Education
B.S. in Wildlife and Fisheries Science from Tennessee Tech University with a concentration in Conservation Biology
Master’s Thesis Project 2017
Hydrologic Regime and Soil Carbon Storage in Restored Subtropical Wetlands. Wetlands are extremely important ecosystems but are threatened globally. Wetland soils are effective carbon (C) sinks due to high primary productivity and low decomposition rates. Increased wetland valuation has led to more hydrologic restoration of degraded wetlands, which is expected to increase soil C storage. Many studies have estimated C stock in different wetlands, but few have examined hydrological drivers of soil C variation across wetland types. This study investigated the relationship between hydroperiod and water depth and soil C storage in three types of restored wetlands at the Disney Wilderness Preserve in central Florida, USA. I collected 150 50-cm soil cores across wetlands on site. Mean water depth was a better predictor than hydroperiod of soil C concentration and stock and had a significant, yet small, positive relationship with soil C concentration in bay swamps and marshes and soil C stock in marshes. Wetland type had a strong influence on soil C variation, with bay swamp soils having the great soil C storage, followed by cypress swamp, marsh, and upland soils, respectively. Together, the sampled wetlands cover approximately 22% of sampled communities, yet store 47% of the total soil C to a 90 cm depth. The results of this study affirm the importance of inundation for soil C storage in wetlands, but also highlight that there are a number of complex variables affecting soil C in wetlands such as litter quality and decomposition rates.