Education

• Ph.D., Southern Illinois University-Carbondale, 2007

Research Interests

• Wetland ecology
• Fire ecology
• Plant ecology

Research Description

I am a plant ecologist interested primarily in linkages between community and ecosystem ecology in peatlands (peat-forming wetlands). My lab investigates the influence of natural disturbances, particularly wildfire and drought, on ecosystem structure and function, as well as the impact of climate change on future disturbance regimes. The topics we work on are as diverse as the places we work, including Alaska, Canada, Michigan, Minnesota, and Florida, and we have a wide network of collaborators from State and Federal agencies, NGOs, and national and international universities. 

Recent Publications

• Abbott, B., et al. (95 co-authors). (2016). Biomass offsets little or none of permafrost carbon release from soils, streams, and wildfire: an expert assessment. Environmental Research Letters  11:034014.
• Benscoter, B.W., Greenacre, D. and Turetsky, M.R. (2015). Wildfire as a key determinant of peatland microtopography. Canadian Journal of Forest Research  45:1133-1137. DOI:10.1139/cjfr-2015-0028.
• Lauck, M. and  Benscoter, B.W.  (2015). Non-destructive estimation of aboveground biomass in sawgrass communities of the Florida Everglades. Wetlands  35(1):207-210.
• Turetsky, M.R.,  Benscoter, B.W., Page, S., Rein, G., van der Werf, G. and Watts, A. (2014). Global vulnerability of peatlands to fire and carbon loss. Nature-Geosciences.  DOI: 10.1038/NGEO2325

Scholarly Activities

• See all publications
• Lab Website