Menu
Tag: Smokies LIVE
-
The Conservation Success Story of the Iconic Wild Turkey
By Frances Figart, Creative Services Director
Back when European settlers first came to Southern Appalachia, wild turkeys were plentiful. By the early 1900s, however, only a few were left, a decline that continued into the mid-century.
“Wild turkeys were nearly extirpated because of habitat loss and overharvest,” says
Read more...
-
Finding My Roots with a GSMA Membership
By Korrin Bishop
I placed a stack of maps and guidebooks on the checkout counter of the Sugarlands Visitor Center bookstore in Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
“It looks like you’re trying to hike every trail in the park!” exclaimed the woman at the cash register.
I nodded. She asked if I was a local.
“I am,&rdquo
Read more...
-
Get a Weekly Dose of Wonder from Tremont
By John DiDiego, Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont Education Director
Psychology research continues to find that experiences of wonder and awe are associated with a host of positive emotions and outcomes—from physical and mental wellbeing, to healing, to what are known as ‘prosocial behaviors.’
As educators, we
Read more...
-
Image for the Asking: When the Color Comes Leapin’ Up
Story and image by Don McGowan
It is closely estimated that William Marion Walker, variously known as Black Bill or Big Bill, owned more than five thousand acres, or about eight square miles, of prime valley and mountain ridge land in the Tremont and Tuckaleechee areas of Great Smoky Mountains National Park and Blount County, TN. Included in
Read more...
-
Study Adds to Knowledge of Fire-enhanced Fungi
By Frances Figart, Creative Director
Our park has among the highest diversity of fungi in North America. There are more than 3,000 documented species, probably a significant underestimation of the true numbers according to fungi experts, or mycologists.
A mysterious type is called pyrophilous fungi. It has long been thought that their
Read more...
-
Bat garland for Bat Week
By Valerie Polk
Halloween will be just a bit different at our house this year. Since we aren't going to our normal, crowded Trick or Treat spots, we're creating our own festive flair at home. My daughter, Emily, is nine now, and she loves this holiday. She also loves bats! So, when I found this cute and simple bat garland on Good Housekeeping's
Read more...
-
Bat Week Shines a Light on Smokies’ Endangered Bats
by Aaron Searcy
This year’s Bat Week (Oct. 24–31) comes at a time when bats in the Great Smoky Mountains are particularly busy. Hibernating species will continue to feed as much as possible in anticipation of the long winter ahead, and on cool fall evenings, bats may swarm in groups to find a mate or locate safe places to
Read more...
-
New Horace Kephart Collection Showcases Previously Unpublished Writings
A new book released by University of Tennessee Press presents the most extensive collection of writings in print to date by early Great Smoky Mountains National Park advocate and author Horace Kephart. Edited by Mae Miller Claxton and George Frizzell of Western Carolina University, Horace Kephart: Writings provides a perfect companion to Great
Read more...
-
Image for the Asking: Liquid Gold
Story and image by Don McGowan
Perhaps the reason I am so attracted to the music of a flute is that the notes of this instrument remind me of tumbling water. And one of the primary reasons I am so intensely drawn to these old mountains of the blue mists is because of my love of water. Who knows, maybe there actually is some kernel of
Read more...
-
New Assassin Bugs Discovered to Exist in the Smokies
By Frances Figart, Creative Services Director
Since 1998, nearly 11,000 species have been added to the park’s diversity checklist—and behind each discovery is a unique story. Will Kuhn made one such discovery earlier this year in his office at Discover Life in America (DLiA), which manages the All Taxa Biodiversity Inventory (ATBI
Read more...
