The On-Line Marsh Wren

Membership Meeting

Our summer meeting, open to all, will be held at 7:45 p.m., Wednesday, September 7, 2005, at the Huntley Meadows Park Visitors Center located off Lockheed Boulevard south of Alexandria (phone 703 768-2525).

TOPIC:	The Potomac Gorge
SPEAKER:	Ms. Mary Travaglini

Potomac Gorge - photo by M. Travaglini

The Potomac Gorge, from Great Falls to Georgetown, is one of the most biologically significant natural areas in the eastern United States. The site harbors more than 400 occurrences of 200 rare plant species and communities, a major river system with numerous tributaries, noteworthy stands of upland forest, seeps and springs that contain rare groundwater organisms, and abundant wetlands. Mary Travaglini, with The Nature Conservancy, will share images and information about this nationally significant area upriver from Dyke Marsh. Ms. Travaglini was hired as the Potomac Gorge Habitat Restoration Manager in October 2004. She focuses on invasive species control and rare groundwater invertebrate habitat restoration in the Gorge in cooperation with the National Park Service.

Three Dyke Marsh Projects Scheduled

The Marsh Wren asked personnel of the National Park Service the schedules of the three major projects involving Dyke Marsh and received the following information.

Boardwalk damage Boardwalk. Reconstruction of the Boardwalk destroyed by the 2003 hurricane Isabel is scheduled to start work in the first week of September and will last four to six weeks.

Marina Study. The Environmental Assessment (EA) of the Belle Haven Marina will be ready for public hearing and comment in October.

Marsh Restoration. In the Proposed Restoration of Dyke Marsh, The George Washington Memorial Parkway has requested $500,000 in the FY 2007 budget for a full-fledged Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on this proposed project.

Friends of Dyke Marsh Retreat

Clockwise around the table: Board Members Sandy Spencer, Frank McKenna, Georg Morduch, Dorothy McManus, David Johnston, Glenda Booth, Ed Risley, Jeb Byrne. Board Member Tony Morris took the photo

On a beautiful day in May, the Board of Directors of the Friends held a long-planned formal retreat, to review our role and purpose as we approach our 30^th anniversary in 2006. We looked at our By-Laws and other documents, and we discussed a long list of what we are about-–including notably advocacy for preservation and restoration of the Marsh; preservation of Dyke Marsh; education; monitoring ecosystem components of the Marsh and supporting research; influencing public policy for environmental issues; partnerships with other organizations and broadening our membership base–and others. We talked about how we can increase our voice and impact–our sponsorship of a video, discussed elsewhere in this issue of the Wren, came from this discussion. We spent an hour with Superintendent Audrey Calhoun in a frank and wide-ranging discussion about our role, different than that of the NPS, and about the Marina and its use.

The Friends named committees for its activities, and we invite you to call or email us, to offer your help or to participate. Our phone numbers and email addresses are on the Contact Us page of this website:

Conservation Action/ Government and Press Liaison
    Members: Jeb Byrne, Glenda Booth
Bird Studies
    Members: Kurt Gaskill, Larry Cartwright, Sandy Spencer
Communications / Programs / Calendar
    Members: Dorothy McManus, Duncan Hobart
Membership and Community Service
    Members: Tony Morris
Financial and Legal Affairs
    Members: Georg Morduch, Frank McKenna
Research
    Members: David Johnston, Kurt Gaskill

You will be hearing from us! We’d like to hear from you!

Dyke Marsh Video

The Board of Directors of the Friends of Dyke Marsh has approved the making of a 30-minute digital video film on the preservation of the Marsh. The Friends have hired Dave Eckert, a local environmental film maker to produce the film. Filming has already started with the completion scheduled for March, 2006. You can read more about the Dyke Marsh Video on News - page 2.

Mississippi Kite Sightings in Waynewood