OOS 47 - Life in the changing forest canopy: Ecology, function, and conservation

Organizer(s)

• MK

  Michelle Kirchner

  North Carolina State University, United States

Co-Organizer(s)

• EY

  Elsa Youngsteadt

  North Carolina State University, United States
• CS

  Clyde Sorenson

  North Carolina State University, United States

Moderator(s)

• CS

  Clyde Sorenson

  North Carolina State University, United States

Forest canopies house up to 50% of terrestrial biodiversity and account for at least 50% of global CO₂ exchange. Climate change and anthropogenic pressures threaten forests on a global scale, but canopy ecology research is still in its nascent stages. Only in the past 40 years have researchers ascended into the treetops, leading to “cloud-breaking” discoveries in forest ecology, biodiversity, and ecosystem functioning.

During this session, we will explore how tree canopies and the animals that live in them respond to environmental stresses and how their conservation can be accomplished. Our goal is to facilitate broader connections among the many aspects of canopy ecology — temperate and tropical forests, plants and animals —- particularly as we collectively grapple with how global changes will transform this environment about which we still have much to learn.

Presentations:

• 3:30 PM – 3:45 PM EDT

  The vertical stratification of tropical forest vertebrates: A meta-analysis
  

  Presenting Author: Edmund Basham – University of Florida

  Co-author: J. Alex Beacher – University ff Florida

  Co-author: David H. Klinges – Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, University of Florida

  Co-author: Brett R. Scheffers – University of Florida
• 3:45 PM – 4:00 PM EDT

  Temperate Canopy Ants: Urbanization shifts diversity and nutritional ecology
  

  Presenting Author: Michelle Kirchner – North Carolina State University

  Co-author: Clyde Sorenson – North Carolina State University

  Co-author: Elsa Youngsteadt – North Carolina State University
• 4:00 PM – 4:15 PM EDT

  Structural diversity as a reliable and novel predictor for ecosystem productivity across North America
  

  Presenting Author: Elizabeth LaRue – The University of Texas at El Paso

  Co-author: Jonathan Knott – US Forest Service

  Co-author: Grank M. Domke – Northern Research Station, USDA Forest Service

  Co-author: Han Chen – Lakehead university

  Co-author: Qinfeng Guo – USDA Forest Service

  Co-author: Masumi Hisano – Lakehead University

  Co-author: Christopher Oswalt – US Forest Service

  Co-author: Sonja Oswalt – US Forest Service

  Co-author: Nicole Kong – Purdue University

  Co-author: Kevin M. Potter – NC State University / USDA Forest Service

  Co-author: Songlin Fei – Purdue University
• 4:15 PM – 4:30 PM EDT

  Experimental warming across a tropical forest canopy height gradient reveals lack of physiological acclimation
  

  Presenting Author: Molly A. Cavaleri, PhD – Michigan Technological University

  Co-author: Molly A. Cavaleri, PhD – Michigan Technological University

  Co-author: Kelsey R. Carter, PhD – Los Alamos National Laboratory

  Co-author: Benjamin D. Miller, B.S. – Virginia Tech

  Co-author: Sasha C. Reed – U.S. Geological Survey

  Co-author: Tana E. Wood, PhD – USDA Forest Service International Institute of Tropical Forestry
• 4:30 PM – 4:45 PM EDT

  Snapshots from the canopy: Using arboreal camera traps to document mammalian diversity
  

  Presenting Author: Jennifer Moore – University of Florida

  Co-author: Protais Niyigaba – African Parks

  Co-author: Gratien Gatorano – Wildlife Conservation Society - Rwanda Program

  Co-author: Felix Mulindahabi – Wildlife Conservation Society - Rwanda Program
• 4:45 PM – 5:00 PM EDT

  From Miami to Madagascar - How the Canopy Toolkit is inspiring both forest conservation and environmental justice
  

  Presenting Author: Meg Lowman – TREE Foundation