adult male has a brilliant nuptial plumage and the head is of purple and green iridescence with two white parallel lines from base of bill and from the back of eye to the rear of the crest.   The white of the chin and throat sweeps up the side of the head in U-shaped prongs, and the eyes and base of the bill are reddish.  The chest is burgundy flecked with white and is separated from the bronze sides by a white and black bar.   The tail and back are glossy purple and the belly is white. …The adult female is more attractively colored than other dabbling duck hens. It has a white chin, throat and belly, with white eye rings surrounding eyes and trailing behind on the sooty gray crested head.  The chest and sides are gray-brown marked with white dashes in disconnected lines.”

Calls
“The male's call is a soft, clear goldfinch like whistle. The female's call is a loud and distinctive, cat-like or owl-like sound.”

Nesting Habitat and Behavior
“The breeding season in Virginia is probably from the end of March through mid-August.  This species is monogamous and some pair bonds form as early as late October and pair remains together through winter.  Other pair formation occurs on the wintering grounds for birds arrive at their nesting areas already paired…. There are 1-2 broods per year. Re-nesting sometimes occurs because the nests are destroyed. …The adult hens generally return to their natal areas to nest and especially so if their nesting was successful there in the past.  The drakes have a low homing rate because they follow their mate to the nesting area of her choosing.  If pair-bonding occurred in the fall, this area may be the natal area for both.

“Mated drakes keep other males from approaching too closely to their mate for a short period prior to nesting. hen, therefore, is defended, not the nesting area. … There is frequent movement in search of food, cover, water depth necessitated by fluctuating water levels of their preferred environment.”

Range and Habitat
The southern third of the breeding range is winter range and, therefore, migration patterns are not well-defined.  The Atlantic Coast appears to be a migratory thoroughfare with uplands and mountains being avoided.  They feed in shallow water, in fields, on forest floor or from vegetation itself when necessary to pick acorns or grapes.  They choose natural cavities of various sizes and shapes up to a mile away from the water.  Basic requirements are that the entrance is large enough, but not too large for the hen.  The base accommodates the clutch of eggs, with enough debris (like wood chips) present to form a cushiony base and to cover the first few eggs. … They will accept artificial nest boxes, which supplement available natural cavities, and prefer boxes located over water. Pileated woodpecker excavations are often used.  The optimum natural cavity has a height of 20-50 feet….

“[Juvenile birds] the first 24 hours of life in the cavity.  They respond to the hen's call by clawing up to the cavity entrance and jumping to the ground or water beneath.  The hen leads them to an area of thickest cover, and broods them and watches over them until brood bonds begin dissolving after the 5th week..  The highest duckling mortality occurs in the first two weeks of life. They fly at 8-10 weeks.  The broods are highly mobile and brood hens readily accept ducklings that are not their own.”

Ecological Associations
“There is some competition for nesting cavities from  the Common Goldeneye (although they prefer shallower cavities and different habitat), starling, Screech Owl, American Kestrel, Fox Squirrel, Hooded Mergansers, bees, and hornets.  There is predation on the eggs, ducklings and sometimes hens by raccoons (greatest threat), snakes, minks, opossums, turtles, fish, and predatory birds. Good breeding habitat is provided by activities of the beaver (ponds) and Pileated Woodpecker (cavities).”

SOURCES

Used for Audio

John James Audubon, “Summer, or Wood Duck,” from Birds of America, accessed from The Audubon Society, online at https://www.audubon.org/birds-of-america/summer-or-wood-duck.

Alice Jane Lippson and Robert L. Lippson, Life in the Chesapeake Bay-3rd Edition, Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, Md., 2006.  See particularly Chapter 7, “Wetlands,” p. 201, including “Birds of the Wetlands,” p. 227, with Wood Duck on page 229.

Chandler S. Robbins et al., A Guide to Field Identification of Birds of North America, St. Martin’s Press, New York, N.Y. 2001.

Cornell University Lab of Ornithology, “All About Birds,” online at http://www.allaboutbirds.org.  The Wood Duck entry is online at https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Wood_Duck.

Ducks Unlimited, “Status of the Wood Duck,” not dated, online at http://www.ducks.org/conservation/waterfowl-research-science/status-of-the-wood-duck, as of 10/19/18.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, “Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918,” online at https://www.fws.gov/birds/policies-and-regulations/laws-legislations/migratory-bird-treaty-act.php.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service/Chesapeake Bay Field Office, “Definitely a Bird of a Different Color,” online at https://www.fws.gov/chesapeakebay/newsletter/Summer05/Wood%20ducks/Wood%20ducks.htm.

Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, “Fish and Wildlife Information Service,” online at http://vafwis.org/fwis/?Title=VaFWIS+Species+Information+By+Name&vUT=Visitor.   The Wood Duck entry is online at http://vafwis.org/fwis/booklet.html?&bova=040061&Menu=_.Taxonomy&version=17822.

World Association of Zoos and Aquariums, “Carolina wood duck,” online at http://www.waza.org/en/zoo/visit-the-zoo/ducks-geese-pelikanes-and-relatives/aix-sponsa.

For More Information about Wood Ducks

Kathy Reshetiloff, “Meet the once-threatened wood duck, bird of many colors,” Bay Journal, April 20, 2023.

For More Information about Birds in Virginia and Elsewhere

BirdNote®, a daily broadcast/podcast on birds, online at http://birdnote.org/.

