SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry
SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry: Digital Commons @ ESF (State University of New York)Not a member yet
1478 research outputs found
Sort by
Cranberry Lake Biological Station Research Symposium, Session C
Get PDFEcological Monitoring and Biodiversity Assessment (EFB202) is the one of the keystone courses in the Environmental and Forest Biology curriculum. Students enrolled in this immersive course live at the Cranberry Lake Biological Station for three weeks. During the first two weeks of the course, students study a wide variety of taxonomic groups of organisms, and are introduced to a broad range of field, laboratory and analytical methods. Students then complete a group research project during the third and final week of the course. The research projects require proficiency in field sampling methods, basic experimental design and statistical analysis, and the ability to cooperatively solve problems.
The course culminates in a research symposium during which groups present their findings to their peers and a panel of judges
Session D, 2016 Second Place: Plankton: I don\u27t know, I didn\u27t think we\u27d get this far
Get PDFAt the Cranberry Lake Biological Station, motorboats are used daily in order to allow students to observe the natural environment around them by conducting research, making observations and exploring. Zooplankton are an essential part of the Cranberry lake food chain, and high amounts of boat traffic may negatively affect their abundance in the water. Due to the varying degrees of gas levels in the lake, it is hypothesized that zooplankton from the marina will have lower percent mortality than the zooplankton from the swimming dock in the presence of gasoline (µL-1). Zooplankton samples were collected from the swimming dock and the marina. Water samples were then collected from Sucker Brook, the swimming dock, and the marina and used to compare the percent mortality between the zooplankton from the marina versus the dock. The experimental groups were exposed to 100 µL-1 gasoline, and both control and experimental groups were allowed to sit for 20 minutes. At the end of the twenty minute treatments, the number of alive and dead zooplankton were counted; twelve replications of this were completed. Statistical analysis will include ANOVA and paired t-tests. It is predicted that mortality rates of the marina plankton will be significantly less than dock plankton in all treatments
Using object-based segmentation to identify invasive species in Onondaga County
Get PDFThe impact invasive species have on native habitats can be devastating as they reduce plant biodiversity, decrease wildlife habitat, and change ecological function of an area. Lythrum salicaria (purple loosestrife), Fallopia japonica (Japanese knotweed), and Phragmites australis (common reed) are three invasive species located in Onondaga County, New York. This study aimed to test the feasibility of identifying the presence of these invasive species using readily available oblique imagery. Imagery used in the study came from Google Earth Street View imagery matched to the coordinates of locations reported to have dense populations of common reed, Japanese knotweed, or purple loosestrife. Images were loaded into ERDAS Imagine 2015 where unsupervised object-based segmentation was performed. ArcGIS was used to determine spectral, spatial, and textural characteristics for each object within the image. MATLAB was used to classify the segmented images using a classification tree based off the spectral bands, length to area ratio of the objects, and average texture of the objects. Results show that Japanese knotweed and common reed classified by these means have an overall accuracy of about 84% and 64%, respectively. Purple loosestrife was not classified during this study due to a lack of imagery corresponding with available data points. To improve this methodology, spatial resolution and capture date of photos should be optimized. Future research should include reference photos with confirmed species identification, higher quality images, and ground validation. This research is an important step towards improving invasive species detection efforts
The effects of soil acidity on the age structure and age at sexual maturity of eastern red-backed salamanders (Plethodon cinereus) in hardwood forests of New Hampshire and Vermont
Get PDFAcidic deposition resulting from emissions of sulfur and nitrogen has negatively impacted the hardwood forests of the northeastern United States, causing depletion of key nutrients such as calcium and chronic acidification of forest soil habitats. Strongly acidic habitats (pH \u3c 3.5) have long been considered lethal to eastern red-backed salamanders (Plethodon cinereus), but recent studies found that P. cinereus were abundant in hardwood forests with soil pH as low as 2.7 – a condition resulting from anthropogenic acid inputs. Although abundance of P. cinereus does not appear to be constrained by soil pH, I hypothesized that very acidic habitats would negatively impact the demographics of P. cinereus populations, including age distribution, growth rates, and age at sexual maturity. I analyzed demographic parameters of extant P. cinereus populations that were sampled in 2012 at four hardwood forests in NH and VT (USA) that ranged in soil/forest floor pH from 2.7 – 3.7. I determined the age of each P. cinereus using skeletochronology techniques to estimate population age structure, estimated growth curves for each population using the von Bertalanffy equation and Chapman’s method, and evaluated mean age at sexual maturity for each population. Overall, soil pH did not appear to strongly affect P. cinereus populations. However, the most acidic site (pH 2.7) had a greater proportion of juveniles to adults, suggesting that fewer juveniles survive to adulthood at soil pH \u3c 3.0. The mean age of sexually mature individuals was significantly higher at the most acidic site compared to least acidic site, but was not significantly different from the sites with intermediate pH sites. My results suggest that it is possible that P. cinereus populations have locally adapted to very acidic soils, but that demographic differences may reveal sensitivity of populations to this stressor. Further study of habitat pH and P. cinereus is warranted because these salamanders comprise a large portion of forest faunal biomass and play an key ecological role in nutrient cyclin
