Principal Investigator
Nate Swenson
Gillen Director of the University of Notre Dame Environmental Research Center
Professor of Biology
CV
Google Scholar
Gillen Director of the University of Notre Dame Environmental Research Center
Professor of Biology
CV
Google Scholar
Postdoctoral Researchers
Uzay Sezen
Uzay is a postdoc in Sean McMahon's group out at SERC, but we call him one of our own since he is a part of our NSF Early NEON Science/Macrosystems Biology collaborative project. Uzay joins the extended family after a postdoc in Jill Wegrzyn's tree genomics group at UCONN. We are excited to have an enthusiastic (tropical) field biologist with fantastic informatics skills joining us! He also represents a much needed Turkish infusion!
website
google scholar
Uzay is a postdoc in Sean McMahon's group out at SERC, but we call him one of our own since he is a part of our NSF Early NEON Science/Macrosystems Biology collaborative project. Uzay joins the extended family after a postdoc in Jill Wegrzyn's tree genomics group at UCONN. We are excited to have an enthusiastic (tropical) field biologist with fantastic informatics skills joining us! He also represents a much needed Turkish infusion!
website
google scholar
Ph.D. Students
Samantha Worthy
Sam completed her BSc and MSc at Columbus State in the lab of Kevin Burgess. Her work has included phylogenetic analyses of plant communities along an elevational gradient in Ecuador and helping to generate a DNA barcode library for the dominate tree species in the Yasuni Forest Dynamics Plot in lowland Ecuadorian Amazon. She is interested in relating traits to demographic rates.
website
google scholar
Sam completed her BSc and MSc at Columbus State in the lab of Kevin Burgess. Her work has included phylogenetic analyses of plant communities along an elevational gradient in Ecuador and helping to generate a DNA barcode library for the dominate tree species in the Yasuni Forest Dynamics Plot in lowland Ecuadorian Amazon. She is interested in relating traits to demographic rates.
website
google scholar
Kiri Staiger
Kiri did her undergrad at Kenyon College where her research focused on the functional biogeography of plant assemblages. She is interested in how chance events influence the dimensions of biodiversity in plant communities.
Kiri did her undergrad at Kenyon College where her research focused on the functional biogeography of plant assemblages. She is interested in how chance events influence the dimensions of biodiversity in plant communities.
Vanessa Rubio-Ramos
Vanessa did her undergrad training at the Universidad de los Andes in Bogota, Colombia where she earned bachelor's degrees in Environmental Engineering as well as Biology. Beyond Colombia, she has been an intern and research assistant with our colleagues at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama.
Vanessa did her undergrad training at the Universidad de los Andes in Bogota, Colombia where she earned bachelor's degrees in Environmental Engineering as well as Biology. Beyond Colombia, she has been an intern and research assistant with our colleagues at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama.
Damani Eubanks
Damani did his undergrad work at the University of Rochester. He is interested in tropical tree ecology, genetics and conservation. Damani is a native of Maryland and coming back to reasonable weather for his Ph.D.
Damani did his undergrad work at the University of Rochester. He is interested in tropical tree ecology, genetics and conservation. Damani is a native of Maryland and coming back to reasonable weather for his Ph.D.
Logan Monks
Logan did his undergrad work at Arizona State University. After graduating he worked in Viet Nam and returned to begin graduate school. He is interested in the biology of tropical trees in Asia.
Logan did his undergrad work at Arizona State University. After graduating he worked in Viet Nam and returned to begin graduate school. He is interested in the biology of tropical trees in Asia.
Undergraduate Students
Thea Bliss
Thea is an undergraduate at UMD majoring in biology. She is helping in the lab with measurements of leaf form and function.
Thea is an undergraduate at UMD majoring in biology. She is helping in the lab with measurements of leaf form and function.
Hall of Fame
Yoshiko Iida
Yoshiko is a forest ecologist interested in tree allometry and linking variation in tree form and function to demographic rates. She was a JSPS visiting postdoctoral scholar in our lab from 2013-2015. She is now a permanent researcher at the Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute of Japan.
website
google scholar
Yoshiko is a forest ecologist interested in tree allometry and linking variation in tree form and function to demographic rates. She was a JSPS visiting postdoctoral scholar in our lab from 2013-2015. She is now a permanent researcher at the Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute of Japan.
website
google scholar
Shan Kothari
Shan was an undergraduate researcher in the lab for three years when we were at Michigan State University. He was awarded an NSF Graduate Research Fellowship and is conducting his Ph.D. research in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Minnesota.
Shan was an undergraduate researcher in the lab for three years when we were at Michigan State University. He was awarded an NSF Graduate Research Fellowship and is conducting his Ph.D. research in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Minnesota.
