Mountain Treasures
In 1987 the USDA Forest Service issued a “final” forest management plan - a plan so vague and so lacking in ecosystem and environmental protections that conservationists and environmental organizations across the country denounced it. The Wilderness Society (TWS), to...
Restoring the Southern Appalachian Forests
The Smokies are renown for their biological diversity and scenic beauty. But a short drive along either of two scenic byways – The Blue Ridge Parkway or the Cherohala Skyway – provides a window on forests under attack from invasive exotics. There are many places near...
Jus ducky at Lake J
The recent NNW winds appear to have knocked a few north bound migrants from the sky. A quick turn around Lake Junaluska last Saturday (Mar. 3) revealed 10 species of ducks. That’s not counting any of the mallard/mallard-hybrids. I sometimes encounter what I believe to...
What light over yonder horizon shines?
Due to a lack of foresight and copious amounts of poor planning I found myself last Sunday evening (Feb. 26) on the side of U.S. 19 across the highway from Kituwah with not one but two flat tires (yeah, the spare was flat). With logistics that would rival a Marx...
Great counting at Kituwah
This year was the 15th annual Great Backyard Bird Count, a citizen-science project created by Cornell Lab of Ornithology and National Audubon Society. The count took place between Feb. 17 and Feb. 20. For the past seven or eight years I have used the Great Backyard...
Zee wolves must go by Kuteeng Satire
The Naturalist’s Corner dispatched its chief investigative reporter, Kuteeng Satire, to the land of Dudley Doright to bring you the truth regarding Canada’s plan to shoot, shoot from airplanes, poison, trap and otherwise kill thousands of wolves because the stupid...