by Christine Martens, SRS Communications • January 21, 2025

More than 250 members of the western North Carolina community, including many forest landowners, gathered at Highland Brewery in Asheville in December 2024 to discuss the challenges facing local forests after Hurricane Helene.

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Communications • November 26, 2024

Thanks to collaborators, the Southern Research Station now has access to a machine that can make biochar, a wood product with many potential uses. The team is currently cooking 10,000 pounds of biochar for an ecological restoration study.

by Kalen Breland, SRS Communications • November 25, 2024

To restore temperate southern woodlands, managers often replace loblolly and slash pines with longleaf and shortleaf pines. However, researchers found that retaining some loblolly and slash pine can save resources without affecting restoration goals.

by Christine Martens, Science Delivery Specialist • November 8, 2024

The William B. Bankhead National Forest is a living laboratory with long-term studies on the effects of thinning and prescribed burning. This year, researchers conducted the 100th prescribed burn.

by By Christine Martens, SRS Communications • October 30, 2024

Oaks are incredibly important, and the symposium brought researchers and land managers from around the world together to discuss the threats that oaks face globally from pests, diseases, land management changes, and climate change.

by I’Ceyonna Ware, Recreation and Lands Resource Assistant • October 24, 2024

New research fuses data from FIA, iNat, and EDDMapS to map the spread of Chinese tallow tree in forests, urban areas, and wetlands. The study shows that the tree has spread at the rate of 5 to 20 kilometers every year for the past decade.

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Communications • October 22, 2024

Longleaf pine forests are increasing, but some forests that once included longleaf pine are being lost to development or degraded by fire suppression.

by Kalen Breland, SRS Communications • September 26, 2024

The USDA Forest Service offers numerous internships for young people who want to explore careers in agriculture, conservation, forest management, and forestry research. Summer interns at Bent Creek Experimental Forest tried their hands at field work by assisting with silviculture and forestry res...

by Sarah Farmer, SRS communications • September 24, 2024

Throughout the USDA Forest Service, people are working to bring youth from under-served and under-represented communities to careers in natural resources. For example, SRS-FIA experts have organized job fairs, networking events, trainings, and other engagements students at Job Corps Centers, comm...

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Communications • August 7, 2024

MAHI is a new tool that can help people detect mussel declines early, which is essential for evaluating conservation strategies and management actions.

by Megan Cameron, SRS Communications Intern • August 1, 2024

A new protocol explains how to use Terrestrial Laser Scanning for fast and accurate fire effects monitoring.

by Sarah Farmer and Jenni Moore Myers, SRS Communications • July 30, 2024

The area burned by wildfires is projected to increase due to climate change. Forest Service researchers analyzed 10 future climate scenarios and large body of literature on fire and wildfire suppression spending.

by Steve Norman, research ecologist • July 18, 2024

After a flash drought and beetle outbreak last year, millions of pine trees scattered across 83,000 acres died. State agencies were able to use a free FS tool called HiForm to map the damage and prioritize trees that pose safety hazards for removal. The information allows officials to make quicke...

by Kalen Breland, SRS Communications • July 16, 2024

Laurel wilt disease has been spreading through the U.S. since 2002 and is fatal to tree species in the laurel family. Forest Service researchers are continuing to monitor the disease, search for treatment methods, and develop a better understanding of how it is affecting sassafras and other susce...

by Christine Martens, Science Delivery Specialist • July 12, 2024

The 14th biannual North American Forest Ecology Workshop was recently held in Asheville, NC. The Southern Research Station was among the sponsors. Around 200 people including many students attended. Attendees enjoyed over 100 sessions about all aspects of forest ecology as well as several field t...

by Greg Smith and Nathan Wheat, quality assurance and quality control foresters • June 11, 2024

Two QAQC foresters from SRS-FIA travel to Laos PDR and Vietnam to exchange knowledge regarding national forest inventories.

by Thomas J. Brandeis, research forester • June 10, 2024

Forest Inventory and Analysis supported international climate mitigation efforts by serving as a technical expert on an assessment team. The team assessed forest reference emission level submissions from Colombia as part of the REDD+ framework.

