CLICK HERE to listen to episode audio (4:02). Transcript of audio, notes on the audio, photos, and additional information follow below. All Web addresses mentioned were functional as of 6-23-17. TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of June 26, 2017. MUSIC – ~5 sec This week, the music of “Exploring the Rivers,” by Williamsburg’s Timothy Seaman, sets the stage for a Virginia river riddle.  Have a listen for about 25 seconds to two river sounds recorded on June 15, 2017, and as you do, try to answer this question: How can water flow from Roanoke to Staunton and again to Roanoke? SOUNDS - ~26 sec If you guessed, within the Roanoke and Staunton rivers, you’re a southern Virginia geography expert!  You heard the Roanoke River in the City of Roanoke, followed by the Staunton River in the Campbell County town of Altavista.  The trick is, they’re the same river!  Downstream of Roanoke City, the section of the Roanoke River between Leesville Lake and Buggs Island Lake is called the Staunton River.  Below Buggs Island Lake, through North Carolina and finally into Albemarle Sound, the river is again called the Roanoke. Some records or maps may use only the Roanoke name, but the Staunton name dominates locally and has a long history.  Three hundred years ago, “Staunton” applied to the whole river above its confluence with the Dan River, according to William Byrd’s 1728 History of the Dividing Line Betwixt Virginia and North Carolina. Today, the Staunton River is notable for more than just its name.   A 51-mile section is designated as a state scenic river.  The Staunton offers rapids for paddlers, flat water for motorboats, and abundant game fish populations for anglers.  And the river is home to two state parks: Staunton River State Park, a 2400-acre site with the distinction of being Virginia’s first international dark-sky park; and Staunton River Battlefield State Park, commemorating a June 25, 1864, Civil War battle focused on the Richmond & Danville Railway. A river within a river, the Staunton enriches southern Virginia’s history, recreation, and natural habitat. Thanks to Timothy Seaman for permission to use this week’s music, and in the spirit of investigating river names, history, and connections, we close with a few more seconds of “Exploring the Rivers.” MUSIC - ~ 13 sec. SHIP’S BELL For more Virginia water sounds, music, and information, visit us online at virginiawaterradio.org, or call us at (540) 231-5463.  Virginia Water Radio is produced by the Virginia Water Resources Research Center, part of Virginia Tech’s College of Natural Resources and Environment.  Thanks to Stewart Scales for his banjo version of Cripple Creek 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 “Exploring the Rivers,” from the 2006 album “Jamestown: On the Edge of a Vast Continent,” is copyright by Timothy Seaman and Pine Wind Music, used with permission.   Mr. Seaman’s Web site is http://www.timothyseaman.com/. T his music was featured in Virginia Water Radio Episode 140, 12-10-12. 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. PHOTOS All photos taken June 15, 2017. Sign for Staunton River High School in Bedford County. Walkway over railroad in Altavista (Campbell County). Staunton River at Altavista River Park.State Scenic River sign at Staunton River crossing of Route 731 at Long Island (Campbell County). Sycamore tree with rope swing over the Staunton River at Long Island Park (Campbell County). Staunton River, looking u

CLICK HERE to listen to episode audio (5:15). Transcript of audio, notes on the audio, photos, and additional information follow below. All Web addresses mentioned were functional as of 6-16-17. TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of June 19, 2017. SOUND – ~3 sec This week, the sound of the James River at Lynchburg opens a revised repeat of a 2013 episode—a “double-header” of music and sounds to mark the annual James River Batteau Festival.  Batteaux [the plural of batteau] were wooden, shallow-draft boats used on the James and many other rivers and canals to transport goods in the 18th and 19th centuries.  Such boats have been called the tractor-trailers of their day, traveling on water-based highways.  The batteau era ended with the widespread building of railroads in the 1800s, but the annual batteau festival—an eight-day float down the James on replica vessels—recalls the boats, crews, costumes, and lifestyle of the era.  