SGER: Impact of Hurricane Wilma, a Large "Infrequent" Enrichment Disturbance on Tropical Seasonal Forest: Establishing the Legacy Effect on the Post-disturbance Mosaic

University Of California-Riverside, Riverside CA

Investigators

Abstract

Intellectual Contribution: The El Eden Ecological Reserve has been the site of important environmental investigations. It also serves as an interior wintering and migration corridor for many neotropical migrant birds from the US and has a rich research background on biodiversity, restoration ecology, and succession studies. Hurricane Wilma hit the Reserve directly in October of 2005, causing a severe damage overlaying a complex array of forests and experiments. The impact of Hurricane Wilma on carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus accumulation, tree damage, mycorrhizal fungi and epiphyte composition and distribution, plant architecture changes, and responding insect and bird communities will be studied. Broader Impacts: The El Eden Ecological Reserve is a well-documented study area for assessing biodiversity and ecosystem functioning with environmental change. Graduate and undergraduate students from the US and Mexico will participate interactively through collaborative Mexican and US funding. HabitatNet, a program at Souhegan High School (11-12 grade students) will monitor plots and will develop a website with research data and observations of interest to High School Students. A similar suite of plant, insect and bird monitoring will be initiated at the Succila secondary school near the reserve in Mexico, under collaborative research with PROTROPICO. This project will initiate an interactive program between the UCR and El Eden research program, the Succila secondary school, and the Souhegan High- HabitatNet program as a model for developing interactions between researchers and students from both countries.