Hollows, Peepers and Highlanders: An Appalachian Mountain Ecology

371 Pages·2004·2.904 MB·English

by  GEORGE CONSTANTZ

Hollows, Peepers, and Highlanders

Hollows, Peepers,
and
Highlanders
An Appalachian Mountain Ecology
by
George Constantz
Second Edition
West Virginia University Press
Morgantown 2004
© 2004 by West Virginia University Press
All rights reserved
14 13 12 11 10 09 08 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
ISBN (paperback) 0-937058-86-6 (alk. paper)
Library of Congress Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
Constantz, George. 1947–
Hollows, peepers, and highlanders : an Appalachian Mountain
ecology / by George Constantz
Second edition.
p. cm. —
Includes illustrations and index
ISBN 0-937058-86-6
1. Natural history— Appalachian Region. 2. Forest
animals— Adaptation— Appalachian Region. 3. Forest
plants— Adaptation— Appalachian Region. 4. Forest
ecology— Appalachian Region. 5. Appalachian Region.
I. Title. II. Constantz, George.

IN PROCESS
Library of Congress Control Number: 2003116400
Design by Lisa Bridges Design
Printed by Bookmasters, Inc.
Printed in U.S.A.
Contents
Thanks ………………………………………………… vii
1. Prologue ……………………………………………… 1
Stage and Theater
2. Origins ………………………………………………… 7
3. Forest Design ………………………………………… 17
4. Creating Diversity …………………………………… 25
5. Catastrophe and the Appalachian Quilt ……………… 33
6. Balds …………………………………………………… 41
7. The Asian Connection ……………………………… 45
The Players
8. The Improbable Lady’s-slipper ………………………… 51
9. Sexual Decisions of Jack-in-the-Pulpit ……………… 59
10. Nuptial Gift of the Hangingfly ……………………… 67
11. Femmes Fatales of Twilight ………………………… 73
12. Small Fishes in Shallow Headwaters ………………… 81
13. Darter Daddies ……………………………………… 89
14. To the Brook Trout, with Esteem …………………… 95
15. A Lungless Salamander Trilogy: Primer ………… 101
16. A Lungless Salamander Trilogy: Coexistence …… 109
17. A Lungless Salamander Trilogy: Mimicry ………… 115
18. Love Among the Frogs …………………………… 119
19. Box Turtle’s Independence ………………………… 127
20. Copperhead’s Year ………………………………… 133
21. Oaks and Squirrels ………………………………… 143
22. Highlanders ……………………………………… 151
Seasonal Acts
23. Autumn Leaves …………………………………… 165
24. Window on Bird Politics ………………………… 171
v
25. Thwarting Swords of Ice ………………………… 179
26. Spring Tensions …………………………………… 189
27. Dawn Chorus ……………………………………… 195
28. Trees and Caterpillars ……………………………… 205
Epilogue
29. The Remnant Archipelago ……………………… 217
30. Abuse, Resurrection, Hope ……………………… 229
Actors ………………………………………………… 242
Jargon ………………………………………………… 252
Sources ………………………………………………… 279
Index …………………………………………………… 343
Author ………………………………………………… 361
vi
Thanks
I owe a great deal to many generous people. John Ailes,
Maurice Donohue, Marshall Sprague, and David Vis encouraged me
to make the commitment. The following highlanders provided liter-
ature: Jerry Atkins, Russell LaFollette, Gerald Lewis, Harold Parsons,
Andy Rogers, Bob Smith, Gary Strawn, Charlie Streisel, Roger
Thomas, Dr. Randy Thornhill, Ro Wauer, and Dr. Peter White. Dr.
Quinn Constantz and Gary Wilson helped with the field work. For
word processing help, I thank Tammy Barnes, Mary Kay Clem, Carol
Fultz, Beth and Betty Loy, Jo Ann Shepherd, Jane Small, Bill and
Dan Snyder, and Robby Pyles. Several chapters were critically re-
viewed by Dr. George Bunting, Mike Clark, Rick Eades, Phil Gallery,
Bob Groves, Mode Johnson, Jim Matheson, Philip Nixon, Ron
Preston, Jim Rawson, Gian Rocco, Tom Stump, Dave Trimmier, and
Paula Worden. The following people read and criticized the entire
manuscript: Sylvia Donohue, Dr. Ed Flaccus, Dr. Bronson Griscom,
Eric Patterson, Dr. Gary Evans, Kat Ort, Danny Williams, and sev-
eral classes of biology students. Although their contributions do not
fit neatly into a single category, I appreciate the help of the follow-
ing mountaineers: Rodney Bartgis, Fred Carter, Grey Cassell, Dr.
Patrick Conner, Kathy Emerson, Bob Faulkner, Ashley Judd, Dr. Ross
Kiester, Gary Morfoot, Shirley Parsons, Arlene Saville, Charlie See,
Phyllis Starkey, Harold Smallwood, John Rimel, and Linda Ullery.
Two anonymous reviewers provided good ideas for this second edi-
tion.
My wife, Nancy Ailes, helped me every step of the way.
Thanks to all.
George Constantz
May 1, 2004
vii

1
Prologue

Iam an unabashed partisan of the Appalachian Mountains. It is
not that there are rocky, majestic peaks here; quite the contrary:
Eons of erosion have delivered rounded highlands that are ap-
proachable and gentle on the eye. But beneath Appalachia’s soft
exterior run myriad short-lived scenes, each being played out by an
individual organism competing for its part in the evolutionary play.
No play runs in a vacuum, though. As G. Evelyn Hutchinson, the
intellectual grandfather of many contemporary ecologists, put it, the
long-term evolutionary drama can only be appreciated within the
context of its environmental theater.
The play is complex, showcasing a tremendous diversity of ac-
tors. Appalachia hosts more species of deciduous trees, salamanders,
darters, and shrews than any other region of North America. Mosses,
ferns, sedges, and heaths also abound. This huge variety of living
things is due in large part to the highlands’ antiquity and convoluted
topography. Appalachia’s beauty is dynamic, though, and every walk
unique. Autumn colors, wing prints in snow, spring wildflowers, and
a stream of tiger swallowtails punctuate my year. If you are open to it,
every day will reveal a new sight, sound, or smell. Even in the dead
of winter I can detect change in the tufted titmouse’s call, a shifting
to the serious song of spring.
I have written this book for three reasons. First, I want to share
my excitement for viewing Appalachian plants and animals from
an evolutionary perspective. Contemplating a leaf or laughing at a
squirrel, friends often ask me, “What good is it?” or “Why does it
1