In Season Three of Sea to Trees, we’re learning about research that delves into the past, seeks to understand the present, and charts the future of Acadia. We’ll walk through the same spruce forests as MacArthur’s warblers, try to understand how human activity is affecting some of the smallest creatures in the park, and illustrate the power of sea level rise with a group of young scientists. What can we learn from the past and present to help our future? www.Schoodicinstitute.org

Transcript:

{Music}

From Schoodic Institute at Acadia National Park comes the third season of Sea to Trees, a podcast that tells the stories of the science happening in and around Acadia. This season we’re exploring some of the groundbreaking research happening in the rocky shorelines, the evergreen forests, and the granite mountaintops.

But it’s more than just research. We’re traveling back in time and looking into the not so distant years ahead to understand the past, the present, and the future of Acadia. In a park so well prepared to study our changing climate…

{Howe}: “I like the term historical ecology because it’s all about bringing together natural and human histories and really understanding those as totally intertwined, not separate histories but these very interconnected histories that have shaped each other across time.”

We’ll take historic flights over Mount Desert Island…

{Howe}: “A great rock, or a farmhouse, or a bridge, or a road intersection.”

Search for amphibians at Sieur de Mont…

{Grandin}: “Oop, here’s another guy. Or is it a worm?” {Monroe}: “He’s like, ‘I’m a worm! I’m a worm!’” *Laughing* {Monroe}: “Ya know, amphibians are really easy to love.”

Trap mice in Schoodic Woods…

{Slabach}: “This is a woodland jumping mouse. You can see these beautiful hind feet and they’re just feisty. All right – bag please, bag please, bag please, bag please, bag please! These guys can turn really easily when they get that back foot on you and so you gotta keep a hold of their tail.”

Listen for birds in historic spruce forests…

{Young}: “I think J18 might be my favorite site. It’s closest to the cliffs and it’s really nice to come out of the woods after two hours and just look at the ocean for a second and go ‘ahhhh.’” {Schmitt}: “Can we go there?” {Young}: “Yeah we can!” *walking through brush* *bell buoy grows louder* {Schmitt}: “Yeah, I can see why you like this site.” {Young}: “You kind of have to stop for a second…”

And watch the sea levels rise with the next generation.

{Schmitt}: “So the projections are another three feet of sea level rise by 2100 and three feet of sea level rise is actually what the storm in January, what that flood height was. That is what the average high tide will be in 2100.”

All that and much more on season three of Sea to Trees.

It takes a walk in the past to understand our present and get ready for the future.

This podcast is possible with generous support through The Cathy and Jim Gero Acadia Early-Career Fellowship, a partnership among Schoodic Institute, National Park Foundation, and National Park Service. Sea to Trees is hosted by me, Trevor Grandin, this year's Cathy and Jim Gero Acadia Early-Career fellow in Science Communication.

Check out season three episode one coming October twenty-twenty four.

*drill noises* {Booher}: “That’s as far as that’s going to go. Can I have another screw? Good sound effects, huh?” *drill noises* *student drops nail* {Student}: “Oopsie!”