Pitch pines in the Francis Carter Preserve in Charlestown, R.I. (Tom Mooney/TNC)
CHARLESTOWN, R.I. — Surrounded by pitch pines, The Nature Conservancy’s Tim Mooney looked across the Pawcatuck River’s south bank in the Francis Carter Preserve. Pointing at the forest 10 feet closer to sea level than the pines, he noted the different tree composition across the river.
“That’s a floodplain forest,” he said. “Pin oaks mixed with red maple. When the glacier retreated, a meltwater river likely piled sand here before the moraine, which these pines tolerate, while the lower plain became swampy and friendlier to the forest community across from us.”…