Inventory and Assessment of Mud Pond Country Park

Transcription

1 Inventory and Assessment of Mud Pond Country Park FOR 195 Natural Resource Ecology and Assessment II Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources University of Vermont April 26, 2017

2 INTRODUCTION During the spring of 2017 a group of UVM Forestry, Wildlife, and Natural Resource Ecology students measured forest conditions across Mud Pond Country Park in Williston, VT as part of FOR 195: Natural Resource Ecology and Assessment II. The goal of the project was to set up a long-term measurement plan so that the forest conditions on this property can be monitored over time. Currently, the primary use of this Town Forest is recreation; however, there is interest in more active management of this property for multiple benefits in the future, include forest products. The property was significantly impacted by a windstorm in 2010 and surveys conducted during this inventory can also serve as an assessment of post-disturbance structure and recovery in these areas. METHODS In order to gather inventory data at Mud Pond Country Park, the property was delineated into 14 different stands based on dominant vegetation conditions. An initial survey of forest conditions was done to assess the level of variability in each stand and determine appropriate sample size. Based on this, one to ten, fixed-radius 1/5th acre plots were randomly located within each stand (Figure 1). Within each 1/5th acre plot all overstory trees and snags greater than 5 in diameter were recorded. Three 52.7 transects were laid out from the plot center at azimuths of 30, 150, and 270. A nested 1/100 th and 1/1000 th acre plot was established along each transect centered on a point 25 feet from plot center for tallying saplings and seedlings, respectively. Along each transect each piece of downed woody debris that exceeded 3 in diameter and crossed each transect was measured. Additionally, two dominant trees per plot were selected and cored for determining site index. Plots were not sampled in Stands 2 and 3 to minimize disturbance to neighboring properties. The following pages contain two-page summaries of the forest conditions for each of the sampled stands Figure 1: Plot layout for inventory. 2

3 and associated management recommendations. 3

4 Key Findings in Stand 1: Stand Structure in Mud Pond Country Park, Williston, VT: Stand 1 Aaron Gilman, Mitch Maver, William Dunkley, Zac Roy Dense, uneven-aged stand dominated by eastern hemlock and red maple Uneven-aged stand with many large diameter trees creating a dense overstory Potential deeryard and important recreation area Management Recommendations This stand is the main entrance to the park and could also serve as a winter deeryard. Couple this with low present timber value on the stand and a low potential for future timber value and any management for timber may not be worthwhile. We recommend managing for wildlife and recreation in this stand Trees per acre Diameter class (in) eastern hemlock red maple yellow birch other Figure 1: Diameter distribution of overstory trees in Stand 1. The other category includes black cherry, ironwood, paper birch, quaking aspen, red oak, red pine, sugar maple, white ash, and white pine. Table 1: Attributes of downed woody debris (DWD) and snags in Stand 1. DWD Snags Volume (ft 3 /ac) Biomass (t/ac) Avg Diameter (In) Density (#/ac) Table 2: Saplings (trees greater than 4.5 tall and less than 7 DBH) and seedlings (Trees less than 4.5 tall) in Stand 1 at Mud Pond. 4

5 Species Saplings (#/ac) Seedlings (#/ac) Eastern Hemlock American Beech Red Maple 50 0 Paper Birch 50 0 Yellow Birch Ironwood 50 0 Table 3: Richness, diversity, and evenness of the overstory and regeneration layers in Stand 1 at Mud Pond Layer Richness Diversity (H') Evenness Overstory Regeneration Saplings Seedlings Site index value for eastern hemlock (base age 50): 60 ft. Total Live Overstory Biomass of Stand 1= tons/acre (Standard error: lbs.) Total Live Overstory Volume of Stand 1= ft 3 /acre (Standard error 24.4 ft 3) Table 4: Tree overstory density, basal area, DBH, and importance value analyses of Stand 1 species. Species TPA BA (ft/ac) DBH IV eastern hemlock ironwood paper birch red maple red oak sugar maple white ash white pine yellow birch Total/average