The 120-mile float in 2017 starts in Lynchburg on June 17 and ends at Maidens boat landing in Powhatan County on June 24. We mark this unique water event first with a 45-second excerpt from a song about river boatmen losing their jobs to the railroads: “James River Blues,” by Old Crow Medicine Show on the 2006 album “Big Iron World,” from Nettwork Records.  Following the music are about 90 seconds of sounds from the batteau festival launch in Lynchburg in June 2013.  The speaker is Jeff Taylor, the emcee at that event, and the loud boom you’ll hear is a replica cannon on one of the boats. MUSIC - ~45 sec VOICES and SOUNDS - ~85 sec More information on batteaux and on other historical river and canal transportation is available from the Virginia Canals and Navigations Society, which organizes the annual James River batteau journey.  Thanks to Old Crow Medicine Show for permission to use this week’s music, and we close with a few more seconds of “James River Blues.” MUSIC - ~9 sec SHIP’S BELL For more Virginia water sounds, music, and information, visit us online at virginiawaterradio.org, or call us at (540) 231-5463.   Virginia Water Radio is produced by the Virginia Water Resources Research Center, part of Virginia Tech’s College of Natural Resources and Environment.  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 This episode is an updated repeat of Episode 166 (6-17-13); that episode has been archived. “James River Blues” and “Big Iron World” by Old Crow Medicine Show are 2006 copyright Nettwork Records, used with permission.   More information about Old Crow Medicine Show is available online at http://www.crowmedicine.com/.  Short segments of “James River Blues” are also included in the following Virginia Water Radio episodes: Episode 220 (6-30-14); Episode 251 (2-2-15); and Episode 334 (9-19-16). Sounds from the 2013 Battteau Festival launch were recorded by Virginia Water Radio on June 15, 2013, on Percival’s Island in Lynchburg.  The band heard playing at that launch was the Virginia group Chamomile and Whiskey; information about that band is available online at http://www.countywidemusic.com/members-app/chamomile-and-whiskey. 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. PHOTOS Three photos above: views from the June 15, 2013, James River Batteau Festival launch at Lynchburg, Va. Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso

CLICK HERE to listen to episode audio (4:16). Transcript of audio, notes on the audio, images, and additional information follow below. All Web addresses mentioned were functional as of 6-9-17.  TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of June 12, 2017. SOUND – ~ 4 sec This week, a ship’s horn sets the stage for a series of mystery sounds, all related to a newsworthy, widespread, and costly issue affecting structures from ports to public schools.   Have a listen for about 40 seconds, and see if you can guess this current issue. SOUNDS - ~39 sec If you guessed infrastructure, you’re right!  You heard the sounds of bridge traffic, a hydroelectric dam, a household faucet and drain, a river barge, trash, stormwater flow, and a Virginia state park name.  All represent aspects of the nation’s infrastructure, the engineered structures and systems supporting water and land use, energy, information, transportation, housing, schools, and other activities. During late May and early June 2017, President Trump and some members of Congress announced separate proposals calling for investments of $1 to $2 trillion in the nation’s infrastructure.  Such calls for increased attention to infrastructure often cite the American Society of Civil Engineers’ “report card” on the state of engineered infrastructure in the United States.  Published every four years, the report covers infrastructure in 16 areas, assessing current conditions, future needs, and available funding.  The water-related areas include bridges, dams, drinking water, energy, hazardous waste, inland waterways, levees, ports, parks, solid waste, and wastewater.   The 2017 report gave a “grade” of D+, and it estimated the cost of making necessary infrastructure improvements at about $4.6 trillion.  The Virginia part of the report, based on information compiled in 2015 by the Society’s Virginia section, gave the Commonwealth’s infrastructure an overall grade of C-. Whether obvious like a highway or hidden like wastwater pipes, infrastructure’s a foundation of society and economies.  