Geography Department  - Biogeography Lab

Northern Illinois University

 

 

 

                        

       

PERSONNEL

           While a majority of the research being conducted here is centered around sugar maples (Acer Saccharum), my focus will be on conifers, mainly black spruce (Picea mariana) and balsam fir (Abies balsamea). As sugar maples migrate northward, they will be moving into the area now occupied by the boreal forest. This will exose sugar maples and conifers to greater competition for resources by one another. I intend to look at how these species react to this competition, and what role it might play in sugar maple migration. One specific interaction that I may focus on is the role balsam fir plays in this process; whether it acts as a facilitator, inhibitor, or possibly has no role at all in sugar maple migration.

           I may use a variety of different methods to look at both physiology of the trees and the quality of the environment they are growing in. These methods may include, but are not limited to measuring gas exchange, chlorophyll fluorescence, and soil Carbon/Nitrogen ratio. Results from these measurements will allow me to find relative vigor of plants, and how much stress they are under. This data can then be compared with species surveys of my study area to look for any patterns between species interactions and vigor and stress of individuals.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jameson Loesch  -  jloesch@niu.edu