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Outdoor Radio: Exploring Trees From Vermont's Highest Peak

Kent McFarland
Biologists Sara Zahendra and Kent McFarland rode the gondola at Stowe Mountain Resort to track the different tree species from Vermont's highest peak, Mount Mansfield.

When you're on the ski lift or hiking up Vermont's mountains, take a look around to see the life zones of the trees on the mountainside. Biologists Sara Zahendra and Kent McFarland of the Vermont Center for Ecostudies, rode the gondola at Stowe Mountain Resort for the view from Vermont's highest peak, Mount Mansfield.

Depending on the elevation, and even what direction the slope is facing, there are a great variety of trees, changing from hardwoods to evergreens as you climb. The evergreens have made adaptations to accommodate the winter cold and snow. The branches are rubbery, so they are less likely to break in heavy snows, and the needles have a thick waxy coating to reduce water loss when the weather is dry. Kent and Sara also explain how 'waves' of dying trees occur every sixty years.

To learn more, listen to the audio or visit these sources:  

Credit Kent McFarland
VPR Audio Engineer Chris Albertine and Finn McFarlanda on top of Mount Mansfield.

Outdoor Radio is a monthly feature produced in collaboration with the Vermont Center for Ecostudies in Norwich Vermont. The program is made possible by the VPR Journalism Fund and by a grant to VCE from the Vermont Community Foundation.

The program is produced and edited by VPR's Chief Production Engineer, Chris Albertine.

Broadcast Thursday, Jan. 22, 2014 at 7:50 a.m.

Chris was Vermont Public Radio Audio Engineer for more than 20 years. In addition to his work for VPR, he has supervised the sound for television documentaries for the Discovery Channel, Turner Broadcast, and the Arts and Entertainment Network. Chris retired in December, 2020.
Franny was VPR's Director of Programming & Production.
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