Donald J. Leopold

Donald J. Leopold
Distinguished Teaching Professor
Department of Environmental and Forest Biology
SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry

Grants Received
(nearly $20 million total, as PI or co-PI)

Restoring small ephemeral wetlands in forested landscapes of New York State; USDA CSREES (SUNY-ESF McIntire-Stennis program), $89,850; August 2009 to September 2012; J.P. Gibbs, J.C. Stella, D.J. Leopold, and K.S. Schulz

Student internship program; NYS-DEC, $24, 297; March 2008 to February 2013; J.P. Gibbs and D.J. Leopold.

Evaluating environmental impacts of transgenic American chestnut trees to chestnut trees produced by conventional breeding; USDA CSREES Biotechnology Risk Assessment Grants (BRAG) program, $380,000; September 2008-Ausust 2011; W.A. Powell, C.A. Maynard, T.R. Horton, D. Parry, and D.J. Leopold

Environmental Scholars; A scholarship program in Environmental Chemistry, Biology, and Engineering; National Science Foundation, $600,000; March 2009 to February 2013; K. donaghy, D.J. Leopold, J.P. Hassett, J.M. Hassett, and J.E. Turbeville.

Environmental science to promote sustainable urban, rural and indigenous communutues; National Science Foundation; $1,638,333; March 2007 to February 2010; D.J. Leopold, R. Beal, C. M. Spuches, and D.J. Raynal.

Inventory and analysis of vegetationin remnant inland salt marshes of New York; Biodiversity Research Institute; $39.467; April 2007 to December 2007

A collaborative approach to conservation biology and entrepreneurship: Realizing student and community engagement throught the conservationm and use of native plants; John Ben Snow Foundation; $18,500; September 2006 to February 2007; C. Spuches and D. J. Leopold.

Environmental influences on plant diversity in rich fens of central New York: A multiscale analysis; Biodiversity Research Institute $18,014; November 2006 to December 2007; D. J. Leopold

Invasive plants program coordinator, NYS-DEC; $69,567 (January 2006 to June 2007), D.J. Leopold.

Ashokan Model Forest Study; USGS; $306,971; September 2006 to August 2007; D.J. Leopold and R. H. Germain.

An assessment of conservation value of the Honeywell International, Inc.'s Hudson Farm Property; Honeywell $23,000 (April 2005 to February 2006), J.P. Gibbs and D.J. Leopold.

Spatial distribution and habitat preferences of Hydrastis canadensis (golden seal) in New York State; Biodiversity Research Institute, $8,892; September 2004 to August 2005, D.J. Leopold.

Distribution, abundance, and ecology of round-leaved orchids in New York State; Biodiversity Research Institute; $10,980; May to December 2005; D.J. Leopold

Genetic diversity of Lupinus perennis; NYS-DEC; $80,000 (April 2005 to March 2008); J.P. Gibbs, D.J. Leopold, and L.B. Smart.

Restoration of alkaline wastebeds; Honeywell; $401,000 (March 2005 to May 2007); D.J. Leopold.

Effects of New York State roadways on amphibians and reptiles: A research and adaptive mitigation program; NYS-DOT; $267,114 (January 2005 to December 2008); J.P. Gibbs, D.J. Leopold, and P.K. Ducey.

Onondaga Creek Habitat Restoration Demonstration Initiative; US EPA; $350,000 (August 2004 to July 2007); T.A. Endreny and D.J. Leopold.

Fertilizer from pulp and paper and waste: The utility and ecology of fertilization with biologically nitrogen-enriched waste; USDA-CSREES/NRI; $380,000 (August 2003 to July 2006); D.J. Leopold, T. Amidon, D. Daley, J. Nakas, and G. Scott.

Aquatic nuisance species: Ecology and control of the invasive plant Hydrocharis morsus-ranae in eastern Lake Ontario and St. Lawerence River wetlands; NOHA/NYS Sea Grant; $128,708 (June 2003 to May 2005); D.J. Leopold, D. Parry, K. Schulz, and J. Farrell.

