Rebecca Montgomery CV

Rebecca A. Montgomery
Associate Professor
Department of Forest Resources
College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences
1530 Cleveland Avenue North
St. Paul, MN 55108 USA
Phone 612-624-7249
Fax 612-625-5212
Email: [email protected]

Specialization

Plant ecophysiology and forest ecology focusing on mechanisms of plant response to global change, ecology of the forest understory and evolutionary ecology of functional traits. Research spans temperate and tropical forests, managed and unmanaged ecosystems.

Education

Ph.D. 1999. University of Connecticut. Ecology
A.B. 1994. Occidental College. Biology, Magna Cum Laude

Professional Experience

Assistant Professor, Forest Resources, University of Minnesota, July 1, 2004-present. Responsibilities: Undergraduate and graduate teaching, research and outreach in the area of forest ecology and tree ecophysiology.

Research Associate, Forest Resources, University of Minnesota, March 2003-June 2004. Responsibilities: Research in the area of forest ecology and tree ecophysiology.

Instructor, Forest Resources, University of Minnesota, January 2003- May 2004. Responsibilities: Undergraduate and graduate teaching in the area of forest ecology and tree ecophysiology.

Research Associate, Botany, University of Wisconsin-Madison, January 2000-March 2003. Responsibilities: Research and project management of an NSF supported grant in the area of ecophysiology

Publications

Peer-reviewed

Invited book chapters

  • Cheeseman J. M. and R. A. Montgomery. In press. Ecophysiology of photosynthesis in the tropics. In: J. Flexas, F. Loreto and H. Medrano (Eds.) Terrestrial photosynthesis in a changing environment: The molecular, physiological and ecological bases of photosynthesis driving its response to environmental change. Cambridge University Press.
  • Chazdon, R. L., and R. A. Montgomery. 2001. La adquisición de carbono en las plantas. In: M. R. Guariguata and G. H. Kattan (Eds.) Ecología y Conservación de Bosques Neotropicales. Editorial Libro Universitario Regional, Costa Rica

Grant and Fellowship Awards

  • 2009-2012 USDI National Park Service. Evaluation and ecological assessment of riparian forest at Knife River Indian Villages NHS. ($42,510 PI RA Montgomery)
  • 2009-2010 DOE National Institute on Climate Change Research. Experimental warming effects on soil organic matter dynamics at the temperate-boreal forest ecotone. ($117,500 PI S. Hobbie, co-PI RA Montgomery, PB Reich)
  • 2009-2010 College of Biological Sciences. Ecology, evolution and ecosystem implications of plant traits: a collaborative framework for improving graduate student recruitment and training. ($20,000 PI J. S. Powers and co-PIs J. Cavender-Bares, S. Hobbie, RA Montgomery PB Reich, I. Schmitt, P. Tiffin and G. Weiblen).
  • 2009-2010 Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. Evaluation of phenotypic and physiologic characteristics of genetically improved white cedar. ($20,000; PI RA Montgomery co-PI C. Pike)
  • 2008-2011 Minnesota Forest Resources Council. Impacts of woody biomass harvesting on saproxylic communities, nutrient availability, and productivity in aspen ecosystems. ($294,000 PI A.W. D’Amato and co-PIs C. Blinn, J.Bradford, S. Fraver, R. Kolka, K. Kozak, R. Montgomery, M. Ostry, B. Palik, and D. Zamora)
  • 2007-2011 DOE Program on Ecological Research. Warming-induced biome change at the temperate-boreal ecotone: An experimental test of key regeneration processes ($1,806,655, PI Peter Reich & co-PIs S Hobbie, RA Montgomery, RL Rich & J Oleksyn)
  • 2007-2009 University of Minnesota, College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resources Sciences. An integrated initiative on climate change in northern forests ($200,000 PI Peter Reich, co-PIs S Hobbie, RA Montgomery, RL Rich & J Oleksyn)
  • 2006-2009 NSF Division of Integrative Organismal Biology, Synergistic effects of light and water on physiological diversification in the Hawaiian lobeliads ($230,000 PI RA Montgomery co-PIs L Sack & TJ Givnish)
  • 2006-2009 USDA NRI, Managing complex structure and wood productivity in Great Lakes pine ecosystems ($400,000; UM subcontract $179,525, PI BJ Palik. Co-PI RA Montgomery, PB Reich)
  • 2006-2012 NSF LTER. Biodiversity, environmental change and ecosystem function at the prairie-forest border. ($4,920,000; $20,000 per year to R. A. Montgomery; PI G. David Tilman and co-PIs PB Reich, S Hobbie, J Cavender-Bares, J King, L Kinkel, J. Knops, RA Montgomery, H Muller-Landau, S Polasky and J Powers.
  • 2005-2006 Grant-in-aid of Research. U Minnesota, Office of the Dean of the Graduate School, Tree physiological response to climate across a latitudinal gradient ($34,438)
  • 2002-2003 STRI/OTS Comparative Ecology Grant, The joint influences of climate, litter quality, and soil fauna in regulating the decomposition of leaf and root litter: a pan-tropical study ($6000, with co-PI Jennifer Powers)
  • 2001 Davis Fund, Department of Botany, University of Wisconsin-Madison ($1000)
  • 2001-2004 Andrew Mellon Foundation, Leaf phenology and hydraulic conductivity as determinants of shade tolerance in S. Appalachian trees ($370,000 with PI Tom Givnish)
  • 1999 Ronald Bamford Endowment to the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology ($800)
  • 1998-1999 NSF Biodiversity Graduate Research Traineeship (Tuition waiver and stipend)
  • 1998 Organization for Tropical Studies Fellowship (Mellon IV Ecosystem fund) ($3,000)
  • 1997-1998 NSF Dissertation Improvement Grant ($10,000)
  • 1997 Ronald Bamford Endowment to the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Ecology, University of Connecticut ($500)
  • 1996-1997 NSF Biodiversity Graduate Research Traineeship (Tuition waiver and stipend)
  • 1993 Ford Foundation/Hughes Fellowship ($3,000)
  • 1993 Council for Undergraduate Research Fellowship ($3,000)
  • 1992 Richter Fellowship ($4,000)

