| 19 species of dragonflies,
damselflies found in Rhode Island
(Note: Can you say 'surreptitious reintroduction?' Could be, folks, could very well be -- what is not possible, when control is the Plan? Also, in the second part of this article, 'Show me the money!' or 'grant programs,' is waved at folks in order to pull them into the morass of the money addiction.) December 22, 2002 By Peter B. Lord 401-277-8036, or plord@projo.com The Providence Journal 75 Fountain St. Providence, R.I. 02902 To submit a Letter to the Editor: letters@projo.com You'd think, in a little state like Rhode Island, [that] we'd have a fairly good idea of which plants and animals live here. But a five-year census of the state's ponds, streams and wetlands has turned up 19 species of dragonflies and damselflies that weren't known to be here before. More than 40 volunteers from the Rhode Island Natural History Survey and The Nature Conservancy collected 11,000 specimens from every community in the state. The census was designed to 'identify and protect' 'biodiversity hot spots' in the state. "We're taking what we learn from this project and working to conserve the habitat that these animals live in," said Virginia Brown, coordinator of the Natural History Survey's Ecological Inventory, Monitoring and Stewardship Program, based at the University of Rhode Island. "Significant conservation work is already happening as a result of this project, particularly in the Ponaganset River watershed in Foster where we found the Coppery Emerald." The Coppery Emerald is one of several rare southern species found during the survey at the northern limits of their range. Others include the Southern Sprite, with just one population previously documented in New England -- and the Blackwater Bluet, which appears to be thriving in Charlestown, South Kingstown and Richmond despite being absent from the rest of New England. Census volunteers found six new populations of the Ringed Boghaunter, one of New England's rarest dragonflies. The Great Swamp Management Area in South Kingstown and the Arcadia Management Area in Exeter are the state's top dragonfly and damselfly 'hot spots.' South Kingstown leads all other communities with 103 species recorded. A total of 133 species were found in Rhode Island. Burrillville and Glocester also host many species not found in South County. Brown has decided to extend the study one year -- to fill in gaps and look for 'particular species' in 'particular towns.' Brown plans to publish an atlas showing where each species was found, and she wants to compare the 'amount of development' in areas with the 'species diversity' that was found. Aquaculture Initiative wins $600,000 grant The Rhode Island Aquaculture Initiative -- a collaboration of federal and state interests -- recently announced that it has awarded $600,000 of a federal appropriation in grants to aquaculture projects around the state. The commission said it is attempting to elevate Rhode Island from last place in the 50 states when it comes to aquaculture. For more information on the initiative, go to http://seagrant.gso.uri.edu/research/rhodyaquaculture/rhodyaquaculture.html. The commission made the following grants: B $149,983 to Prof. Peter August over three years to enhance the Rhode Island Aquaculture and Fisheries Web page and Internet map server with up-to-date physical, chemical and biological data. B $125,438 over three years to Bradford Borque and Harold Pomeroy of Roger Williams University and Something Fishy Inc. to develop economically and environmentally sustainable land-based culture techniques for three ornamental species. B $100,028 to Graham Forrester of URI, and Robert Rheault of Spatco Ltd. over two years to evaluate the effects of aquaculture facilities on natural habitats. B $49,136 to Marta Gomez-Chiarri of URI, Roxanna Smolowitz of the Marine Biological Laboratory and Tim Scott of Roger Williams University over three years to evaluate the presence of a parasite found in wild and farmed northern quahogs in Rhode Island. B $82,405 over three years to Perry Raso, a shellfish aquaculturist, and Alicia Thayer, a South Kingstown High School teacher, to educate 1,700 students in grades 6 and above about shellfish aquaculture and to promote community acceptance of aquaculture. B $100,000 over three years to Tim Scott of Roger Williams University to determine whether producing young seed clams in a hatchery and replanting them on public grounds will result in greater harvest or will inadvertently attract more predators. The group also awarded the following mini-grants: $275 to Aquaculture Products, of Charlestown, to test ways of reducing starfish 'predations' of oysters, $3,000 to Russell and William Blank, of North Kingstown, to buy materials and seed to grow bay scallops and soft-shell clams, and $3,000 to Louis Ricciarelli, Jr., of West Kingston, to determine the best method for growing bay scallops. Also, $3,000 to Salt Water Farms LLC, of Wakefield, to purchase processing machinery to reduce costs and accelerate growth rates of culture oyster and mussels, $2,000 to Spatco, Ltd., to purchase and test in-water aeration equipment, $2,000 to Kenneth Thompson, of North Providence, to grow surf clams, and $1,700 to Christopher Warfel, of New Shoreham, to develop a hybrid wind- and solar- powered upweller that will allow the siting of culture operations in remote waters. The Environmental Journal is a listing of brief news items about the actions of individuals, organizations and businesses that affect the air we breathe, the water we drink and the landscape that surrounds us. |