A steady stream of press releases trickled out from across the National Park System this week, promoting the economic might that emanates from the the parks. All told, the system generated $31 billion and 258,000 jobs in 2010, according to the National Park Service.

Sunday May 20, 2012 will offer a Celestial Super Bowl—a near-total solar eclipse—and parks in parts of the western U.S. will offer some prime viewing locations. If you want to make travel plans for special eclipse-related activities or purchase equipment for safe viewing, just don't wait too long to do so.

A watchdog group on Tuesday raised questions about how the National Park Foundation spends its charitable dollars, saying the organization lacks transparency and is top heavy. Foundation CEO Neil Mulholland adamantly rebutted those charges, saying they were "factually incorrect."

Birds don’t seem to recognize political borders. Some might call that uncivilized, but I find it endearing that a migrating bird doesn’t know – or care – if it’s about to land in Utah, Ohio, Mexico, or Canada. As long as the habitat is suitable and the time is right, the bird will land, and hopefully be spotted by an observant birder.