Dr. Irving A. Mendelssohn
- Ph.D. North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina, U.S.A., 1978
- M.S. College of William and Mary in conjunction with the Virginia Institute of Marine Science, Gloucester Point, Virginia, U.S.A., 1973
- B.A. Wilkes College, (now Wilkes University), Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, U.S.A., 1969
Emeritus Professor
The focus of my research is basic and applied coastal plant ecology. My primary research interests are
1) the influence of environmental constraints on plant distribution and productivity and
2) the ecophysiological responses that allow coastal vegetation to adapt to these environmental factors.
More specifically, my recent research has centered on the effects of salinity and flooding on the growth and adaptive responses of various fresh and salt marsh plant species, the development of stressor-specific and integrative indicators of sublethal stress in wetland vegetation, the analysis of the causes of vegetation dieback in coastal marshes, and the effects of disturbance, natural and man-induced, on the ecology and restoration of coastal vegetation. I am especially interested in research that emphasizes an interdisciplinary approach in addressing ecological questions.
GoMRI-funded projects:
- Accelerating Recovery after the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill: Response of the Plant-Microbial-Benthic Ecosystem to Mitigation Strategies Promoting Wetland Remediation and Resilience (RFP-II)
- Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Impacts and Recovery in Louisiana Coastal Wetlands: Long-Term Effects on Plant-Soil-Benthic Systems (Year One Block Grant, LSU)
- Fates and Effects of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill on the Ecological Structure and Function of Coastal Wetland Ecosystems (Year One Block Grant, LSU)
- Macondo 252 Oil Spill Impacts in Louisiana Coastal Wetlands: Effects on Soil-Microbial-Plant Systems (Year One Block Grant, NGI)