MBL: The Ecosystems Center

LONG-TERM ECOLOGICAL RESEARCH

ARCTIC LTER

At the Arctic Long-Term Ecological Research site at Toolik Lake in the foothills region of Alaska’s North Slope, Ecosystems Center scientists study the effect of warmer temperatures on Arctic ecosystems. Will an increase in the depth of thaw in the permafrost make more nutrients available to plants? Will these nutrients flow into streams and lakes and affect the aquatic food web? ... More>>>

PLUM ISLAND LTER

At the Plum Island Ecosystem LTER site in northern Massachusetts, researchers ask how changes in rural land use and urban development affect the flow of nutrients and organic matter into New England estuaries. How will they alter the food web in coastal waters? What happens to the production of commercially valuable fish as a result? More>>>

PALMER STATION LTER

At the Palmer Station LTER in Antarctica, Ecosystems Center scientists study the coastal ecosystem along the west Antarctic Peninsula, where sea ice duration has declined by 80 days in response to climate warming since 1975, leading to large-scale declines in animal populations other changes in the marine ecosystem. Do these changes suggest the fate of more polar regions of the Antarctic continent? More>>>

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RESEARCH AT THE ECOSYSTEMS CENTER: COLLABORATION

Because the complex nature of modern ecosystems research requires a multidisciplinary and collaborative approach, Ecosystems Center scientists work together on projects bringing expertise from a wide range of disciplines to bear on a variety of questions. Center scientists are currently conducting more than 30 research projects all over the world, many in collaboration with colleagues at other institutions... More>>>

Ecosystems Center Research Projects

RESEARCH THAT SPANS THE GLOBE

In Brazil, scientists investigate the degree to which the clearing of tropical forests in the western Amazon changes the amount of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide that are released into the atmosphere. What will the effect be on global climate? How will change in temperature and atmospheric gas concentrations affect the productivity of forests? What effect does the clearing of forest for pasture have on tropical streams ecosystems?

Studies by center scientists have shown increased freshwater discharge from the Arctic rivers in Eurasia. If ocean circulation is affected, how might the climate in western Europe change?

On Martha’s Vineyard, researchers conduct experiments that use controlled burning to restore coastal sandplain ecosystems. How much will beneficial processes such as groundwater recharge and nitrogen retention increase in restored ecosystems? Will it restore diversity in plant and animal species?

At the Harvard Forest LTER in central Massachusetts and at the Abisko Scientific Research Station in Sweden, scientists use soil-warming experiments to assess how forests would respond to climate warming. How much carbon might be released as temperatures increase? How will warming affect the cycling of critical plant nutrients such as nitrogen? Will changes in nitrogen cycling affect carbon storage in plants?

In Boston Harbor, researchers measure the transfer of nitrogen from the sediments to the water column. How long will it take the harbor to recover from decades of sewage addition?

On the continental shelf and slope of the East Coast, scientists study the chemical composition of dissolved organic matter in marine environments. How does it affect our understanding of how and why carbon is stored?

In virtually all areas of study at The Ecosystems Center, scientists use mathematical models to simulate ecosystem structure and function and to make predictions. Computer models at the center are also used to ask questions about effects of future changes in climate, carbon dioxide and ozone on vegetation productivity and carbon storage world-wide.

These models are run at a spatial scale of half degree of latitude and half degree of longitude. Over the next 100 years, will Arctic ecosystems store or release more carbon? In the year 2101, what is the projected deforestation in a coastal New England watershed?