Bringing Dispersal Back to Guam....

In June, we got the good news that the Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDP, a Department of Defense program) has selected to fund an EBL project! In collaboration with Julie Savidge from Colorado State University, we will be starting a 5-year, multi-faceted project that attempts to set the groundwork for restoring seed dispersal to Guam's forests.

• First, we will finish investigating the impacts of seed disperser loss on the forest, so we can predict what a forest with or without dispersers will look like in 50 or 100 years. 
• Second, we will investigate the role of the native frugivores still present on Guam (e.g. Micronesian Starling) or nearby islands (e.g. Mariana Fruit Dove, White-Throated Ground Dove, Bridled White-eye) to see which are the most effective dispersers. We will also explore the role of feral pigs and rats in seed dispersal on Guam. 
• Third, we will explore the challenges associated with using native birds (would they reliably roost in snake fences, would they play a similar ecological role on Guam as they do on other islands), as well as the negative impacts of feral pigs and invasive rats on forest tree species. 
• Finally, we will develop candidate disperser assemblages that can provide adequate seed dispersal functions to the forest (i.e. a combination of the starling, white-eye, and rats provides almost complete dispersal services). Using these assemblages, we will develop a plan for creating snake-free or snake-reduced areas that maximize the dispersal services provided to the forests of Guam.

Research begins this fall. Stay tuned! 

Summer field crew is here!

We always have a larger field crew for the summer field season, and each year I get excited about the influx of new EBL'ers. This year, we might have the largest crew yet- a total of 13, if I count myself. We have some old pros still out there: Lizzie (post-doc), Evan (grad student), Tony (field tech), Erin (intern), and Lauren (former intern, current logistics guru). In addition, we have a bunch of new blood: REU's Steve Pillman (University of Guam undergrad) and Allie Schaich (Rice University undergrad), Nadya Muchoney (recent grad from Boston/VA) and Kenji Tomari (recent grad from CA) doing frugivory observations, RET's Ben Seman- a middle school science teacher on Saipan- and Greg Ecle- a Chamorro language and culture teacher at Southern High on Guam, and new field tech Christiana Quinata- a Guam native and recent grad from Regis College in CO.

Greg and Christiana had their first partial day in the field today. We went to Anao Conservation Area, and checked out some ongoing experiments there. Here's a pic from the field for your enjoyment.

Nat Geo Blog Post

Ecology of Bird Loss project got a mention in this National Geographic blog post- check it out!

Island Ecology course postponed

We have decided to postpone the Island Ecology course until early January 2015 due to a lack of available mentors. Stay tuned for more details.

Island Ecology Course deadline = April 10th

The deadline for applications for the Island Ecology course is now April 10th. To apply, Email a cover letter, resume, and your unofficial transcript to Dr. Haldre Rogers (haldre@rice.edu). Your cover letter should describe why you are interested in the course, and how it fits into your career goals. This opportunity is only for students and professionals in or from the Mariana Islands.

Island Ecology Course 2014!

We will be running another Island Ecology course from May 26-June 14th of this year. If you are a student at Northern Marianas College, Guam Community College, or University of Guam, interested in learning more about natural resources, conservation, and ecology in the Mariana Islands, you should apply! Participants will start on Saipan, then travel to Rota, and finish on Guam. On each island, they will conduct a research project in small groups, and then will present their results in a symposium at the end of the course. The course is supported through a research grant from the National Science Foundation, so costs for travel between islands and for stays on islands away from a participant's home island will be covered. For more information click here!

EBL in print!

Check out Evan Fricke's recent publication on the causes of distance-dependent mortality here: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/ele.12261/abstract

This work was done on the island of Saipan during the summer of 2012 with field help from Monika Egerer and Tor Shimizu.

See Evan's blog post here (http://scipos.blogspot.com/2014/03/grad-publication-evan-fricke.html) for more details on this research.

Treefall gaps have been created!

Over a hectic 2-week period in December, we created 43 treefall gaps across Guam, Rota, and Saipan. To create these gaps, we cut down small trees of three common species: Aglaia mariannensis, Guamia mariana, and Cynometra ramiflora- and then trimmed the adjacent vegetation. The gaps are about 8-12 m2 in size, which is approximately the size of an average gap in these islands. Now, we get to follow regeneration in these gaps over the next 3 1/2 years- will the presence of birds affect which species recruit in each gap, or the pace of regeneration? Stay tuned!

Islands Beyond the Horizon

A few years ago, Roger Lovegrove, the former director of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, came out to Guam to gather information for his book "Islands Beyond the Horizon".  He joined some EBL'ers in the field to learn about our research, and included a brief mention to our research in his book. The chapter profiling invasive species issues on Guam (Ch5) is well-written and up-to-date. I haven't finished the book yet, but recommend it nonetheless.

VIDEO: Does the Loss of Guam's Birds Mean Warmer Forests?

Read August 16, 2013 story at Pacificnewscenter.com.