Author: Site Owner

Find out the latest in forest news!

How Forest Forensics Could Prevent the Theft of Ancient Trees — Smithsonian Magazine

It’s rare that you hear of thieves stealing trees, but they do exist. “Midnight burlers” are known to carve out the knotted chunks found near the base of redwood trees, which can sell for as much as $3,000. Enforcement being difficult in such large parks, forensic scientists are “link[ing] the patterns of timber poaching to the broader world of local crime.”

New evidence on how forests contribute to dietary diversity — CIFOR

People are suffering from “hidden hunger” even in places that are well suited to growing crops. What’s the cause? A new study is linking it to a lack of dietary diversity, strongly connected to an equal lack of trees. Even with all the calories they need, these children’s hair is yellowing and falling out from a severe lack of vitamins and minerals. CIFOR explains why forests are the solution, and their absence the cause.

Hidden Inca treasure: Remarkable new tree discovered in the Andes — Wake Forest University

You would think that a tree that grows more than 100 feet tall, two feet in diameter, and ranges from Peru to Ecuador might have been noticed by now. Or you could think about it as an incredible example of our planet’s biodiversity, and how we discover fascinating new species every day. Either way, scientists have discovered an incredible species that they’ve named Incadendron esseri.

Parasites are nature’s great givers. Protecting them must be on our tick-list — The Guardian

Scientists are increasingly discovering the ways in which parasites play a vital role in the sustenance of life on Earth. The Guardian argues that even though “they may cause misery, pain and zombie cockroaches … parasites are also responsible for glorious biodiversity.” Insight into this world of parasitism could lead to new breakthroughs in conservation.

Urban roots: the trees bringing life to our streets — The Guardian

In the face of increasing urban deforestation in the UK, The Guardian called to their readers for images of their favorite urban forest scenes. What poured in was a powerful meditation on the importance of connecting our city space with the natural world.

By Dylan Stuntz, American Forests

With Lyme-disease-carrying ticks an ever-growing concern, and disease-carrying ticks found in all 48 contiguous states, proper tick etiquette before and after any outdoor walk is important! With these foolproof steps, you’ll be fully ready to go out without fear.

They’re can get even smaller than this! Credit: Jonathan Harford

STEPS TO TAKE BEFORE YOU LEAVE THE HOUSE

Know where ticks are found!

• Ticks can be found in a variety of locations, but it’s generally safe to assume that any tall grass, low-to-the-ground shrubs or wooded plants have ticks in them. Ticks can even be found in your own backyard.
• If you walk through grass as high as your ankles, it’s safe to assume that you could potentially be carrying a tick. Think about the walk you’re about to take and plan accordingly.

Cover up as much as possible

• Limit the amount of exposed skin! A tick can’t bite you if it can’t find anything to bite. Wear closed-toed shoes, shin-high socks and long pants.
• Tucking your pant legs into your socks can be one of the most effective and easiest ways to prevent transmission.

[PHOTO]Caption: It may not be the most fashionable of choices, but it’s a great way to protect your ankles

Potentially treat your clothing with permethrin

• Permethrin is an insecticide that repels ticks and prevents them from grabbing onto your clothing. It can be sprayed on clothing, shoes or even gear such as backpacks!
• This step does take some planning ahead, as it does take a few hours for the clothing or gear to dry after being treated. That being said, it lasts for 3-4 weeks, so you can easily prep ahead of time!

This is a prepared hiker! Notice the pants tucked into the socks.

AFTER YOU RETURN

Check your clothing for ticks

• Ticks love to hang onto clothing, and can be brought into your home this way. Carefully inspect all outer layers of clothing and gear for ticks.
• To kill any ticks found on clothing, you can put them in a tumble dryer for 10-15 minutes, and the heat should overwhelm them. If the clothes are dirty, wash them in hot water. Make sure the water’s hot, because cold or lukewarm water will not kill the ticks!

Do a tick check

• Inspect every part of your body for ticks, they can be as small as a poppy seed!
• Make sure to check between joints (behind the knees, elbows, armpits), behind your ears and anywhere covered in hair (behind the neck) as tics love warm, dark places.

