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Athens Conservancy Opens the Mary Beth Art Trail
Athens Conservancy and Passion Works Studio have teamed up to create a colorful new Art Trail just outside of Athens. The trail opens Sunday, June 5 with a celebration for the public, along with the other community partners Live Healthy Appalachia and the Ohio Valley Museum of Discovery. The Art Trail, featuring whimsical nature-inspired trail… Read More

Buckeye Trail Biggest Day Hike
June 4th, 2022 will be the Buckeye Trail Association’s third annual Biggest Day Hike, hosted on National Trails Day. National Trails Day, which occurs on the first Saturday of June each year, recognizes federal, state and local trails that provide recreation and access to nature. The Buckeye Trail Association is encouraging everyone around Ohio to… Read More

Researcher finds ‘stunning’ rate of COVID among deer. Here’s what it means for humans
By: Ari Daniel | NPR
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WASHINGTON, D.C. (NPR) — Between October and December of last year, researchers swabbed the noses of 93 dead deer from across Pennsylvania. Nearly a fifth of the animals tested positive for COVID. This is one result from a new pair of soon-to-be-published studies with the latest evidence for COVID spillover from humans into wild white-tailed… Read More

Scientists discover shockingly high rates of COVID infections among white-tailed deer
By: PBS Newshour
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WASHINGTON, D.C. (NewsHour) — Scientists have recently discovered what they are calling a silent outbreak of coronavirus among white-tailed deer. PBS NewsHour’s William Brangham reports about how one of the most ubiquitous species in North America contracted COVID, and what that means for the future of the pandemic.

In elk, a Kentucky professor sees an opportunity to help revitalize Appalachia
By: Liam Niemeyer | Ohio Valley ReSource
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Ohio Valley ReSource · In Elk, A Kentucky Professor Sees An Opportunity To Help Revitalize Appalachia MURRAY, Ky. (OVR) — Howard Whiteman is inching along in his black Toyota Prius, craning his neck to see what’s beyond the rolling grasslands into the nearby woods. He wishes he brought binoculars. He’s slowly making his way around… Read More

Regenerative Agriculture Farm Tour & Lunch
Join ACEnet and Rural Action at Woodland Ridge Farm & Learning Center Saturday, September 25th from 10am – 4pm to learn about regenerative agriculture, enjoy a farm-to-table lunch & take a whole farm tour. This event (including lunch) is free but tickets are limited! To register for this free event or to view the agenda:… Read More

Athens Conservancy Partners With Artist To Help Get Word Out
By: Taylor Burnette
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ATHENS, Ohio (WOUB) — An Athens group is working to get the message out about conservation by partnering with a local artist. The Athens Conservancy works to purchase land with high public value, said Chris Fahl, president of the conservancy board. It preserves private property with environmental value, but also preserves land for public… Read More

Rare Blue Lobster Fished Out Of An Ohio Red Lobster
By: Ian Stewart | NPR
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The Akron Zoo has a new resident for its collection, courtesy of an observant employee at a Red Lobster restaurant.

Glidepath to Recovery: Flying Squirrels and Spruce Forests Share Common Fate
By: Brittany Patterson | Ohio Valley ReSource
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U.S. Forest Service district biologist Shane Jones stands on an overlook high up on West Virginia’s Cheat Mountain. Behind him lush, red spruce trees stand like sentinels on this frozen landscape. As he looks out, small patches of green dot what is largely a view of the barren, brown trunks of leafless hardwoods. More than… Read More

New Protections Proposed For Imperiled Crayfish Species
By: Brittany Patterson | Ohio Valley ReSource
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The U.S. Fish and Wildlife service is proposing new protections for two threatened species of crayfish found in the Appalachian coalfields. Under the new proposed rule, published Tuesday in the Federal Register, the agency will designate 445 miles of streams in West Virginia, Kentucky and Virginia as “critical habitat” for the Guyandotte River crayfish and Big… Read More

Nature’s ‘Brita Filter’ Is Dying and Nobody Knows Why
By: Nathan Rott | NPR
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A mysterious die-off of freshwater mussels has scientists scrambling to find a cause. Freshwater mussels clean water and provide habitat to countless other species.

