At the invitation of Mark Dill of the Newton Creek Watershed Association and Fred Stine of the Delaware Riverkeeper Network, I visited this thirty-acre forest with the purpose of measuring and assessing the site.  I was stunned to find an intact, old-growth forest in an area that is highly developed. Only two old-growth forests have been previously identified in New Jersey, making this tract a remarkable find.

The MacArthur forest consists of many climax species, including an impressive tulip tree grove; massive black, white, red and chestnut oaks; huge American beech and red maple. The understory contains American hornbeam, spice bush and many other native species. This stand looks ancient and has the feeling of a cathedral forest. The tulip trees, which measure up to 14 feet in circumference, have cavities large enough to sit in and their bark has significant balding. The black oaks have massive buttress roots  (an indicator of at least 150 years of age), and impressive heights.  The white oaks have a stag-headed appearance and a lot of spiral twists with balding bark.  A creek runs through this slightly hilly stand. There are numerous pits and mounds on the forest floor and some big trees standing and decaying.  Moss and mushrooms abound, and there is also much wildlife, including bats, yellow salamanders, red fox, whitetail deer and red-tail hawks.

Located in an urban area, just 6 miles from downtown Philadelphia, this forest is surrounded by concrete.  Yet despite human use of the woods, only the edges show signs of major disturbance.  However, the tract is small and near minimum size for a viable old-growth forest. It is essential that it remain intact with adequate buffering to prevent encroachment by invasive species and degradation of the forest ecosystem.  I have been in contact with the top Eastern old-growth specialists in the United States, including Robert Leverett, Bruce Kershner, and Dr. David Orwig of Harvard Forest. All concur that this is a tremendous scientific find and that it should be preserved at all costs.  This ecosystem has evolved over hundreds of years, providing us with one of the few remaining examples of what this area looked like prior to European settlement.  It is a tremendous educational and scientific resource and in need of permanent protection.

More than 30 trees were measured with a DIA tape at 4 ½ DBH recording both sides of the tapes.  Heights and tree cores should be taken as soon as possible.

THIS IS ONLY A PARTIAL LIST OF TREES MEASURED.