Welcome back to the poor prozomenac.

And today we're joined by Bill Finch.

Now Bill's one half of what's called Finch Conservation,

which him, together with his wife, Beth Bainer Finch, focuses on land conservation and education.

Together they produce critically acclaimed books, offer comprehensive consulting services,

and assist in developing large-scale land conservation programs in the southeast.

One area of focus is with Paint Rock Forest Research Center, which we'll talk about later.

Bill's book, which we dive into, is titled Long Leaf, Far as the Eye Can See,

A New Vision of North America's Richest Forest.

The book takes readers on a visual and narrative journey into

the Longleaf Pine Forests of the southeastern United States. These forests are highlighted

as the most biologically diverse and complex forest ecosystems in North America.

Historically, the Longleaf Forest covered a vast area of 92 million acres from Florida to Texas and as far north as Maryland,

but its range has significantly diminished to scattered remnants totaling approximately 3 million acres

due to factors like over-harvesting and urban encroachment. Finch and his co-authors advocate for

saving the long-leaf forest, emphasizing that its unique ecosystem challenges conventional ideas of what a forest should be.

They explained that unlike Appalachian forests, where dense canopies limit sunlight, a long-leaf forest thrives by encouraging other plants to grow in its thin shade, resulting in a grassy savanna teeming with life.

This point is reinforced by plant studies cited in the book,

which identified approximately 925 endemic species in coastal plain-longly forests,

compared to fewer than 170 species in the entire Appalachian province.

Needless to say, when I stumbled across Bill's work, I had to reach out.

So take a listen to our chat, and please grab a copy of his book at the links in the show notes.

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