David L. Gorchov
, Professor
My Homepage
Ph.D.
(1987) University of Michigan
Areas of Expertise
Plant ecology, invasive plants, population biology of harvested plants, and tropical forest management
Research Interests
My research centers in plant population ecology and extends into community ecology. One major focus is the invasion of forests by exotic plant species. I seek to understand the importance of the factors that shape the invasion process, particularly disturbance, landscape connectivity, and seed dispersal. I also study the impacts invasive plants have on native species, both directly and indirectly through ectomycorrhizal fungi.
Another research interest is understanding the effects of harvesting on populations of rare or economically important wild plant species, using demographic modeling and field experiments.. Other interests include the regeneration of tropical rain forest after logging and seed dispersal by birds and bats.
Selected Publications
Rondon, X.J., D.L Gorchov, F. Cornejo. In press. Tree species richness and composition 15 years after strip clear-cutting in the Peruvian Amazon. Plant Ecology DOI 10.1007/s11258-008-9479-x.
Berry, E.J, D.L. Gorchov, B.A. Endress, and M.H.H. Stevens. 2008. Source-sink dynamics within a plant population: the impact of substrate and herbivory on palm demography. Population Ecology 50: 63-77.
Slaughter, B.S., W.W. Hochstedler, D.L. Gorchov, and A.M. Carlson. 2007. Response of Alliaria petiolata (garlic mustard) to five years of fall herbicide application in a southern Ohio deciduous forest. Journal of the Torrey Botanical Society. 134: 18-26.
Berry, E.J. and D.L. Gorchov. 2007. Female fecundity is dependent on substrate, rather than male abundance, in the wind-pollinated, dioecious understory palm Chamaedorea radicalis. Biotropica 39:186-194.
Bartuszevige, A.M., D.L. Gorchov, and L. Raab. 2006. The relative importance of landscape and community features in the invasion of an exotic shrub in a fragmented landscape. Ecography 29:213-222.
Bartuszevige, A.M. and Gorchov, D.L. 2006. Avian seed dispersal of an invasive shrub. Biological Invasions 8:1013-1022.