Aaron Weiskittel

Irving Chair, Forest Ecosystem Management
Cooperating Scientist, Cooperative Forestry Research Unit

Research Interests

• Statistical and mechanistic forest growth modeling
• Applied statistics
• Influence of climate change on forests
• Sustainable forest management
• Linking remote sensing and ecological forecasting tools

Research Projects

Sustainability of widespread forest certification and the Maine Forest Practices Act

Degrees:

• Oregon State University, Ph.D. (Forest Growth and Yield Modeling)
• Oregon State University, M.S. (Quantitative Silviculture)
• The Ohio State University, B.S. (Natural Resources – Forestry)

Media Expertise:
Forestry
Forest Management
Climate Change
Forest Sampling and Statistics

Student Opportunities:

M.S. and Ph.D. Graduate Research Assistantships

Courses

• SFR 205: Forest Measurements and Statistics
• SFR 402: Advanced Forest Measurements and Modeling
• SFR 475: Advanced Biometrics
• SFR 601: Forest Mensuration Problems

Profile

Aaron Weiskittel is an Associate Professor of Forest Biometrics and Modeling with the University of Maine’s School of Forest Resources. He is also the University’s Irving Chair of Forest Ecosystem Management. Weiskittel’s work primarily seeks to develop empirical and process-based models to predict biomass growth and yield across a range of forest types. These models can be used to forecast changes in biomass due to varying silvicultural regimes, changes in annual weather patterns, and the interaction between these factors.

Weiskittel’s Maine-focused research looks at the various factors that influence regional forest structure and composition in the hope of being able to forecast future changes. His research attempts to understand the biophysical factors influencing forest growth and to integrate those factors with other economic, climate, and sociological models. To date, his research team has compiled an extensive database of permanent forest growth research plots that range from southern Maine to Newfoundland and from the 1950s to the present day. This database is being used to develop various models for forecasting future forest productivity, projecting growth under various management regimes, and predicting forest sensitivity to future changes in climate.

Weiskittel is the recipient of multiple research grants including a National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) project titled “Carbon Dynamics and Forest Management: A Retrospective Analysis and Projection of Land Use, Climate Change, and Natural Disturbances in Northeastern Forests” and a NASA project on “The Acadian Forest and Climate Change: Analyzing Shifting Species Distributions and Effects to the Carbon Balance.” He has been published in multiple peer-reviewed journals including Forest Ecology and Management, Northern Journal of Applied Forest Research, Forestry, and New Forests. He is also the primary author of the textbook “Forest Growth Yield and Modeling.”

Selected Publications

A.O. Finely, S. Banerjee, A.R. Weiskittel, C. Babcock, and B.D. Cook, “Dynamic Spatial Regression Models for Space-Varying Forest Stand Table,” Environmentrics (2014, in press).

H. Jiang, P.J. Radtke, A. Weiskittel, J. Coulston, and P.J. Guertin, “Climate and Soils-Based Models of Site Productivity in Eastern U.S. Tree Species,” Canadian Journal of Forest Research (2014, in press).

A.S. Nelson, R.G. Wagner, A.R. Weiskittel, and M.R. Saunders, “Effects of Species Composition, Thinning Intensity, and Shade Tolerance on Vertical Distribution of Leaf Area Index in Juvenile Stands in Maine, U.S.A.,” European Journal of Forest Research (2014).

A.S. Nelson, A.R. Weiskittel, M.R. Saunders, and R.G. Wagner, “Development and Validation of Small-Diameter Aboveground Biomass Equations for Naturally-Regenerated and Planted Tree Species in Eastern Maine,” Biomass & Bioenergy 68 (2014): 215-227.

M.B. Russell, A.R. Weiskittel, and J.A. Kershaw, “Comparing Strategies for Modeling Individual-Tree Height and Height-to-Crown Base Increment in Mixed-Species Acadian Forests of Northeastern North America,” European Journal of Forest Research 133 (2014): 1121-1135.

C. Colgan, B. McGill, M.L. Hunter, and A. Weiskittel, “Managing the Middle Ground: Forests in the Transition Zone between Cities and Remote Areas,” Landscape Ecology 29 (2014): 1133-1143.

R. Hayashi, A. Weiskittel, and S. Sader, “Assessing the Feasibility of Low-Density LiDAR for Stand Inventory Predictions in Complex and Managed Forests of Northern Maine,” Forests 5 (2014): 363-383.

