| The sugar maple, Acer saccharum, is projected to decline and die in 88 to 100 percent of its current range in the United States. An iconic symbol of the northeastern temperate forest and a dominant species in this forest, the sugar maple is identified as the most sensitive tree in its ecosystem to rising temperatures and a warming climate.;This study measures the health of sugar maples on 12 privately owned forests and at three schools in New Hampshire. Laboratory quantitative analyses of leaves, buds and sap as well as qualitative measures of leaf and bud indicate that record high beat in 2012 stressed the sugar maple. The study identifies several laboratory and qualitative tests of health which seem most sensitive and capable of identifying stress early when intervention in forest management or public policy change might counter decline of the species.;The study presents evidence of an unusual atmospheric pollution event which defoliated sugar maples in 2010. The study examines the work of citizen scientists in Forest Watch, a K-12 school program in which students monitor the impacts of ozone on white pine, Pinus strobus, another keystone species in New Hampshire's forest.;Finally, the study examines three simple measurements of bud, leaf and the tree's acclimation to light. The findings of these tests illuminate findings in the first study. And they present examples of what citizen scientists might contribute to long-term monitoring of maples.;A partnership between science and citizens is proposed to begin long-term monitoring and to report on the health of sugar maples. |