Improving the infrastructure grade is a challenge for public officials, scientists, engineers, and citizens—one that’ll take time, innovation, and money. SOUND - ~5 sec Thanks to Freesound.org for the ship horn sound, and thanks to a Blacksburg friend for calling out the state park name. SHIP’S BELL For more Virginia water sounds, music, and information, visit us online at virginiawaterradio.org, or call us at (540) 231-5463.  Virginia Water Radio is produced by the Virginia Water Resources Research Center, part of Virginia Tech’s College of Natural Resources and Environment.  Thanks to Stewart Scales for his banjo version of Cripple Creek 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 ship fog horn was recorded by “inchadney” on June 3, 2012; accessed from the sound-sharing Web site, http://www.Freesound.org. 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 Cartoon that accompanied a February 2010 Virginia Water Central Newsletter article on the 2009 infrastructure report by the American Society of Civil Engineers-Virginia Section. Illustration by George Wills, Blacksburg, Va. (http://www.etsy.com/people/BlacksburgArt). EXTRA FACTS ABOUT THE INFRASTRUCTURE REPORT CARDS Following are the infrastructure categories and 2017 grades from the American Society of Civil Engineers, “2017 Infrastructure Report Card,” online at http://www.infrastructurereportcard.org/.  According to

Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE CLICK HERE to listen to episode audio (4:38) Transcript of audio, notes on the audio, images, and additional information follow below. All Web addresses mentioned were functional as of 5-19-17. TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of May 22, 2017. This week, we re-visit a mysterious, annual calling of the names—names that, if we’re lucky, will not become infamous this summer or fall.   Have a listen for about 25 seconds, and see if you can guess who—or rather, what—is being named. GUEST VOICES - ~25 seconds - Arlene! Bret! Cindy! Don! Emily! Franklin! Gert! Harvey! Irma! Jose! Katia! Lee! Maria! Nate! Ophelia! Philippe! Rina! Sean! Tammy! Vince! Whitney! If you guessed tropical storms or hurricanes, you’re right!  Those are the names planned for the 2017 tropical storm season in the Atlantic basin, covering the Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, and Gulf of Mexico.  The season runs officially from June 1 through November 30.  But tropical storms don’t always follow the official calendar.   For example, this year, the Atlantic’s first named storm—Tropical Storm Arlene—formed in April; and in 2016, Hurricane Alex formed in mid-January, the earliest for an Atlantic hurricane to form since 1938. Tropical storms and hurricanes are two categories of tropical cyclones—counter-clockwise-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 [SOUND – 2 sec - wind]; at 74 miles per hour, a tropical cyclone is considered a hurricane [SOUND – 3 sec - louder wind].  Tropical depressions—with wind speeds below 39 miles per hour—don’t get names, but they can still bring heavy rainfall and flooding. Before a tropical system of any speed or name barges into the Old Dominion...[SOUND – 3 sec – wind, rain, thunder]...you can get ready by making a written emergency plan, including an evacuation plan; assembling an emergency kit of food, water, and supplies; preparing your home for high winds; and establishing ways to stay informed, especially if the power goes out.  Detailed safety tips for tropical storms and other severe weather are available from the “Safety” link at the National Weather Service Web site, www.weather.gov.   Hurricane Preparedness Week for 2017 was May 7-13, so now’s the time! Thanks to 21 Virginia Tech faculty and staff for lending their voices to this episode. We close with about 25 seconds of original music for tropical storms, composed and performed by Torrin Hallett, a student at Oberlin College and Conservatory in Ohio.  Here’s “Tropical Tantrum.” MUSIC - ~26 sec SHIP’S BELL For more Virginia water sounds, music, and information, visit us online at virginiawaterradio.org, or call us at (540) 231-5463.  Virginia Water Radio is produced by the Virginia Water Resources Research Center, part of Virginia Tech’s College of Natural Resources and Environment.  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 Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE “Tropical Tantrum” is copyright 2017 by Torrin Hallett, used with permission.  As of May 2017, Torrin is a fourth-year student at Oberlin College and Conservatory in Oberlin, Ohio, majoring in horn performance, music composition, and math major.  More information about Torrin is available at his Web site, http://www.torrinjhallett.com/.  Thanks very much to Torrin for composing the piece especially for Virginia Water Radio. 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 episod

