Research from Shingle Shanty Published in Soil Biology and Biochemistry
Researchers from Skidmore College, Kent State University, and Indiana University just published an article in the peer reviewed scientific journal Soil Biology and Biochemistry and Shingle Shanty Preserve and Research Station played a critical role as a research site. The article, “Context-dependence of fungal community response to dominant tree mycorrhizal types in Northern Hardwood Forests” addresses the complex, and poorly understood relationships between trees and soil fungal symbionts, with the goal of a better understanding of how soil fungal communities affect tree growth and nutrient cycling in northern hardwood forests. Ultimately this work helps us to manage forest carbon sequestration across the northeast US. The funding for this research came from the National Science Foundation and it included three field sites in New York State’s Adirondacks where researchers monitored environmental conditions, trees and soil fungi for three years. Shingle Shanty was a key study site for the research along a climatic gradient from wetter/colder to dryer/warmer northern hardwood forests. Dr. Kurt Smemo at Skidmore College is a co-author and lead researcher on the project and collected soil and environmental data like temperature and rainfall at sites on the Preserve within mature upland northern hardwoods. Shingle Shanty Preserve and Research Station’s mission is to facilitate scientific research across the Adirondacks and this work, that engaged both graduate and undergraduate researchers, is an excellent example of how Shingle Shanty accomplishes its mission. More peer-reviewed scientific papers from this research are expected in the next year and further collaborations with Dr. Smemo will continue in 2023.
Link to Article:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0038071723000330
Link to Smemo Lab:
https://www.skidmore.edu/environmental_studies/faculty/smemo.php
Peatland Tree Rings
An increment core extracted from a black spruce tree in the Shingle Shanty Peatland. These cores are mounted and sanded before annual tree growth (ring-width) is measured under a microscope. Photo by Mike Lynch Photography.
The annual growth rate of trees is recorded every year by the tree itself as tree rings. This growth is affected by everything from trees growing nearby that compete for light, to temperature, precipitation, and available nutrients. In 2012, we cored 125 trees in the Shingle Shanty Peatland to determine forest age structure. Thanks to SUNY Plattsburgh Center for Earth and Environmental Science’s Forest Ecology Lab’s Dr. Mark Lesser and his student Troy Tetreault (now in graduate school at Idaho State) we have measured the ring width (i.e., annual growth) of each core and cross dated these cores to verify tree age. The next step is to understand how tree growth is or isn’t affected by climate variables (temperature and precipitation) and atmospheric deposition of nitrogen and other important nutrients that affect tree growth. All this research helps us to understand how our human actions are impacting the ecology of peatlands across the Northern Forest Region.
Old Growth Forest Research
Shingle Shanty Preserve and Research Station's mission is to facilitate ecological and scientific research. This 23 square mile preserve is nested in a 950,000-acre roadless area of the Adirondacks and adjacent to the Pigeon Lakes Wilderness Area - home to one of the largest undisturbed stands of old growth forest in the Adirondacks. In 2019, Shingle Shanty connected with a team of forest ecologists from UVM researching recruitment dynamics of red spruce-northern hardwood forests to inform restoration and maintenance of these forests across the Northeast U.S. Check out the preliminary results here.
Jordan Luff, a graduate student in the University of Vermont Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources, checks out an old-growth red spruce tree while researching forest recruitment dynamics just south of Shingle Shanty Preserve.
Small Mammal Presence and Predation and Boreal Bird Nests in Forested versus Open Peatlands in the Northern Adirondacks
Paul Smith’s College student Carly Beckstrom conducted research at Shingle Shanty Preserve using track tubes, artificial nests, and game cameras to test whether small mammals pose a predation risk to boreal birds in open vs forested peatlands. Click the cover below to view the presentation and fascinating results.
