Award Abstract # 2224545
LTER: Long Term Ecological Research at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest

NSF Org: DEB
Division Of Environmental Biology
Recipient: CARY INSTITUTE OF ECOSYSTEM STUDIES, INC
Initial Amendment Date: February 15, 2023
Latest Amendment Date: June 23, 2025
Award Number: 2224545
Award Instrument: Continuing Grant
Program Manager: Betsy Von Holle
mvonholl@nsf.gov
 (703)292-4974
DEB
 Division Of Environmental Biology
BIO
 Directorate for Biological Sciences
Start Date: March 1, 2023
End Date: February 28, 2029 (Estimated)
Total Intended Award Amount: $7,650,000.00
Total Awarded Amount to Date: $3,824,999.00
Funds Obligated to Date: FY 2023 = $1,275,000.00
FY 2024 = $1,275,000.00

FY 2025 = $1,274,999.00
History of Investigator:
  • Peter Groffman (Principal Investigator)
    pgroffman@gc.cuny.edu
  • Matthew Ayres (Co-Principal Investigator)
  • Melany Fisk (Co-Principal Investigator)
  • Pamela Templer (Co-Principal Investigator)
  • Christine Goodale (Co-Principal Investigator)
Recipient Sponsored Research Office: Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies, Inc.
2801 SHARON TPKE
MILLBROOK
NY  US  12545-5721
(845)677-7600
Sponsor Congressional District: 18
Primary Place of Performance: Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies, Inc.
2801 SHARON TPKE
Millbrook
NY  US  12545-0129
Primary Place of Performance
Congressional District:
18
Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): ZFCRKN45MMD6
Parent UEI:
NSF Program(s): LONG TERM ECOLOGICAL RESEARCH
Primary Program Source: 01002627DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT
01002324DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT

01002526DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT

01002829DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT

01002728DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT

01002425DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT
Program Reference Code(s): 1195
Program Element Code(s): 119500
Award Agency Code: 4900
Fund Agency Code: 4900
Assistance Listing Number(s): 47.074

ABSTRACT

The need for long-term research on forest ecosystems has accelerated markedly in recent years. Traditional interests in provision of wood products and clean water have expanded to include climate mitigation, biodiversity conservation, and ecological and social resilience. Forests are complex ecosystems, dominated by long-lived organisms, and are highly connected to adjacent ecosystems at many scales. Long-term research at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest has focused on the ecology and management of hardwood forests, with a focus on understanding the role of disturbance in how forest ecosystems work. The research has continually evolved as unexpected observations emerge from long-term studies, raising questions that can only be addressed with continued long-term research. Recent surprises that will be explored in this latest phase of research are: 1) unexpected changes in the elevational distribution of some tree species that have surprisingly migrated downward instead of up-slope as would be expected in response to warming temperatures; (2) abrupt increases in water use by plants over the past 10 years, and (3) significant declines since the 1970s in some species of birds, salamanders, caterpillars, and beetles. The long-term nature of studies at Hubbard Brook has allowed researchers to build deep relationships with stakeholders. These relationships continue to grow, and researchers will increase participation of new participants to make the site's interaction with the community stronger.

The overarching research theme of this project is the long-term response of ecosystem structure, composition, and function to disturbance. The conceptual model underpinning the project envisions three principal types of disturbance acting as drivers of change in the ecosystem: changing atmospheric chemistry, changing climate, and changing biota. The effects of these drivers play out on a biogeophysical template that includes variation across the landscape in topography, geology, soils, vegetation, and history of past disturbance. Within the ecosystem, the disturbances affect the interacting processes of hydrology, biogeochemistry, vegetation, and food web dynamics. The conceptual model is evolving to focus on ?control points of change? in the landscape - specific places and times where significant changes will begin or accelerate. The research is integrated with broader impacts activities driven by four goals: (1) establish long-term, trusting relationships with community members and environmental decision-makers across the northern forest ecoregion; (2) recruit and train the next generation of ecosystem scientists and environmental leaders; and (3) drive innovations in research, education, and outreach. To achieve these goals, four approaches are planned: public and policy engagement programs, science education and training programs, an art-science program, development and maintenance of infrastructure for interactions with the community.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

