In the last mass research effort to find and save the endangered James Spinymussel, 380 person-hours over a one year period were spent looking for and researching a population that has declined by over 90% since 1988.
As of now, the graduate students are using small pit tags inside each mussel that emit a GPS signal to locate and track the movement of each mussel. However, the trees above the river interfere with the transmission of the tag signal, so any map displaying the “location” of the mussels is inaccurate. In addition, the last time rivers were accurately mapped was in the 1980’s. This means that more man-hours must be spent re-locating the tagged mussels.
Our plan is to correctly map and document shorelines, riverway boundaries, and riverbeds containing James Spinymussel’s using drone technology paired with georeferencing software. This will provide an accurate base map on which the tagged mussels can be plotted, and provide a basis for data collection regarding river erosion and riverbed changes and how it impacts mussel habitat and reproduction.
The first step into the physical field of study. With grad students as guides, we will be experiencing first hand where the Spinymussel’s live and where their populations thrive. We hope to discover the problems that will validate our solutions.