THE M€K PACE 



"The Back Page" is an update on Sea 

 Grant activities — on research, marine 

 education and advisory services. It's 

 also a good place to find out about 

 meetings, workshops and new publi- 

 cations. For more information on any 

 of the projects described, contact the 

 Sea Grant offices in Raleigh (919/737- 

 2454). For copies of publications, 

 write UNC Sea Grant, NCSU, Box 

 8605, Raleigh, N.C. 27695-8605. 



In early April, uncon- 

 trollable blazes roared 

 through eastern North 

 Carolina destroying 

 thousands of acres of 

 forestland. High winds, 

 warm temperatures, low 

 humidity and dry soils combined to 

 create one of the worst fire seasons in 

 50 years. The Pungo fire, which was 

 the largest, burned more than 96,000 

 acres in Hyde, Tyrrell and Washington 

 counties. Its flames devastated the 

 forest's flora and destroyed much of 

 the fauna. 



"Generally speaking, fires are bene- 

 ficial to a lot of species of animals and 

 plant growth, but this fire covered 

 such a large area that the majority of 

 game in the center of the fire was 

 killed," says Carl Betsill, small game 

 and migratory bird program coordina- 

 tor for the N.C. Wildlife Resources 

 Commission. Betsill saw the largest 

 impact on animals the size of raccoons 

 and smaller that could not escape the 

 flames. Unless they were near the 

 fringe of the forest, most of these 

 animals were killed. Heat and smoke 

 from burning peat killed even the bur- 

 rowing animals. 



Deer populations suffered also, says 

 Scott Osborne, deer project leader for 

 the commission. About 20 percent of 

 the deer in that area died, with 

 another 20 percent injured by the fire. 



The loss of animals is very brief, 

 however, says Osborne. Since the 

 fires, habitats have recovered quickly. 

 One of the first things to come back, he 

 says, is bracket fern, followed by 

 shrubs and aquatic vegetation. "This is 



better for the animals," says Osborne. 

 Nutrients from the fire enrich the soil 

 and create fertile feeding grounds and 

 good cover. 



During the winter. 

 North Carolina's coastal 

 marshes and sounds pro- 

 vide an ample supply of 

 food for migrating birds 

 such as ducks, geese, 

 gulls and willets. But 

 other birds call the Carolina coast 

 home, too. Many of the same birds that 

 inhabit other areas of the state, also 

 frequent coastal backyards. For those 

 birds, finding food is not always as 

 easy as a stop at the nearest marsh. 



Should you help these feathered 

 friends in their search for food? James 

 Parnell, an ornithologist at the Univer- 

 sity of North Carolina at Wilmington, 

 says bird food can provide a helpful 

 supplement when other food is hard to 

 find. Parnell cautions that consistency 

 is important. "Don't begin feeding 

 them in the fall and then halfway 

 through the winter quit, because those 

 birds will have become dependent on 

 you. But as long as you maintain the 

 feeding program through the winter, 

 then it probably is very helpful," says 

 Parnell. 



Parnell advises feeding the birds a 

 commercial mix, usually a combina- 

 tion of sunflower seeds, cracked corn 

 and millet. You can alter the mix as you 

 learn more about the birds' prefer- 

 ences, says Parnell. 



Take a look at North 

 Carolina's coast from a 

 new perspective — from 

 the legal side. Beginning 

 this fall, Sea Grant will 

 offer a free, quarterly 

 newsletter addressing 

 coastal legal issues such as water use 

 rights, development and offshore oil 

 leasing. Edited by Walter Clark, Sea 

 Grant's coastal law specialist. Legal 

 Tides will tackle pertinent coastal legal 

 questions as they arise. 



It will emphasize a whole spectrum 



of jurisdictions, says Clark, from the 

 oceans to the coast to the rivers and 

 sounds. "Within each of those is a mul- 

 titude of problems that can affect 

 North Carolina,"says Clark. Interna- 

 tional, national, state and local issues 

 can have an impact on our resources. 

 "For example," he says, "an issue that 

 falls under state jurisdiction right now 

 is settling ownership claims regarding 

 submerged lands under state waters." 



Clark, attorneys and others involved 

 in the questions concerning North Car- 

 olina's coast will write the articles for 

 the newsletter. To receive Legal Tides, 

 send your name and address to Walter 

 Clark, UNC Sea Grant, Box 8605, N.C. 

 State University, Raleigh, N.C. 

 27695-8605. 



UNC Sea Grant has recently pub- 

 lished the preliminary results of a three- 

 pronged multidisciplinary research ef- 

 fort aimed at studying the effects of 

 freshwater drainage on estuaries. Much 

 of eastern North Carolina's fertile low- 

 land must be drained to be farmed. 

 The freshwater drainage from these 

 fields often is funneled into the estu- 

 ary, sometimes into primary nursery 

 areas. 



The report, Water Management and 

 Estuarine Nurseries, details the work 

 of Wayne Skaggs and Wendell Gilliam 

 on land use alterations and runoff, 

 Leonard Pietrafesa's research on the 

 response of estuarine circulation pat- 

 terns to freshwater runoff, and John 

 Miller's findings on the response of 

 juvenile fish and shellfish to freshwater 

 input. 



For a copy of this free report, write 

 Sea Grant. Ask for publication UNC- 

 SG-WP-85-2. 



In a recent study of North Carolina 

 schools, it was found that a low pro- 

 portion of high school blacks and 

 women were enrolled in college pre- 

 paratory mathematics and science 

 courses. Consequently, fewer blacks 

 and women enter these fields of study 

 in college. 



Continued on next page 