6 Key Findings in Stand 4: Stand Structure in Mud Pond Country Park, Williston, VT: Stand 4 Aaron Gilman, Mitch Maver, William Dunkley, Zac Roy Small pole-sized red maple and white pine High stem density but low basal area Low quality wildlife habitat Low timber value Presence of barberry (invasive species) Management Recommendations Stand 4 contains little commercial timber value but would benefit from thinning to encourage a future valuable crop. Recreation paths switchback through the stand but timber management should not interfere with the goals of maintaining recreation within the park. Barberry should be removed from the stand as it is an invasive species that will interfere with management goals Trees per acre Diameter class (in.) black cherry white pine Figure 1: Diameter distribution of overstory trees in Stand 4. Table 1: Attributes of downed woody debris (DWD) and snags in Stand 4. DWD Snags Volume (ft 3 /ac) Biomass (t/ac) Avg. DBH (In) Density (#/ac)

7 Table 2: Saplings (trees greater than 4.5 tall and less than 7 DBH) and seedlings (Trees less than 4.5 tall) in Stand 4 at Mud Pond. Species Saplings (#/ac) Seedling (#/ac) white ash American elm American beech red maple white pine black cherry vitus barberry Table 3: Richness, diversity, and evenness of the overstory and regeneration layers in Stand 4 at Mud Pond. Layer Richness Diversity (H') Evenness Overstory Regeneration Saplings Seedlings Site index value for white pine, base age 50: 68 ft. Total Live Overstory Biomass of Stand 4= 94.1 tons/acre Total Live Overstory Volume of Stand 4= ft 3 /acre Table 4: Tree overstory density, basal area, DBH, and importance value analyses of Stand 4 species. Species TPA BA (ft/ac) QMD IV black cherry red maple white pine Total/average

8 Stand Structure in Mud Pond Country Park, Williston, VT: Stand 5 Lydia Kiewra, Claire Trombley, Louis Bonnet Main Findings: Overstory heavily dominated by mature eastern white pine. Snags are abundant and are mainly eastern white pine with an average DBH of 7.6 inches. Understory dominated by glossy buckthorn and barberry. Management Recommendations: Thinning from below; remove majority of intermediate and overtopped trees. This will favor the dominant and co-dominant trees that will serve as an extended shelterwood for regenerating seedlings This thinning will allow for regeneration of other tree species, and potentially allow for more diversity within the stand. Removal of invasive species. Treat as needed throughout removal process (spot spray or physical removal). Table 1: Overstory values for all live trees per acre, basal area per acre, average diameter at breast height (quadratic mean diameter (QMD); inches), for Stand 5 at Mud Pond Country Park. Species TPA BA (ft²/acre) IV DBH (in) eastern white pine black cherry red maple bigtooth aspen Table 2: Snag stem density (trees per acre), average diameter at breast height (QMD; inches), and species for Stand 5 at Mud Country Park. Species TPA DBH (in) eastern white pine paper birch

9 Figure 1: Diameter distribution of live trees in Stand 5 at Mud Pond Country Park. Table 3: Live tree and coarse woody debris volume (cubic feet per acre) and live tree and coarse woody debris biomass (tons per acre) for Stand 5. Volume (ft 3 /ac) Biomass (t/ac) Live Trees SE CWD SE Live Trees SE CWD SE 3340 ± ± ± ± 2.06 Site Index for eastern white pine: 66.5 feet at 50 years Table 4: Richness, diversity, and evenness of the overstory and regeneration layers in Stand 5 at Mud Pond Country Park (derived from plot level averages) Layer Richness Diversity (H') Evenness Overstory Sapling Seedling

10 Table 5: Number of seedlings per acre in Stand 5 by species. Species Seedlings/ac common buckthorn 5556 barberry spp red maple 2000 choke cherry 1000 rubus spp. 889 alternate-leaf dogwood 667 black cherry 667 honeysuckle (non-native) 666 white ash 556 glossy buckthorn 333 oriental bittersweet 333 elm spp. 222 sugar maple 111 eastern white pine 111 Table 6: Number of saplings per acre in Stand 5 by species. Species Saplings/ac glossy buckthorn 3300 white ash 1267 sugar maple 1000 American beech 833 common buckthorn 800 striped maple 800 bitternut hickory 100 alternate-leaf dogwood 100 boxelder 100 elm spp. 33 eastern white pine 23 red maple 13 yellow birch 2 10

