Michala L Phillips, PhD
Dr. Michala Phillips is an ecologist studying how biotic interactions, disturbance and global change mediate community assembly of plants and soil microbes to affect emergent ecosystem functions.
Michala is passionate about using basic science to create knowledge that can be used to support sustainable restoration and management needs of ecosystems. She integrates community, ecosystem, plant and microbial ecology in her research by using statistical modeling to combine data from a diversity of approaches (field, greenhouse, sensor networks, soil chemistry and molecular biology techniques). Her aim is to build a better understanding of community assembly and ecosystem processes following disturbances to inform restoration and adaptive land management efforts. Towards this goal, Michala works closely with a broad range of collaborators, including federal agency partners, to create research questions, develop projects, and communicate the knowledge gained from research. Some of her primary research interests are understanding how fire, atmospheric nitrogen deposition, and climate change catalyze state changes, such as invasion by exotic plants, with the ultimate goal of developing innovative management solutions.
Education and Certifications
Ph.D. Plant Biology, Plant Ecology emphasis - University of California, Riverside. Dissertation: “Invasion in the Chaparral: Uncovering Soil Microbial and Plant Physiological Mechanisms,” 2019.
M.S. Environmental Science, American University, College of Arts and Sciences, Washington, D.C., 2013.
B.A. in Environmental Studies, American University, College of Arts and Sciences, Washington, D.C., 2012.
Honors and Awards
Fellowships
NSF Postdoctoral Fellowship in Biology - 2021
USDA-NIFA Postdoctoral Fellowship - 2021
Science and Products
Biocrusts mediate a new mechanism for land degradation under a changing climate Biocrusts mediate a new mechanism for land degradation under a changing climate
Resistance, resilience, and recovery of dryland soil bacterial communities across multiple disturbances Resistance, resilience, and recovery of dryland soil bacterial communities across multiple disturbances
Muted responses to chronic experimental nitrogen deposition on the Colorado Plateau Muted responses to chronic experimental nitrogen deposition on the Colorado Plateau
Experimental warming changes phenology and shortens growing season of the dominant invasive plant Bromus tectorum (cheatgrass) Experimental warming changes phenology and shortens growing season of the dominant invasive plant Bromus tectorum (cheatgrass)
Non-USGS Publications**
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
Science and Products
Biocrusts mediate a new mechanism for land degradation under a changing climate Biocrusts mediate a new mechanism for land degradation under a changing climate
Resistance, resilience, and recovery of dryland soil bacterial communities across multiple disturbances Resistance, resilience, and recovery of dryland soil bacterial communities across multiple disturbances
Muted responses to chronic experimental nitrogen deposition on the Colorado Plateau Muted responses to chronic experimental nitrogen deposition on the Colorado Plateau
Experimental warming changes phenology and shortens growing season of the dominant invasive plant Bromus tectorum (cheatgrass) Experimental warming changes phenology and shortens growing season of the dominant invasive plant Bromus tectorum (cheatgrass)
Non-USGS Publications**
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.