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Driven by estuarine circulation, material released from lower Chesapeake Bay tributaries has the potential to be transported to the upper Bay. How far and what fraction of the material from tributaries can be carried to the upper estuary have not been quantitatively investigated. For an estuary system with multiple tributaries, the relative contribution from each tributary can provide valuable information for source assessment and fate prediction for riverine materials and passive moving organisms. We conducted long-term numerical simulations using multiple passive tracers that are independently released in the headwater of five main rivers (i.e., Susquehanna, Potomac, Rappahannock, York, and James Rivers) and calculated the relative contribution of each river to the total material in the mainstem. The results show that discharge from Susquehanna River exerts the dominant control on the riverine material throughout the entire mainstem. Despite the smaller contribution from the lower-middle Bay tributaries to the total materials in the mainstem, materials released from these rivers have a high potential to be transported to the middle-upper Bay through the bottom inflow by the persistent estuarine circulation. The fraction of the tributary material transported to the upper Bay depends on the location of the tributary. Materials released near the mouth are subject to a rapid flushing process, small retention time, and strong shelf current. Our results reveal three distinct spatial patterns for materials released from the main river, tributary, and coastal oceans. This study highlights the important control of estuarine circulation over horizontal and vertical distributions of materials in the mainstem.

In the process of developing my thesis, I wanted to let go of the contemporary way of thinking about the relationship between architecture and sustainability, which lately tends to be through a lens of applied technology and a baseline understanding of building code that assumes the structure will be designed around an HVAC system that runs 24/7/365 and windows that will never open. I found it difficult to shed that habit, as the first sketches I produced showed massive amounts of insulation in the walls (which again, assumes that the interior air is mechanically conditioned). I thought about how long air conditioning has been a factor in culture today. Just one generation ago, young people were growing up in homes that didn't have air conditioning, or if they did, it was space-based, cooling whatever room happened to be occupied. Certainly, the generation before the previous did not live in a culture where air conditioning was an assumed part of building design. We're now spending more time huddled in our air conditioned homes, which is harmful to our health, distorting the way in which our bodies naturally acclimatize to changing weather. Air conditioning was once considered a luxury expense, and now is practically, or actually, illegal to be without. In addition to the relationship between architecture and air, I also thought about water. Where do we get our potable water from and how? Is the way we currently collect, filter, distribute, receive, use, and dispose of water the best practice for keeping our rivers and aquifers healthy and clean? What about the way we heat our buildings? Every apartment I've lived in the city of Richmond, VA has had at least one fireplace, and they are all bricked up. My current apartment has two chimneys, one in the living room and one in the bedroom, both of which have been long forgotten when the building was hooked up to gas heat. I look around the skyline of my neighborhood and see hundreds of unused chimneys. Is that progress? Is the technology we have now to heat homes more efficient, able to provide more comfort, or better for our environment that what we had used for staying warm in the winter for thousands of years? Lastly, I thought about the relationship between architecture and landscape, especially in regard to plants and animals with which we share our habitat. Not just the native plants and animals that happen to be around us, but also the plants and animals we choose to cultivate and raise. I also think architecture also has a place in the reconsideration of our culture's relationship with food, which is to say, our relationship with the earth, our source of food. I was adamant that the site I chose, and the way in which I created architecture on it, would have a positive impact on both the people who visit, and the local ecosystem. In order to stay focused on my concept of what sustainability is for the future of architecture, rather than what society tells me sustainability should be, I framed my argument around the four elements: air, water, fire and earth. As I dove into developing a program and designing structure and landscape, I used these elements as a framework, my own baseline for what good, comfortable, and environmentally responsible architecture should be. Master of Architecture How can I redefine conservation through site and architectural design? I’m going to test a new way to think about environmentally responsible design by designing an off-grid habitat and systems sensitive artists’ retreat in a place that not only has personal meaning to me, a popular getaway spot for Richmond, VA locals, but is currently under threat of 85,000 acres of groundwater-contaminating natural gas fracking in adjacent counties, a thousand acre nearby bald eagle habitat-destroying golf resort development, and irresponsible but difficult to change agricultural practices allowing rampant overgrowth of algae and bacteria severely undermining the health of the river’s ecosystem. The program I chose to investigate also has personal meaning to me, and is usually considered an unsustainable practice: ceramic art. I began learning ceramics my first semester of graduate school and quickly became hooked. However, I noticed many fossil fuel dependent energy and water-intensive practices that were considered quite normal at the studios I worked in at the time. However, the longer I was exposed to ceramics and the more studios I visited, I found more people that approached their making methodology through a conservational lens. They were able to teach me their methods and over time I learned how to properly reclaim clay and use limited and recycled water in the process of making pots and cleaning up the studio. There are still many more aspects of the art to study and perfect, some of which I begin to tackle in my thesis design. Merging the retreat nature of the site and its needs for an intervention to achieve a greater potential for human and environmental health, preserving and protecting the river for its beauty, health, retreat and recreational purposes, and my growing interest in the usually wasteful and environmentally irresponsible art form of ceramics-making launched a thesis level investigation into how to both live in a community that satisfies our basic needs as humans and make this type of art I’ve been drawn to recently in a responsible way.

