Does insect herbivory affect compensation following dominant plant species loss?

Since 2021 in an old field at Matthaei Botanical Garden in Ann Arbor, I, along with several University of Michigan undergraduates, have been studying the effect of the dominant species Solidago canadensis (Canada goldenrod) on the rest of the plant community and associated arthropods using a dominant species removal experiment. More recently, I have been interested in the top down effects of insect herbivores on plant community structure and ecosystem function. In particular, I investigate whether consumption of plant material by insects limits the extent to which remaining plant species are able to increase their biomass and maintain productivity following S. canadensis loss.

What are the combined and interactive effects of precipitation and insect herbivory on plant community structure and ecosystem function?

At the University of Michigan Biological Station in Pellston, Michigan I have established a precipitation and insect herbivory manipulation experiment. In an old-field ecosystem, I constructed insect enclosures to control both the presence and density of insect herbivores. Above these enclosures, I constructed rainout shelters designed to intercept 40% of incoming precipitation to simulate future precipitation patterns in northern Michigan. With this experimental design, I test the combined and interactive effects of altered precipitation and insect herbivory on plant community composition, functional diversity, and above ground biomass.

The effect of nitrogen, warming, and grazing on plant functional traits in an alpine ecosystem.

As part of the Plant Functional Traits Course, I have had the opportunity to work at the THREE-D experiment site in Aurland, Norway. In collaboration with researchers around the world, we developed a plant functional trait collection strategy that would allow us to quantify the effects of mammalian grazing, nitrogen addition, and warming on plant functional diversity.