Cornell University Lab of Ornithology, “E-bird,” online at https://ebird.org/home.  This program was featured in Virginia Water Radio Episode 440, 10-1-18.

Cornell University Lab of Ornithology, “Merlin Photo ID.”  The application for mobile devices allows users to submit a bird photograph to get identification of the bird.   Information is available online at http://merlin.allaboutbirds.org/.

Cornell University Lab of Ornithology and American Ornithologists’ Union, “Birds of North America Online,” online at http://bna.birds.cornell.edu/bna (subscription required).

Virginia Society of Ornithology, online at http://www.virginiabirds.org/.  The Society is non-profit organization dedicated to the study, conservation, and enjoyment of birds in the Commonwealth.

Xeno-canto Foundation Web site, online at http://www.xeno-canto.org/.  The site provides bird songs from around the world.

RELATED VIRGINIA WATER RADIO EPISODES

All Water Radio episodes are listed by category at the Index link above (http://www.virginiawaterradio.org/p/index.html).  See particularly the “Bird” subject category.

Following are links to some other episodes on ducks.
Episode 136, 11/12/12 – Ducks at the Dance.
Episode 197, 1/20/14 – Canvasback Ducks Dive While Others Dabble.
Episode 303, 2/15/16 – Common Goldeneye’s Wings Whistle Over Virginia’s Winter Waters.
Episode 398, 12/11/17 – The Green and Blue of Teal.

FOR VIRGINIA TEACHERS – RELATED STANDARDS OF LEARNING (SOLs) AND OTHER INFORMATION

This episode—the audio, additional information, or information sources—may help with the following Virginia Standards of Learning (SOLs).

2010 Science SOLs

Grades K-6 Earth Resources Theme
4.9 – Va. natural resources, including watersheds, water resources, and organisms.

Grades K-6 Life Processes Theme
K.7 – basic needs and processes of plants and animals.
1.5 – animals’ basic needs and distinguishing characteristics.
3.4 – behavioral and physiological adaptations.

Grades K-6 Living Systems Theme
2.5 – living things as part of a system, including habitats.
3.5 - food webs.
3.6 - ecosystems, communities, populations, shared resources.
4.5 - ecosystem interactions and human influences on ecosystem.
6.7 - natural processes and human interactions that affect watershed systems; Va. watersheds, water bodies, and wetlands; health and safety issues; and water monitoring.

Life Science Course
LS.8 - community and population interactions, including food webs, niches, symbiotic relationships.
LS.9 - adaptations for particular ecosystems’ biotic and abiotic factors, including characteristics of land, marine, and freshwater environments.

Biology Course
BIO.8 - dynamic equilibria and interactions within populations, communities, and ecosystems; including nutrient cycling, succession, effects of natural events and human activities, and analysis of the flora, fauna, and microorganisms of Virginia ecosystems.

2015 Social Studies SOLs

Civics and Economics Course
CE.6 – government at the national level.
CE.10 – public policy at local, state, and national levels.

World Geography Course
WG.2 – how selected physical and ecological processes shape the Earth’s surface, including climate, weather, and how humans influence their environment and are influenced by it.
WG.18 – cooperation among political jurisdictions to solve problems and settle disputes.

Government Course
GOVT.7 – national government organization and powers.
GOVT.9 – public policy process at local, state, and national levels.

Virginia’s SOLs are available from the Virginia Department of Education, online at http://www.doe.virginia.gov/testing/.

Following are links to Water Radio episodes (various topics) designed especially for certain K-12 grade levels.
Episode 250 (1-26-15) – on boiling, for kindergarten through 3rd grade.
Episode 255 (3-2-15) – on density, for 5th and 6th grade.
Episode 282 (9-21-15) – on living vs. non-living, for kindergarten.
Episode 309 (3-28-16) – on temperature regulation in animals, for kindergarten through 12th grade.
Episode 332 (9-12-16) – on dissolved gases, especially dissolved oxygen in aquatic habitats, for 5th grade.
Episode 403 (1-15-18) – on freezing and ice, for kindergarten through 3rd grade.
Episode 404 (1-22-18) – on ice on ponds and lakes, for 4th through 8th grade. Episode 406 (2-5-18) – on ice on rivers, for middle school.
Episode 407 (2-12-19) – on snow chemistry and physics, for high school.

Tuesday, October 16, 2018

Episode 442 (10-15-18): New River High Water History at Radford, Va.


CLICK HERE to listen to episode audio (5:11)

Transcript of audio, notes on the audio, images, and additional information follow below.

Except as otherwise noted, all Web addresses mentioned were functional as of 10-12-18.


TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO

From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of October 15, 2018.

SOUND - ~ 13 sec

Those were sounds of rainfall, an overflowing storm sewer, and a stream cascading into the New River at Radford, Va., on October 11, 2018, as that river was rising due to heavy rain from the remnants of Hurricane Michael and an approaching cold front.  Those weather systems resulted in flooding in rivers and streams across the southern half of Virginia.  The arrival of that rainfall and high water made this a good week to revisit a 2011 episode on the High Water Mark program coordinated by the National Weather Service and the U.S. Geological Survey.