11 Stand Structure in Mud Pond Country Park: Stand 6 Hayden Smith, Jack Leonard, Dylan Leath Key Findings in Stand 6: A wind event in 2010 has resulted in a high level of disturbance in this stand and consequently fairly open conditions High density of downed woody debris and snags indicative of good wildlife habitat Strong presence of American beech and striped maple in the understory with a fair amount of sugar maple regeneration Moderate proportion of invasive species in the understory (common and glossy buckthorn) Management Recommendations: Cut and chemically treat stumps of common and glossy buckthorn in the understory to reduce the density of invasive species and improve growing conditions for regenerating species such as sugar maple Aside from the chemical treatment, take a fairly passive management approach moving forward as this stand does not have a well-stocked canopy layer after the wind event and needs to regenerate Consider: 1. monitoring/protecting rare species in the overstory such as eastern white cedar, and maintaining uncommon understory saplings such as yellow birch in order to promote stand biodiversity moving forward 2. Maintaining early successional trees such as bigtooth and quaking aspen as potential wildlife trees in the future (cavities) 3. Leaving large aggregations of dwd as wildlife habitat Trees per Acre Diameter Class (in) white pine red maple black cherry red pine paper birch Other Figure 1. Diameter Distribution of overstory trees in Stand 6. 11

12 Site Index of Stand 6: 67 feet for white pine at age 50 Table 1. Attributes of downed woody debris (DWD) and snags in Stand 6 at Mud Pond Country Park. DWD Snags Volume (ft 3 /ac) Biomass (tons/acre) Density (#/acre) Table 2. Seedlings and Saplings in Stand 6 at Mud Pond Country Park. Species Seedlings (#/acre) Saplings (#/acre) American beech bitternut hickory 0 19 black birch 0 43 common buckthorn dogwood spp glossy buckthorn ironwood 0 43 pin cherry quaking aspen red maple red oak rubus spp striped maple sugar maple white ash yellow birch 0 12 Table 3. Richness, diversity and evenness in Stand 6 at Mud Pond Country Park. Layer Richness Diversity (H') Evenness Overstory Seedlings Saplings

13 Table 4. Tree overstory density, basal area, importance value, and DBH analysis of Stand 6 species. Species TPA BA (ft²/ac) IV DBH (in) white pine sugar maple red maple striped maple paper birch yellow birch beech black cherry red pine bigtooth aspen quaking aspen white cedar red oak Table 5. Total volume and biomass of overstory trees in Stand 6. Volume (ft 3 /acre) Biomass (tons/acre) 3377 ± ±

14 Stand Structure in Mud Pond Country Park, Williston, VT: Stand 7 Vincent Reichheld, Colin McPhillips, Nina McDonnell Summary This stand includes a large area of white pine windthrow resulting from a storm in The overstory is composed of white pine and mixed hardwoods (red oak, red maple, paper birch, etc.). Most conifers fall into the 10-inch to 22-inch diameter classes, and hardwoods the 8-inch to 14-inch classes. There is a large amount of regeneration in blowdown areas including pin cherry, maples, beech and white pine. Recommendations To prioritize wildlife habitat and timber production, we recommend cutting much of the low quality overstory white pine and hardwoods, leaving at least ten trees per acre with good form or significant wildlife value to serve as reserves, otherwise maximizing growing space for early successional habitat. The large amount of downed woody debris should be left as intact as possible, as it provides valuable habitat for wildlife. By cutting some of the overstory trees and allowing for more light in the stand, the regenerating understory will flourish and provide excellent early successional habitat. As the new stand develops, we recommend timber stand improvement or crop tree release be considered in the coming decades in order to ensure the presence of high quality trees in the future. From a recreational perspective, trails through this stand would be excellent for viewing wildlife. Inventory Average site index (Pinus strobus- 50 years) feet Table 1: Shannon index (unitless), richness (number of species) and evenness (0 to 1) of seedlings (<4.5 ft), saplings (<7in DBH) and overstory trees in MPCP- Stand 7 Seedlings Saplings Overstory Shannon Index Richness Evenness

15 Table 2: Density (TPA) of seedlings, saplings and overstory trees in MPCP- Stand 7 by species Density Species Seedlings Saplings Overstory American beech beaked hazelnut 6 black birch 6 pin cherry 89 red maple red spruce 6 serviceberry 3 striped maple sugar maple white pine witch hazel 3 yellow birch 8 1 black cherry 3 eastern hemlock 1 eastern hophornbeam 2 paper birch 7 red oak 7 northern whitecedar 1 white ash 2 Table 3: Mean and standard error (SE) for volume (ft 3 /acre) and biomass (tons/acre) of coarse woody debris in MPCP- Stand 7 Volume Biomass Mean 2, SE Table 4: Mean and standard error (SE) of trees per acre (TPA), basal area (BA; ft 2 /acre), quadratic mean diameter (QMD; inches), volume (ft 3 /acre) and biomass (tons/acre) for living trees >7 inches DBH in MPCP-Stand 7 TPA BA QMD Volume Biomass Mean , SE

