Books in Long Term Ecological Research series

Owen, who lives in Colorado, is visiting his cousin Neko at her home in coastal California. He is eager to explore the beach with his cousin and aunt, and they find a large amount of kelp washed ashore after a large storm the previous evening. His curiosity about the kelp leads to an afternoon snorkeling adventure in a kelp forest with his cousin and aunt, and they point out the many creatures that inhabit the underwater “golden forest.” Back on the beach, his marine biologist aunt explains how important the washed-up kelp is to the beach ecosystem, and the children learn how valuable kelp is to the environment both in the water and on the coastal beaches.

This book is a narrative told from the point of view of a young girl who is showing her visiting cousin a coastal salt marsh. The children visit the marsh every day for four days, slowly building their knowledge of the ecosystem. As they make their way through the tall marsh grass, the two children slip and slide on marsh mud, discover clusters of ribbed mussels at the base of the grass, and watch as fiddler crabs skitter from burrow to burrow around the edge of a creek. Representative of intertidal marshes throughout the world, the coastal salt marsh described in this book is typically shared by both land and marine mammals, presenting a unique ecosystem at the water's edge.

Research scientists camped at the desolate McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica studying the local lakes and streams are one day surprised to find a young Weddell seal in their midst. Tired and hungry, and perhaps lured by the smell of the group's cheeseburger dinner, the young male is a long way from his natural habitat on the sea ice of McMurdo Sound. Bound by the Antarctic Conservation Act, the scientists know they cannot provide it with sustenance, but instead contact seal scientists who, after some thought, decide they can provide assistance so the seal can return to the sea ice. The seal gets the ride of its life back to its natural habitat, and the scientists name one of their newly found streams to commemorate their unlikely campmate. Published in cooperation with the Long-Term Ecological Research Network, which is funded by the National Science Foundation.In this enhanced edition, enjoy read-along, animations that bring the story to life, and real video footage of the seal's rescue from the dry valley.

This book is a narrative told from the point of view of a young girl who is showing her visiting cousin a Georgia coastal salt marsh. The children visit the marsh every day for four days, slowly building their knowledge of the ecosystem. As they make their way through the tall marsh grass, the two children slip and slide on marsh mud, discover clusters of ribbed mussels at the base of the grass, and watch as fiddler crabs skitter from burrow to burrow around the edge of a creek. Representative of intertidal marshes throughout the world, the Georgia coastal salt marsh described in this book is typically shared by both land and marine mammals, presenting a unique ecosystem at the water's edge.

Mariana is a third grader living in Las Cruces, New Mexico at the northern fringe of the Chihuahuan Desert. One day her class visits Chihuahuan Desert Nature Park to hike to the top of an extinct volcano and see the plant and animal life that is special to this desert. Led by Dr. Whitford, the nature park scientist, the children are challenged to find as many signs of animals living along the trail as they can. Mariana is amazed at all the life around her that was difficult to see at first glance. Adapting to the desert environment, many animals were camouflaged or sought shelter from the sun in burrows. At last atop the volcano, Dr. Whitford tells the children that “This is a great example of an ecosystem that has shifted.” Once grassland, the landscape is now mostly covered in shrubs like creosote bush and mesquite. Suddenly a storm comes up with little warning, and the children rush back to their bus. As the rain subsides the bus driver delivers the unwelcome news that the bus will have to be pulled out of the now muddy road. While waiting for help the children get out of the bus and head for a nearby Playa, a special kind of shallow lake that is formed after a heavy rain. As Mariana wades through the Playa she notices small animals in the water, and scoops one up. Dr. Whitford identifies it as a tadpole shrimp, animals that hatch only when water fills the lakes. At last the bus is pulled out of the mud by a rancher’s tractor, and Mariana returns home to write to her friends about her day in the desert.

Kupe and the Corals is the story of Kupe, a young boy who undertakes an amazing voyage of discovery to learn about corals and the importance of coral reefs to all of the many animals that depend upon them. One night while he is fishing with his father, Kupe observes an astonishing event, thousands and thousands of tiny “bubbles” rising to the surface of the waters in the lagoon near where he lives. Kupe is amazed by this sight and wants to learn more about the “strange pink bubbles” that he has captured in an old jam jar. Kupe visits with an elder from his village and a scientist from the nearby marine lab in an attempt to learn more about what he has seen. During his conversations, Kupe learns that what he has captured are tiny coral larvae, baby corals that are produced in the millions over just a few nights each year by the adult corals living in the lagoon. Kupe then goes on to learn more about how corals grow and the importance of corals in building the reefs that provide homes for all of the other wonderful animals that he sees while snorkeling in the lagoon. Now, realizing how important the larvae he has captured are to the health of the coral reef, Kupe happily returns his larvae to the sea. Kupe and the Corals, is the sixth book in the Long Term Ecological Research Network Series.