Have a listen for about two minutes to part of the October 18, 2011, ceremony unveiling the high water mark sign for the New River at Radford.  The comments are by Richard Harshberger, vice-mayor of the City of Radford; Anthony Phillips, who donated the Radford high-water marker; Dave Wert, meteorologist-in-charge at the National Weather Service’s Blacksburg Forecast Office; and Peter Corrigan, hydrologist at the Blacksburg office.

VOICES - ~ 1 min/53 sec.

[Richard Harshberger:] “Good morning. On behalf of the City of Radford, I’m honored and pleased to receive the second high-water-mark sign in the Commonwealth.”

[Anthony Phillips:] “The actual hurricane that produced these record floods developed down in the Caribbean on August 5th, 1940..... After it made landfall, it really slowed down, and actually spent three days over the southern Appalachians.  And it started raining here in Virginia on August 13, and of course this flood occurred on August 14.  And it spent three or four days over land, just producing copious amounts of rainfall.  The water that produced this record rainfall actually occurred over Floyd in the Little River, which runs into the New upstream...they got 17 inches in two days in Floyd County.”

[Dave Wert:] “It’s flooding, and flash flooding specifically, that produces overwhelmingly the most number of deaths annually across the nation.... Just a simple Category 1 hurricane coming in on the border of Georgia and South Carolina—a lot of people think that Category 1, Category 2, Category 3, the stronger the storm, the more the potential impact.  That’s not the case, especially when it comes to a flash flood or flooding situation.”

[Peter Corrigan:] “But, you know, one thing that we’ve noticed in the past five years, 10 years, in increase in massive flooding.  Pennsylvania, Nashville, Tennessee, Atlanta, Georgia—floods that have greatly eclipsed past records.  So, you know, we’re looking at, this is the highest we’ve ever achieved [at Radford] but there’s no reason it can’t be exceeded, even by significant amounts. Iowa broke a record by 10 feet just recently as 2008, a river that had 100 years of records.  So, this is the highest it’s reached, but it’s not to say it couldn’t reach higher.  And we hope not.”

As you heard, the record high level for the New River at Radford was produced by rainfall from an August 1940, category 1 hurricane that came ashore along the Georgia-South Carolina border.  That hurricane’s rainfall raised the river level to almost 36 feet, or 22 feet above flood stage.  That compares to the river’s October 12, 2018, crest at about 23 feet, or 9 feet above flood stage, following the impacts of Hurricane Michael.

The Radford high-water marker is one of three so far in Virginia, joining ones in Montgomery County and in the City of Franklin.  About 130 markers are in place nationwide.  Silently recalling dramatic histories, the signs are all intended to raise citizens’ awareness of an area’s flooding history and encourage their preparedness for storms and floods yet to come.

SHIP’S BELL

Virginia Water Radio is produced by the Virginia Water Resources Research Center, part of Virginia Tech’s College of Natural Resources and Environment.  For more Virginia water sounds, music, or information, visit us online at virginiawaterradio.org, or call the Water Center at (540) 231-5624.  Thanks to Ben Cosgrove for his version of “Shenandoah” to open and close the show.  In Blacksburg, I’m Alan Raflo, thanking you for listening, and wishing you health, wisdom, and good water.

AUDIO NOTES AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This Virginia Water Radio episode revises and replaces Episode 86, 10-31-11.

The New River sounds in this episode were recorded by Virginia Water Radio on October 11, 2018, in and around Bisset Park in Radford, Virginia.

The comments in this episode were recorded by Virginia Water Radio at the October 18, 2011, Radford High Water Mark Sign Unveiling and Dedication, held in Bisset Park in Radford.  A 20-minute recording of the entire ceremony is available at https://www.vwrrc.vt.edu/virginia_water_radio/mp3_archive/RadfordDedicationOct182011.MP3.

Click here if you’d like to hear the full version (2 min./22 sec.) of the “Shenandoah” arrangement/performance by Ben Cosgrove that opens and closes this episode.   More information about Mr. Cosgrove is available online at http://www.bencosgrove.com.

IMAGES
Color-coded map of one-day flood predictions at Virginia river gages as of 1:37 p.m. EDT on October 12, 2018. Map from the National Weather Service/Advanced Hydrologic Prediction Service, accessed online at https://water.weather.gov/ahps/region_forecast.php?state=va#.
New River at Radford, approximately 2 p.m. EDT on October 11, 2018, when the river stage was about 11 feet.
Overflowing storm sewer cover at the entrance of Bisset Park in Radford, Va., October 11, 2018, at approximately 2 p.m. EDT.
New River in the distance as viewed from the location of the high water mark sign in Bisset Park at Radford, Va., October 11, 2018.
The Radford/New River high water mark sign in Bisset Park in Radford, Va., being unveiled on October 18, 2011, by Anthony Phillips (center right), who donated the sign, and Dave Wert (center left), meteorologist-in-charge at the National Weather Service’s Blacksburg Forecast Office.
Detail of the high-water mark sign at Radford.

EXTRA FACTS ABOUT THE HIGH WATER MARK SIGN PROGRAM

The following was taken from the National Weather Service (NWS)/Office of Climate, Water, and Weather Services, “High Water Signs,” online at http://www.nws.noaa.gov/os/water/high_water/intro.shtml, as of 10-11-18.

“Severe flooding is part of the history of many communities in the southeast United States.  Despite this reality, many residents are not fully aware of the flood potential in their area.

