Click to listen to episode (4:32) 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 8-5-19. TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of August 5, 2019.  This is a revised repeat of an episode from July 2014. MUSIC – ~ 11 sec This week, that excerpt of “Little Brown Bats Eating Mosquitoes,” by Timothy Seaman of Williamsburg, Va., opens a an episode about large, diverse group of insects, some of whose sounds you probably hate to hear on a summer day or night.  Have a listen for about 30 seconds to three kinds of mystery sounds, distinguishable among various other nature sounds, and see if you can guess this group of insects.  And here’s a hint: water rhymes with swatter. SOUNDS - ~29 seconds If you guessed flies, you’re right!  You heard, first, the buzzing of one of several species commonly called gnats, second, the buzzing of a deer fly, and third, the whine of a mosquito.  Scientists include these and many other insect species in the taxonomic order of Dipterans, or true flies, characterized primarily by having only two wings as adults.  True flies have a life cycle of complete metamorphosis through four stages: egg, larva, pupa, and adult.  While most true fly species are terrestrial, for many species—in fact, about 3500 species in North America—a watery environment is required for the larva and pupa stages of their life cycle.  The aquatic habitat for some species is a moist or wet area on land; other species develop in streams, ponds, or other water bodies.  Perhaps the most well-known true-fly water connection is mosquitoes breeding in all kinds of standing water, from salt marshes to water-filled tree holes to discarded tires. Deerflies buzzing; mosquitoes biting and transmitting disease; gnats swarming—for these and other behaviors, many true flies are truly hard to like.  But one can at least appreciate two important ecological roles played by true flies: recycling nutrients by breaking down various materials, from manure on land to leaves in streams; and providing food for bats, birds, fish, frogs, and other animals.  In vast numbers in water, on land, and in the air, true flies have vast impacts. Thanks to Timothy Seaman for permission to use this week’s music, and we close with a few more seconds of “Little Brown Bats Eating Mosquitoes.” 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 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 This Virginia Water Radio episode revises and replaces Episode 221, 7-7-14. Virginia Water Radio thanks Eric Day, Virginia Tech Department of Entomology, for providing information for this episode. The sounds used in this episode were recorded by Virginia Water Radio as follows: gnats in Blacksburg, Va., on 6/29/14; deer fly in Blacksburg on 7/3/14; mosquitoes beside Pandapas Pond in Montgomery County, Va., on 8/8/17. “Little Brown Bats Eating Mosquitoes,” from the 2004 CD “Virginia Wildlife,” is copyright by Timothy Seaman and Pine Wind Music, used with permission; this music was previously used as the feature of Episode 78, 9-5-11, and in Episode 263, 4-27-15 on bats and water.  Mr. Seaman’s Web site is http://www.timothyseaman.com/.  The “Virginia Wildlife” CD was a collaboration between Mr

Click to listen to episode (5:11) Sections below are the following: Transcript of Audio Audio Notes and Acknowledgments ImageSources Related Water Radio Episodes For Virginia Teachers (Relevant SOLs, etc.). Unless otherwise noted, all Web addresses mentioned were functional as of 7-26-19. TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of July 29, 2019. SOUNDS – ~ 6 sec This week, the sounds of summertime swimming open an episode on water, exercise, and work, written particularly for Virginia students in middle school Physical Science and in high school Physics. In physics, work is defined as the application of a force to move an object over some distance. Exercise means movement—of oneself or of objects—so exercise results in work in that physics sense.  And the work required, in turn, affects the energy one expends during the exercise. Have a listen for about 25 seconds to several aquatic exercise activities, and see if you know two physical properties that significantly change the work involved in water exercise compared to exercise on land.  And here’s a hint: if you guess these, you’ll be buoyed up, not dragged down. SOUNDS - ~ 25 sec If you guessed buoyancy and drag, you’re right!  You heard diving, swimming, paddling a kayak, and a water exercise class that included walking, running, calisthenics, and moving various objects.  In all of those situations, the effects of buoyancy and drag in fluids—that is, liquids and gases—make water a very different exercise medium from air: in some ways requiring less work, while in other ways requiring more. Let’s consider buoyancy first.  Buoyant force in water results from the displacement of water by an object in the water.  An object of a given volume will displace that volume of water.  The amount of buoyant force results from the weight of that volume of displaced water.  The effect of the buoyant force depends on another physical property, density—that is, the weight of a given volume of an object or substance.  If the object’s overall density is less than the density of water, the object can float.  Water exerts a greater buoyant force than air, so during shallow water exercise, that greater buoyant force decreases the work one does against gravity.  