Erica Smithwick

Director of the Ecology Institute; Professor of Geography

323 Walker
University Park, PA
eus17@psu.edu
814-865-6693

Research Summary

Uunderstanding how a wide range of disturbances, especially fire, affect ecosystem function at landscape scales.

Huck Affiliations

Publication Tags

Ghana Climate Buruli Ulcer Deer Soil Soil Moisture Rhizosphere Nitrogen Turnover Rate Soil Property Fine Root Moisture Phenology Resilience Carbon Interaction Disturbance Climate Change Biomass Forests Productivity Dengue Temperature Soils

Most Recent Papers

Complex interactions among successional trajectories and climate govern spatial resilience after severe windstorms in central Wisconsin, USA

Melissa S. Lucash, Kelsey L. Ruckert, Robert E. Nicholas, Robert M. Scheller, Erica A.H. Smithwick, 2019, Landscape Ecology on p. 2897-2915

Carbon stocks and biodiversity of coastal lowland forests in South Africa

Erica A H. Smithwick, 2019, Carbon Management on p. 349-360

The value of linking paleoecological and neoecological perspectives to understand spatially-explicit ecosystem resilience

B. Buma, B. J. Harvey, D. G. Gavin, R. Kelly, T. Loboda, B. E. McNeil, J. R. Marlon, A. J.H. Meddens, J. L. Morris, K. F. Raffa, B. Shuman, Erica A H. Smithwick, K. K. McLauchlan, 2019, Landscape Ecology on p. 17-33

Fine-scale spatial homogenization of microbial habitats

Jessica B. Moon, Denice H. Wardrop, Erica A.H. Smithwick, Kusum J. Naithani, 2019, Ecological Applications

Forest pattern, not just amount, influences dietary quality in five African countries

Laura Vang Rasmussen, Matthew E. Fagan, Amy Ickowitz, Sylvia L.R. Wood, Gina Kennedy, Bronwen Powell, Frédéric Baudron, Sarah Gergel, Suhyun Jung, Erica A.H. Smithwick, Terry Sunderland, Stephen Wood, Jeanine M. Rhemtulla, 2019, Global Food Security

Estimating root zone soil moisture across the Eastern United States with passive microwave satellite data and a simple hydrologic model

Douglas Baldwin, Salvatore Manfreda, Henry Lin, Erica A.H. Smithwick, 2019, Remote Sensing

A decade of colonization

Eric D. Taber, Michael L. Hutchinson, Erica A.H. Smithwick, Justine I. Blanford, 2017, Journal of Vector Ecology on p. 3-12

Predicting root zone soil moisture with soil properties and satellite near-surface moisture data across the conterminous United States

D. Baldwin, S. Manfreda, K. Keller, E. A.H. Smithwick, 2017, Journal of Hydrology on p. 393-404

Landscape fragmentation as a risk factor for buruli ulcer disease in Ghana

Jianyong Wu, Erica A.H. Smithwick, 2016, American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene on p. 63-69

Deer feeding selectivity for invasive plants

Kristine M. Averill, David A. Mortensen, Erica A.H. Smithwick, Eric Post, 2016, Biological Invasions on p. 1247-1263

Most-Cited Papers

Continued warming could transform greater yellowstone fire regimes by mid-21st century

Anthony L. Westerling, Monica G. Turner, Erica A.H. Smithwick, William H. Romme, Michael G. Ryan, 2011, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America on p. 13165-13170

Variability in root production, phenology, and turnover rate among 12 temperate tree species

M. Luke McCormack, Thomas S. Adams, Erica A.H. Smithwick, David M. Eissenstat, 2014, Ecology on p. 2224-2235

Regional scale patterns of fine root lifespan and turnover under current and future climate

M. Luke McCormack, David M. Eissenstat, Anantha M. Prasad, Erica A.H. Smithwick, 2013, Global Change Biology on p. 1697-1708

Deer feeding selectivity for invasive plants

Kristine M. Averill, David A. Mortensen, Erica A.H. Smithwick, Eric Post, 2016, Biological Invasions on p. 1247-1263

Post-Fire Spatial Patterns of Soil Nitrogen Mineralization and Microbial Abundance

Erica A.H. Smithwick, Kusum J. Naithani, Teri C. Balser, William H. Romme, Monica G. Turner, 2012, PloS one on p. e50597

Sensitivity of four ecological models to adjustments in fine root turnover rate

M. Luke McCormack, Elizabeth Crisfield, Brett Raczka, Frank Schnekenburger, David M. Eissenstat, Erica A.H. Smithwick, 2015, Ecological Modelling on p. 107-117

Predicting root zone soil moisture with soil properties and satellite near-surface moisture data across the conterminous United States

D. Baldwin, S. Manfreda, K. Keller, E. A.H. Smithwick, 2017, Journal of Hydrology on p. 393-404

Buruli ulcer disease and its association with land cover in Southwestern Ghana

Jianyong Wu, Petra Tschakert, Erasmus Klutse, David Ferring, Vincent Ricciardi, Heidi Hausermann, Joseph Oppong, Erica A.H. Smithwick, 2015, PLoS neglected tropical diseases

Situated knowledge of pathogenic landscapes in Ghana

Petra Tschakert, Vincent Ricciardi, Erica A H. Smithwick, Mario Machado, David Ferring, Heidi Hausermann, Leah Bug, 2016, Social Science and Medicine on p. 160-171

Landscape fragmentation as a risk factor for buruli ulcer disease in Ghana

Jianyong Wu, Erica A.H. Smithwick, 2016, American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene on p. 63-69

News Articles Featuring Erica Smithwick

Apr 01, 2020

Proposals being accepted for ecology research funding

The Ecology Institute announced a call for proposals for its Flower Grant program. The funds aim to support ecology research focused across the institute’s five core themes: resilience and adaptation; provision of ecosystem goods and services; ecology at the interface; rapid evolutionary change; and ecological foundations.

Full Article

Jun 19, 2019

South African forests show pathways to a sustainable future

Native forests make up one percent of the landscape in South Africa but could play a key role in reducing atmospheric carbon and identifying sustainable development practices that can be used globally to counter climate change, according to a Penn State researcher.

Full Article