Jeff Lake
Jeff is an ecologist interested in forest dynamics and community assembly. He was a postdoc in the lab from 2009-2010. He is now an assistant professor of biology at Adrian College.
website
Jeff is an ecologist interested in forest dynamics and community assembly. He was a postdoc in the lab from 2009-2010. He is now an assistant professor of biology at Adrian College.
website
Lingfeng Mao
Mao addresses ecological and evolutionary questions through the integration of large spatial, trait and phylogenetic datasets. He was a postdoc in the lab during 2014-2015. He is now a professor in the Department of Ecology at Nanjing Forestry University, China.
Mao addresses ecological and evolutionary questions through the integration of large spatial, trait and phylogenetic datasets. He was a postdoc in the lab during 2014-2015. He is now a professor in the Department of Ecology at Nanjing Forestry University, China.
Boris Ngouajio
Boris worked as an undergraduate student working in the lab for three years helping with projects regarding the anatomy of leaves in tropical and temperate trees and the ecology of Puerto Rican forests. He now works at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center
Boris worked as an undergraduate student working in the lab for three years helping with projects regarding the anatomy of leaves in tropical and temperate trees and the ecology of Puerto Rican forests. He now works at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center
Krittika Petprakob
Krittika is a tropical forest ecologist interested in linking diversity in organismal function to tree community structure and dynamics in undisturbed and disturbed forests. She is originally from Chiang Mai, Thailand and finished her Ph.D. research on Thai forest dynamics plots and drought physiology in 2020. She is now a faculty member at Naresuan University in Phitsanulok, Thailand.
Krittika is a tropical forest ecologist interested in linking diversity in organismal function to tree community structure and dynamics in undisturbed and disturbed forests. She is originally from Chiang Mai, Thailand and finished her Ph.D. research on Thai forest dynamics plots and drought physiology in 2020. She is now a faculty member at Naresuan University in Phitsanulok, Thailand.
María Natalia Umaña-Medina
Natalia is a tropical forest ecologist interested in how inter- and intra-specific variation in plant form and function is related to species relative abundance distributions in communities. She was a Ph.D. student in the lab from 2011-2016. She is now an assistant professor in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Michigan.
website
google scholar
Natalia is a tropical forest ecologist interested in how inter- and intra-specific variation in plant form and function is related to species relative abundance distributions in communities. She was a Ph.D. student in the lab from 2011-2016. She is now an assistant professor in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Michigan.
website
google scholar
Junjie Wu
Junjie is an ecologist interested in forest dynamics and conspecific negative density dependence. She was a Ph.D. student at Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden (XTBG) advised by Prof. Min Cao and Luxiang Lin and co-advised by Nate. She is now an assistant professor at Dali University.
Junjie is an ecologist interested in forest dynamics and conspecific negative density dependence. She was a Ph.D. student at Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden (XTBG) advised by Prof. Min Cao and Luxiang Lin and co-advised by Nate. She is now an assistant professor at Dali University.
Jie Yang
Jie is a tropical forest ecologist interested in the structure and dynamics of tree populations and communities. She was a Ph.D. student at Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden (XTBG) advised by Prof. Min Cao and co-advised by Nate. She is now an associate professor at XTBG.
website
Jie is a tropical forest ecologist interested in the structure and dynamics of tree populations and communities. She was a Ph.D. student at Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden (XTBG) advised by Prof. Min Cao and co-advised by Nate. She is now an associate professor at XTBG.
website
Jenny Zambrano
Jenny is interested in tree demography, tropical forest fragmentation and biodiversity. She was a postdoc at SESYNC and with the lab from 2015-2019. She is now an assistant professor in the School of Biological Sciences at Washington State University.
website
google scholar
Jenny is interested in tree demography, tropical forest fragmentation and biodiversity. She was a postdoc at SESYNC and with the lab from 2015-2019. She is now an assistant professor in the School of Biological Sciences at Washington State University.
website
google scholar
Caicai Zhang
Caicai is a tree ecologist interested in seedling community structure and dynamics. She was a Ph.D. student at Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden (XTBG) advised by Prof. Min Cao and Luxiang Lin and co-advised by Nate. She is now an assistant professor in the Institute of Eastern Himalaya Biodiversity Research, Dali University.
website
Caicai is a tree ecologist interested in seedling community structure and dynamics. She was a Ph.D. student at Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden (XTBG) advised by Prof. Min Cao and Luxiang Lin and co-advised by Nate. She is now an assistant professor in the Institute of Eastern Himalaya Biodiversity Research, Dali University.
website