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Officials mull farm runoff as possible cause

NEWPORT — Tennessee state conservation, agricultural and environment officials are investigating a widespread fish kill along the lower Pigeon River.

The probe began on Aug. 12 after Tennessee Wildlife Resource Agency officers noticed multiple species of dead fish along the river near Newport.

Aquatic life in the Pigeon River, a popular rafting, kayaking and fishing spot boasting big smallmouth bass, has steadily recovered following years of pollution from the upstream paper mill in Canton. The Pactiv Evergreen site permanently closed earlier this year, after it and previous owners drastically reduced the amount of effluent into the river. Fishing and whitewater sports rapidly took off from there.

TWRA didn’t immediately identify the reason for the fish kill, which remains under investigation, but alluded to sediment and agricultural runoff that spiked during heavy rains this month.

Here is the full news release from TWRA:

“The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) and the Tennessee Dept. of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) are jointly investigating a fish kill on the Pigeon River above Newport. 

“On Friday, TWRA wildlife officers reported dead fish on the Pigeon River from Edwina Bridge down to the Newport police station.  TWRA fisheries biologists responded to the area documenting multiple species of dead fish at several locations. Based on the dispersal of the fish, recent water generation from the dam likely pushed them further downstream while leaving higher numbers of dead fish at the top of the kill zone.

“To determine potential contributing factors, biologists investigated the surrounding area and documented muddy runoff from agriculture fields likely caused by heavy rains in the area.

“TWRA biologists contacted the TDEC field office in Knoxville to assist with the incident and notified the Tennessee Department of Agriculture of the investigation. 

The incident currently remains under investigation.”

Virginia Tech Professor Bill Hopkins preparing to gently return a hellbender to its underwater home in a Virginia stream after taking measurements.  Lara Hopkins/Virginia Tech

One clue: They eat their own in deforested stream corridors

Mike Allen is a media relations officer for Virginia Tech.

BLACKSBURG — The gigantic salamanders known as hellbenders, once the apex predators of many freshwater streams, have been in decline for decades, their population constantly shrinking. No one knew why. William Hopkins, professor in the Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation and director of the Global Change Center at Virginia Tech, suspected the hellbenders’ plight had connections with environmental changes engineered by humans.

Hellbender males select nesting sites on stream bottoms and guard the eggs laid there by females — and occasionally the salamander dads snack on the eggs, consuming them before they ever get to hatch. A study that Hopkins led, conducted through eight years of snorkeling in ice-cold Southwest Virginia streams and published in The American Naturalist, determined that in deforested areas, hellbender fathers are far more likely to eat their entire brood than in areas that still have lush foliage.

This behavior, known as filial cannibalism, probably evolved as a survival tactic for enduring harsh conditions. Prior to Hopkins’ results, scientists were not aware that hellbenders’ filial cannibalism drastically increased in cleared lands, actively speeding the species out of existence.

A green floater mussel (Lasmigona subviridis).  Ryan Hagerty/USFWS

WASHINGTON — The green floater, a freshwater mussel native to the waters of Southern Appalachia, is now formally considered at risk of extinction due to the loss and fragmentation of its aquatic habitat. 

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service determined the green floater, historically found in 10 eastern U.S. states, is likely to become endangered due to existing and emerging threats. The service is proposing to list the mussel as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. 

The green floater is still found in its native range in North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia. It is considered locally extinct in Alabama and Georgia. 

While the species has strongholds in places, green floaters are rare in nearly 80 percent of the watersheds where they naturally occur. More than 75 percent of the nation’s native freshwater mussel species are endangered or threatened, considered to be of special conservation concern, or presumed extinct, according to USWFS.

Chris Jenkins researches timber rattlesnakes like the one seen here.  Courtesy Orianne Society

New film highlights importance of rattlesnakes to the Southern Appalachian environment

Timber rattlesnakes have been demonized for centuries, perhaps to the extent humans are incapable of understanding the snake’s importance to the world. 

The Orianne Society determined the apex predator is of vital importance to the Appalachian region, yet the snake is facing tremendous challenges to its survival.

The film “Rattled: Conserving Rattlesnakes in Appalachia — A Conservation Documentary.” introduced those sentiments when it premiered in Atlanta and other locations in Georgia and North Carolina.

Researcher Dr. Chris Jenkins, CEO of the Orianne Society, is behind the story for the film.

Jenkins said timber rattlesnakes are declining across their range from Maine to Texas. Wildlife biologists attribute the decline to “low recruitment,” meaning reproductive rates that fail to replace their population.

A female rattlesnake may live 50 years, though most live only to 30 or 40. Maturity usually requires 10 years, and snakes may only produce young every other year. The broods are small and the mortality rate is high among young snakes. Rattlesnakes that encounter humans are often killed, leaving no successors.