Category: Field Notes

We’re sitting on something like 400,000 shortleaf pine seeds right now—seed that will be used to restore the Southern Cumberland’s great lost forest system. It’s pretty safe to say that’s the largest collection of shortleaf seeds

What’s Alabama’s most valuable asset? Its genes. I don’t mean to be insulting, but I’m not really talking about your genes, or my genes, or the genes of any person you or I know. I’m talking

Some might suspect we are species hounds at Paint Rock Forest Research Center, obsessed with finding new species. Ed Wilson reminded us often that we should be. He wanted us to know every species on the

How is it, when millions of native elms died from a virulent disease all across the county, elms in the South pretty much laughed it off? Dutch elm disease has been catastrophic for American elms trees in

Paint Rock’s elms aren’t supposed to exist. Or at least, they’re supposed to be very unhappy and all near death. But the truth is Alabama’s many species of elms are all about as happy as trees

We’re doing more than any organization our size should be capable of. We’ve gotten it done because of our partners like founding members and UCLA Distinguished Professors Stephen Hubbell and Patty Gowaty. Because of our long

To laugh with us please click herehttps://www.dropbox.com/s/gh82w1nke20g00f/Cumberlands%20TALE.pdf?dl=0

It’s funny how we turn the world upside down. What were once the most common trees in Alabama are now hard to find, increasingly close to functional extinction. And trees that were once relatively rare, restricted

There are something like 35,000 green but mature shortleaf pine cones from the Alabama Cumberlands drying in burlap bags hanging in our barn. Don’t believe me? We are happy for you to do the recount, so

The research at Paint Rock is important to the future of North American forests. But just as important to the future are our young researchers – interns who work to build our scientific infrastructure at Paint

Photographs by Matt Niemiller Ph.D. and Amata Hinkle Text by Bill Finch  The light at the end of the tunnel can sometimes be a bit disappointing, particularly if you spend much time in an Alabama cave.

Samford team turns over a new leaf—or two—at Paint Rock Samford student Madelyn Thompson has for the past few months been working with Chicago’s Morton Arboretum to try to unscramble the hard maples at the Sharp-Bingham

Joe Paull returns with his wife Kori to look at organizing a library with the field guides and other books donated by E.O. Wilson and Kathleen Horton. Once Kori began to ask questions and discuss the

Joe Paull joined us with an invite from Mike Dalen on a beautiful rainy day to see what the Paint Rock Forest Research Center is about and the work of the forest dynamics census. Experienced in

The restoration of Flagg Mountain Fire Tower, dedicated June 15th was celebrated by many, including the governor. It was a job considered impossible until the right people and teams were pulled together – and it happened.

Photographs and text by Ryan Long Stepping into Paint Rock’s forests lets me see something photo-worthy every day. Everything looks so calm and photogenic; meanwhile there’s a war of aggression being waged at every level in the

Bill did a presentation to the Land Trust of North Alabama about the diversity in Alabama and how we fit into the extinction crisis. You can watch the talk here.

When E.O. Wilson died December 26th, many here may not have recognized how he changed Alabama in the eyes of the world. Those impressed by celebrity will be interested to know that Ed Wilson was likely

If only Alabama knew how to get rich on its own gold. Every time I start counting through the state’s stores of gold—blooming everywhere in fall fields—I wonder how in the world we have failed to

Bachman’s Warbler once filled the canebrakes in Alabama. Of the 10 mainland North American species declared extinct by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service this week, all but one were from Alabama. The spirit bird of the

You can always tell when you have a really great group of interested people by their questions. This exceptional group of Venture America folks learned about biodiversity first hand in Bill’s lectures within the Paint Rock