Bear Meadows Natural Area
Encyclopedia
Bear Meadows Natural Area is located in Centre County
, Pennsylvania
, USA, four miles south of Boalsburg
, within Rothrock State Forest
in the Appalachian Mountains
. The area contains a bog
surrounded by steep mountains and hiking trails. The bog, which covers 320 acres (129.5 ha), has been forming since the end of the last glacial period 10,000 years ago and is surrounded by an old-growth forest of boreal species typically found much farther north, such as Black Spruce
, Balsam Fir
, Eastern Hemlock
, and Yellow Birch
.
The bog gets its name from the abundance of black bear
s that roam through the area. This area is renowned for the abundance of blueberries that grow around and throughout the bog.
. The U-shaped ridge to the north, west, and south is formed by the Tuscarora Formation
. The low hill to the northeast of the bog is formed by the Bald Eagle Formation
. Periglacial
boulders are abundant on the slopes surrounding the bog.
Centre County, Pennsylvania
Centre County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It is part of the State College, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2010, the population was 153,990....
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, USA, four miles south of Boalsburg
Boalsburg, Pennsylvania
Boalsburg is a census-designated place in Centre County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of the State College, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 3,578 at the 2000 census. The village claims to be the birthplace of Memorial Day. The name Boalsburg comes from...
, within Rothrock State Forest
Rothrock State Forest
Rothrock State Forest is a Pennsylvania state forest in Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry District #5. The main offices are located in Huntingdon in Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania in the United States....
in the Appalachian Mountains
Appalachian Mountains
The Appalachian Mountains #Whether the stressed vowel is or ,#Whether the "ch" is pronounced as a fricative or an affricate , and#Whether the final vowel is the monophthong or the diphthong .), often called the Appalachians, are a system of mountains in eastern North America. The Appalachians...
. The area contains a bog
Bog
A bog, quagmire or mire is a wetland that accumulates acidic peat, a deposit of dead plant material—often mosses or, in Arctic climates, lichens....
surrounded by steep mountains and hiking trails. The bog, which covers 320 acres (129.5 ha), has been forming since the end of the last glacial period 10,000 years ago and is surrounded by an old-growth forest of boreal species typically found much farther north, such as Black Spruce
Black Spruce
Picea mariana is a species of spruce native to northern North America, from Newfoundland west to Alaska, and south to northern New York, Minnesota and central British Columbia...
, Balsam Fir
Balsam Fir
The balsam fir is a North American fir, native to most of eastern and central Canada and the northeastern United States .-Growth:It is a small to medium-size evergreen tree typically tall, rarely to tall, with a narrow conic crown...
, Eastern Hemlock
Eastern Hemlock
Tsuga canadensis, also known as eastern or Canadian hemlock, and in the French-speaking regions of Canada as pruche du Canada, is a coniferous tree native to eastern North America. It ranges from northeastern Minnesota eastward through southern Quebec to Nova Scotia, and south in the Appalachian...
, and Yellow Birch
Yellow Birch
Betula alleghaniensis , is a species of birch native to eastern North America, from Newfoundland to Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, southern Quebec and Ontario, and the southeast corner of Manitoba in Canada, west to Minnesota, and south in the Appalachian Mountains to northern Georgia.It is a...
.
The bog gets its name from the abundance of black bear
American black bear
The American black bear is a medium-sized bear native to North America. It is the continent's smallest and most common bear species. Black bears are omnivores, with their diets varying greatly depending on season and location. They typically live in largely forested areas, but do leave forests in...
s that roam through the area. This area is renowned for the abundance of blueberries that grow around and throughout the bog.
Geology
The bog itself is underlain by the Juniata FormationJuniata Formation
The Ordovician Juniata Formation is a mapped bedrock unit in Pennsylvania and Maryland. It is a relative slope-former occurring between the two prominent ridge-forming sandstone units: the Tuscarora Formation and the Bald Eagle Formation in the Appalachian Mountains.-Description:The Juniata is...
. The U-shaped ridge to the north, west, and south is formed by the Tuscarora Formation
Tuscarora Formation
The Silurian Tuscarora Formation — also known as Tuscarora Sandstone or Tuscarora Quartzite — is a mapped bedrock unit in Pennsylvania, Maryland, West Virginia, and Virginia.-Description:...
. The low hill to the northeast of the bog is formed by the Bald Eagle Formation
Bald Eagle Formation
The Ordovician Bald Eagle Formation is a mapped bedrock unit in central Pennsylvania, USA. It is a ridge-forming unit in the Appalachian Mountains.-Description:...
. Periglacial
Periglacial
Periglacial is an adjective originally referring to places in the edges of glacial areas, but it has later been widely used in geomorphology to describe any place where geomorphic processes related to freezing of water occur...
boulders are abundant on the slopes surrounding the bog.