Program Update - Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program - U.S. ...

VADGIF biologists processing the catch from a study reach on the South Fork
Shenandoah. Biologists identify the species, lengths and weights are taken, scales
may be taken for aging, and other data as needed are recorded, producing volumes of
high quality data for later analyses and interpretation by the biologists.
Aquatic Resource
Education
Picture kids turning over rocks in a stream to key out who’s living on the underside
of the stones; casting a line into a small pond and catching their first sunfish; planting
beach grass or saplings to help stabilize fragile shores; exploring the rich mud of a
freshwater or tidal wetland, alive with small creatures to get to know; picking up
a sea star from a shallow tide pool and feeling its tiny tube feet tickle their hands;
discovering that the rivers that flow through their city offer fishing fun and green
places to sit; caring for and studying just-hatched bass, yellow perch, shad or
horseshoe crabs in a classroom aquarium till they are big enough to release in a
nearby stream or saltwater cove; practicing canoeing skills at summer camp and
exploring a pristine lake to the sound of calling loons; creating a schoolyard wetland
as an outdoor classroom; using GIS maps of a local watershed to understand the links
between land use practices and the health of rivers; sitting quietly on a salt marsh
boardwalk and listening to the whisper of the wind in the grasses, the gurgling of sea
water moving up a tidal gut and the steady clicking of foraging fiddler crabs.
From Maine to Maryland, States continue to use some of their Sport Fish Restoration
dollars to fund aquatic resource education programs that re-connect people with
nature. States train teachers on watershed ecology and the principles of resource
management and conservation; work with dedicated volunteers to teach kids the
basics of fish biology and the skills to enjoy freshwater fishing, saltwater fishing, fly
fishing and even ice fishing; introduce teachers and youth group leaders to educational
activities they can use with their students as they explore how a tidal salt marsh
works; host family fishing events where parents and kids discover the delights of
fishing together; develop interpretive and live fish exhibits at hatcheries, aquariums
and education centers to help visitors and students discover the worlds of fishes,
rivers, and oceans and how we work to manage and conserve them; and help teachers
and students conduct field studies, discuss resource issues and understand the human
dimension aspects of conservation. State educators design diverse programs for the
many different audiences that each State needs to reach, from urban families and
summer campers to classroom teachers and citizen scientists. As a result, people gain
skills in fishing, science, and critical thinking, change attitudes about the outdoors
and wildlife, and begin to become stewards of nature. Best of all, they are given the
opportunity to reawaken their innate sense of wonder and let it enrich their lives.
38 Wildlife and Sport Fish Program Update September 2008