Alyssa Matanin

Think Southern Maryland

January 26, 2023 By Alyssa Matanin

Think Southern Maryland? Think big rivers, deep deciduous forests, abundant ecological services, and a rich cultural heritage.

Bounded on the west by the Potomac and on the east by the Chesapeake Bay, Southern Maryland is teeming with ecological diversity. The Patuxent, Maryland’s largest river with headwaters in the state, courses through the center of Southern Maryland, touching all five counties. Maryland’s first capital, St. Mary’s City, as well as its current capital, Annapolis, are located in Southern Maryland, so it’s no surprise that much of the early history of both the state and the country transpired in this region.

Early colonists settled in Southern Maryland for its temperate climate, rich farmland, and abundant access to waterways. However, the region’s history extends far before the arrival of colonists. The Piscataway Confederacy had already established villages and practiced a very sustainable form of agriculture that we could learn from today.

Maryland’s history is inextricably tied to its landscape. Naturally, so are its current culture and economy inseparably linked to the land. Southern Maryland’s waterways are ideal for boaters and fishermen. Its deciduous forests are the largest in the state, supporting a wide variety of wildlife, a timber harvest industry, and dozens of miles of hiking trails dotted throughout the region.

However, one of the most indispensable components of Southern Maryland’s landscape is also one of its most overlooked. The region’s “green infrastructure” provides critical ecological services for the benefit of all people. The forests, meadows, bogs, and marshes attenuate stormwater, soak up excess nutrients, store carbon, and provide habitat for the smallest to the largest animals in the region. According to Maryland Greenprint maps, this green infrastructure provides $1.74 billion per year in ecosystem services to Southern Maryland. Our working landscapes add $3.2 billion to the regional economy.

Unfortunately, this green infrastructure is growing dangerously thin, as hunters, fishermen, farmers, and land stewards can attest. Already, Maryland has seen extensive land loss from development, and the future land loss projections are similarly bleak. In 2022, the American Farmland Trust published a report titled “Farms Under Threat 2040,” which predicted the three most likely scenarios for future farmland conversion in the United States. For Southern Maryland, the numbers are shocking. With steady “business as usual” landscape conversion, the five county Southern Maryland region is projected to lose 40,500 acres of farmland to development by 2040. However, the most popular development trend of recent years has been a low density, single use zoning model known as urban sprawl. Should this trend continue, Southern Maryland’s landscape is at risk of succumbing to “runaway sprawl,” which could cost us 58,800 acres of farmland, according to AFT.

Land is a finite resource, and the green infrastructure provided by natural landscapes is not easily renewed. Once gone, replacing it becomes very expensive, if not impossible. To counteract development pressures and ensure our region’s most valuable green infrastructure is permanently protected, we need aggressive action from land conservationists. For this reason, the Southern Maryland Conservation Alliance (SMCA) was formed in 2021 to strengthen the efforts of conservation actors in the five-county Southern Maryland region. With more than 35 affiliate organizations, SMCA aims to not only ramp up the pace of land preservation in the region, but also redirect the conversation surrounding rural lands and their multifarious benefits.

With the Biden Administration’s goal to preserve 30% of the U.S.’ natural lands by 2030, this is a ripe opportunity to reimagine the way we interact with and relate to land. Rather than valuing land foremost for its development potential, SMCA hopes to reinforce the intrinsic value of natural landscapes to people, the economy, and wildlife. In order to achieve the ambitious land preservation goals defined for our state and our region, we must reframe the conversation to prioritize these values. This has been the first in a series of articles by SMCA about revisioning the future of rural lands in Southern Maryland. Let’s keep the conversation going in article 2, which will discuss the history of rural land use and landscape loss on the east coast.

The Secret Lives of Insects #9

September 23, 2021 By Alyssa Matanin

Brace Yourself. 'Arachtober' Is Just Around The Corner!

By Judy Ferris, Master Naturalist & Guest Blogger

October is just a few days away. Spider fanciers, rejoice! October (otherwise known as ‘Arachtober’) has been officially designated by spider enthusiasts as International Spider Month! In our blog so far, we have introduced only insects; critters with 3 body segments, 6 legs and antennae. Prepare to enter the amazing world of Arachnids!

