Sigrid Resh

"Every tree has its enemy, few have an advocate."
—J. R. R. Tolkien (1892-1973)

Contact

scresh@mtu.edu
906-487-1139
Noblet Building 116

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Research Assistant Professor
Coordinator, Keweenaw Invasive Species Management Area (KISMA)

Postdoctoral fellow, eucalyptus biomass partitioning, CSIRO (Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation), Tasmania, AU
PhD, Forest Ecology, Colorado State University
MS, Resource Economics, Michigan State University

Ecosystem processes and restoration

My current research focuses are: 1. Invasive species treatment options as alternatives to chemical use (i.e., biocontrol (fungal, insects, goats), adaptive manual removal techniques), 2. Restoration of disturbed forests due to invasive species and land use impacts, 3. Importance of wood contributions to soil carbon pools and fluxes, and 4. Soil sustainability and land use. My training is in processes related to forested ecosystem carbon storage. I've examined changes in carbon storage related to forest age (Wyoming, USA), the influence of nitrogen-fixing tree species (Hawaii and Puerto Rico, USA), and coarse root production and soil differences (Tasmania, AUS).

Invasive species in the Keweenaw

As the coordinator of the KISMA and with state of Michigan and US Forest Service and Great Lakes Restoration Initiative funding, I am working with the KISMA community to control new and spreading invasive species across land ownership boundaries and ecosystems and restore native plant communities.

Links of Interest

Areas of Expertise

Invasive species research, treatments, and education/outreach
Forest restoration
Soil sustainability

Publications

Dolinski, L, T Bal, C Webster, SC Resh. 2024. Assessing the Utility of a Native Pathogenic Fungus as a Biocontrol Alternative to Herbicide on Invasive Buckthorns in Forests of Upper Michigan. Natural Areas Journal 44(2):57-64; https://doi10.3375/2162-4399-44.2.57
Young KR, E Alata, RA Chimner, RB Boone, G Bowser, L Bourgeau-Chavez, B Fuentealba, J Gilbert, JA Ñaupari, MH Polk, SC Resh, C Turin, and M Zarria-Samanamud. 2023. Ecological Dynamism and Livestock Governance in a Peruvian National Park. Land 12(11): 2051;

https://doi.org/10.3390/land12112051
Chimner, RA, R Boone, G Bowser, L Bourgeau-Chavez, B Fuentealba, J Gilbert, JA Ñaupari, M. Polk, S Resh, C Turin, KR Young, M Zarria-Samanamud. 2020. Andes, Bofedales, and the Communities of Huascarán National Park, Peru. Wetland Science and Practice 37: 246-254.
Mosier, SL, ES Kane, D Richter, E Lilleskov, MF Jurgensen, AJ Burton, SC Resh. 2017. Interactive effects of climate change and fungal communities on wood-derived carbon in forest soils. Soil Biology and Biochemistry 117: 297-309.

Current Funding

2024. Resh, SC (Principal), AIS Prevention for KISMA with boat wash outreach and AIS education, Sponsored by: US Dept of Agriculture, Requested: $23,000 (May 1, 2024 – April 30, 2026).

2023. Resh, SC (Principal), Expanding KISMA’s Terrestrial and Aquatic Invasive Species Programming Through Targeted Outreach and Removal, Sponsored by: Michigan Dept of Natural Resources, Requested: $75,000. (April 1, 2024 - March 31, 2025).
2023. Resh, SC (Principal), Goats Managing Buckthorn on Community Recreational Trail System, Sponsored by: US Dept of Agriculture, Requested: $50,000. (May 1, 2023 - April 30, 2025).
2023. Resh, SC (Principal), Vander Bilt, D., Chimner, R. A. (Co-Principal), Prioritizing and Restoring Landscapes in Michigan's Keweenaw Peninsula, Sponsored by: US Dept of Agriculture, Requested: $200,000. (May 1, 2023 - April 30, 2025).
2023. Resh, SC (Principal), AIS outreach and portable boat wash support for KISMA, Sponsored by: US Dept. of Agriculture, Requested: $20,000, Sponsor Share: $20,000, Total Project Value: $25,000. (July 2023 – June, 2024).
2023. Bal, T. L. (Principal), Resh, SC (Co-Principal), Stone, A., Advancing Mycobiocontrol Techniques for Buckthorn Management, Sponsored by: University of Michigan-Michigan Space Grant Consortium, Requested: $4,000. (May 10, 2023 - May 9, 2024).
2023. Resh, SC (Principal), Maintaining KISMA Core Capacity for Invasive Species Outreach and Management, Sponsored by: Michigan Dept of Natural Resources, Requested: $60,000. (May 1, 2023 - April 30, 2024).

2022. Baugher, C, N Cassel, SC Resh (co-PI, Principal at Tech) et al., Expanding Phragmites Management in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, Sponsored by: Upper Peninsula Resource Conservation & Development District through EPA GLRI, Requested: $71,003, Sponsor Share: $62,594, Total Project Value: $62,594. (September 1, 2021 - April 30, 2024).
2022. Resh, SC (Principal), Continuing KISMA priority invasive species control and outreach with partners and community, Sponsored by: US Dept of Agriculture, Requested: $50,000, Sponsor Share: $50,000, Total Project Value: $62,847. (April 1, 2022 -March 31, 2024). (Awarded).
2022. Bowser, G, RB Boone, RA Chimner, AB Taber, KR Young with Resh, SC (Co-Principal), CNH-RCN: Andes Bofedales and Cattle: The Impacts of Changing Hydrology and Glacial Retreat on Community Livelihoods in Peru's Cordillera Blanca, Sponsored by: NSF. $499,992 to Colorado State University with subaward to Tech, Requested: $95,343, Sponsor Share: $95,343, Total Project Value: $95,343. (August 1, 2016 -July 31, 2023). (Awarded).
2022. Resh, S. (Principal), AIS outreach and portable boat wash support for KISMA, Sponsored by: Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, Requested: $15,500, Sponsor Share: $15,500, Total Project Value: $18,512. (June 1, 2022 -June 15, 2023). (Awarded).
2022. Resh, S. (Principal), Expanding KISMA's Reach Across Both Aquatic and Terrestrial Ecosystems, Sponsored by: Michigan Dept of Natural Resources, Requested: $60,000, Sponsor Share: $60,000, Total Project Value: $76,401. (June 1, 2022 -May 31, 2023). (Awarded).
2021. Resh, S. (Principal), Upper Peninsula European frog-bit detection initiative, Sponsored by: Upper Peninsula Resource Conservation & Development District, Requested: $40,944, Sponsor Share: $39,544, Total Project Value: $44,844. (May 1, 2021 -April 30, 2023). (Awarded).