Project Description: 

Project Background:
Determining the character and quality of past forest environments will improve our understanding of how forests store carbon over the long-term. Traditional records of forest inventories have only existed since the 1880s in California. But lake sediments serve as repositories of tree pollen grains extending thousands of years, which can be leveraged to reconstruct past vegetation and, potentially, to quantify the carbon stocks of forests surrounding lakes. Using pollen as a proxy for forest carbon requires the application of novel methods that have not been tested outside of Scandinavia. The forests and lakes in the Six Rivers National Forest, California, provide an ideal location for pollen measurement and vegetation reconstruction.

Project Aim:
This project requires the handling of lake sediment cores containing fossilized pollen grains. These cores were collected in June 2018 and need to analyzed for their water content, age, and pollen types. Samples will be processed in the wet laboratory. Determining the age of the sediments is the first priority in processing and requires lead-210 analysis.

Department: 
ESPM
Undergraduate's Role: 

The undergraduate will help me (Clarke Knight) in the laboratory by drying samples of sediment and preparing them for isotope analysis. Eighteen sediment cores need processing. The student will have the opportunity to learn about sediment age dating, specifically the precise sampling processes before specimens are placed in an instrument for lead-210 dating. Depending on time constraints, the student will help prepare samples for pollen counting; this process requires acid digestion of sediments and filtration of pollen grains in the wet laboratory.

Undergraduate's Qualifications: 

I am looking for a motivated undergraduate with a desire to learn laboratory techniques and who is eager to learn about paleo-ecological data. The student must be able to take directions and have competency in the laboratory (e.g. demonstrated success in laboratory based classes).

Location: 
On Campus
Hours: 
To be negotiated