Poutwater Pond: a peat bog in Holden, Massachusetts

Professors from Worcester State University and Clark University have been visiting Poutwater Pond, a peat bog in Holden, Massachusetts for the past decade. Students and their research projects have described the plants and animals seen there, resulting in several Masters theses and other student papers. In 2005, a core of peat was collected from the top to the bottom, and radiocarbon dating showed that the base material was at least 8,500 years old. Students have sifted through the peat layers to find and identify pollen and diatoms, and the species found at different ages tell of past climatic conditions that existed at the bog. This book is a summary of work that is being done at the bog and will continue in the future.