Take a shower

• Not only is it a great way to clean off after a fun hike, it’s also an easy way to wash off any unnoticed ticks, and a perfect time to do a tick check.

Check your furry friends!

• Ticks don’t discriminate, and love to jump onto any mammal that walks by. If you’ve gone hiking with your dog, make sure to check that they are tick-free as well. Check out this guide from petMD for more!

Dogs are often at a greater risk for catching ticks, as they are much closer to the ground. Credit: Max Pixel

IF YOU FIND A TICK

Don’t panic

• Your odds of catching Lyme disease in the first 24 hours are extremely low. The earlier you spot an unwanted tick, the better, so make sure to do a check early. Proper removal of ticks is important though, so stay calm, take a deep breath and prepare to remove the tick.

Use the proper tools

• Use tweezers, a tick spoon or a tick key to remove the tick. Do not use your fingers! If you squeeze the tick it can panic and spit up any nasty pathogens it may be carrying. Also, do not use a lighter to burn it out! That makes them regurgitate and increases the chance of infection.

Apply steady, even pressure when removing the tick

• If using tweezers, grasp the tick as close to the base as possible. Don’t squeeze!
• If using a spoon or key, slide the divot around the body of the tick.
• Slowly and steadily pull upward, without twisting or jerking. This way parts of the head or mouth won’t remain embedded in your skin, which can raise your risk of infection.
• If some mouth parts stay embedded, try to remove them with tweezers. If you’re unable to remove them, thoroughly clean the area and wait for the skin to heal.
• If you want to watch a video tutorial, check this one out!

Record, and then dispose of the tick

• See if you can identify the species of tick, as this may be helpful if you do require medical attention.
• If you’re unsure, take a picture of it!
• Either drown it in rubbing alcohol, save it in a sealed container or flush it down the toilet. Do not crush it with your fingers! This can expose you to any sort of pathogen the tic may be carrying.

Clean the bite site

• Using rubbing alcohol or an antibacterial soap, clean both the bite location and the tool you used to remove the tick.

Pay attention to the bite site

• Symptoms of Lyme disease can include a bull’s-eye rash, or general flu-like symptoms such as fever, achiness or a general lack of energy. Follow the link to see examples.
• These symptoms can develop 3-30 days after being bitten, so pay attention to the bite site for the next month. If any symptoms develop, contact your doctor immediately.

The smallest, nymphs, are the most likely to pass on Lyme Disease. Credit: Fairfax County

Following these instructions, you will be safe and secure when venturing outside. Don’t let ticks scare you off from travelling outdoors! Our outdoors are too beautiful and important to let these little nuisances prevent you from enjoying them.

By Jad Daley, American Forests

Credit: Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources

Scientists and policymakers have long known that forests are key to solving climate change through the carbon capture that occurs during the natural process of photosynthesis.

When it comes to slowing climate change, forests are a big piece of the puzzle: Here in the United States, our forests and forest products capture and store more than 14 percent of U.S. carbon emissions each year. A report from the Obama administration late in 2016 suggested that this forest-based carbon capture could become even more important in the future, capturing as much as 30-50 percent of our carbon emissions each year. In simple terms, our success in overcoming climate change might hinge on U.S. forests.

But there is a far less settled question: Can we use public policy, like financial incentives, to help forests make the jump to greater carbon capture? This month Stanford University researchers released a study of California’s forest carbon offset market that might help to answer this pressing question.

A Quick Primer on Carbon Offset Markets

Does it matter who reduces carbon emissions, as long as it gets done? Does creating a trading marketplace for pollution allow for the kind of benchmark-beating competitive efficiency inherent to capitalism?

These are the kinds of questions raised when people talk about carbon markets.

If you’re unfamiliar, a carbon offset market can be included as part of a “cap and trade” climate change law like California’s Assembly Bill 32 that mandated carbon emissions reductions from certain facilities like power plants. The ability to buy offsets (sold in one ton increments of carbon dioxide equivalent) is an approved way that these legally-regulated industrial facilities are allowed to comply.

Under California law, these offset credits can come from different kinds of carbon reduction projects, including forest offset projects like “improved forest management” whereby a forest owner pledges to capture a greater amount of carbon through a specified set of forest practices not already required by law.

