Theknothole2012 2013

The Knothole 2012-2013

Auburn University School of Forestry and Wildlife Sciences

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Knothole 2012-2013 Table of Contents

Dedication…………………………………………………………………………………………………..3 The Dean’s Corner………………………………………………………………………………………….4 A Note from the Editor……………………………………………………………………………….…….6 Summer Practicum: Forestry…………………………………………………………………………….....7 Summer Practicum: Wildlife……………………………………………………………………………….8 Fall Ice Breaker……………………………………………………………………………………….…....9 Xi Sigma Pi .............................................................................................................................................10 The Wildlife Society………………………………………………………………………………………11 The Forestry Club…………………………………………………………………………………………12 SAF Convention……………………………………………………………………………………….…..13 Forestry Conclave………………………………………………………………………………………....14 Awards Banquet…………………………………………………………………………………………...15 Farewell…………………………………………………………………………………………………....17

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The 2012-2013 Knothole is dedicated to Mrs. Lane Messer Mrs. Lane Messer Retires After Twenty-Three Years Dale Dickens

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t is unusual today for an employee to remain in one position for five or ten years. It is remarkable that on August 31, 2012 Mrs. Lane Messer chose to retire after twenty-three years of service to the Forestry Department and School of Forestry and Wildlife Sciences. Lane served students in the

forestry and wildlife majors under Dr. Earl DeBrunner, Mr. Kent Hanby, Ms. Sara Crimm, and the current Director of Student Services, Mr. Dale Dickens, spanning over two decades of registrations, advising, database building, and special events. Her unchanging welcome greeted untold thousands of visitors, students and their families over this time. She was the driving force for the Toomer’s Oak seedling sales and the funds it generated. From her first typed letter to her most recent presentation of practicum scholarships donated in her name, she has been a timely presence for the student in need. There is no doubt that her voice will continue to be heard around the forestry and wildlife sciences building even as she enjoys a much deserved retirement, guiding, cajoling, and directing students as she may. Be sure to return her a hug if you get the chance to meet her in the hallways. We all wish her and Norman happiness in this new stage of their lives.

Lane and Aubie hit it off at the 2012 Fall Ice Breaker

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The Dean’s Corner Dr. James Shepard

e’ve had a very interesting and productive year. We celebrated student success by

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conferring 55 B.S. degrees (24 forestry, 28 wildlife and 3 forest engineers). We also conferred 10 masters degrees and 3 doctorates.

This year we hosted the Southern Forestry Conclave for 14 schools in March. The event was very well organized and supported by our students and faculty. Everyone said this was one of the best conclaves they’d attended. Auburn came in 7th place overall and came in 1st place for the technical events.

While it might be fun to win crosscut sawing or log birling, employers will be more impressed with our student’s technical skills. Daniel Heath came in 1st in pole classification, James Robert Dearman came in 2nd in dendrology, and Travis Whatley came in 2nd in DBH estimation. We also hosted the Stihl Timbersports Collegiate Series.

Our wildlife students travelled to North Carolina to participate in the Southeastern Wildlife Conclave. We came in 11th place out of 22 schools. We came in 3rd place in the physical competitions and 5th in the art competitions.

Students in Dr. Kush’s forest ecology class initiated a project to restore the forest behind the building. They worked hard to remove invasive species. Students from the Student Chapter of the Society for Conservation Biology also contributed. Facilities funded a mulching operation that removed the Chinese privet and opened up the southern end of the stand. Dr. Barlow and Dr. Morse’s Environmental Interpretation class featured this area in their class projects and their designs will be used

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for educational signage. This area has been designated as a teaching area in Auburn’s campus master plan.

April 5th and 6th we held the first annual Spring Fling and Outdoor Expo at Coach Pat Dye’s Crooked Oaks Lodge near Notasulga. It was a fund raising event that netted over $50,000 for student scholarships and fellowships. A shotgun given to Coach Dye by Bo Jackson went for $15,000 in the live auction!. Our students and staff worked very hard to prepare for and conduct the event. We’re looking forward to continuing the tradition next year.

In April we dedicated the new Solon and Martha Dixon Foundation Learning Center at the Solon Dixon Forestry Education Center. This new building features the 100-seat Gjerstad-Johnson Longleaf Auditorium, a 40-seat classroom, and a conference room We kicked off a membership campaign at the Louise Kreher Forest Ecology Preserve on Earth Day. The Louise Kreher Forest Ecology Preserve was established in 1993 by a gift of land from Louise Kreher Turner and Frank Allen Turner. It covers 120 acres and has five miles of hiking trails, an amphitheater and a pavilion. Many of our students volunteer there to help with the environmental education programming.