Elk Tours in West Virginia Draw Visitors from 8 Other States
By: Associated Press
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CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) – A West Virginia wildlife official says a monthlong series of fall tours to see elk drew visitors from eight other states. Chief Logan State Park naturalist Lauren Cole says that 227 people went on the sold-out tours in September and October. The elk were at the nearby Tomlin Wildlife Management Area… Read More

West Virginia Fall Foliage Peaking in Higher Elevations
By: Associated Press
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CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — West Virginia’s higher elevations still have the best fall color as warmer temperatures in September delayed this year’s fall foliage display. The West Virginia Tourism Office said the best locations this weekend will be in areas such as Randolph County. Fall colors are peaking along U.S. 250 between Elkins and Durbin…. Read More

Federal Biologist: Black Vultures are Invading West Virginia
By: Associated Press
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BUCKHANNON, W.Va. (AP) — A federal biologist says federally protected vultures are invading West Virginia, having migrated from Central and South America about 45 years ago and now settling up the East Coast. Thomas Elliott is a wildlife biologist and district supervisor with the wildlife services program of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and… Read More

A New Bloodsucking Leech Species Found Hiding Outside Washington, D.C.
By: Leila Fadel | Peter Breslow | NPR
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Smithsonian researcher Anna Phillips led the recent discovery of the new medicinal species. Its superficial similarities to a North American leech species helped prevent its detection before.

Deadly Virus Detected in West Virginia White-Tailed Deer
By: Associated Press
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SOUTH CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) – Wildlife officials say a deadly virus has been detected in white-tailed deer in southern West Virginia. The state Division of Natural Resources says in a news release that the deer were found dead in Greenbrier, Monroe and Summers counties. It says a lab confirmed the presence of epizootic hemorrhagic disease… Read More

Trump Administration Makes Major Changes To Protections For Endangered Species
By: Nathan Rott | NPR
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Interior Secretary David Bernhardt says the revisions will make the landmark conservation law more efficient. Critics say it will hurt endangered plants and animals as they face mounting threats.

Mussel Woman: Biologist Passes Along Pearls Of Wisdom About Threatened Mussels
By: Brittany Patterson | Ohio Valley ReSource
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Janet Clayton is standing thigh-deep in a back channel of the Elk River. Clad in a wetsuit and knee pads, the silver-haired biologist with the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources reaches into a bright orange mesh bag submerged in water. Inside are a half dozen mussels she plucked from the rocky river bottom. “This… Read More

Don’t Cut Those Trees — Big Food Might Be Watching
By: Dan Charles | NPR
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Dozens of food companies have promised to stop their suppliers from clearing forests in order to grow crops or graze cattle. Now the companies have a tool to monitor those farmers from space.

Birds Are Trying To Adapt To Climate Change — But Is It Too Little, Too Late?
By: Pien Huang | NPR
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By breeding and migrating earlier, some birds are adapting to climate change. But it’s probably not happening fast enough for some species to survive, according to new research.

Power Plant: How A Grass Might Generate Fuel And Help Fix Damaged Mine Lands
By: Liam Niemeyer | Ohio Valley ReSource
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Down bumpy back roads deep in central West Virginia, a flat, bright green pasture opens up among the rolling hills of coffee-colored trees. Wildflowers and butterflies dot the pasture, but West Virginia University Professor Jeff Skousen is here for something else that stands above the rest of the Appalachian scenery – literally. Thick stalks of… Read More

Cleveland Area Rocks After Earthquake Reported in Lake Erie
By: Associated Press
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CLEVELAND (AP) – Federal geologists say an earthquake with an estimated magnitude 4 has been detected just northeast of Cleveland in Lake Erie. There were no reports immediately of damage, and the U.S. Geological Survey is collecting responses from people who felt the tremors. A magnitude 4 earthquake can cause moderate damage. The 10:50 a.m…. Read More

Spotted: A Swarm Of Ladybugs So Huge, It Showed Up On National Weather Service Radar
By: Merrit Kennedy | Dani Matias | NPR
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Meteorologists in Southern California were puzzled by the big green blob on their radar — it looked like a rainstorm on what was a clear day. Then they discovered it was beetles.

Wild About Winter!
Join the Hocking College Natural and Historical Interpretation Capstone students for a FREE event at The Market on State Street celebrating the wild and wonderful workings of the winter world. The event will feature fun, educational activities for younger members of the family and will take place at the same time as the Athens Farmers… Read More

Scientists Spy On Bees, See Harmful Effects Of Common Insecticide
By: Merrit Kennedy | NPR
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Bees exposed to a type of insecticides called neonicotinoids dramatically changed their behavior — becoming sluggish, antisocial and spending less time caring for the colony’s young, researchers say.