JAMES RIVER PARK SYSTEM BEFORE YOU BEGIN: Be Safe! • Wear old tennis shoes or spe- cial water shoes to protect your feet from sharp objects—avoid open -toed sandals. • Wear a life jacket. It’ll help protect you from rough rocks, improve your mobility, and keep you afloat if you happen to shoot a small rapid. • Use sunscreen to protect your skin, especially the back of your neck. • A long sleeved shirt and light- weight pants offer extra pro- Snorkeling in the City tection from abrasive surfaces. Underwater exploration on the James River in Richmond • Please…no glass. Do not bring glass into the park. Put all THERE’S SO MUCH TO EXPLORE! THIS SNORKELING GUIDE GIVES trash into a proper receptacle. • Help preserve our city wilder- only a glimpse of the hidden underwater communities of plants and ness…Leave plants, animals, animals living in the James River. Try to explore several spots and and artifacts as your find them compare your findings, or visit the same spot several times through- for others to enjoy. out the summer. Choose a spot and begin your exploration. PORTAGE WILLIAMS ISLAND Areas to Snorkel Areas to AVOID Dams (AVOID) t S RIVERSIDE e r R e MEADOWS d iv i v e r l side e Dr B PONY PASTURE RAPIDS THE WETLANDS P d v u l m B e r v p t e t D A h S S H r s w PUMPHOUSE s o n D A e w a u o i r t x s o a v i e u p e PARK d g r D h T a t d m n r e r n a o LEE BRIDGE M a A L H NORTH BANK PARK L BELLE W allow (Texas Beach) ISLE d a Rd R F as Ave ore y Kans s a t Hil POWHITE PARKWAY BRIDGE l Av w e a h t a H 22nd r D STREET BOULVARD BRIDGE y 2 a 2 w n e R d n iv S i ers r t P ide D Dr Riverside ve d A v l Ri es B ve rsid Dr m s e 3 m l t 0 l e i Rd th S 42ND STREET S rest REEDY H c S l d il t r H n e CREEK 2 v 4 o t s e W Snorkeling in the City JAMES RIVER PARK SYSTEM Creatures that are easy to find Oriental Freshwater Clam American Freshwater Mussel the male flares his fins to show his With shells that are beige, round, These mussels have thin, black shells colors. This attracts nearby females that can be up to 4 inches long. The and covered with ridges, these small, and chases away other fish that may inside of the shell common clams try to eat the eggs. live in sand or is slick and shiny. gravel. Often Mussels feed by TRY THIS filtering water. the empty shells Pollutants collect 1–4 inches Gently drop a small pebble or snail onto the are seen in piles in the flesh, making them unsafe to nest and he’ll quickly remove it by biting it left on rocks by and spitting it away from the nest. 1 1 ⁄4 –1 ⁄2 inches eat, although at one time they were muskrats. River part of the diet of Native Americans. currents spread other shells along the Rock: Platform shoreline and in eddies at the ends of TRY THIS of walnut‐sized islands. rocks nests are Feel the smooth, lustrous lining called “Mother of Pearl”. This once was used to built in moving These clams were first seen in the 1–4 feet wide James River in the early 1970s. They make buttons and is the same substance water by Bull were probably brought here in bal- found in natural pearls. Chub. The male guards the nests, but Look for live mussels sticking up like a not very well. lastwater used to weigh down ships wedge out of gravel bars where water is a coming from California or Asia. foot deep or less and moving quickly. TRY THIS Clams filter water as they feed. Fish Nests Watch other fish come up to the nests to lay TRY THIS Sand: Male Sunfish create a “bowl their eggs or eat someone else’s. Dig your hands into sand bars and fine grav- of sand” to hold el to find live ones. Watch them underwater their eggs. Locat- as they dig back down by sticking their soft bodies out of their shells (sometimes they’ll ed in calm water PHOTos: Sand nest by Snowmentality, Flickr.com. do this while you hold them between your near the shore or Rock nest by Emmanuel Frimpong, vtichthyology. fingers). behind boulders 6–9 inch diameter blogspot.com. Tips WHat TO DO: WHERE TO SNORKEL: WHat TO AVOID: Crawl or walk upstream with The Pony Pasture is easily Avoid sandy or muddy areas HOW TO ENJOY your face in the water. A reached but also is the most that cloud up. snorkel and face mask are