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Harvard Forest REU Symposium Abstract 2023
- Title: Restoration of Sambucus Nigra in Relation to Introduced Species on the Nipmuc Reservation & the Value of Traditional Ecological Knowledge
- Author: Charitie Ropati (Columbia University in the City of New York)
- Abstract:
The Northeast region of the United States is heavily impacted by introduced species. Introduced plant species can have significant ecological and economic effects on the region’s ecosystems and native plant communities, yet little is known about how the reintroduction of native plants affects the return of introduced plants. The Northeast region of the U.S. is home to a wide range of introduced plant species; some notable examples include Fallopia japonica (Japanese Knotweed) and Rosa multiflora (Multiflora rose), which are of particular concern on the tribal land of the Nipmuc people, our partners in this work. Introduced species can outcompete and even displace native plant species and can lead to a loss of biodiversity and alter ecosystem dynamics. As we work in service of the Nipmuc community, relational accountability is an important aspect of our methodology and is at the root of our study. This relationship guided our choice of site and focal plants for this experiment: Black Elderberry (Sambucus nigra) is a culturally important native plant whose growth tribal leaders wanted to understand in relationship to a Multiflora rose, a common invasive plant on their reservation land. We first manually removed Multiflora rose and Japanese knotweed. We then established five 1-meter-square plots and planted an Elderberry sapling in the center of each. For 4 weeks, each week we measured the photosynthetic rates of each elderberry plant using a closed path infra-red gas analyzer system and also tracked the regeneration of introduced species. We found that knotweed grew in the established elderberry that were closer to a smaller stream, whereas the patches where there was no elderberry there were less knotweed. This is significant in thinking about and developing restoration practices for native species, like black elderberry. The most important and meaningful role in this research was the establishment of our relationship between our team and tribal members; And ensuring we are accountable to our relations. Creating and maintaining respectful and mutually beneficial relationships between researchers and Indigenous communities is of utmost importance, in part because Indigenous peoples have historically been mistreated by academic researchers and institutions Indigenous research methodologies functions to recognize, maintain, and expand Indigenous sovereignty.
- Research Category: Conservation and Management; Environmental Justice; Invasive Plants, Pests & Pathogens