Let’s get the technical stuff out of the way first. What is an arachnid? Any wingless, carnivorous arthropod having eight appendages and a body divided into two segments. Technically, the Arachnid family includes scorpions, mites, and Daddy Long Legs in addition to spiders. Today, however, let’s focus on spiders. Below you will find answers to those troubling spider questions that have festered in the back of your mind since childhood.

Check out the video below to see a Black and Yellow Garden Spider wrapping paralyzed prey. Video by Wildlife Protection Solutions – 1:41

Do all spiders bite?

All spiders have venom, but only a few are harmful to humans. Spider venom is administered via a bite and is used to paralyze prey before eating. Attacking humans, which are inedible for a spider, would be a waste of precious venom. Only two spiders in the U.S. have venom that can harm humans; the Black Widow and the Brown Recluse. Since the arrival of indoor plumbing and flush toilets, the incidence of Black Widow Spider bites in the U.S. has declined significantly. Why? Outhouses were the perfect hiding spot for Black Widows and their relatives. Today’s indoor bathrooms are not nearly so hospitable for arachnids.

How do spiders move their legs?

Amazing as it seems, spiders have no muscles to extend their legs! Though they have muscles which can flex the legs inward, spiders have no muscles to stretch their legs outward. Instead, they use hydrostatic pressure; pumping bodily fluids (hemolymph) into the legs to push them out. (Sensenig 2003)

A spider, by contracting its abdomen, can increase its hydrostatic pressure up to eight times its resting level in order to extend the legs. With a sudden increase in body pressure, some Jumping Spiders can jump up to 50 times their body length .
Never underestimate the power of hydrostatic pressure! Wolf Spiders can race at a speed up to 2 feet per second. (Iorio 2005)
A spider’s legs curl up when it dies because there is no fluid to extend them. (Morgan 2011)

How does a spider walk on walls and ceilings without falling off? How does it avoid sticking to its own web?

Most spiders have several claws at the tips of their legs. Web-building spiders, such as orb weavers, use these claws to swing from one part of the web to another without getting stuck on the web. The spider’s body is also coated with an oily substance that keeps it from sticking to the web. (Cimons 2010)

Spiders that chase down their prey have modified the claws into tufts. The ends of the tufts split into as many as 1000 bristles. The tufts get their grip through contacting minutely thin layers of water on surfaces. (Rupert, Fox, and Barnes 2004)
Spiders cannot get out of bathtubs because the surface is too slippery. Garden Spiders cannot crawl up walls because they have claws rather than bristles.

How do spiders eat?

Spiders are exclusively carnivores . Clearly, this is bad news for insects, other spiders, small lizards, and assorted tiny creatures.
Most spiders can digest only liquid food . Thus, prey must be liquefied (pre-digested) before it can be consumed. When prey is captured, the spider first bites its victim to inject paralyzing venom. Digestion begins when the spider spits up a drop of digestive fluid from its intestinal tract and places it upon the hapless prey. After a few moments of marination, the liquid begins to dissolve the prey. The spider simply sucks up the goo. Spit, suck, and repeat until the victim is an empty husk. An arachnid gourmet feast!

How does a spider sense what‘s going on around it?

Spiders experience the world in a completely different way than we humans do. Imagine having not 2, but 8 eyes, being able to smell and taste with your legs, and having ears all over your body!

Most spiders have 8 eyes, arranged in various patterns on their heads. The majority of spiders, however, are very near-sighted. Acute vision is not important to web-building spiders who simply wait for prey to come to them. Spiders who actively hunt prey, however, may have excellent vision.

Lacking good vision, spiders have other ways to monitor their surroundings. They can ‘taste’ and even ‘smell’ with their legs, which are equipped with special hairs and sensory organs.
Spiders ‘hear’ an approaching insect with special vibration-sensing hairs and tiny slits found on much of their legs and body. Vibrations are big in the spider world. A web-building spider, for example, hiding in wait, can distinguish between different types of prey hitting their webs. A bee, a moth and a fly each make a unique vibration when contacting a web.

Do all spiders make webs?

