About Mark Lesser, Ph.D., Associate Professor Ecology, State University of New York Plattsburgh
Mark Lesser is a forest ecologist in the Center for Earth and Environmental Science at SUNY Plattsburgh. Originally from Halifax Nova Scotia, Mark completed a BS and Masters in Forest and Forest Genetics at Lakehead University in Thunder Bay Ontario before going on to the University of Wyoming for a PhD in Ecology where he worked on long-term development and structure of ponderosa pine populations. After completing his PhD Mark held postdoctoral positions at SUNY ESF and Syracuse. Research that began as a postdoc in the Great Smoky Mountains moved north to the central Appalachians and Shenandoah National Park, while he was at Shepherd University in West Virginia for two years; and then finally to the Adirondacks when he came to SUNY Plattsburgh in 2017. An avid hiker and 46er, Mark can think of no better place to both work and play then the Adirondacks!
1:30P | Getting to the Core: Using Dendrochronology to Understand a Tree’s Life
Annual growth rings of temperate trees allow us to accurately determine not only the age of a tree but learn so much about what that tree has experienced over its lifetime. Dating and measurement of growth rings provide insight into the climate conditions that the tree was growing in, the disturbances, pests, and pathogens that it faced, how it was influenced by its neighbors, and so much more. For old growth trees this record of experiences may extend for centuries (or longer!). This talk will focus on how the field of dendrochronology and its associated sub disciplines of dendro-ecology, -climatology, and -archeology can all work towards telling us compelling stories of a tree’s life.