CLICK HERE to listen to episode audio (3:56). Transcript of audio, notes on the audio, images, and additional information follow below. All Web addresses mentioned were functional as of 6-2-17. TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of June 5, 2017. SOUND – ~ 5 sec This week, the deep call of a Bullfrog sets the stage for a blitz of mystery sounds, all related to an annual biological kind of blitz.   Have a listen for about 30 seconds, and see if you can guess what two groups of animals are making these sounds. SOUNDS - 29 sec If you guessed amphibians and reptiles, you’re right!  Those were the trill of Gray Tree Frogs, the clicking of Northern Cricket Frogs, the baby-cry-like call of Fowler’s Toads, the thunking sound of Green Frogs, and the unmistakable warning signal of a rattlesnake.  Collectively, amphibians and reptiles are called “herps,” and herpetology is the scientific study of these animals. In Virginia, that study will advance during the 12th annual Herp Blitz on June 10-11, 2017, at Hidden Valley Wildlife Management Area in Washington County.  Herp Blitz is an annual weekend survey conducted by the Virginia Herpetological Society, in which volunteers document all the amphibians and reptiles they can find in an area.  Since its founding in 1958, the Society has been conducting herp-documenting events all over the Commonwealth, from Tidewater swamps to Piedmont forests to mountain streams. In 2017, besides the Herp Blitz the Society organized surveys in Big Woods State Forest and Wildlife Management Area in Sussex County, in Newport News Park, and on Mole Hill in Rockingham County.  Such surveys provide information on the numbers, habitats, and geographic distribution of Virginia’s approximately 150 species and subspecies of amphibians and reptiles—creatures that perform important ecological roles and that enrich the biological diversity of our lands and waters.  The surveys also give herp-curious humans a chance to explore, observe, learn, and contribute. Thanks to the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries and to Lang Elliott’s NatureSoundStudio for the Bullfrog sound, and thanks to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for the rattlesnake sound. SHIP’S BELL For more Virginia water sounds, music, and information, visit us online at virginiawaterradio.org, or call us at (540) 231-5463. Virginia Water Radio is produced by the Virginia Water Resources Research Center, part of Virginia Tech’s College of Natural Resources and Environment. 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 This episode updates and replaces Episode 69 (6-20-11), which has been archived. The American Bullfrog sound was excerpted from “The Calls of Virginia Frogs and Toads” CD, copyright 2008 by the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (VDGIF) and Lang Elliott/NatureSoundStudio, used with permission.  The CD is part of the VDGIF’s A Guide to the Frogs and Toads of Virginia.  For more information, visit https://www.shopdgif.com/product.cfm?uid=1928838&context=&showInactive=N, or contact VDGIF at 4010 West Broad Street, Richmond, VA 23230; phone: (804) 367-1000 (VTDD); e-mail: [email protected].  Lang Elliott’s work is available online at the “Music of Nature” Web site, http://www.musicofnature.org/. The rattlesnake sound was taken from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife National Digital Library, http://digitalmedia.fws.gov/cdm/ (specifically at http://digitalmedia.fws.gov/cdm/singleitem/collection/audio/id/61/rec/18). All other sounds were recorded by Virginia Water Radio, as follows: Gray Treefrog – in Blacksburg, Va., June 10, 2011; Northern Cricket Frog – along the Potomac River/C&O Canal Towpath near Boyd’s Landing, M