by Jamie Van Clief, southern regional science coordinator, The American Chestnut Foundation • June 7, 2024

Improved grafting techniques are helping people preserve the genes of the American chestnut tree - particularly the genes from the southern part of the tree's range.

by Kalen Breland, SRS Communications • May 28, 2024

More than half of vector-borne disease cases are caused by just three species of ticks: lone star ticks, American dog ticks, and blacklegged ticks. With changes to climates and habitats, these ticks have gradually expanded their ranges across the southern and eastern U.S., exposing more people to...

by Christine Martens, Science Delivery Specialist • April 4, 2024

Two new papers on prescribed and enhancement planting provide foundational how-to knowledge for oak restoration. Oaks are important trees that wildlife depend upon, and they also use about a third of the amount of water as species like red maple.

by Kalen Breland, SRS Communications • March 7, 2024

New research shows that even the smallest ecological communities – like the microbes in the soil – thrive after prescribed fire. The bacterial and fungal communities in the soil are small but mighty, cycling nutrients and carbon through the ecosystem by contributing to decomposition and carbo...

by Kalen Breland, SRS Science Communications • February 27, 2024

In 2023, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service delisted eight species of mussels from the Endangered Species Act due to extinction. All of these mussels were native to the Southeast, a region of significant freshwater biodiversity. In addition to enigmatic declines, mussels face habitat destruction ...

by Christine Martens, Science Delivery Specialist • February 22, 2024

Older forests in particular are shifting from drought-tolerant tree species like oak and hickory to shade-loving trees like maple and poplar, reports a new study that evaluates fine-scale factors driving mesophication across the eastern U.S.

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications • February 15, 2024

For many indigenous nations, river cane is a cultural keystone. The Forest Service currently stewards land that is the ancestral homeland of many tribal nations. Working with Tribes to restore, sustain, and improve access to river cane is one of the ways we are putting our Tribal Action Plan into...

by Ashlynn Amon, Southeast Climate Hub • February 13, 2024

The latest outreach efforts of the Southeast Climate Hub include participation at multiple public events. The Hub is bringing science-based information to farmers, foresters, and land managers across the South. At two events in 2023, the team interacted with over 4,000 people.

by Kalen Breland, SRS Science Communications • February 2, 2024

For more than 40 years, invasive wild pig (Sus scrofa) populations have exploded across the South, costing billions of dollars in damage to ecosystems and farms each year. New research indicates a promising new management tool for reducing the density of wild pig populations, but without consiste...

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications • January 30, 2024

In the Southern Appalachians, fires that kill mature trees create habitat for birds - especially the species that depend on young forests and early successional habitat. But even bird species that are not considered disturbance-dependent were more abundant in areas that burned more severely.

by Sarah Farmer and Jennifer Moore Myers • January 25, 2024

Because American-Chinese chestnut hybrids are viable, people have assumed that the two species are compatible. However, new research reveals that their chromosomes are not so similar after all, at least in one key region of the genome.

by Jacqueline Patterson, SRS Science Communications Resource Assistant • January 23, 2024

Tree-of-heaven and Chinese tallow tree are the most invasive tree species in the South, according to a recent study which uses Forest Inventory & Analysis data to identify highly and moderately invasive nonnative species across the U.S.

by Kathryn Sosbe, Washington Office of Communication • January 17, 2024

Tax tips for forest landowners are now available. Updates for the 2023 filing season include changes to the limit for bonus depreciation. Many factors, including forest ownership classification, holding period, and the method of selling timber can affect taxes. The complexities of some of these i...

by Kalen Breland, SRS Science Communications • January 2, 2024

Across Florida, 30% or more of the ant species present are nonnative. In parts of southern Florida, that number has reached 70%. Ants disperse seeds and are important members of nutrient cycles. The researchers plan to further study nonnative ants and forest health, how to detect new species at p...

by Christine Martens, SRS Science Delivery Specialist • December 12, 2023

The Southeast Bat Hub was recently established to help people in 10 southern states conduct bat surveys that follow NABat protocols. The data collected is helping researchers understand how white-nose syndrome and other threats are affecting bat populations.