What are the cords that connect us to what is not broken? One of the ways . . . is through the power of the word as invocation, through naming, and honouring, the living and the dead who came before us. Another way is by bringing our deities and cultural heroes to the stage, being inhabited by them, and becoming their reflections and manifestations. But this can’t be done in isolation. Creation stories are about transformation. . . . The transformative impulse does not come from individuals acting alone. It comes from building alliances, linking arms. It needs families, clans, Nations. It needs alliances across Nations. . . . It needs collaboration. —Monique Mojica (Kuna/Rappahannock) and Ric Knowles (5)

O N Monday, May 25, I772, a young African woman, one of many slaves aboard the Polly, stepped onto Virginia soil at Bermuda Hundred, a Chesterfield County village close to the confluence of theJames and Appomattox rivers. Perhaps she caught a glimpse of Shirley, the imposing brick manor house majestically sitting beyond the James. Would her fate fall there? she may have wondered. Had she arrived in Virginia a half century earlier, she would probably have landed at a wharf along the York River or the Rappahannock, perhaps destined to live the rest of her life in the tidewater region. But in the years after I750 most Africans brought to Virginia were taken up the James to be sold at ports like Bermuda Hundred. Most were then marched into the interior, where planters eagerly sought their labor on newly settled piedmont plantations and quarters. In this regard, the fate of this African woman was typical. No doubt, many planters and merchants were drawn to Bermuda Hundred on May 25 by newspaper notices advertising the Polly's 450 "fine healthy SLAVES." Among them was Paul Carrington, holder of several local offices and a member of the House of Burgesses for Charlotte County. He bought 50 slaves with intent to resell them in the Southside. As the king's attorney in several counties and a professional lawyer, Carrington traveled regularly in this rapidly expanding subregion. He must have been aware of the Southside's insatiable demand for labor. Perhaps he also found encouragement in the slave prices. Richard Hanson, a Petersburg area merchant, expressed surprise at the owners of this consignment, Burnley and Braikenridge, "breaking the price so low ?6o and ?65 privilege . . . as the People expected to give ?65 to ?67.IO privilege.... They likewise abated ?3 pr inch in the small slaves." Nevertheless, "considering the sum large and a considerable risque in the health & life of the Slaves," Carrington took on three silent partners. With their financial support he could proceed more securely in the resale of his purchases. Carrington led the Africans to his plantation near the junction of the Roanoke and Little Roanoke rivers in southern Charlotte County. He ultimately kept only

Pugheaded fish exhibit anomalous bone structure, often characterized by a steep, bulging forehead and incomplete closure of the mouth. While the pughead deformity has been observed in many species of fish, thescientific literature contains no documented instances of pugheadedness in Blue Catfish Ictalurus furcatus. Pugheadedness is rare, particularly in tidal systems, and most recorded instances have been based on single specimens. We captured several pugheaded Blue Catfish (N = 18) in the tidal Rappahannock River in eastern Virginia, a tributary of the Chesapeake Bay. While Blue Catfish sampling was extensive in the James, Pamunkey, and Mattaponi rivers (N = 4,357 fish at 163 sites), pugheaded specimens were encountered at only six sampling sites within the upper tidal zone of the Rappahannock River, an area known to be susceptible to summertime hypoxia. We encountered pugheaded individuals at a higher rate than reported in most published studies, ranging between 1.89% and 3.68%, much higher than...

Since colonial times, anthropogenic effects have eroded Chesapeake Bay's health, resulting in an increase in the extent and severity of hypoxia (≤2 mg O2 l �1 ), adversely affecting community structure and secondary production of macrobenthos in the Bay and its tributaries. The influence of hypoxia on macrobenthic communities is well documented, but less well known is the regulatory effect of hypoxia on macrobenthic production. Changes in macrobenthic produc- tion were assessed in the lower Rappahannock River, a sub-estuary of Chesapeake Bay, in an area known to experience seasonal hypoxia. During the spring, summer, fall, and following spring of 2007 and 2008, 10 samples were collected each season for a total of 80 samples, and macrobenthic production was estimated using Edgar's allometric equation. Additionally, from early spring to late fall, dissolved oxygen concentrations were measured continuously at 2 of the 10 sites in 2007, and 2 of the 10 sites in 2008; in conjunction, the macrobenthic community was assessed through bi-weekly grab samples at these sites. Hypoxic sites had as much as 85% lower macrobenthic pro- duction compared to normoxic sites, and macrobenthic production at hypoxic sites was associated with primarily smaller, disturbance-related annelids. Macrobenthic production differed across seasons, and estimated sediment reworking rates were significantly higher during normoxia, indi- cating that the functional role of the macrobenthic community changed during hypoxia.

