Category: General Interest

“Biology and Conservation of Alligator Snapping Turtles (Macrochelys)” is out, published June 7 as Special Issue 12, Vol. 22 of Southeastern Naturalist. Our workshop leader and friend John L. Carr, Professor Emeritus at University of Louisiana Monroe, and two colleagues, Ethan J. Kessler of the University of Illinois and Gerald R. Johnston of Santa Fe College (Gainesville, FL), co-edited this collection of the latest science on alligator snappers.

“It is the single largest source of information on this uniquely southeastern U.S.A. group of turtles, which are the largest in North America and currently under consideration for listing as Threatened under the Endangered Species Act,” Carr said.

Two of the 28 articles in the Special Issue report research conducted at Black Bayou Lake National Wildlife Refuge near Monroe and a third covers the northeastern region of Louisiana. Alligator snappers also occur in Bayou Desiard, which runs through the ULM campus.

Carr and his co-editors note in the introduction to the volume that whether or not alligator snappers receive federal endangered species protection, they are already considered threatened and at risk for extinction in many states throughout their range.

“It is truly an impressive volume that should prove to be a valuable resource for all those interested in the natural history and conservation of these iconic turtles,” said Keith Goldfarb, Editor-in-Chief of Southeastern Naturalist.

Louisiana Master Naturalists – Northeast is proud to have supported this project financially. We are even more grateful that John Carr is quick to lead a herps certification workshop for us whenever we ask.

The Fourth Quarter Membership Meeting of the NE Chapter of Louisiana Master Naturalist Association at “Heartwood” December 11 was a fabulous event. A few of us had some difficulty finding it, but it was well worth finding.

Once we had assembled, Kelby Ouchley led a marvelous lecture and group discussion about red and white oaks. He also spoke briefly about pines. Then we embarked upon a walk of discovery! We saw many species of mushrooms and fungi, a variety of trees, and a plethora of plants, including many patches of crane-fly orchid leaves.

After the walk, we returned to the gathering spot, roasted hotdogs and enjoyed a buffet of great food, including chicken of the woods and lots of desserts.

During the Membership Meeting, we elected new officers and discussed the broad plan for the new year. Bette Kauffman, who is now President of the Louisiana Master Naturalist Association (our statewide organization), moves to the position of Immediate Past President and will act in an advisory capacity to the NE Chapter’s new President, David Hoover. Charles Paxton agreed to continue in the capacity of treasurer. April Honaker was elected to be our secretary and Susan Hoover to be Membership & Outreach chair.

After the meeting, we drew numbers to exchange gifts. Charles Paxton got to open three gifts because other people kept claiming his prizes. It was all in good fun!

We are planning workshops for 2023 and hope to have one every month from February to June. Watch your email and check on our website for updated information! Hope to see you there.

Susan Hoover

We lost a workshop but gained a very good time! When a workshop had to be cancelled, we gathered at Black Bayou Lake NWR anyway, first in the Environmental Education Center then on the boardwalk, where the birds entertained us well.

David Hoover kicked off the day by presenting his certification project once again. It’s titled “Snakes Alive!” and I’m sure you haven’t heard the last of it. It’s excellent and I think/hope we got a good recording of it this time. It’s fun, informative and especially helpful to people who want to overcome a snake wariness. So if you know a group or organization that would like a fine educational experience, let us know. Our certification projects are meant to be shared!

After David’s talk, we played with Grouchy (see above) for awhile, then adjourned to the boardwalk. It was an overcast day, which was better for photography than you might think! On a sunny day, birds sitting high in trees turn into black silhouettes against the bright sky. A cloudy day can be a relief.

It was a woodpecker day for me. First a red-belly in a tree along the boardwalk, then both a downy and a sapsucker on snags out in the open. Of course, a great egret stalked fish along the edge of the open water and a flock of coots passed us by.

But the crowning observation was a bald eagle–high on a snag and quite a long ways away. Nevertheless, I managed a shot–not the best, but suitable to share here and for iNaturalist, the online citizen science platform where many Master Naturalist post our observations.

So it was a great day after all. Our next event is our 4th Quarter meeting and Christmas party. That will be at Heartwood, the home of Kelby and Amy Ouchley, and a delightful natural area in its own right. Visitors will be welcome. Look for details here soon.

And be sure to go to our public Facebook group to see lots of photographs and stories from our outings. You’ll find it here.

Come on out to Black Bayou Lake NWR tomorrow (Sat., 10/15). It’s Fall Celebration time!

Fall Celebration is the annual event of Friends of Black Bayou. LMN-NE will be there and a number of our members helping with various things.

Activities begin with a nature walk at 9 a.m. The LMN-NE table will have coloring pages for kids and our great t-shirts for sale. We also have bingo cards, and if you walk the boardwalk and see some of the critters on our bingo card, you could win a cool sticker. Great fun for the kids!

Our member Anne Frazer will be next to us with her Climate Change display and activities. More fun and educational as well.

The zoo will be on hand as usual, and you might get to pet one of the snakes that live in the Environtmental Learning Center. Don’t worry, they’re non-venomous and accustomed to humans.

I hear the food trucks will be fab and that a concoction called “Black Bayou Mud Pies” will be served. Yay! I hope mud = chocolate!

Fall Celebration has been on hiatus due to the pandemic, so this will be a big, beautiful celebration of being together again at our fave refuge. Admission is free. Don’t miss it!

LMN-NE is pleased to share our member Anne Frazer’s letter that was published in the Ouachita Citizen, April 21, 2022. Thank you, Citizen!

Earth Day is a hopeful celebration held around the world on April 22nd. More than a billion people participate to “change human behavior and create global, national and local policy changes.” The theme for 2022 is ‘Invest in our Planet.’ It recognizes that “this is the moment to change it all — the business climate, the political climate, and how we take action on climate” (www.earthday.org).

This theme is especially timely in 2022. Congress enacted bipartisan climate legislation in the omnibus bill at the end of 2020. This is an excellent start, but not sufficient to mitigate the climate harms we increasingly experience. It’s time to address the major driver of climate instability – the burning of fossil fuels, which releases climate warming carbon dioxide and other pollutants to the air.

Congress now has the opportunity to enact a crucial carbon fee and dividend policy. It’s similar to a policy proposed on January 17, 2019, in the Wall Street Journal opinion piece: Economists’ Statement on Carbon Dividends.*

It provides incentive to transition away from the combustion of fossil fuels. It does this by levying a gradually rising fee on fossil fuels. It also delivers a cashback to individuals and keeps U.S. businesses competitive internationally. It’s administered in a transparent fashion that doesn’t grow government.

A summary of H.R.2307, the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act, is available on the http://www.congress.gov website.

This is the time to go big on climate policy. After all, Earth is our only home.

*This link will bypass the WSJ paywall and take you to the article on another website.