On June 18, Artemis Sportswomen, the Tennessee Wildlife Federation, and the Southeastern Grasslands Initiative hosted a field trip to Catoosa Wildlife Management Area for women in conservation. The purpose of the field trip was to learn about the conservation and importance of Tennessee’s vanishing savannas and other grassland ecosystems. It was a perfect day for a field trip. The heat and humidity of the week before had broken and left in its place one of those rare, cool, summer days filled with sunshine and a constant breeze.

The field trip began with a stop at a clifftop overlook presenting what is often thought of as your typical Appalachian scenery. Dwayne pointed out several indicator species growing along the top of a high sandstone cliff overlooking forested Daddy’s Creek Gorge. He explained how those plants helped to tell a forgotten story of what the uplands of this landscape used to look like. He shared how those “storytelling plants,” as he likes to call them, combined with historical stories to paint a picture of a rich, complex matrix which included closed-canopy forests, open shortleaf pine-oak savannas, glades, bogs, and everything in between.

The second stop was in the multi-thousand acre savanna restoration area. The scattered trees provided just the right amount of shade, while the grasses and wildflowers swayed in the breeze. Bobwhites, prairie warblers, and many other birds provided a musical backdrop to the conversations about the restoration project.

Prior to the savanna restoration project, which began in the 2000s, the uplands at Catoosa were artificially dense closed-canopy forests that had become closed due to many decades of fire suppression. With canopy thinning followed by prescribed burns, the plant diversity exploded from about 30 species to more than 300 wildflowers, grasses, and shrubs. Much of this diversity came from an unexpected underground treasure trove of buried seeds and rhizomes that no one knew was there.

Restoring the plant communities to conditions like those that existed in the 19th century is having positive benefits. The wide variety of native plant species provide habitat, food, and cover for many animals, particularly savanna-dependent birds, the golden mouse, and rare insects like the Frosted Elfin Butterfly and Rattlesnake Master Borer Moth. A half-dozen rare species of plants have also been found in the savannas.

Dwayne explained that the Catoosa Wildlife Management Area is a special place, not just because of the amazing diversity of plants and animals, but also because in the span of about a decade they’ve been able to restore a forgotten ecosystem that most people didn’t even know existed. It speaks volumes about how we can better manage our public lands and reduce biodiversity loss.

Catoosa’s savanna restoration project represents the largest oak-pine savannas on public land in Tennessee and provides a glimpse of what much of the surrounding region historically would have looked like. Dwayne believes that the Catoosa Savanna is one of the crown jewels of Tennessee's natural landscape and represents a model for other states and regions when it comes to savanna restoration.

The field trip wrapped up with a stop in a nearby closed-canopy forest to examine how impoverished the understory vegetation was compared to the lush, diverse vegetation of the savanna they had just left. Yet, even in the closed-canopy forest, there were still a few scattered indicator species hinting at and telling the story of what could be if this area was also restored to the oak-pine savanna that it had once been.

The field trip was part of a two-week conservation advocacy training program hosted by the Artemis Sportswomen and the Tennessee Wildlife Federation. The goal of the training program was to expand awareness of conservation in Tennessee and to empower people to advocate for conservation. This trip was one of five key learning sessions from Artemis and Tennessee Wildlife Federation on conservation advocacy which also covered government structure, storytelling, writing and public speaking.

The Tennessee Wildlife Federation is an independent nonprofit committed to conserving our state’s wildlife and natural resources and that brings together hunters, anglers, wildlife watchers, and other outdoor enthusiasts. It is one of the largest and oldest conservation organizations in Tennessee and is involved in stewardship, habitat conservation, youth engagement, and public policy. To learn more, visit the Tennessee Wildlife Federation’s website.

The Artemis Sportswomen is a National Wildlife Federation Program that consists of a network of sportswomen who have a strong interest in advocating for conservation and wildlife. To learn more, visit Artemis Sportswomen’s website.

The Catoosa Wildlife Management Area is located on the Cumberland Plateau in Cumberland and Morgan Counties of eastern Tennessee. It consists of a mixture of forested slopes and gorges, beautiful rocky streams, extensive upland oak-pine forests and woodlands, scattered sandstone glades and boggy seepage wetlands, and more than 5,000-acres of restored oak-shortleaf pine savannas. Catoosa Wildlife Management Area is managed by the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency and is open to the public. To learn more about the Catoosa Wildlife Management Area, visit their website.

SHANNON TRIMBOLI, INTERIM DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS

Shannon helps the Southeastern Grasslands Initiative tell the forgotten and untold stories of our Southeastern grasslands.