Aquatic resource surveys that span multiple decades provide valuable information about fish population responses to environmental and human-induced changes. Often, surveys are altered as scientific objectives change or in response to management needs. These modifications usually result in inconsistencies in the time series, which must be addressed for proper analysis of fish community data. Since 1997, juvenile fishes in Virginia tributaries of Chesapeake Bay have been captured monthly using a bottom trawl at both fixed and random sites. Previous surveys in these tributaries (1955–1996) were conducted at fixed sites only; thus, an understanding of the effect of this design change would allow us to infer fish community status through multiple decades. We compared samples from the fixed site design with those from the stratified random design in the James, York, and Rappahannock rivers and examined species composition, biodiversity, relative abundance estimates, and size distributions to understand...

Summary Most larger individuals of migratory striped bass Morone saxatilis from the two major Atlantic coast stocks, the Chesapeake Bay and Hudson River, appear to winter in mid-Atlantic coastal waters. But it is not known whether they exhibit differential wintertime distributions in accordance with the latitudinal differences in locations of these two estuaries. Mixed-stock analyses were conducted based on mitochondrial DNA and nuclear DNA genotypic frequencies on wintertime collections of striped bass from coastal waters. No significant differences (P > 0.05) were seen in the proportions of striped bass from the two stocks between collections made from the Delaware Bay mouth and Cape Hatteras in 1997. However, there was a substantially higher Hudson contribution to a 1995 collection from coastal New Jersey (0.349, SD = 0.136) than to the combined 1997 Delaware Bay mouth and Cape Hatteras collection (0.157, SD = 0.072), suggesting this question deserves further study. Additionally, use of the original four reference samples from Chesapeake Bay tributaries (Choptank, Potomac, Rappahannock, Upper Bay) proved adequate alone in characterizing the Chesapeake Bay stock in simulations in which additional tributary collections (Nanticoke, Patuxent, Pocomoke) were added.

A new species of Neophylax, Neophylax virginica Flint, is described from several sites along the Potomac, Shenandoah and Rappahannock Rivers in Northern Virginia. It is closely related to Neophylax stolus Ross, Neophylax acutus Vinyard and Wiggins, Neophylax ayanus Ross, and Neophylax Ottawa Vineyard and Wiggins, differing in characteristics of the male and female genitalia, which are illustrated. A phylogram of the Neophylax ayanus species group based on COI data is included.

Recent assessments of American shad Alosa sapidissima have used stock-specific maturity schedules in biomass-per-recruit models to establish benchmark total mortality rates for management. Because stocks of American shad are managed separately, an appropriate maturity schedule for each stock is required. Additionally, projections of adult biomass require knowledge about year-class strength and the maturation process. Changes in age at maturity can occur when strong year-classes enter the spawning stock; such changes may affect stock assessment models and management decisions. Maturity schedules may also change due to fishing or other external factors. If stock-specific maturity patterns exist, then identical fishery regulations could have different impacts on neighboring stocks. Most American shad matured by age 5 in this study, with year-class-specific estimates of the percentage mature ranging from 46% to 80% in the James River, 58% to 79% in the Rappahannock River, and 49% to 82% in the York R...