Lake Ontario's dynamic coast: Analyzing ecosystem history for sustaining environmental health; New York State Great Lakes Protection Funds; $200,000 (January 2003 - December 2005); N.G. Hairston. Jr., L. Wagenet, D.J. Leopold, D.M. Peteet, and C.T. Driscoll, Jr.

A landscape approach to predicting and evaluating vulnerable wetland ecosystems; US EPA; $118,135 (October 2002 to December 2005); D.J. Leopold.

An assessment of forest health and soil nutrient status to determine the effects logging practices on water quality in watersheds draining the Catskill Mountains, NY; US Geological Survey; $547,701 (October 2002 to August 2005); D.J. Leopold.

Health and sustainability of New York forests in relation to beech bark disease; US Forest Service; $40,700 (May 2002 to April 2005); P.D. Manion and D.J. Leopold.

Onondaga Creek restoration feasibility study: controlling for flooding and water quality, and enhancing natural processes; US Housing and Urban Development Initiative; $200,000 (January 2002 to December 2004); T.A. Endreny and D.J. Leopold.

Plant and waterbird diversity relative to water levels in Lake Ontario/St. Lawerce River region; International Joint Commission; $58,312 (September 2001 to November 2002); D.J. Leopold and J.P. Gibbs.

Nelson Swamp Unique Area research; New York State Department of Environmental Conservation; $9,000 (May 2001 to January 2005); D.J. Leopold.

Development and application of methods to predict occurrence of plant heritage elements on New York State Forest Lands; New York Department of Environmental Conservation; $165,428 (May 2001 to May 2005); D.J. Leopold.

A random sample system for accessing forest health on New York State Forest Lands. New York State Department of Environmental Conservation; $112,000 (May 2001 to April 2003); D.J. Leopold.

A random sample system for accessing forest health on New York State Forest Lands. Addendum - Ecological community classification component; New York State Department of Environmental Conservation; $24,800 (May 2001 to April 2002); P.D. Manion and D.J. Leopold.

Effects of Northern New York ice storm on forest communities, Addendum; U.S. Forest Service; $20,000 (May 2001 to August 2002); D.J. Leopold.

Karner blue and the pine-oak barrens educational modules; Niagara Mohawk; $3,000 (January to December 2001); D.J. Leopold.

The role of disturbance in the long-term viability of a coastal maritime forest fragment; USGS, National Park Service; $134,065 (October 2000 to September 2004); D.J. Lopold and H.B. Underwood.

Biocomplexity: Physical, biological, and human interactions shaping the ecosystems of freshwater bays and lagoons; National Science Foundation; $3,000,000 (October 2000 to September 2005); M. Bain, E.A. Cowen, D.P. Loucks, N. Hairston, Jr., R.J. Pendall, D.J. Leopold, C. Driscoll, and S. Ellner.

Chemical analysis of stream water samples; USDI National Park Service; $2,495 (October 2000 to May 2001); D.J. Raynal and D.J. Leopold.

Analysis of vegetation and soil solution in the Catskill Mountains, NY; US Forest Service; $10,000 (June 2000 to September 2001); D.J. Raynal and D.J. Leopold.

A random sample system for accessing forest health on New York State Forest Lands; New York State Department of Environmental Conservation; $70,000 (May 2000 to April 2001); P.D. Manion and D.J. Leopold.

Restoration of coastal wetlands in the St. Lawrence River through re-establishment of natural hydrologic regimes; Great Lakes Protection Fund; $222,000 (October 1999 to December 2002); J.M. Farrell and D.J. Leopold.

Conservation and management of New York fens: Plant diversity, nutrient availability, and landscape controls; The Nature Conservancy's Ecosystem Research Program; $238,526 (May 1999 to April 2002); B. Bedford (Cornell) and D.J. Leopold.

Effects of northern New York ice storm on forest communities; U.S. Forest Service; $863,000 (January 1999 to April 2001); D.J. Leopold, J.P. Gibbs, and R.D. Nyland.

