Living on the Edge: Trees of Western Woods

This topic submitted by Jessica Brown, Elissa Masin, Jill Greenwood, Amy Barton (BROWNJL1@muohio.edu) at 4:11 PM on 9/27/02. Additions were last made on Sunday, October 13, 2002. Section: Negron-Ortiz

Natural Systems 1 Fall, 2002 -Interdisciplinary Studies-Miami University

Living on the Edge: Trees of Western Woods
Jessica Brown, Amy Barton, Elissa Masin, and Jill Greenwood

Introduction
While walking through Western Woods an observation made was the ecosystem on the edge of the forest was different from that which was farther in the forest. Even on our short work in Western Woods, we are able to begin to recognize differences between trees in the two areas. From this we developed our hypothesis. We believe that the trees within the forest will be older and have a larger circumference than those that grow on the edge of the forest. We also expect to find a greater variety of species within Western Woods. Therefore, we expect the trees on the edge of the forest to be younger, have a smaller circumference, and a lesser variety of species. We will also be taking note of saplings and honeysuckle bushes. We feel this is a good question for us to research because we have the means to accomplish this task at hand. While we know there may be many different aspects of the trees and forest that could be tested, such as the height, due to our limited knowledge, resources, and time, we feel this is a reasonable task for us to undertake. Throughout this experiment, while discovering the differences in Western Woods, we also hope to gain knowledge about this topic we are researching. This research is relevant to us because edge effects are such a widespread problem in the world today. We find this interesting because there is so much deforestation happening, and we realize that the loss of trees is worse than society understands due to edge effects.

Relevance of Our Research Question
In our research we found other tests that have been done to study edge effects. One such study, Reserve Description 3.5.3, studied woodland edges at various distances from other habitats. They used built out and natural habitats for comparison for data collection. They used highways, projected reserves, and accessible public lands. Edges were tested less than two hundred fifty feet, between two hundred fifty-one and six hundred feet, and greater than six hundred feet away from the conflicting habitat. This research found that the edge effects were a high edge, a moderate edge, and low to no edge, respectively. However, the article also concludes that these intervals were for this specific experiment and that though they have value pertaining to other experiments, they are not one hundred percent accurate (MSHCP).
To get a better understanding of what Òedge effectsÓ truly are, we looked for other sources to explain this term. An edge is described as a meeting point of two habitats. Edge effects are Òthe ecological effects that occur at the boundaries of ecosystems, these includes changes in species composition, gradients of moisture, sunlight, soil and air temperature, wind speed, etcÉMany edge effects have negative consequences.Ó ( Natural Areas )
A woodland area is created by two different habitats, an edge habitat and an interior habitat. These two habitats are considerably different. The interior habitat has not been touched by the edge effects, while the edge has been. This edge habitat can reach from a few to several hundred feet in to the woods (Land-Use Planning).
One article showed the importance of this problem. An author from the United Kingdom wrote a letter to an organization about this issue. Law does not protect eighty-five percent of ancient woodlands. These woodlands could be cut down or otherwise destroyed. The remained fifteen percent are only under a status of ÒSite of Special Scientific Interest.Ó One idea given to help prevent these habitats from being destroyed is to get up buffer zones, areas that cannot be changed (Graham).

