Still Drafting/Editing but pages useable now
– dp – Mon Apr 22, 2024
The following materials are based on notes I prepared for a particular walk at Sandy Lake but describe 5 features or ecological characteristics of the forests that can be viewed on most routes one might take though forests in the area of the larger, proposed Sandy Lake-Sackville River Regional Park .
Each feature is given below in the abbreviated form given in the notes, with a link to a subpage providing more info.
A: It’s a Wabanaki (Acadian) Forest, with all major tree species represented
Conifers/softwoods: White Pine, Red Spruce, Eastern Hemlock(*), Balsam
Fir; lesser: Black Spruce, White Spruce, Tamarack.
Deciduous/hardwoods: Red Maple, Sugar Maple, Yellow Birch, Paper Birch, American Ash*, American Beech*, lesser amounts of Red Oak, Ironwood
Subcanopy hardwoods: Striped Maple, Witch Hazel; some Mt Maple
B: Major Natural Disturbances: 1.Wind – Gap Disturbance (frequent), & Stand-
replacing Disturbance (Hurricanes, much less freq.) 2. Disease/Pests* 3. Fire
*Hemlock Wooly Adelgid (expected); Beech Bark Disease (beetle/canker fungi, Arrived Hfx late 1800s) Beech leaf-mining Weevil (Arr. Hfx ~ 2006); Emerald Ash Borer (Arr Bedford, 2018) – all associated with invasive spp.
C: A lot of Old Forest (80 yrs +) on our tour; it supports Distinct Assemblages of species, e.g. birds (Betts et al, 2022). lichens (re: Goldsmith Lake Lichen Camp)
D: Patches of Old Growth of 3 types – White Pine dominant, or Hemlock, or Mixed Hardwoods; see graphic in notes/below
E: Pit & Mound topography occurs in older, less harvested stands
– Mounds are formed by blowdown of Big Trees
– Age = Oldest Tree on mounds +10-15 years
– Pits and Mounds with similar orientation at Sandy Lake—>Hurricanes
hitting from SE; Sites 1,2,3 likely in 1869 (Saxby Gale, 155 yrs ago) or 1873
(The Nova Scotia Storm, 151 yrs ago); Peninsula a storm 60-70 years
earlier.
– Ecological Significance – vernal pools in pits; mounds are preferred seedbeds; sites of the Wabanaki Forest Love Affair (Yellow Birch & Hemlock); microbiota continuity.
Sandy Lake Water Quality Issues
These will be mentioned as we pass by Sandy Lake, but not talked about in any detail. The major issue – low oxygen during summer stratificiation – is described here