Decades ago, when early versions of emissions trading between regulated polluters was first proposed as a solution to climate change, questions were raised about this approach from both a philosophical and public policy perspective. The theory was that trading emissions would create more flexibility as polluters look for their most efficient pathway to reduce emissions—or in some cases simply transition out of business. But was this letting polluters off the hook or speeding us toward solutions?

After facing this initial skepticism, the results of emissions trading schemes were promising— market-based approaches often proved even more effective than policy makers projected they would be, like the highly publicized sulfur dioxide trading scheme.

Hey, Stanford, Do Forest Offsets Work?

Fast forward to California’s carbon offset market, which is tied to a massive climate change regulatory scheme that covers the seventh largest economy in the world (the State of California). California’s carbon markets are uniquely powerful for environmental interests because they allow carbon emitters to invest in trees anywhere in the U.S., not only in California.

The Stanford study details that California’s forest carbon market program has transacted more than 25 million tons of carbon offsets since its inception in 2013, which translates into more than $250 million dollars of payments to forest owners to make those reductions happen. (California forest offsets have generally traded for approximately $10 a ton.)

We know that $250 million is a tremendous amount of leverage for protecting forests from development and incentivizing additional carbon reductions through restoration and sustainable management. But has that money been used wisely? Do payments to forest owners for carbon offset really lead to “extra” carbon capture that is as clear and measurable as the emissions coming from a smokestack?

The findings of the Stanford study are encouraging, if leaving some deeper questions unanswered. Most importantly, the Stanford researchers found that the carbon capture on forests that triggered an offset payment from a polluter has been truly additional above “business as usual” for the forest owners of those properties. Put differently, they specifically found that without the payment from a carbon offset, the future of those forests and the stored carbon in them could have been very different.

This seems to answer affirmatively the most profound question for carbon offsets, do they work to generate more carbon capture in forests?

The second key finding of the study is that forest projects funded by California carbon offsets have created a host of benefits that go beyond carbon. Forests don’t just clean the air, they clean water, too. Remarkably, 17 of the 39 forests that engaged in the California carbon offset market currently provide habitat for endangered species, a co-benefit that Californians and any conservationist would surely appreciate. This is just the beginning — forests that are protected and managed well provide people and wildlife alike with many, many more benefits.

Perhaps the only “cloud in the sky” of this report has to do with maximizing the carbon-reducing power of the California offset market. There has been some concern among experts that the California rules favor already conservation-minded landowners, and miss some of the biggest opportunities to protect and repair forests at most risk. The authors of the report have acknowledged that they only assessed the effectiveness of the forest projects that have been funded by California offsets—not the projects that have been left out. It will be interesting to see what future studies might say about these missed opportunities.

But all in all, this report is cause for forest advocates and climate champions alike to celebrate. We know forests can help slow climate change, and now we have affirmation that payments to forest owners can help increase this carbon capture. This could have important implications for future investment in forests as a climate solution, from states following California’s lead to corporate social responsibility investors and maybe even federal officials. Stay tuned!

By Melanie Friedel, American Forests

Diastocera wallichi tonkinensis – Credit: Rushen/Flickr

Would you believe me if I told you that bugs are actually the good guys? Well, maybe not all the time, but when it comes to forest ecosystems, bugs save the day. We need them to carry out essential processes like pollinating plants, recycling nutrients, sustaining the food chain and keeping forests in check.

Pollinators and seed spreaders are major players in forest ecosystems. 80% of all trees are pollinated by insects. Bees, wasps, flies, beetles and butterflies drink nectar, eat pollen from flowers and deposit it in other flowers, pollinating new blooms. Ants carry a heavy load as well; they’re responsible for the germination of more than 150 plant species. They collect and carry seeds to bring home and eat, but the lucky ones that don’t get eaten end up germinating along the ant’s path. This way, ants allow the seeds to travel long distances without the need for wind.

Insects don’t just snack on seeds and nectar, though. They also eat leaves and needles, and in doing so, regulate available nutrients and energy sources in the soil. Insects process the organic matter and deliver it into the soil as broken down nutrients, which is much more accessible to microorganisms in the soil, and much easier for plants to use for growth.