CLICK HERE to listen to episode audio (4:05). Transcript of audio, notes on the audio, images, and additional information follow below. All Web addresses mentioned were functional as of 5-26-17. TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of May 29, 2017. MUSIC – ~9 sec This week, music by a Nelson County- and Charlottesville, Va.-based band, vividly reminds us that water has great power, but also complete indifference, over human concerns.  Have a listen for about 35 seconds. MUSIC - ~35 sec You’ve been listening to part of “Dirty Sea,” by Chamomile and Whiskey, on the 2013 album “Wandering Boots,” from County Wide Records.  Far from a place of romance or inspiration, the sea in this song has no sympathy for you—if it swallows you, you “won’t be the first.” That stark image underlines what’s at stake in the annual National Safe Boating Week, which in 2017 ran from May 20-26.   For that event, the National Safe Boating Council, the U.S. Coast Guard, the National Weather Service, and many other partners increase their efforts to educate boaters on how to stay safe on the water.  This year the Safe Boating Council and the Weather Service have a safety lesson for each day of Safe Boating Week, covering these seven topics: distress-signal equipment, marine forecasts, life jackets, boating under the influence, fire extinguishers, thunderstorm safety, and hurricane preparedness. In Virginia, getting that kind of boating information is the law for motorized boat operators: completion of a boating-safety course is required for personal water craft operators aged 14 or over, and for all operators of motorized boats of 10 horsepower of more.  As of 2015, Virginia had over 230,000 registered motor boats, along with thousands of canoes, sailboats, and other non-motorized boats.  If you plan to be in one of these vessels—whether on foamy, flat, or flowing water—please make sure that you know how to have a safe voyage: be prepared, be sensible, and wear a life jacket! Thanks to Chamomile and Whiskey for permission to use this week’s music, and we close with a few more seconds of “Dirty Sea.” MUSIC - ~14 sec SHIP’S BELL For more Virginia water sounds, music, and information, visit us online at virginiawaterradio.org, or call us at (540) 231-5463.  Virginia Water Radio is produced by the Virginia Water Resources Research Center, part of Virginia Tech’s College of Natural Resources and Environment.  Thanks to Stewart Scales for his banjo version of Cripple Creek 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 "Dirty Sea” and “Wandering Boots” are copyright by Chamomile and Whiskey and by County Wide Records, used with permission of Chamomile and Whiskey.  More information about Chamomile and Whiskey is available online at http://www.chamomileandwhiskey.com/, and information about Charlottesville-based County Wide Records is available online at http://countywidemusic.worldsecuresystems.com/. This episode is a revised repeat Episode 214, 5-19-14, for Safe Boating Week 2014; that episode has been archived. 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. PHOTOS Take a little quiz on this week's episode: In which situation shown below are boating safety and a life jacket necessary? High winds and waves on the Chesapeake Bay, looking south from Kent Island, Md., February 25, 2011. Kayaker on flat but deep water in a Dismal Swamp canal, April, 30, 2005. Tree-debris removal during high water on the Potomac River between Loudoun County, Va., and White

CLICK HERE to listen to episode audio (5:53) Transcript of audio, notes on the audio, images, and additional information follow below. All Web addresses mentioned were functional as of 5-12-17. TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of May 15, 2017. MUSIC – ~10 sec The tune of “On Top of Old Smoky,” a traditional song associated with the Great Smoky Mountains, sets the stage to learn about an annual exploration of Great Smoky Mountains National Park.   Each August, a week-long field course called “Natural History of the Great Smoky Mountains” focuses on the park and its biodiversity, with connections to the landscape, water resources, climate, and human heritage of the Southern Appalachian region.  Virginia participants in the course are led by Dr. Don Linzey, of Virginia Tech’s Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation.  Don joins me now. INTERVIEW - ~3 min./20 sec. Virginia Water Radio – Don, welcome and thank you for joining me. Don Linzey – Thank you, Alan.  It’s a pleasure to be here today. Virginia Water Radio – 2017’s the 12th year that you’ve taken students to Great Smoky Mountains National Park.  What are your main goals in going there every year? Don Linzey – Well, it’s a unique course both to Virginia Tech and to the Smokies.  The object is to provide a learning experience—a seven-day experience living within the park—and to provide a high-quality educational opportunity for not only students but anyone interested in natural history.  