VIRGINIA
TECH RESEARCHER HEADS
MONITORING OF ENDANGERED
LOGPERCH
BLACKSBURG,
Nov. 12, 2003 - The
Roanoke logperch,
an endangered relative
of the perch, has
recently made the
news because of chemical
contamination of the
Roanoke River in Salem.
"Chemical spills,
however, are not the
only threats to the
Roanoke logperch,"
warns Virginia Tech
fisheries researcher
Jamie Roberts.
The
logperch is a six-inch
fish native to only
four river systems
throughout the Commonwealth
of Virginia. The fish
have pointed snouts
that they use to flip
rocks and feed on
the bugs underneath.
They were federally
listed as an endangered
species in 1991.
After several years
of study, Roberts,
a Virginia Tech research
scientist in the department
of fisheries and wildlife
science in the College
of Natural Resources
who coordinates the
monitoring project
for the endangered
Roanoke logperch,
explains, "The limited
numbers of logperch
in the Roanoke River
can be attributed
to large amounts of
sediment entering
the river from surrounding
lands."
He
adds, "Large amounts
of very fine sediment
particles, called
silt, are detrimental
to logperch populations
because they decrease
visibility in the
water, smother fish
eggs, and cover the
rocks under which
the fish look for
food." According to
Roberts, silt is the
most common pollutant
in rivers across the
United States and
is harmful to many
fish, including the
logperch.
The
U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers commissioned
the ongoing monitoring
study as a stipulation
of the Roanoke River
Flood Reduction Project.
A joint $70 million
effort by the city
of Roanoke and the
Corps of Engineers,
the flood project
will modify the stream
channel and possibly
generate large amounts
of silt, which may
in turn negatively
affect logperch populations.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service (USFWS) officials
now believe that the
river widening may
also reduce the stream's
ability to transport
silt, causing even
more sediment to deposit
on the stream-bottom.
Environmental
regulations required
the Army Corps to
hire a group of data
collectors to monitor
the species before
and during construction.
The group, spearheaded
by Roberts, studies
the logperch populations,
habitat and water
quality in the river
and reports its findings
to the Army Corps
and the USFWS. If
the data shows a 25
percent decline in
the logperch population,
the Corps must reinitiate
consultation with
the USFWS and consider
alternative plans.
Construction of the
flood abatement project
is currently set to
start in summer 2004.
The
College of Natural
Resources at Virginia
Tech is consistently
ranks among the top
five programs of its
kind in the nation.
Faculty members stress
both the technical
and human elements
of natural resources
and instill in students
a sense of stewardship
and land-use ethics.
Areas of studies include
environmental resource
management, fisheries
and wildlife sciences,
forestry, geospatial
and environmental
analysis, natural
resource recreation,
urban forestry, wood
science and forest
products, geography,
and international
development.
