Members of the Cleland Lab
Members of the Cleland Lab
Elsa E. Cleland, Assistant Professor
I study the responses of plant communities and ecosystems to global environmental changes, such as nitrogen deposition, elevated CO2, shifting precipitation, and invasive species. I am also interested in strategies for restoration of native plant communities in the context of present and future environmental changes. contact
Christopher Kopp, PhD Student
In my dissertation research I will seek to understand how plant species ranges are likely to shift with future climatic changes. I plan to use a variety of observational and experimental techniques along elevational gradients, both in the Sierras and in the mountains of San Diego County. contact
Claire Wainwright, MS Student
I am interested in how interannual variation in rainfall influences the interactions between native and invasive plant species in coastal sage scrub communities. For my masters research I am manipulating the timing of the first fall rainfall, and tracking the response of the plant community, as well as the soil fungal community. contact
Undergraduate Researchers
The lab has hosted a number of students for independent study. Some contributed towards ongoing research in the lab, while others pursued related research as part of their ESYS senior internships. Thanks for all of your hard work!
2008-2009 Hannah Cha, Jessica Craft, Peter Dentith, Leslie Fisher-Sanders, Ruth Gozun, Francesca Henderson, Frances Ho, Rachel Jao, Christine Lee, Katie McLean, Katie Merrill, Leah Murphy, Lauren Oquita, June Reyes, Christoff Saaiman, Lenell Sagustume & Claire Wainwright.
Lizzie Wolkovich, Postdoctoral Researcher (starting January 2010) NSF Biological Informatics Fellowship
I am interested in understanding the key factors that link community and ecosystem ecology, with particular interest in the major factors that regulate this link under global change. For my PhD I studied the role of detritus in altering communities following plant invasion. I examined the role of invasive grass litter as a primary food resource and a modulator of ecosystem properties working in the coastal sage scrub habitat of southern California. Currently I am interested in the role of phenology in promoting plant invasions and community shifts in North America under changing climate. I will use large databases of plant phenology to examine how plant community assembly changes as warming promotes earlier springs and the related nutrient release.
Uromi Goodale, Postdoctoral Researcher
NIH IRACDA Fellowship
My Ph.D thesis work focused on the ecophysiological adaptations of pioneer species along the forest gap-understory continuum, and their dynamic response to changes in environmental conditions. At UCSD I will seek to understand how ecophysiological constraints influence plant species ranges, and may potentially predict species responses to future environmental changes. In particular, I am investigating fundamental tradeoffs among traits relating to water and nutrient use efficiency. contact