I have several master naturalists going with us this year.  So, it’s a course that’s open to classroom teachers and anyone who’s interested in natural history and particularly the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Virginia Water Radio – What are some of the key park features that you use when you’re there? Don Linzey – We do a variety of things.  This year I’ll be taking students to the Twin Creeks Science Center; we’re going to have a tour of the center and see all the natural history collections.  We’ll be taking some hikes to some waterfalls.  We’ll go up to the highest point in the park, which is Clingmans Dome.  We’ll talk about the various forest types, as we pass through cove hardwood and hemlock and get up into the spruce-fir zone.  I will find some Red-cheeked Salamanders, which are an endangered species found only in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.   On some other days, we’ll be going out to Cades Cove, which is the lowest elevation in the park.  We’ll go out during the day and have a park ranger interpret a number of the cultural features and the history of Cades Cove.  We’ll go out at night and be looking [for wildlife]; last year we saw coyote, and deer. Probably we’ll stop at a place called Gregory’s Cave and see the bats.  So we do a variety of different things. Virginia Water Radio – How did you happen to focus much of your career on the Smokies? Don Linzey – The park was dedicated by President [Franklin] Roosevelt in September of 1940.  My parents happened to go to the park in September 1940.  My mom made a scrapbook, and I always loved that scrapbook.  I always wanted to go to the park, so they took me there for my high school graduation; that was my first experience.  Then when I went to Cornell University and started working on my Ph.D. degree, I decided to work on a small mammal in the Smokies about which very little was known.  I went to the Smokies in 1963, I guess; I was a park ranger-naturalist for a couple of summers.   And I met Arthur Stupka, who was the very first park naturalist.  And he was compiling all of his data from the 30-some years he was in the park and writing books on the birds of the park, amphibians and reptiles, the trees and woody shrubs.   He didn’t have time to pull together the mammal information, so he asked if my wife and I would

CLICK HERE to listen to episode audio (4:14) Transcript of audio, notes on the audio, images, and additional information follow below. All Web addresses mentioned were functional as of 5-5-17. TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of May 8, 2017. SOUNDS – ~12 sec - stream riffle in Montgomery County, Va., 7/1314; James River rapids at Richmond, 2/17/14; waves on shore of Claytor Lake in Pulaski County, Va., 9/30/12. This week, those sounds of a riffle in a stream, rapids in a large river, and waves on a lake shore set a habitats stage for learning about a diverse and unusual group of aquatic insects. Have a listen for about 15 seconds to a series of mystery names, and see if you can guess this insect group. GUEST VOICES - ~17 sec Males: Common Burrower! Brushlegged! Females: Little Stout Crawler! Spiny Crawler! Males: Small Squaregill! Prongilled! Females: Small Minnow! Primitive Minnow! Males and females: Flatheaded! If you guessed mayflies, you’re right! You’ve been listening to the names of 13 kinds of mayflies, part of the over 670 species found in North America.  The names were shouted out by students from Patrick County High School, located in Stuart, Virginia, during a visit to Virginia Tech on March 31, 2017. Scientists categorize insects into about 30 large groups known as orders; the order of mayflies is called Ephemeroptera, based on the Greek word ephemeros, meaning “lasts only a day.”  That name refers to the very short adult phase of a mayfly’s life cycle—typically about 24 hours, just long enough to find mates and reproduce.  The mating occurs in large swarms of adults emerging simultaneously—swarms so large along big rivers like the Mississippi that they’ve been known to cover roadways and bridges.  For many species, the mating swarms occur around the month of May, giving mayflies their common name. Before this short adult phase, mayflies live as aquatic larvae (also called nymphs in this insect order); for most species, this phase lasts a few months.  