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VICKSBURG, Miss. – To complete requirements for their World Conservation Award badges, the Cub Scouts of Den 1 - Pack 110 in Vicksburg, Miss., recently visited ERDC’s Fish Ecology Laboratory.
The scouts met with student researchers Nicky Hahn, who is studying suckermouth catfish, and Liz Rayfield, who is working on paddlefish swim studies, along with Dr. Jan Hoover.
The visitors were given an overview of aquatic and terrestrial communities and specific examples of how the Corps of Engineers works to conserve them. Subjects covered included protection of endangered species, control and management of invasive species and the importance of keystone species.
“The Fish Ecology Team does a lot of education and public outreach, but this opportunity was a special one,” said Hoover. “The World Conservation Award encourages scouts to ‘act locally’ but ‘think globally’ about natural resources. We provided hands-on demonstrations to the scouts on local threats to our aquatic ecosystems, how the Corps of Engineers manages invasive species and protects endangered species, and the role of certain animals in maintaining environmental diversity here and in other parts of the world.”
Led by Hahn and Rayfield, the trip included a laboratory tour of swim tunnels used to study the behavior of paddlefish and Asian carp, followed by a greenhouse tour of mesocosms, which are experimental water enclosures designed to provide natural conditions in which environmental factors can be studied. The mesocosms are being used to study the environmental impacts of suckermouth catfishes. The visit also included a live animal demonstration showing the importance of amphibians as indicator species, snakes as apex predators and turtles as seed dispersers.