Tuesday, May 26, 2020

Episode 526 (5-25-20): Here Comes the 2020 Atlantic Tropical Cyclone Season, Led Off by Arthur in May

Click to listen to episode (5:22)

Sections below are the following:
Transcript of Audio
Audio Notes and Acknowledgments
Images
Extra Information
Sources
Related Water Radio Episodes
For Virginia Teachers (Relevant SOLs, etc.)


Unless otherwise noted, all Web addresses mentioned were functional as of 5-22-20.

TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO

From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of May 25, 2020.

MUSIC – ~10 seconds - instrumental

That’s part of “DBW,” by The Faux Paws, from a 2018 collection called “The Hurricane EP” because it resulted when plans changed due to Hurricane Florence, which struck the Atlantic coast in September 2018.  That makes the tune a fitting opening for our annual preview of the Atlantic tropical cyclone season.  Have a listen for about 30 seconds to 21 names that we hope will NOT become infamous this summer or fall.

GUEST VOICES and INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC - ~26 sec – “Arthur.  Bertha.  Cristobal.  Dolly.  Edouard.  Fay.  Gonzalo.  Hanna.   Isaias.  Josephine.  Kyle.  Laura.  Marco.  Nana.  Omar.  Paulette.  Rene.  Sally.  Teddy.  Vicky.  Wilfred.”

You heard the names planned for storms that may occur during the 2020 tropical cyclone season in the Atlantic Basin.  The names were accompanied by “Tropical Tantrum,” by Torrin Hallett.  The Atlantic basin includes the Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, and Gulf of Mexico, and the Atlantic tropical cyclone season runs officially from June 1 through November 30.  But tropical weather doesn’t always abide by the official dates.  For the past five years in the Atlantic basin, named storms have formed before June 1: Hurricane Alex in mid-January 2016; Tropical Storm Arlene in April 2017; Subtropical Storm Alberto in May 2018; Subtropical Storm Andrea in May 2019; and this year, Tropical Storm Arthur on May 17.

[Editor’s correction and note, not in the audio: Named storms have formed before June 1 in the past six (not five) years, including this year; besides the ones mentioned in the audio, others were Ana in May 2015, Bonnie in May 2016, and Bertha in May 2020 (occurring after this episode was posted).]

Tropical storms and hurricanes are two categories of tropical cyclones, which are rotating storm systems that start in tropical or sub-tropical latitudes.  A tropical cyclone is called a tropical storm—and gets a name—when sustained wind speeds reach 39 miles per hour; at 74 miles per hour, a tropical cyclone is considered a hurricane.  Tropical depressions—with wind speeds below 39 miles per hour—don’t get named if they never reach tropical storm wind speed,* but they can still bring heavy rainfall and flooding.  Hurricane-force storms are called simply tropical cyclones in some parts of the world and called typhoons in other parts.

[*Editor's note, not in the audio: A tropical system that never gets above the tropical depression wind-speed level won’t be given a name.  But a lingering tropical depression that previously was at the wind speed of a tropical storm or hurricane will have a name associated with it.]

Before a tropical system of any speed or name barges into the Old Dominion, here are some important preparedness steps you can take:
Make a written emergency plan, including an evacuation plan;
Assemble an emergency kit of food, water, medicines, and supplies, including cleaning and sanitation supplies needed in this year of the coronavirus pandemic;
Prepare your home for high winds; and
Establish ways to stay informed, especially if the power goes out.

Detailed safety tips for hurricanes and other severe weather are available from the “Safety” link at the National Weather Service Web site, www.weather.gov.  While the Weather Service’s “Hurricane Preparedness Week” for 2020 was May 3-9, right now is still a good time to start getting ready for the next tropical cyclone!

Thanks to several Blacksburg, Va., friends for lending their voices to this episode, and thanks to Torrin Hallett for composing “Tropical Tantrum” for Virginia Water Radio in 2017.  Thanks also to Andrew VanNorstrand for permission to use this week’s music by The Faux Paws, and we close with about 20 more seconds of “DBW,” from The Hurricane EP.

MUSIC - ~22 sec – instrumental

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

“DBW,” from the 2018 album “The Hurricane EP,” is copyright by The Faux Paws, used with permission of Andrew VanNorstrand.  Information about “The Hurricane EP” and The Faux Paws is available online at https://thefauxpaws.bandcamp.com/releases.

The 2020 Atlantic tropical cyclone season names were called out by 11 Blacksburg friends of Virginia Water radio on May 21-22, 2020.  Thanks to those people for participating in this episode.

“Tropical Tantrum” is copyright 2017 by Torrin Hallett, used with permission.  Torrin is a 2018 graduate of Oberlin College and Conservatory in Oberlin, Ohio; as of 2020, he is a graduate student in Horn Performance at Manhattan School of Music in New York.  More information about Torrin is available online at https://www.facebook.com/torrin.hallett. Thanks to Torrin for composing “Tropical Tantrum” especially for Virginia Water Radio; to hear the complete piece (28 seconds), please click here.

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

Map showing the names, dates, and tracks of named Atlantic basin tropical cyclones (tropical storms and hurricanes) in 2019. Map from the National Hurricane Center, “2019 Atlantic Hurricane Season,” online at https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/data/tcr/index.php?season=2019&basin=atl.