Studies of nitrogen movement in Adirondack mountain wetland ecosystems; Niagara Mohawk Power Corporation; $86,783 (June to December 1998); D.J. Raynal, M.J. Mitchell, and D.J. Leopold.

Continuation of Adirondack Manipulation and Modeling Project; ESEERCO; $700,000 (June 1998 to December 2000); M.J. Mitchell, D.J. Leopold, D.J. Raynal, R.D. Briggs, and C.T. Driscoll.

Demographic studies of hart's-tongue fern; New York Department of Environmental Conservation; $12,000 (June 1998 to December 2002); D.J. Leopold.

Allelic diversity in Adirondack forest stands: Old-growth versus managed stands, McIntire-Stennis (USDA); $48,073 (May 1998 - September 2000), J.P. Gibbs, D.J. Leopold, S.O. Rogers, and W.J. Hahn.

Selective timber harvest as a tool to promote plant species of concern and regeneration in forested wetlands; NYS-DEC; $5,000 (January to August 1998); D.J. Leopold.

Landowner guide to state-protected plants of forests in New York State; New York Center for Forestry Research and Development; $20,000 (January to August 1998); D.J. Raynal and D.J. Leopold.

A Native American model for environmental restoration and community enhancement; USDA Fund for Rural America; $300,000 (January 1998 to December 2001); R.W. Kimmerer, N.H. Ringler, M.R. Bridgen, D.J. Leopold, S.L. Senecah, and G.L. Godfrey.

Effects of timber harvest and natural gap dynamics on plant biodiversity and tree regeneration in a central New York forested wetland; New York Center for Forestry Research and Development; $32,724 (January to August 1997, January to August 1998); D.J. Leopold.

Curriculum development: Native American perspectives on resource management; USDA-CSREES; $79,978 (September 1996 to August 1998); R.W. Kimmerer, M.R. Bridgen, N.H. Ringler, D.J. Leopold, and J.P. Manno.

The influence of structural heterogeneity on biodiversity within managed, maturing and old-growth northern hardwood stands; implications for ecosystem management; USDA Co-Op (McIntire-Stennis); $82,671 (May 1996 to September 1999); D.J. Leopold., R.D. Nyland, R.W. Kimmerer, and J.J. Worrall.

Ash yellows in New York State: assessing risk with predictive models; New York Center for Forestry Research and Development; $13,990 (January to September 1996); J.D. Castello, D.J. Leopold, and N.G. Gaus.

Monitoring vegetation along Empire State Pipeline; ANR Pipeline Co.; $3,500 (September to December 1995); D.J. Leopold.

Utility right-of-way management in Karner blue butterfly habitat areas; Niagara Mohawk Power Corporation; $425,000 (June 1995 to December 2002); D.J. Leopold, P.J. Smallidge and L.P. Abrahamson.

Role of vegetation on nitrogen movement and in identifying hydrologically- sensitive areas in Catskill watersheds; U.S. Geological Survey; $267,684 (May 1995 to December 1999); D.J. Raynal and D.J. Leopold.

Vascular plant species richness and rarity in wetlands on electric power rights-of-way in New York; Empire State Electric Energy Research Corporation; $37,490 (December 1994 to December 1995); D.J. Leopold, D.J. Raynal and L.P. Abrahamson.

Topsoil as a method of restoring abandoned agricultural mucklands: role of the seed bank; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; $32,500 (October 1994 to December 1995); D.J. Leopold and S.V. Stehman.

Restoration potential of abandoned agricultural wetlands in the Great Lakes Region; Great Lakes Protection Fund; $23,000 (October 1994 to March 1995) D.J. Leopold, R. Smardon, and S. Stehman.

Long-term demographic and genetic diversity studies of Asplenium scolopendrium var. americanum; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; $12,500 (May 1994 to May 1995); D.J. Leopold.

Ecological models for The Nature Conservancy preserves in central and western New York; The Nature Conservancy; $7,000 (December 1993 to June 1994); D.J. Leopold.