Materials and Methods
We will be testing our hypothesis that the trees within the forest will be older, have a larger circumference, and will have a greater species diversity by using transects. We will sample ten twenty-meter transects across the edge of the Western Woods. We will leave five meters between each transect. Within each transect, within a one-meter width, we will measure the circumference of each tree, determine the age of the tree, and identify the species of each tree. We will measure the circumference one meter from the ground. After collecting all the needed data from the edge of the forest, we will measure one hundred meters into the forest, taking the same data from the trees that fall within one meter of the hundred meter line. We will only be collecting data from those trees that are over one meter in height. For those that fall under this one-meter, we will simply record the total number. Because of the abundance of the species, we will also be taking notice of the total number of honeysuckle bushes around each line of sampling.
Our sample will be statistically sound because we are testing a larger sample of species. We will be going deep enough into the woods to be sure that our second tree line will not be impacted by edge effects.
The first section of our test will sample the trees that have experienced edge effects. This sample is vital because we need a large sample of trees from the edge to reach a sound conclusion. Testing a total of two hundred meters across the forest edge will ensure to give us a sufficient sample.
The second part of our test we will sample trees within the forest that are unaffected by the edge effects. This is also vital so we have a large sample of trees untainted to compare to those trees that have experienced the edge effects.
We realize that trees in a natural setting do not grow in straight lines. For this reason, we will be testing an area on each side of the line on the edge and the line one hundred meters in to the woods to get a good sampling.
One set of data we will be collecting from the trees is the circumference of each tree. We will be doing this because we have the means to do this and it is a makes for good comparison between the two tree areas. We will also be testing the age of trees because we have a device to do so, and once again, it is good for comparison. Along with the circumference and age, we will be determining the species of the trees, made possible by tree guides.
One aspect we will not be testing that could be sampled is the height of the trees. We will not be doing this because it is not feasible. We do not have the means to accomplish this data collecting.
For this experiment we will only be sampling trees. We know that there are a wide variety of other plants that grow within and on the edge of Western Woods but collecting data on all of these would be out of our time constraints. We feel that sampling trees will be sufficient to give us the answer we are searching for.
Along with our own knowledge, we asked for advice from our professor, Vivian Negron-Ortiz and our teaching assistants. Their advice gave us insight on the best sampling methods and how many of these samplings we should do.
Our results will be unbiased. We will not be conducting a random sampling method, making the results more impartial. All of the data we will be collecting is scientific, measurements instead of judgments.
For our lab we will need main materials. The first item we will need is a tape measure. This will be used to measure the circumference of the tree, along with the distance into the woods for the second sampling line. The second article we need is device to determine the age of the tree. A third vital item is a book to help us identify tree species.
The class will be helping us to collect our data. We will show them how to measure the circumference of the trees along with identifying the tree species. To make sure that the data collected by our peers is reliable and consistent, we will first give a demonstration of the measuring techniques. We will also supervise the data collecting to make sure the class is using proper methods.

TIMELINE OF EVENTS- STUDENT GENERATED LABS

Week 8:
Saturday & Sunday October 5th and 6th
* Measure and plot the transects to be studied
* Meet as a group to collect data in forest,
measure circumference of trees
Tuesday & Thursday October 8th and 10th
* Class helps to study transects already plotted
* Post critical reviews
* Post progress reports
Week 9:
* Collect any more info needed
* Post progress reports
* Meet with peer science tutor if necessary
Week 10:
* Work on analyzing the data
* Post progress reports
* Meet with peer science tutor if necessary
Week 11:
* Post progress reports
* Meet with peer science tutor if necessary
Week 12:
* Post critical reviews
* Post progress reports
* Meet with peer science tutor if necessary
Week 13:
* Post progress reports
* Meet with peer science tutor if necessary
Week 14:
* Post progress reports
* Meet with peer science tutor if necessary
Week 15:
* Post progress reports
* Finalize everything
* Meet with peer science tutor if necessary
Week 16:
* Download the Help Sheet
* Final report preparation
* LABS DUE!!!!
-Post to web
-Make Mac copy on floppy disk
-Include a paper copy

(Both Data Sheets and Pictures taken would not attach)

List of Works Cited:
Graham, Bradley. ÒLetter to Woodland Trust.Ó 8 Feb 2002. 24 Sept. 2002.

ÒLand-Use Planning in Oak Woodland.Ó Integrated hardwood Range Management
Program. Update 2000. 24 Sept 2002.

ÒThe MSHCP Reference Document.Ó Riverside Co. Integrated Project. Update 2000. 24
Sept 2002.

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