As the end of my first year in my master’s program comes to a close, my field season is just beginning! I will be heading out to the forests of Costa Rica to track tree seedling survival for the summer!
Semester recap:
This semester I continued to work on my theoretical model, looking into the effects of introducing a fungal pathogen via spillover into an existing forest ecosystem. This model will help us better understand how the introduction of a new enemy onto the existing forest seedling community (or other natural plant communities) will affect their survival. I am currently working with my PI, Dr. Benedicte Bachelot, on a manuscript to publish this work– stay tuned!
I also kickstarted this blog, and I am looking forward to sharing more research and graduate life content, especially during my field season.
Field work prep
I will be heading off to Costa Rica VERY SOON to conduct my research investigating the effects of fungal pathogen spillover from nearby coffee plantations on the forest seedling community. The introduction of new enemies into ecosystems has the potential to affect the plant community in a variety of ways. I am interested in how this introduced enemy will affect seedling survival and diversity, particularly if species related to coffee are more at risk of death than other species.
I ordered lots of field equipment (see my instagram video!) so that I can set-up my study area and measure a bunch of different factors such as: tree canopy cover, wind speed, rainfall, temperature, soil samples, and more! This will help me not only track seedlings over my time there, but take into account any other factors that may influence seedling survival.
How it’ll work
I will set up plots in four different forests, starting at the edge and working my way into the forest interior. Half of the plots will be treated weekly with a leaf fungicide and the other half will remain untreated, to test if leaf fungal pathogens are driving mortality. I will also set up trail cameras at each site, to capture any herbivore presence. I will try to post weekly/bi-weekly updates while I’m out there, so keep an eye out!
Updates, pictures of the sites and trail camera footage to come!
Want to support my work? Buy me a coffee!
Gina Errico 
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