16 Figure 1: Diameter distribution of trees by species in MPCP- Stand 7. Other includes beech, black cherry, hemlock, ironwood, sugar maple, whitecedar, white ash and yellow birch. Table 5: Importance values 1 by species in MPCP-Stand 7 Species Importance Value American beech 35 black cherry 38 eastern hemlock 18 eastern hophornbeam 19 paper birch 80 red maple 139 red oak 63 sugar maple 22 northern whitecedar 18 white ash 20 eastern white pine 214 yellow birch 18 1 product of frequency, abundance and dominance 16

17 Key Findings in Stand 9: Stand Structure in Mud Pond Country Park, Williston, VT: Stand 9 Aaron Gilman, Mitch Maver, William Dunkley, Zac Roy Mature old-field white pine stand with potential sugar maple emerging Low quality wildlife habitat Low timber value Management Recommendations This stand would benefit from the harvesting of large white pines to create optimal growth conditions for sugar maple currently present in the understory. Much of the pine is not of the highest sawtimber value, however the stand would greatly benefit from a harvest. Recreation paths switchback through the stand but timber management should not interfere with the goals of maintaining recreation within the park Trees per acre Diameter class (in.) black cherry bitternut hickory ironwood white ash white pine Figure 1: Diameter distribution of overstory trees in Stand 9. Table 1: Attributes of downed woody debris (DWD) and snags in Stand 9. DWD Snags Volume (ft 3 /ac) Biomass (t/ac) Avg. DBH (in) Density (#/ac)

18 Table 2: Saplings (trees greater than 4.5 tall and less than 7 DBH) and seedlings (Trees less than 4.5 tall) in Stand 9 at Mud Pond. Species Saplings (#/ac) Seedling (#/ac) sugar maple red maple 50 0 ironwood 50 0 Table 3: Richness, diversity, and evenness of the overstory and regeneration layers in Stand 9 at Mud Pond. Layer Richness Diversity (H') Evenness Overstory Regeneration Saplings Seedlings Site index value for white pine, base age 50: 59 ft. Total Live Overstory Biomass of Stand 9= tons/acre Total Live Overstory Volume of Stand 9= ft 3 /acre Table 4: Tree overstory density, basal area, DBH, and importance value analyses of Stand 9 species. Species TPA BA (ft/ac) QMD IV black cherry bitternut hickory ironwood red maple red oak white ash white pine Total/average

19 Stand Structure in Mud Pond Country Park, Williston, VT: Stand 10 Lydia Kiewra, Claire Trombley, Louis Bonnet Main Findings: Overstory is dominated by bigtooth aspen, red maple, eastern white pine, and northern red oak. Snags are primarily white ash with an average 16.2 inch DBH and eastern white pine with an average 10.3 inch DBH. Sugar maple and American beech regeneration in understory. Management Recommendations: Promote regeneration of sugar maple. Remove beech seedlings to allow for sugar maple regeneration (spot spray, manual removal). Implement a Timber Stand Improvement which will favor the dominant and co-dominant trees Thinnings will be low intensity. Removed trees (if valuable) can be sold Table 1: Overstory density (trees per acre), basal area per acre, importance value (IV, unitless), and average diameter at breast height (quadratic mean diameter (QMD); inches), for Stand 10 at Mud Pond Country Park. Species TPA BA (ft²/acre) IV DBH (in) bigtooth aspen paper birch red maple eastern white pine northern red oak sugar maple Table 2: Snag trees per acre, average diameter at breast height (inches), and species for Stand 10 at Mud Pond Country Park. Species TPA DBH paper birch eastern white pine white ash

20 Trees per acre DBH Class (inches) bigtooth aspen paper birch red maple white pine red oak sugar maple Figure 1: Diameter distribution of live trees in Stand 10 at Mud Pond Country Park. Table 3: Live tree and coarse woody debris volume and live tree and coarse woody debris biomass for Stand 10. Mean is reported with no standard error because there was only one plot in Stand 10. Volume (ft³/ac) Biomass (t/ac) Live Trees CWD Live Trees CWD 2, Site Index for eastern white pine: 51 feet at 50 years Table 4: Richness, diversity, and evenness of the overstory and regeneration layer in Stand 10 at Mud Pond Country Park. Layer Richness Diversity (H') Evenness Overstory Sapling Seedling

