Welcome to the David Ward Lab!
A main focus of my research and that of my group lies in the field of the ecology of plant species redistributions.
This includes studying both invasive and encroaching plant species and their interactions with biotic and abiotic factors. We also study the effects of herbivory by mammals on the biology of plant populations and communities and implications for conservation.
We adopt a combination of greenhouse and field experiments to gain a mechanistic understanding of the factors that create large-scale vegetation patterns. Our projects span over a large range of systems from prairies in North America to savannas in South Africa.
This includes studying both invasive and encroaching plant species and their interactions with biotic and abiotic factors. We also study the effects of herbivory by mammals on the biology of plant populations and communities and implications for conservation.
We adopt a combination of greenhouse and field experiments to gain a mechanistic understanding of the factors that create large-scale vegetation patterns. Our projects span over a large range of systems from prairies in North America to savannas in South Africa.
Recent Lab News
March 2024
Information sessions for Dr. Ward's study abroad trip in South Africa - 2024-2025
Wednesday, March 6th, 2024, 2-3pm, A108 Cunningham Hall (Kent Campus)
Tuesday, March 19th, 2024, 4-5pm, A108 Cunningham Hall (Kent Campus)
Information sessions for Dr. Ward's study abroad trip in South Africa - 2024-2025
Wednesday, March 6th, 2024, 2-3pm, A108 Cunningham Hall (Kent Campus)
Tuesday, March 19th, 2024, 4-5pm, A108 Cunningham Hall (Kent Campus)
August 9, 2021
KSU Environmental Science and Design Research Initiative:
A closer look at nitrogen in the Chihuahuan Desert, New Mexico. Read the full article here.
July 19, 2021
New publication by Lauren Baldarelli, David Ward, and Scott Collins in Plant Soil!
How encroaching shrubs and nutrients affect nitrogen fixation in the Chihuahuan Desert. Read the full article here.
May 20, 2021
Congratulations to Cindy Perkovich for her fantastic dissertation defense and graduation from Kent State's Ecology and Evolutionary Biology PhD program!
April 9, 2021
New publication by Cindy Perkovich and David Ward in Ecology and Evolution!
Herbivore-induced defenses are not under phylogenetic constraints in the genus Quercus (oak): Phylogenetic patterns of growth, defense, and storage. Read the full article here.
February 26, 2021
Congratulations to Kiersten McMahon and David Ward on their recent publication in the African Journal of Range and Forage Science on the effects of tree canopies on the invasive Lantana camara. Read the full article here.
November 1, 2020
New book out on nonnative and nuisance plant species in Ohio!
Problem Plants of Ohio
Megan E. Griffiths, Melissa A. Davis, and David Ward
Read more about the book here.
October 6, 2020
Congratulations to Lauren Baldarelli on her recent publication in the Journal of Arid Environments on the effects of nutrient additions on biological soil crusts in the Chihuahuan Desert! https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaridenv.2020.104317
April 7, 2020
Congratulations to Lauren Baldarelli, PhD student, on her recent accomplishment of The Garden Club of America Award in Desert Studies! Lauren will put this scholarship towards examining the effects of elevation, parent material, and nutrient availability on the composition of biological soil crusts in Arizona.
March 15, 2020
Congratulations to Cindy Perkovich, PhD student, on her recent publication on protein:carbohydrate ratios in gypsy moths (Lymantria dispar) in the Journal of Chemical Ecology! (Read the article here!)
February 26, 2020
Congratulations to Lauren Baldarelli on her recent publication in Phytotaxa describing a novel species of Nostoc cyanobacteria in Ethiopia!
January 10, 2020
Kent State Biological Sciences researchers to lead study on the effects of the spreading eastern red cedars. Read the full story here.
Announcements
Information sessions for Dr. Ward's study abroad trip in South Africa - 2024-2025
Wednesday, March 6th, 2024, 2-3pm, A108 Cunningham Hall (Kent Campus) Tuesday, March 19th, 2024, 4-5pm, A108 Cunningham Hall (Kent Campus) |