Presentations

Invited Seminars and Symposia

  • 2009 Is it roots or is it shoots? Insights into mechanisms of plant-plant interactions in red pine ecosystems. University of Toronto, Department of Forestry.
  • Roots or shoots? mechanisms of plant-plant interactions in red pine ecosystems. Harvard Forest Seminar Series.
  • 2008 Adaptive radiation of photosynthetic physiology in the Hawaiian Campanulaceae, University of Wisconsin, Dept. of Botany, Madison, WI
  • Trees, shrubs, sedges and hog peanuts:  towards a mechanistic understanding of species interactions above- and belowground, University of Wisconsin, Dept. of Biology, Eau Claire, WI
  • 2007 Ecophysiological diversification in the Hawaiian Campanulaceae: evidence for adaptive radiation in Hawaii’s largest flowering plant family, University of Minnesota, Dept. of Plant Biology, St. Paul, MN
  • Dynamic photosynthetic responses and light gradient partitioning. Symposium on the Functional Ecology of Tropical Trees. Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation, Morelia, Mexico
  • Adaptive radiation of photosynthetic physiology in the Hawaiian Campanulaceae. US-Japan Workshop on Photosynthetic Plasticity and Global Change, Nikko, Japan
  • 2006 Overstory and understory effects on tree regeneration: towards a mechanistic understanding of species interactions above- and belowground Michigan State University, Dept. of Forestry, East Lansing, MI
  • 2005 Adaptive radiation of photosynthetic physiology in the Hawaiian lobeliads (Campanulaceae), University of Minnesota, Dept. of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, St. Paul, MN
  • Adaptive radiation of photosynthetic physiology of the Hawaiian lobeliads, Grinnell College, Dept of Biology, Grinnell IA.
  • 2004 Adaptive radiation of photosynthesis and life history traits in the Hawaiian lobeliads. Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation, Miami, FL
  • 2002 Putting the “adaptive” into “adaptive radiation”: divergence in light regime and photosynthetic adaptations in the Hawaiian lobeliads. University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC
  • The role of leaf and whole plant carbon gain for growth of woody tropical seedlings across light gradients. Association for Tropical Biology, Panama City, Panama.
  • 2001 Plant performance in heterogeneous light environments: evolutionary and ecological perspectives from Costa Rica and Hawaii. University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI.
  • Ecology and evolution of the Hawaiian lobeliads. USDA Forest Service, Pacific Islands Institute of Forestry, Hilo, HI.
  • Phylogenetic history of the Hawaiian lobeliads: potential relationships with the evolution of Hawaiian Drosophilidae. Pacific Entomological Society, Hilo, HI.
  • 1999 Gap dynamics and tree diversity in neotropical forests. Mesa State College, Grand Junction, CO.