“To help raise awareness of flood risk, NWS began a project in 2006 to install High Water Mark signs in prominent locations within communities that have experienced severe flooding.  Locations are selected based more on visibility than location of the flood. For example, a sign might be placed on the wall of a building downtown rather than near a rarely visited riverbank.

“Service Hydrologists from local NWS offices coordinate with emergency management and other local officials to select the best locations for the signs.  The U.S. Geological Survey is involved as well, providing historical data and aiding with the surveying of high water mark signs in their districts.

“The first sign was unveiled in Rome, Ga., on March 21, 2007, during Flood Safety Awareness Week.  Rome’s record flood occurred on April 1, 1886, when the Oostanaula River rose to a stage of 40.3 feet, inundating some parts of downtown Rome with more than 20 feet of water.  The downtown area was so severely damaged that the city opted to fill in much of it, so that street level of present-day downtown Rome is what used to be the second floor.  Even so, the high water mark was more than four feet above the ground.  The sign was installed on the side of the Rome Area History Museum building.”

SOURCES USED AND OFFERING MORE INFORMATION

City of Radford, Va., “City Government,” online at https://www.radfordva.gov/207/City-Government. [Richard Harshberger still listed as vice-mayor on 10/11/18.]

Dana Hedgpeth, Justin Jouvenal, and Lynh Bui, Five dead, one missing and half a million people are without power after Michael ravages Virginia, Washington Post, 10/12/18, 12:06 p.m. EDT.

National Weather Service/Advanced Hydrologic Prediction Service, flood forecast for Virginia and region, accessed online at https://water.weather.gov/ahps/region_forecast.php?state=va#.

National Weather Service/Blacksburg, Va., Forecast Office, online at https://www.weather.gov/rnk/. Staff listing is online at https://www.weather.gov/rnk/StaffListing.

National Weather Service (NWS)/Office of Climate, Water, and Weather Services, “High Water Mark Information Toolbox,” online at http://www.nws.noaa.gov/os/water/high_water/.

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), “USGS Current Water Data for Virginia,” online at https://waterdata.usgs.gov/va/nwis/rt. Gage 03171000-New River at Radford, Va., online at https://waterdata.usgs.gov/nwis/uv?03171000.

RELATED VIRGINIA WATER RADIO EPISODES

All Water Radio episodes are listed by category at the Index link above (http://www.virginiawaterradio.org/p/index.html).  See particularly the following subject categories: “Rivers, Streams, and Other Surface Water”; and “Weather/Natural Disasters.”

Following are links to other episodes on flooding in Virginia.
Episode 192, 12/16/13 – on the Rockfish River in Nelson County.
Episode 272, 6/29/15 – on flooding in Madison County in 1995.
Episode 328, 8/8/16 – on flash flooding generally.

Following are links to some other episodes on the New River.
Episode 109, 5/7/12 – “Banks of New River,” by Whitetop Mountain Band.
Episode 179, 9/16/13 – Twenty-two Miles along the New River Trail.
Episode 264, 5/4/15 – A Bird Day on the New River.
Episode 381, 8/14/17 – Midnight at the Water.

FOR VIRGINIA TEACHERS – RELATED STANDARDS OF LEARNING (SOLs) AND OTHER INFORMATION

2010 Science SOLs

Grades K-6 Earth Resources Theme
4.9 – Va. natural resources, including watersheds, water resources, and organisms.
6.9 – public policy decisions related to the environment (including resource management and conservation, land use decision, hazard mitigation, cost/benefit assessments).

Grades K-6 Interrelationships in Earth/Space Systems Theme
2.6 – identification of common storms and other weather phenomena.
4.6 – weather conditions, phenomena, and measurements.

Grades K-6 Living Systems Theme
6.7 – natural processes and human interactions that affect watershed systems; Va. watersheds, water bodies, and wetlands; health and safety issues; and water monitoring.

Grades K-6 Matter Theme
6.6 – Properties of air (including pressure, temperature, and humidity) and structure/dynamics of earth’s atmosphere, including weather topics.

Earth Science Course
ES.1 – current applications to reinforce science concepts.
ES.8 – influences by geologic processes and the activities of humans on freshwater resources, including identification of groundwater and major watershed systems in Virginia.
ES.11 – origin, evolution, and dynamics of the atmosphere, including human influences on climate.
ES.12 – weather and climate.

2015 Social Studies SOLs

Virginia Studies Course
VS.1 – impact of geographic features on people, places, and events in Virginia history.
VS.10 – knowledge of government, geography, and economics in present-day Virginia.

Civics and Economics Course
CE.6 – government at the national level.
CE.7 – government at the state level.
CE.8 – government at the local level.
CE.10 – public policy at local, state, and national levels.

World Geography Course

WG.1 – skills for historical thinking, geographical analysis, economic decision-making, and responsible citizenship.
WG.2 – how selected physical and ecological processes shape the Earth’s surface, including climate, weather, and how humans influence their environment and are influenced by it.
WG.18 – cooperation among political jurisdictions to solve problems and settle disputes.

Government Course
GOVT.7 – national government organization and powers.
GOVT.8 – state and local government organization and powers.
GOVT.9 – public policy process at local, state, and national levels.

Virginia’s SOLs are available from the Virginia Department of Education, online at http://www.doe.virginia.gov/testing/.

