Much of the research in the department on ecosystems concerns analysis of interactions of processes among multiple trophic levels, at vary degrees of complexity, and makes use of approaches ranging from chemical analysis of ecosystem modeling. The following is an incomplete, but representative list of several 'ecosystems' research projects currently active in the Department (you should also consult web pages of the people associated with research in this area):
Hubbard Brook
Ecosystem StudyHubbard Brook Ecosystem Study - The Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest (HBEF) is a 3,160 hectare reserve located in the White Mountain National Forest, near Woodstock, New Hampshire. The on-site research program is dedicated to the long-term study of forest and associated aquatic ecosystems. The HBEF was established by the USDA Forest Service, Northeastern Research Station in 1955 as a major center for hydrologic research in New England. In the early 1960's, Dr. F. Herbert Bormann and others proposed the use of small watersheds to study element cycling. In 1963, the Hubbard Brook Ecosystem Study (HBES) was initiated by Bormann and Drs. Gene E. Likens and Noye M. Johnson, then on the faculty of Dartmouth College, and Dr. Robert S. Pierce of the USDA Forest Service. They proposed to use the small watershed approach at Hubbard Brook to study linkages between hydrologic and nutrient flux and cycling in response to natural and human disturbances, such as air pollution, forest cutting, land-use changes, increases in insect populations and climatic factors.
invasive species
& ecosystem impactsInvasive plants & ecosystemimpactsFor centuries, people have purposefully introduced plants formedicinal, agricultural and ornamental purposes or spread plantsaccidentally. Thousands of non-indigenous plant species (NIS) are known toexist outside cultivation in the United States. Only recently has the extentof the problems created by NIS received increased attention by scientistsand the public. Many NIS are benign but a minority (about 10%) have invaded our naturalareas. Many invasive NIS tend to be superior competitors and formmonospecific stands at the expense of native species. Natural areas areprotected because of their unique fauna, flora or landscape. The loss ofnatural habitats to settlements and modern agriculture in combination withthe range expansion of NIS and associated changes in plant communities arethe largest threat to the integrity of our natural ecosystems.It is estimated that in the US alone invasive plants infest over 100 millionacres and continue to expand their range by 8-20% annually (twice the sizeof the state of Delaware).
NY Cooperative Fish
& Wildlife Research UnitThe NY Cooperative Fish & Wildlife Research Unit is one of 30such units established for the purpose of enhancing the management ofthis nation's renewable resources. This we accomplish by:
- developing a problem solving research program
- enhancing theeducational and employment opportunities of resource professionals anddegree candidates
- effectively interacting with managementpersonnel, and information and education transfer specialists.
The New York Unit pays particular attention to the resource problems andissues of the Northeastern States with New York as its focal point.With a staff of 3 professionals and a base at Cornell University in theDepartment of Natural Resources we work cooperatively within adepartment structure, but with the option to transcend organizationallines when the need arises. Our efforts are directed not only atmaintaining productive programs in our own areas of interest, but alsoin seeking funds for and coordinating the planning of other research andmanagement faculty/staff at the University and within the N.Y.S.D.E.C.and USFWS Northeast Regional Office. In accomplishing this we are aidedby a select, high quality group of graduate students and researchaffiliates who understand science, people, and the need to grow andproduce in their specialty.
