Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry Announces Chad Hammer as Invasive Plant Biologist

February 20, 2024

For more information contact: Jim Britt at: Jim.Britt@maine.gov

Augusta - The Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry is pleased to announce Chad Hammer as the new Invasive Plant Biologist with the Maine Natural Areas Program (MNAP). Hammer earned a B.S. in Ecology from SUNY Plattsburgh and an M.S. in Forestry with the Natural Resources Department at The University of New Hampshire (UNH). While at UNH, he researched the invasion patterns and impacts of terrestrial invasive plants and published research on increasing the biotic resistance of native plant communities in riparian forests to non-native plant invasions by planting native trees during restoration efforts after Hurricane Irene.

Before MNAP, Chad was a forester and wildland firefighter with the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes on the Flathead Reservation and studied Forest Ecology & Management and Climate Science at the University of Montana. In addition, Chad worked with Lake Champlain Research Institute from 2013 to 2017 as a research technician, assisting in collecting and identifying plankton communities and the long-term monitoring of water quality, food webs, and invasive zooplankton within Lake Champlain.

Supporting documents