Howe and Monroe awarded Acadia Science Fellowships to conduct research in Acadia National Park
This year’s Acadia Science Fellows are two graduate students from the University of Maine: Peter Howe, student in the School of Forest Resources, and Marisa Monroe, research assistant in the Department of Wildlife, Fisheries & Conservation Biology.
Peter Howe is creating a Northern Forest Historical Atlas with photogrammetric analysis of archival aerial photographs of the Maine woods. Using images from the Acadia region between 1949 and 1980, Howe will compile spatially accurate photomosaics of Acadia’s forests through time.
Marisa Monroe is engaging citizen scientists in monitoring Acadia’s 11 species of amphibians. During their seasonal nighttime migrations between forests and wetlands, frogs, newts, and salamanders often have to cross roads. Monroe plans to engage volunteers to monitor park roads during rainy nights.
As part of an initiative by the National Park Service (NPS), National Park Foundation, Schoodic Institute at Acadia National Park and the David Evans Shaw Family Foundation, every year since 2016, fellows expand the capacity of NPS to understand environmental change in parks.
Like many national parks, Acadia is experiencing rapid changes, the impacts of which are still largely uncertain, challenging NPS to manage and protect both natural and cultural resources.
“Science and scientists play an integral part in Acadia National Park’s management,” said Superintendent Kevin Schneider. “We rely on the best available science to make the best decisions for the park. We are eager to welcome the Acadia Science Fellows to the team and work with them to understand our ever-changing landscape.”