Contributed papers (* indicates presenter)

2009

  • Emily Peters*, Joseph P McFadden, Rebecca A Montgomery December 2009. Environmental and biological controls of urban tree transpiration in the Upper Midwest. Annual Meeting of the American Geophysical Union, San Francisco, CA
  • Emily Peters*, Joseph P McFadden, Rebecca A Montgomery August 2009. Environmental and biological controls of urban tree transpiration: Implications for urban hydrology. Annual Meeting of the Ecological Society of America, Albuquerque, NM
  • Rebecca A. Montgomery*, Suzanne Boyden, Peter Reich and Brian Palik. June 2009. Belowground competition, aboveground competition and aboveground facilitation: complex interactions between canopy trees, tree seedlings and shrubs in red pine ecosystems. North American Forest Ecology Workshop. Logan, UT.
  • Palik, B.*, Montgomery, R., Reich, P., Boyden, S., Schulte Moore, L., Atwell, R., Lang, K., Kastendick, D., Powers, M.Variable retention harvesting in Great Lakes red pine forests: responses to spatial pattern of retention. June 2009. North American Forest Ecology Workshop, Logan, UT.
  • Emma L Schultz*, Christel Kern and Rebecca Montgomery. March 2009. Understory plant community responses to silvicultural opening size across and between gaps in Wisconsin northern hardwood forests. National Conference of Undergraduate Research, LaCrosse, WI.

2008

  • Rebecca A. Montgomery*, Suzanne Boyden, Peter Reich and Brian Palik. August 2008. Belowground competition, aboveground competition and aboveground facilitation: complex interactions between canopy trees, tree seedlings and shrubs in red pine ecosystems. Annual Meeting of the Ecological Society of America. Milwaukee, WI.
  • Local adaptation of tree physiology and phenology in a common garden. Kala Peebles* and Rebecca A. Montgomery. Annual Meeting of the Ecological Society of America. Milwaukee, WI.
    Canopy gap size influences understory dynamics of shrubs and trees over 12 years. Christel Kern*, Peter Reich, Rebecca Montgomery, and Terry Strong. Annual Meeting of the Ecological Society of America. Milwaukee, WI.

2007

  • Endangered island floras: fast growth rate and short lifespan create considerable challenges for conservation and restoration of Hawaiian lobeliads. R. A. Montgomery* & Thomas J. Givnish, Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation, Morelia, Mexico
  • Adaptive radiation of photosynthetic physiology in the Hawaiian Campanulaceae. Rebecca A. Montgomery* & Thomas J. Givnish Annual Meeting of the Society for the Study of Evolution/American Society of Naturalist/Society for the Study of Systematic Biology. Christchurch, New Zealand
  • Resprouting by American hazel (Corylus americana) in response to experimental clipping in a restored oak savanna and adjacent oak woodlands. Brian D. Pelc*, Peter B. Reich and Rebecca A. Montgomery Annual Meeting of the Ecological Society of America, San Jose, CA, USA
  • Contributions of deciduous and evergreen trees to seasonal dynamics of CO2 and water vapor over developed land in the midcontinental U.S. Emily Peters*, Rebecca A. Montgomery and Joe McFadden. Annual Meeting of the American Geophysical Union, San Francisco, CA, USA – poster

2006

  • Adaptive radiation of photosynthesis and life history traits in the Hawaiian lobeliads. R. A. Montgomery*, T. J. Givnish & G. Goldstein. 14th New Phytologist Symposium – New directions in plant ecological development. The Royal Society, London, UK.
  • B. Palik*, Kern, C., Montgomery, R., Reich, P., Schulte, L. Restoring complexity in red pine ecosystems: legacy management as a key ingredient. Society of American Foresters National Convention, Pittsburg PA.

2005

  • Belowground factors influence leafing phenology and photosynthesis of pin oak (Quercus ellipsoidalis) seedlings growing in an old field. Rebecca A. Montgomery*, Ian Dickie, Stefan Schnitzer & Peter Reich. Ecological Society of America, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
  • Ecological and operational effects of dispersed versus aggregate tree retention in Great Lakes pine ecosystemsBrian J. Palik*, Christel C. Kern, Rebecca A. Montgomery, Peter B. Reich 5th North American Forest Ecology Workshop

2004

  • Determinants of shade tolerance and its importance for local species distributions of S. Appalachian trees. Montgomery, Rebecca A.*, Omar Lopez, Krista Farris Lopez and Thomas J. Givnish. Botanical Society of America, Snowbird, UT.
  • Monophyletic origin and adaptive radiation in Hawaiian Chamaesyce (Euphorbiaceae) based on ITS and trnLF sequence variation. Morden, C.* and R.A. Montgomery. Botanical Society of America, Snowbird, UT.
  • Sapling leaf phenology in relation to canopy closure, stand position, and tree shade tolerance in the southern Appalachians. Lopez, O. R.*, R. A. Montgomery, K. F. Lopez, and T. J. Givnish. Ecological Society of America, Portland, OR
  • Leaf flushing in relation to canopy closure as a determinant of shade tolerance in southern Appalachian trees. Lopez, K. F.*, Lopez, O. R., R. A. Montgomery, and T. J. Givnish. Ecological Society of America, Portland, OR.

