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Department of

Earth & Environmental Sciences

Lehigh University campus fall aerial view
Beth Norman, visiting faculty in Lehigh's earth and environmental sciences department

Beth Norman

Visiting Faculty

610.758.6751
ben224@lehigh.edu
Education:

B.S. Biology, Bridgewater College, 2002

M.S. Biology, James Madison University, 2006

PhD. Biological Sciences, Virginia Tech, 2012

Postdoctoral Fellow, Trent University, 2012-2013

Postdoctoral Research Associate, Michigan State University, 2014-2018

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Research Areas

Additional Interests

  • Freshwater Ecosystem Ecology
  • Coupled nitrogen and carbon dynamics in heterotrophic streams
  • Cyanobacteria bloom dynamics in inland lakes
  • Community outreach and education

Research Statement

I am an ecosystem ecologist broadly interested in how organisms and interactions among organisms influence aquatic ecosystem structure and function in the face of global change. I conduct much of my research in freshwater ecosystems including streams, lakes, and water-filled tree holes. I use manipulative experiments and natural studies at spatial scales ranging from in situ enclosures to whole ecosystems. 

Specific areas of research that interest me include investigating how microbes process carbon and nutrients in freshwater ecosystems and how these dynamics are affected by eutrophication. This was the focus of my dissertation as well as a more recent collaboration that produced a global synthesis of more than 200 published studies and showed that decomposing litter in streams is generally a net source of nitrogen but that nitrogen-poor litter types may be nitrogen sinks. Another collaborative effort using the spatially extensive Lotic Intersite Nitrogen Experiment dataset focused on trophic transfer of nitrogen in these systems and found that foodwebs based on primary production and herbivory transferred nitrogen more efficiently than those based on detritivory. I also have several on-going projects and collaborations focused on the Pocono Mountain region of Northeastern Pennsylvania. Many Pocono lakes are experiencing degrading water quality due to eutrophication, invasive species, and climate change. A particularly concerning consequence in some lakes is an increase in toxic cyanobacteria harmful algal blooms (cyanoHABs). My work is aimed at understanding the drivers of cyanoHAB severity, frequency, and toxicity as well as understanding correlations among commonly measured indicators (e.g., algal biomass, water clarity, visual cues) and toxicity. I conduct much of this work in my role as Director of Science and Research at Lacwac Sanctuary Field Station and Environmental Education Center in Lake Ariel PA where I run the Pocono Lake Ecological Observatory Network. 

Biography

I am from southern New Hampshire where I grew up exploring forests, wading in streams, and swimming in lakes. I don’t remember ever wanting to be anything other than an ecologist. After receiving my B.S. in Biology, I taught high school science and math before returning to graduate school for an M.S. and PhD, also in Biology. I completed two postdoctoral fellowships before becoming the Director of Science and Research at Lacawac Sanctuary Field Station and Environmental Education Center. Field stations have played a formative role in my career; I was introduced to field stations as a graduate student working at the Coweeta Hydrologic Laboratory in North Carolina and have since worked at several field stations including the Experimental Lakes Area, Kellogg Biological Field Station, and of course, Lacawac Sanctuary. I have also served as the secretary of the Organization of Biological Field Stations. The field station community has provided me with formative research, education, and networking opportunities and I love introducing students to these amazing places. I have mentored some exceptional research students over the years and a desire to return to teaching brought me back to academia as a visiting assistant professor, first at Lafayette College and then Lehigh. 

Moon, J. B., B. C. Norman, E. Shdaimah*, N. Fetcher, S. M. Fennessey. 2025. White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) exclusion shifts soil carbon dynamics in mature oak-dominated and hemlock-dominated forest stands. Ecosystems 28 doi.org/10.1007/s10021-024-00960-7

Robbins, C., B. C. Norman, H. Halvorson, D. Manning, E. Bastias, C. Biasi, A. Dodd, R. Eckert, A. Gossiaux, J. Jabiol, A. Mehring, A. Pastor. 2023. Nutrient and stoichiometric time series measurements of decomposing coarse detritus in freshwaters. Ecology 104:e4114. doi.org/10.1002/ecy.4114

Robbins, C., D. Manning, H. Halvorson, B. C. Norman, R. Eckert, A. Pastor, A. Dodd, J. Jabiol, E.  Bastias, A. Gossiaux, A. Mehring. 2023. Nutrient and stoichiometry dynamics of decomposing litter in stream ecosystems: A global synthesis. Ecology 104:e4060. doi: 10.1002/ecy.4060

Volponi, S. N., H. L., Wander, D. C. Richardson, C. J. Williams, D. A. Bruesewitz, S. S. Arnott, J. A. Brentrup, H. L. Edwards, H. A. Ewing, K. Holeck, L. Johnson, B. S. Kim, A. M. Morales-Williams, N. Nadkarni, B. C. Norman, L. Parmalee, A. Shultis, A.Tracy, N. K. Ward, K. C. Weathers, C. R. Wigdahl-Perry, K. Yokota. 2023. Nutrient function over form: Organic and inorganic nitrogen additions have similar effects on lake phytoplankton nutrient limitation. Limnology and Oceanography 68: 307-321. doi.org/10.1002/lno.12270

Robbins, C. J., B. C. Norman, H. M. Halvorson, D. W. Manning, E. Bastias, C. Biasi, A. K. Dodd, R. A.  Eckert, A. Gossiaux, J. Jabiol, A. S. Mehring, A. Pastor. 2022. Nutrient and stoichiometric time series measurements of decomposing coarse detritus in freshwaters worldwide from literature published between 1976-2020. ver 1. Environmental Data Initiative. https://doi.org/10.6073/pasta/f53d35244db9a38da0cd7d2e37503270 (Accessed 2023-01-09).

