2006 – Present. Senior Scientist (Forest=
Ecologist). The Wilderness Society,
Ecology and Economics Department, 503 West Mendenhall, Bozeman, MT 59715.
2006 – Present. Adjunct Professor of For=
est
Soils. Department of Ecosystem=
and
Conservation Sciences, College
of Forestry, The University of Montan=
a,
Missoula, MT
2000 - Present. Guest Professor of Ecology,
Department of Forest Vegetation Ecology, Swe=
dish
University of Agricultural Scien=
ces, Umeå, Sweden.
Research in soil biogeochemistry as related to forest vegetation dynamics a=
nd
historic land use patterns.
1994=
-
2006. Assistant, Associate, & Full Professor of Forest Soils, College of Forestry=
,
The University of Montana, Missoula,
MT.
EDUCATION
Ph.D. Iowa State
University, May =
1993.
Soil Science (Soil Microbiology and Biochemistry).
M.S. Montana State University, March
1987. Soils (Soil Fertility).
B.S. Univ=
ersity
of Wisconsin-Madison, December 1984. Soil Science (Natural Science)<=
/span>.
![3D"Tom&OlleLunch"](3D"deluca_files/image004.jpg")
|
CAREER OBJECTIVES
- Enhance societal
awareness of soil and its role in anthropogenic and natural ecosyste=
ms
ultimately leading to the enhanced preservation of soils in natural =
and managed
ecosystems.
- Conduct research t=
hat
helps lead to the preservation of natural landscapes
- Conduct research to
enhance our understanding of how natural and anthropogenic disturban=
ce
influence N and C cycling and ecosystem sustainability
- Provide individuals
(through education and outreach) with some of the tools and ability
required to address natural resource limitations and complexities th=
at
face our future generations.
< Tom=
DeLuca
and Olle Zackrisson enjoy lunch in an arctic, subalpine birch stand in
northern Sweden.
|
<=
span
style=3D'mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"'>ONGOING RESEARCH <=
/o:p>
Fire, Fire Excl=
usion,
and Forest Restoration. In the summe=
r of
2006, I left the University of <=
st1:PlaceName
w:st=3D"on">Montana and Missoula
to take a position with The Wilderness Society in Bozeman, MT. Prior to that time my resear=
ch had
been focused on the role of fire and fire exclusion on nutrient cycling and
plant community dynamics in the Inland Northwest and Northern
Europe. My work =
is
currently focused on how various forest restoration approaches influence
ecosystem composition, function and resilience. Evaluation of forest restora=
tion
practices and analysis of the role of fire in regeneration of natural forest
stand structure and function is being conducted in collaboration with other
Wilderness Society researchers and with colleagues at the University. Ongoing studies with graduate stud=
ents
include the characterization and restoration of slash pile burn scars in
ponderosa pine ecosystems and analysis of carbon storage and dynamics in old
growth and second growth forests of the northern Roc=
kies.
Wildfire Charco=
al and
Soil Processes Working with colleagues in Sweden
and Montana,
we have been studying charcoal, that is formed during fire events, to evalu=
ate
its role in forest ecosystem processes.&nb=
sp;
Under support from the NSF-DEB-Ecosystems program, we have found that
the naturally formed charcoal enhances nitrification in forest soils that do
not normally exhibit net nitrification.&nb=
sp;
Working with Bill Holben’s laboratory we have found that fire
induces a significant shift in the nitrifier community and believe that muc=
h of
this shift relates to the incorporation of charcoal during fire events. Further, charcoal has proven to be
extremely effective in the adsorption of phenolic and terpenoid compounds w=
hich
in turn may influence plant-plant, plant-soil, and plant-microbe
interactions. Charcoal deposi=
ted
during fire has the potential to influence soil processes by acting as a sa=
fe
site for microbial activity or by “sponge” for organic compounds
released directly from plant leaves and roots or by the decomposition of pl=
ant
litter. Charcoal exhibits a u=
nique
longevity in soils, having turnover times of 3,000 to 12,000 years. This means that charcoal deposited
enters directly into the “passive” soil C pool meaning that it
functions as a long-term store of ecosystem C. Given the high capacity to adsorb
organic materials, charcoal may also function as a seed for humus
formation. =
Nitrogen Fixati=
on
Dynamics in Boreal Forest Ecosystem Over the past 10 years we have been
collaborating with colleagues in northern <=
st1:place
w:st=3D"on">Sweden to study nitrogen fixa=
tion
in feather moss communities of boreal forest ecosystems. We found that three species of
cyanobacteria commonly colonize the leaf incurve of Pleurozium schreberi and Hylocomium
splendans. Nitrogen fixation rates average about 2- 3 kg N ha-1
yr-1 in late succession forests and is basically non-detectable =
in
early succession forests. Fire
greatly consumes the moss bottom layer during boreal forest fire events and=
it
takes about 20 years before feather mosses are common on these sites after
fire. The nitrogen release
following is continually cycled through inorganic forms as a function of
charcoal formation during fire
events. The free nitrogen, in=
turn,
appears to reduce nitrogen fixation rates in feather mosses up to 100 years
after fire events. Studies are
currently being conducted on the fate of fixed nitrogen in boreal Scots pine
forests and on influence of anthropogenic nitrogen deposition on nitrogen
fixation rates in feather mosses.
