Rappahannock Working Land and Seascapes

A team of terrestrial and marine scientists from the Smithsonian with expertise spanning from the Blue Ridge Mountains to the Chesapeake Bay

Introduction to the Rappahannock

Understanding the value of one of the Chesapeake's largest tributaries

The Rappahannock River is one of the major tributaries of the Chesapeake Bay (whose watershed is filled in blue here). The Chesapeake Bay is the largest  estuary    in the United States and its watershed is enormous, covering over 64,000 square miles. More than 18 million people call this region home.

Sunrise over the Chesapeake Bay

The actions of these 18 million folks have great potential to impact the health of the Bay and its tributaries. In fact, there are 14 square miles of land for every square mile of water in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, which makes understanding land use in this region critical to improving the health of the Bay and its tributaries.

The Rappahannock River, whose upper and lower watersheds are outlined here in turquoise, runs approximately 195 miles through Virginia from the Blue Ridge Mountains in the West to the Chesapeake Bay in the East.

The Rappahannock River near Fredericksburg

The Rappahannock River is named for the  Rappahannock tribe , who still call the river basin home today. Rappahannock loosely translates to "the place where water rises and falls." During the Civil War, the Rappahannock River served as a de facto border between the North and the South. Over the course of the Battle of Fredericksburg in 1862, about 10,000 enslaved people escaped north across the river to find freedom.

In addition to its cultural value, the Rappahannock River contributes a significant amount of economic and ecological value to the region. The seafood industry has shaped the economies of many towns along the river, and tourism and recreation are also large sources of income; recreational fishing, hunting, kayaking, and hiking are all common activities in and around the river basin.

is one of the oldest traditions of the seafood industry in the Rappahannock River. Oysters can be either retrieved from existing reefs or farmed, a process called . Besides their economic benefit, oysters have ecological value.

First of all, they are filter feeders, which means they remove particles from the water for nutrition. In doing so, oysters remove pollutants from the water, improving water quality nearby. Oyster reefs also provide habitat for over 300 species of other organisms, including fish, crabs, and more.

The Rappahannock watershed is home to a variety of people and land uses. By clicking on the legend in the lower left corner, you can see which land use type is most common in different areas. Feel free to zoom in to get a more detailed view.

Farming is common along the shores of the Rappahannock

For example, at the river's headwaters, the land is mostly forested (shown here in dark green). The large patch of forest that contains much of the headwaters is Shenandoah National Park (outlined here in pink).

Shenandoah National Park

As the river flows toward the Bay, it flows through more varied types of land use. The gray (developed land) on the left side of the map shows the city of Fredericksburg and the surrounding suburbs, where there is an increased population density and amount of impervious surfaces and manicured lawns as compared to the headwaters.

This amount of paved surface make it difficult for the land to reabsorb pollutants from the city before they runoff into the Rappahannock River or its tributaries.

The yellow areas on the delineate agricultural land. Notice that much of the river bank in this area is agricultural, with little buffer between cropland/pastures and the river. As a result, pollutants such as animal manure and plant pesticides can be washed directly into the river when it rains. If you follow the Rappahannock all the way to , you will notice that agriculture is the primary use for most of the land right on the river.

What happens on land has a direct impact on the aquatic ecosystems of the Rappahannock River. Though oysters in and are able to filter some pollutants out of the water, they can only tolerate so much before they begin to die off.

When oyster reefs die off, other species, like fish and crabs, lose valuable habitat, threatening their populations.

High levels of sediment and nutrients in the river can suffocate oysters (and other aquatic organisms, like , which make up another important river habitat) and make them more vulnerable to disease. Thus, understanding and relating land use and river use is vital for the holistic conservation of the ecosystems in the Rappahannock watershed.

This variety of land use along one of the major Chesapeake Bay tributaries is one of the reasons why the Rappahannock Working Land and Seascapes team decided to work in the Rappahannock watershed. Below, you will learn a little bit more about the Working Land and Seascapes project.