21 Table 5: Number of seedlings per acre for Stand 10 by species. Species Seedlings/ac common buckthorn 5556 barberry spp red maple 2000 choke cherry 1000 rubus spp. 889 alternate-leaf dogwood 667 black cherry 667 honeysuckle (non-native) 666 white ash 556 glossy buckthorn 333 oriental bittersweet 333 elm spp. 222 sugar maple 111 eastern white pine 111 Table 6: Number of saplings per acre for Stand 10 by species. Species Saplings/ac glossy buckthorn 3300 white ash 1267 sugar maple 1000 American beech 833 common buckthorn 800 striped maple 800 eastern white pine 422 bitternut hickory 100 alternate-leaf dogwood 100 boxelder 100 red maple 89 elm spp

22 Stand Structure in Mud Pond Country Park, Williston, VT: Stand 11 Owen Dumais, Cloe Murphy, Chris Faherty Key Findings: Moderately dense stand made up primarily of white pine, red pine, and sugar maple Large number of ironwood, white pine, and white ash in the understory White pine was the most prominent species in each DBH class Management Recommendations: Due to a budding hardwood understory, the best course of action may be to increase timber production in this stand, primarily through the removal of white pine over time. By harvesting white pine, it will allow for red maple and more white pine seedlings to grow, promoting the site quality. With a strong presence of white pine in the understory, future timber harvests will also be possible. Figure 1: White pine stocking guide. Forest is currently at B-line and we recommend thinning back to this level once stand has growth to part way between A and B lines. Figure 2: Diameter distribution of overstory trees in Stand 11.. BC= black cherry, BE= boxelder, PB= paper birch, RM= red maple, RP= red pine, SM= sugar maple, YB= yellow birch, WP= white pine 22

23 Table 1: Seedling and Sapling Density in Stand 11 at Mud Pond. Species Seedlings (#/acre) Saplings (#/acre) Red Maple Ironwood 1, American Beech Sugar Maple 0 67 Yellow Birch 0 33 Black Cherry 0 33 White Pine Barberry 0 33 White Ash 3, Table 2: Species richness, diversity, and evenness in Stand 11 at Mud Pond. Layer Richness Diversity (H') Evenness Overstory Seedlings Saplings Table 3: Live tree volume and biomass with standard deviations in Stand 11 at Mud Pond. Volume (ft 3 /acre) Standard Deviation Biomass (tons/acre) Standard Deviation

24 Table 4: Tree overstory density, basal area, importance value, and quadratic mean DBH by species in Stand 11 at Mud Pond. Importance value is based on relative density, frequency, and basal area for a given species. Species TPA BA (ft 2 /ac) IV DBH (in) Boxelder Paper Birch Red Maple Sugar Maple White Pine Yellow Birch Black Cherry Red Pine Total Table 5: Attributes of DWD and Snags in Stand 11 at Mud Pond. DWD Snags Volume (ft 3 /ac) Biomass (tons/acre) DBH (in) Density (#/acre)

25 Stand Structure in Mud Pond Country Park, Williston, VT: Stand 12 Owen Dumais, Cloe Murphy, Chris Faherty Key Findings: Low density overstory made up primarily of hardwoods Dense understory, primarily composed of sugar maple Little to no downed woody debris in the stand. The stand is in the stem exclusion phase. Many trees in the stand fall within the 7 inch DBH class Management Recommendations: Because of the high number of sugar maples in the understory, the best course of action is to thin the stand in order to give the crop trees (sugar maples) space to grow. Once the seedlings mature the stand will be optimal for sugaring. Due to the lack of sugar maples in the overstory currently, the stand will be best managed by thinning. Figure 1: Diameter distribution of overstory trees in Stand 12 at Mud Pond. BC=Black Cherry, RM=Red Maple, WP=White Pine Table 1: Seedling and Sapling Density in Stand 12 at Mud Pond Stand 12 Seedlings (#/acre) Saplings (#/acre) Sugar Maple 10,020 1,799 American Beech 0 0 White Ash 2, White Pine

26 Table 2: Species richness, diversity, and evenness in the overstory and regeneration layers in Stand 12 at Mud Pond. Layer Richness Diversity (H') Evenness Overstory Seedlings Saplings Table 3: Live tree volume and biomass with standard deviations in Stand 11 at Mud Pond. Volume (ft 3 /acre) Standard Deviation Biomass (tons/acre) Standard Deviation Table 4: Tree overstory density, basal area, importance value, and quadratic mean DBH by species in Stand 12 at Mud Pond. Importance value is based on relative density, frequency, and basal area for a given species. Species TPA BA (ft 2 /ac) IV DBH (in) Aspen Ash Black Cherry Red Maple White Pine Total

