Thank you, Susan, for your quick action, and to you, Kevin, for your
support about getting something done on this issue.
My attempt to reach someone in the TWRA Region IV office was much less
successful than that of Susan, so I'm glad that she and others may be able
to get the message through. When I called their office this afternoon in an
attempt to express my concerns, I was not allowed to speak with anyone
beyond the initial receptionist and got a very cool/curt reception from
her. I did finally get to leave a message for the wildlife manager, upon a
second request, but was told that he was out of the office for meetings
most of this week. That cool reception makes me thing that others may also
be voicing concerns. Through a friend who is part of the local
mountain/trail biking community, I have also learned that hunting at Forks
has been a major discussion topic among that community in the past week,
days before our experience. Again, my concern is for public safety, so I
hope that hearing concerns from more than one recreational community may
now prompt action on TWRA's behalf.
Good birding,
Angela Hoffman
*Angela M. Hoffman*
Knoxville, TN
ahoffman1979@xxxxxxxxx
On Mon, Sep 12, 2016 at 4:13 PM, Kevin Breault <Kevin.Breault@xxxxxxxx>
wrote:
Thanks, Susan, where it is clear that there is an issue, the state and
other jurisdictional entities must get on this.
Kevin Breault
Brentwood, TN
________________________________________
From: tn-bird-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx <tn-bird-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> on
behalf of Susan Lanier <Susan.Lanier@xxxxxx>
Sent: Monday, September 12, 2016 2:59 PM
To: tn-bird Listserv
Subject: [TN-Bird] Re: WMAs and birding
I've sent a message to TWRA Region 4 about your concerns about awareness
of the hunting season at Forks of the River WMA and asked about putting up
temporary signs. It makes sense to me but I don't have a lot of control of
the results.
https://www.tn.gov/assets/entities/twra/attachments/
hunting_seasons_summary_16-17.pdf
Susan Lanier
-----Original Message-----
From: tn-bird-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:tn-bird-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]
On Behalf Of kde@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Monday, September 12, 2016 2:35 PM
To: tn-bird Listserv
Subject: [TN-Bird] Re: WMAs and birding
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As Angela points out, the Greenway bordering FOTR WMA is a high-use area.
It connects the WMA directly to Ijams Nature Center and the
much-publicized Knoxville Urban Wilderness trail system. However the WMA
has also always been a high-use area for hunting and dog training. Those
sunflower fields aren't just there to be pretty.
In the past, there was typically temporary signage posted at the WMA
parking lot indicating when the WMA is closed to non-hunters. But I
haven't went there regularly in many years (sadly) so not sure what is
common practice now. However, if you come in on the Greenway from Ijams',
there may not be any warnings posted since that is maintained by the city
and county... even though it runs directly beside the sunflower/dove fields.
The official Outdoor Knoxville website for KUW
(http://www.outdoorknoxville.com/urban-wilderness)
has (if you scroll down far enough) the following to say about hunting on
the FOTR WMA...
"
Forks of the River Wildlife Management Area The South Loop main route
winds from the Ijams Quarry Trails along the paved Will Skelton Greenway
that skirts the Tennessee River and the fields of the WMA. The greenway
ends at the woods edge and merges onto the singletrack Whaley Trail which
snakes along the river to the Anderson School Trails. The WMA internal
trails traverse through open fields, hardwood forests, and hedgerows all
home to an abundance of wildlife and songbird activity.
Hunting: Please be aware that the Wildlife Management Area is an active
hunting area managed by the Tennessee Wildlife Resource Agency. Special
conditions apply to this property and are listed below. This Forks of the
River Wildlife Management Area is managed for hunting and habitat
conservation by the Tennessee Wildlife Resource Agency. The TWRA works
collaboratively with Legacy Parks Foundation, Appalachian Mountain Bike
Club, and the Parks and Recreation departments of both the City and County
of Knoxville to provide for non-motorized, recreational mixed-use within
the WMA. During hunting season, all internal trails are closed to
non-hunters but the Will Skelton Greenway and Whaley Trail stay open year
round.
Forks of the River Hunting Seasons for 2016:
Aug. 27, 2016 through Feb. 28, 2016: open after 12:00 pm on Saturday and
Sunday April 2, 2016 through June 11, 2016: open after 12:00 pm every day
Note that the Will Skelton Greenway and Whaley Trail remain open at all
times.
A complete list of regulations and more information about TWRA are
available at http://www.tn.gov/twra/section/hunting-in-tennessee
Big thanks to the Appalachian Mountain Bike Club and all the volunteers
that helped build these beautiful trails!
"
Dean Edwards
Knoxville, TN
On Mon, 12 Sep 2016, Angela Hoffman wrote:
Wow, little did I know that my safety warning post about Forks of theread the sign and turned around to drive home.
