Browse Items (15 total)

We cored ten Amur Corktree specimens (nine on the Preserve at Vassar; one on the Arboretum) to estimate their ages. The collected data aided our investigation into the spread of this invasive species.

In a world increasingly plagued by anthropogenic heat due to airborne emissions, the mitigation of such emissions is all the more effective when carried out by entities with more sway. Moreover, trees provide a critical sink of greenhouse gases…

The production of electricity is known to be a gargantuan contributor to global climate change. In 2018, it was responsible for approximately 41% of all global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, amounting to a total of 13.6 billion tons of CO2 emissions…

Vassar College lacks a comprehensive inventory of its trees or estimates of their carbon sequestration, making it difficult to assess the campus's net carbon emissions. Yet trees play acritical role in climate regulation by storing carbon in their…

A rise in the beaver population at the Preserve at Vassar College has resulted in flooding in several areas, causing various problems. Due to all the flooding along the Quercus and Wright trails on the Preserve, the trails have been closed. With the…

We studied two areas of stormwater institutes: a rain garden and a bioretention area, as well as two grass lawns. Through exploring these two environmental types, we attempted to explore if the green stormwater infrastructure is achieving its goal of…

Balance in ecosystems is both crucial and fragile. When one species experiences population flux, others change in response. Often, dramatic population change can lead to permanent alteration of ecosystems. Human activity is a major driving force in…

The North American Beaver (Castor canadensis) is a keystone species that creates wetland habitats through dam construction, dramatically altering local hydrology and ecosystem composition. At the Vassar College Preserve, beaver activity has created a…

Invasive vines such as Oriental Bittersweet have proliferated across the Northeastern United States (Kurtz 2018). These vines wrap around and strangle trees, block sunlight from reaching the undercanopy, and hinder animal (including human) activity…