27 Table 5: Attributes of downed woody debris (DWD) and snags in Stand 12 at Mud Pond. DWD Snags Volume (ft 3 /acre) Biomass (tons/acre) DBH (in) Density

28 Stand Structure in Mud Pond Country Park, Williston, VT: Stand 13 Matt O Donnell, James King, Hank Brandeis Key findings in Stand 13: White pine dominated overstory Lower amounts of blow down compared to the rest of forest High density of live trees Management recommendations: High scores on the site index as well as little blowdown makes this stand good for managing white pine, potentially for timber production. Table 1. Overstory tree density, basal area, importance value, and average diameter at breast height (QMD) by species in Stand 13 of Mud Pond Country Park. Species TPA BA (ft 2 /ac) IV QMD (in) Sugar maple Eastern white pine Red oak Paper birch Red maple American beech Table 2.Trees per acre, basal area, volume, and biomass of living overstory trees in Stand 13 of Mud Pond Country Park. TPA BA (ft 2 /ac) Volume (ft 3 /ac) Biomass (tons/ac)

29 Figure 1. Diameter distribution of overstory trees of Stand 13 at Mud Pond Country Park Legend: SM = sugar maple, RO = northern red oak, RM = red maple, PB = paper birch, EWP = eastern white pine. Table 3. Seedlings and saplings in Stand 13 at Mud Pond Country Park. Species Seedlings (#/acre) Saplings (#/acre) American beech Eastern white pine Red oak Witch hazel

30 Table 4. Richness, diversity, and evenness of the overstory and regeneration layers in Stand 13 at Mud Pond Country Park. Layer Richness Diversity (H ) Evenness Overstory Saplings Seedlings Table 5. Attributes of downed woody debris (DWD) and snags in Stand 13 at Mud Pond Country Park. DWD Snags Volume (ft 3 /ac ) Biomass (t/ac) Density (#/ac) Avg. DBH (in)

31 Stand Structure in Mud Pond Country Park: Stand 14 Crew: Matt O Donnell, James King, Hank Brandeis Key findings Stand 14: Maple dominated overstory Low amount of blowdown High site index values With a quadratic mean diameter over 10 inches for both red and sugar maples as well as the two species having the first and second highest trees per acre and basal area values, this stand has a good potential for sugaring Management recommendations: Thin forest of non-maple spp. to increase vigor of red and sugar maple in stand Set up tubing away from trail to minimize recreational impacts Tap all trees over 10 in. DBH and tap any tree over 20 in DBH twice Table 1. Overstory tree density, basal area, importance value, and average diameter at breast height (QMD) by species in Stand 14 of Mud Pond Country Park. Species TPA BA (ft 2 /ac) IV QMD (in) Sugar maple Eastern white pine Red oak Red maple American beech Black cherry Aspen Larch

32 Table 2. Trees per acre, basal area, volume, and biomass of living overstory trees in Stand 14 of Mud Pond Country Park. TPA BA (ft 2 /ac) Volume (ft 3 /ac) Biomass (tons/ac) Figure 1. Diameter Distribution of overstory trees in Stand 14 at Mud Pond Country Park. Legend: Larch = larch spp., EWP = eastern white pine, BC = black cherry, RM = red maple, SM = sugar maple, ASPEN = bigtooth aspen, AB = American beech. 32

33 Table 3. Seedlings and Saplings in Stand 14 at Mud Pond Country Park. Species Seedlings (#/acre) Saplings (#/acre) American beech Beaked hazelnut Buckthorn Choke cherry 0 83 Dogwood spp Eastern white pine Musclewood 0 50 Northern red oak 0 50 Paper birch 0 17 Red maple Sugar maple Table 4. Richness, diversity, and evenness of the overstory and regeneration layers in Stand 14 at Mud Pond Country Park. Layer Richness Diversity (H ) Evenness Overstory Saplings Seedlings

34 Table 5. Attributes of downed woody debris (DWD) and snags in Stand 14 at Mud Pond Country Park. DWD Snags Volume (ft 3 /ac ) Biomass (t/ac) Density (#/ac) Avg. DBH (in)