Great Smoky Mountains National Park
National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior
SMOKIES GUIDE The Official Newspaper of the Smokies • Spring 2024
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A singing northern parula, one of many warblers whose migration back to the Smokies heralds the coming of spring. Image courtesy of N. Lewis.
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Words with a Ranger My desire to become a park ranger came as an epiphany several years ago while I was on a guided walk in Yellowstone National Park. The walk was through what is known as the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, and the ranger who led it made it an incredible experience. Before the group dispersed, the ranger recommended considering a career with the park service and gave each of us a puzzle piece with a small part of the canyon to take home. After that, I was determined to become a ranger so I could make the same difference for others that the Yellowstone ranger had made for me. After I concluded my military career, I joined the park service, and that puzzle piece is still with me today. It has traveled to more than 30 other national parks so far. Continued on page 8
For Birds and Blooms, Timing Is Everything Species tune into key seasonal signals to thrive
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umans seem to be the only forms of life in the Smokies that rely on a calendar. For the other 21,000+ species discovered in these mountains so far, knowing when to sing, bloom, or set out in search of food depends on paying close attention to environmental cues. In spring, as days lengthen, temperatures climb, and rains soak the ground, a whole host of plants known as “spring ephemerals” receive their signal to flower. Over millennia, these early risers have adapted to attract pollinators within the brief window of springtime when most deciduous trees have yet to put out their leaves and direct sunlight is still plentiful on the forest floor. Spring ephemerals generally peak in early to mid-April in the Smokies with some persisting into May at the cooler higher elevations. Songbirds also take note of these seasonal signals and the growing avail-
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ability of food. Resident birds establish their territories, sing more frequently, and develop colorful plumage in hopes of attracting a mate. Meanwhile, migrant songbirds start to move and arrive daily throughout spring from their wintering grounds elsewhere to join in the chorus of song and set to building their nests. When we humans decide to study these changes, we call it phenology. Every year, park biologists and community volunteers organized by the Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont visit designated phenology plots to measure the progress of the seaons. By carefully collecting data about natural events over time, we can reveal fascinating interconnections and better understand how everything from blooming wildflowers to migrating songbirds will respond to change as they set their busy schedules. GreatSmoky MountainsNPS
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PARKING TAG REQUIRED! Parking in the Smokies for more than 15 minutes requires a valid parking tag (annual tag pictured). For more info, scan code with camera app
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