What is an Appalachian forest?

As the USDA Forest Service’s revision plan for the Pisgah and Nantahala National Forests continues to be discussed (The new plan will guide the management of the Pisgah and Nantahala National Forests for the next 15 years.) I wonder how many people give thought to...

On the Isle again

Thanks to the generosity of dear friends, my family gets to vacation on Isle of Palms every summer. If you follow the “Naturalist’s Corner” regularly you’ve seen accounts of these expeditions – maybe about “pluff mud,”...

A wet and wonderful weekend

Thanks to the generosity of a friend, my family and I spent a long weekend on Fontana Lake. The small “fishing” cabin near Prince’s Boat Dock is not the Ritz but it has all the comforts of home and a lot more character than the Ritz. Many of you who follow the...

An unapologetic scientist

The cosmos looms large and wondrous again and much of the credit goes to one charming affable, but steadfastly rigorous, when it comes to scientific principles, host – Neil deGrasse Tyson. Tyson, an astrophysicist is the Frederick P. Rose Director of the Hayden...

A not too shabby second

May 3rd and 4th were the dates for this year’s 30th annual edition of the Great Smoky Mountains Birding Expedition. This trip began in 1984 as the brainchild of George Ellison, Bryson City resident, author and naturalist, Rick Pyeritz M.D., who had a practice in...