Rappahannock Working Land & Seascapes

Collaborative science to support the Rappahannock watershed

Rappahannock Working Land & Seascapes (WLS) is a recently piloted subproject of the Smithsonian's Working Land & Seascapes project. The Rappahannock WLS team is made up of a diverse range of scientists with expertise on the land and in the waters of the Rappahannock watershed - from the Blue Ridge Mountains to the Chesapeake Bay. One of the main goals of the broader WLS initiative is to unite terrestrial and marine scientists on projects that bridge the ridge-to-reef interface. This interdisciplinary approach helps inform game-changing environmental practices and empower effective conservation actions.

"The Rappahannock Working Land and Seascapes project aims to examine how land use change influences biodiversity and ecosystem services on the land and in the water within the Rappahannock Watershed. A primary goal is to identify species such as native plants, birds, and migratory fish that may be indicators of these effects. We aim to achieve our goals by facilitating a network of stakeholders across the watershed to synthesize data that fills current knowledge gaps. We will work together with the community to prioritize conservation needs, co-design scientific research to address knowledge gaps, and ensure accessibility of resources and results."

Rappahannock WLS envisions a future for the Rappahannock Watershed in which stakeholders work together to understand and support healthy land and seascapes for the benefit of people and nature.

Rappahannock WLS goals are as follows:

  1. Prioritize mutual conservation needs, collaboratively design research, and share results with existing networks
  2. Examine how land use change influences biodiversity and ecosystem services 
  3. Develop indicators (e.g. plants, birds, and migratory fish) to track these influences

To meet these goals, Rappahannock WLS has prioritized the following actions:

In the short term:

In the long term:

A Wide Range of Scientific Expertise

One of the main goals of Smithsonian's Working Land & Seascapes is to convene terrestrial and marine scientists to collaborate on projects that bridge the ridge-to-reef space. In the graphic to the left, each subject area (oyster reefs, land use, bird diversity, etc.) represents the specialty of a scientist on the Rappahannock WLS team. Continue reading to explore the diverse set of research interests and scientific expertise guiding the Rappahannock WLS project.

Plant Diversity

Dr. Kimberly Komatsu Principal Investigator of the  Ecosystem Conservation Lab  at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center (SERC) Principal Investigator of Rappahannock WLS

Dr. Kim Komatsu leads the  Ecosystem Conservation Lab  at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center. The Ecosystem Conservation Lab investigates how ecosystems respond to human-caused global change drivers, such as climate change, nutrient pollution, and land use change. Their research focuses on working landscapes, such as rangeland, soybean cropping systems, and forest fragments in a human-dominated landscape, all of which provide valuable services to humans like food, carbon sequestration and storage, and habitat for many plants and animals. The Ecosystem Conservation Lab strives to incorporate collaborations with land managers and decision makers in their research from project inception, with the goal of developing science-driven solutions to environmental challenges.

Fish Populations & Oyster Reefs

Dr. Matthew Ogburn Principal Investigator of the  Fisheries Conservation Lab  at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center (SERC)

Dr. Matt Ogburn leads the  Fisheries Conservation Lab  at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center. The Fisheries Conservation Lab investigates the ecology, management, and conservation of ocean- and bay-based fisheries. Their research focuses on providing the best scientific information available to inform fisheries management and conservation decision-making at scales from local communities to global institutions. They do research to understand the structure and function of oyster reef ecosystems, evaluate the effects of restoration, and compare quality of oyster habitat in harvest areas and sanctuaries.

In addition, the Fisheries Conservation Lab is documenting the current status of migratory fish (specifically river herring and shad) in Chesapeake Bay tributaries and conducting studies to understand how land use affects their river habitat. The traditional migration of river herring and shad has been impeded by dam construction, and so the Fisheries Conservation Lab also monitors for the presence of these fish before and after dam removals, to understand if these restoration measures are successful. In the case of the Embrey Dam, which was removed from the Rappahannock River near Fredericksburg, removal of the dam resulted in the return of river herring and shad to much of the upper Rappahannock.

Bird Diversity

Dr. Amy Johnson Program Director of  Virginia Working Landscapes , a program of the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI)

Dr. Amy Johnson leads  Virginia Working Landscapes , (VWL), a program of the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute. VWL anchors its research regionally by conducting rigorous ecological research throughout a 16-county region in northern Virginia. With more than 80% of this region under private ownership, their team of scientists collaborates with private landowners and citizen scientists to carry out this research with a goal to better understand how land-use practices impact native biodiversity.

