2017 Association of Mid-Atlantic Aquatic Biologists Workshop Cacapon State Park Berkeley Springs, WV
March 30th – 31st, 2017
The 2017 Annual Meeting and Workshop for the Association of Mid-Atlantic Aquatic Biologists (AMAAB) will be March 30th – March 31st, 2017 at Cacapon State Park near Berkeley Springs, WV. We are planning a full day of presentations on Thursday. Mini workshops will be held on Friday morning. The host for this year's workshop is the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality.
The procedures for offering presentations have not changed from previous years and can be found in the AMAAB website’s “Call for Presentations” section.
Pre-registration for 2017 AMAAB Workshop should be sent by email to [email protected]. Be sure to reference "[your last name] AMAAB 2017" in the subject line. Please include your contact information (name, address, telephone number).
The registration fee is $60 which includes an evening social on Thursday, March 30th. Payments are typically made onsite at the meeting and may be made by cash or personal and agency checks made payable to AMAAB. We regret that we will not be able to accept credit cards.
Onsite Registration will take place on: Wednesday, March 29th -- 7:00-8:30pm (preferred as to allow meeting to start on time Thursday) Thursday, March 30th -- 8:00-9:00am
Cash or checks will be accepted at onsite registration. If your email address has changed, please leave one of your business cards at the registration table so we can update our mailing list. It is important that we get an updated email address from members because we have made the transition to conducting all business by email and website postings instead of by traditional paper mailings.
There will be morning refreshments offered on Thursday and Friday morning (coffee, Danish, juice) but nothing that counts as a “formal” breakfast.
Again this year we will be holding a raffle. This has been a big success each year. So bring a little extra cash, you may win and all help supports the meeting!
We are working on putting together photo galleries of past meetings. If you have any digital photos or videos from past meetings that you would like to share, please send them to our webmaster Katherine Hanna ([email protected]).
Check back periodically for updates. We look forward to seeing you at the workshop.
Best regards,
Rick Browder
2017 AMAAB President
Pre-conference AGENDA: WEDNESDAY, MARCH 29, 2017
17:00 - 21:00 Early Registration (Make checks payable to "AMAAB")
DAY 1 AGENDA: THURSDAY, MARCH 30, 2017 Washington/Fairfax Room
08:30 Welcome, AMAAB Business, Announcements Rick Browder, VADEQ - 2017 AMAAB President ([email protected])
08:45 Environmental DNA: An Efficient, Non-Invasive Approach for Monitoring Threatened and Endangered Mussel Distributions Amy Bergdale, US EPA Region 3 ([email protected])
09:10 Twenty-Five Years of Rapid Bioassessment on the Delaware Coastal Plain: Lessons Learned, Current Perspective Robin Tyler, Delaware Depart. of Natural Resources and Environmental Control ([email protected])
09:35 Citizen-Based Water Monitoring Data Uses at the Agency Level Danielle Donkersloot, Izaak Walton League of America ([email protected])
10:00 Overview of Fairfax County's Stream Restoration Macroinvertebrate Stocking Pilot Study Jonathan Witt, Fairfax County Stormwater Planning Division, Watershed Assessment Branch ([email protected])
10:25 - 10:45 Break 20 minutes
10:50 Development of Aquatic Life Use Assessment Protocols for Swamp Waters in Virginia Drew Garey, Virginia Department of Environmental Quality ([email protected])
11:15 Prioritizing Fish Habitat for American Eel (Anguilla rostrata) in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Nicholas Walker, George Mason University ([email protected])
11:40 Consideration for the Future of "Conventional" Statewide Biology Assessment Amidst Shrinking Budgets Ellen Dickey, DE Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control ([email protected])
12:00 - 13:30 Lunch (Poster Session 12:45-13:30)
13:35 GIS Methods to Characterize Properties of the Long-Term Stream Regional Monitoring Network Watersheds David Gibbs, US EPA, ORISE Research Fellow ([email protected])
14:00 The Northeast Stream Quality Assessment Robin Brightbill, US Geological Survey ([email protected])
14:25 A Spatiotemporal Stressor Gradient of The Susquehanna River Tim Wertz, Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection ([email protected])
14:50 Rusty Crayfish (Orconectes rusticus): Study of Biology, Life History, and Diet in the Middle Susquehanna River Michael Bilger, Susquehanna University ([email protected])
15:15 - 15:30 Break 15 minutes
