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Monadnock Ecological Research & Education Project
Long Term Project Goals
The MERE Project is developing an in-depth understanding of the mountain's ecological patterns and processes in the face of a changing climate. This understanding will be shared with visitors as a means to further their appreciation for ecological change on the mountain and in their own backyards. The mountain’s cultural significance will be incorporated into this understanding because it's ecological changes are so closely linked to past and present human activity. The collection of baseline data on plant communities is the initial step in developing this ecological understanding. Once established, ecological research sites will be revisited every five years. Changes observed will be examined along with climate change data to examine links. The MERE Project will share acquired knowledge with the general public through community presentations, web site information, trail stewards, and scientific and popular articles. Further, the MERE Project seeks to enhance the use of current ecological research (i.e. GPS units, sighting compasses, and topographical maps), ecological literacy, and application-based research in local high schools and to establish a long-term relationship between graduate students at Antioch University New England, local high school students, and Mount Monadnock State Park.
The Purpose of Collecting Baseline Data of Plant Communities
As diverse as we know Mount Monadnock to be, there is still much to learn about its natural community structure. Since Henry David Thoreau’s botanical explorations in the 1800s, no systematic scientific study has been established that could be reliably followed into the future. Explorations of Henry Ives Baldwin in the 1970s, Bill Nichols of the New Hampshire Natural Heritage Program in 2002, and Dianne Eno in 2006 have focused on specific areas of the mountain and provide valuable information,but none of these studies established permanent plots that could be followed over time.
The annual flood of autumn hikers impacts the mountain's trails and summit. Knowing what plants exist and in what locations will allow managers of Mount Monadnock State Park to protect rare or vulnerable communities. Such information is also valuable in enhancing the visitors' appreciation and respect for the mountain’s ecology.
Baseline data of present-day conditions will allow scientists to measure changes in forest composition and health over time. Student and faculty researchers will compare current and future data with climate trends and other environmental information. Thus, they will see how climate change affects the mountain's ecology and forests throughout the region.
© 2007 Antioch University New England, 40 Avon Street, Keene, NH 03431-3516 800.553.8920