There is going to be a riverside clean-up on the Apalachee River here in the Athens area on October 22nd at 9:00am. This is co-sponsored by Rivers Alive an the Keep Oconee County Beautiful Commission.
I was thinking that if we could get a couple of NANFAs out there early (say 8:00am) and set up a stream side tank (I've got some saw horses we we could use as a table, but all my tanks are already full)... that we could certainly attract some attention with the folks that are coming to do the river cleanup. Talk to them a little about the fishes in the river. Help them with the clean up. Outreach... Service... Awareness... sounds like a good thing all around.
I helped with this river cleanup last year... it is pretty localized and last year was only a handful of people... so we could have a nice impact if there were a few of us there to help them clean up... and they normally only stay about an hour, so it is not terribly hard work.
I'm going to go, and wear a NANFA shirt and hat, even if I don't set up a tank or anything. But if there are some you you out there that would like to come along and help, we could certainly make a mini-event of it. Contact me and let me know if you would be interested in helping out.
River Clean Up and Outreach
Started by
Michael Wolfe
, Sep 21 2011 07:27 PM
21 replies to this topic
#2
Guest_frogwhacker_*
Guest_frogwhacker_*
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Posted 21 September 2011 - 11:23 PM
There is going to be a riverside clean-up on the Apalachee River here in the Athens area on October 22nd at 9:00am. This is co-sponsored by Rivers Alive an the Keep Oconee County Beautiful Commission.
I was thinking that if we could get a couple of NANFAs out there early (say 8:00am) and set up a stream side tank (I've got some saw horses we we could use as a table, but all my tanks are already full)... that we could certainly attract some attention with the folks that are coming to do the river cleanup. Talk to them a little about the fishes in the river. Help them with the clean up. Outreach... Service... Awareness... sounds like a good thing all around.
I helped with this river cleanup last year... it is pretty localized and last year was only a handful of people... so we could have a nice impact if there were a few of us there to help them clean up... and they normally only stay about an hour, so it is not terribly hard work.
I'm going to go, and wear a NANFA shirt and hat, even if I don't set up a tank or anything. But if there are some you you out there that would like to come along and help, we could certainly make a mini-event of it. Contact me and let me know if you would be interested in helping out.
If it weren't for 1300 miles and 60 gallons of gasoline(round trip) I'd love to be there, and I've got a 30gal. not in use too. Not sure I could talk the rest of the family into a 12hr trip each way. It sounds like a wonderful idea and a great opportunity for outreach though. Good Luck.
Steve.
Edited by frogwhacker, 21 September 2011 - 11:27 PM.
#3
Michael Wolfe
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- Board of Directors
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- North Georgia, Oconee River Drainage
Posted 08 October 2011 - 01:57 PM
Come on guys... I know there are a few of you out there that are close enough to make this trip (OK frogwacker, you are excused)... need some volunteers... for a couple of hours... seine in the morning, fill a tank, collect a little trash, and talk about fish...
I think the K-man has a tank that I can use... just need a few more helpers.
I think the K-man has a tank that I can use... just need a few more helpers.
Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing. - Benjamin Franklin
#4
Michael Wolfe
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- Board of Directors
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- North Georgia, Oconee River Drainage
Posted 15 October 2011 - 11:23 AM
Only one week to go... still looking for some helpers... I have a handful of brochures and my table ready to go... planning on getting the aquarium fro K-man this weekend.
Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing. - Benjamin Franklin
#5
Michael Wolfe
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- Board of Directors
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- North Georgia, Oconee River Drainage
Posted 22 October 2011 - 10:32 PM
We had a good time this morning... a dozen or so volunteers (some that had to leave early so are not in the picture)... three of us representing NANFA... but we were able to collect over 200 pounds of trash. Notice the funny looking guy on the left sporting a NANFA T-shirt.
We were also able to set up a NANFA table and do a little outreach. It was pretty easy convincing these folks that were already interested in cleaning up the river bank, that the fish in the river might be interesting too. Thanks to the K-man for providing the Georgia Regional Tank!
