Ben
benfeld.bsky.social
Ben
@benfeld.bsky.social
MSU Masters Student, Plant Ecologist,
Life-long Learner (He/Him)
Reposted by Ben
Thank you to everyone who attended the 1st Great Lakes Plant Science Conference and helped make it a success! This inaugural meeting brought together 416 registrants from 55 institutions. Together, we’ve built momentum for the future of #plantscience in the Great Lakes region and beyond! #GLPSC2025
September 15, 2025 at 5:16 PM
Reposted by Ben
The Whitehouse wants to cut $300 million from US Forest Service Research which is 95% of our budget.

Goodbye job.
May 2, 2025 at 8:03 PM
Reposted by Ben
The NSF Research Coordination Network in Undergraduate Biology Education program was cancelled. I'm on a team that was proposing to incorporate small natural history collections into college biology classes in VT. We are no longer submitting the proposal tomorrow — there goes my winter break work.
January 27, 2025 at 7:10 PM
Reposted by Ben
Another paper on fire & seed dormancy is on its way! A global meta-analysis, @annbot.bsky.social
doi.org/10.1093/aob/...

By the way, find a glossary on this topic here: jgpausas.blogs.uv.es/2023/02/01/s...

🧪🌍🔥🌿🌾🪴🌱 wildfire #PlantBiology
Fire and seed dormancy: A global meta-analysis
AbstractBackground and Aims. Fire-released seed dormancy (SD) is a key trait for successful germination and plant persistence in many fire-prone ecosystems
doi.org
December 30, 2024 at 12:24 PM
Reposted by Ben
1/
Please see our new paper! 'Contemporary fires are less frequent but more severe in dry conifer forests of the southwestern United States'.

#Wildfire

🧪🌏🔥
Contemporary fires are less frequent but more severe in dry conifer forests of the southwestern United States - Communications Earth & Environment
Contemporary fires are less frequent than those occurring in the past, but their severity results in higher tree mortality, based on a comparison of historical and contemporary fire severity using den...
www.nature.com
October 11, 2024 at 1:56 PM
This is a cool map of elevation in Wyoming with County lines overlaid ⚒️ Cool to see the effect of the mountains on them! #Geology
November 24, 2023 at 9:41 PM
I saw this graph last week and it has NOT left my brain since
November 20, 2023 at 8:59 PM
Reposted by Ben
A new study shows that grassland plant diversity leads to increased soil carbon capture, due to the quality of the carbon.

More reasons to protect and encourage diverse landscapes!
🌎🌿🧪
The positive effect of plant diversity on soil carbon depends on climate - Nature Communications
Soil carbon content is positively related with plant diversity in global grasslands, and this relationship is particularly strong in warm and arid climates. Plant diversity is related to soil carbon v...
www.nature.com
October 23, 2023 at 3:11 PM
Reposted by Ben
I don't think we should approach those bison.

...I don't want to get gourd!
October 20, 2023 at 7:25 PM
Visited the Kellogg Biological Stations Bird Sanctuary today, lots of Ducks Geese and Swans. Super cool!
September 30, 2023 at 10:54 PM
Reposted by Ben
Banner day for geologists: rock-licking got the Ig Nobel!!
September 15, 2023 at 7:26 PM
My favorite Sunset pictures from my adventures this summer (Victoria BC, Seattle, Hot Springs SD, Teddy Roosevelt NP ND)
September 21, 2023 at 5:50 PM