Michelle Cailin Mack

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Michelle Cailin Mack
Alma materUniversity of California, Berkeley
Scientific career
Thesis Effects of exotic grass invasion on ecosystem nitrogen dynamics in a Hawaiian woodland  (1998)
Doctoral advisor Carla D'Antonio

Michelle Cailin Mack is an ecologist working on the connections between plants and climate in polar regions. She is a fellow of the Ecological Society of America and the American Geophysical Union. She currently holds the title of Regent's Professor at Northern Arizona University. [1]

Contents

Education and career

Mack has both a B.A. and a B.S. from Evergreen State College (1990) [2] [3] and went on to earn a Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley in 1998. [4] Following her Ph.D. she worked at the University of Alaska Fairbanks until 2002, first as a postdoc working with F. Stuart Chapin III and then as a research associate in the Institute of Arctic Biology. In 2002 she moved to the University of Florida where she was promoted to professor in 2013. In 2014 she moved to Northern Arizona University. [4]

Research

Mack's research investigations include examining how human activity and the introduction of non-native species impacts terrestrial ecosystems. [5] [6] For example, she has examined how changes in C4 grasses have changed nitrogen cycling in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, [7] and how changes in nutrients change the storage of carbon [8] and bacterial communities [9] in polar regions. Her research includes investigations of the role of fire, [10] [11] thermokarst lakes, [12] and permafrost thawing on carbon cycling in polar regions. [13]

Selected publications

Awards and honors

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ecosystem</span> Community of living organisms together with the nonliving components of their environment

An ecosystem is a system that environments and their organisms form through their interaction. The biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and energy flows.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tundra</span> Biome where plant growth is hindered by frigid temperatures

In physical geography, tundra is a type of biome where tree growth is hindered by frigid temperatures and short growing seasons. The term is a Russian word adapted from Sámi languages. There are three regions and associated types of tundra: Arctic tundra, alpine tundra, and Antarctic tundra.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Subglacial lake</span> Lake under a glacier

A subglacial lake is a lake that is found under a glacier, typically beneath an ice cap or ice sheet. Subglacial lakes form at the boundary between ice and the underlying bedrock, where gravitational pressure decreases the pressure melting point of ice. Over time, the overlying ice gradually melts at a rate of a few millimeters per year. Meltwater flows from regions of high to low hydraulic pressure under the ice and pools, creating a body of liquid water that can be isolated from the external environment for millions of years.

Yedoma is an organic-rich Pleistocene-age permafrost with ice content of 50–90% by volume. Yedoma are abundant in the cold regions of eastern Siberia, such as northern Yakutia, as well as in Alaska and the Yukon.

F. Stuart Chapin III is a professor of Ecology at the Department of Biology and Wildlife of the Institute of Arctic Biology, University of Alaska. He was President of the Ecological Society of America (ESA) from August 2010 until 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arctic ecology</span> Study of the relationships between biotic and abiotic factors in the arctic

Arctic ecology is the scientific study of the relationships between biotic and abiotic factors in the arctic, the region north of the Arctic Circle. This region is characterized by two biomes: taiga and tundra. While the taiga has a more moderate climate and permits a diversity of both non-vascular and vascular plants, the tundra has a limited growing season and stressful growing conditions due to intense cold, low precipitation, and a lack of sunlight throughout the winter. Sensitive ecosystems exist throughout the Arctic region, which are being impacted dramatically by global warming.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Climate change in the Arctic</span> Impacts of climate change on the Arctic

Major environmental issues caused by contemporary climate change in the Arctic region range from the well-known, such as the loss of sea ice or melting of the Greenland ice sheet, to more obscure, but deeply significant issues, such as permafrost thaw, as well as related social consequences for locals and the geopolitical ramifications of these changes. The Arctic is likely to be especially affected by climate change because of the high projected rate of regional warming and associated impacts. Temperature projections for the Arctic region were assessed in 2007: These suggested already averaged warming of about 2 °C to 9 °C by the year 2100. The range reflects different projections made by different climate models, run with different forcing scenarios. Radiative forcing is a measure of the effect of natural and human activities on the climate. Different forcing scenarios reflect things such as different projections of future human greenhouse gas emissions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arctic methane emissions</span> Release of methane from seas and soils in permafrost regions of the Arctic