Kupe and the Corals is the story of Kupe, a young boy who undertakes an amazing voyage of discovery to learn about corals and the importance of coral reefs to all of the many animals that depend upon them. One night while he is fishing with his father, Kupe observes an astonishing event, thousands and thousands of tiny “bubbles” rising to the surface of the waters in the lagoon near where he lives. Kupe is amazed by this sight and wants to learn more about the “strange pink bubbles” that he has captured in an old jam jar. Kupe visits with an elder from his village and a scientist from the nearby marine lab in an attempt to learn more about what he has seen. During his conversations, Kupe learns that what he has captured are tiny coral larvae, baby corals that are produced in the millions over just a few nights each year by the adult corals living in the lagoon. Kupe then goes on to learn more about how corals grow and the importance of corals in building the reefs that provide homes for all of the other wonderful animals that he sees while snorkeling in the lagoon. Now, realizing how important the larvae he has captured are to the health of the coral reef, Kupe happily returns his larvae to the sea. Kupe and the Corals, is the sixth book in the Long Term Ecological Research Network Series.

This book introduces children to the nation's watershed, the Continental Divide, and how snowmelt forms the headwaters of the rivers and streams that bring life to the land below all along the front range of the Rocky Mountains. The entire water cycle is described from evaporation to glacier formation and the various life zones that water runs through on its way from alpine tundra to prairie are detailed in exquisite drawings.

One summer morning, Annie and her brother Bradley venture down to a nearby stream to play, but find the water murky and devoid of frogs and minnows. They hear a splashing sound behind them, and are startled to see their neighbor, Ms. Carson, approaching them, wearing rubber boots and carrying a box of test tubes. It turns out Ms. Carson is an aquatic ecologist whose job it is to test the health of local streams. After Annie mentions all the green slime found in the stream, Ms. Carson explains that it is the result of a build up of algae caused by excessive amounts of nutrients flowing into the stream. Ms. Carlson and the kids then gather some water samples in test tubes, to which they add special chemicals that reveal that the water contains excessive amounts of phosphorous and nitrogen.Ms. Carlson explains that these are derived from fertilizer and pesticides that their neighbors have been using to excess. Upon hearing this news, Annie and Bradley begin a special campaign to get their neighbors to reduce the amount of chemicals they use in their lawns and gardens, which results in a healthier stream the following year.

Old-time New England foresters coined the term “wolf tree” for trees they saw as having the ability to “eat” the sun and nutrients and prevent the growth of other trees. Today, however, we understand how wolf trees benefit wildlife. Join Aurora and Orion as they search for a wolf tree in the in the 3,160 hectare Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, looking for such clues as a large trunk, low branches, wildlife activity, and nearby smaller trees.

Follow two scientists as they spend a night in the Everglades collecting water samples, photographing wildlife, and sloshing through marshes in an attempt to understand this mysterious ecosystem. Part of a long-term effort to return the Everglades to a natural state after a century of development, the scientists try to figure out what the “river of grass” was like prior to human settlement. Along the way, they deal with razor-sharp sawgrass and alligators and turtles and are even surprised by the sudden presence of what is known in the Everglades as a “frog gigger”—one who hunts and collects frogs for food!Published in cooperation with the Long Term Ecological Research Network, which is funded by the National Science Foundation.

Research scientists camped at the desolate McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica studying the local lakes and streams are one day surprised to find a young Weddell seal in their midst. Tired and hungry, and perhaps lured by the smell of the group's cheeseburger dinner, the young male is a long way from his natural habitat on the sea ice of McMurdo Sound. Bound by the Antarctic Conservation Act, the scientists know they cannot provide it with sustenance, but instead contact seal scientists who, after some thought, decide they can provide assistance so the seal can return to the sea ice. The seal gets the ride of its life back to its natural habitat, and the scientists name one of their newly found streams to commemorate their unlikely campmate. Published in cooperation with the Long-Term Ecological Research Network, which is funded by the National Science Foundation.