CURRENT RESEARCH FOCI
RESTORATION & REGENERATION IN FRESHWATER FORESTED WETLANDSThe loss and degradation of freshwater forested wetlands give impetus for effective science-informed restoration strategies. Multiple projects in this lab characterize ecological conditions that drive swamp community composition, identify barriers to species regeneration, and explore creative new approaches to wetland restoration practices. With our on-campus greenhouses, off-campus mesocosm facility, and the Great Dismal Swamp nearby, we are able to empirically explore solutions to the restoration and conservation of this important ecosystem through both in-situ and ex-situ research.
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nature-based solutions & efficacy of living shorelinesSea level rise, erosion, and land loss presents a complex problem for coastal communities and habitats. Additionally, hardened shorelines such as bulkheads and sea walls limit the landward migration of coastal habitats and organisms. Living shorelines are one option to attenuate wave energy and protect the shoreline from degradation while providing additional ecosystem services. Our lab is involved in several partnerships that seek to quantify the ability for nature-based solutions to attenuate wave energy, accrete sediment, prevent erosion, improve marsh health, and recruit oyster spat- thus improving water quality. We work with homeowners, local non-profits, and private industry to understand factors that may contribute to the success of this nature-based solution to sea level rise.
Collaborators: Sierra Hildebrandt (VASG Fellow), Dr. Erik Yando (ODU), Dr. Navid Tavildahri (ODU), Dr. Tom Allen (ODU), George Mason University, VA Sea Grant, Chesapeake Bay Foundation, Nansemond River Preservation Alliance. |
FROM SWAMP TO SATELLITEWith a warming climate, extreme weather events, such as tornadoes, are expected to increase in frequency and severity. Understanding how habitats recover from such a disturbance is crucial for habitat management. In 2020 an EF1 tornado struck the Great Dismal Swamp, doing ~500 acres of damage through bottomland hardwood and forested wetland habitat in Virginia and North Carolina. Our team has been investigating the impacts of this extreme weather disturbance on the swamp and the swamp's recovery using both on-the-ground field sampling and remote sensing techniques such as drone and satellite imagery. This project will lie the foundation for long term monitoring and many student research and learning opportunities.
Collaborators: Drs. Erik Yando (ODU), Tom Allen (ODU), and George McLeod (ODU) Funding: VA Space Grant Consortium |
mangrove restoration in a changing climateMangrove forests are one of the most efficient ecosystems in terms of sequestering and storing carbon, and are thereby a crucial ecosystem for natural climate change solutions. Unfortunately, mangrove systems worldwide are in a state of decline- giving impetus for restoration efforts. Our lab's research in mangrove restoration, regeneration, and physiology has expanded from the Gulf Coast of the US to equatorial Singapore. In the US, my work sought to understand the facilitative or competitive relationships between black mangroves (Avicennia germinans) and surrounding salt marsh grass communities at the mangrove's northernmost latitudinal limit. In Singapore, my research focuses on the role of light in controlling mangrove seedling establishment and survival. Currently, we are using climate-controlled growth chambers to understand interactive effects of salinity and atmospheric CO2 on mangrove physiology and freeze resilience.
See: Pickens et al. 2019; Yando et al, 2021; Sloey et al. 2022 Key collaborators: Drs. Erik Yando (ODU), Michiel van Breugel (NUS), Dan Friess (Tulane) |
PLANT FUNCTIONAL TRAITS & THEIR ROLE IN RESTORATIONPlant functional traits include any morphological, physiological, or phenological plant characteristic. These traits have long been measured and used for understanding similarities between species. More recently plant functional traits are being used to understand how plants respond to stressors, what drivers ecological interactions between species, and what traits are associated with ecosystem services. My lab explores how functional traits can be used to inform management and restoration as well as predict resilience and sustainability of habitats into the future.
Key collaborators: Dr. Karin Kettenring (USU), Victoria Ellis (ODU) Figure (left) from Sloey et al. (2023) Wetlands |
ADDRESSING CHALLENGES IN WETLAND PLANT PRODUCTIONThe demand for wetland and coastal plants is on the rise with increasing support for coastal resilience projects and nature-based solutions (e.g., living shorelines). In Virginia, recent legislature requires consideration of living shorelines, opposed to hardened structures, whenever possible. However the in-state supply of coastal wetland plant species does not meet this rising demand. Our lab, in partnership with the Commonwealth Center for Recurrent Flooding Resilience and GOVA, has spearheaded communication outreach to plant producers, restoration practitioners, and local governments to understand how to fill the growing economic gap of coastal plant production.
Key collaborators: Dr. Erik Yando (ODU), Carol Considine (ODU CCRFR) |
PEDAGOGY IN PLANT BIOLOGYDespite the overwhelming applicability of plant biology in many sectors, professional and educational training in botany at colleges and universities has been in decline since the mid-20th century. With NSF IUSE-funded project TREEBUD, we want to reinvigorate plant biology at ODU by enhancing our course offerings, increasing student involvement and representation, and preparing students for individualized futures through tailored mentorship, professional development, and research experiences. Over three years, we will be implementing a new Impact Learning Community in plant biology for incoming freshman, recruiting undergraduates for paid research experiences in the summers, and revamping the botany course with some exciting new activities to give students key skills that are important for plant-focused careers. Read more here: https://sites.wp.odu.edu/treebud1/
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PREVIOUS RESEARCH FOCI
freshwater tidal wetland restoration in the sacramento-san joaquinIn the Sacramento-San Joaquin Bay Delta in California, USA, more than 95% of the Delta has been hydrologically altered and most of the original wetlands in this system have been degraded or converted to agricultural fields. One restoration strategy in this system involves reintroducing abandoned agricultural fields to tidal hydrology to restore wetland habitats. My dissertation research investigated factors that may impede wetland restoration in these highly modified systems, including: hydrology and inundation, soil compaction, soil nutrients, and seed germination dynamics. My work combined field studies with controlled mesocosm and greenhouse experiments to determine the abiotic thresholds and reproduction strategies of three species of freshwater tidal wetland plant species that are commonly desired in restoration plantings.
This research was partially supported by the California Federal Bay Delta BREACH III Project, the Wetland Foundation, the U.S.G.S. Wetland and Aquatic Research Center, and University of Louisiana at Lafayette. This research was conducted in collaboration with Dr. Mark Hester (UL-Lafayette), Dr. Jonathan Willis (Nicholls State U.), and Dr. Rebecca Howard (U.S.G.S.). |