Photo Essay: Spring Flora & Fauna

Young foxes emerge from their den under the watchful eye of their mother in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley. From the photographer: “As I sat in my photo-blind, the den glowed as the sun was setting to create a dramatic backlight effect.”

Fringed bleeding-heart flowers are found naturally throughout forest floors and shaded, rocky outcrops of the southern Appalachians. Photo taken at Bays Mountain Park, in Kingsport, Tennessee.

Secret Falls is in McDowell County, North Carolina. From the photographer: “When I eventually got down the steep hillside, I was greeted with this sight. It seemed like a prehistoric and forgotten place, wild with moss and fresh spring green shoots of life everywhere. Reishi mushrooms grow on old Hemlock trees.”

An adult male red-bellied woodpecker perches atop a lichen-covered white oak branch in the early morning sun. The bird’s range covers the entirety of the Blue Ridge Mountains. These mid-sized woodpeckers seem to prefer peanuts over most any seed.  

Toad trillium bursts onto the spring scene on the Stonecliffe Trail of the New River Gorge National Park and Preserve in West Virginia.

Baby bear cub and titmouse were photographed about three miles from Great Smoky Mountains National Park not far from Townsend, Tennessee. From the photographer: “While I was photographing this sleeping cub, a titmouse suddenly landed and began plucking fur from the baby bruin’s back. The titmouse flew off, deposited the fur in her spring nest and then returned and gathered more hair. This happened four or five times. The cub continued sleeping and never once opened his eyes. Nature is simply amazing!”

An early spring white erect trillium finds a foothold next to a small creek, known as Whiteoak Flats Branch, in the heart of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. From the photographer: “Nothing symbolizes spring in the Smokies like wildflowers and running water.”

A white-tail deer picks fruit out of a crabapple tree at Bays Mountain Park, in Kingsport, Tennessee.

Mertensia Virginica, better known as Virginia bluebells, are native flowers found in moist woodlands and river flood plains in the Appalachian region. Virginia bluebells are considered threatened due to habitat loss. This batch was photographed at Laurel Run Park in Church Hill, Tennessee, which is known for its variety of wildflowers throughout the year.

Dogwoods blooming in the South is a sure sign that spring is here. This image was taken in the Upstate of South Carolina. From the photographer: “This was a welcome sight to my eyes after the cold months of winter. I call this one ‘Trinity.’”

This bald eagle nest is located at the base of a steep hill along the Clinch River in Scott County, Virginia. From the photographer: “The nest’s height allows the unique perspective. I was lucky to be trusted by this eagle family enough to photograph feeding time with a young eaglet.

Spring bloom of a full redbud tree stretching out over Little River in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee. Redbuds in the Smokies are in bloom for only a very short time.

Pink lady slipper photographed in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. From the photographer: “In 30 years of exploring the Smokies I have seen only one pink lady slipper. So rare are these flowers that guidebooks and websites omit specific details on where to find them. Researching older, out-of-print materials on where to locate these elusive blooms uncovered an often-overlooked trail that showed vague possibilities, so early one morning I went shoe shopping. After a fruitless half-hour, I was turning around to hike back out when a trio of blooms came into view about 20 yards off the trail.”