Lead Principal Investigator: Fisichelli, Nick

Project Description: The goals of this project are to map the locations tree species and the condition of tree health in Acadia National Park (ACAD) and Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument (KAWW) so that the parks can understand the threat of invasive insect pests, like Emerald Ash Borer and Hemlock Wooly Adelgid, and protect threatened tree species traditionally used by the Wabanaki tribes, such as ash. This project will map select species of trees and tree health for all forested lands in ACAD and KAWW using existing ground, airborne, and satellite imagery because the parks currently lack maps accurately representing tree species occurrence and tree health at fine spatial resolution. These maps will provide a valuable resource for a number of management and resource applications including: 1) management of invasive insect pests and diseases, such as Emerald Ash Borer, Hemlock Wooly Adelgid, and red pine scale, and 2) anticipating and managing changes in forest species or mass mortality events that may occur with climate change and drought, and possibly in combination with insect pests.

The outcomes of this project are a peer-reviewed report and a map of tree species composition and tree health in ACAD and KAWW that describes the condition of a range of forest types across both parks. In addition, two in-person workshops, one each in ACAD and KAWW, will be held to communicate findings to park staff and other stakeholders (e.g., researchers, friends’ groups, land trusts, municipalities) and to get input to improve and revise the maps. A communication product (e.g., resource brief, web article, or story map) will also be completed to share the findings more widely.

Lead Principal Investigator: Nick Fisichelli, Schoodic Institute

Partner Institution: Schoodic Institute

Federal Agency: National Park Service

Federal Agency Technical Contact: Dr. Jim Comiskey

Project Type: Research

Project Discipline: Natural Resources

Project Sub-Discipline(s): Biological (Ecology, Fish, Wildlife, Vegetation, T&E)

Start Year: 2022

End Year: 2024

Initial Funding Amount: $29,786.00

Federal Grant Number: P22AC00405

Amendments

• Amendment Number: 1, Year: 2023, Amount: $32,144.00

Location: Acadia and Katahdin Woods and Waters

National Parks or Protected Areas:

• Acadia (NPS)
• Katahdin Woods and Waters (NPS)

State(s): Maine

Project Description: This is a two-part project collecting vegetation community data at 1) the Northeast Temperate Network’ s long-term freshwater wetland monitoring plots located in Acadia National Park, and 2) long-term forest vegetation monitoring plots located within
NPS parks from Maine to Virginia. Both of these ecosystems are important to park operations, visitors’ experience, and are valuable resources that are constantly affected by environmental change and stressors. Monitoring data collected under this agreement will be used by NPS Inventory and Monitoring staff and Dr. Nicholas Fisichelli of Schoodic Institute to assess the overall condition of and factors affecting NPS vegetation communities and provide recommendations to park managers. For example, annual assessments of the condition of park vegetation can help park’s prioritize invasive species management, identify and adapt to newly emerging threats, and alter management practices as needed to promote healthy ecosystems. Schoodic Institute in cooperation with NPS IMD staff will perform analyses of the vegetation communities and environmental data to evaluate the roles of climate change, invasive exotic species, forest pests, and other stressors on vegetation health within eastern parks.

The resulting analyses will increase the public and scientific community’s knowledge of how a variety of local (e.g., deer browse, culverts) and regional (e.g., invasive species, climate change) stressors affect the condition of vegetation resources. This information is critical for evaluating current and future threats to regional vegetation structure, biodiversity, and other linked natural and cultural resources so that strategies can be developed to mitigate their impacts in the future. For example, scientific data is needed to understand and manage how the arrival of invasive forest pests, high deer browse, and invasive plant species are affecting the forests within our parks and local communities that not only provide refuge for species and are important to high water quality, but also contribute to the visitor experience as an integral component of many park’s cultural landscape.

Lead Principal Investigator: Nick Fisichelli, Schoodic Institute

Partner Institution: Schoodic Institute

Federal Agency: National Park Service

Federal Agency Technical Contact: Dr. Jim Comiskey

Project Type: Research

Project Discipline: Natural Resources

Project Sub-Discipline(s): Biological (Ecology, Fish, Wildlife, Vegetation, T&E)

Start Year: 2018

End Year: 2023

Initial Funding Amount: $85,134.64

Federal Grant Number: P18AC01230

Amendments

• Amendment Number: 1, Year: 2019, Amount: $114,462.37
• Amendment Number: 2, Year: 2020, Amount: $203,374.13
• Amendment Number: 3, Year: 2020, Amount: $71,253.43
• Amendment Number: 5, Year: 2022, Amount: $61,752.18

National Parks or Protected Areas:

• Acadia National Park (NPS)
• Appomattox Court House National Historical Park (NPS)
• Booker T. Washington National Monument (NPS)
• Colonial National Historical Park (NPS)
• Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park (NPS)
• Gettysburg National Military (NPS)
• George Washington Birthplace (NPS)
• Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site (NPS)
• Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park (NPS)

State(s): Connecticut, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Virginia