Dr. Barbara Nicholson
Associate Professor
Department of Biology
Office: Rm 221 Marcus White
Telephone: 832-2706 Fax: 832-2594
E-mail: Nicholsonb@mail.ccsu.edu
DEGREES:
Ph.D. University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, March 1993, Botany, Peatland Ecology.
M.Sc. University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, December 1987, Botany, Peatland Ecology.
Honours B.Sc., University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada, Spring 1979. Biology.
Courses Taught At CCSU:
Science 485, Studies in Science - Aquatic Ecology.
Bio 326, Non-Vascular plants, protists, and fungi.
Bio 202, Principles of Ecology and Evolution.
Bio 133, Laboratory in Introductory Ecology.
Bio 132, Introductory Ecology.
Bio 121, General Biology I. Bio 121
Bio 121, General Biology I – Laboratory section
Research /Scholarly Interests, Activities, Publications:
My research interests are in the area of peatland ecology, particularly the paleoecology or the developmental history of a peatland. I enjoy analyzing the biogeochemistry, peat sediment history, hydrology, landform development, and macrofossil history of the peat sediments in order to reconstruct what has developed in terms of water movement, landform development, and community structure within the peatland. Much of my research has direct applications in the management and restoration of peatlands and I am always looking for research projects which have an application beyond the academic. Currently, I am working in conjunction with the Connecticut Chapter of the Nature Conservancy undertaking a paleoecological investigation of one of their properties, Beeslick Pond. This wetland is one of the rarest wetland types in the State and contains many of Connecticut's rare and endangered species. The Conservancy would like to understand what the disturbance history of the site has been, and what impact past disturbance has had on the abundance of the rarer species. I am interested in obtaining a good middle to late Holocene climate signal from these sediments. A Holocene climate record that independently collaborates water level fluctuations previously interpreted from diatom and fossil pigment profiles found in lake basins, would have great scientific merit.
Another project that I am currently working on is a collaborative effort with members of the University of Nebraska. We are investigating the peat profile of an interdune wetland in the Nebraska sandhills. Sand beds exist within a wetland that run parallel to a large parabolic dune. It is here we hope to contribute to the resolution of climatic information for the past 10,000-12,000 years. A core rich in organic macrofossils; roots, seeds and pollen of previously existing communities was removed and is being examined in order to determine whether the sand bed overlies a drought impacted vegetation. The presence of a ecological change in community type, structure, or rate of decomposition would confirm the existence of a long-term drought that promoted the formation of the sand bed through saltation.
Additionally, I am pursuing research in Sphagnum ecology. Sphagnum is a moss that grows in peatlands and has many unanswered questions concerning its basic ecology, such as: the role of competition amongst individuals in a hummock for nitrogen and phosphorus; the role of hummocks in the growth of the plant; shade tolerance and the need for structural support. I would like to conduct an experiment which would demonstrate through radioactive tracers, that active competition between individual Sphagnum stems occurs in a hummock for aerially deposited nitrogen and phosphorus.
Post-doctorate fellow -the Mackenzie Basin Impact Study.
Department of Botany, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta.
Production of a ecological and climatic model that predicted the effects of increased global warming on natural peatlands in western Canada. The model related peatland species, hydrology, and water chemistry to climatic variables. The model consisted of gridding the distribution of a group of indicator species across environmental gradients. This research is part of a larger research effort, the Mackenzie River Impact Study (MBIS) where predicted changes in the peatland communities are being used to estimate plausible changes in the local and regional water levels.
PUBLICATIONS, Refereed Journals:
2000 Dr. Vitt and B.J. Nicholson. Chapter on the Mackenzie River Basin and the wetlands within, in a book entitled: The World's Largest Wetlands. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK.
1999 The paleogeochemistry of terrestrializing wetlands in western Canada. Submitted to The Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences. Submitted June, 1999.
Gignac, L.D., B.J. Nicholson and S. E. Bayley. The utilization of bryophytes in bioclimatic modeling: projected northward migration of peatlands in the Mackenzie River Basin, Canada, as a result of global warming. The Bryologist 101: 572-587.
Gignac, L.D., B.J. Nicholson and S. E. Bayley. The utilization of bryophytes in bioclimatic modeling: present distribution of peatlands in the Mackenzie River Basin, Canada. The Bryologist 101: 560-571
1997 Wayne R. Rouse, Marianne S. V. Douglas, R. E. Hecky, Anne E. Hershey, George W. Kling, Lance Lesack, Philip Marsh, Michael McDonald, Barbara J. Nicholson, Nigel T. Roulet, and John P. Smol. Effects of climate change on the fresh waters of arctic and subarctic North America. Hydrological Processes 11: 873-902.
1996 B.J. Nicholson, L.D. Gignac, and S. E. Bayley. Peatland distribution along a north-south transect in the Mackenzie River Basin in relation to climatic and environmental gradients. Vegetatio 126: 119-133.
1995 B.J. Nicholson and L.D. Gignac. Ecotope dimensions of peatland bryophyte indicator species along gradients in the Mackenzie River Basin, Canada. The Bryologist 98: 437-451.
B. J. Nicholson. The wetlands of Elk Island National Park: Vegetation classification, water chemistry, and hydrotopographical relationships. Wetlands 15: 119-133.
1994 B.J. Nicholson, Wetland Development at Elk Island National Park, Alberta, Canada. Journal of Paleolimnology 12: 19-34.
1993 P. Kuhry, B.J. Nicholson, L.D. Gignac, D.H. Vitt, and S.E. Bayley. Development of Sphagnum dominated peatlands in boreal continental Canada. The Canadian Journal of Botany 71: 10-22.
1992 B.J. Nicholson, L.A. Halsey and D.H. Vitt. Peatlands of Alberta A 1:1,000,000 Summary Map outlining the distribution and classification of peatlands in Alberta.
1990 B.J. Nicholson and D.H. Vitt. The paleoecology of a complex mire in continental western Canada. The Canadian Journal of Botany 68: 121-138.
1989 B.J. Nicholson. Peat chemistry of a continental mire complex in western Canada. Canadian Journal of Botany 67:763-775.
Eriphorum in bloom
I know this is not peatland research, but it is also something I enjoy doing. I am still however surrounded by water!
And for those who are really curious about my appearance. This is for you!