Critical habitat for plant species and communities - a landscape ecology perspective; USDA Forest Service; $30,000 (July 1993 to June 1996); D.J. Leopold.

Support for photographs to be used in: Leopold, D.J., W.C. McComb, and R.N. Muller. 1998. Trees of the Central Hardwood Forests - An Identification and Cultivation Guide, Timber Press, Inc. , Portland, OR, 512 p.; $750 (July 1993 to June 1994); D.J. Leopold.

Forest succession on abandoned agricultural wetlands; USDA Co-op (McIntire-Stennis); $41,110 (2 years beginning May 1993); D.J. Leopold and S.V. Stehman.

Spatial patterns during succession in abandoned agricultural wetlands; National Science Foundation, Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Program; $5,178 (September 1992 to August 1994); D.J. Leopold and A.S. Fisher.

Pathogen incidence and rate of spread: Impact of habitat and landscape attributes; USDA-NRICGP; $200,000 (3 years beginning September 1992); D.J. Leopold, J.D. Castello, and C.J. Davis.

Evaluation of Karner blue (Lycaeides melissa samuelis Nabokov) habitat beneath transmission line rights-of-way in Albany and Schenectady Counties, New York; Niagara Mohawk Power Corporation; $54,500 (May to December 1992); D.J. Leopold.

Status of Onondaga Lake plant and wildlife populations and communities; Onondaga Lake Management Conference; $5,000 (May to July 1992); L. VanDruff and D.J. Leopold.

Introduction of Phyllitis scolopendrium var. americana to new sites in central New York: The Nature Conservancy-New York Field Office, New York Natural Heritage Program and NYS-DEC (Section 6 Funds from USFWS); $6,700 (4 years beginning June 1991); D.J. Leopold.

Dry Lake basin siltation mitigation; GSA Development Corp.; $3,000 (June 1991 to December 1992); D.J. Leopold.

Management of spreading globeflower (Trollius laxus ssp. laxus) in central New York; NYS-DEC Forest Stewardship Program; $12,400 (2 years beginning April 1991); D.J. Leopold.

Rights-of-way stability: A 15-year appraisal of plant dynamics on electric power rights-of-way in New York State; Empire State Electric Energy Research Corporation; $147,690 (3.5 years beginning March 1991); L. Abrahamson, D.J. Raynal, C.A. Nowak, and D.J. Leopold.

Ecology of the eastern massasauga; American Wildlife Reasearch Foundation, Inc.; $4,000 (2 years beginning January 1991); D.J. Leopold and G. Johnson.

Search for new Phyllitis scolopendrium var. americana in central New York; The Nature Conservancy - New York Field Office and New York Natural Heritage Program; $2,500 (1 year, beginning June 1990); D.J. Leopold.

Vegetation responses following prescribed burning; USDA Co-op; $60,000 (3 years, beginning May 1, 1990); R. Nyland, L. Abrahamson, and D.J. Leopold.

Inventory and analysis of small islands and emergent shoals and recommendations for their protection, St. Lawrence River, Thousand Islands Area; St. Lawrence-Eastern Ontario Commission; $10,000 (1 year beginning July 1989); D.J. Leopold, S.R. LaPan, and R.C. Smardon.

Inventory and analysis of wetlands and shoals in the Thousand Islands Area; Thousand Islands Land Trust; $7,000 (1 year, beginning February 1989); D.J. Leopold.

Botanical survey at Blueberry Patch, Finger Lakes National Forest and Effects of prescribed fire on oak reproduction; USDA Forest Service; $6,500 (1 year, beginning September 1988); D.J. Leopold and R. D. Nyland.

Effects of liming on terrestrial vegetation; Cornell University; $120,000 (3 years, beginning September 1988); D.J. Raynal and D.J. Leopold.

Status of Cypripedium candidum in rich fen in western New York; SUNY New Faculty Development Award; $700 (1 year beginning November 1987).

Ecological consequences of ash decline and relationship of disease to drought; USDA Co-op (McIntire-Stennis); $47,387 (3 years beginning October 1986); D.J. Leopold and J.D. Castello.