SELECTED RE=
CENT
PUBLICATIONS
DeLuca, T.=
H. and
G.H. Aplet. 2008. Charcoal and carbon storage in forest soils of the Rocky
Mountain West. Frontiers in Ecolog=
y and
the Environment: In press
Gundale,
M.J., S. Sutherland, and T.H. DeLu=
ca.
2008. Fire, native species, and soil resource interactions regulate the
spatio-temporal invasion patt=
ern of
Bromus tectorum. Ecography:
In Press.
Nilsson,
M-C., D.A. Wardle and T.H. DeLuca<=
/b>.
2008. Belowground and aboveground consequences of interactions involving li=
ve
plant species mixtures and dead organic substrate mixtures. Oikos: In Press.
Walters,
D.K. and T.H. DeLuca. 2007.
Salt-lick induced soil disturbance in the Teton Wilde=
rness,
USA.
Range Ecology and Management 60:675-679.
DeLuca, T=
.H. 2007.
Environmental benefits and consequences of biofuels development in the United States.
The Wilderness Society. Science and Policy Brief. April 2007. 12 pp
Liedgren=
, L.G.,
I.M. Bergman, G. Hörnberg, O. Zackrisson, E. Hellberg, L. Östlund=
, T.
DeLuca. 2007. Radio=
carbon
dating of prehistoric hearths in alpine northern Sweden: problems and possibil=
ities.
Journal of Archaeological Science 34:1276-1288
DeLuca, T.H. and O. Zackrisson. 2=
007. Juniperus communis enhances soil
fertility in arctic ecosystems. Pl=
ant
and Soil 294:147-155.
DeLuca=
,
T.H., O. Zackrisson, F. Gentili, A. Sellstedt, M-C. Nilsson. 2007. Ecosystem
controls on nitrogen fixation in boreal feather moss communities. Oecologia
152:121-130.
Gundale, M.J. and T.H. DeLuca. 2=
007.
Charcoal and litter extracts alter soil solution chemistry and growth of Koeleria macrantha in the ponderosa
pine/Douglas-fir ecosystem. Biology and Fertility of Soils 43:303-31=
1.
&nbs=
p;
Kurth, V.=
J. M.D.
MacKenzie, and T.H. DeLuca. 20=
06.
Estimating the charcoal content of mineral soils. Geoderma 137:135-139.
Keeling, E.G., A. Sala, and T.=
H. DeLuca.
2006. Effects of fire exclusion on forest structure and composition in unlo=
gged
ponderosa pine/Douglas-fir forests. Forest
Ecology and Management 237:418-428.
DeLuca, T.H. and A. Sala. 2=
006. Frequent fire alters nitrogen
transformations in ponderosa pine stands of the Inland Northwest. Ecology 87:2511-2522.
MacKenzie, M.D. and T.H. DeL=
uca.
2006. Resin adsorption of carbon and nitrogen as influenced by season and t=
ime
since fire. Soil Science Society <=
st1:country-region
w:st=3D"on">America=
Journal
70:2122-2129.
MacKenzie, M.D. and T.H. DeL=
uca.
2006. Charcoal and shrubs modify soil processes in ponderosa pine forests of
western Montana.
Plant and Soil 287:257-266.
Gundale, M.J. and T.H. DeLuca. 2=
006.
Temperature and Substrate influence the chemical properties of charcoal in =
the
ponderosa pine/Douglas-fir ecosystem. Forest<=
/st1:place>
Ecology and Management 231:86-93.