The Chesapeake Bay (CB) is the largest estuary in North America and has been listed as impaired under the Clean Water Act since 1998. Deteriorating water conditions are largely due to contaminants carried into the Bay by the many tributaries in the CB watershed. The Earth System Science Interdisciplinary Center of the University of Maryland at College Park is developing a Chesapeake Bay Forecast System (CBFS) to provide regional Earth System predictions for the Chesapeake Bay watershed. SWAT is utilized as the land module of CBFS to simulate the hydrology and water quality of the prominent tributaries in the CB watershed. This aticle reports the model configuration as well as calibration and validation results for Rappahannock, one of the major CB river basins. The complete configuration of the model involved the following steps: watershed delineation and the establishment of hydrologic response units, sensitivity analysis, balancing water budget, adjusting crop yields, balancing flow partition, manual and auto-calibration, and validation. The simulated quantities include daily average streamflow and daily loadings of sediment, nitrate, and phosphate. The calibration NSE for the four variables were, respectively, 0.73, 0.63, 0.52, and 0.50 which met a set of stringent evaluation criteria set forth by Moriasi et al. (2007) as being good or satisfactory simulations. NSE measures how well the plot of observed versus simulated data fits the 1:1 line and a value of 1 indicates a perfect simulation. The calibration results also satisfied the other evaluation criteria used in this study with the exception of large uncertainty in phosphate load. Validation of streamflow and nitrate load also met all the evaluation criteria including NSE being 0.70 and 0.61, respectively. The validation results for sediment and phosphate loads were considered unsatisfactory with NSE being 0.25 and 0.19. The model statistics were compared to those of the Chesapeake Bay Program Watershed Model and showed strength in the simulations of Rappahannock River streamflow, sediment load, and nitrate load. The Rappahannock SWAT model currently produces routine 14-day ensemble forecasts of daily flow and loadings of sediment, nitrate and phosphate in an automated system. Four thresholds were used to compute the ETS skill score of the Rappahannock streamflow forecast: 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, and 2.0 times of the average daily flow. The ETS skill scores of the first day forecast were 0.75, 0.56, 0.52, and 0.41, respectively, for the four thresholds. They remain around or above 0.4 up to 14, 8, 7, and 5 days lead time in the four cases. The ETS scores reveal that the model has good forecast skill for base flow and noticeable skill for event flow. The forecast skill remains visible for at least 2 weeks for base flow and at least 5 days for the event flow thresholds used in this study.

New species of shore flies (Diptera: Ephydridae) from the Delmarva States are described, and taxonomic clarifications are made. The six new species are (type locality in parentheses): Discocerina delmarva (Virginia. Stafford: Aquia Harbour, Lions Park), Hydrochasma aquia (Virginia. Stafford: Aquia Harbour, Lions Park), Hydrochasma avanae (Utah. Grand: Swasey Beach (N Green River; shore of Green River; 1255 m), Hydrochasma garvinorum (Virginia. Rappahannock: Hazel River (NW Culpeper; 171 m)), Allotrichoma deonieri (Virginia. Spotsylvania: Rappahannock River), and Hydrellia toma (Virginia. Fairfax: Great Falls (Clay Pond)). The taxonomic changes are as follows: Psilopa obscuripes Loew is the correct name for “P. compta” of New World authors, nec Meigen; Discocerina parva Loew is confirmed as a junior synonym of Discocerina obscurella (Fallen), and the identification of the latter species is clarified with detailed illustrations and description of structures of the male terminalia.

Summary Serum transferrin distribution was studied in 128 spot, Leiostomus xanthurus, obtained from the lower Rappahannock River of Virginia. Three phenotypes designated as TfA, TfB and TfAB were observed. These are described as representing two codominant alleles at a single gene locus. Phenotypic distribution did not differ significantly from that predicted by Hardy-Weinberg analysis.

A program for restoration of the public oyster grounds at the mouth of the Rappahannock River was initiated by the Commonwealth of Virginia in 2000. Responding to pressure from harvesters, the state developed a management strategy that allows commercial harvest from some of these grounds while maintaining the development of a potentially disease tolerant broodstock population in nonharvested sanctuaries. To assess this management plan, a STELLA model of the oyster fishery that links the biological system, the state management program and harvest effort was developed. The model portrays one area open to harvest once every three years. One sector of the model shows the effects of the state's program of enhancing natural productivity by shelling and maintaining sanctuaries of broodstock oysters. High natural mortality rates caused by disease and predation are shown to severely reduce the number of juveniles that reach maturity in the population growth sector. In the harvest sector, one half of the m...

Species of the shore-fly genus Hecamedoides Hendel from the Nearctic Region are revised, including description of H. lattini, new species (Virginia. Stafford: Falmouth (38°19.2′N, 77°28.1′W; Rappahannock River; 9 m). To provide context and also to facilitate identification, diagnoses are provided for the tribe Discocerinini and genus in addition to a key to the genera and species, H. lattini and H. unispinosus, occurring in the New World. Diagnostic characters, especially of the male terminalia, are illustrated, and distribution maps are also provided.

