RUI: Facilities Improvements and Scientific Equipment for the Research Laboratory of the Bowdoin Scientific Station

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The Bowdoin Scientific Station (BSS) is a biological field station located on Kent Island in the Bay of Fundy. BSS contains over 125 ha of boreal forest, old field, and marsh. Since 1935 the field station has fostered research in terrestrial ecology, resulting in usage of the station by over 3000 people and the publication of over 55 scientific papers. Current research programs at BSS include long-term population censuses, behavioral ecology, mate choice, lifetime reproductive success and developmental biology of birds; acoustic communication in colonially breeding birds; and the effects of herbivore grazing and fog-borne pollutants on forest dynamics. BSS offers an excellent opportunity for integrative, multi- faceted research in terrestrial biology because of its habitat diversity, 50-year data base on climate and populations, and recent initiation of new research directions at the site. This project will provide funds for improvements in facilities and scientific instrumentation to modernize the field station and enhance the research programs of all station users, especially undergraduates. Three general improvements are included: 1) electrification of the research laboratory; 2) upgrading of equipment, including a microcomputer and data loggers with environmental sensors for on-site data entry and analysis; 3) insulation of the laboratory and dormitories to extend the useful season of the station.