The New England Botanical Club will present an online meeting on Zoom on Saturday, November 6 at 7 pm with Dr. Danielle Ignace, Assistant Professor, Indigenous Natural Sciences Department of Forest and conservation Sciences, University of British Columbia in Vancouver.
Eastern US forests are losing a foundation tree species, the eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadenis), due to the exotic insect pests hemlock woolly adelgid (Adelges tsugae) and elongate hemlock scale (Fiorinia externa). The widespread destruction of this important evergreen conifer has large ramifications for ecosystem processes and other species that depend on it for survival. The implications of this invasion for ecosystem processes are far-reaching because coniferous eastern hemlock is most often replaced by deciduous tree species, such as Betula lenta (black birch), which have differing effects on forest floor microenvironments. Using an “accidental experiment” initiated by patch-level timber harvesting, 30 years ago in western Massachusetts, Dr. Ignace presents the impacts on soil organic layer mass, C:N content, soil respiration, leaf litter characteristics, and the microbial community. Taken together, these impacts affect source/sink carbon dynamics, which may be exacerbated by a warming climate. Non-members may register for the meeting access link here.
