Tanglewood encompasses distinct biodiverse terrestrial and aquatic habitats. Due to its history of agricultural and forest management, the Tanglewood Biological Field Station is a unique outdoor lab where researchers can design and evaluate the impact of land management practices. The varied ecosystems on the property provide an opportunity for long-term data collection from biologically diverse forest and stream ecosystems.
Dr. Christina Staudhammer
Professor Christina Staudhammer has collected weather data at the station since 2018 and has an ongoing forest inventory project at the site. Weather station data is available for download at cstaudhammer.people.ua.edu/data.html.
The recent forest inventory showed a high degree of tree species diversity (3-11 species per 0.04 ha plot), with 45 species on the property. The most common tree was loblolly pine (Pinus taeda), followed by Sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua). On average, trees had a diameter at breast height (DBH) of 23.6 cm, with the largest individual recorded with a DBH of 90.4 cm. In the future, students will use this first inventory to monitor changes in forest structure over time.
Dr. Nate Jones
Assistant Professor Nate Jones received a grant from the Alabama Water Institute to conduct watershed research at Tanglewood. Long-term hydrologic observations are critical for understanding how the world is changing and how humans can better prepare for those changes. This award will provide the funds to install a suite of hydrologic instrumentation to establish two experimental catchments at the Tanglewood Biological Station. Specific research objectives include: (i) developing a predictive understanding of stream drying, and (ii) quantifying the impact of stream drying on downstream waters. Work in the watersheds was initiated in summer 2020 and is currently supporting multiple graduate student projects.