Satellite image of Hurricane Dorian, just prior to the storm’s landfall over Cape Hatteras, N.C., on September 6, 2019. Image from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), accessed online at https://www.nesdis.noaa.gov/content/goes-east-sees-dorian-moments-making-landfall-over-cape-hatteras-nc, 5/26/20.

EXTRA INFORMATION

On Tropical Cyclone Preparedness

The following information is quoted from the National Weather Service’s “Hurricane Preparedness Week 2020” list of tips for each day of a week, online at http://www.weather.gov/wrn/hurricane-preparedness#prepweek.

“Day 1 - Determine your risk.
Find out today what types of wind and water hazards could happen where you live, and then start preparing how to handle them. Hurricanes are not just a coastal problem.  Their impacts can be felt hundreds of miles inland, and significant impacts can occur without it being a major hurricane.

“Day 2 - Develop an evacuation plan.
The first thing you need to do is find out if you live in a hurricane evacuation zone.  If you do, now is the time to begin planning where you would go and how you would get there.  You do not need to travel hundreds of miles, but have multiple options.  Your destination could be a friend or relative who doesn’t live in an evacuation zone.  If you live in a well-built home outside the evacuation zone, your safest place may be to remain home.  Be sure to account for your pets in your plan.  As hurricane season approaches, listen to local officials on questions related to how you may need to adjust any evacuation plans based on the latest health and safety guidelines from the CDC [U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] and your local officials.

“Day 3 - Assemble disaster supplies.
You’re going to need supplies not just to get through the storm but for the potentially lengthy and unpleasant aftermath.  Have enough non-perishable food, water and medicine to last each person in your family a minimum of three days.  Electricity and water could be out for at least that long.  You’ll need extra cash, a battery-powered radio and flashlights.  You may need a portable crank or solar-powered USB charger for your cell phones.  The CDC recommends [that] if you need to go to a public shelter, bring at least two cloth face coverings for each person and, if possible, hand sanitizer.  (Children under two years old and people having trouble breathing should not wear face coverings).

“Day 4 – Get an insurance check-up.
Call your insurance company or agent and ask for an insurance check-up to make sure you have enough homeowners insurance to repair or even replace your home.  Don’t forget coverage for your car or boat.  Remember, standard homeowners insurance doesn’t cover flooding.  Whether you’re a homeowner or renter, you’ll need a separate policy for it, and it’s available through your company, agent or the National Flood Insurance Program at floodsmart.gov.  Act now as flood insurance requires a 30-day waiting period.

“Day 5 - Strengthen your home.
If you plan to ride out the storm in your home, make sure it is in good repair and up to local hurricane building code specifications.  Many retrofits are not as costly or time consuming as you may think.  Have the proper plywood, steel or aluminum panels to board up the windows and doors.  Remember, the garage door is the most vulnerable part of the home, so it must be able to withstand the winds.

“Day 6 – Help your neighbor.
Many Americans rely on their neighbors after a disaster, but there are also many ways you can help your neighbors before a hurricane approaches.  Learn about all the different actions you and your neighbors can take to prepare and recover from the hazards associated with hurricanes.  Start the conversation now...[and] remember you may need to adjust your preparedness plans based on the latest health and safety guidelines from the CDC and your local officials.

“Day 7 - Complete a written plan.
The time to prepare for a hurricane is before the season begins, when you have the time and are not under pressure.  If you wait until a hurricane is on your doorstep, the odds are that you will be under duress and will make the wrong decisions.  Take the time now to write down your hurricane plan.  Know who issues evacuation orders for your area, determine locations on where you will ride out the storm, and start to get your supplies now.  Being prepared before a hurricane threatens makes you resilient to the hurricane impacts of wind and water.  It will mean the difference between being a hurricane victim or a hurricane survivor.”

On Tropical Cyclone Names

The following information is quoted from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, “Tropical Cyclone Names,” online at http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/aboutnames.shtml.

“Since 1953, Atlantic tropical storms had been named from lists originated by the National Hurricane Center.  They are now maintained and updated through a strict procedure by an international committee of the World Meteorological Organization [online at http://www.wmo.int/pages/prog/www/tcp/].

“[Six lists] are used in rotation and re-cycled every six years, i.e., the 2019 list will be used again in 2025.  The only time that there is a change in the list is if a storm is so deadly or costly that the future use of its name on a different storm would be inappropriate for reasons of sensitivity.  If that occurs, then at an annual meeting by the WMO committee (called primarily to discuss many other issues) the offending name is stricken from the list and another name is selected to replace it.  Several names have been retired since the lists were created.  [More information on the history of naming tropical cyclones and retired names is available online at https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/aboutnames_history.shtml.]

“If a storm forms in the off-season, it will take the next name in the list based on the current calendar date.  For example, if a tropical cyclone formed on December 28th, it would take the name from the previous season's list of names.  If a storm formed in February, it would be named from the subsequent season's list of names.  In the event that more than twenty-one named tropical cyclones occur in the Atlantic basin in a season, additional storms will take names from the Greek alphabet.”

SOURCES

Used for Audio

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), “NASA Provides in-Depth Analysis of Unusual Tropical Storm Alex,” 1/15/16, online at http://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2016/alex-atlantic-ocean.