All spiders produce silk, but only about half create webs. Spiders are equipped with an array of spinnerets with thousands of spigots. Together, the spinnerets pump out various kinds of silk depending on the purpose for which it will be used. Silk ranges from sticky stuff used to wrap prey, to extremely strong threads used to support webs.

Watch an Orb Weaver Spider build a web in this gorgeous video from BBC – 4 minutes.

- Spiders are able to produce 7 different types of silk, but no one species produces all seven silk varieties.
- A single strand of spider silk long enough to encircle the earth would weigh slightly over a pound. (Twila 2017)
- Spider silk used in webs is five times stronger than the same thickness of a strand of steel.
- A web of spider strands as thick as a pencil could stop a Boeing 747 in flight. (Kelley 2008)
- The Darwin Spider creates giant webs that span rivers and streams. The support strands are 10 times stronger than Kevlar. (Choi 2010)
- Many spiders, including orb weavers such as our common Black and Yellow Garden Spider, eat their webs every night and reuse the same material to build them the next morning.
- Hundreds of years ago, people used spider webs to cover wounds, believing that it would help staunch the bleeding. Today we know that spider silk contains vitamin K, a blood clotting agent.

How many spiders are there on earth?

Scientists estimate that an average acre of land on planet Earth is home to 1 million spiders. The number may be closer to 3 million in the tropics.
45,000 spider species have been identified. Many more species remain undiscovered.
Spiders are present on every continent except Antarctica and are found in all habitats; snow-capped peaks at 11,000 feet, beneath the surface of water, in caves, deserts, and yes, even in your home!
It is estimated that at any given time no human on the planet is more than 10 feet from a spider. Ever!

By now you may be nervously wondering “What predators eat spiders?”

If you are a spider, peril lurks in every direction.
Danger can come out of the sky in the form of a bird. Carolina Wrens, for example are particularly fond of spiders and may often be seen patrolling the exterior of your house for tasty spiders.
Amphibians and reptiles help control spider populations. Lizards in particular are voracious eaters of spiders and can eradicate them in a controlled environment.

Some wasp species rely on spiders to serve as hosts for their larvae. Mud dauber wasps prowl insect-rich areas such as your flower garden, specifically in search of spiders. Once a spider is found, the wasp administers a paralyzing sting which renders the spider inert, but not dead, then lays an egg inside the spider’s abdomen. The wasp packs the spider into its larder, adding more spiders until it judges that it’s enough to feed a hungry larva. Then she uses mud to seal the chamber shut and sets to work on the next chamber. The end result is rather like a row of mini-storage warehouses stuffed full of undead arachnids! When the wasp egg hatches, the larva eats the spider from the inside out, feasts on other spiders as needed, pupates, then bursts out of its clay chamber as an adult wasp.
Many spider species fully embrace cannibalism, hunting and happily feasting on their spider cousins. Male spiders are generally small and unassuming. In some species the female may consume the male as a snack after mating.

Now, try to imagine our world without spiders.

We humans are programed from birth to fear spiders. Without spiders, however, our planet would be completely over-run with insects. Consider the following…

A typical spider eats about 2,000 insects each year. (Walker 2004)
In 2012, scientists estimated that worldwide, spiders consumed an estimated 600 million metric tons of insect biomass annually. That is about the same weight as the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt. A separate study at about the same time concluded that the weight of all the humans on the planet was a mere 287 million metric tons. Less than half of the biomass eaten by spiders in a single year. Yes, we definitely need spiders on our planet!
Spiders are a vital link in the food chain, providing nutrition for birds, insects, other spiders, and many other animal species.

Spiders have not survived on earth for 400 million years without being supremely adaptable. In this brief examination of the astonishing world of spiders, we have barely scratched the surface of the wonders and variety in every aspect of the Arachnid family. Next time you see a spider, take a moment to appreciate this essential 8-legged friend who works tirelessly to rid our world (indoors and out) of insect pests. That spider who patrols your house for bugs? It deserves a better reward than a smack with a newspaper. Instead, escort the little critter out to your garden where it can do some good!

October 10th is International Jumping Spider Day! Stay tuned for a special blog to celebrate these engaging, fuzzy leaping spiders.

