B.A.S.S. gets its hands dirty

The Freshwater Land Trust teamed up with B.A.S.S. employees Wednesday, Nov. 14, for a volunteer workday to restore critical habitat for the endangered vermilion darter and watercress darter. The volunteers worked at Tapawingo Springs Preserve in Pinson, Ala., to remove invasive species and replant native shrubs along the wetland area. Here, Freshwater Land Trust staff members Rebekah Pine Parker and Brian Reid tell B.A.S.S. employees the significance of the wetland area.

Bruce Akin, CEO of B.A.S.S., readies his shovel for the restoration effort. The main goal for the day was to remove large clumps of a fast-spreading invasive plant called privet.

B.A.S.S. staff walked down a flooded pathway to get to the worksite.

Jennifer Leonard and Amanda Gale navigate a flooded road to make it to the worksite.

Helen Northcutt and Jamie Broday use a shovel to dislodge a privet plant.

Employees learn how to use the weed wrench to yank the invasive plant out of the ground.

Jennifer Dome digs in to get the privet out from the roots.

Amy Skiff wrestles a weed out from beneath a tree root.

While other employees pull invasives out of the ground, Faith McDonough busies herself with planting native bushes.

Amanda Gale and Jamie Broday practice teamwork.

A frog is among the wildlife that hopped or crawled out of the natural environment during the workday.

Hank Weldon and Emily Hand, who make up the College B.A.S.S. team, work in a marshy area.

Helen Northcutt and Emily Hand carry freshly pulled privet plants to the discard pile.

Chris Brown and Jon Stewart work to dislodge a buried fence from tree roots.

Helen Northcutt and Emily Hand enjoy working together in the office and outdoors. "It was fun getting our hands dirty while giving back to the community," said Hand.

Emily Hand, Helen Northcutt and Jennifer Dome stop for a pose behind tall privet plants.

Helen Northcutt holds a salamander that crawled out from an area where she had pulled weeds. When we posted this photo on Twitter, our followers were happy to proclaim this was good fish bait.

Torrance Johnson and Rick Reed plant native bushes in the areas that have been cleared.

Chris Brown and April Phillips work together during the planting phase.

The B.A.S.S. team poses together after a long day of working in the mud.