National Hurricane Center (NHC):
Main Web page, online at https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/?atlc. This site provides bulletins, maps, and other information on tropical storms as they are occurring.
“Glossary,” online at https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/aboutgloss.shtml. This site includes the wind-scale designations for tropical depression, tropical storm, and hurricane.
“Hurricane Preparedness Week, May 3-9, 2020” online at https://www.weather.gov/wrn/hurricane-preparedness (as of 5/22/20).
“NHC Data Archive,” online at http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/data/.
“Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale,” online at https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/aboutsshws.php.
“2016 Hurricane Alex Advisory Archive,” online at https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2016/ALEX.shtml?.
“2017 Tropical Storm Arlene Advisory Archive,” online at https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2017/ARLENE.shtml?.
“2018 Hurricane Florence Advisory Archive,” online at https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2018/FLORENCE.shtml?.
“2018 Subtropical Storm Alberto Advisory Archive,” online at https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2018/ALBERTO.shtml?.
“2019 Subtropical Storm Andrea Advisory Archive” online at https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2019/ANDREA.shtml?.
“2020 Tropical Storm Arthur Advisory Archive,” online at https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2020/ARTHUR.shtml?.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA):
“Busy Atlantic hurricane season predicted for 2020,” 5/21/20, online at https://www.noaa.gov/media-release/noaa-predicts-near-normal-2019-atlantic-hurricane-season.
“Tropical Cyclone Names,” online at http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/aboutnames.shtml.
“What’s the difference between a hurricane and a typhoon?” online at https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/cyclone.html.

National Weather Service:
“Historic Hurricane Florence, September 12-15, 2018,” online at https://www.weather.gov/mhx/Florence2018.
“Hurricane Safety Tips and Resources,” online at https://www.weather.gov/safety/hurricane.
“Tropical Cyclone Climatology,” online at https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/climo/.

For More Information on Tropical Cyclones and Emergency Preparedness

American Red Cross, “Hurricane Safety,” online at http://www.redcross.org/prepare/disaster/hurricane.

Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), “Hurricanes,” online at http://www.ready.gov/hurricanes.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA)/Climate Prediction Center, “Atlantic Hurricane Outlook and Summary Archive,” http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/outlooks/hurricane-archive.shtml.

Virginia Department of Emergency Management “Know Your Zone” Web site for evacuation planning, online at http://www.vaemergency.gov/hurricane-evacuation-zone-lookup/.

Virginia Department of Transportation, “VDOT and Emergency Response” (including hurricane evacuation information), online at http://www.virginiadot.org/about/emer_response.asp.

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 “Weather/Climate/Natural Disasters” subject category.

Following are links to other episodes on tropical cyclones.

Episode 134, 10-29-12 – Hurricane Sandy and storm surge.
Episode 163, 5-27-13 – annual season-preview episode.
Episode 215, 5-26-14 – annual season-preview episode, with storm names for 2014.
Episode 226, 8-11-14 – mid-season update.
Episode 266, 5-18-15 – annual season-preview episode, with storm names for 2015.
Episode 317, 5-27-16 – annual season-preview episode, with storm names for 2016.
Episode 330, 8-22-16 – mid-season update.
Episode 337, 10-10-16 – Hurricane Matthew and storm surge.
Episode 345, 12-5-16 – season-review episode.
Episode 369, 5-22-17 – annual season-preview episode, with storm names for 2017.
Episode 385, 9-11-17 – Hurricane Irma and storm surge.
Episode 423, 6-2-18 – annual season-preview episode, with storm names for 2018.
Episode 438, 9-17-18 – basic hurricane facts and history.
Episode 474, 5-27-19 – annual season-preview episode, with storm names for 2019.

Following are other music pieces composed by Torrin Hallett for Virginia Water Radio, with episodes featuring the music.

“Beetle Ballet” – used in Episode 525, 5-18-20, on aquatic beetles.
“Corona Cue” – used in Episode 517, 3-23-20, on the coronavirus pandemic.
“Geese Piece” – used most recently in Episode 440, 10-1-18, on E-bird.
“Lizard Lied” – used in Episode 514, 3-2-20, on lizards.
“New Year’s Water” – used in Episode 349, 1-2-17, on the New Year.
“Rain Refrain” – used most recently in Episode 455, 1-14-19, on record Virginia precipitation in 2019.
“Spider Strike” – used in Episode 523, 5-4-20, on fishing spiders.
“Turkey Tune” – used in Episode 343, 11-21-16, on the Wild Turkey.

FOR VIRGINIA TEACHERS – RELATED STANDARDS OF LEARNING (SOLs) AND OTHER INFORMATION
Following are some Virginia Standards of Learning (SOLs) that may be supported by this episode’s audio/transcript, sources of information, or other materials in the Show Notes.

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/Space Interrelationships Theme
2.6 – identification of common storms and other weather phenomena.
4.6 – weather conditions, phenomena, and measurements.
5.6 – characteristics of the ocean environment.

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.

Life Science Course
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.11 – origin, evolution, and dynamics of the atmosphere, including human influences on climate.
ES.12 – energy, atmosphere, weather, and climate.

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.

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.

Government Course
GOVT.7 – national government organization and powers.

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 333, 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, 2-12-18 – on snow chemistry and physics, for high school.
Episode 483, 7-29-19 – on buoyancy and drag, for middle school and high school.
Episode 524, 5-11-20 – on sounds by water-related animals, for elementary school through high school.

Monday, May 18, 2020

Episode 525 (5-18-20): Introducing the Water Beetles

Click to listen to episode (4:39)

Sections below are the following:
Transcript of Audio
Audio Notes and Acknowledgments
Images
Extra Information
Sources
Related Water Radio Episodes
For Virginia Teachers (Relevant SOLs, etc.)