For those of you who are smitten with spiders, I highly recommend “Amazing Arachnids” by Jillian Cowles. Beautifully written and full of jaw-dropping pictures by the author, this book is a treasure trove of fascinating spider lore.

Read Other Posts In This Series

SOMD Conservation Alliance Launches with Hope for Consolidated Land Preservation Efforts

September 16, 2021 By Alyssa Matanin

By Mary Hoover, Chesapeake Conservation Corps Member 2021/22

The Southern Maryland Conservation Alliance (SMCA) held a successful launch early September, after months of careful planning and preparation. Representatives from land trusts, conservation groups, and other Southern Maryland environmental organizations met on Tuesday, September 7th at Serenity Farm to further learn about and support the new coalition, which aims to transcend county lines and consolidate the voices of these smaller conservation actors. Featuring speeches from Joel Dunn, Buddy Hance, and Wendy Stringfellow, the launch advanced the Alliance’s mission “to conserve and restore Southern Maryland’s landscapes, waterways, and shorelines that are special to its people, fundamental to its economy, reflected in its culture, and vital for its native fish, wildlife, and plants, on which we rely”. John Turgeon, director of the Maryland Environmental Trust, key partner in the success of the launch and early adopter of the Alliance opened the event with a greeting and introductions for the speakers for the day.

Joel Dunn, President and CEO of the Chesapeake Conservancy kickstarted the lineup, pleading a fiery case for the need to conserve Southern Maryland’s landscape. “There is so much urgency in the effort here to protect Southern Maryland,” said Dunn. In light of the most recent IPCC report which issued a code red for the climate, Dunn is not alone in feeling the gravity of environmental efforts such as those promised by SMCA.

Southern Maryland is a crucial target for conservation efforts in the face of this climate emergency. From an environmental standpoint, the Southern Maryland landscape is invaluable. A combination of factors, including vast forests, soil construction, and geological makeup award this region a highly “resilient” characterization, according to The Nature Conservancy. Essentially, Southern Maryland is a high-priority site for conservation, given its unique capacity to preserve biodiversity, exhibiting “resilience” despite a changing climate. “It is okay for us to be ambitious and it’s okay for us to be relentless,” Dunn assured the alliance members, “We need to be that glimmer of hope – a glimmer of hope that we can address that code red.”

Dunn was followed by Buddy Hance, President of the Calvert County Board of County Commissioners and former Secretary of Maryland Department of Agriculture, who voiced economic support for the preservation of Southern Maryland’s landscapes.

Hance said, “preservation is the cheapest route we can take. In Calvert we need to do a better job to preserve what we can and while we can.” Hance argued that extensive development of rural lands in Calvert county could diminish the rural appeal which attracts both residents and visitors. Protecting from such development would prove an economic advantage for the county in addition to an environmental one.

The final guest speaker was President of Forever Maryland Wendy Stringfellow. Following the previous speeches which provided environmental and economic support for land preservation, Stringfellow concluded by upholding land trusts as “uniquely suited to preserve land.” Land trusts, according to Stringfellow, “are doing much more than conservation. Local land trusts are directly connecting people to the land.” Among the attendees at Tuesday’s launch were representatives from various Southern Maryland land trusts, including American Chestnut Land Trust, Black Swamp Creek Land Trust, Cove Point Natural Heritage Trust, Scenic Rivers Land Trust, Calvert Nature Society, Conservancy of Charles County, Patuxent Tidewater Land Trust, Maryland Environmental Trust, Land Trust Alliance and other affiliate groups and members. By providing the protection and services they do, land trusts are expected to be a key actor in SMCA going forward.

Greg Bowen, Executive Director of the American Chestnut Land Trust closed out the event, stating “…rivers, creeks, wildlife areas, fisheries and wildlife corridors cross county lines. Coordination can be a problem (…) too many of our resources are becoming fragmented and key watersheds are becoming impacted. Land owners, if given the good options, will do the right thing, but we need more funding to protect all that we hold dear. Together, we have a larger voice. Together we can reach out to more people. Together, we can work on our common objectives, and we can celebrate our wins,”

Tuesday’s launch was a hopeful beginning for the Southern Maryland Conservation Alliance, and there is much work to be done from here. Through a concerted effort by SMCA members, Southern Maryland can be a “place where native fish, wildlife and plants thrive, and the fabric of healthy natural and working lands and waters enrich communities of those who live, work and play here” (SMCA vision statement).

