While studying the plant and insect communities of the late Paleocene-early Eocene of the Hanna Basin, Wyoming, I became more and more interested in what was influencing these relationships. What factors, either abiotic or biotic, influenced these communities and did those relationships hold true across ecosystems? To understand our fossil record more completely, we must look to the modern as an example of how, what and where relationships between plant and insect species are similar, and where they are different.
Much research has been done by modern ecologists to investigate how abiotic and biotic factors influence plants and insects but the methodology doesn't quite work for examining the fossil record. To solve this issue, I am using paleobotanical methods within modern ecosystems and creating a dataset that is comparable to the fossil record. I am sampling within tropical and temperate forests and more specifically, within the facies or habitats, that fossil leaves are predominantly preserved in. Dynamic and tributary river systems, and swamps were targeted at all three of my sampling locations. Unlike modern ecologists, I dig like a paleontologist. By isolating leaves within the fine-sediment I am inherently sampling the fossil record (given a few million of years). Once leaves have been collected and processed, I examine them as if they were fossils utilizing the Guide to Insect (and Other) Damage Types on Compressed Plant Fossils (version 3.0) by Conrad Labandeira et al. and the Manual of Leaf Architecture by Beth Ellis et al. Additionally, I record leaf trait information for future analyses. Lastly, I collect sediment samples to examine the organic chemical signal preserved to compare that to what we find within the organic geochemical record.
If you have any questions about my research projects, interests, or future collaborations, please email me.
Much research has been done by modern ecologists to investigate how abiotic and biotic factors influence plants and insects but the methodology doesn't quite work for examining the fossil record. To solve this issue, I am using paleobotanical methods within modern ecosystems and creating a dataset that is comparable to the fossil record. I am sampling within tropical and temperate forests and more specifically, within the facies or habitats, that fossil leaves are predominantly preserved in. Dynamic and tributary river systems, and swamps were targeted at all three of my sampling locations. Unlike modern ecologists, I dig like a paleontologist. By isolating leaves within the fine-sediment I am inherently sampling the fossil record (given a few million of years). Once leaves have been collected and processed, I examine them as if they were fossils utilizing the Guide to Insect (and Other) Damage Types on Compressed Plant Fossils (version 3.0) by Conrad Labandeira et al. and the Manual of Leaf Architecture by Beth Ellis et al. Additionally, I record leaf trait information for future analyses. Lastly, I collect sediment samples to examine the organic chemical signal preserved to compare that to what we find within the organic geochemical record.
If you have any questions about my research projects, interests, or future collaborations, please email me.
Tropical Ecosystem
Las Selva, OTS station
Costa Rica
Sampling leaves preserved in sediment along the dynamic Rio Sarapiqui in Costa Rica.
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This is our old growth swamp locality within the OTS property at La Selva. It is the at the edge of the property line and the most secluded but my favorite because we see the most wildlife here.
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The last environment or facies sampled was a small tributary. This locality is within the protected old growth forest. Here we capture a less dynamic transport system than the main Rio Sarapiqui but more transport of leaf material than the swamp.
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Multiple types of insect damage on this leaf however we see an amazing pattern of hole damage which cuts across the mid vein.
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An example of a mine on a Piper sp. leaf.
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Beautiful Lepidoptera! The diversity of insects within the tropics is astounding.
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Temperate Ecosystem
Harvard Forest
massachusetts, usa
Looking for leaf snags and potential sampling locations at Harvard Forest.
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Creating a transect through a small tributary within Harvard Forest. This allows us to randomly sample when fine-sediment is lacking
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Canopy sampling at Harvard Forest to test what chemical compounds are lost when leaves become fossilized.
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An example of plant-insect interactions on the surrounding forest. This is an example of surface feeding.
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An example of hole feeding, a very common type of insect damage on modern and fossil leaves. Many different types of insects can make this type of damage.
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This is a type of leaf-rolling insect which creates a nest-like structure. This is very rare in the fossil record but absolutely beautiful in the modern.
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Temperate Coastal Ecosystem
Smithsonian Environmental Research Station
MarylanD, USA
Amazing leaf mats preserved within our swampy locality.
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Sampling at the most fascinating locality to date! This is a fresh water drainage out in the brackish waters, connecting to the Chesapeake Bay. Leaf preservation here is amazing and kayaking is always fun.
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Prepping samples for the oven by cleaning fine-sediment from leaf samples at SERC
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My favorite caterpillar friend hanging out on an American Beech (Fagus grandifolia) leaf.
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Beautiful fungus popping through the leaf litter in Maryland (SERC). Perfect representation of how decomposition can influence data collected from leaf litter rather than sediment.
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An example of surface feeding damage on an American Beech tree (Fagus grandiflora) leaf.
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