Peter Chesson

Professor, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology

Peter Chesson's research questions primarily concern how the adaptations of organisms to variable environments promote species diversity and affect ecosystem functioning. He investigates these questions using mathematical models and experiments in natural systems. Recent research topics have involved neighborhood competition, community assembly, invasion resistance, life-history evolution, multitrophic diversity maintenance, nonstationary community theory, and temporal and spatial niches in their various forms. In addition, he is involved with field and experimental projects on annual plants in the Arizona deserts and in Taiwan. He has studied herbaceous perennial plants in Australia, and currently has research projects with scientists in Taiwan on plant adaptations, the biology of Selaginella, and tropical forest ecology.

Degree(s)

  • PhD, Statistics and Zoology, University of Adelaide, Australia, 1978
Peter Chesson