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September 15, 2004
Conservation in Loudon Natural Communities of New Hampshire Moths of the Granite State |
The electronic newsletter of The Nature Conservancy's New Hampshire Chapter, a monthly roundup of conservation in the Granite State.
For more information on this and other projects of The Nature Conservancy, visit http://nature.org/newhampshire.
About this e-newsletter
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| Fall Mountain is a stronghold for the federally endangered northeastern bulrush. On Sept. 1, The Nature Conservancy closed a deal to purchase 950 acres on Fall Mountain, including three of New Hampshire's eight populations of northeastern bulrush. Eric Aldrich photo © TNC. |
The Nature Conservancy Purchases
and Protects Fall Mountain
The Nature Conservancy this month purchased 950 acres on Fall Mountain in Charlestown and Langdon, ensuring that this critical habitat will remain protected for this and future generations.
Formerly owned by New England Power Company, the property includes the mountain's northern ridgeline, along with the entire watershed of a series of ponds and beaver flowages that comprise the headwaters of Mountain Brook. The property's wetlands support the best three of New Hampshire's eight populations of northeastern bulrush, a globally rare plant. The property's pristine ponds, streams and forests are also prime habitats for otter, deer, wild turkey, waterfowl and other wildlife.
The Conservancy plans to hold the property temporarily, and transfer it (possibly within the next few months) to the state of New Hampshire. State officials have preliminarily agreed to accept the property and manage it as a new state forest. The Nature Conservancy would hold a conservation easement that would prevent development and ensure sound recreation and forest management practices to protect the federally endangered northeastern bulrush and other sensitive and exemplary ecological features.
"In southern New Hampshire, we rarely have an opportunity to protect in one fell swoop two pristine ponds and their entire watershed," said Mark Zankel, conservation programs director for The Nature Conservancy in New Hampshire. "We are benefiting from New England Power Company's careful stewardship of the Fall Mountain property and the company's willingness to work with us on a conservation transaction."
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| The Nature Conservancy recently sold this land near the Soucook River in Loudon to Jack Bronnenberg, whose well-respected, family-owned logging company will manage it as a showcase for sustainable forestry. Duane Hyde photo © TNC. |
A gift of land to The Nature Conservancy in 1998 is now a gift of conservation to the town of Loudon and the Five Rivers Conservation Trust, a land trust based in Concord.
The Conservancy has recently donated one of the land gifts -- 50 acres in Loudon -- to the town. And the Conservancy has sold another parcel in Loudon -- 79 acres -- to a local family while ensuring the property remains protected and well managed. The Five Rivers Conservation Trust now holds conservation easements on both tracts.
The story began in 1998 when the family-owned Bear Paw Timber Corp. donated to The Nature Conservancy 35 parcels scattered throughout New Hampshire and Maine -- more than 8,000 acres in all. At the time, it was one of the largest private gifts of land for conservation in both states. In New Hampshire, the gift consisted of 2,825 acres on 23 parcels; six of those tracts essentially doubled the size of the Conservancy's Green Hills Preserve in North Conway.
The other tracts donated by Bear Paw Timber are spread throughout New Hampshire, including two tracts in Loudon: one of 50 acres near Bumfagen Brook, the other of 79 acres on the Soucook River.
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| The sixth Eastern Old Growth Forest Conference will be held Sept. 23 through 26 at the Geneva Point Conference Center in Moultonborough. Here, TNC Northern N.H. Program Manager Peter Benson measures an ancient fir in an old growth section of the Conservancy's Vickie Bunnell Preserve. Eric Aldrich photo © TNC. |
Moving Toward Sustainable Forestry:
Lessons from Old Growth Forests
The sixth Eastern Old Growth Forest Conference comes to New Hampshire this month, bringing scientists and conservationists together to discuss an array of issues about these rare and precious ecosystems.
The conference runs Sept. 23 through 26 at the Geneva Point Conference Center in Moultonborough.
This conference serves three purposes: 1) to disseminate information to conservation groups and the forest products industry about old growth forests in the Eastern United States and Canada; 2) to explore the dynamics of old growth forest ecosystems in a way that can inform sustainable forestry practices; and 3) to provide a forum for discussing ways in which the land conservation community can partner with the forest products industry in conserving forest lands in the Eastern United States and Canada.
More than two dozen speakers, including some from TNC, will present topics on everything from finding old growth forests to insect species and conserving them. There will also be field trips to old growth forests in New Hampshire. The event is sponsored by more than two dozen organizations, including The Nature Conservancy.
For more information, visit www.oldgrowthconference.org.
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| You don't need a kayak to join TNC for a tour of Great Bay, Saturday, Oct. 2. |
Nature Conservancy Field Trips
Saturday, October 2:
Kayaking on Great Bay
Here's a remarkable opportunity to see New Hampshire's hidden coastline: Great Bay.
