Browsing by Author "Record, Sydne"

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    Ground-Dwelling Macroinvertebrate Biodiversity as a Determinant of Forest Health in Morris Woods
    (2016) Fleet, Caroline; Record, Sydne
    The edge effect is a phenomenon that occurs when two or more ecosystems overlap to form a ‘border’ environment that is ecologically different from the surrounding biome. The nature and magnitude of the edge effect can be elucidated through direct examination of a myriad of environmental and biotic factors, including macroinvertebrate diversity, soil temperature, and canopy coverage. Extensive pitfall trapping, canopy coverage assays, and soil temperature probing were conducted in interior and edge plots in Morris Woods, a relatively small temperate forest in suburban SE Pennsylvania. No significant differences appeared to manifest within measurements of soil temperature (Tinterior = 15.63 oC; Tedge = 16.23 oC; 2-­‐tailed SEM1, p > 0.05) and canopy coverage (Cinterior = 91.64%; Cedge = 88.31%; 2-­‐tailed SEM, p > 0.05) between the edge and interior plots, though observable differences in macroinvertebrate abundance (Ninterior = 179; Nedge = 262), species richness (Rinterior = 2.127; Redge = 1.259), and species diversity (Dinterior = 0.5864 ; Dedge = 0.4151) were evident. Results also indicated that the interior plot supports more macroinvertebrate taxa and more environmentally sensitive taxa than the edge plot, indicating that that the interior plot likely exhibits higher niche richness, though the factors of soil temperature and canopy coverage did not appear to account for these differences.
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    Spatially Explicit Disturbance Histories of Forested Sites Within the National Ecological Observatory Network
    (2022) Olivares-Mejia, Samantha; Record, Sydne
    Land use and disturbance history play a large role in understanding our environment as they can have long lasting effects on composition of modern ecosystems. This research aims to collate land use and disturbance histories for forested sites within the National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON). Although the network has standardized monitoring techniques for sites across the country, it does not have any spatially explicit data on disturbance history. This research intends to bridge this knowledge gap to enhance the context of ecological analyses based on NEON data. A total of 59 data products were created for 75% of the forested NEON sites, 80% of which depict disturbance history and 20% depicting land cover information. This research highlights the importance of open data, proper data management practices, and collection of spatially explicit disturbance data to be a routine part of the land management process.