Palynology of three bog cores shows complex European impact on the forests of Central Maine.

Abstract Short peat cores from three sphagnum bogs in central Maine were analyzed palynologically to determine whether recent reforestation approximates forest composition immediately prior to European colonization and deforestation. Radiocarbon dating and palynology show that the cores extend to 600–2000 years b.p., beginning well before 18th-century colonial forest disturbance. Cores from Round Pond bog (Franklin County) and Kanokolus Bog (Waldo County) show that Tsuga canadensis (Eastern Hemlock) was much more abundant on the local landscape at the time of European settlement than it is today; a core from Hamilton Pond bog (Kennebec County) records an abrupt local Eastern Hemlock decline, and accompanying Acer spp. (maple) rise, that preceded European contact by several centuries. All three bogs show increased heath (Ericales) abundance with deforestation, presumably a result of augmented nutrient flux into the bog basins due to increased erosion on surrounding slopes. Modern forest composition around ...