Soil erosion is a serious problem in areas with expanding construction, agricultural production, and improper storm water management. It is important to understand the major processes affecting sediment delivery to surficial water bodies in order to tailor effective mitigation and outreach activities. This study analyzes how naturally occurring and anthropogenic influences, such as urbanization and soil disturbance on steep slopes, are reflected in the amount of soil erosion and sediment delivery within sub-watershed-sized areas. In this study, two sub-watersheds of the Rappahannock River, Horsepen Run and Little Falls Run, were analyzed using the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) and a sediment delivery ratio (SDR) to estimate annual sediment flux rates. The RUSLE/SDR analyses for Horsepen Run and Little Falls Run predicted 298 Mg/y and 234 Mg/y, respectively, but nearly identical per-unit-area sediment flux rates of 0.15 Mg/ha/y and 0.18 Mg/ha/y. Suspended sediment sampling indicated greater amounts of sediment in Little Falls Run, which is most likely due to anthropogenic influences. Field analyses also suggest that all-terrain vehicle crossings represent the majority of sediment flux derived from forested areas of Horsepen Run. The combined RUSLE/SDR and field sampling data indicate that small-scale anthropogenic disturbances (ATV trails and construction sites) play a major role in overall sediment flux rates for both basins and that these sites must be properly accounted for when evaluating sediment flux rates at a sub-watershed scale.

We compared the distribution and nutrient status of native haplotype F ofPhragmites australis along the freshwater to mesohaline tidal marsh gradient of the Rappahannock River, Virginia, for comparison with the nonnative, invasive haploty M. Using GIS analysis of aerial photography and GPS-based ground truthing, we identified 55 separate clones of native haplotype F comprising a total of 3.68 ha (range 0.002–0.734 ha), all found in tidal wetlands where surface water salinity was 0 psu. We identified 219 separate clones of the invasive haplotype M covering 68.3 ha along the same stretch of river (range 0.004–11.86 ha), found in wetlands where salinity ranged from 0 to 11 psu. From 15 separate clones for each haplotype, average carbon content in leaves of the native was significantly higher than the invasive (43.90±0.08% versus 42.82±0.15%, F1,28=20.938, p

We tested the hypothesis that the physical and chemical processes acting in sea grass habitats of the lower Chesapeake Bay are spatially structured and that dissolved elemental chemistry of sea grass-habitat surface waters have their own unique identity. We sampled surface waters from July to September 2001 in five sea grass habitats of the lower bay: Potomac, Rappahannock, York, Island (Tangier-Bloodsworth), and Eastern Shore. Dissolved Mg, Mn, Sr, and Ba concentrations were measured by sector field inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry. As expected, Mg, Sr, and Ba exhibited conservative behavior, but Mn exhibited nonconservative behavior along the salinity gradient. Spatial differences in the chemistry of surface waters over sea grass habitats were fully resolvable independently of time. Moreover, classification accuracy of water samples was low in Rappahannock, moderate in Potomac and Eastern Shore, and high in the York and Island habitats. The chemistry of York was distinct because of the effects of physical mixing, whereas Island chemistry was unique, potentially because of the influence of Coriolis acceleration and river discharges from the Susquehanna River. The results of this study show that sites so close to one another in physical space maintain distinct chemical differences.

A depletion electrofishing study was conducted on two Virginia rivers to estimate the density and biomass of smallmouth bass Micropterus dolomieu. Population estimates generated by a maximum likelihood analysis (MLM) were compared with those derived by the Leslie method. Also, population size structures from depletion samples were compared with those from single-pass surveys. Adult smallmouth bass were successfully depleted in three to five runs at most sites, and estimates averaged 386/km (SE = 132) and 47/ha (SE = 17) on the Rappahannock River and 265/km (SE = 90) and 38/ha (SE = 20) on the James River. Age-0 population estimates averaged 221/km (SE = 60) and 28/ha (SE = 14) on the Rappahannock River and 248/km (SE = 88) and 31/ha (SE = 14) on the James River. Capture probability was highest (mean = 0.40) for adult bass on the Rappahannock River and lowest (mean = 0.17) for age-0 bass on the James River. Population estimates based on the Leslie method, which regressed catch per effort on cumula...

To determine if natural populations of the eastern oyster possess resistance to Perkinsus marinus, progeny representing several oyster stocks from the Chesapeake Bay and the Gulf of Mexico were deployed at two sites within the Chesapeake Bay. Mortality, P. marinus infection (prevalence and intensity), shell height, condition index, and energy reserves (glycogen, protein, and lipid) were compared between these stocks. Oyster stocks from the Chesapeake Bay had higher intensities of Dermo infection than Louisiana stocks, with differences among individual stocks. Throughout the 2-y study, a natural Dermo-resistant stock from Tangier Sound (CTS), was identified. Despite infection intensities approaching those of a susceptible Rappahannock River stock (CRB) and higher than a Gulf of Mexico stock (LOB), CTS consistently had lower mortality for the 2-y grow out, and was comparable to a hatchery disease-resistant strain (XB). At a site (Port Kinsale) where the significant parasite was P. marinus, the LOB ...