Following are links to Water Radio episodes (various topics) designed especially for certain K-12 grade levels.
Episode 250 (1-26-15) – on boiling, for kindergarten through 3rd grade.
Episode 255 (3-2-15) – on density, for 5th and 6th grade.
Episode 282 (9-21-15) – on living vs. non-living, for kindergarten.
Episode 309 (3-28-16) – on temperature regulation in animals, for kindergarten through 12th grade.
Episode 332 (9-12-16) – on dissolved gases, especially dissolved oxygen in aquatic habitats, for 5th grade.
Episode 403 (1-15-18) – on freezing and ice, for kindergarten through 3rd grade.
Episode 404 (1-22-18) – on ice on ponds and lakes, for 4th through 8th grade. Episode 406 (2-5-18) – on ice on rivers, for middle school.
Episode 407 (2-12-19) – on snow chemistry and physics, for high school.

Tuesday, October 9, 2018

Episode 441 (10-8-18): Calling on Citizens to Catch the King Tide in the Hampton Roads Region


CLICK HERE to listen to episode audio (4:01)

Transcript of audio, notes on the audio, images, and additional information follow below.

Except as otherwise noted, all Web addresses mentioned were functional as of 10-5-18.
 

TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO


From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of October 8, 2018.

SOUND, MUSIC, VOICE - ~17 sec

This week, we drop in on the fun and the serious purpose of imagining Elvis Presley participating in a citizen-science effort to help assess sea-level rise in Hampton Roads, Virginia.  Have a listen for about 60 more seconds.

SOUND, MUSIC, VOICE - ~63 sec

You’ve been listening to the audio from a “Catch the King” promotional video produced by WHRO, the public media station in Norfolk.  As you heard, king-tide data-collection events in Hampton Roads, this year on October 27, are an effort to map that area’s highest annual astronomical tide.  Similar king-tide data-collection and mapping events are happening in other states, too, including North Carolina and South Carolina.  In Hampton Roads, WHRO and several partners are also coordinating the participation of area schools in a year-round flood-mapping project, in which students will use a smart phone app to submit quarterly measurements on areas affected by flooding.

The effects of current and predicted sea-level rise are a big challenge along Virginia’s coast.  Virginians in the Hampton Roads region are responding with imagination, funding, community spirit, scientific information, and a sense of humor.

Thanks to WHRO for permission to use sounds from the “Catch the King” video, which is part of its Batten Environmental Education Initiative.  And if you live in or near southeastern Virginia, our closing words are for you…

SOUND, MUSIC, VOICE - ~10 sec

SHIP’S BELL

Virginia Water Radio is produced by the Virginia Water Resources Research Center, part of Virginia Tech’s College of Natural Resources and Environment.  For more Virginia water sounds, music, or information, visit us online at virginiawaterradio.org, or call the Water Center at (540) 231-5624.  Thanks to Stewart Scales for his banjo version of Cripple Creek to open and close this show.  In Blacksburg, I’m Alan Raflo, thanking you for listening, and wishing you health, wisdom, and good water.

AUDIO NOTES AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The audio on the king tide measurement in Hampton Roads was taken from a video produced by WHRO FM in Norfolk, Va.; audio used with permission.  The video (1 min./33 sec.) and the “Catch the King” project are part of the stations’ Batten Environmental Education Initiative; the video is available online at http://kingtide.whro.org/.  More information about WHRO is available online at https://whro.org/; more information about the station’s environmental education programs is available online at https://environment.whro.org/.  Thanks to Brian Callahan, WHRO’s chief education officer, for providing permission to use the audio and for other information.

Click here if you’d like to hear the full version (1 min./11 sec.) of the “Cripple Creek” arrangement/performance by Stewart Scales that opens and closes this episode.  More information about Mr. Scales and the group New Standard, with which Mr. Scales plays, is available online at http://newstandardbluegrass.com.

IMAGES

Diagram of factors contributing to sea levels, reproduced from a 2001 report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Figure 1 in Thomas Doyle et al., “Sea-Level Rise Modeling Handbook: Resource Guide for Coastal Land Managers, Engineers, and Scientists,” U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 185, 2015, online (as PDF) at https://pubs.usgs.gov/pp/1815/pp1815.pdf.


Maps of sea-level changes along coasts of the United States, 1994-2012. Figure 7 from Thomas Doyle et al., “Sea-Level Rise Modeling Handbook: Resource Guide for Coastal Land Managers, Engineers, and Scientists,” U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 185, 2015, online (as PDF) at https://pubs.usgs.gov/pp/1815/pp1815.pdf.

SOURCES

Used for Audio

Dave Mayfield, Hampton Roads sea level rise is accelerating, report says, Virginian-Pilot, 3/12/18.

Christina Ianzito, Welcome to Virginia Beach, home of the East Coast’s fastest-rising sea level, Washington Post, 9/6/18.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration/National Ocean Service, “What is a King Tide,” online at https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/kingtide.html.

Sea Level Rise, online at https://sealevelrise.org/virginia/.

South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control, “South Carolina King Tides Initiative,” online at https://mycoast.org/sc/king-tides.

University of North Carolina, “North Carolina King Tides Project,” online at http://nckingtides.web.unc.edu/.

Virginian-Pilot, “Editorial: Another Chance to Catch the King,” 9/28/18, online at https://pilotonline.com/opinion/editorial/article_4ebf740e-c290-11e8-87ed-e388736e774b.html.

