Focus

Research efforts at the Forest have primarily focused on the interactions of forest management, wildlife and related ecosystem elements and processes. Disturbances such as wildfire, wind-throw, ice storms, and insect or disease outbreaks have always been a part of the natural ebb and flow of forest succession. Native Americans contributed to this disturbance, particularly through the use of fire. Today, our forests continue to be disturbed by both natural and human-induced changes. They are certainly not static systems, but rather always changing, dynamic communities. The plants and animals that live in this ever-changing environment respond in different ways to these many changes. It is this complex world that we seek to understand at the MWERF, but with particular emphasis on active forest management. It is this emphasis that sets it apart from so many other ecosystem research forests in the United States.

While there are many avenues of inquiry that can be pursued within this broad area, we are focused on those that we believe we are best positioned to pursue based on our unique strengths. It is in these areas that we are likely to make the most meaningful contributions to our understanding of our forests. Thus, four key areas are the foci of our work: landscape ecology, wildlife science with special emphasis on game species (i.e., white-tailed deer and ruffed grouse), aquatic ecology, and carbon cycling and sequestration in managed hardwood forests. Each serves a purpose in helping further develop our understanding of how our forests function, not just as areas that produce needed forest products, but also as a part of a larger natural ecosystem.