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In today’s environmentally conscious academic climate, there has been a significant amount of attention paid to the destruction caused by industry to the planet. However, this summer Hamilton students Samantha Mengual ’16, Zoe Tessler ’16 and Daniel O’Shea ’17 are researching a less frequently considered potential cause of decreasing biodiversity: invasive exotic species. Their research is under the advisement of Associate Professor of Biology William Pfitsch, and is focusing on the Alliaria petiolata plant, more commonly known as garlic mustard.

For the 30th consecutive year the ecology class Biology 237 traveled to Whiteface Mountain in the Adirondack high peaks to examine the response of trees to elevational and climatic gradients. The day was a spectacularly clear and beautiful, with intense fall colors in the foliage.

The glens around campus are some of the most unique features of Hamilton’s 1,350-acre campus.  Filled with a variety of trees, wildlife, and nature paths, students often take advantage of the beautiful scenery.  However, keen eyes in the biology department took notice of an invasive plant and began investigating its negative impact on the glen environment.

For the 29th year in a row, the ecology class (Bio. 237) went up Whiteface Mountain to look at how and why the composition and structure of the forest changes with elevation. The 23 students on the Oct. 7 trip were led by Associate Professor of Biology Bill Pfitsch and Ernest Williams, the William R. Kenan Professor of Biology.

Professor of Biology Ernest Williams took six students to the Northeast Natural History Conference 2012, held April 16-18 at the OnCenter in Syracuse, N.Y., where he and the students all made presentations.

For the 28th consecutive year, the Ecology course (Bio. 237) traipsed to the top of Whiteface Mountain. This year's class was so large that it was split into two separate trips. As usual, the weather for this trip was unpredictable. The first trip took place on Sept. 25 with Prof. Bill Pfitsch and found warmth, blue skies and grand vistas. The second trip, led by Prof. Ernest Williams on Oct. 2, encountered dense overcast skies, rain and chilly temperatures.

Hamilton’s Kirkland and Rogers glens offer beautiful forest paths for joggers, dog-walkers and nature lovers. Hidden within the lush greenery, a well-trained eye can spot several plant species growing there that aren’t native to the glens. Invasive plant species in forests have the potential to interfere with native plants and animals, as well as disrupt the microbial balance of the soil. Five biology students and Professor Bill Pfitsch are mapping these unwelcome visitors in a summer research project.

The Ecology class made its annual trip up Whiteface Mountain on Sunday, Sept. 27. Despite low cloud cover, the group was able to study changes in forest composition and size at different elevations, the dwarfed trees (krummholtz) near the mountain top, and the vegetation of the alpine zone. The class is taught jointly by Associate Professor of Biology Bill Pfitsch and Ernest Williams, the Christian A. Johnson Professor of Biology.