PUBLICATIONS PRODUCED AS A RESULT OF THIS RESEARCH

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(Showing: 1 - 10 of 38)
Zammarelli, Miranda B and Ayres, Matthew P and ter_Hofstede, Hannah M and Lutz, David A and Holmes, Richard T "Territory Sizes and Patterns of Habitat Use by Forest Birds Over Five Decades: Ideal Free or Ideal Despotic?" Ecology Letters , v.27 , 2024 https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.14525 Citation Details
Bashian-Victoroff, Claudia and Yanai, Ruth D and Horton, Thomas R and Lamit, Louis J "Nitrogen and phosphorus additions affect fruiting of ectomycorrhizal fungi in a temperate hardwood forest" Fungal Ecology , v.73 , 2025 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.funeco.2024.101388 Citation Details
Caron, Stephen_B and Campbell, John and Driscoll, Charles_T and Groffman, Peter_M and Leonardi, Brendan and Reinmann, Andrew and Rustad, Lindsey and Wilson, Geoff and Templer, Pamela_H "Shallow snowpack and early snowmelt reduce nitrogen availability in the northern hardwood forest" Biogeochemistry , v.168 , 2025 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10533-025-01239-2 Citation Details
Contosta, Alexandra R and Arndt, Kyle A and Baulch, Helen M and Casson, Nora J and Harpold, Adrian and Morelli, Toni Lyn and Sirén, Alexej PK and Templer, Pamela H "Threshold Changes in Winter Temperature and Precipitation Drive Threshold Responses Across Nine Global Climate Zones and Associated Biomes" Annual Review of Ecology, Evolution, and Systematics , v.55 , 2024 https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-ecolsys-110421-102101 Citation Details
Contosta, Alexandra R. and Battles, John J. and Campbell, John L. and Driscoll, Charles T. and Garlick, Sarah R. and Holmes, Richard T. and Likens, Gene E. and Rodenhouse, Nicholas L. and Rogers, Shannon H. and Templer, Pamela H. and Vadeboncoeur, Matthew "Early warning signals of changing resilience in the biogeochemistry and biology of a northern hardwood forest" Environmental Research Letters , v.18 , 2023 https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/acf3fe Citation Details
Cooper, Nathan W and Yanco, Scott W and Rushing, Clark S and Sillett, T Scott and Marra, Peter P "Non-breeding conditions induce carry-over effects on survival of migratory birds" Current Biology , v.34 , 2024 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2024.09.015 Citation Details
Coughlin, Justin G and Chang, Shih Ying and Craig, Kenneth and Scarborough, Charles and Driscoll, Charles T and Clark, Christopher M and Pavlovic, Nathan R "Characterizing localized nitrogen sensitivity of tree species and the associated influences of mediating factors" Ecosphere , v.15 , 2024 https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.4925 Citation Details
Davidson-Onsgard, August and Jones, Todd M and Savides, Kim and Kaiser, Sara A "Description of a Black-throated Blue Warbler (Setophaga caerulescens) incubating an empty nest and review of this breeding anomaly in birds" The Wilson Journal of Ornithology , v.136 , 2024 https://doi.org/10.1676/24-00030 Citation Details
Deitsch, John F. and Kaiser, Sara A. "Artificial light at night increases top-down pressure on caterpillars: experimental evidence from a light-naive forest" Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences , v.290 , 2023 https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2023.0153 Citation Details
Driscoll, Charles and Milford, Jana B and Henze, Daven K and Bell, Michael D "Atmospheric reduced nitrogen: Sources, transformations, effects, and management" Journal of the Air & Waste Management Association , v.74 , 2024 https://doi.org/10.1080/10962247.2024.2342765 Citation Details
Driscoll, Charles T and Milford, Jana B and Henze, Daven K and Bell, Michael D "Introduction to the 2024 Critical Review: Atmospheric reduced nitrogen: Sources, transformations, effects, and management" Journal of the Air & Waste Management Association , v.74 , 2024 https://doi.org/10.1080/10962247.2024.2342767 Citation Details
(Showing: 1 - 10 of 38)

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