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A Note from the Editor

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here is never a dull year in the School of Forestry and Wildlife Sciences. This year, like every other, was full of excitement! While our school is small, our students, staff, and faculty members are accomplishing big things every single day. I believe that the

School of Forestry and Wildlife has more pride in what they do than any other school at Auburn University. Inside this issue of The Knothole, you’ll discover just a taste of the exciting achievements we’re accomplishing. It has been my pleasure to be the Editor of The Knothole during an exceptionally exciting year!

Tyler Claxton, Editor

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Summer Practicum: Forestry Trent Williamson

hat is Summer Practicum? Summer Practicum was described to us as the “The best ten

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weeks of our lives that we would rather not do again”, that statement could not have been more true. The Forestry Practicum at the Solon Dixon Center is a summer that not only

binds this year’s practicum class, but every Auburn forester that has attended since its conception.

Summer Practicum takes a group of rising juniors and forces them to work together in extreme conditions, hot humid days, and late grueling nights. But when the dust settles and the ten weeks come to an end, there is a camaraderie that is like no other. This year’s class was no exception, even though the classes were difficult and the conditions were harsh, we worked together and were able to finish as a class.

The Summer Practicum is an experience that sets Auburn’s program apart from every other forestry school in the country. At times it felt that the expectations and tasks were overwhelming and unrelenting, but through perseverance and teamwork we were able to overcome each obstacle. We were fortunate to have such a dedicated group of professors that were willing to take time out of there summer to mold us into foresters. Dr. Barlow explained the learning experience as trying to drink from a fire hose, so much information in such a small period of time. It is amazing the amount of knowledge that a group of diverse students can learn in a summer. Together we all gained a greater knowledge and respect for both the forestry program and for the profession. But what will I take away from my experience? I gained a greater knowledge of forestry, relationships that will last a lifetime, memories of late night cornhole games and days by the river. Most of all I gained the pride of entering the fraternity of Auburn Foresters.

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Summer Practicum: Wildlife Zalin Smith

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his past summer marked the first official Wildlife Summer Practicum at the Solon Dixon Forestry Education Center. As a dual major in both Forestry and Wildlife Ecology & Management, this was not my first Dixon Center experience, but my second. After attending

Forestry Summer Practicum in 2011, I had mixed feelings about returning for another Dixon Center summer after a long ten weeks of Forestry Practicum, but I looked forward to the new experiences I would get to have for six weeks learning how to trap wildlife, survey for animal sign, and learn more about various species of wildlife.

The summer began with a weekend trip to the Wehle Center in Barbour County, where we learned about songbirds and their habitat. Once back at the Dixon Center, the real fun began! Getting up at 5:00 A.M. every morning to listen for songbird calls with Dr. Hepp and Dr. Grand was slow for everyone at first, but was a good experience in the end. The second part of the six weeks consisted of waking up early every morning to conduct herpetofauna (reptiles and amphibians) surveys, which involved searching for snakes, frogs, lizards, and other critters with Dr. Steury. Finally, Dr. Ditchkoff taught about feral hogs and white-tailed deer the last two weeks of the summer. This involved learning how to effectively trap feral hogs, aging white-tailed deer, and conducting game camera surveys for small mammals and white-tailed deer.

All in all, the second time experiencing the Dixon Center summer was a great time for me, and getting to enjoy six weeks with my closest friends learning about the subject we love was very enjoyable.

We still had a lot of fun going down to the Conecuh River in the afternoons and playing football and volleyball every night with professors when we weren’t studying and writing reports. The second time around made me appreciate what the Solon Dixon Center has to offer students and also appreciate the time enjoyed with fellow friends while gaining a hands-on education.

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Ice Breaker James Robert Dearman

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uring the second week of classes last fall, SGA hosted its Welcome Week School Icebreaker.

Everyone took some time to travel out to the pavilion at the Mary Olive Thomas tract to visit and catch up with one another after a long summer. We grilled hot dogs and Bubba Burgers,

and everyone seemed to have a great time. Highlights included a farewell to Mrs. Lane who had served the students to no end, and an appearance of Aubie.

