The Franklin Bird Club leads walks along the Greenway on Wednesday mornings at 8 a.m. through September. Walks start at alternating locations: Macon County Public Library, Big Bear Park and Salali Lane. 

By this point, more than six months after Hurricane Helene barreled through Western North Carolina, it’s a common sight. Heavy machinery moving in and around waterways, working to remove debris that choked rivers and streams during extreme flooding caused by the storm. 

As a young child, growing up right outside of London, Dan Tapster fondly remembers watching David Attenborough’s nature documentaries with his mother, these family moments that were “a cherished ritual.”
“She proudly claims to be his number one fan,” Tapster said. “And those early experiences ignited my fascination with storytelling and the natural world.” 

Among the earliest flowering members of the Aster Family (Asteraceae) is the robin’s plantain (Erigeron pulchellus). Around Cullowhee, the robin’s plantain begins blooming in early April at lower elevations and can be seen blooming at higher elevations into June.

Western Carolina University will welcome eight-time Emmy-nominated showrunner Dan Tapster to talk about the making of our planet. 

Picture this — your bottle of body wash, discarded and forgotten, now sits floating in the Pacific Ocean, mingling with millions of others in a toxic soup of waste. Like you, I toss containers into the trash without thinking twice.

The four-state mountain region that includes Great Smoky Mountains National Park is home to an estimated 14,500 black bears, but one particular animal had caught the attention of a watchful police chief in one of the park’s gateway communities.

Panthertown Map Association, the non-profit publishers of Burt Kornegay’s popular map, “A Guide’s Guide to Panthertown,” recently celebrated the publication of the newly revised 30th anniversary edition with a $7,500 donation to Friends of Panthertown. 

The Franklin Bird Club leads walks along the Greenway on Wednesday mornings at 8 a.m. through September. Walks start at alternating locations: Macon County Public Library, Big Bear Park and Salali Lane. 

N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) recommends that homeowners check now for bats that may be getting into their home and evict them responsibly before pup-rearing season begins on May 1.