But in deeper water buoyancy can add the work of keeping oneself upright Next let’s consider drag, which slows an object moving through a fluid.  Drag results from the viscosity of a fluid, which is the internal friction that affects how a fluid flows.  Water has a higher viscosity than air—just as honey and molasses have higher viscosities than water—so water exerts more drag on a moving object than air does.  The greater drag in water increases the work needed for movements during water exercise compared to the same movements in the air. As an example, consider a jumping jack in chest-deep water.  Buoyancy reduces the work needed to jump off the bottom of the pool, and it reduces the impact of landing back on the bottom.  On the other hand, drag increases the work done by the arms, legs, and torso moving through the water. We close by challenging you to think about another example, one that you might well experience this summer.  Try to apply the concepts of buoyancy and drag to a spring-board diver... SOUND - ~ 3 sec – diving board ...rapidly passing through air and then plunging into water, SOUND - ~ 2 sec – splash 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

Click to listen to episode (4:09) 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 7-19-19. TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of July 22, 2019. This week, we explore some likenesses and differences between to summertime sound-makers found in the Commonwealth’s southeastern Coastal Plain.  Have a listen for about 15 seconds to the following mystery sounds, and see if you know these two species of amphibian.  And here’s a hint: if you look below the Mason-Dixon line in a tall tree, you might totally get this question. SOUNDS - ~17 If you guessed the Southern Toad and the Oak Toad, you get a Virginia amphibian A+!  These are two of four Virginia species in the scientific family considered “true toads.”  In Virginia, both the Southern and Oak toads occur essentially only in the southeastern corner, they breed from spring through September, and they show a preference for wooded areas with sandy soils.  Like Virginia’s other two true toads—American and Fowler’s—the Southern and Oak toads are in the scientific gemus of Anaxyrus, Latin for “king” or “chief.” Beyond these similarities, though, these two species show marked differences.  The Southern Toad’s full scientific name is Anaxyrus terrestris, meaning “king of the earth,” while the Oak Toad is Anaxyrus quercicus, a much more modest “king of the oak leaves.”  Earlier you heard the obvious difference in the species’ male breeding calls—the long trill of the Southern Toad compared to the chick-like peep of the Oak Toad.  The calls parallel the animals’ size difference: the Southern Toad is about 2-4 inches long, while the approximately 1-inch-long Oak Toad is the smallest toad species in North America.  The Southern Toad hides during the day and begins to forage for food at dusk, while the Oak Toad is more active in daytime.  Finally, the Southern Toad is considered the most common toad species in southeastern Virginia and the southern United States, while the Oak Toad is considered by Virginia wildlife specialists to be rare and of special concern in the Commonwealth. Exploring living things often reveals striking differences beyond surface similarities.  That’s a tale re-told by two Virginia Coastal Plain toads. Thanks to the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries and to Lang Elliott for permission to use this week’s sounds, from the 2008 CD, “The Calls of Virginia Frogs and Toads.”  We close with one more round of the Southern Toad, with the “thunk” sounds of Green Frogs in the background. SOUNDS - ~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 sounds in this episode were from “The Calls of Virginia Frogs and Toads” CD, copyright 2008 by the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries and Lang Elliott/NatureSound Studio, used with permission.  For more information on this CD, visit http://www.shopdgif.com/product.cfm?uid=1928838&context=&showInactive=N (as of July 19, 2019, the item was out of stock), or contact the Department at P.O. Box 90778, Henrico, VA 23228-0778; phone: (804) 367-1000 (VTDD); e-mail: [email protected]; main Web site: https://www.dgif.virginia.gov/. Lang Elliott’s

Click to listen to episode (5:11) 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 7-12-19.  TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of July 15, 2019.  This is a revised repeat of an episode from July 2015. MUSIC - ~ 15 sec “When gravity no longer holds you down, you’ve come of age, it’s time to fly.” This week, that excerpt of “Gravity,” by Bob Gramann of Fredericksburg, Va., sets the stage to remember an historic overcoming of gravity and many other challenges that took place fifty years ago this July 20th.  Even if that date is your birthday, you’ll probably agree that the date’s most historic event happened in 1969, on a desolate, far-away place strongly connected to water on earth.  Let’s listen back for about 35 seconds to parts of that history. SOUNDS and VOICES – ~ 37 sec. “3-2-1-0. All engines running.  Lift-off, we have a lift-off, 32 minutes past the hour, lift-off on Apollo 11.  Tower cleared.”“Houston, Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed.”“And I’m going to step off…now.  