Ernest Lab Research Areas
Research interests are very diverse but all center on the idea of finding and understanding general ecological laws. Much of our research uses mammals as a study organism, but the research philosophy of the lab is to focus on asking interesting questions regardless of taxa. The following is a list of current research areas:
The Portal Project
The Portal Project is a long-term site in southeastern Arizona. Originally started by Jim Brown and associates, the site studies the interactions among rodents, ants, and plants. This is the primary field site for the Ernest lab.
Portal website...
Portal Project blog...
Community Dynamics
A primary focus of the Ernest Lab is the study of dynamics in ecological systems. Ecological systems change through time, both due to natural and anthropogenic processes. We ask questions about how communities change, which properties are exhibit constrained behavior, which are idiosyncratic and unpredictable, and how do the dynamics respond to different perturbations such as climate change, species removal, etc.
Macroecology and Life History
Macroecology is the search for general laws of biology through the study of large-scale patterns. In particular, this lab focuses on the relationships between body size and important physiological, life history, and ecological traits.
