Examining Succession

New England forests generally follow a specific pattern of regrowth, with successive groups of plants dominating the landscape.  Scrub brush is the first to grow back after an interruption, including berry plants.  That is followed by birches and poplars, which are replaced by pines and oaks, until finally a climax forest of hardwoods, especially maples and beeches.  To identify an area in the midst of this process, we used ArcMap to highlight stands of birch and poplar.  We then created a layer to overlay onto Google Earth, which helped us find the most accessible location.