GET TO KNOW ME

I'm an early career egologist who enjoys asking questions about the way ecosystems change in response to disturbance. I work most frequently with plants and plant-herbivore interactions. I've just returned to graduate school to get my PhD in Ecology with Dr. Virginia Dale at the University of Tennessee Knoxville.

My thesis focuses on vegetative recovery on the Mount St. Helens debris avalanche in the 44 years since it erupted.

I like to study the way disturbance affects ecosystems, in whatever form it might take: from volcanoes to invasive species to climate change.

Selected Publications

Denton, E.M., Sheley, R.L., Hardegree, S.P., (2024) Spring Precipitation Amount and Timing Predict Restoration Success in a Semi-Arid Ecosystem. Journal of Applied Ecology. (accepted, preprint)

Dunn, P. O., et. al (2023). Extensive regional variation in the phenology of insects and their response to temperature across North America. Ecology, 104(5), e4036. https://doi.org/10.1002/ecy.4036 READ

Denton E.M., Pyle L.A, Sheley R.L. (2021) Seedling defoliation may enhance survival of common wheatgrass species seeded for restoration of sagebrush steppe in the Northern Great Basin, but not Poa secunda. AoB Plants 13(4): 1-11 . READ

Smith M.L., Knapp A.K., Denton E.M., Dietrich, J., Gray J., Hoffman A., La Pierre K., Qiang Y. (2020) Mass ratio effects underlie ecosystem responses to environmental change. Journal of Ecology 108(3): 855-864. PDF

Hamerlynck E.P., Denton E.M., Davies K.W., Boyd C.S. (2019) Photosynthetic regulation of seed heads and flag leaves in an exotic and four native sagebrush steppe bunchgrasses. Conservation Physiology 7(1): coz112. READ

Griffin-Nolan R.J., Carroll C.J.W., Denton E.M., Johnston M.K., Collins S.L., Smith M.D., Knapp A.K. (2018) Legacy effects of a regional drought on aboveground net primary production in six central US grasslands. Plant Ecology 219(5): 505-515. PDF

Denton E.M., Smith B.S., Hamerlynck E.P., Sheley R.L. (2018) Seedling Defoliation and Drought Stress: Variation in Intensity and Frequency Affect Performance and Survival. Rangeland Ecology & Management 71 (1): 25-34. PDF

MEET MY ADVISOR

Dr. Virginia Dale

Research Professor, Mathematical Ecology, Landscape Ecology UTK

UTK Website

Personal Website