15:35 Thinking Outside the Cookbook: Addressing Issues of Functional & Spatial Scales in Fairfax County Stream Bioassessments LeAnne Astin, Fairfax County Stormwater Planning Division ([email protected])
16:00 The June 2016 Floods and Their Effects on Streamgage Ratings and Controls in West Virginia Terry Messinger, US Geological Survey, Virginia-West Virginia Water Science Center ([email protected])
16:25 Refining StreamBED through Expert Interviews, Design Feedback, and a Low Fidelity Prototype Alina Striner, Univ. of Maryland, Human Computer Interaction Lab ([email protected])
16:50 Virginia Flow-Ecology Modeling: An Initial Assessment of Flow Reduction Effects on Aquatic Biota in Virginia Jennifer Rapp, US Geological Survey, Virginia-West Virginia Water Science Center ([email protected]) Pamela A. Reilly, US Geological Survey, New Jersey Water Science Center ([email protected])
18:00 Native American Historical Demonstration Doug Wood, WV Humanities Council (former WV DEP) ([email protected]) 19:00 - 22:00 Evening Group Social - Washington & Fairfax Rooms - Finger Foods and Beverages from Cacapon State Park Restaurant
Poster Session
Refinement of the Chessie BIBI Index of Stream Health for the Chesapeake Watershed Claire Buchanan, Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin ([email protected])
Sampling Effort Needed to Detect Fish-Environment Relationships within a Stream Network Nathaniel Hitt, US Geological Survey, Leetown Science Center ([email protected])
Prioritizing Fish Habitat for American Eel (Anguilla rostrata) in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed (Talk and Poster) Nicholas J. Walker, George Mason University ([email protected])
Paleolimnological Investigations of Didymosphenia geminata in the Mid-Atlantic Region Matt Shank, Susquehanna River Basin Commission ([email protected])
A Detailed Assessment of Shale Gas Development on Headwater Streams in the Upper Susquehanna River Basin Kelly Maloney, US Geological Survey, Leetown Science Center ([email protected])
Preliminary Results from Stream Methane Monitoring in the Marcellus Shale Region of the Susquehanna River Basin Luanne Steffy, Susquehanna River Basin Commission ([email protected])
Susquehanna River Basin Emerging Contaminant Study Amy Williams, Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection ([email protected])
Spatial Stream Temperature Assessment Indicates Local and Regional Variation in Fish Thermal Habitat Matthew Morgan, US Geological Survey, Leetown Science Center ([email protected])
Discovery of the Feminine Clam Shrimp, Cyzicus gynecia, in West Virginia Danielle Nathanson, West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection ([email protected])
Morphological Predictors of Individual Variation in Brook Trout Movement Tyler Troy Garrett, US Geological Survey, Leetown Science Center ([email protected])
Turn Your TV to 10: Urban Assessment of Taxa Sensitivity Predicts Higher Tolerance Values (TVs) Chris Ruck, Fairfax County DPWES, Stormwater Planning Division ([email protected])
Benthic IBI Scores Indicate Success of a MD Mitigation Project in Casselman Watershed Patricia Brady, Maryland Department of the Environment ([email protected])
Bioaccumulation of Organic Contaminants in Anacostia River Tributaries with Elliptio complanata and Passive Samplers Rachel Harrison, University of Maryland College Park ([email protected])
Effects of Temperature and Desiccation on Vitellogenin Measurement in Fathead Minnow (Pimephales promelas) and Largemouth Bass (Micropterus salmoides) Plasma Samples Lance Yonkos, University of Maryland College Park ([email protected])
DAY 2 AGENDA: March 31, 2017 - Workshops
1. Identification and Taxonomy of Suckers (Catostomidae) Facilitator: Dan Cincotta, WV DNR ([email protected]) Participants will learn the distribution and identification of fishes in the sucker family Catostomidae from the Central Appalachian region of North America; emphasis will be given to adult specimens. Individuals partaking in the workshop will also learn to categorize sucker lip patterns, count lateral line scales and soft rays, and how to find and pull pharyngeal teeth. You should also bring a dissection microscope with an adequate light source (or separate illumination, such as a fiber optic light), fine forceps to count soft rays (preferable with non-serrated inner edges), a can of compressed air (used to dust keyboards), your favorite fish identification key/source, and any specimens that you wish to confirm. Vinyl gloves, identification handouts, and pans (to keep fish moist) will be provided. (Class Limit: 20)
