Spring Pygmy Sunfish Group, And Finals Are Done

I've been invited to attend a working group meeting to review the status of the spring pygmy sunfish, Elassoma alabamae. This small, obligate spring fish was thought to be extinct from 1940 -- 1970s. Its known habitat was inundated by the construction of Pickwick Reservoir in NW Alabama as the result of dams on the Tennessee River. Since then, several isolated populations have been rediscovered in Lauderdale and Limestone counties, Alabama. One population lives on the Wheeler National Wildlife Refuge in Decatur, AL, and others are found in spring systems on private property. As with other spring species, it's extremely sensitive to alterations in water quality resulting from land use changes. The species has no formal protection, since landowners have largely managed their property to avoid harming the fish. But the fish is still hanging on by a thread with only 3 or 4 scattered populations. So, this meeting is meant to consolidate knowledge of the species and consider the optimal way to manage it. Attendees include the people from Conservation Fisheries, Inc., in Knoxville, TN, and researchers from Tuscaloosa like Mike Sandel and Bernie Kuhajda. I've encountered the species once, during my flame chub survey, at a well-known spring system in Limestone County.

And final exams are over. I gave four this week, including the Biology II section, since a colleague had to go to Mexico on a trip planned before we hired her. Giving the exam wasn't so much a big deal, but calculating and entering the final grades took several hours out of an otherwise busy week. I'm happy to say all of my grades were submitted on time, and I don't think any students were offended by their grades (at least not for good reason). Today I'm going in and making a last push on packing the teaching lab; it'll be moved on Monday, when I begin a week of jury duty. The way Alabama does jury duty it's like being drafted. Oh well, hopefully it will be no more than boring.