The Brownie-type models for multiyear tagging studies allow the estimation of age-specific and year-specific total survival. An important assumption of these models is that the tagged cohorts are thoroughly mixed, or more specifically, that they have identical spatial distributions. We propose a chi-square test to assess the validity of this assumption and apply the method to striped bass tagging data from the Rappahannock River, Virginia. The current protocol for estimating striped bass survival involves fitting a suite of Brownie-type models to tag recovery data. Because moderate levels of nonmixing can induce significant bias, we examined tagging data for two size ranges of fish to determine if the well-mixed assumption was violated. We suggest that examining spatial patterns of recaptures should be a routine part of analyzing tagging data from multiyear studies. For the striped bass data, the analysis showed little evidence of assumption violation, but in some cases the power of the test was ...

Virginia's river fisheries for American shad have been under moratorium since 1994. The moratorium is partial since the three stocks (in the James, York, and Rappahannock rivers) are harvested to an unknown degree in an offshore mixed-stock fishery. Current research efforts have three objectives: (1) to determine current status of the stocks relative to historical levels, (2) to determine appropriate target catch-rate levels for restoration, and (3) to develop new assessment tools so that a future moratorium can be avoided. Current status is being evaluated by monitoring catch rate of commercial fishers who are paid to fish with historical methods in historical locations; the contemporary catch rates are compared to those recorded in logbooks completed voluntarily by fishers prior to the closure. We propose to define restoration targets in terms of historic catch rates recorded in logbooks. This requires determination of relative catching power of historic (multifilament) and modern (monofilament...

We examined associations between habitat variables and occurrence and density of alewife (Alosa pseudohareneus) and blueback herring (Alosa aestivalis) early egg stages (unfertilized and newly fertilized) in a tributary of the Rappahannock River, Virginia from February to May 1992. We looked for temporal associations between tidal condition, time of day, light intensity, and temperature and peaks in egg densities. Occurrences of alewife early egg stages were positively related to dissolved oxygen (7–12 mg/l) and velocity (3–20 cm/s), and peak densities were positively associated with peaks in water temperature (within the range of 4–19°C). Occurrences of blueback herring early egg stages were positively related to water temperature (14–22°C). There was no correlation between occurrences of early eggs of either species and tidal condition.

In the basement of the Central Rappahannock Regional Library headquarters in Fredericksburg, there is a minilibrary for very special patrons. This small but essential collection is tucked away in a corner of the lower level of the public library building. Occasionally someone who is looking for the law library or the Virginiana room wanders through the door expecting to see shelves of regular books. When they look up, their mouths usually drop open as they take in hundreds of shelves stacked high with thousands of blue boxes.

Hypoxia, even anoxia, has persisted during summer in the bottom water of the lower portion of the tidal Rappahannock River, a western shore tributary of Chesapeake Bay. A laterally integrated, two-dimensional, real-time model consisting of linked hydrodynamic and water quality models was developed and applied to the tidal Rappahannock River. The model was calibrated and verified using field data collected in 1987 and 1990. The model reproduced the observed hypoxia very well. The model was used to study the effects on hypoxia of the physical processes (gravitational circulation and vertical mixing), oxygen demand (both in sediment and water column), and the quality of incoming bay water. Sensitivity analysis using the model provided further insight to the understanding of the processes contributing to hypoxia. This paper presents the model application with emphasis on the sensitivity analysis for hypoxia.

Long-term trends in macrobenthic communities of the lower Chesapeake Bay, USA, were examined using data collected quarterly (March, June, September and December) from 1985 to 1991 at 16 stations along a salinity gradient from tidal freshwater regions of the major tributaries (James, York and Rappahannock rivers) to the polyhaline region of the main-stem of Chesapeake Bay. A non-parametric trend analysis procedure was applied to five parameters characterizing macrobenthic community structure: community biomass, species richness, abundance of individuals, proportion of biomass composed of opportunistic species (opportunistic biomass composition) and proportion of biomass composed of equilibrium species (equilibrium biomass composition). For the parameters tested 36 trends were detected. For community biomass, five trends were significant; all had positive slopes and occurred in the James and York rivers. For species richness, six trends were significant; all had positive slopes with three trends in the James River, two trends in the York River and one trend in the main-stem of Chesapeake Bay. For abundance of individuals, 17 trends were detected; all abundance trends were seasonally dependent, had positive slopes and occurred at 12 of the 16 stations. For opportunistic biomass composition, four trends were significant; all had positive slopes with one trend in the lower Rappahannock River and three trends in the main-stem of Chesapeake Bay. For equilibrium biomass composition four trends were significant; two trends had positive slopes (one in the James River and one in the York River) and two trends had negative slopes (one in the Rappahannock River and one in the main-stem of Chesapeake Bay). Trends in the James and York rivers were considered to indicate improving conditions for the benthos, while trends in the lower Rappahannock River and the main-stem of the Chesapeake Bay were considered to indicate deteriorating conditions. Deteriorating conditions for the benthos were associated with regions exposed to summer, low dissolved oxygen events. The trends in the indicators of benthic biological community health were inferentially related to trends observed in water quality conditions in the tributaries and main-stem of Chesapeake Bay. All major water quality and biotic trends appeared to correspond in an ecologically meaningful manner.