2. Identification and Taxonomy of Larval Caddisflies (Trichoptera) Facilitator: Jason Robinson, Illinois Natural History Survey ([email protected]) A brief survey of the biology, distribution and taxonomy of the representatives of this order in the eastern US. We will focus on larval life history stages, used most frequently in benthic characterization studies, but we will discuss some characteristics of the adult life history stages useful for diagnosing species or higher taxonomy. Workshop participants are encouraged to bring their own material for determination and verification. (Class Limit: 20)
3. Shiny Apps: Building Interactive Web Applications in R Facilitator: Emma Jones, VA Dept. of Environmental Quality ([email protected]) The Shiny package allows basic R users to become web application developers without the need to learn HTML or other web coding protocols. By transforming R projects into scalable web applications, R users separate scripts from user-friendly interfaces, allowing non-R users convenient and dynamic opportunities to interact with tools and datasets. This course will serve as an introduction to building tools and data visualizations with Shiny, thus a basic knowledge of R is encouraged. (Class Limit: 20)
4. Identification and Taxonomy of Larval Stoneflies (Plecoptera) Facilitator: Jane Earle ([email protected]) Stonefly nymphs can be difficult and frustrating to identify. This new and revised workshop will provide tips on how to make stonefly identifications less difficult and how to avoid the pitfalls that lead to common misidentifications. Concentration will be on the troublesome genera, including gill-less nemourids and taeniopterygids, chloroperlids, and some perlids and perlodids, with an overview of the other families. Specially developed keys, habitat and emergence associations, and other helpful hints will be used. Representative specimens will be available. Attendees are also encouraged to bring their own specimens. Handouts will include regional keys to five families, an identification guide, and confirmed regional species lists. Updated regional keys and other handouts will be available by request about 2 weeks prior to the meeting. (Class Limit: 20)
5. Methods in Quantifying Filamentous Periphyton Facilitators: Ted Turner & Andrew Kirk, VA Dept. of Environmental Quality ([email protected] & [email protected]) Due to recent challenges to Virginia’s 305 B report, the EPA has tasked the VA DEQ to develop methods to quantify and assess recreational nuisance levels of aquatic vegetation in Virginia streams. The first phase of this task has been to develop and compare several quantitative methods for determining aquatic vegetation cover and biomass, with the goal of achieving a non-subjective means of measuring aquatic plant biomass. For Virginia streams, nuisance vegetation is primarily filamentous algae, so the methods which will be presented will be primarily focused in assessing filamentous algal cover. This workshop will be a class-based survey of several approaches to measuring nuisance aquatic vegetation in wadeable and boatable streams. Attendees will not need to bring any equipment or materials. (Class Limit: 20)
6. Large Rivers Workshop Facilitators: Dustin Shull, PADEP ([email protected]), Mike Selckmann & Zach Smith, Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin ([email protected] & [email protected]) Wadeable streams assessment methods are common; however increased depth and overall complexity of large rivers may cause inaccessibility or unacceptable index and metric variability for various biological assessment methods. As a result, significant increases in effort and time have been recommended to compensate. We will evaluate current approaches for making biological assessments on large rivers, and discuss best practices for creating accurate, precise, and efficient methodologies. This workshop is intended cover many biological communities including, but not limited to algae, macroinvertebrates, and fish. (Class Limit: 40)
7. Head Water Streams Evaluation Facilitator: Periann Russell, North Carolina DENR ([email protected]) Where does a stream start? When does a water feature fall into State jurisdiction? The exact answer lies in each State’s definition of a stream, but one method that quantifies stream permanence is the NC Stream Determination Method. In over 20 minutes, an observer rates a stream segment on 35 factors to produce a numeric score. In North Carolina, 19 points indicates an intermittent stream and results in the State claiming jurisdiction. This seminar will give an overview of how to use the NC Stream Determination form and how other States have modified it for their own uses. It will include both classroom and field portions. Participants should bring field gear appropriate for the weather. (Class Limit: 20)