Research Program

Ecological causes and consequences of variation in biodiversity

My research program is broadly focused on the disciplinary interfaces between population, community and ecosystem ecology in both freshwater and terrestrial systems and has involved work with amphibians, insects, fish, lizards, and herbaceous plants. In particular, I am interested in understanding processes that control the structure (e.g., relative abundances of species, number of species and kinds of species present) of ecological communities and how this structure affects ecosystem function and dynamics of constituent populations. For example, my students and I study how biotic and abiotic factors affect the intensity of species interactions within food webs which can affect the ability of different species to coexist. Understanding the ecological causes and consequences of variation in the biodiversity of food webs is essential if society is interested in conserving biodiversity and predicting the consequences of biodiversity loss.

ECU web feature on our research

Courses Taught

BIOL 2250.         Ecology

BIOL 4200, 4201. Population and Community Ecology

BIOL 6800.   Population Ecology

BIOL 6850.   Advances in Ecology (Topics discussed in different semesters include ecological statistics, the biological niche, and current topics in ecology)

BIOL 7900. Ecological Statistics

Recent Publications

Chalcraft, D. R., B. J. Wilsey, C. Bowles and M. R. Willig. 2009. The relationship between productivity and multiple aspects of biodiversity in grassland communities. Biodiversity and Conservation 18:91-104.

Rogers, T. N. and D. R. Chalcraft. 2008. Effect of density-dependent processes on larval anurans depends on environmental context. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Science 65:2761-2768.

Chalcraft, D. R., S. Cox, C. Clark, E. Cleland, K. Suding, E. Weiher, and D. Pennington. 2008. Scale-dependent responses of plant biodiversity to nitrogen enrichment. Ecology 89:2165-2171.

* Designated as a "Recommended Article" by Faculty of 1000, Sept. 8, 2008. 

Resetarits, W. J., Jr. and D. R. Chalcraft. 2007. Functional diversity within a morphologically conservative genus of predators: implications for functional equivalence and redundancy in ecological communities. Functional Ecology 21:793-804.

Wilsey, B. J., D. R. Chalcraft, C. Bowles and M. R. Willig. 2005. Multidimensional nature of species diversity in grassland communities. Ecology 86:1178-1184.         

Resetarits, Jr, W. J., C. A. Binckley, and D. R. Chalcraft. 2005. Habitat selection, dispersal, species interactions and community assembly in complex landscapes: a metacommunity perspective. Pages 374-398 in: "Metacommunities: Spatial Dynamics and Ecological Communities" edited by Marcel Holyoak, Mathew A. Leibold and Robert D. Holt. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, IL.

Chalcraft, D. R., C. Binckley, and W. J. Resetarits, Jr. 2005. Experimental venue and estimation of interaction strength: Comment. Ecology 86:1061-1067.

Chalcraft, D. R., J. Williams, M. D. Smith, and M. R. Willig. 2004. Scale dependence in the species richness - productivity relationship: the role of species turnover. Ecology 85:2701-2708.

Chalcraft, D.R. and W.J. Resetarits, Jr. 2004. Metabolic rate models and the substitutability of predator populations. Journal of Animal Ecology 73:323-332.

Laboratory Personnel

Graduate Students

Doctoral students:     

Jon Davenport (IDPBS)

Lauren McCarthy (IDPBS)

Masters students:     

Natalie Amoroso (Biology)

Leah Connell (Biology)

Robby Deans (Biology)

Jason Hernandez (Biology)

Chuck Williams (Biology)

Prospective graduate students

An NSF-supported research assistantship is available for a doctoral or master's student to participate in a 5-year project that examines the consequences of biodiversity loss in temporary ponds located in the coastal plain of North Carolina. Applicants should send a brief cover letter, CV/resume, statement of relevant research experience and interests (1-2 pages), and list of names of people who are willing to provide letters of reference (preferably as a single PDF document) to Dr. David Chalcraft.