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; Saturday,  July 10 at

Cost: CNC Members-Adults-$6, Children-ages 4-11-$3

Nonmembers-Adults-$9, Children-ages 4-11-$4.50

Meet at CNC for an informative power point presentation about bats. We will then car caravan to the Nickajack Cave, home to more than 60,000 endangered gray bats. There is a short walk to the viewing platform. As the sun sets, the tiny gray bats wing their way out of the cave to feed on insects. Bring a flashlight and wear comfortable walking shoes. This is a very popular program and space is limited. Pre-registration and prepayment are required. Call 821-1160 ext. 0 to register.

Call 423.821.1160 ext. 112 to register

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Our newest additions to the CNC Red Wolf pack arrived this weekend! We received two 9 month old brothers who were born at Sandy Ridge, NC. Their father is the same father of our 2007 pups and their mothers are sisters. One has a stub tail that happened when he was less than 3 months old. They are just beginning to settle into their enclosure, learn their surroundings and our routines. We’re glad to have them here!

In addition to a reconnection with nature, wilderness trips help me to live more simply. I’ve learned that I really don’t need so many things to be happy, because when traveling with a backpack, keeping it light is the secret to enjoying the journey. “The less I carry, the more I enjoy the trip,” has become my new mantra for life. Wilderness teaches me to consume less. I’m always surprised at how little water is needed, for instance, to take a bath or brush my teeth and how satisfied I am eating simple, one course meals.

Returning, a few weeks ago, to a soft bed, warm shower, and meal of fresh fruit and vegetables, was delightful. But these pleasures will forever be tempered with the memory of living lightly in the wilderness. I have come home more determined than ever to slow down, savor every day, use all of my senses, consume less, build greater community with my friends and family, and increase my efforts to share the joy of simple living.

I hope you will take every opportunity to go outside, and let nature be your teacher, too!

Naturally yours,

Jean Lomino

One thing most people don’t realize is how breeding recommendations work. It’s quite simple because all captive Red Wolves’ pedigrees are kept in a computer program that allows us to make virtual pairings to determine whether a particular pair will increase diversity or not. Prior to the meeting, it is determined how many births are needed to offset deaths and maintain the current population size and how many births are needed to grow the population at a rate of 2%. We assume a litter size of 4 and a 25% probability of successful reproducing – these numbers drive our decisions of how many breeding pairs to create. Another important factor is space to house these animals. We can breed Red Wolves and have many pups, but there must be a place to house them. In a perfect world, all the cooperators would have unlimited funds and space to build big enclosures to house, care for and feed all the pups and parents! (The CNC’s latest Red Wolf enclosure cost approximately $15,000!)

The fostering process helps with the space issue if the timing is right. Sometimes a breeding pair is identified as a potential fostering opportunity—whose pups may be fostered into a wild den. After the captive litter is born, the Red Wolf biologists look for a wild litter with pups the same age as the captive pups. Usually this captive litter is in close proximity to the wild refuge so the transfer can happen quickly; the pups must be less than two weeks old. The fostering process also introduces the captive bloodline to the wild bloodline which creates diversity.

Last year, the father of our 2007 pups had a litter of 4 which was to be fostered, but the litter was born early in the season and there was not a wild den available. The three males from this litter are transferring to CNC! We are holding 1275F, 1566M and 1567M. Red Wolf 1377F will transfer to another facility and we will be receiving 1370F to pair with CNC’s 1408M as a breeding pair! Our pack will be 8 strong with the possibility of 2010 pups!

CNC continues to be one of the most engaged cooperators of the RWSSP and our attendance at this meeting each year confirms our strong association and allows us to be an integral part of the decision making process.

Billy Ewton with Ewton Fence Company has donated hours and hours of his time and labor as well as fencing materials. He has built and repaired many feet of fencing and recently donated his labor, time and materials to build an off-exhibit, outdoor, warm weather enclosure for our woodchuck. This much needed, new enclosure allows the woodchuck to spend beautiful summer days outside digging happily in his new home! This enclosure will also double as an opossum enclosure when the woodchuck is not at home. MANY thanks to Billy Ewton for taking care of all our fencing needs and for his love of the Nature Center!

Chuck Harbin came by the Nature Center one day and filled out a volunteer form. When we saw his extensive building background with animal enclosures, we asked if he would be willing to build one of the new enclosures made possible by the recent lumber donation from Bell Development. He and his sons, Ryan and Adam have been working very hard ever since! We are incredibly fortunate to find such a generous and talented family to take on this very large task. Chuck’s building skills have created an awesome new enclosure for our barn owls and our great-horned female owl, who will be much more visible to the public. This enclosure allowed us to move some birds around into new spaces and free up some space as well.

THANK YOU SO MUCH to Chuck, Ryan and Adam, for their dedication, skills and willingness to work in the heat so our animal ambassadors can live in luxury!

These fun and family-friendly events include our 10th annual Festival of the Jack O’Lanterns and our 5th annual Holiday in the Woods.

Volunteers are needed during both events for the game and activity booths; they are also needed on days before and after the events for preparations, setup, teardown, and cleanup. These are great volunteer opportunities for individuals, families, and groups.

Best of all, volunteers can attend the events they work, for FREE!

Festival of the Jack O’Lanterns:

• Sat, Oct 17 from 2 – 9 pm
• Sun, Oct 18 from 1 – 6 pm

To volunteer for the Festival, please contact Kristiina Braden at kristiinabraden@gmail.com

Holiday in the Woods:

• Fri, Dec 4 from 4 – 9 pm
  
• Sat, Dec 5 from 9 am – 5 pm

To volunteer for the Holiday in the Woods, please contact Diane Morgan at dmorgan@chattanature.org or 821-1160 x111