One of the unanticipated benefits of having Gus Shaver
visit Barrow and interact with our NGEE Arctic team is the fact that he worked
here in the early- to mid-1970's. Gus has conducted a lot of interesting,
excellent research in his career. He started working in the Arctic as a
young scientist with the International Biological Program (IBP). The IBP was a
large, multi-investigator effort between 1964 and 1974 which coordinated
large-scale ecological and environmental studies. One early aspect of work that
Gus enjoyed as part of the IBP team, and for which he is well known, was his
characterization of roots in various arctic plant species. This research took
place just south of Barrow. Our team has driven past this site many times on
the way to the Barrow Environmental Observatory (BEO) and we had never stopped.
Today, we pulled off the road at a place Gus recommended and walked a short
distance onto the tundra. As Rich, Victoria, Gus, and I walked, Gus talked
about his research. He pointed out the location of several experiments and
mentioned the changes that had taken place in the landscape over the last 45
years. He talked about the stream that ran through this area and how in the
1970's he had examined exposed ice wedges along the stream bank. The stream now
is wider than he remembered with steeper, more degraded embankments.
As we walked, Gus began looking for what he called
"root boxes". These were boxes have wooden sides with plastic front
and backs. Tundra vegetation was excavated, placed carefully into these boxes,
and inserted back into the soil. The idea was that the wooden boxes could be
periodically removed and the growth of roots examined through the clear plastic
windows. After some looking, we found one, then two, and before long we had
located his original plots. The thermocouples that had been inserted into each
box were still visible. Victoria was particularly keen to talk to Gus about
this work. It was agreed that although a simple approach, the data that came
from those wooden boxes is still some of the most complete information on root
growth and structure for plants on the North Slope. Victoria is conducting
research on plant roots in polygonal landscapes as part of the NGEE Arctic
project and plans to revisit these boxes later in the year and see if any roots
can be observed. It is hoped that a better understanding of root traits can
improve our description of plant functional types.
We walked back to the van and drove the remaining
distance to the BEO parking area. As we walked along the boardwalk, Gus was
reminded that the small "greenhouses" in the distance were part of an
educational effort that he and others had initiated several years ago. These
structures were placed over tundra vegetation and essentially raised the air
and soil temperature throughout the season. Teachers from the local elementary,
middle, and high schools would bring students out to the site. They would then
talk about climate, climate change, and how increased temperatures could potentially
impact local vegetation. I participated in one of these tours last fall and
these simple structures are a good "show and tell" opportunity for
educators. It was also a good local outreach activity for participants in the
NGEE Arctic project. Thanks Gus!
