The Summer Rally has Come and Gone...
The 2023 Mount Rogers Summer Naturalist Rally has come and gone. Here’s a recap of the weekend.
Our campus and the landscapes surrounding BRDC were buzzing with enthusiastic naturalists this past weekend as we hosted the third rally of 2023, the Mount Rogers Summer Naturalist Rally! BRDC was excited to share programs on topics that included mushrooms, birds, dendrology, watercolor, summer wildflowers, edible/medicinal plants, freshwater snorkeling, salamanders, astrophotography, beaver ecology, land snails, butterflies, ferns, geology, and raptors. On Friday night, Dr. William Hopkins of Virginia Tech gave an excellent presentation on the Eastern hellbender, or “old lasagna-sides,” if you will, and the current status and research he’s conducting on their populations.
Dr. William Hopkins sharing his presentation, “THE RACE TO SAVE APPALACHIA’S GIANT SALAMANDER, THE EASTERN HELLBENDER”.
Ben Casteel leading his edible/medicinal plant walk.
Our youth participants also got to have their own adventures with our Naturalist Educators, Olivia and Brendan. The group focused on nature journaling, stream ecology, tracks and signs, campfire building, insect study, and of course, they had to test out the fire escape slide in the schoolhouse.
BRDC has been tagging monarchs caught on our campus. This one was tagged with the help of the kids at the rally!
Lots of big smiles during all the youth programming activities!
We had over 100 rally participants share meals together in the dining hall, follow their curiosities in the library, and some stayed on the second and third floors to fully immerse themselves in the rally experience. This was the first Summer Rally that we were able to host in the fully restored schoolhouse, and it was really special to see the campus being explored while in full bloom!
Rally participants exploring the diverse underwater world of a Blue Ridge mountain stream.
Participants of the astrophotography program, led by Jay Martin, had beautiful clear skies above Whitetop Mountain.
As always, none of this would have been possible without the knowledge and commitment of our guides and speaker. We also certainly could not have had a successful rally without the help of our volunteers, many of which were local college students from Emory & Henry College and East Tennessee State University.
With another successful rally in the books, we look forward to our upcoming Fall Rally, scheduled for October 13-15th. Make sure to join and help round out our first full year of seasonal rallies! Stay tuned!
Salamanders
We brought in some live local salamanders for the kids to observe
Most every first grader knows about frogs and toads and their life cycles. And, if they know about amphibians, they may know that salamanders are part of this group too. But rarely do they talk about salamanders and get to see them up close.
This month in the K-2 Program, BRDC staff read excerpts from a youth salamander guidebook discussing the differences between salamanders and lizards (amphibians vs reptiles) and some of the features of our local salamanders, where they live, their habitats, and how they breathe. We also brought in some live, local salamanders for the kids to observe.
Our focus was on the Eastern hellbender, our largest salamander. After watching a video on the hellbender, we discussed ways to save and protect this amazing salamander and have him swimming in our rivers and streams for future generations.
Young Explorers find possibly the ugliest but coolest creature in the Blue Ridge Mountains
Suited up and ready to roll we made our way downstream to form lines of snorkelers. With 64 deg water even the experienced snorkelers were hesitant, but once the crew laid flat and got their heads in the water the elation began to ring out.
Young Explorers Club goes snorkeling for Hellbenders
On Thursday September 3, 2015, BRDC hosted a sign up and preparatory meeting for the Young Explorers Club at the Independence Public Library where twelve young explorers signed the membership rules and code of conduct to become the founding members of the club. During the meeting we discussed the basic premise of an explorers club and introduced them to the hobby of being a naturalist. In preparation for our first outing, a snorkeling trip to the South Fork of the Holston River, we studied up on fish species with the Guide to Freshwater Fishes of Virginia and discussed the hellbender. The following Saturday we met up and carpooled over the mountain to Buller Fish Hatchery and the South Fork of the Holston River which is part of the Tennessee River watershed to explore the riches of a mountain stream.
With the water low and the sun shining bright it was the perfect day to explore the creek bottom. After a short study of the Mount Rogers National Geographic Map (part of the naturalist packs) the club took on the challenge of squeezing into wetsuits. Suited up and ready to roll we made our way downstream to form lines of snorkelers. With 64 deg water even the experienced snorkelers were hesitant, but once the crew laid flat and got their heads in the water the elation began to ring out. The group worked their way up stream finding all sorts of creatures. The occasional scream or snorkel muffled rambling of excitement signaled the next great find. Trout, darters, sculpin and crayfish were everywhere! Rhiannon became the group fish whisper as she surfaced with multiple sculpins and darters in hand for everyone to have a close look.
We worked our way up stream in 16" of water searching every crevice and crack for creatures of the deep, until the leading edge discovered the stone cold face of a hellbender under a large rock! Everyone got a chance to peak over the edge and come face to face with one of the ugliest creatures of the Blue Ridge. Hellbenders are often referred to as Mud Puppies by locals and have a mottled light brown and dark brown skin that resembles the coloration of a brown algae covered rock. On first look, one would not recognize the motionless hellbender for a salamander, not the least of the reasons being that it was over 20" long! Two beady pale blue eyes sat at the front of the head and kept a watch out for unsuspecting crayfish or snorkelers in this case! Lifting up the rock we got to see the full extent of the salamander. Handling the spectacular creature gently, everyone observed its "white finger nails" and long flat tail that it uses to propel itself in the water. Being careful to return the rock to its exact position, we let the hellbender crawl back into its hiding place. We were left stunned by the simultaneous beauty and ugliness of the hellbender. As such a docile creature it is easy to feel sympathy for its vulnerability but then you remember it eats crayfish for a living and is basically pure muscle! For more information about the hellbender, its distribution and threats, please visit: http://www.dgif.virginia.gov/hellbender/
Luke enjoying the waterfall!
The afternoon was capped off with a refreshing dunk under the cascading waterfall of the dam. The explorers found a large air pocket behind the water and took turns disappearing into the deafening roar of the water. After a gearing down we documented the species observed in our journal and each member got a Hellbender poster and one of the Crayfish of Virginia courtesy of the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. Everyone departed wishing we could keep on exploring and excited for the next trip afield!
The Young Explorers Club
Looking like a stone
This hellbender salamander was found last week in Fox Creek, Grayson County, Virginia. It was 20-22 inches long! The patterns on its body allow it to hide in plain site among the large rocks and pebbles in the rapids of Fox Creek.
For more information about this rare animal check this website out:
http://www.hellbenders.org/The_Hellbender_Homepage/About_Hellbenders.html