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Too much garlic mustard, or too many deer? Wilson Lecture March 1

susan-kalisz

Susan Kalisz

Susan Kalisz, professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, will present “The role of species interaction in forest invasion:  the good, the bad and the ungulate,” at 7 p.m. Wednesday, March 1, in 1 Upham Hall.

Her talk, intended for a general audience, is the annual Roger Wilson Lecture in Botany sponsored by the department of biology.

Kalisz’s research on deer and invasive species concludes that an overpopulation of deer (density of deer in the United States is about four to 10 times what it was prior to European settlement of North America) is the primary reason garlic mustard is crowding out native plants, such as trillium, which are preferred food for wild deer. This effect is reversible with deer exclusion, her studies have shown.

In addition to studying herbivores and invasive plants, Kalisz and her collaborators also explore concepts and theories relating to the evolution, ecology and conservation of plants.

A reception will follow her talk in 100 Upham Hall.