laura mcmanus, raindrop technician
It has been another successful year for the RainDrop long-term experiment nestled in the grasslands of Wytham Woods in Oxfordshire. A wide array of researchers have been busy collecting another field season’s worth of data to complete its third post-treatment year. Laura McManus (RainDrop Technician) and Andy Hector (RainDrop Principal Investigator) remind us here what RainDrop is all about and look back over the 2019 field season.
For readers that are not familiar with RainDrop, it is a long-term climate change and grassland biodiversity experiment run collaboratively by the University of Oxford and the Open University (OU), with support from the Ecological Continuity Trust. It has been established for the wider ecological research community to come and use, with current external engagement including the University of Manchester and the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology in Wallingford.
RainDrop focuses on manipulating precipitation by droughting and irrigating parts of the grassland for comparison with controls exposed to ambient conditions. The experiment hopes to shed light on the ecological effects of altered precipitation regimes in the face of current and future climate change.
Melanie Stone (OU) and Oceane Nicolitch (Manchester) will be finishing up their research into grassland species composition, and biomass and soil properties respectively, so be on the lookout for upcoming publications. Sara Middleton and Coline Jaworski (both Oxford), however, are just starting their three years of research at the site. Coline, a researcher visiting from overseas, will be investigating the nectar production of Lotus corniculatus, determining the availability of resources for pollinators. Sara, a DPhil student, will be researching the relationship between the traits and demography of grassland species and will be following their growth over time under the different treatment conditions of the experiment.
Additional research carried out this year included a bachelor project by Sarah Whelan (Oxford), who researched below-ground microbial activity using bait lamina sticks and found that activity was water-limited. Research by Rashed Zaman, a Master’s student visiting from Wageningen University, studied the flammability of the grassland. With recent wildfire outbreaks in mind, both globally and nationally, this research could provide some intriguing insights for land management in the future.
It is clear to see that RainDrop is flourishing in its fourth year, while the next few years look set to be even more productive. Finally, a note to say that the RainDrop team are sad to be losing their research technician, Laura McManus, who moved on in December and are very grateful for the fantastic work she has done. Hopefully we will be welcoming a new member to the RainDrop team who can fill her shoes during the next field season.
Additional Information
Further detail on the history and progress of the RainDrop experiment is available on ECT’s dedicated RainDrop webpage.
A Request
RainDrop is one of ECT’s milestone achievements to date, and could not have been supported without funds in place. ECT relies heavily on private donations and competitively-won grant funding to deliver its activities. Please kindly consider a donation via our online giving platform.
