Ecosystem Science

The Terrestrial Ecosystem Ecology group, led by Elise Pendall at the University of Wyoming, studies ecosystem processes and how they are affected by environmental change at local to global scales. Elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations, precipitation regimes, land use and fire management are examples of environmental drivers that influence the biogeochemical cycles of carbon and water. A key goal in our research group is to understand feedbacks among environmental drivers and the processes they control, such as the effects of global warming on organic matter decomposition. Feedbacks and interactions among ecosystem components, and the role of shifting plant communities, are among the biggest challenges in understanding ecosystem responses to global change.

Past changes in climate have affected ecosystem processes and vegetation distributions, and can provide insight into potential future climate-vegetation dynamics. Dendrochronology and paleoecology are tools that we combine with stable isotope analysis to evaluate past changes in precipitation seasonality and temperature at sites in North and South America.

Research Sites

Elise Pendall, Ph.D.

I conduct research on carbon and water fluxes between terrestrial ecosystems and the atmosphere, and on the effects of global changes such as increasing carbon dioxide concentrations and land-use change on these fluxes. An important component of my work involves the use of stable isotopes as tracers to better quantify small changes in these fluxes that might not otherwise be detected. Much of my research focuses on belowground carbon pools and processes to better characterize their role in ecosystem responses to global change.