Forest Service Features - Late May 2024 Edition

Forest Service Features

Late May - 2024

YCC participants set up small mammal footprint tunnels within the trees of Arz Ehmej Conservation Park, the location of their six-month residential program. Each tunnel contains sticky tape, charcoal, and white contact paper for collecting prints. (Photo courtesy of Lebanon Reforestation Initiative)

Restoring Lebanon's Forests

In the hills north of Beirut, Lebanon, a group of young citizen scientists collects the footprints of small mammals using contact paper and charcoal. They are hoping they might find signs of forest dormice, a fluffy-tailed, squirrel-like animal that thrives in dense forests. But forest dormice are no longer common in Lebanon, where rapid urbanization, unsustainable forestry practices, and, increasingly, wildfire have reduced Lebanon’s forest cover to just six percent, leaving a highly urbanized population vulnerable to flooding, compromised ground water and polluted air.  Read more...

 

 

The sun rises over the Gila Wilderness from Emory Pass. (USDA Forest Service photo by James Apodaca) 

Centennial of the Nation's First Official Wilderness: Gila Wilderness

This week, the Gila Wilderness celebrates a significant milestone – 100 years of Wilderness designation.

“In 1924, a young forester by the name of Aldo Leopold advocated for this land to be set aside to be the first officially designated wilderness in the United States and in the world,” said Ryan Merrell, Gila Wilderness Centennial Coordinator. “And 40 years after that, we were able to have the passage of the Wilderness Act in 1964, codifying this as an official code and land management tool. Since then, Wilderness has taken up almost 5% of U.S. total land mass and has been adopted by 60 countries across the world.”  Read more...

 

 

Green spaces like forests, parks, and gardens offer places for physical, mental, and spiritual renewal. In fact, studies show that access to trees and green spaces may improve health outcomes. People take in fresh air and enjoy shade in a park in Washington, DC. (USDA Forest Service photo by Preston Keres)

Mentally and Physically, Trees Make a Difference

During my dad's recent hospital stay, I witnessed the healing power of trees.

He was assigned to a room that looked out at a bleak brick wall. Needless to say, he didn’t like it. He quickly grew tired of brick walls and began asking to see trees and get fresh air. He believed that spending time in nature would help him feel better - and his instincts were right. With permission from the nursing staff, we found a way to take him outside. The moment we were surrounded by the green canopy of trees, his mood improved. That became our daily routine, and I’m certain the presence of trees sped up his recovery. Read more...

 

 

Crews created a fire backburn to help reduce the amount of fuel that was available to the main fire. This allows firefighters to establish containment features or barriers to the main fire. (USDA Forest Service photo by Matthew Teele)

Valentine Fire Restores Forest and Community

On Aug. 16, 2023, the residents of Poderosa and Colcord Estates and neighboring towns on the Tonto National Forest Payson Ranger District felt that foreboding when they looked to the skies and saw rising smoke. That evening, smoke began wafting through ponderosa pine 11 miles northeast of Young, Arizona, and 27 miles east of Payson. The smoke’s source was the lightning-caused Valentine Fire.

But this fire would play out differently than most. USDA Forest Service firefighters, relying on trust and close coordination with the local community, decided to use the wildfire to their advantage. Read more...

 

 

Frank Lake with the Klamath River Singers performing at Reggae on the River demonstration dance. From left to right: Chaley Thom (Karuk), Clarence Hostler (Hupa-Yurok-Karuk), Charlie Thom (Lake’s Karuk grandfather with microphone), Brian Tripp (Karuk), and Frank Lake (USDA photo by Frank Lake)

Avian Ambassadors and Tribal Perspectives

According to the North American Bird Conservation Initiative's  2022 U.S. State of the Birds Report,  the U.S. and Canada have lost an estimated 3 billion breeding birds since the 1970s.

Pacific Southwest Research Station ecologist and tribal liaison Frank Lake wondered how the birds he grew up with in northeastern California were faring. As a Karuk tribal descendant with Yurok family, Lake has a deep connection to the land and the birds that inhabit it. Belted kingfishers, woodpeckers, condors, eagles, and other birds have been part of his ancestors’ way of life for thousands of years. Birds play a role in tribal creation stories, and tribes use feathers to grace regalia and use in traditional ceremonies.

“Indigenous and western knowledge systems can teach us a lot about the significant roles land birds have in our environment. Understanding how fire and other land management practices may affect birds is important for evaluating the conditions of our ecosystems,” Lake said. Read more...

 

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