Witness to Extinction

38 photos

The Hemlock Wooly Adelgid is an invasive insect the size of a pepper fleck. For over 50 years it has been invading the hemlock forests starting in Virginia and spreading throughout the South. The great hemlock forests and old growth trees of Shenandoah and the Great Smoky Mountains are gone. Hillsides and valleys within Nantahala and Pisgah National Forests are decimated. What is left are a few pockets of trees that are being treated, but for the most part, the Eastern Hemlock as a species is functionally extinct in the Southern Appalachians.
This series is a tribute to the magnificent trees that were once living and now left to return to the earth. Imagine their grandeur as they filled the forest with their presence. We are not powerless to halt the spread of the ongoing destruction, the adelgid is not finished. Great hemlock forests to the north and west are in jeopardy. There is much research and action on prevention, but without resources the fight is limited. Awareness creates the public support needed to get things done. If this is important to you please get involved. Thank you.