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Sue Fruchey Taking Notes: Sue Fruchey taking notes Botanists with the Fish and Wildlife Service and U.S. Forest Service recently visited the Linville Gorge area of Pisgah National Forest to monitor the threatened mountain golden heather and it’s response to recent fire. The plant is adapted to fire, which biologists believe helps control the plant’s competitors. A significant threat at heavily-visited sites is simple trampling by hikers and rock climbers unaware of the plant under their feet and its significance. One way you can help mountain golden heather is joining countless hikers in heeding area-closed signs on public lands, which often mark fragile habitats or species easily damaged by foot traffic. Photo credit: Gary Peeples/USFWS

Impediments to Prescribed Burning: NRCS Interviews: NRCS contracted with NC State to conduct a series of interviews with NRCS state office and field staff, along with some key partners, to collect observations on major impediments to implementing prescribed burning on-the-ground. The Executive Summary is posted here; for a copy of the full report contact Bridgett.Costanzo@usda.gov.

Conservation Planning and Design: NatureScape: The Appalachian NatureScape Design incorporates and models newly developed data and information from all Appalachian LCC funded research projects as well as key existing datasets from partners to produce a series of maps that integrate aquatic connectivity with terrestrial significant habitats to guide conservation planning and decision making.

Assessing Vulnerability of Species and Habitats to Large-scale Impacts: CCVA: New vulnerability assessments for 41 species and 3 habitats in the Appalachians are now available. The conservation community can view and search each of these assessments by relative raking or vulnerability scores, conservation status ranks, state and subregion of assessment, and higher taxonomy. In addition, principle investigators NaturServe compiled the results of 700 species assessments previously completed by other researchers as well as assessments on several habitats.

Videos: A selection of videos that highlight biodiversity, environmental and cultural issues, and other developments.

Assessing Future Energy Development: Assessing Future Energy Development across the Appalachian LCC uses models that combine data on energy development trends and identifies where these may intersect with important natural resource and ecosystem services to give a more comprehensive picture of what potential energy development could look like in the Appalachians. A web-based mapping tool allows policy makers, land management agencies, industries, and others to see where development may likely occur and intersect with important natural values to inform regional landscape planning decisions. Ultimately this information is intended to support dialogue and conservation on how to effectively avoid, minimize, and offset impacts from energy development to important natural areas and the valuable services they provide.

Assessing Future Energy Development across the Appalachians: The Nature Conservancy - with support from the Appalachian LCC - has completed a study to assist policy makers, land management agencies, and industry in assessing potential future energy development and how that may overlap with biological and ecological values.

Southeast Aquatic Resources Partnership SARP: The Southeast Aquatic Resources Partnership (SARP) is a regional collaboration of natural resource and science agencies, conservation organizations and private interests developed to strengthen the management and conservation of aquatic resources in the southeastern United States.

Working Lands for Wildlife: Through Working Lands for Wildlife (WLFW), NRCS works with partners and private landowners to focus voluntary conservation on working landscapes. NRCS provides technical and financial assistance to agricultural producers, helping them plan and implement conservation practices that benefit target species and priority landscapes. Since 2012, NRCS has restored and protected 6.7 million acres of much-needed habitat for a variety of wildlife. These efforts have led to the rebound and recovery of many species, demonstrating the WLFW conservation model works.

Eastern Brook Trout: A diverse group of partners, including state fish and wildlife agencies, federal resource agencies, Indian tribes, academic institutions and non-governmental organizations, are working collaboratively to conserve eastern Brook Trout and their habitats. Established as the Eastern Brook Trout Joint Venture (EBTJV), this Fish Habitat Partnership has already produced several range-wide population assessment of wild Brook Trout; completed extensive work that identifies key threats to wild Brook Trout and their habitats; and developed conservation strategies that protect, enhance and restore wild Brook Trout.

Training Slide: Firefighters with Stanislaus Hot Shot Crew clear out vegetation to mitigate fire progression at the Donnell Fire, Stanislaus National Forest, California. (Forest Service by Cecilio Ricardo).