FOREST RESEARCH IN THE
BIOLOGY DEPARTMENT AT
MEMORIAL: RESEARCH
ACROSS SCALES TO
PROMOTE KNOWLEDGE
DIVERSITY
YOLANDA WIERSMA, SHAWN
LEROUX, LUISE HERMANUTZ, LOUIS
CHARRON, NICHOLA ELLIS, EMILIE
KISSLER, AMY TANNER
CIF-NL
Meeting
Nov. 13, 2014
INTRODUCTION
FOREST RESEARCH ACROSS SCALES
Landscapes
Ecosystems
Communities
Populations
HERMANUTZ LAB
• Established 1995
• Population and community ecology
• Focus on plant ecology, plant-herbivore
interactions, climate change
• [email protected]
PLANT-HERBIVORE INTERACTIONS
Parks Canada
BOREAL ECOLOGY (BIOL 3610)
• Field-based course that teaches the principles of terrestrial
ecosystems
• Student posters on display here
HERBIVORY
Research projects studying the
effects of disturbance in TNNP
FIRE
WIND THROW
Come see students posters
RESTORATION OF BALSAM FIR FOREST
UNDER MOOSE THREAT IN TERRA NOVA
MSc Project – Louis Charron
NFLD marten
Red crossbill
Boreal felt-lichen
Multi-aged balsam fir
forests are the critical habitat
of many rare native species
Photos: TNNP
Cumulative effect of moose and natural disturbance leading
to low regeneration in balsam fir stands
NO REGENERATION
IMPLEMENTATION OF A MOOSE
MANAGEMENT PLAN IN TNNP
(1) Hunting  Moose population reduction
Photo: TNNP
IMPLEMENTATION OF A MOOSE
MANAGEMENT PLAN IN TNNP
(2) Active restoration
Planting seedlings  Restart the natural regeneration cycle
Photo:
TNNP
EXPERIMENTAL RESTORATION – BEST
PROTOCOL?
(1) Planting density
(2) Site disturbance regime
(3) Ground preparation
For more information go see Louis Charron poster
EXPERIMENTAL RESTORATION – BEST
PROTOCOL?
Control
Aboveground cut
Photo: Ben Ojoleck
Photo: Ben Ojoleck
Scarification
For more information go see Louis Charron poster
Leroux Lab
Established: 2012
Ecosystem ecology
[email protected]
www.mun.ca/biology/sleroux
Moose-Vehicle Collisions in Newfoundland
MSC STUDENT: AMY TANNER
• >600 moose-vehicle collisions occurring each year
in Newfoundland (3 human deaths this year)
• Concern for the public’s safety - implementation of
mitigation strategies
• My project:
•
1. Roadside vegetation cutting – attractant or deterrent
•
•
Compare the proportion of moose browse in roadsides that have
and have not been cut
2. Methods to predict hotspots for moose-vehicle collisions
across the island
•
Develop statistical models to identify best predictors of moosevehicle collisions
1. Roadside Vegetation Cutting
2. MOOSE-VEHICLE COLLISIONS IN 2012