Study of the Holocene Plant Fossil Record in the Upper Skagit Valley, Ross Lake National Recreation Area

Project ID: J9W88030002

Federal Agency: National Park Service

Partner Institution: University of Washington

Fiscal Year: 2003

Initial Funding: $67,500

Total Funding: $67,500

Project Type: Research

Project Disciplines: Physical

National Park: North Cascades National Park

Principal Investigator: Brubaker, Linda

Agreement Technical Representative: Mierendorf, Robert

Abstract: To characterize past climatic regimes and how these have affected local vegetation communities, a study of the Holocene plant fossil record is proposed. Several lake cores will be extracted from within the project area and analyzed for fossil pollen, plant macrofossils, charcoal, and other data (such as volcanic ashes) that have been successfully used in other localities as a means of reconstructing Holocene environmental history.

Deliverables:

• Ridley Lake: a sediment record of Holocene vegetation and climate history in North Cascades National Park Service Complex, Washington (Final Report)
• Thunder Lake: a lake sediment record of Holocene vegetation and climate history in North Cascades National Park Service Complex, Washington (Final Report)