It’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” Those were NASA recordings of Apollo 11’s lift-off on July 16, 1969; the July 20th lunar-module landing on the moon; and astronaut Neil Armstrong’s famous words just before setting foot on the moon.   Watched live on television by an estimated 650 million people, Apollo 11’s moon landing was a milestone in space exploration, which in the 50 years since has achieved spacecraft landings on Mars and Venus, fly-bys as far away as Pluto, and missions beyond our solar system.  One of the main objectives of exploring the moon and beyond has been the search for evidence of water, including whether liquid water may have occurred on Mars, other planets, or planetary satellites, all places where water ice has been found. But every day we see the evidence of the moon’s effect on Earth’s water.   In 1687, Isaac Newton explained scientifically how daily ocean tides result largely from the gravitational pull of the moon and sun, with the moon exerting the strongest influence.  The moon’s pull also helps stabilize the orientation of the earth’s axis, a major factor in determining climate and seasons.  The moon’s gravitational effects play a role in two of the 21st Century’s big challenges—sustainable energy, and the impacts of a changing climate.  In some places, the range and speed of daily tides provide enough renewable energy that commercial-scale electricity generation can be feasible.  Meanwhile, higher tides and tidal flooding resulting from climate-related sea-level rises present a technological and political challenge to many coastal communities, not least in Virginia’s Tidewater and Eastern Shore areas. Just like reaching the moon, those and other current challenges tax our will, wallets, and imagination.  So let’s go out with words President John F. Kennedy used in 1961 to capture the United States’ imagination for reaching a goal about 240,000 miles away. VOICE – ~25 sec Excerpt of NASA audio of President John F. Kennedy, May 25, 1961, speech to Congress: “We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard.   Because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills.  Because that challenge is one that we’re willing to accept, one that we are unwilling to postpone, and one we intend to win.”   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, visi

Producers' note: A link error is preventing this episode from playing properly in the podcast feed.  If you normally listen to Virginia Water Radio at a podcast site, please try this week's episode online at  http://www.virginiawaterradio.org/2019/07/episode-481-7-15-19-moon-and-water.html.  We apologize for this inconvenience. Click to listen to episode (5:11). 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 7-12-19.  TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of July 15, 2019.  This is a revised repeat of an episode from July 2015. MUSIC - ~ 15 sec “When gravity no longer holds you down, you’ve come of age, it’s time to fly.” This week, that excerpt of “Gravity,” by Bob Gramann of Fredericksburg, Va., sets the stage to remember an historic overcoming of gravity and many other challenges that took place fifty years ago this July 20th.  Even if that date is your birthday, you’ll probably agree that the date’s most historic event happened in 1969, on a desolate, far-away place strongly connected to water on earth.  Let’s listen back for about 35 seconds to parts of that history. SOUNDS and VOICES – ~ 37 sec. “3-2-1-0. All engines running.  Lift-off, we have a lift-off, 32 minutes past the hour, lift-off on Apollo 11.  Tower cleared.”“Houston, Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed.”“And I’m going to step off…now.  It’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” Those were NASA recordings of Apollo 11’s lift-off on July 16, 1969; the July 20th lunar-module landing on the moon; and astronaut Neil Armstrong’s famous words just before setting foot on the moon.   Watched live on television by an estimated 650 million people, Apollo 11’s moon landing was a milestone in space exploration, which in the 50 years since has achieved spacecraft landings on Mars and Venus, fly-bys as far away as Pluto, and missions beyond our solar system.  One of the main objectives of exploring the moon and beyond has been the search for evidence of water, including whether liquid water may have occurred on Mars, other planets, or planetary satellites, all places where water ice has been found. But every day we see the evidence of the moon’s effect on Earth’s water.   In 1687, Isaac Newton explained scientifically how daily ocean tides result largely from the gravitational pull of the moon and sun, with the moon exerting the strongest influence.  The moon’s pull also helps stabilize the orientation of the earth’s axis, a major factor in determining climate and seasons.  The moon’s gravitational effects play a role in two of the 21st Century’s big challenges—sustainable energy, and the impacts of a changing climate.  In some places, the range and speed of daily tides provide enough renewable energy that commercial-scale electricity generation can be feasible.  Meanwhile, higher tides and tidal flooding resulting from climate-related sea-level rises present a technological and political challenge to many coastal communities, not least in Virginia’s Tidewater and Eastern Shore areas. Just like reaching the moon, those and other current challenges tax our will, wallets, and imagination.  So let’s go out with words President John F. Kennedy used in 1961 to capture the United States’ imagination for reaching a goal about 240,000 miles away. VOICE – ~25 sec Excerpt of NASA audio of President John F. Kennedy, May 25, 1961, speech to Congress: “We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard.   Because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills.  Because that cha

