Discovering Biodiversity on a Maine Mountain

FROM THE GROUND UP • July 29, 2026

After traveling several miles on one of Maine’s countless gravel roads, we parked at a log landing just growing up to raspberries. The surrounding northern hardwood forest had been recently harvested. This land had recently been acquired by a conservation organization ensuring a balance of sustainable forestry and protection of sensitive habitats in perpetuity. Two weeks into my new Ecologist position with the Maine Natural Areas Program, I accompanied our Chief Ecologist, Kristen Puryear, and her Field Assistant, Emily Carty, to assess rare natural communities and plants on the mountain looming above. Our observations also demonstrated the value of conservation across an elevation continuum, and at a “landscape” scale, where natural communities are interspersed, providing for species now and into the future. ~ Christopher Reidy