As a group, mayfly larvae live in practically any freshwater habitat you can imagine.  Most species prefer stones, wood, or other materials in fast-flowing water, but others prefer slower water or even the relatively still water of lakes or ponds. In these habitats, mayflies are important parts of food webs, eating organic debris or algae and in turn being eaten by fish and many other predators.  Their role as prey for game fish makes mayflies a popular model for fly-fishing lures.  And the diversity and abundance of mayflies in many aquatic habitats make them valuable for biological monitoring of water quality. Variety; enormous mating swarms; ecological importance; angling fame—there’s a lot to discover about...[GUEST VOICES] mayflies! Thanks to Patrick County High School students and the school’s Dan River Basin Association Club for lending their voices to this episode. SHIP’S BELL For more Virginia water sounds, music, and information, visit us online at virginiawaterradio.org, or call us at (540) 231-5463.  Virginia Water Radio is produced by the Virginia Water Resources Research Center, part of Virginia Tech’s College of Natural Resources and Environment.  Thanks to Stewart Scales for his banjo version of Cripple Creek 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 guest voices in this episode were students from Patrick County High School, located in Stuart, Virginia, recorded on a visit to the Virginia Tech College of Natural Resources and Environment on March 31, 2017. Thanks to the students, the school’s Dan River Basin Association Club, school faculty Stephen Henderson and Brenda Martin, and the Dan River Basin Association’s Wayne Kirkpatrick for their visit and participation in this episode. Thanks to Mi

CLICK HERE to listen to episode audio (4:51) Transcript of audio, notes on the audio, images, and additional information follow below. All Web addresses mentioned were functional as of 5-1-17. TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of May 1, 2017. GUEST VOICE – ~7 sec This week, we drop in on the annual celebration of a water-focused organization created in Roanoke, Va., whose influence has spread nationwide.  Have a listen for about a minute. GUEST VOICES - ~59 sec You’ve been listening to Roanoke Mayor Sherman Lea and to Robert Stewart, the outgoing executive director of the nationwide Rural Community Assistance Partnership.   Both were speaking on April 19, 2017, at the annual “Water is Life” conference of the Southeast Rural Community Assistance Project, better known as Southeast RCAP, or simply SERCAP.  The event marked the 48th anniversary of SERCAP, whose mission is to provide affordable water and wastewater facilities, community development, environmental health, and economic self-sufficiency to low-income rural citizens.  One of six rural community assistance projects in the United States, SERCAP serves Virginia, Delaware, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida. SERCAP began in 1969 as the Demonstration Water Project, created by the Roanoke non-profit organization Total Action Against Poverty to help bring water systems to rural residents in the region around Roanoke.   In 1975, the effort expanded statewide as the Virginia Water Project, which would become a model for rural community assistance programs nationally. Among its significant accomplishments was the 1988 publication of “Water for Tomorrow,” which documented water and wastewater needs for each Virginia locality.  In 1993, the Virginia Water Project became SERCAP, and today its activities include technical assistance for water and wastewater systems, financial assistance for water projects, housing rehabilitation, and a service-oriented alternative break program for students. Thanks to SERCAP for its commitment to safe and adequate water and wastewater facilities. And in keeping with the organization’s “Water is Life” motto, we close with part of “On a Ship,” by Blacksburg musician Kat Mills. MUSIC - ~25 sec. SHIP’S BELL For more Virginia water sounds, music, and information, visit us online at virginiawaterradio.org, or call us at (540) 231-5463.  Virginia Water Radio is produced by the Virginia Water Resources Research Center, part of Virginia Tech’s College of Natural Resources and Environment.   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 guest voices heard in this episode were recorded by Virginia Water Radio at the “Water is Life” conference luncheon held by the Southeast Rural Community Assistance Project, or SERCAP, in Roanoke, Va., on April 19, 2017. “On a Ship,” from the 2015 album “Silver,” is copyright by Kat Mills, used with permission.  