Arctic methane release is the release of methane from Arctic ocean waters as well as from soils in permafrost regions of the Arctic. While it is a long-term natural process, methane release is exacerbated by global warming. This results in a positive climate change feedback, as methane is itself a powerful greenhouse gas. The Arctic region is one of the many natural sources of the greenhouse gas methane. Global warming could potentially accelerate its release, due to both release of methane from existing stores, and from methanogenesis in rotting biomass.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sergey Zimov</span>

Sergey Aphanasievich Zimov is a Russian geophysicist who specialises in arctic and subarctic ecology. He is the Director of Northeast Scientific Station, a senior research fellow of the Pacific Institute for Geography, and one of the founders of Pleistocene Park. He is best known for his work in advocating the theory that human overhunting of large herbivores during the Pleistocene caused Siberia's grassland-steppe ecosystem to disappear and for raising awareness as to the important roles permafrost and thermokarst lakes play in the global carbon cycle.

Ecosystem respiration is the sum of all respiration occurring by the living organisms in a specific ecosystem. The two main processes that contribute to ecosystem respiration are photosynthesis and cellular respiration. Photosynthesis uses carbon-dioxide and water, in the presence of sunlight to produce glucose and oxygen whereas cellular respiration uses glucose and oxygen to produce carbon-dioxide, water, and energy. The coordination of inputs and outputs of these two processes creates a completely interconnected system, constituting the underlying functioning of the ecosystems overall respiration.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Permafrost carbon cycle</span> Sub-cycle of the larger global carbon cycle

The permafrost carbon cycle or Arctic carbon cycle is a sub-cycle of the larger global carbon cycle. Permafrost is defined as subsurface material that remains below 0o C for at least two consecutive years. Because permafrost soils remain frozen for long periods of time, they store large amounts of carbon and other nutrients within their frozen framework during that time. Permafrost represents a large carbon reservoir, one which was often neglected in the initial research determining global terrestrial carbon reservoirs. Since the start of the 2000s, however, far more attention has been paid to the subject, with an enormous growth both in general attention and in the scientific research output.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Climate and vegetation interactions in the Arctic</span>

Changing climate conditions are amplified in polar regions and northern high-latitude areas are projected to warm at twice the rate of the global average. These modifications result in ecosystem interactions and feedbacks that can augment or mitigate climatic changes. These interactions may have been important through the large climate fluctuations since the glacial period. Therefore it is useful to review the past dynamics of vegetation and climate to place recent observed changes in the Arctic into context. This article focuses on northern Alaska where there has been much research on this theme.

Terence Vincent Callaghan is a British biologist specialized in the ecology of the Arctic. Much of his work on arctic plants has taken place in Abisko in northernmost Sweden, based at the Abisko Scientific Research Station where he served as director. He was a lead author of the IPCC Fourth Assessment Reports chapter on polar regions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Viral shunt</span>

The viral shunt is a mechanism that prevents marine microbial particulate organic matter (POM) from migrating up trophic levels by recycling them into dissolved organic matter (DOM), which can be readily taken up by microorganisms. The DOM recycled by the viral shunt pathway is comparable to the amount generated by the other main sources of marine DOM.

Susan M. Natali is an American ecologist. She is the Arctic program director and senior scientist at the Woodwell Climate Research Center, where her research focuses on the impact of climate change on terrestrial ecosystems, primarily on Arctic permafrost. She is also the project lead for Permafrost Pathways, a new initiative launched in 2022 with funding from TED's Audacious Project. On Monday, April 11, 2022, Dr. Natali gave a TED Talk introducing the Permafrost Pathways project at the TED2022 conference in Vancouver, BC.

Erika S. Zavaleta is an American professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of California, Santa Cruz. Zavaleta is recognized for her research focusing on topics including plant community ecology, conservation practices for terrestrial ecosystems, and impacts of community dynamics on ecosystem functions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sandra Díaz (ecologist)</span> Argentinian ecologist

Sandra Myrna DíazForMemRS is an Argentine ecologist and professor of ecology at the National University of Córdoba, who has been awarded with the Linnean Medal for her scientific work. She studies the functional traits of plants and investigates how plants impact the ecosystem.

Anne E. Giblin is a marine biologist who researches the cycling of elements nitrogen, sulfur, iron and phosphorus. She is a Senior Scientist and Acting Director of the Ecosystem Center at the Marine Biological Lab.

Margaret Torn is an ecologist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory known for her research on carbon cycling, especially with respect to the interactions between soils and the atmosphere.

