Broadly, I’m interested how fungal communities respond to disturbance. More specifically, I aim to determine how native decomposer fungal communities are influenced by the early arrival of a pathogenic fungal community that is introduced by invasive beetles in Southern California.

1. My previous work supports the hypothesis that the pathogenic community is producing enzymes that can break down some carbon compounds within wood.
2. Currently, my research focuses on determining how the pathogens' wood-degrading potential might influence the community composition of native wood-decomposing fungi. If there are changes in native decomposer community composition due to the pathogens, I will determine the extent to which these changes might alter the process of decomposition as it relates to proportions of different carbon compounds and overall rates of decay.
3. In addition, I plan to establish whether water availability plays a role in controlling the activity of these fungal pathogens, and therefore the strength of their influence on the native decomposer fungi and the process of decomposition. 

Above are images related to my research. On the left is a picture of a western sycamore (Platanus racemosa) that is heavily infected with the invasive shot hole borer (ISHB). Pictured in the middle is a cross-section of Goodding's black willow (Salix gooddingii) and the fungus-lined gallery of an ISHB. On the right is an experimental plot using wood microcosms to mimic native decomposer colonization of infected dead wood.