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Xi Sigma Pi Officers: Forester: Jonathan Kenney Assistant Forester: Carla Irene Ranger: Thomas Hudson

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i Sigma Pi is a national honor society that includes forestry students that have outstanding grade point averages. It has a longstanding tradition of initiating members and participating in service projects to provide assistance for the local community. Last year, Xi Sigma Pi

members worked on a project at the Louise Kreher Ecology preserve in assisting with the establishment of a longleaf pine ecosystem by removing unwanted competing vegetation. This year the society has been discussed on the national level and is undergoing certain evaluation as whether to continue the society or not. Due to this fact, the Auburn chapter did not initiate any new members for the 2012-2013 school year or participate in a service project. My hope for this society is that it will continue next year and be back as strong as ever. It has been a great school year and we wish the best for Xi Sigma Pi in hopes that it will continue to serve the Opelika and Auburn community.

Until next time, Jonathan Kenney

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The Wildlife Society Mason Childers, 2012-2013 Wildlife Society Vice- President

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he Auburn University Student Chapter of The Wildlife Society had another great year in 20122013. Throughout the year we had many great speakers from all types of wildlife fields come and give helpful insight to members at our bi-weekly meetings. We kicked off the year with our

annual Youth Dove Hunt in Camp Hill, AL. It was a great event and we were able to meet our goal of introducing youth to the outdoors through hunting. This year we were able to host a Project Learning Tree workshop where many members were certified as Project Learning Tree Educators, which will be very useful down the road. This year we also took 19 members to the Southeastern Wildlife Conclave, hosted

by North Carolina State University. We had a great time and finished 3rd overall in physical competitions as well as members placing 1st in individual competitions. We also hosted our annual Wildlife Youth Day at the Mary Olive Thomas tract. This was once again a great event in which we were able to introduce more youth to the great outdoors. We were able to send 7 volunteers to assist with the Archery in the Schools state tournament held in Montgomery, AL this year as well. This year we had a new event which was the Spring Fling hosted by legendary coach Pat Dye at his property, Quail Hollow Gardens, in Notasulga, AL. This event was a fundraiser for the School of Forestry and Wildlife Sciences and was very successful, even for it being the first year. All in all we had a great year and made many great memories that we will never forget.

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Forestry Club James Robert Dearman, Forestry Club President, 2012-2013

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orestry club this year saw numerous challenges and successes! We started off the year with a bow tournament fundraiser for Log-a-Load at the Sportsman's outpost, and were able to raise $4,300. During the year we featured several seniors who had summer

internships with various companies. These seniors helped instill the importance of a summer internship to the juniors, many of whom have been successful at finding an internship for the summer of 2013. We also hosted several companies such as Westervelt and Weyerhaeuser, as well as a local forestry consultant, Bruce Eason to speak at our meetings. However our largest undertaking this year was hosting Forestry Conclave. Conclave is a competition between 14 Southern Schools of forestry in physical and technical events. Auburn hosted for the first time since 2001, and was applauded this year for the job we did.

Additionally, we were proud to announce Auburn placed first in the technical events division! We raised $1,800 for Log-a-Load at the STIHL Southeastern Collegiate Qualifier, and $15,000 to support all the conclave activities. We could not have hosted conclave with as much success without all of the student and adult volunteers. I am extremely thankful for all of the work each person contributed, especially this year's officers. However, with next year, I trust our new president, Russell Agnew, will lead the club admirably into its new season.

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SAF Convention Russell D. Agnew, 2012-2013 Forestry Club President

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t the end of October 2012, four juniors in the School of Forestry attended the National Society of American Foresters Convention held in Spokane, Washington. While at the convention we attended seminars on different types of GPS and their uses, the growth of Longleaf pines and

how to restore the trees, forest economics, water shed management, and the uses of fire in different ecosystems. All of these talks covered many different issues in forestry today in areas all over the United States.

While at the convention I went on a tour of the land base for Inland Empire Paper Company Timberlands located around Spirit Lake, Idaho. I saw a diverse mix of forest types and management activities on their land base. They grow and harvest up to eight different species in the same plantation compared to the southeast where we have significantly lower species diversity in plantations.

We had a chance to meet and network with other students from other universities from around the United States throughout the trip and at the National Student Congress where we talked about issues and concerns that are affecting forestry students currently. We competed in a student quiz bowl while at the convention head –to-head against other school teams. Auburn University hosted a reunion where students, facility, staff and alumni met and conversed.

It was overall a fun and informative trip and I would encourage any Forestry student to attend!

