MAINE SUNDAY TELEGRAM • November 12, 2023
Regarding forests, conservation biologist Noah Charney, a professor at University of Maine in Orono, takes a long view – 20 years, 200 years, 20,000 years, back to the Ice Age. What can a forest tell us about the major evolutionary forces that sculpted what is before our eyes today? Why are certain trees where they are? What was the likely succession of tree species over time that created the forest in front of us? When he takes his students to a salt marsh, he asks them to think about what created the striking visual patterns they can see. “These Trees Tell a Story” is meant for the average person, not the biologist. ~ Frank O Smith