Dr. van de Gevel has received funding from The Nature Conservancy to continue to study forest stand dynamics on Bluff Mountain during the Summer of 2009. She worked closely with Phil White (Geography graduate student) and undergraduate research assistants to synthesize results and present at the Southeastern Division of the Association of American Geographers in Knoxville, Tennessee in November 2009 ,the Association of American Geographers Meeting in Washington D.C. in April 2010, and the Southeastern Division of the Association of American Geographers in Savannah, Georgia in November 2011.
Bluff Mountain is one of the most ecologically significant natural heritage sites in the southeastern United States. The plant communities present on Bluff Mountain include a Carolina hemlock (Tsuga caroliniana) forest, oak/hickory (Quercus/Carya) dominated forests, and a flat rock plant community. A unique southern Appalachian fen also contributes to the species diversity and importance of this site. The purpose of this project was to assess how tree species composition and age structure have changed as a consequence of chestnut blight (Cryphonectria parasitica) in hardwood forest communities on Bluff Mountain.