Once a tree has died, it’s up to insects to start recycling the tree’s nutrients back into the earth. Decomposing wood, though, is a whole ‘nother story from leaves and needles. It’s harder for microorganisms to break down wood and bark than it is to break down leaves and plants. The bark protects the wood from being accessed, thus preventing decomposition. This is when insects come to the rescue: they drill holes down into the trunk so that fungi, microorganisms and other insects can enter and start working. If insects didn’t drill those holes the decomposition process would take twice as long.

Once they have access to the wood, “pioneer insects” such as bark beetles, longhorn beetles, jewel beetles, timber worm beetles and wood wasps gather around to feed on the bark and sapwood (the outermost layer of the trunk’s wood). The wood then begins to decompose. When twigs fall off, different insects gather, and bacteria and fungi get involved. Finally, the wood is broken down so thoroughly that it’s almost soil — it becomes a dark, thick, nutrient rich material called humus. ants, fly maggots, beetles, mites and springtails set up camp in the humus, and whatever rotting wood is left gets occupied by worms and snails. They move the decay along to create even more surface area for microbes, and eventually everything breaks down, leaving us with soil.

Think that sounds tough? Well, there’s even more. The important task of monitoring forest health is humbly carried out by insects called bark beetles. In a healthy ecosystem, these beetles recognize weak or sick trees and feed on them to kill them (putting them out of their misery, if you will). In doing so, they improve the overall health and sickness resistance of the forest, and the dead tree decomposes and returns its nutrients to the soil. Unfortunately, many forest ecosystems have become unhealthy due to climate change and fire suppression. The normally sustainable beetle populations have exponentially increased, and have essentially over-performed their role, devastating endless swathes of forests. The process by which a forest would normally stay healthy by trimming the fat has overcorrected.

Clearly, by eating all the leaves, wood and bark that they do, insects are a crucial link in the food chain. But bugs get eaten too. Many forest creatures depend on bugs as a food source: birds such as woodpeckers, warblers and sparrows, as well as mice, shrews, bats, salamanders, frogs, toads and lizards, just to name a few. Some insects even eat other insects! Predatory or parasitic insects benefit their ecosystems by eating overpopulated or invasive plants or other insects, in order to keep pest or weed populations under control.

If the huge accomplishments that these tiny creatures can achieve isn’t impressive, I don’t know what is. Without bugs, we couldn’t have healthy forests. Without healthy forests, we wouldn’t have the air we breathe or the water we drink. So think twice the next time you swat that fly away, and look out for worms crossing the sidewalk, because as surprising as it may be, you need those little guys more than you think.

By Dylan Stuntz, American Forests

I’ve always been fascinated by vines. Ever since I was little, I would help my mother in her garden, and I would always make a beeline for the peas, just to check on their progress. It was just so interesting to watch them stretch and grasp as the weeks went by, meandering up trellises and over branches. It was my first exposure to nature as something capable of change.

When I was younger, I imagined nature to be a massive, unchanging entity. I was positive all forests had stood since the beginning of time, and sure the entire world was covered in verdant greenery. I grew up in rural Vermont, surrounded by incredible forests and foliage. I was skiing as soon and I could stand, and hiking as soon as I could walk. Nature to me was as common as air, this all-encompassing, limitless resource.

Then I moved to the city, trading my dirt roads for pavement, my trees for street lights and my cricket chirps for car horns. Suddenly my air had been cut off. Like a swimmer abruptly dunked underwater, I reached for air at every opportunity. I desperately searched, finding small parks, running trails, little patches of green. I found my greenspaces in an urban jungle and, bit by bit, this country boy adjusted to city life.

Now, when I visit Vermont, I linger on the trails, I breathe deeper when I pass a wildflower and I stare longer at the star-filled sky. I no longer take the trees for granted because I’ve learned what it’s like to live without them.

I’m at American Forests because of extraordinary places that always seemed ordinary to me. People say I’m passionate about forests. I reply, how could I not be? I dare anyone to stand in a forest during a rainstorm, summit a mountain when fall forests are showcasing their foliage, or listen to a summer symphony of crickets, and not become breathless. I’m here so the beauty of the natural world can become ordinary to everyone.

Credit: Wikimedia Commons

By Allie Wisniewski, American Forests

This is part of an 11-blog series on our work with Alcoa Foundation in 2017. Learn more here!

