Jacob Spears Jacob is a PhD student in the Collins lab. His interests include desert plants from both the Chihuahuan Desert in New Mexico and the Sonoran Desert in Arizona. He is interested in the desert grasslands of New Mexico and how drought effects plant productivity and diversity in this ecosystem. He also works in collaboration with the Hernandez lab at the Desert Botanical Gardens north of Tempe, Arizona. As part of that lab, he studies saguaro cactus conservation and has a curiosity about the early life of the saguaro and what the seedlings can withstand. Outside of his research, Jacob is an avid weightlifter, as he played football at Rhodes College during his undergrad. He can also be found at choir rehearsal on campus, or at home tending to his large collection of house plants. |
Tyler Martin
Tyler is a Masters Student interested in Global Climate Change and its intersection with Ecology. He is currently studying how fire seasonality impacts the recovery of abundant grasses Bouteloua eriopoda and B. gracilis at the Sevilleta National Wildlife Refuge. His research relies on plant community composition and percent cover data from burn plots associated with the Sevilleta Long-Term Ecological Research program. Outside of academics he enjoys spending time hiking, rock climbing, and trail running with his dog. |
Scott Collins Distinguished Professor and Loren Potter Chair of Plant Ecology, Department of Biology, University of New Mexico
Plant community and ecosystem ecology scollins @ unm dot edu Publications: scholar.google.com/citations?user=qCMFRpoAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=sra Sevilleta LTER: sevlter.unm.edu/ Department of Biology: biology.unm.edu/ 
My name is Lorél Medina, and I am a fourth-year undergraduate student preparing to graduate with a bachelor's in biology with a focus in art. After graduating I want to pursue a degree in biological illustration working in science communication so that I can make biology more accessible for the general public.
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Purbendra Yogi
PhD student University of New Mexico Plant-microbe interactions, Biogeochemistry, Google Scholar Email: [email protected] |
Mariah Patton (she/her) is a PhD student co-advised by Dr. Scott Collins and Dr. Jennifer Rudgers. She is interested in understanding how communities alter the resistance to global change drivers such as nitrogen deposition and precipitation variability across different scales. Currently, Mariah’s dissertation research focuses on addressing questions within biological soil crusts across the Chihuahuan, Sonoran, and Mojave deserts. Mariah is also a proud fur mom to her Doberman, Bear, an avid plant lover and gardener, a rock climbing view-seeker, an LTER enthusiast and community member, and a strong advocate for fostering inclusive and supportive scientific communities.
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