Marie Jasieniuk - Principal Investigator

Research Focus: Population genetics, molecular ecology, and evolution of agricultural weeds and invasive plants. Genetics, evolution, and spread of herbicide resistance in weed populations.    more details...

email: mjasien@ucdavis.edu

Anna Sherwood - Ph.D. Student

Research Focus: The evolution and spread of adaptive traits; heterogeneous selection pressures and population subdivision.   more details...

email: amsherwood@ucdavis.edu

Annabelle Kleist - Ph.D. Student

Research Focus: I am interested in the genetic, evolutionary, and demographic processes contributing to the success of invasive plants of horticultural origin. Determining the sources and genetic structure of invasive plant populations can help identify general features of the invasion process and assist in developing management practices. Detailed comparative studies of introductions among regions with similar climates may elucidate more accurate patterns of invasiveness and inform invasion theories.   more details...

email: ackleist@ucdavis.edu

Lindsay Clark - Ph.D. Student

Research Focus: Hybridization has been directly implicated in the evolution of invasiveness in some plant taxa, and hypothesized to contribute to invasions of many other plant taxa. The genus Rubus (blackberries and raspberries, Rosaceae) is ideal for studying this phenomenon, given that it includes a number of noxious weeds (11 in the United States as listed by the USDA PLANTS Database) and has a history of evolution through hybridization.   more details...

email: lvclark@ucdavis.edu

Jeff Firestone - Ph.D. Student

Research Focus: Research on biological invasions primarily focuses on large populations since large populations of invasive species are conspicuous and have the greatest ecological and economic impacts.  There is growing recognition, however, that research on small populations may be equally valuable for understanding the success and impact of invasive species.  Several recent studies suggest that the dynamics of small populations of an introduced species determine its viability and invasive potential in the area of introduction.  My dissertation research focuses on elucidating the demographic and genetic limitations of small population size on invasive success.   more details...

email: firestone@ucdavis.edu