Unless otherwise noted, all Web addresses mentioned were functional as of 5-15-20.
 

TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO


From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of May 18, 2020.

MUSIC – ~4 sec – instrumental

This week, we drop in on a musically-enhanced, water-insect competition.  The participants have been challenged to figure out the most species-rich group of insects on the planet, and then come up with the distinguishing words for seven aquatic versions of that group.  Have a listen for about 15 seconds to this entomological exercise, and see if you know the name for that overall group of insects.  And here’s a hint: the name sounds like a revolutionary, four-member rock band.

VOICES and MUSIC - ~15 sec – “Crawling. Long-toed. Predaceous diving. Riffle. Water penny. Water scavenger. Whirligig.”

If you guessed beetles, you’re right!  You heard part of “Beetle Ballet,” by Torrin Hallett, underlying the descriptive names of seven water beetle families.  Scientists categorize beetles into a taxonomic group called an order, and beetles are the most diverse order of animals, with a current estimate of about 390,000 species worldwide.  Perhaps as many as 20,000 of those species are water beetles.  The seven kinds of water beetles you heard, out of about 20 North American families, are among the most commonly found on this continent, with the predaceous diving beetle family and the water scavenger beetle family having the largest number of species.

As a group, water beetles occupy all kinds and sizes of aquatic and semi-aquatic habitats, such as ponds, lakes, and other still waters; streams and rivers; various kinds of wetlands; temporary habitats like puddles; and a variety of moist areas on coastal shorelines.  Beetles that inhabit water typically do so both as adults and in their immature, larval stage; but some, like Water Pennies, are terrestrial as adults, and Long-toed Water Beetles have terrestrial larvae.  All beetle adults have two pairs of wings, with the forewings forming a hardened sheath of the membranous hind wings, and many water beetles are able to hold under those forewings a bubble of air that allows them to breathe while submerged.  Feeding habits among the thousands of water beetle species vary widely, both in what they eat and in how they acquire their food.

Water beetles have many remarkable adaptations and biological variations.  Here’s one example: Whirligig beetles, which can be seen swimming in circles on the surface of ponds, lakes, and still water on stream margins, have eyes divided into an upper and lower half; the upper half can see above the water surface, while the lower half can see below.

Thanks to several Blacksburg, Va., friends for lending their voices to this episode.  Thanks also to Torrin Hallett for composing this week’s music especially for Virginia Water Radio, and we close with the last 20 seconds of “Beetle Ballet.”

MUSIC - ~ 22 sec – instrumental

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

“Beetle Ballet” is copyright 2020 by Torrin Hallett, used with permission.  Torrin is a 2018 graduate of Oberlin College and Conservatory in Oberlin, Ohio; as of 2020, he is a graduate student in Horn Performance at Manhattan School of Music in New York.  More information about Torrin is available online at https://www.facebook.com/torrin.hallett.  Thanks very much to Torrin for composing the piece especially for Virginia Water Radio. To hear the complete piece (39 seconds), please click here.

The water beetle family names call-outs were recorded by several Blacksburg, Va., residents in May 2020.

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

Whirligig beetles in the New River in Giles County, Va., May 17, 2020.


A species of predaceous diving beetle, Virginia Beach, Va., April 10, 2019.  Photo by Laura Bankey, made available on iNaturalist at https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/22308991 (as of 5-18-20) for use under Creative Commons license “Attribtution-NonCommercial 4.0.”  Information about this Creative Commons license is available online at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/.

EXTRA INFORMATION ABOUT WATER BEETLE FAMILIES

As noted in the audio, scientists classify beetles scientific classification level called an order.  The scientific names for the beetles order is Coleoptera.  Other orders of familiar insects include Diptera, the order of “true flies”; Hymenoptera, the order of ants, bees, and wasps; and Lepidoptera, the order of butterflies and moths.  (For one list of all insect orders, see Iowa State University’s BugGuide, online at https://bugguide.net/node/view/222292.)

Families are groups within orders.  Following is some information on the beetles families that include water beetles, that is, beetles that live in or closely associated with aquatic habitats.

J. Reese Voshell, in A Guide to Common Freshwater Invertebrates of North America (McDonald and Woodward, Blacksburg, Va., 2002; (pages 359-368), lists the following seven beetle families as “common in freshwater habitats” in North America.  The families are listed in alphabetical order by common name, with the scientific names for the family in parenthesis.

Crawling Water Beetle (Haplidae)
Long-toed Water Beetles (Dryopidae)
Predaceous Diving Beetles (Dytiscidae)
Riffle Beetles (Elmidae)
Water Pennies (Psephenidae)
Water Scavenger Beetles (Hydrophilidae)
Whirligig Beetles (Gyrinidae)

R. W. Merritt and K. W. Cummins, in An Introduction to the Aquatic Insects of North America, 2nd Edition (Kendall/Hunt, Dubuque, Ia., 1984; (pages 427-437), list the following 21 beetle families as having aquatic or semi-aquatic species in North America (connected either to fresh waters, estuaries, or marine waters).  The families are listed in alphabetical order by scientific name, followed by the family’s common name.

