Kirk Barnett

Summary

Climate models, especially ones for the Australian continent, expect more variable rainfall events as a result of global climate change, including reduced annual rainfall and longer periods in between rainfall events. Plant community responses will be highly dependent on how plant groups cope with climatic changes. In addition, root herbivory could dramatically alter these mechanisms by removing root tissue needed to cope with drought. Specifically, I am interested climate change scenarios that consist of reduced annual rainfall (drought) and altered frequency of rainfall events (lengthening periods in between heavy rainfall events) and how they might alter grassland plant communities under root herbivore attack.

Ecology Entomology