Accompanists on the song are Ida Polys, vocals; Rachel Handman, violin; and Nicholas Polys, banjo.  This song was previously featured in Episode 296, 12-28-15.  More information about Kat Mills is available online at http://www.katmills.com/ at https://www.facebook.com/katmillsmusic. 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. PHOTOS The cover of “Water for Tomorrow,” an influential 1988 report on water and wastewater needs by locality in Virginia that was published by the Virginia Water Project, the predecessor to the Southeast Rural Community Assistance Project (SERCAP)

CLICK HERE to listen to episode audio (3:53) Transcript of audio, notes on the audio, images, and additional information follow below. All Web addresses mentioned were functional as of 4-21-17. TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of April 24, 2017. SOUND – ~4 sec This week, we drop in on a group of Virginia middle-school students giving citizens a vocabulary test related to one of the Commonwealth’s most challenging water issues. Sound unbelievable? Well, just have a listen for about 35 seconds. GUEST VOICES - ~35 sec You’ve been listening to Christiansburg Middle School students who attended Stormwater Education Day on April 12, 2017.  The vocabulary list you heard included processes of the water cycle, also known as the hydrologic cycle; along with geographic features of watersheds, a term that people often interchange with drainage areas, drainage basins, or river basins.  Water cycle processes and watershed features are key elements in stormwater: when, where, and how much of it occurs.  Stormwater occurs when rainfall or other precipitation can’t seep—or infiltrate—into the ground, particularly when the precipitation lands on pavement or other impervious surfaces.  Stormwater runs off over the land surface into water bodies or into drains and pipes that eventually lead to water bodies.  During that runoff, stormwater can pick up various water pollutants, and high-volume stormwater can cause flooding and erosion.  Such impacts, and the laws and regulations implemented in response, have made stormwater-management a far-reaching water issue, affecting local governments, homeowners, and businesses all over Virginia. Back in Christiansburg, students learning now about the water cycle, watersheds, potential contaminants, and the filtering potential of different materials will be the future idea-generators and decision-makers who’ll deal with this widespread and complicated issue. Thanks to Christiansburg Middle School students, teachers, and volunteers for lending their voices to this episode.  And we close with some appropriate sounds for stormwater. SOUND - ~12 sec – Rain and thunder SHIP’S BELL For more Virginia water sounds, music, and information, visit us online at virginiawaterradio.org, or call us at (540) 231-5463. Virginia Water Radio is produced by the Virginia Water Resources Research Center, part of Virginia Tech’s College of Natural Resources and Environment. Thanks to Stewart Scales for his banjo version of Cripple Creek 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 voices of sixth-grade students (and some adults) from Christiansburg Middle School in Christiansburg, Va., were recorded April 12, 2017, during Stormwater Education Day, held on the grounds of the Christiansburg/Montgomery County, Va., chapter of the Izaak Walton League.  Thanks to Patricia Colatosti of the Town of Christiansburg and to Patricia Gaudreau of the Montgomery County School Division for organizing Stormwater Education Day and for allowing Virginia Water Radio to participate. The terms called out by the students were the following: water cycle; watersheds; evaporation; transpiration; condensation; precipitation; rainfall intensity; infiltration; runoff; groundwater; surface water; impervious surface; divides; drainage areas; tributaries; river basins; the ocean. The learning stations at the 2017 Stormwater Education Day were the following: Montgomery County – groundwater model; Skyline Soil and Water Conservation District, Christiansburg, Va. – runoff boxes; Town of Christiansburg/Town of Blacksburg/Virginia Tech Department of Biological Systems Engineering – stream table; Virginia Cooperative Extension/Montgomery County Unit – pet waste and streams; Virginia Cooperative Extension/Virginia Tech Department