Ecological Data Collecting: "There is valuable information..."

Three interns with the College of Menominee Nation Sustainable Development Institute are working on a project called "Measuring the Pulse (MTP)." In this post, Brennan Waupoose, MTP Ecological Data Collector, describes his experience and work below.

"Following the Summer Institute, the Ecological Data Collectors went to the Wabikon Lake plot located within the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest near Laona, WI. We spent two days learning Condit’s protocol used by the Smithsonian Institute to create an inventory of tree species and size. This protocol is very advanced compared to the “fixed-radius” method sometimes used by Menominee Tribal Enterprises. Every 20-meter subplot has PVC pipes at every 5 meters (25 total) for a “roping” method to create a layout for mapping the trees.

After learning Condit’s protocol, we then returned to our site at College of Menominee Nation where we installed a one-hectare plot, which measures 100 meters by 100 meters, nearly 2.5 acres. This site will be used as a Training plot in the near future for CMN’s Natural Resource program and also serve as a control for scientific research of the Menominee forest. The plot has been divided into 25-20 meter square subplots known as quadrants or “quads”. The quads are used to map and create a census of the forest plot documenting all living trees greater than 2.5 cm. The process includes mapping, sequentially tagging, measuring diameter at breast height (DBH), identifying tree species, and recording each tree on data sheets in a consistent manner to ensure data integrity. Without consistency a re-census of the plot will have flaws between the original data and the re-census.

This has been a great learning experience so far.  Considering the amount of detail used in the protocol, there is valuable information that can be produced within this site and I see myself using this site to continue my tree-ring research."

Post written by Brennan Waupoose