2002

  • Photoinhibition in the Hawaiian lobeliads across field and greenhouse light gradients. Montgomery, Rebecca A.* and Thomas J. Givnish. Ecological Society of America, Tuscon, AZ.
  • Common-garden studies of adaptive divergence in photosynthetic traits along a sun-shade gradient in the Hawaiian lobeliads. Givnish, T. J., and R. A. Montgomery*. Ecological Society of America

2001

  • Adaptation to different light levels in the Hawaiian lobeliads: dynamic photosynthetic light responses and the outcome of “in silico” transplants. Montgomery, R. A.*. and T. J. Givnish. Ecological Society of America, Madison, WI.
  • Putting the “adaptive” in adaptive radiation: static photosynthetic light responses in the Hawaiian lobeliads. Givnish, T. J.*, R. A. Montgomery, and G. Goldstein. Ecological Society of America, Madison, WI.

2000

  • Leaf-level and whole-plant assimilation as predictors of tree seedling growth across a broad light gradient. Montgomery, Rebecca A.* Ecological Society of America, Snowbird, UT.

1999

  • Mortality and growth response of tree seedlings to light heterogeneity in tropical secondary forest and plantations. Montgomery, Rebecca A.* Ecological Society of America, Spokane, WA.

1998

  • El ambiente de luz en bosques secundarios y plantaciones de arboles y su efecto sobre el crecimiento y la regeneración de plántulas de especies leñosas. Montgomery, Rebecca. A.* IV Congreso Latinoamericano de Ecología; Arequipa, Perú.
  • Scaling leaf-level to whole-plant assimilation for three tropical tree species across a light gradient. Montgomery, Rebecca. A.* Ecological Society of America Annual Meeting, Baltimore, MD.

1997

  • Predicting understory light availability in tropical wet forest from measures of stand structure Montgomery, Rebecca A.*, Robin L. Chazdon, and Katherine S. Miller. Association for Tropical Biology Annual Meeting; San Jose, Costa Rica.

1994

  • Diet selection in the leaf-cutter ant, Atta cephalotes Montgomery, Rebecca A*. and H. Elizabeth Braker. Association for Tropical Biology Annual Meeting; Guadalajara, Mexico.

1993

  • Dark-like fixation in the marine algae, Ascophyllum nodosum International Symposium on Crassulacean Acid Metabolism; Montgomery, Rebecca A.* Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute; Panama City, Panama.

Teaching & Learning

Courses Designed and Taught

  • Forest Ecology, 4 credit w/lab, U Minnesota
    Introduction to ecology through the lens of forest ecosystems, explores interactions between the individual tree and the environment, evolution, biotic interactions, forest biogeochemistry, succession and disturbance.
  • Northern Forests Field Ecology, 2 credit field course, U Minnesota
    A field course based at the Cloquet Forestry Center, explores forest soils, succession, forest dynamics, competition, community ecology, students gain extensive experience with field sampling methods and scientific writing.
  • Ecology of Managed Ecosystems, 3 credit w/lab, U Minnesota
    Team taught course (led by Dr. Anthony D’Amato) that uses a case study approach to explore ecological patterns and processes in managed ecosystems (e.g. agricultural, urban, forest, wetland).
  • Ecophysiology of Woody Plants, 3 credit, U Minnesota
    Introduction to functional ecology, explores photosynthesis, water relations, nutrient uptake, anatomy and growth. Focuses on urban ecosystems since the student audience are largely in an urban forestry major.
  • Plant Functional Traits in Ecology and Evolution, 1 credit seminar, U Minnesota This graduate seminar (team taught by faculty in the Departments of Forest Resources and Ecology, Evolution and Behavior) explored the growing role that the study of plant functional traits (e.g. photosynthetic rates, leaf nitrogen) play in understanding ecological systems and evolutionary patterns and processes.
  • Current Topics in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, 1 credit seminar, U Connecticut
    Seminar that read and discussed papers written by the weekly departmental seminar speaker then attended the talk. Aimed at increasing intellectual participation by undergraduates in the department.

