Hello, readers! One thing in my life that brings me joy is watching birds. My birdwatching is not done out in the wild, binoculars in hand, but simply looking out my kitchen window at the birdfeeder in my backyard. There is something very special about seeing all the visiting birds, and my family and I … Continue reading Backyard Birdwatching
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Hike with Pride this month!
June is LGBTQIA+ Pride Month as well as Great Outdoors Month and so this blog will be about both! LGBTQIA+ is an acronym that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual and the plus is for gender fluid people - people whose gender identity changes over time or per situation. Queer is a … Continue reading Hike with Pride this month!
Let’s clear the air: a Vulture is not a Buzzard
Today’s blog focuses on the Turkey Vulture, another one of the most commonly seen birds here in the Southeast. Before we talk about identifying characteristics though, I thought we could dive into the semantics of the terms vulture and buzzard, because it can be pretty confusing. Before researching this topic, whenever I heard the … Continue reading Let’s clear the air: a Vulture is not a Buzzard
The Broad-winged Hawk
Hello readers! In my previous (and first ever) blog post I wrote about the differences between the Red-tailed Hawk and the Red-shouldered Hawk. We discovered how the Red-tailed is bigger than the Red-shouldered and how it is more likely to be seen in our area as well. In this blog we will talk about the … Continue reading The Broad-winged Hawk
Red Tailed Hawk vs Red Shouldered Hawk
Hello to all the readers of the Shelf Life in the Mountains Blog! My name is Annie and I have been working at the beautiful Jackson County Public Library in Sylva for almost two months now. I have also been an avid bird watcher for about four years. It all started when I moved from … Continue reading Red Tailed Hawk vs Red Shouldered Hawk
Celebrating National Science Month with Citizen Science
[Contributed by Carlyn, Circulation Supervisor @ Macon County Public Library] April is National Science Month. There are many ways to celebrate, from reading about a famous scientist, to taking part in a science fair. You might attend Family Science Night at your library or school. One way to become more actively involved is to take … Continue reading Celebrating National Science Month with Citizen Science
Love and the Feathered Rex
By Luke When I was a kid, I was gob-smacked by the movie “The Beast of Hollow Mountain.” This glorious American-Mexican co-production featured rugged cowboys, the low-cut charms of Patricia Medina (who fostered strange stirrings that I wouldn’t understand for a few more years), stampeding cattle and treacherous patches of quicksand – the essential ingredients … Continue reading Love and the Feathered Rex
GSNP Today
By Stephen My last two blogs covered the resources in the Fontana Regional Library system about the Smoky Mountains, before the park existed, and the grassroots movement of the early twentieth century to get the park established along the Tennessee/North Carolina border. This time I will list guides that can be used when visiting the present day park. … Continue reading GSNP Today
Are you a “Twitcher”?
Are you a “twitcher”? Wikipedia gives the definition as someone who travels a long distance to see a rare bird. By Faye Here in America people often find it relaxing to watch birds. It’s estimated that approximately 60 million people in the United States feed birds. According to Susan Hayes, executive director of the Wild … Continue reading Are you a “Twitcher”?
Shelf Life in the Mountains 