Massachusetts Wide
Many important social, ecological, and historical processes operate at and must be interpreted at broad spatial scales. Because data availability and collection histories vary across political boundaries, the state often becomes a useful scale for geographical analysis. Moreover, Massachusetts is an appropriate scale to study ecological processes and conservation because it supports:
- broad variation in vegetation, environment and disturbance history
- it encompasses much of the diversity in the New England region
- it affords many unique data sources that are unavailable in adjacent states.
As a consequence, we have undertaken a number of statewide studies with application to land protection, biological conservation, and the management of natural resources.
Historical Wildlife Dynamics in Massachusetts
As a consequence of historical changes in land use, land cover and human attitudes there has been a remarkable change in the abundance and distribution of wildlife across the Eastern U.S. In order to document these changes as part of a larger investigation of historical changes in vegetation and human activities we have conducted an extensive study of historical data on wildlife in Massachusetts, covering the time since European settlement. This study provides ecological insights into the changing nature of wildlife assemblages as well as useful background for ongoing efforts at conservation, wildlife management, and human education.
Ecological Characteristics and Consequences of Forest Harvesting
Forest management, including the harvesting of timber and other resources, is an major ecological process that alters forest composition, structure, and function, shapes wildlife habitat and may be a regionally important economic factor. With the large extent of forest cover in New England there is the potential for forest harvesting to be a major process shaping our forests into the future. Using a regulatory data source that is unique to Massachusetts and which covers all forested land we are assessing the spatial pattern of forest harvesting across the entire state for the period from 1985 to present. These data are being analyzed to determine the role of harvesting as a modern forest disturbance, to contribute to the management of conservation lands, and to guide forest policy decisions.
Selected Publications
Foster, D. and J. Aber. 2004. The Physical and Biological Setting for Ecological Research. Pp. 19-31 In D. Foster and J. Aber (Eds.), Forests in Time: The Environmental Consequences of 1000 Years of Change in New England. Yale University Press, New Haven, CT.
Foster, D. and J. Aber. (Eds) 2004. Forests in Time: The Environmental Consequences of 1000 Years of Change in New England . Yale University Press, New Haven, CT.
Finley*, A. O., D. B. Kittredge, T. H. Stevens, and C. M. D. D. Schweik. 2004. Possibilities for cross-boundary cooperation in a landcape dominated by private ownership: a case study from Massachusetts. Forest Science (submitted).
Finley*, A. O. and D. B. Kittredge. 2004. Private forest landowner values, stewardship-based programs, and behaviors: a case study from Massachusetts. Northern Journal of Applied Forestry (submitted).
Bernardos, D., D. R. Foster, G. Motzkin, and J. Cardoza. 2004. Wildlife dynamics in the changing New England landscape. Pp. 142-168 In D. Foster and J. Aber (Eds.), Forests in Time: The Environmental Consequences of 1000 Years of Change in New England. Yale University Press, New Haven, CT.
Verheyen, K., O. Honnay, G. Motzkin, M. Hermy, and D. R. Foster. 2003. Response of forest plant species to land-use change: a life-history trait-based approach. Journal of Ecology 91: 563-577.
Hall, B., G. Motzkin, D. Foster, M. Syfert, and J. Burk. 2002. Three hundred years of forest and land-use change in Massachusetts, USA. Journal of Biogeography 29: 1319-1335.
Foster, D., G. Motzkin, D. Bernardos, and J. Cardoza. 2002. Wildlife dynamics in the changing New England landscape. Journal of Biogeography 29: 1337-1357.
Anderson, J. A., S. Cooper-Ellis, and B. C. Tan. 1998. New distribution notes on the mosses of Massachusetts. Rhodora 99: 352-367.