Other Teaching Experience

  • Fundamentals of Tropical Biology, Organization for Tropical Studies, Resource Faculty (2008, 2007, 1998, 1993)
  • Undergraduate Semester Abroad Program, Organization for Tropical Studies, Resource Faculty (2003)
  • The Border: Environment, Economy, and Culture, Occidental College, Teaching Staff (1993-1994)
  • Marine Ecology, Vantuna Research Group, Instructor on board the Research Vessel Vantuna (1990-1994)

Mentoring & Advising

Post-doctoral scholars

  • Suzanne Boyden (2005-2008) Managing complex structure and wood productivity in Great Lakes pine ecosystems – Dr. Boyden is currently Assistant Professor of Forest Ecology at Clarion University.
  • Justin Kunkle (2008- present) Synergistic effects of light and water on physiological diversification in the Hawaiian lobeliads

Graduate student advising

Completed graduate student advisees:

  • Brian Pelc (M.S., NRSM; co-advised with Peter Reich) American hazel (Corylus americana) resprout dynamics and influence on understory community in Midwestern oak savanna – M.S. Awarded 2008
  • Stacey Olszewski (M.S., NRSM; co-advised with Eric Zenner) Structural and compositional changes in the terrestrial vegetation of forested riparian areas as a result of a gradient of timber harvesting regimes– M.S. Awarded 2008

Current graduate student advisees:

  • Ph. D: Kala Peebles, Christel Kern, Moana McClellan, Carrie Pike, Ted Salk
  • M. S.: Cassie Kurtz, Christopher Pinahs, Claudia Nanninga

Other graduate student advising (committee membership):

  • Ph.D.: Justin Becknell, Maga Gei, Chad Giblin, Amy Dykstra, Emily Peters, Rachel Putnam, Kerrie Sendall, Heather Whittington, Terry Serres, Tim Whitfeld, Tricia Markle, Rosaria Healy, Jessica Savage (2010), Mark Norris (2008)
  • M.S.: Marta Vargas Timchenko, Alan Flory (2009)
  • M.A.: Adam Berland (2007)

Undergraduate independent research advising (*honors project)

  • Emma Schultz (2008) Understory plant community response to silvicultural opening size across and between gaps in Wisconsin northern hardwood forests* co-advised with Christel Kern
  • Brandon Gallagher (2005) Distribution and habitat characterization for three species of Goodyera (Orchidaceae) within the Rainy Lake, Ontario watershed
  • Kathryn Smith (2005-2006) Effects of shrub competition on photosynthetic physiology of six temperate tree species*
  • Melissa Maxa (2005) Root competition for nitrogen and phosphorus between Pinus resinosa seedlings and northern Minnesota forest plants

Service

Professional Service

  • Reviewer for American Journal of Botany, Biotropica, Canadian Journal of Forest Research, Ecology, Forest Science, Functional Ecology, Journal of Ecology, Journal of Forestry, Journal of Vegetation Science, Journal of Tropical Ecology, New Phytologist, Oecologia, Plant Ecology, Restoration Ecology, Teaching Issues and Experiments in Ecology, Tree Physiology
  • Grant reviewer for Graduate Women in Science, Minnesota Agricultural Experiment Station, Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, USDA National Research Initiative, US National Science Foundation

College and University Committee Service

  • 2009-present College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences Safety committee
  • 2008 St. Paul Open Spaces for Learning Taskforce
  • 2006-2009 College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resources Sciences, Honors Committee
  • 2006-2010 College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences Student board (faculty advisor)
  • 2005-2006 Graduate Working Group for merger of CNR/COAFES
  • 2005-2006 ENR/ES Major Curriculum development
  • 2004-2006 College of Natural Resources Student Faculty board

Society Membership and Service

  • Member of the Ecological Society of America, the Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation, the Botanical Society of America, and the Society of American Foresters.
  • 2009-present Chair of the C6 Physiology section of the Society of American Foresters
  • 2005 Bell/Braun Award judge, Best Graduate Student Paper/Poster, Ecophysiological section of the Ecological Society of America

Awards and Distinctions

  • 2010 Newman Art of Teaching Award
  • 2010 College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resources Sciences Distinguished Teaching Award (non-tenured faculty)
  • 2001 Selected to participate in an elite seminar in Advanced Comparative Tropical Ecology sponsored by Organization for Tropical Studies, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute and the Mellon Foundation
  • 1996 Outstanding Scholar Award, University of Connecticut Graduate School
    1994 elected Phi Beta Kappa
  • 1993 Raymond Selle Award for Excellence in the Occidental Biology Department
  • 1993 elected to Mortarboard Honor Society

Specialized Training

  • Next Generation of the Professoriate: Using Technology in Teaching and Learning, UMN Center for Teaching and Learning (2006)
  • Bush Faculty Early Career Teaching Program, UMN Center for Teaching and Learning (2004-2005)
  • Grant writing seminar: Getting started as a successful grant writer and academician (2004)