Help! Fire!

On November 26, 2012, some of our neighbors were probably terrified to see flames and smoke on the big meadow near Mahan Manor. It's OK, we told all who called. We are doing a controlled burn. What? Most people hear the word "fire" and assume it is a wildfire like those in California which destroy hundreds of thousands of acres, including homes, but that isn't always so. "Wildfire" is the term applied to any unwanted, unplanned, damaging fire burning in forest, shrub or grass and is one of the most powerful natural forces known to people. While sometimes caused by lightning, nine out of ten wildfires are human-caused.

Why has the number of acres burned remained high over the last few years? Many factors are involved and include:

1. Past fire suppression policies which allowed for the accumulation of fuel in the form of fallen leaves, branches, and excessive plant overgrowth in forest and wildland areas.
2. Increasingly dry, hot weather.
3. Changing weather patterns across the US.
4. Increased residential development in the wildland/urban interface.

Natural fires are considered nature's housekeepers, by removing brush, leaves and needles that provide fuel to burn. By reintroducing fire into fire dependent ecosystems in a controlled setting, we can recreate the effects of natural fire, give balance back to fire-dependent communities, and prevent the catastrophic losses of uncontrolled, unwanted wildfire. Fire teams can use controlled burns/prescribed fires when and where doing so will safely reduce the amount of fuel for fires. Fire teams can also decide to allow lightning caused fires to continue to burn in areas that will not affect the safety of people while reducing fuels. As one of the most important natural agents of change, fire plays a vital role in maintaining certain ecosystems. Prescribed fire reintroduces the beneficial effects of fire into an ecosystem, producing the kinds of vegetation and landscapes we want, and reducing the hazard of catastrophic wildfire caused by excessive fuel buildup.

Prescribed Fire, also known as a controlled burn, refers to the controlled application of fire by a team of fire experts under specified weather conditions that help restore health to fire-adapted environments. By safely reducing excessive amounts of brush, shrubs, and trees, encouraging the new growth of native vegetation, and maintaining the many plant and animal species whose habitats depend on periodic fire, prescribed burning helps reduce the catastrophic damage of wildfire on our lands and surrounding communities. Prescribed fire is one of the most effective tools we have in preventing the outbreak and spread of wildfires. But because prescribed fire is fire, fire management experts are extremely careful in planning and executing a prescribed fire.

The burned areas will start to green up again in an amazingly short time, and by next spring you will have to look closely to find evidence of a fire at all.  Remember Smokey's ABCs: Always Be Careful with fire. Smokey wants people to be responsible when they use fire. Fire has many uses, and our maintenance staff is trained in the proper ways to use fire. It is still wrong and irresponsible to play with matches, leave fires unattended, throw lighted cigarettes away, or use equipment without proper spark arrestors.

Naturally yours,

~denapple

Call of the Wild Goose

Have you noticed V's of geese lately? Are they migrating through Kentucky on their way somewhere else? Maybe, and maybe not. Canada Geese fly in a V formation because it's both aerodynamic and energy efficient. Each bird in the line flies slightly higher than the bird in front of it, acting as a windbreaker and reducing drag. The lineup provides easy communication between the geese while keeping track of each other. They take turns leading the formation, falling back in the line when they become tired.

Canada Geese maintain nests in Canada and in the northern regions of the United States throughout the summer. Once lakes and rivers begin to freeze over and food becomes scarce, the geese congregate into flocks of 30 to 100 birds to start their migration to warmer places. The fall migration occurs in September or October. They travel the same flight corridors called flyways every fall and spring to get to their destinations in southern parts of the United States and northern Mexico. The flyways follow coastlines, rivers and mountain ranges. Canada Geese migrate 2,000 miles to 3,000 miles, and can fly 1,500 miles in 24 hours with ideal weather conditions! The geese generally travel 40 miles per hour, but they can reach 70 mph with a good wind. The geese fly at altitudes between 2,000 feet and 9,000 feet.

Though common today, at one time Canada Geese were hunted almost to extinction. The birds had vanished from the north-central United States by 1900, and droughts in the 1930s reduced their numbers elsewhere. Since then, however, the growth of federal and state refuge systems has helped build goose populations that now probably exceed those of presettlement times. The present abundance of Canada Geese in open suburban areas like parks, airports and golf courses, and their habit of defecating almost a pound of material per goose per day, has given the bird an increasingly negative image.

People may be surprised to hear that birds learn to migrate from their parents and flock—they don't hatch with this complex knowledge. So geese hatched in Kentucky never learned to fly north and instead took up local residence year-round. We've provided food and safety right here in our cities and suburbs. The geese have no reason to go elsewhere, so they settle in and raise families.

Canada Geese are found in many types of watery habitat, including lakes, rivers, marshes, bogs and sloughs. In their breeding range, a pair usually requires at least five acres of open water plus access to upland fields or open land for grazing. In winter, geese need grazing habitat for feeding and open water for drinking. Geese are vegetarians, eating a variety of plant species and parts, especially grasses, sedges, grain and berries. They often feed in flocks, and have become fond of farm-grown grains, especially corn and shoots of winter wheat. These birds are exceedingly adaptable to human-altered habitats and are common on suburban parks, lawns, golf courses and even at Cave Hill Cemetery. So don't be surprised to see them near your own neighborhoods.

Naturally yours,

~denapple