Click to listen to episode (4:53). 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 7-5-19. TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of July 8, 2019. MUSIC – ~8 sec This week, that excerpt of “Rain Refrain,” by Torrin Hallett, opens an episode on a recently published scientific paper challenging the typical depiction of a vital, worldwide cycle.  Have a listen for about 30 seconds to some mystery sounds related to this cycle, see if you know any of three names for the cycle. SOUNDS AND MUSIC - ~ 29 sec If you guessed the water cycle, the hydrologic cycle, or the hydrological cycle, you’re right!  You heard sounds of some of the components typically included in descriptions or diagrams of the water cycle: rainfall, representing precipitation; a river, representing surface water and flow; coastal waves, representing the ocean; and water flowing from a spring, representing groundwater storage and movement.  The final sound you heard—a household faucet—represents the role of humans in the water cycle, an aspect not as often included in water cycle diagrams.  The exclusion of a human component from water cycle diagrams is one of the main issues raised in a July 2019 scientific article entitled, “Human domination of the global water cycle absent from depictions and perceptions.”  Published in the journal Nature Geoscience, the paper was authored by 23 scientists from seven U.S. research institutions, including Virginia Tech, and from six other countries. The researchers examined several dozen recent studies of the global water cycle to identify and quantify 16 sources of water, called “pools,” and 16 water-movement processes, called “fluxes.”  They then compared those findings to over 400 water cycle diagrams from several countries, including the United States.  The researchers found that the majority of water cycle diagrams didn’t include, or inaccurately represented, several components or principles identified in the scientific studies.  As already noted, one main finding was the widespread exclusion of human interactions with water.  Other components that the researchers assert were underrepresented include precipitation over the ocean [p. 535 of the research paper]; the amount of fresh water that is actually available for human use [p. 535]; large water bodies with no surface outlet, such as the Caspian Sea in western Asia [p. 539]; and uncertainty and variation over time in estimates of water cycle components [p. 535]. The researchers suggest that inaccuracies in water cycle depictions can, quote, “reflect and reinforce the misunderstanding of global hydrology by policymakers, researchers, and the public.”  Conversely, they assert that improving the accuracy of widely used water cycle diagrams would be, in the researchers’ words, “an important step towards equitable water governance, sustainable development, and planetary thinking.” Thanks to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for the ocean sounds, and to Torrin Hallett for this week’s music. We close by letting part of the water cycle have the last sound. SOUND - ~ 7 sec – thunder and rain. 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

Click to listen to episode (5:09). 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 6-28-19. TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of July 1, 2019. MUSIC – ~8 sec This week, that excerpt of “Baldcypress Swamp,” by Timothy Seaman of Williamsburg, Va., opens an episode about a large, distinctive place of water, woods, wildlife, and human history in Virginia and North Carolina.  Have a listen for about 25 seconds to some sounds recorded in June 2019 from that area, and see if you know the rather gloomy name for this place. SOUNDS - ~24 sec If you guessed the Dismal Swamp, you’re right!  The frogs and birds you heard are a small sample of the life in the Great Dismal Swamp, a large area of forested wetlands in southeastern Virginia and northeastern North Carolina.  Reportedly named by William Byrd during his exploration of the area in 1728, the Great Dismal Swamp at one time covered an estimated 1.5 million acres.  Between the colonial era and the 1970s, the swamp was changed drastically by development of the Dismal Swamp Canal, construction of miles of drainage ditches, and the timbering of cypress and cedar trees made possible by the drainage. In 1974, about 49,000 acres of the swamp were established as a federal wildlife refuge, and that has since grown to over 110,000 acres, providing what the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has called “some of the most important wildlife habitat in the mid-Atlantic region.”  It’s also home to Lake Drummond, one of only two natural lakes in Virginia. A key feature of the Dismal Swamp is its peat soil. Peat contains decomposed plant material accumulated over many years under wet, low-oxygen conditions.  Peat gives the Dismal Swamp distinctive water chemistry and water-holding conditions, with particular vegetation adapted to those conditions. As a human habitat, the Dismal Swamp is particularly noteworthy as a refuge to thousands of African Americans fleeing slavery between the 1600s and the Civil War.  