Profs awarded grant to study effects of buckthorn
Monday, July 10, 2006
Dr. Laurie Furlong and Dr. Todd Tracy, biology faculty members at Northwestern College, have been awarded an Iowa Science Foundation grant to study the invasive European buckthorn at Oak Grove County Park near Hawarden.
Over a three-year period, Furlong, Tracy and about two dozen NWC students will conduct research that seeks to determine the effects of the European buckthorn on native Iowa forests. A preliminary study was performed in a floodplain forest near Alton in 2005.
The researchers will examine species richness and diversity, canopy cover, percent ground cover, soil nitrogen levels and habitat use to see if buckthorn concentration is adversely affecting them. One of their objectives is to determine whether expensive and time-consuming buckthorn eradication efforts are worthwhile.
Over a three-year period, Furlong, Tracy and about two dozen NWC students will conduct research that seeks to determine the effects of the European buckthorn on native Iowa forests. A preliminary study was performed in a floodplain forest near Alton in 2005.
The researchers will examine species richness and diversity, canopy cover, percent ground cover, soil nitrogen levels and habitat use to see if buckthorn concentration is adversely affecting them. One of their objectives is to determine whether expensive and time-consuming buckthorn eradication efforts are worthwhile.
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