Erika is a soil ecologist applying the study of below-ground food-webs to soil health and quality assessments. The work is centred on the Atlantic region of Canada and the boreal biome. Most recently, through her doctoral project and work with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (Memorial University of Newfoundland, Dr. Adrian Unc and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Dr. Claudia Goyer) she determined and interpreted morphological and molecular soil nematode community compositions and related indices as functional markers of soil quality across the four Atlantic provinces of Canada. Her early research investigated the variability of physicochemical soil properties and invertebrate communities in natural and managed podzols. Also during her time as a student researcher, she examined the impacts of management, including biochar application and rock pulverization practices, on soil quality and soil food-web dynamics. Erika’s research has highlighted the increasing need for reliable functional indicators of soil quality in Canada and the global North and that nematode-based indicators are strong contenders to best reflect functional changes induced by land use, land use change, and climate change in these regions.
Research Interests
- Northern land use and land use change.
- Soil food-webs and associated carbon and nutrient dynamics.
- The use of biological indicators of soil quality for sustainable agricultural management.
- Free-living and plant parasitic nematode communities.
Education
- PhD candidate in Environmental Science, Memorial University of Newfoundland.
- Certificate in the identification of terrestrial and freshwater nematodes for ecologists and environmentalists, Wageningen University and Research Centre.
- MSc in Boreal Ecosystems and Agricultural Sciences, Grenfell Campus, Memorial University of Newfoundland.
- BSc in Environmental Science, Grenfell Campus, Memorial University of Newfoundland.
Employment
- Student Researcher, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Fredericton Research and development centre (2019-present).
- Nematode Specialist (contract), Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Fredericton Research and Development Centre (2019).
- Research Assistant, four positions, Grenfell Campus, Memorial University of Newfoundland (2014-2016).