What do the Civil War battles of Fredericksburg and Gettysburg have to do with the Art of War , the military strategy treatise written by ancient Chinese general Sun Tzu (ca. 544 – ca. 496 BC)? Very much, in fact. The Art of War’s timeless advice and principles can explain the results of battles and entire wars in every historical period, including the 19th century. The unorthodox way of war advocated therein allowed Sun Tzu, the commander of the army of Wu, to defeat a much larger army of the neighboring state of Chu, but due to a lack of English translation until 1910 was unknown to the English-speaking world, including Generals Ambrose Burnside and Robert Lee, who, ignorant of its sage advice, made catastrophic blunders at Fredericksburg and Gettysburg, respectively. Burnside attempted a rapid crossing of the Rappahannock river at Fredericksburg, but pontoon bridges did not arrive in time, so the element of surprise was lost, and even when they did, he hesitated to cross until December 1862 when Confederates had already dug themselves in at Marye’s Heights; he sent his men like swarming ants towards the Confederate trenches on the heights, losing thousands of them. Lee evidently didn’t learn from his enemy’s mistakes and repeated them at Gettysburg in July 1863. Although no river crossing was involved, Lee wrongly abandoned his original plan to capture Harrisburg and Camp Curtin (which would have been a huge prestigeous blow to President Lincoln and might have encouraged a European recognition of the Confederacy) and, upon hearing that Union divisions were at Gettysburg, he moved his entire army there. At Gettysburg, he first issued unclear orders to subordinate Gen. Richard Ewell, then, the next day, clarified these by ordering multiple suicidal assaults on fortified Union positions on Cemetery Ridge. Sun Tzu counseled against attacking an enemy’s strong positions and especially against charging uphill to attack. He also stressed the importance of clarity of orders and of not trying the same type of attack over and over again. As Burnside’s and Lee’s examples show, generals who ignore Sun Tzu’s advice do so at their own peril.

Restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) analysis of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) was used to characterize stocks of striped bass Morone saxatilis and to estimate their relative contributions during the fall of 1989 to the mixed coastal fishery at eastern Long Island, New York. Mitochondrial DNA was obtained from reference samples of striped bass collected during the spring of 1989 from the Hudson River, New York, and four spawning areas of the Chesapeake Bay (Choptank, Rappahannock, and Potomac rivers and the upper Chesapeake Bay). Five mtDNA major length genotypes were detected in these fish, and significant differences in their frequencies were observed between the Hudson River and Chesapeake Bay samples. An mtDNA minor length genotype found in some fish (13%) from the Chesapeake Bay and absent from all Hudson River samples provided a second discriminatory character. By using a constrained generalized least squares approach, we estimated that the Hudson River and Chesapeake Bay stocks cont...

A Lagrangian time-series study of egg abundances of striped bass Morone saxatilis in the Pamunkey River in 1987 yielded mortality estimates of 10–91%/d. Mean daily mortality (68%/d) was incorporated into a model used to estimate annual egg production and female biomass from results of ichthyoplankton surveys conducted on Virginia spawning grounds in the Mattaponi River (1980), Pamunkey River (1980, 1983–1985, 1988–1989), Rappahannock River (1982–1983), and James River (1981, 1983). Annual egg production varied from 2.77 × 108 eggs in the Mattaponi River in 1980 to 2.69 × 109 eggs in the Pamunkey River in 1988. Results of contemporaneous surveys in 1983 indicated that egg production and biomass estimates were greatest on the Rappahannock and James rivers. Egg production estimates in Virginia are comparable to estimates for the upper Chesapeake Bay region and North Carolina. Our results indicate that an order-of-magnitude increase in female biomass was required to deposit the number of eggs observe...

