How cool is this? "Khipus are a unique form of writing based on coloured and knotted cords. Andean people of the past used them as a record of the climate, and studied them to understand the patterns of what was going on. Efforts are now underway to get accurate radiocarbon dates." Read more ...

📢 The @paqlab.bsky.social is recruiting a PhD (or MSc), and you don't want to miss that - best place ever to do you PhD! 😉 To work in IDENT, a network of experiments of the effects of diversity on forest functioning. Foreign student? It's gotten harder 😞 but we can help.
paqlab.uqam.ca

I enjoy the lush herbaceous plants of nutrient rich mesic temperate deciduous forests. These species with more boreal distributions are more diminutive, but also showy, exciting to see, and among my first (botanical) loves from my undergraduate research in the Boundary Waters. #forestecol #Ecology

Done!

Ground layer plant communities are 2-10+ times more diverse than the overstory in temperate forests. They are sensitive indicators of environmental conditions. Our research has shown respond to a complex hierarchy of controls and can be severely limited by dispersal.

We are taking our first measurements of tree seedlings planted in assisted migration plantings. We are looking at whether we can convert a northern hardwood stand into an oak-hickory stand with some white pine and tulip poplar. #forestecology #climatesciences
#silviculture
#ecophysiolgy
#forestry

200+ scientists are in the middle of a marathon livestream to show why weather and climate science is so important and needs all our help to continue.

It is here: wclivestream.com/watch

MLive, a local Michigan News site, today wrote a little article promoting my ongoing interest in "lake-effect sun".

Cloud cover data indicate that the tip of the Keweenaw Peninsula is the sunniest location in Eastern North America this time of year.

www.mlive.com/life/2025/05...

We went to see this rock that was estimated to be 3.6 billion years old, and "America's Oldest Rock", it was gneiss 😄. www.sciencenews.org/article/unit...

Awesome can they consider USDA and fire season next? Please and thank you.

Serviceberry/saskatoon trees are in full bloom in the UP. These gorgeous flowers will soon turn into delicious sweet fruits that will feed birds and numerous other wildlife species. I love how the dainty and delicate flowers seem to just float in the modstory and contrast with the rugged landscape.

We kicked off our first year of post-treatment sampling on our Adaptive Capacity Through Silviculture experiment with spring ephemeral surveys. We are comparing alternative climate change adaptation strategies, including resilience and transition, to business as usual and no action.

Our graduate students presented their research at the Ecosystem Science Center at Michigan Tech's annual Student Research Forum last week, a great chance to showcase and celebrate their amazing work! Here is a sample from the students I am honored to work with.

If you know someone that is looking for a grad student opportunity in 2025 in fire ecology / dendroecology / spatial analyses -- please pass on this announcement. Julia Burton, Jed Meunier, Eric Rebitzke and myself are looking for a student to join our team and be based here at Michigan Tech.