Wildlife Diversity Program Quarterly Report for October–December 2025
Aquatic Organism Passage/Culvert Assessment Project
Jacob Freedman continued to work on the United States Fish and Wildlife Service Fish Passage Program grant in the Neuse and Tar river basins. By the end of December, exactly 400 culverts were assessed using the Southeastern Aquatic Resources Partnership (SARP) protocol, meeting the grant goal, with 285 assessments occurring during this quarter. Most of the crossing data can be seen on SARP’s Aquatic Barrier Inventory and Prioritization Tool; some still needs to go through SARP’s quality control process before being posted online. Following the conclusion of fieldwork, a summary report will be generated which will include analysis on which culvert char- acteristics correlated most strongly with passability scores. In 2026, work will begin on the second aquatic passage assessment grant mentioned in the third quarter report. This grant is funded by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) and emphasizes 1500 culvert assessments within the range used by river her- ring and other anadromous species on the Coastal Plain of NC. In addition, a third grant, also from NFWF, will fund an additional 800 culvert assessments as part of a larger longleaf pine ecosystem initiative on Sentinel Lands in the Sandhills and Coastal Plain of NC. These three grants combined will fill in a wide area of existing data gaps regarding aquatic organism passage at road crossings across eastern North Carolina.
JACOB FREEDMAN
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