Researchers from all over the world come to UMBS to conduct field work, run experiments, and learn about the natural systems of northern Michigan. In addition to a diverse array of research topics, these working scientists span career stages: from graduate students, to post-docs; beginning staff scientists, to full professors – all of whom need time, infrastructure, and financial support to make their programs successful. But who are these researchers, what kinds of projects are they tackling, and how does UMBS help facilitate their work?

Meet Dr. Fernanda Santos, Dr. Jean-Phillipe “JP” Lessard, and Dr. Brian Scholtens. Their home institutions are located 900 miles from UMBS, give or take - but last summer, all three scientists made the pilgrimage to Douglas Lake in the name of their research programs. Santos is a staff scientist just launching her work on forest transitions. Lessard is mid-career and looking for a long-term home for his projects, but needs preliminary data in order to make the leap. Scholtens is a senior-level researcher finishing up data collection for a book – a pursuit that is not often covered by grant funding.

Last summer, all three scientists found a research home – and critical financial support – at UMBS. Below, we learned more about their work.

Dr. Fernanda Santos, R & D Associate in the Environmental Sciences Division at Oak Ridge National Laboratory

Supported by a gift from UMBS alumni Marian Gold, Art Gold, Linda Greer, and Mike Tilchin.

What did you work on this summer at UMBS?

"This work is part of my project entitled “Assessing the impacts of disturbances on soil carbon cycling” and funded by the DOE-Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD). The goal of my work this summer was to collect intact soil mesocosms (soil inside PVCs) containing roots that had been decomposing in these soils for the past 12 years. The specific objective of this study is to quantify the amount of fine root C stabilized in soil after 12 years of decomposition and how the storage of roots in soils was influenced by the long-term exclusion of plant inputs as part of the Detritus Input and Removal Treatments (DIRT) plots."

What did you discover or are hoping to discover? Why is it important?

"I am hoping to understand how long root carbon and nitrogen from decomposing roots stay stored in soil. Moreover, how root C and N storage is affected by other environmental change such as nitrogen fertilization and the removal of other plants inputs.

Since roots are an important source of the tremendous amounts of carbon stored in soils, it is important to understand roots’ long-term contribution to soil carbon storage and the environmental factors that alter the role roots play in soil carbon storage. This study can improve our limited understanding of how forest ecosystem functions respond to global change and provide unique data to improve the way computer models predict future ecosystem responses to global change and support science-based management policies."

Why is UMBS a good place to do this research?

"The UMBS serves as a natural laboratory for disturbance ecology studies. It has a number of researchers with expertise in disturbance ecology, multiple long-term and ongoing experimental manipulations of fire and canopy disturbances, and facilities and resources that can be utilized during field campaigns (i.e., laboratory space, lodging, and dining). It also offers opportunities to work with and mentor students, it is a beautiful place, and it has great and supportive people!"

Dr. JP Lessard, Associate Professor of Biology at Concordia University (Canada)

Supported by the Alfred H. Stockard Family Endowment: Provides support for scholars, undergraduate and graduate students, and renowned teachers to advance zoological education and research at UMBS.

What did you work on this summer at UMBS?

“'Climate change and the indirect effects of insect herbivory on pollinator communities.'

Ongoing climate changes interfere with the physiology, behaviour, and life cycles of plants and animals. As a result, plants and animals interact in new ways, which is expected to affect the functioning of ecosystems. In this project, we aimed to understand how changes in the timing and intensity of early season herbivory, which is expected under climate change, might scale up to affect pollinator communities.

Insect herbivores can change plant chemistry in multiple ways, some of which can affect the quality of nectar and floral display, and indirectly, pollinator behaviour. Herbivores have direct negative effects on plant fitness by feeding on reproductive parts, but also have indirect negative effects by feeding on non-reproductive parts such as leaves. In particular, leaf herbivory decreases available photosynthetic area, carbohydrate reserves and stored nutrients as well as increases secondary metabolite production which may affect the quality and quantity of nectar. Additionally, leaf herbivory may reduce floral traits such as flower size, flower number, and cause delayed flowering.

Climate changes are causing insect herbivores to emerge earlier, which could change the onset timing and intensity of herbivory, thereby affecting the magnitude of effects on nectar and pollinators. Whether plants are injured in early, middle or late season can influence their growth, yield or fitness. The timing of herbivory could also mediate the magnitude of change in nectar quality induced by herbivory, but this remains unexplored."

What did you discover or are hoping to discover? Why is it important?

"We are expecting that higher level of herbivory occurring earlier in the season will lead to changes in the chemistry and nectar and perhaps the morphology of flowers. If it is the case, then we might expect changes in the composition of pollinator diversity. This is important because insects and pollinators are already declining dramatically and the impact of climate change on insect phenology could be one reason."

Why is UMBS a good place to do this research?

"The infrastructure and support staff at UMBS is just unbelievable. We don’t have access to anything like this back in Canada. Just the fact that we had access to an enclosure and that Jason, Adam, Karie and others facilitated our work makes it possible to perform sophisticated, important experiments."

Dr. Brian Scholtens, Professor and Associate Chair of Biology, College of Charleston

Supported by the Alfred H. Stockard Family Endowment: Provides support for scholars, undergraduate and graduate students, and renowned teachers to advance zoological education and research at UMBS.

What did you work on this summer at UMBS?

"My project was 'Leaf miners of northern Michigan'.

I spent from mid-May through the end of August searching for, photographing and identifying insects that develop as leaf miners. These are insects with complete metamorphosis where the larva feeds on leaf tissue between the epidermal layers of the leaf, generally making a very distinctive pattern in the leaf as they consume the photosynthetic tissue."

What did you discover or are hoping to discover? Why is it important?

"My goal with this project was to complete a long-term survey of all the Lepidoptera (moths and butterflies) of the tip of the Lower Peninsula around UMBS. This survey was started by Dr. Ed Voss, who completed the survey of butterflies and large moths (referred to as Macrolepidoptera), and I have continued by working to document the smaller moths (Microlepidoptera). The final group I’m working on contains most of the leaf mining moths. A recent guide makes it possible to confidently identify these species based on the leaf mines, allowing me to do a much more complete inventory of these groups.

Over the course of the summer, I located and identified more than 200 species of leaf mining insects, including over 140 moths, more than 60 true flies, and several beetles and sawflies (plant feeding wasps). I was able to rear many of these, along with parasitoids and have many more ready to go into the refrigerator for overwintering and possible emergence in the spring. This work will complete a nearly comprehensive inventory of the Lepidoptera species of the region, one of the few places (and probably the only field station) with such a complete survey. Over the course of the next several months, I will dissect moths to confirm identifications, and then write the final two papers to complete our Lepidoptera inventory.

Inventories provide basic distributional, phenological, and ecological information that can be used by many other researchers as they plan and execute studies in the region. Leaf miners, in particular, can serve as excellent species for ecological and environmental studies. Because they leave behind obvious, identifiable physical traces it is easy to document their presence and absence, abundance, and the effect of environmental variables on these distributional traits. Having an initial inventory opens up many other potential avenues of research using these otherwise overlooked organisms."

Why is UMBS a good place to do this research?

"For my study it was essential that I base the work at UMBS, since the inventory centers on the field station (as did all the past efforts by Ed Voss). But, in addition to that, UMBS and the surrounding State and Federal lands provide ideal habitats spanning the entire range of northern Michigan environments to search for leaf miners. UMBS also provides a great support structure with excellent living and lab facilities to complete this work."

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