Scientists

Herbivory, insect-plant-soil interactions, mutualism, and evolutionary ecology

Biogeochemistry of terrestrial ecosystems, soil organic matter dynamics, global change, land-use legacies on soils.

The principal focus of my research program is the consequences of life history and environmental change on nutrition. I work with other scientists and students to study ungulates (e.g., reindeer, caribou and muskoxen) and waterfowl (e.g., ducks and geese) as well as non-game species (e.g. porcupines) in both wild and captive populations.

My research focuses on several areas: basic studies in stand dynamics (especially development patterns of mixed species stands and density effects in single species stands); siviculture (especially economic and biodiversity issues); and forest management.

Dr. Nagorski's research includes trace metal dynamics in hydrological systems, trace metal records in ancient ice cores, streambed sediment geochemistry, and surface and ground water interactions and modeling.

My work at CRITFC includes GIS analysis, map-making, database design, and research into the effects of climate change on Columbia Basin snowpack and streams. Before working at CRITFC, I spent five years performing fisheries data collection and management in Washington and Oregon. At Portland State University, my thesis focused on using GIS as a tool to model the potential effects of climate change on a local hydrologic basin.

Past projects have involved developing forest fire mitigation strategies, habitat restoration strategies for fish and wildlife recovery, direct manipulation of species abundances for endangered species recovery, examination of climate effects and land and water resource management.

I am interested in the population and community ecology of marine algae and seagrasses. Active projects include the updating of the seaweed flora for northern California, examining the eelgrass and invertebrate response to the grazing of eelgrass by black brant geese, the examination of bottom up limiting factors to eelgrass, and the description of the phytoplankton community in the Humboldt Bay. I am also involved in CSU collaborative effort to set up an integrated ocean observation platform to monitor near shore marine water quality.

My research interests focus on effects of human activities on plants. I study effects of alternative logging methods on forest productivity and diversity I also study effects of air pollutants on plants in the field and in controlled environments. My current research also focuses on the commercial moss harvest industry in Appalachian and PNW forests.

Research centers on the ecology and biogeochemistry of forest ecosystems, as well as grassland and riparian systems. We examine how factors such as natural and human disturbances, climate and climate change, succession, and soil fertility shape ecosystem biogeochemistry - and the reciprocal effect of biogeochemical cycles on these and other factors. We are particularly interested in how activities within ecosystems shape nutrient inputs, losses, and whole-system nutrient balances, and in linkages between terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Our studies occur primarily in Pacific Northwest forests, with a strong focus on cycles of carbon and major nutrients through soils, plants, water, and air.

Nutrient cycling in natural and human-disturbed ecosystems, soil organic matter dynamics, forest biogeochemistry. My lab studies the changes in biogeochemical cycling, and the effects on the vegetative community, that has arisen from human activities.

John Kim is an ecological modeler with the Forest Science Lab and the Pacific Northwest Research Station. He studies climate change impacts on vegetation using dynamic global vegetation models. He has a Ph.D. in Fisheries and Wildlife Management from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst; an M.S. in Computer Science from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst; and a B.A. in Computer Science from University of California San Diego.

Our current research interests focus on developing conservation protocols for rare vascular plant species through (1) taxonomic investigations of poorly known populations or species proposed for legal protection under the Endangered Species Act; (2) developing methods for re-introducing and recovering populations of critically endangered species, by integrating life history studies in the field and greenhouse; and (3) evaluating the roles of pollination and floral predation in limiting rare plant species. (Courtesy)

My main research interest revolves around the expression of Armillaria root disease in the moist, mid-elevation forests of the southern interior of British Columbia. In these forest, Armillaria ostoyae is very widely distributed, but it is expressed in very different ways. In some places, the pathogen is quiescent, meaning it is present on roots, but almost exclusively restricted to callused lesions. In such stands there are virtually no above-ground symptoms and presumably little damage. On the other hand it can also be active, advancing along roots, killing trees, and spreading from tree to tree. My research is focused on the factors that lead to quiescence or active expression. The ultimate aim is to devise silvicultural approaches that will keep stands in a quiescent state.