9615661 Hunter This project will investigate the short term effects of Hurricane Opal on ecosystem processes at the Coweeta LTER site, North Carolina. The hurricane was a rare and dramatic event that resulted in considerable deposition of woody detritus and green leaves on the forest floor. The rare nature of this event, and the need to initiate studies of its effects as soon as possible, make this research well suited for SGER funding. This research will investigate the short-term effects of hurricane-derived greenfall on nutrient availability and decomposition processes on the forest floor. The investigators will test the prediction that loss of green leaf tissue from hurricane Opal will influence the carbon-nutrient balance of trees because nutrients were not resorbed for internal recycling prior to senescence. Rather, nutrients were lost to the forest floor. The nutrient stress caused by the loss of green tissue may result in high carbon:nutrient ratios in trees, and the allocation of carbon to tannins and other polyphenols instead of allocation to growth. This allocation of carbon to defenses may influence the subsequent quality of leaf tissue for herbivores, and levels of defoliation in the forest canopy. This project represents a unique opportunity to study the effects of altered ecosystem processes on plant physiology and plant herbivore dynamics following an extreme climatic event.
