iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Joseph D. Birch @josephdbirch.bsky.social · 09/04/2026

Editor Bob Keane of Fire Ecology was kind enough to feature our work on the journal's podcast and chat with us about how prescribed fire and fuel treatments can reduce the risk of cheatgrass invasion in mixed-conifer forests. Have a listen - its only 8 minutes! fireecology.org/feco-podcast...

fireecology.org

Episode 89: Overstory retention in a managed mixed-conifer stand limits cheatgrass invasion after wildfire — Association for Fire Ecology

Joe Birch, Jessica Miesel, and Matthew Dickinson discuss cheatgrass abundance in response to overstory death and prescribed fire.

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Reposted by Joseph D. Birch

Justine Karst 🇨🇦 @j-karst.bsky.social · 18/03/2026

This needs attention. Suzanne Simard threatened legal action against a journalist asking critical questions. This is not how science works. Brave of @aislingirwin.bsky.social to report.

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Reposted by Joseph D. Birch

Justine Karst 🇨🇦 @j-karst.bsky.social · 11/02/2026

A follow-up to the debunk of trees anticipating solar eclipses. Wonderfully argued by Novoplansky, the lead author. (I accidentally deleted the original post). figsinwintertime.substack.com/p/when-scien...

figsinwintertime.substack.com

When science worships its own shadow

On trees, eclipses, and the perils of belief

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Joseph D. Birch @josephdbirch.bsky.social · 16/02/2026

Do arborglyphs hurt aspen? In our newest paper we examined the ecological effects of arborglyphs. Aspen with arborglyphs had 19% faster radial growth, and no 10-yr mortality bump. This is likely because people carve the healthiest and largest trees! www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

sciencedirect.com

American graffiti: Spatial distribution and ecological consequences of aspen arborglyphs

Aspen (Populus tremuloides Michaux) is perhaps the most iconic tree species of the American West. The thin, white bark of aspen has long been a canvas…

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Joseph D. Birch @josephdbirch.bsky.social · 18/09/2025

A short clip of the 2025 Dillon wildfire in northern California. We (the USFS Fire Behavior Assessment Team) took immediate pre-, active-, and post-fire measurements of this and other forests to understand how fire behavior shapes forest health.

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Joseph D. Birch @josephdbirch.bsky.social · 18/06/2025

Great visualization of the 'dripline' on trees. Fallen needles accumulate just under this tree in the golden trout wilderness.

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Joseph D. Birch @josephdbirch.bsky.social · 03/03/2025

Sekhmet wants a phone of her own.

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Joseph D. Birch @josephdbirch.bsky.social · 08/02/2025

Our newest study is out today! We found that 9 y after fire there were HUGE differences in bacterial and fungal communities between neighboring burned soils and small unburned refugia. Contact me directly if you can't access the paper and I will email you a pdf copy! doi.org/10.1016/j.sc...

doi.org

Redirecting

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Joseph D. Birch @josephdbirch.bsky.social · 23/12/2024

Arborglyphs are fascinating, complex, and controversial. I always feel terrible for the tree and the damage it has suffered! However, this is something quite cool with finding one like this one - in southern Utah.

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Joseph D. Birch @josephdbirch.bsky.social · 15/12/2024

Despite my past trauma with bark beetles 🐞, I still find their galleries beautiful (so long as they are not in my ear)!

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Joseph D. Birch @josephdbirch.bsky.social · 11/12/2024

Meet Ol' Blue - the world's oldest blue spruce. Seen here getting a hug on its 457th birthday. We made it a cake, gave it a party hat, and sang it a song.

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Joseph D. Birch @josephdbirch.bsky.social · 10/12/2024

Tree rings a beautiful! This is an image of a Great Basin bristlecone pine (Pinus longaeva) core with the years 1999 - 2017 visible (oldest on the left). The four pencil dots mark the year 2000 and the paired dots mark a missing ring (2002) which was extremely dry at this site.

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Reposted by Joseph D. Birch

lukelukeluke @lukelukeluke.bsky.social · 04/12/2024

Here are some nice mushrooms

Hundreds of delicate gray Mycena semivestipes mushrooms grow up the side of a mossy log under gray winter skies

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Reposted by Joseph D. Birch

Steve Voelker @thetreecorener.bsky.social · 13/11/2024

If you know someone that is looking for a grad student opportunity in 2025 in fire ecology / dendroecology / spatial analyses -- please pass on this announcement. Julia Burton, Jed Meunier, Eric Rebitzke and myself are looking for a student to join our team and be based here at Michigan Tech.

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Reposted by Joseph D. Birch

molly conger @socialistdogmom.bsky.social · 02/12/2024

i need a shock collar that punishes me for trying to do more research once i’ve decided it’s time to start writing.

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Joseph D. Birch @josephdbirch.bsky.social · 03/12/2024

Call me Celebrimbor for I just made a ring from 2000 y old wood!

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Joseph D. Birch @josephdbirch.bsky.social · 03/12/2024

Sometimes I wish I was a cat so I could snuggle under a blanket and forget about things for a while...

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Joseph D. Birch @josephdbirch.bsky.social · 25/11/2024

Biodiversity is all around us if we know how/where to look!

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Joseph D. Birch @josephdbirch.bsky.social · 25/11/2024

Our new paper is out on the dendroclimatology of Picea pungens (blue spruce) and Picea engelmannii (Engelmann spuce)! We describe the world's oldest blue spruce (Ol' Blue) and how each species responds to climate. Read more here: doi.org/10.1002/ecs2...

doi.org

Spruce up your climate analysis: Dendroclimatology of Picea engelmannii and Picea pungens

Warming and more variable climates threaten to upend historical tree ranges, climatic sensitivity, and vigor. In western North America, the species Picea engelmannii var. engelmannii Parry ex Engelma....

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