Join The Nature Conservancy on Saturday, Oct. 2, for a kayak tour of Great Bay. Leading the tour will be Jay Odell, marine ecologist for the Conservancy in New Hampshire.
We'll start the tour at New Hampshire Fish and Game Department's Sandy Point Discovery Center, part of the Great Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve. Kayaks will be available, courtesy of Sandy Point, for those who don't have their own.
We'll meet at 2:30, be on the water around 3:30 p.m. and return around 6:30 p.m. Kayakers will paddle along the Lamprey River, to Moody Point, and an island near The Nature Conservancy's Lubberland Creek Preserve.
The trip has a maximum of 16 participants. To sign up, contact Megan Lepage before Sept. 24 at The Nature Conservancy in New Hampshire: 603-224-5853, ext. 26, or mlepage@tnc.org.
Saturday, October 2:
Green Mountain
Saturday, October 16:
- TNC's Stamp Act Island in Lake Wentworth. Join TNC staff for a rare opportunity to see this remarkable preserve. Bring your canoe/kayak and life jackets. Meet at 10 a.m. at Lake Wentworth State Park in Wolfeboro.
To sign up for these field trips, please contact Megan Lepage: 603-224-5853, ext. 23. TNC field trips are free and open to members and non-members. Please leave pets at home.
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Natural Communities of New Hampshire
The New Hampshire Natural Heritage Bureau has just published a comprehensive new book: "The Natural Communities of New Hampshire," by Daniel D. Sperduto and William F. Nichols.
The 230-page book describes 192 different types of natural communities in New Hampshire, from black spruce/balsam fir krummholz high in the White Mountains to black gum - red maple basin swamps of the southeastern lowlands. It also includes an overview of important physical features and natural divisions of New Hampshire.
Why classify natural communities? "The need to classify natural communities is fundamentally pragmatic," according to the book's introduction. "People need a way to sort out, understand, and communicate about nature's complexity in order to be good stewards. ... Natural communities can be thought of as the natural arenas where populations of different species interact, respond to selective pressures, and continue to evolve. If these natural contexts can be maintained, it will benefit all other forms of life; if they cannot, the species they contain may be in jeopardy."
"This comprehensive manual represents the culmination of over 10 years of natural community classification work in New Hampshire, and is the best framework for viewing and understanding the landscapes we inhabit and are working to protect," said co-author Dan Sperduto.
The Natural Heritage Bureau is sending copies of the book to all of New Hampshire's public libraries. It is also available online at the bureau's website: http://www.nhdfl.org/formgt/nhiweb/.
Dan Sperduto and Bill Nichols are ecologists with the New Hampshire Natural Heritage Bureau and are employees of The Nature Conservancy. The Conservancy led the effort to establish and fund natural heritage programs around the U.S. Canada and Latin America.
"Natural Communities of New Hampshire" is made possible by funding from the New Hampshire Conservation License Plate Program, the "Moose Plate."
Saturday, October 9, in Keene:
Cities for Climate Protection
You know the adage: Think globally, act locally. Well, that's what city of Keene has in mind with an event it's sponsoring on October 9.
The city of Keene has joined the Cities for Climate Protection Campaign, an effort coordinated by the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives to combat climate change. As the first municipality in the state to join the campaign, Keene has established itself as a leader in environmental stewardship. Keene's Cities for Climate Protection Committee has drafted a local action plan, which has been adopted by the city council. Keene's action plan aims at reducing the city's carbon emissions by 10 percent in the areas of transportation, energy use and solid waste. It's called the city's 10 Percent Challenge.
And that's what Keene is kicking off on October 9: the 10 Percent Challenge.
The city-sponsored event will focus on informing the public about the many issues surrounding climate change. There will be live music, exhibitors, raffles, speakers, activities for children, an energy bike tour and other activities.
The Nature Conservancy will be there, among other exhibitors, to highlight its own work -- both locally and globally -- on global climate change. For more information about TNC's Global Climate Change Initiative, visit: http://nature.org/initiatives/climatechange/.
For more information on Keene's Cities for Climate Protection Campaign, call Christa Koehler, 603-352-5474, or visit: http://www.ci.keene.nh.us/planning/climateprotection.htm.
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| Moths, like these rare species from the Ossipee Pine Barrens, are featured in the latest issue of N.H. Wildlife Journal. |
Moths Featured in N.H. Wildlife Journal
An article in the new issue of New Hampshire Wildlife Journal takes a look at moths of the Granite State and reviews some of the efforts to research and restore their habitats.
There are an estimated 2,500 moth species in New Hampshire; by contrast, there are fewer than 1,000 species of butterflies in all of the U.S. and Canada.
The article describes The Nature Conservancy's work in the Ossipee Pine Barrens, home to several rare moth species. The Conservancy is also working to carefully restore fire to this ecosystem and improve conditions for rare moths.
New Hampshire Wildlife Journal is published six times a year by the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department.
Visit: http://wildlife.state.nh.us/Wildlife_Journal/WJ_mag.htm.