RESCUED BABY OTTERS FIND NEW HOME AT SHINGLE SHANTY
Shingle Shanty Preserve and Research Station is the home of two young otters that were rehabilitated over the summer at The Wild Center in Tupper Lake. “The Wild Center staff reached out to us as a location for the rehabilitated otter release because of Shingle Shanty’s remoteness and our capacity to monitor the dispersal of these ‘re-wilded’ animals,” said Steve Langdon, Shingle Shanty’s director. “The release site is perfect otter habitat. I have seen otters in this location periodically over the past decade, and I am sure they will stick around the area.” READ MORE.
The otters being carried to their new home. Photo by Steve Langdon.
Shingle Shanty Research Published in Wetlands
Shingle Shanty Preserve and Research Station Director Steve Langdon, with collaborators at the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry, has published a paper in the highly respected, international peer-reviewed scientific journal, Wetlands. This paper documents tree encroachment patterns in the varying ecological communities that make up the large peatland complex at Shingle Shanty Preserve. Boreal peatlands like those at Shingle Shanty are among the most pristine and best protected examples of this ecosystem at this latitude around the globe, yet they are still showing signs of forest structure change driven by climate change and nitrogen deposition. This research provides a strategy for monitoring early warning signs of change and the impetus for development of management and mitigation strategies to enable biodiversity conservation efforts.
SSPRS is a non-profit organization funded by individual donors. Please support our work by donating here.
TWO Papers published on BOREAL BIRDS
Dr. Michale Glennon of the Paul Smith's College Watershed Institute conducting boreal birds surveys at Shingle Shanty in 2019.
Shingle Shanty Preserve and Research Station Director Steve Langdon co-authored two recently published papers about changes in boreal bird populations and habitats, “Relative contribution of climate and non-climate drivers in determining dynamic rates of boreal birds at the edge of their range” and “Temporal changes in avian community composition in lowland conifer habitats at the southern edge of the boreal zone in the Adirondack Park, NY.” The research was a collaborative effort led by Dr. Michale Glennon at the Paul Smith’s College Watershed Institute, and included Madeleine Rubenstein of the United State Geological Survey in Reston, VA. and Dr. Molly Cross of the Wildlife Conservation Society in Bozeman, MT. The work was covered in the Adirondack Daily Enterprise in an article titled “Study examines reasons for decrease in boreal birds. The studies examine changes in bird community populations of lowland boreal ecosystems, as well as possible drivers of those changes and include data collected at Shingle Shanty and across the Adirondacks. This work exemplifies Shingle Shanty’s mission to facilitate the study of ecology, geology and the environment across the Adirondacks through partnerships with academic, scientific and environmental organizations.
SSPRS is a non-profit organization funded by individual donors. Please support our work by donating at https://www.shingleshanty.org/support.
A Protected Place
“This remote ecological jewel in the heart of the Adirondacks has an incredible diversity of wetland and upland systems. This landscape diversity, combined with the availability of high-resolution abiotic data, detailed floral and faunal inventories, and well-documented land-use history, makes this an ideal place to undertake ecological research.
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Established in 2008, the Shingle Shanty Preserve and Research Station (“SSPRS”) is a biological field station, with work concentrated on the Shingle Shanty Preserve. The Shingle Shanty Preserve (the "Preserve") is a 23 square mile (60.7 kilometer square) tract of land located in the middle of the six million acre Adirondack Park. It is a truly unique resource dedicated to supporting research and education to enhance the future stability of ecosystems found in the Park and across the Northeastern United States. SSPRS’s remoteness, elevation and location creates an unparalleled opportunity to pursue biome level work with national and international implications. All of the Preserve is protected by a Forever Wild conservation easement that assures continuity of long term research and monitoring. The Preserve receives minimal human usage.
A Public Purpose
The Shingle Shanty Preserve and Research Station facilitates the study and dissemination of learning about the environment, geology and ecology of the Adirondacks through its unique physical resources and collaborative approach. The Preserve promotes research applicable throughout the Adirondacks with a concentration on the rare wetlands, forests and numerous water bodies found within the Preserve. Field research and academic study are conducted through partnerships with academic, scientific and environmental organizations and made available publicly to benefit the greater understanding of the Adirondack environment.