Katherine L. Gross
University Distinguished Professor of Plant Biology and KBS Director
Ph. D., Michigan State University, 1980
W. K. Kellogg Biological Station
Hickory Corners, MI 49060
Phone: (269) 671-2235
Email: grossk (at) kbs (dot) msu (dot) edu
Plant population and community ecology
I am broadly interested in the causes and consequences of species diversity in plant communities, particularly grasslands. My current research focues on how variation in soil resources influences species diversity and composition, particularly in grasslands. We currently have ongoing two large field experiments in native grassland in SW Michigan where we are manipulating the spatial pattern and scale of soil resource heterogeneity to see how this influences local plant diversity. We are interested in the dynamics of the community response to these manipulations of resource heterogeneity and how species traits, particularly comparing clonal and non-clonal species, affect the response.
I am also interested in the determinants and consequences of diversity in agricultural ecosystems. As a co-PI on the KBS LTER project I have been monitoring the long-term effects of different crop management systems on the diversity and composition of weed communities in row crops. We have recently established a new experiment (the Biodiversity Plots) in which crop type and rotation.This will allow us to determine the effects of crop diversity on community and ecosystem processes, including weed seed banks, the emergent weed community, crop production, soil microbial and insect communities. We are continuing to monitor the effects of annual disturbance and fertilizaton on community composition and successional trajectory in replicate old fields that are part of the LTER experimental system. These experiments allow us to test the long-term effects of fertilization and tillage on plant and microbial communities and soil processes.
The LTER work combined with my research on native grasslands has given me a greater appreciation of the challenges inherent in restoring native species in degraded grassland. My students and I have begun to work with local resource managers to develop experimental approaches that can guide the restoration and management of native grasslands in this area.
Representative Publications
Gross, K.L., M.R. Willig, L. Gough, R. Inouye, and S. B. Cox. 2000. Species density and productivity at different spatial scales in herbaceous plant communities. Oikos 89: 417-427.
Mittelbach, G. G., C. S. Steiner, K. L. Gross, H. Reynolds, S. M. Scheiner, R. B. Waide, M. R. Willig, and S. I. Dodson. 2001. What is the observed relationship between species richness and productivity? Ecology (in press).
Suding, KN, KL Gross and G Houseman. 2004. Alternative states and positive feedbacks in restoration ecology. Trends in Ecology and Evolution 19:46-53.
Gross, K.L., G.G. Mittelbach, and H. Reynolds. 2005. Invasiblity and grassland biodiversity: effects of nutrient addition and cover reduction. Ecology 86: 476-486.
Suding, KN, SL Collins, L Gough, CM Clark, EE Cleland, KL Gross, D Milchunas, and S Penning. 2005. Functional traits predict species loss in response to resource enhancement. PNAS 102: 4387-4392.
Farber, S, R Constanza, DL Childers, J Erickson, KL Gross, M Grove, C Hopkinson, J Kahn, S Pincetl, A Troy, P Warren, and M Wilson. 2006 linking Ecology and Ecosystem Management BioScience 56: 121-134.
Smith, RG and KL Gross. 2006. Weed community and corn yield variability in diverse management systems. Weed Science 54: 106-113.
Suding, KN and KL Gross. 2006. Modifying native and exotic species correlations: The influence of fire and seed additions Ecological Applications (in press)
Emery, SM and KL Gross. 2006. The identity of dominant species, not evenness, drives invasion in experimental plant communities Ecology (in press)