Prior to his retirement in 2021, Thomas Doyle's research focused on developing integrated simulation models of plant growth and succession at the leaf, tree, stand and landscape levels.
RESEARCH
Thomas Doyle's models have predicted effects of natural and anthropogenic disturbance on the structure and function of coastal and floodplain forests. He applied dendroecological techniques of tree-ring analysis for climate reconstruction, disturbance interventions of floods and hurricanes, and forest model validation. Current ecosystem model applications include projected impacts of global climate change, sea-level rise, elevated carbon dioxide, and hurricane impact along with resource management issues of wetland restoration, fire, wastewater pollution, and landscape fragmentation.
Ecosystem analysis and modeling with a special emphasis on tree-ring applications, forest succession, and landscape simulation models, role of natural and anthropogenic disturbance and climate change on forest structure and diversity of coastal ecosystems of the southeastern United States and Caribbean regions.
SCIENCE AND MANAGEMENT IMPACT
Doyle's research spans several decades of developing spatial simulation models for temperate and tropical ecosystems from mangroves, tidal freshwater forested wetlands and marshes to floodplain swamp forests, pine flatwoods, and montane eastern deciduous and tropical rain forests. His field and modeling research takes an integrated hierarchical approach to understanding physiological processes at the leaf layer and plant level, to competition and spatial relations of tree canopy and species dynamics at the stand and forest level, and landscape scale exchange of physical forcings of climate, flooding, fire, storms, and management of riverine and coastal systems. His dendrochronology research has shown that hurricane wind and surge evidence is imprinted in the growth record of surviving trees in coastal counties and that tree-ring chronologies from coastal locations are problematic for climate reconstruction for confounding storm influences. His tree-ring collections in riverine floodplains shows that streamflow records are valuable climate proxies for rainfall distribution annually and seasonally, and that different tree species respond to temperature and precipitation to different degrees such that multi-species approach is more comprehensive for climate reconstruction than single species models. His hurricane research and models are based on dozens of post-storm assessments in mangrove and tidal freshwater forests across the southeastern U.S., Caribbean, and Central America. These investigations and tools have shown that hurricane intensity and frequency are important determinants of ecosystem type and structure based on measured species sensitivity to windthrow and surge impact.
Science and Products
Assessing Coastal Forest Impacts and Resource Management Implications following Hurricane Sandy
Effect of Hurricane Wrack Deposition on Coastal Marsh Surface Elevation Change
Rate and Process of Mangrove Forest Expansion on Carbon Relations in Coastal Louisiana
Dendrochronology of Coastal Forests to Evaluate Impacts of Wind and Surge from Hurricane Sandy
Assessing Treefall Patterns and Causal Relations of Wind and Surge from Hurricane Sandy
Aerial Videography Overflights of Forest Cover and Impact from Hurricane Sandy along the Atlantic Coast, USA
Webinar: Sea-level Rise Modeling Handbook: Resource Guide for Coastal Land Managers, Engineers, and Scientists
Informing Conservation Management Decision-Making at Coastal National Wildlife Refuges
A Handbook for Resource Managers to Understand and Utilize Sea-Level Rise and Coastal Wetland Models
Science and Products
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Assessing Coastal Forest Impacts and Resource Management Implications following Hurricane Sandy
Tropical storms and hurricanes wreak havoc with coastal forests where damage can vary with wind speed and approach from isolated treefalls to wide-area blowdowns of whole forests.Effect of Hurricane Wrack Deposition on Coastal Marsh Surface Elevation Change
Storm surge waves and tides of hurricanes have the propensity to wash up marsh detritus of dead reeds and leaf debris along with plastic trash and lumber, commonly referred to as wrack, from overwashed beaches, marshes, forests, streets, and lawns.Rate and Process of Mangrove Forest Expansion on Carbon Relations in Coastal Louisiana
Field observations over recent decades have confirmed mangrove expansion landward in tropical zones and poleward in temperate saltmarsh settings around the northern Gulf of Mexico.Dendrochronology of Coastal Forests to Evaluate Impacts of Wind and Surge from Hurricane Sandy
The science of dating growth rings and history of live and fossil wood samples is called dendrochronology. This technique is valuable for conducting climate reconstructions where meteorological data is lacking and for detecting past disturbance events such as tropical storms and hurricanes.Assessing Treefall Patterns and Causal Relations of Wind and Surge from Hurricane Sandy
As tropical storms and hurricanes move onshore and make landfall, wind and storm surge can be sufficiently high to damage built-infrastructure and natural systems, most notably coastal forests at the interface of land and sea.Aerial Videography Overflights of Forest Cover and Impact from Hurricane Sandy along the Atlantic Coast, USA
High resolution imagery (aerial videography) was obtained of Hurricane Sandy to assess forest damage by documenting disturbed canopy and downed trees.Webinar: Sea-level Rise Modeling Handbook: Resource Guide for Coastal Land Managers, Engineers, and Scientists
View this webinar to learn more about the Sea-level Rise Modeling Handbook.Informing Conservation Management Decision-Making at Coastal National Wildlife Refuges
Coastal National Wildlife Refuges (NWRs) provide a myriad of beneficial services, including buffering storm surge, improving water quality, supporting commercial fisheries, and providing habitat for imperiled wildlife and plants. Yet in the last century, coastal ecosystems in the eastern U.S. have been severely altered by human development activities as well as sea-level rise and more frequent extA Handbook for Resource Managers to Understand and Utilize Sea-Level Rise and Coastal Wetland Models
Coastal wetlands and the many beneficial services they provide (e.g., purifying water, buffering storm surge, providing habitat) are changing and disappearing as a result of sea-level rise brought about by climate change. Scientists have developed a wealth of information and resources to predict and aid decision-making related to sea-level rise. However, while some of these resources are easily ac - Data
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