A.S. Nelson, A. Weiskittel, and R.G. Wagner, “Development of Branch, Crown, and Vertical Distribution Leaf Area Models for Contrasting Hardwood Species in Maine, USA,” Trees 28 (2014): 17-30.

M.M. Bataineh, L. Kenefic, A. Weiskittel, R. Wagner, and J. Brissette, “Influence of Partial Harvesting and Site Factors on the Abundance and Composition of Natural Regeneration in the Acadian Forest of Maine, USA,” Forest Ecology and Management 306 (2013): 96-106.

L.V. Gagné, A. Genet, A. Weiskittel, and A. Achim, “Assessing the Potential Stem Growth and Quality of Yellow Birch Prior to Restoration: A Case Study in Eastern Canada,” Forests 4 (2013): 766-785.

M.B. Russell, A.R. Weiskittel, and J.A. Kershaw, “Benchmarking and Calibration of Forest Vegetation Simulator Individual Tree Attribute Predictions Across the Northeastern U.S.” Northern Journal of Applied Forest Research, 30 (2013): 75-84.

M. Bataineh, R.G. Wagner, and A.R. Weiskittel, “Long-Term Response of Spruce-Fir Stands to Herbicide and Precommercial Thinning: Observed and Projected Growth, Yield, and Financial Returns in Central Maine, USA,” Canadian Journal of Forest Research 43 (2013): 385-395.

J. Waskiewicz, L. Kenefic, A. Weiskittel, and R. Seymour, “Species Mixture Effects in Northern Red Oak-Eastern White Pine Stands in Maine, USA,” Forest Ecology and Management 298 (2013): 71-81.

M.B. Russell and A.R. Weiskittel, “Assessing and Modeling Snag Survival and Decay Dynamics for the Primary Species in the Acadian Forest of Maine, USA,” Forest Ecology and Management 284 (2012): 230-240.

R. Li, A.R. Weiskittel, J.A. Kershaw, and A. Dick, “Regional Stem Taper Equations for Eleven Conifer Species in the Acadian Region of North America: Development and Assessment,” Northern Journal of Applied Forestry 29 (2012): 5-14.

A.R. Weiskittel, N.L. Crookston, and G.E. Rehfeldt, “Projection of Douglas-Fir Future Habitat and Productivity in Western North America,” Schweiz Z Forstwes 163 (2012): 70-78.

R. Li, B. Stewart, and A.R. Weiskittel, “A Bayesian Approach for Modeling Nonlinear Longitudinal/Hierarchical Data with Random Effects in Forestry,” Forestry 85 (2012): 17-25.

U. Kohnle, S. Hein, B. Musselmann, F.C. Sorenson, and A.R. Weiskittel, “Influence of Provenance on Bark Thickness and Bark Ratio of Douglas-Fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii [Mirb.] Franco) Growing in Southwestern Germany,” Canadian Journal of Forest Research 42 (2012): 382-399.

B. Rijal, A.R. Weiskittel, and J.A. Kershaw, “Development of Height to Crown Base Models for Thirteen Tree Species of the North American Acadian Region,” Forestry Chronicle 88 (2012): 60-73.

M.B. Russell, A.R. Weiskittel, and J.A. Kershaw, “Assessing Model Performance in Forecasting Long-Term Individual Tree Diameter Versus Basal Area Increment for the Primary Acadian Species,” Canadian Journal of Forest Research 41 (2011): 2267-2275.

E. McGarrigle, J.A. Kershaw, M. Lavinge, A.R. Weiskittel, and M.J. Ducey, “Predicting Small Tree Diameter Distributions Using Predictions from a Two-Parameter Weibull Distribution in the Acadian Forest Region,” Forestry 84 (2011): 431-439.

C.H. Guiterman, R.S. Seymour, and A.R. Weiskittel, “Influence of Conventional and Low Density Thinning on the Volume Growth and Lower Bole Taper of a Eastern White Pine Plantation in Central Maine,” Northern Journal of Applied Forestry 28 (2011): 123-128.

H. Temesgen, V. Monleon, A. Weiskittel, and D. Wilson, “Sampling Strategies for Efficient Estimation of Tree Foliage Biomass,” Forest Science 57 (2011): 153-163.