a heavily used area. Do not swim near a dam. big help. YOUR SNORKELING The broad stretch of rocks You might get caught in the ADVENTURE Choose shallow rocky areas at the 42nd Street entrance current and be swept over the (6”–24” deep). The best view- offers more variety and is less dam. The hydraulic action ing is in slow‐moving water. crowded. of the water below the dam makes it difficult for even a Look in the shadows. Crea- North Bank has a sandy strong swimmer to escape. tures hide or attach them- beach and calm water. selves under rocky overhangs Avoid fast-moving and Any place the water is clear, and undercuts. turbulent water since you can slow‐moving, and rocky get injured on slippery and should be interesting. sharp rocks. And it is possible to drown due to foot entrap- ment. Snorkeling in the City JAMES RIVER PARK SYSTEM Snails Crayfish There are at least a half-dozen kinds of aquatic snails in the James. Each has Crayfish look its own preferred water conditions, but many often can be found near one like little lob- another, often on the upstream and downstream sides of the same rock! sters. The two claws hold and Long Spiral‐shelled Snails tear the creatures 1 River Snails are the most common kind. Feel the many ridges around the which are their ⁄2–1 inch long shell. (A smooth‐surfaced, thinner‐shelled kind is a rare find.) food. They normally walk forward, but will scoot away backwards when alarmed. Short Spiral‐shelled Snails TRY THIS Pond Snails are small and smooth with rounded edges. (Another small, smooth kind has one wide, flat ridge around the edge.) Place a crayfish in a swim mask full of water then watch it. It may eat a worm if you’re Orb Snails look like a coil of rope and are also rare. patient. Little Pond Snails are tiny, thin, smooth, and cone- shaped. Look under water to see how it moves. Gently touch it with one finger and watch it scoot!. Creatures That Move Quickly Small Fish (1–4 inches) Medium Fish (5–10 inches) Large Fish (1–2 feet or longer) Shield Darter Pumpkinseed American Eel Percina peltata Lepomis gibbosus Anguilla rostrata Look under rocks. It Many kinds. Look Snake-like fish seems to walks on its fins. for a dark dot on the “bite” water to breathe. Eastern gill cover. May be found in rock Mosquitofish Blue Catfish cracks and caves. Gambasia holbrooki Ictalurus furcatus Common Carp Look in potholes. It Look for smooth Cyprinus carpio resembles a guppy. skin, forked tail and Silver or yellowish Satinfin Shiner “whiskers” on face tinge and heavy‐bod- Look in pools. It has (barbels) used to ied with big scales and a blue outline on its taste the river mud; tiny whiskers on the fins. can be large. mouth. Smallmouth Bass Longnose Gar Young Smallmouth Bass Micropterus dolomieu Lepisosteus osseus Look in pools and behind rocks. It has red The most popular Look for black dots on eyes and a yellow dot on the tail. game fish, it has red the sides of this long Bull Chub eyes and dark stripes and slender fish. It Look for fish forming schools. Under water it on the sides; can be may be very still then has a dark line with a gold line along its side. large. move away quickly The most common kind of fish in the river, near the surface. and one of only two that eat clams! TRY THIS For a truly unique perspective, bend over so your head is underwater, then put your face up close to a rocky overhang. It’s a little spooky, but often you’ll come face to face with a fish! PHOTO: Crayfish by Jason Neuswanger, troutnut. Swim up to a stand of water willows in one foot of water and wait quietly with half your com. mask above the water and half below (breathe with a snorkel). ILLUSTRATIONS: Fish by Duane Raver/USFWS. Lie in a shallow rapid (6” deep) with your arms out to either side and small fish will often use Snails by etc.usf.edu. you as their new territory. Snorkeling in the City JAMES RIVER PARK SYSTEM Creatures found under rocks Aquatic Insects These bottom dwellers hatch and live under water for most of their lives—6 months to 2 years—then crawl out, shed their skins and become winged adults that breathe air for a few days or weeks, long enough to mate and lay eggs in the water.