by Jacqueline Patterson, SRS Science Communications Resource Assistant • December 7, 2023

Cutting gaps in the canopy around eastern hemlock significantly improves their survival despite hemlock woolly adelgid infestations, reports a recent study. Researchers tested different gap sizes of up to 0.15 acres and found that the larger the gap, the better the hemlocks were able to produce n...

by Christine Martens, SRS Science Delivery Specialist • November 30, 2023

In October 2024, oak experts from around the world will gather in Knoxville, Tennessee for the International Oak Symposium. The Symposium is designed to meet Forest Service priorities, sustain oaks, and bring researchers and managers into productive dialogue. The call for abstracts – for both o...

by Kalen Breland, SRS Science Communications • November 7, 2023

A new economic model for understanding hardwood markets allows researchers to account for trends in the supply and demand of important species such as white oak. White oak is vital to many industries and is ecologically important. Previously, all hardwood species were modeled as a group. The new ...

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications • October 26, 2023

The Louisiana pinesnake is one of the rarest snakes in the country. The Forest Service is restoring its longleaf pine habitat, tracking released snakes, and studying their population ecology. “This work highlights the multidisciplinary nature of species conservation and the multiple partnership...

by Jacqueline Patterson, SRS Science Communications Resource Assistant • October 19, 2023

A new modeling study suggests that climate change has become the major driver of erosion in the Mississippi River Basin. In the future, extreme precipitation is expected to occur more frequently in the upper basin cropland area. Croplands are more vulnerable to extreme rainfall and contribute mor...

by Christine Martens, SRS Science Delivery Specialist • October 11, 2023

A 20-year study confirms Asiatic bittersweet's sit and wait strategy. The invasive vine grew rapidly for the first 9 years in gaps created by Hurricane Opal. After that point, the gaps closed in with new growth, and Asiatic bittersweet increased only slowly until year 20. The study also reports t...

by Jacqueline Patterson SRS Science Communications Resource Assistant • October 3, 2023

Remote sensing technologies such as LIDAR are leading to more accessible and efficient ways to map forest structure in order to track forest health, conservation needs, and climate change impacts over time. LIDAR data can be used to create 3D maps of forest structure. A new study shows that fores...

by Christine Martens, SRS Science Delivery Specialist • September 28, 2023

A special issue in the journal Forest Ecology and Management focuses on chestnuts across the globe. Most of the 22 articles focus on the American chestnut and the European sweet chestnut. Topics included chestnut ecology, disease pathology, wildlife perspectives and silviculture for timber produc...

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications • September 26, 2023

The most advanced hybrid American chestnut trees do not yet have the blight resistance needed for forest restoration, according to results from an eight year field trial. The recent study is part of a larger effort representing the oldest field trials of advanced hybrid seedlings.

by Mike Haldeman, SRS Science Communications • September 14, 2023

By 2070, drought is likely to affect three times the forest area as it has in recent decades. This is based on projections from a new Forest Service study that shows where drought exposure may increase and which forest types could be most affected. Managing for open forests by thinning, planting ...

by Allyson Mann, University of Georgia Athens • September 12, 2023

New research reveals that the plentiful—although short term—presence of black locust trees after a land disturbance creates nutrient conditions that favor species like maple and tulip poplar, rather than oak and hickory, and the effects can last for decades. In addition, fire makes soil more ...

by Mia Beams, SRS Science Communications intern; Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications • August 17, 2023

A new book takes an ecosystem approach to urban forest management. The book provides detailed steps for developing a successful urban forest management plan – from assembling a project team, engaging the community, surveying the urban forest and working within the governance to create a sustain...