&nbs=
p;
MacKenzie=
, D.M.,
T.H. DeLuca, and A. Sala. 2006.
Nitrogen mineralization and biodiversity in low elevation forests of wester=
n Montana. Soil
Biology and Biochemistry 38:952-961.
&nbs=
p;
Gundale, =
M.J.,
K.L. Metlen, C.E. Feidler, and T.H. DeLuca.
2006. Spatial nitrogen heterogeneity increases diversity following restorat=
ion
in a ponderosa pine forest, M=
ontana.
Ecological Applications 16:479=
-489.
DeLuca, T. H., M.D. MacKenz=
ie,
M.J. Gundale, and W.E. Holben. 2006. Wildfire-produced charcoal directly
influences nitrogen cycling in forest ecosystems. Soil Science Society America
Journal 70:448-453.
Thorpe, A., V. Archer,=
and
T.H. DeLuca. 2006. The invasive
forb, Centaurea maculosa, incre=
ases
phosphorus availability in Mo=
ntana
grasslands. Applied Soil Ecology 32:118-122.
&nbs=
p;
DeLuca, T.H. 2006. Looking at biofuels and
bioenergy: Letters. Science 312:1743-1744
Gentili F., M-C. Nilsson, O. Zackrisson, T.H. DeLuca and A. Sellstedt. 2005. Feather moss-N2 fixing cyanobacteria association:
physiological and molecular diversity of the associative cyanobacteria gene=
ra. Journal
of Experimental Botany 422:3121-3127.
&nbs=
p;
Hart, S.C., T.H. DeLuca, G.S. Newman, M.D. MacKenz=
ie,
and S.I. Boyle. 2005. Post-fire vegetative dynamics as drivers of microbial
community structure and function in forest soils. Forest Ecology and Management 220:166-184.
M.J. Gundale, W.M. Jol=
ly,
and T.H. DeLuca. 2005.
Susceptibility of a northern hardwood forest to exotic earthworm invasion. =
Conservation Biology 19:1075-1083.
Gundale, M.J., T.H. DeLuca, C.E. Fiedler, P.W. Ramsey, M.G. Harrington, J.E.
Gannon. 2005. Restoration Management in a Montana Ponderosa Pine
Forest: Effects on Soil Physical, Chemical=
and
Biological Properties. Forest Ec=
ology
and Management:213:25-38.
Zackrisson, O, T.H. DeLuca, M-C. Nilsson, A.
Sellstedt, and Berglund. 2004. Nitrogen fixation increases with successional
age in boreal forests. Ecology
85:3327–3334.
MacKenzie, D.M., T.H.
DeLuca, and A. Sala. 2004. Forest structure and organic matter analysis
along a fire chronosequence in the low elevation forests of western Montana. Forest
Ecology and Management 203:331-343.
&nbs=
p;
Switalski=
, T A.,
J.A. Bissonette, T.H. DeLuca, C.H. Luce, and Mary Ann Madej. 2004.
Watershed Benefits and Impacts from Road Removal: A Review. Frontiers in
Ecology and the Environment 2:21-28.
<=
/o:p>
DeLuca, T=
.H.,
O. Zackrisson, M-C. Nilsson, A. Sellstedt. 2002. Quantifying nitrogen-fixat=
ion
in feather moss carpets of boreal forests. Nature 419:917-920.
&nbs=
p;
DeLuca, T=
.H.,
M-C. Nilsson, and O. Zackrisson. 2002. Nitrogen mineralization and phenol
accumulation along a fire chronosequence in northern Sweden. Oecologia 133:206-214.
CURRENT G=
RADUATE
STUDENTS
Sarah Bisbing, MS Student. Carbon storage in oldgrowth and second growth
larch forests of western Mont=
ana.
Sarah.bisbing@grizmail.umt.edu
Natalie Meyer, MS Student. Characterization and restoration of slash pile
burn scars in western Montana=
.
natalie.meyer@myportal.montana.edu.
&nbs=
p;
Back
to the People Page
------=_NextPart_01C83C99.9EEFD600
Content-Location: file:///C:/0E87E0C1/deluca_files/themedata.thmx
Content-Transfer-Encoding: base64
Content-Type: application/vnd.ms-officetheme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------=_NextPart_01C83C99.9EEFD600
Content-Location: file:///C:/0E87E0C1/deluca_files/colorschememapping.xml
Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable
Content-Type: text/xml
![3DTDLab](3D"deluca_files/image002.jpg")