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Forestry Conclave Dalton Hand, 2012-2013 Conclave Chairman

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he 56th Annual Southern Forestry Conclave this year was a huge Success! Conclave as we know was hosted this year 2013 right in the heart of the rolling plains. Auburn University painted the sky blue and orange as it soared to the top, hosting one of the greatest Forestry Conclave

performances in years. Fourteen of the finest forestry schools in the South gathered from March 14-16 to compete in 8 different technical and 14 different physical events. For Auburn University, we ranked 1st overall in the technical events with each member coming in the top five for each event. Daniel Heath, junior in Forestry finished 1st in Pole Classification. Travis Whatley, also a junior in Forestry finished 2nd in DBH estimation. As for physical events, we did not do so well. However, one of our very own ladies, Barry Kimbro finished 2nd in the Bow Saw Competition. I would like to thank all of our donators as they contributed to the conclave, Dr. Tom Gallagher as he supports and makes things possible being our club advisor, the faculty for making each technical event successful, Susan Anderson from Virginia Tech and Teresa Whitman-McCall for there dedication and such hard work, and lastly our very own students that took the time to compete and help this year. For the year ahead, I would like to encourage the student body to get involved with the forestry club and to get ready to do your best and represent Auburn University as we head to Virginia Tech as they host the ASFC Forestry Conclave in 2014.

War Eagle!

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Awards Ceremony Fern Graves

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n Tuesday, April 16, 2013, The School of Forestry and Wildlife held its annual awards banquet. This ceremony is organized and executed by the hard work of students from the school. This year’s proceedings were lead by outgoing and incoming SGA presidents James

Robert Dearman and Tyler Claxton. The following awards awards highlight a number of accomplished and hardworking students deserving of special recognition. Incoming SGA, Forestry Club and Wildlife Society officers were recognized, as well as Xi Sigma Pi honor fraternity members.

Award Auburn Forestry and Wildlife Sciences Alumni Association Outstanding Senior Award

Recipient Zalin Smith (Forestry) Elizabeth Messick (Wildlife)

Weyerhaeuser Forest Economics Award Association of Consulting Foresters Senior Leadership Award

Robert Zuckley James Robert Dearman

Annual Academic Improvement Award in Forestry

Jacob Cauley

Southeastern Society of American Foresters and Alabama Division Leadership Award

Dalton Hand

Alabama Forest Owners Association Award

Daniel Heath

F&W Forestry Services Inc. Rising Senior Award

Will Leonard

Alabama Division, Society of American Foresters Junior Leadership Awar

Dalton Hand

William Allen Carey Memorial Outstanding Forest Pathologist Award

Jonathan Kenney

The Alabama Wildlife Federation/Robert G. Wehle Non-Game Management Annual Award

Lindsey Phillips

The Alabama Wildlife Federation/David K. Nelson Game Management Award Alabama Chapter of the Wildlife Society Student Leadership Award Westervelt Rising Senior Award in Wildlife

Zalin Smith Sarah Grove Anna Gates

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President’s Award

Mignon Therese Denton

2013 SGA Honors Ceremony Outstanding Student Award 2013 SGA Honors Ceremony Outstanding faculty Member Award Armistead Family Military Service Annual Award Garden Club of Alabama Forestry Conservation Scholarship Student Club Awards – Wildlife Outstanding Member

Lindsey Phillips Todd Steury Brian Kincaid Dustin Hatfield Sarah Grove

Student Club Awards – Wildlife Outstanding Faculty

Steve Ditchkoff

Student Club Awards – Forestry Outstanding Member

Jonathan Kenney

Student Club Awards – Forestry Outstanding Faculty

John Gilbert

2013 School of Forestry and Wildlife Sciences Outstanding Alumnus Award

Larkin Wade

Phi Kappa Phi Most outstanding First Year Award

Charlotte G. Musser

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Farewell Tyler Claxton, 2013-2014 SFWS SGA President

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pring – what an appropriate time for graduation! As dogwoods blossom, azaleas bloom, and turkeys gobble, life begins anew. For our graduates, a new chapter of their lives begin as well.

Our prayer is that you leave Auburn University proud of the amazing things you’ve

accomplished in your time here. We wish that you always use your passion for forestry and wildlife to fulfill all your hopes and dreams and that you never forget the value of hard work. Always take great pride in your work, it will not go unnoticed. As you encounter obstacles in your life, no matter how difficult they may be, always know that there is nothing you cannot overcome. You will always forget your struggles, but never will you forget your victories.