WHRO FM-Norfolk, Va., “King Tide,” online at http://kingtide.whro.org/.

For More Information about Sea-level Rise

Thomas Doyle et al., “Sea-Level Rise Modeling Handbook: Resource Guide for Coastal Land Managers, Engineers, and Scientists,” U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 185, 2015, online (as PDF) at https://pubs.usgs.gov/pp/1815/pp1815.pdf.

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, online at http://www.ipcc.ch/.  On sea level rise particularly: “Climate Change 2007: Frequently Asked Question 5.1 - Is Sea Level Rising,” online at https://www.ipcc.ch/publications_and_data/ar4/wg1/en/faq-5-1.html.

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Climate Adaptation Science Centers, “Sea Level Rise,” online at https://casc.usgs.gov/announcement-keywords/sea-level-rise.  See particularly “Safeguarding Our Cultural Past from Future Climate Change: Scientists work to protect cultural resources in Jamestown [Va.] from a changing climate,” 11/28/16, online at https://casc.usgs.gov/content/safeguarding-our-cultural-past-future-climate-change-scientists-work-protect-cultural.

Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) Center for Coastal Resources Management, “Coastal Topics Catalog: Climate Change/Sea-level Rise,” online at http://ccrm.vims.edu/publications/catalog/topics.html.

Wetlands Watch, “Sea-level Rise Adaptation,” online at http://wetlandswatch.org/adaptation.

RELATED VIRGINIA WATER RADIO EPISODES

All Water Radio episodes are listed by category at the Index link above (http://www.virginiawaterradio.org/p/index.html).  See particularly the “Science” and “Weather” subject categories.

Following is the link to another episode on tides.
Episode 275, 7/20/15 – The Moon and Water.

Following are links to some other episodes related to climate.
Episode 231, 9/15/14 – Exploring Climate Change Basics, with Examples from Assateague Island National Seashore and Shenandoah National Park.
Episode 312, 4/18/16 – Student’s Research Digs into Streamside Soils, Rainfall Rates, and Greenhouse Gases.

FOR VIRGINIA TEACHERS – RELATED STANDARDS OF LEARNING (SOLs) AND OTHER INFORMATION

The episode—the audio, additional information, or information sources—may help with the following Virginia Standards of Learning (SOLs).

2013 Music SOLs

SOLs at various grade levels that call for “examining the relationship of music to the other fine arts and other fields of knowledge.”

2010 English SOLs

Reading Theme

8.5, 9.4, 10.4, 11.4 – symbols, imagery, figurative language, and other literary devices.

2010 Science SOLs
Grades K-6 Scientific Investigation, Reasoning, and Logic Theme
2.1, 3.1, 4.1, 5.1, and 6.1 – Gathering and analyzing data, and current applications to reinforce science concepts.

Grades K-6 Earth Patterns, Cycles, and Change Theme
3.9 – Water cycle, including sources of water, energy driving water cycle, water essential for living things, and water limitations and conservation.

Grades K-6 Earth Resources Theme
3.10 – impacts on survival of species, including effects of fire, flood, disease, and erosion on organisms.
4.9 – Va. natural resources, including watersheds, water resources, and organisms.
6.9 – public policy decisions related to the environment (including resource management and conservation, land use decision, hazard mitigation, cost/benefit assessments).

Grades K-6 Interrelationships in Earth/Space Systems Theme
5.6 – characteristics of the ocean environment (ecological, geological, and physical).
6.8 – organization of solar system and interaction of bodies, including gravity, lunar phases, tides, space exploration.

Grades K-6 Living Systems Theme
6.7 – natural processes and human interactions that affect watershed systems; Va. watersheds, water bodies, and wetlands; health and safety issues; and water monitoring.

Life Science Course
LS.1 – understanding of scientific reasoning, logic, and the nature of science, including current applications to reinforce science concepts.
LS.10 – changes over time in ecosystems, communities, and populations, and factors affecting those changes, including climate changes and catastrophic disturbances.
LS.11 – relationships between ecosystem dynamics and human activity.

Earth Science Course
ES.1 – current applications to reinforce science concepts.
ES.3 – characteristics of Earth and the solar system (including sun-Earth-moon relationships, tides, and history of space exploration).
ES.10 – ocean processes, interactions, and policies affecting coastal zones, including Chesapeake Bay.
ES.11 – origin, evolution, and dynamics of the atmosphere, including human influences on climate.
ES.12 – weather and climate.

Physics Course
PH.1 – current applications to reinforce science concepts.
PH.2 – analyzing and interpreting data.
PH.3 – nature and practice of science.

2015 Social Studies SOLs

Grades K-6 Geography Theme
1.6 – Virginia climate, seasons, and landforms.

Virginia Studies Course
VS.10 – knowledge of government, geography, and economics in present-day Virginia.

Civics and Economics Course
CE.1 – skills for historical thinking, geographical analysis, economic decision-making, and responsible citizenship.
CE.6 – government at the national level.
CE.7 – government at the state level.
CE.8 – government at the local level.
CE.10 – public policy at local, state, and national levels.

World Geography Course
WG.1 – skills for historical thinking, geographical analysis, economic decision-making, and responsible citizenship.
WG.2 – how selected physical and ecological processes shape the Earth’s surface, including climate, weather, and how humans influence their environment and are influenced by it.
WG.18 – cooperation among political jurisdictions to solve problems and settle disputes.