Merritt Turetsky is an American ecosystem ecologist and a professor at the University of Colorado Boulder. She currently serves as the Director of Arctic Security for the University of Colorado. She served as the first woman Director of the Institute for Arctic and Alpine Research (INSTAAR) from 2019-2023. Her research considers fire regimes, climate change and biogeochemical cycling in Arctic wetlands. Turetsky is a member of the Permafrost Action Team (SEARCH), a group of scientists who translate and deliver science to decision-makers.

References

  1. "Seven new Regents' professors showcase NAU's research and scholarly excellence – The NAU Review" . Retrieved 2021-10-31.
  2. "The Evergreen State College 19th Class Commencement Ceremonies" (PDF). Evergreen State College. Retrieved October 9, 2021.
  3. "The Evergreen State College Eighteenth Annual Commencement Ceremonoies" (PDF). Evergreen State College. 1989. Retrieved October 9, 2021.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Michelle Cailin Mack CV" (PDF). 2017.
  5. Mack, Michelle C.; D'Antonio, Caria M. (1998). "Impacts of biological invasions on disturbance regimes". Trends in Ecology & Evolution. 13 (5): 195–198. doi:10.1016/s0169-5347(97)01286-x. ISSN   0169-5347. PMID   21238260.
  6. D'Antonio, Carla M.; Hughes, R. Flint; Mack, Michelle; Hitchcock, Derek; Vitousek, Peter M. (1998). "The response of native species to removal of invasive exotic grasses in a seasonally dry Hawaiian woodland". Journal of Vegetation Science. 9 (5): 699–712. doi:10.2307/3237288. ISSN   1654-1103. JSTOR   3237288.
  7. Mack, Michelle C.; D'Antonio, Carla M.; Ley, Ruth E. (2001). "Alteration of Ecosystem Nitrogen Dynamics by Exotic Plants: A Case Study of C4 Grasses in Hawaii". Ecological Applications. 11 (5): 1323–1335. doi:10.1890/1051-0761(2001)011[1323:AOENDB]2.0.CO;2. ISSN   1939-5582.
  8. Mack, Michelle C.; Schuur, Edward A. G.; Bret-Harte, M. Syndonia; Shaver, Gaius R.; Chapin, F. Stuart (2004). "Ecosystem carbon storage in arctic tundra reduced by long-term nutrient fertilization". Nature. 431 (7007): 440–443. doi:10.1038/nature02887. ISSN   0028-0836. PMID   15386009. S2CID   4338923.
  9. Campbell, Barbara J.; Polson, Shawn W.; Hanson, Thomas E.; Mack, Michelle C.; Schuur, Edward A. G. (2010). "The effect of nutrient deposition on bacterial communities in Arctic tundra soil". Environmental Microbiology. 12 (7): 1842–1854. doi:10.1111/j.1462-2920.2010.02189.x. ISSN   1462-2920. PMID   20236166.
  10. Johnstone, Jill F.; Hollingsworth, Teresa N.; Chapin, F. Stuart; Mack, Michelle C. (2010). "Changes in fire regime break the legacy lock on successional trajectories in Alaskan boreal forest". Global Change Biology. 16 (4): 1281–1295. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2486.2009.02051.x. ISSN   1365-2486. S2CID   9645666.
  11. Mack, Michelle C.; Bret-Harte, M. Syndonia; Hollingsworth, Teresa N.; Jandt, Randi R.; Schuur, Edward A. G.; Shaver, Gaius R.; Verbyla, David L. (2011). "Carbon loss from an unprecedented Arctic tundra wildfire". Nature. 475 (7357): 489–492. doi:10.1038/nature10283. ISSN   0028-0836. PMID   21796209. S2CID   4371811.
  12. Anthony, K. M. Walter; Zimov, S. A.; Grosse, G.; Jones, M. C.; Anthony, P. M.; Iii, F. S. Chapin; Finlay, J. C.; Mack, M. C.; Davydov, S.; Frenzel, P.; Frolking, S. (2014). "A shift of thermokarst lakes from carbon sources to sinks during the Holocene epoch". Nature. 511 (7510): 452–456. doi:10.1038/nature13560. ISSN   0028-0836. OSTI   1776462. PMID   25043014. S2CID   4455401.
  13. Schuur, Edward A.G.; Mack, Michelle C. (2018-11-02). "Ecological Response to Permafrost Thaw and Consequences for Local and Global Ecosystem Services". Annual Review of Ecology, Evolution, and Systematics. 49 (1): 279–301. doi:10.1146/annurev-ecolsys-121415-032349. ISSN   1543-592X. S2CID   92292300.
  14. "2021 Class of AGU Fellows Announced". Eos. 2021-09-28. Retrieved 2021-10-09.