Dissertation Research: Cascading impacts of invasive species removal by a biocontrol herbivore
The first aim of my dissertation is to understand the drivers of variation in Tamarix canopy defoliation by Diorhabda spp. I found that older trees had greater defoliation and the more time since the first defoliation event, the greater tree recovery. I used spatial models to identify patterns of defoliation that remained consistent from year to year and others that changed over time. See the full results in our paper in Biological Invasions!
The second aim of my dissertation is to understand plant community response to varied levels of biocontrol defoliation over a large geographic area. I use a functional guild approach as well as measures of functional dispersion to examine the relationship between altered resources caused by biocontrol and plant community traits. Click here to read my abstract from the River's Edge West 2021 Conference or here for the paper published in Oecologia.
Monitoring plant community response to invasive species control is a crucial aspect of ecological restoration, but species-based approaches are limited in that they do not reveal the underlying mechanisms driving plant community changes. Particularly, in the case of biological control where the impact on the target species is both spatially and temporally varied and not controlled by land managers, it is important to be able to anticipate broader ecological impacts of invasive species control. The last chapter of my dissertation examines the effect of Tamarix biocontrol during a second cycle of defoliation. I use species and functional diversity metrics to understand the trajectory of change in the understory plant community, as well as the relationship between species and functional measures over time. Check back soon for publication information!
NSF-CNH: The influence of the human element on outcomes of riparian restoration in the southwestern U.S.
I've had the pleasure of working on this awesome NSF funded project examining the intersection of human and ecological influences in Tamarix removal outcomes. The PI for this project is Dr. Anna Sher. One of the primary goals of this research was to understand whether or not scientists and land managers were communicating. The science-practice gap has often been cited as a primary obstacle in successful restoration. We found that Tamarix removal across the southwest is an exemplary case of scientists and land managers working together. For details check out our paper in Restoration Ecology. Much of this work is from the Masters thesis of Lisa B. Clark. In addition to helping write and publish that manuscript, much of my work has been on our second aim - to gauge whether all that great communication leads to better on the ground outcomes. For the answer to that question, check out our second paper on this project published in Wetlands.