Government Course
GOVT.1 – skills for historical thinking, geographical analysis, economic decision-making, and responsible citizenship.
GOVT.7 – national government organization and powers.
GOVT.8 – state and local government organization and powers.
GOVT.9 – public policy process at local, state, and national levels.

Virginia’s SOLs are available from the Virginia Department of Education, online at http://www.doe.virginia.gov/testing/.

Following are links to Water Radio episodes (various topics) designed especially for certain K-12 grade levels.
Episode 250 (1-26-15) – on boiling, for kindergarten through 3rd grade.
Episode 255 (3-2-15) – on density, for 5th and 6th grade.
Episode 282 (9-21-15) – on living vs. non-living, for kindergarten.
Episode 309 (3-28-16) – on temperature regulation in animals, for kindergarten through 12th grade.
Episode 332 (9-12-16) – on dissolved gases, especially dissolved oxygen in aquatic habitats, for 5th grade.
Episode 403 (1-15-18) – on freezing and ice, for kindergarten through 3rd grade.
Episode 404 (1-22-18) – on ice on ponds and lakes, for 4th through 8th grade. Episode 406 (2-5-18) – on ice on rivers, for middle school.
Episode 407 (2-12-19) – on snow chemistry and physics, for high school.

Tuesday, October 2, 2018

Episode 440 (10-1-18): eBird Helps Birders Deliver the Data


CLICK HERE to listen to episode audio (4:15)

Transcript of audio, notes on the audio, images, and additional information follow below.

Except as otherwise noted, all Web addresses mentioned were functional as of 9-28-18.


TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO

From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of October 1, 2018.

This week, we feature a series of sounds for a science-project mystery.  Have a listen for about 20 seconds to a Great Egret, Common Eider, and Bald Eagle, and see if you can guess what the names of these three water-related birds have in common.  That will give you a clue to the name of a worldwide collaborative project to gather information about birds.

SOUNDS - ~18 sec

If you guessed that the names all start with “e,” you’re right!  Not many bird names do, but any feathered creature is an object of interest to eBird, a bird-data-gathering project managed by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York.  According to the project’s Web site, eBird.org, “eBird is the world’s largest biodiversity-related citizen-science project, with more than 100 million bird sightings contributed each year by hundreds of thousands of users.  eBird users provide records of observed bird species, location, numbers, and associated habitat. Such data from so many users give scientists valuable information for identifying large-scale bird-population trends.  Besides its scientific value, eBird helps birdwatchers share information and experiences, including participating in large-scale observation events like the Cornell Lab-sponsored Global Big Day, taking place next on October 6, 2018.

eBird is just one of many examples of citizen science, where citizens have opportunities to contribute to scientific information by recording their observations using established protocols.   For example, one center for citizen science, at Colorado State University, is involved with almost 700 projects worldwide.  Activities in Virginia include the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries’ Frog and Toad Calling Survey, the Virginia Herpetological Society’s BioBlitz, and a variety of projects conducted by the Virginia Master Naturalist Program.

Back to birds in the sky, trees, waters, and other habitats, if your interest is in watching them and keeping track of what you see, eBird might be the tool for you.

Thanks to Lang Elliott for permission to use this week’s sounds, from the Stokes Field Guide to Bird Songs.  We close with about 20 seconds of music inspired by birds. Here’s part of “Geese Piece,” by Torrin Hallett.

MUSIC - ~ 18 sec

SHIP’S BELL

Virginia Water Radio is produced by the Virginia Water Resources Research Center, part of Virginia Tech’s College of Natural Resources and Environment.  For more Virginia water sounds, music, or information, visit us online at virginiawaterradio.org, or call the Water Center at (540) 231-5624.  Thanks to Ben Cosgrove for his version of “Shenandoah” to open and close the show.   In Blacksburg, I’m Alan Raflo, thanking you for listening, and wishing you health, wisdom, and good water.

AUDIO NOTES AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The sounds of the Bald Eagle, Common Eider, and Great Egret were taken from the Stokes Field Guide to Bird Songs-Eastern Region CD set, by Lang Elliott with Donald and Lillian Stokes (Time Warner Audio Books, copyright 1997), used with permission of Lang Elliott, whose work is available online at the “Music of Nature” Web site, http://www.musicofnature.org/.

The Great Egret was featured in Virginia Water Radio Episode 277, 8-10-15; the Bald Eagle was featured in Episode 375, 7-13-17.

“Geese Piece” is copyright 2016 by Torrin Hallett, used with permission.  Thanks to Torrin, a graduate of Oberlin College and Conservatory in Oberlin, Ohio, for composing the piece especially for Virginia Water Radio.”  More information about him is available online at https://www.facebook.com/torrin.hallett.  “Geese Piece” was previously featured in Virginia Water Radio Episode 335, 9-26-16.

Click here if you’d like to hear the full version (2 min./22 sec.) of the “Shenandoah” arrangement/performance by Ben Cosgrove that opens and closes this episode.  More information about Mr. Cosgrove is available online at http://www.bencosgrove.com.

IMAGES


Screen shot of eBird’s map of records around the world, as of 10/1/18, 4 p.m. EDT, accessed at https://ebird.org/explore.


