In Sierra Nevada forests, shrubs are considered strong soil moisture competitors with regenerating trees, reducing seedling establishment, and
slowing growth. Recent studies, however, suggest that in some circumstances shrubs can facilitate tree establishment and growth by modifying
harsh microclimate conditions; increasing acquisition of water, carbon, and/or nutrients via shared mycorrhizal...
In Sierra Nevada forests, shrubs are considered strong soil moisture competitors with regenerating trees, reducing seedling establishment, and
slowing growth. Recent studies, however, suggest that in some circumstances shrubs can facilitate tree establishment and growth by modifying
harsh microclimate conditions; increasing acquisition of water, carbon, and/or nutrients via shared mycorrhizal...
Nitrogen is a limiting resource in many temperate forests and nitrogen-fixing plants are usually limited to the early
stages of post-disturbance succession. In fire-dependent Sierra Nevada forests, however, Ceanothus cordulatus is
relatively abundant even in old-growth forest conditions which are at least partly maintained by fire.We conducted
a field experiment...
Nitrogen is a limiting resource in many temperate forests and nitrogen-fixing plants are usually limited to the early stages of post-disturbance succession. In fire-dependent Sierra Nevada forests, however, Ceanothus cordulatus is relatively abundant even in old-growth forest conditions which are at least partly maintained by fire. We conducted a field...
Sierra Nevada forests have high understory species richness yet we do not know which site factors influence
herb and shrub distribution or abundance. We examined the understory of an old-growth mixed-conifer
Sierran forest and its distribution in relation to microsite conditions. The forest has high species richness
(98 species sampled),...
Frankia strains symbiotic with Ceanothus present an interesting opportunity to study the patterns and causes of Frankia diversity and distribution within a particular host infectivity group. We intensively sampled Frankia from nodules on Ceanothus plants along an elevational gradient in the southern Sierra Nevada of California, and we also collected...
Little is known about biophysical controls on soil respiration in California’s Sierra Nevada oldgrowth, mixed-conifer forests. Using portable and automated soil respiration sampling units, we measured soil respiration rate (SRR) in three dominant patch types: closed canopy (CC), ceanothus-dominated patches (CECO), and open canopy (OC). SRR varied significantly among the...
With fire suppression, many western forests are expected to have fewer gaps
and higher stem density of shade-tolerant species as light competition becomes a more
significant influence on stand pattern and composition. We compared species composition,
structure, spatial pattern, and environmental factors such as light and soil moisture between
two...
Research in Dolan lab focuses primarily on the adaptive immune system and ways it can be better utilized to eliminate infected or transformed cells. Research focuses on the major histocompatibility (MHC) class I antigen presentation pathway, which plays an important role in alerting the immune system of the presence of...