Mark Norris

Tree hugging, dirt worshiping ecologist, Stevenson University

[Mark Norris @DocTsuga]

Goodbye, Twitter. It was a decent run but it's past time to leave. When I started, my feed was 75% science/ecology/environment. Now it's 95% doom scroll fodder. For the very few remaining followers, find me on Insta, YT, & Bluesky as ProfTsuga on each.

[Mark Norris @DocTsuga]

As an aside, students learned why shrubs and shrubby habitats are understudied.

[Mark Norris @DocTsuga]

Ecology class update: We continued our salamander ecology project in lab this week as student groups pursued their own ideas for why salamanders are in some areas and not others. Ideas emphasized: Understory (shrub) veg, soil environment, and landscape position. @IrvineNature

[Mark Norris @DocTsuga]

Ecology course update: This week in lab, simulating foraging outcomes including the influence of competition, territoriality, and predation.

[Mark Norris @DocTsuga]

#Arboreal update - With the help of our adjunct entomologist, getting flight interception trap samples identified and counted this week. Lots of cool stuff. 12 orders represented with Coleoptera (beetles) being the most abundant, Curculionidae (bark beetles) in particular.

[Mark Norris @DocTsuga]

Lovely afternoon for a stroll across campus, and was serenaded by the marching band.

[Mark Norris @DocTsuga]

@Swilua Need to reposition the camera to capture that.
There are footprints all over one of the Adirondack chairs, likely a raccoon

[Mark Norris @DocTsuga]

Testing a new trail camera for my parents in the backyard. Seems to work fine.

[Mark Norris @DocTsuga]

#Arboreal update: Going through many thousands of trail camera captures from just two weeks, and working to better program and position cameras for better quality captures. Early findings suggest lots of typical activity on the ground and flying squirrels all over the canopy.

[Mark Norris @DocTsuga]

Ecology course updates: spent the last two weeks of lab doing a mark and recapture of crayfish on campus. We'll be estimating population size and considering a few additional population attributes.

[Mark Norris @DocTsuga]

And during the classroom portion, students are doing a nice job contributing to our class notes through brainstorming and reviewing case studies, all in an effort to increase ecological literacy.

[Mark Norris @DocTsuga]

Ecology course updates: This class is continuing our salamander project. We spent the last 2 weeks surveying 14 cover board transects across 2 properties. Students will next propose projects to better understand the patterns of where salamanders are and aren't.

[Mark Norris @DocTsuga]

Side note for election season - I've found it interesting to note which houses refused a free tree. While exceptionally anecdotal, those refusing a tree on our street are of the same political persuasion.

[Mark Norris @DocTsuga]

Our neighborhood is being targeted by the county for some street tree planting. We think this is great, especially on our street that doesn't currently have any street trees, but know that not all of our neighbors agree. Thank you @BaltCoGov
https://t.co/kEMaVZ5saL

[Mark Norris @DocTsuga]

New street trees arrived in our neighborhood last week! This is such a nice improvement to our neighborhood and our street in particular. Can't wait to walk in their shade in a decade.
Our house was not planned for a tree but we've requested one.

[Mark Norris @DocTsuga]

#Arboreal update: First collection from flight interception traps from different canopy heights of two red oaks, then processing the samples in the lab. Pleasantly surprised with the abundance of specimens.
#PUI_research

[Mark Norris @DocTsuga]

Teaching an elective Ecology course. We've been considering plant adaptations to their environment. In lab, we explored this by examining photosynthesis through two simple student-designed experiments.
It was a lovely day to sit around and wait for the @LICOR_ENV to do its thing

[Mark Norris @DocTsuga]

We're continuing our Arboreal project this semester to explore the biodiversity of tree canopies. Shown here: tree climbing practice and installing flight interception traps.

[Mark Norris @DocTsuga]

This year has seen a lot of [seemingly healthy] trees taken out of the neighborhood

[Mark Norris @DocTsuga]

More tree removal in progress this morning