Beautiful, vibrant Spain boasts the highest index of biodiversity in the European Union. With climate change and environmental degradation plaguing the land at an increasingly rapid pace, Ecoherencia knows that it cannot stand idly by. By engaging communities of volunteers and instilling a sense of care and respect for the environment in younger generations, this nonprofit cooperative society is constantly striving to achieve individual and collective resilience.

Ecoherencia’s work aligns with four major themes: ecosystem restoration, environmental education, citizen science, and agroecology and permaculture. The organization’s perspective is largely holistic, and members are keen to walk their talk. Since their objective is to improve their environmental, economic and social surroundings, they understand the necessity of proposing real and visible solutions.

But why embark on such a journey alone? This year, Ecoherencia is teaming up with both American Forests and Alcoa Foundation to plant 5,400 trees and shrubs at four locations within northwest Spain, an area that has been significantly affected by fires in recent years. With the help of volunteers, both locals and employees of Alcoa, the organization will restore vegetation in Madrid, Avilés, A Coruña and San Ciprián. Native species including Aleppo pine, European oak, holm oak, sweet chestnut, European ash, silver birch and more will be planted.

Ecoherencia knows that the best work results from community collaboration. In order to achieve its tree planting goal, the organization is involving local schools and city councils to spread the word and give everyone the opportunity to make positive change close to home. Restoration will not only benefit forest ecosystems, but also encourage the flourishing of amphibian species and other native fauna.

Thanks to Ecoherencia and its work with both American Forests and the Alcoa Foundation, Spanish ecosystems are on their way to an amazing recovery. Change doesn’t happen in a day, but with many days and many hands, the planted seeds of resilience are sure to grow tall and strong.

By Melanie Friedel, American Forests

Bird-watching can be an exciting way to explore the outdoors, or simply a relaxing activity while escaping into nature. Unfortunately, it’s not always easy to find exciting birds in your backyard, but fear not — this list of the top forest spots to go birding will help you score some amazing finds!

Chiricahua Mountains, Coronado National Forest, Arizona

Credit: Alan Shmierer

Don’t be deceived by the miles of seemingly barren lands. These mountains rise up from the Arizona desert, providing a cool and wet climate perfect for a rare tropical bird: the elegant trogon. This metallic green and bright-red bird is the only trogon found regularly in North American forests. Thankfully, Coronado National Forest offers 13 trails, so pick one, grab your binoculars and get searching!

Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks, California

Credit: U.S. Forest Service

This pair of parks is special because it attracts species that thrive in riparian habitats. You’re likely to see the beautiful and unique California spotted owl. It lives in elevation ranges between 1,000 and 8,000 feet, but it can only be found in the Sierra Nevada and southern mountains along the coast of California. If you’re lucky, you’ll catch it spreading its wings. Its wingspan can be as wide as 5 feet! The park recommends visiting in the spring through the fall to see this treasure of a bird.

While you’re there, you might also run into the mountain quail, band-tailed pigeon, white-headed woodpecker, hermit warbler, yellow-billed Cuckoo, great gray owl, flammulated owl and the willow flycatcher, just a few more of the park’s wide range of resident birds.

Acadia National Park, Maine

Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Accompanied by the scenic views from Maine’s cliff-lined coast, this is the perfect site for spotting a ruby-throated hummingbird along a forested trail. The park offers guided bird-watching and walking tours, but even if you venture on your own, you have a great chance of seeing not only the ruby-throated hummingbird, but also a peregrine falcon.

Paradise area & Sunrise area, Mount Rainier National Park, Washington

Credit: Ron Knight

This 14,410-foot, active volcano is home to plenty of birds that are sure to keep you amazed with every step. In the Paradise area, you’ll find the sooty grouse, band-tailed pigeon, red-breasted sapsucker, mountain bluebird and more. Along streams, look out for the American dipper, and in more open areas, check out the American pipit.

The Sunrise area can be found at an altitude of 6,400 feet — the highest point accessible by paved roads. Here you’ll find the boreal owl, gray-crowned rosy-finch, and a small, round-bodied bird called the white-tailed ptarmigan. The neat thing about this bird is that it changes color between seasons, going from completely white in the winter to white with gray and brown spots in the summer.

