All Articles Page 4

Research Partnerships with Native American Communities

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications  • 
“The Southern Research Station is working with a number of Native American tribes to promote forest ecosystem restoration and sustainability,” says Monica Schwalbach, USDA Forest Service assistant director. The projects focus on sustainability of botanical species that are important to indigenous communities. SRS researcher Michelle Baumflek is the science lead for many of these projects,…  More 

Significant Trees of the Eastern Cherokee

by John Schelhas, Research Forester, Southern Research Station  • 
A partnership between the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI) and the USDA Forest Service Southern Research Station has led to the development of a new educational module for Cherokee youth. The module is centered on seven significant trees of the Eastern Cherokee and connects these trees to Cherokee culture and forest management. The tree…  More 

A Yearly Health Checkup for U.S. Forests

by Lars Pomara, Eastern Threat Center  • 
Every year, the USDA Forest Service Forest Health Monitoring (FHM) program tracks changing forest conditions, including national assessments as well as focused regional analysis. The resulting report is the only national summary of forest health undertaken on an annual basis. Forests constantly change as a result of tree growth and mortality, weather events and climate…  More 

Hitchhiking Seeds Pose Substantial Risk of Nonnative Plant Invasions

by Jennifer Moore Myers and Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications Team  • 
Seeds that float in the air can hitchhike in unusual places – like the air-intake grille of a refrigerated shipping container. A team of researchers from the USDA Forest Service, Arkansas State University, and other organizations recently conducted a study that involved vacuuming seeds from air-intake grilles over two seasons at the Port of Savannah,…  More 

New Manager’s Guide for Controlling Hemlock Woolly Adelgids

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications  • 
An Eastern hemlock can live for 800 years, anchoring ecosystems from its roots to its branches. But a bug that’s a speck by the eye can kill these giants in just a few years. Foresters, entomologists, silviculturists, physiologists, and other experts have been working together to keep hemlock trees alive and reduce the impact of…  More 

Hemlock Woolly Adelgids & Their Predator Beetle, Laricobius nigrinus

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications  • 
Laricobius nigrinus is a small beetle that eats an even smaller bug – the hemlock woolly adelgid, or HWA. Since 2003, Laricobius has been used to help control HWA. But the beetle, which is native to western North America, is only active during the fall, winter and early spring. Recently, USDA Forest Service research entomologist…  More 

Climate Change, Streamflow, and Social Vulnerability: Locating Increased Risks

by Jennifer Moore Myers, SRS Science Communications  • 
What happens when climate change or urbanization increases the frequency or severity of floods? How well can different downstream communities prepare for and respond to those catastrophic events? USDA Forest Service scientists and approached these questions in a new way. They developed a risk matrix that pairs the likelihood of high streamflow events – which…  More 

Darter Conservation

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications  • 
Increasingly, recovery plans for imperiled fish species include raising them in captivity and releasing them in the wild. Crystal Ruble of Conservation Fisheries, Inc, with SRS researchers Ken Sterling and Melvin Warren published a protocol for captive propagation of the Yazoo Darter (Etheostoma raneyi). The researchers also summarize its early life-history. Compared to other darter…  More 

When Birds Attack Snakes

by Casey Conrad, SRS Science Communications Intern  • 
It’s a bird! It’s a plane! No, it’s … birds attacking a Jamaican boa? In a recent study by USDA Forest Service scientists Richard Schaefer and Craig Rudolph (retired), along with colleagues from Jamaica and Washington, DC, the previously undocumented mobbing of Jamaican boas is brought to scientific light. The act of multiple birds screeching…  More 

Climate Change and the Future of Southern Wetlands

by Sydney Marie Jones, SRS Science Communications Intern  • 
The Southeast hosts an impressive network of forested wetlands. These wetlands improve water quality, reduce flooding, store excess carbon, and provide important habitat for wildlife. They are also particularly vulnerable to changes in climate and land use. With researchers from North Carolina State University, USDA Forest Service scientist Peter Caldwell designed a model to assess…  More