Research in our lab focuses on the epidemiology and ecology of Phytophthora species in California forests, with an emphasis on Phytophthora ramorum, the causal agent of Sudden Oak Death (SOD). California forests have lost millions of trees to SOD since its introduction in the mid-1990s.
Our study sites span the range of P. ramorum in California, from Big Sur to the Oregon border. The sites comprise a diversity of forest types, including: redwood-tanoak, Douglas-fir-tanoak, coast live oak and mixed oak forests. Across this range, we are monitoring the establishment, spread and ecological impacts of SOD.
This research includes: monitoring for the presence of Phytophthora species in California streams; understanding the abiotic and biotic factors that contribute to innoculum loads in natural systems and to pathogen survival; long-term monitoring of forest dynamics in susceptible habitats; quantification of the changes to nutrient cycling dynamics in forests impacted by SOD; and examining forest regeneration following high mortality from SOD.
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