Science and Sweets Summer Lecture Series

This year's Thursday Lecture series centers around the theme "Environments and Species in Peril". We are hopeful that these talk will generate discussion between students and the community concerning the definition of peril in conservation. Specifically, we hope to discuss whether our personally held distinctions and biases about what is truly perilous may cause us to apply the "peril" label too late, or not at all, even though ecosystems and species may naturally occur in a delicate balance.

Schedule of Talks:
                NOTE: All lectures take place at the Eldridge Research Station, meet at 6:30 p.m. for desert and the talk starts promptly at 7 p.m.

• June 23rd- CANCELLED

• June 30th- Jarad Mellard, Ph.D. - "On the Season - Diversity Relationship" (Free Ice cream!)

                       -Come help us kick off our Thursday lecture series! Our newly arrived Summer Research Fellow will be delivering a talk discussing work he is doing in the arctic, as well as the conspicuous Season-Diversity Relationship (SDR) that can be seen in seasonal environments.

• July 7th - William Eldridge, Ph.D. - "Thermal Limits of a Few Freshwater Fish Species Under Fluctuating Temperatures"

                   -Abstract:Temperature affects fish at every level of biological organization, from the molecule to the population. As a result, fish are very sensitive to changes in ambient temperature. Predicting how a fish species will be affected by changes to the thermal regime in nature due to climate change or other anthropogenic activities requires understanding its thermal tolerance to elevated temperatures. The thermal limits for most freshwater fish species have been based upon constant temperature conditions or a single directed change, however, temperature fluctuates daily and seasonally in nature. I will present on experiments my lab has conducted to evaluate thermal limits in response to long-term exposure (18-45 days) to a variety of daily temperature cycles that differed in the minimum  and maximum  temperature, daily duration at each temperature, and the rate of temperature change. We found that some fish species are impaired by daily temperature fluctuations at 4C/hr even when the minimum and maximum temperatures of the cycle do not approach the species’ thermal limits. We also found that there is a significant effect of the daily duration at the maximum temperature; impairment is less for shorter versus longer daily duration at the maximum temperature. The results suggest that a daily respite from a stressful temperature provides additional time each day for compensatory and repair mechanisms to offset thermal damage. Therefore, thermal limits derived from constant temperature experiments may underestimate a species thermal limit in nature.
                                 

• July 14-Gwangju Science Academy Students- Poster presentations

                    Join us for wine and cheese and support young scientists in their poster session! Students from GSA in South Korea have spent 3 weeks living and studying at the Preserve, and now they present the results of their independent study projects. Please come enjoy wine and cheese on us and support these young researchers!

• July 21- Mary Beth Kolosvary, Ph.D. - " Vernal Pools: Ecology, Threats, and Conservation Opportunities"

                   -Abstract: Temporary forested pools are an important ecological resource throughout northern and eastern North America, yet they are often destroyed or degraded. Pool creation offers a potential mitigation solution, but long-term monitoring to assess the functioning of created pools is scarce. Furthermore, studies rarely integrate multiple, interacting levels of the pool ecosystem, including physical, chemical, and biological parameters. To address this knowledge gap, we compared the physical habitat, water chemistry, productivity, and community composition of macroinvertebrates and amphibians from 7-year old created pools (n = 7) to reference pools (n=6). Created pools were smaller in size, received more sunlight, had greater amounts of Lemna, Typha, and Phragmites, and were less likely to dry. Created pools had higher pH and conductivity, but algal biomass did not differ. Macroinvertebrate richness was similar across pools, but composition starkly differed. Amphibian species richness and composition was similar between created and reference pools; however, created pools had fewer focal pool-breeding amphibians, including the spotted salamander and wood frog. By assessing the entire pool ecosystem, we found that the ability of created pools to mimic the physical conditions and ecological functions of
natural temporary pools is suspect.

• July 28 - Amy McMillan, Ph.D. -"The Creature from the River Styx: The Life Story of the Hellbender Salamander in New York"

                      -Abstract: New York is the northernmost reach of North America’s Eastern hellbender, Cryptobranchus alleganiensis. Hellbenders, also known as snot otters and devil dogs, are large, fully aquatic salamanders that live in fast-flowing rivers and streams. Our work on hellbenders began in 2003, when we discovered they were declining in the Allegheny River drainage of New York. Since then we have expanded into the Susquehanna drainage and explored genetic relationships of the populations around the state, investigated feeding preferences and hellbender interactions with native and invasive crayfish, tested release methods and genetic parentage for headstarted animals, and researched historical distributions and persecution. In this talk, I will give background and describe the current state of knowledge in NY on this amazing salamander, highlighting the work done by many undergraduate and graduate students in my lab.

• August 4- William Bryant Logan, NAtural History Author- “The Thousand Year Wood: People, Pasture and Forest in a Mountain Village in Navarre”

                   - There is a small village in western Navarre, Spain, that physically resembles Rensselaerville. The pasture hills are so steep that if you fell on one, you would probably roll straight to the bottom.  Yet this place has maintained the fertility of its pasture and the face of its forests for more than a thousand years.  How has this happened? Logan will examine the practice of the people on the land and the ancient system of ownership that stands behind it. The main sports in this town are axe-cutting and stone-lifting, and the town’s chief monument is its public laundry. 

Speakers:

Jarad Mellard, Ph.D.
      Dr. Mellard is the Summer Research Fellow at the Huyck preserve and Biological Research Station. Previously, he was a postdoctoral researcher in the Center for Biodiversity theory and Modeling at the Station d'Ecologie Experimentale du CNRS in Moulis, France. His areas of interest include spatial ecology,  ecosystem - community structure relationships, and species interactions in environmental change. For full bio, see : Jarad P. Mellard, Ph.D.

William Eldridge, Ph.D.
    Dr. Eldridge is the Principal Investigator of the Fish Molecular Ecology Group at the Stroud Water Research Center in Pennsylvania. His primary research focus and interests involve understanding and conserving the genetic diversity that is necessary for fish survival, both at the individual and population level. For full bio, see: William Eldridge, Assistant Research Scientist

Mary Beth Kolosvary, Ph.D.
      Dr. Kolosvary is an assistant professor in the department of environmental studies at Siena College in Albany, New York. Her primary research interests include aquatic ecology, specifically, vernal pools and herpetology. For full bio, see: Dr. Mary Beth Kolosvary

Amy McMillan, Ph.D.
     Dr. McMillan is an Associate professor of Biology at Buffalo State University. Her current research interest include population and conservation genetics, impacts of anthropogenic stressors, and disease on populations. For full bio, see: Dr. Amy McMillan

William Bryant Logan- ISA Certified Arborist
          Logan is the author of three natural history books, Dirt, Oak, and Air. He is a long-time member of the faculty at the New York Botanical Garden and an adviser to its School of Professional Horticulture.  In 2012, he won the True Professional of Arboriculture award of the International Society of Arboriculture and the Senior Scholar award of the New York State Arborists. He has lectured at the Arnold Arboretum, Huntington Gardens, Morton Arboretum, New York Botanical Garden, Toronto Botanical Gardens,  the University of California, Berkeley, the University of British Columbia, Midwestern State University, and many other places. The film based on Dirt was a selection of the Sundance Film Festival. 
For full bio, see: William Bryant Logan