Professor

Research and/or Creative Works

A fundamental goal of ecologists is to understand how interactions among species govern their abundance and design. Most studies examine the interactions between two species to determine, e.g., how a particular trait evolved or how one species affects another's ecology or evolution. Although examining two species interactions is tractable and provides us with a great deal of information, I believe that one must study a multitude of interactions to fully understand the patterns we observe in nature and to understand the forces that govern species abundance, distribution, population- and community-dynamics.

I am interested in the ecological and evolutionary consequences of multiple species interactions. Specifically, my work focuses on the interactions among antagonists (e.g., herbivores, seed predators and pollen thieves) and mutualists (e.g., pollinators and mycorrhizal fungi).

My current work focuses on two major questions: (1) How do direct and indirect interactions among multiple species affect the ecology and evolution of host plants traits and affect population and community dynamics? (2) How do belowground interactions between plants and mycorrhizal fungi affect interactions aboveground between plants, pollinators, and herbivores?

Areas of Expertise and/or Research

Plant-animal interactions

Education

  • Ph.D., University of California-Davis, 1991
  • Albertson College of Idaho 1992-1993, Visiting Assistant Professor
  • Stanford University 93-94, Postdoctoral Fellow

Contact

Phone:
  • (802) 656-0449
Office Location:

Marsh Life Science Building, Rm 205A

Website(s):
  1. Brody Lab