While many used the swamp as a stopping point along the Underground Railroad, many others stayed there.  Those Dismal Swamp inhabitants were known as “maroons,” from a French word meaning “to flee,” and Dismal Swamp was only one of many remote places used by maroons before the Civil War. In the 21st Century, the Dismal Swamp attracts outdoor enthusiasts; fascinates historians and archeologists studying maroon communities; and challenges wetland scientists studying interactions among water, land, vegetation, and the atmosphere.  Despite its gloomy name, the Dismal Swamp can enlighten explorers of its natural and historical intricacies. Thanks to Trevor Amestoy and Clay Word for providing this week’s sounds.  Thanks also to Timothy Seaman for permission to use this week’s music, and we close another selection by Mr. Seaman with a title recalling some of the recreation and wildlife to be found in the Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge.  Here’s about 20 seconds of “Paddle with the Kingfishers.” MUSIC - ~ 20 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 heard in this Virginia Water Radio episode were from a video recorded by Trevor Amestoy in the Di

Click to listen to episode (3:44). 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 6-21-19. TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of June 24, 2019. SOUND – ~ 5 sec – Little Blue Heron call and fishing This week, those croak and splash sounds introduce a wetland bird that’s fairly common but not very obvious, is a slow methodical hunter, and drastically changes color between its juvenile and adult stages.  Have a listen for about 10 seconds to some more sounds, and see if you can guess this creature.  And here’s a hint: this bird’s prey will become a little blue. SOUNDS - ~10 sec – Little Blue Heron calls If you guessed a Little Blue Heron, you’re right!  About half as tall as the Great Blue Heron, the Little Blue Heron is one of 12 North American species in the bird family of herons, egrets, night-herons, and bitterns.  The Little Blue is found in marshes and other aquatic areas along the southeastern United States coastline.  It’s a common summer and breeding resident in Virginia’s Coastal Plain region, although its Virginia population faces some threat from wetland draining, sea-level rise, and other habitat loss, according to the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries.  The Little Blue is slow and deliberate as it hunts in shallow water for fish, amphibians, crustaceans, and insects. Its eggs, in turn, are preyed upon by various mammals and other birds. The Little Blue is notable among the heron family for the color change from juveniles to adults.  While adults have a bluish body and a purplish head and neck, the immature birds have all white feathers, changing to a mix of white and blue after the first year’s molt.  According to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, the white coloration may help Little Blue Herons survive their first year by making them more tolerated within mixed colonies of Snowy Egrets and other white adult herons.  It’s thought that in those mixed colonies, the young Little Blues may catch more fish and gain some protection from predators. With their changing appearance and their ecological roles, Little Blue Herons add color and diversity to summer in Virginia’s Coastal Plain. Thanks to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for this week’s opening sounds, and to Lang Elliott for the featured sounds, from the Stokes Field Guide to Bird Songs.  We close with another brief burst from a Little Blue Heron, accompanied by other birds, courtesy of the Fish and Wildlife Service. SOUNDS - ~7 sec –Little Blue Heron followed by Red-winged Blackbird and other species 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 opening and closing Little Blue Heron sounds were from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s National Digital Library, online at http://digitalmedia.fws.gov/cdm/; the Little Blue Heron recording specifically is online at https://digitalmedia.fws.gov/digital/collection/audio/id/55/rec/56. The second set of Little Blue Heron sounds was 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

Click to listen to episode (4:50). 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 6-14-19. TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of June 17, 2019. SOUND - ~ 3 sec – Beaver tail splat and splash This week, those mystery sounds open a revised episode from 2012 on a semi-aquatic mammal known for its teeth, its tail, its fur, and its behavior.  Have a listen for about 10 more seconds, and see if you can guess what’s making the splat and splash sounds.  And here’s a hint: You can guess this if you get BUSY. SOUNDS - ~8 sec – Beaver tail splat and splash, twice If you guessed a beaver, you’re right! That was the sound of an American Beaver smacking its tail on the surface of a creek as the animal submerged.  The tail slap is a defensive behavior for a beaver protecting the territory around its colony.  As semi-aquatic mammals, beavers spend time both on land and in the water, in contrast to fully aquatic mammals like dolphins or whales.  Beavers live in lodges that either are dug into the banks of streams, lakes, or ponds, or are built freestanding from wood and mud, with interior spaces above water and entrances below water.  