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications • August 10, 2023

Prepared as a part of the centennial of Forest Service research in the South, a new report uses previously unpublished studies, biographies, maps, letters, photos, and other primary materials to show how forestry evolved in the southern U.S.

by Mia Beams, SRS Science Communications Intern • August 3, 2023

A new study is the first to examine how large storage dams in freshwater streams affect crayfish. The study reports that streams with a dam have fewer microhabitats, more predators, less aquatic vegetation and warmer water. They also have fewer crayfish. Streams without a dam have more microhabit...

by Mia Beams, SRS Science Communication Intern • August 1, 2023

Since 2007, some bee populations have fallen by more than 80%, according to a recent 15-year study on bees and butterflies in northeastern Georgia. This study was among the first to assess pollinator decline in forests largely undisturbed by humans. Many previous reports of pollinator declines to...

by Tom Brandeis, Forest Inventory and Analysis • July 20, 2023

Forest Inventory and Analysis experts recently shared forest inventory knowledge with experts in the Republic of Tajikistan. The Tajikistan government is seeking to reforest rural areas, improve watershed management, and implement a national forest inventory that would provide them with the infor...

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications • July 18, 2023

Timber sales are part of the Forest Service land management strategy. But in recent years, almost 15% of timber sales have not gotten a single bid when first offered. New research is illuminating the factors driving no-bid timber sales and pointing towards solutions that can reduce them.

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications • July 11, 2023

With partnerships, a model, and maps, fire managers on the Oconee National Forest in Georgia doubled the acres treated with prescribed fire.

by Jacqueline Patterson, SRS Science Communications Resource Assistant • June 28, 2023

A new study found that, at broad scales, dense, crowded forests are at higher risk of damage from insects and diseases. USDA Forest Service researchers Christopher Asaro, Frank Koch, and Kevin Potter compared the amount of space trees take up, or total basal area (TBA), with survey maps of fore...

by Jacqueline Patterson, SRS Science Communications Resource Assistant • June 22, 2023

Forests provide critical pollinator habitat and pollinators provide important benefits to forests. A new global review discusses why forests are incredibly important to pollinators and how forest pollinators can provide substantial economic benefits to neighboring agricultural areas.

by Jacqueline Patterson, SRS Science Communications Resource Assistant • June 16, 2023

The 2023 FIA National User Group Meeting in Charlotte, North Carolina was hosted by the Society of American Foresters and the National Council for Air and Stream Improvement. The meeting highlighted partner projects as well as FIA program updates.

by Jacqueline Patterson and Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications • June 15, 2023

140 sixth-graders recently spent a day at Bent Creek Experimental Forest, learning about hemlock ecology and spending time in the woods. Forest Service researchers Bud Mayfield and Andy Whittier showed students the hemlock insectaries, where biocontrol agents that prey on hemlock woolly adelgids ...

by Jacqueline Patterson, SRS Communications Resource Assistant • June 1, 2023

Table mountain pine, a rare and fire-dependent tree species that grows in the Appalachian Mountains, has declined due to fire suppression and changing land uses. Researchers are studying the genetic diversity of the species to guide restoration efforts. Replanting and restoration may be essential...

by Jacqueline Patterson, SRS Communications Resource Assistant • May 30, 2023

A survey of alligator snapping turtles focused on habitat preferences and environmental DNA as a safer, more efficient method for sampling populations of these rare, potentially endangered turtles.

by A. Dan Wilson, research plant pathologist • April 17, 2023

by Jacqueline Patterson, SRS Communications Resource Assistant • April 6, 2023

by Lars Pomara, Ecologist • March 23, 2023

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications • March 22, 2023

by Mac Callaham, research ecologist, and Jacqueline Patterson, SRS Science Communications Resource Assistant • March 14, 2023

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications • January 26, 2023

by Kathryn Sosbe, Forest Service Office of Communciation • January 24, 2023

by Mei Geller, Science Communication Intern • January 12, 2023

by Sam Lambert, SRS Forest Inventory and Analysis • January 5, 2023

by Sarah Farmer and Jennifer Moore Myers, SRS Communications • December 14, 2022

by Laurel Haavik, Technical Writer-Editor • December 8, 2022

by Amy Androff, Public Affairs Specialist, Forest Products Laboratory • December 6, 2022

by A. Dan Wilson, Research Plant Pathologist • November 16, 2022

by Preston Durham, SRS Forester • November 2, 2022

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications • November 1, 2022

by Jennifer Moore Myers, SRS Science Communications • October 27, 2022

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications • October 26, 2022

by Jennifer Moore Myers, SRS Science Communications • October 13, 2022

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications • September 29, 2022

