Project Description: This collaboration between the UCSB Office of Education Partnerships, the Smithsonian Institution and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology will expose UCSB undergraduates from a minority background to life science research on the oak ecosystem at Sedgwick Reserve. The students will experience first-hand how researchers collect data on acorn production of Quercus lobata, and learn about the background and hypotheses tested in the long-term studies on masting. After a short introduction to the methods, they will collect their own data, conduct simple analyses and discuss the implications of their findings in light of data collected over the last 7 years. Furthermore, we will discuss the ecosystem-wide effects of variable seed crops, and how the observed variation may have arisen. The ultimate goal of this short visit is to motivate a small of group of students to get involved in aspects of our long-term study, and to pursue small, independent research projects in the near future.

Approved