How do species’ demographic performance depend on broad climate gradients, landscape disturbances, and local species interactions?
We have two primary projects addressing this overarching question:
1) How will species interactions mediate forest responses to changing climate?
The Pacific Slope (California, Oregon, Washington) is a great place to do ecological research because of its many strong environmental gradients. We are collaborating to carry out a unique multi-taxa transplant experiment at the H.J. Andrews LTER , across a large elevation / environmental gradient, to test how species interactions depend on microclimate and fire disturbance history. A long-term goal is to build models predicting how species interactions may influence species responses to changing climate. Focal taxa include trees, bryophytes and lichens.
Collaborators:
- Posy Busby (OSU), Amelia Fitch (OSU), Joe LaManna (Marquette University), Matt Betts (OSU), Mark Schulze (LTER, OSU), Bruce McCune (OSU), Andy Jones (OSU)
- Remarkable field crew of collaborators: Katelin Kutella, Yausi Khajavei, Libby Taylor-Manning,
- Graduate students: Meghan Lake, Abigail Neat (OSU), Joe Gagne (OSU)…
2) How will forest demography (trees and understories) change with increased climate variability?
We are collaborating with Joe LaManna and Dave Bell to develop and use a Smithsonian forest dynamics plot that Joe initiated to ask questions about how plant demography varies across elevation gradients in relation to temperature and available moisture in order to test how climate and biotic interactions combine to affect species distributions and coexistence.
All of this work currently takes place at the famous and lovely H.J. Andrews LTER , just an hour east of Eugene.