by Jeff Prestemon, senior research forester and project leader, Southern Research Station • September 22, 2022

by Virginia McDaniel, Science Writer, and Mei Geller, SRS Communications Intern • September 1, 2022

by Virginia McDaniel, Science Writer • July 21, 2022

by Virginia McDaniel, Science Writer • July 14, 2022

by Mei Geller, SRS Science Communications Intern • July 12, 2022

by Virginia McDaniel, Science Writer • June 28, 2022

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications • June 22, 2022

by Virginia McDaniel, Science Writer • June 9, 2022

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications • June 7, 2022

by Virginia McDaniel, Science Writer • June 2, 2022

by Deena C. Bouknight • May 19, 2022

by Virginia McDaniel, Science Writer • May 12, 2022

by Virginia McDaniel, Science Writer • May 10, 2022

by Virginia McDaniel, Science Writer • May 5, 2022

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications • May 3, 2022

by Virginia McDaniel, Science Writer • April 28, 2022

by Jennifer Moore Myers, SRS Science Communications • April 26, 2022

by Virginia McDaniel, Science Writer • April 21, 2022

by Paul Hamel, retired USDA Forest Service scientist • April 20, 2022

by Joyce El Kouarti, Office of Communications • April 19, 2022

by Teresa Jackson, SRS public affairs specialist • April 14, 2022

by Mac Callaham, research ecologist, and Virginia McDaniel, science writer • April 12, 2022

by Stephanie Siegel, USDA Forest Service Contract Science Writer • April 7, 2022

by Virginia McDaniel, Science Writer • April 5, 2022

by Meredith Blackwell, professor emerita; and Brian Sullivan, research entomologist • March 24, 2022

by Jennifer Moore Myers and Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications • March 22, 2022

by Virginia McDaniel, Science Writer • March 17, 2022

by Andrew Dolloff, SRS Project Leader & Fishery Research Biologist • March 15, 2022

by Stephanie Siegel, USDA Forest Service Contract Science Writer • March 10, 2022

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications • March 8, 2022

by Sean Nealon, Oregon State University News Editor • March 2, 2022

by Kathryn Sosbe, Office of Communication • February 23, 2022

by Virginia McDaniel, Science Writer • February 17, 2022

by Virginia McDaniel, Forestry Technician • February 15, 2022

by Stephanie Siegel, USDA Forest Service Contract Science Writer • February 3, 2022

by Stephanie Siegel, USDA Forest Service Contract Science Writer • February 1, 2022

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications • January 27, 2022

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications • January 26, 2022

by Virginia McDaniel, Forestry Technician • January 25, 2022

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications • January 13, 2022

by Stephanie Siegel, USDA Forest Service Contract Science Writer • January 4, 2022

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Communications • December 16, 2021

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications • August 12, 2021

by Megan Leinenbach, SRS Science Communications Intern • July 22, 2021

Since 2002, forests in the southeastern U.S. have struggled against a disease called laurel wilt. In 18 years, laurel wilt has spread to 11 southeastern states and killed hundreds of millions of trees.

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Communications • May 28, 2020

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications • January 20, 2020

Water tables are everywhere, but their levels fluctuate – especially in the poorly drained clay soils of coastal South Carolina.

by Jenni Moore Myers, SRS Communications • March 7, 2019

Genetics research is focused on learning more about the laurel will pathogen’s genetic structure in order to improve detection methods and screening for possible resistance in Lauraceae host species.

by Sarah Farmer, Science Writer • January 18, 2018

Raindrops that land on trees may never hit the ground. “Trees intercept a significant amount of rain,” says U.S. Forest Service science delivery specialist Eric Kuehler.

by Texas A&M and Texas Forest Service - adapted from news release • August 1, 2017

by Tom Brandeis, SRS Forest Inventory & Analysis • December 7, 2016

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications • October 6, 2016

by Jenni Moore-Myers • September 13, 2012

by Stephanie Worley Firley, EFETAC • July 19, 2012