Getting our hands dirty!

This past week, my field study group started our work in the forest. To get to our study site, we park next to a field of wildflowers - black eyed susans, other asters, and Queen anne's lace. Then we walk 20 minutes on a winding dirt road passing all manner of animal tracks and scat along the way. I've seen moose prints, coyote scat, deer and turkey tracks, turkey feathers, wood frogs, and spring peepers, and lots of acrobatic chipmunks. We are studying vegetation along the border of Warren Farm and the Barrington Headwaters in NH. Half of the study site is made up of a recently logged forest and the other half is made up of a long ago logged forest. The difference in vegetation in these areas is evident immediately. Medium aged hemlocks and older pines dominate on the Warren land, while hardwoods, and softwoods are found in a diverse mix on the Barrington Headwaters side of the boundary line. Huge boulders are scattered all over the site, evidence of the distant past glacial activity.

Our group managed to collect data from 5 of the 9 plots we are studing, so only 4 more to go. I have found 4 ticks imbedded in me thus far, so I will start wearing bug spray as of today.