The Klemmer Lab
food-web ecology
University of Maine, Orono
School of Biology and Ecology
Rockweed food webs in light of harvesting
Conserving Rockweed and Animal Systems for a Sustainable Harvest (CRASSH)
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Rockweed has been harvested off the coast of Maine for over 40 years to be used as a soil amendment for agriculture. However, little is known on exactly if/how harvest affects the rocky intertidal ecosystem. Our team is working with industry and conservation stakeholders to conduct a BACI harvest experiments at over 50 sites along the coast of Maine, from the New Hampshire to Canadian boarder. We hope to better understand the rockweed food web to inform harvest and conservation practices.
Long-term riparian harvest impacts on headwater streams
15 year follow-up on Manomet Maine harvest experiment
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Riparian forest harvest has impacts on freshwater and forest ecosystems. We returned to a riparian harvest experiment 15 years post-harvest to investigate the long-term impacts of different harvest practices on stream food webs and the connections to forest ecosystems. This research will help harvesters determine the best management practices for riparian buffers.
Rocky Mountain pond-land meta-ecosystems
Changing hydrology can alter connections between land and water ecosystems
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We are studying how changes in hydrology of high elevation ponds in the Rocky Mountains alters cross-ecosystem interactions with terrestrial ecosystems, changing whole meta-ecosystem food webs. If ponds dry earlier, stranded insects might enter detrital pathways in the terrestrial ecosystem. However, if insects can emerge from ponds, then the energy pathway might connect to terrestrial predators, such as birds and spiders.
