This project will develop and construct sets of large outdoor mesocosms which will be used by resident and visiting investigators to conduct manipulative experimental research. The facility represents the next phase in the development of field laboratory infrastructure designed to expand the usefulness of the seawater, stimulate new research directions and collaborations, and provide student training and public opportunities at the Baruch Marine Field Laboratory. New administrative, faculty, and staff appointments coupled with record levels of research and educational use of the field station have resulted in plans for the future growth and enhanced productivity of the Baruch Institute. The mesocosm facility represents a major new initiative designed to promote the testing of hypotheses regarding salt marsh structure and function. Comprehensive long-term datasets based on up to 25 years of regular measurements in the North Inlet Estuary have provided insights into the role of abiotic and biotic factors in long-term change, but opportunities for researchers to conduct large scale manipulative experiments in the tidally dominated natural system are limited. A group of engineers and scientists will design a set of eight replicate 3.5m by 13m units which can be planted, flooded, and drained in such a way as to simulate conditions in the adjacent tidal marsh. Associated infrastructure and controls will allow for future manipulations using hydroperiod, salinity, and/or temperature as test factors. A set of smaller mesosms will be established to provide research opportunities for addressing questions which require different spatial scales or time frames. Together, the array of units for ecological studies will advance the research and educational goals of the facility, perhaps more than any other improvement that can be made at this point.
