NCWF In The Field – December, 2025

November 30, SWC Bass Lake Workday: NCWF South Wake Conservationists Chapter held a garden workday at their native shade plant demonstration garden at Bass Lake Park in Holly Springs. Volunteers planted, mulched, and raked the garden, giving it a refresh before the start of winter. Over 70 native plants–including white wood aster, foam flower, and Christmas fern–were installed thanks to the careful planning of the chapter’s new Wildlife Gardens and Habitat Committee.

November 30, Swannanoa Valley Wild Wreath Making Workshop: NCWF Swannanoa Valley WILD! hosted their very first wreath making workshop at Peri Social House in Black Mountain. The event served as a chapter fundraiser and a great way to bring nature-loving folks together for a festive event. The workshop was led by the ever talented and inspirational teacher Abigail Hedberg-Moffitt, a farmer, florist and owner of Bloom WNC. Participants created beautiful wreaths out of native and natural materials just in time for the holidays.

December 2, A Bear-y Good Time: NCWF Concord Wildlife Alliance Chapter had a bear-y good time celebrating the holiday season at McGill Baptist Church. Adults learned about the BearWise program and explored practical ways to coexist with wildlife and had the opportunity to get crafty by making holiday cards and bookmarks. Children enjoyed a reading of “Bear Snores On” and created their own bear-themed crafts!

December 4, Lake Norman Wildlife Holiday Party: NCWF Lake Norman Wildlife Chapter celebrated the end of the year with a rockin’ good Holiday Party! The chapter commemorated its landmark year, which included the revamp of the Island Habitat Program, the completion of Patriot Pier at Ramsey Creek Park, and a brand-new name, logo, and website. Attendees enjoyed live music, beer and wine, heavy hors d’oeuvres, and community fellowship while participating in a live raffle to raise money for wildlife.

December 6, TW Uwharrie Hike: NCWF Triad Wild Chapter went on a guided hike at Little Long Mountain in Uwharrie National Forest. Participants were treated to a hike led by biologists from the National Forest Service. The hike leaders stopped to identify local flora and fauna as they walked while also discussing land management strategies such as prescribed burning.

December 6, Winter Bird Walk & Pollinator Maintenance: NCWF Union County Wildlife Chapter bundled up for a guided Winter Bird Walk through the Union County Agricultural Center campus led by biologist Tony Lombardino. Nearly a dozen wildlife enthusiasts braved the cold weather for chance encounters with yellow-bellied sapsuckers, winter wrens, white-throated sparrows, and ruby-crowned kinglets. After the bird walk, folks stuck around to help with maintenance of the newly installed Pollinator Pitstop at the Agricultural Center. Volunteers added milkweed seeds, watered, and pulled fescue and annual weeds before they had the chance to seed and establish.

December 6, TCC Brumley Workday: NCWF Tri-County Conservationists Chapter held a native plant oases workday at Brumley Preserve in Chapel Hill. Volunteers planted over 45 native tree saplings and removed invasive plants around the oases. Volunteers also helped shore up the fencing around the oases to discourage deer from hopping in.

December 9, ecoEXPLORE Mammalogy Field Season Celebration: NCWF, Pocosin Lakes NWR, and Tyrrell County Library teamed up for our last ecoEXPLORE program of the year, celebrating the mammalogy field season. Participants learned more about carnivores, herbivores, and omnivores then used sweet treats to create imitation scat for species like white-tailed deer, raccoons, coyotes, and river otters. While watching the NCWF Red Wolf live camera, families were excited to ask their Red Wolf questions while observing the Red Wolf Center’s breeding pair roaming around their enclosure.

December 13, Naked Creek Cleanup and Tree Guard Installation: New River Conservancy alongside NCWF High Country Wild, New River State Park, and Keep Ashe Beautiful hosted a creek cleanup. 800 pounds of trash and debris were removed from the creek. We also installed tree guards for our newly planted trees at the base of Mount Jefferson.

December 13, Help Keep Charlotte Beautiful: NCWF Charlotte Wildlife Stewards Chapter was back at it, keeping Tyvola Road clean and green. Charlotte Wildlife Stewards adopted a stretch of Tyvola Rd in Charlotte through Keep Charlotte Beautiful’s grassroots Adopt-a-Street program. Volunteers enjoyed the pleasant winter day and removed more than 100 lbs of litter from the roadside, helping to mitigate vehicle-wildlife collisions!

December 18, Holiday Habitat Litter Collection Project: NCWF Wildlife Habitat Stewards of Northeastern NC Chapter have been busy this holiday season as they partake in their third annual Holiday Habitat Litter Collection Project. Chapter volunteers from around the region are conducting litter cleanups within their communities to help combat the damaging effects of litter on wildlife and their habitats. Since Thanksgiving, the chapter has picked up over 511 lbs of litter from our waterways and roadsides.