AGENDA DATE: 5/18/2022
TITLE:
Title
Resolution to Support Reintroduction of the James Spinymussel
BODY
SUBJECT/PROPOSAL/REQUEST: Adopt a resolution to support efforts by the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources to reintroduce the federally-endangered James Spinymussel in Albemarle County.
ITEM TYPE: Consent Action Item
STAFF CONTACT(S): Richardson, Walker, Hudson, Herrick, Filardo, Rapp, Perkins, Maliszewski, Biasiolli
PRESENTER (S): Kim Biasiolli and Brian Watson (DWR)
LEGAL REVIEW: Yes
REVIEWED BY: Jeffrey B. Richardson
BACKGROUND: North America has over 300 species of freshwater mussels; the majority reside in the southeastern United States, making it a worldwide diversity hotspot. Virginia, which contains 80 species, is one of the most diverse and important states for mussels. Freshwater mussels provide important ecosystem services, including maintaining water quality - each individual mussel filters upwards of 12 gallons of water per day. They are also one of the most imperiled groups of animals, with roughly 75% of all species being either extinct, endangered, threatened, or a species of concern. In Virginia's Wildlife Action Plan, 64 species are considered species of greatest conservation need.
The James Spinymussel (JSM) primarily resides in the James River watershed in Virginia, but also in West Virginia and the Dan River watershed in Virginia and North Carolina. The JSM is a federal and state endangered species, and a priority species for recovery for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources (DWR). An estimated 90% of JSM populations have been lost across the species' range, including from the James River. The federal recovery plan for JSM is provided as Attachment A.
DWR has been working on freshwater mussel recovery through propagation since the late 1990s, and directly with the endangered JSM for the past 15 years. The USFWS and the DWR are raising JSM at the coopera...
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