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Looking at Birds Through an Artist’s Eye
Story and artwork by Gaynell Lawson
Heron in Search of Fish by Gaynell Lawson
Birds fascinate me. They always have. I enjoy watching them wherever I’m fortunate enough to spot them—in our streams, in the Great Smoky Mountains, or even in my own backyard. I’ve found that if I provide the right feeder,
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GSMA publishes educational adventure to teach young readers about wildlife crossings
GSMA is pleased to announce the publication of A Search for Safe Passage, an educational adventure for readers ages seven to 13 written by Creative Services Director Frances Figart and illustrated by GSMA Publications Specialist Emma DuFort.
A Search for Safe Passage tells the story of best friends Bear and Deer who grew up together on the
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Award-winning Writer Makes Great Smokies Her Park
by Frances Figart, Creative Services Director
In the spring of 2019, Latria (pronounced La-tray-a) Graham was chosen to be one of the first Steve Kemp writers-in-residence, spending six weeks learning and writing in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The residency—funded by Great Smoky Mountains Association and named for its 30-year
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Image for the Asking: Carter Shields Cabin
Story and image by Don McGowan
The census records for the year 1850 tell us that Cades Cove—that most idyllic valley in Blount County, Tennessee, in what is now the southwestern corner of Great Smoky Mountains National Park—was populated with 135 families accounting for 625 hearty souls. Six years earlier, on February 5, 1844, the
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Trailside Talk: Mission 66
By Mike Hembree
A happy coincidence in the 1950s led to change for the national park system.
The Baby Boom of the post-World War II period increased the population of children in the United States dramatically. At the same time, the country was becoming increasingly mobile. Many veterans returning from the military had the money to buy their
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Biological Science Technician Reflects on Career Choices
By Frances Figart, Creative Services Director
Alix Pfennigwerth maps and surveys wetlands and collects data from forest monitoring plots as a biological science technician with the Inventory and Monitoring program at Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Photo courtesy of Matt Jernigan.
Alix Pfennigwerth works as a biological
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Smokies Entomologist Reflects on Role of Women in Science
Entomologist Becky Nichols determines the peak display period for the famous synchronous fireflies of the Smokies. Photo courtesy of Joye Ardyn Durham.
By Frances Figart, Creative Services Director
When Becky Nichols was in graduate school there weren’t many women studying to become entomologists. Over the years, she
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The Smokies in Your Backyard: Flowering Dogwood
By Steve Kemp and Janet Rock
Photo by GSMA
Although it is illegal to dig up plants in Great Smoky Mountains National Park and transplant them in your yard (all plants, animals, and even rocks are protected in the park), you can purchase native plants at reputable nurseries and propagate a bit of the Smokies around your home. Our new Smokies
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Beyond the Shadow of the Woodchuck
By Frances Figart, Creative Services Director
The woodchuck is the largest ground squirrel in the deciduous forests of the eastern United States. Photo courtesy of Tim Parker.
Whether you call him a woodchuck or a groundhog—whether you consider her precious or a pest—you must admit this charismatic critter has
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Park birds may have benefited from Clean Air Act
By Frances Figart, Creative Services Director
Warblers like this Black-throated Green Warbler are at the highest risk of illness and death from ground-level ozone, which not only harms avian respiratory systems but also damages vegetation that they depend on for food and shelter. Photo courtesy of Warren Lynn.
It is likely
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