Graduate Student at Idaho State University
Research/Published Abstracts
Alpine Pollinator Guilds of the Adirondack High Peaks
Tetreault, T. and M.B. Burgess. 2019
Over the course of two growing seasons, I recorded the number and taxonomic group of pollinators visiting flowers of 14 alpine and sub-alpine plant species on the summits of seven Adirondack High Peaks. Flower color, scent, and several abiotic factors were also recorded. Non-dimensional scaling was used to visualize the relationship of pollinator choice with floral traits and ecological variables. An analysis of similarity was conducted to determine statistical significance of groups. A chi-square test was conducted to test whether or not pollinator preference was independent of corolla color. Species richness and biodiversity measures were also calculated.
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If you would like to hear of the results of this research feel free to contact me.
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Presenter at:
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26th Annual Conference on the Adirondacks
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11th Northeastern Alpine Stewardship Gathering
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Center for Earth and Environmental Science Research Seminar
Reproductive Biology and Pollinator Guilds of Nine Alpine Plant Species
Tetreault, T. and M.B. Burgess. 2018
Over the course of two growing seasons, I recorded the number and taxonomic group of pollinators visiting flowers of nine alpine plant species on the summits of six Adirondack High Peaks. Flower color, scent, and several abiotic factors were also recorded. Non-dimensional scaling was used to visualize the relationship of pollinator choice with floral traits and ecological variables. An analysis of similarity was conducted to determine statistical significance of groups. A chi-square test was conducted to test whether or not pollinator preference was independent of corolla color. Species richness and biodiversity measures were also calculated. I found that 80%-90% of visits to yellow flowers were made by flies, bumblebees only occurred on yellow and/or purple flowers, and M. groenlandica (Mountain sandwort) was visited by the most taxonomically diverse group of pollinators. A chi-square test rejected the null hypothesis that there was no relationship between pollinator preference and corolla color.
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Presenter at:
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Center for Earth and Environmental Sciences Research Symposium at SUNY Plattsburgh.
Multivariate Morphometric Analysis of Species Boundaries of Solidago altissima, S. gigantea, and S. rugosa.
Tetreault, T. and M.B. Burgess. 2018
Multivariate morphometric analysis of species boundaries of S. altissima, S. gigantea, and Solidago rugosa. Specimens were collected from two sites, and each specimen was pressed and given an accession number. Leaf length, leaf width, involucre length, and stem/leaf hairiness were measured for each species. Cluster analysis and principal coordinates analysis were used to evaluate morphological variation and test the null hypothesis of no distinguishable groups. Histograms and box plots were used to screen for major outliers. Major findings were that leaf length, leaf width, and involucre length were significantly different between each species, and that S. rugosa formed two distinct clusters (possibly due to low sample size).
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Presenter at:
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Center for Earth and Environmental Sciences Research Symposium at SUNY Plattsburgh.
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Wetlands as Permanent Carbon Sinks in a Fire-Dependent Ecosystem
Tetreault, T., M. Tompkins, and M. Alldred. 2019.
Wetlands as Permanent Carbon Sinks in a Fire-Dependent Ecosystem. This study investigated the effects of a wildfire on the soil properties of a sandstone pavement pine barren in Altona, Clinton County, New York. We observed that wetland areas within the fire suffered less damage than the surrounding forest. We collected preliminary soil data on a large wetland complex at the edge of the burn. We established transects from the wetland edge into the forest on burned and unburned sites and collected soil samples at 4 meter increments along the transects. Soil samples were analyzed to determine bulk density, moisture, organic content, and extractable nutrient concentrations. Results indicated significant losses of organic carbon in burned sites. However, we found that wetlands retained similar organic carbon stocks at burned and unburned sites. This result indicates that wetlands serve as permanent carbon sinks in fire-dependent ecosystems.
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Presenter at:​
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Northeast Natural History Conference at Eagle Hill Institute in Springfield, Massachusetts
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Center for Earth and Environmental Sciences Research Symposium at SUNY Plattsburgh
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Northeast Geological Society of America conference in Portland, Maine
Northeast GSA powerpoint presentation
Check out Dr. Mary Alldred's website, where you can find the online version of the poster pictured above!
https://malldred.github.io/teaching.html
Check out Dr. Mark Lesser's website!
https://mless004.wixsite.com/sunyplattforecology/people
Establishment and Growth of Trees Encroaching Into a Boreal Peatland in the Central Adirondacks, New York State.
Tetreault T., M. Lesser, and S. Langdon. 2019.
Shingle Shanty Forest Preserve, located in the central Adirondacks of New York State, is host to a large peatland complex, and is home to numerous boreal plant species at their southern range limit. These plant species may be threatened by tree encroachment that has been exacerbated by nitrogen deposition and climate. The purpose of this study was to examine the timing of woody encroachment in different peatland community types. Cores taken from trees within the peatland complex were utilized to investigate woody encroachment. We found that earliest encroachment of Picea mariana (Black Spruce, n= 64), Larix laricina (tamarack, n= 17), and Abies balsamea (Balsam Fir, n= 25) into open bog communities dated to 152, 103, and 68 years ago, respectively. Thuja occidentalis (Eastern White Cedar, n= 17) encroachment, into fen communities dated to 182 years ago. Finally, the earliest Black Spruce encroachment into forested bogs dated to 231 years ago. Further study will assess timing of encroachment events and their relation to climate and deposition. Further, modelling growth patterns (ring-widths) of encroached trees against climate and deposition variables will provide insight into how these factors are associated with both encroachment events and subsequent growth. We hypothesize that there will be an increase in encroachment and growth of trees over the past century due to anthropogenic warming and nitrogen deposition.
Presenter at:
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Northeast Natural History Conference at Eagle Hill Institute in Springfield Massachusetts
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Center for Earth and Environmental Sciences Research Symposium at SUNY Plattsburgh
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SUNY Undergraduate Research Conference at SUNY Adirondack
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26th Annual Conference on the Adirondacks
Current research work
Now in the beginning stages of the summer 2020 field season. Data collection will be taking place for my M.S. work on the Beartooth Plateau, located just north of Yellowstone National Park.
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Early in the Spring semester of 2019 Michala Hendrick and I
started to develop an idea for undergraduate students to get
involved in research. We worked to put together the first annual
Student Independent Research Showcase by inviting back recent
Center for Earth and Environmental Science graduate Chad Hammer
and getting current researchers to present their projects. We worked
with several professors and faculty, compiled a presentation of all the
research done, advertised heavily, and secured funding for the event.
The goal of this event was to interest undergraduates in independent research projects. Michala Hendrick and I believed in the importance of research for professional and career development. During Chad Hammer's presentation he demonstrated the value of undergraduate research experience as a bridge to graduate study in his field. Many students are attracted to science fields without a clear view of their future. With this newly founded event, we hope that students will be inspired to do independent research for years to come.
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If you would like to see the full research showcase presentation, as well as the presenter pamphlet, contact me and I will be happy to send the files.
2019 Showcase
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