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PAGE 2A PICKENS COUNTY PROGRESS THURSDAY. JANUARY 12. 2023
Heavy rainfall means
“backyard epic” for
local kayakers
While most people were worrying about roofs, gutters and washed out ditches, local
kayakers took a different approach to the heavy rain on January 4th.
“Pretty epic right in your backyard,” is how Mike Williford, a Jasper mechanic, summed
up the effect of the more than three inches of rain on Long Swamp Creek.
Williford, along with fellow kayakers Rick Thompson of Kennesaw and Tony Eyl of
Jasper, enjoyed runs on the local creek last week.
Williford said there were a lot of downed trees blocking rapids which made the relatively
short distance on Long Swamp from the put-in on Grandview Road to the takeout on Cove
Road more dangerous and time consuming. “In our opinion that would be one of the best,
if not the best, class 4 runs in the Atlanta area if the [fallen trees] were removed,” he said.
At right, Tony Eyl navigates the largest drop on Long Swamp Creek. Below, Mike Will-
ford goes over the falls. At bottom, Eyl comes through a rapid ofpristine water even after
the heavy rains last week.
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UGA Press Release
Athens, Ga. - Anewproj-
ect at the University of Geor
gia is investigating the
declining ruffed grouse pop
ulation in North Georgia, and
scientists need help from out
door enthusiasts.
Researchers at the UGA
Wamell School of Forestry
and Natural Resources in
collaboration with the Geor
gia Department of Natural
Resources are collecting as
many ruffed grouse genetic
samples as they can find to
get a better understanding of
landscape connectivity
across the Georgia moun
tains.
The birds are native to
North Georgia, but fewer
sightings in recent years have
made population estimates
difficult.
Now a new five-year
study will log DNA from
samples and help researchers
find ways to help the birds.
“We believe their popula
tions have been declining for
some time now, and so we’re
looking to see how much
these grouse are moving
around the landscape and
how connected they are,”
said Clay Delancey, research
scientist for the project. “So,
that’s where the genetic com
ponent comes in. We’re col
lecting DNA from these
grouse to analyze and see
how isolated they’re becom
ing in the mountain ranges.”
In the spring, Wamell re
searchers will fan out across
the mountains and look for
grouse. But until then, they
are asking for residents to
help in the search.
If someone is planning to
head out to the forest,
whether it’s for a hunt or for
a day on the trails, Delancey
asks them to contact him for
a sampling kit. He’ll send
them an envelope containing
all the materials necessary to
collect samples, whether it’s
feathers or tissue from a de
ceased bird, or fecal matter
from a “dramming log.”
Because grouse have be
come so scarce, these logs
can help provide crucial sam
ples when no birds can be
seen.
“The males display for the
females on top of a fallen
log,” said Delancey. When
the birds dram, they beat
their wings, starting slow and
gaining in speed to create a
throbbing sound similar to a
muffled lawn mower. “And
they typically use the same
logs over and over again, so
there can get to be a pile of
fecal matter on the log.”
In recent years, he said,
hunters have noted fewer and
fewer raffed grouse during
hunting season. Habitat loss
is a major source of the de
cline—grouse prefer densely
packed, young forests. But
this type of landscape is dif
ficult to find across the Geor
gia mountains.
“So, if it’s a hunter who
harvests a bird or if someone
finds a roadkill grouse, we’re
hoping to get some samples,”
Delancey said. Members of
the public can either send the
samples back to UGA or De
lancey can pick them up.
“Our grouse surveys are
pretty much throughout
North Georgia, so we want
samples from all different
parts, if we can.”
To receive a sample kit,
email Delancey at Clay-
ton.Delancey@uga.edu or
visit the DNR’s website for
details on what samples
need to be collected.
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