To prospective students:

The short answer is YES, I am seeking highly motivated, knowledgeable, clever, and hard-working graduate students interested in forest ecology and ecophysiology. Work in the lab includes both applied and "basic" research in tropical, temperate, and boreal systems. Support for graduate studies is available on a competitive basis for both international and Canadian students (though more opportunities exist for the latter). In order to be competitive for admission and financial support you will need to present very strong academic credentials. A good match with a potential graduate advisor is also critical.

My main areas of research interest include applied forest ecology and silviculture, comparative ecology and ecophysiology of trees, forest canopy biology; ecological aspects of global environmental change, and tropical forests. The following topics are planned as the main focus of research in my lab over the next 4-5 years:

* Age-related changes in tree gas-exchange, leaf chemistry, and canopy structure, and the implications of these to changes in tree shade-tolerance and aspects of "ecosystem function" such as carbon sequestration, litter decomposition and nutrient dynamics. Planned studies will make use of canopy access facilities at Haliburton Forest, Ontario, and tropical forest sites in Panama and Malaysia (and potentially central Africa and the Caribbean nation of Dominica). Key applied aspects of this work are related to the question of how very old trees function, and thus how removal of old trees by harvesting alters forest ecosystems.

* Comparative tree ecophysiology, particularly as related to tree ontogeny. What are the main axes of physiological variation that determine ecological variation co-occurring tree species? What physiological processes drive differences in tree habitat requirements? Answers to these questions require both survey studies that quantify tree habitat associations and their correlations with functional traits, and manipulative experiments (such as reciprocal transplant studies) that quantify responses to environmental variables. Tree habitat requirements (such as growth responses to light and maconutrients) appear to change markedly as trees grow and mature, but these changes and the underlying physiology processes involved remain very poorly understood.

* Use of large-scale tropical forest plot datasets to understand tree habitat associations and long-term changes in tree distribution patterns . My lab has been closely involved in large-scale plot projects in Malaysia and Dem. Rep. of Congo (coordinated by the Center for Tropical Forest Science of the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute). Ongoing and planned work at these sites will includes field studies of the impacts of large mammals and mound-building termites on tree diversity, growth, and distribution patterns, and studies aimed at understanding tropical forest responses to anthropogenic environmental change.

* Tree interactions with polypore fungi (bracket fungi), particularly in relation to harvest-related damage, tree senescence, and biodiversity maintenance. Partial stand harvests (such as "variable retention") are widely advocated as a form of ecologically sustainable forestry. However, partial stand harvests always result in damage to residual trees, providing opportunities for woody tissue infection by opportunistic fungal pathogens. A particularly important group is the polypore (bracket) fungi. We have recently documented very large effects of post-harvest damage on tree growth and physiology, and also differences in fungal community structure between managed and unmanaged hardwood forests in Ontario. We suspect that polypore fungi are a main mechanism for these effects. Planned work will focus on hardwood forests in Ontario, and will involve a combination of field studies with development of molecular markers (ITS microsattelite probes) to enable identification of fungal pathogens at early stages of infection. In addition, collaborative work on biodiversity may also involve surveys of insect groups dependent on polypore fungi.

* Patterns and causes of post-harvest mortality in temperate and boreal forests. A more applied aspect of the lab's work involves developing a stronger scientific basis for "alternative" silviculture, such as systems involving structural retention harvesting. A key concern regarding such systems (from both a wood production and wildlife habitat perspective) is tree death following partial harvests; however data are very scarce on this topic. We have recently received a large grant from the Canadian Sustainable Forest Management Network entitled "Tree mortality following partial stand harvests: A cross-Canada study". This project will involve tree ring analyses of dead and live trees sampled at 8 sites across Canada to examine rates and causes of post-harvest tree mortality.

Some of the instruments and techniques used in the lab include:

* Leaf and whole-plant gas exchange (Licor Li-6400 system).
* Leaf optical analysis (Ocean Optics and ASD systems).
* Soil and woody tissue respiration (Li-6400 with soil chamber).
* Soil oxygen sampling system.
* Hemispherical photograph analysis (digital cameras with fisheye lens; Scanopy and other software).
* Tree mapping and measurement equipment (Lasertech system).
* Dendrochronological analysis (TRIM system and WinDendro).
* Higher-level statistical software for analysis of large datasets (e.g., R package).
* Phylogeny-based comparative analysis techniques.
* Elemental analysis (CN analyzer, Atomic Absorption and ICP spectrometers).

We are also "gearing up" in other areas, and would be especially interested in applicants with experience in the following:

* Isolation, culture and identification of tree pathogenic fungi.
* Molecular marker (ITS microsattelite probes), and mini-array development.
* Empirical modeling of spatial interactions using maximal likelihood methods.
* Use of individual-based, spatially explicit forest simulation models.
* Methane fluxes from soils and vegetation.

Special consideration will be given to students with prior experience closely related to these projects and/or methods used; prior natural history background, especially related to work in tropical sites, is also an important factor.

If you think that I would be a good match as a prospective advisor, I will need to evaluate your background and prior work more carefully. What I specifically would need from you is: (1) a note explaining your interests and prospective thesis topic, how this would fit with what the direction of research in my lab (as outline above), and what skills and background you would bring to this effort; (2) a resume and copy of transcripts (or list of prior coursework with marks); (3) a copy of a paper you have written that represents what you consider to be your best scientific work to date.