Bio
I am a second year PhD student with Natalie Boelman studying the effects of climate-driven deciduous tall shrub expansion on high latitude ecosystems. As part of the Evolving Meta-Ecosystems Institute, I use a combination of gas exchange, field spectroscopy, and remote sensing techniques to investigate how the physiology and phenology of willow shrubs (Salix spp.) varies along a large latitudinal gradient in Arctic Alaska. I am also interested in understanding how shrub expansion affects other Arctic species, such as migratory songbirds. Towards that end, I use acoustic recordings of birdsong, remote sensing data, and statistical models to quantify the influence of vegetation on the diversity and abundance of songbirds living in the western North American Arctic.