Norman, B. C., P. C. Frost, G. C. Blakelock, S. N. Higgins, M. E. Hoque, J. L. Vincent, K. Cetinic, M. A.  Xenopoulos. 2019. Muted responses to Ag accumulation by plankton to chronic and pulse exposure to silver nanoparticles in a boreal lake. FACETS 4: 566–583. doi:10.1139/facets-2018-0047

Norman, B. C. and E. D. Walker. 2019. Succession of bacteria and fungi in leaf litter of tree hole habitats: responses of diversity to mosquito larvae. Aquatic Microbial Ecology 83:237-250

Norman, B. C. and E. D. Walker. Conditioning of leaf detritus modulates density-dependent growth of Aedes triseriatus larvae (Diptera: Culicidae). 2018. Journal of Medical Entomology 55:342-350. DOI: 10.1093/jme/tjx209

Tank J. L., E. Martí, T. Riis, D. von Schiller, A. J. Reisinger, W. K. Dodds, M. R. Whiles, L. R. Ashkenas, W. B. Bowden, S. M. Collins, C. L. Crenshaw, T. A. Crowl, N. A. Griffiths, N. B. Grimm, S. K. Hamilton, S. L. Johnson, W. H. McDowell, B. C. Norman, E. J. Rosi-Marshall, K. S. Simon, S. A. Thomas, J. R. Webster. 2018. Partitioning assimilatory nitrogen uptake in streams: an analysis of stable isotope tracer additions across continents. Ecological Monographs 88:120-138

Norman, B. C., M. R. Whiles, S. M.  Collins, A. S. Flecker, S. K. Hamilton, S. Johnson, E. J. Rosi-Marshall, C. L. Crenshaw, T. Crowl, W. K. Dodds, R. O. Hall, R. El-Sabaawi, N. A. Griffiths, E. Marti, W. H. McDowell, S. D. Peterson, H. M. Rantala, T. Riis, K. S. Simon, J. L. Tank, S. A. Thomas, and J. R. Webster. 2017. Drivers of nitrogen transfer in stream food webs across continents. Ecology 98: 3044-3055

Vincent, J. L., M. J. Patterson, B. C. Norman, E. P. Gray, J. F. Ranville, A. B. Scott, P. C. Frost, and M. A. Xenopoulos. 2017. Chronic and pulse exposure effects of silver nanoparticles on natural lake phytoplankton and zooplankton. Ecotoxicology 26:502–515

Chen, S., J. Zhao, D. Joshi, Z. Xi, B. C. Norman, and E. Walker. 2016. Persistent infection by Wolbachia wAlbB has no effect on composition of the gut microbiota in adult female Anopheles stephensi. Frontiers in Microbiology 7: DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2016.01485

Blakelock, G. C., M. A. Xenopoulos, B. C. Norman, J. L. Vincent, and P. C. Frost. 2016. Effects of silver nanoparticles on bacterioplankton in a boreal lake. Freshwater Biology 61:2211-2220

Furtado, L. M., B. C. Norman, M. A. Xenopoulos, P. C. Frost, C. D. Metcalfe, and H. Hintelmann. 2015. Environmental fate of silver nanoparticles in boreal lake ecosystems. Environmental Science & Technology 49: 8441-8450

Norman, B. C., M. A. Xenopoulos, D. Braun*, and P. C. Frost. 2015. Phosphorus availability alters the effects of silver nanoparticles on periphyton growth and stoichiometry. PLoS ONE 10(6): e0129328. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0129328

Dodds, W. K., S. M. Collins, S. K. Hamilton, J. L. Tank, S. Johnson, J. R. Webster, K. S. Simon, M. R. Whiles, H. M. Rantala, W. H. McDowell, S. D. Peterson, T. Riis, C. L. Crenshaw, S. A. Thomas, P. B. Kristensen, B. M. Cheever, A. S. Flecker, N.A. Griffiths, T. Crowl, E. J. Rosi-Marshall, R. El-Sabaawi, and E. Martí. 2014. You are not always what we think you eat: selective assimilation across multiple whole-stream isotopic tracer studies. Ecology. 95:2757–2767

Cheever, B. M. and J. R. Webster. 2014. Effects of consumers and nitrogen availability on heterotrophic microbial activity during leaf decomposition in headwater streams. Freshwater Biology 59:1768-1780

Furtado, L. M., M. E. Hoque, D. Mitrano, J. Ranville, B. M. Cheever, P. C. Frost, M. A. Xenopoulos, H. Hintelmann, and C. D. Metcalfe. 2014. The persistence and transformation of silver nanoparticles in littoral lake mesocosms monitored using various analytical techniques. Environmental Chemistry 11:419-430.

Cheever, B. M., J. R. Webster, E. E. Bilger, and S. A. Thomas. 2013. The relative importance of exogenous and substrate derived nitrogen for microbial growth during leaf decomposition. Ecology 94: 1614-1625.

Northington, R. M., J. R. Webster, E. F. Benfield, B. M. Cheever, and B. R. Niederlehner.  2013. Ecosystem function in Appalachian headwater streams during an active invasion by the hemlock woolly adelgid. PLOS ONE 8 (4): e61171. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0061171

Cheever, B. M., E. B. Kratzer, and J. R. Webster. 2012. Immobilization and mineralization of N and P by heterotrophic biofilms during leaf decomposition. Freshwater Science 31: 133-147.

Cheever, B. M. and K. S. Simon. 2009. Seasonal influence of brook trout and mottled sculpin on lower trophic levels in an Appalachian stream. Freshwater Biology 54: 524-535.

Teaching

EES 098: Imperiled Freshwaters
EES 095: Food Webs in Ecosystems