I am interested in understanding the interplay between ecological and evolutionary forces in shaping species interactions. When thinking about how the natural world functions, it is important to consider that ecology and evolution go hand-in-hand. That is, ecological processes, such as species interactions, often act as agents of natural selection to cause (rapid) evolution of a population. Further, that evolution may alter how the population interacts with other species. For part of my research, I showed that introduced elk caused rapid evolution of a native plant, which alters plant-arthropod interactions (Smith et al 2015b).
My Current Projects
How habitat fragmentation, climate change and invasive species will influence species interactions and their constituent patterns of natural selection
How climate influences local adaptation in plants and alters plant-insect interactions
How altered canopy structure, caused by the invasive emerald ash borer, alter patterns of natural selection on understory plants
How arsenic uptake by plants alters plant-associated arthropod communities
IMPORTANT CONCEPTS THAT SHAPE MY PERSPECTIVE
Community Genetics and Foundation Species –
Spatial and Temporal Variation in Natural Selection –
Rapid Evolution –
Dave Solance Smith 