Low impact development (LID) is increasingly becoming an important option/alternative to be evaluated during the stormwater management planning process. An excellent example of the integration of LID into a stormwater master plan is the Celebrate Virginia North project; one of the first large-scale LID implementation projects in Virginia. The stormwater planning phase included extensive coordination between WEG, the client (Silver Company), the regulatory agencies, the locality, and interested stakeholders (Friends of the Rappahannock) in evaluating the potential direct and indirect impacts to the aquatic environment. We are presenting not only the consultant perspective of this project, but also that of the client, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), and Friends of the Rappahannock

The Atlantic slope region of the northeastern US stretches from the Penobscot River in northern Maine to the Rappahannock River on the lower Chesapeake Bay. This chapter discusses five large river basins in the Atlantic US–Northeast region: the Penobscot, Connecticut, Hudson, Delaware, and Susquehanna. The chapter gives a brief overview of the physiography, climate, and land use; geomorphology, hydrology, and river chemistry; and river diversity and ecology of the five river basins. The Atlantic drainage of the northeastern US is physiographically and climatically diverse. There are ten terrestrial ecoregions in the Atlantic US–Northeast region. These regions also show great biological diversity. Human impacts and special features of the rivers are also discussed. The rivers played important roles in the European colonization of North America and the establishment of the US. These rivers served as economic, transportation, and communication conduits.

The environs of Fredericksburg, Virginia, were a major theatre of operations in the American Civil War (1861–1865) beginning with the Battle of Fredericksburg in December 1862. Fredericksburg, located on the Rappahannock River at the Fall Line, was a key obstacle to Union advances on Richmond, the Confederate capital. The battlefield comprised river terraces and gentle slopes with parallel north-south ridges providing structural boundaries on either side. The Confederates exploited the natural barrier of the river and river terraces, which impeded the Union river crossing, while occupying a defensive position on high ground. Tactical advantages were also obtained from obstacles including a major road, a railroad embankment, bogs, dense woods, and stone walls and fences. The Union Army advanced uphill through these obstacles with little cover in their unsuccessful attempts to dislodge the Confederates. Effective use of terrain coupled with high quality leadership thus enabled Confederate forces to defeat their opponents at the Battle of Fredericksburg. This in turn helped to postpone Union capture of Richmond for nearly three years.

This study examines the ebb and flow of social, economic, and political currents on Virginia's Northern Neck—the peninsula bounded by the Potomac River to the north and the Rappahannock River to th...

In this essay, three lines of evidence are developed that sturgeons in the Chesapeake Bay and elsewhere areunusually sensitive to hypoxic conditions: 1. In comparison to other fishes, sturgeons have a limitedbehavioral and physiological capacity to respond to hypoxia. Basal metabolism, growth, and consumptionare quite sensitive to changes in oxygen level, which may indicate a relatively poor ability by sturgeons tooxyregulate. 2. During summertime, temperatures >20 C amplify the effect of hypoxia on sturgeons andother fishes due to a temperature*oxygen "squeeze" (Coutant 1987)- In bottom waters, this interactionresults in substantial reduction of habitat; in dry years, nursery habitats in the Chesapeake Bay may beparticularly reduced or even eliminated. 3. While evidence for population level effects by hypoxia are circumstantial, there are corresponding trends between the absence of Atlantic sturgeon reproduction in estuaries like the Chesapeake Bay where summertime hypoxia predominates on a system-wide scale. Also, the recent and dramatic recovery of shortnose sturgeon in the Hudson River (4-fold increase in abundance from 1980 to 1995) may have been stimulated by improvement of a large portion of the nursery habitat thatwas restored from hypoxia to normoxia during the period 1973-1978. (PDF contains 26 pages) University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science. Chesapeake Biological Laboratory

In the Chesapeake Bay watershed, various endeavours such as the inter-state agreements and Chesapeake 2000 agreement have been implemented to improve water quality and ecological conditions, and have produced mixed results at best in various tributaries. So as to evaluate the management efforts on ecological conditions in the Rappahannock River watershed, we analysed the long-term variability in land use, nutrient content and ecological biotic metrics. It appears that the inter-annual variability in nutrient loadings and concentrations is largely influenced by changes in urbanisation and climate. Significant increases in urban development (35%) and population growth have exacerbated both point and non-point nutrient pollution in the Rappahannock River. The comparatively low N : P ratio in the tidal zone, with respect to the non-tidal zone, may be due to salinity-induced P leaching from sediments regulating the water quality along the river–estuary continuum. In addition, inter-annual variability in ecological biotic metrics demonstrates degrading ecological conditions in the Rappahannock River watershed, which are primarily due to increasing watershed urbanisation driving high nutrient loadings and altered nutrient stoichiometry.