Scanning Electron Microscopy Student Image Portfolio
Get PDFScanning Electron Microscopy Student Image Portfoli
Beavers as Ecosystem Engineers: Influence of Wetland Class and Vegetation Structure on Avian Species Richness
Get PDFAdvances in shrub-willow crops for bioenergy, renewable products, and environmental benefits
Get PDFShort-rotation coppice systems like shrub willow are projected to be an important source of biomass in the United States for the production of bioenergy, biofuels, and renewable bio-based products, with the potential for auxiliary environmental benefits and multifunctional systems. Almost three decades of research has focused on the development of shrub willow crops for biomass and ecosystem services. The current expansion of willow in New York State (about 500 ha) for the production of renewable power and heat has been possible because of incentive programs offered by the federal government, commitments by end users, the development of reliable harvesting systems, and extension services offered to growers. Improvements in the economics of the system are expected as willow production expands further, which should help lower establishment costs, enhance crop management options and increase efficiencies in harvesting and logistics. Deploying willow in multifunctional value-added systems provides opportunities for both potential producers and end users to learn about the system and the quality of the biomass feedstock, which in turn will help overcome barriers to expansion
Session A, 2016 First Place: Forest Bird Behavior in Response to the Calls of Native and Non-Native Owl Species at Cranberry Lake Biological Station in Clifton, NY
Get PDFWhen forest birds feel threatened by the presence of a potential predator, they may respond with an anti-predator strategy called mobbing. Mobbing is a set of behaviors intended to harass and drive a predator away. In order to observe the response of forest birds to native and non-native owl calls, 3 separate species’ calls were played 4 times a day for 4 days at 8 different locations (n=31, 1 point was discarded due to severe weather). Four calls were broadcasted: the Black-Capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus) as the control, the Barred Owl (Strix varia) as the native predator, and the Spotted Owl (Strix occidentalis) and Eurasian Tawny Owl (Strix aluco) as non-native predators. During and after the broadcasted calls, the number of forest birds that flew in and the strength of the alarm calls (based on a scale), both characteristics of mobbing behavior, were recorded. Using an ANOVA and Tukey Test, it was concluded that the number of birds that flew into the area in response to the native Barred Owl was statistically different than the Black-Capped Chickadee, Spotted Owl and Eurasian Tawny Owl. However, the response to the Black-Capped Chickadee, Spotted Owl, and Eurasian Tawny Owl was statistically similar. Based on the Chi-Squared test, the difference between the strength of alarm calls in response to the different species of owls was found to be statistically significant. It was found that the forest birds at Cranberry Lake Biological Station tended to exhibit mobbing behavior more often in response to the native Barred Owl than to the non-native Spotted Owl and Eurasian Tawny Owl
Morphological Diversity of Bowfins (Amia spp., Amiidae) Among the Laurentian Great Lakes and South Carolina
Get PDFThe Bowfin genus Amia has been considered monotypic since 1896, when 12 nominal species were synonymized with Amia calva without scientific analysis or rationale. Since then, only three studies have explored morphological or genetic variation within the genus, all of which found some degree of separation among populations. To further test the 1896 monotypy hypothesis, we analyzed morphological variation of newly collected Bowfins between South Carolina (SC, type localities of A. calva, A. lintiginosa, and A. cinerea), Lake Huron (type localities of A. ocellicauda and A. occidentalis), and Lake Erie (type localities of A. canina and, perhaps, also A. piquotii). Results showed significant differences for 15 morphometric and five meristic characters between SC (five sites combined) and Jakes Erie and Huron (with data for those two lakes combined). Within the Great Lakes, 13 morphological and two meristic characters were significantly different between Lake Erie and Lake Huron. Finally, within SC, five samples from lower coastal plain sites differed significantly from a sample from an upper coastal plain site for at least 10 morphometric and five meristic characters. Consequently, I reject the 120-year-oJd monotypy hypothesis. Amia oce/licauda was the second nominal species described (from Lake Huron), and therefore among nominal taxa (other than A. calva), it has priority and should be resurrected as a valid species. Morphological variation between lakes Erie and Huron, though not as clear, suggests that there likely exists further complexity within the genus. Likewise, in South Carolina there are indications that two species could be present, and that also begs further analyses. The discovery of multiple species of Bowfins raises concerns for conservation and management; a growing market for Bowfin caviar could have detrimental effects on population sizes and genetic variation