I'm a research scientist with the Earth Lab and CIRES at the University of Colorado in Boulder working with Dr. Jennifer Balch. I earned my PhD at the University of California, Davis in the Graduate Group in Ecology where I was advised by Dr. Andrew Latimer and Dr. Malcolm North. My MSc advisor at Colorado State University was Dr. Ruth Hufbauer.
My research focuses on broad-scale emergent patterns of plant biogeography arising from local-scale demographic processes, particularly how vegetation spatial structure affects the dynamics of disturbance-prone forests. I use geospatial analyses, cutting edge tools, integration of diverse data sources, and a firm foundation of ecological theory to advance innovative, original macroecology research in the mountainous western U.S.
These are some projects I'm currently working on:
My research focuses on broad-scale emergent patterns of plant biogeography arising from local-scale demographic processes, particularly how vegetation spatial structure affects the dynamics of disturbance-prone forests. I use geospatial analyses, cutting edge tools, integration of diverse data sources, and a firm foundation of ecological theory to advance innovative, original macroecology research in the mountainous western U.S.
These are some projects I'm currently working on:
- Investigating the fine-scale drivers of California megafires.
- Integrating drone-derived data with the National Ecological Observatory Network forest structure data and the Aerial Observation Platform
- Using Google Earth Engine to assess wildfire severity and the precariousness of continental US forest systems to state change
- Drone mapping forest structure and spatial patterns of western pine beetle outbreaks in the Sierra Nevada
- Teaching scientific computing skills to researchers
- GLORIA alpine plant monitoring to track climate change effects on peaks within the Great Basin region
- Eco-evolutionary consequences of multiple introductions for colonizing individuals using microcosm experiments
You can find some of my previous research and resource management activities here.
Contact:
Michael Koontz
Earth Lab/CIRES
SEEC Building, Room 348
University of Colorado-Boulder
Boulder, CO 80303
mikoontz at gmail dot com
ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-8276-210X
GitHub: mikoontz
Twitter: @_mikoontz
Michael Koontz
Earth Lab/CIRES
SEEC Building, Room 348
University of Colorado-Boulder
Boulder, CO 80303
mikoontz at gmail dot com
ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-8276-210X
GitHub: mikoontz
Twitter: @_mikoontz
Last updated: 2021-06-23
