Soil Fungi Control: Forest Function & Diversity

Join us in the Bierhall Café for a SAAS Presentation! Coffee and breakfast items will be available for purchase prior to the event.

9am – Gather
9:30am – Presentation begins

Program Description: Dr. Kurt Smemo will describe generally how forest fungi structure forest ecosystems globally by controlling patterns of diversity and rates of nutrient and carbon cycling in soil. This will include recent and current work in the Adirondacks and an overview of the most recent research related to the relationship between trees and fungi. Forest ecosystems are globally important due to their biological diversity and influence on carbon, nutrient, and hydrologic cycles, and they play a key role in the climate system. The Adirondack landscape provides an outstanding natural laboratory for exploring these dynamics.
 
Presenter Bio: Dr. Kurt Smemo is a professor in and chair of the Environmental Studies and Sciences Department at Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs. Dr. Smemo is an ecosystem scientist with more than 30 years of experience in forest and soil science. He holds a B.S. in Forestry from the University of Montana, an M.S. in Environmental Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, and a Ph.D. in Natural Resources from Cornell University.

Be sure to check out other upcoming SAAS presentations:

• Life History of Moose in Upstate NY – Aug 21
• Bird Window Collisions & Bird Safe Solutions – Aug 28