River WMA would spark such discussion! All of the discussion I've read
so far seems to be addressing important and pertinent issues that we,
the birding community, need to consider as we interface with
regulatory agencies, other users of such properties, and the public.
For a little background on why my concern was raised so much by the
lack of signage at Forks, I did want to share this: it is a special
case. Had this been most other WMA areas, my concern wouldn't have
been the same, as the need for checking hunting seasons would be more
obvious (though I do still think signage is a win for all involved).
This property, however, is within the city limits of Knoxville, has a
paved City greenway running alongside its perimeter, and is visited by
hundreds of regular (read: non-hunting and
non-wildlife-aware) people *per day* on a good day if you include
those who walk or bike the greenway. During July and August, the
property also draws hundreds of people per day to view and take
pictures among the fields of sunflowers planted there. Because of
that, it seems like a special case in which most don't see it as a
hunting property, even those of us who are aware of what a WMA is,
which is why I posted the warning -- not for myself, but for others
and their safety. Also, we have visited Forks in previous years when
temporary signage *has* been visible about the possibility of hunters
being present, and we then did the responsible and reasonable thing:
proceed at your own risk" or similar.
Regarding the very real limitation of resources to pay for signage, I
don't see there being a need to create signs that list specific
seasons or dates or that change from year to year. Similar to some
seasonal road signs, a sign could be created that is closed in the
folded position and locked and which can then be unlocked and opened
during any hunting season to simply state "Hunters may be present -
Additional explanatory signage, with maybe a link to the state's=================NOTES TO SUBSCRIBER=====================
website, would be nice, but not needed.
Good birding to all,
Angela Hoffman
*Angela M. Hoffman*
Knoxville, TN
ahoffman1979@xxxxxxxxx
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TN-Bird Net is owned by the Tennessee Ornithological Society
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Moderator: Wallace Coffey, Bristol, TN
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------------------------------
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Cleveland, OH
-------------------------------
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Rosedale, VA
--------------------------------
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Clemson, SC
__________________________________________________________
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======OTES TO SUBSCRIBER=======
The TN-Bird Net requires you to SIGN YOUR MESSAGE with
first and last name, CITY (TOWN) and state abbreviation.
You are also required to list the COUNTY in which the birds
you report were seen. The actual DATE OF OBSERVATION should
appear in the first paragraph.
_____________________________________________________________
To post to this mailing list, simply send email to:
tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx.
_____________________________________________________________
To unsubscribe, send email to:
tn-bird-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
with 'unsubscribe' in the Subject field.
______________________________________________________________
TN-Bird Net is owned by the Tennessee Ornithological Society
Neither the society(TOS) nor its moderator(s)
endorse the views or opinions expressed
by the members of this discussion group.
Moderator: Wallace Coffey, Bristol, TN
wallace@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
------------------------------
Assistant Moderator Andy Jones
Cleveland, OH
-------------------------------
Assistant Moderator Dave Worley
Rosedale, VA
--------------------------------
Assistant Moderator Chris O'Bryan
Clemson, SC
__________________________________________________________
Visit the Tennessee Ornithological Society
web site at http://www.tnbirds.org
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
ARCHIVES
TN-Bird Net Archives at //www.freelists.org/archives/tn-bird/
MAP RESOURCES
Tenn.Counties Map at http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/states/tennessee3.gif
Aerial photos to complement google maps http://local.live.com
_____________________________________________________________
NOTES TO SUBSCRIBER
The TN-Bird Net requires you to SIGN YOUR MESSAGE with
first and last name, CITY (TOWN) and state abbreviation.
You are also required to list the COUNTY in which the birds
you report were seen. The actual DATE OF OBSERVATION should
appear in the first paragraph.
_____________________________________________________________
To post to this mailing list, simply send email to:
tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx.
_____________________________________________________________
To unsubscribe, send email to:
tn-bird-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
with 'unsubscribe' in the Subject field.
______________________________________________________________
TN-Bird Net is owned by the Tennessee Ornithological Society
Neither the society(TOS) nor its moderator(s)
endorse the views or opinions expressed
by the members of this discussion group.
Moderator: Wallace Coffey, Bristol, TN
wallace@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
------------------------------
Assistant Moderator Andy Jones
Cleveland, OH
-------------------------------
Assistant Moderator Dave Worley
Rosedale, VA
--------------------------------
Assistant Moderator Chris O'Bryan
Clemson, SC
__________________________________________________________
Visit the Tennessee Ornithological Society
web site at http://www.tnbirds.org
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
ARCHIVES
TN-Bird Net Archives at //www.freelists.org/archives/tn-bird/
MAP RESOURCES
Tenn.Counties Map at http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/states/tennessee3.gif
Aerial photos to complement google maps http://local.live.com
_____________________________________________________________
