Preston
R. Aldrich
Assistant Professor of Biology
Main research interests
My research program involves the study of the evolution and ecology of plant species, primarily trees. We apply a variety of techniques including (1) traditional field ecology methods, (2) molecular genetic and genomic techniques, and (3) computer simulations. I also am interested in the methods, history, and philosophy of science.
Potential student projects
Students in my lab work on a variety of projects depending on their interests and my funding base. Most of my projects are comprised of several components and students can contribute to one or more of these. For instance, those interested predominantly in molecular genetics skip the field ecology and work in the lab using samples already collected. Topics include (1) population genetics and evolution, (2) molecular and traditional ecology, (3) genomics, (4) inasive plant species, (5) dynamics of old-growth forests, (6) the role of disturbance in forest communities, and (7) the philosophy of science including environmental ethics. See my research page for more details.
Selected publications
Aldrich, P. R., G. R. Parker, J. Romero-Severson, and C. H. Michler (2005) Confirmation of recruitment failure of red oaks in Indiana old-growth forest: 75 years of data. Forest Science.
Aldrich, P. R., G. R. Parker, C. H. Michler, and J. Romero-Severson (2003) Whole-tree silvic identifications and the microsatellite genetic structure of a red oak species complex in Indiana old-growth forest. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 33: 2228-2237.
Aldrich, P. R., G. R. Parker, J. Ward, and C. H. Michler (2003) Spatial dispersion of trees in an old-growth temperate hardwood forest over sixty years of succession. Forest Ecology and Management 180: 475-491.
Aldrich, P. R., and J. L. Hamrick (1998) Reproductive dominance of pasture trees in a fragmented tropical forest mosaic. Science 281: 103-105.
Aldrich, P. R., J. L. Hamrick, P. Chavarriaga, and G. Kochert (1998) Microsatellite analysis of demographic genetic structure in fragmented populations of the tropical tree Symphonia globulifera. Molecular Ecology 7: 933-944.