Education

• Ph.D.   Environmental and Forest Biology. 1996. State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry
• B.S. Biological Science. 1980.  Michigan Technological University  cum laude

Research Interests/Endeavors:
My research interest is unraveling how ecosystems respond to disturbance events. These disturbances vary from those that have occurred through evolutionary time: hurricanes, fires, flood/droughts, and those driven by humans: invasive species, human development, climate change, and restoration. This work is focused in southwest Florida but involves a variety of ecosystems and taxa.

Currently we are: exploring patterns of anuran communities through time in southwest Florida as indicators of environmental change, monitoring interactions of the invasive Burmese python with the native eastern indigo snake, tracking the vectors of change in Lake Trafford following restoration dredging, analyzing the impact of mosquito control on non-target organisms, continuing work on restoration of submerged aquatic vegetation in the Caloosahatchee River, and tracking long-term growth in multiple forest plots in the region toward quantifying carbon dynamics.

Background/Bio/Personal Info:
I grew up in Detroit, Michigan, but have lived in Oregon, Wisconsin, Malawi, New York, Puerto Rico, and Virginia before settling in Florida in 1996 to help start Florida Gulf Coast University. I love my job here! For me, it is a perfect mix of being both a teacher and a scientist.

Ecology is not rocket science – it is much more complicated than that!

Relevant Links:

Extended CV