January 24th, 2007
the mystery of the marked trees
A couple of days ago, in my hiking report from Mill Pond Conservation Area, I wrote about some trees that are marked with numerals written in blue paint. We first noticed the marked stand of trees in one region of the forest some time ago – I can’t quite remember when, but it’s probably been a few years. On our recent hike, we noticed that the paint looked quite fresh, so we knew someone must be continuing to study the trees. We wondered if it might be a plot set up by one of the three universities that do various ecology and wildlife studies throughout our region (Carleton, Ottawa, and Queens). I sent off an email and received a speedy reply from one of the personnel at the conservation office that oversees the Mill Pond site. He wrote:
That would be a MOE [Ministry of Environment] Forest Bio-monitoring Network permanent sample plot. The objective is to monitor and evaluate the condition and growth of trees to determine the changes in tree condition over time. The plot was set up in 1986. You may recall at that time there was a lot of concern about acid rain and other factors causing forest decline (especially in sugar maple).
So! The mystery of the marked trees has been solved. However, now I’m wondering about the findings of the bio-monitoring project. If I come up with more info, I’ll try to remember to post it.
[tags]Mill Pond Conservation Area[tags]
January 25th, 2007 at 7:22 pm
Good job on tracking down the solution to the mystery. It’s always a pleasure to get a reply back from an inquiry.
I’ve been thinking of how to unobtrusively mark trees that I’ve measured. A small “W” at breast height? I probably won’t make my letters that big though.
January 25th, 2007 at 10:24 pm
Wayne – Yes, it was nice to find out about the trees. We’ve noticed it so many times but kept forgetting to follow up on it. Luckily, I picked the right person to ask so got my answer straight away
Marking the trees you’ve measured sounds like a good plan. I’d use much smaller letters too if it were me. Those big blue numbers are rather visible!
February 4th, 2007 at 1:47 am
I remember measuring trees in 1978 marked by the BLM. They used an aluminum nail with a quarter sized tag with a # on the tag. That blue paint is ridiculous.
February 4th, 2007 at 2:05 pm
Scott – Yes, the blue paint seems like overkill. However, it’s not that bad once it weathers for awhile. That’s fresh stuff. I don’t know why they don’t use tags though. There’s another forest where we sometimes hike – one where several researchers have been studying trees as well as invertebrates – and the trees are marked with metal “dog tags” fastened with small nails as you have described. It’s not at all noticeable.