• Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Kentucky, and West Virginia listed the Appalachian Cottontail as a ‘Species of Greatest Conservation Need’ as of 2015
• Appalachian cottontails have acute senses of smell, hearing, and sight
• Their diet consists of leaves, blackberry, greenbriar, mountain laurel; bark and twigs of trees such as red maple, aspen, and black cherry. They also consume fruits in their diet and act as seed dispersers
• The main threats to Appalachian cottontails are habitat destruction and fragmentation due to development; the lack of cover exposes the cottontail to predators, increasing the strain on the species
• Currently, this species is classified as Near Threatened (NT) on the IUCN Red List and its numbers today are decreasing

The Piping Plover is considered endangered and a highly rare state breeder in Maryland. The East Coast populations are threatened by disturbance to their nesting habitat which includes open, sandy beaches and flats on the Atlantic and Gulf coasts, specifically Assateague Island in Maryland.

The Piping Plover is classified as a small bird, at approximately 7 inches long and weighing between 1.4 to 2.3 ounces. It has been documented that the Piping Plover can live as long as 11 years. However, with its 80% adult survival rate, the average life span is approximately five to six years.

In Maryland, there are ongoing conservation efforts to protect the Piping Plover. More broadly, the US Fish and Wildlife Service is conducting a recovery plan aimed to achieve increased productivity of breeding pairs and long-term protection of breeding and wintering plovers and their habitat.

Dolphin sightings are common in the Chesapeake Bay. Every summer, Maryland’s Fish and Wildlife Health Program receives reports of bottlenose dolphins in the bay and its tributaries. They are typically seen from April-November in groups called pods.

Dolphins stick around as long as food sources are abundant and water temperatures remain warm. Sightings have been reported as far north as Kent County. Occasionally, they appear in the Severn River, as well as around Kent Island. Sightings north of the Bay Bridge do occur but are less common than those occurring farther south in Calvert, Dorchester, Somerset, St. Mary’s and Talbot counties. Sightings are the most common along the Atlantic Coast at Ocean City and Assateague Island National Seashore.

• Bottlenose dolphins are found in most warm and temperate oceans worldwide.
• They travel in pods of 2-15 animals, typically appearing in Maryland waters April-November. These dolphins are among the most commonly stranded marine mammals in our area.
• They are often seen at Assateague Island and Ocean City and commonly hunt in the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries.
• Protection under the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 identifies humans as their greatest threat and prevents any resulting future depletion.
• Bottlenose dolphins range in color from light gray to near-black with lighter coloration on their bellies.
• Adults range from 6-12.5 feet long and weigh up to 1,400 pounds.
• They can swim up to 22 miles per hour using their flukes.
• Prominent dorsal fins help researchers identify individuals.
• Distinct inshore and offshore populations exist—those inshore tend to be smaller and lighter. They use echolocation to find and capture their prey, which typically includes fish, invertebrates and squid.
• Dolphins are social animals and often forage cooperatively.
• Males generally live 40‐45 years, while females can surpass 50.
• Their only natural predators are orcas and sharks.
• Females give birth every 3‐6 years after 12 months of gestation.
• Calves feed on their mothers’ milk for 3‐5 years and can start eating small fish when they are about six months old.
• Proof that all mammals have hair, calves are born with whisker-like vibrissae on their snout that fall off shortly after birth.

The Diamondback Terrapin is the state reptile of Maryland and is the official mascot of the University of Maryland!

The Diamondback Terrapin have a distinct diamond-shaped, concentric ring pattern on the scutes of their shell. They are also quite picky about the body of water they call home, only habituating in unpolluted saltwater. This does however make them an indicator of healthy marsh and river systems.

Diamondback Terrapins are not immune to the population threats experienced by many of the species that call our watershed home. Their population has been decimated due to over-collection and commercial harvesting, as well as coastal development, nest predation by mammals and gulls, boat strikes, and sea level rise.