Tag Archives: nature

Great Smoky Mountains National Park held two ribbon-cutting ceremonies to unveil over 10 new pieces of alternative fuel equipment. The events were held at Oconaluftee Visitor Center near Cherokee, N.C. and Sugarlands Visitor Center near Gatlinburg, Tenn. on September 30, 2015. With the new pieces of alternative fuel equipment, the Smokies implemented three new facets of the park’s Climate Friendly ...

Great Smoky Mountains National Park, in cooperation with the Smoky Mountains Astronomical Society, will offer a 2 ½-hour stargazing program in Cades Cove on Saturday, Sept. 19, 2015 beginning at 7:30 p.m. Experienced astronomers and numerous telescopes will be on hand to provide a discovery of the autumn sky’s position of stars, galaxies, and constellations, including the Milky Way. In ...

Great Smoky Mountains National Park officials announced the closure of the Whiteoak Sink area effective now through March 31, 2016 to limit human disturbance to bat hibernacula and help hikers avoid interactions with bats. Park biologists will be monitoring the site throughout the winter collecting population, ecological and behavioral data that will inform resource managers developing a long-term protection plan. ...

On Tuesday, August 4, the American Eagle Foundation of Tennessee released two 13-week-old bald eaglets in honor of the service members slain last month by a gunman at the Naval Operational Support Center and Marine Corps Reserve Center in Chattanooga, Tenn. For the past six weeks, these eaglets have resided in the American Eagle Foundation’s artificial nesting tower overlooking Douglas Lake ...

Great Smoky Mountains National Park and Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont are hosting an event on Friday, July 17, 2015 in Cades Cove to mark the return of a 14 year-old Smokies monarch butterfly tag recovered on a forest floor in Mexico. Park and Tremont staff will be joined by Outdoor Educator, Wanda DeWaard, to receive the tag from ...

Great Smoky Mountains National Park is teaming up with the Balsam Mountain Trust for a third year to present a special program, Birds of Prey, at the Oconaluftee Multipurpose Room on Friday, July 10, 2015. Michael Skinner, Executive Director of the Balsam Mountain Trust, will conduct an hour-long Birds of Prey program beginning at 11 a.m. This program will provide ...

Trails, campsites and a shelter in the Hazel Creek area reopened today, after being closed since the bear attack nearly a month ago. Officials with the Great Smoky Mountains National Park announced Thursday, July 2, 2015, that Hazel Creek Trail, Jenkins Ridge Trail, Bone Valley Trail, Cold Spring Gap Trail, Derrick Knob Shelter, and backcountry campsites 82, 83, 84, 85, ...

The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service are investigating the shooting of a bald eagle in Jefferson County in the area of Elliots Shoals on Douglas Lake near Dandridge, Tenn. A reward of up to $12,500 is being offered for information leading to a conviction of the person or persons responsible for shooting the eagle. The wounded eagle was ...

The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency is among several organizations launching a campaign to help save monarch butterflies and offering free seed packets to individuals, school groups and organizations that would like to participate in the Save the Monarchs Campaign. The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, along with the National Wildlife Federation, Tennessee Wildlife Federation, Tennessee Parks and Greenways Foundation, Mississippi River ...

Dolly Parton’s Dollywood theme park is well known for its delicious food, entertaining shows, and exhilarating roller coasters. It also has a unique partnership with the American Eagle Foundation and a special bald eagle breeding pair that resides in the park. Both Dollywood and the American Eagle Foundation celebrate their 30th anniversaries this year. Coincidentally, these disabled bald eagle parents, ...