The Fraser Experimental Forest is an outdoor research laboratory to study timber, water, wildlife management, and their integration in the high elevation subalpine coniferous forests. The

experimental forest An experimental forest, or experimental range, as defined by the United States Forest Service, is "an area administered ... 'to provide for the research necessary for the management of the land.'" Size and relation to other areas According to th ...

was established in 1937, and encompasses . It is situated on the west side of the

Continental Divide A continental divide is a drainage divide on a continent such that the drainage basin on one side of the divide feeds into one ocean or sea, and the basin on the other side either feeds into a different ocean or sea, or else is endorheic, no ...

in north-central

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the wes ...

and includes the entire watershed of main Saint Louis Creek, a tributary of the

Fraser River The Fraser River is the longest river within British Columbia, Canada, rising at Fraser Pass near Blackrock Mountain in the Rocky Mountains and flowing for , into the Strait of Georgia just south of the City of Vancouver. The river's annua ...

. It is managed by the

Rocky Mountain Research Station The Rocky Mountain Research Station (RMRS) is one of five regional units that make up the US Forest Service Research and Development organization — the most extensive natural resources research organization in the world. The station headquarter ...

of the

United States Forest Service The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 154 national forests and 20 national grasslands. The Forest Service manages of land. Major divisions of the agency inc ...

and is located within the

Arapaho National Forest Arapaho National Forest is a National Forest located in north-central Colorado, United States. The region is managed jointly with the Roosevelt National Forest and the Pawnee National Grassland from the United States Forest Service office in F ...

. The forest was designated a

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. I ...

Biosphere Reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or o ...

in 1976, and was withdrawn from the UN reserve program as of June 14, 2017 at the request of the U.S. Government.

Ecosystems

The Fraser Experimental Forest includes subalpine forests and

alpine tundra Alpine tundra is a type of natural region or biome that does not contain trees because it is at high elevation, with an associated harsh climate. As the latitude of a location approaches the poles, the threshold elevation for alpine tundra gets ...

typical of the central Rocky Mountains. In the forested areas below the timberline, Engelmann spruce (''Picea engelmannii'') and subalpine fir (''Abies lasiocarpa'') are the predominant trees, at higher elevations, on north slopes, and along streams. Lodgepole pine (''Pinus contorta'' var. latifolia) is the predominant tree at lower elevations and on drier upper slopes. The majority of the forest was initiated after a fire in 1685. Pockets of older trees exist in draws and at higher elevations.

Research

Fraser is one of few sites in the

Rocky Mountains The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in straight-line distance from the northernmost part of western Canada, to New Mexico in ...

that maintains long-term records on

hydrology Hydrology () is the scientific study of the movement, distribution, and management of water on Earth and other planets, including the water cycle, water resources, and environmental watershed sustainability. A practitioner of hydrology is calle ...

, climate, forest structure and growth, and responses to forest management. Fraser provides the capacity for researchers to do whole-ecosystem manipulations in watersheds that are representative of high-elevation watersheds of southern and central Rockies. Most early research was oriented toward timber or

water cycle The water cycle, also known as the hydrologic cycle or the hydrological cycle, is a biogeochemical cycle that describes the continuous movement of water on, above and below the surface of the Earth. The mass of water on Earth remains fairly cons ...

and production resulting from forest management. For this research, many long-term study plots were established in both lodgepole pine and Engelmann spruce, and 7 watersheds were monitored for streamflow, climate and snow. Some of the records now exceed 60 years in length. Research on forest/wildlife interactions began in the 1950s. Biogeochemical studies began in the 1960s, were restarted in the 1970s, and have been continuous since 1982. Much of this work is done in cooperation with the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an List of federal agencies in the United States, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government within the United States Department of the Interior, U.S. Department of ...

Sources

References

{{Reflist

External links

Fraser Experimental Forest (U.S. Forest Service)
Former biosphere reserves of the United States Research forests Arapaho National Forest