The_Claw_leoni_vcr

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“The Claw” by Paul Leoni.
Fiddler crabs are charismatic crustaceans that burrow tunnels and aerate salt marsh soil.

On_the_Shore_leoni_vcr

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“On the Shore of Salty Soil and Rising Seas” by Paul Leoni.
The Agroecology Lab surveys a tidal marsh in the Virginia Coast Reserve, where sea level rise exceeds the global average.

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“Through the Phragmites” by Paul Leoni.

Phragmites australis, the common invasive reed in the Virginia Coast Reserve, a plant that can outcompete native plant species in salt marshes.

reynebeau-tent-MCM

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One of the aforementioned tents at the McMurdo Dry Valleys LTER.

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Shaking bottles at McMurdo Station. The large carboys were once discarded, but are now recycled.

reynebeau-glacier-MCM

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Taylor Valley, Antarctica, one of the main study sites of the McMurdo Dry Valleys LTER.

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Spartina alterniflora dominates the lower-elevations of salt marshes in the eastern United States. Living within its tissues are many fungal endophytes, which Kylea and Mya cultured.

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Fungal cultures sorted by morphotypes. Petri dishes with the same growth characteristics are stacked together. Higher stacks are common morphotypes, while short stacks are more rare morphotypes. Roughly, the samples cultured by Kylea and Mya follow the “few common, many rare” pattern of biodiversity; only a few morphotypes are stacked tall, while most are spread out across the lab bench in short (or single) stacks.

sperry-greenfungus-pie-1

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A particularly charismatic fungus. At its edges, you can see the fungal hyphae (the branching filaments of a fungus that grow outward) reaching out into the agar to colonize more space. For a culture like this, Kylea and Mya would note things like the color, color gradient, fuzzy but smooth texture, and generally round shape.