About The Harvard Forest

The Harvard Forest in Petersham, Massachusetts has served as Harvard University's rural laboratory and classroom for research and education in forest ecology since 1907. The Forest is situated on 3,000-acres of mixed hardwood and conifer forests with ponds, streams, swamps, fields and forest plantations that provide diverse ecosystems for study and teaching, and habitat for a wide array of plant and animal species. A facilities complex including laboratories, classrooms, historical archives, and offices supports the research, educational, and administrative activities of approximately forty students and staff. The Fisher Museum of forestry contains the world-renowned dioramas depicting the history of landscape changes in New England since Colonial settlement. Research at the Harvard Forest focuses on plant and animal ecology, landscape history and conservation biology and management. The Harvard Forest is part of the National Science Foundation Long-Term Ecological Research network (LTER) and also receives funding from the Department of Energy's National Institute for Global Environmental Change, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, R.T. Fisher Fund and other sources. The Fisher Museum is open to the public daily during business hours and on weekend afternoons in the summer and fall. Visitors are welcome to walk the more than forty miles of woods roads and self-guided nature trails connected to the Museum.

For additional information please visit the Harvard Forest website at http://harvardforest.fas.harvard.edu.