Category: Robert Carter

Timberdoodles are crawling through the young, moist forests and grasslands of the Carolinas. Most people never see them, but the lucky ones get to see their sky dance. Timberdoodles (Scolopax minor) are also called woodcock, mudsucker, mudsnipe, mudbat, night partridge or Labrador twisters. They are the only woodcock native to the Americas, with the other […]

You don’t even know it is there. It lurks in the dark of your yard, searching for prey while its venom drips off its iron-red teeth. It is a formidable hunter, consuming more than its weight in food daily. It has probably walked by you when you are outside in the dark, camouflaged by its […]

Many people have heard about a pawpaw patch in a song, but don’t realize that there is such a place. Pawpaw (Asimina triloba) is a tropical to subtropical shrub or small tree in the custard apple family. It was first observed by Hernando DeSoto in 1541, but Native Americans had been consuming the fruit and […]

Most forest landowners will harvest timber at some time to generate revenue. There are three primary wood products that can be harvested during the life of a stand: pulpwood, chip-n-saw, and sawtimber. Pulpwood has the smallest diameter trees and the lowest monetary value. Larger diameter trees produce sawtimber for lumber and sometimes poles. Sawtimber and […]

If you live in the country, or sometimes in the city, around May, you’ll start to hear these strange sounds at night. As a kid, I remember hearing the voices of the night as I was camping or fishing at night. The creatures move silently in the night and periodically call, but they are silent […]