VWL’s current research focuses on grassland birds, native plant communities, pollinators and human dimensions of conservation. Research results are shared with partners throughout the region to help inform best management practices for biodiversity conservation

Land Use

Dr. Iara Lacher Previous Program Lead of  Changing Landscapes Initiative , a program of the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI)

Until early 2021, Dr. Iara Lacher led the  Changing Landscape Initiative,  a program now managed by Craig Fergus of the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute. Changing Landscape Initiative scientists worked alongside community members to evaluate the impacts of land use change on wildlife, ecosystems, and community health. Its mission was to combine research with community wisdom to help secure a vibrant and healthy future for people and wildlife and the data produced continue to be a valuable resource for communities in the watershed.

Since scientists working on the Rappahannock WLS project understand that land use affects plant diversity, which affects water quality, which affects fish populations, they are bringing scientific knowledge from all of those domains to work with conservation stakeholders in the Rappahannock watershed to empower their work on the ground and serve as a scientific resource for conservation action.

The Smithsonian has many resources that make it possible to investigate cutting-edge science. Through collaboration with conservation stakeholders and other Smithsonian scientists, these resources and advances in science can be utilized in the Rappahannock watershed for the benefit of people and nature.

The Working Land and Seascapes Model

Uniting scientists and stakeholders for conservation action

The Rappahannock Working Land and Seascapes Project lies under the umbrella of Smithsonian’s Working Land and Seascapes (WLS), which unites researchers from a spectrum of disciplines in order to integrate science and advanced research into conservation actions.

"Working Land and Seascapes is a network of individuals and institutions that share a vision for conservation science that recognizes humanity’s relationship to nature. As a pillar of the Smithsonian’s Conservation Commons, they spark ideas, forge partnerships, and share knowledge to tackle today’s biggest conservation and climate challenges on the world’s land and seascapes. They aim to foster healthy and productive landscapes and seascapes for the benefit of people and nature."

The crux of the Working Land and Seascapes model is connectivity:

  • Connecting conservation practitioners and decision makers to relevant science
  • Connecting human health and well-being with that of nature
  • Connecting scientists and ideas from many different disciplines and backgrounds

WLS supports fourteen conservation projects all across the globe - from the Chesapeake Bay to Myanmar. See where in the world WLS works in the embedded StoryMap below:

Learn more about the Working Land and Seascapes model at  their website .

Contact Information

Get in touch with Rappahannock WLS

Are you a conservation specialist in the Rappahannock watershed looking to collaborate? Are you just generally interested in the work that WLS does? Please feel free to reach out to our communication specialists.

For general or terrestrial-specific inquiries:

Meredith Hickman:  HickmanM@si.edu 

For marine-specific inquiries:

Julie Luecke:  LueckeJ@si.edu 

Attributions

All images free for commercial use from Pixabay unless specified below.

Content

Julie Luecke

WLS StoryMap

Smithsonian Working Land & Seascapes

Images

Cover Photo

Meredith Hickman

Oyster Reef

Allison Tracy

Rappahannock WLS Infographic

Meredith Hickman

Plant Diversity

Kim Komatsu

Dr. Kimberly Komatsu

Kim Komatsu

Fish Populations & Oyster Reefs

Allison Tracy

Dr. Matthew Ogburn

Matt Ogburn

Bird Diversity

VWL

Dr. Amy Johnson

Amy Johnson

Land Use

Ian McGregor

Dr. Iara Lacher

Iara Lacher

Sunrise over the Chesapeake Bay

The Rappahannock River near Fredericksburg

Farming is common along the shores of the Rappahannock

Shenandoah National Park

This amount of paved surface make it difficult for the land to reabsorb pollutants from the city before they runoff into the Rappahannock River or its tributaries.

When oyster reefs die off, other species, like fish and crabs, lose valuable habitat, threatening their populations.

Dr. Kimberly Komatsu Principal Investigator of the  Ecosystem Conservation Lab  at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center (SERC) Principal Investigator of Rappahannock WLS

Dr. Matthew Ogburn Principal Investigator of the  Fisheries Conservation Lab  at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center (SERC)

Dr. Amy Johnson Program Director of  Virginia Working Landscapes , a program of the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI)

Dr. Iara Lacher Previous Program Lead of  Changing Landscapes Initiative , a program of the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI)