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Climate Change and National Parks: A Survival Guide for a Warming World -- Northern Flying Squirrel and other Threatened Mammals

The climate is not static. Ice ages come and go, pushing rivers of ice south and then pulling them back north across continents as temperatures and snowfalls rise and fall. Animal and plant species either stay ahead of these icy incursions and adapt, or perish.

Update: Tropical Storm Claudette Arrived at Gulf Islands National Seashore on Short Notice, But the Park Service Was Ready

Tropical Storm Claudette strengthened with surprising speed before making landfall in the Florida Panhandle, but the Park Service was ready to protect Gulf Island National Seashore visitors on very short notice. With Bill and Ana gathering strength over warm tropical waters, more powerful storms could soon arrive.

Traveler's Checklist: Fredericksburg & Spotsylvania National Military Park

Touring a Civil War battlefield can be both a somber experience and one that opens doors into incredible history, one that gives you a better appreciation for the growing pains the United States experienced in the past. At Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park, four battlefields await your visit.

Our National Parks: "For the Benefit And Enjoyment Of The People" (If You Don't Mind the Entrance Fee)

While the three "entrance-fee-free" weekends in the National Park System are now behind us, the debate over the propriety of park entrance fees no doubt will go forward, if not heighten, in the wake of some impressive visitor numbers logged by some parks. One organization that you won't hear lobbying for a permanent waiving of the fees, though, is the American Recreation Coalition, which was a strong voice for them more than a decade ago and continues that stance today.

Climate Change and National Parks: A Survival Guide for a Warming World -- Yellow-Legged Frogs of the Sierra Nevada

The mountain yellow-legged frog was once one of the most abundant vertebrates in the Sierra Nevada. The flash of its yellow legs could be seen and the echo of its croaking could be heard across the Sierra’s alpine lakes, even those nestled at 12,000 feet that contain watery habitats typically too cold for amphibians. Unfortunately, that empire began to crumble as long ago as 1850 when non-native trout were first transplanted into some of those lakes to increase fishing opportunities.