Dr. Alison Bennett

Research Focus

Her unique research approach combines techniques from multiple disciplines including field, greenhouse, quantitative, chemical, molecular, and theoretical ecology approaches, to understand species interactions with implications for both managed (agricultural and invaded) and unmanaged systems.

Scientific Activities

Work on arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi spans both natural and managed systems and levels of biological organization. The goal of her groups research is to better understand the generality of the outcome of species interactions and the importance of those interactions in communities and tolerance to environmental change. By focusing on the generality of species interactions her group aims to enhance the predictability of interactions crucial to both natural and managed systems.

Significant Publications

Bennett, A.E., N.S. Millar, E. Gedrovics, A. Karley. 2016. Invited Paper. Plant and insect microbial symbionts alter the outcome of plant-herbivore-parasitoid interactions: implications for invaded, agricultural and natural systems. Journal of Ecology. 104(6): 1734–1744. doi: 10.1111/1365-2745.12620

Millar, N. S., A. E. Bennett. 2016. Stressed out symbiotes: Hypotheses for the influence of abiotic stress on arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. Oecologia. 182(3):625–641 doi: 10.1007/s00442-016-3673-7 Powell, J.R., A.E. Bennett. 2016. Unpredictable assembly of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal communities. Pedobiologia 59(1-2): 11-15. doi: 10.1016/j.pedobi.2015.12.001

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Collaborators