Microbial Observatory Microbial Observatory - Although microorganisms are ubiquitous in soil and sediments, we suspect that less than 5% have been isolated and described. Much work remains to cultivate, as yet, undescribed microorganisms, understand ecological relationships in microbial communities, and assess how microorganisms process water, nutrients, and energy that sustains life on Earth. Towards this goal, we recently established a Microbial Observatory, which is part of a National Science Foundation initiative to close the gap in our understanding of microorganisms in natural and managed ecosystems. Our observatory focuses on methanogenic microorganisms, which produce methane - an atmospheric greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming - inhabiting acidic peat-forming wetland ecosystems. Students involved in this project are using the latest molecular and biochemical techniques to cultivate and study microorganisms and are working in the field to describe the natural habitat of these amazing 'bugs'. Wetland
BiodiversityPreservation of Wetland Biodiversity -Concern with loss of biodiversity world-wide has reached such proportionsthat it is the subject of newspaper editorials, TV specials, andinternational treaties. Rich fens, which are groundwater-dominatedwetlands, support some of the highest levels of plant species diversityknown world-wide. These typically small wetlands comprise only about 0.07percent of New York state but support 7 percent of its rare and uncommonspecies. The program on conservation of wetland plant diversity seeks toexplain how such high diversity can be maintained or restored in workinglandscapes of farms, forests, streams and lakes. By conducting fieldexperiments and studies on the hydrology, nutrient cycling, vegetationdynamics, and mycorrhizae of these wetlands, the program hopes to gaininformation needed by land managers and conservation organizations such asThe Nature Conservancy to stem the loss of wetland diversity. Ecosystem impact
of large ice-stormEcosystem Impacts of a Large Ice-Storm - The 1998 ice storm was a large-extent ecological disturbance that severely affected eastern Adirondack forests. Ice damage produced widespread breakage of limbs and trunks in susceptible trees. Although ice storms are regularly occurring disturbances within northeastern North American forests, the magnitude and extent of the 1998 storm exceeded "typical" ice storms observed within the past 100 years. While plot and stand-scale ecological impacts of ice storms have received attention insofar as tree species vulnerability, stand age susceptibility, and microhabitat alterations, larger-extent damage patterns have not been previously evaluated. To do this, we employed the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) to assess forest vigor and canopy density in atmospherically corrected Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) satellite images collected prior to and following the 1998 ice storm. Digital change analysis of the baseline forest condition (1990 NDVI data), and the condition encountered in the post-storm image (1998 NDVI data) was conducted. Forest damage was separated from natural variations in canopy reflectance by employing a generalized linear model that incorporated in situ measurements. A robust empirical variogram analysis revealed that locations of tree damage were significantly correlated for distances up to 300 meters, with heavily damaged forest occurred in smaller patches. Measurements of canopy damage proximate to ecological edges did not follow our hypothesis of decreasing damage with distance from the boundary. Instead, we show that local topography (elevation and aspect) contributed more significantly to observed damage patterns. Disturbance and
forest dynamicsDisturbance and tropical forest dynamics - Extensive virgin forests in the central mountain range of the Dominican Republic have been named a top priority worldwide for conservation and preservation by the Nature Conservancy because of their biodiversity and hydrologic value. The Dominican Forest Program in the Department of Natural Resources seeks a better understanding of the ecological factors that shape these complex ecosystems. The key to the forest seems to reside in the interactions between natural disturbances like fire and hurricanes and the ecology of the native endemic pine species, Pinus occidentalis, that dominates much of the region. Students involved in the Program learn how forest ecologists untangle the complex ecological web of tree reproduction, growth and mortality in relation to environment, disturbance and the other members of the biotic community like palms, tree ferns, birds and mushrooms. NY GAP
ProjectNY GAP Project - Habitat loss and fragmentation have been identified as two major threats to biological diversity on this planet. The National Biological Service has launched a massive program to assess the biological health of the lower 48 states--the Gap Analysis Program (GAP). Although the problem is global in scale, it makes sense to begin by addressing these problems locally. In New York State, the program is led by Cornell biologist Charles Smith, with Steve DeGloria of the Cornell Laboratory for Environmental Applications of Remote Sensing (CLEARS), and Milo Richmond of the N.Y. Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit (Natural Resources, Cornell). The research team uses workstations and supercomputers, such as the IBM RS/6000 POWERparallel SP system at the Cornell Theory Center, to relate images taken from space to details at ground level. For example, when the information is available, they can relate the types of crops being grown on a particular farm to the number of breeding pairs of red-tailed hawks in the nearby forest.
GAP is a product of the information age. Based on digital technology, teams across the country are literally identifying gaps in the protection of biodiversity at state, regional, and national scales. All of the information gathered in the process goes into a computer-based geographic information system or GIS. The beauty of GIS is that the output is map-based, a format that is easily and intuitively understood.
Coordinated through the Cornell Laboratory for Environmental Applications of Remote Sensing (CLEARS) and the Cornell Center for the Environment (CfE), New York GAP scientists gather information that ranges from remotely sensed satellite images of vegetation to maps of the boundaries of public lands and hard copy lists of the species living on them. All of this and more goes into the GIS databases, which are maintained in related layers (coverages) within the system.