Screen shot of part of eBird’s bar graphs of bird observations at Back Bay in southeastern Virginia, as of 10/1/18, 4 p.m. EDT, accessed at https://ebird.org/explore.


An observation entered into the “My eBird” records of the host of Virginia Water Radio: Great Blue Heron in a stormwater pond at the Virginia Tech Inn in Blacksburg, July 28, 2015

SOURCES

Used for Audio

Colorado State University and Citizen Science Central, CitiSci.org, online at https://www.citsci.org/CWIS438/Websites/CitSci/Home.php?WebSiteID=7.

Cornell Lab of Ornithology, “E-bird,” online at https://ebird.org/home.  Information on the October 6, 2018, Global Bird Day is online at https://ebird.org/news/october-big-day-6-october-2018.

Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, “Frog and Toad Calling Survey,” online at https://www.dgif.virginia.gov/wildlife/frogsurvey/.

Virginia Herpetological Society, online at https://www.virginiaherpetologicalsociety.com/.

Virginia Master Naturalists, “What You’ll Do,” online at http://www.virginiamasternaturalist.org/what-youll-do.html.

For More Information about Birds

BirdNote®, a daily broadcast/podcast on birds, online at http://birdnote.org/.

Cornell University Lab of Ornithology, “All About Birds,” online at http://www.allaboutbirds.org.

Cornell University Lab of Ornithology, “Merlin Photo ID.”  The application for mobile devices allows users to submit a bird photograph to get identification of the bird.   Information is available online at http://merlin.allaboutbirds.org/.

Cornell University Lab of Ornithology and American Ornithologists’ Union, “Birds of North America Online,” online at http://bna.birds.cornell.edu/bna (subscription required).

Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, “Fish and Wildlife Information Service,” online at http://vafwis.org/fwis/?Title=VaFWIS+Species+Information+By+Name&vUT=Visitor.

Virginia Society of Ornithology, online at http://www.virginiabirds.org/.  The Society is non-profit organization dedicated to the study, conservation, and enjoyment of birds in the Commonwealth.

Xeno-canto Foundation Web site, online at http://www.xeno-canto.org/.  The site provides bird songs from around the world.

RELATED VIRGINIA WATER RADIO EPISODES

All Water Radio episodes are listed by category at the Index link above (http://www.virginiawaterradio.org/p/index.html).   See particularly the “Birds” and “Science” subject categories.

Following is a link to an episode on the Virginia Herpetological Society’s survey activities.
Episode 371, 6/5/17.

Following are links to episodes related to Virginia Master Naturalist activities.
Episode 81, 9/26/11 – on stream assessment with aquatic macroinvertebrates.
Episode 172, 7/29/13 – on methods of fish sampling.
Episode 241, 11/24/14 – on fish classification.

FOR VIRGINIA TEACHERS – RELATED STANDARDS OF LEARNING (SOLs) AND OTHER INFORMATION

This episode may also help with the following Virginia 2010 Science SOLs.


Grades K-6 Scientific Investigation, Reasoning, and Logic Theme
1.1, 2.1, 3.1, 4.1, 5.1, and 6.1 – Gathering and analyzing data. 2.1, 3.1, 4.1, 5.1, and 6.1 all also include “Current applications to reinforce science concepts.”

Grades K-6 Earth Resources Theme
4.9 – Va. natural resources, including watersheds, water resources, and organisms.
6.9 – public policy decisions related to the environment (including resource management and conservation, land use decision, hazard mitigation, cost/benefit assessments).

Grades K-6 Living Systems Theme
5.5 – cell structures and functions, organism classification, and organism traits.

Life Science Course
LS.1 – understanding of scientific reasoning, logic, and the nature of science, including current applications to reinforce science concepts.
LS.4 – organisms’ classification based on features.
LS.11 – relationships between ecosystem dynamics and human activity.

Biology Course
BIO.1 – current applications to reinforce science concepts.
BIO.8 – dynamic equilibria and interactions within populations, communities, and ecosystems; including nutrient cycling, succession, effects of natural events and human activities, and analysis of the flora, fauna, and microorganisms of Virginia ecosystems.

The episode may also help with the following Virginia 2015 Social Studies SOLs.

World Geography Course
WG.1 – skills for historical thinking, geographical analysis, economic decision-making, and responsible citizenship.

Government Course
GOVT.1 – skills for historical thinking, geographical analysis, economic decision-making, and responsible citizenship.

Virginia’s SOLs are available from the Virginia Department of Education, online at http://www.doe.virginia.gov/testing/.

Following are links to Water Radio episodes (various topics) designed especially for certain K-12 grade levels.

Episode 250 (1-26-15) – on boiling, for kindergarten through 3rd grade.
Episode 255 (3-2-15) – on density, for 5th and 6th grade.
Episode 282 (9-21-15) – on living vs. non-living, for kindergarten.
Episode 309 (3-28-16) – on temperature regulation in animals, for kindergarten through 12th grade.
Episode 332 (9-12-16) – on dissolved gases, especially dissolved oxygen in aquatic habitats, for 5th grade.
Episode 403 (1-15-18) – on freezing and ice, for kindergarten through 3rd grade.
Episode 404 (1-22-18) – on ice on ponds and lakes, for 4th through 8th grade. Episode 406 (2-5-18) – on ice on rivers, for middle school.
Episode 407 (2-12-19) – on snow chemistry and physics, for high school.