Brittany Barker

I investigate how past and current environmental changes influence the dynamics and distributions of animal and plant populations. As a member of the Oregon Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Center, I develop ecological models that can help agricultural decision makers with managing and monitoring pests, their crop hosts, and their natural enemies. These models can help stakeholders detect invasive species before they can establish and spread, reduce abundance of pests before they cause widespread damage, release biological control agents in locations that will optimize pest pressure, and increase reliance on beneficial species over chemical pest control methods. For example, I have developed a spatial modeling tool that predicts both where and when to expect target insects species. My previous research focused on (1) combining and analyzing remote sensing and ecological data sets to measure patterns and drivers of vegetation change through time; and (2) characterizing and identifying the types and sources of genetic variation associated with range expansions; and (3) exploring historical and topographic drivers of island biodiversity. I am currently an Assistant Research Professor with the Dept of Horticulture and Oregon IPM Center in the College of Agricultural Sciences at OSU. Previously, I worked as an Ecologist with the USGS Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center in Boise, Idaho, and I completed a PERT postdoctoral research fellowship in the Dlugosch Lab in the Ecology and Evolutionary Department at the University of Arizona.