Campus Directory

Pronouns she, her, her, hers, herself

Division Physical & Biological Sciences Division

Department/College/Unit Ecology & Evolutionary Biology Department

Title Professor

Affiliation Faculty

Other UCSC Campus Affiliation Environmental Studies Department
Rachel Carson College

Faculty Type Regular Faculty

Areas of Expertise Ecology
Plant Biology
Conservation
Land Management
Evolution
Population Biology

Web Site

Primary Office Location CSC Coastal Biology Building
260

Office Hours Fall 2022: Tuesdays 11-12, https://ucsc.zoom.us/j/2775049074?pwd=VkdkTzdqcS84ZXlWQWErU3RxaFlldz09, and by appointment.

Mail Stop CBB/EE Biology

Biography, Education and Training

A.B., University of Chicago
Ph.D., University of Washington
Miller Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Integrative Biology, UC Berkeley

Research Associate, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Panama

Summary of Expertise

Plant ecology and evolution, invasion biology, plant conservation, restoration

Research Interests

Plant Ecology, Biology Of Species Invasions, Disease Ecology

I seek to understand what controls plant distribution and abundance, with an emphasis on species interactions. Much of my current work focuses on the evolutionary ecology of plant-insect mutualisms and plant-pathogen interactions.

For many of my research questions I use biological invasions as a tool to study ecological processes. Exotic species, which can be seen as perturbations to natural communities, give us an opportunity to study ecological and evolutionary shifts in response to new conditions and new species interactions. 

Biological invasions are also one of the most urgent conservation issues of our time. I have an interest in both documenting the ecological impacts of particular invasions, and understanding the biological mechanisms behind those impacts. At the interface between science and policy, can we use theoretical ecology to help make better prioritization decisions for species eradication or control? Can we accurately assess the risk of introducing new species?

Awards, Honors and Grants

Fellow, Ecological Society of America

Fellow, California Academy of Sciences

UCSC Committee on Teaching, Excellence in Teaching Award

Chancellor’s Achievement Award for Diversity

Fulbright Fellow

First recipient, Jean H. Langenheim Endowed Chair in Plant Ecology and Evolution

Jane Block Distinguished Lecture in Conservation Biology, at The Center for Conservation Biology, University of California, Riverside

Walton Lecture Recipient, Mountain Lake Biological Station, University of Virginia

University of Washington’s first annual “Leaders in Biology” speaker

Advisees, Grad Students & Researchers Grove, Sara (sgrove)
Lustenhouwer, Nicky (nlustenh)
Melen, Miranda (mkmelen)
Lai, Edith (edylai)
Barasi, Serena (sbarasi)

Courses Plant Ecology (BIOE 145)
Advanced Evolutionary Biology (BIOE 279)
Field Methods in Plant Ecology (BIOE 145L)
Introduction to Field Ecology and Conservation (BIOE 82)
Plants and Society (BIOE 118)