Jagels focuses on the species known as dawn redwood or its scientific name, Metasequoia . It was thought to be extinct until living trees were found growing in a remote part of China in the 1940s, and plantings are now common throughout the world. In his Nutting Hall office, Jagels keeps a collection of branches, seed cones, leaves and other materials from the island. After so many years, they appear only a bit worse for wear. The woody material was well preserved in the swamp where it grew, although it has been somewhat compressed Two Ph.D. candidates, Mike Day and Mei Jiang, have been participating in the work.
Day is also a research associate.
He is conducting a photosynthetic analysis of Metasequoia and comparing his results to those from other species. Jiang has helped to obtain Metasequoia samples from China and to search the scientific literature on the species. Although Maine is generally considered to be outside its range, several dawn redwoods have been planted on the UMaine campus. One stands in the courtyard of Barrows Hall, and specimens are located in the Littlefield Ornamental Garden and the Fay Hyland Arboretum. Samples of ancient larch, gingko and birch have also been recovered from the island.