Mountain Bluebird Trails, Montana

Credit: Tom Koerner/U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service

The birdhouses set up along these trails provide inviting homes for bluebirds and are bound to have you seeing lots along your way. The birdhouse entrances are just small enough to let in bluebirds, but too small for predators like magpies and raccoons to get in. Prepare to be amazed by the streaks of blue in the sky as the bluebirds fly past, or appreciate them up close as they take breaks along these trails constructed purely to preserve their habitat.

Sandia Mountain Wilderness, Cibola National Forest, New Mexico

Along the 117 miles of trail, you can find many open clearings to look up and catch the raptors — another name for birds of prey — soaring above you. There’s a tram that can take you to the top of the ridge, or you can hike it and catch some views along the way. Whatever you choose, you’re bound to see at least one of the 18 species of raptors that fly over this land.

Magee Marsh Wildlife Area, Ohio

Credit: Joel Trick/U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service

More than 300 migratory bird species pass through this 2,000-acre stopover. It’s one of the only beach ridges left on the southern shore of Lake Erie and one of the few remnants of the Great Black Swamp. But what makes this area even more unique and valuable are the several components that make it a vital marsh system. Here, you’ll see orioles, vireos, flycatchers and raptors, but what the area is most known for is its warblers. Look out for the Kirtland’s warbler, a Wildlands for Wildlife focal species and a rare bird found almost only in jack pine forests and identified by its bright yellow belly and blue-feathered head.

Shenandoah National Park, Virginia

Credit: Bill Thompson/U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service

This is the perfect place to enjoy nature’s changing autumn colors or perch yourself atop one of the many hills, but as you make your way through the 500 miles of scenic trails, take your time and look out for the wide variety of local birds.

The black-and-white warbler’s thin, squeaky song represents the beginning of spring. You can spot it by looking for a small bird striped with black and white feathers, nimbly creeping along tree trunks and branches, searching for insects or building a nest in a pile of leaf litter.

The white-breasted nuthatch might also be searching for insects and meaty seeds. It gets its name from its technique of jamming large nuts and acorns into tree bark and then poking at them with its sharp beak until they “hatch” open to release a seed. Check out its strokes of black, gray and white feathers. It’s small, but not hard to track down with its loud and nasal call.

Hanging out in the shrubs of the forest understory, you might find a hooded warbler — look out for its bright yellow body, black neck and head, and the thick stripe of yellow across its face.

Another bright yellow bird you’re likely to find here is the cedar waxwing. Its silky feathers fade from brown to cobalt blue to yellow at the tail, with red-tipped wings and a black mask. When searching, listen for a high-pitched and thin whistle call. In the fall, hundreds group together to gather berries. Don’t be surprised by its impressive aeronautic skills if you see one in the sky!

If you hear a loud rummaging from the undergrowth of the forest, don’t worry — it’s most likely a eastern towhee. Its movement is loud for its size, but it’s a very common bird identified by its deep black back and reddish-brown belly. They like to hang out in hidden spots, so you might only be able to catch a glimpse through the branches.

Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado

Credit: PIXNIO

This park is full of a variety of species from birds of prey and woodpeckers to hummingbirds and water fowl. The park provides such a diverse habitat that it’s a designated Global Important Bird Area. Along with the white-tailed ptarmigan and the three-toed woodpecker, you can find the exotically colored western tanager and the rare but energetic and social pygmy nuthatch.

Hawk Mountain Sanctuary, Appalachian Trail, Pennsylvania

Credit: Darren and Brad/Flickr

Of course there are some notable birding sites along the entire trail, but Hawk Mountain never fails to impress. The crosswinds create the perfect situation for the raptors to soar on the updrafts. The best time to see a variety of hawks, eagles, falcons and vultures is from September to November, when they make their journey south from Canada, New England and New York. The trail is a great place to camp out for a few days or even just spend an afternoon on one of the many tours and birding events the trail has to offer.

All of these beautiful wildernesses and birds are waiting for you. And these spots are only a few of the amazing areas across the country where rare and exotic birds can be found. Start with these, and see what you can find. You just might find them a little more exciting than your backyard.