Conneticut+River+habitat+and+population+details

===The Connecticut river metapopulation is distrubuted between Massachusetts and Connecticut local populations. The historical local populations in New Hampshire have been extirpated, or gone extinct in those patches of habitat. The population in Massachusetts was dangerously small, before a novel experiment was attempted to increase its size. In fact, when it was discovered in 1986, there were less than 25 adults counted. The Connecticut sites were discovered three years later, and at that time contained 450 adults (5). You will see how scientists and volunteers worked together to try to maintain biodiversity by restoring the Massachusetts populations shortly.===





===As you can see from these photographs, the habitat is much different along the Connecticut River than in Maryland. The Puritan tiger beetles have adapted to this environment, and live in sandy beaches here - not in cliffs as they do by the Chesapeake Bay. Living in a beach habitat instead of less accessible cliffs has increased their contact with humans. Some of this contact has been with individual hikers and others using the waterway for recreation. Humans have also impacted the Connecticut River metapopulation through hydroelectric dam projects, which has raised the river level, decreased beach sizes, and destroyed valuable habitat for the species. In both respects, human contact is believed to have contributed to the decline of these local populations.===



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