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Top Potential Field Sites for hMRI Pilot Study (New England)

 

The study will use sites with a clear contrast between High Structural Complexity (Rewilded) and Low Structural Complexity (Degraded).

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A. High-Complexity / Rewilded Reference Sites (High Expected hMRI Score)

 

These sites offer high levels of coarse woody debris (CWD), deep litter, and mature canopy, essential for advanced microbial recovery.

  • Northeast Wilderness Trust ("Forever-Wild" Lands) - Regional (MA, NH, VT):

    • These lands are legally protected from resource extraction, allowing natural processes and high structural complexity to dominate. This makes them the ideal reference condition for fully recovered microbial systems.

  • Sheldrick Forest Preserve (The Nature Conservancy) - Wilton, NH:

    • Features mature groves of 150-200 year-old trees and old-growth characteristics. Represents a high-quality, high-complexity benchmark site.

  • Muddy Pond Preserve - Kingston, MA:

    • A local preserve with dedicated rewilding efforts. Provides an accessible location to test the hMRI in a smaller-scale, actively recovering context.

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B. Low-Complexity / Degraded / Managed Sites (Low Expected hMRI Score)

 

These sites have known recent disturbance histories resulting in low CWD, low litter depth, and simplified canopy structure, serving as the necessary control group.

  • Myles Standish State Forest Complex - Plymouth/Carver, MA:

    • Actively managed public land with documented history of timber harvests and prescribed fire. This site guarantees areas of recent, measurable disturbance and low structural complexity.

  • Muddy Brook WMA - Hardwick, MA:

    • Public land undergoing large-scale habitat restoration. The management process involves known, recent disturbance (clearing/management) which makes it an excellent site to capture the low-end of microbial recovery.

  • NH State Forests:

    • Managed by the NH Division of Forests and Lands, which regularly conducts timber sales and silvicultural practices. Provides reliable access to areas with documented, recent management-related disturbance.

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C. Confirmed Site Access

  • Ausbon Sargent Land Preservation Trust - Mt. Kearsarge/Lake Sunapee region, NH:

    • Confirmed access to properties in central New Hampshire. Specific parcels would be selected based on management history to provide either rewilded reference or intermediate recovery conditions.

 

D. Site Selection Resource

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  • Wildlands in New England Inventory - Regional (New England):

    • Planning Tool. This mapping tool will be used in the first phase of the project to precisely locate candidate "Forever-Wild" properties and facilitate the matching of these sites with the nearest accessible degraded sites.

  • NH GRANIT / MassGIS - State GIS databases for identifying land cover, conservation status, and disturbance history of candidate sites.

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