The relationship between environmental advocacy, values, and science: a survey of ecological scientists' attitudes.

This article reports the results ofa survey of 1215 nonstudent Ecological Society of America (ESA) members. The results pertain to three series of questions designed to assess ecologists' engagement in various advocacy activities, as well as attitudes on the relationship between environmental advocacy, values, and science. We also analyzed the effects of age, gender, and employment categories on responses. While many findings are reported, we highlight six here. First, ecologists in our sample do not report particularly high levels of engagement in advocacy activities. Second, ecologists are not an ideologically unified group. Indeed, there are cases of significant disagreement among ecologists regarding advocacy, values, and science. Third, despite some disagreement, ecologists generally believe that values consistent with environmental advocacy are more consonant with ecological pursuits than values based on environmental skepticism. Fourth, compared to males, female ecologists tend to be more supportive of advocacy and less convinced that environmentally oriented values perturb the pursuit of science. Fifth, somewhat paradoxically, ecologists in higher age brackets indicate higher engagement in advocacy activities as well as a higher desire for scientific objectivity. Sixth, compared to ecologists in other employment categories, those in government prefer a greater separation between science and the influences of environmental advocacy and values.

Effects of canopy components on throughfall chemistry: An experimental analysis.

Five canopy components of subalpine balsam fir forests (branches with young needles, branches with old needles, non-foliated twigs, lichen-covered twigs, and boles) were treated with simulated rain to test the influence of these components on throughfall and stemflow chemistry. Effects on the fluxes of potassium, sodium, hydrogen, sulfate, nitrate and ammonium ions by the canopy components were tested in relation to rain application rate, duration of rain, and time since the last rain. Interactions between ionic behavior and components were complex. In general, the ionic behavior ranged from high levels of net efflux to mixed influx-efflux to high levels of influx in the order: sulfate, potassium, sodium, nitrate, hydrogen, ammonium. In cases in which application rates produced significantly different results, net flux rates increased with application rate. Branch components mostly ranged from low flux rates (either influx or efflux) to high rates according to the order: young needles

Potential alteration of precipitation chemistry by epiphytic lichens.

Epiphytic lichen growth is abundant on the boles and branches of balsam fir trees at high elevations in New Hampshire. These lichens absorb elements needed for growth from solutions flowing over their surfaces and from direct impaction of water droplets. This study describes how epiphytic lichens and fir needles altered the chemistry of simulated rain water solutions under laboratory conditions. Experiments showed: 1) lichens absorbed ammonium and nitrate from solution; the rate of uptake increased with increasing temperature of the solution, 2) lichens lost calcium, magnesium, and hydrogen to the solution, 3) lichen thalli also initially lost potassium, but in time, net movement was reversed back into the thallus, 4) cation movement increased with increasing temperature, and 5) fir needles responded in a manner similar to that of the lichens, but the amount of change was much less. From these results it seems that epiphytic lichens have potential ecological importance in altering the chemistry of throughfall and stemflow.