Introducing the Friends of Hunting Creek

September 13, 2021 By Alyssa Matanin

By Ron Klauda and Alyssa Matanin

There’s a new environmental stewardship group in town. Formed in early 2020 under the umbrella of the American Chestnut Land Trust, the Friends of Hunting Creek (FOHC) envision a future where current residents and future generations act as stewards of a balanced ecosystem functioning sustainably within a healthy, resilient Hunting Creek watershed. The Mission of the FOHC is to promote the ecological health and resiliency of the watershed’s 50 miles of streams and landscape so that landowners, citizens, government agencies, and elected officials together take an active role in protecting and sustaining the natural and cultural resources.

Draining over 19,000 acres of central Calvert County, still 57% forested, and home to almost 9,400 people, the FOHC are keeping watch over the largest watershed on “The Pleasant Peninsula”. At least 50 miles of streams arise, meander, and merge into the mainstem of Hunting Creek before it empties into the Patuxent River between Mallard Point and Potts Point. The eastern, western, and southern portions of the Prince Frederick Town Center drain through several tributaries into Hunting Creek. With a current imperviousness of 6.0%, the watershed is approaching a tipping point where water quality and ecological health of the mainstem Hunting Creek and its 50+ miles of tributary streams could be harmed by more development that results in forest loss, increased storm water runoff, and soil erosion.

In addition to meeting almost monthly, the FOHC has organized and hosted at least 2 paddle events per year. The paddles provide an opportunity for current friends to connect and build camaraderie, while also offering newcomers an opportunity to view the creek from a new perspective, building an appreciation and concern for the waterways of Hunting Creek. The FOHC has a Facebook page that is updated with relevant events, updates, and publications from group members and related organizations. They will also soon have their own webpage to serve as an archive for documents, maps, and general information about the creek and the group.

To pursue the FOHC’s goal to expand the scientific understanding of our land and water resources, volunteers with the FOHC conducted our first Water Quality Blitz on April 3, 2021. This monitoring effort yielded measurements of total nitrogen (expressed as NO23) at 10 non-tidal stream sites spread across the Hunting Creek watershed. The Blitz also yielded measurements of water temperature, conductivity, dissolved oxygen, dissolved oxygen saturation, and pH at two of the 10 stream sites, plus at four additional sites. In addition, current velocity was measured at four stream sites, permitting us to calculate flow (discharge). Here’s a link to the 2021 Water Quality Blitz report.

Future water quality monitoring in the Hunting Creek watershed should include (a) resampling all 2021 stream sites on some meaningful and doable frequency, (b) sampling additional sites in portions of the watershed that have not been sampled, (c) measuring current velocity at all sampled sites so flows can be calculated and nitrogen loads can be estimated, and (d) ranking the tributary streams with respect to their water volume contributions to the mainstem Hunting Creek. To guide and implement these water monitoring goals, the FOHC recently formed a Water Monitoring Committee.

To pursue another FOHC goal that is aimed at engaging citizens and encouraging them to observe, document, and act to prevent adverse environmental impacts, FOHC members are attending meetings of the County’s Planning Commission and Environmental Commission to learn about, ask questions, and comment on proposed development projects in the Hunting Creek watershed. To pursue collaborative efforts and activities among watershed residents, government agencies, and local officials to make informed land use decisions and achieve common goals, FOHC members comment on and provide input to the draft of the 2021 Prince Frederick Town Center Master Plan update.

With a current membership of 36 the FOHC intends to promote and celebrate the Hunting Creek watershed as a natural, recreational, aesthetic, and economic resource. We also want our membership to enlist the help of more watershed residents. If you live in the Hunting Creek watershed and want to get involved with the FOHC, send an email to alyssa@acltweb.org and ask to be added to the FOHC mailing list, or click this link to register. Not sure if you live in the Hunting Creek watershed? Click on this link, follow the directions, type in the address of your residence, and you’ll quickly find out.