Amphizoidae – Trout-stream Beetles
Carabidae – Predaceous Ground Beetles
Chrysomelidae – Leaf Beetles
Curculionidae – Weevils
Dryopidae – Long-toed Water Beetles
Dytiscidae – Predaceous Diving Beetles
Elmidae – Riffle Beetles
Gyrinidae – Whirligig Beetles
Haliplidae – Crawling Water Beetles
Hydraenidae – Minute Moss beetles
Hydrophilidae – Water Scavenger Beetles
Hydroscaphidae – Skiff Beetles
Limnichidae – Marsh-loving Beetles
Melyridae – Soft-winged Flower Beetles
Noteridae – Burrowing Water Beetles
Psephenidae – Water Pennies
Ptilodactylidae – Toed-winged Beetles
Salpingidae (= Eurystethidae) – Narrow-waisted Bark Beetles
Scirtidae (= Helodidae) – Marsh Beetles
Sphaeriidae – Minute Bog Beetles
Staphylinidae – Rove Beetles

SOURCES

Used for Audio

Iowa State University Department of Entomology, “Bug Guide/Order Coleoptera - Beetles,” online at https://bugguide.net/node/view/60.  This is the source used for the total number of beetle species worldwide.

R. W. Merritt and K. W. Cummins, An Introduction to the Aquatic Insects of North America, Second Edition, Kendall/Hunt, Dubuque, Ia., 1984.

George K. Reid, Pond Life, Golden Press, New York, N.Y., 1967.

Andrew Edward Z. Short, “Systematics of aquatic beetles (Coleoptera): current state and future directions,” Systematic Entomology, Vol. 43/No. 1, January 2018, accessed online at https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/syen.12270.  This is the source used for the total number of water beetle species worldwide.

J. Reese Voshell, A Guide to Common Freshwater Invertebrates of North America, McDonald and Woodward, Blacksburg, Va., 2002.

For More Information about Beetles and Other Insects in Virginia and Elsewhere

University of Michigan Museum of Zoology, “Animal Diversity Web,” online at https://animaldiversity.org. Beetle species are listed at https://animaldiversity.org/search/?q=beetle&feature=INFORMATION.

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. Entries for beetles are available at this link.

Many field guides to insects are available from book stores or other supplies.

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 “Insects” subject category.

Following are links to other episodes with information related to beetles.

Episode 81, 9-26-11, and Episode 363, 4-10-17 – on stream assessment using aquatic insects and other macroinvertebrates.
Episode P336, 10-3-16 – on streamside insects.

Following are other music pieces composed by Torrin Hallett for Virginia Water Radio, with links to episodes featuring the music.

“Corona Cue” – used in Episode 517, 3-23-20, on the coronavirus pandemic of 2020.
“Geese Piece” – used most recently in Episode 440, 10-1-18, on E-bird.
“Lizard Lied” – used in Episode 514, 3-2-20, on lizards.
“New Year’s Water” – used in Episode 349, 1-2-17, on the New Year.
“Rain Refrain” – used most recently in Episode 455, 1-14-19, on record Virginia precipitation in 2019.
“Spider Strike” – used in Episode 523, 5-4-20, on fishing spiders.
“Tropical Tantrum” – used most recently in Episode 489, 9-9-19, on storm surge.
“Turkey Tune” – used in Episode 343, 11-21-16, on the Wild Turkey.

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

Following are some Virginia Standards of Learning (SOLs) that may be supported by this episode’s audio/transcript, sources of information, or other materials in the Show Notes.

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 Resources Theme
4.9 – Virginia natural resources, including watersheds, water resources, and organisms.

Grades K-6 Life Processes Theme
1.5 – animals’ basic needs and distinguishing characteristics.
2.4 – life cycles.
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.
5.5 – cell structures and functions, organism classification, and organism traits.

Life Science Course
LS.4 – organisms’ classification based on features.
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.6 – bases for modern classification systems, including structures, biochemistry, and developmental stages.
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.

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 333, 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, 2-12-18 – on snow chemistry and physics, for high school.
Episode 483, 7-29-19 – on buoyancy and drag, for middle school and high school.
Episode 524, 5-11-20 – on sounds by water-related animals, for elementary school through high school.

Monday, May 11, 2020

Episode 524 (5-11-20): A Tour Around Sounds by Water-connected Creatures

Click to listen to episode (5:20)

Sections below are the following:
Transcript of Audio
Audio Notes and Acknowledgments
Image
Sources
Related Water Radio Episodes
For Virginia Teachers (Relevant SOLs, etc.)


Unless otherwise noted, all Web addresses mentioned were functional as of 5-8-20.

TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO

From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of May 11, 2020.

MUSIC – ~8 sec – instrumental

This week, that opening of “All Creatures Were Meant to Be Free,” by Bob Gramann of Fredericksburg, Va., sets the stage for an episode filled with mystery sounds of creatures related to water and found in Virginia.  This episode is designed especially for Virginia K-12 students whose science curriculum includes learning about the Commonwealth’s living creatures, also called organisms.  I’ll play a few seconds of sounds of 12 animals, ranging from tiny to tremendously large.  After each one, I’ll tell what the animal is and a little bit about its occurrence or habitat in Virginia. I hope you know ‘em all!  Here goes.

One.  SOUND - ~ 4 sec.  Several species of mosquitoes are common in Virginia and breed in a variety of still-water habitats.

Two.  SOUND - ~4 sec.  Deer flies, which annoy and bite during their flying adult stage, inhabit wetlands, ponds, marshes, or streams in their immature stages.

Three.  SOUND - ~5 sec.  The Atlantic Croaker, one of many fish species known to make sounds, occurs along Virginia’s coastline and in the Chesapeake Bay in warm weather.

Four.  SOUND - ~ 4 sec.  Gray Treefrogs are a common and sometimes loud amphibian found throughout [much of] Virginia.

Five.  SOUND - ~ 5 sec.  American Toad breeding in Virginia starts between March and April in temporary pools or ponds, where males advertise to females with long trills.

Six.  SOUND - ~7 sec.  The American Bullfrog is Virginia’s largest frog, found all over the Commonwealth in ponds, lakes, and still-water sections of streams.

Seven.  SOUND - ~3 sec.  Belted Kingfishers are fish-catching birds found around streams, rivers, ponds, lakes, and estuaries.

Eight.  SOUND - ~6 sec.  The Laughing Gull is one of 16 gull species whose occurrence has been documented in Virginia, out of 20 gull species known in North America.

Nine.  SOUND - ~4 sec.  The Red-winged Blackbird is often seen, and distinctively heard, around ponds, marshes, streams, and other wet areas.

Ten.  SOUND - ~6 sec.  Populations of the Bald Eagle have recovered dramatically in recent decades and our national symbol can now often be spotted along Virginia’s rivers.

Eleven.  SOUND - ~3 sec.  American Beavers, now found across Virginia after reintroduction starting in the 1930s, smack their paddle-like tail on the water as a defensive behavior to protect a colony’s territory.

And twelve.  SOUND - ~8 sec.  The Humpback Whale, which can be seen during migrations along Virginia’s coastline in winter, uses it song for breeding or other communication.

Thanks to Freesound.org for the mosquito sound; to Rodney Rountree for the Atlantic Croaker sound; to the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries and to Lang Elliott for the bullfrog sound; to Lang Elliott again for the Laughing Gull and Bald Eagle sounds; and to the National Park Service for the whale sound.  Thanks also to Bob Gramann for permission to use his music.

And thanks finally to all Virginia students for their efforts to keep learning through an unusually challenging spring 2020.

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

“All Creatures Were Meant to Be Free,” from the 1995 album “Mostly True Songs,” is copyright by Bob Gramann, used with permission.  More information about Bob Gramann is available online at https://www.bobgramann.com/.  This music was used by Virginia Water Radio previously in Episode 465, 3-25-19.

The mosquito sound was recorded by user Zywx and made available for public use on Freesound.org, online at https://www.freesound.org/people/Zywx/sounds/188708/, under Creative Commons License 1.0 (public domain).  More information on this Creative Commons license is available online at https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/.

The deer fly sound was recorded by Virginia Water Radio deer fly in Blacksburg, Va., on July 3, 2014.

The Atlantic Croaker sound was from Rodney Rountree’s “Fish and Other Underwater Sounds” Web site at http://www.fishecology.org/soniferous/justsounds.htm; used with permission.

The Gray Treefrog sound was recorded by Virginia Water Radio in Blacksburg, Va., on June 10, 2011.

The American Toad sound was recorded by Virginia Water Radio in Blacksburg, Va., on April 3, 2017.

The American Bullfrog sound was from “The Calls of Virginia Frogs and Toads” CD, copyright 2008 by the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries and Lang Elliott/NatureSoundStudio, used with permission.  Lang Elliott’s work is available online at the “Music of Nature” Web site, http://www.musicofnature.org/.

The Belted Kingfisher sound was recorded by Virginia Water Radio in Blacksburg, Va., on January 19, 2018.

The Laughing Gull and Bald Eagle sounds were 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.  Lang Elliott’s work is available online at the “Music of Nature” Web site, http://www.musicofnature.org/.

The Red-winged Blackbird sound was recorded by Virginia Water Radio in Blacksburg, Va., on April 9, 2017.

The American Beaver sound was from a video recording by Virginia Water Radio at Toms Creek in Heritage Park in Blacksburg, Va., on June 2, 2012.  A 23-second segment of that video is available on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mulEJhKGhl0.

The Humpback Whale sound was taken from a National Park Service recording (“Humpback Whales Song 2”) made available for public use on the “Community Audio” page of the Internet Archive Web site, at http://www.archive.org/details/HumpbackWhalesSongsSoundsVocalizations.

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.

IMAGE

White-headed Eagle (a name formerly used for the Bald Eagle) painting originally published between 1827 and 1838 by John James Audubon in Birds of America, Plate XXXI (31), as reprinted in 1985 by Abbeville Press, New York.  The painting includes what Audubon called a Yellow Catfish caught by the bird.  Photo taken June 29, 2017, 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 https://www.audubon.org/birds-of-america.

SOURCES USED FOR AUDIO AND OFFERING MORE INFORMATION

AmphibiaWeb, online at https://amphibiaweb.org/.

Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, “Atlantic Croaker,” online at http://www.asmfc.org/species/atlantic-croaker.

Robert A. Blaylock, The Marine Mammals of Virginia (with notes on identification and natural history), Virginia Institute of Marine Science, 1985; online (as a PDF) at https://www.vims.edu/GreyLit/VIMS/EdSeries35.pdf.

Chesapeake Bay Program, “Atlantic Croaker,” online at https://www.chesapeakebay.net/S=0/fieldguide/critter/atlantic_croaker.

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

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

Eric Day et al., “Mosquitoes and Their Control,” Virginia Cooperative Extension Publication ENTO 202NP, 2016, online (as a PDF) at https://www.pubs.ext.vt.edu/content/dam/pubs_ext_vt_edu/ENTO/ENTO-202/ENTO-202-PDF.pdf.

Nonny De La Pena, What’s Making that Awful Racket? Surprisingly, It May Be Fish, New York Times, 4/8/08.

John D. Kleopfer and Chris S. Hobson, A Guide to the Frogs and Toad of Virginia, Special Publication Number 3, Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, Richmond, 2011.

Bernard S. Martof et al., Amphibians and Reptiles of the Carolinas and Virginia, University of North Carolina Press, Chapel Hill, 1980.

National Aquarium, “A Blue View: Fish That Make Sound,” 2/16/16, online at https://www.aqua.org/blog/2016/February/Fish-That-Make-Sound.

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

Rodney Rountree, “Soniferous Fishes,” online at http://www.fishecology.org/soniferous/soniferous.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.

Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (VDGIF), “Virginia is for Frogs,” online at https://www.dgif.virginia.gov/wildlife/virginia-is-for-frogs/.

Virginia Department of Health, “Frequently Asked Questions about Mosquitoes,” online at https://www.vdh.virginia.gov/environmental-epidemiology/frequently-asked-questions-about-mosquitoes/.

Virginia Herpetological Society, online at http://www.virginiaherpetologicalsociety.com/index.html.  Herpetology is the study of amphibians and reptiles.

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

J. Reese Voshell, Jr., Guide to Common Freshwater Invertebrates of North America, McDonald & Woodward Publishing, Blacksburg, Va., 2002.

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: Amphibians, Birds, Fish, Insects, and Mammals.

Following are links to other episodes about the creatures featured in this episode.

Mosquitoes – Episode 78, 9-5-11.
Deer flies (and other true flies) – Episode 484, 8-5-19.
Atlantic Croaker (and other sound-making fish) – Episode 77, 8-29-11.
American Toad – Episode 413, 3-26-18.
American Bullfrog – Episode 74, 8-8-11.
Belted Kingfisher – Episode 224, 7-28-14.
Laughing Gull (and other gulls) – Episode 518, 3-30-20.
Red-winged Blackbird – Episode 364, 4-17-16.
Bald Eagle – Episode 375, 7-3-17.
American Beaver – Episode 477, 6-17-19.
Whales – Episode 399, 12-18-17.

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

Following are some Virginia Standards of Learning (SOLs) that may be supported by this episode’s audio/transcript, sources of information, or other materials in the Show Notes.

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 Living Systems Theme
2.5 – living things as part of a system, including habitats.
6.7 – natural processes and human interactions that affect watershed systems; Virginia watersheds, water bodies, and wetlands; health and safety issues; and water monitoring.

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

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.

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

Following are links to other 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 333, 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, 2-12-18 – on snow chemistry and physics, for high school.
Episode 483, 7-29-19 – on buoyancy and drag, for middle school and high school.

Monday, May 4, 2020

Episode 523 (5-4-20): Fishing Spiders Can Mean Ambush for Aquatic Prey

Click to listen to episode (4:04)

Sections below are the following:
Transcript of Audio
Audio Notes and Acknowledgments
Images
Sources
Related Water Radio Episodes
For Virginia Teachers (Relevant SOLs, etc.)


Unless otherwise noted, all Web addresses mentioned were functional as of 5-1-20.

TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO

From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of May 4, 2020.

MUSIC – ~ 9 sec - instrumental

This week, we feature original music about some semi-aquatic, multi-legged creatures, whose land-dwelling relatives are well-known in nature, human habitats, and human stories and legends.  Have a listen to about 30 more seconds of the music, and see if you know these creatures.  And if you’re fishing for a clue, count to eight.

MUSIC - ~ 27 sec - instrumental

If you guessed fishing spiders, you’re right!  You’ve been listening to “Spider Strike,” by Torrin Hallett, a graduate student at Manhattan School of Music in New York.  Over 40,000 species of spiders occur worldwide, and both real and imagined versions of these eight-legged creatures are a familiar part of human life from corner cobwebs to comic book heroes to various cultural myths.

Fishing spiders are probably less familiar to most people, although these spiders are large and they’ll sometimes wander into houses.  Fishing spiders get their name from their habit of capturing aquatic prey that sometimes includes fish.  More typically, however, these spiders feed on insects.  They can swim, dive, and walk across water to reach their prey. Living along the margins of streams, ponds, or other water bodies, they’re known to anchor themselves to an object near the water, place their front legs on the water surface, and wait to ambush insects whose movements the spiders can detect through surface ripples sensed by the spider’s legs.  In this way, the water surface serves the function that a web provides for many terrestrial spiders.  While fishing spiders don’t make webs to capture prey, they do produce silk to make structures for protecting their eggs; accordingly, they’re classified in the family known as nursery-web spiders.

At [up to] about three inches long, fishing spiders are some of the largest spiders in Virginia.  They aren’t venomous to humans, but they may bite.  Look for them—carefully—along water bodies in vegetation, under rocks, or on trees.

Thanks to Torrin Hallett for composing this week’s music especially for Virginia Water Radio, and we close with the last few seconds of “Spider Strike.”

MUSIC - ~10 sec – instrumental

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

“Spider Strike” is copyright 2020 by Torrin Hallett, used with permission. Torrin is a 2018 graduate of Oberlin College and Conservatory in Oberlin, Ohio; as of 2020, he is a graduate student in Horn Performance at Manhattan School of Music in New York.  More information about Torrin is available online at https://www.facebook.com/torrin.hallett.  Thanks very much to Torrin for composing the piece especially for Virginia Water Radio. To hear the complete piece (47 seconds), please click here.

Thanks to Eric Day, Virginia Tech Department of Entomology, for his help with this episode.

IMAGES

Dark Fishing Spider (Dolomedes tenebrosus), photographed at the Mariner’s Museum in Newport News, Va., June 15, 2019.  Photo by lhjenkins, made available on iNaturalist at https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/27061502 (as of 5-4-20) for use under Creative Commons license “Attribtution-NonCommercial 4.0.”  Information about this Creative Commons license is available online at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/.


Six-spotted Fishing Spider (Dolomedes triton), photographed in Suffolk, Va., April 7, 2020.  Photo by Kathy Richardson, made available on iNaturalist at https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/41713432 (as of 5-4-20), for use under Creative Commons license “Attribtution-NonCommercial 4.0.”  Information about this Creative Commons license is available online at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/.

SOURCES

Used for Audio

BBC News, Fish-eating spiders ‘Widespread,’ 6/18/14.

Eric Day, “Wolf Spiders and Fishing Spiders,” Virginia Tech Department of Entomology/Virginia Cooperative Extension Publication 3104-1586 (ENTO-212NP), 2016, online at https://www.pubs.ext.vt.edu/3104/3104-1586/3104-1586.html.

Encyclopedia Britannica, “Arachnida,” online at https://www.britannica.com/animal/arachnid; and “Nursery-web Spider,” online at https://www.britannica.com/animal/nursery-web-spider.

Iowa State University Department of Entomology, “BugGuide/Genus Dolomedes—Fishing Spiders,” online https://bugguide.net/node/view/1985; “Nursery Web Spiders,” online at https://bugguide.net/node/view/1963; and “Order Araneae—Spiders,” online at https://bugguide.net/node/view/1954.

Lindsay Lane, “Animal Diversity Web/Dolomedes triton,” University of Michigan Museum of Zoology, online at https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Dolomedes_triton/.

Blake Newton, “Nursery-web and Fishing Spiders,” University of Kentucky Department of Entomology, online at https://www.uky.edu/Ag/CritterFiles/casefile/spiders/fishing/pisaurid.htm.

Martin Nyffeler and Bradley J. Pusey, “Fish Predation by Semi-Aquatic Spiders: A Global Pattern,” PLOS One, 6/18/14, online at https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0099459.  This reference (pp. 9-10) was Virginia Water Radio's source for the idea that fishing spiders use the water surface in a similar manner to how terrestrial spiders use their web to capture and locate prey.

Phys.org/University of Oxford, “How Can Spiders Locate Their Prey?” 5/22/19, online at https://phys.org/news/2019-05-spiders-prey.html.

Howard Russell, “Fishing Spiders,” 6/11/10, Michigan State University Extension, online at https://www.canr.msu.edu/news/fishing_spiders.

Reese Voshell, A Guide to Common Freshwater Invertebrates of North America, McDonald and Woodward, Blacksburg, Va., 2002.

Patti Wigington, “Spider Mythology and Folklore,” Learn Religions Web site, 12/23/18, online at https://www.learnreligions.com/spider-mythology-and-folklore-2562730.

For More Information about Spiders in Virginia and Elsewhere

American Arachnological Society, online at http://www.americanarachnology.org/.

Prince William Conservation Alliance [Prince William County, Va.], “Discover Northern Virginia Nature: Arachnids/Spiders (Aranae),” online at http://www.pwconserve.org/wildlife/insects/spiders/index.htm.

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 “Invertebrates Other Than Insects” subject category.

Following is a link to a previous episode with information about spiders found beside a stream.
Episode 336, 10-3-16.

Following are other music pieces composed by Torrin Hallett for Virginia Water Radio, with episodes featuring the music.
“Corona Cue” – used in Episode 517, 3-23-20, on the coronavirus pandemic.
“Geese Piece” – used most recently in Episode 440, 10-1-18, on E-bird.
“Lizard Lied” – used in Episode 514, 3-2-20, on lizards.
“New Year’s Water” – used in Episode 349, 1-2-17, on the New Year.
“Rain Refrain” – used most recently in Episode 455, 1-14-19, on record Virginia precipitation in 2019.
“Tropical Tantrum” – used most recently in Episode 489, 9-9-19, on Storm Surge and Hurricane Dorian.
“Turkey Tune” – used in Episode 343, 11-21-16, on the Wild Turkey.

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

Following are some Virginia Standards of Learning (SOLs) that may be supported by this episode’s audio/transcript, sources of information, or other materials in the Show Notes.

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 Resources Theme
4.9 – Virginia natural resources, including watersheds, water resources, and organisms.

Grades K-6 Life Processes Theme
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.

Life Science Course
LS.4 – organisms’ classification based on features.
LS.6 – ecosystem interactions, including the water cycle, other cycles, and energy flow.
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.

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 333, 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, 2-12-18 – on snow chemistry and physics, for high school.
Episode 483, 7-29-19 – on buoyancy and drag, for middle school and high school.