Beavers build dams to deepen the water level for lodge building, but also to allow the animals to dive for safety, travel in the water to feeding areas, and transport felled trees back to their lodge.  Beavers feed on bark from various tree species as well as on non-woody plants when those are available. Beavers have many adaptations for their semi-aquatic life.  The paddle-like tail, besides its use in warnings, functions in propulsion and maneuvering in the water, balance while feeding on trees on land, fat reserves, and body temperature regulation.  The front feet are adapted for grasping food and digging, while the webbed hind feet aid in swimming.  When a beaver is underwater, valves keep water out of the nose and ears, transparent membranes cover the eyes, and the lips close behind the teeth, allowing underwater gnawing.  And beaver fur keeps in heat, keeps out water, helps the animal float, and provides protection from predators. That fur’s use in hats and other products made the animals highly prized, widely trapped, and historically significant during European exploration and settlement of North America, to the point that beavers were eliminated from much of their natural range.  But reintroduction and successful reproduction have restored beaver populations to much of North America, including throughout Virginia.  The return of beavers to developed areas presents humans with a range of benefits and costs.  Beaver activity can create new wildlife habitats and have positive impacts on water quality, but it can also result in flooded human infrastructure, eating of agricultural crops, and damage to trees. Living on land and in the water; having a significant role in the history of North America, affecting wildlife and human habitat: the American Beaver is a complicated wildlife story.  Here’s a closing take on that story, from Dietland Müller-Schwarze, in his 2011 book, The Beaver: Its Life and Impact: “This animal dazzles with its extensive constructions, demands respect as a survival artist, and—when in conflict with humans—challenges the best minds in wildlife management.  Many citizens’ groups and professionals strive to resolve those conflicts and find ways for us to coexist with beavers.” 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 virgi

Click to listen to episode (5:13). 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 5-31-19. TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of June 3, 2019. MUSIC – ~12 sec That’s an excerpt of “Exploring the Rivers,” by Timothy Seaman of Williamsburg, Va.  The title refers to 17th-Century journeys by Captain John Smith to explore the Chesapeake Bay and its river tributaries.  In the 21st Century in Virginia and the six other Bay watershed jurisdictions—Delaware, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia—public officials and private citizens are on a journey to restore the Bay’s water quality and biological health.  The legal name for that journey is the Chesapeake Bay Total Maximum Daily Load, or TMDL. Under the federal Clean Water Act, TMDLs are a mechanism for assessing and setting limits on pollutants that prevent water bodies from meeting their legally defined designated uses, such as water supply, support of aquatic life, and recreation.  In December 2010, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA, published the Chesapeake Bay TMDL.  Made up of 92 smaller TMDLs for Bay tributaries, the Chesapeake TMDL is the largest one developed by the EPA, covering the largest estuary in North America.  Often referred to as the Bay “clean-up plan” or “pollution diet,” the Bay TMDL sets enforceable limits on the levels in Bay waters of three pollutants—nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment—arising [largely] from agriculture, stormwater runoff, and wastewater treatment.  The Bay TMDL regulatory approach followed voluntary efforts by Bay jurisdictions since 1983 that had fallen short of reaching restoration goals. The Bay TMDL calls on the seven jurisdictions to have in place by 2025 the practices needed to meet pollutant limits in the Bay and its tributaries.  To achieve this, Bay jurisdictions were required to submit three phases of Watershed Implementation Plans.  Phase III is happening now, and it requires the seven jurisdictions to identify progress they’ve made so far in meeting pollutant reductions, and to specify how they plan to accomplish further reductions needed to meet the TMDL’s 2025 limits.  In Virginia, that work included dozens of public meetings between January 2017 and May 2019.  In April 2019, the jurisdictions submitted their draft Phase III plans to the EPA. The public comment period on those drafts ends June 7, and the final plans are due to the EPA by August 9. Since the first Bay Agreement in 1983, among Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, DC, and the EPA, Bay watershed partners have been trying, as that agreement states, to “fully address the extent, complexity, and sources of pollutants entering the Bay.”  That’s a long, continuing journey of dialogue, science, compromise, effort, and expense. Thanks to Timothy Seaman for permission to use this week’s opening music.  We close with about 25 seconds of another musical selection, this one to recognize the long run needed for restoring the Chesapeake Bay.  Here’s part of “The Race,” by the Harrisonburg, Va.-based band, The Steel Wheels. MUSIC - ~25 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 ACKNOWLEDGEME