I was there early and solo seined for about 20-30 minutes and came up with 6 species. Creek Chub, Bluehead Chub, Yellowfin Shiner, Snail Bullhead, Blackbanded Darter, and Turquoise Darter. These are all common fish around here, and pretty much what I expected to see. But they made for a nice display and discussion for the folks before and after they were cleaning up the trash.
We were also able to set up a NANFA table and do a little outreach. It was pretty easy convincing these folks that were already interested in cleaning up the river bank, that the fish in the river might be interesting too. Thanks to the K-man for providing the Georgia Regional Tank!
I was there early and solo seined for about 20-30 minutes and came up with 6 species. Creek Chub, Bluehead Chub, Yellowfin Shiner, Snail Bullhead, Blackbanded Darter, and Turquoise Darter. These are all common fish around here, and pretty much what I expected to see. But they made for a nice display and discussion for the folks before and after they were cleaning up the trash.
Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing. - Benjamin Franklin
#7
Michael Wolfe
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- Board of Directors
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- North Georgia, Oconee River Drainage
Posted 26 October 2011 - 10:28 PM
Well, looks like nothing compared to the big haul you were involved in... but I did make contact with one local land owner that was willing to let us access the river from her land... and another that has contacted me about doing a proram with her group... so at least we did the outreach part.Looks like you guys got a bit of trash for just having a few people. Also, looked like a nice fish display. I need to get a poster/sign like that for when I set up.
And that sign was from teh South Carolina convention... was sold at the end of the auction almost as an after thought and I bought it because the backside has the fish decal from the Alabama convention... it has been hanging in my fish room for years... and now it is making its first (of hopefully many) field appearances.
Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing. - Benjamin Franklin
#9
Michael Wolfe
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- Board of Directors
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- North Georgia, Oconee River Drainage
Posted 27 October 2011 - 11:20 AM
Yes, sir. I also participated in the clean up here last year (will be mentioned in the next AC I think as part of a SFC summary from last year). This is also a known site for striped jumprock since we were talking jumprock on another thread (Nate has some pictures from what Dave and I seined up last year)... and for the state threatened Altamaha Shiner (again, awesome photo from Nate that I think will be in the AC article). I didn't get get either of these solo-seining... just the stuff I could kick up form the bottom and banks... doing the Crail-down-stream-toss-and-shuffle... but I was still pretty excited to get 6 species that way...Good stuff! Was this at the site where you took us after SFC?
Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing. - Benjamin Franklin
#10
Guest_farmertodd_*
Guest_farmertodd_*
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Posted 27 October 2011 - 11:52 AM
Every method has it's biases. Still, I'm surprised you didn't get any of the shiners. That works pretty well in chutes where they're at. Was the water more clear? That can be problematic for those beefy Cyprinella. One trick is to grind your feet in the substrate for a few minutes to get them feeding and pretty cool with you standing there. Then toss the net 
Todd
Todd
#11
Michael Wolfe
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- Board of Directors
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- North Georgia, Oconee River Drainage
Posted 27 October 2011 - 12:01 PM
Every method has it's biases. Still, I'm surprised you didn't get any of the shiners. That works pretty well in chutes where they're at. Was the water more clear? That can be problematic for those beefy Cyprinella. One trick is to grind your feet in the substrate for a few minutes to get them feeding and pretty cool with you standing there. Then toss the net
Todd
I'm a terrible Cyprinella seiner... I am beginning to think they are faster AND smarter than I am...
Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing. - Benjamin Franklin
#13
Michael Wolfe
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- Board of Directors
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- North Georgia, Oconee River Drainage
Posted 31 October 2011 - 04:51 PM
We needed you there... I never saw any redbreast sunnies!Display looked good! I'm sad my schedule kept me from being there, but at least I could contribute!
Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing. - Benjamin Franklin
#14
Michael Wolfe
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- Board of Directors
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- North Georgia, Oconee River Drainage
Posted 10 March 2012 - 01:00 PM
What an exciting April this is stacking up to be for NANFA Georgia... I hope you are not tired of hearing from me... but I have another opportunity for you.
On April 21, Rivers Alive and the Keep Oconee County Beautiful Commission are sponsoring another cleanup day on the Apalachee River. (So I am posting it here as an extension of our last river side cleanup at the same location last fall).
As before I am asking some of you to join me early in the morning so that we might be able to set up a small display table/aquarium as we did in the fall (see above). If we get there early and fill the tank with some nice fish, we will certainly draw some interest from a group that is already interested in cleaning up the river banks... now we can show them what they are helping.
Also, I expect that this time of year we will have some pretty stunning looking Turquoise to show off. The early spring has got them really revved up... take a look at this guy that turned up a few weeks ago!
Anyways, back to my point... I need a seine hand or two or three to show up early morning with me!
On April 21, Rivers Alive and the Keep Oconee County Beautiful Commission are sponsoring another cleanup day on the Apalachee River. (So I am posting it here as an extension of our last river side cleanup at the same location last fall).
As before I am asking some of you to join me early in the morning so that we might be able to set up a small display table/aquarium as we did in the fall (see above). If we get there early and fill the tank with some nice fish, we will certainly draw some interest from a group that is already interested in cleaning up the river banks... now we can show them what they are helping.
Also, I expect that this time of year we will have some pretty stunning looking Turquoise to show off. The early spring has got them really revved up... take a look at this guy that turned up a few weeks ago!
Anyways, back to my point... I need a seine hand or two or three to show up early morning with me!
Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing. - Benjamin Franklin
#16
Guest_blakemarkwell_*
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Posted 10 March 2012 - 03:45 PM
One trick is to grind your feet in the substrate for a few minutes to get them feeding and pretty cool with you standing there. Then toss the net
Todd
That's a really good idea. I'll have to give that a try next time I'm out. Great stuff, Michael. Those nuptial E. inscriptum are making me drool!
#17
Michael Wolfe
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- Board of Directors
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- North Georgia, Oconee River Drainage
Posted 22 April 2012 - 06:08 PM
Had a great day yesterday with the River Clean Up here in Georgia... I set up my regular table with the K-man's aquarium and my new sign from Charlie...
We had seined the river for a little while before anyone else arrived and had a rather embarrassment of riches... including these guys... one day destined to be blueheaded warriors...
and these guys...
this is after all Georgia, so I have to throw in the obligatory photo of a blackbanded darter...
and last, but not least, this guy, who appears (based on his faded colors and tattered fins) to have done his manly duties already this spring... they normally are early spawners anyway (I see the best ones in March) and this year we had early spring in February...
Also collected a snail bullhead, redbreast sunfish, yellowfin shiners, and some juvenile Altamaha Shiners.
We had seined the river for a little while before anyone else arrived and had a rather embarrassment of riches... including these guys... one day destined to be blueheaded warriors...
and these guys...
this is after all Georgia, so I have to throw in the obligatory photo of a blackbanded darter...
and last, but not least, this guy, who appears (based on his faded colors and tattered fins) to have done his manly duties already this spring... they normally are early spawners anyway (I see the best ones in March) and this year we had early spring in February...
Also collected a snail bullhead, redbreast sunfish, yellowfin shiners, and some juvenile Altamaha Shiners.
Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing. - Benjamin Franklin
#19
Michael Wolfe
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- Board of Directors
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- North Georgia, Oconee River Drainage
Posted 22 April 2012 - 06:30 PM
Well, it just turned out to be me and my son from NANFA... probably because we just did Back to the Swamp and the Reinhardt Bioblitz so this was the third weekend in a row... but there were also 10 -15 other volunteer trash collectors including a group of high school students... so we got to do some decent outreach.
Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing. - Benjamin Franklin
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