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Smithsonian Environmental Research Center

Understanding Ecosystems for a Sustainable Future

Animal-Plant Interaction

Principal Investigator

Specialty

Mangrove Ecologist

Animal-Plant Interaction Projects

One of only two tree climbing crabs, Aratus pisonii, feeds on mangrove leaves. This unique crab is an omnivore and also known to have cannibalistic tendencies.

Climate & Nutrients Affect Mangrove Herbivory
Climate change is facilitating rapid encroachment of mangrove trees into herbaceous saltmarsh ecosystems.

Mangrove Expansion in Response to Climate Change
Nutrient over-enrichment increases the productivity of scrub mangroves, but also decreases their resistance and resilience to hurricane damage.

Nutrient Enrichment Intensifies Hurricane Impact on Mangroves