Effects of Non-native Earthworms on Mid-Atlantic Forest Soils

Speaker: Katalin Szlavecz, Earth and Planetary Sciences, Johns Hopkins University

Land use change along with establishment of non native species fundamentally altered soils in the Mid-Atlantic region. Dr. Szlavecz and her students have been studying the effects of non-native earthworms on leaf litter decomposition, soil carbon cycling, and plant growth for over a decade. This presentation will focus on field observations and experiments carried out in the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, Edgewater, MD. Here, a new invader, the Asian Amythas hilgendorfi, is currently spreading in an old forest stand. Laboratory experiments with isotopically labeled leaf litter demonstrated how this species interact with the resident native and non-native earthworms, and what might be the key to its success in invading new habitats.

Location: White Oak Library
11701 New Hampshire Avenue Northeast, Silver Spring, MD 20904 

Directions: http://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/library/branches/whiteoak.html

The meeting is open to non-members.

Registration is not required.